<p>Sorry HH, I wasn’t trying to limit our topics. I am going to be preparing tax returns for the elderly poor thru AARP as a volunteer starting in January. My DH is going to be a greeter at the location I am working at. He also drives elderly people to appointments several times a week. I have to study and take a class to do my volunteer job. My DH jobs require no special training.</p>
<p>FlMathMom, no worries! I wasn’t offended, only thinking how much things have changed from a year ago when all any of us could think about was our kids and their chances. Watching friends whose kids are now in the throes of The College Process, I am realizing how far I have moved but how little visible progress I have made. Trying to let it go until after the holidays.
Your volunteer work sounds great. Good for you and your DH!</p>
<p>I think volunteering is a good way to gain current skill sets, network and help people out. When I was looking to get back into a traditional job 8 years ago, I realized that the things I had done in the PTA were a good background for my current job. The whole job market seems turned upside down now. I work at a public library earning not much per hour, my college grad son is working his butt off at a warehouse earning more then me, and our freshman in college is being paid the same as me per hour for his part time college job. I am very grateful that we can afford for me to work at a low paying job that is very enjoyable. </p>
<p>And back to college kids… I bought my son his train ticket home two nights ago! He was going to catch a ride with a neighbor but she’s doing a study abroad second semester so will be taking most of her stuff home with her and won’t have much room for him. Instead, he and a friend will take the train to NYC and his friends parents will pick him up there. Only one train a day from his college town so I’ll be anxious until he tells me he’s on it. </p>
<p>Regarding young adult sleep overs - It’s a no go in our house. I just don’t feel comfortable with it. I also agree that it shouldn’t be assumed that a young couple would WANT to sleep together at a parents house. I would not have before we were married. Not passing judgement, but that’s how I feel.</p>
<p>I agree that volunteer work is a good way to ease back into work IF you have the time and patience. With no intent of doing this, in effect this is what I did when doing bookkeeping for a very large youth sports organization one of my boys was involved in. I had the time and enjoyed the work. Certainly no one else wanted to do it!! It was at the time everything went online so I took them throught that transition and automation. When I did go back to work after 15 years at home I had several years with this organization, great references, and certainly experience. Do to health I don’t work now, however it was a great springboard at the time.</p>
<p>I don’t think we have any members with students at VT, however we may have lurkers. Please keep these students and their families in your thoughts. I just can’t believe this community has to endure this again. We have many friends there so will not rest easy until I know they are all safe.</p>
<p>I’m more than fully employed – I’m on a day trip from London to meet with one of my firm’s clients in Amsterdam – and ShawWife has been full-time with flexibility when the kids were around – but with the nest empty, we both find we’re able to do more, either professionally or personally. I’m able to travel a little more freely to work with clients. </p>
<p>I have been doing pro bono projects at times, but my plan is that my next pro bono project will be a book on how to think about career choices. I’ve been advising people on this since I was a young professor and my wife keeps sending me friends who need advice. Apparently, people find it very useful. Maybe I should write a chapter about folks coming back into the workforce – it’s not in my current outline. I suspect volunteering works if you treat it like a job. There is another issue that HighHead alludes to, which is implicit age discrimination perhaps just for females (I haven’t heard too many males referred to as “perky”). In my firm, we tend to hire younger folks so that we can mold them to our way of doing things. So, there may be some unusual challenges associated with working one’s way back in to good positions.</p>
<p>FWIW</p>
<p>I have LOTS of vol experience in a variety of areas–have been doing that and holding “chair” positions on some things from time to time.
The harder thing is to translate those activities and skills onto a resume. </p>
<p>Have tried to get back into the workforce in certain areas and in this area/part of the country it is not as easy…I find there are those women who have stayed in the workforce always and have Careers, and then there are the women with jobs yet not alot of mobility/career track, and then women who have been home w kids/volunteer.</p>
<p>A large part of my professional work was done will living in Wash DC. </p>
<p>Shaw–yes perky is something that opens doors for women and I haven’t heard of men described that way.<br>
Though I can tell you I had a woman who was interviewing me ask me how my husband would feel about such n such/long hours etc! While living/working in Wash DC I stopped wearing my wedding ring to interviews!</p>
<p>My heart goes out to the VT parents.</p>
<p>Woke this morning to an email from DS’s school telling parents about an armed robbery on campus - 2nd one in less than a month. He’s at a LAC in a “safe” city. DS on first floor of his dorm - window must be shut and locked at all times.
Then the VT tragedy.<br>
get scary</p>
<p>Hope everyone is safe…</p>
<p>On a lighter note</p>
<p>uuuuuggggg…mother in laws…</p>
<p>otoh</p>
<p>I have pretty much completed the Christmas gift list.
Have to do 2 gift cards for kiddo2 for things that need to be tried on/selected.
Otherwise–I am done purchasing for DH and kiddo1 and kiddo2…
and my parents and MiL(s) – DH has a mom and step mom…so I have 2 MILs</p>
<p>And the house got cleaned today–soooo happy to have the floors steam mopped…sure it will; all be redone again before the holiday yet if you had seen the layer of dust on everything and those floors–you’d understand why I am doing the happy dance. </p>
<p>Next up–wrapping. Have the paper and ribbons…
Lots on the to do list…Baking will get done with both kids in the kitchen…
Kiddo2 said that whatever I cook for Christmas Eve should be “easy” so I am not stressed out… Such a sweetie!</p>
<p>Having a good time in Florida. Had dinner with FLMM and her DH last night. It was lovely meeting them. </p>
<p>The really good news is that my friend who moved down here in Sept. daughter, who is a senior at boychild’s school, needs to be in Albany for a drs appt so can give boychild a ride home after semester is over and back to school in Jan. I’m so excited not to have to drive there and back in the dead of winter. :)</p>
<p>Thank goodness the VT situation seems to be over. It is a tragedy for the young officer. </p>
<p>Otoh, I am stressing about the lack of a second frig this season. The garage frig was very old & yucky so I had S throw it out last summer. The freezer didn’t work& I’m sure the rest was very energy innefficient.</p>
<p>We can’t fit much in our counter depth frig. I was thinking we’d be ok with the cold garage, but it hasn’t been cold enough to store food yet & I don’t want to poison the family, my cooking is bad enough. Cheapest little frig with some space is$400 from everywhere I checked. I guess I know what I’m getting for Christmas this year! That & H said he is getting me some new pots, since I have burned or worn out the 2-3 I use, exciting.
The tree has been sitting in a bucket since Sun. I was much more motivated last year, but we had just moved in & I wasn’t working so the house looked great. This year I am so happy to have a job & decorating stress!
I recommend temping as a way to ft employment, although I am still waiting & I’ve been at the Co for 4 months, but things are looking positive for 2012. I was a little discouraged about the big fee the agency from CA got when the co is 15 mins from my house, but I am contributing to the economy, so what are you going to do. They would have never hired me otherwise.</p>
<p>fogfog, is it illegal to ask what your husband would think about your travel schedule? I think there is a lot of implicit sexism in hiring/promoting, though I have found a few companies that do a terrific job promoting women – who tend to have really capable women execs. All of the admin types, including office manager, in my firm are female, though we did have a male exec assistant for a while (he was terrible). All of the full-time consultants are male, although we have a couple of contractors who are female and I’m talking with a woman now who could be very strong as a full-time hire. While neither of the contractors in question is that strong, one would likely be good enough to hire if she were interested, but she’s just had a kid and would unlikely not want the extensive travel a job at her level would require. Interestingly, the really strong candidate volunteered to me that she doesn’t have a family (might have a BF but she didn’t say) and has the time in her life for extensive travel.</p>
<p>Idinct: Sorry about your fridge woes! We had a similar situation last year when our upright freezer died just before the holidays. With no time to replace it, we were lucky that it was very cold outside and we were able to store things outside in our screened in porch during the holidays. I was a little paranoid about things staying frozen, but we were lucky that it worked fine. Have you considered looking in the local paper or on craigslist for a used fridge? Might not be the most energy efficient, but you can get a good deal that way.</p>
<p>Idinct and Ohiomom, was in Sam’s yesterday and they have upright freezers (several sizes from 150-250 dollars) Didn’t have the biggest size but the two they had were quite large. </p>
<p>In the house we just moved into there was a huge freezer left by the previous owners (they left a lot of crap but that is another story) anyway, it was gross so I defrosted it, cleaned it out, replugged it and headed out to the grocery store to shop for Thanksgiving and stocked up, got home only to discover that the engine had burnt out! Luckily I had my old fridge in the garage and managed to stuff all that frozen food into the two freezers I had (both side by sides which I hate). I now have to get rid of the dead freezer in the basement, how did you all get rid of yours? Right now the only way I can find is to pay someone to haul it away, any other ideas?</p>
<p>My holiday update, shopping not done, decorations not even started, baking um yeah getting to it. I did buy some wrapping paper yesterday while at Sam’s club (yeah me!). I need somebody to light a fire under me and get me motivated! I don’t like doing it alone. Kids are coming home Wednesday and Thursday, keep telling everyone I am waiting for them so they can help me!</p>
<p>Yeah for Friday, tired today our city had its annual “midnight Madness” shopping extravaganza where the local shops in our historic downtown open up till (you guessed it) midnight, there are bands and entertainment and cider etc. Lots of fun, they have one next Thursday night as well, place was packed! Great for Local businesses and parking is free if you can find it! </p>
<p>Have a wonderful day!</p>
<p>EAO: After our freezer died, I “inherited” a freezer from my parents. So now I had a great freezer, but also a dead freezer in the garage to get rid of. How did I get rid of the old freezer? I ended up paying the two guys who delivered my new dryer $20 each to take the old freezer with them. My husband told me it would never work, but he was wrong!</p>
<p>Morning all - I am almost done with gifts - just three gift cards to order! I will work on Christmas card mailing this weekend.<br>
On the job front, this job market does make it harder for everyone. I think there is definitely some ageism out there and also a lack of appreciation for the very valuable skills honed through significant volunteer work and “captaining the family, home, etc.” while out of the paid work force.
I consider myself very blessed to have had two flexible positions in my field over my parenting-intensive years. Hubby has the primary job with long hours and required travel, but my work, while not as exciting or financially rewarding as my previous Wall Street positions, is meaningful. I also get to maintain a professional certification that was a $&*#! to earn.<br>
Patting myself on the back as I tell you that dinner is in the crock pot! TGIF!</p>
<p>Been a while - real life intruded 
</p>
<p>Thanksgiving was wonderful - D was here, spent time with us for most of the four days and it was so back to “normal” again. She was very emotional though - while she loves school, she hated leaving all of us behind and heading back. Have to say it was wonderful to have her home, be able to go into her room and wake her up in the morning or just listen in on conversations between her and S, discussing high school options while baking. Warmed my heart…two weeks to go before she’s home again! She’s stressing out about finals right now - but I would be more worried if she didn’t stress out :)</p>
<p>Sent out a quick care package today - some cookies, a small xmas tree and some candy from a local store she loves. Hopefully, she’ll get it on Monday before the big finals begin!</p>
<p>Looks like I missed some interesting conversations. I’ve worked full time ever since D was born - and of late, it seems like I work more than full time! Also volunteer at a couple of different places - usually things that I can do at home - which keeps me busy.</p>
<p>Haven’t had to think about GF/BF sleepovers - can tell you that H would never have it 
He’d prefer that D never have a BF !! Was funny - D had some pics posted on fb for a dance she was in - while there, H stumbled upon some halloween pics that she had posted. In one of them, he thinks she’s holding hands with a boy - he wasn’t a happy camper Far be it for me to tell him they could be doing way more than just holding hands !! His little girl !</p>
<p>EAO</p>
<p>I know when my mom wanted to get rid of stuff…she’d leave it at the curb with six pack on top! The trash guys would take everything!
We did it once with a large item…dragged it to the curb, left a 6 pack on top…
GONE!</p>
<p>I do try to let is slip in interview conversation that I am an “empty nester”, I can travel anywhere/anytime & work late at a moments notice. Since they can already tell how old I am in person I need some kind of competitive advantage!</p>