Yikes dana! That sucks, I hate when people do that. OWN YOUR MISTAKES, folks. Although since none of our leaders in Washington do, why should anyone else?

flea, I'm sorry to hear about your husband's unhappiness, but one of my coworkers just moved to your husband's agency here in SF, and seems to like it alot. She says everyone's really dedicated to the mission and there's no dead weight (unlike my agency). Can he swing a lateral transfer to another office without having to move, maybe? Or another agency with offices local?

Speaking of dead weight, holy crap the new contractor they hired to (basically) fill my spot cannot open Outlook. She has been here for two weeks and has done NO WORK. She's got medical issues and family issues and I suspect some mental health issues, but she's done no work at all, that I can tell. I can't even get my work done because she's constantly asking for help with her computer.

The problem is that she's a contractor, and we will cut her loose in a dead moment, with no notice at all, if we decide to. I don't mean her ill, but despite what's on her resume, she seems barely able to feed and clothe herself, much less work at a fairly high level. (She is sleeping in her car in a bad neighborhood until she gets an apartment, and apparently lives on protein bars. I can't even.) She needs help, but we are really not the folks to provide it...

How on earth do people like this get hired??? Padded resume?

Ugh, my sympathies to your husband, dana.

Oh, Dana, I'm so sorry. A little peacetime for recovery for him, and for you, too.

SO sorry, Dana. Hope this is the beginning of a much better things for your DH.

Egad, Matilda is spilling tears over class assignments.

Matilda did not get any of her closest friends: Isabella, Norah, Davi, Justice or Poppy.

She did get two pretty good friends in Reece and Sophie. And she has *always* wanted to have classes with Iris and Satchel. But two of her frenemies in Caterina and Angelika (rather bossy girls) are in her class.

Worse, Isabella and Justice are in the same class without her. Oh, the stinging disappointment.

Especially since these classes will remain intact for both 4th and 5th grade.

Awww, poor Matilda. I think I was lucky enough to have my BFF in the same class all through elementary school. Then she moved away. :(

I'm glad there's some new babies to coo over and more imminent babies. Lots of people need better jobs or failing that, big cluesticks for their bosses.

Whoa, Consuela. That sounds....extreme.

Because he is a federal employee, mr. flea is fairly unlikely to be fired, but he hates everything at work so much right now I'm afraid he'll quit. Quit his "dream job" that we moved to Ohio for. ARGH.

Oh god, flea.

I think I was lucky enough to have my BFF in the same class all through elementary school.

I was just talking about this last weekend -- I think my best friend and I were in different second grade classes, but together aside from that. Granted, there were only two classes per grade in my school, but I wondered if it ever actually came up to either keep us together or separate us?

Of course! I know I've seen your dishes but I don't remember, what do you have?

At this point, the pieces from three different sets that have survived both me and all of my moving.

I should maybe do something about that.

I'm sorry, Dana. How sucktastic.

Flea, could you find your own dream job somewhere, move the family for it, and have your DH wrassle the kid stuff?