ever just know

dunkman

I have just done 5 years with the government so I now get an extra 8 days leave this year! woo-haa!!

decides2dream

dunkman wrote:

I have just done 5 years with the government so I now get an extra 8 days leave this year! woo-haa!!

so what does this mean....you now will work about 72.3 days a year?
outside of educators, i know of no one who gets as much vacation time as you. amazing.

my husband works for the government, and he is at top salary/leave. he gets 5 weeks.
i get 4.5 and that never changes for anyone in my firm, not even partners. both are considered very generous packages. (plus add in holiday leave on top of that)

dunkman

decides2dream wrote:

dunkman wrote:

I have just done 5 years with the government so I now get an extra 8 days leave this year! woo-haa!!

so what does this mean....you now will work about 72.3 days a year?
outside of educators, i know of no one who gets as much vacation time as you. amazing.

my husband works for the government, and he is at top salary/leave. he gets 5 weeks.
i get 4.5 and that never changes for anyone in my firm, not even partners. both are considered very generous packages. (plus add in holiday leave on top of that)

i now get 32 days actual leave... with 7 stats and 4 'floaters' which can be taken at any time... as we don't get overtime we work Flexi-time which means i can 'bank up' a total of 7 hours per month which we can use as a flexi-day but only 1 per month.

so 43 days actual leave days... and if i can manage it I could have 12 flexi days off throughout the year...

when i see that typed out it is pretty awesome indeed... but i take solace in the fact that i work much harder than teachers and I also provide a more valuable service to the general populace.

Lauri

polaris_x wrote:

Lauri wrote:

It's not MY formula, I didn't want this to happen. I have bills. My student loans are like a second rent. Plus I had to go into this do-gooder field, and I took this job because I need a job, even though I could possibly make slightly more somewhere else, but I couldn't wait for that so...there you go.

try and make it your formula ... do you want it to go like this indefinitely?

no! absolutely not! the only thing I could do is get a new job, but I just got this one last year, and before that I only had my job for a year, so I need to show some kind of stability in my career (and job searching just means more stressful work and this one isn't bad except for the pay). And besides honestly, in my field I think I could make a little more, maybe $5,000-$10,000 more a year, but it still wouldn't be enough to cover my expenses. My last job just covered my expenses, but I hated it because it really wasn't what I want to do and I was working for the bad guys. Then I got laid off which I was actually happy about. I just found out last night that I think I actually could sell some photos to stock photo companies...I don't know I have to research that more and see if I can make a little extra cash doing that, because other than getting an entirely new career in like investment banking or something, I don't have many options. My savings are down to $800, my two low-limit credit cards are maxed out...fun is just not in my forecast, but it needs to be.

polaris_x

here's a plan:

1. find some smaller things you can do for yourself that would make you happy that won't cost you too much (maybe spend a day taking pictures).
2. fix your debt issue - debt will always be a ball and chain
3. prioritize your spending so that you can live within the means you are earning ... it's pretty clear you need to find some savings on your expenses somewhere
4. diversifying your revenue stream is a great idea (i get paid from doing multiple things) - the variety helps keep you interested
5. plan on doing something larger for yourself say 6 months from now so when the days are real shite - you have something to look forward to ...

if all else fails - find a sugar daddy ...

decides2dream

dunkman wrote:

decides2dream wrote:

dunkman wrote:

I have just done 5 years with the government so I now get an extra 8 days leave this year! woo-haa!!

so what does this mean....you now will work about 72.3 days a year?
outside of educators, i know of no one who gets as much vacation time as you. amazing.

my husband works for the government, and he is at top salary/leave. he gets 5 weeks.
i get 4.5 and that never changes for anyone in my firm, not even partners. both are considered very generous packages. (plus add in holiday leave on top of that)

i now get 32 days actual leave... with 7 stats and 4 'floaters' which can be taken at any time... as we don't get overtime we work Flexi-time which means i can 'bank up' a total of 7 hours per month which we can use as a flexi-day but only 1 per month.

so 43 days actual leave days... and if i can manage it I could have 12 flexi days off throughout the year...

when i see that typed out it is pretty awesome indeed... but i take solace in the fact that i work much harder than teachers and I also provide a more valuable service to the general populace.

hahahahahaa...well alrighty then.
as long as you are protecting the universe, guess you deserve it.


i feel quite fortunate. i received 10 holidays and 3 weeks from the get-go, and after 2 years went up to 10 holidays + 22 vacation days. also, our firm is quite generous. last year, got the whole week off between christmas and new years as a "gift"...year before they threw in an extra day for independence day weekend, etc. so even tho it's no where near the amount of time i got off while teaching, i really like that i can take say a week in september off, or october...not dictated by a school schedule. it was impossible for mr. dream and i to coordinate our time off, so until i lieft teaching, we had little vacation time together. so i am actually happier with my current schedule. now....2 teaches as a couple THAT is ideal. however, i already fell in love with mr. dream, so eh well....maybe in a next life.


and, basically what you're saying is you could possibly have, up to 55 paid days off? is that including holidays, or do you get that in addition to? no wonder yer so damn feckin' happy.....:D haha. good for you!


late edit - 7 hours a month = 1 workday? so you don't even work an 8 hour day? sheesh. :P

norm

well my next vacation is here



so, yeah, i'm sooo ready for a vacation!!

decides2dream

norm wrote:

well my next vacation is here



so, yeah, i'm sooo ready for a vacation!!

BEST vacation you can take!
:thumbup:

chadwick

everyone needs "me" time. rather it's an hour or less everyday or longer. i firmly believe in taking time for myself. i do this constantly and it does upset some people. oh well and to bad. i do it for my own mental health and clarity. if my friends want to be around a decent person then by god leave me be for awhile. i require time to myself. you could say i take mini vacations daily.

Lauri

polaris_x wrote:

here's a plan:

1. find some smaller things you can do for yourself that would make you happy that won't cost you too much (maybe spend a day taking pictures).
2. fix your debt issue - debt will always be a ball and chain
3. prioritize your spending so that you can live within the means you are earning ... it's pretty clear you need to find some savings on your expenses somewhere
4. diversifying your revenue stream is a great idea (i get paid from doing multiple things) - the variety helps keep you interested
5. plan on doing something larger for yourself say 6 months from now so when the days are real shite - you have something to look forward to ...

if all else fails - find a sugar daddy ...

ok well honesty, you don't really know my financial situation, so a lot of the inherent assumptions here are pretty off. It's pretty easy to say "fix your debt problem." Don't you think I would if I could? besides the credit cards are a drop in the bucket compared to my student loans, which unless I suddenly win the lottery, will not be paid off until I'm 60. Also you don't know what my expenses are...I kind of take offense that someone would assume that I live an extravagant lifestyle without knowing me. Almost all of my expenses are my student loan payments and there's nothing I can do about that.

Yeah I am trying to come up with a plan for a day off though. I need to really plan in advance and make sure I don't feel as though I wasted it. I'm probably gonna wait for some nicer weather...so you know still just trying to plug along. Planning something for myself for 6 months sounds great, but I can't, I have 2 weddings right around that time, so that's what I'm saving and planning for. But I'm not looking forward to either of the destinations, as much as I'm trying to convince myself that I have to make them fun because they're my "vacation." To me a real "vacation" is something one chooses for themselves to spend their money on because they know they'll enjoy it, and any time there's an obligation involved in a trip it's not very "vacationy." I thought the last wedding I went to was going to be a vacation, because I was excited about the location. And while it was really good to see my friends, I only had about 1 day and a lot of traveling.

polaris_x

Lauri wrote:

ok well honesty, you don't really know my financial situation, so a lot of the inherent assumptions here are pretty off. It's pretty easy to say "fix your debt problem." Don't you think I would if I could? besides the credit cards are a drop in the bucket compared to my student loans, which unless I suddenly win the lottery, will not be paid off until I'm 60. Also you don't know what my expenses are...I kind of take offense that someone would assume that I live an extravagant lifestyle without knowing me. Almost all of my expenses are my student loan payments and there's nothing I can do about that.

Yeah I am trying to come up with a plan for a day off though. I need to really plan in advance and make sure I don't feel as though I wasted it. I'm probably gonna wait for some nicer weather...so you know still just trying to plug along. Planning something for myself for 6 months sounds great, but I can't, I have 2 weddings right around that time, so that's what I'm saving and planning for. But I'm not looking forward to either of the destinations, as much as I'm trying to convince myself that I have to make them fun because they're my "vacation." To me a real "vacation" is something one chooses for themselves to spend their money on because they know they'll enjoy it, and any time there's an obligation involved in a trip it's not very "vacationy." I thought the last wedding I went to was going to be a vacation, because I was excited about the location. And while it was really good to see my friends, I only had about 1 day and a lot of traveling.

sorry but i make no assumptions ... if you read what i wrote - the advice holds true regardless of your actual situation ... you yourself said you need to tackle that debt ... i didn't say you weren't trying nor that you were living an extravagant lifestyle ...

polaris_x

norm wrote:

well my next vacation is here



so, yeah, i'm sooo ready for a vacation!!

woohooo ... we're doing the same vacation!

chiquimonkey

norm wrote:

well my next vacation is here



so, yeah, i'm sooo ready for a vacation!!

niiiiiice! i took that one in 08, was SO good! enjoy

even carving time out on the weekend for things you love is important for your well being. that doens't require any extra money or time off of work, you already have it off!

norm

chiquimonkey wrote:

norm wrote:

well my next vacation is here



so, yeah, i'm sooo ready for a vacation!!

niiiiiice! i took that one in 08, was SO good! enjoy

even carving time out on the weekend for things you love is important for your well being. that doens't require any extra money or time off of work, you already have it off!

yep! even if only for a few hours, just unplug from reality and do something that refreshes your mind...a walk, luch with friends, movie or my personal favorite...nothing!

chiquimonkey

norm wrote:

yep! even if only for a few hours, just unplug from reality and do something that refreshes your mind...a walk, luch with friends, movie or my personal favorite...nothing!

HUGE fan of nothing here *thumbs up* heehee

even with all of life's hardships, one has to have a good state of mind to get thru and appreciate the hell out of every moment. as the wise sage neil finn once said, 'love this life, don't wait till the next one comes'

norm

chiquimonkey wrote:

as the wise sage neil finn once said, 'love this life, don't wait till the next one comes'

that kiwi knows his shit! :thumbup:

chiquimonkey

norm wrote:

chiquimonkey wrote:

as the wise sage neil finn once said, 'love this life, don't wait till the next one comes'

that kiwi knows his shit! :thumbup:

WORD!

decides2dream

norm wrote:

chiquimonkey wrote:

even carving time out on the weekend for things you love is important for your well being. that doens't require any extra money or time off of work, you already have it off!

yep! even if only for a few hours, just unplug from reality and do something that refreshes your mind...a walk, luch with friends, movie or my personal favorite...nothing!

it is an art to do *nothing* well....and well, i am an artist.
i can happily sit out in my garden ALL day, glass of wine in hand...magazine in lap. hell, the magazine isn't even necessary. nor the wine - tho it does make it so much better. just *being*....listening to nature, to the fountain gurgle, the dogs play, bliss! can do the same at a park, almost anywhere....and oftentimes, so much more restorative than going away, traveling - tho i LOVE that! - and besides...infinitely less expensive. plus, you don't have to pack.

chiquimonkey

decides2dream wrote:

norm wrote:

chiquimonkey wrote:

even carving time out on the weekend for things you love is important for your well being. that doens't require any extra money or time off of work, you already have it off!

yep! even if only for a few hours, just unplug from reality and do something that refreshes your mind...a walk, luch with friends, movie or my personal favorite...nothing!

it is an art to do *nothing* well....and well, i am an artist.
i can happily sit out in my garden ALL day, glass of wine in hand...magazine in lap. hell, the magazine isn't even necessary. nor the wine - tho it does make it so much better. just *being*....listening to nature, to the fountain gurgle, the dogs play, bliss! can do the same at a park, almost anywhere....and oftentimes, so much more restorative than going away, traveling - tho i LOVE that! - and besides...infinitely less expensive. plus, you don't have to pack.

restorative is the key word for sure! and i agree with all that, especially it being good not having to pack

Lauri

decides2dream wrote:

it is an art to do *nothing* well....and well, i am an artist.
i can happily sit out in my garden ALL day, glass of wine in hand...magazine in lap. hell, the magazine isn't even necessary. nor the wine - tho it does make it so much better. just *being*....listening to nature, to the fountain gurgle, the dogs play, bliss! can do the same at a park, almost anywhere....and oftentimes, so much more restorative than going away, traveling - tho i LOVE that! - and besides...infinitely less expensive. plus, you don't have to pack.

I do nothing all the time, but I'm pretty bad at it. Usually when I'm doing nothing it's because I have so many things I should or could be doing that I can't organize/decide which one to do so I just check out. I do nothing at least 3 week nights a week, and then usually most of the weekend. And then it always happens that suddenly it's friday night and I haven't made any weekend plans yet, so when I wake up on saturday, the only thing I can think of to do is work out or clean, and I'll often procrastinate on those and not even get them done. Like tomorrow, it's supposed to be sunny (though a little cold) and I would like to go for a bike ride. But because I haven't organized with anyone or planned anything, I might not even get to do that (I don't have a route mapped, I'm not prepared to go too-too far into the suburbs alone, etc). My only option then is to go on the really crowded bike path (death trap) which is only a 20-mile ride, and I'll probably just think "why bother?" Haha weekends actually really stress me out!

I do enjoy sitting on my porch and stuff, but being ADHD things like this can be problematic for me.

True, packing, flying, etc are stressful! I wonder though if I would find them as stressful if I were going to do something fun and didn't need to worry about anyone else, wasn't cramming too much into a tiny period, etc. You know, an actual "vacation."