Flashback Friday: Kickoff to Summer of Hell

1990
Multiple things were going on in June of 1990.
-Idiot and I had a major fight over, of all things, my views of the Catholic Church and things I didn't agree with. Instead of accepting my right to an opinion, he pretty much yelled at me I was stupid and refused to end the fight until I acknowledged he was 'right' and I was 'wrong'. At 2am, desperate for some sleep, I finally told him what he wanted to know and wearily crawled into bed, resolving to end this toxic 'relationship' once and for all.

What really ticked me off the most was 'Common Ground' was showing on TV, and since I'd read the book not only in college, but many times since, I'd wanted to see it. But about thirty minutes into the show, I made an innocent 'this is what I disagree...' statement, not knowing I was pushing one of his 'hot button' issues. And you really can't stop in the middle of a fight and say, 'Oh, let me throw a tape into the VCR since you're not going to let me watch the rest of it in peace'.

The next day, I called into work for a personal day. Called a friend of mine, who came over and we moved everything of The Idiot's out of my apartment. Unfortunately, this only lasted a week. (Yeah, he wooed me back with some sweet talk and false promises, but that's another story!)

-I started supervisor training. After an eight hour intense training with the other eight newly-chosen supervisors, everything I'd learned the past three months was tossed out the window as we implemented a new 'system'. I had two new workers to train, plus one of my 'kids' wasn't taking the changes very well and had to be dealt with in an extremely patient manner. She had taken a dislike to me when I met her, but since I was now the only person she recognized besides the aides, she latched onto me after the first week and wanted to follow me everywhere, interfering with my work with the other 'kids' in my group. But after a week, she relaxed.

This was also the time when my boss discovered I held a Public Passenger/Chauffeur's License. In addition to my duties, I was also asked to drive the facility's two vans whenever a group decided to take a 'field trip' or one of the school-age kids needed to be picked up from summer school. I actually enjoyed these outings; I was allowed to take my own music along, and we'd detour past Ryan White's house and Dairy Queen. I could turn my group over to another worker and happily disappear for two hours, depending on which person I had to pick up, or how long the 'field trip' lasted.

-So why the 'Kickoff to Summer of Hell'? The facility was in a state of transition. We were being asked to do things we'd never attempted before; the residents were suddenly in groups with new rules, new workers, and new routines; two new QMRP's were hired and more 'hands-on' than the previous one. So everyone was nervous. Add to that my personal turmoil with the Idiot and you have a recipe for disaster.

Happy Friday!
I'll be at the Farmer's Market again tomorrow, and I've also been invited to a writer's workshop in Evansville. Don't know if I can do both yet; I'll have to discuss it with the SU. The workshop is free, but it's an hour away. And from what I gather from the invite, my fellow Guild members will be leaving two hours before I'm finished at the Farmer's Market. So unless I can persuade one of them to wait for me, I don't see it happening. I could be wrong, but the only way he agreed to my trip in January was the fact I was car-pooling. God forbid I use any of his gas to do something to further my career....I'll let you know either tomorrow or Monday what goes down.

In the meantime, I've got to put the Writer's Guild brochure together and add the books 'Mistletoe Magic' and 'Sister Light' to my 'Traveling Library'. And pick up some more hand lotion or body spritz. I still have plenty of Smarties and bookmarks. Now if the rain stays away, we'll all be happy! My neighbor is also loaning me his Kindle for display, and I checked at Walmart the other day: Interest in the Sony Pocket E-Reader had definitely spiked:)

Books Bought Yesterday:
-Love Slave For Two: Beginnings
-Love Slave For Two
Both by Tymber Dalton. I should get to the first one either tonight or tomorrow.