Seriously Short-Handed

Thanks to a vacation scheduling snafu, both my boss and another director are on vacation until the 4th of July. This leaves our second location without a director, and our primary location short one director. The owner and myself will have to cover everything for the duration. That leaves me answering the phones every day after hours, which I detest. I especially hate those calls from our second location. We use an answering service, and they usually call up and say they have an *URGENT* message. I'll call the number and it's somebody checking to see if mom's been cremated or asking if the death certificates are ready.
Tomorrow will be busy, more so because of the staff shortage. We've got to load a casket into an airtray and have it to the airport by 10am. We've got a 10am funeral mass, followed by the National Cemetery. We've a 1:30 ID view, and a 4pm memorial service. The National Cemetery will take two people; myself and driver for the limo, and we'll be gone from about 9:45 until 2:30 or so, leaving the owner and one other person to get everything done in the afternoon. I'll be glad when the week is over; not that it matters a whole lot because I'll still have the blasted telephones all weekend long.

Replacements And Skydiving

Our employee has officially retired and moved away. Things just aren't the same around the funeral home with her gone. The new girl is doing well, though, and business has slowed down enough that none of us are being overwhelmed. Our other location has been getting all the calls this week. We've got a visitation tomorrow over there, funeral mass on Friday and then the National Cemetery. We've got a private viewing Friday night, family only, at our primary location, then a memorial service Saturday morning at 11am. Thankfully, this is my weekend off and I don't have to work. Instead, I'll be watching my wife cash in her skydiving gift certificate I bought her last Christmas. She'll be tandem jumping from about 10,000 feet. I bought the video package, so I'll have some video and still photos to document the occasion.