I'm losing my mind. There's been a thumping noise inside my left ear for 24 hours now. It happened before and lasted for three days. I thought it had gone away, but I was wrong; it's back. I've looked it up on Dr. Google* and it's a "middle ear myoclonus" or muscle spasm in the middle ear. It seems as if there's no cure. It's driving me mad. It's random, sometimes it's a slow rhythmic thump, sometimes it's like a machine gun (not as loud, but that rapid). It goes away and then it comes back. Nothing I've tried has worked, including hot compresses, massage, decongestants, antihistamines, anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants, Vitamin B, magnesium, caffeine, no caffeine, food, salt, screaming, and pounding on my head. It may be triggered by moving my left arm and shoulder, which, yeah, lemme stop doing that. Temporary relief seems to come from enough Advil and Valium to make me dopey and sit real still, but that peace is shattered as soon as a cat starts hollering at me, like they do. I couldn't sleep much last night, and today I'm useless. I feel lucky this didn't happen this weekend when I was getting stuff done. I've called out sick to work but I can't do that every time this happens. I don't know what do. I'm so on edge I yelled at my poor cat for scratching the sofa (though he knows he shouldn't do that and never does except for attention, but I don't yell. All the cats are now quietly in the tree, so I guess they're not traumatized by my little breakdown).

*(jeezis, it's scary there, I was half convinced I'd had a stroke or a brain tumor)

I do try to at least have a sweater available to put on, that's why I feel weird! I think I left it on my porch.

These are like crotch length shorts, but it is really hot and she has to walk a long way.

I also could really care less because she is not customer facing except on specific days she knows about, but there are busy bodies from other departments and HR who have reported my student before to my boss.

I think I will wait until she leaves and say I know it is hot, but shorts should be mid thigh? Is that a good length? She is very tall and has very long legs so it is hard to judge. I would really like them to not be crotch length.

The rule at schools here is "shorts must be longer than the fingertips when standing." That usually equals mid-thigh.

If you speak to her, I would mention that you know it's hot, but there have been complaints about student attire in the past, so you have to have a policy.

I have no idea how long shorts should be in an office, because I've never worked in one that allowed them? I think longer than fingertips is a pretty common length for school stuff?

I went for a run at dawn and it was already kinda too hot and muggy. Then when I got home and looked at the time it was actually time to drive to work. So, came in late, and now it seems without my phone. Monday.

I hate that, I end up feeling so out of it all day without my phone...and then I feel annoyed because my phone should not be so important! There were years and years where I did not have a cellphone, let alone a smartphone, and was Just Fine.

Zen, glad you are not losing your mind, but that does sound obnoxious. Like when your eye it twitching, only it's coming from INSIDE YOUR HEAD.

Somewhat relatedly, in the entire history of the universe, has anyone ever received an automated call that starts out saying, "This is not a sales call" and the call was actually not a sales call?

Actually, yes! Once after college I answered the phone at home and ended up taking a survey about songs on the radio, and then agreed to go to a thing where they had like, 100 people, and played snippets of songs and we had to rate how much we liked them, or if we had heard them too much, and got paid some amount of money for it ($60 maybe? Something that was way more than the nothing I was making until I found a job!)

The rule at schools here is "shorts must be longer than the fingertips when standing." That usually equals mid-thigh.

That is funny, because on me (I have short arms)my fingertips are higher than my crotch! I will have to make sure that is not true for her!

ETA: I have really never seen an adult staff member wearing shorts, but faculty wear them, and I have never really prohibited students from wearing them either.

The rule at schools here is "shorts must be longer than the fingertips when standing." That usually equals mid-thigh.

The nuns would make us kneel and the skirt had to touch the floor.

In the office we try and not offend our co-workers, but heat is an issue so we tend to wear very little with sweaters at hand to shield against the A/C.

In lunch delight news, my plan for lunch was steamed broccoli with a dressing of oil, lemon juice, and oregano. Just before I closed the fridge door the mangoes called my name so I grabbed a plastic container of mango and added it to the broccoli. Winner! It was so delish.

I've never understood the no-sleeveless dictum. But then I drove a manager to sputtering once when I pointed out that the pantyhose-must-be-worn rule didn't make much sense when we weren't required to wear sleeves all the way down to our wrists.

In Utah, a lot of work dress codes are kind-of-subtle versions of Mormon clothing rules, ie, the famous "magic underwear", ie, garments. That's why bare shoulders on grown ups make the locals twitchy, because it's not something righteous people would be doing and it's a blatant statement of someone Not In The Church. Of course, there are also rules saying garments can be laid off in special circumstances, which often get interpreted as "It 98 freaking degrees out there! Get these layers off!"

Sophia, so your dress code explicitly states sleeveless us prohibited?

No- I just feel naked!

ETA: Our dress code says we should dress appropriately and neatly.