Episode #58: Today, We Turned The Calendar Page

Today is November 1, 2020, and I am now officially retired. With most local/state/federal entities, you are required to retire on the first of a given month. This usually means working up to the final day of the proceeding month (28th, 29th {leap year}, 30th or 31st). This is relatively easy to do if your work schedule happens to include the weekends on weekly basis (e.g. hospitals, prison facilities, detention centers). Not easy if you work a traditional M-F schedule (like myself).

Thus, my last official working day was Friday October 30, 2020. 

It was interesting to say the least, in that 1} we're hip deep in global (IMO a man-made) pandemic, which means that 2} our department has a maximum allowance of "4 employees"at any given time and 3} there weren't a heck of a lot of employees in the building to begin with. 

So I was only able to say a personal goodbye to about a baker's dozen of staff members, including a few co-workers. I did receive a few nice gifts, including food, gift cards and electronics. I actually did some work, which normally takes about 45 minutes, and managed to stretch it out to about 4 hours. In addition to all the fun stuff, I created a few necessary e-mails. One was the outgoing bounce back that basically said it was a pleasure doing business with everyone, I had great time, met some great people and who you need to contact with questions about your payroll going forward.

The other was a rather personal good bye to my immediate co-workers. I would like to share that e-mail with everyone here. And if I extrapolate from the response from one co-worker who had forwarded me the e-mail (silly me neglected to cc myself on it), I think I managed to touch some emotion with it. So my friends, let me know what you think.

Note: even though I spent 14 1/2 years at my last agency, I only spent the past 7+ years with this last group of outstanding co-workers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Good afternoon to one and all,

It's October 30, 2020, and a somewhat dreary snowy day to end one's working career on. In an curiously odd twist of fate, I'm ending my state and DCF career the same way I had entered DCF back in May 2006: by myself with no one really around to greet me (or in this case) or say good bye.

While I had entered DCF all by my lonesome after a tumultuous two year stint at DOC, I am leaving DCF on a high note, comforted by the fact that I'm leaving behind co-workers who I consider to be a genuinely close part of my extended family. I am honored and privileged to be allowed entry into a small sliver of your personal lives and I believe it has made me an all-around better person. And I'm glad that with everyone showing me a small sliver of their personal lives, it gave me the confidence to, being the actual semi-introvert that I am, share a sliver (medium-sized at best) of my personal life with everyone. 

I will truly miss the camaraderie as the reality that is retirement slowly starts to sink in on November 2nd, as well as the richness of the tapestry that is called "the working life". I will always have fond memories of everyone that I have worked with in Payroll for the past 7+ of the 14 ½ years spent at DCF. Believe me when I say that I leave my job with a slightly heavy heart and a few tears in my eyes. 

Thank you once again for showing me the all that you are and the all that you have become. 

I am forever your friend,

George

{c} 2020 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #57: Where, Oh Where Am I Today?

So the skyline photo just off to the right was something that I used to see on a daily/weekly basis pre-Covid19 (that's prior to the first week of March if you're from Connecticut) from my office building.

Suffice to say, after October 30th, I will no longer have that view, as I will be gainfully retired (aka unemployed) on November 1st.

If you're wondering why there seems to be a missing day, the long and short answer is that I work Monday thru Friday. Halloween, which is my actual last day, is on a Saturday, thus making my last working day to be October 30th.

As of the date of this post being published, I have either 4 or 5 days left to work (depending on whether I published this on the 25th or 26th). A fair amount of my co-workers have no idea that I'm retiring (telecommuting/teleworking ya'll) so while I'm doing my final payroll this pay period, I'm also typing out a ton of extras e-mail to let folks know when my last day is. Which in and of itself is a very painful thing (which I've mentioned many, many times in the preceding 10+ years of blogging).

Most of the e-mails, have been very generic. Like, "btw, my last day will be 10/30 as I'm retiring 11/1. It's been a pleasure working with you". Some have, however, contained greater detail, which is directly due to the fact that there are still a few people left at my agency who previously worked at the facility that I was originally hired to do payroll for back in 2006. Those staff members have gotten a more personalized goodbye.

Most, if not all, of the responses I've received have been either 1} congratulatory; 2} envious (those who have the years, but not the age or the age but not the years); or 3} congratulatory and complimentary. The complimentary ones I have saved and forwarded to my personal e-mail, if only because I've never really thought I would leave a lasting impression with my fellow co-workers. That was always my main goal (like my writing) at work, which was to leave a lasting impression with at least one person at work.

So heading into this very last week of my (current) working life I think is going to be a bag of mixed emotions. It'll be bittersweet, as I've worked with some truly wonderful people over my 14+ years at my current agency. It will be memorable, that's for sure, although it will be difficult to say goodbye in person, since everyone is doing a split of telecommuting and working at the office.

I'm looking forward to the first week of November with mixture of trepidation and relief. Not sure which will win out over the long run, but it should be a fun ride just the same.

{c} 2020 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Episode #56: This Is The 2nd Part Of The 1st Impression

Ya know, old blogging habits can die a really hard and painfully gruesome

No, really. Honest and for true. Roughly a week and a half ago, I wrote in that particular post that there would be a part 2. I actually had something planned out for that next post, like a better recap or something to that effect. Problem is, here we are a week and a half later, and my initial plan has gone to pot.

So we're par for the course. And using cliches, which is also par for the course. And reusing massively old pictures, which again is also par for the course.

Sigh.

The main reason, I think, is that for the past few weeks I've been calmly preparing for November 2nd, which will be the first day in 24 1/2 years where I don't have to be somewhere by 8a. So I've been cleaning out all of the crap that needs to be filed, scanned, boxed, moved and regurgitated. Which means that I've been spending on average about 3 1/2 hours per day at the office getting all of my work done. And believe or not, I'll be doing my very last payroll this week, since my last day coincides with the very last working pay day I will be participating in.

In addition to the cleaning/purging of my office (yes, believe it or not I still have some stuff to take home from my almost bare bones cubicle), I've also been doing a little "goodbye" related writing. Like, writing a good-bye e-mail that will go up around lunch time on October 30th, as I will probably spending the entire day there cleaning up and not really paying attention to my e-mail. Not sure how long my work e-mail will remain active, but it'll be there just the same.

I'm also writing some thank you notes for all of my payroll co-workers. I bought the cards last weekend and I plan on dropping some serious coin on D&D gift cards for everyone.

So sometimes, the best laid plans can go askew. Hopefully, once the reality of retirement really sinks in and becomes my new normal, I'll try to find a way to get back into the swing of blogging again. And yes, the picture up above perfectly represents how I've already checked out at work.

{c} 2020 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved

Good Lord, It's Autumn Already? Where Did The Time Go?

Wowzers!

It's been, at the very least, an interesting Summer 2020. While I have not been doing anything in the way of writing (or blogging) for that matter, I have begun the laborious task getting my life into some kind of semblance of order. An order, of which I would like to have in place by the beginning of 2021.

To say things have been eventual during the summer would be a distinct understatement.

Let's start off with the events of the familia.

Everyone in the familia is doing as well as can be expected. Daughter has been tested 4 times (yes, you read that correctly) at the university and so far has been a big fat negative (yay!). Both doggos, Tina and Oreo, are doing well, as well as the rabbit Mr. Cuddles. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the masthead of the blog. Holly was euthanized in early September due to a combination of age and kidney disease.

I'm doing well as can be expected, and that will only get better, since on November 1st...

Work.

...on November 1st, I will officially be a retired somebody.

If you recall from my blatherings from earlier this year, work has been a basic flustercuck. The aggravation hasn't stemmed from the new world order known as Covid-19, but stemming from the new payroll system that my agency is shoving down our throats (sort of like how the left shoving down black lies matter and antifa in the style of 1984).  This collective shoving is not a statewide thing, but an agency thing (a lot of agencies don't want it, so that's a huge red flag right there), and they're doing w/o the proper training for ALL OF THE STAFF, and it seems like every time they set a concrete date to make it effective, a lug wrench trashes the gears and they have to go back to square 1a.

I actually qualified for early retirement the month after I had turned 55 this year (June). I really didn't want to do it, since a large financial penalty would be involved for taking an early retirement, but after qualifying with an age and year total of 75+ and combined on how miserable I was becoming and how it was affecting my home life as the aforementioned debacle was unfolding, I consulted with my family and came to the decision that after spending a total of 24 1/2 years with one employer, it was time to go.

And thus, ends part the first. Tune in next time for part the 2nd, and as always, keep on shakn' your groove thing.

{c} 2020 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved