Need advice on how I should continue... - Page 2

kayskate · #26 01-07-2010, 07:13 AM

Just to add perspective to the driving part of this discussion, I have regularly driven 30 miles for ice time. I used to drive close to an hr. 10-15 min sounds like a treat to me. Of course, it's all relative to what you are used to and the time you have. However, I don't think it's unusual to have to drive long distances to a rink, especially if your hrs are limited and you don't have your first choice. When I worked full time it was very hard to find ice. That often meant skating once/wk. One yr, I even froze my patio to practice spins. That was huge project and I haven't done it since, though it is cold enough this yr to make it a possibility.

Kay

fsk8r · #27 01-07-2010, 07:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kat12

There are a couple, but I hate cheating my lunch hour even if I make it up later. I could just talk to my boss and explain that I'll be doing this once a week, but that won't do much for me if other people notice, don't understand, and get pissy about it and start talking and I gain the reputation of one of those people who never does their work or something. At any rate, one rink (the one I used to go to) no longer seems to be offering public sessions; I haven't been in a while as they changed their time by half an hour for this year, so the session ends at 4:30, which means I got back to the office just in time to pack up and leave (which also would look bad for me). The other rink is even further away (and the first one takes about 11-15 minutes to get there and back). I'd have to drive almost 12 miles each way to get there (and this on top of driving 30 miles each way to get to work, so you can see why I balk at putting the extra miles on my car, plus that means almost 20 minutes each way to get there according to Google Maps, so i'd be taking almost a 2-hour lunchtime once you figure in time to put on and take off skates, and skate for an hour.) Their freestyles end at 5:20, so it's possible I could skip my lunch and just leave work early, and head home straight from there. I see their prices are nice, though, both on freestyles and public skating (a punch card for 10 freestyle sessions is $70, and their noon public skating is $2) so I might just have to bite the bullet, give my boss the heads-up, and do it. Have never been there, though, so I'd have to try it out some time to make sure it's a nice place. I just hate driving that far. My poor car.

I'd explain to the boss if you did want to do it, and then not worry about colleagues. I bet they all do odd hours if you pay enough attention. I find people admire others who do these sorts of things and squeeze them into their day. Most people I work with know I skate and they know that on x day I'm late and on y day I leave early, and know I make the hours up during the rest of the week. Other people work odd hours for other reasons from kids needing to be picked up, to other activities. Bosses actually like it because you're having to pay attention to your timetable to be able to do everything you're more dedicated to your job when you're there.

Kat12 · #28 01-07-2010, 07:16 PM

Yeah, my boss is cool and won't care, especially when I explain to him I'll be making up the extra time with other lunch hours. I'm thinking about people like, say, the assistant in the other section (to give you an idea, this woman accosted me yesterday morning before I even got my coat off to tell me that the empty, washed-out soup can from my lunch the day before that I'd forgotten to bring home for the recycling that evening was going to attract bugs. Despite the fact that it was clean. I mean, she was downright pissed off. People like that).

As far as driving...I know people have driven further, however: I need to balance a desire to skate with practicality. I already worry about the miles I put on my car--I do not want it wearing out before I have it paid off! I also need to worry about my expenses with gas and such. And it's not like I'm a great skater that spending a ton of time and money on this hobby is justified, anyway.

fsk8r · #29 01-08-2010, 02:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kat12

Yeah, my boss is cool and won't care, especially when I explain to him I'll be making up the extra time with other lunch hours. I'm thinking about people like, say, the assistant in the other section (to give you an idea, this woman accosted me yesterday morning before I even got my coat off to tell me that the empty, washed-out soup can from my lunch the day before that I'd forgotten to bring home for the recycling that evening was going to attract bugs. Despite the fact that it was clean. I mean, she was downright pissed off. People like that).

As far as driving...I know people have driven further, however: I need to balance a desire to skate with practicality. I already worry about the miles I put on my car--I do not want it wearing out before I have it paid off! I also need to worry about my expenses with gas and such. And it's not like I'm a great skater that spending a ton of time and money on this hobby is justified, anyway.

Sounds like you work with some really petty people. But I'm the sort of person who tries to ignore those sort of comments and get on with things. If I don't work for them, I don't care.

As for the driving, I understand your concerns about adding miles and fuel costs. It's all to be considered (although if you're doing 60miles each day, adding another 12 onto the week ain't going to really affect the car too much). But great skaters aren't born over night. I wouldn't call myself a great skater but I try. My skating hours have increased as my skills increased, and my skating level wasn't much different from yours when my boss first became aware that I skated. Changing my schedule to fit a different session in is always a big upheaval especially when it involves messing around with the working day. The first time I had to skate before work, I said I'd trial it and see how it goes. I ain't overly impressed with the being tired at work thing, but I'm coping and I seem to skate OK at a time when the rest of the world is still in bed, so I've let it continue. However, after the first time it became easier to do, and now it's routine.
If you think there's an option for a practice session or a lesson which isn't too much of an upheaval but required a little planning at work to do, I'd try it. Even tell the boss that you're just trialling it to see if it works for you.

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