Non-Labor-Free Labor Day

Happy Labor Day everyone!  Labor Day is one of my holidays to work, so I’ll be headed to the hospital later today.  I think this means that I won’t be working Thanksgiving, which will be nice.  We had a get together/dinner type thing at the Rocket Scientist’s parents’ house on Saturday, so I got in my holiday festivities.  Woo!

As my first Labor Day where I actually have a job in the “real world,” I thought I would share some of what I’ve learned thus far.

1. Working is for the birds.  School was so much better!  You determined when to study, how much/how little effort you would put in, and if you wanted a day off, you didn’t necessarily have to show up for class.  That being said, I only knowingly missed a few classes in college, and I studied alllll the time.  But I liked it!  Learning is fun.  If only I could get paid to learn…grad school, anyone?  Maybe I should be a teacher.
2. Being paid hourly has pluses and minuses.  Being paid hourly means that I get overtime the second I work more than I’m schedule for, even if I only work 72 hours!  Time and a half adds up VERY nicely.  (I’ll get time and a half today…and another day off to use some other time…woo!)  That being said, if I get called off work, I don’t get paid.  I can use vacation time, but I currently only have ten hours of vacation time, so I would have ran out if I used it for all the times I’ve been called off.
3. My job is really hard.  Yes yes, I know everyone thinks that they have the hardest job…but really, nursing is really hard!  The idea behind it isn’t terribly complex, but being on the front lines means I get the grunt of anything that goes wrong.  Where I work, everything falls under my job description (we even empty trash cans…), so many things don’t go as planned and it’s up to me to fix it.  With a smile, of course!
4. Being paid is AWESOME.  Getting my first paycheck, I was astonished at how much money I was getting…and that I get it every two weeks!  What a deal.
5. The world is geared toward the 9-5 lifestyle.  As someone who doesn’t work 9-5 (go evening shift!), I’ve found it very difficult to meet people.  While it is convenient to make a dental appointment and be able to say, “Anytime in the morning works for me,” meeting people is so hard.  Any recreational leagues, pottery classes, or church groups meet in the evening.  Running groups meet at 6am or in the evening.  I could join a book club with stay at home moms…but we probably have different interests/priorities in life.
6. I totally understand “working for the weekend” now.  Many days, I don’t like my job.  My roommate doesn’t like her job either.  I appreciate my days off so much more now than I did before.  I’ve realized how important it is to find something that you love to do because you’ll be doing it the rest of your life!  I’m still on the hunt for the organization/job that is best for me.  I just hope I find it soon…

I’m sure I’ve learned more along the way, but I think that’s a good start.  Today is a rest day from running…my legs are tired!  I definitely needed it after a long week of running last week, and my legs will appreciate it before all the miles planned for this week.  My back also is still sore, so it’s not a rest day from stretching.  I received a comment on my last post saying that I should dance around to loosen up my lower back…I’ll try anything once, as long as no one is around to witness it!  :)

Yesterday was an attempt at walking around the town where I work, as cute shops and restaurants line the main street.  However, they were all closed!  I guess they closed for the “holiday,” even though it was today!  I was kind of sad and we only got to go into two stores.  The highlight of the adventure was spotting a Hawaii license plate in the parking lot…don’t ask me what it was doing in Pennsylvania, but I’ve never seen one before so it was very exciting!  I had to snap a picture, Frayed Laces style:

Hang Loose!  (I think…)

The Rocket Scientist said I was embarrassing him…oops!  I thought it was funny.  :)  I hope everyone has a great Labor Day, filled with BBQ’s and sunny weather!