my anniversary came and went at the office without any fan-fare. i had anticipated this very possibility, seeing as how i’d previously learned that someone very undeserving had recieved a raise for no apparent reason other than because they whined about how broke they were all the freakin’ time. in anticipation of this, i’d sent a memo to the powers-that-be about five weeks in advance of the anniversary, politely but firmly reiterating what i’d done this last year to deserve a raise, what i could do in the year to come to earn a promotion and a raise, and well, asking for a raise.

no one said a word. for weeks.

it was a stand-off, of sorts. a chess game. i’d made my move, i waited for them to make theirs. and i quietly worried that instead of getting what i wanted from what i always thought was my dream job, i would instead have to give it up and move on. and then, a week after the anniversary, something happened. at the end of the day, the boss said with mild suprise, “oh, you’ve been here a year, haven’t you? we should do something about that!”

you think?

so a memo went out, congratulating me on the milestone, and giving me a new title, a promotion of sorts… i got promoted, to my job. ha!

but then today, by some act of god or congress, and just as casually as you’d say, “i think i’ll have pizza for lunch” the boss said, “oh, your new rate of pay will start at the next pay period.” i tried to not act too shocked. “really?” i said. “and what rate is that?” and then i did act shocked. because i was. because i got not only what i felt i deserved, but the amount that i thought i wouldn’t get, but had to ask for to get what i wanted.

holy crap!