Hmm, it seems the immediate answer to that question is, "Yes." After all, I am.
But boy is this boy busy. Things are hoppin' at the new job. It's a bit of culture shock going from frumpy flannel and jeans academia to the suit coat and tie corporate world (and yes, my dress code requires I wear a suit coat and tie--somewhere the karmic shift in the world attained harmonic balance). These first two weeks are crammed full of meetings with division heads and with HR orientation stuff.
Meetings! I had forgotten just how many meetings I used to have to attend in my pre-PhD call center management life--and forgotten, too, just how much I disliked meetings. Don't get me wrong, all the meetings in these first two weeks are both necessary and strategic. But believe me, it's exhausting. The information overload is real. Waves of heat and steam have been rising off my skull these first two days.
I am, however, very excited about the new opportunities in this new position. The challenge is clear, the risk is real and severe, but the successful payoff is the powerful motivator. I am, of course, in the midst of a "honeymoon" period, and I realize that real challenges and bumps in the road lay ahead. It's that way with every job. But I continue to be very favorably impressed with my boss, from the first interview, to observing his interaction with colleagues and management behavior and skill set.
My position is, by its nature as a newly created position and by the fact that I report to a boss who reports to the head of the foundation for which I work, very visible. Any successes and failures will be right there out in the open. That is a very good thing, overall, of course. But it makes for some moments of vertigo. I joked with my wife and told her that according to the organizational chart I was two heartbeats away from the top of the foundation. Of course, the reality is quite different from what the chart presents visually. But it does reinforce that sense of visiblity.
I won't bore ya'll with any more job stuff. Nor will it be my practice to discuss work in any significant way here. But I'm attempting to process so much information at the moment, that even some generic comments help sort of relieve the mental pressure.
In addition to the new job and the steep learning curve, I'm also teaching logic two nights a week for the community college. It's a seven week course, and tomorrow is the end of the second week, so it will come to an end very soon. But given that I worked full time and taught three nights a week for the whole school term, even this busyness isn't as bad as it's been.
It is, however, putting a large crimp in getting unpacked. Anna needs me to move the heavy stuff, but I'm gone two nights a week. So my nights home right now are devoted to helping unpack.
Oh, and did I mention that Anna is leaving for ALA this Friday? She'll be gone Friday morning through Monday evening. We have child care set up for Friday and Monday, but I will be Mr. Mom in a major way this weekend. Thankfully, the folks at All Saints are very helpful when Anna's sick or resting at home and I take the girls by myself, so attending Divine Liturgy Sunday shouldn't be too bad.
I will say this: eliminating the commute has given me back very precious time with the girls. They're still early risers, though not as early as before, and so I get significant play time with them before I have to be at work--which involves a commute of several minutes as opposed to an hour. And even though I'm teaching two nights a week right now, I'm still home earlier than before, and get more time in the evenings when I'm home, and a quick bit of time when I'm teaching.
Even Anna and I have been able to have some end-of-day "debriefing" time as I catch her up on my day and get caught up on hers.
I cannot say enough how good God has been and is being to us. We are so blessed. God is so good. Life is often hard and painful. But God is always good. Always.
Posted by Clifton at June 20, 2006 11:31 PM | TrackBackGood for you, Clifton!
Posted by: tidbit at June 21, 2006 05:05 PM