Tuesday, June 16, 2015
The storm before the calm, or...
I booked what?
The days and weeks leading up to Cancun were more eventful than I would have guessed. First was the surprising level of stress I had, even though financial aid wasn't really that busy. Since we were relatively slow, this cannot be considered a positive development. Does this means I'm totally burned out, unable to handle the job any more? Let's hope not. I also read the quiet as a threat to my overtime, though that fear seems to be unfounded as of this writing. I shouldn't be in a position to need overtime, but I do. Second, I reread my plane ticket, and realized I had booked an overnight flight coming home, grounding myself in Miami from 10:30pm to 6am the nest day. I realized this early enough, I felt, to be able to change the flight without penalty, but no such luck. American Airlines said I'd have to buy a one-way new ticket, which would have cost as much as the original round trip ticket. No wonder it was so cheap. Anyway, I declined. Instead, I'd just have to arrive at the airport early and see if I could get a seat on an earlier flight. I wouldn't have minded the stop over if the timing were not so tight. If I had a full evening to head over to South Beach and hang with friends, eating dinner at News Cafe, and sleep in Suites on South Beach, I would have been glad to stay over. With this timing, I'm staying the Miami Airport Hotel or sleeping on the floor of the airport. I actually had to do this in Athens last year, because there was no other option, but it sucked and I was in pain for days. At 44, it's just not funny or adventurous.
The above situations were minor in comparison to a much larger issue: Financial Aid week, a tradition I roundly loathe. We counselors sit at a table in other buildings across campus, helping students. This is how is works in theory. Truthfully, I want more privacy when speaking to a student about sensitive topics than can be afforded in the foyer of the gym. Also, we really don't speak to that many students anyway. Mostly we just sit at our table, waiting to help passing students. I do like when the table is in the cafeteria; there's a Starbucks kiosk nearby. It does increase our visibility throughout campus in a direct, visceral fashion; I'm just not sure it does anything else positive. Anyway, since our forces are scattered across campus, it's hard to get time off. So, you ask, impatient for me to get to the point, are you saying that Cancun and Financial Aid Week coincided? Why yes, it did. I wasn't greatly worried; my boss knows of my wanderings. She gets annoyed at my early vacation requests, but usually honors them. I do admit I asked for the time in late January, along with every other trip until July. What can I say; I'm proactive. Although she and the counselor who organizes this event weren't happy about it, since I already spent $1800 on the flight and conference, I got the time off. I was also told that I was going to last on the list for vacation until October. I agreed, then sent my vacation requests for the rest of the year that afternoon.
Finally, the last change in my life was by far the biggest and best. I started dating someone, the previously mentioned Carrie. Our first date occurred on March 13th.; naturally, it was a Friday. Adding a new person complicates things, no matter who that person is. The notion of off-shoring your life and money is still in the fringe stage, though the idea is nibbling on the edges of early adopter status. Note I said the idea, not the execution of the idea. I doubt it will ever be anything but a curiosity to almost all, with a large portion calling it un-American to even contemplate. By the time they feel otherwise, it will be too late, but let's stay on topic. I didn't know how she'd react, so broaching the topic was difficult. She didn't immediately dismiss the notion, but I believe she's skeptical concerning my political predictions. She does seem more receptive to my economic pronunciations. However, she's much less interested in theory than I am, so she rightly wonders why I don't, well, do anything. I wish I had an answer. I should say that together we did one thing: we have a tomato, squash, and cucumber plant on her deck, and despite being stuck in small containers for too long, each is progressing nicely.
So, with my ducks in a row, my girlfriend not quite sure what all of this was about but trusting me anyway, and passport in hand, I drove myself to JFK to park to board my flight. Again, I was told that I was wasting money by not taking the train, but there's a method to my madness, and it paid off. I fully charged my phone and Kindle Fire to entertain myself during the flight and with that I boarded, fairly manic with anticipation, wondering what was in store. I thought I knew; of course I didn't.
The days and weeks leading up to Cancun were more eventful than I would have guessed. First was the surprising level of stress I had, even though financial aid wasn't really that busy. Since we were relatively slow, this cannot be considered a positive development. Does this means I'm totally burned out, unable to handle the job any more? Let's hope not. I also read the quiet as a threat to my overtime, though that fear seems to be unfounded as of this writing. I shouldn't be in a position to need overtime, but I do. Second, I reread my plane ticket, and realized I had booked an overnight flight coming home, grounding myself in Miami from 10:30pm to 6am the nest day. I realized this early enough, I felt, to be able to change the flight without penalty, but no such luck. American Airlines said I'd have to buy a one-way new ticket, which would have cost as much as the original round trip ticket. No wonder it was so cheap. Anyway, I declined. Instead, I'd just have to arrive at the airport early and see if I could get a seat on an earlier flight. I wouldn't have minded the stop over if the timing were not so tight. If I had a full evening to head over to South Beach and hang with friends, eating dinner at News Cafe, and sleep in Suites on South Beach, I would have been glad to stay over. With this timing, I'm staying the Miami Airport Hotel or sleeping on the floor of the airport. I actually had to do this in Athens last year, because there was no other option, but it sucked and I was in pain for days. At 44, it's just not funny or adventurous.
The above situations were minor in comparison to a much larger issue: Financial Aid week, a tradition I roundly loathe. We counselors sit at a table in other buildings across campus, helping students. This is how is works in theory. Truthfully, I want more privacy when speaking to a student about sensitive topics than can be afforded in the foyer of the gym. Also, we really don't speak to that many students anyway. Mostly we just sit at our table, waiting to help passing students. I do like when the table is in the cafeteria; there's a Starbucks kiosk nearby. It does increase our visibility throughout campus in a direct, visceral fashion; I'm just not sure it does anything else positive. Anyway, since our forces are scattered across campus, it's hard to get time off. So, you ask, impatient for me to get to the point, are you saying that Cancun and Financial Aid Week coincided? Why yes, it did. I wasn't greatly worried; my boss knows of my wanderings. She gets annoyed at my early vacation requests, but usually honors them. I do admit I asked for the time in late January, along with every other trip until July. What can I say; I'm proactive. Although she and the counselor who organizes this event weren't happy about it, since I already spent $1800 on the flight and conference, I got the time off. I was also told that I was going to last on the list for vacation until October. I agreed, then sent my vacation requests for the rest of the year that afternoon.
Finally, the last change in my life was by far the biggest and best. I started dating someone, the previously mentioned Carrie. Our first date occurred on March 13th.; naturally, it was a Friday. Adding a new person complicates things, no matter who that person is. The notion of off-shoring your life and money is still in the fringe stage, though the idea is nibbling on the edges of early adopter status. Note I said the idea, not the execution of the idea. I doubt it will ever be anything but a curiosity to almost all, with a large portion calling it un-American to even contemplate. By the time they feel otherwise, it will be too late, but let's stay on topic. I didn't know how she'd react, so broaching the topic was difficult. She didn't immediately dismiss the notion, but I believe she's skeptical concerning my political predictions. She does seem more receptive to my economic pronunciations. However, she's much less interested in theory than I am, so she rightly wonders why I don't, well, do anything. I wish I had an answer. I should say that together we did one thing: we have a tomato, squash, and cucumber plant on her deck, and despite being stuck in small containers for too long, each is progressing nicely.
So, with my ducks in a row, my girlfriend not quite sure what all of this was about but trusting me anyway, and passport in hand, I drove myself to JFK to park to board my flight. Again, I was told that I was wasting money by not taking the train, but there's a method to my madness, and it paid off. I fully charged my phone and Kindle Fire to entertain myself during the flight and with that I boarded, fairly manic with anticipation, wondering what was in store. I thought I knew; of course I didn't.
