Been busy setting up my new practice; too many niggling business details to attend to, and endless trips to Staples. I'm getting there, though, and the office is looking fabulous. I just keep telling myself "If you build it they will come"; and the old friend I am working with is just delightful.
H is working himself to the bone. I think maybe being in a startup is not such a good choice for him, as he doesn't seem to be able to ever turn it off. I'm going to have to start insisting on work-free Sundays, I think, or he will work himself into the ground. I understand that a startup means lots of work, but this is getting downright ridiculous and unhealthy. Unfortunately, there are personality issues between the founders hat are vaguely reminiscent of what H was trying to get away from in his last job. I feel badly for him, but he's a big boy and has to figure things out for himself.
S20 got his cast off this week (he broke his hand right after he got home from college for the summer). He still has to wear a splint but can take it off at night. He's still looking for a summer job, as he lost the job he had lined up (couldn't pass the physical due to his broken hand).
Well, I've got to get some sleep so i can tackle my everlasting "to-do" list tomorrow.
You really have two startups between you and H, don't you, with his job and your setting up the new practice? Don't forget to keep an eye on your own schedule with the everlasting "to-do" list when you reserve time off.
Can S20 get some kind of office job where his splint isn't a big deal? A lot of guys prefer to work outdoors, especially in summer, but in the real world, many of the jobs are in offices. Getting some experience with office work realities now could be helpful for a job search later.
Thanks for the Fathers' Day greetings!
Joe
My sitch More importantly, Light A Million Candles
S20 wouldn't be a lot of use in an office right now, since the splint interferes with his typing! He only has a week and a half left to wear the splint, however. He's applied to Blockbuster and the local video game store, and yesterday he found an internship at a nanotech company he will apply for.
Don't worry, I'm good about taking time off for myself. I can't work nonstop the way H does. I'm pacing myself.
Loopy from margaritas and Mexican food with Dust in the Wind tonight. She had me giggling with her tales of the judge in her settlement conference. I made her promise to post her tale here once the ink is dried.
Hi all - posting from my new office on my lunch break!
I've been very busy, getting things set up and covering for my partner while she's gone on a 10-day vacation. Next week I will have more time to work on the forms and things I still want to put in place for my office.
D16 has been invited to perform at a charity concert (for a big international political organization) in town. She's a singer/songwriter, and this will be her first "real" gig, a whole 30 minute set in front of a large audience. (Someone saw her performing at a youth center talent show and asked her to perform at this). Last night she saw her name on the poster for the first time - pretty exciting!
S15 has his learner's permit now and is determined to learn the stick shift that his siblings haven't mastered.
S20 is doing some temp work for his dad's company. I was worried about the two of them working in the same office, but it actually is working out well. S is a big help, the computer work is right up his alley, and they really needed some temporary help in this arena.
H is super-stressed, as there is conflict brewing in his new job (politics). He decided to relieve his stress by rearranging our living room furniture Saturday - and now his bad back is killing him. A little MLC brewing too - a good friend was hospitalized with chest pain last week, had an angioplasty/stent procedure. This guy's only a few years older than H, and an athletic surfer. This is making H rethink some of his workaholic tendencies with regard to this start-up.
Busy is good. Glad to hear that H is rethinking that workaholic thing, but sorry it was because of your friend's health. Is he willing to take a little break with you at all?
D16 has been invited to perform at a charity concert (for a big international political organization) in town.
Will she be singing her own songs? Is/was she getting nervous before the gig?
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S15 has his learner's permit now and is determined to learn the stick shift that his siblings haven't mastered.
I once heard a good reason for teaching kids to drive a stick. Someday it might be the only transportation available when they're the only sober driver around. I have a rental car the last couple days, an automatic, and it is driving me crazy (like that's difficult!) when the clutch isn't where I want it, I have to use the brake every time I want to slow down, etc.
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S is a big help, the computer work is right up his alley, and they really needed some temporary help in this arena.
Getting work experience in an office for the ol' resume is a good idea, if there's any chance he'll want to do work that requires some office time later. It can be a tie-breaker when considering two candidates who seem on paper to be equally qualified. "Hmm, he spent last summer working in an office, while so-and-so was tending bar."
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He decided to relieve his stress by rearranging our living room furniture Saturday
Rule number one of relieving stress - Don't move heavy stuff. Rule number two - Don't try to drink it away, and while I'm at it, Rule number three - Use a trampoline!
You sound great. I hope H's stress levels are reduced. Summer seems to breeze right by these days. Not long before the kids are back to school.
Does H have any schedule set in his mind for how long he'll stick it out with the start up?
Thanks,
Joe
My sitch More importantly, Light A Million Candles
Ellie, Sounds like things with the family are going great!!! Congrats on getting your office set up.
I tried to teach my D to drive a stick shift. Oy vay!!!! Thought she'd have a melt down on a gravel road out in the country. She still can't drive one!!! Good luck to your son and good for him that he wants to accomplish this.
Quote: D16 has been invited to perform at a charity concert (for a big international political organization) in town.
Will she be singing her own songs? Is/was she getting nervous before the gig?
Yes, all her own material. Her biggest problem is whittling hr song list down to just 30 minutes! Surprisingly, she's not nervous. This is a kid who, ever since grade school, has just commanded the stage whenever she had it. (This usually resulted in her being cast as the villain in school plays because she has such a BIG personality). Even when she had to sing for a dear young friend's funeral, and was a distraught mess, when her moment on stage came, she was totally professional.
I'm sure she'll have a blast!
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I once heard a good reason for teaching kids to drive a stick. Someday it might be the only transportation available when they're the only sober driver around.
That, and someday you might have to borrow a friend's truck to move or something! Unfortunately, I have failed at teaching S20 and D16 the stick shift so far, but S15 is more determined. He refuses, however, to drive my Kia, which is the easier stick to drive in the household, but not "cool" enough for him. So he's learning on his dad's pickup, which is a very hard stick, plus the gearshift knob has the disconcerting habit of falling off at inopportune times!
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Does H have any schedule set in his mind for how long he'll stick it out with the start up?
He's wrestling with that question right now. He's thought of signing back up for his old job but with a start date the first of the year, so he has time to train a replacement and get some new things in place at the startup. Then he has a bad day and thinks why chuck another six months down the drain if it won't change the company outcome anyway?
It's a big disappointment, because he's GOOD at this job and was enjoying the challenge. If the other executives were positive personalities and all moving along in the same direction, he'd be having a blast, despite the workload. Instead, he feels as soon as he fixes one thing, someone else comes along and undoes it. And unfortunately, the CEO doesn't seem to have a handle on setting firm expectations and holding people responsible.
Frankly, he's just so fried right now that I'm worried about his health. If he went back to his old job, despite the BS issues there, he could have a four-day work-week and be done every day by 6, and make the same money he is now. I'd love to see him put his excess energy then into music or art or mountaineering or just surfing his brains out. (Just please god keep him from another remodelling binge!!!)
