Bummer

I've run out of cocoa krispies.
In theory, this should be easy to remedy, but I'm tired, and I don't want to leave my blanket and couch for the frozen tundra. It's been a really long day. And I could use a sweet treat, but my recent go-to-snack has disappeared.
Bummer.

I haven't talked much about work, mostly because my work and the weather have recently overlapped quite a bit. And we're still dealing with it. Right now we're trying to get rid of the ginormous snow piles that are taking over the corners at intersections. As you can imagine, it's a little dangerous to turn onto a street when you can't see whether or not cars, small children, or other human beings are in the way. So we are slowly attacking those, as well as digging out fire hydrants, mailboxes, and other areas that are important, but not the first on our list.

Besides the snow, I'm also starting another round of interviews. This time I'm hiring one of my managers, who will complete the team of  four direct reports. This person is pretty integral to our operation, so I'm willing to give this a lot of time and energy. Good thing, because we have 25 first-round phone interviews. Yay, us! Thank goodness we have a great interview team. I'm also putting together a schedule for their time on-campus - I'm looking at a half-day gig.

In addition to the interviews, my boss and I are meeting with small populations of my staff, to talk about the 'state of the state', and how it affects us as state employees. With a new governor, folks are pretty nervous about what that will mean for their paychecks. And while we don’t really know anything, we are meeting with folks to talk about the little that we do know, and to address any concerns they have. I’m also using it as a time to say, “Hi, now that you’ve seen me around (and hopefully know/trust me more than when I met with you in my first week of work), what do you want me to know? What should I be focusing on?” I had my first one today. Two more tomorrow. They will be helpful for staff to feel heard, and insightful for me, especially if folks continue to be honest. But some of the stuff they are sharing is kind-of a bummer. Staff morale is hard to combat – thankfully I feel up for the challenge.

But I’d feel a little better with some chocolate cereal treats that snap, crackle and pop.