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Yearly Archives: 2006
May 15, 2024    |      0 comments

Electric Lawnmower Purchased

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I bit the bullet and purchased a lawn mower. Electric, self propelled, and the right size for my yard. Here she is in all her beauty.

Ryobi electric lawnmower

And the guys (my two daughter’s friends) were super excited to try it out. Phew, a few more weeks until I have to start doing it myself.

I greatly appreciate the push toward electric. With the smaller size of my yard, the lower maintenance yard we are working towards, and my angst at having to maintain a lawnmower, this seems to be the solution to all my problems. I deep dived into reviews and was down to the Greenworks and the Ryobi.

I’ve had great success with all my power tools that are Ryobi and it’s available locally, so decided to go that direction. The last decision was self-propelled or not, which was about a $70 difference. I decided to bite the bullet and give myself the easier way out…or so I’ve heard.

It’s so easy to start compared to our previous gas mowers which I always struggled with. And it’s super quite, well, until you start the blades.

And a huge selling point for me was that it folds up so you can store it vertically. Since I have no real storage for outside tools, that will make a huge difference. My carport is already pretty tight so having this stand or hang on a wall, will allow me to still park my car under cover.

That cost $399. By my math, I have to cut my own yard 8 times to make that back since I was previously paying $50 every two weeks for yard maintenance in the summer months.

And frankly, I am not dreading the actual work as much as I was previously. Well, a little bit less.

 

May 13, 2024    |       3 comments

Layoffs and Low Workplace Morale

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My job has been a bit rough lately. I’m in academia and the university I work for has recently handed down major budget cuts from central administration. The cuts are sweeping and are affecting every department, even those that had been doing well financially (like mine!). As part of the mandatory cuts, my Department Head recently had to let go of one staff member and one faculty member.

I’ve never worked anywhere before when layoffs like this have occurred. It’s just the worst. Many folks in the office have developed personal friendships with colleagues and losing a team member means more work for everyone else. It all begs the question..

How do you all handle super low morale in your workplace?

I have a leadership role within my unit and I know others will be looking to me in the wake of these layoffs. People want reassurance that their positions are safe and there’s a whole mix of emotions right now – sad, mad, scared, etc. And just on an interpersonal level, morale is in the gutter. I don’t want to be insensitive to the situation, but is there a way to help folks cope with the losses and to move toward a more positive work environment?

I’d love to hear about others’ thoughts or past experiences. Right now is such a tough time. Inflation means so many people are living paycheck-to-paycheck. And when you know people personally – know their kids names and sports and their hobbies and interests, etc. – it makes it that much harder to lose them during economic downturns.

And at the same time, everyone wants to enjoy their workplace. We spend so much of our lives at work – it’s terrible for it to feel like an icky place to go in the morning. We’ve historically had so much comradery and our teams are so close. I’d hate to see these losses cause permanent damage to the culture of the department.

Any sage advice from others who have walked this path before?

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