WOO!
I just got an email from BofA. My reimbursement of my travel expenses from my conference trip at the end of March has posted! That is $875.79!! Excellent. Of course, I have to remember that this is not extra money; it needs to go to pay the credit cards that financed the conference trip. Well, the rental car ($250) was on my debit card, so I can hang on to that. ;)
My plan right now is to transfer the part that I want to use to pay the credit card into my savings account, so I can get some interest on it. And then just pay my balance off on Bill Day.
So, yeah. It is being a good day.
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
This is not a catch or creative title.
Yes, before you say anything... I realize that I have fallen off the face of the earth for a few months. It happens. Im sorry. Moving on.
I had hoped to get motivated enough to do my taxes this weekend, but alas, Ally McBeal DVDs and my couch won out over the 1040.
Anyway, I have mentioned before that one of my good friends at work was fired last fall. Well, recently he found a new job. Unfortunately (for me, fortunately for him), his new job is in another state. Inspired by my moving road trip with SS4BC, he asked me to help him move, which will entail driving down with him and his wife and then flying back home on my own. His new job is giving him $2500 for moving expenses, which is awesome! I talked with him today about being concerned about expenses on the road trip, and he said that the new job would reimburse him for stuff up to the $2500. And until that second, I had not thought that was how that would work. In my mind, they gave him $2500. Hmm.
Of course, being as self-centered as I am, I turned this inward and became worried that when I find a job, I am not going to have the money to pay for the move up front. UGH. Seriously, right now, my big financial concern is scraping together enough cash for a plane ticket and rental car for getting to a conference in March for work. I will get reimbursed for the travel, but I have to pay for it all up front.
Basically, I need to be saving a lot more than I am now. Sadly, I have not put money into my savings account in months. Winter is expensive in New England. My utility bills were about double (maybe triple, but I dont know the numbers off the top of my head right now) what they are in the summer, because of the damn heat.
Anyway, my savings amounts to a measly $300ish right now. Really not enough for any type of emergency, except for an emergency trip to the grocery store. It makes me mad that, once again, I have fallen out of habit with one of my projects (here being this blog and diligently managing my money). The irony is not lost on me that when I stopped regularly writing in the blog is when I stopped paying attention to my money and really have no extra anywhere.
Really, my fear now is that I am going to find the perfect awesome position somewhere next year and not be able to afford to move to the new job. How stupid is that? Anyway, this has lit a mild fire under my lazy ass to get back into financial shape. And get myself to where I am not scared of my account balances.
The upshot of this spring is that with any luck I wont owe any taxes for 2009, and there may even be a small refund (which will go directly to my outstanding 2008 tax balance). The 2008 taxes will get paid off by this summer, or I will have to kill myself. And once that is done, the $250-400/month that I was paying the IRS can go into savings, and I may be able to breathe again. I have yet to actually sit down and figure out if that is actually numerically possible. But I hope to get to my taxes this week, and I will write a post all about that. And hopefully, I will have some updated goals for 2010 and perhaps some updated status bars.
**sigh**
I must be more proactive and less reactive. But really, I want to be less terrified about the future, so that I can actually start looking for a job and get out of this hell hole.
I had hoped to get motivated enough to do my taxes this weekend, but alas, Ally McBeal DVDs and my couch won out over the 1040.
Sidenote: WOW. Finding that link made me very glad that I bought this DVD set when I did. At $129, it came in under my Three Cents per Minute Rule. Now, it is listed on Amazon for $182.49! Good job, Okturn!
Anyway, I have mentioned before that one of my good friends at work was fired last fall. Well, recently he found a new job. Unfortunately (for me, fortunately for him), his new job is in another state. Inspired by my moving road trip with SS4BC, he asked me to help him move, which will entail driving down with him and his wife and then flying back home on my own. His new job is giving him $2500 for moving expenses, which is awesome! I talked with him today about being concerned about expenses on the road trip, and he said that the new job would reimburse him for stuff up to the $2500. And until that second, I had not thought that was how that would work. In my mind, they gave him $2500. Hmm.
Of course, being as self-centered as I am, I turned this inward and became worried that when I find a job, I am not going to have the money to pay for the move up front. UGH. Seriously, right now, my big financial concern is scraping together enough cash for a plane ticket and rental car for getting to a conference in March for work. I will get reimbursed for the travel, but I have to pay for it all up front.
Basically, I need to be saving a lot more than I am now. Sadly, I have not put money into my savings account in months. Winter is expensive in New England. My utility bills were about double (maybe triple, but I dont know the numbers off the top of my head right now) what they are in the summer, because of the damn heat.
Anyway, my savings amounts to a measly $300ish right now. Really not enough for any type of emergency, except for an emergency trip to the grocery store. It makes me mad that, once again, I have fallen out of habit with one of my projects (here being this blog and diligently managing my money). The irony is not lost on me that when I stopped regularly writing in the blog is when I stopped paying attention to my money and really have no extra anywhere.
Really, my fear now is that I am going to find the perfect awesome position somewhere next year and not be able to afford to move to the new job. How stupid is that? Anyway, this has lit a mild fire under my lazy ass to get back into financial shape. And get myself to where I am not scared of my account balances.
The upshot of this spring is that with any luck I wont owe any taxes for 2009, and there may even be a small refund (which will go directly to my outstanding 2008 tax balance). The 2008 taxes will get paid off by this summer, or I will have to kill myself. And once that is done, the $250-400/month that I was paying the IRS can go into savings, and I may be able to breathe again. I have yet to actually sit down and figure out if that is actually numerically possible. But I hope to get to my taxes this week, and I will write a post all about that. And hopefully, I will have some updated goals for 2010 and perhaps some updated status bars.
**sigh**
I must be more proactive and less reactive. But really, I want to be less terrified about the future, so that I can actually start looking for a job and get out of this hell hole.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Great Financial Decisions in DelMoniq History #2 - Moving to a Safer Neighborhood
This minorly ties in with Decision #1, but not obviously and not directly.
Picture it... crappy neighborhood Fall 2008. (Gold Girls reference, sorry, my gay is showing)....
Anyway, when I moved cross-country in 2005, I knew that I wasnt moving into the greatest of cities or the greatest of neighborhoods in said city. But it was good enough, the place was nice and affordable, and I could take public trans (or walk) to work.
Over my first three years here, I saw the neighborhood slowly decline. The people on my street (more importantly my building and neighbors owned by the same people) were moving away, and apartments were vacant for a long time. The people moving in were not of the same caliber as before. People around my age and situation (grad/med school types) were moving out and poorer families with many children were moving in.
Graffiti appeared on the back of our house. Cars in the back lot were broken into. The landlords put up a fence (it helped some, but was kinda retarded as it didnt actually enclose anything). A car was parked across the street for over a week with no one attending it, and eventually, all the windows were busted out of it. Turns out the car was stolen and abandoned on our street.
One night last October, I was playing video games and chilling out at home, and I heard shouting outside. I looked out the window, and saw a car parked in the middle of the street and two guys shouting at each other. I sat back down and played more games. And then, I heard it. Five or six very loud gunshots right outside my house. I looked out the window and saw one of the guys running off down the street.
I grabbed my phone and called 911. Moments later, police and fire trucks were there. I never really learned what happened that night. No one was killed on my street. But the seed had been placed... it was time to move. The police action took hours. People were yelling, police investigated. I heard one woman shout: Oh my god! Thats my sisters car! What the fuck? What happened?.
The next morning, I told my carpool what happened, and one of my friends responded, with oh just last week so and so told me that someone was shot and killed outside her house. That was a block away at the other end of my street!
That morning, I was on the phone with my landlord trying to get out of my lease. They understood. I had just signed a new lease two weeks earlier, so they were sad, but they did let me out of the lease. I promised to be out by December 1.
What followed was a month of hunting for apartments. That was so NOT easy. Maybe my standards are too high? Maybe this city is not that good in general? Eventually, I found a place that I liked; however, I (again) missed warning signs.
I was so focus on getting out of the ghetto and into a decent place, that I missed a few things. Anyway, I did see the apartment, but it was after dark and most of the lights in the place were burned out. As devils advocate, there are no ceiling lights in most of the apartment. But still, I should have insisted on revisiting in the daytime. But I liked the location and the layout, and they would take my cats. So I said I would apply. The rent was a bit more than I wanted to pay, and I did try to get him to come down on the deposit. But he said he wouldnt if I had the cats. UGH.
Anyway, what followed was a month of drama. Where I had rented apartments before (in a different state), there are very strict laws in place that landlords and tenants MUST follow. And everything is very well standardized and thought out. NOT HERE. First off, what I didnt realize at the time, was that I was dealing with a rental company and NOT the landlord. Their only goal is to rent the property for the landlord, collect their commission, and wash their hands of the whole thing. So, when I saw the apartment, I said it was dirty and needed to be cleaned. The rental agent told me that the landlord would have the place cleaned and painted in time for move in. And I agreed.
I had a meeting to sign the lease, but they didnt have the keys. So, I paid money and had NOTHING to show for it. The next day, I got the keys. But it was not ALL of the keys. I was missing a mailbox key and the key to balcony door (which is double keyed, so until I had a key it could not be LOCKED). After several run arounds with the rental people, I finally go in touch with the landlord. And he insisted that the rental people had all the keys. After assuring him that they did not have all the keys, I had to meet with him at his office (an OB/GYN office, very uncomfortable) during the work day to compare my keys with his keys. Turns out he had some keys that he didnt know what they were, and they were my missing keys.
Anyway, I drive up to check on the place during the day (weeks after I was told the place would be cleaned), and it wasnt. Nothing had been done. I talked with the landlord, and he said If I knew it had to be cleaned, I would have charged more for the deposit. What the fuck!?! That charge should have been made against the pigs that moved out of here.
Anyway, I told him that it didnt matter, because I had already rented a truck to move the next day. So on moving day, I rented a carpet shampooer and my friend (the compulsive cleaner) shampooed and vacuumed and scrubbed while us boys moved boxes from the truck.
So, the financial part come in here. At the same time that Im looking for a new place to live, I get my October 2008 paycheck, and I find that it is $1000 LESS than it had been before. Turns out, on my 3rd anniversary, I got reclassified in the system and now taxes are being deducted when they were not before. Well, shit. I needed that money to move! So, I had to beg money from the parents (I hate doing that), and I was able to refinance the CitiLoan and get an additional $900.
So, to recap. Moving is hard enough as it is without the landlord/rental agent being assholes. Moving is expensive enough even when your job doesnt suddenly stop 1/3 of your pay. And now, all the progress of paying $200+/month to the loan from the therapy has been washed away and theres even more debt. And I had to get money from the parents, which I had not needed to do in years.
The upside, no one is getting shot on my street, and I dont feel unsafe walking to my car after dark at home. And there is a washer and dryer in my apartment. The downside, I now have still more debt and more guilt than before. My rent is $175/month more than before and I make $1000 less/month. Plus, utilities here are more expensive, and now I have to drive to work.
I guess, in the long run, for my piece of mind the safety is most important. But I now have ZERO extra money ever. I am back to where I was financially in 2004, which was pretty shitty. I dont have mountains of credit card debt, but there is that damn CitiLoan still out there. And I have no real money in my savings accounts. I had been hoping that by 2010 things would be less bleak, but it does not appear to be turning out that way.
I am kinda very annoyed with my apartment. All the little things are now glaring blemishes. I hate my downstairs neighbors. I dont like the driving to work. And now I am 100% stuck. There is no way to get more money from the parents (especially after they helped with the vet costs in June). And I doubt that I would be able to get more money out of the CitiLoan. So, I just need to tough it out here until I get my real job in the mythological future.
And there is the added horribleness of having my friends not completely understand the situation. I used to travel 3 or 4 times each year to visit friends or family. Now, I absolutely can not do that. There is no money. I havent been on a trip for almost a year. And there are things that I would love to do. But I am living in a situation of my own creating, and I need to deal with that.
It just sucks you know. On paper, moving was a BAD decision, but is the safety issue and piece of mind (however how small) worth the added financial stress? I dont know. Probably. I really dont think that I could handle that neighborhood now. But it just sucks that I had to ruin my finances to get out of there and that I am not 100% satisfied with my apartment.
Overall, I declare this situation NEUTRAL.
Picture it... crappy neighborhood Fall 2008. (Gold Girls reference, sorry, my gay is showing)....
Anyway, when I moved cross-country in 2005, I knew that I wasnt moving into the greatest of cities or the greatest of neighborhoods in said city. But it was good enough, the place was nice and affordable, and I could take public trans (or walk) to work.
Over my first three years here, I saw the neighborhood slowly decline. The people on my street (more importantly my building and neighbors owned by the same people) were moving away, and apartments were vacant for a long time. The people moving in were not of the same caliber as before. People around my age and situation (grad/med school types) were moving out and poorer families with many children were moving in.
Graffiti appeared on the back of our house. Cars in the back lot were broken into. The landlords put up a fence (it helped some, but was kinda retarded as it didnt actually enclose anything). A car was parked across the street for over a week with no one attending it, and eventually, all the windows were busted out of it. Turns out the car was stolen and abandoned on our street.
One night last October, I was playing video games and chilling out at home, and I heard shouting outside. I looked out the window, and saw a car parked in the middle of the street and two guys shouting at each other. I sat back down and played more games. And then, I heard it. Five or six very loud gunshots right outside my house. I looked out the window and saw one of the guys running off down the street.
I grabbed my phone and called 911. Moments later, police and fire trucks were there. I never really learned what happened that night. No one was killed on my street. But the seed had been placed... it was time to move. The police action took hours. People were yelling, police investigated. I heard one woman shout: Oh my god! Thats my sisters car! What the fuck? What happened?.
The next morning, I told my carpool what happened, and one of my friends responded, with oh just last week so and so told me that someone was shot and killed outside her house. That was a block away at the other end of my street!
That morning, I was on the phone with my landlord trying to get out of my lease. They understood. I had just signed a new lease two weeks earlier, so they were sad, but they did let me out of the lease. I promised to be out by December 1.
What followed was a month of hunting for apartments. That was so NOT easy. Maybe my standards are too high? Maybe this city is not that good in general? Eventually, I found a place that I liked; however, I (again) missed warning signs.
I was so focus on getting out of the ghetto and into a decent place, that I missed a few things. Anyway, I did see the apartment, but it was after dark and most of the lights in the place were burned out. As devils advocate, there are no ceiling lights in most of the apartment. But still, I should have insisted on revisiting in the daytime. But I liked the location and the layout, and they would take my cats. So I said I would apply. The rent was a bit more than I wanted to pay, and I did try to get him to come down on the deposit. But he said he wouldnt if I had the cats. UGH.
Anyway, what followed was a month of drama. Where I had rented apartments before (in a different state), there are very strict laws in place that landlords and tenants MUST follow. And everything is very well standardized and thought out. NOT HERE. First off, what I didnt realize at the time, was that I was dealing with a rental company and NOT the landlord. Their only goal is to rent the property for the landlord, collect their commission, and wash their hands of the whole thing. So, when I saw the apartment, I said it was dirty and needed to be cleaned. The rental agent told me that the landlord would have the place cleaned and painted in time for move in. And I agreed.
I had a meeting to sign the lease, but they didnt have the keys. So, I paid money and had NOTHING to show for it. The next day, I got the keys. But it was not ALL of the keys. I was missing a mailbox key and the key to balcony door (which is double keyed, so until I had a key it could not be LOCKED). After several run arounds with the rental people, I finally go in touch with the landlord. And he insisted that the rental people had all the keys. After assuring him that they did not have all the keys, I had to meet with him at his office (an OB/GYN office, very uncomfortable) during the work day to compare my keys with his keys. Turns out he had some keys that he didnt know what they were, and they were my missing keys.
Anyway, I drive up to check on the place during the day (weeks after I was told the place would be cleaned), and it wasnt. Nothing had been done. I talked with the landlord, and he said If I knew it had to be cleaned, I would have charged more for the deposit. What the fuck!?! That charge should have been made against the pigs that moved out of here.
Anyway, I told him that it didnt matter, because I had already rented a truck to move the next day. So on moving day, I rented a carpet shampooer and my friend (the compulsive cleaner) shampooed and vacuumed and scrubbed while us boys moved boxes from the truck.
So, the financial part come in here. At the same time that Im looking for a new place to live, I get my October 2008 paycheck, and I find that it is $1000 LESS than it had been before. Turns out, on my 3rd anniversary, I got reclassified in the system and now taxes are being deducted when they were not before. Well, shit. I needed that money to move! So, I had to beg money from the parents (I hate doing that), and I was able to refinance the CitiLoan and get an additional $900.
So, to recap. Moving is hard enough as it is without the landlord/rental agent being assholes. Moving is expensive enough even when your job doesnt suddenly stop 1/3 of your pay. And now, all the progress of paying $200+/month to the loan from the therapy has been washed away and theres even more debt. And I had to get money from the parents, which I had not needed to do in years.
The upside, no one is getting shot on my street, and I dont feel unsafe walking to my car after dark at home. And there is a washer and dryer in my apartment. The downside, I now have still more debt and more guilt than before. My rent is $175/month more than before and I make $1000 less/month. Plus, utilities here are more expensive, and now I have to drive to work.
I guess, in the long run, for my piece of mind the safety is most important. But I now have ZERO extra money ever. I am back to where I was financially in 2004, which was pretty shitty. I dont have mountains of credit card debt, but there is that damn CitiLoan still out there. And I have no real money in my savings accounts. I had been hoping that by 2010 things would be less bleak, but it does not appear to be turning out that way.
I am kinda very annoyed with my apartment. All the little things are now glaring blemishes. I hate my downstairs neighbors. I dont like the driving to work. And now I am 100% stuck. There is no way to get more money from the parents (especially after they helped with the vet costs in June). And I doubt that I would be able to get more money out of the CitiLoan. So, I just need to tough it out here until I get my real job in the mythological future.
And there is the added horribleness of having my friends not completely understand the situation. I used to travel 3 or 4 times each year to visit friends or family. Now, I absolutely can not do that. There is no money. I havent been on a trip for almost a year. And there are things that I would love to do. But I am living in a situation of my own creating, and I need to deal with that.
It just sucks you know. On paper, moving was a BAD decision, but is the safety issue and piece of mind (however how small) worth the added financial stress? I dont know. Probably. I really dont think that I could handle that neighborhood now. But it just sucks that I had to ruin my finances to get out of there and that I am not 100% satisfied with my apartment.
Overall, I declare this situation NEUTRAL.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Thinking about stuff.
Yeah, I know that thinking usually gets me in trouble. Mainly because I tend to dwell on things and get all mopey and depressed, just ask my brother. All this work drama has me worried and stressed out, and it has brought about all the old feelings from my former, emotionally abusive boss and how it was when I got fired from that job.
Financially, I have to work. I wish that werent the case (dont we all). But honestly, if were told in my meeting with the boss on Wednesday that I would have to leave in two weeks... I would be royally frakked! I have less than $1000 in my combined savings accounts--not even enough for the next month of rent. The logical, reasonable part of me realizes that chances of me getting fired are slim, but the rest of me knows that there is now a non-zero chance of getting fired.
The boss has told me in the past that I was safe in my position and that I didnt have anything to worry about. [quote]Other people will leave before you do,[/quote] she said. But that was then, and this is now. She said just several weeks ago, when we first learned that the one grant didnt get funded, that no one should worry about his/her job at group meeting in front of everyone. A month later, my good friend is out of a job (and kicked out of school).
She has unwittingly (or perhaps purposefully) and irreversibly altered the mood/state of the lab. Everyone is worried about his/her job. Whether she intended to or not, she has ushered in a regime of fear. This is how my former boss ran his lab. Constantly being told that if you dont produce and publish on his time frame, you will be out.
I find myself forced to consider contingency plans. What would I do? semi-continuously reverberates in my mind. So, what would I do? I would need to find another job, ASAP. However, could I? Four years, one paper, fired for not producing results. Does NOT look good! Top that with the fact that this is my second postdoc position, and I was fired from the first one for...not producing results! Im unemployable -- with the notable exception that I know that SS4BC would hire me if she were running her own lab, but thats a minimum of two years off.
So, what would I do? The only thing I could do, I guess. Sell as much of my shit as I can, rent a truck, and shack up with my parents. Of course, without income, I would be in deep shit to the government for my taxes, and I would default on my loans. None of that will do good things to my credit rating. I would have to find some sort of job close to where my parents are and scrimp and save and figure out what to do.
So, what do I do now? I frakking work my ass off trying my frakking hardest to produce results so as NOT to get fired. And this situation has me frakking scared. I know from experience that this is not a good position to be in with a boss. I have a plan to get shit done, but I have no idea if the boss will agree with my plan. I have a plan to show her what is getting done, but is this going to be enough? How do you convince a boss NOT to fire you when your science isnt working? That is a question that had plagued me for a long time that I was sure I was past.
But I guess not. I just hope to gods that my plans work and that the outlook after Wednesdays meeting is better. Because right now, I am terrified.
Financially, I have to work. I wish that werent the case (dont we all). But honestly, if were told in my meeting with the boss on Wednesday that I would have to leave in two weeks... I would be royally frakked! I have less than $1000 in my combined savings accounts--not even enough for the next month of rent. The logical, reasonable part of me realizes that chances of me getting fired are slim, but the rest of me knows that there is now a non-zero chance of getting fired.
The boss has told me in the past that I was safe in my position and that I didnt have anything to worry about. [quote]Other people will leave before you do,[/quote] she said. But that was then, and this is now. She said just several weeks ago, when we first learned that the one grant didnt get funded, that no one should worry about his/her job at group meeting in front of everyone. A month later, my good friend is out of a job (and kicked out of school).
She has unwittingly (or perhaps purposefully) and irreversibly altered the mood/state of the lab. Everyone is worried about his/her job. Whether she intended to or not, she has ushered in a regime of fear. This is how my former boss ran his lab. Constantly being told that if you dont produce and publish on his time frame, you will be out.
I find myself forced to consider contingency plans. What would I do? semi-continuously reverberates in my mind. So, what would I do? I would need to find another job, ASAP. However, could I? Four years, one paper, fired for not producing results. Does NOT look good! Top that with the fact that this is my second postdoc position, and I was fired from the first one for...not producing results! Im unemployable -- with the notable exception that I know that SS4BC would hire me if she were running her own lab, but thats a minimum of two years off.
So, what would I do? The only thing I could do, I guess. Sell as much of my shit as I can, rent a truck, and shack up with my parents. Of course, without income, I would be in deep shit to the government for my taxes, and I would default on my loans. None of that will do good things to my credit rating. I would have to find some sort of job close to where my parents are and scrimp and save and figure out what to do.
So, what do I do now? I frakking work my ass off trying my frakking hardest to produce results so as NOT to get fired. And this situation has me frakking scared. I know from experience that this is not a good position to be in with a boss. I have a plan to get shit done, but I have no idea if the boss will agree with my plan. I have a plan to show her what is getting done, but is this going to be enough? How do you convince a boss NOT to fire you when your science isnt working? That is a question that had plagued me for a long time that I was sure I was past.
But I guess not. I just hope to gods that my plans work and that the outlook after Wednesdays meeting is better. Because right now, I am terrified.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
A little influx of cash.
Working at a Medical School does have its perks. Theres a lab upstairs from mine that does blood studies. Usually, theyre hired by companies to test their products. Ive done two different studies with them. One was testing a new method for storing platelets ($600 for me!) and the other was testing a new machine for collecting red blood cells ($250 for me!). They told me both times that they love my veins and that they would keep me in mind for future studies.
Well, last week, I got a call in lab from them. It has been over a year since I heard from them, so I had pretty much forgotten about them. But theyre doing another platelet study, and they thought of me. Theyre going to harvest platelets, radiolabel them, put them back into me, and draw blood over a period of about two weeks to check on them. It sounds horrible, but Ive done it before, and its not a big deal. But this study pays $620! Im so down for that. Its basically free money. I can bleed. Plus, its helping science, and thats a good thing.
It starts Sept 10 and goes for about three weeks in total. So, I probably wont see money until October. But seeing as how, it will probably all go to taxes or bills anyway, it doeesnt really matter. The point is, I need to be sure NOT to spend it on THINGS I dont need. Its for paying down debt. And $620 will certainly help with that.
And speaking of cash, SS4BC posted about ways to earn some extra cash, and this has me thinking about finally doing something with my change bucket and rolled up piles of coins. I know it may annoy my friends at BofA, but I have a feeling that in the next week or so, I may be walking in there with a sack full of rolled coins to deposit. Its like she says, every cent counts.
Well, last week, I got a call in lab from them. It has been over a year since I heard from them, so I had pretty much forgotten about them. But theyre doing another platelet study, and they thought of me. Theyre going to harvest platelets, radiolabel them, put them back into me, and draw blood over a period of about two weeks to check on them. It sounds horrible, but Ive done it before, and its not a big deal. But this study pays $620! Im so down for that. Its basically free money. I can bleed. Plus, its helping science, and thats a good thing.
It starts Sept 10 and goes for about three weeks in total. So, I probably wont see money until October. But seeing as how, it will probably all go to taxes or bills anyway, it doeesnt really matter. The point is, I need to be sure NOT to spend it on THINGS I dont need. Its for paying down debt. And $620 will certainly help with that.
And speaking of cash, SS4BC posted about ways to earn some extra cash, and this has me thinking about finally doing something with my change bucket and rolled up piles of coins. I know it may annoy my friends at BofA, but I have a feeling that in the next week or so, I may be walking in there with a sack full of rolled coins to deposit. Its like she says, every cent counts.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Worried for the Future
It has been a while since I have posted anything, and I am sorry for that. Lots has been going on. But first I have to say that over the weekend, I spilled grape soda on my laptop. Everything is fine and not sticky. However, the apostrophe key was a casualty of my clumsiness. So bear with me if my contractions looks stupid, and Ill try not to quote anything. I have an external keyboard, but I didnt feel like hooking it up.
Anyway, as for the lots happening... One of my best friends here -- a coworker of mine -- was fired. UGH. The whole thing doesnt make any sense, and no one understands what the boss was thinking. Hes a graduate student, and what this essentially means is that he has been kicked out of school. The reasoning -- the boss doesnt think that he will accomplish enough to graduate in a soon enough time frame. Given that he has a max of three years left (plenty of time, in my opinion), this is pretty much a slap in the face.
Needless to say tensions were running high in lab today. And, as apparently the go-to guy in lab, people were coming to me expressing worry for their own positions. Basically, now everyone is worried that if he/she doesnt get enough results in enough time (enough being an arbitrary and subjective quantity defined by the boss) that he/she will be fired (or kicked out of school). Its ludicrous! This is really NOT the tone she needs to set for the lab. But whatever, its done. My friend will be out of work in a couple weeks and will most likely be moving out of state before Christmas.
This is especially mind bottling (yes, I said that on purpose. See Blades of Glory.) in light of the fact that this summer, she took on a new graduate student, and she is seriously a waste of space. Its going to be interesting, as she is presenting for lab meeting this week.
I am just seriously pissed at all of this. And I am dying to know the bosss side of things. Part of me thinks that I can get away with talking to her about it by coming at it from the point of view of the person who will be in her position and wanting to know how she came to this decision. I really will need to know how to know when to cut a graduate student out. But I dont know if shell tell me anything or not. I think that Im just going to wait until my next scheduled one-on-one meeting with the boss next week.
Of course, having been fired from a job for not bringing in enough results, I know how my friend feels, and of course, I too am worried about my job here. I know that the boss has told me in the past NOT to worry about my job and that other people would be let go before me, if need be. But still Im worried. And I would start applying for jobs now, if I had ANY chance of being able to get one. Alas, it comes down to getting results. And while, Ive worked my ass off in this lab, I only have one publication from my nearly 4 years here. Thats not enough. Mostly, this is because my original project was a bust, and I spent 2.5 years or so on it trying to get it to work. Its only been in the last year that Ive had something going that was literally crapping results. Ive just been working on getting a story together. If all goes well, Ill have something written up by the end of the year.
Anyway, I digress.
All this worry has me thinking tonight about where Id like to go. I have an idea job in mind. Of course, I think Id like to be a PI and run my own lab. But when it comes down to it, I dont think thats what Id really like to do. I LOVE doing science. Sure, I have ideas, and I can write about science. But the more I realize what my PIs have done and are doing, the less I actually WANT that job. I like getting my hands dirty in the trenches. I like working one-on-one with students in the lab and teaching lab skills and DOING experiments.
On the other side of the coin is my good buddy, SS4BC. She loves going to conferences, talking to people, networking, writing grants, and such. Sure, shes a fabulous chemist and a great experimentalist. But she was BORN to be a PI. And she has great ideas, and I know that shell do great things with them. And half-jokingly, half-seriously, weve talked about working together. I think that as a team, wed be UNSTOPPABLE. Can we make this work? Is she as serious about it as I am? I dont know. I think that our timing may just work out.
Shes on track to be done with her current position in two years, and shell be looking for faculty positions during that time. So, in theory, shell be on her own by Fall 2011. Given how much slower my experiments are than hers (seriously, Ive been prepping for my big experiment since June and its going to take about 6-8 months to DO the experiment), Ill probably be job-ready about the time she starts a faculty position. Hmmm. This could work.
So, what I was thinking about tonight was this: in an idea world, where would I want to live and settle down? And being the map-geek that I am, I made a color coded map to indicate my preferences.
Its color coded from Green to Red (Most to Least Desirable, respectively). Blue falls in the middle. Yeah, Im sure it looks a bit odd to most people, but Ive got my reasons. Do you live an Okturn-Desired area? What do you think? Am I being too judgmental? Im not saying that Id ONLY look for jobs in Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. Im just saying that if two identical jobs were offered in LA or New Jersey, Id take the job in LA. If the perfect job for me is in Montana, so be it. But Id like to stay in more greener pastures (so to speak).
Anyway, it breaks down like this... Living in CT has taught me that (1) I HATE Winter and (2) I HATE New England. So, places guaranteed snow...OUT. (except for NYC, because its a big city and I wouldnt have to drive). Im a CA boy at heart, and I LOVE SoCal and San Francisco. Ive got friends in SoCal Seattle, Georgia, Florida, South Texas, and family in Kansas and Arkansas, and it would be nice to be closer to them. Pretty much the rest is weather based or based on some arbitrary idea that I have about the area.
Anyway, as for the lots happening... One of my best friends here -- a coworker of mine -- was fired. UGH. The whole thing doesnt make any sense, and no one understands what the boss was thinking. Hes a graduate student, and what this essentially means is that he has been kicked out of school. The reasoning -- the boss doesnt think that he will accomplish enough to graduate in a soon enough time frame. Given that he has a max of three years left (plenty of time, in my opinion), this is pretty much a slap in the face.
Needless to say tensions were running high in lab today. And, as apparently the go-to guy in lab, people were coming to me expressing worry for their own positions. Basically, now everyone is worried that if he/she doesnt get enough results in enough time (enough being an arbitrary and subjective quantity defined by the boss) that he/she will be fired (or kicked out of school). Its ludicrous! This is really NOT the tone she needs to set for the lab. But whatever, its done. My friend will be out of work in a couple weeks and will most likely be moving out of state before Christmas.
This is especially mind bottling (yes, I said that on purpose. See Blades of Glory.) in light of the fact that this summer, she took on a new graduate student, and she is seriously a waste of space. Its going to be interesting, as she is presenting for lab meeting this week.
I am just seriously pissed at all of this. And I am dying to know the bosss side of things. Part of me thinks that I can get away with talking to her about it by coming at it from the point of view of the person who will be in her position and wanting to know how she came to this decision. I really will need to know how to know when to cut a graduate student out. But I dont know if shell tell me anything or not. I think that Im just going to wait until my next scheduled one-on-one meeting with the boss next week.
Of course, having been fired from a job for not bringing in enough results, I know how my friend feels, and of course, I too am worried about my job here. I know that the boss has told me in the past NOT to worry about my job and that other people would be let go before me, if need be. But still Im worried. And I would start applying for jobs now, if I had ANY chance of being able to get one. Alas, it comes down to getting results. And while, Ive worked my ass off in this lab, I only have one publication from my nearly 4 years here. Thats not enough. Mostly, this is because my original project was a bust, and I spent 2.5 years or so on it trying to get it to work. Its only been in the last year that Ive had something going that was literally crapping results. Ive just been working on getting a story together. If all goes well, Ill have something written up by the end of the year.
Anyway, I digress.
All this worry has me thinking tonight about where Id like to go. I have an idea job in mind. Of course, I think Id like to be a PI and run my own lab. But when it comes down to it, I dont think thats what Id really like to do. I LOVE doing science. Sure, I have ideas, and I can write about science. But the more I realize what my PIs have done and are doing, the less I actually WANT that job. I like getting my hands dirty in the trenches. I like working one-on-one with students in the lab and teaching lab skills and DOING experiments.
On the other side of the coin is my good buddy, SS4BC. She loves going to conferences, talking to people, networking, writing grants, and such. Sure, shes a fabulous chemist and a great experimentalist. But she was BORN to be a PI. And she has great ideas, and I know that shell do great things with them. And half-jokingly, half-seriously, weve talked about working together. I think that as a team, wed be UNSTOPPABLE. Can we make this work? Is she as serious about it as I am? I dont know. I think that our timing may just work out.
Shes on track to be done with her current position in two years, and shell be looking for faculty positions during that time. So, in theory, shell be on her own by Fall 2011. Given how much slower my experiments are than hers (seriously, Ive been prepping for my big experiment since June and its going to take about 6-8 months to DO the experiment), Ill probably be job-ready about the time she starts a faculty position. Hmmm. This could work.
So, what I was thinking about tonight was this: in an idea world, where would I want to live and settle down? And being the map-geek that I am, I made a color coded map to indicate my preferences.
Its color coded from Green to Red (Most to Least Desirable, respectively). Blue falls in the middle. Yeah, Im sure it looks a bit odd to most people, but Ive got my reasons. Do you live an Okturn-Desired area? What do you think? Am I being too judgmental? Im not saying that Id ONLY look for jobs in Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. Im just saying that if two identical jobs were offered in LA or New Jersey, Id take the job in LA. If the perfect job for me is in Montana, so be it. But Id like to stay in more greener pastures (so to speak).
Anyway, it breaks down like this... Living in CT has taught me that (1) I HATE Winter and (2) I HATE New England. So, places guaranteed snow...OUT. (except for NYC, because its a big city and I wouldnt have to drive). Im a CA boy at heart, and I LOVE SoCal and San Francisco. Ive got friends in SoCal Seattle, Georgia, Florida, South Texas, and family in Kansas and Arkansas, and it would be nice to be closer to them. Pretty much the rest is weather based or based on some arbitrary idea that I have about the area.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
I've been a bad boy.
I should feel bad, and I kinda do. But I didn't realize it was the end of the month until Friday. I did realize that I got paid (thank goodness for emails from the bank when I get direct deposits). This reminded me to go get a money order for rent. I bad been thinking of trying the bill pay thing, but I didn't want to risk it cutting it this close. Anyway, I ended up watching Heroes on Hulu (the episodes expired on Aug 1, so I had to finish the season) and chatting online with friends. So, no bills got paid. Saturday, I went to work, and then I had dinner and Lost night with friends. I got home too late to worry about the bills. So today, I had to go to work again, but I took all my bill stuff with me so I could pay them and mail them and not have to worry about it. Well, as I was leaving work this afternoon, I realized that I left all the bill stuff in my desk and didn't pay a goddammed thing! UGH.
I've not been this late with my bills in a long time. So, I'm going to have to remember to pay them all in the morning with my coffee at work. I've just been feeling so lost and weird all week, so I'm not entirely surprised that the end of month caught me by surprise. But damn. I was trying to be so good.
To top this off, I had plans to write several new blog posts about things that have been going on, but I never actually got around to it. I'm not exactly tired tonight, so I may try to get some things written out tonight. But ugh. I'm annoyed with myself.
I've not been this late with my bills in a long time. So, I'm going to have to remember to pay them all in the morning with my coffee at work. I've just been feeling so lost and weird all week, so I'm not entirely surprised that the end of month caught me by surprise. But damn. I was trying to be so good.
To top this off, I had plans to write several new blog posts about things that have been going on, but I never actually got around to it. I'm not exactly tired tonight, so I may try to get some things written out tonight. But ugh. I'm annoyed with myself.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
The first step on the path to independence.
I know that this isn't exactly financial-related. Well, kinda tangentially, it is. Sure, yeah. Totally!
Anyway, off and on I've been toying with ideas for independent research projects. Independent here meaning my own research idea that I can start now and get some preliminary data that are also related enough to my boss's research to justify spending her money on the project but also something that she herself doesn't want to persue, so I could take it with me when I get a job. Basically, if I can get this started, get some sexy data, and write a great grant application, I can get a job. WOO!
Anyway, I've been thinking of ideas in whatever downtime I have for such thoughts. And I was toying with sticking in the polymerase field and possibly working on polymerases related to the one on which my boss (and I now) currently work. I hadn't nailed down anything specific, but I had a jist (a couple of proteins and a vague plan). Well, in the past month, I've stumbled upon some fabulously sexy results with my current polymerase, and at the same time, discovered that two other polymerases have the exact same structure and the same key conserved residues...these residues are conserved through practically every species that has these polymerases (human, mouse, chicken, dog, bacteria, virus, etc.). It's totally awesome.
So... BOOM! I have a concrete idea and a plan. And not 24 hours before a meeting with the boss where I propose said plan, she emails me and suggests that I do my plan. AWESOME! She had the same idea, so I know it's a good one.
Anyway, this past week, I've decided is the "official" start of my independent project. And it's totally exciting, because for one of my polymerases, I have to clone it, and this is actual cloning (cells -> RNA -> cDNA -> plasmid), which I've never done before. So, yeah, I'm totally pumped on this. So much so, that I've been designing my cloning strategy tonight at home. (Yes, I am that much of a nerd.)
So, while not completely relevant for this blog, it indicates that I'm a smidge closer to being able to get a real job and do real work. It's a great feeling! =)
Anyway, off and on I've been toying with ideas for independent research projects. Independent here meaning my own research idea that I can start now and get some preliminary data that are also related enough to my boss's research to justify spending her money on the project but also something that she herself doesn't want to persue, so I could take it with me when I get a job. Basically, if I can get this started, get some sexy data, and write a great grant application, I can get a job. WOO!
Anyway, I've been thinking of ideas in whatever downtime I have for such thoughts. And I was toying with sticking in the polymerase field and possibly working on polymerases related to the one on which my boss (and I now) currently work. I hadn't nailed down anything specific, but I had a jist (a couple of proteins and a vague plan). Well, in the past month, I've stumbled upon some fabulously sexy results with my current polymerase, and at the same time, discovered that two other polymerases have the exact same structure and the same key conserved residues...these residues are conserved through practically every species that has these polymerases (human, mouse, chicken, dog, bacteria, virus, etc.). It's totally awesome.
So... BOOM! I have a concrete idea and a plan. And not 24 hours before a meeting with the boss where I propose said plan, she emails me and suggests that I do my plan. AWESOME! She had the same idea, so I know it's a good one.
Anyway, this past week, I've decided is the "official" start of my independent project. And it's totally exciting, because for one of my polymerases, I have to clone it, and this is actual cloning (cells -> RNA -> cDNA -> plasmid), which I've never done before. So, yeah, I'm totally pumped on this. So much so, that I've been designing my cloning strategy tonight at home. (Yes, I am that much of a nerd.)
So, while not completely relevant for this blog, it indicates that I'm a smidge closer to being able to get a real job and do real work. It's a great feeling! =)
Monday, July 20, 2009
A Brilliant Idea? (maybe not)
I was looking up the company that makes one of our instruments at work today, and this lead to some internest daydreaming. And this lead to my (probably not) brilliant idea.
I should get a job in London.
What? Work in the UK? "Hells yeah!" I thought. This isn't a fully thought through plan, or even really a plan at all. But now, it's a bee in my bonnet (not to put to fine a point on it).
Sure, there are universities in the US where I could get a professor job. But don't they need eccentric assistant professors of Chemistry/Biochemistry/Materials in the UK? This will, of course, require lots of thinking and some serious soul searching. But I'm not ready to jump on the job hunt bandwagon just yet. I have some job security (word from The Boss is that I'm not getting kicked out anytime soon), but I can't stay here forever. I do, however, need to publish two (hopefully three or four) more papers, finish up my work, and get my independent project started (I have a plan, and I'm 0.05% started already).
Now, I just have to decide...Los Angeles? or London? Hmmm. Either will be 4000% improvement over Connecticut.
I should get a job in London.
What? Work in the UK? "Hells yeah!" I thought. This isn't a fully thought through plan, or even really a plan at all. But now, it's a bee in my bonnet (not to put to fine a point on it).
Sure, there are universities in the US where I could get a professor job. But don't they need eccentric assistant professors of Chemistry/Biochemistry/Materials in the UK? This will, of course, require lots of thinking and some serious soul searching. But I'm not ready to jump on the job hunt bandwagon just yet. I have some job security (word from The Boss is that I'm not getting kicked out anytime soon), but I can't stay here forever. I do, however, need to publish two (hopefully three or four) more papers, finish up my work, and get my independent project started (I have a plan, and I'm 0.05% started already).
Now, I just have to decide...Los Angeles? or London? Hmmm. Either will be 4000% improvement over Connecticut.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
I'm SHOCKED! (July food "budget")
Oh. My. Frakking. Gods.
So, Dr. Faith just posted an excellent blog about food budgeting. This inspired me to take a look at how much I actually spend on food.
My thoughts were this... I'm a HORRIBLE person, and I rarely eat dinner or breakfast (I know. I'll be dead by age 50.) My main expense is lunch at work and what little groceries I buy for at home snackage. My guess is that I would come in a tad over the $125/month that Dr. Faith discussed.
I just scrolled back to my recent Where'd my money go? post for the past two weeks and added up what I spent on food.
$136!
Holy crap. I spent $240 for the two weeks, so I spend 57% of my money on food? Really?? Then again, when I think about it... what else do I buy? Where does the money go REALLY?? ALL of my cash spent the past two weeks was on food ($102). $112 of the food money was spent AT work or ON MY WAY TO work. The rest ($24) was spent on actual groceries. Mind you, my "groceries" for the past two weeks were a box of cereal, 20 bottles of Powerade (this doesn't count Powerade purchased at 7-11 or at work), two boxes of toaster strudel, and things I forget from my trip on the 1st. Oh and a case of Raman Noodles for $2.
I think I could fill a swimming pool with the Powerade that I drink in a month. Shit.
Okay, things I've learned tonight. (1) I spend WAY more money on food than I think I do. (2) I should eat better.
I find myself wondering (and not just tonight) if cooking at home and bringing lunch to work would really be cheaper than buying lunch at work from the carts outside. IF my now famous (or infamous) casserole of death (it has broccoli so it's good for you, despite the fried chicken strips, sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and cheese) costs roughly $25 to make. I pulled that number out of my ass; the major expense here would be the chicken and the veggies. And I get say four lunches out of it, I'd about break even. However, I'd eat a bulk of it at home and not save 100% of casserole for lunches. So, if only half of it went to two lunches... I'd still about break even. This is how I justify it to myself that it's okay to buy lunch every day. I'm going to have to make said casserole of death to get the exact cost, eat dinner once, and divide the rest into lunch-sized portions. See, to me, the "extra" hidden cost is eating the dinner at home. If I didn't make the casserole, planning to bring it to work for lunch, I wouldn't eat anything for dinner (most likely). So, there's no money saved, and the casserole actually has cost me the money I saved on lunch by eating a lunch portion for dinner at home. But I don't know if this is ACTUALLY true, or only what I tell myself to justify my hatred of going to the grocery store.
Hmm. Lots of things to think about here. The other variable here is the dread of having to deal with the endless comments and questions from people at work who would be shocked to see me bringing my lunch to work. I hate that. On the rare (read 5 or 6 times in 3.5 years) occasions that I have brought a lunch to work, it's been a horrid experience, simply because of the comments and conversations that ensue.
Anyway, this has become rambling. (Click "Publish" you jackass!)
Laters.
So, Dr. Faith just posted an excellent blog about food budgeting. This inspired me to take a look at how much I actually spend on food.
My thoughts were this... I'm a HORRIBLE person, and I rarely eat dinner or breakfast (I know. I'll be dead by age 50.) My main expense is lunch at work and what little groceries I buy for at home snackage. My guess is that I would come in a tad over the $125/month that Dr. Faith discussed.
I just scrolled back to my recent Where'd my money go? post for the past two weeks and added up what I spent on food.
$136!
Holy crap. I spent $240 for the two weeks, so I spend 57% of my money on food? Really?? Then again, when I think about it... what else do I buy? Where does the money go REALLY?? ALL of my cash spent the past two weeks was on food ($102). $112 of the food money was spent AT work or ON MY WAY TO work. The rest ($24) was spent on actual groceries. Mind you, my "groceries" for the past two weeks were a box of cereal, 20 bottles of Powerade (this doesn't count Powerade purchased at 7-11 or at work), two boxes of toaster strudel, and things I forget from my trip on the 1st. Oh and a case of Raman Noodles for $2.
I think I could fill a swimming pool with the Powerade that I drink in a month. Shit.
Okay, things I've learned tonight. (1) I spend WAY more money on food than I think I do. (2) I should eat better.
I find myself wondering (and not just tonight) if cooking at home and bringing lunch to work would really be cheaper than buying lunch at work from the carts outside. IF my now famous (or infamous) casserole of death (it has broccoli so it's good for you, despite the fried chicken strips, sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and cheese) costs roughly $25 to make. I pulled that number out of my ass; the major expense here would be the chicken and the veggies. And I get say four lunches out of it, I'd about break even. However, I'd eat a bulk of it at home and not save 100% of casserole for lunches. So, if only half of it went to two lunches... I'd still about break even. This is how I justify it to myself that it's okay to buy lunch every day. I'm going to have to make said casserole of death to get the exact cost, eat dinner once, and divide the rest into lunch-sized portions. See, to me, the "extra" hidden cost is eating the dinner at home. If I didn't make the casserole, planning to bring it to work for lunch, I wouldn't eat anything for dinner (most likely). So, there's no money saved, and the casserole actually has cost me the money I saved on lunch by eating a lunch portion for dinner at home. But I don't know if this is ACTUALLY true, or only what I tell myself to justify my hatred of going to the grocery store.
Hmm. Lots of things to think about here. The other variable here is the dread of having to deal with the endless comments and questions from people at work who would be shocked to see me bringing my lunch to work. I hate that. On the rare (read 5 or 6 times in 3.5 years) occasions that I have brought a lunch to work, it's been a horrid experience, simply because of the comments and conversations that ensue.
Anyway, this has become rambling. (Click "Publish" you jackass!)
Laters.
Laboratory Finances
Okay, I'm going to get a little bitchy about my work. I've been absolutely IRRITATED the past several days about recent events in the lab. BUT, I feel I need to qualify this whole post by saying that (1) I love my job; I bitch and moan a lot about it, but it's the best job I've had ever and (2) I love my boss; I'm convinced that without her this job would blow major chunks, and I know for a fact that if I had my previous boss for this job I would have been fired years ago. And with that said, I do have to bitch and moan about lab finances for a bit.
Our boss announced in our weekly meeting last Thursday that one of Program Project grants from the NIH did not get renewed and that the other labs on the project decided to take the rewrite in a different direction, so our lab is no longer included. This totally blows, but is not at all catastrophic. We have plenty of money from other grants, and she's working on writing several other applications to make up for this loss. However, what this does mean is six months to a year of "conservative spending" (her term).
This was contrasted with the announcement that no one had to worry about his/her job/salary/stipend. She was going to rearrange things so everyone would still be paid. That's nice; I enjoy job security (especially after my last job). HOWEVER, she also just took on a new grad student. AND she keeps refusing to fire the bitch of the lab who deserves to be gone. Rumors have been swirling around the lab for over a year that AC would be gone "soon". First is was Jan 2009. Then, I was even told by the secretary that June 30, 2009 would be her last day. Then, the summer meeting schedule came out, and she's listed through August! WTF?
Okay, don't get me wrong. I'm all for saving money in lab where appropriate, and I do think that we've been a bit over frivolous (partly due to lack of supervision and partly do to being spoiled for the past couple years). HOWEVER, AC uses the most supply money of any one person in lab (by my rough "calculations" in my head), and she yields very little good results. I know, I'm a complete hypocrite by saying this (and I cringe looking at my typing of it), because I was fired from my last job for not bringing in enough results to justify my salary.
But this is just a simple case of her not getting along with ANYONE. Her lab meeting presentations are frequently punctuated with shouting matches between her and the boss. Her individual, bi-weekly meetings are spent arguing loudly with her. It was 2 years after she started when the boss said at a meeting (where AC was not present) that "she finally had data that she believed". AC comes in at 1130am and leaves at 4 or 430pm. She'll talk on the phone a lot of that time. She monopolizes equipment and leaves messes (fungus growing in "sterile" hoods) everywhere. She makes one of the techs do most of her work, so she doesn't have to do it. She's generally just a horrible person. She was told a year ago that she had to find her own source of money or she'd be gone. Well, she didn't get the fellowship, and she's still around. Everyone in lab has come to me separately and said "I know how to cut out a HUGE chunk of money" (or words to that effect), all meaning that AC really needs to go.
Granted, AC does not have a job lined up. She whined about being a single mom with no job, and our boss pitied her. And I've been told, that as long as I want/need to be here I can be. But the boss can not keep hiring people when people aren't leaving the lab. We're out of space!
When I joined the lab, there were 5 people regular lab members (I make 6). In the past 3.5 years, two people have left, and 9 people have joined. We're now 14 people (not including my summer high school student). The boss expects lots of work being done, but less money spent and not enough space to do the work she wants.
I have a feeling that AC really will leave at the end of the summer. There is a week on the current schedule when she's not listed, and that's an excellent sign. I really just hope that the extra work of this "conservative spending" is worth it. I trust that the boss knows what she's doing. It just makes the lab a completely different dynamic now, and I'm not adjusting well to the change.
Our boss announced in our weekly meeting last Thursday that one of Program Project grants from the NIH did not get renewed and that the other labs on the project decided to take the rewrite in a different direction, so our lab is no longer included. This totally blows, but is not at all catastrophic. We have plenty of money from other grants, and she's working on writing several other applications to make up for this loss. However, what this does mean is six months to a year of "conservative spending" (her term).
This was contrasted with the announcement that no one had to worry about his/her job/salary/stipend. She was going to rearrange things so everyone would still be paid. That's nice; I enjoy job security (especially after my last job). HOWEVER, she also just took on a new grad student. AND she keeps refusing to fire the bitch of the lab who deserves to be gone. Rumors have been swirling around the lab for over a year that AC would be gone "soon". First is was Jan 2009. Then, I was even told by the secretary that June 30, 2009 would be her last day. Then, the summer meeting schedule came out, and she's listed through August! WTF?
Okay, don't get me wrong. I'm all for saving money in lab where appropriate, and I do think that we've been a bit over frivolous (partly due to lack of supervision and partly do to being spoiled for the past couple years). HOWEVER, AC uses the most supply money of any one person in lab (by my rough "calculations" in my head), and she yields very little good results. I know, I'm a complete hypocrite by saying this (and I cringe looking at my typing of it), because I was fired from my last job for not bringing in enough results to justify my salary.
But this is just a simple case of her not getting along with ANYONE. Her lab meeting presentations are frequently punctuated with shouting matches between her and the boss. Her individual, bi-weekly meetings are spent arguing loudly with her. It was 2 years after she started when the boss said at a meeting (where AC was not present) that "she finally had data that she believed". AC comes in at 1130am and leaves at 4 or 430pm. She'll talk on the phone a lot of that time. She monopolizes equipment and leaves messes (fungus growing in "sterile" hoods) everywhere. She makes one of the techs do most of her work, so she doesn't have to do it. She's generally just a horrible person. She was told a year ago that she had to find her own source of money or she'd be gone. Well, she didn't get the fellowship, and she's still around. Everyone in lab has come to me separately and said "I know how to cut out a HUGE chunk of money" (or words to that effect), all meaning that AC really needs to go.
Granted, AC does not have a job lined up. She whined about being a single mom with no job, and our boss pitied her. And I've been told, that as long as I want/need to be here I can be. But the boss can not keep hiring people when people aren't leaving the lab. We're out of space!
When I joined the lab, there were 5 people regular lab members (I make 6). In the past 3.5 years, two people have left, and 9 people have joined. We're now 14 people (not including my summer high school student). The boss expects lots of work being done, but less money spent and not enough space to do the work she wants.
I have a feeling that AC really will leave at the end of the summer. There is a week on the current schedule when she's not listed, and that's an excellent sign. I really just hope that the extra work of this "conservative spending" is worth it. I trust that the boss knows what she's doing. It just makes the lab a completely different dynamic now, and I'm not adjusting well to the change.
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