BOO!

Wishing all my ghoulfriends and little goblins a Happy Halloween! Have a spooktacular day! (Sorry, I couldn't resist!) Have fun tonight! xo

Hallow's Eve

I can't believe Halloween is here in four days! It's so exciting! Tonight, I bought a big, poofy wig and a handful of snakes for H's Medusa costume. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

Thanks to FBP for coming on the search with me tonight! Good times!

This is how I feel today

Does the body good

Part of this weekend was spent writing my final paper of the year. I had requested an extension on the paper when I was offered my job and finally got around to doing it this weekend. It was a slow start but things eventually got rolling and I was pleased with the final copy.

When I handed it in today at lunch, I ran into some of my friends. It was great to see them and have a few laughs and hugs. I'll be seeing them again on Thursday night when I join them at a pub to celebrate their final course of the year.

As for work...it's been really great and incredibly busy. The transition has been smooth, thus far and I'm really enjoying it. At the end of the day, I feel like I've accomplished something and that the work I'm doing is worthwhile. It's a wonderful feeling and one that I don't think I've experienced before.

Hope you had a lovely weekend and a nice start to the week! Talk soon, friends. xo

Happy Thanksgiving

I wish we were celebrating Thanksgiving with my family right now. I miss the spread of food and laughing with my cousins. It was always so loud and boisterous and the food never seemed to end. Despite being away from them today, I do feel there is so much to celebrate and be thankful for here at home such as my wonderful little family (J+H), a new job, great friends, J's lovely family, being healthy and enjoying the little things in life. ♥

[Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky.]

Wishing all of my Canadian friends and family a Happy Thanksgiving. xo

Vintage Sexism (aka Pure Madness)

I just had to share this with you. It's hard to believe these kind of articles were circulated not so long ago.

This gem is from the July 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine, written for male supervisors of women during World War II. These were "helpful tips" on supervising women at work (I think #10 is my favorite):

1. Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters, they're less likely to be flirtatious, they need the work or they wouldn't be doing it, they still have the pep and interest to work hard and to deal with the public efficiently.

2. When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. Older women who have never contacted the public have a hard time adapting themselves and are inclined to be cantankerous and fussy. It's always well to impress upon older women the importance of friendliness and courtesy.

3. General experience indicates that "husky" girls - those who are just a little on the heavy side - are more even tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters.

4. Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination - one covering female conditions. This step not only protects the property against the possibilities of lawsuit, but reveals whether the employee-to-be has any female weaknesses which would make her mentally or physically unfit for the job.

5. Stress at the outset the importance of time the fact that a minute or two lost here and there makes serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up.

6. Give the female employee a definite day-long schedule of duties so that they'll keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. Numerous properties say that women make excellent workers when they have their jobs cut out for them, but that they lack initiative in finding work themselves.

7. Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change.

8. Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day.

9. Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive; they can't shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a woman - it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency.

10. Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl's husband or father may swear vociferously, she'll grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this.

11. Get enough size variety in operator's uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. This point can't be stressed too much in keeping women happy.

(Source: feministing.org)

Exciting news!

If you were following my blog this summer then you might remember reading about all of the exciting and wonderful experiences I had during my practicum. Just to refresh your memory - I was doing my placement at a women-centred employment agency in downtown Toronto under the supervision of a really amazing woman (who has since become a mentor of mine). The practicum was life-changing, in so many ways - from confirming my decision to go into the program to instilling my love for the profession, including learning about the complexities of clients and those of myself. To me, being employed by the agency after finishing the program was my idea of a dream job.

Fast forward to last Wednesday, when I received the job offer to work as an Employment Counsellor with them - MY EXCITING NEWS! This was after an intense interview process (carried over two days) that included case studies, a role-play, preparing and presenting a mini-workshop and of course, a litany of questions (situational, personal and knowledge-based).

I started working on Friday and it was such a good feeling to be back in the office again. Everyone was so warm and welcoming, and it was an absolute thrill to sit in my new space in my new role. (Makes me giddy just thinking about it!)

I was briefed about my position and "introduced" to my caseload. I began calling clients to introduce myself and to schedule appointments with them in the coming weeks. Some of them remembered me from the summer and it was great to speak with them again. I'll meet with a couple of clients tomorrow for the first time, which is very exciting. At the end of the month, I'll be facilitating a workshop and co-facilitating another.

I feel very fortunate to be given this opportunity to be part of an amazing team, for an agency that does wonderful and meaningful work in the community. For the first time, I feel really proud of what I'm doing and it feels great...really, really great.

I'm really going to miss this...

Thursday was the last day of classes for me. I only have two courses left in the program I was taking that I'll be finishing now in the New Year. It's all for very exciting reasons that I'll fill you in on in my next post but for now, I just wanted to pay homage to some of my classmates - especially the ones I'm going to miss the most.

It's going to be weird not seeing them every day and being able to hang out with them on breaks and for lunch. I'll really miss the classroom antics, including the crazy facial expressions to go along with them. It's been so much fun and I can't believe ten months have already gone by! The time went so quickly! I'm glad that my path led me to the program and to all of the interesting and unique people and experiences there.

I'm really going to miss a few people, in particular - my FBP sista and the stiletto-heeled CWCs who've made my days in the program so memorable. I'm really going to miss them and plan to stay in touch.

I'll be thinking of you. Take care, friends. (I miss you already!) xo