Quitting Smoking - Day 1

Posted by Leigh on June 30, 2008

I’m finally doing it. I’m done just talking about it. (Hmmm, maybe that’s why I’m so cranky this morning. Or maybe not!)

We’ve decided to quit smoking for good! Russ and I that is. Let’s hope this goes well!

We’ve tried quitting before, and Russ always does really good right off the bat. I on the other hand, get mean and nasty, and it last the whole time. But it’s usually me who wants to stick with it, while Russ gives up after a week.

Why is that I ask him? You can go four whole days with out a smoke, but then you light up again. And of course when he starts smoking again, I follow suit because… well, just because, I guess! I don’t have the will power to resist when he’s smoking right next to me.

But this time it’s for good! I’m tired of smoking! I’m tired of the ashes every where, the stale smoke smell that never seems to go away, and the tar residue it leaves on everything in your house! Not to mention the health affects of it.

So do we have any former smokers out there? Any advice you can give to some one who dearly wants to quit?

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Filed Under: Inside My Head

Getting Taken Advantage Of….

Posted by Leigh on

This post refers back to “Middle of the Night Phone Calls”

A little background info for those of you who don’t know the situation. Last spring, three of my aunts called and asked me if I would take a job with the local water authority, I turned them each down at least three times. But they couldn’t find anyone else with an accounting background to run the clerical and financial aspects of the utility company, so I finally, after much begging, agreed to take the job. It’s a small village that the water authority services, just over a hundred customers. And I’ve lived just outside the village all my life, so I know 95% of the customers.

Okay, so my first mistake was taking the job. I have enough on my plate as it is, what with running my own business, running my father’s business for 8 months out of every year while he winters away, and keeping my nieces and nephews often, I often find myself working 14 hr days at it was.

My second mistake was not putting my foot down sooner. I should have stopped the home phone calls right from the start. I should have stopped the home visits right from the start. But because a lot of them were from family members and friends, I let it slide. Now it’s become a major problem.

The water authority doesn’t make money, obviously, it’s just a utility company, and a very small one at that. Every month it’s create accounting to keep checks from bouncing and make sure all the bills get paid. So I understand that they can’t pay a whole lot, and I’m not really doing it for the money, I do it because I was begged by family members to do it. But it’s come down to this: For less than $300 salary a month, I know have people calling my house at all hours of the day, and night. No one wants to abide by the by laws of the utility company (No tell me, would you call your electric company and ask if you could post date a check for an entire month, and not get your service shut off?), they want me to help them out by letting things slide.

Not only that, but instead of submitting any requests in writing, like our by laws say, they think they can call at anytime, and I’ll drop what I’m doing to cater to their needs. Such as on Saturday, my younger sister’s best friend, who is a water customer, called at 11am. She needed a letter stating that they have public water to give the building inspector as they are building a new house. I said no problem, I’d have it to her in the mail on Monday. Well, that is a problem she tells me, can she pick it up in an hour. They’re going away for the weekend and they need to have the letter to the inspector by Monday. I was livid, but I dropped what I was doing and typed it up. Then to keep her from bringing her three kids up to my house to pick it up, I ran it down to her. (I figured it was quicker that way, as if she had come here, she probably would have stayed to chat, or let the kids play, and I had other work to do.)

That coming right on the heels of the middle of the night phone call by another water customer left me in a really bad mood!

So what are my plans to get these people under control? First I talk about it very loudly while I’m at the post office. The postmaster and I get along great, he’s even offered me a part time job there if I want it… I’m still thinking about that though, because it would put me in more contact with the people I’m complaining about… lol.

But seriously, I’m to the point where I’m actually thinking about changing my home phone number, and dropping the water authority phone line into my house. The water authority can pay for it’s own voice mail and I’ll just check it every morning. That should solve the phone call problem, if people can’t reach me directly, then they’ll learn they can’t get things done instantly.

Secondly, I’m done kenneling my dogs when people come. Thanks for the idea Jim! If they can’t stand to deal with my jumping Jack, or Lewy who tries to bite any man that walks in my house, they don’t need to be here. I don’t have to kennel my dogs when my friends come over, why should they be punished for idiots who feel they can stop out and interrupt my day! Yes, I will put up a sign that says beware of dogs (although even typing that makes me laugh, because my dogs are all “kicker dogs” not a one of them weighs over 30 pounds) hopefully that will work to a degree that keeps at least anyone with kids away, or even if they left their kids in the car. I’m tired of having strange children running through my house and trying to invite themselves to stay and play. I’m also bring it up at the board meeting that unless they get insurance that covers my place, no customers should be there period. The current insurance will cover the water operators that stop out to drop off paperwork and such, so that’s not a problem. But they, the two other employees, understand my position as it is, and they only ever drop stuff off, and my dogs are used to them.

As for the board, if they don’t like my new “demands”, then they can kiss my a**. Let them try to find someone else willing to take this job! I’ve already asked them to start looking many times, and all I get in answer is: No one else wants to. Well, no shit! If I had known what all it involved, I would have run kicking and screaming in the other direction.

Renters - that’s become a dirty word to me because of this job. So this morning, the landlords all got sent a “nice” little letter reminding them that it’s their job to handle their tenants. I’m not babysitting these a**holes for them any longer. I refuse to call each landlord every time a tenant doesn’t pay their bill. It’s not my job to keep track of these people that are always moving in and out. I’m simply to bill them and collect the checks. Not a single renter will get water service in this town again unless their landlords notify me and send in all the paperwork filled out correctly! I’m done feeling sorry for them because their landlords are deadbeats!

Yeah! I’m finally learning how to stand up for myself! I’m tired of getting taken advantage of, because I’m too nice to say NO! (Okay, so we’ll see how well I do at the meeting on Wednesday night!)

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Filed Under: Small Town/Country Life, Work/Self Employment

Middle of the Night Phone Calls

Posted by Leigh on June 27, 2008

There’s nothing I hate more than being woke up by a ringing phone. Especially at 3:30am.

Last night, or I guess it was actually this morning, a water customer called at 3:30am. When I signed on to run the local utility company, I had absolutely no idea what I was in for. I thought, I know these people, most of the are relatives of some sort or another. It can’t be too bad.

Boy was I wrong! Not only do I have to harass the same people every other month for not paying their bills, I’ve also had to shut off water on people that I know. It’s just a job I tell myself, they can’t really hold it against me.

Then there are the renters, as I say that word I sneer. I’ve never had anything against people who rent instead of own. That is until I got saddled with this job. The renters are the worst. They don’t listen, don’t do their paperwork, and then complain endlessly until they get what they want. They call at all hours of the day, and apparently now they’re making middle of the night calls to my HOME phone. They stop at my house - which is not water authority property - any time they feel like it. And to top it off, they let their kids run loose throughout my house the whole time they are here. And that whole time I’m standing there with clenched teeth and a very fake, very forced smile, wishing I could just reach out and strangle them!

I’ve asked nicely, that no one stops without an appointment. I’ve very clearly listed my business hours, along with the business phone number, on every piece of paper that goes out. I’ve complained to the board, whom all live right in the center of the village, with these people. (Where as I live a few miles out of the village and don’t even have city water myself.)

I’m at my wits end! This job is invading every aspect of my personal life, and I’m tired of it. I was coerced into taking it by a few of my aunts whom are on the board. They were desperate and couldn’t find anyone else to do it. The last person quit and promptly moved out of the area. I think I’m starting to understand why she moved away… This village is full of idiots!

Work shouldn’t follow you around! It shouldn’t call at 3:30am and then not even bother to leave a message. (I had my husband call the number right back to complain, but they didn’t answer it.) So another number added to my blocked callers list, just let them try and bother me again!