School Days, School Days!

Yesterday I was contemplating talking about the first day of school - how it went for the girls, the chaos and agony of school supply lists and the odd calm that's come over me when I do lunch making prep.  However, as you can see by yesterday's abruptly ending post, I had other things in mind that I wanted to talk about before bringing on the school post.

First off....It's so hard to believe that god, was it three years ago(?) that I posted this lil post about the Diva's first day of kindergarten!  She started the third grade on Monday with a male teacher!  Perhaps it's the schools I went to, but I never had one till high school. Mr. Banks, 9th grade US Govt.  Ugh...why do I even remember that? Anyhow - we met him on meet the teacher night and he seems like a nice enough sort of bloke - last last year's teacher, I think he's an older one in regards to years on the job.  It's going to prove interesting how the school year turns out.

If a 3rd grader wasn't crazy enough, the Elfling is in Jr. High!  Omg, I feel so old just typing that....but then on Monday, I was talking to an old friend and bloody hell - she has a junior in high school! Regardless - the move from an intermediate school to junior high is a big thing...a bit like going from the county jail to Leavenworth.  You don't even have to ask the Elfling if that's her opinion, it's a bit of mine! I would think the point of 7th and 8th grade is to prepare them for increasing Independence as they get into high school and beyond.  Surprisingly, the dress code is MORE strict than in elementary and intermediate grades.  They're not allowed use backpacks during the school day, once you sit somewhere at lunch, you're stuck there till released to go to class and no going to your locker right when you get to school.  You have to wait around doing...who knows what, where (ok, this bad on my part, as I haven't gotten exact details, beyond outside).  I don't know if this really drives home how...I don't know...reined in these kids are but some of these thins just sound really asinine.  Are all kids this age seen as monsters? 

The Elfling's first few days have been spent struggling over getting into her locker - it's got a lock built in and I'm beginning to wonder if this is a lefty issue she's having.  Yesterday went better as she was able to get it open twice.  I hope it's just stress of a new place, new people all around and nerves getting the better of her.  She's been stuck near cretins at lunch and yakkity assed girls in class. Despite her overwhelming negativity to the situation, I've heard glimmers of hope from her - interesting people in her class and perhaps even interest in her classes, so we'll see.

Part of going to Leavenworth, of course, was getting her supplied for the stay.  What a bloody pain in the arse.  We're talking seven teachers with seven ideas that they need full supply lists for one class each...i mean one teacher alone wanted something like 72 pencils!  Mein gott!!  I think they're going to build a wing to the school or something with them.  I get the need for school supplies but why does one teacher want my daughter to have three bags of red pens?  What really pissed me off was all these things I bought?  How much came home with the declaration - "I didn't even need this crap,ugh!"  Poor kid...no backpack and she was lugging said crap all damn day. 

This year the girls seem pretty keen on bringing their lunches.  For the first days of school, I think it's a smart move as with all the chaos these days can have, at least they know they've got lunch.  The first day report on the matter proved me right - the Elfling said the lines were long so she was happy to have something yummy from home.  The Diva sounds like she's got the last lunch of the day - who knows what's left by then!  I'm kind of jealous, actually.  Today they're feasting on leftover pasta and sauce packed (with grumpy love from a tired daddy) in their thermoses...what do I have?  My standard carrot sticks and pb crackers.  *laughs*  Ah well - they're calling to me, so I'm going to nibble while the phone is quiet.

Busy...

I'm so busy, my head is spinning.  The irony of that is the fact that it's so bloody quiet here at work today.  *laughs*  Labour Day probably marks the end of summer for most of us but since school starts before then, it definitely looks over here at the hotel.  (For those of you who are Frisky Dingo enthusiasts, feel free to end a dramatic pause before "the hotel".  I certainly did.) But before we came to that point, things were getting kinda crazy rt with getting the girls ready for school and the car accident.

Car accident!  Yeah...It actually happened what will be two weeks ago on Wednesday.  All in all we were very lucky that nobody was seriously hurt - the girls were scared witless and E walked away with a bruised hand.  Getting insurance resolved seemed to move at a glacial pace but now that we know what's going on with the rental and who's taking care of the truck, it's a lot calmer around the house. In regards to the rental?  After nearly three years of having a truck, the switch over to a car is insane. I feel almost claustrophobic around other cars, near trucks and vans taller than me.  Good thing I'll never be rich and have my sweet lil BMW Z4...or whatever delightful sports car they come up with in the future cause it'd be to tiny for my tastes!

ahem...I'm sure that's just a moment of sanity.

...That the Joke was on Me....

How many of you guys get that line - that it's a song lyric?  I don't know that it's actually a reflection of things so much is that it's a song that sounds depressing to me and that, my friends, is now I'm feeling right now.  It's been super busy at work these days.  We had someone quit and that kinda bungled up the schedule and then last week, i got one day off (Friday) and was back to work the next day.  So we have me here today, just dying for some more time, which I will get in the form of a four day weekend. A MUCH needed one, I might add.

I really do like my job, even when people are a pain.  Gods, the stories I could tell you - particularly about a certain sports team that stayed with us.  But to be honest?  I just don't have the heart for it right now cause the last couple of days have been rough and I think it's my own doing.  I've been having issues with a particular process - I guess you could say that I've struggled with it from the start though it never got this out of hand.  I'm no longer so new that these mistakes are acceptable and it's become very frustrating.  For my boss. Trust me, I don't blame him in the least - Im' frustrated too and more than just a little disappointed in myself. 

I've doubled down on my notes, taking new ones and adding to my old ones as needed.  With my long weekend, I'm going to use the online training features to shore up my shakiness as well because I definitely need it. One of my biggest problems is that I simultaneously get ahead of myself and freak out, so my notes include this:

Take the time to look at things. 

To be certain of what you are doing and where your actions will take you.

I should have perhaps added stuff about staying calm and to remember to breathe. 

Ugh..maybe the joke IS on me.

The Crazy Week

That really sums up last week rather nicely.  Sunday snowballed into a real mess by Wednesday in regards to rooms to clean vs housekeepers on staff on any given day.  Wednesday was definitely the worst of it.  By the time my shift was over at 3pm, I saw a total of three rooms ready for the more than three guests we had scheduled to show up.  Maybe it shouldn't be in my place to worry over such a thing - I know some people would say that at least.  But this how I see it:  I am the front line of the hotel and the provider of rooms.  If I don't have the rooms or have people waiting, it looks bad and puts people in a bad mood.  Luckily, by Thursday, things looked like they were better in regards to our room issue.

I was talking with the night auditor yesterday and it turned out he had a bit of a wild weekend....well...our guests did at least... that included two naked women streaking through our lobby in some sort of drunken state.  By the sounds of it, there was a lot of that going on - drunken states, I mean.  Considering some of the characters I have to deal with, I'm really quite glad I don't have to deal with what goes on around here at night *laughs*

Speaking of characters, I have three to share with you guys this morning.  To be honest, I think this must have have all happened on Wednesday.  It was as if the powers that be looked down upon me having this sweet moment with a puppy and smote me by tainting the rest of the day.  Btw, it really was a cute moment! 

So victim number one called to confirm rooms that she'd apparently cancelled (in a drunken haze, perhaps?) back in the beginning of the month.  She had no recollection of it despite the tracking back to her calling the 800 number and confirmation numbers to the effect that she had, indeed, cancelled these rooms.  I don't know why, but over the course of the conversation, she admitted to calling them half a dozen times about these rooms so it sounds quite plausible, that she lost her mind and cancelled.  Unfortunately, so close to the reservation dates, I couldn't reinstate the reservations - we were booked!  I really felt for her....even if she did start crying about how I ruined her life and weekend.

Wow, now that I look up at that first caller, victim seems to be wrong....tormentor, perhaps?  Goof?  Even better!  Subject number two has a reservation- great! They are part of a group checking on on Xday and rather casually mentioned they were going to check in on Yday.  Uh...hello - your reservation is for Xday, if you want to show up on Yday, you need to make a reservation for that day - and you know...pay the price for that night.  *eyeroll* 

And finally, we have the person who checked in knowing he could have his room for four days but wanted it for five.  Everyday he came in checking to see if there was a cancellation that would let him keep his room for the extra day - a smart move!  However aggressively suggesting I "bump" someone so he could keep his room was a bit selfish, if you ask me.  Regardless, I wasn't authorized to make that sort of move and in the end, it looks like he got what he wanted.  Saving grace, I suppose, is the drunken women who were so belligerent at 6am about losing their room (and being given a different type of room), were downright chirpy hours later when they checked out.  Eh, go figure.

As you can all maybe see, it was another full week for me, which makes me grateful that I'm back to my regular schedule this week and gods know I need that with E actually having his CT scan this week.  Though you know what I didn't touch on?  My anniversary.  It was also on Thursday.  *laughs*

Friday, Interrupted

All I wanted last night was a moment of dark quiet to help abate my headache before drifting off to sleep.  While sometimes the best laid plans go awry, really badly made ones are a miracle if they go right.  So I was out of luck but thank goodness I generally am fast to fall asleep. And up 6 hours later forcing myself to get more sleep cause I went to bed too early, it seems.  Silly me...

Routines are a big thing for me, more than I care to admit cause I think it makes me look more a rigid person when I like to think that I'm really a go with the flow personality.  But let's break down yesterday because while I was simmered under light and noise, the final thought before drifting off to dream was a pondering of what my day looks like on paper.  A terrifying undertaking in the blistering light of day because my not so secret fear is that I'm going to show myself to be things people insist I'm not.

5am marks the start of my day and already it's good since I managed to get out of bed without stepping on Freya who tends to sleep by my side.  With work at 7, I get plenty of time to get ready for it and have my quiet time.  Can a person meditate over skinning?  I think so.  My mind clears as I hack and slash my way through creatures, part of the mantra of peeling and walking off to the next kill.  It's not as methodical as mining or flower picking but the peace is there, setting the pace for a calm start.

6:15 am and were off and running - with the girls out of town, I'm responsible for feeding the pets.  Scooping kitty kibble into Odin's bowl reminds me to snag a granola bar to tuck in my purse with my carrots. With E up and ready, I get a ride into  work so that he can run an errand this morning. 

7am is the official start of my shift and it always starts with counting out my drawer and matching up the in house list to the registration list.  Between checking out guests and taking calls, I look over the incoming list of housekeeping staff vs how many rooms.

I've been doing really well with my habit of taking sips of water every time I get up.  I'm always jumping up to do something so I'm always taking sips.  A serving of nuts marks my breakfast taken till about 10am.

By noon everybody who's checking out is gone, FedEx has paid me a visit and I've gone through a round of marking dirty rooms as cleaned.  It's been a steady stream of reservations being made, changed and cancelled coupled with a check in or two.

Afternoon's passing with relative peace as I read between nibbles on my carrots.  I lament over a piece of poetry I've started a bit before tidying up the desk.  I like to hit up frequently touched areas with disinfectant once a week and have to run the vacuum every day.  Nicely tidied up, I tuck into more reading for the last hour of my shift.

2pm and a frantic call comes in from my relief.  In the end my shift extends for an additional hour to hour and a half.  Between the phone going crazy and people checking in, I think towards the end I think cracks were beginning to show in my smile.

430pm found me on the way home to my ecstatic puppy.  Too ecstatic as she barely let me get changed out of my work clothes before giving me hugs and kisses.  She finally let me collapse on the couch after I played with her.

6ish?  Ish!?!  Heh...we'll see who amoung you figures that one out.  I dealt with dishes, started laundry and did some picking up while fixing dinner.

740pm and my Friday's interrupted before it even gets to start.  *sighs*

It's the Fourth....Tra-la-la

What's a real shame is what today really means to people.  Before I left for Germany back in 2004, I was listening to a program where someone was going around asking people about the significance of today and the answers were shocking.  It's not about the weekend long sales, the fireworks display, the picnics and bbqs.  It's about celebrating the birth of this nation!

Of course...I'm sure I had some sort of speech that would have had me standing up before my keyboard, heart filled with pride and awe for the nation's history and all that jazz but dear gods...I'm just too tired to try to recreate the feeling I had hours ago. 

"Krieger-San, my cherry blossoms are wilting!"  Yeah...I just had to softball a lil Archer in here...Wilting indeed, only I'm the blossoms. Bloody hell, it's just barely past noon and already I cannot WAIT to get my ass home, nearly naked and just...dead on the couch. 

How is it today was harder than yesterday - there were more checks outs then than today and yet...ugh...people today have just left me downright knackered.  Let's see if we can count the ways...

People who come in at peek checkout hour wanting to see a room.  They're part of a group that's going to be staying with us and yet was not entirely clear (to themselves) what name(s) the group was under.  Bless their hearts, I was running my arse off and they remained quite patient about it. 

I'm still not sure partially eaten tin of Danish butter cookies is peace offering enough after yelling at me cause prices aren't what you expected.  Or that infernal tapping while I frantically tried to sort the problem out while dealing with the phone. 

When checking out of multiple rooms...seriously...you should make sure that EVERYBODY in those rooms is AWAKE and LEAVING!  Saves the maid having a heart attack when she goes to clean a checked out room only to find bodies still on the floor. 

I don't get how someone can call here, speak really good English and want to talk to someone who's Spanish speaking.  Dude, if you know enough to understand ask, perfectly about rooms, it's not much more than that to make a bloody reservation.  However, since you do want assistance, accept that you're going to be on hold with our reservation line - they will help you!  Stop hanging up on them and calling me in hopes that I've magically learned enough Spanish to be fluent enough to help you!!

Oh and the worst of the bunch....my boss was being a regular Dante Hicks. I think I would have burst out laughing when he told me he wasn't supposed to be here today but since he was growling all pissed off about it, I instead was on edge and just waiting for him to sprout a second head and bite mein off.  Wait, I mean him biting my only head, not that I have a second one for him to bite off.  Ironically enough, he was damn chipper after leaving when he called to ask me to check on something....bugger.

ugh...so this post has just turned into one great big bitchfest...I feel a bit better though...getting all that crap off my chest.  What do you guys thing....am i being a bitchy fae, a bad worker fae or just...a fae who managed to smile sweetly, greet enthusiastically and be overall cheerful despite the stressful morning.  Ugh...prolly a combo of all three....

Habitual Habits

This is something that has been bothering me for quite some time - of how hard it is to get into a good habit, how easy it is to break and how VERY easy it is to start back up with bad habits. 

This time last year I'd managed to to start a very good habit of writing just a little bit everyday.  Well, by everyday, I mean four or so times a week.  Sometimes I'd eke out the time during quiet moments at work and sometimes, I'd get that 15 minutes of quiet that would manage to stretch to 30 or 40 minutes.  It was just blissful for me - such an accomplishment.  Until we realize that when I write, I do so on pen and paper instead of at my computer which has left me with partial notebooks filled with script that goes from relatively neat to downright illegible and littered with lil doodles.  Gods bless my friends for their encouragement - to get me back into the writing bug but it's really been slow going. I think the fact that I'm sitting here right now, doing just that, writing here is a start but I really think the habit I also need to form is getting the typing down. 

Looking over things, I think I have to admit, I can be a bit OCD about some things and not just about how i load and unload my grocery cart (thus being a bit picky about how i put the bags back in and load them into the truck for the ride home) -I like to have some aspects of my day scheduled out.  That's why I'm up at 5am nearly every morning.  I don't like a bit rush to work so getting up early allows me to indulge in the quiet of  taking care of Meister Penguin! or farming.  Much like how I like to do a load of laundry a day (hard to do with no kids around lol) or my lists of things to do that i make out nearly every day. It's a bit of rigidity in my free flowing way. 

My irritation at getting some actual typing done has lately increased because I've found myself really working on proper hydration.  Specifically at work, I've found that every time I get up, I stop to sip my water.  I was doing that this morning and couldn't help but berate myself.  Why this and not that? 

I think I need to stop beating myself up about it.  I work, in what some circles consider, a full time job.  I do most the housekeeping, all the laundry, nearly all the cooking and take care of my family.  If I'm a lil tired after all that, then maybe I shouldn't stress over yet another thing.

And of course, try to get some of that damn typing up tomorrow....my day off.  lol