Resignation Tendered

I officially emailed in my resignation today. No, not for my job! I decided that with all my competing priorities, I needed to drop something. So, TOPS it is.

Being area captain was something that I really wanted to excel in but it's just not working out right now. If you read my prior blog post, it's pretty clear that I have a full plate. I'm only one person with only 24 hours available in a day. And I need to sleep!

I haven't heard back yet from my coordinator in response to stepping down from the position. All I can hope for is that she understands I simply have other things going on in my life that I need to take more time for. At least with one thing off my list I feel like I can breathe a little easier. That is to say, until I pick something else up in its place... Just kidding ;)

"Sure, sign me up!"

I guess I haven't posted anything in quite a while, eh? I wish I could say that it's because I'm boring and have nothing to write about. On the contrary, my life has started to burst with extra-curriculars. With that realization, I also decided it was time to start saying "no" to things. Here, just so you know what I'm talking about...

• Not only do I attend my weekly TOPS meetings, I'm an Area Captain for eight chapters. That means I communicate with them regularly, prepare the occasional newsletter, and have to visit them in-person at least once each per year. That's only since starting July 1st. And I have to remember to submit my monthly report to my regional director!
• I'm on Viterra's Social Committee. We plan an event every month or so, including the annual "Holiday Party" that just took place this past Friday night. It also involves monthly meetings. Thankfully those are during work hours.
• I'm a member of the CPA's (Canadian Payroll Association's) Regina Branch and meet every month or so with the other members. I also need to attend one to two PDS (Professional Development Seminars) per year as the volunteer in addition to helping out at the annual certification luncheon and National Payroll Week breakfast.
• Also with the CPA, I'm a registered Subject Matter Expert (SME). My most common duties in include the review of payroll guidelines, certification program content, and exams. I did two reviews within a few weeks of each other in November.
• Paul and I attend a once-monthly meeting for the Son's of Scotland (SOS), a non-profit group made up of Scottish members (duh) that plan events with each other and participate in local functions. I just signed up to help plan the Christmas party, even though I just found out that we won't even be able to attend it because of another function that means more to us.
• In addition to the "Christmas Party Committee", I joined the "Burns Night Committee", also for the SOS. The grand even takes place on or around Robbie Burns' birthday each year; this time it's January 25th. Who knows what I'll need to do to help out with that one!
• Each year the city of Regina has a multicultural festival called Mosaic. I decided to sign up for a committee with the Scottish Pavilion this year, specifically the "Publicity and Sponsorship Committee". We've only had one meeting as of yet, but there's another tomorrow night and many more to come. My main job will be to obtain sponsorship monies from companies in the area so we can afford to put on the event. We'll also be publicizing our pavilion through local media prior to May when Mosaic is held.

What am I missing? Oh yeah...

• I'm on the worship team at church so volunteer my singing talents once or twice per month.
• I do the books for Paul's business, keeping track of all his income and expenses so that at tax time, the accountant doesn't have to ask me for much. That and if I didn't help Paul out, he would forget to withhold taxes each pay period, and not know how to calculate his input tax credits for his GST return each quarter.
• I'd still like to further my education and get my Certified Payroll Manager (CPM) designation. Maybe in the spring...?
• Like the good little wife that I am, I do all the shopping, cooking, cleaning, and laundry. I've tried to get help but the truth is that I do it best and I'm actually quite happy after it's done. There's just something so satisfying about having a clean house with food in the fridge... And anyway, Paul does his share with the dog so I let him off.
• Don't forget I work full time and have a high-intensity workload at the moment. Keeping up with my own work and still being able to help my co-workers with their issues is tough. I keep reminding myself that, at the end of the day, I really do love what I do.

I think that's all, but who knows. I probably forgot something because I'm so overly organized that I need an organizer for my organizer and things get a little messy sometimes.

Good thing I signed up for Wednesday noon-hour yoga class! Ohhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmm...

Obsessive Personality?

Sometimes I wonder why my brain acts like it does. Is it heredity? Am I just bonkers? Did something in my upbringing cause me to act a certain way? Who knows, but these questions will occasionally pass through my consciousness.

Specifically, I have issues with obsessing. It can be over any sort of thing; such as seeing a Dairy Queen commercial on TV and thinking about a sundae for days until I get one; or dwelling on something someone said until some new thought or situation deems it null and void; or needing my desk to be in a certain order or organizational pattern. Often I need to snap myself out of a thought pattern to realize that what's going on inside my brain is ludicrous and just plain stupid.

This trait of mine can be quite annoying. I not need the material goods or food I dream of, or have the right idea about what that person said or did. My visions are not reality. My wishes are false. I just need to keep reminding myself of that and use good judgement, self-control, and objectivity to straighten my brain out.

I'm sure this all sounds quite silly, but if you struggled with it you would really want to know why it even happens in the first place. Some so-called professional wrote a short article regarding "The Obsessive Personality". There were maybe two or three points I felt were valid; otherwise it was a bunch of hooey and absolutely did not apply to me. I do NOT think I have a serious obsessive compulsive type of disorder, but I do feel that I need to be very aware of my thoughts and feelings and be smart in my decision-making.

Time for an Upgrade

For Christmas in 2002, when I was living in my very first "real" apartment (not just a basement suite), I was blessed with a beautiful new Eureka Whirlwind vacuum. It served me well over the years, even after bringing pets into our home and getting fur clogged in it. Unfortunately, however, when I was emptying the dust cup last week, the piece that keeps the cup on the vacuum itself broke off. When I went to use it today, I found that the piece really was extremely important so I now am without a vacuum.

Ever since seeing a Dyson commercial on TV for the first time, I've dreamed of owning one. They aren't cheap. They are really good at what they do, however. Since my Eureka died, I decided it is now officially time to splurge and just go buy one. With a five year warranty and positive review upon positive review over the entire line of vacuums, I can't go wrong. The decision to buy one was made easy by my old one dying; the decision as to which one to buy proved more difficult than expected!

I've settled on the DC37. With Ball™ technology, the new DC37 Turbinehead Animal vacuum cleaner turns on the spot and follows easily, without the awkward moves. It's the only canister vacuum with an articulating central steering mechanism. The brush bar is powered by air instead of a motor, making the cleaner head light and easy to maneuver. DC37 has also been engineered for reduced noise levels.  http://www.english.dysoncanada.ca/vacuums/ball/dc37_canister_vacuum.asp 

Like I said, they don't come cheap but I am very excited to finally, once and for all, rid my home of unwanted pet hair. Honestly, I can't wait for someone to come visit so I can show it off!

Long Time No Write!

Wow, has it really been three weeks since I last posted? I guess my mind is so full of other items that I haven't been able to bother it to blog. I mean, the last three weeks have flown by so fast that I've already been home over a week since my work trip to Minneapolis. It seems like yesterday.

I'm trying to relax a little, and unfortunately was caused to by a sudden bout of exhaustion/sore throat that came over me on Sunday night/Monday morning. I'd rather not be sick, but at least it has caused me to do mostly nothing the last two days. There's still much to be done, but sometimes the body just demands I cease action. Although I keep pretty healthy, there are still times when others' sickness and overwork can get the best of me.

Other than succumbing to a short malady, things have been pretty good at Chez Nairn. Our future home building is often on the brain; when the time is right, we'll know. Before that happens, however, our current home renos need to be completed. I'm still without a second shower (I'm blaming my "lazy once he gets home from work" husband), but am willing to pay a plumber to help out. It just needs to be finished so we can get on with the other jobs. I really dislike home renovations so the sooner they're completed the better.

Paul's truck is due to be fixed starting next Tuesday. I pray it doesn't take them too long because we'll be renting a truck for him to use for the time it's in the shop. Quite an expensive accident, eh? Too bad we don't know who did it because it's 100% not Paul's fault but he's left to pay the deductible. All his hard work just to go down the drain into a stupid hit-and-run.

Once that's all done with we can start planning our trip to Scotland. It's somewhat scary to think about the things I want to do and the planning that's required (oh yeah, and the money we need to pay for it all!), but I'm going to try and enjoy it. The best part will be the trip itself and I'll forget about any stress I incurred beforehand.

Maybe I'll have more exciting things to share soon. Or not. I guess it depends on how busy I am!