Thursday, March 28, 2013

It is almost that time of year again!


 

 Welcome to my fundraising page! Please go to www.TriValleySocks.org and click on Support A Walker....type in my name and you can click on the donation! Any size donation is appreciated - and if you cannot make a donation, maybe you can sign up to walk?!

This is my 6th year of doing this - and I have a blast doing it!

The walk is the evening of May 11th and we walk through the streets of Pleasanton - come out and 'support' us!!!! You will get quite a giggle from all the creatively decorated bras we will be wearing!

This is a volunteer run organization so that 100% of the money raised goes to the organizations that have been chosen to be recipients this year:


 
UCSF Helen Diller Comprehensive Cancer Center

                       
ValleyCare Breast Cancer Services

 
HERS Breast Cancer Foundation

 

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Here We Go Again.....

Yep, here I go again. Quitting my 'dream job' and starting a new one in a couple of weeks. I loved what I was learning to do - I really thought I was learning a lot.

But one thing I learned is in a job interview - if they say the benefits are 'equitable' or 'comprable' ask - equitable/comparable to what? After 90 days of waiting - while they refused to answer questions and during which I had to ask them when I was going to get the info about the medical benefits (that should have been a clue!!) - I found out exactly what kind of crappy medical benefits they had. 4 different plans, all with Kaiser. Having been raised going to military clinics I have absolutely no issue with Kaiser. Except that none of the 4 plans offered everything we need as a family and all 4 were freaking expensive!

Yep, they would oay 80% of myt premiums but I had to pay 100% of my husbands - has anyone else ever run into that anywhere? I never have before. And the cost is all age related - AGE DISCRIMINATION! So while I am now paying out over $700/month for the premiums - come June it would be well over $900/month.

And that did not include chiropractor (ok, so I do not fully 100% believe in chiropractors, but the fact that chirpractic care has kept my hubby from the scalpels of a surgeon for over 25 years - yeah, it is important) and no vision. And the dental? HA! The cheap one....well, I looked up all the local dentist and reading their reviews I wouldnt even send an enemy to them! So I chose the higher price plan which is still crappy.

Add in no retirement, the sick leave is only so many hours/year and does not roll over (so if you get the flu in the beginning of the year you are screwed for the rest of the year) and altho there is vacation time - with the way the year runs, I still cannot figure out when I could have taken vacation (that was the least of it, cause that could have been worked out).

So I am going back to hospital nursing - back to 3 12 hour shifts/week (which I must admit, the M-F thing was killing me) but, sigh, back onto night shift. I havent worked night shift for 15 years or so, so I am a little concerned. This place is a little (as in, a lot) slower then where I worked before - but that is ok - cause the benefits are paid for!!!

We finally found a dog today!! Made the rounds of the adoption sites and potential sites....found one place. Walked up and I fell for 2 different pit babies...they were adorable....until they started 'talking' and I realized the one thing that can drive me nuts about my granddog is his 'talking'...and they were doing the same. They had some adorable babies, not even sure what they were - 2 white ones - and a whole bunch of black ones. Also a very quiet, shy (traumatized?) beautiful 5 year old black shepherd mix. And then I turned around and hubby had a terrier mix in his arms. A puppy, probably about 10 - 12 weeks. (He was in a partition with one of the pitty puppies - man,  you should have seen the look on that puppie's face - he was devastated that it wasnt him that was being held!)

We had discussed ages, and neither of us wanted a puppy. And this was the furtherest thing from a shepherd, or even a pit mix....but Ralph came home with us. And has spent most of the afternoon on hubby's lap!

So far he is quiet - a little but of whining but not much. He did come out of the bathroom carrying my slipper in his mouth - but not chewing on it (yet!)  - and I found him laying on top a pile of my shoes....

The grand kids wanted to know if he is Wreck It Ralph - well, time will only tell!

Aging

 Why is so much about aging kept a secret? Or is it that we just dont pay attention when we are younger? I mean we all know about the wrinkl...