Flipping Out

¡¡ɹǝʇsʌooɹƃ - 00ᄅ ɹǝqɯnu sɐʍ ʇsod ,,sndɹoɔ,, ʎɯ ¡ʎǝɥ

Oh, I know you want to know how to do that....thanks to my friend at I Know Where You Can Find It, you can get it here.

Corpus

Well, somehow we got invited to dinner with Nicole's best friend Courtney and her parents last night, so we went.

We really like and trust Courtney's parents.

We weren't there five minutes before the girls hit us up. They wanted to drive to Corpus Christi during spring break (and Nicole's 17th birthday is that week). Alone. Unchaperoned. They're 16. No plans for how they would rent a room being underage, how they would pay for it, what would happen if injured, what would happen if in a car accident, etc.... Later it came out that there were lots of their 18 - 19yr old friends going. Oh, and Corpus is 4 hours away.

You can guess our answer: NO!

We did, however, give them the option to accompany us to a rented beach house. They can invite their friends to come to the beach, even run around unchaperoned during the daylight hours, but they'd sleep in the beach house with us. Well, that was a big no! They did NOT want to do this.

Eventually, the girls left dinner before we did, leaving parents to talk. We really enjoyed our time.

When Nicole came home, the first thing she said to me was, "Sooooooooooooo, about the beach house...."

I'm guessing I will be renting a beach house.

Territorial...Who, Me?

I am finding I am extremely territorial. I didn't realize how much until recently. As you know, I have my new coworker, Kaye, who also happens to be an extremely good friend of mine... maybe even my best friend.

She was hired to help me because the work load is growing and growing.

People, I can't release control! I don't want to give her my work. I have fantastic relationships with my customers - we've built an amazing rapport and the thought of releasing it into the care of another - even my best friend, well, it's killing me!

The bad part is - I want MORE!

I cannot let go.

Do you find yourself wanting to "be in charge?" or are you one of those "go with the flow" types? I think you can be both. I need to find a balance.

Now, I better grab that line before somebody else does!

My Five

Thanks to my dear friend, Gary, I have something to post! It's all about the FIVES... Read my answers below, and feel free to scroll down, copy, and post your answers in comments.

Here we go, and thanks again, Gary!

1) What was your favorite snack when you were 5? Peanut butter & crackers What is it now? For an out-and-out snack, it would have to be popcorn.

2) What was your favorite cartoon when you were 5? Oh, I liked so many, but I remember watching Caspar The Ghost a lot, along with Heckle & Jeckle, Felix the Cat....and who could forget Tom Terrific? What do you like to watch now? I hate to admit it, but SOME reality shows have me, however, I am currently not under the influence of one. And, as I admitted previously, I record Y&R (you know what I am talking about if it's got you, too!) and watch it in the evenings.

3) What did you like to do after school when you were five? Play outside with friends - tag, hide-n-seek, kickball, bike riding, Red Rover, Mother May I? How about in your free time now? Reading, playing trivia, and an occasional nap is great.

4) What scared you most when you were 5? Spooky things... witches, goblins, monsters under the bed... What scares you most now? My family members being hurt in some way or losing them.

5) What do you remember most clearly from when you were 5? How nothing was impossible - we saw Mary Poppins and, afterwards, got our umbrellas, climbed a ladder and jumped off. We just new we could fly! How about in the last year? Reviewing 2008, it was all about the kid...her struggles in school, making some bad choices, and the changes she went through and is currently making.

Feel free to take these, post in comments, or use on your own blog - have fun!

1) What was your favorite snack when you were 5? What is it now?

2) What was your favorite cartoon when you were 5? What do you like to watch now?

3) What did you like to do after school when you were five? How about in your free time now?

4) What scared you most when you were 5? What scares you most now?

5) What do you remember most clearly from when you were 5? How about in the last year?

The Aftermath

Is non-existent! Oh, it's peaceful....busy, busy, but very peaceful and pleasant.

More later...it's just one of "those days!"

I need a good meme to fill out and post today, but I don't have one. I don't want to look for one.

Tell me something good!

So Long, Colonel

Yes, it happened.

I couldn't write Friday because the Big Cheese was around most of the day and I have to look officially busy. And, well, you know me by now... I don't really post on the weekends. There's a teenager in my house and weekends are always whirlwinds.

Anyway, here's how it went down. Oh sheesh - I can't remember what I already told you - be right back - need to read my own last post...oh, okay... you didn't get ALL of the juicy details.

Friday morning the Big Cheese wants me to come in at 7:00am, so that he can 1.) get in and 2.) beat the Colonel to work. So, we get there at 7am. The Big Cheese gets all his attorney-advised paperwork in order. We wait. We chit chat. We call the building and have the Colonel's access card deactivated, request a change of locks, and cancel his corporate credit card.

As you have surmised, I am certain by now the Colonel isn't getting another chance.

Eight o'clock rolls around - no Colonel. Not too surprising as he usually drags in around 8:15 - 8:30am.... it gets to be about that time when an email arrives telling me he's not coming in - he's taking a "personal day" and will be in on Monday.

Big Cheese says, "He doesn't get any more personal days on my dime." He then goes in the hall and calls the Colonel on his cell and lets him know he's here in town and needs to see him in person immediately.

I imagine the Colonel knows what's coming by this point. He tells the Big Cheese he's "at the doctor" but will be in by 9:30am. I don't know what kind of doctor he's going to where he can get a call at 8:30am and be back across town within an hour. I'm smelling a rat, but what the heck...we know the end of this story before we get there.

So, here he comes... 9:30ish. He walked in the door with his key and credit card in his hand. He was shaking something awful. The Colonel and the Big Cheese went into the Colonel's office, closed the door, signed some papers and the next thing we know, boxes are being packed.

He took his desk chair. Guess he brought it from home. He left... get this: THE DIRTY, FILTHY COFFEE POT! Ugh!

Kaye moved into his office and we've decided we're going to have Casual Day everyday.

Whew, we're Colonel-free and work life is new and fresh.

Oh, and the coffee pot was in the trash can before the day was over.

A Matter of Hours

The Big Cheese arrives at midnight (1 hour from now).

He's having me meet him at the office at 7am.

He told me to bring a few boxes.

It might be a while before you hear from me tomorrow, but as soon as the Big Cheese heads to the airport, you will be the first to know the WHOLE story!

Whew - this is something else....

The Cheese Is Coming!

Oh, yeah...

It's true.

The Big Cheese just called... he's flying in from northern CA. He'll be here at midnight. And we'll be at the office at 7am.

SOMEBODY is getting some bad news tomorrow.

*gulp*

When You're Ready To Go

...you're ready to go! No, not THAT....sheesh!

We're moving our office to a bigger one down the hall which is currently occupied. Well, sort of occupied...I talked to the business owner yesterday and all of his employees now telecommute, so no need for the big space.

He has a geology-based company. The biggest geode (full of beautiful amethyst) I have ever seen is sitting inside the doorway - it's about 5'7" and gorgeous. Anyway, he has a fantastic conference room table, 10 chairs, 4 cubicles, 2 desk chairs,a refrigerator, a leather sofa, and some various desks.

This owner is ready to go! He's selling us all the stuff listed above for $50.00 each or less. He just doesn't want to move it. Good deal for us :-)

MAJOR COLONEL UPDATE: People... while I was typing the above, the Big Cheese called the Colonel. The Colonel got up and closed his door, but...he doesn't know we can hear EVERYTHING. He was screaming (oh, yes) at the Big Cheese telling him he doesn't like being treated this way. Why was he being monitored? Why doesn't Big Cheese appreciate all he did for him in the past?

We couldn't, of course, hear the other end of the conversation, but after a pause, we hear the Colonel say the following, "If you want me to go, tell me to go! I hate sales, I'm not happy, don't like it one bit, but I am NOT quitting!"

More talking back and forth and then some phone slamming.

He's still here, but.....he might be READY TO GO!

We'll see!!

Spies

I just met a true life spy.

No kidding! Well, he's no longer a spy, but he was. In the US Air Force - retired.

This guy speaks fluent German and Russian. It sounds like he had a total James Bond experience - and he confirmed this... except for the getting laid part!

Life is amazing.

The Custom Tray

It's late at night, but I don't really like my posting to get too far behind. As I mentioned before, I am training a new employee, Kaye. Kaye is going to do great! She used to work with Wendy and I in the past, so this is an easy transition.

The Colonel, on the other hand, is oozing with I-don't-careness! Did he make 25 calls today? No, no he did not. And, he has a knack... a knack to completely screw up the copier/printer. For some reason, when he hits, "print," everything wants to print from a custom tray and not out of the regular stack of blank papers. This involves him getting up, opening every nook and cranny of the machine to figure out what's wrong and then slamming them all shut.

For the love of Pete!

More tomorrow when I am awake.

Quick, quick!

Training a new employee! If I get a moment later will do some updating.

Happy Tuesday!!

My Brother Is Not A Supermodel

Well, it's Friday the 13th. And, it's my brother's birthday today.

Since I usually publish my posts from work, I don't have a picture of my brother saved on this computer. It is, after all, my WORK computer. You, as my friends, would never guess that since I seem to squeeze in time to do this while I am here. Anyway, I thought I'd just see if I could Google up a photo and post it.

Friends, if you have an unusual last name, you don't know what you'll get, but let me show you what I found when I entered my brother's name:

Believe it or not, this Victoria's Secret Supermodel is unquestionably a relative. My maiden name (and my brother's last name) are the same as hers. It's so unusual that if anyone has this name, we ARE related. However, make no mistake, Selita is not my brother. So, you can rest easy there.

Back to my brother...today he is 44. I wish I could give him all the credit possible here, but this is a post, not a book.

My brother is the youngest of the 3 of us. I'm the oldest, then my sis, then my brother. We are fortunate to be so close. I count my brother and sister as my dearest friends - completely aside from being family.

My dear brother has always been there for me. I have never, ever had a crises that he hasn't been my rock. Weird things would always happen when my husband was out of town - I got two flat tires at the same time - guess who saved me? Another time that Jerry was out of town, our aquarium pumped all it's water out onto our brand new wooden floors... guess who helped me clean it all up, save the fish, and tote that great big aquarium out of the house? Oh! and he also had a commercial-sized dehumidifier which saved my floors. He didn't even know where he got the darned thing - it was in his garage. Magic!

That's just a couple. He and his wife made Jerry & I the godparents of their one and only daughter. A blessing to us.

Holidays? My brother and his wife always host them - they WANT to! God bless 'em.

So, happy birthday to my favorite brother. I love you.

Jumbled Up

Isn't it a nice day! The sun is shining, it's about 50 degrees right now (it's 8:30am) and the temperature is to go up to 70 today. With, the best of all, low humidity.

For those of you who never have to face the humidity factor, low humidity is good!

The Colonel is in. Said a tree limb that had been loosened from Hurricane Ike was wrenched free from the storm we had the other night. The limb is responsible for yesterday's lack of power that left him unable to "secure the house." He also reported it was all corrected by 10:30am. He never made it in. It was a good day for me and Wendy.

I looked in my purse and there is a roll of Lifesavers in there. I haven't SEEN a roll of Lifesavers in years. What I really need to know is how it got there! Of course, my family thinks I am a pack mule... everything ends up in my purse. Well, the Lifesavers are mine now.

Here's something interesting. As you know, I am in Houston. Fourth largest city in United States. Not far from my office building is another, taller office building. Buzzards have adopted the roof of this building to be their nesting ground. I can look out and see dozens of buzzards slowly circling around this high-rise. They teach their babies how to fly from here.

Birds are amazing, really. We have a mockingbird that has hung around our house for a couple of years now. He always sits in the same place. When it's cold, he puffs himself up. He's used to us now and won't fly off when we come out on the patio.

And they sing like nothing else on earth! Man, oh man, I love my mockingbirds.

Have a great day, friends :-)

Show Me Yours!

I was thinking how you have your computer desktop set up shows a lot about you. So, I thought I would share mine. Will you share yours? What I did was go to my basic desktop, hit "Print Screen," then opened Paint>New and saved as a jpg... where you see it now:

This is my wallpaper for Valentine's Day. Isn't it cute? I am hoping my friend, Gary, sees how cute the whales are and find a way to make one into a mug. I can dream, can't I?

Oh, the Colonel didn't come in today. His power went out last night and he can't secure his house.

I don't know about you, but I would try turning the key in the lock.

Okay... if you share your desktop, leave me a comment so I can "see" you!

Goodness!

Well, what do you know? I got big, ole raise yesterday. It wasn't time for a review or after a year or anything - it was a "just because you're doing a great job" raise!

Nice, isn't it?

And, even nicer... I got my best friend, Kaye, hired. She starts a week from today.

Yesterday, I received my order from our favorite potter, Gary. A beautiful heart-shaped mug (that's for ME) and a lovely heart-shaped candle holder that I have given to my coworker and friend, Wendy (she loved it), and Gary included a really amazing "mystery gift." I can't tell you what it is because I don't want other Gary afficionados to be jealous. It's possible they could come after my collection and things could get ugly.

The Colonel? No calls yet... he's been here over an hour. He has that "staring at the computer screen" down pat, though.

I don't think he got a raise.

Tracking

Another post regarding the Colonel. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Colonel, he is my coworker who couldn't sell ice water to people in Hell has the title of, "Senior Sales Manager."

He is doing his very best to be disengaged from his job. He calls virtually no one. He doesn't leave the office, and is completely NOT a people person.

That's the bare minimum. As some of you know, the Big Cheese flew into town a week or so ago and gave the Colonel the option of retaining his position by making at least 25 calls a day. Not too difficult a task in my opinion. For three days after the Big Cheese left, virtually no calls were made.

Well, last week... starting around Wednesday, the calling started up. It's freaking me out that he's actually doing something. Sooooooooooo, I found out from the almost-Big Cheese (a VP) that the Colonel is now being "tracked" and he knows it.

Nothing like a little fire under your hiney to get you moving.

You should hear him when someone actually calls him back. It's like a freaking miracle - lol!

Oh, this is big fun!!

Y&R

I can't believe I am admitting this to the world, but here it is: I have become addicted to The Young and The Restless. The bad part is I am so NOT a soap opera person. But, I guess that's just not true, because they got me. I'm hooked.

Now, I used to watch All My Children a hundred years ago when Cliff & Nina and Greg & Jenny were the hot couples. Tad was a boy. And Phoebe was still alive.

I haven't watched a soap since then, but the ladies in my last office used to have Y & R (that's what the "real" fans call it) on TV at my lunch hour everyday. I didn't watch for a long time and then, slowly, I got hooked. Now, I don't watch it at work (no TV here), but I DVR it (sounds so much more hi-tech than "tape") and watch it when I get home every night.

So, maybe you watch, maybe you don't, but I want to go on record to say I am glad Nick & Sharon heading in the direction of getting back together (Phyllis could just up and disappear!) and I am shocked they really killed Brad off. Okay, whew! That's off my chest and I don't feel so deceptive.

Do you have a dirty little TV secret? Go ahead, spill! Whom am I to judge?

I

Thanks to Betty, I am "lifting" this meme...

I

I live: in Texas! Doesn't get much better than that ;-)

I work: for an amazing company!

I smell: fantastic! Find my perfume and just give it a whiff: Il Bacio

I listen: to various kinds of music

I hide: from solicitors

I walk: in a park near our home

I write: better than I thought I could at times

I sing: because I love it, but wish I had a better voice

I can: crochet

I watch: some movies over and over again

I daydream: of traveling to various places

I want: my daughter to focus and find purpose in her life

I cry: so easily.

I read: a lot! I love books.

I love: my family

I rode: an elephant

I sometimes: go off by myself. I love alone-time.

I fear: something bad happening to my husband, daughter, or pets

I hope: I never quit learning

I eat: more than I should

I play: the piano

I miss: my grandmother more than I could express here

I forgive: but, sometimes not as quickly as I should

I drive: the cutest little cream-colored VW Beetle you ever saw :-)

I lost: my high school class ring

I dream: often, but rarely "wild" dreams... usually some kind of conversation....

I kiss: often :-D

I hug: even more

I have: the best of friends

I remember: so many things... "looking" at a full eclipse and I will probably go blind one day (that's what they told us), watching Neil Armstrong hop onto the moon, my first dog's many sets of puppies... and more, more, more

I don't: want to let life just slip by without being fully present

I believe: in God

I owe: so much to my parents

I know: that I have so much more to learn

I hate: how easily my buttons can get pushed

I wish: I could change some things in the past

I wear: black pants a lot

My ex: whoa - that's too long ago

People would say that I'm: intense

I don't understand: why people to be "right" so often

Life is full of: surprises!

My past is: exactly as it should be... I am happy my life unfolded the way it has

I get annoyed when: people act stupid

Parties are: wonderful at times and overrated at others

Tomorrow: is Friday - and that's always good!

Never in my life have I: gone skinny-dipping and I don't foresee this in the future, either.

When I was younger, I: thought I would be famous some day

When I was 5: I climbed a ladder with an umbrella so I could jump off and fly like Mary Poppins.

My life is not complete without: my doggies

If you visit my hometown: you'd have a blast!

The world could do without: whiners

If I ever go back to school: I would love to learn how to cut gems


Now, how about you??

We Gotta Know Wednesday

So, progress reports came out yesterday for Nicole. She is doing great in her new school - all A's and B's except for a 78 in Chemistry. She has the rest of the 6 weeks to bring it up and it might be the very first time she gets all A's and B's in high school. Math and science have been struggles for her. The new school allows her to move at her own pace and she loves that. I do, too.

I've created a monster with the Colonel, but now Wendy and I are obsessed with what he's doing.

We've been keeping track of how often he leaves the office. We know he "pretends" to go to the restroom and is really going on smoke breaks. It's only 8:44am (he got here at 8am, which, by the way, is really early for him) and he's left the office twice. We'll keep you posted throughout the day.

Now, for something completely unrelated: our water. I know, I know, the water has been a sore subject in the office, but we finally got a water dispenser... clean, spring water. Well, yesterday, while getting some for coffee, I noticed there was a wire right over the hole where the water empties into the dispenser. A plastic-coated wire - like a telephone or electrical wire. Just about a 6 inch piece lying over the hole. Creepy.

I called the water guy, Charlie, and tell him this. He says to me, "You didn't see it when you put the new bottle on?" I tell him that I didn't, and he asks, "Why not?" My response was something to the effect of I didn't realize I had to inspect bottles of PURE SPRING WATER for electrical wires and is this something we should be doing??? Of course, all I can think of is who touched the wire?!?

Charlie has already been here and left. He drained the machine, took the wired bottle, and replaced it with one that was fully inspected before insertion.

This place has a water curse.

Oh, and Melissa B., if you're reading this, I am mailing your print today!

It's Only Tuesday

Don't worry... the Colonel is still here. He's made 3 calls this morning. That's almost a record.

Life, overall, is good right now. I love when you get in one of those smooth spells where things are right.

Today, on my way to work, I passed an office building... nothing remarkable about that... I go past this building everday, but today there were approximately 18 fire engines and 12 ambulances in front of the place. No smoke. So, I am thinking someone went postal and God only knows what's going on in there. I flipped onto the news channel. Nothing.

So, here I am in my office and still don't know.

Right this moment, it's really quiet and uneventful in the office. It's been crazy-busy the last couple of weeks but, for now, it's calm. Better to monitor every move of the Colonel.

Yesterday, he went on six cigarette breaks within four hours. Of course, we're not sure what he needs a break from, but I guess that's irrelevant in his world.

I have some contract workers that are trying to circumvent the system and manipulate work from our clients. They still want to do the work through us, but are trying to obtain on their own. I am really TICKED OFF at these people. You can bet they will be getting less jobs than anyone else. Sheesh - respect the system you chose to work within or take your exit.

Oh, and just for the fun of gossip... one of my workers packed up and moved across the country to live with her online love interest. It was all great at first until he turned into a clingy, needy dude. He became one of those smothering, all-encompassing guys you see on America's Most Wanted (without the violence). So, she broke up with him Saturday at which point he proceeded to have a heart attack. She drove him to the hospital and he refused to go in. Needless to say, she was not happy! Faking a heart attack to make her stay??

This morning she called to let me know he had a REAL heart attack last night and is in the hospital (he should be fine).

She and her rat terrier are now living in a hotel.

Winner!

Sorry to be so slow in posting the winner in my print give-away, but there was some sickness in the house this weekend and I just had to be mom.

Everyone is better and back on track, so all is well.

So, without further ado, our print winner is Melissa B. from the The Scholastic Scribe!

Melissa, I will be stopping by your place to get your info.

Congratulations!

More Colonel updates later....