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Second Workday at the Office of the Blind
Mar. 22nd, 2005 07:11 pmWork: Our office is so neat! It has three 'secret' entrances, and the building has a secret elevator, for which I thank the gods, because the public elevator is slooow.
Okay, so it's the freight elevator, probably. It looks awfully nice inside, for a freight elevator. And it's fast.
Apparently, the Texas Dept. of Health and Human Services uses a different kind of intranet than the Parole division does. Our office email system uses Outlook, and I can apparently send messages to people who are not State of Texas employees. So I can email Mark from work. Yea! I won't be doing any surfing that is not related to work, but at least I can send and receive email, within reason.
Tomorrow I have new-hire orientation, so I'll be out at the HR office all day. I checked my vacation accrual rate, and if I read it correctly, I should be entitled to accrue 11 hours of Annual Leave each month. Yippee! They've gone a bit chintzy on their longevity pay; when I first started with the State in 1990, you earned $7 extra per month, for each year of employment, until your monthly total equaled $210. So, with ten years of employment, you'd be earning $70 extra per month. Now, the way they do it is that you earn an extra $20 for every three years of employment. This means that, with 10 years of service, I will now be getting $60 extra a month.
On the other hand, given a choice between that and no salary per month, I'll take it. (g)
They have extended the longevity pay, though. Now, nstead of the cut-off being at 30 years of service, it goes to 42 years, so that the highest amount of longevity pay an employee can receive per month is $280. They're clearly betting that they will save money in the long run, because most employees won't stay with the state for an entire 42 years.
I can tell that this place is going to be bad for my waistline. There's a little snack shop downstairs, whose proprietor makes delicious breakfast tacos. And she sells bear claw pastries. *whine*
Good news--After six months, I might have the option to change my work schedule. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they might allow me to work 7am-4pm, M-F. I so do not like going home in the dark.
Blast from the past--My friend Clint called today while I was at work! I used to go out with him, years ago, and I was able to get his phone number. That was so neat!
Medical Transcription Word of the Day: oligomenorrhea - Scanty and brief menstrual periods more than six weeks apart. I'm sure there are some women who would love to have that condition, but I think it would freak me out too much.
House Bedlam: Tonight is our friend Tom's birthday. He wants to go out to a restaurant he hasn't named yet and is riding the bus over here now. This should be an adventure.
Okay, so it's the freight elevator, probably. It looks awfully nice inside, for a freight elevator. And it's fast.
Apparently, the Texas Dept. of Health and Human Services uses a different kind of intranet than the Parole division does. Our office email system uses Outlook, and I can apparently send messages to people who are not State of Texas employees. So I can email Mark from work. Yea! I won't be doing any surfing that is not related to work, but at least I can send and receive email, within reason.
Tomorrow I have new-hire orientation, so I'll be out at the HR office all day. I checked my vacation accrual rate, and if I read it correctly, I should be entitled to accrue 11 hours of Annual Leave each month. Yippee! They've gone a bit chintzy on their longevity pay; when I first started with the State in 1990, you earned $7 extra per month, for each year of employment, until your monthly total equaled $210. So, with ten years of employment, you'd be earning $70 extra per month. Now, the way they do it is that you earn an extra $20 for every three years of employment. This means that, with 10 years of service, I will now be getting $60 extra a month.
On the other hand, given a choice between that and no salary per month, I'll take it. (g)
They have extended the longevity pay, though. Now, nstead of the cut-off being at 30 years of service, it goes to 42 years, so that the highest amount of longevity pay an employee can receive per month is $280. They're clearly betting that they will save money in the long run, because most employees won't stay with the state for an entire 42 years.
I can tell that this place is going to be bad for my waistline. There's a little snack shop downstairs, whose proprietor makes delicious breakfast tacos. And she sells bear claw pastries. *whine*
Good news--After six months, I might have the option to change my work schedule. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they might allow me to work 7am-4pm, M-F. I so do not like going home in the dark.
Blast from the past--My friend Clint called today while I was at work! I used to go out with him, years ago, and I was able to get his phone number. That was so neat!
Medical Transcription Word of the Day: oligomenorrhea - Scanty and brief menstrual periods more than six weeks apart. I'm sure there are some women who would love to have that condition, but I think it would freak me out too much.
House Bedlam: Tonight is our friend Tom's birthday. He wants to go out to a restaurant he hasn't named yet and is riding the bus over here now. This should be an adventure.
