Tag Archives: Career

Getting Ready For My First Shift

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! I start my first shift as an on call shelter counselor tonight. I will be doing a shadowing shift tonight. I am nervous about it because it is a twelve hour shift at night. I am also having anxiety over it because I have had much sleep today.

In all honesty I am having more anxiety over when my second shift is going to be due to me not knowing when it is going to be happening. According to my supervisor I need to do three shadowing shifts counting the one I am doing tonight. We briefly discussed it the past Monday (October 1st) but never confirmed the days. I just don’t want to miss a shift and get into trouble for not attending a shift. I did email my supervisor both yesterday as well as today. In fact my last email to my supervisor was less than a half an hour ago.  I think I’ll text and/or email him tomorrow after my shift to inform him how it we and to ask about my next shift once again.

I know I am having anxiety over something I cannot control. I just want to make sure the next time I work that I get enough sleep especially since my shifts our twelve hours long and at night. I am sure my supervisor will let me know in time when my second shift will be so I can get enough sleep.

Thank you so much for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope to let you know more about my shift at some point tomorrow. Have a good weekend everyone. Happy Friday to each one of you. Peace Out, World!!!

Friday Night Randomness

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! Happy Friday to everyone out there reading my blog. It is hard to believe that I will have my first shift a week from today. I am looking forward to it. The one thing that I am not looking forward to this next week is all the orientations I have to attend. In fact I have about twelve orientations I have to do within the first sixty days of employment. I am having some high anxiety over the new job but I am looking forward to it at the same time.

As much as I would like to blame the lack of sleep as of lately due to new job jitters, it is not the case. I haven’t been sleeping very well as of lately. In fact worse than usual for me. Enough for my psychiatric nurse practitioner and regular doctor to consider putting me in a sleep study.

I am not sure about the sleep study but I think I am going to call it a night even though it is only eight thirty in the evening in my corner of the world. Thank you for reading. I hope everyone has an awesome weekend. Peace Out, World!!!

Wednesday Ramblings

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning, World!!! I did end up getting some sleep last night. I got about three hours even though it is still not enough sleep, I will take any sleep I can. I hope the sleeping med situation with my insurance company is taken care of soon.

I don’t have anything planned for today. It is a see what comes up type of day. I do know that I will need to get out of my apartment at some point because if I don’t it might turn into one of them days. I don’t know why it feels like but it does.

I am excited about my new job even though I don’t know when my first shift will be. I hope it is soon. I am not sure if I like everything about it. The reason why is because it is at night and is a twelve hour shift. But the thing about it is, is that it is only one to two days a week.

I don’t have much more to say in this post. I appreciate everyone who reads my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone has an awesome day. Again, thank you for reading. Peace Out, World!!!

Jobless, No More & Other Stuff

Posted on by Gertie

Hello, World!!! I got a job over yesterday to be an on-call shelter counselor at a local drop-in center for homeless youth and young adults which does an overnight shelter for young adults. This morning I accepted the job offer. It may not exactly be the job I want however I know from experience that you’re more likely to get a job if you are already working. I am hoping that working even as an on call staff will be helpful with me getting a Peer Specialist job.

I was able to tell my therapist the good news today. We discussed both the benefits and down falls of going back to work. We both agreed that the benefits out way the down falls of going back to work. We also discussed other aspect of my life that I am not willing to share with you at the moment.

Now on to the issue I am having with my meds. My new sleeping med is now not being covered by my insurance yet they paid for it last week but not this week. I need a pre-authorization and my doctor filled it out and faxed it on three different occasions the last two days yet my insurance company claimed they didn’t receive none of the pre-authorization forms.  Dealing with the insurance company regarding my sleep medication doesn’t help with my sleep. It is actually making my lack of sleep even worse.

Speaking of sleep I think I got about an hour and last night which is more than I got on Sunday night. I really hope I am able to sleep tonight because if I don’t I am afraid I might be a cranky bucket tomorrow when I call the insurance company again as well as my doctor regarding my sleeping med.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. It is very much appreciated. I hope you have a good night (or day). Peace Out, World!!!

Labor Day Randomness

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning, World!!! Today is a national holiday here in the United States called Labor Day so to everyone in the U.S, Happy Labor Day. It is a long weekend for many Americans due to it being Labor Day and we have Unions to thank for Labor Day here in the U.S.

As I speak of Labor Day, I can’t help but think about me being unemployed at the moment and looking for a new job. I have a job interview tomorrow. The interview is for a shelter counselor position with homeless young adults. The job is only twelve hours a week but I am okay with that. I also have a potential interview for an peer position later this week.

I don’t have much planned today. I will be spending some of the day with my dad and uncles. We are going out to lunch later. It is nice to spend time with family. We are most likely going to a local mom and pop restaurant but I am not a hundred percent sure yet.

I am still dealing with a huge wave of grief over my grandma passing this past Valentines Day. It’s hard to believe that it has been almost seven months since her death. I have been talking with my therapist a great deal about my grief regarding my grandma.

Thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. I hope everyone has a great day. Peace Out, World!!!

What A Week?

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! It has been a few days since I have blogged. I had every intention to blog more this week however I was both busy and exhausted. I was busy with the peer conference I both attended and volunteered and that is what caused me to be exhausted.

I had a really great time at the conference. I loved being able to attend the seminars while at the same time serve my fellow peer specialist/counselor. My primary duty as a volunteer was to hand out and collect the evaluations of the seminars I attended and I was able to attend the ones I wanted to. It was also awesome to see friends I haven’t seen in awhile due to having busy lives.

I was suppose to have a job interview today however they needed to change it to next week and I am just waiting for them to let me know when. That was for the peer job. As for the other job I was trying to get an interview for, the interview has finally been scheduled for Tuesday. That is for a Shelter Counselor position at homeless shelter for young adults. Whatever job I get is the job I am meant to have at the moment.

Thank you for reading my blog. I hope everyone has a good weekend. Peace Out, World!!!

More Randomness About The Same Ole Shit

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, again, World!!! I am so excited for the conference next week that I created a painting expressing how I feel about attending the conference. Painting is not just for me to express my negative emotions but to express the positive emotions as well. I am thinking about taking the painting to the conference to share with people. Art is so helpful for me to express my emotions.

Even though I don’t check into the hotel to three in the afternoon on Monday, I have started packing. Which reminds me I have to get my refills for my meds on Monday before I leave for the conference. I already know what to pack but making sure I get my meds are the major thing I can’t forget to pack as I have refill to pick up on Monday.

I am also getting excited about my job interview for next Friday, August 31st for a peer specialist position. Yes, the commute will not be fun as it is about an hour each way on the bus. But on the bright side if I get the job, I will be traveling the opposite direction of the main part of the traffic nightmare since everyone tends to go toward Seattle while I’ll be going the opposite direction of most everyone else. I am not saying there won’t be traffic the direction I am going in, its just the traffic going into Seattle is worse. Look, I am getting ahead of myself as if I already got the job but I don’t know if I even got the job because I haven’t had the interview yet.

Thank you for reading!!! It is really appreciative from my end of things. Like I said in my last post, I hope to blog about the conference during my free time at the conference. I hope everyone has a great Friday. Peace Out, World.

Birthday Dinner With Grandpa

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! I just spent the last two hours with my grandpa as today is his 88th birthday. It was an extremely difficult birthday for him as it is his first birthday dinner since my grandma’s death on Valentines Day of this year. As difficult as it was for him and I both, he really enjoyed himself. As much as my grandpa wishes my grandma was still around to cook him his birthday dinner he appeared extremely grateful that I stepped up to the plate and made it for him. It was nice to have a meal with just my grandpa and myself.

Over dinner we discussed me going back to work and seeing if I was ready to go back to work. He agrees that I am ready to go back to work and he is proud of me that I am seeking out jobs in the field I love and finally getting interviews. Even when the interviews are far in between each other at least I am getting them. He might take me to my job interview on August 31st so I don’t have to take an hour bus ride each way. Of course if I get the job I will have to take the bus but  I am okay with that.

Thank you for reading my blog. It is very much appreciated. I hope you have a great rest of your Thursday. I am glad that my grandpa at a great birthday despite our grief over my grandma. Have a great weekend. Peace Out, World!!!

Combating Depression & Other Randomness

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World. Right now I am combating both depression and grief. I am really missing my paternal grandma today. Or at least that is how the wave of grief is having it for me today. I am also combating off some depression. Not sure if it is the regular depression I deal with or if it is depression related to the grief or maybe a combination of both.

To help me fight off the depression and grief I have been doing some household chores to make my apartment cleaner. Cleaner so when my grandpa comes over for his birthday dinner it’s not as messy as it usually is. I am making my grandpa meatloaf for his birthday because that is what he wants even though it’s a “simple meal” it is one that he “enjoys.” Being able to do something for my grandpa for his birthday instead of giving him something is something he would rather have as the memories are better than material things.

Another way I have been combating the depression and grief is getting ready to go to a conference early next week that is solely for Peer Specialist/Counselors. Just knowing I will be with people who are in recovery with mental health challenges for two days is enough to keep me going. I will be in a hotel for two day full of peer support. In fact I also sought out peer support today for the depression and grief. That someone is the one who is the supervisor of the volunteers at the peer conference. See I got a full ride scholarship, including lodging and food just because I will be volunteering. I only have to pay for transportation which is easy because I am car pooling with someone to the conference. The power of peers is a real thing and we are going to fight against the mental health system somehow.

On a good note, and I think I have informed you of this already is that I have an interview on Friday, August 31st, 2018 for a peer specialist job. A job I am unsure about but hope I get an opportunity to get back in the swing of things. Yes, I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things work wise but am a bit nervous about going back to work. I am having some self doubts about going back to work but for me having self doubts is a normal part of my daily mental health challenges.

I should really get going as I need to start preparing to cook dinner as my grandpa will be here shortly and likes to eat relatively early. I am expecting to eat around five in the evening in my neck of the woods.

I would like to thank you again for reading my blog. It is very much appreciated from my end of things. If it wasn’t for you the reader and/or follower, I still would not be blogging. Peace Out, World!!

Can’t Fall Back To Sleep

Posted on by Gertie

Good Morning, World!!! I can not seem to go back to sleep after being woken up by my cat, Lil Gertie, after a five hour nap. Of course when I attempted to go to sleep Lil Gertie wanted to play so I decided that I would play with her. Lil Gertie is one spoiled lil kitty. I love her so much.

To make my sleep issues even worse is that I have a migraine. Migraines are extremely painful. I am not sure what set off this migraine but my migraine medication ain’t working shit. I just hope the pain subsides so I don’t have to the stupid hospital again.

I’m wondering if my worries over not getting an email about a peer position interview I have on August 31st is what is causing part of my migraine. The lady who called me about it only mentioned her name once and I forgot to get her name again. I am hoping she emails me more of the details about the job interview so my worries and anxiety can subside. At least I will be working either a sixteen hours a week or thirty hours a week. I just hope she emails me sometime later today with more of the details and so I can ask more questions of her.

On a plus note the lady who wants to interview me for the shelter counselor position finally emailed me back explaining why she hadn’t set up an interview yet. It’s because others have been on vacation or out sick. She should be getting back to me by the end of the week via email. Lets hope I get emails from the individuals for both positions by the end of the week.

At least I know I have a least one job interview, I just wish remembered the ladies name. I can’t remember the name for the life of me which is why I am hoping for an email. Please send out positive vibes, energies, prayers or whatever that works for you that this woman emails me back or at least calls me back because I tried calling the number back it said it wasn’t taking any calls at this time. It didn’t even have a voicemail I could leave.  I know things will work out in the long run but I still have my worries.

Well, it appears like Lil Gertie, my cat is wanting my attention again so I better give it to her. If I give it to her now, she won’t wake me up at four o’clock in the morning wanting scratch on the head or to play. She sure helps me a lot.

I hope my migraine goes away as I call it a night. I’ll play with Lil Gertie first and then attempt to fall back to sleep. Thank you for reading my boring ass blog. Especially since my post appear to be repetitive as of lately. I am grateful for your readership and Peace Out, World!!!