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avoidance: the underrated option
By heather | September 11, 2008
If you’ve been reading closely (and you should be because it’s not like I’m posting thesis material or that I’m posting volumes of scintillating content) you may have picked up on my mention of a lack of employment post maternity leave.
That’s being a bit dramatic, since I am a consultant. Consultants move from contract to contract a lot which is perfect for me because I can’t stand to work anywhere for more than 18 months or so. The client I was working with decided not to renew the contract for next year which means in consulting world I am “on the bench”.
(Note: While I won’t miss the client at all, I am royally pissed off that I have to give up a day of unpaid maternity leave to go turn in my badge and check out. Which on second thought, screw that…I’m charging them the day I go in to outprocess. If they didn’t want me back they should have thought of it before I went on leave. Or they should be willing to let me mail back my badge and be done with it.)
Anwyay, now I have to find a contract. This is made more difficult by the fact that I am a princess about my commute - I refuse to cross the tunnel or travel more than 30 miles.
In any other circumstance, I would LOOOVE a fresh start. But the thought of a new contract right now is stressing me out. Normally when you come back from a maternity leave, everyone you work with is welcoming and wants to talk babies and see pictures.
Most importantly they are willing to cut you some slack when you decide at 2pm that you can’t stand to be away from the babas for one more second and tear out of there to go pick them up early.
Or come in late.
Or break down in tears at your desk.
Or commandeer an office for 30 minutes twice a day to pump.
I will not have that cushion. I now have to prove that I am dependable and sharp to an entirely new group of people.
Which is difficult when your suit doesn’t quite button and there is milk leaking out your boobs and you’ve had 45 minutes of sleep.
Now for my next problem. I potentially have two offers. (I know…waaaah.)
The first is work that I would probably enjoy and in my field, but is onsite and 40 minutes away with relatively structured hours. (Structure=sucky)
The second is only an option because I know someone on the hiring team who is willing to take a chance. I have a little experience doing the type of work, but it’s not in my field. It isn’t even a firm offer yet and may not become one. But…but! If it works out, once I get trained I COULD WORK FROM HOME. (Hears angels sing…)
If I worked from home, we could keep doing our tiny tot gym classes. (Last week I broke out in tears as I watched Alex run around because he has so much fun and soon we won’t be able to do it anymore and waaah again.)
I might be able to get to the gym more than once a week. (Which could facilitate my suits buttoning and also lessen my desire to get back on the meds or drink wine at inappropriate times.)
Right now, I’m studiously avoiding my work email. Sitting in my inbox like little flaming turds are emails from my boss and from my potential boss with job number 1 wondering what I’m going to do.
Avoidance.
That’s what I’m going to do.
Topics: Uncategorized |
September 11th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
I really hope you get that second offer so you can stay home. I use avoidance in a lot of things too so dont feel bad!
Miss’s last blog post..Holy Blogger Weekend Batman - Pt. 2
September 13th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Sometimes avoidance is a good thing, like in that Kevin Bacon movie that I can’t think of the name right now but he’s a writer and he goes away for the weekend and while he’s gone there’s a bidding war on his screenplay that keeps going up and up because everyone thinks he’s selling it to someone else. By the end of the movie he gets top dollar and gets to make his movie.
So see, totally a good thing. Hope offer #2 comes through.
skiplovey’s last blog post..He’s got my heartstrings wrapped around his pinky finger
September 13th, 2008 at 10:04 am
Here’s hoping! I’ve avoided reading most of my blogs this week. But that’s a good thing right?
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