Friday, June 22, 2012

The Big Rat


On any given day if you walk around NYC, you are bound to see a big rat standing in front of some building. I am not talking about an enormous live rat but an inflatable one. It’s always a disturbing site for a number of reasons:

1)      It’s a big frigging rat
2)      It signifies that someone in the building or a company in the building does things in a dirty way or conducts things in an underhanded way

Neither of these reasons gives me warm or fuzzy feelings.

As a New Yorker, rats don’t phase me too much. I watch them in the subway tracks and observe where they go. This year I’ve been ‘greeted’ more than ever on my morning walks to the train by at least two that scurry along any of the blocks I walk on (we happen to have a serious problem on our hands this year since we didn’t have a cold winter) Yes, they are gross but as long as I have protective shoes (hence, not any open toe shoes or flip flops), I’m ok.

But this inflatable rat is bothersome because it really taps into so many people’s fears. It’s an enormous rat with beady red eyes – even if rats don’t ‘bother’ me, this is disgusting. And to think that I see one of these on a pretty consistent basis makes me wonder about the conditions that people are working in. In this day and age, you’d think people would treat each other with more respect but it seems to be getting worse. Just as the real rat population is growing, it seems the human rat population continues to get worse as well.

Cravings


Being pregnant has many stereotypes associated with it – the insane mood swings and the bizarre needs in the middle of the night, along with other things. Most of what people think of when they talk about pregnant women is cravings. I have heard some weird ones in my day but honestly I don’t see them being any different than wanting to eat something particular when you aren’t pregnant.
A few months ago in the beginning stretches, I really craved French food. I wanted Steak au Poivre like crazy and escargot. When I mentioned this to a couple of people they said I just wanted to go to Paris and that was what was feeding the craving. I said to them “Um no, I think I want the food!” There’s no denying in my mind that I wouldn’t have preferred to get on a plane and have those authentic meals in their birthplace but the urge was more about the food than the need to get on a plane.

When I finally had my escargot and steak (along with potatoes au gratin), I felt satisfied and happy. Just goes to show you what wanting a specific meal can trigger in a person’s body. Mind you, I still wouldn’t have minded getting on a plane but that was nothing a couple of Parisian inspired movies wouldn’t help.

And yes, it was a weird craving, especially the escargot. But hey, I like my French food! Also, what was funny is that I’ve craved these things even before I was pregnant so if people had been paying attention they would have noticed it wasn’t anything unusual. Every so often I wanted a lovely steak tartare or a French steak prepared any way and I often order escargot when I go to French restaurants. But oh well, people only remember what they want and like to attribute things to odd pregnancy cravings. Really, these are just my usual slightly odd cravings.

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Working from Home


Despite all my complaints about my job, I have to say I am very lucky in one sense. I am allowed to work from home whenever I need to as long as I keep my boss informed of where I am working.

There are many advantages to working from home for me and my employer. For my employer, I can log on much earlier than I would if I were commuting into the office and I can stay on much later. They can get a couple more hours of work from me with this kind of schedule.  I’m also a lot happier when I work from home which is motivating. This works for both my employer and me.

I am happier for a number of reasons. The first of which is that I can pretty much stay in my pajamas for a lot longer than I would if I were to dress for work. I think pajamas are just a more relaxing wardrobe in general. When I lounge around in my pajamas, I am more laid back and I don’t get as upset about things because I am comfortable. And when I do get dressed, I am more likely to wear clothes that make me feel more comfortable so I am more productive. I am not constricted in my suit or slightly uncomfortable shoes. 

Also I like working at home because I can regulate the temperature of my environment. This is so helpful to me because when I am in the right temperature, I can work for much longer periods of time. I don’t have to get up a dozen times to go make tea because I am freezing in my office tundra. I also don’t have to get up a dozen times to go to the bathroom because of all the tea I am drinking to keep myself warm. The temperature is just right and if it isn’t I can adjust it. Something I can never do at work because the minute I call a request into the facilities unit, the next day, it’s the same freezing cold. 

It also never gets too hot at home. I can open a window and let in air which helps calm me down. When I get hot at work, even if I end up in tee shirt, it still doesn’t completely relax me. I have to go and get a cool drink to keep my body temperature at a reasonable level. This takes up time. At least if I am home, it’s a quick walk to the fridge to get a beverage and I am back to my work. This means more time working. Employer benefits again.

A couple of other reasons I love working from home are:
1)      When I am sick, I don’t have to contaminate the whole office. I can just do it to my husband. This is a big benefit to my employer.
2)      When I get really annoyed at people, I can just pet my dogs and my blood pressure lowers immediately.
3)      I don’t spend as much money on food because everything is in my fridge or pantry. I make my meals depending on my mood and I eat healthier. When I am at work, even if I bring my food from home, I tend to spend more money because I want a snack and I go and get it. Or I’ve run out of water so I have to go get some. 

Even though there are a lot of great things about working from home, there is one major drawback – socialization. I don’t get to meet with other people (except my husband) or have a walk with old co-workers. Those are the things I like about going to work. But for me, working from home has more advantages than disadvantages. I think the daily commute can be stressful even if I usually use it to read books, which I find relaxing. If I don’t get a seat on the train though, it’s impossible to read leaning on a pole.

Friday, June 1, 2012

The Noisy Shrub


On my latest trip to Long Island, I was startled when I heard a shrub with a cough. I kept looking around thinking that perhaps a neighbor was walking by and was having an asthma attack. But it was much closer to me than outside the fence. 

I began to investigate. Waiting for the noise to sound so I could quickly move to where the tone resonated. As I got closer to the noise, I saw the faint outline of a fuzzy snout. I realized that my dog Foxy was the one coughing under a shrub – her so called ‘hut’. 

I worried that perhaps she had caught a cold or something then I remembered that moments before I heard the sound, she was playing fetch. Foxy loves to play a good game of fetch with a stick from a tree. There is quite frankly nothing like a good game of ‘fetch’ or ‘stick’ for Foxy. (Aside from maybe trying to catch flies by eating them).  

She can play fetch for a while. Once she gets tired, she liked to lie down on her belly with her stick between her paws and rip it apart. This often caused pieces of the bitten up bark to get caught in her throat. Hence the hacking cough she exhibits that often sounds like a 90 year old who has smoked 3 packs of cigarettes a day.
It made me chuckle. I asked her if she was ok and then asked her to follow me to her water bowl. She lapped up a good cup of water and the doggie TB that I was about to attribute to her finally vanished. At least until her next session of stick.