The in Between

     I haven't had time off of work like this since my dad passed away almost 7 years ago. Being home due to an injury is different than being off for a  death in the family. I had always hoped I would have extended time off for maternity leave but alas life is full of surprises.
      It took me a little bit to be at peace with my situation. Bone healing takes time and nurturing. As much as I would like it to be healed yesterday I know it takes time.
      My favorite line people spout is to enjoy my time off. I don't miss work but I would not call having a fractured shoulder enjoyable. Its not the worst thing in the world but I would much prefer to have extended time off for a fun reason. Broken bones hurt and make it hard to sleep without waking up a gillion times.  For me an awesome vacation includes good sleeping. I'm also not such a homebody. I like being out and about.
     Its easy to get swallowed up by work responsibilities and forget to nurture one's social life . A shoulder injury is quite a reminder. Being social is important to well being as much as being able to afford one's life. Being social makes life worth living. Right now I'm not really social or working. I am speaking to good friends more often which is something I must continue once I recover. As much as I would like to socialize right now I really need to rest up. When I am all better I will be back on the merry-go-round. Some of my perspective has changed but so much is easier said than  done.

The Fragility of Life.

 I haven't posted in awhile.  I wasn't sure that I had wanted to share what has been going on with me . Although I have a blog I am a private person. Alas I opted to share.
  A week and a half ago I fell and broke my shoulder. Some  random people helped me off of the street restoring my faith in mankind.
   Having an injury forces a person to slow down and think about life. Aside from resolving to be a better money saver it made me aware of the fact that aside from  my actual paycheck and insurance I don't miss work AT ALL.  I don't even miss my work friends which actually surprised me . Before the accident I longed to work part time but felt it would be hard financially. Now that this has occurred I know that when I return to work it will be part time for awhile before I am able to resume full time. I don't think that wanting to have a break or work part time is why I fell but I do assume it was meant to be that I have a break from work right now and having a shoulder injury was the way it was made to happen.
     Being out of work also helped me realize though its easy to spend too much , its also painless to be thrifty ,
     Though I enjoy living alone, I see how having a roommate could be helpful in this situation.        
    With Hashem's help I will be back to my old self sooner than later. Meanwhile I am catching up on my netflix queue.

Multiculturalism at its Best

     I work in an office with a very diverse cultural environment. It is so diverse that all but two of the "white" people are Jewish.
    After many years of working in a culturally diverse environment one learns to be very careful of what one says about racial differences. Or more accurately one NEVER speaks of anything that could be misconstrued as being racist in any way shape or form. One learns that EVERYONE is bigoted about some group and that darker skinned people analyze their skin tone more than any  white person ever could imagine.
     One also learns that most of the affirmative action multicultural casts get it wrong. When working in an office with as many cultures as the United Nations its more of a matter of fact  than an issue . Of course the office I work in is multi-cultural as happenstance , not because they set out to make it so.
     My thoughts on working in a multi-cultural environment? Its quite nice . One gets to learn a lot about other cultures. Those I work with have learned more about Orthodox Judaism than they ever thought they would.
      The thing is America is very multicultural though sometimes it appears to be just white or black. Its really quite a shame. There really are many cultures in the United States though the media seems to focus on their agendas.

How Much Do You Care?

      Work is always a game of chess where one is always trying to choose the best strategies, It is also where I hone my  drama skills.
     There is a new employee where I work. I took one look at her and knew I did not like her and then realized as much as I did not like her I knew that I had to pretend with all my might  to fake friendliness toward her. Thank goodness that was my instinct. Turns out she is on the paranoid side and thinks people are talking about her when she leaves the room. I barely remember she works in my office when she is in a different room and she thinks everyone is talking about her when she leaves the room .Figures.
      I never think that anyone is talking about me when I am not in the room. When I walk into a room and people stop talking I just figure they are talking about something personal instead of about  moi. But that's just me.If I actually heard my name mentioned I might think differently, but otherwise I'm oblivious. I just don't think that I am the most popular topic of discussion among my co-workers.

Time To Smell The Roses

     Some weekends I am really over scheduled. I am so tired that I need another weekend to recuperate. Other weekends I have more free time. It seems however whenever I say that I am just relaxing instead of with solid plans I feel that I am being judged. Why haven't I something special to do every moment of the weekend? I  feel like I have to lie instead of admit that I may have slept in on a Sunday morning instead of having made plans for the ENTIRE day.
      On one level, I do like to have some plan for the weekend so I do things that I cannot do when I am at work. The thing is that I have such a full schedule during the work week that I like to be less regimented on the weekend.
     These days we are living in times where its a badge of honor to subsist on little sleep and run around like a maniac without a moment's pause. Its good to be busy, but its also okay to turn off the auto pilot and admit to smelling the roses.

Lazy

     I am always busy at work but I hate being told what to do. When I first started at my job my supervisor would always tell me do this, do that in her annoying way. I quickly realized if I just did everything I needed to do I would not have to hear her nagging. Some people would rather sit around and wait for you to tell them what to do and they don't mind being hounded. I suppose that they still do less work because sometimes it becomes tired to have to tell someone what to do all the time. I hate being told what to do all of the time. I guess some don't mind if it means they can be lazier.

Sukkot in the office

    I know , I know, I am a week late with this one, but I just saw it today and I didn't want to wait until next year to post it so here it is. Its a bit goofy , but fun.

Happy Labor Day!

     Like many Americans I am not working today in honor of the secular holiday of Labor Day. Labor Day has been one of my favorite holidays because it is a secular holiday and also because it is not a work or school day.
     I have always thought it curious that in honor of Labor Day we don't go to to work or work a twice as long day since it is Labor Day. In this economy those who aren't working wish they were one of the laborers who are being honored.

     Anyway happy Labor Day to all  who will be back to laboring tomorrow.

snow day

when i was a kid the sweetest words to be heard were snow day. it was what we lived for. no school, making snowmen and sledding on makeshift sleds in the common ground near my home.
though i will have to use a sick day because i cant get to work today due to the 12-15 inch snowstorm the words snow day are just as sweet.

for all of you in the nyc area who are snowed in, enjoy your day off!! again!!

text me!!

in the old days when i would call in sick to work i would have to call my supervisor and break the news. my supervisor is not a   morning person.  the most awful thing in the world would be hearing her voice when i would call in sick.
now the new generation has arrived at work. all members of the new generation would text my supervisor instead of actually speaking  to her. at first i didn't want to give my supervisor my cell number because id rather  not  have her be able to call me anywhere .  now she does have my cell number so i have been able to make the most of a bad situation. i had to call out from work yesterday due to the blizzard . i texted her. it was amazing. even when she texted me back with an annoying request it was still way better than hearing her awful voice utter those words.
i am just loving technology. i guess im now officially part of the new generation.

define feminism

feminism as with all labels is subject to interpretation. to me feminism means equal pay for equal work. i work very hard at my job. i deserve to be paid as much as a man would if he had my job. i believe that even if a woman eventually becomes a stay at home mother, she should be able to support herself financially. preferably a woman should live on her own and have a job that supports herself before marrying. she doesn't have to have a high paying job to do this. its just important to be able to know one can be self sufficient. of course , even saying such a notion makes me seem dated. most women do work to support themselves before they marry unless they marry very young (at 18-21) . even if one does marry this young one should know what its like to work even if its part time. it gives one confidence and makes one realize that money doesn't grow on trees.

some feminists believe that a woman shouldn't need men. i suppose what they mean is that one should be comfortable enough with ones self that one doesn't have to always be in a relationship to feel complete. its good to feel satisfied with who one is and where one is in life regardless of ones marital status. i also think that feeling empowered as a woman does not cancel out the need to get married or have a boyfriend. just because one wants to get married and have a family does not mean you are not being a feminist. to me feminism is all about the choices. one should be able to be a married with children career woman or a stay at home mom. everyone does not need to be a clone.