Enough is enough

There comes a time when enough is enough. When you feel like you just can't take one more day. When you imagine a million different ways in which you could quit, each one more grand than the previous. Well I reached that point about five months ago, and I am ashamed to say that only the lure of sweet money and a slight case of delirium have been propelling me forward since. I have never been the quiting kind of girl (so it is a good think I never took up smoking). In fact, I have been the opposite. Fiercely loyal to my jobs, rarely taking time off, dragging my butt to work even when I am sick. The only jobs I have ever had to quit were the ones that were ending due to graduation or end of summer. Oh, except that little gig at Sylvan Learning where I took massive vacation time and just never went back. My point is that I have never had to look someone in the eye and tell them that I quit. I even went through the tiring process of filing for leave rather than quit my teaching job in St. Albert!
On Wednesday I came home after an exhausting day of being belittled and bossed around. In a bold move I told Blake that I was finished. Speedo Lady could take the job and shove it (I may have been more graphic than that). Being the big talker that I am, I described several ways in which I could convey to her, in detail, every single little thing she has done to make me reach this pinnacle of frustration. Then I simmered a bit and decided that at some point in November or December I would tell her that I was leaving. Due to a timely interview and Speedo Lady's insistence that I find someone on this island to cover for me or I couldn't go-(even if it was Blake- and "cover" meant sit at a desk, beside the receptionist, who is already there, and answer the phone the 2 times it might ring) I reached my boiling point. A meeting was scheduled on Sunday (by her, heaven forbid she use any work hours to discuss anything). From her viewpoint we were going to talk about the contract that she has still not drawn up 2 months after my new term with her began, the lack of a work schedule for the last 5 weeks and the fact that I have not received my vacation pay from 2 months ago. From my standpoint I was going to quit.
Saturday evening saw us role playing the whole quitting scenario. Blake made an excellent Speedo Lady and we managed to practice every range of emotion I could imagine Speedo Lady would react with.... or so I thought.
Sunday morning rolled around and I was armed with an arsenal of good responses to anything she could fire at me. My stomach was in butterflies and I just wanted to get the whole ordeal over with. I arrived a few minutes early to gather my thoughts while Blake sat in the car, his presence a comfort to me. Speedo Lady breezed in and for the first 10 minutes it was her show. I couldn't get a word in edgewise. The one time I made a concerted effort to interrupt, she shushed me and said "Just let me finish!" as she described in detail all I was to accomplish in December. When I was finally able to blurt out that I was giving her my notice, I was met with the one response I had not anticipated. Disbelief. Now I'm not talking about a surprised denial, or even a few moments of shocked disbelief, I am talking about the fact that she told me that she did not believe I intended to quit, and I would have to come to her again to resign, as she was a "positive-person" and didn't believe I would actually end up leaving. No matter that I told her three times that it was for real, even though I have no job awaiting, she is still bent on the fact that I will change my mind. So this morning, on my way in, I handed her a written resignation, only to be met with " Well, we'll just see... I think you'll change your mind."
I can't wait to see the look on her face when on November 30th I hand in my shirts and walk out the door for good. Actually, I can't wait to look in the mirror and see the smile on my face!