The Holidays

I think I talked about Christmas and boxing day already. So next is the holidays. On December 28th we drove up to Edmonton, I saw a nurse for my surgery and she said that everything looked really good. I had to wear these little tapes and a bra for five more days, 24 hours a day. So then we headed to the mall to do some shopping and spend those gift cards. Well the first store that we hit up I was able to fit jeans and shirts, this is the first time I have ever walked into a normal sized clothing store and was able to fit both top and bottom, either than Old Navy. I know many people think that I am just in love with old navy but it was more that they had XXL tops in trendier styles so I shopped there. So then we went to LaSenza and I was able to buy 4 bras, I am now a proud 40C. I would like to get that 40 down to a 38 but that will be a work in progress. Then we just went to the hotel and vegetated before having to get up super early. So the flight went of fantastically and the entire trip was excellent. I wouldn't have changed a thing. We arrived, checked in and then went walking down the strip. We took a cab to the Palms and then went to Hart and Huntington for tattoos. I got a butterfly behind my ear. If no one knows, Hart and Huntington is the tattoo shop where the show "Inked" is filmed. Lacey, who is a regular on the show did my tattoo. I way overpaid, $200 for a butterfly the size of a quarter behind my ear. I was feeling pretty bad about that so while my friend Jen was getting a tattoo on her foot I went and put $5 in the nickel machines. I won $76 then I cashed out and put another $5 in, I won $206. Now this made me feel a lot better because my tattoo was now paid for and I had more money than when I started with. So Jen finished her tattoo and then we went back to the room. We went in a limo ride that night with some guys that we had met on the plane who were from Vermillion of all places, yes we go 1000miles away to hang out with people that live 45 minutes away from us. It was really fun though, we went to Freemont street and gambled at Golden Gate casino, I won about $180 on the blackjack tables and then we went to Scores. This is apparently the most elite strip club in Vegas. I have no idea?! All I know is that it was a $30 cover charge and the guys paid for it and then drinks were extremely expensive, again they paid. Sean Coombs was there that night, that was about the only time I saw a celebrity. Then from there we went to a country and western bar. Then home. Now that was all just our first day. For the rest of the trip we just wandered around and went to the different hotels and casinos. We didn't go to any shows. On New Year's Eve we were on the strip but pretty much after the countdown we went to our room. Unless you are drunk I didn't see the thrill in being on the strip, we had spent the last couple of days walking to only walk more didn't appeal to me. Then on the 1st we went to the Supernova concert. That was awesome. I must admit though that this was also the absolute most drunk I have ever been in my life. Immediately after the concert I went home. I was done. The good thing about me being drunk is that I know it, I came out of the concert, said I need to go and then fell down. How graceful, in a dress and all. So now I know my limits and I will never be that way again. The next day was definately a struggle though, we had to check out of our hotel room and our flight didn't leave until 11:59pm. So we had the whole day to kill and I hurt everywhere, you know when your eyelids hurt, that's where I was. By 5:30pm I was doing not too bad, we had hung out at the mall for a long while just sitting in the food court and that was good. Then we strolled back to our hotel to collect our bags and head to the airport. The entire trip was very liesurely, if we wanted to see something we saw it if we wanted to go to our room we did, if we wanted to party we did, if we wanted to go to bed early we did. It was great. I also couldn't believe that for 3 girls to go on a trip together there was no fighting or bickering. That is amazing! So it was a great experience. Now for my upsetting news. I came home and got paid on Friday. I checked my bank balance to see how much I had been paid and it was $600.00 less than last month. I get an advance and then a pay cheque. My pay last month had been $1534.34. This month it was $856.34. So actually $678 less than last month. Now I knew that my benefits had not been taken out on the last cheque so they would be doubled but still that is a huge decrease. So I called the finance department. So what happened was is that I had filled out a medical request for my surgery to take from December 18th to December 28th off as medical leave. Then from December 29th to January 3rd as compensatory time, ( we get 5 days per year of compensatory time). Now I just assumed that it was approved. I guess you should never assume. They approved 2 sick days and the compensatory time but that still left me 5 days short. So rather than send me an email or tell me that I would have 5 days without pay on my check they just let me get my pay check and find out that way. Nice! I now have absolutely no respect for the people that I am working for. I have disliked this job for a while and now it is just confirmed that I don't want to be here. So the plan. Casey is going to school at the end of February, I will go and help Cory during that time, then in the middle of July I will take holidays until September and then I will go and work with Jen. She is doing payroll for Flint in camp jobs. She said that she already knows that she could get me on but I think I want to go and help Cory first, work on getting my body into shape a little then take the summer off and then go and work with her. Now I had said when I started this job that if I didn't like it I always had the option of going to work with Cory in February, I just didn't think that would happen. Low and behold it is. I am excited and happy for it too. There are so many reasons that I am leaving too, all the same reason that I was leaving PDD. Okay when I negotiated coming back here I had asked for my benefits to be reinstated fully, they were. I also asked for my holidays to be reinstated. Now benefits were given but I won't be eligible for holidays until next November, when I had started I said that I wanted holidays to be reinstated because I didn't want to work next summer. That didn't happen. My wage, I asked them to come up with the best dollar figure they could, he didn't try to find more money at all and I ended up taking a $10,000.00 pay cut a year. Then to not let me know that they didn't approve of my medical leave when I was up front with them about my surgery topped the cake. As if they couldn't have granted me 5 days in advance for sick leave and then just not let me have any sick days for 5 months. So I am a little bitter to say the least. Actually a lot bitter. I need to leave. Last fall I had said I was going to travel, and buy a bike, and take this up coming summer off. So far this job is not allowing me to do any of that. I don't have any time off until November so I can't travel, I am not making a lot of money so I can't save a whole bunch for the bike and travel, and I have no holidays so I have to work this summer. Yep, life is way too short I am going to give my notice in a month and be done March 1st!!!