The last time I worked overnights, I was in my 20s and living in Indiana. I was employed by the Indiana Department of Corrections at the time.That periods seems like eons ago.
I’m now moonlighting as a funeral attendant. Some people still call them undertakers. Some of the duties are as you’d imagine.
The last 24 hours have been particularly hectic in the funeral business.
Sometimes I get to drive the coach.
Holiday shoppers took a hit in 2013 when stormy weather right around Christmas resulted in tens of thousands of shoppers not being able to get packages to their intended destinations on time. Not only was it disastrous for shoppers, but retailers took a hit, also.
If shoppers and retailers don’t want a repeat of last year’s Christmas nightmare, package deliverer UPS surely is banking on better delivery results. The company was barraged by criticism last year when the company failed in delivering thousands of packages by Christmas Eve. Brown insists it’s well-prepared to make this a merrier Christmas in 2014, even as increased online shopping is likely to put greater strain on the company and its rivals.
Brown getting it done.
On Saturday morning, the thermometer near our mudroom entrance read minus 20. That’s cold! On Monday afternoon that same thermometer was reading 50 degrees, a remarkable shift of 70 degrees in two and a half days.
We are experiencing greater extremes and fluctuations in our weather. Both sides on the issue of climate change attempt to use this to score points in their favor. If inclined to trust in science, the data indicates that something’s up with our weather. Continue reading
[Note: Various reports and articles indicate that by 2020, as much as 50 percent of the U.S. workforce will be comprised of freelance workers. I’m already there.–jb]
I’ve been at this free agent game long enough that I should know the routine this time of year. It’s prospecting time. Almost all of my activities are devoted to getting new things into the JBE pipeline. Continue reading
Last night was the second in a series of what will be nine contiguous nights chasing the moonlight as a seasonal employee on assignment. I’ve been doing this work just long enough now that I’m able to really focus on the callers, as well as my surroundings, and less on the technical components of navigating the order fulfillment system. It’s what I refer to as “being in the zone,” at least when it comes to being an order taker. Continue reading
When consumers call, someone must pick up on the other end.
We live in an age of transitions; at least that’s what we’re being sold. Gone are the glory days of union-wage jobs and pension funds. “Bring on the free agents” cry the 21st century prophets (or perhaps, profiteers) that tell us that all we need is a better, or more diverse tool set to succeed in the new economy.
Moonlighting—that age-old tradition of holding a 2nd job in addition to your primary wage-earning position—is something that more than 8 million Americans are engaged in. I’m one of those, juggling multiple paying gigs, all adding up to one mess of 1099s and a coming tax-paying train wreck of an employment situation. Continue reading