Good news and four jobs

Well, the good news is that my father-in-law's metastatic kidney cancer is responding well to treatment. After 8 weeks of drug therapy, all the tumors in his lungs have shrunk about 30-40%. In 8 weeks!! Can you believe it?!? God is GOOD!

I, on the other hand, struggle to remain positive about job prospects as the date of my last day at Tweedee approaches. I have added a 4th job to my arsenal: server at The Grumpy Troll. I'm only working 1-2 shifts/week right now, but I'm hoping that I can add at least one more there and one more at Mariner's Inn after I'm done at Tweedee. People have been assuring me that I'll qualify for unemployment benefits, but I don't think those benefits will cover our expenses, and I know they'll be adjusted based on my part-time job earnings. I'm going to try to figure that out before the end of June, but if my initial calculations are correct, I'll have to continue to work 3 part-time jobs until I can find one full-time job that pays me enough to have only it. And then? Well, then we'll celebrate! After we get our finances back in order, of course.

Happy Valentime's!

Last year, just before Valentine's Day, Einar and I watched an old 30 Rock episode which featured a character that kept saying, "Happy Valentime's!" thoughout the episode. It was hilarious! So now, we wish each other a happy Valentime's instead of happy Valentine's.

I had to wait tables all weekend, and even though I'd rather not have to spend my weekend nights working, it's actually kind of fun to waitress on Valentine's day. You get mostly couples who are in a good mood, ready for a nice night out. And because it's a special occasion for them, they are usually quite generous with their tips, which is nice when you've given up your night to be at work.

Speaking of tips, I've noticed a difference in tipping amounts over the past year. It used to be that I'd average 18% tips on a typical night, which I was quite happy with. I'd get some people that would tip exactly 15%, the magic don't-tip-less-than-this percentage. But I'd get quite a few customers that would tip 20% or more. In the past year, those groups have flip-flopped. Now, I get quite a few diners that tip exactly (and I mean exactly) 15% and only a few that tip 20% or more. I'm sure it has to do with the economy. Business at the restaurant where I work is definitely down, despite what the owner tells you - not only in volume, but in what people are ordering. It's been kind of interesting to watch.

I'm hoping the economy, especially the job market, turns around soon. From what I keep reading, it has already starting to improve, but then, why is unemployment predicted to stay above 10% for 2010 and still be above 9% in 2011?

Job Loss

On Friday, Einar sent me a text message telling me that he had been laid off. We're extremely grateful that I have (seemingly) stable employment at my 3 jobs, but I am still trying to come to terms with how this is going to impact our finances. I continue to look for a full-time job, but there aren't many openings. And I haven't heard anything from any of the places I've applied, except for the one offer that I declined.

Three people on three consecutive days last week asked me if I've considered returning to teaching. Perhaps God is nudging me? I do not have my Wisconsin license, and I haven't yet looked into what would be necessary to obtain it. There is some appeal to being back in a classroom, but I know Madison is an extremely tough district to get into because of an overabundance of licenses teachers. I might look into it, though. I've got to think about it a bit more before I make a decision.

It's Restaurant Week in Madison, which means I'm working a bit more than usual. Hopefully the restaurant will be busy, and I'll make a lot of money!! I hope people are generous.

Birds of the Air

I've always liked this Bible passage:
‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” - Matthew 6:25-31

I find it comforting and calming, and I often think of it when I start to feel financially stressed. And when I manage to stop worrying, when I've put my trust in God to provide for me, I have always been taken care of. Case in point: last Wednesday. I had to waitress, and in the morning, I took a few minutes to figure out how much I would need to make to keep Einar and I on track financially. I told Einar, "I need to make $120 tonight." He looked at me and, knowing that Wednesday nights are not typically reliable for making $120 in tips, told me, "Good luck!" I nodded, sharing his doubt. But I told myself that it would work out and offered up a prayer. When I arrived at the restaurant, it wasn't looking like my goal - my need, actually - would be met. There was only 1 reservation, and guests weren't exactly knocking down the door. One of the servers went home early. Slowly but surely I started getting tables. And slowly but surely my tips followed. I wasn't feeling optimistic, though. I reminded myself to just trust that it would happen. At the end of the night, when I did my check out, I had made $119.57! Amazing. God does provide. . .

Thumbs

I've never really noticed how much I use my thumbs. I mean, I know opposable thumbs separate us from many other animals, and I'm always thankful that I can easily open doors and jars and my cat cannot. Last night, my right thumb starting hurting while I was waitressing. I can't recall hitting it on anything. It seemed strange to me. I even commented to the bartender about it being sore and how odd that was. It was a little swollen, too, making it difficult to bend. When I got home, it continued to swell and be painful. It is still swollen and painful, and the cause remains a mystery.

If you read my post from yesterday, you know that I was fasting in observation of Ash Wednesday. I made it almost the whole day - I ate a roll while I was waitressing because I started to feel lightheaded and dizzy. Other than that, I avoided the temptations of bagels in the office, Riesen chocolate caramels on my desk, Starburst in the conference room, and a whole restaurant full of food. It may not have been 40 days, but it was full of temptations, nonetheless.

Extra, Extra

I wait tables part time, and that means a lot of interactions with people.  Sometimes these people are odd.  Like a couple of weeks ago, when I had a table of two. . .  They each ordered an entree, hash browns, and a salad.    That in and of itself isn't unusual.  But then they said they wanted to order an extra side of hash browns.  This is a bit unusual since we serve the hash browns family style and an order for two is quite generous.  However, people really love the hash browns, so I didn't think much of it.  This was their first extra.  They then decided to order an extra salad, so they could each have a more sizable salad to begin their meal.  Extra number two.  They finished their meal (but not all of the hash browns - turns out that an order for two would've been sufficient).  I asked them if they would like dessert.  They both ordered 2 scoops of ice cream with EXTRA chocolate sauce.  I am not kidding!  I kept referring to them as my extra table.  I found myself hoping that their tendency for extra would mean I'd get an extra large tip.  Sure enough: 30%.  Hooray!