Monday, February 26, 2007

So tired

I am still alive, just tired. Richard and I have been commuting together to Vernon, but I only have the rest of this week and he will have to drive by himself. I like Vernon community mental health a lot, so far I have been with Youth and Child addictions, Elder services team, Community Response Team (crisis intervention at ER and community), Assertive Response team (follows people after discharge from psychiatry), mental health counselling, followed a psychiatrist around for the day, tomorrow is Motivational Interviewing inservice (which sounds like a late night infomercial, but is really a therapy type strategy) and Wed-Friday will be the psych day program which is sort of group counselling/life skills. Plus Wed we are teaching a youth group about the negative and positive effects of drugs.

It's a lot, and I'm looking forward to a few days off before i start my next preceptorship (March 8)

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Back on

After some time spent figuring out how to manage this thing, Mom is back on the family blog! It took both of us, but we figured it out. Lisa and Mom

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Basketball

I just got home from our second basketball tournament. They were both really fun even though we came in last in both of them. In fact, in both tournaments we played the same team. They were really nice girls though, I talked to them while we were watching another game.

The best part of the two tournaments was last night, in Canmore, our coach just parked the minibus in a general food area because the restaurant he wanted to go to with his family was there. The rest of us decided to go to Boston Pizza, but there was a half- hour wait for a table, so we kept walking along. Some girls went to a Chinese place, and the rest of us kept walking. Then we came to a Dairy Queen, but only the drive through was open, so me and one other girl walked through the drive through! It was amazing. I have always wanted to do that, and now I finally have. We brought our food back to the bus, and froze as we ate it, then we went back for blizzards and got even colder. It was so funny!

In the tournament last weekend in High River, there was a three point competition, and the girl on our team who was supposed to do it was sick, so I got to. The first round I got 8 in a minute, and the other girl got 4, so I advanced. The next round I got 6 and the other girl had ten, so then I was out. It was really fun. I got 3 three pointers during games that weekend too.

I think I will go have a shower and then go to bed now. I have to leave for a hockey game at 8:00 tomorrow morning, and I am just beat now.

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Little Old Ladies

I'm really enjoying my new job, but it is quite the eye opening experence. Before I started here I thought that the vast majority of little old ladies were kind and sweet. This may be true elsewhere, but not at our office. There is this group of ladies who comes in to fold the leaflet every week, and they were in this Friday. I can hear everything they say from my desk, and I heard one of them mention that one of our clergy is going to Mexico for a couple days.

#1 "I wouldn't go to Mexico these days!"
#2 "He'll come home in a wooden box!!"


These ladies are all nuts, and most of them aren't very nice. One takes great pleasure in pointing out all the mistakes I make in the leaflet every week starting it out with "not to critisize, but what about...."

Monday, February 12, 2007

Introducing the Book

My boss sent this around: Introducing the Book

In other news, I have now done 2 shifts as telephone interviewer. While doing this many hours per week is a LOT, the hours go fast, the work itself is not hard at all, and for a person who hates the phone, I kind of like it. And I've hit my "shift targets" both shifts (although they generally do not expect you to do so until after your first week. I'm an achiever!

There are a lot of weirdos in the office...I got asked out for coffee by one of these (named Ernie, by the way!). Did anyone see Art School Confidential? I read the comic, but didn't see the movie....but what I mean to say is that the numbers of different art school "types" that this mocks are actually not specific to art, they are everywhere. I'm at Social Survey Confidential.

Tonight is Emmylou Harris (sniff, Judith out of town...I did sell your ticket, by the way), and tomorrow a Board meeting, and then 5 nights of work. But the good news is that I no longer have insomnia.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

the news, such as it is

I haven't posted lately either, since very little is new.

Today I fell down the stairs on 104 Street, due to a combination of ice and low blood sugar. NOT a very pleasant feeling. I bounced down at least three steps. Now I have a nice collection of bruises.

I made a delicious Moroccan-style tagine today. Want the recipe, Will?

It is a super-busy week at work for me as I have yet another giant report due tomorrow. However, I sign a full-time permanent contract tomorrow, and will start getting benefits Feb. 15. Yay! They have technically extended the program only until June 2007, but all this is a very good sign.

Also, my supervisor put a sign up between my cubicle and my data-analyst co-worker's. It says, "Nerdville: Population 2". If I ever get my camera working, I will post a photo.

Would You Like Fries With That Data?

It has indeed been ages since I posted to the blog...but I feel quite confident that having been the "ideas man" for the blog counts for something. But my biggest news right now is that I've taken on a part-time job, working at Statistics Canada, to get a financial handle on myself & get rid of some debt / get ready for NF trip and a trip to Jasper. No, I am not an economist or a mathematical statistician or even a sociologist: I am doing telephone interviews.

The application process was a bit bizarre: we all got called in to the lobby of the StatCan building, and brought upstairs en masse (about 20 of us?) to write a "test" that was kind of like grade 10 math. You could tell the woman administering the test was nice, but also used to "high turnover" employees and so anytime someone asked a question about work conditions, she sounded really harsh ("NO, we DON'T start shifts at 5pm. Someone said you could do this? Well, that's a special arrangement. You can make a special arrangement. But we DON'T start shifts at 5pm."). Trying to sort the "wheat" from the chaff, I guess.

We need to be at desk, logged in, ready to work, at EXACTLY shift start time. I imagine coffee / meal break is just as strictly regulated. This will be a very interesting reminder to me of how good my current job is, contract or not.

It's going to be a bit punishing: 24 hours a week (2 weekend days, 2 weeknight evenings) but I have committed to a 3-month period, after which I immediately go to Jasper for the provincial library conference (think expensive summer camp at the Jasper Park Lodge, with alcohol) for a rest --I mean, some professional development.

Monday, February 05, 2007

Heart and Hustle

We had a hockey tournament here this weekend. We played three games. We won the first one against Leduc, lost to Bentley, then lost to Calgary. It was really fun. For the Bentley game, I got the Heart and Hustle award, which is picked by the coach of the other team. That made me really happy, except I didn't really think that I deserved it. I thought our goalie should have gotten it. I think it must have been the new stick. I got a composite stick just before that game, which was also really exciting as I had never used anything but wood before.

I have a basketball game tonight. If we lose, we are as good as out of playoffs, so we really have to win. It is in Sylvan Lake, and I am really excited. We should be able to beat this team so I hope we do.

The new semester started at school last week. I am now in Bio 20, which I like a lot, we are watching The Lion King right now, Math 30, which is intimidating, but the work has been really easy so far, which may be due to the teacher, French 20 and Social. It is a pretty good semester, I haven't gotten too much homework so far, so that is always nice.

Nothing else is really new with me. I have a really busy month ahead, with basketball or hockey or both on nearly every single day. After Feb. basketball will be over and there isn't much hockey scheduled, but I signed up for rugby today, so that will be starting. Most of those practiced are optional though, so I should be okay.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

The Queen/ Get on It!

Mom and I went to see The Queen today. It was good, Helen Mirren did a super job and I found it pretty interesting. Then Richard and I went to Mom's pour le diner.

I start my new practicum tomorrow. I think it'll be great, the manager is really enthusiastic. The hours work perfect for Richard and I to car pool together. I feel excited about it. I like community mental health anyway, and an enthusiastic manager just makes it better

I didn't get valedictorian. The person I nominated originally got it. I felt equally relieved and disappointed. Relieved that I didn't have to write a speech etc. and come up with something inspiring and not trite. Disappointed that i lost. And I did vote for myself. Though I felt like I was cheating when I did so. However, everyone expects politicians will, so what's the difference?

Have been showing suite after having spent oh, 10 hours cleaning it between the 2 of us. G-ross! I don't know if that guy ever cleaned behind/beside the toilet, or for that matter the bathtub. Dissssgussssting. He called last night apologizing for 'not getting all the cleaning done' Um, you didn't do any! This from someone who's going to school for sterile technician in the hospital. Yes, the people who make sure instruments are sterile for surgery etc. Reassuring, isn't it?

Finally, surely people must have stuff going on. Get on it and post! I can write pages about absolutely nothing, the rest of you can do likewise I am sure.