No Strike

That's the way it looks, at least. The union members still have to ratify the new contract and then the state has to pass the budget. Fortunately, since it is an election year, the budget should be passed by the end of the month, which is close enough to on time for most politicians (especially since their constituents don't have a clue when the budget is actually supposed to be passed). It's only fifteen days late, who cares? Right?

Basically, the new contract give all the workers a pay increase (The increase isn't retroactive; instead they're paying the workers off with a one time lump sum. If I get the lump, I'll be getting more money than I would have gotten in the past nine months. For most workers it's probably a few hundred dollars less. Of course, for the most part, they don't realize that, they're just happy to suddenly have extra money in time for summer.), health care costs will stay the same (My employer pays a percentage of any health care premium, they wanted to make it a flat rate, which would have screwed us as health costs went up.), retirement contributions stay the same (They would have been cut in half if the contract presented to us had gone through.), the unpaid "furlough" days are gone, and a raise in pay, based on the consumer price, index but not lower than 2%, next year at the same time. The contract expires on June 30, 2008, which is three years from the date the last contract expired.

I'm relieved that there's not going to be a strike. I would have been out there holding up a stupid sign, but not chanting the stupid slogans, to support getting a real contract, but I'm glad I don't have to.

In other news, my allergies decided to go psycho yesterday. (They probably would have on Saturday as well, but I was else where.) I asked around the office this morning if maybe there was something sprayed on the fields this weekend, but was told no.

Here's what I was told and my internal response to each:

I was told that it was due to the heat.
Two weeks ago it was just as hot, maybe even hotter, and my allergies didn't go nuts. And on Thursday it was about 95 out there and my nose was fine.

I was told it was the wind.
It's been crazy windy for the past month (with the exception of the hot day), why was it only on Sunday when I couldn't stop sneezing?

I was told that we didn't have a spring, so everything is coming in now.
No. Spring started a while ago. The massive amount of rain stopped at least six weeks ago, probably more, and plenty of things were blooming before and during the rain and in the last six weeks.

I was told that it's just because this is the worst place in the world for allergies.
I can believe that, but it's not a reasonable answer for why Sunday was total an utter misery when before that I was doing okay.

Today, I am leaky, but not as leaky as I was yesterday.