It is one and a half months now. My job life has started, for the first time in India. This is after 5 and half years when I and J's papa are working together again. In last 5 and half years we were either not in one place when we both were working or I was not working when we were living together. It therefore needed some recap of those days when both of us used to get up, get our tea, get ready and go to our respective offices.
The job has created some new ripples in our little world of three and we all got little off the stage to adjust with the new routine.
This time unlike the last ones, I have a 9-6 job, 9 hours fixed, cards get swiped, time gets noted, work gets done.
Time keeping is very important in my recent work. I, in contrast dwell in the layers of time. My new job demands lots of time calculation. Hope I will learn the skill now. I am trying to use up the nine hours in office to its fullest and then shut the computer and my mind from work.
J is happy as at least she does not have to go to a new city/country again because of mamma's job. She is absolutely fine now with mummy working 5 days a week. A scene unimaginable when she was one, two or even five years old for that matter. I had extreme hard time putting her in kindergarten in the morning in those days. Now she is totally cool with her mother going for a job. A relief for me. That day when I asked her whether she feels bad on returning home from school? She said, "Not at all, I get to play a lot with others". On asking "J, are you happy as mummy is working again?" Her reply was prompt, "Yes, off course, you told me to give lots of gifts once you get a job, remember."
My job also led to other developments in our life style and that is inclusion of more than one domestic help in our daily routine.
India is a country were domestic helps are easy to get and difficult to retain. After dilly-dallying for few weeks I also entered in the loop of maid, baby sitter, chauffeur kind of a life style. Baby sitter is needed as no after school programme is there in the schools. There are private day cares but then 'J' has to be chauffeured from her school to the day care at the school end. A difficult task. Institute day care is still on developmental stages in many of the government run organisation. But things are getting better with each year. With my lack of confidence on driving and lack of proper public transport in typical Indian cities - a chauffeur came as an time saving answer to travel to and fro from work, expenses are high though. Things go super smooth if the whole team work together in harmony. But the uncertainty is too large for that harmony. Many days one or the other does not come and we end up doing chores on our own, so for now slowly we are also building the machine based support that we got used to of, while living in Europe. A middle way to find a balance.
Next big bang came on my back it self. Constant sitting in front of the computer brought lots of pain on my lower back, poor posture said the doctor. So I am trying to take breaks in between ticking off the to-do list. Little walk up and down the stairs, drinking a cup of coffee while standing near the cubicle of other colleagues, putting my feet firmly on the ground and not let it just loosely touch the ground (yes, I am a short woman) are some of the changes I am trying to bring in my regular sedentary work. Also some exercises are provided by a nice and soft spoken physiotherapist that day. I am trying to do them without fail.
Weekends have become too tight and I am not finding enough time for my proper baking classes. I am working on them. I need to figure that out as the kids have started enjoying cooking/baking. They have started bringing new ideas and they do look forward to saturday baking classes. Socialising/outdoors/shopping/chores all seems to be to tough to handle in two sandwiched days between two work weeks, where heart wants just to lie and read.
After mostly wearing jeans and shirt/T shirts to work for last ten years, I was little skeptical in my newfound corporate world about the formal dress code. But it seems I am enjoying wearing Salwar-Kameez just as I used to, while I was in university. I am enjoying cooking different kinds of lunch to take in my lunch box. Lunch hour at office is a free flowing time where many of my colleagues to have lunch together. A time not devoid of recipe exchange, gossips and discussion on new movie or fashion!
It seems to me that the new kind of days have started falling into routines and the ripples will either stay or fade away-that only time will say.
The job has created some new ripples in our little world of three and we all got little off the stage to adjust with the new routine.
This time unlike the last ones, I have a 9-6 job, 9 hours fixed, cards get swiped, time gets noted, work gets done.
Time keeping is very important in my recent work. I, in contrast dwell in the layers of time. My new job demands lots of time calculation. Hope I will learn the skill now. I am trying to use up the nine hours in office to its fullest and then shut the computer and my mind from work.
J is happy as at least she does not have to go to a new city/country again because of mamma's job. She is absolutely fine now with mummy working 5 days a week. A scene unimaginable when she was one, two or even five years old for that matter. I had extreme hard time putting her in kindergarten in the morning in those days. Now she is totally cool with her mother going for a job. A relief for me. That day when I asked her whether she feels bad on returning home from school? She said, "Not at all, I get to play a lot with others". On asking "J, are you happy as mummy is working again?" Her reply was prompt, "Yes, off course, you told me to give lots of gifts once you get a job, remember."
My job also led to other developments in our life style and that is inclusion of more than one domestic help in our daily routine.
India is a country were domestic helps are easy to get and difficult to retain. After dilly-dallying for few weeks I also entered in the loop of maid, baby sitter, chauffeur kind of a life style. Baby sitter is needed as no after school programme is there in the schools. There are private day cares but then 'J' has to be chauffeured from her school to the day care at the school end. A difficult task. Institute day care is still on developmental stages in many of the government run organisation. But things are getting better with each year. With my lack of confidence on driving and lack of proper public transport in typical Indian cities - a chauffeur came as an time saving answer to travel to and fro from work, expenses are high though. Things go super smooth if the whole team work together in harmony. But the uncertainty is too large for that harmony. Many days one or the other does not come and we end up doing chores on our own, so for now slowly we are also building the machine based support that we got used to of, while living in Europe. A middle way to find a balance.
Next big bang came on my back it self. Constant sitting in front of the computer brought lots of pain on my lower back, poor posture said the doctor. So I am trying to take breaks in between ticking off the to-do list. Little walk up and down the stairs, drinking a cup of coffee while standing near the cubicle of other colleagues, putting my feet firmly on the ground and not let it just loosely touch the ground (yes, I am a short woman) are some of the changes I am trying to bring in my regular sedentary work. Also some exercises are provided by a nice and soft spoken physiotherapist that day. I am trying to do them without fail.
Weekends have become too tight and I am not finding enough time for my proper baking classes. I am working on them. I need to figure that out as the kids have started enjoying cooking/baking. They have started bringing new ideas and they do look forward to saturday baking classes. Socialising/outdoors/shopping/chores all seems to be to tough to handle in two sandwiched days between two work weeks, where heart wants just to lie and read.
After mostly wearing jeans and shirt/T shirts to work for last ten years, I was little skeptical in my newfound corporate world about the formal dress code. But it seems I am enjoying wearing Salwar-Kameez just as I used to, while I was in university. I am enjoying cooking different kinds of lunch to take in my lunch box. Lunch hour at office is a free flowing time where many of my colleagues to have lunch together. A time not devoid of recipe exchange, gossips and discussion on new movie or fashion!
It seems to me that the new kind of days have started falling into routines and the ripples will either stay or fade away-that only time will say.
I like the sound of your new work place :) Good to know people still go to work in salwar kameez, I did that 10 years back. But the Westside and Pantaloons give such a hip idea of the new India, I am under the false illusion that every other place barring Kolkata has raced ahead probably.
ReplyDeleteAlso I totally get the harmony of help part. When people crib about doing all the work here, I think it is good that we depend on ourselves. Had a hard time sync-ing with the maid when in B'lore