The Impending Doom of Another New Year

There's that moment when you suddenly realize that it's nearing the end of December and the current year just passed you by, faster than you can blink. You think back to the New Year's resolutions that you made that year and realize you aren't a step closer to fulfilling nearly half of them. Puzzled, you think back and wonder if you could even recall all of them... lose weight, get in shape, be a better partner, learn to speak German, etc...

Then you start to think if making new year's resolutions has any purpose... Studies show that gym membership sales go up in January as people plan on getting in shape but that actual gym usage returns to what it was by March as people no longer go, finding excuses to put it off for another day. And it's easy to do so because we have a year to get in shape and a year seems like a long time. Or at least in January it does. But by the time December rolls around, well, that's a different story...

So, I've decided that for this year, I'm not making yearly resolutions. I'm going to make monthly resolutions. Hopefully, this practice of giving myself a shorter, more easily manageable time frame will get me actually moving forwards in my goals, checking them off sooner, rather than trying to pack as many as I can into the last three weeks of the year.

With that said, here are my goals for January 2015:

• Work goals:
• Survive light year review without panicking 
• Get a good review on my light year review
• Ask for (and get!) a raise

• Sewing goals:
• Finish hounds tooth vest
• Sew a long sleeve shirt for winter
• Sew one dress for winter

• Pole goals:
• Clean up spins
• Clean up basic moves (Climb, Plank, Sit, Chopper, Invert)
• Learn to do Superman
• Butterfly - Gemini - Scorpio - Gemini - Cupid - Superman combo

• Personal:
• Set up a savings fund for hubby and myself 
• Wake up earlier to work out in the mornings (hoola hoop or pole)
• Do a better job on the dishes so hubby approves of my dish washing skills

Wish me luck! 

When a Colleague is Sent Packing

We got called into the boss' office this morning. His solemn face immediately told me that something is wrong and I felt my heart sink as we all went quiet. But it wasn't until I looked around and noticed that we weren't all in attendance. "She's leaving us. It's a mutual agreement and it's for the best..." At first I didn't understand who they were talking about - the new designer or the other product manager that started almost a year ago, slightly before me. Neither of them were in the office. "Who?" I asked. "The PM," he said. "It's a mutual decision and it's for the best."

What does that mean - mutual decision? Is there really such a thing or is it just a nice way to say fired? She'd seemed a bit moody lately, but then again, that was a part of her natural behavior.

By the time we left the boss' office she was gone and her desk was bare of her Hello Kitty mug and bowl of Skittles. What do you say to a colleague after they've been fired? Should you talk to them? Wish them luck? She was out of the office so fast, I didn't have time to say good bye and by the way she left and took all of her stuff, it doesn't seem like she'll be back - or wants to come back to say good bye...