Job Purrs Needed

I've just been told that starting Monday I'll have to start coming into the
office and will no longer be able to work from home (one of the agreements
at the time of my hire). We're talking about an hour and a half drive there

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)...

(Most of self-righteous diatribe snipped)

Wayne Boatwright...

Did you have a contract with that stipulation? If not, you don't have a
leg to stand on.

We're talking about an hour and a

(in gridlocked traffic) and an hour and a half home again. Because I have a
truck, I'll be spending a *MINIMUM* of $80 - $100 a week in gas alone. I

Wayne Boatwright...

It was, apparently, your choice to have a truck. Perhaps you need to
consider a more economical vehicle. While I realize this change may be a
shock to you, many people spend that much time or more on the road to get
to and from work.

I have *NO* clothes appropriate for the work

Judith Latham...

[Snip]

polonca12000...

have *NO* clothes appropriate for the work place dress code (business
casual - I have either dress suits or jeans), so I'll be spending money on
that (including makeup, which I don't have to wear at home). I'll be paying

Wayne Boatwright...

Appropriate clothing is part of the overhead of working. I doubt that
wearing makeup is a requirement. I think it would be hard to enforce.

I'll be paying for lunch now, so that's another $50

for lunch now, so that's another $50 or so a week. As I've said here in the
past, DH and I are extremely over-extended as it is - this is going to put

Wayne Boatwright...

There are many alternatives to spending $10/day for lunch in a restaurant.
I rather doubt the average person does so.

us over the edge!

All of that is not even considering what my home life will be like now.
I'll have to wake at 5:30AM and won't be getting home until 7:00PM. I'll

Wayne Boatwright...

I get up at 4:30AM to arrive and begin work at 7:00AM for an 8-hour day.

have no time for my exercise or biking, and by the time I fight traffic
coming home I won't be in any shape for "play" - I'm looking at *maybe* an
hour every day of "down time".

Wayne Boatwright...

Do you want to work or do you want to play? Few have the luxury of ample
time for both.

jXwXeXrXmXoXnXt...

Oh, what a drag!! I'm sorry to hear this. :( And you were just saying
yesterday how lucky you were to be able dress for "work" really
comfortably because you work at home!

I can relate to what you're going through, although yours sounds worse
than mine. I was out of work for over 3 years, except for some freelancing
which occasionally made me enough to live on, just not reliably enough.
So I got a full-time job, and I'm still adjusting to the daily commute,
to being away from home some 10+ hours a day, getting up in the morning
(I had become completely nocturnal in those 3 years), and taking care of
the daily business of living and managing my home while not being around
very much. It seems that my mission in life these days is to find
practical solutions to all the different issues that come up - when to
make certain phone calls, when to buy things I need, and so on. At least
you have an SO who can help - I live with cats only. They're wonderful
company, but aren't much help with stuff like housework and grocery
shopping! :)

Why did they change their minds? And why such an extreme change? Do
you think they'd be amenable to your going in 3 times a week rather
than every day? ie, some compromise?? It's such a radical change in

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)...

Some offices have no kitchen facilities, and forbid eating
at your desk - maybe hers is one of them? I work for a CPA
firm, and even when mere staff go to a client's office, we
are not supposed to bring our lunch (even if the client has
an employee lunch room).

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)...

Unfortunately, some places with a dress code DO "give a
rip"! They can't FORCE you to wear makeup, but they can
make you feel awfully uncomfortable about it, if you don't
wear at least the minimum lipstick and eye-shadow.

jmcquown...

You must work at a terribly backward firm. Anyplace I've ever worked at
least had a micowave and a place where someone could eat away from their
desk. And makeup wasn't required. But when I was younger I thought I
shouldn't leave the house without it. Such a shame, being so embarrassed
about my natural looks. Really, such a shame.

jmcquown...

Oh Pulleeeze!

Jo Firey...

They will get me to keep lipstick and eye-shadow on the day all the guys are
required to wear the same. Same goes for panty hose.

jmcquown...

Thank you very much! No one is going to tell me I have to wear eye shadow
and mascara!! and panty-hose in order to get the job done. Screw that!

I'm plenty feminine, but no one has told me what to wear in a very long

jmcquown...

I understand dressing nicely, not all slouchy in torn up jeans or stuff that
looks like workout clothes. But neither do I have to wear a "suit" in a
business casual atmosphere and makeup. I dressed more like the office execs
than did the execs, simply because I like nice dresses. But they didn't
require that I do so.

time.

Yes I did buy panty hose for my daughters wedding last year, but it was so
hot I didn't wear them. And I'm guessing hardly anyone else did either.

(I did make the concession of getting a good pedicure before hand and not
going barefoot till after the big day)

jmcquown...

I have some panty hose for special occasions and I do polish my toenails :)
No one tells me to do so, though. No one will *ever* tell me to do so. And
if they want my expertice on the job, they won't be looking at my face or at
my legs.

<---Don't hate me because I'm beautiful AND smart Jill ;)

Randy...

Then why are you here?

Monique Y. Mudama...

As I understand it, there's no law against forcing people to wear
makeup -- heck, they could require the guys to wear makeup if they
wanted to.

your life.

Can I suggest that you bring your lunch to work rather than buying
it every day? I've been doing that religiously since I started my job
early in May. I have two reasons for it - (1) it keeps the cost down,
and (2) the food I make is much healthier than most food I could buy
cheaply. I have a little cooler (one of those mini "personal" coolers),
and that keeps the food cold for several hours, so it doesn't spoil
in transit. That might help a little with the expense, anyway.

MaryL...

That's what I do, except that I use an insulated lunch bag instead of a mini
cooler. I always take my lunch in and eat at my desk. Of course, students
know that and often "drop in" at noon, so that means that lunch time often
becomes office hours! ;-)

MaryL

Photos of Duffy and Holly: >'o'<
Recent pics: http://tinyurl.com/clal7

Maybe you could carpool, even a couple of days a week? Around here,
we have something called "Ride Share" where you can find out if anyone
is travelling a similar route who would be willing to share a ride.
If you don't have anything like that, maybe you could put an ad in
the local paper, or online bulletin board if you have that. Carpooling
would help with the gas prices!

Good luck - hope it's not too horrible a transition. And if you are
stuck with this, then I hope you find a new job ASAP!

Needless to say, I'm going to be looking for different employment (something
that will be hard to do given all of the above).

Wayne Boatwright...

Needless to say, you probably need to.

I could really use some job-finding purrs.

Wayne Boatwright...

It must be terrible to not be coddled anymore.

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)...

How has a "helpful" creep like you remained unplonked on
this NG?

Adrian A...

He didn't remain unplonked by me, the only way I know he's posted anything
is because of other people's replys.

Wayne Boatwright...

That's probably a good thing. I won't have to see you either. :-)

glsummer...

You got it. Purrs on the way.

Ginger-lyn

Home Pages:
Animals in Movies Website)

Randy...

Lots and lots of purrs coming your way. May the search be short and the outcome
exceptional.

Huggs back,
Randy

kilikini...

Good luck! I know how you feel; my husband drives between 1.5 - 2 hours
each way, too, and we have an SUV. I know EXACTLY what you're talking about
between gridlock and gas prices. You've got to find something else. Purrs
that you find something soon.

Judith Latham...

No purrs available so good luck vibes are on their way.

Sam...

Great job purrs on the way. It's a b*tch when they change the rules.

polonca12000...

Lots and lots of purrs and best wishes for a great new job for you, CN,
Polonca and Soncek

Victor Martinez...

Lots of purrs. Do you think you could talk to someone in upper
management? I mean, it is part of your compensation in a way. If they
are taking that away from you, they should at least compensate you
monetarily, I think.

Takayuki...

It feels so soon! I know you (well, we all know) that you really
disliked the job you had before this one. I hoped that you'd like
this job a lot, although I was concerned when you seemed down about
life in general just shortly after you started. Purrs that you'll
find something that you like.

sriddles...

Hope you find something more suitable. I don't blame you for not
wanting to shell out so much money on gas, etc.; and the hours away
from home too. The cats are going to miss you. They're like mine;
they're used to having somebody around. They like that even if they
won't admit it.

Monique Y. Mudama...

Purrs incoming. Is there much of a tech market close to your house?

I definitely believe in a short commute. It's time you just can't
recoup!

Cheryl...

AKKK! I have so envied your work situation and I'm so bummed for you
that it won't continue. At least with this company. CN, many
companies are going the home working route, so purrs that you find
one that can accommidate your wishes. On that note, purrs for me
too, that I can find one that'll let me work that way! I'm so f'n
sick of where I work now. It used to be like family, now everyone is
just kissing the ass of this big company that bought us. Even though
one of the clauses of the sale was that part of our stock option for
retirement is to be held in escrow, and we're finding out all of the
situations where money will be drawn from that, and we'll never see
it. In my case, the amount held in escrow is about $30,000. I'll
never see that. I can tell now.

polonca12000...

I'm so very sorry to hear about your situation, Cheryl.
Lots and lots of purrs and best wishes for you to find a much better job,
Polonca and Soncek