It's Tacky And I Love It

Look at this. LOOK AT THIS.

It was free, from a lady named Denise on Facebook.

It's perfect. I love her. It is now in my flat.

In other news I have a bunch of random stuff that I should list for sale, since it would be suitable as Christmas presents. It's the appropriate time, you see, evidenced by all the random tat that is appearing in my Facebook feed. The winner for today is someone selling what they describe as a perfect Christmas gift - and they are rocks she has painted and wants £2 each for. No, they are not Michelangelo-level works of art. They're rocks with coloured dots on them.

Clearly I am in the wrong career.

Ugh Power Prices

So when I moved in here nine months ago, I signed up with Neon Reef for my electricity. They were pretty new on the scene and entirely online - which I am fine about - and not only were their tariffs low, all their power was green as well. (Whatever green energy actually means.)

You will probably not be surprised, but they're one of the companies that have gone bust in recent weeks. About 25 energy companies supplying England have bitten the dust in November. The UK has price caps on what can be charged by law, and as the price of fuel has skyrocketed they've been going backwards by supplying it under the cap price.

I signed up on a 14 pence per kilowatt hour variable tariff which was the lowest on the market at that time. I've now been flung into British Gas 😠 and my new tariff is 21 pence. 😠

Why isn't there a puke emoji? 😠

I am not looking forward to bills that are 50% higher than before. And there is no point switching, they're all basically the same cost now. Sigh. They can't even move my direct debit over and I will have to pay the bills manually from here.

Not impressed.

Plus, I'm home for a week between jobs = more power use heating the flat. At least I'm not spending money on food, since the kitchen is still full.

Lovely: Neighbour #8 who just gave me a box of chocolates for Christmas.

Have a Seat

Posed by model.

So I am really stupidly excited about an incredibly ugly freebie I got today. It sort of resembles this lovely example at the left (I am too lazy to clear a neat corner in order to take a photo of the actual chair). It is gloriously shiny red, sturdy, has a few scratches showing a pale crimson underneath and a few chips showing white beneath that. I have ideas about sanding it enough to paint it white (or pale green) and for it to be my dressing table chair, but who knows, I might leave it in its shiny red ugliness.

From the same house I also got a pair of matching navy metal folding chairs. And what's more they are neither rusted nor scratched to buggery. Score! The irony is that I didn't even care what colour (I was just vaguely thinking I'd like to get two chairs to go with my folding table) and now I quite like the idea of blue. 

Also today: a bunch of flowers and a box of chocolates from Boss Lady to say thank you. ♥ 

Also posed by model.
A different model.

Currently cooking a roast, because that's what you do at midnight.

I have quit my gym as it won't really be practical to keep travelling there (it's close to old-work, which isn't all that close to me). There are two main contenders for Replacement Gym, one is well-equipped but costs a bit, and then there's Cheapy Gym which is bare bones, not very big and in the grounds of the college (it also has very limited hours). I'm still deciding. I asked them a few questions about their "free included classes" since they didn't see fit to actually say what they are. We will see.

Riverdance On My Roof

Do you see this picture? This is a representation of the sound going on above me as the roofers get started.

But at least it is happening, finally.

Work is going ok. It's sad that I'm only just getting to know a few of the old-newbies just as I'm going, because one of them is a quiet bright spark I could definitely have seen as being a good friend given time, and the other one has brilliant potential to progress. I've made a point of at least making this clear to the others so that they keep them in mind for more responsibility. Even Annoying Face listened to my advice on a few things (knock me over with a feather). I have promised to come to their Christmas party to make a brief appearance and I will bring Carebear along with me, who now has a new job as a carpenter.

My car's MOT is due and I'm hoping to get that booked in during my week of freedom. I also need to assess my wardrobe as I'm not sure that I have more than 2 or 3 suitable office-type work outfits which fit me. I might need to visit the charity shops to expand the options a little bit.

I have opened a new current bank account and activated the automated bank switching service... another easy £100 for about 30 minutes of work (I needed to move some direct debits for bills in order to qualify, so it took about ten days altogether to make it happen). It was a no-brainer since I was closing an old account with The Worst Bank In The World that I only opened to get an introductory bonus that is long-gone. There is another £100 switch offer still available for a different bank, for another couple of weeks, so I will look into that during my freedom week too.

Free things: allll the avocadoes. I usually forget to eat them, but at least they get a chance to be eaten. Also all the bread, most of which gets binned, and the salads that just never end. 

The Idiocy, It Does Not Stop Following Me

I have been training our three new hires. I shall call them Huey, Dewey and Louis.

Huey declined to come in tomorrow at 6am to cover a sick call because, and I quote, "I need to be home to tidy the living room for my mother." I apologised and said I didn't realise that he was a carer. He shook his head, said no, it was just his turn to tidy up before his mother left for work. I say, ok, can you start a couple of hours later? No, he couldn't, because tidying the living room takes a very long time and he will need to straighten up the chairs. I gave up at that point because this kid clearly has no concept that his excuse sounds stupid to begin with.

Dewey has told me that he will not be available on any days before 12pm, as he needs to stay home and look after the house. I assumed that meant he had a neurotic dog, but it turns out he has a rabbit. Which apparently cares if it's alone and will... I don't know, destroy the house? Disturb neighbours? Then he got chatty later on and remarked how much better this job is than his last one because they used to make him start at 5am and this one is flexible and he can work at times to suit him. (Well I've got news for him. I quietly put him on the rota for next 7am next Tuesday. Essentially because staying home to care for your rabbit is bullshit. And also that it's stupid to be telling the person who manages the rota that you can work whenever it pleases you, when you're one week into a brand new job.)

Louis is normal. Well, featuring relatively high on a scale of normal. Louis successfully memorises every procedure but is blunt, rude, and doesn't seem aware that manners exist (much less possess any himself). I have so far found him very receptive to pointers unless he has already been told, at which point he cuts me off mid-sentence to say he knows. He also barks at customers without using hello, please or have a nice day. I just sigh... I've at least taught him to say, "Thank you for waiting" when there's a long queue. It's a start. I will now attempt to stop him from touching his hair non-stop. He's wearing about half a tub of Brylcreem by the look of it, followed by teasing it into an affectation of I Stuck My Finger In A Power Point. As in, greasy and sticking up everywhere. I inwardly will him to wash his hands the second he touches it, which is often.

Just ugh. Grace almost burst into tears when she heard I was leaving. Grabbed her phone to call her mum whom she thought might also cry despite having never met me, merely because she has apparently always gone home and told her mum that work was good today because I was there. I love Grace, I'm going to miss her. x

Pre-emptive Kapow

But first the minutiae. Two staff isolating due to Covid and lack of immunity and Grace off sick with suspected Glandular Fever. Along with Boss Lady still running about fixing other stores, we're down to a skeleton crew. Making my next bit of news kind of shitty timing.

I'm jumping the gun here ever-so-slightly... but I got very interesting news this morning from an HR Lady, the one who interviewed me for Job #1. It turns out that they almost offered me Online Manager of their supermarket but ultimately decided it would be too much for me (fair, once they told me it's being revamped in the next few months) and they've offered me Café Manager instead. This has fewer peaks & troughs of hard work, becomes quieter in the winter, and is generally considered one of the starter management roles. I initially baulked as I didn't want to be cooking again full-time. But she assures me that my hands-on time will be minimal as I'll have mostly admin tasks to look after and their existing team leaders do run the show. The café there also includes their huge staff canteen. I will have a schedule of when I'm also in charge of the whole store (yikes!) and will sometimes also cover parts of the Customer Service Manager's role.

We are now just nutting out the salary before I give her an official yes. I asked for a bit more than I originally asked for as Online Manager 😂 figuring I had nothing to lose. She was just so positive and clearly set on me that even if they come back with a no to the amount I asked, I'll merrily accept the starting salary and stroll on over.

I gave notice to my own Boss Lady today. I have mixed feelings here. She admitted that she was gutted, but she didn't seem terribly surprised that I'm going. She was really interested and enthusiastic about my new role (which surprised me in a good way) and said that it sounded like it was more my thing than where I am (which surprised me in a... weird way). I told her I feel like a shit head, leaving right now, and she said yeah I'm a shit head, but don't be an arsehole for your last week. We had a good laugh. She has offered to be my personal referee going forward. It was only after I left that chat that I realised I should have offered the same to her. She's quite a brilliant person, a genuinely good person merely given way too much to do, currently burnt out and stressed out, and if she jumps ship, she deserves to really do well.

Suffice to say I was in a great mood today. Have told a few people. Trying not to tell the newbies during their first week! But obviously it'll be common knowledge pretty fast.

New record set: the amount of food on offer tonight was off the scale. It was £42.00 and when I scanned my staff card it became zero. I haven't brought this much free food home in a long time. But I won't have the opportunity again after next week so I grabbed anything that wasn't perishable.

The Treadmill of 9 to 5

Or maybe it's more of a merry-go-round. One of our newbies screwed up big time (above my level of scope) but Boss Lady's current level of Insane Busy means I'll probably have to somehow deal with it. Three more new staff members start this week and their training will mostly fall on me. One of them has big limitations on their hours (why, why, why do we keep hiring these people?). Idiot Space Cadet staff member (you may remember her as Beryl who wants to fuck off and skip across a meadow) still won't shut up about her Idiot Lifestyle Choice, to the point where the whole staff wish she'd fuck off and head for that meadow, and it's affecting morale, just like everything else lately which is affecting morale. All makes me want to bang my head on a wall. And it makes me think about the fact that I earned 2 weeks' worth of extra pay last month which could potentially buy me two weeks of blissful unemployment...

I went back to the gym last night after staying away far too long. But as is now usually the case, I was already hurting somewhere before I arrived, and unsurprisingly I wasn't able to run. I did walk for half an hour instead. I also did ten minutes on the bike, and although it's easier than walking or running I could immediately tell that new muscles were waking up - so I stopped there, thinking that I didn't want to spend this morning in agony. Well I slept terribly and the muscles concerned are obviously unimpressed 😂

Annoying: the almost complete lack of protein in the work freebies.

Meh: I can always get salads and bread.

Silver Lining: I'm doing late shifts for the next three weeks so at least I can snap up the reduced meat.

Prediction: that I'll be eating a very boring rotation of very similar meals for the next three weeks. I'm terrible at proper dinners when I work lates (last night I ate a freebie sandwich on the way home from the gym).

For Pity's Sake

Our managing agent has resigned due to harassment from one of the leaseholders. Can I just note here that the agent was working for the directors and this leaseholder is not even a director? Honestly. He was incredibly nasty to her and I'm not surprised she is opting out. I have mentally named him The Pit Bull and hope he stays the hell out of the whole business once we find a new agent.

Scaffolding is going up and there goes my privacy... the workers are right outside my windows, so I've had to pull all the curtains, how nice to sit without daylight.

Didn't get Job #3. Still not heard back from Job #1!!

Bumper pay packet this month and higher than I expected. I did a lot of extra hours here and there. No wonder I'm tired! Head office has thrown another new procedure at us with new forms to fill out and new magical expectations of our time. Plus ça change.

I have actually been a little better than usual this past week with spending. It's been so long since I showed any discipline and I've bought far too many meal deals for lunch, but I've mostly stuck to my cupboards and freezer for a week. It feels good to eat what I've got and know I'm saving my pennies. 

I Tried Smiling...

I think it's working. We've got the go-ahead on the roof replacement, and I am paying 7.4% instead of a 10%, because I've got the smallest flat. (Under the past management everything was charged under equal shares. Proportional charging would be fairer.) I have redrawn from my loan, ouch, there goes £1,100.

The scaffolding goes up in a few days. Now since the ridiculous politics and fighting has been so childish among the directors and leaseholders I am holding my breath. Fortunately, the two that are steering it are the Good Guys and I just need the idiots to pipe down and let people get on with things.

Still waiting to hear back from Job #1, the one that I think I'd actually like. They are at least keeping me in the loop and are still deciding. Still think I probably won't get it, but the chances are better than for Job #3.

Went to the gym today after five days away and felt the shin splint raring up in the first couple of minutes. And to be honest I just felt yuck all round, body was aching and it was just really unpleasant. I cursed inwardly and walked half an hour instead, and even that felt out of kilter. I really think I need to lose some body mass first so that I'm not causing myself so much strain 😒

Final Stretch?

We finally have movement on getting our building's roof replaced. There's a quote in place, a managing company in place, and a legal person making it all nice and tidy. The contingency fund doesn't quite cover the whole amount, so I'm in the process of redrawing some of the advance on my loan and will cover the rest of it by getting close to the bottom of my piggy bank. I will have to tighten my belt a bit for a while, but hey, it's a relief to see the end of the tunnel in sight. After this we should only have small amounts for completing the fire safety work, including electrical work for our automatic rooftop smoke vent and some new fire doors in the building.

The only remaining question really is the timing to complete it all. I'm kinda pondering whether to finish and sell this place and start again with the next one. I suppose that was my original intention, hoping to make a small profit each time, until I have a larger flat where I can let out a spare bedroom. I can't realistically sell until all the work is done (so that it isn't limited to cash buyers). So, I wait.

Tired. It's such a boring thing to keep noting, but I am. Work is a ridiculous circus. I have another job interview this week - haven't heard a peep from the last two which is a little bit depressing, so the mind skips ahead. Did they offer it to someone else and that person hasn't given them an answer yet? Or are they just slow? I've done no real research for this next interview which will probably show, but to be candid I am just not invested in job searching. It's funny to think that because I already have a job, even though I desperately want to get out, there is less motivation to move.

Did a stint as an Olio volunteer, collecting and listing surplus food for others to collect. I only had two people interested and it was a massive, time-consuming pile of bread and pastry that people don't tend to want. Not sure I will bother again. I also skipped the gym this week due to having no energy left in my tank. Disappointed in myself but I will use the opportunity to repeat the same week of the Couch to 5k and hopefully not feel like I'm struggling so much to complete it.

Stop press: Didn't get Position #2, the ambiguous one, which turned out to be manager role and which I didn't want anyway. Today's interview went ok. I answered most questions really well but sometimes rambled a lot. I don't think I'll be successful but it went better than expected. And boy, were the questions haaaard.