The Thursday Ramble: When the Job is Killing You

I guess the ultimate answer to what to do when the job is killing you, is retire.  Call it quits. Say I don't want to do this shit anymore and I am not going to.  Then book a long trip, as often as you can.  I was just on Facebook and someone had posted their planned itinerary for a week in Iceland, looking for input on what they should add.  I didn't comment, but if I had, my comment would have been, "what is missing is a day off, a vacation."  We are moving east across the Atlantic, with a nice wind to our back, averaging about 25 miles per hour, about 5 miles per hour faster than scheduled.  I am finding lots of joyous nothing to fill my days. 

A couple of months ago, as I was drafting posts to go up while I was on this years grand adventure, Doc Spo posted about change when you hate your job. Twice in my nearly 50 years of working, I reached a breaking point on a job that was killing my soul.  I went for weeks, or months, dreaming of escaping.  I found myself saying "I don't want to do this anymore." And until retirement age, I needed to work.  I needed to support myself, pay for a home, food, transportation. I needed to work to have health insurance.  

The first breaking point was in late 1991.  I was working for a homebuilder in central Florida.  It had been a great, if at times all consuming, job.  Lots of 10 hour days, always working on weekends, and several times a year, going 2-3 weeks without a day off.  It also paid really well.  In some ways I am still benefiting from 2-3 years of high earnings while I was with that builder.  There was a change of management. The division manager I worked for was fired, for cause.  A regional vice president was promoted. New managers brought in.  My immediate boss was under intense pressure, that he passed onto nearly everyone who worked with him.  I was moved to a project in an area I didn't understand and didn't like, new product was being built, in designs that didn't work for the market.  The new bosses boss, was having an affair with one of my coworkers.  Things were just weird.  And my personal life was a mess.  I was in a failed relationship that had two of us living parallel lives and hating one another most of the time. 

I was miserable.  I was taking college classes a couple of nights a week.  Scheduling for the next semester was coming up.  I called my boss and said "I need to take some serious time off, like the fall semester." We called it a sabbatical. I don't know how I found the strength to do that. It helped what I had a pipeline of work that I would be paid for.  

I booked a full class load, spent time thinking, ended the failed relationship.  When it was time for me to return to work, I found that my boss had been fired, for meddling in the affair between my co-worker and his boss.  She replaced my boss, and told me "there was not a place for me."  I moved on, found another job. Things bounced around for two or three years, and when Sweet Bear was offered a teaching job in Kentucky and we made the major move, leaving the builder world to pursue something entirely new. 

The second breaking point came about 10 years into practicing law.  I was working for a small non-profit public interest group.  The director's personal life was a mess. She became unresponsive. Rather than wait for approval I went to sending her memos that read, "unless you object to this proposal, I will consider it approved and move forward." And I did. I had a very successful grant season, bringing in funding to support myself and another person.  I asked the boss to allow me to hire a halftime assistant.  I was willing to work 60 hours a week, I needed help. And she responded, with a no.  Why I will never know.  I was at a breaking point of working insane hours, and being told despite the fact that I had raised outside money to hire help, I couldn't.  An email arrived describing a job opening in Washington DC.  I had a fitful and sleepless night.  Got up at 5:00 AM, updated my resume and applied before going to the office the next day.  A few weeks later I had an interview in DC. About three weeks went by and I had given up hope. And things were dire in the office.  I called in sick, I couldn't face going in. Mid morning the phone rang.  My soon to be boss asked, "if we make you an offer, will you accept." I said yes.  He said, wait for a call. Later that afternoon I went into the office to let them know I would be leaving in four weeks.  Unfortunately, the boss who refused to hire an assistant for me, had left the week before.  I tendered my resignation to a beloved coworker on her first day as director, repeating several times, this is not about you.  

The move to DC was a major disruption.  It started a decade of us having two jobs, in two states, two homes, and splitting time between the two.  Sweet bear was able to spend about 20 weeks a year in DC. I was able to visit Lexington two or three times a year for a few days. Usually driving at least one of those. 

That bold move, put us where we are today. And we are happy with where we are.   

 

My World of Wonders aka The Wednesday Ws at sea edition

Who am I seeing this week? My sweet bear and strangers on a ship

Where am I going? On our way to England

Where have I been? Ft Lauderdale, and Bermuda 

What time is it? The ship changes time zones 6 times in 14 days, I have no idea, nor do I really care as long as I am on time for dinner.

Who deserves a huge THANK YOU this week? The hard working crew on the ship. 

When will I see land again? A week from today. 

What was Bermuda like? Warm, sunny, bright blue.  We took a glass bottom boat tour, out over coral, and a sunken ship - it was intentionally sunk by the British about 130 years ago. Lots of fish.  A nice walk around the Kings Wharf area. 4 out of 5 stars, I would go back.

Travel Tuesday: At Least Once In A Lifetime

I did something Monday evening I haven't done in, well so long that I can't remember the last time, meaning it has been far-far too long.  I sat on one place and watched the sunset over an hour.  I resisted the urge to run back to the room and grab my camera, Sweet Bear took this photo on his phone. I just relaxed and watched nature's light show. If you can't remember the last time you sat quietly, with or without a large (very large) Bourbon and watched the sunset, find a comfortable place, turn off the world, and just watch. 

In the summer of 2015 we took factory delivery on a new car, just outside of Stuttgart Germany, it was a adventure that everyone should have at least once in a lifetime. Included with the delivery package was a nights stay in a really nice hotel, entrance to the Mercedes museum, a car and driver to take us to the factory, a behind the scenes factory tour, lunch, two weeks of insurance, registration and road tax, transportation of the car to the dealer in the United States, and all of that for a 7% discount on the price of the car.  The manufacturer is exporting/importing a used car (the car you have driven for two weeks) saving on taxes.  VW, Porsche, Audi, Volvo, and Mercedes offer something like this on select models made in the EU.  

We took a ride in a Zeppelin 

Concord 

 

Moody Monday: The Next Four Weeks

We are taking a little break for the next four weeks. 

All has gone to plan, I am sailing through the Bermuda Triangle today.  

Last year I didn't do WiFi on the ship, I called it a two week digital detox.  I didn't find it made a noticeable difference.  I will see if this trip feels different than last year with WiFi.  Once we are on land, I will have WiFi in the hotels. I am not going to try getting my phone back online until we are home next month. 

Where will we be? We were in Ft Lauderdale for a couple of days, we have stops in Bermuda, Weymouth, Southampton, Zeebrugge, and exit the ship in Rotterdam.  After that we are spending a couple of days in Brugge, then London, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. All together we will be gone a little over a month. 

A much needed break.  

As I update this pre-written post on Sunday, the sky is blue with a few big fluffy clouds.  The seas are moderate, the ship has a gentle roll.  I picked the cabin location for quiet, and in the process ended up in a location that feels more of the motion of the ocean.  

Sunday's daily Selfie, taken with my little travel computer, by the windows on the pool deck. 

The Sunday Five: A cluttered Desk

Shortly after I took these two photos, while having lunch on the ship, the screen on my phone went black and don't come back. The phone makes noise, but the display is dead.  Boarding went well. The ship is very nice, and WiFi seems to be working fine on my little travel laptop. But photos won't be posted until we return home in a month. 

1: There is an old saying that a messy desk is a sign of a messy mind, if so, what is an empty desk a sign of?

2: Do you write electronically or on paper? 

3: Do you often do research when you are writing? 

4: Do books or computers dominate your work space? 

5: Is your workspace tidy or messy? 

My Answers: 

1: There is an old saying that a messy desk is a sign of a messy mind, if so, what is an empty desk a sign of? My desk is always messy. 

2: Do you write electronically or on paper? Almost always electronically. 

3: Do you often do research when you are writing? Probably 20% of the time, 

4: Do books or computers dominate your work space? Computers. 

5: Is your workspace tidy or messy? Messy, even dirty. 

Please share your answers in the comments. 

 

The Saturday Morning Post - 50 States in 52 Weeks - Iowa

Today, we board a slow boat to Rotterdam. I have scheduled posts that will fill the days at sea. We have WiFi this trip. I don't know how well it will work, and what I will be able to post while moving slowly east across the Atlantic.  I will edit and post as I can.  If I can't there will be daily posts. I likely will be slow to respond to comments, but please leave comments I will read and respond to them as I can. 

Iowa is west of Illinois. I have been there a couple of times. There are hundreds of miles of rolling farmland, lots of corn, and livestock.

Umm, more pigs than people. More Pork Queens than any other state. 

I am glad I have been there.  I think it is a great place for people to say they are from. But I can't think of a single reason why I would want to go back there.  

Foodie Friday: Homemade Pizza

First an update, then Pizza.  The flight to Florida went off without a hitch.  Our dear neighbor Susan drove us to the airport, you could set your watch by her timeliness.  She was an engineer for NASA for decades, precision is in her DNA.  The flight left and arrived on time, and was not one of the two American Airlines planes that clipped wingtips at National Airport today. Those two planes were taken out of service missing winglets.  I was on a plane once that backed into another plane on the ground and tore the winglets off. 

The hotel is a very predictable Hampton Inn, downtown.  Not a touristy part of town.  It is about a 5 mile taxi ride from here to the Port on Saturday morning.  

Florida feels a little like the twilight zone. Having lived here for two decades it feels like home, and at the same time it feels alien. South Florida is filled with immigrants and tRump voters at the same time and place.  How they can co-exist without spontaneously combusting I don't understand.  Traffic is horrible, and at the same time the Sun Rail high speed train station is a block away from the hotel.  (Not at the airport, cruise terminal or beach where people come and go, downtown near the Court House and library.)

Here are a few tips for making great pizza at home. 

If you have a stand mixer with a dough hook, pizza dough is easy to make and better than store bought. You can mix and knead by hand, but it is a bit more work. 

Basic Pizza dough: 

3/4 cup warm water -between 100-110 degrees F

2 teaspoons sugar (more or less) 

2 teaspoons dry active yeast. I use rapid rise that I buy online in one-pound bags, and store in the freezer, it keeps for years. 

2 cups +/- bread flour (high protein flour - in Britain it is known as strong flour.) 

1 teaspoon salt +/-

Drizzle of Olive Oil 

Method: 

Dissolve sugar in warm water, stir in yeast, set aside for 5-10 minutes. It will start to get bubbly. 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix flour, salt and a drizzle of olive oil.  Stir in yeast mixture. Using the dough hook start stand mixer on low.  If needed sprinkle in additional flour one small spoon at a time until a dough ball forms and pulls away from sides of the bowl. If it is to dry and there is loose flour around the bowl, add water a teaspoon at a time. The flip from too wet or dry to just right is a matter of a tiny amount of water or flour.   

Set a timer for 5 minutes, and mixer to medium low and allow it the knead for 5 minutes.  The dough may still be sticky.  Just before you turn the mixer off, drizzle a little olive oil around the outside. Cover and set in a warm place to rise for 1-3 hours.  The longer the rise the more flavor it will develop. 

Toppings: 

Top it with what you like.  There are no rules.  

I make a basic red sauce with a small can of tomato sauce and a heaping teaspoon or two of dried oregano, or mixed italian seasoning. 

Meat toppings should be pre-cooked.  If you are using italian sausage, or ground beef, cook them before using them.   

Top tip: Don't overdo the toppings. My most common failure is stacking the toppings thick and center fails to bake through before the outside edges are overcooked.  The one above was marginally too thick. 

Top tip #2: Get the oven very-very hot.  450 degrees F is a good temp.  I am using a pizza stone. This is a large flat ceramic block that heats with the oven and holds onto the heat.  I am struggling with things sticking to it.  So I stretch the dough and top it on a single sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil, and then slide the foil on and off of a cutting board and the pizza stone.  The foil rapidly transfers heat to the bottom of the crust, especially in the center were I find I most need it.  

There is no correct cooking time.  It is done, when it is done.  No two pizzas are the same, the thickness of the toppings, the temperature of the oven, even the temperature of the toppings will change the cooking time.  I start checking at about 10-minutes.  The one above was in the oven about 17 minutes, with the oven door opened once to take a couple of photos.  

I made pizza last Friday for out monthly LGBTQ community gathering. It was a hit. 

What are your favorite pizza toppings?  

Have you made your own dough?