Time Really Flies!

I can't believe I haven't posted for over a month! Things have been steadily crazy for the past several weeks. Mike still has not found work, but he has been working very hard every day on the bathroom remodel, as well as other tasks around the house. I so appreciate that he has been doing most of the cleaning and has dinner ready most days when I get home from work.

Work -- well, that has been interesting to say the least. I'm so grateful that my supervisor decided to give me 40 hours each week for the month of April. I don't spend all of my time in the OB/GYN office where I normally was working. Instead, she flexes me out to where the need is -- usually at the main registration desk for the pediatric and family practice clinic. While I usually keep busy while working anywhere, it is a different kind of busy at the registration desk -- just a constant flow of new patients ready to check in. There has been some drama in the OB/GYN office, with some people feeling resentful that I've been working primarily in the new suite with the new doctor. Apparently, they believe that I sit over there and just twiddle my thumbs or surf the internet and there was a lot of complaining and griping going on. One of the girls even emailed me to chastise me for how I spent my day, basing her opinion on incorrect assumptions and the griping of others. She went so far as to accuse me of not clocking out for lunch and of leaving early -- both of which were not true. After simmering for most of the afternoon, I calmed down and wrote a response, letting her know exactly how all of her assumptions were inaccurate and asking her why she just didn't ask me if she had a question as to how I spent my day. I also let her know I was copying the supervisors on the email, as I did not want them to get inaccurate information about me from her or anyone else.

I spoke to my supervisor about the situation the next day and was very relieved when she told me that they could not be more happy with my work and that I should not let any of my co-workers bring me down. Apparently there are some ongoing issues with the OB/GYN department that I was unaware of (most with this particular co-worker) and we later had a meeting about those issues. At first, my co-workers expressed their resentment at the fact that I alone worked in the other suite -- but when I agreed to their suggestion that we rotate (as I felt that way they would all see exactly what work needed to be done over there), they suddenly changed their minds and decided that the whole situation was caused because of stress, as they do not always have me or the other temp worker (when we are flexed out) and are always feeling behind. The supervisor agreed to a suggestion that one girl in the office help with the scheduling so that they would always have sufficient help -- and I insisted that the other temp needed to work in the other suite, as I would not always be there -- so now we alternate. We'll see if that helps the situation. However, it was sad -- because I really enjoyed my job and the people I worked with -- but to learn that people were talking behind my back, criticizing my work unjustly, and making untrue allegations about my ethics and work habits really hurt my feelings. I don't feel that I can really trust any of my co-workers anymore and I do not look forward to my days at the OB/GYN office anymore. At this point, I'm mulling over some other options, including applying for some other positions which would pay a bit less, but would move me to a more autonomous position away from the OB/GYN office.

The bathroom STILL is not finished -- but every day it looks better and better. My parents came to visit the third week in March and I took nearly a full week off work to help Mike to get a lot of tasks accomplished before they arrived. We were able to tile the floor and tub surround, install the vanity and toilet, and put up the mirror/lights, towel rods, etc. We can now actually use the bathroom! The shower is the last thing to do -- and we are tiling it now (it should be done by the end of the week if things go as planned). We had wanted a frameless glass shower enclosure, but we may not be able to afford that right away with Mike's current situation, so we'll just get a shower rod and curtain for the time being. It will be so nice to be able to shower in our bathroom (for the first time since we moved into the house!). I'll be sure to post before and after pictures.