| 15/9/2006 Referring back to the previous entry: Mum paid the parking ticket via post the very next day and a few days later I gave her £25 to pay for it. Today was my last day of work. I'm neither happy nor sad-I just see it as a change: it happens. I'm feeling more relieved than anything. Mustapha and Charlie shook my hand and everyone else (who was there) told me goodbye and good luck. Sarah I said goodbye to last night because today was her day off. I was touched by her words: "you'll make it". I'm very thankful for the workplace: it gave me experience, it kept me fit and provided me with money. It was the first time people actually treated my like an adult, which sometimes felt strange because I'm not used to literally cleaning after my own mess or being addressed with a title (the way Sanjay calls me "Madam" is rather annoying). I learned I had to get things for myself; quite new considering that in school, someone else is always getting something. Also in my previous experience the question I was always wary of at various places was: what am I not allowed to do? Working made me think 2 new questions to replace the old one: what must I do to achieve the objective and what can I get away with? I learned I could eat the leftovers of customers in the kitchen 'cos eating small bits of them raises no eyebrows. Now to be honest I thought my first workplace would be worse than this, but I had a great boss, good General Manager of the hotel and the place itself was good to its workers...most of the time. I also learned things about myself: I'm calm but I'm sometimes too calm, which slows me down. I had to learn how to assess what I'm carrying (to avoid anything from falling off the trays and smashing to bits), I'll need to retain that skill. I learned that my particular frame of mind meant I slowed down when faced with large, daunting tasks. But most of all, I learned how truly stupid I really am. |