Cathy Classics by Cathy Guisewite for April 30, 2012

I’m not sure who deserves the bigger eyeroll, but I think I’ll give Cathy the edge because only an idiot would let her boss catch her looking for another job on the company’s time and with the company’s computer and Internet access. So Cathy, this eyeroll is for you!

Fickle. And strange.

Morning Susan and lightenup. Here comes Monday! I’m envious that Aaron gets to sleep through it. He says his Sunday night is like Monday, so he doesn’t get away scott free.

Strange. And fickle.

:-D

Hi Susan when you arrive. Morning lightenup. I’m about to tell LMB his favorite morning word. “Okay buddy, DONE !” LOL like a little guided missle. :-D

Games, worthless games. Sure, they’re fun with friends, but at work, no way. It just creates an environment of dishonesty and lack of trust, which is part of the formula for disaster. But I will say that the comparison with work and dating or prom is a funny one.Good morning, legaleagle, Billy, Aaron and Susan!Hello to gmforde, rgcviper, lindz.coop, hendelca, Mona, serenasakitty, kittycatpawsare, soonergal, lippyfish and all the other Cathy nuts rolling around here today!Hi GsMom!! Welcome back! Thanks for your kind wishes to me the other day. I really need some nice words these days. :-) We had our meeting last night, and it was as crazy as I expected, but from an unexpected person. The big issues at the meeting were 1. the budget where we are running into a deficit this coming year so we have to raise dues. Also, the bylaws committee spent $3000 on an attorney to review our new bylaws because our current ones expire in June, but that wasn’t part of any budget that’s been approved by the homeowners so they pulled a Congress and spent it without discussion/approval.2. recently a se* offender (not sure if I can say that here) moved back with his parents who live in our neighborhood, so we recently notified the neighborhood of this. We didn’t know if there would be discussion about that, especially since several are upset, so that was a wildcard.3. there was a separate part of the meeting where the covenants & bylaws committee would have a discussion (not a vote) on the proposed new covenants & bylaws that was sent out weeks ago for review.So… enough issues to have an “lively” meeting, but then there was another wildcard that totally threw everything into chaos where it made a budget discussion in Congress look like an elementary school debate. Our neighborhood is a mix of “old-timers” who have lived here 20-something years, usually have grown children and are either retiring here or considering moving soon, and “newbies” who have moved here recently (we’ve been here 5 years), have children of various ages, and get involved as we can. So, one of the old-timers, Bob, who used to be president and very involved has had health issues where he has constant seizures and serious brain damage. He and his wife were there, which was great. But Bob found fault with everything, argued it ad nauseum, wouldn’t let others have a chance to talk, wouldn’t consider any opinion other than his own, was downright rude and belligerant, etc. Many were understanding and tried to be respectful of him, ignoring his rudeness, but after 2 hours of this, it was too much for many. Very little got accomplished, other than listening to Bob and the decision that the bylaws committee will work on the bylaws further. Personally, I have checked out. I certainly respect that everyone has different opinions, but after 2 hours of complaining and little else, I got fed up that hardly anyone was providing solutions for what they didn’t like. I know this is unfortunately pretty typical, but it doesn’t mean I will waste my time further listening to it. I’ve decided that as soon as my time is up, I will never volunteer for another neighborhood position nor will I go to another meeting. I used to think my neighbor was apathetic for doing this, but now I agree with him. As for Bob, I’ll leave that open for debate. When people tried shushing him so that others could speak, he was outraged that he couldn’t speak his mind. I’m fine with everyone having different opinions and speaking their mind as long as you are respectful and have put just as much thought into possible solutions as you have put into your complaint. Personally, I think Bob should have submitted his concerns in writing so that everyone could have had their chance to speak and he wouldn’t have hijacked the meeting. I think his brain injury has made him irrational (I’ve been told by others that he was not like this before) and his wife should have realized this and handled it appropriately. I’m sure it is difficult to silence your ill spouse, but sometimes you need to see the big picture and realize that he will not be able to discuss things rationally and would be disruptive rather than constructive. That’s about it. I’m sorry for my long post, but I appreciate the opportunity to vent as I don’t feel much like talking with anyone around here today.Have a nice day, everyone!

Eek, that really was a long post – I’m sorry!!

“If someone else is interested, then I am definitely interested!”

So true in life in several areas. Why is that?

@gretchensmom: This attitude has always been well-known. It’s the story of the dog in the manger.

lightenup you’re going to end up sick and worn down from all that crap. Take care of your husband and daughters. Leave the maniacs to their own. They won’t last. Nobody else speaks up because you’re doing it for them. And for what? Dr Billy talking here . . . hang it up and move on. It is NOT worth it any more.

Generally, I’d say “Better safe than sorry” here, from Cathy’s point of view.

However, in the office, with the boss looking over her shoulder … not so much.

@ GretchensMom and Billy – First of all, thank you for reading my post! I know it was long, but incredibly there was a lot I didn’t put in.I really appreciate both your sympathy and advice. My husband is not good with giving sympathy, so that means a lot to me.I tried to give up the position yesterday when several homeowners were complaining about the board so they volunteered to join. That gave us a couple extra people, so I kept saying that I would step down. Unfortunately that wasn’t accepted, so I’m still on the board. Next week we’re having a transition meeting, and I will be clear that I am not secretary any longer because I don’t have the time for it. Some of the complaints yesterday were about the lack of communication, which bugged me because no one communicated before this past year either and it’s only a problem now because of the incredible amount of issues we’ve had to deal with (and some don’t like the results).Personally, I don’t have time to document every little thing or talk about it nonstop. Being a secretary for this board is a pain because everyone wants to give their 2 cents, and complains if it’s not how they want it. Believe me, there were several times that I was fighting back tears yesterday. Dr. Billy, you are right, this is making me sick and worn down, and I hate that feeling. The only good thing is that I think people have been shocked into participating, so hopefully finding volunteers will become easier.I’ll try to keep it to a minimum, but I’ll let you know as soon as I get rid of the secretary position, which will be a step in the right direction.Bless you all for keeping me sane! :-) ♥♥

Hi other Cathyites!! I think Cathy is also making some much needed but rash moves/decisions — let Mr. P deal with it — he started the nonesense.