Sh*t Storm

I have always said if you're going to have a bad week, go all out.  I do believe (and hope) that this is one for the record books, never to be repeated.  Shit tsunami.

It's been a year since I've felt the need to write.  Sometimes it was because I was struggling, sometimes it was because I was happy, but then it was because it had been so long that I felt out of touch with my own blog.  This past week left me feeling the need to sort it out and write it down.  It might help -- can't hurt.

Yesterday's election was enough to put this week into the top 10 of worst weeks.  How such an awful, ridiculous excuse for a human being can lead our country is beyond me, but the fallout remains to be seen.  R and I decided that whatever happens during the next four years will be due to the errors in judgement of others, so at least we can watch the parade without guilt.  Little comfort but better than nothing.

One of the other parts of the shitty week began when my boss resigned from his position on Monday.  He had applied for the position above him (a VP that reports to the University President) and was one of the final three candidates.  He found out last Friday that he was not selected (in fact no one was and the search is reopened) and immediately went home.  His resignation was announced on Monday.  

On the surface, this is what happened.  This is what I told my staff and what most of the University knows.  The truth is there is much more to this story that made the resignation even harder for me.  I always liked my boss and hoped to work for him until I retire.  He respected my work, forgave me my errors, and trusted me to do my job.  I appreciated his patience with my questions and the fact that he never made me feel bad when I messed up.  I admired his intellect and ability to see the big picture.  He really was easy to work for, even when my job was hard.

The difficult part is that he messed up, in ways that he never should have.  He left and took my respect along with him.  He also took a lot of knowledge with him because delegating was not his strong suit.  We are scrambling now to figure things out but my hope is that we will learn, grow, and improve over time.  I've been through baptisms by fire before, and I came through stronger in the end.  I think the University will find a way to a better place with this very important position.  We have no choice.

Speaking of this very important position, I have already had several people ask me if I plan on applying for his job.  I am not remotely qualified but am flattered that there are those that think I could do it.  When I assure them that I have no desire (I really don't) and am not qualified (I'm not) then they express relief.  That's a compliment, right?  I'll take it.

The last part of my own private tsunami is the resurfacing of my right cornea this week.  I told R that when having your eyeball scraped and sanded down is the BEST thing to happen in a week, that's a pretty shitty week!  Yesterday I had the surgical procedure done because of recurring corneal erosion on my right eye, and now it will be healing over the next few months.  Amazingly, I was seeing more clearly almost immediately, so I am optimistic that this will allow me to postpone the looming cataract surgery for a while.  (For the past year, I have had a gray, lacy veil in the vision of my right eye that is now gone!)  The hardest part of my recovery will be to take it easy while it is healing because I really feel fine.  I have to remind myself that it is delicate and needs some time to let the cornea regenerate a new surface.  I am supposed to be off the rest of this week so it will be a challenge to rest, especially with the challenges now present at work.

So that's it -- my official worst week ever.  A friend reminded me it's only Wednesday and I almost threw up.