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My thoughts released; a mind set free |
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These pages contain my thoughts, from meandering ideas and persuasions to deep cerebrations and serious mentations. Why, for what purpose? To release my mind and set creativity free. Somewhere inside the constraints of my mind dwells a writer, a poet, an artist who paints with words. In here I release those constraints and set the artist free. Perhaps, lost somewhere in the depths of thought, is a story or a poem, waiting to be written. 
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| Made it through another Saturday; twelve hours and busy at work. But, not as busy as Saturdays have been. I hope Sunday is a little slower than normal, too. At least I don't have to get up at three tomorrow morning, and it's only a nine hour day. Then, another twelve hours on Monday, up at three, and I have to give an interview after work. It's going to be a long day. Then it's a few days off. But, hopefully we will also start training someone. We had talked about going camping with our three days off, but then we changed our mind and decided to stay home and work on some projects, like the privacy panels and the pond. It's a good thing we did not make camping reservations, since Rhonda will have to go in and train on Thursday if we get someone hired on Monday. I will also be going in, to do paperwork and get things started. But, it will be nice when we get another person trained to replace the person quitting on the first of August, and it will give us more time off together to do what we want. Besides, it sounds like it may be very hot next week, possibly into the triple digits. That would be way to hot for camping out, and would put a damper on hiking and enjoying the campground. So, maybe the following week, if it works out. It will also give us a chance to set the tent up and go through all our camping stuff. It hasn't been used in over a year, so we should go through everything before we head out. The next couple of weekends will be a little easier for us, since we will have someone training, but it will also reduce our hours and paychecks. I still have to work out the training schedule, and I'm hoping to keep our hours up pretty close to where they are now. Even so, it will be nice to have a little bit of a break form these long weekends at work. Of course, it's only over the summer that we have to put in the long days, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. I could hire a temp guard to work the summer, but then we don't get near the hours we want. It's may get better if we get some good guards who can fill in for other shifts, but for the time being, either Rhonda or I have to be able to pick up some hours if someone misses, and we have to be able to do it without logging over forty hours and going into overtime. It makes it difficult to schedule more than thirty hours a week for us. But, if we get someone who can fill in and pick up hours, we could schedule closer to forty a week, and that would be nice. It would also be nice to have a weekend off, once in a while. We have not taken a weekend off in over a year, and don't see it happening until after Labor day, at the soonest. Again, if we get some guards who can pick up shifts and cover for others, we could work out a different schedule and have every other weekend off, instead. That's the way it was scheduled when I started, but even then, it was seldom that I got my every other weekend off. It seemed someone was constantly needing time off on the weekends, so I always ended up having to cover for them. But, maybe one day it will work right. I don't mind working the weekends and getting time off during the week; in fact I prefer it this way. But, not every weekend. It would be nice to be able to take one off every now and again. Someday, when we have the right crew on, so that everyone is reliable to work, and we don't have to pull such long days to pick up hours. Anyway, I made it through today, and tomorrow is a shorter day, I don't have to be up so early, and Rhonda will get home earlier. Then it's going to be a bear of a day on Monday, but with a couple days off after, I think I may just survive it. Then, we do a little training and then, maybe, we will have that good crew and can start working on a better schedule. I have a bunch of time off I need to use up, and this fall may be the time to do just that. I know I'm ready for a nice long vacation. |
| It's back to the weekend work schedule, and I'm already behind. It was a full day, starting out right away this morning, but not too bad of a day. I didn't have to be to work until eleven, so I thought I could get some work done from home. I got a good start but needed to check a few applicants that had been forwarded to my email, and that's when it started to show that today was a Monday. I know, it's Friday, the last day of work and the forerunner to the weekend for most. But for me and my wife, it's the first day back to work after our time off. So, we get Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off, and go back to work on Friday. That means our weekend is in the middle of the week, and our Monday comes on Friday. It's a nice trade off, however, since Monday is then our Friday. Anyway, I needed to get into my email, so I clicked the icon and got this message that Outlook had an error and could not start. I was given an option to retry, so I did. Same thing. There was also an option for a quick repair or an online repair. I picked quick, since I was in a hurry and had to be leaving for work in a couple of hours. The repair was still going when I left for work, and if it had not been for my netbook, I wouldn't have gotten much done at all. Then, it was off to work, and we got there right on the wire. The first thing I need to do is talk to the guard who is getting done, but she doesn't have much to say, so I figure she still has not gotten a date for quitting yet. She was going to leave a week ago, but the new job had not come through yet. So, we have a tentative last day of August first from her, and that is what I informed my boss. It is why we are looking again for another guard, and why things are kind of messed up. So, I had already figured that as soon as I have some one hired, I would be informing this person that her last day is in fact August first. In the event that we did not hire, I would have let her stick around until Labor Day when our double coverage ends, and then let her go anyway. I know that sounds kind of cruel, but you have to understand she burned us last year, and I was not even going to rehire her. But after a long talk, she informed me that she would not leave our employment until February at the soonest. She was in a bind and needed work, so I was kind and gave her a second chance. She worked three weeks before giving me notice that she was taking a different job. So, even though the job did not start right away for her, she would have been done a week ago, by her choosing. But I was nice and told her I would keep her on until August first, and to keep me posted of what was taking place. Today, after not hearing anything from her, she leaves a letter of resignation on the counter at work for me to find. I figure it must be some kind of drama or she would have given it to me instead of leaving it for me ti find. I also know that it's unlikely she is going to get the job she put in for, by what she has told me. But maybe. I just have a feeling that she is going to come to me at the last minute and want to keep working. Only, I need to have people I know will be around for a while and also be upfront and notify me ahead of time that they are planning on looking for another job. I really don't hold it against them for looking and taking a better job with benefits and everything, but I don't like this sneaking and hiding it. The day did turn out pretty good, even though it was my Monday. I had someone come by and apply for the position, and he seems like he may be the right person. I also have an interview on Monday, and possibly another person who may work out for the position. So, it's looking like we can get someone hired and trained before the person leaves, and that is a good deal. |
| My last day off this week, and it's about over. Thankfully I don't have to get up real early tomorrow for work. Rhonda and I both work eleven to five tomorrow, so we get to go in together, work together, and come home together. It also lets us enjoy our last night off together, without having to get up so early the first day back at work. I do need to get up kind of early tomorrow, so I can get some stuff done for work, seeing how I didn't get to it today. I had a good day, even if it started out a bit less than desirable. First of all, I did get to bed a bit earlier last night with hopes of getting up earlier today. Instead, I got up around ten, again. That's alright, I enjoyed sleeping in. But I woke up with a lot of pain in my hip and my leg again. It was as bad as it's been, or at least close to it. I took some over the counter pain medication, a ibuprofen and a Tylenol. That's right one of each. I had not thought about it before, but it's a great combination. I first learned of this combination when I had some dental work done. The dentist I had said it's a good idea to bring along some ibuprofen and some Tylenol, and take one of each. I asked why, and she told me one blocks pain at the source, the other blocks pain at the brain. So, by taking one of each, it blocks some of the pain at the area it originates, and the other blocks it at the end of the line, in the brain. This makes for better pain relief than taking two of either one. I tried it, and it worked great; I've been taking one of each ever sense, when it's needed. So, that's what I did this morning, then sat and had some coffee with Rhonda. It helped, but my leg was so sore, it still caused me some discomfort, and made it difficult to sit still. Of course, Rhonda noticed, and she got some oil and positioned herself where she could massage the leg, and set to it. At first, she could only use slight pressure, the pain was so severe. She located some deep knots in the muscles and began working them, and as the knots loosened, the pain let up. Eventually she was able to work the deep muscles with quite a lot of pressure and work out all the knots. It felt better right away, and has been doing good all day. After we got me moving better, we went out and enjoyed the patio, then came in and had lunch and a Bible study. After, it was time to get to work. Rhonda wanted to strip down an old chair so it can get painted, and I wanted to work on a project that has been a year aging. The chair will hold a large flower pot, but it's missing a top; the part one sits on is no longer with us. So, my other project was to cut a top for this chair, with a hole in it to hold the flower pot. While I set up for my first project, Rhonda set up for stripping the chair down. She got started about the same time as I did, and we worked close to each other so we could enjoy conversation while we worked. My first project was a yard ornament that Rhonda liked a lot, but it got broke. It was a squirrel and a rabbit on a teeter totter. I had planned on fixing it that same year it got broken, but I soon discovered there was no repairing this item. The two figurines were in good shape but the teeter totter was broken, and it was not any kind of material that I could work with. So, it got put off and the next year I set to trying to find a way to again, fix it. There was no way to repair the broken teeter totter, so I looked at the option of building another teeter totter, and that required cutting the two figures off. I was able to do just that with a Dremmel tool. The cuts weren't quite square, but close enough to work with. The next step was to cut a board to mount them on, and make a teeter totter for them. But, work went crazy last year and this project got set on the back burner again. So today, I found a thin piece of oak pallet lumber left over from my days working in a saw mill. I cut a shape into it to make it a little fancier, then set about building a base to set it on. The first cut was at too much of an angle, but the second try was just right. The piece of wood had just enough angle that one figure sat up, the other down, but not quite on the ground. I shaped the top on either side of the point where the oak would attach in an arc, like a pivot for the teeter totter. Next I used a sander to square up the bottoms of the two figurines, then used an outdoor glue to mount them to the piece of oak. Next was to glue and screw the oak to the base, and then let it set up and dry good. All that remains now, is a good coat of paint. The next project went much faster, it was just a matter of measuring and marking out a top for the chair. I cut the piece out, then found a pattern for the circle in the center, and cut a large hole in it for the planter to sit in. I still need to attach it, but the fit is good, and it looks nice. Rhonda finished stripping the chair down, so now I can mount the top and then she will paint it all. Once the paint dries for a couple days, we can set it out by the patio, set the planter in it, and that project is done. My entry here for the night is also done, and now I'm going out to enjoy one last fire on the patio before starting work again through the weekend. |
| Another day winding down, and another day off about over. I did get quite a bit done today, but not as much as I wanted. Of course, I didn't get much time to do anything in here, but that's typical, lately. I have a bunch of stuff I need to do for work yet, too. That's the bad part about my job, so much of it can't be done while I'm at work, so I have to take it home with me. But, it's nice to have the A/C in again, and it's a lot better than the last few years. We just have a couple of window units, and in the past had one in the living room and one in the bedroom. But, that didn't do much for keeping the downstairs cool, except for the bedroom, if the door was shut. So, we use to hang a blanket in the kitchen doorway, so we could get the living room cooler. Last year I managed to put one unit in the kitchen window, but it wasn't sealed the best. It's a side mounted window, and it was just a hassle trying to get the A/C unit to fit in the window at all. But, we did manage to get it in, and half secure. We used a roll of duct tape to seal it up, and it did the trick. This year I cut a section of plywood to mount the unit from, and just had to figure out a way to mount the plywood to the window. That was a challenge because of the way the window is set up, but I figured out a way to put a couple of runners in the window track, after removing one section of the window. I put one oak runner in the top track and one in the bottom track, the set the plywood up in place and attached it to the runners. It worked pretty slick, and by dinnertime we had the kitchen cooling nicely. But, I had run out of time and did not get the other A/C unit in the living room window. That one fit a little better, but because of the way it was built for old fashion wooden windows, it did not work quite right in the vinal window that is in the living room. Again, we managed to get it sealed up pretty good, but it was not attached securely and was always needing some adjustments. I did the same thing here, I cut a piece of plywood and mounted the A/C unit to the plywood, then set that up to the window and attached it to the window frame. This one worked a lot better, because it was easy to attach it. Because of the weight of the unit, I knew it would be difficult to get it up in place and try to hold it and fasten it in. So, I made a bracket that the bottom of the plywood could set into, then just stand the whole thing up into place. It was a bit of a job to lift the unit and plywood up as high as we needed to, but once we had it up, we set the bottom in the track and then stood it up. Rhonda held it in place for a few minutes while I put the screws in to secure it. Then, it was just a matter of sealing the space between the plywood and the window. It's a pretty wide gap, so our foam tubes are not big enough. I'll have to measure it and see what I can find after work on Friday, so we can finish sealing it up. For now, we just put an old pillow in the space. It was a tight squeeze, so it should seal up pretty good. It's running now and cooling down pretty nice in here. The best part isn't just getting it cooler, it's drying out the humidity so it's more comfortable. After we finished that project up, it was time to clean up and start dinner. I cooked the meat up while Rhonda heated up the rice and re-fried beans. We had the wraps warmed and filled them full of seasoned beef and onions, then some cheese and a bit of re-fried beans. The rice was on the side and the rest of the re-fried beans topped off the rice with a bit of cheese on top of that. It was real good, even if it wasn't authentic Mexican. After, we finished our Bible study and then fed the dogs. Now it's time to finish this up, then go out and enjoy a fire again tonight. I'm not going to sit out as late as I did last night, but for a little while will be just fine. It's kind of a cool night, and it's going to get cooler, down into the fifties, so the fire will feel nice, and it's always enjoyable to relax in front of one. |
| Once again I'm getting in here a bit late. It's funny how it's always the things I enjoy the most that have to wait till the end of the day. One day, I will have enough time to do what needs doing and still have time left over to do what I want. But, for now, it's a matter of what needs attention the most. Of course, I didn't get a very early start to this day, but it was nice to sleep in, too. It was a day off, so I didn't set any alarm and just got up when I woke up. Only, Rhonda was looking out for me and came in and woke me up around ten. Of course, Hannah, our little dinger dog also had to come in and wake me up. She's so cute, she sometimes jumps up and snuggles me until Rhonda comes in, or if it's warm, she lies in my recliner and waits for Rhonda to come in to wake me. Then she jumps up and gets right up by my arm, and gives me kisses just like Rhonda does. After getting up, I spent a little time enjoying some coffee with Rhonda, then she worked my sore log real good. It hurt like the dickens to have her give a deep massage, but it did help out a lot. It did pretty good all day, and I was on my feet a lot. She worked on the yard, mowing, while I set about figuring how to mount an air conditioner into the kitchen window. It's a side slide window, and pretty old, so it has always been difficult to put the A/C into it, without it leaking air, water, and insects. Last year I cut some boards and put in to seal it up, but even then it took a lot of foam and duct tape to get it all sealed, and then it still wasn't very secure in the window. So, this year I tried something different. We had the idea last year, but never got a chance to try it out. I mounted the A/C unit onto a piece of plywood. Then, I sealed it all up real good and mounted the plywood into the window. I did pull the unit apart and cleaned it good, and it should work a lot better and more efficient now. Then, after getting the unit mounted to the plywood, we mounted the whole works into the window. There wasn't much to fasten it too, so I took a couple pieces of oak pallet lumber I had left, trimmed them down to fit into the slides the window fit in, and them mounted the plywood to the oak boards that now fit down into the grooves the window itself fit. I fastened the plywood with the A/C unit to the oak, and then put a chunk of pipe wrapping foam into the only section that still needed sealing. It worked great, and now we have one A/C unit mounted and usable. Only, something isn't square. It's either the window, or the plywood, or I suppose it could be a bit of both. What ever the cause, it resulted in the A/C unit being kind of at a kilter. It does not look the best, but I'll give it a try and see if it drains right and works proper. If it does, it will stay crooked until next season, but if it does not work right, I'll have to cut another section of ply wood to fix it. I'm hoping it works just fine, and it will do until next season when I go to put it back in. I still need to put another A/C unit int he living room, and am going to do it the same way. I already have the plywood cut and ready to put in, I jut need to cut an opening the A/C will fit in, then seal it good. But it was getting pretty late so I stopped with on in and one not quite ready. I will finish it all up, tomorrow. It should not take very long to finish this one up, and Im double checking everything to ensure it is put in right, and that it fits square. Now, I'm getting so very tired, and that makes it difficult to write. Not only that, but it makes me want to go snuggle Rhonda in bed and call it a day. Only the fire is burning and I want to enjoy it for a while. So this is enough of this, now it's time to go out and enjoy the night... |
| And the day comes winding down to a close. I got absorbed into a movie and didn't watch the time, so it's much later than I intended, and past the midnight mark in WDC. Here in South Dakota, it's just four minutes past eleven in the evening, so I still get my 750 words written on Monday, but my post in WDC will show Tuesday. It was a long day at work again, and only getting three hours of sleep didn't shorten it up any. I also was up a few times in that three hours to use the bathroom. I'm not sure what the deal is, but I have been running to the bathroom about every hour during the night. I'm also having to go to the bathroom more during the day, too. Rhonda told me it's probably my body flushing the toxins from the infection out, and that does make sense to me. I also have been having muscle cramps and spasms. For a few days the muscles in my right shoulder kept getting spasms, but now it's stopped finally. Instead, I'm getting them in my upper right leg. I also have some very tight muscles in that leg, and it's causing a lot of intense pain. It's not even the surface muscles, which would be better, I could use heat and cold on them, Rhonda could massage them, and even lotions and ointments might help. But, these muscles are deep, down by the bone, and difficult to work at all. I just hope that it stops about as fast as it started. It started in the side, almost over the right kidney, then localized in the right side of my lower back. Rhonda was able to work the area with her talented fingers, and the massaging helped a lot. I also used the TENS unit on the area, and that seemed to help a lot, too. But, instead of going away, the pain moved into the right upper leg, in front, on the side, and in the hip. Again, Rhonda worked the area real well, and it helped, but the pain did not go away, it moved to the lower area of the upper leg, manifesting itself just above the right knee. It is also creating a lot of pain in the knee itself, as a result of the tight muscles pulling against the knee. As a result, the knee itself, and the front of the leg above it for about eight inches is very sore, throbbing, and tighter than a banjo string. Again, not the surface muscles, but the deeper ones down by the bone. It started when my tooth flared up, and seems to be connected. I know it may not have anything to do with the tooth, but it seems like it started in with the pain the day after my tooth started hurting so bad. I remember because I thought the hip and side hurt at first from sleeping on that side. I couldn't sleep on my left side, as I normally do, because the tooth was on the left and it hurt more if I placed pressure on it, even the pressure from my pillow. I know I roll around and sleep on both sides during the night, but with my tooth hurting so bad, I didn't roll over and ended up on my right side most of the night. But, now I don't think that was the case at all. I know I slept on it most of the night, but I don't think that is the cause of any of the pain. If that was the case it would have cleared up by now, and it sure as heck wouldn't be moving around. How or why an infected tooth messed up my side and leg, I don't know, but it's other the case or it's a coincidence that they both happened within twenty four hours of each other. The only other explanation would be a pinched nerve in my back, which does happen once in a while, but it's never been like this. That shoots pain down my right butt cheek, and down the back of the leg, all the way down to my toes sometimes. But, it does not feel the same as this, and it does not make the muscles tighten like they are now. No, I'm sure it's not resulting from my back, but something different. I'm going to remain hopeful that it's a result of the infected tooth, but if it does not get better pretty soon, I'll have to pay a visit to the clinic and have a talk with my doctor. There is one other possibility, and that is Lyme's Disease. I know that causes all sorts of bizzare problems and affects various parts of the body at different times. I could research it a bit and learn more, but it either is or it isn't. I'm hoping it isn't, and it will clear up, but since I did get bit by a deer tick last summer and did not realize it until the red bulls-eye pattern had appeared, it's a possibility that I was a bit late in seeing my doctor and getting on an anti-biotic. From what I understand, if the infection gets going to long, it's difficult to clear up. It gets into areas that the antibiotic doesn't reach and then surfaces again and again. The treatment then becomes a large dose of various types of antibiotic, for a longer period of time, until the disease is gone. Again, it's just some general knowledge of the sickness, and I would have to research it more, and talk to my doctor to know for sure. But, since I did take an antibiotic and did not have any problems for a while, I'm hoping, like I had said, that it just clears up and goes away. |
| It went and got late on me again before I got in here to write tonight. Even so, it wasn't a bad day, but it did have it's moments. In the end, it seems to have turned out pretty well, and even though I'm getting to bed a bit later than I should, I'm enjoying the evening. I suppose by the time I get done work tomorrow, I'll be shot, however. It all started getting hornswoggled yesterday evening, right about the time we were heading off to bed. I was getting my stuff turned off and put away, Rhonda was shutting down fans and turning off lights. There was an irritating whistling sound coming in through the kitchen window, and Rhonda thought it was the fan making the sound. But, after turning it off, the sound persisted. She then assumed it was the grain elevator across the street, which often makes a lot of noise. I didn't think it sounded right to be coming from the elevator, unless something was getting ready to break down. I went out the back door and listened, but the sound was not present outside. That confirmed my suspicion that it was us who had something on the brink of breaking down. I went back to the kitchen and listened again. After a moment I still could not identify the type of sound I was hearing. It sounded kind of familiar, but I could not come up with any ideas what was causing it. Perhaps the refrigerator, since that was running. I went to the fridge, opened the door and listened inside, nope, it wasn't the fridge. Then, I thought perhaps the bathroom fan was on, and it was coming from there. I went to the bathroom, and the sound was louder. I moved around the small space of the bathroom, and I could hear the sound most by the tub and the sink. I came out, and it was a lot quieter, until I went into the kitchen. Then, the closer I got to the sink the louder it became again. I turned the cold water on, no change. Then, I turned the hot water on, and it seemed like the sound became a little quieter. I know leaking faucets can make a lot of noise sometimes, even though they are leaking only a small amount of water. But it wasn't the kitchen faucets that were making it. I returned to the bathroom and repeated my test on the sink, same results. The cold didn't make any difference, but the hot water faucet did. I repeated the test at the bathtub, and again, had the same results. But, none of the faucets were leaking. Rhonda had also been investigating the sound, and said it sounded kind of like water spraying or leaking. I agreed, but since it wasn't present in the kitchen or bath, it had to be some place else. And, the only other place is the basement. We do not have a full basement, it's only about half the size of the house, and was at one time just a root cellar. It's been modified but never finished off. The floor is dirt, with rock over it to prevent mud when the weather is wet, and there is a sump down there. Other than that, it's not much at all. I opened the door to the basement and a wave of very hot, humid air assaulted me instantly. I grabbed the Webster and began removing cobwebs that had formed -- the basement is always harboring an ample supply of spiders. I could hear the sound much better now, and it was the sound of water spraying out of a small opening under high pressure. I began my decent into the basement, and at halfway down the steps I seen the problem. A hot water line had sprung a leak at a union joint. It was spraying out under pressure, and forming a nice hot mist that filled about half of the small area. The hot water had increased the temperature quite a bit, and the steam had made it feel like a sauna. I was tired and knew there wasn't any sense in trying to do anything at this time of the night, so I turned the water off and came back up. I cleaned up and got ready for bed, then discussed options with Rhonda. We decided to switch our shifts so I could look and see what I would need to fix it, then come in to work. So, this morning I was up at five, had a couple cups of coffee and seen Rhonda off to work, then set in to my task for the day. I brought some tools down and set up to work, but it was still so hot and humid that the sweat was just poring out of me. I went back up and got a thermometer and set it on the steps, about knee level; one hundred and twelve degrees at that level, hotter up higher. My head comes just about to the floor joists, so I was in the hottest and most humid air down there. I worked on the line and had the leaking section removed by a little after eight. But, I was overheating; it was like working in a sauna, and I needed to cool down. I took the dogs out to the patio and took a few minutes to cool down, the went to the garage to look for parts. I doubted I would have anything to fix it with, but I did find a section of copper tubing long enough to replace the bad section, and then with a little more hunting, I found the compression fittings I needed to attach it. I did have to flare one side, but that went well, and I soon had the new section attached to the line. Now, I just needed to go back down and put the line back in. It took a little bit to get it to fit just right and hook it up, then turn the water on. I had a small leak, but it was just dripping. I tightened it a bit more, and it slowed but did not quite stop. I tightened the other side of the fitting, then snugged it just a bit more and it sealed. I came up, cleaned up and made it to work only fifteen minutes later than I had been scheduled. But, since I had Rhonda in to cover for me, I was fine getting there a bit late. It was pretty busy, but not as bad as the last few Sundays and by five thirty I was done. I ran to Target to get a few things, but couldn't find them. The only person I did catch to help me was rude and not helpful at all, so I abandoned that task and went instead to the grocery store to see if they had the stuff I was looking for. Nope, but I did find another kind that was close to the same. Then it was time to come home. I got here just after seven, and got my self a sandwich and some cottage cheese, then set down to get some work done that I'm behind on. I got my report sent, faxed an updated schedule, and then logged in here. Now, this is done, it's time to get to bed, three thirty will be here sooner than I want, and I have a twelve hour day of work tomorrow. But, then it's three days off and that's what I'm looking forward too. |
| Getting pretty late and I'm just getting in here to write. It's my twelve hour day at work, but it ran over a bit and ended up a thirteen hour day by the time I got clocked out. Then, I went around back to say goodby to Rhonda and ended up working another half hour to help her out. Only, this was off the clock, so it didn't count. By the time I got home, I was beat, and needed a nice nap. Part of the reason was the long day, but even more, the short night leading into it. I had only about four hours of sleep, and that was interrupted by bathroom calls about once an hour. The biggest problem for sleeping was the same thing that kept me up so late in the first place, the heat. It was hotter than a biscuit yesterday, and very humid. I thought I was going to have a heat stroke, or heat exhaustion for a little while right after work. I felt faint, dizzy, and sick to my stomach, but it soon passed and I felt fine again. It probably was just overheating and not drinking enough water. I drank water, but not enough. I was sweating pretty hard and just sipping on my water, trying to make it last. I know I didn't drink enough, since I didn't have to use the bathroom most of the afternoon, and into the evening. Of course, once I was done work, I got some water and did drink more, then when I got home, drank some more, and even had a couple of cans of beer after that. Finally around eight last night I had to go to the bathroom. I was still thirsty, so I drank some 7-Up mixed with pink grapefruit juice, and another glass of water. I did have to use the bathroom again before bed, and was feeling pretty good by this time. Of course, I was up three or four times in the few hours I had to sleep to use the bathroom, as a result of all the water. I needed it, but it was too late to drink that much without consequence. So, about four hours of sleep, then up and off to work. It was cooler this morning and it felt good. That was part of the problem, it was just too hot in the house to sleep. I need to cut some plywood and mount the window A/C units so we can use them, but have not had time to do that yet. I wanted to get that done this last week, but after the tooth removal and the infection and sickness I suffered, there just wasn't any way. So, cooler today, but I was so tired. It rained and stormed a little this morning, then just rain for the rest of the morning, until about two this afternoon. This made it cool and with the wind, even cold. I wasn't complaining, but sure would have enjoyed this weather more had it moved in yesterday afternoon. Even so, it was a nice break from the heat, but by three, it was getting hot -- not as hot as yesterday -- and humid. We received quite a lot of rain, and with the heat, it was getting pretty muggy, pretty fast. I was suppose to work until five this afternoon, but it was so slow most of the day, I probably could have clocked out earlier. Well, except for the fact that it was Saturday and could get busy at any given time. And, it did. It got busy after the rain stopped, and by five, when I should have been clocking out, it was backing up in the yard. A couple of big, and kind of messed up loads had some to do with it backing up, but it was just that busy, too. It finally calmed down enough that I could leave around a quarter to six. I walked the yard, talked to a couple of people for a minute or two, then clocked out and left. I was going to drive straight home, but changed my mind and decided to drive around back and tell Rhonda goodby. I knew she would enjoy it, and I was already kind of missing her, so around back to see her for a minute, tell her I love her and to be careful and safe. But, when I got there, she had a line forming and was looking pretty busy, so I got out and grabbed a scanner and jumped in to help. Luckily it wasn't real busy and we soon had the traffic cleared and a few minutes of quiet to talk before I left. Then it was a quiet drive home, fighting off the sleepiness, and then take the dogs out. After, I decided to try a nap, but it was still very hot in the house, so I couldn't sleep. I moved to my recliner by the open window, which had a nice cool breeze coming in, and I did fall asleep, but woke in a few minutes with some leg cramps. I worked them out, got comfortable again and soon dozed off, again. And again, in a few minutes, I was wide awake with some very tight stomach cramps. Not like being sick, but in the abdominal muscles, they were tight and cramping, and it hurt. Once I had them worked out some, I got up, and took a cool shower to see if that would help lessen the cramps. It did, but by the time I was done, it was time for Rhonda to come home, then visit a bit, enjoy some ice cream, and now she's napping in her chair while I write, and when I finish, it's off to bed for us. It's cooler tonight, and hopefully we can keep the windows open and a fan going in them, to cool the house down so we can sleep better. Tomorrow it's another long day at work, but I don't have to go in as early, and it's only nine hours and should be slower. I do have a lot of work to get done from home, so hopefully I'm not so tired and can get things done. But, that means I need to get my weary butt off to bed -- right now. |
| Another day draws close to an end. It was back to work today after three days off, and it was also the hottest day yet this summer. Up to the time I got to work, I thought yesterday was going to be the last day Rhonda and I had time off together until we got someone hired and trained. I had wanted to contact some people just for that reason over the time I had off. But, things don't always go the way we plan them, and I didn't get much of anything done all week. Monday I took off from work early and headed to Howard to get a tooth looked at, pick up some antibiotics, and go over options with a bum tooth. But, by the time the dentist seen the x-rays, he was ready to just pull the tooth and get it over and done with. There was little chance to save the tooth, and it needed to come out right away. So, I consented, and the tooth was pulled. I came back home with three days off to rest and heal up, intending to try and get some work done, contact some prospective employees, and maybe even set up an interview or two. But, by the time I got home, I ended up going off to bed shortly after getting home. I was tired, sore, and rest was all I could focus on. For the next two days, I ran a pretty high fever and was pretty out of it. By yesterday I was finally starting to pull through and starting to become aware again. It was a heck of an infection, and it was messing up a lot of different things with me. My sinuses for one, my asthma was acting up, I had discomfort in my chest, acid reflux and indigestion, and a terrible back and side ache. I was also suffering from a lot of muscle cramps and joint pain, as well as just being tired all the time. But, with the tooth out, and a couple of days to heal up and beat the infection, I'm feeling a whole lot better. I was surprised I was not put on antibiotics, but I suppose a dentist does not know how much infection is in the system, since they do not do blood work. Also, with the tooth gone, the source of infection is gone, and then body can now begin to heal itself. So, today I was feeling even better, almost back to my old self, which was good since I was back to work today. But I was kind of down knowing that it may be a while before Rhonda and I both get time off together again. When I got to work, I talked to the guard who was suppose to work today as her last day. But, she wouldn't be starting her next job until the first week in August, so I asked if she wanted to work longer. She did, and we looked over the calendar and picked August 1 as her last day. I was going to have her write up a new resignation listing this date, but she wasn't sure if she would get the job or not, and desired to not file it just yet, if that was alright with me. I agreed, asking that she keep me posted of any changes, and I also told her if the job did not come through she could stay on longer yet. It helps us out since we have not hired yet, and it helps her out as well. But, because I cannot depend on her working for any longer than she needs to, I think it best we hire someone just in case she does get the job, or finds a different one. Normally we would have to slash some hours to create some for another guard, but I'm hoping that we can find someone who will be willing to work about fifteen hours a week for now, with the option of picking up time if someone wants time off or gets sick. Also, the afternoon guard is still not doing a satisfactory job, and I'm getting some pressure from the store management to do something. That something is to replace him, basically. I can put him on less hours and try and schedule him during the slowest shifts, but if he does not get it soon, they will demand he be replaced. The only other option is to put him on temp duty for the summer, doing double coverage. I'm hoping he gets his stuff together, but at the same time, I am beginning to suspect he really prefers not to work at all, but is pressured to work by his dad. So, having another person available would be a smart move, and cutting this person back on hours would make management happy. I'll talk to him Monday, and we will go over the schedule and set up some hours for a new guard to start. Then, I guess it's up to them who stays and how goes come Labor Day weekend. I'll keep the person who is doing the best job, plans on sticking around awhile, and can work various shifts, as needed. |
| Kind of a quiet and peaceful day; one of them lazy days of summer. I have the day off, my last one together with Rhonda for a while, or at least until we get someone hired and trained again. It's nice out, temperature wise, but kind of windy, and there is rain in the area. It's been good day, but unfortunately I had to discipline my dog, which is always kind of a downer for me. It's kind of like the old saying, this is going to hurt me worse than it will hurt you. But, it's my responsibility to teach her and make her a productive member of our family. Unfortunately, she spent her life in the pound up to the point we adopted her. Being cute, and a smaller breed, I'm sure she was adopted a few times, at least. But, she is also a bundle of pure energy and a can be quite a handful. So, I suspect that some well meaning person seen this little puppy in the pound and brought her home, expecting her to be well mannered and well behaved. Only, she wasn't, she had been put in the pound at a very young age and never had the opportunity to interact with a family. She would have been very excited and eager to explore and learn, but yet, had no idea what a family was. So, she did something they did not like and instead of teaching her, they returned her to the pound. For this young dog, the message was clear, if you get in trouble, you get returned to life in a small pen, isolated from human interactions, except for what little the caretakers of the pound provided. As she matured, she must have gone out at least a few times, from what the woman at the pound said, but she never lasted more than a few days before being returned. Again, as soon as unwanted behavior surfaced, she was returned to her pen, and soon learned this is what punishment it. We did not know it when we went to the pound to see her, but learned at the time of adoption, that this loving animal was about to be put down. What had brought us to the pound was an post online, shared by a friend. My Golden Retriever had just passed away of old age, and I was heartbroken. We were all heartbroken, but Hyko, our other Golden, took her death especially hard. He had all but given up on life, and would only lie and stare off into space. He had no interest in anything and we feared that he may follow her right to the grave. We seen the post, and it showed pictures of the current residents of the pound. Hannah was there, a cross between a Lab and a Springer, about half the size of Hyko, and very pretty. What caught my attention was the intelligence in her eyes. We discussed it and drove in to look at her. She was in the last cage, and we had someone get her and bring her out where we could see her. At the time, I was uncertain if I wanted another pet or not, but knew Rhonda was interested and I thought it would help Hyko pull through his grief. When Hannah was brought out, she was pulling and jumping, completely unruly. She was so excited and eager to see everyone and anyone, but they had her restrained on a choker collar and it did the trick, she behaved just enough to keep from having it cinched up on her. Rhonda took her and petted her, then brought her over to me. She was so eager to jump right up on me, that it was difficult to even look her over. She was actually shaking she was so excited, and eager. She insisted on getting right up by my face and fought hard to stay right there with me. The pound did not take credit or debit cards, and I had not brought my checkbook, but I knew I wanted to bring this young dog home. They were not sure how old she was, but said she was two years old. She didn't look that old, I would have put her at about a year, by her growth, and the fact she had not yet filled out. But, the story was that the people that had her had been forced to move and could not bring her with them. Yet at the same time, they told us she had never been worked with or trained. She had gone out a few times but been returned because she was not a house dog. Her breeding also did not fit, since she was a cross between a Lab and a Springer, both of which the original owners raised and bred. The information given us was that the two breeds crossed and Hannah was the result, unwanted and unsellable. Of course the story was first one, then the other as time passed. Also, Hannah had the appearance that she was either pregnant or had recently had a litter of pups. I suspect that the people breed her on purpose to create a smaller hunting dog, and then bred her again with either the Lab or the Springer to get the desired build and markings. Once she was bred and they had the puppies, for future breeding, she was no longer needed since she did not have the color and markings desired. In other words, she had good parenting on both sides, been kept for one purpose, to breed and then to dispose of. She was not worked with except to feed and breed, then turned over to the pound. Of course, that is only speculation, but it does explain a lot of what we were told, that she had only received shots once, and why she had been brought in, to start with. The rest, getting a home and returned was true, because she had never known a life outside of a pen that likely wasn't any bigger than in the pound. What ever her story was, my heart felt for her, and I ran to the bank, got out some cash and we brought Hannah home. She was a handful, but very eager to please, and she was pretty well behaved. She didn't know much, for being a pet, anyway. She did not know how to interact with people or other dogs properly, she did not know how to play with Hyko or with toys, and she did not know how to behave in a house. Mostly, she was afraid to do much of anything, for fear of being returned to the pound. In my thinking, she expected this to be a couple day outing and then back home. Yes, this young dog thought the pound was home. She soon learned some basics, and I discovered that what I seen in her eyes was right, she was very smart. She learns fast, and retains the knowledge. She slowly learned how to interact, but it's been a long struggle to get her to play with toys, to bring them back to me, and to even jump up and sit on my lap. Hyko, of course, climbs up on the chairs and bed. Hannah was very much capable of jumping up, but would not. I could not even call her up, but had to lift her and put her up on the chair to sit. After, she was depressed, and it did not take long to realize, that her simple reasoning told her that she had gotten up on the furniture, now she had to go back to the pound. Of course, she did not, and after a while she became more secure in knowing that she was not going to get in trouble if she sat in my recliner. It has been like this with so many things, trying to get her to interact and do things most dogs would not think twice about. But, her biggest fear to this day is to disappoint me and get sent back to the pound. For instance, after she had been with us for some time, I let her run free off the lead. She did pretty well, but then one day wondered off down the street to play with some kids that live a couple of houses down. She did not know any different, and she loves kids, so she did what felt right and wondered off. I called and she did not come. I walked down to get her, but she would not even come to me then. She didn't' avoid me, she just was having too much fun interacting with these children to stop and listen. But, she needed to learn that she cannot leave the yard, unless she is on a leash and taken out of the yard. So, I had to put her on the lead and bring her back home, scolding her and then putting her inside. She actually shook she was so filled with terror. She has never been mistreated, to any ones knowledge, so it was something else that she feared. The next day, we ran into town, and of course, as we often do, let the dogs ride along. They both love to ride, and jump right in, and everything was fine until we got to town, then Hannah began to grumble and whine, crying and acting like a caged animal. That's when I understood her fear, she thought I was bringing her back to the pound, because I had scolded and disciplined her. To this day, she is sensitive to this. I can scold her, tell her know and work with her pretty well, but when she does something new that requires discipline, she instantly becomes depressed and acts like her life here is over. This makes it very difficult for me to work with her with discipline, but yet, sometimes I have to. That was the case today, and she broke my heart seeing how upset she gets, and how she tries so hard to snuggle and hang tight to me after. She looks at me with those intelligent eyes as if to say, I'm sorry, I didn't know, please to take me back. I know in time, she will come to realize that her home is here, we are a family and even when she gets herself in trouble, she won't have to give up the only home and family she's ever known. In the meantime, it's more painful for me to scold her, and teach her sometimes than it is for her to learn, but it's the only way she can learn, and it's my responsibility to teach her so that nothing bad will happen to her. Now, she is back to her old self, and not clinging so tight to my feet. She is beginning to understand that I'm disappointed in her, but I'm not going to take her back to the pound, and she can still have her home here and a family. That's the hardest part, I know and understand, but there is no way to make her understand; she's intelligent, that's for sure, but she just does not have the capacity to understand that the past is over and she will never have to go back to that place. |
| Another day draws to a close. We had intended to have afire tonight, but changed our minds because we are just too tired to stay up. We didn't get up early at all today, but I was up and down most of the night. I didn't drink a lot yesterday, but sure did have a lot of liquids coming out throughout the night. I think a lot of it was retention of fluids, inflammation and swelling, and of course I did drink a couple of bottled of beer by the fire before bed. My mouth is doing great, but still a little sore. Not bad, but a little right around the area the tooth was in. So far it seems to be healing up fine, and I just have a couple of more days to be extra careful around the area, then it should be pretty good. I do have one more day off, so by Friday I should be doing fine with that. My back, on the other hand is not doing much better at all. I have determined it is not the kidney, and that in itself is good news. Instead, it's been determined that it's the sciatic nerve pinching and causing all this pain and discomfort. Rhonda worked the back muscles real good today with some massage and stretches, then we put a tens unit on it. For anyone not familiar with a Tens Unit, it's short for, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. The devise isn't much bigger than some smart phones, has four leads that come out of it, and connects to four sticky conductor pads. Rhonda positioned the pads on the area of the hip, and the sciatic nerve region, then hooked me up to the tens unit and for most of the afternoon, I stimulated the nerves with an electrical current. It did the trick, I was able to go into town and do some shopping with her this afternoon. Of course, it's an all day event when we go shopping, and we enjoy it a lot. Today we kind of cut things short, and made it back home by a little after six this evening. Then, it was a matter of putting things away and just relaxing for a while. I took the Tens Unit off after we got home and it's doing better, but beginning to get sore again. Not as bad as it has been, but it's still hurting some. I'm hoping a good nights rest will help it get even better, and perhaps tomorrow I can get another deep massage from Rhonda, then use the Tens Unit some more. That was pretty much the whole day, coffee out on the patio, run into town and shop for the afternoon, grab a bite to eat at McDonald's and then come home, relax for a bit, do a Bible study, and then get in here and write my entry. After, we will have ice cream and watch something on Netflix, then it's off to bed. We are wanting to get up earlier tomorrow and get a full day in. I haven't really planned anything for tomorrow, because things tend to change so fast on our days off. I'm not even sure on the weather, if it's going to be nice, thunderstorms, or what. Today was pretty nice, but very humid, and pretty hot. We had thought about burning some brush and a downed tree in the back, but it was too late when we got home, and with my back acting up again, it's not the best timing for a burn. There is also another tree, still standing, that is mostly dead. It may catch fire as well, and if it does, it will come down. That means I may have to use the chain saw and cut it up some, and with my back all messed up right now, that's not possible. Maybe next week we can burn it all up, and cut up anything we need to. Again, it will depend on the weather, my back, and getting the saw running and ready. That in itself kind of depends on my back, too. Since there is no way of telling what the weather will be or how my back is going to be doing, there isn't any sense in planning anything. It's sometimes better to wait and see how things turn out. If my back permits, I may get some odds and ends done tomorrow, but all in all, I'm looking at a relaxing day of resting up and getting ready to work all weekend. I also have to get some paperwork done for work, and I should try and get a hold of a few people and set up some interviews. Again, well kind of leave it as tentative, pending on what's going on tomorrow and how I feel. |
| My first day off this week, and it's about over. It was a pretty good day, but a full day. We got up early, around five and had to be in Brookings by eight. The directions we were given were not right, but they got us close to the imaging center, and the receptionist at the building we went to directed us to the hospital next door where the imaging was actually being done at. Poor Rhonda couldn't eat or drink anything after midnight, because she needed to have an empty stomach and bladder for the ultra-sound. She said it was pretty painful, even though the technician told her most women prefer the type of ultra-sound they did. But, it was soon over and from there we went to Perkins, so I could get her some coffee and some breakfast. I had not eaten anything before we left, so we were both hungry. I did have a cup of coffee before we left, and I also took one with me. My mouth was pretty sore this morning, but nothing like it was with the infected tooth still in. My side, on the other hand, was quite painful. I'm not sure what I did to it, but it's been hurting the last two days now. Rhonda and I thought it may be my kidney that was hurting, possibly a kidney stone, but today after our nap, she messaged the area, and the kidney seems fine. My back, hip, and leg had knots in the muscles, and I'm thinking that's the whole problem. I know I have been sleeping on the opposite side that I usually do, since my tooth has been acting up, and it was after sleeping on my right side all night that it started hurting. Another thing that has been going on is my right shoulder, or actually the arm at the shoulder and just below. The muscle keeps twitching and jumping. This has been going on since the side pain has started, and again, I don't know what or why. It's not painful, but it's kind of irritating, and I don't have near the strength in the upper arm I should. I suppose I slept on that side for a couple of nights and have both the hip and the shoulder out of whack. Anyway, back to my day. We got back from Brookings a little later than expected, but only because we took some back roads home and made it a bit more scenic. Once we got home, we decided to go back to bed and sleep for a couple more hours. I slept very sound, and felt better after I woke up. I had a nice message from Rhonda while we waited for the coffee to brew, then enjoyed a couple of cups of coffee together. We discussed the plans for the rest of the day while we sipped our coffee, and planned out the evening. We would mow a little around the house and patio, then run into town and pick up a few things. Once we returned home, we would get a fire going out on the patio, and I would cook some steaks over an open wood fire while Rhonda whipped us up some macaroni salad. That was the plan, but it changed as we went along. We started out fine, and soon had the area around the house mowed all the way back to the street. I wanted to get the ditches mowed, just in case we got more rain. They have been flooded and we have not been able to keep them mowed, but it had dried enough to mow them good today. After I finished down there, Rhonda worked on some trimming around the trees, so I worked up in the yard, getting more mowed there. I had been feeling better after my message, but mowing kind of did me in, and it was pretty painful, so I decided to finish up the mowing and only have it hurt for one day, instead of having it get hurting again tomorrow, too. This put us behind schedule, and too late to run into town, so we changed the menu to boiled potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower in cheese sauce, and beef tips in gravy. We also discovered that our cooking tripod does not fit over the fire ring anymore. We had changed it around when we redid the patio, and we also put concrete lattice in the front of the fire ring, closing it in. The tripod is just a bit too big to fit inside the closer, but not big enough to span across it. Oh well, we can still use it camping and I can rig up a frame for holding an old grill grate over the fire ring to cook on. Of course, we also have a nice charcoal grill we can cook on, too. Once dinner was done we ate, then it was just a matter of getting my entry written before it got too late. Now, it's time to go sit out and enjoy the fire, drink a couple of bottles of beer, then head off to bed. Hopefully tomorrow, my hip and shoulder will be feeling better, the way my jaw and mouth are after having that bum tooth pulled out. |
| Better get this written now, I may not be able to later. It's been one of them kind of days, and it's definitely been a Monday. Not that it's all been bad, in fact, it hasn't been a bad day at all, it's just been a Monday. I worked today, up at three thirty, to work by five, and was suppose to work until two this afternoon. I had another guard come in for double coverage at eleven, and it would have been a pretty easy day. But, I've been suffering with a tooth ache all weekend, and it was still pretty sore this morning. On top of that, when I got up, I had a throbbing pain in my right side. I thought at first it was cramping, and Rhonda said the muscles felt knotted up. But, it just did not go away, like a cramp would, and when Rhonda tried to message the knotted muscle, it didn't do any good. So, I went to work with my tooth aching and my side hurting. It was a pretty slow day, which helped a lot. It was raining this morning, but quite after a half hour. The sun kind of broke though the clouds, shining off and on, and it get hot and humid. At least it was hot and sticky to me. One of the guests commented that it felt like it was going to get to be a hot muggy day, and I told him it already was. He replied, "You must be sick, it's only seventy two out now." Yeah, I think maybe I was sick, probably from this infected tooth. Rhonda was calling to get me in to see the dentist, and I called her at nine thirty when I went on break. Again, it was suppose to be an easy task, call and see when I can get in, hopefully this afternoon. Only, they wanted me to come in on Thursday, and I had to pay off an old bill before they would even look at the tooth. That would be fine if there was an old bill, but every thing should be paid up. Rhonda is going to look into it further, but we are both sure, I should not have any money due, since I paid at the time of service each time I've gone in. Even if they didn't have the back bill, it wouldn't do me much good waiting until Thursday, I needed something sooner. Rhonda called around and found another dentist that works on a sliding fee, based on income. Only he was twenty five miles further away. I could get in at three this afternoon, have it looked at, x-rayed, and get an antibiotic started. Fine, I could do that. The other guard said he would be fine to work the afternoon alone, since it was slow, and Rhonda would be in around three thirty to help. So, I was going to be home by one, visit with Rhonda a little, then go to the dentist. Only it got busy right at twelve thirty when I was about to leave. Not anything serious, just a little rush and by quarter too one I was on my way. I had a message on my phone, and when I listened to it, I discovered that Rhonda had thought she needed to come in by one and was on her way. This was a problem, since she was coming in the van and I had the Jimmy. The Jimmy needs some work, doesn't get very good gas mileage, and we had planned on switching vehicles out this afternoon. I tried calling her, but could get no answer. So, I hoped I would be able to get her attention when I met her on my way home. I met her about nine miles from home. She seen me and turned around, while I stopped. I explained that she did not need to come in until three thirty, and she followed me back to the house, where we had a quick bite to eat, switched vehicles, and I was off to the dentist. It was just that kind of day, little things that made it difficult, but all in all, a good day. I seen the dentist's assistant, she looked at the tooth, took an x-ray, and said the same thing they had told Rhonda. I would need to take some antibiotics for the infection and then come back to have the work done. She did want the dentist to look at the tooth and the x-ray, to determine the best course of action, however. He came in and was very nice, looked at the tooth, the redness in the gums and the gunk coming from around the tooth. The x-ray showed a piece of the filling had busted out, between the two teeth, and it was open to the root. It was also pretty badly infected, and he wanted to take the tooth out right then. It was unlikely it could be saved, and there is no tooth under it, so it really doesn't do anything, so I consented to have it pulled and he shot my mouth full of Novocaine, then let me sit and wait for a bit. When he came back, my mouth was numb and I was ready to have him pull the tooth. I expected it to come out hard, the one below it had been very difficult to pull. But, he pushed against the side and it shifted. He then got a hold of it and twisted it a little and it pulled right out. It really didn't take much at all, and I would have to agree, it would have been senseless to try and save it. He cleaned the socket up and said that with the tooth out, the infection should stop, and I didn't even need to get any medication. Not even anything for pain. It was pulled out by four thirty this afternoon, and it really doesn't hurt at all, even now. In fact, it feels kind of good not to have that throbbing pain. Now I just have to take it easy for a few days and I should be as good as new. |
Another day about done, one left to work and then three days off, hopefully. Then, we will be short one person and Rhonda and I will be down to two days off each week, but not the same days. Hopefully we get someone hired soon. I didn't call anyone or do anything about the people who have put in applications because of the holiday weekend. I was thinking about calling some of them tomorrow, after work. But now I'm not sure if I will be able to talk very good or not. I ended up with a tooth ache yesterday, and it's only gotten worse. The tooth has been sensitive to hot and cold since I had it worked on the last time I was at the dentist. That was two years ago, or right in that time frame. I had intentions to go in for my six month cleaning and check up, but we didn't have a vehicle we could use then. By summer, we were busy with work, short on help, and I seldom got a day off. When I wasn't working, I was exhausted and trying to play catch up on home projects. Then, it was winter again, and the weather wasn't the best, so again it got put off. A couple of times the tooth that hurts now acted up a bit, getting kind of sore for a day, but then it would be fine again and I never really gave it much thought. Yesterday, however, it started out with a mild ache to it, kind of the same as it has done before. But, as the day went on, it became more and more sensitive to temperatures and by the time I got home, it was very uncomfortable. I brushed my teeth good when I got home, then flossed, and that was all it took. The floss hit the tissue between the two teeth and it about dropped me to my knees. I thought there was something caught in between them, and that was why it had hurt so bad, so I took a pick and gently tried to clean between the two teeth, but that hurt even worse. I ended up using a numbing agent on it, and taking some over the counter pain medication. It finally settled down to a throbbing ache by the time I went to bed. I again put some teething gel on the area, and coated some floss with more of the gel, then gently worked it between the teeth, and messaged the gums with it. Another dose of pain medication and it felt pretty good, good enough to sleep. I woke up sometime during the night and had to repeat this procedure, take more over the counter pain medication, and was able to get back to sleep. I was up at three thirty for work, and it was feeling a little better, but still sore. After I got to work it started throbbing again, so I took some more pain medication, and it soon began to settle down a bit. Then all of a sudden, it started with this sharp shooting pain. It was all I could do to focus past it and work, and trying to speak was almost too much. The air would move into my mouth as I spoke and hit that back tooth, and I thought I would pass out from the pain. Of course, it got busy right then, too. After three guests had been cleared to leave the yard, I had a little break, and just enough time to dig out the tube of teething gel, put some on my finger and work it over the gums and in between the teeth. Then another guest was there and I had to go back out and work. Luckily the teething gel works pretty fast and it was already helping. Soon enough it had numbed the tooth back down to a milder ache, one I could handle. I took more over the counter pain medication and managed through the morning. By the time Rhonda came in, it was feeling pretty good. It did for the rest of the day. I thought the pain was gone, but it wasn't. It just let up enough that I didn't notice it at all. I mean, from the deep shooting pain and the throbbing ache, it numbed up pretty good. So, since it had been aching and hurting so bad, it now felt good. Once the over the counter medications wore off, however, I realized there is a mild ached still throbbing through the tooth and jaw area. It is also red on the outside of the mouth and swollen. I suspect I have an infection as well as a busted filling, but can't see it well enough to know for sure what is going on. I just know it's going to be a long night trying to sleep if it keeps on like it is right now, and it's going to be a miserable time at work tomorrow morning. Rhonda will call the dentist as soon as they open, then I will call her or she will come in so I can leave, depending on when I can get in. Our dentist is about forty miles in the opposite direction from where we work, and that's another twenty five miles from home, so it will be a long drive over if this thing keeps acting up. Depending on what course of action they need to take, it may be a long drive home, too. Luckily I should have three days off to heal up and rest up. But, the way things have been at work, I just don't know for sure until the day ends. Any time before closing, the phone could ring and I may have to go in. I hope not, but it's possible. Mostly because the person who is quitting is not very reliable, and it's her last week. I will, however, stay positive that she will finish out the week, and we will have a good, hard working, and dependable person hired soon to replace her. |
| Saturday is about done, and what a day. For the people who had the day off, it would have been a great day for a lot of things. It was hot, humid, and just enough wind to keep it comfortable. For me, it was work as usually. I opened and for most of the morning it was pretty quiet. I was hoping it would stay that way, and maybe I could slip out a bit early. But by ten it was getting pretty busy, and by noon it was almost nonstop. Not only was it busy, but it seemed like the cooks where out as well. There were plenty of normal shoppers coming through the yard; working on outdoor projects. Some were just finishing up and needed a few items, and some where doing repairs, and also needed just a few items. There were some who had pretty good sized loads, and must have just been getting started on some project or another. But, there were also some goofy people coming through. I'm talking about people who pull up and make you stand there because they are on the phone. Of course, I don't stand there very long, before going back inside and letting them wait. But today the person whispered to me, like it was a big secret that he was at Menards to buy a couple of treated 2x4's. Then, there was the woman who took off before the gate was all the way up, and took out her windshield. I was inside the store at the time, but came out in time to catch all the excitement. Rhonda said the gate was down, she had closed it before this person had pulled up to have her load checked. The other gal checked the load, and went inside to open the gate. Instead of waiting for the arm to go up, the lady took off and the arm hit the window and busted it out. Normally the gate arms will snap off pretty easily without causing much, if any, damage. But this gall caught the arm on the top of her grill and right before it snapped, it was high enough to slap back towards the front window. Of course, she was moving pretty fast and the window was also coming up to meet the arm, and the two smacked jut hard enough to break out the window. She insisted the arm was up and started closing as she was going through it. Even if this was the case, it should have hit the hood and then went back up. The video caught it all, as did the other guard and Rhonda. So, when I come out, I don't have any idea yet what happened. This woman gets right in my face and asked me if the arm was coming down. I tell her I don't know, I wasn't there. She progresses to tell me it had to be coming down to break her window, then asks me, "Right?" I answer again, "I don't know what happened, I wasn't here and did not see." She again explains that the arm was coming down, hit her window while she was coming through, and wants me to confirm this. I tell her again that I was not present when the accident took place, I didn't see anything and do not know what happened. Then I add, "That camera over there should have captured the entire incident and will show if the arm was going up, coming down, or stationary. But, I didn't see anything and don't know what happened. She looked over and seen the surveillance camera and that was it, she was back over by her vehicle and had nothing more to say to me. The camera did show just what the guard said, the arm was down, the other person had just started to open it, and this woman stomped on the gas and ran right into it. I'm just glad it was only the gate arm, and not anything else. Then, there was the comedians, who when asked if they know where they items they are picking up are located, and answer, "Yeah, in there someplace." They point into the yard and chuckle, thinking this is just the wittiest thing I have ever heard. I don't get a chuckle out of it at all, and instead just agree and move on to the next guest and let them figure it out. They never seem to have the smart ass attitude when they finally come back out. But, all in all, most of the people are nice and friendly. I enjoy talking with them and helping them have a nice experience, if possible. Of course, with the hat day, there were plenty of women coming through in various outfits, showing a lot of skin. Not anything lewd, although we see some of that as well. No I'm talking females of various ages, from young ladies to elderly women. They may have sun dresses on, or be dressed up in blouses and skirts. Some of course have on shorts and tank tops; a little of every kind of fashion as well as various body types and sizes. I was once referred to as a girl watcher many, many years ago, when I was a teenager. Back then, in the early seventies, girl watching was common, and I enjoyed the various types of beauty on display. I still do, and that's what I'm talking about. Women of different ages, all types of builds, and dressed in various fashions pass through the yard on weekends. Some are local women, some from other places through out the state, and even from neighboring states. I enjoy them as much, the outfits, and the many forms of beauty they display. I guess once a girl watcher, always a girl watcher. The only thing that changes is it goes from girls to teens, then young ladies, and on to mature women. Well, Rhonda should be home any time now, and it's getting difficult to concentrate. Fireworks are going off all around, and it's a bit distracting. So, I'll end my post and go watch the show. |
| Happy Independence Day to everyone who celebrates the Fourth of July. Today was also my first day back to work after three days off. It was kind of slow today, but still busy enough to keep us both working. It's kind of surprising how many people were out shopping instead of out having fun. Especially since it was a pretty nice day, and there was a lot of activities going on all over. It's kind of funny, guests come through and make similar comments like, "You have to work on the Fourth? That's not right." Or, "It's not right to make people work on the Fourth." I don't bother to tell them, I wouldn't have to work if people like them were not out shopping and buying building materials. Not that it bother's me to work on the Fourth of July or any other holiday, or that stores and businesses are even open on holidays. I believe in free enterprise and the right of owners to be open for business any day they want, as well as any time. Besides, it's the shoppers who set the days and times businesses are open. If there are not enough shoppers, stores will not stay open. I don't mind working on holidays, and I imagine a lot of people just don't have anything to do on holidays. It's sad, but it just seems to be true. With all the things going on, it seems odd to see a man, woman, and their children out shopping at Menards. There is so much for to do, fun things going on all over. But, if they want to shop for building materials, or if someone would rather work on their house than to attend the parades and car shows, that's their choice. If it was mine, I would likely be uptown looking at the different things going on, or maybe out at the lake enjoying the sunshine and sandy beaches, not to mention the gals running around in bikinis. But, it just turned out that it was our day to work, and I didn't have any intention of switching things around just to try and get the day off. Besides, it's difficult to do with the double coverage we need to provide Friday through Monday. I can handle working and having my three days off in the middle of the week, there is still lots of things to enjoy, and the crowds aren't around to spoil it. I would have enjoyed seeing the fireworks this evening, but it just did not work out. We had planned on going back into town to watch them, but it started raining and storming right when we got off work. So, not knowing how long it would rain, we went to Papa Murphy's for take home and bake pizza. Besides being so wet and the chance of the fireworks cancelling, we are both very tired, and have to be up early for work tomorrow. I have to be to work by five, and Rhonda comes in at ten. On top of being very tired and needing to be in bed early tonight, there is the dogs. Hannah has not been around fireworks before, living most of her existence in the pound until we adopted her. Hyko is doing better with the banging outside, but he is easily frightened by the sound of the bigger fireworks. So, if we went back into town, they would have to stay home. With all the stuff going off all over, they would be terrified. So, we changed our mind and stayed home, and enjoyed pizza and a movie. The dogs are right here staying close but doing well as the booming echos around us, and we get an opportunity to see how they do. Maybe next year we will have the day off and can enjoy the holiday, sleep in the next day, and know the dogs are doing fine. For this year, it's work today, tomorrow, Sunday and Monday, then we get three days off again. After that, I don't know what will happen. We will be short on help and should still get two days off a week, but we will not get the same days off. That will make it hard to do much, and we will have to be up everyday in time for one or the other to go in to work and open. But, hopefully we find someone who is willing to work, is dependable, and can do a good job. Then, we will be back to our days off together and ready to go out and enjoy the summer. |
| Success at last. That is, I did get to my the project I have been wanting to work on today, and it's done. Well, maybe not done, but done to the point of what we had planned to get done. I'm talking about the patio, of course. Rhonda and I had gotten the old one tore up and most of the new one down. I can't say new, since most of it is the old patio block and retaining wall block, so perhaps redone, or revamped would be better. Let's go with revamped, just because it's kind of a colorful word. Whether it fits the purpose or not, I don't know, and I'm just too damn tired to care. Three days off, but one day was wet and raining, so no outdoor work at all. That left yesterday and today to get the patio finished up as far as we had planned to go, and as far as we have material to go. But, the lawn was only half done getting mowed last week, and that part was getting pretty bad. The part we did not get to last week was out of control; I'd say a foot tall in most places. Partly because it hadn't been cut in two weeks, partly because it's so wet and growing faster than Rhonda and I can keep up with it. So, yesterday we set out to get the grass cut, and of course, being so long, it didn't cut worth a damn. It was also pretty wet and it wasn't about to dry out being so tall, and it's thick. So, it was slow going, mowing. But, we set the mowers up high and managed to get it cut down and looking pretty good. By the time we finished it, it was time for dinner and of course by the time dinner was over, it was getting to late to work on the patio, and with a full belly, I just didn't feel like doing much of anything. So we had a fire, drank a few bottles of beer, and just relaxed for the evening. It did get kind of late by the time we turned in, which of course meant we also got up kind of late today. It was another nice day, and we had coffee on the patio, and just enjoyed the morning. It was late morning, but we still had shade and sat out until after the noon whistle blew. That signaled time to get busy, so we finished up with one last cup of coffee and then set about getting going on our project. I had to cut a few patio block to fit in to the ends of the patio, and once that was done we needed to take apart the fire ring. We had some concrete lattice set in front of the fire ring, and I had stacked some brick in behind, just to see how it would look. All that had to come out and then start setting brick. Now, keep in mind, I'm no brick layer, and this was my first attempt. Also, we did not use mortar to fasten the brick, but instead used an industrial adhesive. This way, if it messed up, we could clean the brick up pretty easy and start over again. Also, it will set up faster and we should be able to have a fire tonight and enjoy our handiwork. I don't know if it will work or not, but it should, to the best of my knowledge. I guess this is one of those, live and learn projects. I did have the ground level when we put the block down for the fire ring, and I assumed it was still level, but it had settled. We have been getting a lot of rain, and the ground is soft and wet, so the heavy blocks settled and the ground around them also did not stay level. So, lesson one when working on blocks, always make sure your base is level before you begin. Unfortunately, I learned this point after I was almost done. Fortunately, the back side, to the west of the fire ring, stayed level and only needed a little fill. So, I set a line of brick in place, and then put down a line of adhesive, which for all practical purposes, is glue. Then, the next row of brick went down, and when we got to the end, of course I had to cut a bit of brick to make it fit right. Not bad, about a half of brick and that seemed right since we would be inter-weaving the brick where the two walls meet. Another line of glue and another level of brick. Now, I noticed something. I should have measured the area and set the brick so that I would not have to cut one or two inch pieces to fill in the gaps. So, point two, measure the area and allow for even cuts in the brick so that there are not small pieces needed. It was too late for changing it now, so we continued, and since the brick cut pretty easy, we moved right along. I don't have the proper saw for cutting brick, but instead am using a cheap angle grinder with a mason blade on it. It works great, but there is not way to cut all the way through, and there is no guide to cut a straight line. Even so, it cut deep enough on all four sides that I could take a hammer and mason chisel and with a little tap, the brick would snap at the cut. It left a little bump, but the mason blade removed this pretty slick. Of course, it makes a lot of dust. Cutting and grinding the blocks, I mean. It makes a lot of real fine dust, and I'll probably be blowing it out of my nasal passageways for the next week. Point three, purchase a comfortable dust mask for cutting block. I did have a pair of nice safety glasses, and of course wore them for each cut. It was a good thing, too, because I could feel the grit sandblasting my arms and face with each and every cut. But with the safety glasses on, I didn't get any grit in my eyes. The noise wasn't real bad, either. I do have some ear plugs, but didn't feel I needed them. The wall went right along, with Rhonda helping and soon enough we had reached the level of the concrete lattice. At this point we began stepping the brick back just a bit, and stopped just short of the level of retaining wall. I had intended to stop even with it, but I had not measured it quite right, and of course I discovered that my south wall was not level. The west end of it was just short of the level of the retaining wall, the east side was almost a brick shorter. The wall interlocked with the brick work on the west side of the fire ring, and that one was also just a little short of the height we wanted. Not a lot, but just a little. So point four, measure everything, then remeasure it again. I also had a slight problem with the retaining wall. When we built it a week ago, we kind of followed the edge of the patio, but also just kind of set them in along the point of the ground being level. I didn't check to see how square it was with the patio, and it curves a bit as it goes to the west. So, it's not squared off with the patio, and it has a bend to it. The brick work on the south side runs parallel to the retaining wall, but the distance is not equal since the wall is not square. This leaves a gap behind the brick work, but we are just going to put some cedar chips in there. It may be better that it didn't match up the way I had planned, since we had a problem with the old one getting vermin behind it. It seems snakes love to get in between brick walls and block walls. There is a six in gap at the bottom, but it would have matched up on top if I had done this right. We were not sure what to put in between the two walls to fill it in and keep unwanted varmints from taking up residence, but now it will be open and easy to prevent them from taking refuge there. I just hope the glue holds the brick tight, and it all works out. But, if not, I do have a blade that is made to grind brick and cement, and I think it will clean the glue off the brick very well. Then, we will level the ground up, build it up another quarter inch in back and two inches in front, then put the brick back down with a mortar mix to bond them together, and do it one last time. That's if the adhesive does not hold tight. I think it will do just fine. I do have pictures of the original patio we built. I also have pictures of the second time around, and now I will take some of this one. I want to post them all so anyone interested can see how things turned out. We still have some work to do, but the patio part is now done. All that's left is to put in a pond, and then put up some privacy lattice. Hopefully in a few weeks, we will have it complete. Then, I will post another photograph of the finished project. Of course, even as we sit and look at our work, we get ideas for more to go with it, so it my never be completely done, but the patio and wall should be. Next is the pond and privacy panels, then perhaps an arbor over the pond. |
| Another day winding down, and I still have not finished working on the patio like I wanted to. My plans were to work and finish the patio during my three days off. I had intended to work on the patio yesterday for a while, then work on the employee evaluation so I could go in and get it finished. If I hadn't finished the patio by the time I stopped to work on the evaluation, I had planned to finish it today. But, I had other tasks to take care of for work besides the evaluation, and since it was rainy and cold out, I figured I may as well work on my work projects and get them done. I couldn't do all of them, however. I needed to have the total yard traffic and had not gotten any kind of an update since the middle of the month. I also had to fill out a flow log and had not even started that. I did get the rest done, then worked on the evaluation and got it printed off. Like usual, it took longer than expected, and longer than it should have. But I had it done in time, and then sent off a couple of faxes. Then I seen another issue that needed to get taken care of, so I had to make a call, then fill out more paperwork, and then fax that. By now, it was about time to head into town to do the evaluation. It was still misting out, so there really was no opportunity to work on the patio or anything outside. But since the evaluation was ready, Rhonda and I drove in to take care of it. She worked the guardhouse while I talked to the evening guard and went over the evaluation with him. It was a good evaluation, and he seemed happy with his score and my comments. He did score high and I put him in for a raise, hopefully he gets it on his next check. After, Rhonda and I went and did a little shopping, then went and got a bite to eat. I had offered to pick up a hot chocolate for the even guard since it was so cold and wet, so we finished our meal and then took him a hot chocolate, before heading over to pick up a few groceries. This did not take very long, and we were soon driving home. By the time we got here it was after nine and by the time we had everything put away, it was almost ten. We relaxed and watched a little television before turning in for the night. A full day, but I had not gotten to the one task I wanted to work on, the patio. Today we got up a bit late, but still got a pretty good start for the day. We had not mowed the whole yard last week, just the area around the house so we could work on the patio. Rhonda wanted to get the grass cut, so she started on that while I worked on my monthly report. It took a bit longer than I wanted, but I got it done and went out to start work on the patio. But, the flies and mosquitoes were very thick and I noticed that Rhonda was having a slow and hard job at mowing. The grass was tall where we had cut it last week, and it was twice as high where we had not mowed. This was part of the reason the flies and mosquitoes where so bad, and I decided I should start up the rider and get the grass mowed before working on the patio. Only I had to go so slow to cut anything. For one thing, the grass was way too tall, another problem was the moisture, the grass was very wet. Also, the mower needed to be sharpened. I could not do anything about the first two things, but I could sharpen the blade on the mower. I blocked it up and set to removing it, and then to sharpening it. It took a while, since it was very dull. But it needs more than to be sharpened, it needs to be replaced. The blade is just wore out and needs to get tossed and replaced with a new one. But, that would mean a trip into town, and I wanted to get the grass done so I could work on the patio. So, I sharpened it as best as I could, then set about balancing it as close as I possible, and finishing the mowing. It cut better, but the grass is so long and thick, and it's way to wet, so it still did not cut the best. It was also slow mowing, and it took most of the afternoon and part of the evening to get it done. It's not the best job, and will need to be mowed in a few days, but it's done. Only now it's going on eight o'clock. I had not written anything in WdC yet so I thought I better get that done. Also, Rhonda started the grill and a fire for the evening, so I can't work on much for the patio. I may still get a few blocks cut and put in, to finish that part, and I would like to work on the sandbox, too. We have two dogs, and they love to lay in the cool sand when it's hot out. It's also soft for them, and they can dig and enjoy the sand. So, now that this is done, it's time to go back out and maybe get a bit of work done on the patio. But, I suspect that dinner will be done cooking on the grill by the time I get ready to work, and that means time to eat grilled chicken and potato salad. I know by the time I finish eating, I won't feel like doing much except relax, so it's looking like another day gone and still not a bit of work done on the one thing I wanted to get finished. But, I still have tomorrow, and weather permitting, I may just get it done yet. We'll give it a hell of a try... |
| Wow, ten o'clock in the evening already. Where has the day gone? It's been one of them kind of days that seems to slip past too fast, yet it was a good day, and a productive day. It didn't go quite as planned, but then, they seldom do. Today was a day off for me, but I had a few things to do for work. At the top of the list was an employee evaluation that is a bit past due. It was a year on the the twenty second of June, so just a couple weeks past the date. Of course, there were a few things that added to the lateness to this important part of my job, trying to deal with guards who need schedule changes, and of course the one who really messed up and had to have corrective action taken, again. Then, I had another guard resign and had to deal with that, as well. It's also worth noting that I do not get much time to work on these types of things when I'm on the job. If it's slow, I can write in information and spend some time going over questions, scores, and comments. But, I still need to type it out on the computer on my own time, since we cannot have computers or any electronic devices at work other than what is issued to us. This in itself kind of makes it difficult to get things done right away. See, on the days I work, I put in some long hours, and by the time I get home, I'm ready for a break from work, so it get's put off until I get some time off. But, since I also have a life and have to devote some time to that, I don't always get as much done for work as I'd like. If there's nothing serious going on, I can take some time to do things like this evaluation, but if problems come up, I have to deal with them, so the more optional items get put on the back burner, again. This was the case last week, and even some this week. But, because it was past due, and because this person is a good worker and deserves recognition and a raise, I put the more recent problem on the back burner today and devoted my time to finishing this evaluation so I could go in and go over it with him, get it faxed, and get him a raise as well as to get the opportunity to show him as well as tell him that his hard work, dedication, and positive attitude are greatly appreciated. It's one of those things in life that are backward. The problem people get all the attention. Sure, it's negative attention ninety percent of the time, but it take up ninety percent of the time, too. That means there is little time left as well as energy to praise those who are doing an awesome job. I try, but it seems I only get a chance when there's other things going on, and I have to make changes to accommodate the problem. Part of this is just how it works. When a guard is doing a good job, there is not reason form me to go in and talk to them. If our shifts start and end at the same time, I can take a few minutes to talk to them and tell them they are doing a great job, but that's seldom the way it works out. Also, it just isn't the same as if I come in just to tell them I appreciate their hard work and not having to watch over everything they do. It is something I would like to do more, go in and give praise. But it seems that I'm always going in to take care of problems, so I kind of burn out and don't like to go in at all if possible. Hopefully, the replacement for the person who resigned will be another good employee and not need a lot of attention and supervision. I also hope that our current problem child will get his stuff together and start putting in the time and effort needed to do things right. I hold positive thoughts on this, and am trying my best to get the point across, but unfortunately, he has to make the decision to do or not to do the job right. A lot of the problems are little things, but even little things tend to add up to one big thing over time, and even as I address one problem area, another surfaces. I know a lot of it is attitude, and personality, and it's up to this person to make the needed changes in thinking and attitude. I can offer to help, to guide, and to even lead, but I cannot make him accept the help, take my advice, or to even follow. And so, it's looking like we may have to close out his position at the end of the summer and not move him into a long term position. I told him this is what I'm currently being forced to do, but that I would watch and wait with a final decision around Labor Day, when his position ends. Of course, it's more a day by day ordeal, and if problems don't get corrected, or new ones continue to arise, there is no chance of keeping him on. But, there is hope that he will make the needed changes and secure a more permanent position. It's this kind of supervisory duties I dislike, having to hold someones hand and try over and over to guide and lead them, but knowing I can't do anything if they refuse to do what they need to do. On the other hand, duties like those that consumed most of my day today, providing positive feedback to a good worker who requires little supervision and is self motivated and professional make my job pleasant and remind me why I continue to put as much as I can into my job and my position. |
| Today was definitely a Monday! Normally Monday's are pretty good days at work, and since I don't work on Tuesday, it's kind of my Friday. Today, however, Monday insisted on being a real pain. It started out a little rushed, but I was at work and clocked in on time. From there, it was a pretty typical Monday morning. There was very little for yard traffic, except for venders coming in and some deliveries. It started to get a little busier around eight thirty, and I had my first return for the day show up. Normally this is no problem when it's slow, but when it's busy it can be a real pain. Today it was a whole new experience for me. I had one of the guards show up to talk to me. I could tell it wasn't going to be anything pleasant by her demeanor, and knowing this person's history, I had a pretty good idea what was up. She had just started working at the beginning of the month, and I had second thoughts about hiring her at all. She had worked for me last summer, and from the first day, she put more effort into finding a different job than she did in doing her current one. It wouldn't have been so bad, but she kept it very concealed, so I had no idea that she was aggressively seeking other work. In fact, it was just the opposite by what she informed me. As the summer progressed, it just got worse. She began having problems with the schedule and needed it changed constantly, she didn't put much effort into the job, and I eventually found out she was looking for another job. By the end of the summer she was leaving to work a different job, but the deceit was so bad I never did learn what was really going on. I knew she was keeping a lot of information back from me just by her posts in Facebook, and by the end of the summer, I was actually glad to see her leave. This spring, she contacted me, needing a job. It seemed there had been a lot of changes in her life and she needed a job real bad. I had a long talk with her about what I expected, and that there would not be a repeat of last year. She assured me that she was not the same person, that she would be responsible and dedicated to her job, and had no plans to pursue any other work until next spring at the earliest. I had my doubts, but decided to give her another chance. She started the first part of June. By last week, she was already needing to change out a day to go to the clinic with her son. She knew the procedure, but did not follow it. Instead she called me on my time off and needed me to arrange for her to take time off in a couple of days. We went over the procedure and I was nice, set up a change for her, and thought that was the end of it. But, it came back and bit me, bad. First of all, the person she switched with has had a history of not getting to work on time, and had been removed from doing any opening shifts. But, she worked opening, so he got a second chance to prove himself, and assured me he would not mess it up. He did, however, manage to mess it up. I was called at a little after six, no one had shown up to open the guardhouse. I had to scramble to get someone in there, so I had Rhonda call around while I dressed and got ready to run in. By the time I was ready to head out the door, the person who was suppose to open had shown up, an hour and forty-five minutes late. I decided not to go in and talk to him, since I was pretty riled. Instead I contacted my boss and informed him by e-mail what had taken place. I then set about to do the paperwork and corrective action that was required and spent almost half my day working for nothing as a result of this switch. I also had a feeling that things had changed, or the new person would not have asked for time off this soon. I didn't have anything to show this, but I felt it, just by her tone and attitude. It was just like last year. So, today she shows up and informs me she is taking a different job, and wants to give me a two week notice. I reminded her of our conversation, and her answer was, "Well, I didn't look for another job. I had applied a while back and they just contacted me now." I reminded her of her commitment to work through the summer and winter, but she didn't seem to remember much of that. Not that it would have mattered, she had failed to keep her word, proven she had not changed at all, just changed her surroundings and was again repeating the same actions as before. When she was in need, she would say or do anything to get what she needed, but as soon as something else came along, she showed her true nature. So, even if she had changed her mind, it would be too late to change mine. I would rather be short on help than to have someone working who is nothing but problems and never knowing when she will up and leave, or need something different, or want time off, or just call in drunk and tell me she can't work the next day. After I got that all taken care of, I tried to work on a new schedule to fill her hours, but it was too busy to get much done. Then, the other guard showed up for his shift, and since he had been given a verbal warning a month ago for being late and not opening the guardhouse on time, which results in a pretty hefty cost for our company, I had to give him a second warning. This one was a written warning, that I had prepared on Thursday. It was pretty harsh, putting him into a temporary summer position, meaning his current job will end the weekend of Labor Day. But, I had already decided to give him a chance to prove himself, and had discussed options with the store managers. They didn't have much for complaints, other than he started taking too long on breaks, and was late to open. There was a little concern that he should check loads closer, but I had already discovered this. So, when he came in, I gave him an official butt chewing, had him read and sign the written warning and gave him the full riot act of what was taking place with his job, and how close he was to losing it. Then, I offered him a way out, so he wouldn't feel trapped and cornered. I figured it had been pretty negative feedback on his mistakes and problems, so I focused on what he was doing right, and gave him a chance to move forward past this. I told him I would talk to him again about everything in two weeks, and also had that written into his corrective action, I reminded him of the discussion we had when he started, and just asked him if he planned on keeping his job or wanted to look for something else. he wanted to keep this one. So, I let him know that he has until Labor Day to move past this and do things right. I would be willing to give him a chance to show he can do the work, and if there aren't any more problems I will consider keeping him on. He was pretty shook up over the whole deal, but after working with him for a couple of hours he relaxed and I think started to understand that I would do just what I said and give him a good opportunity to move forward and correct things. I have a feeling there is going to be more little issues, based on his personality and just the way he tends to do things. But, they are little things and can be overcome as long as he is willing to work at it. His general attitude is good, he is doing fine with most aspects of the job, and I think he is genuine in his sincerity to do better. I just hope that giving him another chance goes better than it did with the other guard. |
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