First day, One busy Mama

I think almost everyone dreads the first day of work at a new job. Many people dread going back to work after vacation; still other’s dread going back each and every Monday morning. Though I have never been one of the latter sort, I was a little nervous going to the office on my first day.
I had no access to the building or to my office, so I asked someone arriving for work to let me into the security office so I could at least get my card pass for the building; fortunately the guy in charge of issuing the pass was already there and he had my pass ready. He asked, “You Kline?” I said “Yes.” And he handed me the pass. Back in New Jersey that interaction would have been slightly more difficult.
Someone with a key was in the office to let me into my office – which is very barren just yet. That is made more obvious by the sheer size of it. It is probably 14’x16 with windows on one entire wall. I believe the windows face south so excessive sun is not a problem. It is really quite nice and I consider myself fortunate to have it.
I do not really know what is expected of me yet, but I am being given little glimpses at a time and some of the team I have here are already bouncing questions off of me about things I shouldn’t really answer them on. But I did anyway. It was really to tell them they were headed the right direction with the project they were working on. If I was wrong we will correct it together later.
Wednesday I will spend the entire day traveling with my boss to visit the various outposts where some of the personnel I am responsible for are stationed. It should be an interesting day – roughly nine hours of travel and three hours of meetings. I am afraid I may be late for church on our very first Wednesday night.
Mama vacillates between excited and frustrated with the load of things that have fallen to her while I am at work; house hunting, getting Chase registered for school, looking for work for Seth, looking for a place fro Grandma and Grandpa to rent, etc. Even Chase mentioned that it is a little weird that I am not off on any weekdays any more. I won’t know how weird it is for a couple of weeks. I am hoping it will be better - for Mama and me, for church and for Chase’s school activities. It has been a long time since I have been home every evening and every weekend. I’m a little afraid of wearing out my welcome.
Mama, the boys and I went to try on boots at a store after lunch on Sunday afternoon and as I was looking a kindly salesman – dressed for the part of a salesman in a boot shop in Texas – asked if I was looking for boots also. When I answered that I was he shot his thumb over his shoulder to the other side of the store. “Men’s boots are over there.”
“Thanks” I told him. “I was beginning to think Texas had changed a lot more than I realized since we’ve been gone.”