Alexandra's Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day

3: The number of hours Kaitlyn and I spent in a training today until we snapped.

Kaitlyn and I have been collaborating with a local business who wanted to train 23 members of it's staff on benefits for the OBB. We don't usually plan extra trainings, but because there were so many people who wanted the training, and because they all had laptops and wireless internet, we decided to make an exception.

We rarely both attend a training, either, but as there were so many new counselors, in an unfamiliar place, we made another exception.

Kaitlyn had had an enormous class last Friday at Miami Hamilton, so we both went to that one, too. Kaitlyn did most of the talking while I went around to people who were struggling and helped them catch up. We were going to switch roles today; I would lead the training and Kaitlyn would make sure everyone was on the same page. With our system from last week, we figured today's trainng would go just as smoothly as that had. It did not.

Although we were told that all 23 counselors would have their own laptop and reliable internet access, this was not the case. In fact, only about 15 people showed up, and two of them hadn't brought their laptops. The internet was a complete disaster; it took forever for anyone to get signed on, and even then it was erratic. Someone's internet died every 10-15 minutes.

Sadly, this wasn't the worst part of the class.

The entire time I was there, I felt like I was babysitting a bunch of sixth-graders. I think that, because everyone already worked together, they were all really comfortable just goofing off and chatting to one another. I literally did not have their attention for more than 15 seconds at a time. When the third cell phone rang I was just like, "Okay, everyone. Can we turn off the cell phones, please? That's the third one that has gone off." I mean, really? When you heard the first one ring, didn't that REMIND you to turn off you own? I didn't think I'd have to remind them. They're adults.

Everyone was so disrespectful. My voice got steadily louder and I was much more firm, but it didn't sway them. It was completely out of control. I don't know if it's because they thought we were too young to know anything or what, but I have never been more frustrated in my life.

Some examples:

• We asked counselors--several times--to pair up because we were having so many problems with the computers. We still ended up with a group of one and a group of three. They just weren't grasping the concept of "pairing up."
• One man stood up in the middle of the scenario and went back to his own computer. When asked if there was a problem, he said he was done. They had been working for 15 minutes. They weren't done.
• I don't think we had everyone in the room at a time throughout the day. People were wandering in and out constantly. Could you not have gotten your coffee during that 20 minute break when we were trying to get everyone online?
• Kaitlyn overheared one person say there wasn't a social security number for the woman in the scenario. She interceded, and said that she did have one. The man then said that he thought they were supposed to just make someone up. Why? Why would I have gotten you through the first few steps of the Alice Nelson scenario and tell you to keep your books open on page 73 if I wanted you to BS the whole thing?

It was, without a doubt, the worst training either of us had ever been to. No one heard a word I said because they NEVER STOPPED TALKING. We eventually called Jessica and let her know what was up. We talked to the site supervisor. We discussed it with each other. And we decided to pull the plug on the training at noon and finish it another day, at a place with reliable internet access. This is why we don't usually set up special trainings for one agency. We already have reliable training sites. We're going to stick with them.

It was awful. I am not looking forward to seeing them all again to finish the training. Kaitlyn and I have already decided to go together for part II. If I had been by myself today, I would probably be cowering in a corner somewhere.

And now when I send them the next class announcement for round II, I'm going to have to remind them to turn their cell phones off, tell them not to talk when I am talking, and to take this seriously.

Or I could just say, "This is not a 3rd-grade field trip. This is a business-related training. Please behave like adults, or you will be asked to leave the class."

Tempting.

Necessary.

The Trouble With Snow Is...

45: The number of minutes my car was stuck in the snow Tuesday.

As everyone is probably aware, we've gotten oodles of snow over the past couple of weeks. It seems like whenever we took the time to bundle up and shovel the driveway, Mother Nature would drop another 6+ inches of snow in Fairfield.

This week has been particularly tricky. My drive home from work Monday was terrifying, to say the least. The roads were completely covered in a fine layer of ice. I slipped and slid all the way home, but made it back safe and sound.

I think the roads were marginally better on Tuesday, but I can't be sure because I never made it out of my driveway. The snow plow that had come in the middle of the night had pretty much trapped me in. Of course, I didn't realize this until my car got stuck in the middle of the street and the driveway. (See below)




Fortunately we live on a dead-end street, so no angry drivers came by. But it did take my mom and me 30-45 minutes to dig it out.

Needless to say, I worked from home Tuesday.

The roads are a lot better now than they have been, and it hasn't really snowed in a few days. But the parking lot at Shared Harvest is an absolute catastrophe. It's never actually been a good parking lot. There aren't a lot of places to park, so people usually park on the grass. But as the grass is currently buried beneath about a foot of snow, everyone has been cramming themselves wherever they see blacktop. The result of such a system is pictured below:

The good news is that you're never too old to play in the snow. I am just dying for Steve to go on the intercom someday and say "Attention, Shared Harvest employees. A snowball fight will begin in the parking lot at 12:15 ... Snowball fight at 12:15."

IN OTHER NEWS: Here is my cat, Albert, playing in the snow.

Tax Clinic Gurus

3: The number of Saturdays I have to work in a row.

Before I begin, here is a picture of some ENORMOUS icicles Kaitlyn and I saw when we were driving around Darke County last week. Aren't they insane?
I just wanted to share that. Kaitlyn thinks I have a slight obsession with icicles.

Shared Harvest Foodbank has been trying to kick off a tax clinic for the past couple of years, but always ran into a few speedbumps. The clinic was called off one year because of a snowstorm, and another year no one even showed up. But things were a lot different this year. Third time's definitely a charm.

Seven counselors, including Kaitlyn and me, came to work bright and early Saturday morning ready to do people's taxes. Kaitlyn and I had spent the last couple of weeks hanging tax flyers, taking phone calls, and referring people to the clinic. We encouraged people to make appointments with us, but we also let it be known that we would accept walk-in clients. We were pretty determined to make this year's tax clinic a success.

And it was! We had six people come in who had made an appointment with us. I so wish I had a picture of Kaitlyn's face when we found out that one of the people who came in had heard about us through a flyer we had hung at the laundromat. It was pure joy.

Anyway, the clinic went really well. We didn't have any technical difficulties, the counselors were all comfortable with the software and hardly had any problems. And we didn't have any walk-in clients come in, but we're still extremely pleased with how everything turned out.

I have to help out at another tax clinic next Saturday, and the Saturday after that I have a training to do in Darke County, so I'm going to be busy for a while. I'm excited for my next 2-day weekend, whenever that may be.

IN OTHER NEWS: My Dad's birthday was on Valentine's Day. Happy birthday, Dad!

Working in a Winter Wonderland

6-8: The additional inches of snow we're expected to get by the end of the day.

Nearly every school in Butler county was closed today because of the snow. There were hardly any cars on the road this morning. I know this because the Shared Harvest Foodbank doesn't shut its doors for trivial things like fierce winter storms.

The reason being is that Shared Harvest is considered an emergency service, so even if there's a level 4 snow emergency going on out there, we still have to show up to work. Which makes sense, really. What doesn't make sense is why some of the other businesses on our street are still resolutely shoveling their sidewalks, only to have to shovel them again in a half hour. I just can't see people braving this storm to go out and buy boating accessories right now.

Well, the good news is that it is absolutely gorgeous outside. It's snowing like crazy, the ground is covered in a sheet of white, and the trees are sparkling with ice.

The bad news is that I don't face the window at work, so this is what I'll be looking at today:

Facepalm

8: About the number of inches of snow we got over the weekend.

I have incredibly fantastical news---my insurance company finally paid off my health bills! After months and months of re-calling, double-checking, and head-banging, that whole entire mess with my ankle is finally cleared up. When I was younger I used to wonder why adults always refused to go to the doctor when they felt sick. And now I realize that it's probably because they don't feel like dealing with their insurance companies.

Makes perfect sense to me now.

And now I have to get something off my chest. I've compiled a list of three simple rules to keep in mind when talking to your friendly neighborhood OBB counselors:

1. Read the e-mails we send. They most likely hold the answers you are calling/e-mailing us about.

2: Listen to the words I say. I was at a training a few weeks ago and someone asked me,
"Do you usually send out training dates ahead of time? Because I haven't seen the dates for next month yet."
I responded with, "Yes we do, but the woman who usually does it is on maternity leave and the Southeast regional coordinator is taking over for her. She's pretty backed up, but we'll have those dates out in the next couple of days."
He then condescendingly said, "Well what I'm ASKING is...do you usually send those out ahead of time?"
"....YES."

3. If you opt not to follow the aforementioned rules, do not yell at me as if it were my fault you didn't get the information. There's only so much I can do.

Thanks, everyone.

Happy Birthday Me!

23: My age today!

I'm not sure why, but 22 seems a lot younger than 23. I seem to remember thinking the same thing about 21 when I turned 22.

It doesn't really feel like my birthday today. Maybe it's because I haven't really had much time to anticipate it...I spent most of last week buried under a pile of blankets with Nyquil and a box of tissues. I'm feeling a lot better. Just a residual cough.

Anyway, yesterday Kaitlyn and I drove up to Dayton Urban Ministry to help them out with their tax clinic. We arrived a half hour early, made sure we understood which computer went to which printer, and logged in to the OBB Web site, ready to help people do their taxes.

I guess by now I should be used to the fact that hardly anything turns out perfectly, no matter how much you prepare.

There were only four counselors available to help clients, including Kaitlyn and me, and because of computer/space issues, only three were actually able to sit down with people. A line had already formed in the next room over. And the internet was just horribly, horribly slow. It took several minutes just to go to the next page. Everything took twice as long.

Hardly anyone had brought their 2008 AGI or PIN, which you need to electronically sign/file your 2009 taxes, so a lot of people had to make calls to the IRS, where of course no one was answering.

Fortunately, Kaitlyn had the good sense to bring out our laptops, which ran a lot faster. We each helped clients on our laptops, then brought it up on the desktop when we had to print something off, which still took up a lot of time. We were only able to see two clients each. But all of them got some money back, and that's always good to see.

The second guy I saw was like a breath of fresh air. We were still using the slow desktops and I was getting a little frustrated. He just said to me, "Don't worry about it, I don't mind waiting a little!" and then we realized he didn't have his 2008 AGI or PIN he said he would just paper file. He actually said, "I'm in no rush!"

I wanted to thank him profusely for being so rational. Most people are in the biggest rush of their lives to get their taxes done. It was nice to meet someone who realized that it's not the end of the world if they have to wait a few days longer to get their refund.