My supervisor called. He wanted to know how I was doing, how I was holding up. Not in the business sense. In the personal sense.
I had a headache. Not a dull buzz, not quite an all-encompassing migraine. Just a sharp pain.
I was tired. Sleep has been odd, and fleeting. I need an occasional nap, about once a week, to really feel up to par. I haven’t had that, not in the last month.
It was coffee keeping me going. The coffee pot I bought for the store before the Halo 2 launch was the best investment I made.
Twice in two days, the personal call. I didn’t mind. He called me “blessed.”
My supervisor asked my keyholder how I’m doing. She worries about me. I worry about her, too. She means the world to me.
On Sunday’s conference call he defined a burned-out manager as one who doesn’t plan, who doesn’t hold his employees accountable for their behaviors. He wanted to make sure I wasn’t on the road to Christmas burn-out. He knows–I will go postal. I have before.
Today was a good day. A new employee started. I tendered a job offer to another; he starts tomorrow. I interviewed three candidates–two first interviews for my store, a second interview for another store. Events are moving forward.
Christmas is not quite four weeks away. That’s a lot of time for things to happen, bad things. But looking at that span of time, in terms of the business I see no bumps in the highway.
In terms of my personal life, there are bumps ahead. I need to replace my car. I want to finish a short story by Christmas. I need to sort out a morass of conflicting emotions that has kept me half-preoccupied. I should have my eyes checked–my vision was terribly blurry Saturday.
Personal things can’t be planned. Business can.
I’m pacing myself. I’m staying mellow. I’m playing some video games–Lord of the Rings: The Third Age has taken the lion’s share of my attention. Discovering the local jazz radio station has been a blessing.
The headache eventually passed.