Monday, July 16, 2012
Happy Trails
A quick news update -- no news whatsoever on the house. People are still coming by, but nothing beyond that. Not sure what we need to do next, or even if there's anything we can do, but I'm hoping our realtor will be able to shed some light on the situation.
Found out a little more about those full-time IRS positions I didn't get. Turns out one of the people who did get one of the jobs was . . . my boss. Seems they were hiring from a whole 'nother level of experience all along, and three seasons in, I'm just not there yet. Emphasis on the yet.
Things continue to be interesting at work. A half-dozen or so of the most senior members of our crew were sent off to Washington DC last week for training sessions by Homeland Security experts on false identity documents. Then they will come teach the rest of us what they learned, and we will use that information in the stepped-up fight against document and identity fraud that our department is in the middle of. Given all the extra time and training we're dealing with, it looks like I'll be working here for quite a while yet this season, which is good news indeed.
And lastly, I want to take a moment to honor Rev. Lou Snead, who preached his last sermon yesterday morning as pastor of Faith Presbyterian Church here in Austin. He and his lovely wife Michelle are embarking on the adventure of retirement, with lots of travel and family and grandkid-watching and gardening on the agenda. Lou was pastor at Faith for 17 years, and I have never seen a better fit between minister and congregation. As Lou said at the retirement party we threw for him on Saturday, "I would have been here longer if I had gotten here sooner." Lou is one of the finest people I have ever known, a living embodiment of St. Francis of Assisi's advice to "preach the gospel at all times and when necessary, use words." Like everybody else in the Faith community, I will miss him terribly.
One of the policies of the Presbyterian Church is that, upon retirement, a pastor distance himself from his former church. This not only helps the congregation move forward, it doesn't put the next pastor in the difficult situation of having to deal with constant comparisons to the previous minister. (Some of that is going to happen anyway, of course, but trying to minimize it is a good idea.) Today, just one day removed from his last Sunday on the job, I find it very difficult to imagine a spiritual life at Faith (or anywhere else) that Lou is not smack-dab in the middle of. But I know that I, along with the rest of the Faith congregation, must find that new path, that new way to be witnesses to Christ's message in a needy world, that moves forward without our pastor of 17 years. It won't be easy, but I remain hopeful.
Monday, June 25, 2012
Strike Three
A quick update: Got another set of conflicting emails from my IRS masters about the permanent full-time gig, so this time I took advantage of the "if you have any questions" link. Got a prompt reply (good!) saying that the conflicting information went out due to some sort of computer glitch (bad!) and that, after reviewing my file, it turns out I did not make the cut (worse!).
C'est la vie. Or, to put it another way, que sera, sera. Or to put it yet another way, crappity crap crap.
C'est la vie. Or, to put it another way, que sera, sera. Or to put it yet another way, crappity crap crap.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
... And The Livin' Is Easy
It is so summer here in Texas. Got our first few 100-degree days in the forecast for later this week. It's times like these I envy my sister Laurie and her backyard pool -- I would live in it 24/7 if I could.
Good news on the work front: The second official meeting to announce when they were going to start sending more of us IRS tax examiners home was canceled. Just like the first one. I could be there for weeks more, or months. It's not that they're not telling us (though they aren't) -- I think it is that they don't know themselves. There's a lot going in on our department with upcoming changes in a lot of our policies and procedures, and the new training for all that could keep us all there for a while.
I also heard about the permanent full-time positions they were accepting applications for back in March, and I made the first cut and made the Best Qualified list. That's good, but not a lock. What happens next -- or when -- is just as big a mystery as it was in the three-month wait from application to this latest news. Stay tuned.
Had a few more people come look at the house this past couple of weeks, but no progress. I get the impression it's a lot of waiting around with no idea what's going on until the realtor calls one day with the news that we have an offer. Kind of like the job news, where you know nothing, you know nothing, you know less than nothing ... then bam! It happens.
When I get a bam!, I'll let you know.
Good news on the work front: The second official meeting to announce when they were going to start sending more of us IRS tax examiners home was canceled. Just like the first one. I could be there for weeks more, or months. It's not that they're not telling us (though they aren't) -- I think it is that they don't know themselves. There's a lot going in on our department with upcoming changes in a lot of our policies and procedures, and the new training for all that could keep us all there for a while.
I also heard about the permanent full-time positions they were accepting applications for back in March, and I made the first cut and made the Best Qualified list. That's good, but not a lock. What happens next -- or when -- is just as big a mystery as it was in the three-month wait from application to this latest news. Stay tuned.
Had a few more people come look at the house this past couple of weeks, but no progress. I get the impression it's a lot of waiting around with no idea what's going on until the realtor calls one day with the news that we have an offer. Kind of like the job news, where you know nothing, you know nothing, you know less than nothing ... then bam! It happens.
When I get a bam!, I'll let you know.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
We're Listed
The house is officially for sale. The realtor came over this afternoon, took pictures, pounded the "For Sale" sign in the front yard, dropped off the paperwork. I don't expect anything to happen instantly (or even quickly), but it's nice to take this major step.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Great Weekend
The title says it all. We haven't had this good a weekend in a long time. It started Friday night, when Louise went to see one of her favorite bands, Flogging Molly, who were on tour and playing in Austin. I had to work, but Louise had a great time, and knowing she was having a great time made me feel better. Louise spent Saturday at a yoga expo with her yoga teacher (a lovely lady we know from church), and came home happy and energized. And Sunday, we had dinner-and-a-movie at the Alamo Drafthouse and caught The Avengers.
Really good movie. If you have any interest in the comic-book movie genre at all, you will really enjoy this one. I won't bother to do a review, since there's plenty of material out there already about it. Just go.
How good a weekend was it? I have to head off to work in a little while, and I don't mind at all. Completely ready to start the week and hit the ground running. We have to do this more often.
Really good movie. If you have any interest in the comic-book movie genre at all, you will really enjoy this one. I won't bother to do a review, since there's plenty of material out there already about it. Just go.
How good a weekend was it? I have to head off to work in a little while, and I don't mind at all. Completely ready to start the week and hit the ground running. We have to do this more often.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Making The Cut
A quick update on a number of subjects:
First off, furloughs have begun at the seasonal IRS gig. The temps hired just for this season were let go earlier this week, and the first round of seasonals go home next week. Good news is, my evaluations and seniority put me high enough on the ranking list that I will be passed over for furlough and get to keep working. There will be another round of furloughs in a few weeks, but I have no idea when the cuts will come or if I will be able to dodge that second bullet. They're going to send me home at some point, but I don't know when.
And nobody has heard anything about the permanent positions they announced a few months ago. Not a peep. So I'm going to file that under "it happens when it happens" and stop worrying about it.
Had a nice visit with Ben and his wife Stephanie a couple weeks back. Ben reported for US Navy Basic Training about 10 days ago. They keep those guys bottled up pretty tight during the training, so we haven't heard much. Training should take another six weeks or so, but I don't know the exact dates.
Work on selling the house has slowed to a near-standstill. Thing is, we don't have that much stuff left to do, but we're not getting it done. Time to get re-energized and re-motivated.
Doing a date night Sunday night with Louise -- dinner and a movie at a new Alamo Drafthouse location that opened just a few miles away. Right now, the front-runners are The Avengers and Dark Shadows. Details later.
First off, furloughs have begun at the seasonal IRS gig. The temps hired just for this season were let go earlier this week, and the first round of seasonals go home next week. Good news is, my evaluations and seniority put me high enough on the ranking list that I will be passed over for furlough and get to keep working. There will be another round of furloughs in a few weeks, but I have no idea when the cuts will come or if I will be able to dodge that second bullet. They're going to send me home at some point, but I don't know when.
And nobody has heard anything about the permanent positions they announced a few months ago. Not a peep. So I'm going to file that under "it happens when it happens" and stop worrying about it.
Had a nice visit with Ben and his wife Stephanie a couple weeks back. Ben reported for US Navy Basic Training about 10 days ago. They keep those guys bottled up pretty tight during the training, so we haven't heard much. Training should take another six weeks or so, but I don't know the exact dates.
Work on selling the house has slowed to a near-standstill. Thing is, we don't have that much stuff left to do, but we're not getting it done. Time to get re-energized and re-motivated.
Doing a date night Sunday night with Louise -- dinner and a movie at a new Alamo Drafthouse location that opened just a few miles away. Right now, the front-runners are The Avengers and Dark Shadows. Details later.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Long Overdue Update
Hi. Long time, no blog. And the weird thing is, the longer you go without doing something, the bigger the task becomes (that's one of the laws of thermodynamics, or perhaps procrasto-dynamics), and the bigger it becomes, the more difficult and daunting it becomes, until you just don't want to think about for weeks or months at a time.
Well, enough of that. Lots going on, so I will try to hit the high points and keep moving.
I am completely recovered from my leg issues. I was knocked flat for about two weeks, and then had two more weeks or so of slow recovery, but for the past six weeks or so I have been just fine. In retrospect, I should have just gone to the hospital the day I got sick, but not having health insurance, I decided not to. I still spent a fair chunk of change on the medical-industrial complex, and I guess it worked out in the end.
Things are going well at the IRS. I'm working my regular 5pm to 1:30am shift, plus some overtime here and there. We'll have plenty to keep us busy for at least another month, and then they'll start furloughing people. I'm trying to delay that moment for as long as possible, but we'll see. The really exciting news is that they announced 25 (!) full-time permanent job openings in my department back in March, and I eagerly applied, along with a bunch of other folks. None of us have heard anything back yet, but I didn't expect to right away. After three tax seasons, I'm starting to get a feel for how the government does things (and you can take that any way you want to). Anyway, I like my chances -- I have a ton of experience, and it's the right experience, plus I had a lot of help from our Team Manager with filling out all the paperwork and using the right buzzwords to get past the screening process. The only variable is how many other people applied: 50? 500? I don't know.
We're still committed to selling the house and moving into some place smaller and cheaper, but getting the current house ready to sell is taking longer than we hoped. We're not listed yet, but we're shooting for Real Soon Now -- like by the end of the month, or early May. More on this as developments warrant.
We're getting a visit from oldest stepson Ben and his lovely wife Stephanie this week. Ben is headed off to Navy basic training in less than two weeks, and is coming through the area to see some family before he leaves. He'll start at the Great Lakes naval station in Chicago, and I don't know much beyond that. There's a good chance Ben doesn't know much beyond that, either. (Like I said earlier, I'm starting to get a feel for how the government does things.)
I feel that Louise and I are starting to emotionally withdraw from our church commitment, and that makes me sad. The pastor who has been there as long as we've been going (over 10 years now) is retiring, and it's made it hard to get excited about the future there. The church is way more than just the pastor, of course, and I have to reconnect with that part of the relationship if I'm going to continue to be a member. The only thing I'm really excited about is our little worship band, Banned From The Church. It lets me channel my inner rock star and make some fun music with some nice, talented people. I guess I'll use that as an anchor point, and try to expand and re-engage from there. Or something like that.
Enough of an update? Hope so, 'cause it's all I've got right now. Comment if you want, or if you have any questions, or whatever. 'Til next time . . .
Well, enough of that. Lots going on, so I will try to hit the high points and keep moving.
I am completely recovered from my leg issues. I was knocked flat for about two weeks, and then had two more weeks or so of slow recovery, but for the past six weeks or so I have been just fine. In retrospect, I should have just gone to the hospital the day I got sick, but not having health insurance, I decided not to. I still spent a fair chunk of change on the medical-industrial complex, and I guess it worked out in the end.
Things are going well at the IRS. I'm working my regular 5pm to 1:30am shift, plus some overtime here and there. We'll have plenty to keep us busy for at least another month, and then they'll start furloughing people. I'm trying to delay that moment for as long as possible, but we'll see. The really exciting news is that they announced 25 (!) full-time permanent job openings in my department back in March, and I eagerly applied, along with a bunch of other folks. None of us have heard anything back yet, but I didn't expect to right away. After three tax seasons, I'm starting to get a feel for how the government does things (and you can take that any way you want to). Anyway, I like my chances -- I have a ton of experience, and it's the right experience, plus I had a lot of help from our Team Manager with filling out all the paperwork and using the right buzzwords to get past the screening process. The only variable is how many other people applied: 50? 500? I don't know.
We're still committed to selling the house and moving into some place smaller and cheaper, but getting the current house ready to sell is taking longer than we hoped. We're not listed yet, but we're shooting for Real Soon Now -- like by the end of the month, or early May. More on this as developments warrant.
We're getting a visit from oldest stepson Ben and his lovely wife Stephanie this week. Ben is headed off to Navy basic training in less than two weeks, and is coming through the area to see some family before he leaves. He'll start at the Great Lakes naval station in Chicago, and I don't know much beyond that. There's a good chance Ben doesn't know much beyond that, either. (Like I said earlier, I'm starting to get a feel for how the government does things.)
I feel that Louise and I are starting to emotionally withdraw from our church commitment, and that makes me sad. The pastor who has been there as long as we've been going (over 10 years now) is retiring, and it's made it hard to get excited about the future there. The church is way more than just the pastor, of course, and I have to reconnect with that part of the relationship if I'm going to continue to be a member. The only thing I'm really excited about is our little worship band, Banned From The Church. It lets me channel my inner rock star and make some fun music with some nice, talented people. I guess I'll use that as an anchor point, and try to expand and re-engage from there. Or something like that.
Enough of an update? Hope so, 'cause it's all I've got right now. Comment if you want, or if you have any questions, or whatever. 'Til next time . . .
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