Restructuring

Well, it’s Monday morning at 5:30. I didn’t go work out this morning. I’ll go later. I’m just a little slow on the uptake. I felt sub-par all weekend—like I just wasn’t running on all cylinders. Nelson worked on the back yard on Saturday and I am so impressed: it looks like someone else’s back yard!

Today is the first day of my new job. Not really, but kinda sorta. My boss has been working for weeks on a restructuring plan for the ministry. The more he worked on it, and let some of his ideas leak a wee bit, the more I got the impression that my position was going to be changing. I lived in limbo all that time—a place or state I don’t do well in. The one thing that became more and more sure in my mind was that I was no longer going to be responsible for the packaging program. That program has been my baby for three years now. Dan asked me what I thought one of my biggest accomplishments was over the past year, and I said helping to get the program moved to the new building and getting the new supervisor established. So I’ve been grieving the anticipated “loss” a bit the past week.

In my meeting with Dan I learned for sure that I would not be supervising packaging any more. I will occasionally consult, but my plate going to be otherwise filled! My new title is going to be Re-entry Program Coordinator. I will continue my present responsibilities in Huron and Erie counties and at our new work in Crawford and Wayne counties. I will be responsible for the participants from orientation through job-readiness to job placement and then add the aftercare. I sat down on Friday (I had met with Dan late on Thursday afternoon) and began mapping out how I would do all that was going to be required of me. In addition, I will be doing the TNet3 class in Erie and Wayne County Jails. It looks like Thursday will be my only time in the office and I will be pulling a couple of Saturday trainings in Crawford County. My contacts with employers is going to increase also as I take that responsibility from both Dan and Bob.

It’s a lot, but I’m terribly excited about it. The even bigger news is that there could possibly be a position shaping up for Nelson. We were both sitting at computers last night (he on Beth’s and me on ours) researching our new possibilities and talking across the hall to each other about what we found. It was comical, but fun.

Now that I know what’s coming, I think that’s why I got ick over the weekend. I had been stressing over the unknown and the potential possibilities. I tried not to, but it’s just the way I’m wired. Once I knew what I could expect my systems relaxed and bingo: earache. Here’s the other thing I believe factored into that. I’ve been reading about inflammation and how what we eat impacts that. Chocolate, while having some good things is also on the bad list for it’s high fat content. What I found interesting was that one of the symptoms I read about was itchy and sometimes painful ears. What was my comfort food this past week? I indulged in two chocolate bars (extra large). The only improvement there was that I ate them slowly over the course of several days—something I never would have been able to do before, but something I need to not do at all. I’m back on track with better eating and flushing my system with plenty of water. I know what to do—I just need to do it!

One of the challenges that my new position brings will be eating while on the road so much. I’ve preached to others that it can be done, now I just need to do it. One of the positives that came out of planning out my days for the next three months is that I can show Nelson which days I have to have “eat on the run” meals and when I’ll have access to a microwave to eat something heated. I’m also going to check into a good thermos for my coffee, and while I’m at it a thermos for other “hot stuff.” I bought Nelson one several years ago, I just need to relocate it?????

I’m also going to have to think about what I’m going to do about Curves. But I’ll save that for another entry.

Have a marvelous Monday!