My last day in Boston was Tuesday and we once again got an early start and headed into our customer site at 8:00 a.m. My flight was leaving at 2:40 p.m. so one of my customers arranged a cab to pick me up at noon. The traffic in Boston is ridiculous so everyone said it would be best to leave at noon to make sure I got to the airport with plenty of time remaining.
The cab ride was uneventful. The driver talked a lot and asked a lot of questions and kept referring to his girlfriend (or maybe wife) as his sweetheart which made me smile to myself. I got the the airport about 12:30 and had thankfully already printed out my boarding passes so I basically just had to jump in the ever-growing line to get into the terminal. It took about 30-45 minutes to get through security, after which I went straight to the Legal Sea Foods located in the terminal for some lunch. I had clam chowder and a lobster roll and it was all delicious.
I spent the next little while returning a few calls and browsing through my phone and finally it was time to board the plane. I was so lucky because on both flights home I had the exit row. On the flight from Boston to Atlanta I was on the row where the seat in front of me was a good four feet away and it was grand. I sat next to Cliff, the CFO of Boston Mutual and he told me about the endurance race he just finished and then told me about how he came to know Jesus. We spent most of the flight talking about faith. Well, he mostly talked and I occasionally got a word in which made me laugh because Cliff mentioned multiple times he was not a people person but he could have fooled me. We also talked about math. Cliff loves math and math is/was my favorite subject in school and so we had some common ground there on which to have a conversation. Cliff was visiting his mom and step-dad in Atlanta and so after the plane landed, we parted ways.
I had a bit of a layover in Atlanta so I walked around and watched people and called my dad and the next thing I knew it was time to board the plane. On this flight, not only did I have the exit row, but the middle seat was empty as well so there was lots of room to spread out. I spoke to the gentleman sitting next to me and we started talking and ended up talking from take off to touch down. His name was Melvin Adams and he once played for the San Antonio Spurs and the Harlem Globetrotters. He was coming to Huntsville to put on a basketball camp and he also works as a motivational speaker. He had me laughing the whole flight home. It was great. We are now Twitter and Instagram buddies and I hope our paths cross again some day because I really enjoyed talking with him. I finally made it home a little before 8:00 p.m. where I basically went to straight to bed and to sleep. I will never for the life of me understand why travelling is so exhausting.
The next day I had a different customer in house and went in to to work at my normal time of 6:30 a.m. and by the time the day was over (work and then dinner with the customer), it was 10:00 p.m. My clock was literally chiming 10:00 p.m. when I walked in. So, again ti was straight to bed for me. I don't think Pippa enjoyed me much last week.
The rest of the week was somewhat normal, work, gym, sleep and back to work. I think it was one of the busiest work weeks I've ever had and I'm very much looking forward to a somewhat more normal week this next week.
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Sunday, June 21, 2015
Thursday, June 18, 2015
While In Boston
Monday morning in Boston I woke up, got ready for the day, ate some breakfast and headed out the door. My co-worker Andy and I drove the one mile or so up the road to our customer site to begin our work day. It was raining outside and Andy was kind enough to pick me up under the portico at the hotel and drop me off at the front door of our customer site.
We spent the day working and having meetings with various people who we work with on a daily basis but from a distance. It was refreshing to meet all the people we talk to on the phone so often. I think it makes a huge difference to put a face with a name and I was so glad to meet people who I've talked to for years but had no idea what they looked like in person.
Our customer took us out to lunch at a local spot and Andy and I both had the Lobster Roll, or should I say Lobstah Roll, which was really good. We enjoyed visiting with our customers on a casual environment and getting to know them a little better. After lunch we had more meetings and Andy did some more work on his project and around 4:30 p.m. we called it a day. We were planning to leave at 5:00 p.m., but we had plans to go to the Red Sox game and our customer told us we should probably hit the road.
So, we went back to the hotel and changed clothes and then went to the train station so we could catch the train/subway into the city. It was Andy's first time on a train or subway and he was really excited. What can I say? He's young. It took us a good hour or longer to get to our subway stop because of the vast number of people trying to get to the game. The trains were running slow and we were often stopped on the tracks not moving at all which was supremely annoying considering there were hundreds of people on each car and I was starting to feel claustrophobic.
We finally made it to Fenway Park, bought some tickets on the first base line under the upper deck (it was raining and we wanted to stay dry) and walked around outside the park for while before going in. We finally went in and I was planning to get a hot dog and soda, but Andy decided to buy a whole pizza for us to split and so I just went with it because at this point I was ready to sit down and start watching the game. We made our way to our seats and practically needed a third seat for our gigantic pizza.
The game was fun, the atmosphere was more fun. The weather was cold. I had on a coat and a beanie and by the time the game was over, I was freezing. The Sox played the Braves and despite a rally in the bottom of the ninth, the Sox lost (their seventh loss in a row). We still had a great time and I'm so glad we were able to catch a game while in town.
After the game, we made our way to the train station which was backed up to the street to get in. They apparently haven't caught on to the DC method of just let everyone in on game night. After waiting in line to get into the station, we finally made it onto a train and began the long journey back to our car. We made it back to the hotel around midnight where I promptly went to sleep. It was a productive day and a fun night!
We spent the day working and having meetings with various people who we work with on a daily basis but from a distance. It was refreshing to meet all the people we talk to on the phone so often. I think it makes a huge difference to put a face with a name and I was so glad to meet people who I've talked to for years but had no idea what they looked like in person.
Our customer took us out to lunch at a local spot and Andy and I both had the Lobster Roll, or should I say Lobstah Roll, which was really good. We enjoyed visiting with our customers on a casual environment and getting to know them a little better. After lunch we had more meetings and Andy did some more work on his project and around 4:30 p.m. we called it a day. We were planning to leave at 5:00 p.m., but we had plans to go to the Red Sox game and our customer told us we should probably hit the road.
So, we went back to the hotel and changed clothes and then went to the train station so we could catch the train/subway into the city. It was Andy's first time on a train or subway and he was really excited. What can I say? He's young. It took us a good hour or longer to get to our subway stop because of the vast number of people trying to get to the game. The trains were running slow and we were often stopped on the tracks not moving at all which was supremely annoying considering there were hundreds of people on each car and I was starting to feel claustrophobic.
We finally made it to Fenway Park, bought some tickets on the first base line under the upper deck (it was raining and we wanted to stay dry) and walked around outside the park for while before going in. We finally went in and I was planning to get a hot dog and soda, but Andy decided to buy a whole pizza for us to split and so I just went with it because at this point I was ready to sit down and start watching the game. We made our way to our seats and practically needed a third seat for our gigantic pizza.
The game was fun, the atmosphere was more fun. The weather was cold. I had on a coat and a beanie and by the time the game was over, I was freezing. The Sox played the Braves and despite a rally in the bottom of the ninth, the Sox lost (their seventh loss in a row). We still had a great time and I'm so glad we were able to catch a game while in town.
After the game, we made our way to the train station which was backed up to the street to get in. They apparently haven't caught on to the DC method of just let everyone in on game night. After waiting in line to get into the station, we finally made it onto a train and began the long journey back to our car. We made it back to the hotel around midnight where I promptly went to sleep. It was a productive day and a fun night!
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
A Trip To Boston
I spent the last couple of days in Boston, one of my favorite cities in the good ole United States of America. I've been quite a few times before, but this time around I went for work rather than pleasure. As long as I've worked for my current employer, I've never traveled for my job; so, this was an unexpected surprise. Since the week ahead is jam packed for work, I had to fly out on Sunday so that I could be back in town for a big meeting and audit on Wednesday.
My flight was scheduled to leave Huntsville a little after 11:00 a.m. on Sunday and so, I got up at 5:00 a.m., did a bit of laundry and then went to the 6:00 a.m. worship service at church where I'm pretty sure I was the only visitor that day. I was completely surprised when most of the people there were talking amongst themselves and you could tell they were regulars at the early service. I had no idea the 6:00 a.m. service had regulars. After church I went home and finished up some cleaning and changing of the sheets and actually packed a bag for my trip.
I left for the airport around 10:00 a.m., parked in long term parking, grabbed a bite to eat, ate, and got on the plane. A co-worker, Andy, went on the trip as well, but we were not sitting beside each other on the flight. We were a few rows apart. I sat between two men who I assume were also both headed out of town on business. One was going to Baltimore, the other was just grumpy. We had pretty much no layover in Atlanta, which was great. I had time to buy a bottle of water and get on the plane. On the flight from Atlanta to Boston, I had an exit row seat and there wasn't a seat in front of me so my legs were able to stretch out the whole flight and it was absolutely delightful! I watched a movie I had downloaded to my Kindle and just generally enjoyed the whole flight. I have exit row seats on the return flights home too, or at least I'm supposed to; so, I'm pretty pumped about that.
When we arrived in Boston, it was a little after 4:00 p.m. and we took the bus to the rental car location. Poor Andy, he's so young and innocent. The rental car was in his name because he s staying a day longer than I. He said he couldn't find on his reservation who the rental was with, but that he thought it was Hertz. So, into the Hertz line we go. Andy, bless him, keeps looking at his reservation and doesn't understand why he can't find which company the car is with. I ask to see it and it says Budget and I point that out and say we need to be in another (longer) line on the other end of the room. He thought that Budget meant that it was a budget, or cheap, car, not that it was the name of the company. He's young, people, he's young.
We went to dinner at Legal Sea Foods and had a great spread of delicious seafood items, including Lobster Bisque and stuffed shrimp. My only request was that we be back at the hotel by 9:00 p.m. which is when the season finale of Game of Thrones was coming on. We made it back with about 10 minutes to spare and would have gotten back sooner if not for the terrible waitress we had. She hardly ever checked on our table, we were often without drinks, and it took her three tries to get our checks split up correctly. If you ever go to the Legal Sea Foods in Braintree, be sure that Amanda is not your server.
I watched the Game of Thrones finale and then attempted to go to sleep. I did not sleep well at all - for the second night in a row. It was either the ginormous bed, the lack of Pippa, the fact I was distraught over the Game of Thrones finale or a combination of the three. Who knows? Whatever the case, it made for a very tired Monday which is when the actual work portion of the trip began.
We finally made it to the rental car around 6:00 p.m. and headed out on the road. At first Andy told me he wanted me to drive, but then decided to drive himself. I think he was a little nervous, but he did great. He wasn't as aggressive as I would have been, but he still did a good job. We made it to the hotel and got checked in, dropped our things off in our respective rooms and then left to get some dinner.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
The Last Summer Wedding for 2014
I woke up Saturday morning about 6:00 a.m. and basically moved from the bed to the couch. I spent the rest of the morning napping on and off and watching shows from the DVR and then golf. I did manage to at least leave my house for about 30 minutes to fill the car up with gas and get a pizza for lunch.
About 2:30 I dragged myself off the couch and got ready for my friend Jay's wedding. It was the fourth and final summer of 2014 wedding I would attend. Jay and I used to work together until he moved on to greener pastures almost a year ago. Well, it may have been over a year ago at this point. I seriously lose track of time. Jay and I have stayed in touch since he left and I was so glad to get his wedding invitation in the mail. He and Krislyn had dated for about four years and we used to tease him quite often about popping the big question.
A while back, I had asked Nevin if he would go with me to the wedding. I knew that I would not know a whole lot of people other than the handful of work friends that would be going and so he graciously agreed to go with me. Nevin came by a little before 3:30 p.m. and we were soon on our way for the 4:00 p.m. wedding which was held at a church downtown close to my house. The church was small and quaint, quite a contrast from the other weddings I've attended recently.
The ceremony was supposed to start at 4:00 p.m., but didn't actually get started until almost 4:30 p.m. Jay looked handsome and Krislyn looked beautiful, as it should be. The ceremony was short and sweet, lasting all of about 15 minutes. The most interesting part of it all was when Jay and Krislyn jumped the broom. Beforehand, the minister told the history behind it - how slaves were not afforded the privilege of a legal marriage and so they jumped over a broom to indicate a commitment to each other. The grandmothers swept away the floor (indicating a sweeping away of the past), then placed the broom on the floor and Jay and Krislyn took the big jump. It was a nice way to end a lovely service.
The reception was across the street at the Roundhouse Depot. The room was decorated beautifully. There were appetizers and drinks for everyone to snack on while the wedding party was taking photos. Soon after the couple arrived, the entire wedding party was announced and the first dances took place. Jay and his mother really cut a rug during their dance. It was such fun to watch. The dinner was finally brought out and I loved that Krislyn's dad said a prayer to bless the food before dinner. We had greens, shrimp and grits, steamed veggies, wild rive, chicken and cornbread. Everything was really good.
Not long after dinner, Jay and Krislyn cut the cake. I had a piece of the bride's cake which looked beautiful and tasted good. Nevin and I as well as my co-workers all left soon after. We had all been at the reception for a couple of hours and the dancing hadn't even started. I think we were all tired and ready to hit the road.
It was a fun night with friends celebrating the love and union of two lovely people. Here's to wishing Jay and Krislyn all the best!
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
I Thought It Was Vitamin Gut
Do you ever get vitamin gut? You know, that queasy feeling you sometimes get when you take your vitamins on an empty stomach. I get it from time to time which is why I now take my morning medicines with milk. It truly does help with the vitamin gut feeling. Today, even after drinking milk with my morning meds, I still felt a little queasy. By the time I got to work, my stomach was still not up to par and continued to feel worse throughout the course of the day.
Around noon I decided to go ahead and leave work for the day rather than suffer at my desk for one more minute. I took a nap when I got home and around 3:30 or so I began to spend the remainder of the day and evening in the bathroom hugging the toilet with my arms. That's right folks, it would appear that the dreaded stomach bug has finally hit me. After avoiding it for more than a month, my luck ran out. I have racked my brain trying to figure out where I picked it up. My best bet is at the chiropractor's office - the nurse who did my treatment told me that her two girls had the stomach virus last week and I can only imagine that she probably carried it in to the office and gave it to me. Thanks a lot lady! I'm hoping this will be a quick run and it won't last a whole week like it has with other folks.
Speaking of the chiropractor, I almost died on the way to his office yesterday. As I got on the exit ramp at Governor's Drive, the vehicle in front of me came to a screeching halt. It was some sort of wildlife removal company and they decided to risk their lives and mine in the middle of rush hour traffic to pick up a ladder on the side of the road. They already had two ladders on their truck so I'm guessing this one wasn't even their's because think about it, have you ever seen a truck with three ladders? I doubt it. It's usually just two. Maybe it was their ladder - either way, it was a dumb move and could have injured or killed a lot of people.
At work on Monday, some of the cars in the parking lot were spray painted. The security guards were clearly hard at work. I was really hoping Old Blue would have gotten a stripe of spray paint on her broken window so I could get it replaced, but I was not so lucky. One guy in our department was a victim of the spray paint bandit and filed a police report. Hopefully he will be able to get his car repaired without any problems.
Well, typing this up has been the biggest break my stomach has given me in quite some time. So, I'm not going to press my luck, but instead will bid you adieu. Hope your health is fairing better than mine.
One more note - a shout out to my mom today - it's her birthday. Happy Birthday Mother! I look forward to celebrating with you when my belly can once again hold solid foods!
Around noon I decided to go ahead and leave work for the day rather than suffer at my desk for one more minute. I took a nap when I got home and around 3:30 or so I began to spend the remainder of the day and evening in the bathroom hugging the toilet with my arms. That's right folks, it would appear that the dreaded stomach bug has finally hit me. After avoiding it for more than a month, my luck ran out. I have racked my brain trying to figure out where I picked it up. My best bet is at the chiropractor's office - the nurse who did my treatment told me that her two girls had the stomach virus last week and I can only imagine that she probably carried it in to the office and gave it to me. Thanks a lot lady! I'm hoping this will be a quick run and it won't last a whole week like it has with other folks.
Speaking of the chiropractor, I almost died on the way to his office yesterday. As I got on the exit ramp at Governor's Drive, the vehicle in front of me came to a screeching halt. It was some sort of wildlife removal company and they decided to risk their lives and mine in the middle of rush hour traffic to pick up a ladder on the side of the road. They already had two ladders on their truck so I'm guessing this one wasn't even their's because think about it, have you ever seen a truck with three ladders? I doubt it. It's usually just two. Maybe it was their ladder - either way, it was a dumb move and could have injured or killed a lot of people.
At work on Monday, some of the cars in the parking lot were spray painted. The security guards were clearly hard at work. I was really hoping Old Blue would have gotten a stripe of spray paint on her broken window so I could get it replaced, but I was not so lucky. One guy in our department was a victim of the spray paint bandit and filed a police report. Hopefully he will be able to get his car repaired without any problems.
Well, typing this up has been the biggest break my stomach has given me in quite some time. So, I'm not going to press my luck, but instead will bid you adieu. Hope your health is fairing better than mine.
One more note - a shout out to my mom today - it's her birthday. Happy Birthday Mother! I look forward to celebrating with you when my belly can once again hold solid foods!
Friday, March 22, 2013
Sometimes You Need Snacks to Break Up the Monotony
I completely forgot to mention that last Friday we had a snack day at work. It was truly a glorious occasion although I don't think as many people participated in this spring snack day as they do when we have it at Christmastime.
Where I work, we don't get all the government holidays off and in fact don't have one holiday between New Year's and Memorial Day. That's a long stretch without a free day off and so I had suggested to our department admin that we should have a snack day in March to break up the monotony of the day in and day out work and also to boost our moral. I mean, let's face it, folks get cranky during a five month span with no holiday. As luck would have it, last Friday was also the birthday of one of the upper managers so we basically just pretended like it was a big celebration of his birthday, but really it was just an excuse to eat and have some fun at work.
I made buffalo chicken dip and corn dip as well as some chocolate chip cookie bars, all of which turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. Meri brought some Pico made by her eldest daughter and it was delicious and hot! We had an assortment of cakes, cookies, dips, cheese balls, fruit and various and sundry other items including some of the best doughnuts I've had since the sad demise of Mr. Donut. The doughnuts were from some local place in Athens and were scrumdillyumptious! The spring snack day really put everyone in a good mood and lifted our spirits and now, perhaps, we will be able to make it through the next couple of months until we have a holiday.
In other news, mine and my dad's vacation plans are coming along nicely, or at least I think they are. In addition to going to a taping of the Ellen Show, we were also contacted about volunteering at the Tour of California bike race which is the primary reason I picked California for our vacation this year. I had signed us up a while back and quite honestly had kind of forgotten about it until we received an email this week. The bad part is that all volunteers are required to attend a meeting ahead of their race day assignment and since we don't live in California, that won't really work for us. the volunteer organizer for the mountain stage (for which we were contacted about volunteering) told us that he would see what he could do for us in regards to working out the logistics of not being in town for the mandatory meeting. I'm hoping it all works out and that we are able to get a really great assignment on race day.
My dad has also booked us a fun adventure zip-lining through the Redwoods which is going to be so much fun! We are also planning and outing to a Giants baseball game which I will pay for with my health points at work so we won't actually have to pay for the tickets, which is super nice. I just need about 70 or so more points to get the seats I want and I should have those by the end of the weekend. It's shaping up to be a great vacation!
I don't have much planned for the upcoming weekend - we are slated to have very cold weather on the first weekend of spring. I had planned on mowing the lawn for the first time but since it's going to be so cold, that will have to wait until another day. Next week I hope to have a review or two for you (that's like a mini-poem). In the meantime, I hope everyone has a nice weekend and stays warm!
Where I work, we don't get all the government holidays off and in fact don't have one holiday between New Year's and Memorial Day. That's a long stretch without a free day off and so I had suggested to our department admin that we should have a snack day in March to break up the monotony of the day in and day out work and also to boost our moral. I mean, let's face it, folks get cranky during a five month span with no holiday. As luck would have it, last Friday was also the birthday of one of the upper managers so we basically just pretended like it was a big celebration of his birthday, but really it was just an excuse to eat and have some fun at work.
I made buffalo chicken dip and corn dip as well as some chocolate chip cookie bars, all of which turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. Meri brought some Pico made by her eldest daughter and it was delicious and hot! We had an assortment of cakes, cookies, dips, cheese balls, fruit and various and sundry other items including some of the best doughnuts I've had since the sad demise of Mr. Donut. The doughnuts were from some local place in Athens and were scrumdillyumptious! The spring snack day really put everyone in a good mood and lifted our spirits and now, perhaps, we will be able to make it through the next couple of months until we have a holiday.
In other news, mine and my dad's vacation plans are coming along nicely, or at least I think they are. In addition to going to a taping of the Ellen Show, we were also contacted about volunteering at the Tour of California bike race which is the primary reason I picked California for our vacation this year. I had signed us up a while back and quite honestly had kind of forgotten about it until we received an email this week. The bad part is that all volunteers are required to attend a meeting ahead of their race day assignment and since we don't live in California, that won't really work for us. the volunteer organizer for the mountain stage (for which we were contacted about volunteering) told us that he would see what he could do for us in regards to working out the logistics of not being in town for the mandatory meeting. I'm hoping it all works out and that we are able to get a really great assignment on race day.
My dad has also booked us a fun adventure zip-lining through the Redwoods which is going to be so much fun! We are also planning and outing to a Giants baseball game which I will pay for with my health points at work so we won't actually have to pay for the tickets, which is super nice. I just need about 70 or so more points to get the seats I want and I should have those by the end of the weekend. It's shaping up to be a great vacation!
When I got home from work today my neighbor Jeff told me that my next door neighbor's house was broken in to - that would be Charlie's house. Apparently it happened on Monday, March 11. I can only assume the burglars didn't break into my place because of the ferocious dog known as The Tide. Charlie has an alarm system that went off and so the thieves only got away with two laptops which is more than they should have taken, but better than it could have been. Thankfully Charlie wasn't injured (he was not at home) and there was no damage to his home. There's never a dull moment around here, people!
I don't have much planned for the upcoming weekend - we are slated to have very cold weather on the first weekend of spring. I had planned on mowing the lawn for the first time but since it's going to be so cold, that will have to wait until another day. Next week I hope to have a review or two for you (that's like a mini-poem). In the meantime, I hope everyone has a nice weekend and stays warm!
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Back to the Grind
It was back to the grind for me today as I went back to work after 11
days off. I've got to say, though, I was quite ready to get back to a
regular routine as I was beginning to get quite bored being at home. We
had inventory at work today and will continue it tomorrow which means we
spent the day counting widgets in between checking emails and
responding to customer requests. All in all, it was a nice first day
back and the day went by rather quickly which was also nice.
New Year's Day was nothing to brag about. After staying up til midnight and then driving home and finally getting in bed around 12:30 a.m., I slept in until 8:15 or so which is exceptionally late for me. Then I spent the rest of the day watching football and sleeping and eating. I should probably be ashamed to admit that I did not even bother to shower the whole day. After being lazy and spending most of the day in a deep sleep, the next thing I knew it was early evening and I figured, what was the point. It's not like I was planning on leaving the house. This is what I hate most about New Year's Day - some people probably love the laziness of the day but I find the lack of productivity to be completely annoying. I had grand plans of taking down the Christmas decorations but it rained all day and I didn't want to drag things from the shed to the house and vice versa in the rain. So, the day was completely unproductive and wasted. I also didn't eat any black-eyed peas for the first New Year's Day in I don't know how long - hopefully I'll have a bit of good luck in spite of this mishap.
Our New Year's Eve dinner was a success and was enjoyed by all in attendance, with the exception of my brother who had a bit of a stomach bug. I was pretty pooped by the time midnight rolled around as I had been up since 6:30 and had no nap during the day. Midnight is not an hour I see on a regular basis. After the stroke of 12, The Tide and I hit the road home which always makes me nervous because undoubtedly there are a lot of drunks on the road leaving their respective parties. I did not see the first firework, but heard plenty, especially the ones downtown which when standing in the driveway of my parents' home sounded like bombs over Baghdad.
So far I have no grand plans for the next few days; as luck would have it, the first weekend of the new year will be spent at the funeral home. It sure seems like I spend more and more time there the older I get. I guess that's life's course though. So, if I can't think of much else to write about over the next couple of days I will try my best to put up a movie review or two because some of you might want to visit the theater over the weekend and there are definitely some films out now that you will not want to miss.
Hope your 2013 is off to a roaring start!
New Year's Day was nothing to brag about. After staying up til midnight and then driving home and finally getting in bed around 12:30 a.m., I slept in until 8:15 or so which is exceptionally late for me. Then I spent the rest of the day watching football and sleeping and eating. I should probably be ashamed to admit that I did not even bother to shower the whole day. After being lazy and spending most of the day in a deep sleep, the next thing I knew it was early evening and I figured, what was the point. It's not like I was planning on leaving the house. This is what I hate most about New Year's Day - some people probably love the laziness of the day but I find the lack of productivity to be completely annoying. I had grand plans of taking down the Christmas decorations but it rained all day and I didn't want to drag things from the shed to the house and vice versa in the rain. So, the day was completely unproductive and wasted. I also didn't eat any black-eyed peas for the first New Year's Day in I don't know how long - hopefully I'll have a bit of good luck in spite of this mishap.
Our New Year's Eve dinner was a success and was enjoyed by all in attendance, with the exception of my brother who had a bit of a stomach bug. I was pretty pooped by the time midnight rolled around as I had been up since 6:30 and had no nap during the day. Midnight is not an hour I see on a regular basis. After the stroke of 12, The Tide and I hit the road home which always makes me nervous because undoubtedly there are a lot of drunks on the road leaving their respective parties. I did not see the first firework, but heard plenty, especially the ones downtown which when standing in the driveway of my parents' home sounded like bombs over Baghdad.
So far I have no grand plans for the next few days; as luck would have it, the first weekend of the new year will be spent at the funeral home. It sure seems like I spend more and more time there the older I get. I guess that's life's course though. So, if I can't think of much else to write about over the next couple of days I will try my best to put up a movie review or two because some of you might want to visit the theater over the weekend and there are definitely some films out now that you will not want to miss.
Hope your 2013 is off to a roaring start!
My dad and the late Coach Glen Nunley, one of my all time favorites!
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Christmas Cheer At Work
I'm happy to announce that the world did not end and also that I will not be working again until 2013. My
place of employment is shut down the week between Christmas and New
Year's and I am really looking forward to having some time off. I have
always enjoyed having the week off between Christmas and New Year's and
even when my workplace isn't shut down, it's a week that I've always
taken off so I can enjoy time with family, friends, and also just some
time for myself.
Friday, December 21, was the last day of the work week and the work year, and since it was also supposed to be the end of the world, some of my co-workers and I had a little fun with it. Long story short, one of our customers was visiting earlier in the year and was concerned about the world ending on December 21 and went on to tell how she had a helmet and was going to float away in her bathtub. I swear I am not making this up, and the lady was dead serious. There are many other crazy tales from this lady, but I'll stop while I'm ahead. So, I decided to bring in my bike helmet and wear it on the 21st. A few other people got in on it too and much hilarity ensued in our morning meeting.
Later on in the day, Santa stopped by and I had an opportunity to have my photo taken with him by the Christmas tree in the front lobby.
Speaking of the front lobby, we have fresh flowers delivered every week and I recently found out you can request to take the flowers home on Fridays. My friend Meri works the front desk and I was asking her about taking them home one of the last two weeks of the year and so she ordered a gorgeous Poinsettia and I was able to take it home on the 21st. I'll be taking it to my parents' house I'm sure but can enjoy it for myself a few days before Christmas.
I also received a gift from the gal I share a cubicle with; she got me an Amazon gift card and a gift card to the movies. I was very thankful to receive both of those! I also received a pretty scarf from another co-worker. So, I'm really glad the world didn't end on Friday, December 21, because it was a really nice work day if I do say so myself.
Friday, December 21, was the last day of the work week and the work year, and since it was also supposed to be the end of the world, some of my co-workers and I had a little fun with it. Long story short, one of our customers was visiting earlier in the year and was concerned about the world ending on December 21 and went on to tell how she had a helmet and was going to float away in her bathtub. I swear I am not making this up, and the lady was dead serious. There are many other crazy tales from this lady, but I'll stop while I'm ahead. So, I decided to bring in my bike helmet and wear it on the 21st. A few other people got in on it too and much hilarity ensued in our morning meeting.
Later on in the day, Santa stopped by and I had an opportunity to have my photo taken with him by the Christmas tree in the front lobby.
Speaking of the front lobby, we have fresh flowers delivered every week and I recently found out you can request to take the flowers home on Fridays. My friend Meri works the front desk and I was asking her about taking them home one of the last two weeks of the year and so she ordered a gorgeous Poinsettia and I was able to take it home on the 21st. I'll be taking it to my parents' house I'm sure but can enjoy it for myself a few days before Christmas.
I also received a gift from the gal I share a cubicle with; she got me an Amazon gift card and a gift card to the movies. I was very thankful to receive both of those! I also received a pretty scarf from another co-worker. So, I'm really glad the world didn't end on Friday, December 21, because it was a really nice work day if I do say so myself.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Work Snack Day 2012
Today was our snack day at work and we had enough food to feed a small
army and the food seemed to multiply throughout the day. I arrived
around 6:45 so that I could update my morning reports and then help get
the conference room set up. The girl who was bringing the tablecloths
was running late and so arriving early didn't do me much good as I
needed the tablecloths, plates, etc. to set up the room. She arrived a
few minutes before 7:30 and I met her outside and helped her bring
everything in. We got the room set up and then the food started
arriving.
I brought sausage balls and a chicken ball to this work soiree of ours. Some of the other items that were brought included seven layer dip, homemade salsa, cheeseball, spinach dip, Boston butts, Chick-fil-A trays, cookies, cakes, the list could go on and on. There was seriously a lot of food. We ran out of plates before lunch time and had to get another stash from the cafeteria. HR supplied us with a tray of chicken fingers at lunch time and those were devoured so quickly I never even saw them - and I sit right beside the conference room where all the food was being kept.
Snack day is my favorite day of the work year. Everyone is in a good mood and jolly and having a good time. Most of the time we are all just trying to get through the day without killing each other. Okay, maybe it's not that bad, but all our attitudes greatly improve on snack day.
After our first trip round the food table we were joking about how eating was going to put us in comatose state and we would all want a nap. That's when one of the guy's came up with the brilliant idea to take these two photos.
I'm not gonna lie, I could totally have used a nap once or twice throughout the day. I managed to stay awake and I also managed to not eat too terribly much. I wasn't stuffed to the gills and miserable as can easily be the case on days like this. It was a really fun day at work. It's nice to see folks loosen up a little and have a little fun.
Tonight we are headed to The Living Christmas Tree and I hope to have a Friday afternoon post up about that experience. I'm looking forward to it as it is usually a really nice show.
I brought sausage balls and a chicken ball to this work soiree of ours. Some of the other items that were brought included seven layer dip, homemade salsa, cheeseball, spinach dip, Boston butts, Chick-fil-A trays, cookies, cakes, the list could go on and on. There was seriously a lot of food. We ran out of plates before lunch time and had to get another stash from the cafeteria. HR supplied us with a tray of chicken fingers at lunch time and those were devoured so quickly I never even saw them - and I sit right beside the conference room where all the food was being kept.
Snack day is my favorite day of the work year. Everyone is in a good mood and jolly and having a good time. Most of the time we are all just trying to get through the day without killing each other. Okay, maybe it's not that bad, but all our attitudes greatly improve on snack day.
After our first trip round the food table we were joking about how eating was going to put us in comatose state and we would all want a nap. That's when one of the guy's came up with the brilliant idea to take these two photos.
I'm not gonna lie, I could totally have used a nap once or twice throughout the day. I managed to stay awake and I also managed to not eat too terribly much. I wasn't stuffed to the gills and miserable as can easily be the case on days like this. It was a really fun day at work. It's nice to see folks loosen up a little and have a little fun.
Tonight we are headed to The Living Christmas Tree and I hope to have a Friday afternoon post up about that experience. I'm looking forward to it as it is usually a really nice show.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
If You Are Sick, Stay Home
I want to take this opportunity to get
on my soapbox about people who are ill with some sort of cough due to
cold/, or the flu, or bronchitis, or anything involving fever. If you
have one of these types of illnesses and you work for a living, do your
co-workers a favor and stay home.
I don't know why it is that America has become the country where work comes before everything in life, but for whatever reason it has and it is probably the one thing I dislike most about this great country. I think we should adapt to the European way of life where we close the doors for a month every year and deal with the work when we return from holiday - seems like a much better way of life. The same goes for sickness. I don't understand for the life of me why people come to work when they are sick - that's what sick leave is for, people!
I bring all this up because this week my supervisor is sick. On Monday she sent us an email that she had fever, etc. and that she was going to work form home and go to the doctor later that afternoon. We never heard from her again that day and then she showed up to work on Tuesday morning with a terrible cough and looking like death warmed over. I told her not to be coming in with some disease and spreading her germs around. I also asked her what the doctor said - well, she didn't go. Her fever broke mid-morning on Monday and so she decided not to go to the doctor. All I could think was "I wonder how many days I have until I am feeling terrible?" Wednesday, she came back to work and her cough was worse than it had been on Tuesday. She came to me around 11:30 that morning and asked me to take care of some things for her that afternoon because she was leaving to go to the doctor - thank you!
Wednesday afternoon she sent us all an email and said that she was sorry in advance if anyone gets sick because she is contagious! Great, just great. This, friends, is a prime example of why people should go to the doctor and then stay at home when they are sick instead of thinking they can fight it off and come into work, which will inevitably result in contaminating lots of other co-workers.
So, today is now Thursday and thankfully my supervisor stayed at home and I certainly hope she gets better soon. I, however, started feeling a little achy Wednesday afternoon and today just feel kind of blah. I am hoping against hope that I do not get whatever illness it is that my supervisor has because I have a very busy few days in my future and do not have time for illness nor do I want to be sick, in general. So, fingers crossed that I will not get full blown sick and if I do then I will be sending the bill to my supervisor.
In all seriousness, though, please stay home if you are sick. The rest of us do not want your germs. Some of us get sick enough without your help. Thanks for listening to this Public Service Announcement.
I don't know why it is that America has become the country where work comes before everything in life, but for whatever reason it has and it is probably the one thing I dislike most about this great country. I think we should adapt to the European way of life where we close the doors for a month every year and deal with the work when we return from holiday - seems like a much better way of life. The same goes for sickness. I don't understand for the life of me why people come to work when they are sick - that's what sick leave is for, people!
I bring all this up because this week my supervisor is sick. On Monday she sent us an email that she had fever, etc. and that she was going to work form home and go to the doctor later that afternoon. We never heard from her again that day and then she showed up to work on Tuesday morning with a terrible cough and looking like death warmed over. I told her not to be coming in with some disease and spreading her germs around. I also asked her what the doctor said - well, she didn't go. Her fever broke mid-morning on Monday and so she decided not to go to the doctor. All I could think was "I wonder how many days I have until I am feeling terrible?" Wednesday, she came back to work and her cough was worse than it had been on Tuesday. She came to me around 11:30 that morning and asked me to take care of some things for her that afternoon because she was leaving to go to the doctor - thank you!
Wednesday afternoon she sent us all an email and said that she was sorry in advance if anyone gets sick because she is contagious! Great, just great. This, friends, is a prime example of why people should go to the doctor and then stay at home when they are sick instead of thinking they can fight it off and come into work, which will inevitably result in contaminating lots of other co-workers.
So, today is now Thursday and thankfully my supervisor stayed at home and I certainly hope she gets better soon. I, however, started feeling a little achy Wednesday afternoon and today just feel kind of blah. I am hoping against hope that I do not get whatever illness it is that my supervisor has because I have a very busy few days in my future and do not have time for illness nor do I want to be sick, in general. So, fingers crossed that I will not get full blown sick and if I do then I will be sending the bill to my supervisor.
In all seriousness, though, please stay home if you are sick. The rest of us do not want your germs. Some of us get sick enough without your help. Thanks for listening to this Public Service Announcement.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
The Mouse Has Met the Maker
I’ve had a lot going on the past few days and have lots to tell you about. It just amazes me how quickly things pick up when September rolls around. It seems like it was just yesterday that Jackie and I were buying concert tickets for the month of September and talking about how awesome it was going to be and now… here we are!
I wanted to update you on some things that I mentioned last week. First –the mouse. As you may recall, I saw a mouse scurry down the aisle at work last Thursday. Friday morning when I came in someone had placed a plastic bag under my filing cabinet and tried to convince me they had caught the mouse but had left it in that bag under my filing cabinet. I didn’t buy it. As it turns out, they did catch the mouse, but the mouse met its demise and was disposed of before I arrived. Apparently the lady who sits on the other side of the wall from me keeps food in her drawers and that mouse was over there eating a chocolate bar when he was found. I wouldn’t be surprised if another one showed up some time soon, but here’s to hoping not.
I also mentioned last week that I had election training. It actually was a lot more interesting than I had anticipated. My dad had complained to me the week before that it took about two hours and lots of people had questions and he didn’t think they were ever going to get out of there. My group must have been more attentive because our session only lasted about an hour and a half and there were only about five questions from the group. The information they reviewed was interesting and including scenarios I had never even considered. This training was for the September 18 vote for the special amendment to the constitution and I will have another training session in October for the November election.
In other news, a few times this summer there has been fresh dog poop out by my car. Clearly someone has been walking their dog and letting it poop in my yard without cleaning it up. To say this perturbs me is quite an understatement. It happened again last Friday and of course when I walk out to my car in the morning I am ready to leave and don’t have time to scoop poop. If I ever catch the culprit, you can rest assured I’ll be giving that owner a piece of my mind.
I wanted to update you on some things that I mentioned last week. First –the mouse. As you may recall, I saw a mouse scurry down the aisle at work last Thursday. Friday morning when I came in someone had placed a plastic bag under my filing cabinet and tried to convince me they had caught the mouse but had left it in that bag under my filing cabinet. I didn’t buy it. As it turns out, they did catch the mouse, but the mouse met its demise and was disposed of before I arrived. Apparently the lady who sits on the other side of the wall from me keeps food in her drawers and that mouse was over there eating a chocolate bar when he was found. I wouldn’t be surprised if another one showed up some time soon, but here’s to hoping not.
I also mentioned last week that I had election training. It actually was a lot more interesting than I had anticipated. My dad had complained to me the week before that it took about two hours and lots of people had questions and he didn’t think they were ever going to get out of there. My group must have been more attentive because our session only lasted about an hour and a half and there were only about five questions from the group. The information they reviewed was interesting and including scenarios I had never even considered. This training was for the September 18 vote for the special amendment to the constitution and I will have another training session in October for the November election.
In other news, a few times this summer there has been fresh dog poop out by my car. Clearly someone has been walking their dog and letting it poop in my yard without cleaning it up. To say this perturbs me is quite an understatement. It happened again last Friday and of course when I walk out to my car in the morning I am ready to leave and don’t have time to scoop poop. If I ever catch the culprit, you can rest assured I’ll be giving that owner a piece of my mind.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Five Years in the Making
I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not,
but back in April I hit a milestone in my professional career. For the
first time ever, I have worked at the same place for five years. This is
quite a milestone for me for many reasons.
As you may recall, I was actually laid off from work back in the fall, but was very blessed to only be out of work for one week and rather than being out of a job was instead transferred to another division within the company. I had to take a pay cut and go back to the same position I started in, but I am not complaining because I feel so lucky and blessed beyond measure to actually have a job; some people that were laid off the same day as me are still without a job. So, since I was able to transfer to the other division, all my time, vacation, sick, etc. transferred over as well and as of April 09, I have worked for the same employer for five years.
I started working when I was 16, as a cashier at Winn-Dixie and since that time, I have held a plethora of jobs - everything from working for a US Congressman to stocking shelves at a grocery store. I've worked in sports media relations, been a writer for various media outlets, worked security for a Senior PGA tournament (Seriously, who's going to be afraid of me?) and been an after-school sitter for a couple of rowdy kids. I've worked at K-Mart (also as a cashier), waited too many tables to count at three different restaurants, worked as a bar tender in a fraternity house and did some time in the shoe department at Wal-Mart. In college I held down a job at the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library where I may or may not have been captured sleeping on a sofa in the University of Alabama yearbook. I've worked as a receptionist, a bookkeeper, a photographer's assistant, a United States Census worker and a youth intern at a church. I think it goes without saying that I have had more jobs than I can count - maybe with the help of my friends and family I could list them all, but I seriously doubt it. To say making it five years at one company (can't really say one job) is a milestone is perhaps the understatement of the century.
What can I say? I get bored easily and I like to keep an active mind and I'm constantly thinking about the next job or the next step, or at least I used to. Thankfully, the older I get the more my mind settles down. Do I still have dreams of owning a bakery or a catering company or winning the lottery and moving to France. You can bet your bottom dollar I do, and maybe one day I'll brave the trepidation and anxiety I feel and give it a go and then again maybe I won't. Some people think I should be doing something bigger and better with my life making mad amounts of money; but you know what, that's not really for me. Would I like to have more money, sure who wouldn't? For me, though, money does not make the world go 'round. I have a good life and do not want for anything, which is a lot more than some people can say. If I leave this earth without fortune and fame, so be it.
So, back to working at the same place for five years.... I do a good job at work and feel confident that I will be moved up again soon. It will come when it is supposed to and that's just fine by me. With my five year milestone, I also hit three weeks a year of vacation, which makes a huge difference. I like the people I work with and I do not dread going in to work each day as I have with other jobs. That's not to say that one day I may look for something else, but right now, I am quite content and sometimes contentment is exactly what you need in life.
I brought all this up, three months after the fact, because today, my five years of service at my company was celebrated with cake and sodas. What more could you ask for? All the employees who hit milestones last quarter at the company were celebrated today. I was the first name called, which of course made me laugh because laughing is my favorite. My supervisor said, "speech, speech," so I thanked the HR guy who hired me. I asked him to come and he did and he is one of my favorite people at work. It was a funny moment.
The gal I share a cubicle with had also been invited, but she and I thought she had been invited for moral support or something but as it turns out, it was her service award day too. She has been working for the company for 25 years and will now be privileged to receive one of the up close parking spaces, she also got $150 from the company - nice! We got a good laugh out of that because first of all she didn't know it was her 25-year award and secondly there is no telling how many weeks or months she has been walking a long distance to her car when she could be parked up close. We did a lot of laughing this afternoon - I think it was the sugar. For five years of service, I also received a $10 voucher for our cafeteria and a free pizza from Papa Murphy's, which doesn't do you much good when you are not eating dairy. I'm also not a fan of Papa Murphy's; but, it was still nice and maybe my parents will become the recipients of the free Papa Murphy's pizza.
Five years - quite a milestone for me. Here's to making it at least five more!
As you may recall, I was actually laid off from work back in the fall, but was very blessed to only be out of work for one week and rather than being out of a job was instead transferred to another division within the company. I had to take a pay cut and go back to the same position I started in, but I am not complaining because I feel so lucky and blessed beyond measure to actually have a job; some people that were laid off the same day as me are still without a job. So, since I was able to transfer to the other division, all my time, vacation, sick, etc. transferred over as well and as of April 09, I have worked for the same employer for five years.
I started working when I was 16, as a cashier at Winn-Dixie and since that time, I have held a plethora of jobs - everything from working for a US Congressman to stocking shelves at a grocery store. I've worked in sports media relations, been a writer for various media outlets, worked security for a Senior PGA tournament (Seriously, who's going to be afraid of me?) and been an after-school sitter for a couple of rowdy kids. I've worked at K-Mart (also as a cashier), waited too many tables to count at three different restaurants, worked as a bar tender in a fraternity house and did some time in the shoe department at Wal-Mart. In college I held down a job at the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library where I may or may not have been captured sleeping on a sofa in the University of Alabama yearbook. I've worked as a receptionist, a bookkeeper, a photographer's assistant, a United States Census worker and a youth intern at a church. I think it goes without saying that I have had more jobs than I can count - maybe with the help of my friends and family I could list them all, but I seriously doubt it. To say making it five years at one company (can't really say one job) is a milestone is perhaps the understatement of the century.
What can I say? I get bored easily and I like to keep an active mind and I'm constantly thinking about the next job or the next step, or at least I used to. Thankfully, the older I get the more my mind settles down. Do I still have dreams of owning a bakery or a catering company or winning the lottery and moving to France. You can bet your bottom dollar I do, and maybe one day I'll brave the trepidation and anxiety I feel and give it a go and then again maybe I won't. Some people think I should be doing something bigger and better with my life making mad amounts of money; but you know what, that's not really for me. Would I like to have more money, sure who wouldn't? For me, though, money does not make the world go 'round. I have a good life and do not want for anything, which is a lot more than some people can say. If I leave this earth without fortune and fame, so be it.
So, back to working at the same place for five years.... I do a good job at work and feel confident that I will be moved up again soon. It will come when it is supposed to and that's just fine by me. With my five year milestone, I also hit three weeks a year of vacation, which makes a huge difference. I like the people I work with and I do not dread going in to work each day as I have with other jobs. That's not to say that one day I may look for something else, but right now, I am quite content and sometimes contentment is exactly what you need in life.
I brought all this up, three months after the fact, because today, my five years of service at my company was celebrated with cake and sodas. What more could you ask for? All the employees who hit milestones last quarter at the company were celebrated today. I was the first name called, which of course made me laugh because laughing is my favorite. My supervisor said, "speech, speech," so I thanked the HR guy who hired me. I asked him to come and he did and he is one of my favorite people at work. It was a funny moment.
The gal I share a cubicle with had also been invited, but she and I thought she had been invited for moral support or something but as it turns out, it was her service award day too. She has been working for the company for 25 years and will now be privileged to receive one of the up close parking spaces, she also got $150 from the company - nice! We got a good laugh out of that because first of all she didn't know it was her 25-year award and secondly there is no telling how many weeks or months she has been walking a long distance to her car when she could be parked up close. We did a lot of laughing this afternoon - I think it was the sugar. For five years of service, I also received a $10 voucher for our cafeteria and a free pizza from Papa Murphy's, which doesn't do you much good when you are not eating dairy. I'm also not a fan of Papa Murphy's; but, it was still nice and maybe my parents will become the recipients of the free Papa Murphy's pizza.
Five years - quite a milestone for me. Here's to making it at least five more!
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