It has been busy and will not be doing too much today!

The OAMFT three day event was cancelled due to lack of people wanting to attend but we did have one day of networking. There has been a decrease of 10% membership and so again with another association the talk was about what they can do for us. It was a great day and I sat with chums from grad school who I actually see once a year at the conference. I did have fun but did not really learn anything. I need to learn. Funds are low and since I did have a wonderful suite, jacuzzi, two large screen tv's in each room and a separate shower etc....with mandatory starbucks coffee to boot, I did not hesitate to donate when someone mentioned it. So many things were booked for the conference and it still had to be paid for so to ensure people would come, it was free. That is rather sad, but I understand to be expected at conferences opened to the world. Trauma is of great interest to me and I want to always be up to date with it so I learned about another avenue I can take. As part of the college, I need to have 40 hours of education every two years. I am also keeping track of my hours and should be doing that for the books and research I do on my own, so that is something I should keep in mind. I do record each seminar; conference I now go to. I do not realize how much I do until I see it listed in hours and I have to stop taking that time for granted and record all. I definitely had me time and I count that as a mini vacation. I only stayed the one night regrettably due to my pets having separation anxiety. So, the final banquet was finished about 7:30 pm and though tempted to stay, I drove home much to the happiness of all. Me time is a priority and I do take it when ever I can. Yesterday, I attended the FSNA meeting which is held twice annually. I was late getting there due to traffic, parking and congestion downtown. I normally leave much earlier but I had other things to do since I have no hot water at home. Hot water and a new dryer will be arriving tomorrow hopefully. Heating water can be consuming and I am glad I am living in this era. The vegetarian food was mostly gone but someone found me two bites worth and I piled cheese on my plate with a few treats. Oh, well, mia culpa. I did get one free pedometer. Now I have two to lose. I was sworn in again for another two years as Assistant Benefits Officer with the Executive Board. Once again, I read out about inteqrity etc....I shall be......I will be so ethical by the end of all this. If you are a retired Public Servant with the Federal Government please join us. There has been a big change with people from the National Executive resigning but I am hopeful for positive change. We have a new electee who is a Judge and that is what we need as well to help each other. I found a similar request of what can we do for you? What would you like to see from us? There is also name changes. It is now SAGE, rather than FSNA. I have found a lot of consistency in all my associations regarding what we want and how to get there, name changes etc......The public is feeling their pockets emptying too much and so are becoming more discriminating in what they want to pay for and which associations they wish to belong to. FSNA is also increasing their memberships but it is no where near the therapy side of the house. At the meeting with OAMFT they were saying that the average member pays about 1500, 1600 a year annually and so that tells me I am spending over two grand a year to do my work and that is only for associations and insurance. Have I decided what I am going to drop? No. I have decided to give my self three to four years to make that decision. However, I cannot take on anything new without dropping one existing association. I have friends who have gone in different directions and I just love seeing them and catching up. Everyone is scattered once agin and busy and so it is difficult to see each other. Again, at OAMFT I notice some disconnect from those living in rural areas. As professionals we should always be up todate with all training and terminology so I wonder how that sometimes gets lost. With todays technology of reaching out everywhere I have to ask why some people do not have up to date information. In the city I suppose we come into contact with so many people and it is common everyday language related to our field that I try to use. I imagine if there is an area where a therapist is alone she or he may somehow be left in the wayside. HOwever, that should be corrected. One of the things that still keep me here is the opportunities that I have, the great universities, the professional development etc.... plus the last house I liked in Niagara Falls had all the toys I liked with a grand pool and family room etc....but it had problems which I am not willing to take on such as water leakage, etc...Now back to the serious side at the Federal Retiree meeting, I mentioned that Via Rail gives 25% off for veterans and military in case there were veterans in the room. Two veterans came to seek me out at the end of the meeting and I was so pleased to be able to give them some information. One told me he joined the military when he was sixteen to go off to war. I couldn't hug him enough. When I joined FSNA there were quite a few veterans and yearly I saw less. I thought there were no more so to see these two elderly men was so endearing for me. So for the most part I have completed all meetings, conferences etc for this month and now I can focus on my clientale base and book, in that order. Next month I shall be attending a seminar with the new law regarding assistant dying and how it affects me as a therapist and pastoral counsellor. I will also be selling my two books and signing at York Unversity, Show case at Central Square for one day, I believe it is the 10th. So, do not hesitate to contact me if you want an appointment for counselling or if you want to buy one of my books. The elections last night was very interesting and I taped some to watch this morning. It seems that change is in the air everywhere. I wonder what that will all mean moving forward. What do you think?