The Honeymoon is Over

Two full weeks of school are completed, along with weeks of getting established in my office since being hired on July 19th. There have been many early mornings and late nights, but I still had a constant smile on my face and probably annoyed my friends with the all of the job bliss comments. Now that I have settled in, even became the mayor on Foursquare, there have been a few things that have messed with the bliss:

• During my first administrative meeting I was addressed by my first name. This never happened in my career before and it was actually a little disturbing. The event almost became it's own blog post until I realized using first names is part of the school culture. Not sure I am still happy with that in a meeting setting, yet it is something I can get adjusted to.
• Time is an issue, specially colleagues not keeping up with scheduled meetings. A huge issue for me, because I believe that keeping appointments and being on time is important. Trying to be a little more forgiving on this issue, but I did express my annoyance. I think that expressing my feelings about this is important to maximize my time in the new position.
• There are communication troubles and it is resulting in work needing to be re-done. Not really sure how to handle this yet, but there has to be a solution to avoid frustration by multiple parties. 
• Then the little things: some people avoiding their duty, the drama of working with artistic people, and the random "emergencies."

Despite the annoyances, I wake up happy during the week knowing that I am going to my new school. In a any new relationship, there has to be an adjustment period. I am determined to not be too judgement to enjoy the great parts of the culture: smiles in the morning, hugs (though I am not a "huggy" person), compliments, and being a part of projects that support students & teachers. Honeymoons are dreamy and enjoyable, but the day-to-day realities make the journey worthwhile.