Again, it's been a total effing week from Hell...made even worse by my arthritis (which the cold and damp is NOT helping!) and by a lupus flare brought on by all of the goddamn stress at work. Just finished my third 12-hour shift in three days, and the way I've been feeling lately, I'll need a day or two to "recover" from it all, but THAT is not to be! My husband has invited one of his co-workers over for dinner tonight, so I'm expected to be up and functional by 6 p.m. Never mind the fact that my little monster is now out gallivanting at Costco rather than staying home to keep my unruly dogs in line so that I can effing nap for a few hours! Grrrrrr!!! I'm ready to tell him to do the cooking and cleaning himself and that he can entertain his buddy while I get a few zzzz's!!!
Next week promises no relief whatsoever from all of the commotion. They've got a MINIMUM of 8 inpatient surgeries scheduled during Christmas week (many of them lumbar surgeries who will be there ALL DAMN WEEK!), minimal staffing, and, of course, I'll be working through the holiday weekend...BUT they've made a minor adjustment to my schedule. I'll only have to do three nights in a row during the Christmas holiday, rather than four, following which I'll have TWO nights off, rather than just one, in order to "recover" somewhat and to spend some time with my girls. I would have liked a bit more time off to be with my girls, but since I was notified of my girls' trip home on such short notice, there wasn't all that much that could be done. NEXT year will be better, though, since I'll be only working PRN at that place and will have a full time job as a nursing instructor, which means I'll no longer work weekends and will have extended holiday breaks...what WILL I do with myself with all of that free time???!!??? While on one hand, I'm looking forward to finding out, on the other hand, I'm NOT looking forward to the pay cut that I'll be taking. I'm currently making almost 70K per year in my current position, and will make a good bit less, unfortunately, as a nursing instructor. That, along with my husband's recently announced intentions to go from semi-retirement into full retirement within the next six months, is making me think long and hard about whether I REALLY want to take that new position, after all. Yes, I'd LOVE to teach and to help form the next generation of nurses in my area...but whether I can work enough PRN hours IN ADDITION to my new full-time job to make up the difference, not only from my previous salary, but the loss of my husband's wages, as well, is another issue. I'm still only inches away from telling my new place, "thanks but no thanks." I need to do a good deal more thinking, as well as finding further ways to economize, before making my final decision (which WILL need to be made before the end of next week!) What, really, do two people and a couple of dogs need with the money we're making now, anyway?? I admit that I become a bit nuts if our checking account balance falls below the 5-figure mark, especially since my packrat-hoarder husband is always looking to acquire more things! He just BOUGHT a brand-new car in January, and has decided, for some reason, that while he didn't want to trade in his old Volvo when he bought the new one, that he *now* wants to trade it in (along with MY car, which has just barely over 40,000 miles on it!) to purchase yet ANOTHER car so that he can "save" the 3K in anticipated maintenance fees that he projects we'll be spending on both of those cars within the next year. WTF? I told him when he bought his LAST new car that there was no way that two people needed THREE effing cars, but he just had to have it, anyway! And NOW he wants ANOTHER one???? I'm honestly beginning to believe that this man will NEVER be happy, no matter HOW many things he owns, because he always wants more, more, and more!
I've never wanted much in this life beyond a roof over my head, food to eat, decent clothes to wear and my books, my kitchen gadgets and the few electronic devices which I enjoy for entertainment's sake, along with a bit of money in the bank to cover an emergency or to help my children, family and friends if/when they needed it. But I honestly don't know how I can take this pay cut in light of this man's increasing acquisitiveness. And honestly, as much as his "semi-retirement" and having him at home during the hours in which I need to sleep is messing with my sleep schedule, my work and my health, I'm ready to read him the riot act and to tell him to STOP his acquisitive BS or to get his ass back to work full-time and get the eff out of my hair! What the eff IS it with me, anyway, that it's always been so freaking difficult for me to say "no" to ANYBODY??!!?? But I'm at the end of my rope and unfortunately, something's gonna blow, really, really soon!
Thank you, Jesus, THIS workweek has ended!
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Topics should be about experiences, comments, and observations from our members' personal lives.
Thank you, Jesus, THIS workweek has ended!
"The miracle is this: the more we share, the more we have." -- Leonard Nimoy (1931-2015)
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Icey
Re: Thank you, Jesus, THIS workweek has ended!
And that, Cindy, is why if I was in your position, I'd have no qualms about taking the new job. You need to rest yourself hun and have time out for yourself and your family/hobbies/dogs.
The stress isn't doing you any favours, health-wise, and people over here could live very well on your joint incomes, even if yours'd drop by a few thousand.
I had to smile - sorry, it's not amusing really - at the way you described your husband's habit of acquiring things, but you know what they say about men and their toys? We have 4 cars to use, plus my son has one of his own. What on earth do we need 4 motors for? Sadly, the OH thinks it's necessary. A different car for different kind of trips. Well, I just let him get on with it. If he wants to waste money, then I'm not too bothered so long as everything else gets paid for, which it thankfully does. I just find it kind of silly to flaunt stuff when there's no need to. Heck, my first car was an ancient little Mini, and I liked it better than what I've got now. I had loads of fun with it and never once thought about upgrading it to something bigger and swankier, but things changed over the years when I needed more room to accommodate the children, and later their friends as well!
I think you're going to see a big change in your lifestyle once you have more time at home, and it might not be easy to get used to at first. One of those cases of "great for a bit", but then "what do I do with myself?" Well I assure you that it gets better, and if you feel healthier in yourself because of it, then there's no contest. No one wants to work until they have a heart attack, and the extra time you'll have'll give you chance to do more of what you'd like to do, and to get to know your husband all over again.
When I knew that I was going to be with my husband for so many hours, it was great at first, because I was newly married and love him to bits, but the rosy specs come off after a bit, and his presence could irritate me sometimes because I wanted to get on with the pattern of things I'd become used to, and yet felt obliged to give some of that time to him as well. Now we've adjusted, and things're better, but suddenly going from working so many, many hours, unless you do things with your OH and appreciate the extra time you have for yourself, you might find yourself wishing you could go back to those manic days of the past. It DOES even out though, Cindy. The money's irrelevant. Having enough to cover yourselves's sensible, but not to the point where it HAS to be hoarded or you start to worry about the dwindling balance. I hope your husband enjoys his collections, and that that you have a more gentle but pleasant job to go to very soon.
The stress isn't doing you any favours, health-wise, and people over here could live very well on your joint incomes, even if yours'd drop by a few thousand.
I had to smile - sorry, it's not amusing really - at the way you described your husband's habit of acquiring things, but you know what they say about men and their toys? We have 4 cars to use, plus my son has one of his own. What on earth do we need 4 motors for? Sadly, the OH thinks it's necessary. A different car for different kind of trips. Well, I just let him get on with it. If he wants to waste money, then I'm not too bothered so long as everything else gets paid for, which it thankfully does. I just find it kind of silly to flaunt stuff when there's no need to. Heck, my first car was an ancient little Mini, and I liked it better than what I've got now. I had loads of fun with it and never once thought about upgrading it to something bigger and swankier, but things changed over the years when I needed more room to accommodate the children, and later their friends as well!
I think you're going to see a big change in your lifestyle once you have more time at home, and it might not be easy to get used to at first. One of those cases of "great for a bit", but then "what do I do with myself?" Well I assure you that it gets better, and if you feel healthier in yourself because of it, then there's no contest. No one wants to work until they have a heart attack, and the extra time you'll have'll give you chance to do more of what you'd like to do, and to get to know your husband all over again.
When I knew that I was going to be with my husband for so many hours, it was great at first, because I was newly married and love him to bits, but the rosy specs come off after a bit, and his presence could irritate me sometimes because I wanted to get on with the pattern of things I'd become used to, and yet felt obliged to give some of that time to him as well. Now we've adjusted, and things're better, but suddenly going from working so many, many hours, unless you do things with your OH and appreciate the extra time you have for yourself, you might find yourself wishing you could go back to those manic days of the past. It DOES even out though, Cindy. The money's irrelevant. Having enough to cover yourselves's sensible, but not to the point where it HAS to be hoarded or you start to worry about the dwindling balance. I hope your husband enjoys his collections, and that that you have a more gentle but pleasant job to go to very soon.
Re: Thank you, Jesus, THIS workweek has ended!
let me repeat myself:
no, no, no - nope! tell him to find himself a new job or a new HOBBY, other than shopping for new wheels. in fact, I find it totally unmanly to sponge off a wife who is already getting worn out. ugh.
been there, done it, bought the shirt - didn't fit!
and furthermore, g/f, if you think you're going to bail on the new job because you don't think you'll be brilliant at teaching... you WILL! so stop worrying about that.