It was my morning to sleep in today, a strike of luck because Owlie woke up early with a massive dump and it wasn't my problem Anyway at 8:04 I get a text from my supervisor that wakes me up and she's having a bit of a go at me because apparently I didn't check my roster and should have started work at 8am, and can I still come in? And that pissed me right off because we're supposed to get our timetable two weeks in advance. That is, we should have a roster for this week, and by mid week have one for next week and the week after. This never happens. Not since this supervisor replaced the one that came before, about a year and a quarter ago now. And because I had in fact checked my roster.

I'd only been given two short shifts a week apart. Last Friday and next Friday. So I said as much. I followed that up with "If you change my roster after you have posted the original one you need to actually tell me about it" like fuck, if I'm working once a week, don't expect me to check every day. So I went in at 9am. I could have made if for 8:15, but screw that.

The joy of this is: I showed up and she's nice as freshly-baked blueberry pie. She then has to actually apologize not only for changing my roster at last minute and not letting me know but also for trying to pass it off as my mistake. And I was like DAMN RIGHT! Hahaha. No seriously, I was like "That's fine, thanks for the work, yes I can stay back an extra hour" I might be a bit of a suck, but I need this job. Plus it must have irked her to have to admit to her dickishness.
To add to the dickishness, she's taken to giving me 3hr 45min shifts. If I work 4 hours legally they have to give me a paid 15 minute break. Like, really? C'mon this company has the money to let this fat bitch sit down for a cup of tea! What is this shit?

Thinking of work, now I'm wondering what to do about this cruise. We're spending nine nights in the south pacific islands at the end of Feb and I'm so freaking excited now that it's soon!! ahem, sorry for that outburst, but I'm not sure what I should be doing about work. See, if Obi was/is working, then technically there's only one day of work I wont be able to make and I can just say "I'm unavailable this one day" and be done with it. But if he doesn't yet have a job at that point and I'm working all week, I have to take my annual leave instead. Which I'm not sure I've even earned yet, but as they don't pay leave for casuals, I don't expect a refusal. The lame part of that would be, if I can save those two weeks of leave, I can take them directly before my maternity leave starts, thus lessening the gap between when Simmy is born and when I can stop working, so I don't want to have to take them if I can avoid it. But at this point, if Obi does get a job before Feb what the hell kind of chance is he going to have of being allowed to go on a cruise? So I don't know what's best for us. Not that it matters, in the end we'll do what has to be done

Can't bloody wait to get on that ship though! And can't wait for the new year. Seriously.

Thinking of that, I'm actually going to a party this year! For the first time in, er... ok, ever. We did have one, sort-of, at the end of 2010 but it was full of lameness. We played cards. It wasn't my idea of awesome. This year we're camping out on my friend's block. Of course I agreed to this plan way before googling where she actually lives now - which is out west in the high fiddle-dee-dee. It's going to take me five hours to drive there. Probably more because in Oz Learner drivers can go a maximum of 80 clicks, even on the freeway (no, that's not miles my friends). But it'll be fun. And even if it isn't at least we're doing something, because what else would we do? Drag Isis to see the fireworks on the bridge at midnight? I think not.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous though because 1) I don't do parties and 2) this is that mate who lost her baby and now is struggling to fall pregnant again. Most of her mates she's met through her support group also have lost babies and many struggle to be around pregnant women and other people's babies. Two boxes that I tick I don't like upsetting people just by breathing but at this point I'm too fat to hide what's going on. I don't want to cause people pain, but I know I do. Case in point: For Christmas this mate made a very public display of not being on facey because she couldn't handle all the happy baby and family photos. (Which I totally understand and respect - but don't make a post about it and make the rest of us feel bad for being happy, you know?) So yes, awkward. On the flip side, I also get to catch up with another mate from high school too, it's been nearly a year since I saw both of them.

Babies! My thoughts are all linking together tonight you notice? So like, what's with baby name lists? I know I made a list and I made Obi make one too. But it was like 8 names each, and half of those were prospective middles only. I don't get how people have name lists 20 or 30 or even more long. Maybe I'm just fussy because I don't like that many names enough to use them on a kid? But then from these mega lists parents get short lists (which appears to be what I started with) and from there they make combo lists (first and middle) from which they eventually pick a name. For Isis we never had a list at all, we had a conversation. Then an argument about how he needed to contribute to a middle. And he looked at a name website one night, decided he hated everything and asked me again what one of my previous suggestions had been - and said "Ok let's go with that". The end.
This time, I wrote a list, he wrote a list and we prayed there'd be one name we both didn't hate. (I really wanted him to have more say this time!). There's no back up name. We're only naming one kid, after all.

I'm not judging, btw, I'm just genuinely interested in how people roll, and kind of wondering if I'm doing it wrong. This one chick I know makes a list of more than 50 names (I think it was 70, but know it was less than 100) and has her partner do the same. Any name that makes it to both their lists goes on their joint list. After that they both give each name a score. (say there's 20 names, they number them 1-20 in order they like most) then the scores are added and the name with the highest number becomes their next kid. How organized is that?! I don't know if I'm in awe or just a little scared.
Sadly I think if Obi and I made 70 name lists we still wouldn't get one in common, so it's lucky we're open minded.

We still don't have a middle, but I'm not particularly worried as yet, I've got months to bake this thing. I'm mourning the loss of the name Ivy though. I love this name, but forgot I loved it and it didn't make my list. Not that I'd have it for a first anyway because it's in the top 30 names over here. More common in households than vegimite. And I think it's only fair that Simmy gets a family middle, because Isis and her future brother will. There's no Ivy's in either family tree to the best of my research. But I still love it. I'd totally push for two middles just to use it. or a hyphenated middle. Hah!

Oh well, I can use it in a book at some point right? Like other names I love that Obi hates or won't work in the real world. Like Farrah.

Book book book! I've had another burst of writing and am feeling fantastic. I remember why I love what I do.
Anyway this post is turning into a novel so I'll shut up. Have a good evening everyone, and a great new year's too. And blog. You people need to post more blogs!