A week I don't care to repeat

A very brief weekly round up...

I think the Elder has decided to quit the 'journey'. She's not updated her blog since her notice she was required to keep one. She's been staying out at Sub's family property and not attended Uni for at least a week. Just when I thought she was getting herself on track.

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The Teen is living rough again. She had been sharing with the Elder but they have come to the conclusion that they cannot share together. Teen keeps asking MOTH and I to move back there. I don't seem to be able to convince her that it's just not logistically possible, as well as not being practical. It's her home town and she cannot be convinced to move back here. It's so stressful knowing that she can't afford housing, can't find anyone serious enough to share with and has to rely on the generosity of friends for a place to stay every few nights. She's 18 now, and for various reasons, cannot live at home. We can't support her. She gets Youth Allowance but last time I looked, she was only getting $377 a FORTNIGHT? How does a person get a house and pay rent/utilities/food on that? How is that any different from pensioners....

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The hassles with the kids is having a very negative effect on MOTH. The black dog lurks in the background and he's working hard to keep it at bay.

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The job I had hopes for at work is not .... working out the way I had hoped. The general vibe from the Manager, although not in so many words, was that he didn't think I could do it. So he awarded the task to my new immediate manager. We are to work closely together on this task. I was relatively happy because I would still have some input, although not the responsibility I had been working toward. I suppose I should say that the task is organising a conference. It goes for a week - 3 full days of program, 2 full days of tutorials. There are about 1000 delegates who attend. The new manager has been serving on the committee longer than I, but only been involved in part of it. I've been on the main committee for 5 years, the program committee 2. I know everything except the bit the new manager used to do (media liaison).

We had our first program committee meeting last Friday. There are new members, and 3 left of the old ones; a completely different dynamic. The Manager turned up and proceeded to take over the proceedings. I NEVER clash with anyone if I can help it - I can't deal with conflict. He and I clashed at least 3 times over the course of the hour and a half of the meeting. He tried to tell us how to run the committee. He tried to tell us that we needed a meeting next week to make a decision about some of the things we had discussed THIS meeting. Go figure. Usual procedure from previous meetings is chuck a couple of suggestions about then decide from those which are preferred. At the same sitting. But no, he decreed another meeting the next week. I disagreed, trying to pin them down to make a decision now. The decision has been made, he said. I just made it. I told him straight out it wasn't his decision to make; it belonged to the Chair. He also decided that main conference stuff should be discussed at the program committee meeting and when I objected because, frankly, it's a stupid idea, someone asked who was on the main conference committee. I said the new manager and I. He promptly declared he was on that committee as well. I simply cannot work with someone who makes it so plain that they don't trust my judgement. I have decided to withdraw from the program committee, and I dread having to work with him on the main committee.

When I returned to the office and announced that he was on the program committee, I was laughed at. With pity. When I mentioned to a different group that he was on the main committee, someone commented, Oh my god no!

I really do not want to be associated with the mess that man is going to create.... If it works he will bask in the glory, if it does not, the new manager and I will be at fault.

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But on a lighter note, we had a flat battery sometime during the week. Zman and I pulled into the service station where I swap cars. As soon as we hit the driveway, I asked Zman if he had jumper leads. Yep, MOTH left the car headlights on. It doesn't take long but it sure results in a flat battery. One phone call to RACQ later and I'm advised it could take an hour for them to turn up. Luckily it didn't but Zman decided to wait for a while with us.

Today MOTH and I went to the movies with Sunny. The movie was Inception. The special effects are mind numbingly good and there were some vertigo inducing moments! It is a movie I think I would be happy to see more than once. In fact, I think it might be necessary to see it more than once - there are probably bits in the first viewing I'm sure to have missed. It also ends on a rather suspenseful note!

A care package from Mother arrived during the week. It contained a bag my father had borrowed when he was down last, marshmallows, minties, a couple blocks of chocolate, a pack of Dove peppermint chocolate, and a bag of fantales. I love those things.

It arrived before Friday, but brightened my week to that point. Thanks Mum, you always manage to hit the spot. xxx