Why I need to keep my mouth shut
Why didn't I listen to my own advice? I've been a widow for three months now. Actually, it's going into the forth month. I've changed. I used to be a very private person, not sharing with even my closest friends. Now, it seems I can't stop talking. I don't know, maybe I was hoping it would make me feel better. Instead, I feel worse. I'm being judged by the people I spend the greatest amount of time with and it does not feel good at all.
This is what happened. I decided to redecorate my father's house. I hired a decorator as I'm not that great with furniture arrangement. Well, this decision was deemed wasteful. It didn't matter that it put a smile on my father's face that I hadn't seen in years. It didn't matter that it made me happy. It didn't matter that the changes to the house increased it's value. The people I work with passed the word that I was wasting money.
It doesn't stop there. I purchased a dog and decided to have it boarded and trained at the same time. I did this with my previous dog and she turned out wonderfully, able to stay in the house by herself without getting into mischief. My new dog is a Shiba Inu, a somewhat feral dog that can be a handful if left to it's own devices. I work a 9 to 12 hour day. I won't be there to see that it receives the training it needs and my father is ill equiped for the task. Well, I was asked how much it cost by a coworker and stupidly answered. Within hours I heard snide remarks from people regarding what they considered another waste of money. I've apparently become the butt of jokes. It didn't matter that I'm driving a ten year old car and that I only go to the beauty salon once every two-three months. It didn't matter that I only get pedicures once or twice a year and that I haven't had a vacation in years. It didn't matter that I don't have kids, so a new dog becomes my kid in so many ways, and would certainly give me pleasure after a year of loss(bird, husband, dog all gone within 13 months).
Note that none of these people have given me one thin dime for either of my projects. Nor have they offered to sit with me on lonely days and nights.
Now I know, never share your personal life with coworkers. I will follow my advice from now on.
This is what happened. I decided to redecorate my father's house. I hired a decorator as I'm not that great with furniture arrangement. Well, this decision was deemed wasteful. It didn't matter that it put a smile on my father's face that I hadn't seen in years. It didn't matter that it made me happy. It didn't matter that the changes to the house increased it's value. The people I work with passed the word that I was wasting money.
It doesn't stop there. I purchased a dog and decided to have it boarded and trained at the same time. I did this with my previous dog and she turned out wonderfully, able to stay in the house by herself without getting into mischief. My new dog is a Shiba Inu, a somewhat feral dog that can be a handful if left to it's own devices. I work a 9 to 12 hour day. I won't be there to see that it receives the training it needs and my father is ill equiped for the task. Well, I was asked how much it cost by a coworker and stupidly answered. Within hours I heard snide remarks from people regarding what they considered another waste of money. I've apparently become the butt of jokes. It didn't matter that I'm driving a ten year old car and that I only go to the beauty salon once every two-three months. It didn't matter that I only get pedicures once or twice a year and that I haven't had a vacation in years. It didn't matter that I don't have kids, so a new dog becomes my kid in so many ways, and would certainly give me pleasure after a year of loss(bird, husband, dog all gone within 13 months).
Note that none of these people have given me one thin dime for either of my projects. Nor have they offered to sit with me on lonely days and nights.
Now I know, never share your personal life with coworkers. I will follow my advice from now on.
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