Month: October 2023

back to the office sort of

Posted on by Life is Surreal in musings

(photo: Volodymyr Proskurovskyi, Unsplash)

after almost four years of working from home, i worked in an office today. it’s a coworking place right downtown new haven and i’ll go one to two days a week. it was a weird feeling like being at a new job but without the anxiety of starting a new job. the best part is that i have no schedule there and can go and/or leave whenever i want. that said, i’m thankful for my set required working hours because when i freelanced and didn’t have that structure, i was way too distracted. in fact, i really sucked at it.

i think this is a great investment for my mental health and overall wellbeing. let’s take a look at the cons and pros. cons first because, well you know.

CONS

there are people

i probably can’t wear my pj bottoms and sweats

there are endless food choices in walking distance

i may drink entirely too much iced coffee (but really, is that even a thing?)

it’s hard for me to work without my 2nd screen

there are no cats

parking costs money and i had one hell of a learning curve today trying to exit the garage

after work i have to drive home before flopping on the couch

i have to get up even earlier to get to the gym and shower before work (which doesn’t always happen in that order when i work from home)

PROS

there are people

these people are incredibly ambitious and creative

i can wear all those clothes (and shoes!) i bought before covid

there are endless food choices in walking distance

they sell little portable laptop monitors

there are no cats, specifically orange ones, who headbutt my hand and mouse constantly and also try to sit on the laptop

the office has a ton of natural light

it’s in a great part of new haven

it is right next to a good coffee shop and around the corner from elm street market (which is also the door to the parking garage)

on the days i’m there i may actually stop working at the end of work day rather than loosing track of time and the it’s 6pm

if i can’t live in the middle if a city, at least i can work there

oops! i did it again . . . my life as an orthopedic mess

Posted on by Life is Surreal in ridiculousness

back from my follow up. i have a clean break at the base of my pinky toe and it is not really displaced. no restrictions and i should wear the boot to keep my toes in place. which is fine because i feel much more secure right now in the boot. if i hurt a lot, i know i will have overdone it. the doc said that there is nothing they can do, but they also can’t speed up the healing and it takes some time. oh, doctor, my friend, i am well aware of the drill. i go back in a month just to make sure everything is okay, which it should be. there will be a blog in the future recounting this very ridiculous and likely expensive accident. takeaways:

  1. take everything pa’s say with a grain of salt. they mean well, but are not that experienced, can’t tell you anything anyway because of ethics, and just generally want to make sure you are prepared for the worst and that they are covered if worst case scenario does happen, which includes surgery and amputation (the latter was all me, not them).
  2. pay attention when loading up the leg press with 45lb plates, or really any plates.
  3. continue to carry crutches in the car. see how prepared i was there? you’all laughed at me.
  4. they make tiny little baby boots for small kids who have broken their foot. they are adorable and have cartoons on them. they should also make those for adults.
  5. that said, my foot is so swollen it looks like a like a big balloony baby foot.
  6. after running a focus group about griffin hospital years ago and hearing that one man’s friend would rather die on the sidewalk than go inside, and others saying that hospital is where you go to die, i am quite pleased with my care and the friendliness of staff. that said, if anything serious happens to me, take me elsewhere.