A New Job Opportunity

This wasn't the first time I started a new job on a Friday and if you were to sit me down a year ago and tell me, 

"Val, you will be in a different position, in a different program area, making 46% more money a year..."

I would have called you crazy and seriously laughed in your face. The reasons?  To start off, nothing like this happens to me, especially with work. I have been working from home for almost six years, had little to no contact with anyone at headquarters, therefore, not networking or putting myself out there. I was doing the same mundane thing with no advancement; my supervisor was taking things away making my day and my position less challenging than it used to be when I first started in that unit and I was just going through the motions at that point. I desperately needed a change. But, how? How do I blindly go into another job and hope that it's a good fit?

The decision to send one text to check-in about two years before started this whole chain of events. I had little to no expectation when I sent it because I wasn't sure if they even wanted to talk to me, let alone want me back into their life. I just wanted to rekindle a friendship that I missed due to a miscommunication and some unfortunate events.

Anyway, I believe it took a lot of courage on both sides to even start communicating again and once we did, it got easier and easier every day, but I know it will never be the same. Those days are long gone. We are older, been through different life changing things and here we are now, a chance to move forward.

The DJA was a good change of pace for me. I was able to be in the office once a week, meet new people, network and learn a new program area the best I possibly could. Of course, I hoped that it turned into a job opportunity but at that point, I was happy just to get a chance to do something different and fill my afternoons with actual work.

But a job opening did show up at the beginning of January and I got excited. I knew I would have to earn it. Nothing is guaranteed. I tried to learn as much as my DJA allowed. I asked questions and I tried to understand why we did the things we did in that unit. I started working on my resume, cover letter and going over possible interview questions. I wanted to be prepared for when the job posted.

I was given just enough information to keep it ethical. I also was taking a two-week vacation to Europe with Ben during this time. I was hoping that when the job posted, it didn't close while I was gone. I did worry about that. Luckily, it did post while I was gone but it didn't close until a few days after we returned. I was able to come home and put the finishing touches on it and send it off. I hoped for the best.

After a nerve-wracking interview and waiting until the end of March. I was told I got the job and I could feel all the nervous energy disappear. Except, it came with another problem that was out of my control. I will not go into specifics, but we did have to report someone to HR for their behavior.

My first day was interesting. Since it was a Friday, we were at home and for the next several weeks I would be in training with my new supervisor learning the other things I didn't do during the DJA. That included more of the challenging emails in the shared inbox, settlements, more wage releases, RTR's, refund requests, special projects and eventually citations and determinations. This unit did a lot for being so small and understaffed.

I know this sounds weird but after several years of not being challenged, bored out of my mind, being isolated and micromanaged, this new job was a literal breath of fresh air. I do believe that there is the right place at the right time for everyone. The stars had to align just right for this opportunity to present itself. This was the first time in my state career I felt like I was in a position that mattered and being treated how we should be treated as people. The best part is my supervisor lets us do our job!

We have several goals we'd like to get accomplished as the year goes on but the main one is to get some of the things we do in our unit caught up to at least monthly or weekly. I am sure we will hit several hiccups along the way, but we were determined. We might even get another team member within the year or so and possibly a 5th person bilingual position to fill eventually.

Here's to the new job opportunity and a chance to make positive changes to the unit!

New Adventure: A Squaxin Park Geocaching Event and Adventure

Easter

We were excited to finally have a little kid to do Easter with this year. Ben and I had to go to the storage unit to grab our Easter baskets, the eggs and the rest of the decorations. I spent the few weeks before Easter going to the Dollar Tree grabbing goodies for Easter baskets. Some people are harder to shop for than others. I go through this every year, and it sucks. I asked if everyone was okay with having BBQ chicken and everyone was good with it. Beans, fruit, potato salad and chips would be served with it. Mom said she would make cupcakes and provide some Cutie oranges.

Ben and I assembled the baskets about a week before Easter. I made sure everyone had a couple things in their basket. We kept them in the extra bedroom so the kitties wouldn't get into them...because they would, if we didn't put them away.

I went to the store to grab the final touches for the Easter baskets and the stuff for dinner. Grocery shopping always takes a huge chunk of the day away. I hate traffic, lines and wandering around the store with people in the way. Shopping shouldn't take that long, but it does. I went home and Ben helped me unload and put stuff away. We spent some time cleaning out the grill since it sat all winter long with the cover over it. It's another job I hate doing but it needs to be done.

I was hoping that we would be spared from rain on Sunday. There was a chance of it, and I hope that chance was slim to none. But with my luck, it will only rain when we were outside looking for baskets and eggs. I got together with Dad a couple days before Easter, so he could get some change to put in the plastic eggs. I had some change set aside and he brought over a sack of quarters, nickels and dimes while I was working one afternoon. Later on, that day, I got the eggs out and divvied them up into the eggs along with the candy eggs. Mom contributed a couple gift cards for our big prize eggs. Those would be harder to find.

The day of, we got up, ate a light breakfast to get us through the morning and started finishing up the house. Ben got the BBQ all fired up and started cooking the chicken about an hour before everyone started to arrive. I got the serving table ready and put the tablecloths on the tables. I put the Easter baskets outside on the back table and now we were just waiting for people to arrive.

Trish, Ed and Amy arrived with the potato salad, Mom and Grandma Karen brought their stuff, Erika, Zac and Brian arrived next and then Dad, Doug and Sonya. The chicken got done as soon as the last people arrived, so it was still hot. I told everyone the food was ready and to come grab a plate. The food frenzy began.  We chatted about all kinds of stuff. I shared more information about my new job that started later on that week, Doug was still trying to find work and had some leads, and I really need to get a highchair for Brian when he is at our house.

We finished up food, Trish and Grandma pitched in with the dishes while Ben and I went outside to hide the Easter baskets and the eggs. We were all excited for Brian to push his wagon around looking for eggs. He was getting better at walking but still needed something to keep him steady. Erika had also put a cute bunny button up shirt on him. I found some bubbles in our garage that Grammie bought years ago. 

Ben and I finished hiding everything and went back inside and got everyone's attention since somebody didn't listen to the rules last year. I explained the rules and made sure everyone was crystal clear on how we were going to do it. I gave them the yard boundaries and told them nothing was hidden inside the vehicles. We all went outside and of course the only time it rained was when we were looking for our baskets and eggs. Luckily, it was brief.

Brian was adorable pushing his wagon around. We made sure his basket was easy to get while Erika helped him find eggs. Sonya brought over some real eggs that she filled with confetti (cascarones). You smash them over your head to bring good luck in the upcoming year. This is something she did with her family growing up and decided to share it with us this year. It was fun and there were confetti pieces everywhere! I pushed Brian around in his wagon on the cul-de-sac and he had a blast! We also played with bubbles!

We gathered for the family picture before it was time for everyone to head home to get ready for the upcoming work week. It should be an automatic day off for everyone after a major holiday on a Sunday. Everyone came into the house and unloaded their eggs and basket into a bag. I put the Easter baskets back into the large garbage bag and everyone thanked us for a good time.

Ben and I cleaned up afterwards and put everything away. The late afternoon was nice, so I took a post-Easter walk around the park. It was nice to get some exercise after spending the last few days getting the house ready for a family gathering. 

I am excited to see how Brian will respond to Easter next year. Happy Easter everyone!

Next Adventure: Friday: Girl's Weekend - Leavenworth