clouds of doom be gone!

Speaking of light, I have come to this epiphany of sorts while convelescing. I have come to the realisation that you simply MUST be happy and content in your place of employment or it is going to be one miserable work day after another. Well this ethic of sorts applies to me, anyhow. Some people can go in utter zombie-mode and go in, day after day after day and just get through. I don't work that way. I feel like I am in a leader-less, direction-less and negative environment while at work. And this is a children's museum, folks. It should be happy, cheery, jolly.

Things kind of came to a head a few weeks back, when the woman who owns the business next door came over to "discuss" issues with a co-worker. There had been long standing arguments of sorts due to this woman parking in the easement behind the Museum, since she has a massive SUV which is impossible to get around. It is also a loading-unloading zone only. This woman will park back there for hours. And if those of us who play by the rules needs to get back there to load or unload from the Museum, we can't. You can't get around her due to the construction, and when I have had to drop something off or load my Jeep, manuevering around her vehicle is next to impossible. You literally have to inch your way bit by bit. And God help you if you are back there for a legit reason (I re-iterate...loading and unloading) and she wants to park back there. This happened the very week in question so she called over wanting to know who was back there and telling me I needed to move.

At any rate, my co-worker had gone over there to ask if maybe she could attend a meeting with the other business neighbours about this issue. He was told she was busy and so he came back to the Museum. About ten minutes later, this woman flew into our front door asking for my co-worker, then stormed in the back, pinned him in the corner and went insane. Let's just say every kid in that Museum learned the "F" word because she must have screamed it about twenty five times.

I finally went out there between them and asked her to please stop, as there were children around and surely they could carry this "conversation" outside. This was met with her finger pointing at me saying "I don't give a ____". (You can fill in that blank with her favourite word).

An incident report was written up and given to our Director who happened to be out of town during this fiasco. Upon her arrival the next week, upon hearing about what happened, what did she do? What did she say? "Oh". And that was that. She never asked any of us witnesses for further details, she never went over to speak to the raging lunatic next door. Just like with everything else, it was brushed over and other *important* things such as making Museum contacts or soliciting for money were pursued.

How can a Museum be run effectively if there is no direction, no leadership, no support? Not just a Museum, but any business?

My attitude towards this place changed instantly. Not to mention, anything I say or do is met with harsh criticism... I am also asked to do menial tasks while engrossed with work that has deadlines (such as highlighting the museum's name on posters that were made up by the Salvation Army for the Shoe Drive, when the posters are IN our Museum). There are dozens of other examples, too numerous to type here. Another co-worker said that employees there feel unappreciated and feel as though they are incompetent due to the lack of direction.

I just don't know.

But I do know this, my epiphany consists of a change. I may take a pay cut, but I need to be happy and feel fulfilled at the end of the day. Not laden down with a weight that never seems to lift.

Hoping the clouds of doom will part a little farther and a little faith and luck will get me to where I need to go.