End of February odds & ends

• It's February 28th. The one saving grace of this month is that it's short. :p
• Thank you for your kind comments on my recent post about my co-worker. So far as I know, she is doing about as well as can be expected. A collection was taken up to send flowers and some of her favourite treats, and a card circulated for everyone to sign. The usual platitudes, but thankfully, no real clangers, at least not at the point when I saw it.
• Our VP, who made the announcement, later apologized to me for dropping the bombshell in the way she did, which was nice of her.
• There have been a number of changes at work recently, stemming from my co-worker's impending maternity leave:  one colleague was appointed to cover her job during the year she was off, another colleague moved in to take that vacant slot, etc. etc. -- sort of a domino effect. I asked the VP what was going to happen now and was told the arrangements in place would still stand for the year -- even though my coworker will almost certainly not be off that long (I believe she is still entitled to 17 weeks on Employment Insurance maternity benefits) -- and that when she returned, we'd just have her as an additional resource. I said that was probably a wise thing, since (based on my own experience), she likely won't be entirely "here" for quite awhile to come.
• Unfortunately, one of the dominos was my own manager, who has been "seconded" to another job for a year. (She called me and coworker into an unexpected meeting & I immediately figured she was either telling us she had a new job, or she was pregnant. My guess is she won't be returning to this job in a year from now because she'll have either found something else or... she'll be pregnant/on maternity leave.)  Her job has been posted, and when it is filled, I will be dealing with my third new manager in as many years. (The fourth retired in April 2010 after being my boss for most of the previous 16 years).  I know it's rare today for people to stay in one job/area as long as I have, and I certainly don't expect my next boss to hang around for 16 years. But SOME continuity would be nice... :p 
• Did anyone watch the documentary "Makers" on PBS on Tuesday night -- a history of the women's movement? (If you didn't, you can still watch it online.) I missed the first half hour, but watched the rest. (Until 11 p.m. I also stayed up until 10 the previous night watching Dallas, 12 on Sunday watching the Oscars, & 11ish on Saturday & Friday because... well, it was the weekend!  So I am dang tired this week...!)  Nevertheless, I am glad I did. It was so inspiring seeing all those old clips -- a great history lesson, and a great reminder why "feminism" is not and should not be a dirty word. Brought back a lot of memories...! 
• (But yikes -- what has Marlo Thomas done to her face?? I almost didn't recognize her...)  :(  
• I have seen Gloria Steinem twice. I stood in line during my lunch hour to buy her book "Revolution from Within" when it came out in 1993, and had it autographed. And about a year later, my visiting mother & I went to see her speak at an HR professionals conference (a friend gave me the tickets). Afterwards, we saw her walking by us in the hall outside the auditorium. She was incredibly petite. And I think she is still beautiful in her 70s.
• Speaking of "Dallas" (a few bullets back -- and I wrote about my longtime love for the show here), next week's episode will be the true end of an era:  the death of JR Ewing.  Rumour has it he is murdered ("who killed JR?"). The week after that, "Dallas" stars of the past & present will gather for his funeral, including Ray, Lucy, her parents (Gary & Valene of "Knots Landing"), JR's second wife Cally and his former mistress, Mandy Winger. Part of me can't wait, and part of me is dreading it, because it truly is the end of an era, and the series will never be quite the same without him.
• I saw and flagged this article a few weeks ago & still wanted to share it with you, if you haven't already seen it. The New York Times Motherlode blog featured a beautifullly written guest post on breaking the silence about stillbirth. Some excellent (& almost entirely sympathetic) comments, too.
• Also, re: my last post on women at work and flexible workplaces, I found this great article. The title reads "Single People Need Work-Life Balance Too" but it's actually more about all people without children (including empty nesters) than simply singles. First paragraph:  "Discussions of American work culture tend to focus primarily on the difficulties parents face balancing work and caring for their kids. But a new study points out that there's more to life than family, and conversations that focus solely on child rearing are leaving out the many ways that too much work can affect the childless."
• Tracey at La Belette Rouge enlisted me and a couple of other childless/free bloggers to help her respond to a comment urging her to consider adoption. You can find our collective thoughts and perspectives (along with some great comments) here.