No No Phone. No You’re Never There

Get it? No – except for Morty, I would bet that most don’t.

At my “going-away” lunch, there was food. But NO cake! WTF? Granted I can’t complain too much. I didn’t want any to-do in the first place, so I stayed away from any planning even when they asked what I wanted. I would have rather had cake than lunch. Overall though it was nice. Decent mexican food and everyone was nice and seemingly sorry to see me leave the department.

I still don’t know I’m going away. I am definitely exiting the department and my job, but possibly not the organization. Interviews on Thursday went well. I think I’m their top candidate. Actually, I think I’m their only candidate. Not because no one else applied. There is nothing to apply for. There is no approved job via H.R. This new division approached me out of the blue. So there is hope of employment.

Some good news I found is the job I began to interview for a few weeks before my notification of termination has not been filled yet. I thought (and think) I am a strong candidate. I know their initial interviews are done – but no word. After some time with no word, I began to doubt my viability and assumed they chose someone else and are just really bad about notifying people.

I guess there are a few reasons no one has been selected. One being the old person is still there, now doing two jobs. In this home stretch of the fiscal season, it makes sense not to hire anyone just yet so they can be favorable to budget. My other thought was that they know I’ll be out of a job and they can offer it to me and lowball me somewhat. I’d never tell them, but I’d take the job for what I was making – even though it is larger in scope. I don’t mean that because I need a job. I wanted the job, and I know that I was well paid for what I do. I don’t want them to think they can’t afford me.

I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining, but having possible two or three jobs (my old dept, which I am not interested in) almost immediately upon leaving is great, but leaves me no breathing room to look. I think it is extremely difficult to do a real job search when you’re fully employed. Career searches can be full-time jobs in themselves. The ultimate would be time off to do that search and then if need be, come back to all those available options if needed. And that they held open just for you.

….a boy can dream.

going….Going….GONE

This is it.

My last day of work.

Told a month ago that my job was being eliminated, the countdown began (and even extended four days!). But today is the day. I’ll leave the job I’ve been at for almost two years in an organization I’ve spent the last 11 years of my life.

I don’t know exactly what I’m supposed to be feeling.

• Angry? A month ago I was a little stunned, but I don’t think I got angry.
• Sad? I’m not. Any sadness I felt was for possible loss of income – not the job.
• Elated? Nope. Not that either.

The pay is very good. But the job itself wasn’t horribly challenging. Let’s face it – if you must spend most of your day in the office, you want some challenges and hopefully not make a 10 her day seem like 22 hrs.

There are a few people in the department I will miss. A number of people within the organization I will miss as well. But you know how it goes – emails and phone numbers are exchanged, but once you’re out of sight, you’re out of mind (and vice versa). At least for 99% of those you think you’d like to stay in contact with.

I would have liked to get through this day without the acknowledgement of this being my last day. I know this is not possible. The department is insisting, against my wishes, of having a lunch for me. Sure, I can bring home the leftover cake – but I’m not much for the attention. I’m a Leo who is ok with bringing attention upon myself, but not to have others do it for me. I’m self-conscious at any even that draws focus to me. People wonder why I don’t really care about my birthday – and trust me, it has nothing to do with getting older.

This afternoon, I think I will just walk out with no fanfare, or as little as possible. The office is clean. I have like three things for my briefcase and that is it.

Maybe I don’t know how to feel because I’m not sure I’m gone gone. Just yesterday I had two interviews here in the organization for a job that does not yet exist. I have a good reputation around here, so it was nice to be thought of as they create this position. Outside, I have another hospital who is looking at my resume with some interest and a recruiter and with whom I have been playing phone tag.

I’ve come to peace (somewhat) with being outplaced. It could be a launching pad for other jobs and organizations. It can be an exciting time. I say this now. Ask me next week when I will be lounging around in sweats, eating kettle chips and watching Judge Judy! Oh – then just SHOOT me.

The last few days I’ve been reflecting on how I left University Orientation. I was closer with some of the people there than I am here. Phyllis, my dear co-worker, and I are still in touch, but that last day was ruined by our boss. The man who’d never see a day through decided to stay until I left. And not just in the building but in my office. No proper good-byes for Phyllis and myself. My car sat outside. Packed. I got in and drove to Cleveland and to the house where Denton (and Howard! grrrrrrrrrr) and the cats were waiting for me.

Time will tell how this will actually play out. But I’ll land on my feet. Of this I am sure. And at least for the next week I have a focus. Not a job, but my parent’s 50th Anniversary party, which we are hosting.

I assume I will have much time to update this blog. Not just the content, but the look and to switch over to my other URL – BlobbysBlog.

THE PRICE OF…

I don’t know gas prices elsewhere in the country or even township to village. Cleveland seems odd in how the price of gas is determined. First, Cleveland is split into the East side and West side (no Jets. no Sharks. …that I know of.) One would think that when the streets turn from, say E. 3rd Ave to W. 3rd, somewhere inbetween you’ve hit the West side. You’d be wrong. The west side actually means the west side of the Cuyahoga River….which is past W. 9th. Don’t ask. And people are realllllllly weird about the whole “oh…..you’re an East sider!” kind of thing.

One thing the west side has going for it is its gas prices – they are always lower. Not by a penny or two, but usually by a dime. Sometimes more. The east side isn’t less accessible for tanker trucks to deliver their goods. Refineries aren’t either. We’re even closer to the MidEast! What gives?

Anyhooo…I filled up last Saturday at what many would consider a ridiculously low rate of $2.05 a gallon. I understand supply/demand economics. I know that summer is over and vacationers are not demanding tanks full at this time. I get that the hurricane season wasn’t the disaster they claimed it would be. I know that some gas company found what is possibly one of the richest veins of crude in the Gulf of Mexico a few weeks back. And I know that prices are supposedly based on ‘futures’.

And here is the new future: mid-term elections. What else can it be? Maybe Shurb’s low low low polling numbers when it comes to energy!

It’s hard not to be a bit skeptical about Shrub and his boys (hey, he’s gotta keep them happy w/high energy costs). Conflict in the mid-east isn’t any better than it has been in two years. The vein of crude they found in the Gulf is a minimum of five years before they produce a drop. So are we saying that lack of hurricanes and decreased travelers let gas prices drop by almost a dollar in a month? PLEASE.

The government and the oil companies have gotten us to a point where when we’re just above $2 a gallon, we exhale and think ‘wow! that’s low!!’. And to the rest of the world it’s dirt cheap. To the U.S. it is not. They have succeeded in inflating prices over the last 2-3 years so that when prices fell, they are still statistically much higher than they were before then, the gas buying public’s expectations have been shifted.

Well played Mr. Bush.

BATHROOM w/BLOBBY

Though I’m sure there is some niche blog demographic out there that would love to have a series of entries with this title, I can assure everyone this will NOT be an on-going thread.*

I just happened to find this funny, and so over-looked by the majority of people who see/use it every single day.

*Unless of course I find a continual funny stream of things in restrooms during my travels!

The Big Gay Office

I knew it would happen. My oldest niece and nephew’s favorite show is The Office. They love love love to quote from there and have eagerly been awaiting the season premiere. I mean, so had I, but probably not to the degree that they were. These kids have downloaded every episode for their video iPod and can pull reference out of their heads like their uncle (that’s me) can do Simpsons quotes. And they know I’ll get all their tourettes like lines.

If you’ve never seen the show, I highly recommend it, though it can be painfully embarrassing to watch. I know that sounds odd, but watch a few episodes and you’ll know of which I speak. Not only was last week’s show no exception – it may have jumped to the head of the class. This is not only because of the content and delivery, but because of what I knew I’d have to endure Sunday afternoon when seeing the kids.

While trying to refrain from spoilers, I will just say that the words, ‘gay’, ‘faggy’, ‘homo’ and ‘gaydar’ all come up in the script. Several times. Oh – and just a little man-on-man action.

There was no disappointment on Sunday – in front of my parents and theirs – when the kids could not wait to ask me if I saw it. Of course I had, I replied. Matt says he didn’t think the episode was that funny except the gay stuff. I laughed and said, ‘that’s all there was’. He pointed out that his disappointment stemmed from Jim no longer at the Scranton branch. It was still funny at two different Dunder-Miflin locations – and you know it’s only a matter of time before Jim returns. I mean – you just know it!

I Am A Good Uncle

Or at least I think I am.

For a long time I was the funnest (ok, I still am) and bought the bestest gifts. At least when there were only a few nieces or nephews. When there became eight of them, the gifts became less original, eventually with me just getting whatever their parents told me to. For awhile, through the gifts I’d get, it was fun to have someone to mold, at least in my own limited way. I have to say, I also liked buying things that I knew would annoy the fuck out of their parents: the popcorn popper that Fisher Price makes (you push it and the balls pop into the plastic dome). Or for Maddie, getting her the instrument set that had a triangle, blocks, tambourine and I think maracas, and giving it to her just before their eight-hour car ride. Even I stopped short of the annoying million piece Lite-Brite set.

But in the 15 years I’ve been an uncle, I’ve never had any of the kids stay over. I’ve babysat for many of them. I’ve even done overnights at their house during these babysitting jaunts. Two of the younger kids (five and seven years old) have been dying to stay over and been asking us for at least the last year. We kept putting them off – all for legitimate reasons. Either Denton was traveling or the house was under construction. Katie, the 15yo, wants to stay too, but only because she is convinced the house has to be haunted. Granted, it is almost 100 yrs old and big, but haunted it is not…..and I know from haunted (right Jon? right Dity? right Becca?).

So this last weekend we had the kids. Ok, that’s a stretch. We had them for like 22 hours. But it was 22 hours in a row!!! It just felt like an entire weekend. It is times like these I know I am now and was never cut out to be a parent. Not that I haven’t touched on that here over the years, but things like this just confirm it that much more. I love them, I do, and they were very well behaved.

What is the problem you ask? ME! Even though they are young, I swear I have a shorter attention span than they do. Ok, that’s not quite fair, but it’s not too far off. I can only feign interest in their likes/dislikes for so long….and the length of time is definitely too short for a babysitter. Denton is so much better about it than I am. Sadly, I subscribe to the “play with them and give them back” method.

I will give them this – they were not weepy about being away from home. I loathed staying with my relatives when I was their age. Well, when I was ANY age. It was also Dominic’s first sleep-over. Tough for any kid. They did great though. Carmen didn’t do a bang-up job eating dinner (just as Morty predicted she wouldn’t) and it was only cheese pizza. But it wasn’t the cheese pizza her parents got, so it was only one small piece which she consumed. Since our waffles weren’t cinnamon waffles (who knew? ok…I mean, besides Morty!) she would not eat those either, even if (or especially if) we added the cinnamon ourselves. Dominic ate every piece of his individual pizza and a pudding!

When it came to entertainment, they both wanted the GameCube, but not the same game (natch!). Or when it came to TV, one wanted The Incredibles, one wanted Schoolhouse Rock. There wasn’t time to watch both, let alone of them through completion before bedtime…which was to be 7:30p, but we let them stay up later. However, they opted to stay up much later, coming downstairs multiple times (‘we forgot how to turn off your lights’. uh-huh!). I think their lights upstairs went out at 10p.

Since we’ve never had kids over, there were questions I should have asked their parents, like their sleep,eating and peeing patterns etc. But I didn’t, nor did they offer it up. The one thing the kids did request was to go to Dunkin Dounuts. We thought that was a hit – mostly because they did. While there, Denton thought we should go to a new park that had just opened up, which we’ve seen being constructed over the past year.

Preston’s Hope is in our Jewish Community Center, and built with the specific thoughts of children with disabilities. It really is a small town with great access for all kids. It is quite extensive and extremely impressive. Carmen & Dominic loved it (so did we). We literally had to pull them out of there, but they had to get home to get ready to attend a wedding.

Both kids were better than this uncle. The good uncle, who’d get secretly annoyed at the mess they made. The uncle who was also was peeved (at himself) for not having a better plan to entertain the kids. I don’t think they cared and seemingly had a good time. Hey – they want to come back, so that is something.

Maybe I’m not such a bad uncle, but Denton is a great uncle.

NOAH (sans ark)

I say I don’t use the YouTube virals too often – and I swear I somewhat, kind of attempt not to. But it is Sunday and traditionally it is the day of the lowest hits to Blobby’s Blog. I don’t want sound like I am disrespecting my reading public and I try not just go through the motions. Honest, I have semi-interesting things to write. Honest!

That being said, I do like this viral. Noah has taken a pic of himself everyday for over six year. I think one would be hard pressed to say these are arranged in order, as hair length changes can happen pic to pic. And yes, I know I don’t have much hair, but from my recollection, hair does not grow THAT quickly. The music fits the sequence, and the entire package is somewhat hypnotic. What I find interesting is Noah’s eyes and mouth, or just his general expression. Rarely, if ever, does it change. How he do that?

….but who’s counting?

Click Here to get this from FreeFlashToys.com!

Oh that’s right………………………ME!

AT THIS VERY SUNDOWN

we’re gonna party like it’s 5767!

Yeah – it just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?

Clearly, Prince is not a jew – or apparently a man who wears briefs. Going by this pic, one could almost surmise the his royal badness could be jewish!

CHAVEZ on SATAN BUSH

Besides just calling him ‘the devil’ (which is way too forgiving), he went on to say of Shrub at the U.N. “The devil came right here… And it still smells of sulfur today.”

Say what you want about Chavez. No one in an authoritative position has called W out they way they should. The French tried – too nicely – and now we get Freedom Fries, Freedom Doors and Freedom Kissing.

What will W do w/out Blair as his only butt-kissing friend? Clearly back-rubs are out in Germany.

It is (more than) time for just the american voters to turn their back on this administration.

In the meantime, Bush says he’d order U.S. forces to go after Osama bin Laden inside Pakistan if he received good intelligence on the fugitive al Qaeda leader’s location.

ummmmm……….he had NO intelligence for WMD in Iraq and it didn’t stop you sending a few thousand troops there to die.