Tired ears.

Part of my job as an adviser is be one of the faces of the college to prospective students and their parents.  During this time of year, advisers sign up to mingle during lunch with the families and answer any questions they may have.  Because the mingling occurs in a dining hall, sometimes it is hard to be noticed among all of the various other people who are there. Solution: bright yellow T-shirts with ADVISER printed in black across the back.  Which is fine. If you are skinny. And 25 years old. I’m neither.  I felt conspicuous which, I suppose, is the purpose. I always felt embarrassed for the old gray-haired cashiers at Kmart who were forced to wear cutesy little red bows or elf ears or Santa hats during the Christmas season.  You could tell by looking at them that they sure as heck would not have chosen to wear that crap. I think that it is disrespectful and rude for an employer to require employees to dress like fools for the sake of the store or for the sake of the holiday.  I kind of feel like that when I wear this shirt.  There really isn’t anything wrong with it. I like T shirts as much as the next guy – it is the writing on the back that bothers me.

  Anyhoo……I guess if that is the biggest complaint I have, I’m doing pretty good.  Besides, I just love talking to prospective students and their families.  It is the best part of my job except for talking to students on a daily basis - which even for an introvert like me, is really appealing.  But there is where the line is drawn. Talking to people who aren't students, who aren't part of my job, is draining. Crazy draining.  I have a friend who likes to verbally unload at the end of the week and I just can’t do that.  I can’t listen to one more person’s issues.  At the end of the week, actually at the end of every day, I need some time to collect myself and to re-energize.  Sometimes that doesn't happen.  The act of quilting helps quite a bit.  Using my creativity helps to re-charge.  I've always been that way - I remember from the time I first had kids, the time after work was sacrosanct.  It was for the sanity of the family.