Developements at work

I’m a sub contractor to a contractor.  We distribute the newspaper commercially, to stores and gas stations and restuarants and street racks in our territory.  Sales of the paper have been dropping the two years I’ve done this, a continuing trend as the newspapers are eclisped by other media.

Just got off the cell with the boss, the guy I work for.  My van is in the shop and the scope reads all sorts of faults.  Nothing surprising, given the miles on it.  600 bucks is less than , ahh, pleasing to hear, but it has been and would continue to be a willing beast of burdan, and since the loan went through, I can kind of afford it. 

Pay for it, yeah.  Like it, not really.

I called to tell him I’d have it back tomorrow, and since it’s my night off anyway, it’s no problem for anyone if I don’t get it until tomorrow.

Anyway, he tells me that sales are down and he’s having trouble paying the Oregonian, that he needs to cut back on drivers- would I like to pick up time in the afternoons when he let’s the afternoon guy go?  He proposes that I do the south route only in the mornings, that he’d do the SE Portland routes and take care of business at the same time – billing, collections, etc; and that I’d do the afternoon routes, mid-day.

I said let’s cut to the chase – are you proposing that I work more and make more, or less?

I will be making more, but working odder hours, and driving during the day, which increases many-fold the chances of crossing paths with some idiot.  We’re gonna talk face to face Thursday afternoon.

*

So, deciding to put money into the van, before I learned of changes in the job turns out to have been the right decision. 

I don’t want to recall how many vehicles I put how many thousands into for no great gain, and I don’t particularly feel like doing it again, but the van has been good to me, and it works for it’s living. 

Extra bonus points for always getting me home.

I’ll earn more, which means that I can save up for the timing belt, which is gonna need replacing in not so many more miles.

(please fate/god/karma/whatever, let this be a wise decision)