Long, exhausting day.

Just got home from work a few minutes ago.

I spent the afternoon trying to fix a project I completed in April of 2004, which hasn't been touched much since. A couple of weeks ago, someone went to try it and discovered that it didn't work anymore. The guy who originally taught me how to use the software is no longer with the company. So.

After spending a while trying to re-learn how the software works, a long while banging my head on whatever I could find, I managed to get part of it fixed, enough that it's workable. It wasn't anything that I'd done or not done that had made it not work. And now maybe it'll actually be *used* instead of just sitting there after I spent weeks on it.

The more important thing was the meeting this morning with the VPs about my potential return to work there. Rather fortunately, I talked with the VP of Ops first, which put me in a totally different mood than the VP of Finance would've. The VP of Ops is often quite a smart-ass, which I'd gotten used to enough when I was there that I could respond in kind. The VP of Finance often makes me feel shy/nervous, though when I left, she did say that one of the things that she had liked about me was that I always had a smile, which was pretty much true, outwardly.

They gave more detail on what they'd like me to do. Basically, I'm to be the wish-list come true.

They'd mentioned the help desk part before. Today they added things like lots of Access and Excel, possibly doing some training, programming, all kinds of stuff. Basically, relieving some of the work off of the people who are swamped with computer-related stuff that they really shouldn't have been doing in the first place -- as well as taking back some of my old tasks and continuing to maintain the manuals and this project I worked on today.

The VP of Ops had told me long ago that my name would often come up in Senior Management meetings -- "Maybe we should look into have XYZ done" "Oh, I bet Jennifer could do it".

So now I may be *doing* all/most those things.

They know I don't know much about Access, their proprietary software, or some of the other things they're considering asking me to do... but they also know how well I can learn such things. So they (supposedly) don't expect me to know everything, but to be willing to learn. Which is good.

All this, and they don't expect it to be more than 25-30 hours a week at first.

They haven't given me a dollar figure yet, other than to say that it'd be salaried instead of hourly, and my vacation and benefits would be picked up right where I left (so I wouldn't have to start over).

I still have mixed feelings about the whole thing.

The job itself sounds good, if challenging.

I'd be the only female in a department of moody to indifferent men, though I'd likely be working with other departments and with franchisees.

And I know the people there, too... granted, there are some that I don't like, but that's likely to happen anywhere. It's hard to find a company that doesn't do things that appear to be stupid/heartless, that doesn't have stupid employees or office politics. I have to remember that it's just business -- it's all about the money.

As I rather suspected, the girl that was "terminated" recently was fired/made to quit for basically speaking her mind -- not telling anyone off, just giving honest feedback to the VP of Marketing that he didn't like. Not that it's anyone I'd really have to work with, but it's that sort of a company, especially right now. So, I would have to accept a certain lack of job security (in spite of the *apparent* security).

There's also the fact that I have been enjoying barely-working. I haven't had this much time off from full-time job or school since I was 4. I've gotten used to sleeping in, spending late nights with C, getting shopping done during the day when the stores aren't as crowded, having time to make dinner and do dishes, not having to look professional. Having it start part-time would probably help to ease me back in to normal working stuff.

In addition to that, it feels somehow like it'd be a defeat of some sort to go back. Kinda like getting back together with an ex-bf when, in spite of his promises, he probably hasn't really changed. Or like moving back in with your parents because you can't quite make it on your own. I thought I'd find a new job at a better company, and I haven't. So I'm a bit bummed.

On the other hand, of course, there's the fact that this company evidently likes me so much that they really don't want me to go. I was/am a good, obedient employee, capable of more than I was doing, willing to take on additional work. I was careful not to burn any bridges when I left (if only so I'd have good references). (On the third hand, they got a lot more out of me than they were paying me for, and maybe they're hoping for that again.)

They're supposed to have a job description and proposal next week, and are looking to "move" on this in "two to three weeks".

We shall see.