63 cases were assigned to me last night, all in a small area northwest of me, all within walking distance. i didn't have much going on this morning, and left for work even earlier, at 11am, just so i could finish by 7pm. weather-wise i heard one meteorologist describe it as "delicious": clear blue sky, temperature in the 60-70's, a slight feel of autumn. it was cold enough that i wore pants, though the weather did get a bit warmer later in the afternoon.
once more, a lot of proxy cases, which i'm learning to enjoy more than standard first visit cases. even though it takes longer to enumerate a proxy case, i've found it's more rewarding, because it increases your chances of actually speaking to a live person who often times know at least something about their neighbors. i've had a lot of proxy interviews, not sure if they'll count for my bonus eligibility.
since i was enumerating so close by, i did come home very briefly for a bathroom break before going back out again. my official half hour break came around 3:45pm. 30 minutes has never felt like it's gone by so quickly when you're on your break! even though it wasn't that hot today, i still took a quick shower when i got home. i then watched a little tv while snacking on some corn chips and guacamole.
i never like starting work, but usually towards the end of the day if i'm on a roll, especially if i'm able to close a few cases by proxy, and on a good day i seemed to have more energy and almost sad to see the work day coming to a close. highlight today included enumerating an apartment complex that was impossible to get inside. i tried my best, did get into 2 of the 5 buildings, but it was frustrating. but i remember the maintenance guy i spoke with a few weeks ago when i first tackled a few cases here, and he was awesome, remembered every detail about every apartment that i had on my list, and i was able to close them all out. another highlight was a nearby address that they keep sending me. today was the third attempt and i knew they wanted me to attempt proxies. i could've just winged it, but i happened to know the neighbor who lives across the street from that address, and when i serendipitously bumped into her walking her dogs in the neighborhood, i quickly got some info for that case and was able to do a proxy interview. i also finally found out her name even though i see her all the time.
they did give me a chunk of addresses that was a harvard law student residence. i put it at the end, knowing full well i wouldn't get any success trying to enumerate those addresses. fortunately i finished nearly all my other cases before my shift was over, and didn't have to tackle any harvard addresses, of which we've have conflicting instructions, but the latest seems to be hold off on enumerating them as the census is coordinating with the university to get a master list of april occupancies.
it was weird to be back at home by 7pm. my father had came to my house again and left some dinner on the table along with the sichuan kimchi container. after a shower, i sort of just relaxed in the living room, didn't eat until 9pm.
of the 63 cases assigned to me today, i went through 39 of them. of those that i tackled, i managed to close 24 cases. that's a 60% closure rate! always be closing!
trying to think if i'm going to go out early again tomorrow. heck, if i start work at 10am, i could be home by 6pm, in time for the evening news! something to think about. i find myself waking up early anyway, just the mild anticipation of having to work triggering my biological alarm clock.