New Job (And further scrambling...)

I haven't posted for a couple of weeks because I've been so darn busy. I took on another job. And didn't quit any. Which means I lost my 1 day per week that I had "off" (except for class).

I'm not sure it was the best decision, but it was the one that felt most right to me at the time. I got a call on Friday before the college quarter started on Monday, from the biology department at my local state university. One of their part time instructors had to leave town quickly due to a family emergency, and could I fill in teaching some labs this quarter?

I had put my application in to the part time pool months earlier; before I got the job at the retirement community, before I started my phlebotomy class. Before everything. And I didn't hear anything until now.

It's the department & school I got my bachelor's degree in, and it pays better than my retirement home job. And I just feel better being able to say "yes, I work two jobs, one as a biology instructor at X university and the other as a receptionist at X retirement home." I feel like that's some how more comfortable to say as someone with a master's degree than just "I'm a receptionist." Also, my previous experiences in teaching have been pretty fun. And I figured even though it wasn't ideal timing, this would be a "foot in the door" so to speak, and I might get further appointments with them later.

So now I'm working 7 days per week, about 60 hours per week, and still don't have benefits. And I am no longer able to volunteer at the hospitals on Saturday (temporarily) because in order to get the week days off that I needed to teach, I had to take on an additional weekend day at the retirement home.

In November, one of my coworkers who's been off on maternity leave, will be coming back to work, and she usually takes the weekend hours, so I can get rid of Saturday then (and go back to the hospital volunteering).

It's just all really unfortunate timing. On top of everything, my volunteer buddy (we share the Saturday shift) at the hospital has just been diagnosed with stomach cancer. I went in last Saturday to volunteer expecting her to be at the front desk and she was in a patient bed instead. Poor lady. I brought her a potted plant and talked to her for half an hour or so.

So I need to find someone to cover Saturdays for the next 4 weeks now, which is close to impossible. We're hiring someone new at the retirement place, and she starts next week. She said she'd like more hours, so maybe once she's trained up I can give her Saturday day shift.