Tuesday, November 12, 2013

There's no such thing as a free lunch

Well, actually there is. However, it's not without its own cost. ;-) My new employer (and, M's too for that matter - we both got jobs at the same place) offers free food. . . all day long. Free breakfast in the morning, snacks, fresh fruit, coffee, smoothies, lunch, & if you happen to be working late, free dinner. I'm sure you can guess why our employer wants to feed their staff - to keep them working longer! That said, I'm very grateful. I've packed a lunch probably 85% of every work day, so it's such a nice treat to have the variety of options, the cost savings, as well as just saving time by not packing. I also feel super grateful that our employer puts a big emphasis on healthy options. The jury is still out on how much we're saving, but I'll be reporting on that soon.

There is also an onsite gym (I've been taking spinning in the morning - it's amazing), that is free. Love having a gym in such close proximity to my desk. I can actually get in a workout on 2-3 days/week before my first meeting.

That said, my first three weeks have been quite an adjustment. I was with my prior employer for my entire career (16 years, but who is counting? ;-)), and had a huge network I could tap whenever I needed advice, had questions, or just wanted to vent. I'm starting entirely from scratch in a new place with a very different culture. It's . . . unsettling. I also had one vision of what my job & team would be like, based on feedback from M about his team & environment. We work in different job disciplines, & I think it's safe to say that our teams are nothing alike.

I'm still trying to find the balance of settling in to a new place, adjusting to my new working hours, and managing the kids/family/household stuff.

Luckily, soccer ended on Saturday, & I'm very grateful to have the time back. It was a huge learning experience for me to coach, and quite a bit more work than I initially expected. Somehow, since we've moved to California, the boys have started to look more alike! I think it's the shaggy hair & tan. ;-) And yes, these are pictures of pictures, so please excuse the quality.


In other news, I got my first paycheck last Friday, so I'm busily tallying up our spending for 2013, predicting our final budget totals for the year, setting the budget for 2014 and just generally getting our lives back in order.

And, we've rented out our house in Washington!!!! So very excited. We're going to continue to pay for the yard service, & then pay a fee to the property management firm, but we will roughly break even each month. So excited to have that settled. Our renters move in over the weekend.

I apologize for my absence as I try to find time to get everything done!

What is one thing you are grateful for today? For me, the gorgeous fall that we are enjoying, and the relief of knowing our house is rented. 

10 comments:

  1. I lost my job with my previous employer due to budget cuts 5 years ago. I had been there for 9 years. I was lucky enough to find a job after a few weeks but the different environment was hard to get used to. My previous job everyone was a lot more relaxed. It took some time to get used to everyone. Hang in there it will get better.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, exactly! It's very stressful to try & pick up all of the subtle cultural things that happen at a work place. Especially when your boss is very unavailable. :-) I think we've spoken 10 sentences since I've started. I suppose it's just sink or swim!

      Delete
  2. Congrats on renting the house! Are you selling the vacation place too?
    So odd your boys look so much alike....except w/the same parents, shouldn't they? lol

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My husband is Iranian, so what's funny is that these guys look anything like me at all! He has all of the dominant genes. ;-) We're still tossing around ideas with the vacation house. The market is not very strong on the Oregon coast, so we're trying to determine if it makes more sense to hold on a bit longer, hopefully deduct some of the interest (we phased out last year, but was able to write off some) on our taxes, etc. I have a super strong emotional attachment to the house, so I'm the holdout for sure.

      Delete
  3. Your kids do look alike! Feel free to vent here, I know exactly what you mean about a network to tap into. Overall, it sounds like you really do have a great employer. Even though I am making far less than I used to (used to have a specific designation and no longer do) I am lucky to have hooked up with a great company, fellow employees and owners. Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So happy to hear that you're enjoying your new job - sounds like a fantastic place to be. Enjoying your work is a huge part of life happiness, I think. :-)

      Delete
  4. Your boys are so cute. I can imagine that coaching soccer would definitely have its challenges.

    I think its always a bit hard to transition to a new job. You don't know anybody and sometimes the expectations aren't all that clear. With my current job, I always got there a bit early and parked in the same spot. This went on for a couple months when my boss (and president of the company) told me I was parking in her spot. Oops!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Loved the parking in the boss's spot. Classic! It is really hard to not know who to ask for silly things - how to expense stuff, weekly reports, just the basics. I suppose all of that improves over time, because it's no fun to feel like you haven't the foggiest clue what's going on. ;-)

      Delete
  5. It sounds like you have a wonderful new job! I would live there if I got 3 free meals and use of the gym.
    And your boys are adorable!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's pretty great! I have breakfast there & my second cup of coffee every week day. The coffee alone should be saving us, as we buy the fancy stuff. I love not having to pack anything. SO convenient! The gym is awesome. I need to figure out my schedule a bit more so I can take full advantage of all of the classes.

      Delete