11:18pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Tuesday night, December 28, 2022. Mom made it safely to Wyoming without my accompanying her. The accomplishment was a team effort; my daughter’s mom drove her to the airport, my daughter and her friend got her through check in and finally, a family acquaintance picked her up in Salt Lake City for the drive back to Wyoming. I am glad she made it and, to be honest, happy I didn’t have to go. This weekend gave me a chance to relax and change perspective regarding work. Now I feel less stressed. If I had missed work yesterday I would have fallen back into the same energy as before. I needed a change. Fortunately there are only three more work days until 2023. Time to make the best of them.
Tag: Palm Desert
A long week ahead
6:27pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Monday night, December, 26, 2022. Came to Palm Desert instead of staying in Aliso Viejo tonight. Originally the plan was to take Tuesday off, fly to Salt Lake City with mom, turn around, fly back, then drive to Palm Desert Wednesday afternoon. However, the clinical manager here in Palm Desert had a family emergency so, she is not available to open the office tomorrow. I altered my vacation plans to be here as needed. Unfortunately, that meant traveling on an extremely busy afternoon. A drive that normally takes 2 hours took closer to four. I am tired and getting ready for bed. It feels like this is going to be a long week.
Ready for the week to be done
7:17pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Thursday night, December 22, 2022. I had to provide a counseling form to an employee today. Such matter are never easy, not for me, nor the employee involved. Unfortunately, the situation escalated to needing a second, more intense, conversation in the afternoon. Which will now be followed by a final discussion tomorrow. At this point, all my energy is drained. I am ready for the week to be done and to move on to our holiday celebration. Tomorrow afternoon mom and I return to Orange County. Hopefully the trip goes well and we can get some last minute shopping in before enjoying time as a family.
Wednesday, day 3 in Palm Desert, California
6:17pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Wednesday evening, December 21, 2022. We are still in Palm Desert for a couple more days. I have been going to the office and working. Mom mostly hangs out in the room and goes down to the lobby for breakfast. Though reportedly, she went for a short walk today. My daughter’s mom texted this morning; she was diagnosed with pneumonia last night, which explains the shortness of breath. She is feeling a little better but, needs to take it easy the next couple of days. My daughter feels better as well. She has a cough and tires easily but otherwise is doing alright. Of course, it was reported she plays online until 4am with friends in Australia so, it probably isn’t illness sapping her energy. I look forward to Christmas. We are going to drive up to Valencia on Saturday and spend time with family before officially celebrating the holiday in Orange County.
Night one: sharing a room with mom
7:22am, pacific standard time, hotel lobby in Palm Desert, California, USA, Tuesday morning, December 20, 2022. My mom and I made it through the first night sharing a hotel room with only a king bed. The couch pulled out for a surprisingly comfortable hide-a-bed and the desk has rollers for an impromptu partisan. This morning I woke up early to exercise then stayed in the lobby drinking coffee and watching sports. At 7am I went back up to shower, get dressed and reassemble the couch. Mom is still asleep and I am downstairs for another cup of coffee before heading to the office. It isn’t perfect but, we are making the best of the situation.
Monday before Christmas
6:34pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Monday night, December 19, 2022. The family is still a little under the weather today. I stopped by this morning to walk the dog and drop off tea before driving to Palm Desert. My daughter and her friend were asleep but, her mom was in the living room watching television. She was thankful I was able to help before departing for the week. I got out of Orange County at noon and arrived at 2:30pm. My mom is with me this trip. I thought I booked a suite with a separate bedroom but there isn’t much privacy. We are going to share the room to save money but we might have to rebook. I am getting too old to sleep on the pullout couch in a hotel room and neither of us are keen on sharing a sleeping space.
Leave in the morning
5:35pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Thursday night, December 15, 2022. The plan was to return to Aliso Viejo tonight and leave for Salt Lake City in the morning. However, with everyone being sick, I decided to stay an extra night in Palm Desert and drive to Orange County early. So far I have not gotten sick but, I do feel a slight headache right now. Hopefully, it is from a change in weather and not because I have Covid.
They have Covid
6:09pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Wednesday night, December 14, 2022. Turns out my daughter and her mom have Covid. No wonder they were feeling under the weather this week. My daughter seems to be fairing well but, her mom is more symptomatic. I am feeling alright so far, which is good. Friday I fly to Salt Lake City to meet my mom and fly back with her to Orange County. I called her this evening to let her know the situation. She just got a Covid booster shot so, she isn’t overly concerned. We are moving forward with the original plan and will celebrate the holidays together.
Monday in Aliso Viejo
8:26pm, pacific standard time, apartment in Aliso Viejo, California, USA, Monday night, December, 12, 2022. My daughter and her mom are both sick. I originally stayed the extra day because her mom had a court case to attend and needed me to take our daughter to school. Instead, I spent the day with my daughter while she stayed home. The extra day away from the office was nice but, it is hard to fully engage through email. I will head out early and get to Palm Desert around noon tomorrow. There are only a couple days before I fly to Salt Lake City to pick up my mom for the holidays.
An extra day at home coming up
6:11pm, pacific standard time, hotel in Palm Desert, California, USA, Thursday night, December 8, 2022. The last day of meetings galore. Finally. This week felt incredibly long and I need a break from work. My daughter’s mom needs to go to Los Angeles on Monday so I am going to stay in Orange County until Tuesday morning. Normally I would feel bad about missing a day in the office but, the timing feels really fortuitous. I am just going to appreciate the circumstance and enjoy an extra day at home.
mikemeyer949 