My case in December never materialized so I was unhappy and had to work in Target for another few weeks. Three weeks ago I was looking for cases and found one that was less hours but much closer than the other one. I started it two weeks ago and I'm so happy. I'm still working at Target for extra cash and for my 401k loan to be paid off but only one or two nights a week and no weekends.
There's some things I miss about Target, but I don't miss being at huddles, working with morons, the unrealistic expectations, the stupid management, working early, etc. I get to get up at 7am, have a three and a half hour lunch break, and be home by 6:30pm every night. The three and a half hour lunch break is awesome. Between my cases one day last week, I sat and ate lunch, went to IKEA, Michaels, and another Target and then went to my other case. Another day I went home and took a two hour nap. Yesterday, I went to Trader Joe's, a bookstore, and got lunch. It's a lot of driving and I'm not being paid to travel (you only get paid if you're going directly to cases) but I love it.
The most important thing is that it's rewarding. My older case is someone with very high-functioning autism. My newer case is someone a bit younger with autism but he has the mentality of an 18 month old. With the previous agency, he learned that smacking himself in the head would get attention. Ever since my agency and I were assigned, they have gone down as we're told to ignore his cues. Making a difference in someone's life is much more rewarding than stocking potatoes. I did get my hair pulled out and almost bitten yesterday but it's not as stressing as you think.
Plus I get my $3 raise next month and my training paid out. The supervision is a consultant visiting once a week and working WITH you. The downside is that during the summer, I will lose my older case temporarily as he will not be in the area but I can always pick up a new case.
After working this, I cannot fathom why I didn't try much earlier.