I've been a pie fiend as of late. I tend to make a bunch of apple pies in the fall as the apples are in season, and this year has been no different. I had a couple coworkers inquire why I hadn't brought in any pie. If anyone knows anything about my job, you'd know why that is the case. But I made a pie for my cousins coming into town, and it turned out that it caused a bit of a commotion for leftovers. I only heard this second/third hand, but the next day, the last slice was vied for, pined after, and disputed about. HEY. I will make you another pie if you ask! The great thing about the pies are how quickly they can be made and how wonderful they always seem to come out. I even made one for game night... the first game night I had attended in many a month, and taking a break a couple hours in to devour it was delish. I love it when after weeks have gone by, people still bring up the pie as a topic of conversation.
So I quit my job. I put in notice. I gave them four weeks. I'm leaving on a good note, and my next job will be exactly on my path in the career/field I want to be in. It's a wonderful opportunity and I'm looking forward to the change. But I've also made sure in the final weeks at my current job that nobody gets the false-impression that I'm uncommitted... I have a ton left to do on my plate, and I'm finally getting the opportunity to finish everything I have outstanding. I will get everything done. The final days at my job have been rife with revelation about who cares about me, what everyone thinks of me and who really matters. I've been appreciating all the congratulations people are giving me, those that have come up to me to wish me luck and all the happy faces wanting the best for me. There is great speculation as of late to WHERE I'm going.. but since I'm trying as much to keep that to myself until I'm settled into the job, they'll have to wonder! But in general everyone is happy for me... :) There will always be those few left that treat me with silence, but I leave on a high note, and I'll still be helping them out from here to there as a contractor.
Unfortunately, this means no trip to California like I did last year for a week. I had scheduled a full trip to California in December to ride home with R. That didn't materialize. Not only did I request the time off and get it approved after much finagling of my schedule with my coworkers, but R never settled on his departure date. And since I'm switching jobs now, my new job will not provide me with enough time off in 2010 to leave in December. I was able to negotiate more time off than I otherwise would, but unfortunately, I won't have accumulated enough to vacation until next year. But the good news is they cash out my bank after I leave... so that will be a nice extra added final pay check!
So beyond work (which has been taking up all my time), not a whole lot has been going on. In the evenings, I've been filling my time with random activities, meeting up with people, watching funny/scary movies, catching up on long overdue todo items (leaves, anyone?), and just keeping myself distracted. The stress of the last nine months of job interviews, travel, my working situation, and just life in general has finally let up, and I'm trying to enjoy the sense of quiet and come back to zero.
I had a gathering for Halloween game night this year, which I think ended up being a great success. I had about 15 people over on Friday... I cleaned, baked, got snacks, ordered a sheet pizza with 50 wings, and hung out and played games with a bunch of my friends. It's good to be staying for a little while longer.. because I do enjoy all their company so much.
Saturday included an amazing party at Jen & Jim's house. They host it every year, and invite all the craziest people from their extended circle. Last year the gathering was intimate, and this year... the house was full of the most random costumes. I, of course, was super boring and did not dress up.. but I brought food/drink and had a great time with everyone for over six hours. I spent the day enjoying scary movies and then enjoyed the evening eating great foods and hanging out with a great group of people. By the time I was leaving for the night, they were all headed to the bars. Not sure how late they're open.. but 2AM was late enough for me! I stumbled home, got an extremely late-night phone call from a friend, and just couldn't sleep. I think I was super hopped up on caffeine and good times. No sugar! (I avoided carbs as best I could, like usual.) Besides my total lack of working out as of late (have had a lot of bodily discomfort...), I'm feeling good.
Speaking of stuff to do in my free time... volleyball! (My all time favorite sport by the way...) Our vollyball team is getting a whole lot better from week to week. We're working better as a team and actually kicking some serious butt. This week's double header was amazing. Not only did we dress up as zombies for the match, but we killed in our first round, gorged on food between, and then had a great come-back victory in our second match up. Last week we worked amazingly as a team (even our friendly audience said so!) and we're just getting better and better. This meant the entire evening (Halloween) was taken up at Hot Shots playing volleyball, it was totally worth it. These are my friends, we have a great time together, and what better way than enjoying the camaraderie and over-eating over the course of 4 hours? I'm officially joining the team for our next round... very much looking forward to it. I'm not saying we are pros.. but for a team of misfits with random skillsets, we're definitely improving.
This and next week include daily lunches with friends/coworkers "sending me off" for best wishes. I am enjoying the transition... even if the plan for what to do after I leave is still being decided. Good luck to them! I wish them the best.
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