Oops.

I'm feeling better, but I keep coughing up chunks of rubber cement, (sorry, I know that's gross) and I can't take my lovely cough syrup before driving or going to work... both those tasks require a responsible person. Which I am. More or less.

Now of course you'd expect that if one were not going to work, a responsible person would call and let someone know.

Which I did. Both days. Day one, Monday, I called early (6:40) in the AM because Sunshine runs a morning program at our regular site. She was on the phone and the call went directly to voice mail.

I said something funny about hoping she checks voice mail, and that I would not be in because I was sick. Then, when she didn't call me back before morning program was over, I called her cell phone... which also went to voice mail. Said something again about checking voice mail at our site.

While I was visiting Dr. Dirtball, she called me. I didn't take the call, because I was at the doctor. I just pushed the button to ignore the call. She left me a voice mail, in kind of a snippy tone, informing me that she does check voice mail! She checks it from her house all the time, thank you.

Oookay then! Sheesh. Just trying to be a little humorous.

I know that when I don't go in she has to stay to close and that for her as a single mom with a 4 year old boy, those evening hours are really important. I know that she showed up at 6:15 in the morning to work the morning shift and that 6 PM is a LONG time after that.

It's one reason I close every day and she leaves as soon as our numbers drop. It's important to my mommy heart that she gets to spend that time with her little guy.

So even though I have called in sick, hmm, let me think here... a total of six days in the last five years, I still don't like doing it. As a mom of former small ones, I know how sweet that time is and how fast it goes. And I worked outside the home for a time when Matt was a small boy. You never get that time back, you know?

She also said that she really wished she hadn't checked the messages, since she had not planned to be at work at our site at all that day, she was going to cover for someone who had to go to a funeral, but 'not to worry, we'll get it figured out.'

So Tuesday morning, I called our site again. Once again, Sunshine was on the phone and I had to leave another voice mail. Figuring that since we'd discussed it while playing phone tag on Monday, she would check messages and know far in advance (it was 7:10 AM) that I wasn't going to make it to work.

Well... no.

Evidently she didn't know I wasn't going to be there until she showed up at 2 PM and checked the messages.

She did not tell me that, however. I found out from our district manager when she called this afternoon. She was nice about it, she just gently said that next time I should call her if I wasn't going to come in so that we can be sure we're covered. Which I did the last time, and got flack for. "You don't need to call the office, just let me know."

Sunshine didn't say anything about it to me, but she was a little pissy Wednesday afternoon. I've worked with her for five years, so I could tell just from her demeanor that she wasn't very happy with me.

Well, after her smartassy comment on my cell phone about how she checks the voice mail all the time, I couldn't help internally rolling my eyes while feeling bad at the same time.

Evidently she didn't check her voice mail.

I'm sure it will all blow over. She probably will mention it to me when she's not mad anymore, I'll make appropriate noises and that will be it.

I won't confess to her that after I called in, I took cough syrup and went back to sleep, and did not wake up until nearly 3 in the afternoon, long after my shift had started.

Because saying, "Sorry I didn't call and make sure you got the message, but I was on drugs." while true, wouldn't make me look very good, would it?