Sometimes she seems to have grown overnight…

… the Lily puppy, that is.  She looks bigger than yesterday already!

So here it is Monday.  Labor Day.  Work Holiday.

I’ve been dealing with headaches since last Monday afternoon.  It started out as a migraine.  It could still be a migraine, Idunno.  Never had one last this long.

Just here it is another Monday and my head is still trying to detach itself from my body.  Oh, it’s not as bad as it was, say, on Thursday —- but when you’ve been dealing with one for this long does it really matter?

Tomorrow I am going to the gym, to a mental health appointment, to work, to a career interview mastery course, back to work, and eventually home with maybe a stop at Kroger’s on the way there. That will be quite a full day for me compared to the past week of days.

For BlogapaLOSEa I’m putting off the weigh in until tomorrow so I’ll have a weight to go with my picture.  I will only record the hopefully, but doubtful loss (note daily calorie intake verses lack of exercise).  Hey, I’m still in the game!

I’ve been laid off at work, effective October 31st, as my position is being eliminated.  The position as described in my job description.  I’m sure they will put someone in as a regular type secretary once I’m gone. 

I’m really okay with it, after all I have been looking for another job since May, and I’ll just keep on looking.  My position started out as temporary, just doing some typing and stuff, and evolved into all the awesome things I was doing before the big department reorganization and I got my new immediate boss.

He’s very likable, but sometimes I felt like he forgot I was there.  He didn’t ask me to do much for him, which was okay because I’m also support for my old boss and two other employees.  And while they are all pretty low maintenance if all four of them were needing stuff at the same time I could become very frazzled.  So, anyway, I’m thinking my new boss was expecting a more traditional type secretary when he first came to us.  I would often get the impression that such a secretary was what he was used to and preferred.

And of course there is the "pretty report" person.  I guess I was her support, too — but really it should have been the other way around.  She should have been teaching me how to do the things she didn’t want to do instead of just how to make pretty reports… 

And I’m sure that my absence record of the past 18 months or more was another big push in this position elimination.  I’ve missed a lot of work because of migraines, back problems, streph throat, cold/flus, blood sugar regulation problems, and mental illness, too.  Yup, I’m a total effing mess of health issues that were (of course) being aggravated by my being not so happy as I used to be at the office.  It’s a vicious cycle, you know.

*sigh*

Now my search will become more intense.  I’ve already begun applying for even temporary positions at UK to get some experience in other departments, but what I’m really looking for at UK and elsewhere in town is a more creative type position.  Another position with UK would be ideal — I need my health coverage just like anyone else (maybe more).

I’ll be eligible for unemployment, but I’m gonna assume that doesn’t make up the total financial and benefits package I’m in right now.  I’ve a feeling it’s about equal to disability payments sans the health insurance.

My mental health professional has suggested to me, more than once over the past few months, that maybe I should consider just returning to my disability status.

But I like working!  I really do. 

A long time ago in a land far, far …

Back in the 90′s when I applied for disability I really didn’t think I would get approved, even though I have more than one disability.  I just thought since I’d always been working…  So I was pretty surprised when I was approved — and so quickly, too.  I mean, I heard of the denial and long appeal process, but my claim was approved and I was receiving benefits in no time.

Still, when I finally got this job at UK it was because I was missing working that badly.  I’d been looking for a job for a couple of years already and was hoping to get on at UK.  I had a couple of part-time jobs in between, but I knew I didn’t want to make either one of them a permanent position for myself.

I think my therapist keeps suggesting returning to disability because my health issues get in the way of my working so much.  I think so, too.  Which is why I’m also hoping to find the perfect work-at-home solution for myself.

If I were dealing with a migraine I could continue to wear my ice bags on my head and put on dark sunglasses to get through tasks on the computer.  I know I would look ridiculous, but I’d be at home so it wouldn’t matter.

If it was back pain keeping me home then I’d just work at the computer from my hubby’s reclining chair.  Not so much pain when I’m that position!

Okay, colds, the flu, and stuff like that could slow me down at working from home; but even when you’re down with one of those you could still get some work done from home.  It would prolly be at a really pathetic pace, but some work would be better than no work.

Like if you’d been down for two days and sleeping a lot, but now it’s 11 o’clock at night and you’re feeling pretty good and wide awake from sleeping so much — perfect time to catch up on some work!

I couldn’t do one of those call center jobs from home — I have three dogs in the house and one never knows when barking will commence.  Plus, I hate talking on the phone. 

It would be awesome if my little hobby business could pick up enough work to support me and pay for medical insurance, too — but there is so much competition out there for website development (and professional web designers at that) I don’t see that happening at all.  It would also mean having to really raise my prices which would also cut down on opportunities…