Looking up

Boy, was yesterday eventful at work.

First we had a goodbye lunch for an employee. Some of the attendees were other former employees and as we left, I told them to refer to me anyone who would be qualified to take over this position. That's when our volunteer piped up "Train me for it! Train me for it!"

That was strange, because I had already approached the volunteer about taking over that position. This volunteer has come to the office 2 full days a week for about a month, is smart, and a quick learner. She said when I first asked her about taking the position, that she got the impression that I was looking for someone more qualified than her. What I didn't know was that she had 8 years of experience doing similar but not the same kind of work. When I first interviewed her, she was applying for a different position at the organization.

Anyway, she's going to move into this newly vacant position. And that's a really good thing because she knows the organization and the program. Now I have to figure out how much to pay her. For 10 years, the starting pay has been the same, so now it's actually worth less than it was ten years ago. On the other hand, that puts pressure on me, as the only fundraiser in the organization, to find even more money.

Secondly, I have another new hire for a position that's been open since February 2006. Yes, it's been open for 17 months. I have really high hopes for this new person. We met for coffee yesterday to discuss a few issues, such as salary (of course) and her visa situation. She's got a work permit through her current job, so if I want to hire her, we have to find a lawyer to file the papers to have it transferred or something so she can work legally for us. Eventually she also wants to become a permanent resident, which means more legal fees and a 2 year commitment. The goal is to become a citizen.

I said, let's try a 3 month probationary period before sponsering her for permanent residency. After all, we may find that it's not such a great match after all and then we'd both be stuck for 2 years in an unhappy situation.

I agreed to a higher salary, though not as high as she wanted, so we can cover the costs of the legal fees. Again, now I have to think about where this extra money will come from. Augh, the pressure, the pressure!

However, it's coming up on the weekend and I can rest easy that these two positions will be filled, that work will continue, and that new blood and fresh ideas will be coming in. Change is inevitable and I think this time it's going to be good.

So I will take a break at lunch and go bead shopping. I really like long beaded lariat necklaces, so my idea is to take the one skein of multicolored sari silk yarn that many of us have and knit it into a long skinny scarf, maybe a 5 stitch I-cord, with beads at the ends.

And then tomorrow, Brother One and I will go see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. It was not my favorite book but I hear the movie is really good. My favorite HP is Goblet of Fire, and the movie did not live up to my expectations. This time, my expectations are much lower.

Husband is not sure if he wants to participate in this geekery with us. He has not seen any of the movies nor read any of the books. Yes, I'm married to a muggle.