168 Hours - What I Can Remember Of It Anyway

This was a busy week and I'm still yawning.

• The week began with the job interview I mentioned last week.  I decided that with all of the reorganization, indecision about what's happening with my job and the snails pace in which we're receiving information, this is as good a time as any to see what jobs are available on campus and in Topeka.  The position would oversee the student assistants at the front desk and assign rooms to the incoming students.  The person in charge of the hire thought they'd have a candidate selected and ran through Human Resources by Friday, but I didn't hear anything.  That can mean that they didn't select me or they didn't get approval by Friday from HREO.  That's OK.  I've been doing some thinking and have come to the conclusion that there is something to be said for the familiarity of doing the same job for eleven years and for my own office with a window and music playing.  Even if my new job description includes doing budget and payroll for two departments.
• I've been working on a fall semester student assistant schedule for two months now.  This is part of my job that will be given to the new Assistant Director when they begin next month.  And that puts a smile on my face.  Every semester requires at least one new schedule, but most require four or more because of finals week, class changes, vacations, etc.  Take July 26 - August 19, for example.  That is a four week time span and there are four schedules to get us through.  Four.  The past two weeks found me interviewing for new student assistants as two of mine graduated and one who has two other jobs didn't have enough available hours to make sense for him to work for us this semester.  I thought I'd found a couple of orientation assistants and a new student applicant to fill in the gap, so I came up with a schedule, offered the new student applicant a position and was told that he wanted to work for us, but he'd taken another job and only had a couple of hours available now.  *Sigh*  No, big *SIGH*.  So I'm back at the drawing table and needing the new staff to begin in a week.
• The Associate Director asked me for a copy of my most recent resume on Thursday.  He also asked the Project Coordinator for hers.  We were perplexed, so before sending it, I asked A.D. if I could ask why he needed a copy of my resume.  "Sure.  I'm nominating you for a NASPA award."  Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather.  To my knowledge, I haven't been nominated for anything since I received The Classified Employee of the Month in February, 1991.  I have no idea what this award is and seriously doubt I'll win but, as they say, just being nominated is an honor and I'm pleased that A.D. thinks that highly of my work.
• Our microwave quit a couple of weeks ago.  My first thought was that we could live without it.  After all, all we use it for is to melt butter, pop popcorn and reheat leftovers.  I told Hubby that we could get by with the oven and the "easy bake oven", as I call our new toaster/convection oven.  So Thursday, on what is normally Fried Egg Night because Hubby works late and I have to cook my own supper, I decided to make a layered stew.  After I layered the ingredients, I put it in the new easy bake oven and a mere 1.5 hours later, it was ready for consumption.  As I was putting away the leftovers I thought to myself that Hubby would be tickled to have some of that for supper when he got home around 8:30.  And then it hit me...  How is he going to warm that up?  We don't have a microwave!  So I set the easy bake oven to warm and stuck the layered stew back in to stay warm for another 45 minutes.  Tomorrow we go microwave shopping.
• My Dad returned the shirt we gave him for Father's Day/Birthday by mail this week.  The first shirt I'd purchased was too big, so I'd mailed him a smaller version last week and let him know I could still return the first shirt.  So the package arrived Thursday along with $3 reimbursing us for postage spent mailing him the second shirt (of course...that's what my Dad does) and a note.  Yes, a handwritten note to me from my Dad.  It's laying right here beside me and I've read it a dozen times.  Dad thanked us for the shirt and said he was wearing it to town when they headed in to mail the package to us; said I'd sent a cute email and that granddaughter will have some big shoes to fill in her new job; and he said he likes the shirt - with an exclamation point; and signed it "Love, Dad".  The portion about the granddaughter is referring to some photos and a story I emailed about Granddaughter visiting my office last weekend.  Now this is not a long letter.  No one writes long letters anymore, but even more rare is the note from Dad.  Mom was surprised.  She didn't know Dad had included a note.  I've been keeping cards and notes from my Mom and Dad for a little while now.  Mom does 99% of the writing.  I did find two other little thank you notes from Dad.  My son says I should frame this one.  Maybe I will.
• Hubby is off today - Sunday.  He worked yesterday.  It's usually the other way around, but both the other maintenance men were gone this week, so schedules his schedule changed.  Our entire little family is off today.  That doesn't happen often.  Why can't everyone have the weekend off as do Daughter, SonIL, DaughterIL and I?  With Hubby off Saturdays and Son off Sundays, it makes it difficult to get together for Family Fun Night.  But we'll all be here for supper and maybe a game or two.  Is 95 degrees outside too hot for chili?
• NOTE:  We did have chili and it was mighty tasty.  Son and DaughterIL brought cinnamon rolls (it's a school lunch combo thing I'm told) and Daughter and SonIL brought a chocolate/peanut butter cheesecake.  The evening was capped off with a competitive game of gin rummy and the granddaughter taking her Aunt for a walk in the back yard.  Another fun Sunday evening with the family.