On the bright side, I believe we now have everything that we intend to keep packed up and in boxes. The last remaining outstanding item is the file cabinet - and even with that, the initial sorting has been completed. What remains is to analyze everything I set aside in the "shred" and "get rid of" piles to make sure I agree with that assessment (and then shred them, of course). That said, we now are in a position to actually try and visualize how all the rest of everything is going to be removed from the house (literally, we have no idea).
Also, my mouse problem of two months ago seems to have resolved itself via some baited food and a trap which last month apparently got the last inhabitant in the attic. No sounds nor sight this month.
On the less bright side, the roof leak reappeared - although fortunately just before my arrival (as with the initial time), so it appears that there is limited if any damage to the floor. The Cowboy mentioned they had significant rain and wind just before my arrival. Wind seems to be the main factor, as there were no leaks last year at all. I dried everything off, replaced the container in the attic, and put a large plastic container on the floor to catch any water. The Cowboy has offered to look in on it from time to time until my next return in January.
The visit with my Aunt and Uncle went well.
She is tired (unsurprisingly) but seemed in good spirits and was up and engaged during my visit with my Uncle and my cousin, even if she did not have a lot to say. The visit was 30 minutes or more, and she was awake and listening the whole time.
They have placed a hospital bed in the upstairs living room, although she has not used it as she prefers the couch, saying it is more comfortable. This is not the first time I have heard such a complaint about a hospital bed; they are hoping a new mattress will resolve the issue - the hospital bed does allow them to raise her feet, which helps with swelling.
Any thoughts or discussion about timelines was not broached during my visit. I hesitated to ask; no-one asked the unspoken question. I have every hope to see her again in January.
Traveling there and back again has become less and less of an enjoyable experience.
The problem, of course, is that unlike my last two jobs (and my stint at unemployment) I cannot take a week off at a time to stay there. As a result, my visits are wedged into a 24 to 30 hour period. Within that period - exclusive of rising (often very early), preparing and driving to the airport, and flying - I have to get from the airport (whether by family or friends, and often with a breakfast to visit), pick up the truck, do whatever business I have to do in town, drive to the Ranch, make sure I visit with my Aunt and Uncle and The Cowboy, have dinner with Uisdean Ruadh (as is the custom) - and ensure I have enough time to do some packing and organizing, sleep, shower, eat breakfast, prepare the house for my departure, and then get back on the road to drop the truck back off and then get to the airport.
When I took the job at New Home 2.0, I knew that I would have to be onsite for the work - people occasionally work from home, but at this site there is no accommodation for weekly work from home sorts of thing. It is a manufacturing site; we manufacture things. I do not think I had anticipated the impact it would have on my visits back to The Ranch. It has made such visits much less things of anticipation and much more things of inconvenience, more of a chore than a pleasure.
It is nice to see family and friends of course, and always seeing the property is a joy - but now it always a joy tinged with sorrow and a certain exhaustion knowing that as soon as I see it I will be swiftly departing in less than a day.
Yeah, manufacturing is a "high touch" occupation.
ReplyDeleteAnd the time-frame for problem resolution is measured in seconds and minutes, not "Let's have a meeting next week"
Very true, ERJ - especially in my industry where we are dealing with biologic systems where mere minutes in some cases can make or break two weeks to three months of work.
DeleteTo be fair, I took the job knowing this. I am at least fortunate in that I have been able to continue to go at all - if this was in New Home, I could not even manage to get out and back again in a weekend.
I left the workforce before working from home became common place. Had it been around back then, I might have stayed awhile longer as it seems like it has a lot more advantages than disadvantages. There were many times when I needed to be at work, especially when I was building or testing prototypes, but for the actual design work, it would have been quite easy to work from home and I'm certain a lot more productive since I could avoid the constant interruptions.
ReplyDeleteEd, I have come to see both sides of the discussion. On the one hand, I can be very productive at home when I have computer related tasks to do as interruptions are kept to a minimum (people vastly underestimate the amount of time that walk-ups and hallway conversations take up). And conference calls can be just as effective as in person meetings to accomplish work.
DeleteAt the same time, there are certain collaboration and perhaps even less measurable aspects in terms of actual "work" that are only gained by being in close proximity. Part of it is simply learning to "work" together, instead of lobbing tasks and e-mails back and forth. Another is building some level of trust and relationship and often understanding a process or problem in a way that cannot fully be grasped by not being there.
A new employer....maybe like throwing a fist-sized rock into a small pond and watching the ripples move outward. Time constraints are a bummer TB, hang in there.
ReplyDeleteNylon12, there are always possibilities of course - but those are possibly years in the future and, given the nature of this job, quite likely not to manifest any time soon. At some point I could perhaps work one day from home - but even then, it assumes other things like regular InterWeb access and/or phone access, etc. And in this particular case if we are successful at what we do, we will be doing a lot more of it, which I suspect limits the ability to work remotely even more.
DeleteBut the sorting for the most part is finished, so that should be one less stress.
ReplyDeleteCowboy is a valuable asset.
What is Uisdean Ruadh's schedule? Would either of them be willing to keep a closer watch on the ranch to do things that need doing?
You may need to book flights well in advance and travel on holiday weekends to get a little extra time?
I feel for you, TB. I remember how it was before hubby retired and we would make a marathon trip from North Carolina to Louisiana on a weekend. *Hugs*
You all be safe and God bless.
Linda - The sorting being done is a stress relief; now we can turn to the next major set of tasks.
DeleteI can ask The Cowboy and Uisdean Ruadh to check on things at least, but at best that is a short term gap remedy. And some of the larger items to be done require blocks of time that at the moment, are not achievable beyond vacation days.
I am fortunate that flights there are pretty reasonable and fairly bookable at this point - for example, I believe I can book out to July 2025. Managing that plan months in advance while making sure I am here as well as choosing when to go - for example, booking during Spring Vacation is simply unaffordable which then pushes out the time between my visits, etc.
This "hit the ground and go-go-go for 30 hours" makes things very much feel like just another set of chores to do.