Hump day sappiness

ShallowSeas · May 2014

Half way through the week!! Some of you may know by my OLW posts that I tend to be really frustrated with my job. I work in the mental health department of a maximum security prison with juvenile offenders. I run groups and try my hardest to help these kids make a change in their life but unfortunately, we get a lot of repeat offenders come through and its frustrating to see these kids being released and then coming back a couple months later because they have re-offended or being killed on the streets, which sadly happened this weekend. I've been very frustrated lately and have had several "what am I doing with my life?!" moments over the past couple months and have even started looking for other jobs.

Today, just now actually, I was looking for other jobs when I got a call from an officer who said an offender wanted me to have something. It was an essay he had written (we have an accredited high school at the prison) about what a true friend is, and in the essay he listed me as one of the people here who has helped him the most and seemed to trust him. I got teary-eyed reading it; it made my day and I really needed that.

So thats my sap story for the day

How is everyones' Wednesday/week going?

carliealissa · May 2014

That's wonderful . I've had similarly emotionally draining jobs (child welfare) and it can be so difficult, I understand where you're coming from. What other types of jobs are you interested in, do you know?

I've had a rough morning so far. Found out yesterday that someone close to me just had loved ones involved in a murder suicide. Although I didn't know them, it is such a horrific thing to happen and I am feeling so terrible for my close person and others I know who knew them. I wish there was anything I could do. I also shed a few tears at work which is just awkward.

[Deleted User] · May 2014

Awww @severmilli12- I love those moments when you realize that even through all the frustration and stress that what you're doing is all for a greater purpose!

So far our week has been good. H wanted to start eating Paleo again so we are on that track again. The last time we did it, it worked really well and we both lost some weight and gained muscle in the process. Besides that I've been focusing on packing some stuff and just cleaning around the apartment. This week should be pretty low key compared to last week.

Last week was one of those weeks where I felt like I had a weight on my shoulders the whole week so I'm glad this is a lighter week.

LizzyTish88 · May 2014

@Severmilli12 That is such a sweet story. Although it sucks at times, it's so great that these kids have people like you to help them along. You should be very proud of what you do.

This week has been hectic. My parents are throwing us a housewarming party this weekend so we've been trying to get the house ready for that. BF has been working so hard in the house and yard and things are looking great. Other than that, pretty low key.

labro · May 2014

Love that story Sev! It's so sweet!

My week is going fairly well other than sitting in some godawful traffic this morning. FI and I got a quote yesterday to have about 40 trees removed from our front and backyard (mostly nuisance trees like tulip poplars, pines, and sweetgums) and they came back with an amount that was MUCH better than what we were expecting so we're definitely moving forward with them. They're going to use a giant crane to remove the trees in the front because we have a bunch of bushes and some other trees we don't want removed. I'm kind of excited to watch! Our trees in the backyard are seriously killing our grass and some of them are a hazard to the house because the former owners never properly kept the trees thinned out. I'm looking forward to getting the backyard landscaped into more of what we want and have it be less like a mini forest.

We also had our neighbor's landscaping company come over yesterday to dig in some drainage pipe to help fix some water issues in our backyard. Basically most of the water from our roof empties into one section of the yard so they buried our gutters and connected them to the pipe to help move the water away to an area where they will drain off faster without creating a bunch of standing water.

Blackbird230 · May 2014

Yesterday I finally made a breakthrough with the horse I've been gaining trust with. I was able to catch him, bring him in from the field and give him a good grooming. His name is Bo.

buddysmom80 · May 2014

So we we sent out our STDs on Saturday because FI was so excited and he couldn't wait. I've been getting text messages, calls and emails non-stop from people who are so excited for our wedding. People that I didn't even think would want to go (dad's old work friends, FI's friends, etc.) are all excited! FWIW, with my dad's friends, they got the STD, called my dad, my dad told them there would be open bar and they circled back to me to be like "yeahhhh, we'll be there!!!!"

labro · May 2014

@buddysmom80 YAY! So glad you got your STDs sent out! I'm bummed though....we heard from hardly ANYONE about our STDs after we sent them out. I'm glad you're getting so much positive feedback from your friends and family!

loves2shop4shoes · May 2014

That's a sweet story.

Honestly, your job does sound tough, but the amount of impact you have the ability to make, even if it's on just a select few kids, is profound. It's unrealistic that everyone in a correctional facility will be helped, or even has the ability to be helped at any given time. That's not a reflection on your.
keep doing what you're doing. Obviously you made an impact on that one kid, and I'd be surprised if it wasn't many more in the future.

blabla89 · May 2014

That is sooo sweet @severmilli12! I'm sure you're making a bigger impact than you realize. When I look back at the people who made a difference in my life, I realize that I didn't appreciate some of those people at the time, but now I see how much they've helped me.

Blue & White · May 2014

@LaPeanut1018 well I think you must have had my address wrong for the STD which is why I didn't blow up your newsfeed the second I got it!

I'm not that sappy today..hmm...I'm seeing my sister next Tuesday!! So I'm excited about that and it's sappy in a big sis/little sis kinda way!

Hummingbird125 · May 2014

I'm feeling sappy today about FI. I get frustrated with him at times, but he's just so damn perfect for me. I was frustrated with how I felt/looked last night, and he just said the sweetest things to me without even realizing how much I needed to hear them. We also talked a little bit about having kids, and his job, etc, and I'm just so happy that we are entirely on the same page about those things. I just cannot wait to marry and have babies with that man :-)

[Deleted User] · May 2014

Dear @Lapeanut1018

GO TO QT OR RACETRACK WITH ME SO I CAN GET SOME NOMS COFFEE YO!

PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

ETA: meant for OLW but I don't care anymore.

GoldenPenguin · May 2014

Hummingbird125 said:

I'm feeling sappy today about FI BF. I get frustrated with him at times, but he's just so damn perfect for me. I was frustrated with how I felt/looked last night, and he just said the sweetest things to me without even realizing how much I needed to hear them. We also talked a little bit about having kids, and his job, etc, and I'm just so happy that we are entirely on the same page about those things. I just cannot wait to marry and have babies with that man :-)

SITB: (I REALLY hate this formatting sometimes. FUCK.)

All of this (except the crossed out parts, obviously). We did the same thing last night, and it made my heart swell three times its size. I'm the motherfucking Grinch of love.

LizzyTish88 · May 2014

GoldenPenguin said:

Hummingbird125 said:

I'm feeling sappy today about FI BF. I get frustrated with him at times, but he's just so damn perfect for me. I was frustrated with how I felt/looked last night, and he just said the sweetest things to me without even realizing how much I needed to hear them. We also talked a little bit about having kids, and his job, etc, and I'm just so happy that we are entirely on the same page about those things. I just cannot wait to marry and have babies with that man :-)

SITB: (I REALLY hate this formatting sometimes. FUCK.)

All of this (except the crossed out parts, obviously). We did the same thing last night, and it made my heart swell three times its size. I'm the motherfucking Grinch of love.

HAHAHA. I just DIED. @GoldenPenguin

phira · May 2014

That is so wonderful to hear. J was in social work for a while and had to quit because it was just so emotionally difficult. It's an enormous emotional burden. But the importance of the work you're doing is astronomically huge. Even if you don't stay at your job, or in a similar field, the role you've played in these young people's lives cannot be undone, in the best possible way.

ShallowSeas · May 2014

Thanks everyone for the kind words

I hung his essay in my office so hopefully when I start feeling frustrated I can use that as a reminder that what I'm doing isn't completely pointless like it sometimes feels.

Hump day sappiness

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