[Magdalen] An update or 2 (3...).

[M J _Mike_ Logsdon]

>>>And Mike, you shouldn't have even considered taking vacation days for an 
exam required for work. *Of course* those are fully paid days!<<<

True, true.  But at the Monterey County Low Morale Water Resources Agency, there's always a back-story.  I not only assumed, for safety's sake, that I'd need to cover the time myself, I also caused something of an administrative heart murmur when I let out that I wasn't taking an Agency vehicle, but rather driving my own, and adding a second night on my own tab.

First, the exam isn't "required", it's merely "highly recommended" by my boss, and her only.  Hence, in the eyes of the financial sorts, "optional".

Second, with the above as backdrop, the first response she got was from the senior accountant who made the case that even one night at the hotel wasn't necessary, because Salinas and Sacramento are only 3 hours apart, so I could get there before the exam began on Friday morning, take it, then come back to the Agency, deposit the Agency vehicle, then head home.  Boss was irritated to no end.  She made the counter-case I described yesterday about Thursday being necessary, etc.  She won.

Third, I mentioned the second night on my own tab, and my use of my own car.  Backdrop on this is that the reason these people's colons get so crimped at such times as this is because a now-former employee took not only an Agency vehicle to such a thing, but also added a couple days on without telling anyone so he could head further north and get in some fishing.  Came back, and apparently expected the Agency to pay for everything.  Shortly after that, he found another job.  AND, a memo came out from the GM laying down the rules -- you will use an Agency vehicle, but your time will be strictly limited, and no variations will be tolerated.  (Remember, this GM was hired to fix our budgetary woes, millions in the red each year....)  Soooooo, my news got intestines churning.  Boss came to the rescue again, with a message that went basically, He's not as young as the rest of us, he's got health issues that tire him out in ways we can only begin to imagine, he's checking out as the Agency Friday morning before the exam, everything else is on his own tab, and even though I disagree he says he's not going to submit a mileage reimbursement request -- AND, we need him to pass this thing; let him be comfortable, for God's sake!  She won.  (She whispered to me later she'd get my mileage reimbursed regardless.)

Sooooo, you can see why I figured it would be best to play it safe, and just cover the time on my own.  Not a happy place, the place I hope to live long enough to retire from in 2030.  :-)=