WORKING FROM HOME

I was forced to stay and work from home yesterday, whether I wanted to or not. The steep hill, which is part of the lane, was now glare ice…all the way down. Because it was still pouring rain, there was no use trying to sand it – it would be immediately washed away. The satellite for internet was working though, and the phones, and most of the day was spent using either one or the other to keep in touch with the office and clients. By late afternoon the weather let up some, and we were able to use the backhoe to groom the culprit. This morning I should be able to drive away without worrying about sliding through the few small trees and landing in my neighbour’s house…sideways… LOL!

Although it was slightly bothersome – I had a long list on my agenda – it wasn’t anywhere near the frustration and panic I’d have felt years earlier when not able to make it to the office. I can remember the stress of driving to work in the dark, through blinding snowstorms, in a little corolla station wagon. I was responsible for opening the money exchange booth at the airport, and that meant being there for 4:30 AM, come hell or high water. If there was a storm, I would leave an hour earlier than usual. Often the only other vehicles on the road at that time of night would be the huge snowploughs, and they didn’t move for anybody! Meeting one struck terror in my already hammering heart. They used three-quarters of the road, were moving fast, and I would squeeze over, leaning into the steering wheel, my fists clenched on it tight, peering through the thick, blowing snow made worse by their passage, praying that I wouldn’t run into the ditch on my side. We had no cellular phones at the time, so if you took the ditch, you stayed there until a good Samaritan would stop and help you out. They were far and few between at 2:30 AM.

We’ve come a long way, baby! My four-wheel drive handles much better in snow than the little Corolla, and it’s parked in a garage both at home or at work, so there is no time lost in scraping ice off the windows. My cell-phone is a constant companion, and there’s a little card in my wallet which guarantees roadside help if needed within minutes (I had the occasion to use it last year, and it works!!). Rapid access to the office computer by internet makes it possible to work from wherever I am. Even better, the only person who can get on my case if I don’t show up is my self, and that’s not going to happen, LOL!

Lucky, you say? Well, a little, maybe. Technical advances have much to do with it. But where I am now is mostly due to many hours of hard work, and study. Some of it could be the result of wisdom acquired with age too. I refuse to put myself through that kind of stress now. I have learned that the extra buck just isn’t worth it.

With all that said and done, I need to prepare for this morning’s drive to the city. The hill is negotiable, rush hour is nearly over, and I’ve got a new CD that will rock me all the way there. Life is good.

Sending you SMILES!

Luv from the Bush in Quebec.