What do you think of me?

This week I had an interesting insight. One that not everyone will have the chance to experience.--I learned what a perfect stranger's first impression of me is.

I was doing some last minute Christmas shopping when I decided to head over to Game Stop to pick up a game my son requested for Christmas. I didn't plan to get him anymore gifts, but I discovered that the clothes to fun stuff ratio was a bit off.

Anyway, I walked into the store, and, surprisingly, I was the only customer in the store. The very friendly clerk asked me how I was doing, and asked if I was looking for anything specific. And this is where it happened....I asked if Overlord Hellraiser was an actual game, or if it was a "coming soon" game. The man's eyes widened, and he did a visible double take. Then he proceeded to fall over the counter laughing, as he explained, "I did NOT expect that to come out of your mouth." I laughed right along with him, and said, "Let me start over. Can I get the Lego game, please." Apparently, I don't look like the hell raiser type. I would have to agree with him. I don't think I ever thought those words would come out of my mouth either.

But, I got the game, and a good laugh. How many times, this close to Christmas, do you not only get what your looking for, but have a good time joking with a store worker while getting it.

Ella

My mommy heart has been broken

I guess I can't really say "mommy heart", but my "mom heart" has been broken.

My husband and I were wandering the aisles of our local Wal Mart recently looking for Christmas ideas for our son. At one point we walk over to the games section to look for games that we might add to our collection. After looking at the myriad of games that are available to the masses now we settle on a card game, Politically Correct War, that we can use as a stocking stuffer.

Here is where the crime occurs: We are walking out of the toy section when I look up and realize we are in the action figure section. Then it happens. All of a sudden I am overwhelmed with the thought that we are NOT looking for any gifts for our son in this section. For the first time since he was 2 I am not buying one actual toy for my son for Christmas. I wouldn't have even been in this aisle if it weren't for the fact that it was located at one end of the the games section. My son is growing up. We will no longer have Christmasses filled with a want of Power Rangers, Bionicles, Pokemon, or other various commercially driven fads for boys. Little did I know that the World of Warcraft figures I bought last year would be the end of an era.

Our Christmasses now will be filled with ipods, itunes, video games and clothes. We are leaving the toy age, and we are now fully immersed in the electronic age. Before long we will be buying him kitchen gadgets and bed linens for his own first place. My little boy, is not a little boy anymore.

As I write this, though, I am reminded that although my son is taller and stronger than me, he is still a boy. A goofy, fun loving child that is currently making faces and making annoying "singing" sounds in the chair next to me. I guess I won't be getting out the Rogaine for him yet.


Ella

Send in the Men With the White Coats

While the stock market is down, I can tell you a sure fire investment....what ever company makes straight jackets. 'cuz after this next week at work they are going to come after me. My boss has me working 7, yes 7 days in a row. I know there are people who do this on a regular basis, but not me. I have no desire to. I decided to get this job, so I wouldn't be bored and depressed sitting on my hands at home.

I went from a part time employee to full time fairly quickly less than 6 months. In the retail world that is saying something because if there is one thing they like less than, say, shoplifters, it's giving benefits to their employees.

Anyway, as I was saying, invest in the straight jacket industry. I usually do pretty well until about day 4, and then, I am ready to tie up the next person who tries to convince me that the sales ad was deliberately written in such a way as to convince someone to come in and spend their life savings on soup. And not just any soup, but soup they don't like because the soup they like was excluded from the ad. Let me just save you the trouble of speculating. YES, it IS a conspiracy! If you buy up all the yucky soup, we know you will be back to buy more soup next week because the "powers that be" bugged your home, and purposely only put the soup you hate on sale, and because you can't say no to a good deal they have you right where they want you. Spending money on soup you don't like this week, and coming back next week for what you really wanted in the first place.---See, straight jackets I tell you, straight jackets.

Breakfast with the President-Dodged the Bullet

I had breakfast with the president last week, and despite all of my nervousness it went very well. They should change it to "Mini Town Hall Meeting With the President" as the breakfast portion of the meeting was more of an afterthought.

First let me say that this the first time I have actually met and spoken to the president of our company, and I must say I was impressed. This is actually a very intelligent man, and he definitely has a passion for the business.

I arrived at the meeting place almost an hour early since I didn't know what to expect for traffic, so I had all that time to get my nerves in a tight little ball. I don't like change. I like routine. I am perfectly happy to go to work and do the same thing over and over. The more routine, the better. I walked into the room, and there was a sort of a "round table" set up. While we were chitchatting I mentioned my gag order to the assistant. That was when I found out I was sitting to one chair away from where the president was going to sit. I knew I sat in the wrong chair. Now I am going to have to talk.

The meeting went very well, and he was very informative. He shared information with us on how the company was changing and growing, and he asked for our input and questions. I even managed to speak around the lump in my throat, and I didn't sound ridiculous, I think.

Best of all, afterwards I went back to work, and it wasn't to pick up my last paycheck. (Insert cheers from boss here.)

Little Things That Make Me Happy Part I

This entry would be subtitled, "Hooray for medical advances!" This week I went in for my..used to be yearly, but now will be every six months..bloodtest. I hate needles. I hate them with a passion, and having a lab tech jiggle a needle in my arm while they change out vials..not exactly on my top ten list, so imagine my joy at this exchange:

Blood sucking vampire lady: "Please look over the label, make sure everything is correct, and initial on the line."

Me: *looks at label, initials, and looks up* "Is that the only one?" Inside I am thinking, "Because I'm not coming here again for at least 6 months. I don't care what they say."

Blood sucking vampire lady: "Yes, that's it."

Me: "Are you sure? Because usually I have 4 vials taken."

Blood sucking vampire lady (turned angel): "Oh, we are doing about 30 tests on this one vial. We have better testing now."


Cool! Only one vial instead of 4. I was in and out in a matter of a minute, AND.... I got a Snoopy bandaid!

Breakfast with the President

So, next week I am supposed to have breakfast with the president, not of the United States, though, I asked. This is a breakfast with the president of the company I work for. They want one person from each store that is articulate, smart, and full of ideas. Apparently everyone else said no, and I am going.

I was chosen to go my store manager (Who insists I was her first choice. I have a great boss, she knows how to work flattery). When my direct manager found out there was immediate panic.

1st of all I am a bookkeeper, not only am I a bookkeeper, but I am the head bookkeeper.

2nd of all I have ideas. Ideas that are not so "home office friendly". I don't feel that home office supports the store the way they should, and I feel that many of the people there have been away from store level too long, and have forgotten what it is like to actually be the ones that are face to face with the customer on a daily basis.

3rd of all she wants me as her bookkeeper, and she is "afraid" that if I express my ideas she will be short 1 head bookkeeper.

Because of this, I have been issued a gag order. I can go to the breakfast, but I am not to speak. I am to go eat and come back to work.....still employed, not to pick up my last paycheck. I really don't know what she is so worried about. Unlike my husband, I went to tact school. I have ideas that don't include me getting fired. Some of my ideas have even been implemented in our store. I can share those ideas, right? I wonder how enforceable this gag order is.

Now, all I need to do is decide which ideas I should bring up if I am actually given the chance. Who knows, maybe I can make a change.

Some days you should just stay in bed

This was my day on Thursday. I should have never left my bed. My bed tried to tell me that by making me oversleep by 20 minutes--which I never do. Did I listen, no! I rushed my through my shower to get back on track.

My work clothes tried to tell me that when I couldn't find my pants. I looked on my dresser where I thought I laid them out. I tore apart my bed in case I really laid them out on my bed instead of my dresser, not there. I looked under my bed. I don't know why I even bothered, but you know they may have sprouted legs and walked there. I stood there, and wondered how well it would go over at work if I called in "pantsless", and then I decided to check downstairs. There they were on the table, where I thought I put my bag for physical therapy. I must have been tired because while the pants were where the bag was supposed to be the bag was where the pants were supposed to be. Anyway, did I listen to my lost pants? No!

Then I went to work. It was alllll down hill from there, and as you can tell, I wasn't very high on that hill to begin with. I never made it to physical therapy since I was supposed to be there at 4, and I didn't manage to leave work until after 5... More than an hour and a half after I was supposed to leave.

I finally listened when I made it home, though. My son wanted to go out to dinner, but I KNOW what would have happened, and let's just say I would be typing this from my hospital bed after being in, and probably causing a 20 car pile up. Gees, we're lucky the roof didn't fall in.

Good thing you start with a clean slate after a good 8, er....6 hours of sleep, or I may have never made it through the weekend.