The First Week of 2022

I had a feeling that this year was not going to be an easy one and it has started with a challenge. I got a message on Bank Holiday Monday from my Manager. He had symptoms of Covid and wasn't coming back to the UK for the rest of the week at least.  With the person who shares my job, still off for at least another week, that left just me to run the shop for the first week in January.

I can't say I was over the moon about this, but after initally feeling pretty low about it, I just resigned myself to the task. As a consequence, I've had to work nearly double my normal hours, but I will get time in lieu eventually, so I should get almost a full week off once the Shop Manager returns.

Anyway, I decided not to blog about the week as it was happening. It had it's challenges, high points and low points, but I finished tonight and I've now got two days off, thank goodness. I've left the shop in a better state than I started with. I was flagging a bit today, but still managed to keep going until the end.

The Shop Manager is returning on Monday, as is my fellow Deputy (hopefully). They can take back over the reins, as they'll be refreshed from their time off over Xmas. Me, I'm tired and need a break, which I will hopefully get soon.

It's been quite eventful in other ways too this week. A very longstanding volunteer got offered a job and starts next week. I'm so pleased for him. He's been a very reliable volunteer for several years and has always helped me, since I started there, nearly 5 years ago now. I couldn't be happier for him. He deserves this opportunity so much.

Another volunteer is also starting a new job, and after she showed me her rota for the next two weeks, I can tell that we're not going to see much of her from now on, which is sad, because she's a nice girl and works well. She says she will still come on her days off, bless her, but I think she'll find she might be quite tired.

So, there's a lot of moving on going on, and that is a good thing. That is what we are there to do, give people an opportunity to build their confidence and gain experience, to help them progress in their lives.  That's how I like to see my role anyway.

The reverse side of this, is that we're going to be stretched for volunteers in the coming weeks. It doesn't scare me, as it's always been a cyclical thing in the shop. New volunteers come along and old ones sometimes return (if you're lucky). Let's hope so anyway.

Now I'm going to put my feet up, pour myself a drink and relax.

I hope you've had a good week.