Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Love it!!

I did it!!!




I finished my first ever 20-day hot yoga challenge last night!

That's the most I have gone to class in one month.

Now I am totally motivated to go even MORE days but I think my husband would kill me ;).

Outside of getting my Master's degree, this has probably been one of the hardest things I've been able to complete.

I don't really feel like any more of a yoga rockstar then when I first started, but I do feel like I totally accomplished something major, even if others in my life think it's silly or don't get it ;).

Just making the time committment alone has been the hardest thing about this challenge, especially with my other responsibilities (kid, wife, work). The heat is not even a major factor for me in getting through anymore.

On that note, what is something you've completed that you didn't think you could do?

What is a goal that you want to try that totally scares you because of the time, difficulty, cost......whatever it may be?

Happy hump day my friends!!!! With the speed this week is flying, Friday will be here before we know it :)

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

On to Tuesday......

So I made it through my crazy Monday yesterday.

Spent the majority of the day going over with various family members and professionals on why it's not a wise idea to move a person who ambulates in a wheelchair into a non-wheelchair accessible apartment (that canNOT be accomodated for their needs even if we tried).

After awhile I just had to laugh about all of this...........otherwise I would just make myself crazy with stress.

I know the conversation is not over yet either. It will pick up again today, for sure.

But throughout all these situations, laughter is what gets me through. I am sure I come off as nuts and annoying sometimes (and "that" co-worker many of you have heard me rant about has been sure to tell me when I laugh she doesn't think it's a laughing matter), but it does absolutely 110% take the edge off. And laughter makes me realize that it's not worth it to get all stressed, crazed and yell, cry, or whatever other negative response I could use instead.

How do you react when the going gets tough at work with your clients?

Monday, February 27, 2012

One for Monday ;)



P.S. I only have ONE more class left to go in my 20-class-in-the-month-of-February Bikram yoga challenge!!! I feel like I can conquer the world. (Well, maybe not, but at least I can conquer the hot room).

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Send me strength...........

I have 3 days left to go in my Bikram yoga challenge and I am coming down with a cold (figures!). I am downing lots of good tea to hydrate and if anything, will just sit on my knees or lie down on my mat for the rest of the challenge. It is really silly to quit now, no matter how I feel.

So what's on your plate this weekend social workers and friends?

I am definitely trying not to think about the job. It will be there on Monday, waiting for me. That's for sure ;).


Happy happy all!!!

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Yup :)

Welcome new followers!

I just realized I am up to FIFTY followers on my blog!!! That is one little thing that totally made me smile today. Feel free to jump in and say hi, introduce yourself and leave a comment. It makes things interesting around here. HAPPY WEEKENDING ALL!!!


Friday, February 17, 2012

As I suspected

the drama from work last week has pretty much blown over.

Now everyone is annoyed with a new co-worker that has been hired about a month or two ago.

Basically what is happening, is new person is completely over-qualified for the position they have been hired for and are trying to get out of doing their work by focusing all of their efforts on creating a NEW role that doesn't involve the "down and dirty" of their position's daily responsibilities.....

In the meantime they are really pissing off a lot of people, especially those in their same role who know exactly what is going on. This person also can be completely condescending to other staff and acts like they are the supervisor.

Yesterday was the icing on the cake because this worker got the boss to pass off some of their duties to someone else, and everyone's aware of it.

While I am glad I am not the object of hate this week, it made me realize it is always going to be someone at work!

And therefore I am super thankful another weekend is upon us.

So how was your week out there in Socialworkland? What are some of the issues going on at your office?

Besides the above, on a bigger level we've been talking about the changes in NYS Medicaid and how this will affect case management overall..........many of us may not even have a job in the next year or two which makes me very sad and anxious :(

Friday, February 10, 2012

Roles and boundaries


If you are one of my lovely Twitter followers, you know that this past week at work was pretty rough.

My boss laid down the law with some of my co-workers regarding what he wanted me to be spending my time on at work, and what he did not (i.e. answering phones).

Translation for many of them: She thinks she's better than us.

I think I and everyone know deep down that is absolutely 110% NOT the case, but in the moment I guess feathers were super ruffled.

Angry, hurtful comments were shared. To my face, and within ear-shot.

Anyways, I am confident that this situation will blow over. They generally always do (until the next time ;)).

Basically what the situation boils down to, is that people in another role than me are pissed that I am not expected to do the same things.

I get it, I totally do, but as a Master's level social worker, there just are some things, some days that like it or not, are not within my scope of practice at that moment. (Note: the co-workers I am referring to are in entry-level positions that require a HS diploma).

Sometimes I realize I need to suck it up and do things I don't always want to do as far as work and some of my clients are concerned, but in terms of the office dynamic, there has to be a pecking order with certain duties.

Even if we are ALL over-worked and stressed.

And people don't have to like me or be my friend if I'm not doing what THEY want, or expect me to.

Do you ever experience things like this at your job?

What are some of the issues or duties that have caused tension with different level staff?


How have you dealt with it?

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Accountable update

Just wanted to share that so far, I have completed 6 classes towards my 20 class hot yoga challenge for the month of February!!!

I feel great!!!

If you haven't checked out my addiction just yet, I strongly encourage you to try.

All you need to do is breathe :). I promise ;).

What are goals or challenges you are facing this month?

Happy Hump Day :)

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Ways to make extra $$$$$


Ha, I know as a social worker no matter where you live, this thought is probably always on your mind.

I know it's on mine, especially because we live in such an expensive area and DH is self-employed......sometimes it seems like a really long time will go by before he gets paid from a job, which means I feel broke all the time or find myself dipping into savings to make ends meet.

Since I work F/T and have a child, I personally don't want to get involved with some kind of P/T job where I need to leave the house and after taxes only bring in a small amount.

So with that said, the timing couldn't have been more perfect for this because it is already part of what I am doing at work anyways.......my agency has really begun to push bonuses if we can get a client approved for the programs I work for within 45 days. We will get $500.00 (pre-tax!) for that. If we bring someone new on within 60 days, they will reward us with $250.00 (also before taxes).

It really is a great incentive, when sometimes our efforts to go above and beyond can feel unrecognized, and the best, helps out in terms of savings and paying off some debt.

I haven't qualified for one of these in awhile, but my boss reminded me earlier this week (I think he knew I was stressed and overall employee morale has been quite low). I unexpectedly realized I qualified for a $500.00 one from a client I brought on back in November!! Reviewing the recent cases I had worked on, I also saw I would've made the $250.00 one for several clients, but was off a week past the 60 days each time.........so this does give me an extra push to stay on top of my work.

What are some things you do to make extra cash?

Does your agency offer any kind of financial incentive?

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Wish me luck

My 20-days of hot yoga challenge for the month of February starts today. I am posting about it here to hold myself accountable.





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