Having a break.

Normally, I only have a break from blogging when I'm away but recently I felt the need for a break. I don't know why but I just haven't been able to summon up the energies to sit at the keyboard and write. I have been lurking, checking in on the blogs I follow and enjoying reading them as always, but for now I'm enjoying not having to feel compelled to write too. It's quite refreshing - but it's not a long term idea - I shall get back into it soon. But for now, be sure I am still following you all with enjoyment!

For Spanish Owner

This is done in Windows Live Writer, especially for you. Straight text is a doddle (unless Brinkley is trying to attract my attention as he is at the moment, must be close to walk time). It seems he is irritated by me typing text at speed as he’s laid right by the laptop.

Now, I can type in a different colour very easily, by selecting text type and colour as if typing in a work document. And just as easily I can change again.
If I want bold I can have bold – and Brinkley has decided enough is enough and moved

If I can find a video I’ll try and insert -

And that was a simple process.

So, if you are still having problems with Blogger I would suggest you take a look at this. I’ve not put everything in that you use – oh, you need a link to another webpage maybe?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-MO7xVW-oU – yes, another easy process. (And by the way, it’s the link to the pups already embedded above).

And now to post it to my blog – I just click the publish button and it’s done.

Hope this gives you an idea in case you fancy trying it.

Challenges of a new job.

I am very concious in my new role, of not over stepping the mark. I have worked at a senior level previous to my time in Spain. I had responsibility for others, for systems, for making sure we had backups of data and in a crisis, I had responsibility for analysing the options and deciding which route to choose.

When I returned to work I wanted to lose all of that responsibility. I wanted a job where I went to work, did my job, enjoyed working with my colleagues and switched off when I came home at night. Where my weekends were my own and the 'life-work' balance that everyone talks of, and which I am very aware of, was in balance.

And so, to my current job. I love my job. I'm doing work I've always enjoyed and doesn't tax my brain too much. I have a good boss who is on the same wave length as me. I am in an industry that produces something which, after years in a service environment, I find enjoyable. The initial few weeks were a little stressful due to issues with my work colleague but she is no longer working there and her possible replacement seems fine. It was a challenging few weeks but we're past them now. It didn't help that the day after the agency had been asked to let her know she wasn't wanted back, she was sat at her desk when I got in to the office. The agency hadn't got around to phoning her to let her know her services were no longer required. How bad is that?

This is the same agency that I'm in talks with over holiday pay. They have a holiday year running from 6th April to 5th April - it follows the tax year dates. They have a rule that all holiday has to be taken by the 5th April, no carry forward - nothing strange in that. They also have a rule that says you have to work a month before you can take any holiday - again, nothing unusual in that, you need to accrue the holiday before you can take them but, there is always one that doesn't fit the rules - and it's me!

I started on the 3rd March, so my first month with them to accrue holiday is 6th March to 5th April. So I then somehow have to take the holiday accrued also by the 5th April. And, to make it even more difficult the 5th April fell on a Tuesday and my day off is Monday. I'm having trouble making the agency see that their rules mean that it was impossible for me to accrue and take the holiday by the 5th April, but they're having trouble understanding my problem and are telling me I must lose the days accrued - but that doesn't seem fair!

And so to the latest crisis. Last week we realised we had a problem with the software giving bad info. There was a rogue entry that had appeared and corrupted a load of data. No problems, back-ups are run automatically twice a day. Unfortunately, no-one was running the check-data program first to make sure the data being backed up was good.

And so, we had to go back a week to find a good back up. They could recover some of the data but other needed re-inputting, and of course the data that couldn't be done automatically made up 60% of the lost data. So last week was spent re-doing the work from the week before. The General Manager was on holiday so I found myself making the decision as to what options we chose. Needless to say I now do daily data checks before the backup is run, just so I don't end up having to repeat weeks.  One major difference this time - previously I would have spent the long holiday weekend working to get everything up to date. This long holiday weekend has been 4 days off for me. There is still work to do but it will get done on Tuesday.

Hopefully this week will see my new colleague starting, the system fully up to date and the job will revert back to being stress-free.