Wait (weight) off

Lots of wait (weight) issues came to a head today. And I feel lighter.

I'm feeling better, digestively speaking, but still a little tender in the gut. I weighed myself this morning and was down 5 pounds! I don't know when I weighed myself last, but still. However, I'm sure the weight loss came to an abrupt end today because I also felt like eating lunch for the first time in days. So I did.....lots. But whatever, at least I felt like eating. Wish I could summon the suppressed appetite whenever I need to, but I guess you can't have it all.

I still haven't heard about the new job, but I am aware that if I was a slam dunk candidate I think I would have heard by now. So I'm moving forward on the assumption that no news is "NO" news. And I'm really good with that (with a hint of relief). After all, how was I going to get home over a half-hour lunch and let the pugs out? How was I going to start work an hour earlier than I do now and still get in my morning walk? How was I going to be able to take off when the new grandchild arrives in July?

So today I had a conversation with my boss and revealed the fact that I'm planning to move on. We may be undergoing some changes and transitions at the office, equipment and otherwise, and I felt it was time to let him know. It went exceptionally well, which I can either attribute to (a) my ability to make him understand my point of view or (b) the fact that he was wanting to cut me loose anyway. For the sake of self-esteem, let's go with (a).

Here's what will go down. If we end up making changes at the office, I'll be there to help with the transition, set up, etc., then will move on. If we end up doing nothing, I'll be moving on. Either way, I move, but it's with full disclosure, a good reference, and the freedom to apply and interview with people and businesses who also know my employers. Believe me, that has stopped me in the past. And the ability to talk about my plans has lifted a weight off my shoulders.

I now know I have an out, and almost any situation can be worked through if you know it will come to and end. I'm also a horrible liar (meaning I'm horrible at lying), so when I'm asked in job interviews why I'm leaving my current position, I trip over myself trying to make it understood that I want to make a change without letting the bitterness come through. I even practice what I'm going to say, but I never quite get it right. I either say too much or am too cryptic, which is compounded by the fact they cannot contact my current employer. Now it will be easy because all I have to say is I'm looking for more hours, possibility of advancement, etc. You need a reference? Call my boss. I don't have to be a pissed off employee looking for something else because I'm not pissed off any longer. I guess it was the hidden agenda that was pissing me off.

On a completely different subject which has left me inordinately proud of myself, I worked on an old PC at the office today, one that is used by law clerks, trying to get a few more months out of it. It had been shutting itself off for no reason and after trying umpteen different things, including switching out the pc's, memory, cords, monitors, outlets, router ports, and disabling Symantec, I finally narrowed it down to the printer. Once I unplugged it from the computer (not just turned it off) everything worked fine. I installed another little printer we had sitting around and it still worked. I'm very proud that I figured it out and slightly chagrined that it took me the better part of the day to do so. But in my office, applying myself to the task, figuring it out, putting the computer all back together (with added memory stolen from an unused PC) is light years ahead of what anyone else could even attempt. So even though my attempts are clumsy at best, they still look pretty good in comparison.

A good day.