I am grateful for work
Contractor showed up TO THE MINUTE and was excellent. His quote was right in my mental range of what I thought would be a great price for the work, and I only have a few questions before I confirm. Apparently the fence line needs to be cleared before they can do it and I'm not equipped either physically or quite literally with the power tools to do it. So I'm waiting to see what scope of clearing is required (if it's just trimming I can manage that) and/or if he can build that into the price. Overall an excellent interaction, which I really needed.
I'm at the point at work with my job duties evolving and the work increasing where I'm wondering if I should ask for a raise or for some other benefit. I can make a case for it but also I've only been there a year and have already gotten a small raise and a stock award (that will pay out over 3 years) so it's not that I'm underappreciated - far from it. But the job has also evolved and we knew that it would when I was hired in.
I'm also being conscious to book some definite time off because I have not been doing that and I need to. I read somewhere that when you have unlimited PTO you don't use as much because it's not really part of your compensation. It's not a use it or lose it thing. I was trying to explain the concept to my mom who totally didn't get it. She was like "well you gotta bank some days" and I'm like "no that's not a thing here, I can take off whenever I want." And I realized that I haven't taken many days at all. I think being a remote worker has really contributed to that - I can take a break to talk to a contractor, for example, instead of taking a half day. I can work from my brother's house if I need to or from the library. And then one day I'm like ALL I DO IS WORK and I realize I haven't taken a day off in six months. I think that's a very American thing.
Anyway wow, looking back over the last year at this job and my perspective and work life balance and sense of value in my work has really skyrocketed. Every day I am so grateful that I'm able to do work I like and am good at (even when it's frustrating and makes me annoyed) and still have a full social and family life. And that I'm paid a decent wage and have good benefits and can actually make a reasonable contribution to retirement. Again, a very American thing to be grateful to have those things at all.