h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'd really like to share this with you, and would very much like to hear anyone's thoughts on this, should they come across my journal.

Last Friday for Comic Relief, at the nursery I work at we decided to hold a "Big Hairdo Disco" to raise money for the charity, we sent for a fund-raising pack to look for ideas & posters etc. The pack duly arrived, contained in which was a sweepstakes poster. It had 40 different Hairdo's to choose from, & a scratch off panel hiding a "'Do". To be in with a chance of winning £20, you could buy a 'do for £1. The point being that Comic Relief get £20, and the winner gets £20. Great Idea.

So I put the poster up in the staffroom, and duly harassed all the staff to purchase a 'do, probably 80% obliged, and of those all but one paid up right away. Then I asked the parents to have a go also, and by lunchtime Friday the poster was filled with names.

But when I came to count up the money I discovered that we were £2 short. Looking at the poster I could tell who the people were who had yet to pay up. One was a parent, who's child was off with the chicken pox, therefore I don't blame you!

However another was a member of staff, more specifically a member of management. She had swaned off on holiday without paying up, and was not due to return till after the fund-raising event. The poster had been displayed for 4 weeks prior to this holiday, and she was one of the 1st people to have her name down.

So I put the £1 in the pot, for both the absent parties, on behalf of Comic Relief, and scratch off the panel. Revealing the winner to be the manager who had not paid.

Now in my mind she had ample time to pay up, and no excuse not to have done so. It was my money in there, not hers & so I say that that money should have all been donated to CR, without question!

But today she finally made it back in to work, she was tipped off on my opinion regarding the situation by another of the managers, before I got chance to speak to her in person. Therefore the 1st thing she said to me today was "I believe your comic relief Disco went really well..." Yes it did, I told her, then "But I have good and bad news for you..."

"I didn't pay you cos I you were on holiday" She said. Now before I left I left a cup in another member of staff's locker to collect any incoming money, The last thing I did before I left was to tell her about this. Of course she completely denied that. She then proceeds to tell me that she will donate £10 back to CR, making it clear that she still expects the money to be paid to her despite the fact that she has yet to put any of her personal money in the pot - ('what a ' I think [can I say bitch here?]) & say "Thanks, lovely".

Anyhow, my thoughts were amplified about an hour later when I take a crispy £10 note to the office ( I did deliberate weather or not to take £9 in one pound coins, but perhaps as a test, perhaps as a vindication of my thoughts, I took the note). She took it. "You do realise you still owe £1, don't you?" I asked her, to which she replied.
"You cheeky thing, take it out of the £10!" she said as I was walking away "OK I donated £9."

No you complete , you donated _nothing_, you fraudulently took £10 away from a *Charity!* You make more money than all but one person who works here and you wont even let £10, which is not rightfully yours, go to people who absolutely *need* it.

Anyway this has been playing on my mind all day, the more I think about it, the more angry I feel. Venting here has helped, I hope that people might read and understand, and think 'What a ' too, oh and by saying it here, I wont get fired, which is the only thing stooping me from saying it at work!

Anyway I feel I am right, and she is very very wrong, & that too helps.
to her, just know I will be thinking "ing " tomorrow when I see her.

--What goes around, comes around.

--She's no doubt a bit too thick to understand this sort of sentiment, needs a few more reincarnations yet!

Never mind, just keep smiling sweetly, it will drive her mad, they can't handle apparent serenity (even if you're inside!)

--It might be an idea to start quietly hunting for other jobs though, there must be quite a few in nursery work that put the caring, human aspects before other things.


Terri

I'll try very hard with the smiling sweetly, although I know it will be very difficult! Will try the bit, if I think too much about the reason I was angry it makes me sad though

Anyhow I get to bank the money we did raise on Monday, which is £55+ which they wouldn't have got if I hadn't bothered to even try, so I guess I can be pleased with that

Been thinking about a new job for a while, although I don't think I'll be looking for another job of the same sort. I'd like to go and do something completely different, I just don't know what.

However for now there are enough things I like about where I am to keep me there a while longer yet, but soon it'll be time to get going.

Good to see you again Terri, thanks for the

Terri

OMG!!! I'm so sorry Andy, I meant to pay you on Friday. Please collar me asap coz you know what a dozey mare I am! I put my name down when Lukey was off and I'd just called in whilst on a round trip of the Town Hall to give a councillor something, but (shock horror), didn't have my bag or any money on me. I'd called in to tell them he had chicken pox coz I'd forgot to phone in that morning. I feel terrible now, please feel free to shout at me coz I deserve it!! I do think that's disgusting behavior of the manager involved to do that though, coz although I'm guilty mine's just being too thick to remember whereas her's is sheer greed.

Please don't leave though coz you're the best centre worker in there and Lukey loves you

Please don't think that was about you, cos it really wasn't! You had a genuine reason for not putting your £1 in, she did not!

I will be pleased to accept another pound to put in with the Comic Relief funds This was all about her, and the way she and the other manager behaved. I wish I could say that I was surprised by the way they acted, but I guess deep down I expected this to happen, it's a shame I hadn't been able to avoid this situation in the first place with better planing on my part. Next time I will be ready!