Time for updates

The big news for today is the delivery of my new dining set!!! YIPPEE!!!! The guys are here now, assembling the bakers rack and table. The dining set is wrought iron, glass and slate. Shadow is going to have a great time with this table. There is a slate shelf under the glass top. I can picture him perched on the shelf, trying to play with whatever is on the table. Nothing like having built in dinner entertainment.

On the job front, things seem are going pretty good at the office lately. It's been somewhat quiet now that Lori was told she is not allowed any information on her "financees" worker's comp claim. Although we did have a good laugh when she complained that another co-worker is making rude comments to her and treating her badly.

I found out last week, there is a job opening for a District Trainer. The Dist. Mgr. asked his secretary if she thought I would be interested in the job. She didn't know, so she asked me. Of course I'm interested in the job --- I didn't know it was opening up. It will require lots of travelling to all the terminals in New England and upstate NY, training new hires. The company will provide me with a company car. I will also need to spend time in Lakeland, FL receiving my training. Hmmm, FL in the winter --- I can deal with that. Whenever there is a mass rollout of new/upgraded software, I may be required to travel anywhere in the US to assist with training. I love to travel and have provided software training in the past, while at Wiremold and International Paper. My boss was in meetings all day Friday, so I didn't get a chance to approach him about the job but will speak to him Monday. There is also the possibility this job would include about a $10k raise!! Now that's a BIG plus!!!

Yesterday, I was so proud of myself at work. For the last two days, I have been working on automating our attendance keeping records. Currently I use the pre-printed attendance forms and manually add mark them and add up "points" from the occurences. What I've done is designed an attendance form, in Excel - linked it to a Word doc. and import name, hire date, employee numbers from Access. This will give me the printouts, without having to type all the information. I'm hoping to, eventually key the occurances into Access and then import them to the word doc and calculate totals. The Ops. Mgr. was looking it over friday and loved it. He then asked if I could also automate our vacation schedules and he can eliminate 4 huge binders from his shelves. If I'm lucky, I will have these all set to go for the start of the New Year.

The guys are almost done assembly the dining set so I guess I should head out soon to run errands. I'll post more soon, when I hear more about the District Training job.

Ramblings...

My thoughts of late, have been so disorganized I woke up thinking today is Monday. It was a pleasant surprise when I realized it was only Sunday.

Work:
The past week has been interesting, to say the very least. Several years ago, one of our drivers had a worker's comp injury to his left shoulder. He recently started to have shoulder problems and tried to re-open the comp claim. Notice I wrote TRIED. While I was filling out his forms, I picked up on a little discrepency. The problem he is having now is with his RIGHT shoulder and not the previously injured LEFT shoulder.

This driver is also engaged to marry a co-worker that sits in the cubicle next to mine. Recently she tried to get out for a Medical Leave of Absence and was unsuccessful. She also went to HR and upper management and accused my boss of sex discrimination. It was decided her discrimination claim was totally without merit and dismissed. Now that the comp claim is being denied, both are saying the boss is trying to screw them over for the discrimination claim.

While a smile DID come over my bosses face, when I told him about the discrepency, he didn't know until AFTER I verified the records. The driver now is faced with submitting a NEW claim and submit to examinations by the insurance company's doctors. The insurance company doctors must determine this is a work related claim before any money is paid to his current doctors. In the meantime, the driver was told he could not work light duty and sent home friday. Next week should be an interesting week, when the driver submits a new claim and discovers he must submit to the extra examinations.

Shadow:
I've had strange cats in the past but this cat is the strangest! Recently he discoved the dining room walls are wood. He has literally been climbing the walls!!! Off I went to the pet store for a kitty condo/scratching post. Damn!, those things are expensive!!! I was hoping to find something inexpensive for him to climb -- no luck. I did find a nice but smaller scratching post w/perch that he seems to like. I haven't caught him climbing the walls since my purchase.

Shadow has also started to do something I've only known one other cat (Smokey) to do, he is using his paw to eat his food. I do believe Smokey's ghost may be haunting this place. Shadow is still having fun playing with water. The faucet fascinates him and he tries to catch water droplets. Last night, he was having a great time playing with the water, while I filled the tub for a bubble bath, until he fell in! What a sight that was --- soaked kitty covered in bubbles!! Of course that didn't stop him, he did come back later while I was relaxing in the tub.

Personal Happenings:
Not much has been going on in my life outside of work. I did go to the CT Ren Faire and had a great time. If you would like to see pictures, they are posted on my webshots site. Aside from the faire, I really haven't been doing much of anything. My motivation has been dwindling recently and I just don't feel up to being social. If the sun ever comes out today, I may go for a scenic ride and bring along my camera. I love the Autumn scenery but it depresses me knowing the cold winter will soon follow.

It's this time of the year I start thinking about my Holiday Baking list. I've been busy scanning my cookbooks for new recipes to go with my usual baked goodies. It will be an inexpensive Christmas, again this year and that bothers me. There will be a few purchased items but for the most part, gifts will be baked or handmade this year.

Don't bother wondering about a love life, that sucks as usual. Maybe someday, there will be someone in my life. It seems there are only physical attractions and nothing more. While physical isn't bad, it's also nothing great if there is no deeper attraction and it's not what I want for my life. That deeper attraction may never happen, again. At this time, I've given up on finding that person. They will need to find me now. In the meantime, I'll just hang out with friends and try to be content with my life.

It's one of THOSE days...

The day started off in it's usual manner - get the coffee going, shower and get ready for work. I should have realized it was going to be a bad day when Shadow stole my new package of nylons and hid them from me. I spent about 15 minutes looking for them and found them under the futon in the den. Bad Shadow! Next it's time for the morning commute and that actually went pretty good. I've been taking I-91 South to I-691 for the last week because of traffic tie-ups and construction on I-84.

The morning flew by, just me keeping busy with my normal duties then lunch time rolls around and that's when IT happened. The person I had the confrontation with, last July, came back to "visit" the office staff. It seems she has been out of work for the last 6 weeks and is looking to get her job back at Watkins. As if we don't have enough BS going on in the office, this one wants to come back. Thankfully my boss was out of the office so she couldn't speak with him. There is no way I will work with this person. I didn't even care to be in the office while she visited so I took my lunch break. When I came back, I immediately grabbed the deposit and went to the bank. All afternoon my co-workers chatted about how nice it will/would be if she came back to work. I just kept my mouth shut.

Finally 4:30 rolls around and I was out the door about 4:45, quick listen to the traffic and "Oh shit" there's a game at Rentschler Field tonight. It doesn't matter which route I go home, I'm going to hit the game traffic. Little did I know, the game traffic was the least of my worries. I-91 North was bumper to bumper from Meriden/Middletown all the way to Wethersfield and probably beyond. I got off the highway in Rocky Hill and took the side streets. It normally takes me about 25 minutes to reach the Charter Oak Bridge. Tonight it took 45 minutes and the quickest part of the ride was when I got off the highway!! Finally I'm home - it only took an hour tonight to go 35 miles. As I came through the doorway, I ended my work day by having the storm door slam on my achilles tendon, scraping it to a point of drawing blood and putting a nice size hole in the new nylons I searched for this morning.

Dinner will consist of PB&J (can't burn it and can't hurt myself making it) and then I'm going to bed. Tomorrow has to be a better day!

"I'm Still Here"

Bad me for not posting more often but I haven't felt much like typing when I get home from work. The work days have been long, even when I leave on time. The 40-minute commute is a bitch when people drive like assholes and cause accidents. Don't even get me started on the rubber-neckers and lane hoppers. I do enjoy it when the person in front of me, lane hops to get 2 cars ahead, and ends up being the car behind me :) That's justice and I laugh at them everytime.

Work has been very busy but less stressful now that I have finally caught up with my work. Apparently, we are expecting an extremely busy weekend. One of the Ops Managers sent me an e-mail, listing the dockworkers sheduled this weekend. He wants to know if any of these people calls out this weekend. This is a "closed" week for vacations and only one person has been allowed time off.

One source of stress at work has been another female co-worker. She has a problem with paranoia and thinks the District Secretary (DS) has been telling my boss not to offer her several office jobs. She has also formally accused my boss of sex discrimination. She really believes she didn't get the HR job because she's a female. I can honestly say my boss is probably the least likely male, I can think of, that would discriminate against ANYONE. Yes, I have bitched about the reviews being discriminitory BUT those were not created by my boss. Those are simply forms that he and others must follow. IMO, she didn't get the job because of her lack of knowledge and her attendance. She was hired in March and taken atleast 10 sick days.

Next week should prove to be interesting. After speaking with the DS friday, she mentioned my boss was going to speak to me. He wants to know what has been said, to me, by the co-worker. Chances are the District HR Manager and District Manager will also want to speak with me. When the co-worker didn't get any satisfaction from the the District HR Manager, she went over all of them, to the Regional VP.

On the home front, the 900 numbers I previously posted about, have been removed from my phone bill. At my request, I now have a 900 block on my phone. I want to speak with my nephews counselor before I confront him with the phone fiasco. My thoughts are to simply ask him HOW is is going to pay for the phone calls. I want to make his counselor aware of the calls and my plans prior to me speaking with him. I called her last week and left a message. She has yet to return my phone call. Yesterday was my nephews 13th birthday and my parents will be visiting him today. I was suppose to go but chose to stay home instead. I don't believe I could face him without confronting him.

My brother, Rick, is having his own difficulties with going for custody of the children. His wife, Jasmine, is adamant about NOT getting custody of the children. Rick has a 2nd DCF/court evaluation in November. Jasmine is also scheduled to be there and is refusing to attend. The outlook for his marriage lasting is not good. He had previously told his wife to not make him chose between her and his kids --- she would lose. Rick will be coming home, in November, but without Jasmine UNLESS she has a change of heart. He refuses to pay the air fare if she is not going to show up for the evaluation.

I visited my parents, at their home, yesterday. My Dad put me to work! They are being processed as a licensed DCF home and need to pass a home inspection. One thing that didn't pass was their above ground swimming pool. DCF insists they have some kind of a pool alarm installed or dismantle the pool. My parents don't use the pool very often and decided the alarm was just too expensive for only a couple of days of pool use. So Dad drained and distmantled the pool yesterday. My ex-sister-in-law called yesterday and Mom told her they HAD to dismantle the pool because of DCF. Lisa knows my parents enjoyed having the pool and Mom wants to let her believe SHE is the reason they will no longer have a pool.

A couple of weeks ago, after 2 very long and stressful years, I finally booked another cruise!!! Marsha and I will be sailing in the Carnival Legend, from NYC, on 5/13/05 (Friday the 13th!) for an 8 day cruise. The cruise is a birthday present to myself and we splurged for a cabin with a balcony. The ports of call are Tortola, St. Thomas and San Juan. and we'll have 4 days at sea!! If I remember correctly, we will be in St. Thomas on my birthday. If anyone would like to join us, let me know and we can have your cabins added to our booking number. I would love to have a birthday party on the beach in St. Thomas or St. John's.

On October 10th, I will be going to the CT Ren Faire in Woodstock, CT. Every Ren Faire I've attended, I have wanted to purchase an outfit. Well, I did that, on-line, this year. The outfit I purchased is a simple peasant outfit. Until now, I didn't realize I purchased the same outfit they have pictured! My parents will be joining me along with friends, Karl, Victoria and the kids. I haven't been to the faire in Woodstock so I can't compare it, in size, to other faires. I know the fair grounds are a good size but I don't know how much space they will take up. We have also chatted about attending King Richard's Faire this year but haven't decided if we'll go or not.

So that's life as it stands right now. Until next time, take care and to my FL friends - keep safe!

"Hell hath no fury......"

I was made into a fool for taking in my nephew and trying to help him. If I were to see him right now, I would need to be restrained. My electronic phone bill came in this morning and it's NOT a good one. Not only did that little bastard sneak in long distance phone calls to friends, he was also calling 900 numbers!!!! Thank GOD they stopped as soon as I got my previous phone bill in, and saw the extra phone call he had been making. At that time, I started keeping the phone, with me at all times. My current phone bill has $270.00 in charges to phone sex numbers and I'm ready to wipe his face from this earth!! Yes, I can call the phone company and say they were not authorized but the fact remains, they came from MY phone and I will probably have to pay the charges. Either way, Ricky needs to learn a very expensive lesson in paying for behavior.

At this time, I want nothing to do with this kid. His birthday is coming up and I was going to visit him. Not now - no way in hell will I go see him. I don't like people that lie to me and use me. My nephew is no exception!

Major Influence?

While my nephew is living with me, I'm trying to expose him to another way of life. His mother has used video games, and Disney to be a babysitter. Since, there really isn't much he can do here, I'm getting him to try different things while he is here. He wanted to make a gift for his Dad so I searched on-line for a craft project. Of course my nephew wanted to make a t-shirt but I talked him into a simply decorated cross that would be a gift to his Dad and step-mom. He loved doing the project and it was easy enough to do completely on his own.

Ricky knows all sorts of recent movies (most of which he SHOULD NOT know) but has never heard of Alfred Hitchcock, Jimmy Stewart, Frank Sinatra, Bette Davis, Grace Kelly..... A couple of nights ago, I switched the TV to TCM and we watched Jezebel with Bette Davis. The only movie he had seen, about the Civil War period, was The Patriot. He LOVED the movie and kept asking about the actors/actresses. He had never watched a b&w movie before. Last night we watched Rear Window. The movie captured his attention to a point where he was asking about different camera effects. Maybe tonight I'll introduce him to "classic" horror movies -- Frankenstein, Dracula.... or we could watch African Queen, Gone With The Wind, Singing In The Rain.....

Something else that has captured Ricky's attention is Slam Poetry. Ricky writes Rap songs (ok so he doesn't have the beats down) and I pointed out that it's quite similar to slam poetry. While at the book store last weekend, I picked up the book "Idiots Guide To Slam Poetry". He has read a little of the book but I would like to find an open mic where he can listen to Slam Poetry. I think he would get more out of listening to the performances than reading a book. If anyone knows an open mic venue, in the Manchester area, let me know. The only one I know about is The Buttonwood Tree and they stop during the summer months.

1. What is your Full Name? Bernadette Marie Cartland
2. What color pants are you wearing right now? Ummm do my jammies count? Blue plaid
3. What are you listening to right now? The rain falling outside and the echoes in my head
4. Missing? Someone to curl up to and listen to the rain fall
5. What was the last thing you ate? PB & J sandwick
6. If you were a crayon what color would you be? Oooh tough choice - grass green
7. Last person you talked to on the phone? Wig
8. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Eyes
9. Do you like the person who sent you this? Yep, she's one of my bestest friends
10. How are you today? Tired - very tired!
11. Favorite drink? COFFEE!!
12. Favorite alcoholic drink? Margarita
13. Favorite sport? Sports -- YELCH!!!
14. Hair color? I'm not sure anymore. It could be brown or gray.
15. Eye color? Green
16. Do you wear contacts? No
17. Siblings? Three - 2 brothers and 1 sister
18. Favorite month? May
19. Favorite foods? Pot Roast - anything chocolate that doesn't have
almonds
20. Last movie you watched? Jezebel with Bette Davis and Henry Fonda
21. Favorite day of the year? My birthday, of course, May 17th.
22. Are you too shy to ask someone out? Yes, but you would never know it the way I act.
23. Summer or winter? Summer
24. Hugs or kisses? It depends on who the other person is.
25. Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate
26. Do you want your friends to write back? Yes
27. Who is most likely to respond? ???
28. Who is least likely to respond? ???
29. Living arrangements? Rent a duplex, currently living with me is my nephew (temporarily)
and the newest addition, a kitty named Shadow
30. What books are you reading? Harry Potter -- Flight Of The Phoenix
31. Favorite Board Game? Scrabble
32. What are you doing tonight? Probably just watching TV
33. Buttered, plain, or salted popcorn? Buttered -- extra butter please
34. Favorite car? Rolls Royce Phantom II
35. Favorite flower? Lilac
36. How many keys on your key ring? Ummm which key ring? 3 on the one with my car/house
keys, 4 on my desk keys and 3 on my office key ring
37. Can you juggle? Books, workloads - yes. Now if your talking about items like pins, eggs,
knives -- no way
38. Favorite day of the week? Saturday
39. Red or white wine? White
40. What did you do for your last birthday? Went to J&G's?
41. Do you carry a donor card? I don't need to, it's stated on my driver's licenses
42. Lifetime goals? To enjoy life
43. What is the first thing you think of when you wake up in the morning? It's morning already?

Worth Every Minute

After a busy and stressful day, I arrived home with an armload of work, to find two red roses with the following note attached:

"Hey Aunt Bernie you may not know this but I love you. If you didn't take me, I don't know what I would do. Thanks alot for this Auntie, at lease you care. It's like somebody else at lease my mom don't want me ... I love you. Your nephew Rick"

Of course after reading the note, the tears started to fall. How do I explain to a child, everyone loves and cares about him when he's not allowed to be around these same people?

Kitty

We have a name for the newest addition to the household -- Shadow! It earned the name by following Ricky and I where ever we go in the house. Shadow has been sleeping with Ricky and keeping him company.

Stressful!

That's the only way to describe the last few weeks with my nephew. It's been 14 years since I have shared my home with another person - nevermind a pre-teen. I had become set in my way of doing things and needed to make major adjustments in my life. My laundry pile is more than double. Why do kids think just because you've worn something, for just a few hours, it's dirty? The food bill has more than doubled as well. Staples such as bread, milk and eggs I would buy every other week. I now run to the store twice a week for these items. He drinks a gallon of Kool-aid daily.

Last week Ricky had his first (better be ONLY!) run in with Manchester PD. He and a girl in the neighborhood were fighting. Although she started the fight, Ricky started the punching and left her with a black eye and several welts. The girl's grandmother opted to not press charges because BOTH kids would have been arrested - the girl for disturbing the peace and Ricky for assault. Yes, Ricky has a temper with a short fuse. One of my goals is to get him to understand why he needs to walk away before the fuse is lit. I know, it's a milestone goal for such a short period of time.

The DCF Supervisor was here Thursday evening and informed me of horrific, to say the least, news. I won't go into detail here because it is personal. Sometime within the next two weeks, Ricky will be moved to a juvenile residential facility. He needs help and it's more than any one person can give him. At this facility, he will receive intense therapy and still be able to continue with his schooling.

Work has been getting better. There is still a lot to do and because I can't work OT, I've been working through my lunch breaks. Rumor has it a new HR person will be starting tomorrow. That will take a huge amount of work off my desk and a co-worker. She has been handling the hourly new hires and I do salary new hires. I also process the paperwork for the hourly new hires. My work has become an escape for the stress I have at home and vice-versa. This stress, I believe was also reflected in a recent doctor's visit when they took my blood pressure. I have never had a BP higher than 120/80 until last week. While it's still not high by medical standards, 134/80 is high for me.

Yesterday, I did something I said I wouldn't do again - adopted a kitty. My neighbor, Debbie, came home with a stray that found her. While visiting a friend, a few blocks away, this kitty was next to her car crying away. Her friend stated the cat had been hanging around crying for several days, so Debbie brought the cat home with her. The cat is very thin and has a cold so it will go off to the vet this week for a thorough check up and shots. It would also be nice to find out if the cat is male/female and if it has been neutered/spayed.

I haven't come up with a name yet but the possiblities are: Chloe, Sweet Pea and Smudge. The name will be decided after I get a better feel for the cat's personality. Ricky and I went to Pet Supplies Plus yesterday for kitty necessities and toys. Just to give Ricky something to occupy his time, I will travel to Home Depot for items to build a scratching post and possibly a window perch for the cat. The kitty has taken a major liking to Ricky and followed him all around yesterday. While the cat went to bed with Ricky, it woke up in my bed. It's very affectionate but not very playful. It could be that it is still getting used to us or just not feeling well at this time.

Today we're off to Wig's for a day at the pool. I could use a day of doing nothing and Ricky will enjoy the swimming time. I should do laundry but that will wait for another day. Today will be a day for relaxing and enjoying the beautiful day.

Free Time?
 
It seems I no long have any free time to just veg out.  My weeks have been filled with work, housework, laundry, buying food for a growing 12 year old.  I finally have a little quiet time this morning, to give an update.

Instanta-family - just add kid
Ricky is doing well here but still bored.    He has met a few kids in the neighborhood but is not allowed to go to their homes and visit.  The circumstances dictate he have constant adult supervision.  I can't control how much supervision he has at their home, so they must come here and there isn't much for them to do here.  No knowing how long he will be staying here, I don't know if I should look into enrolling him in the local school system either or if he will be home-schooled by DCF.

Ricky's mom had her first supervised visit with Ricky's siblings.  Apparently it went well but was also a little disturbing.  The kids have had no contact with their mother since they were taken from their home and split up.  The girls, Chelsea and Tatiana, are in separate foster homes and Josh is with my parents.  The kids all appear to be adjusting well and are happy being away from home.  They were a bit upset when it was time to say good-bye but not as upset as one would expect.  Except for weekends spent with my parents the kids have never been away from home, not even spending a night at a friend's house, nevermind with strangers!

Work Update
It's been busy at work (short 3 office workers) and without the ability to work overtime, I'm obviously falling behind in my work.  On a good note, my hard work has not gone unnoticed.  I had my first review last week and it earned me a 5% raise.  While it wasn't as much as I hoped it would be, it was the highest raise I've seen come across my desk.  The normal raises are 3-4%.  I was told I need to work on my "people skills".  Apparently some co-workers don't quite understand my sense of humor when I ask if they are eating all the vacation slips.  Nor do they understand the words "just a minute while I finish my train of thought".  I am expected to immediately stopped whatever I'm doing and answer the phone; get paper out of the store room; leave my desk to see if my boss is in his office because people don't know how to dial an extention.  You know multiple bull shit things that don't need to be done immediately but someone asks me to do.

The Weekend
Today Ricky and I will be shopping for sneakers.  I really must get him out of the name-brand mode.  Every article of clothing he mentions is by name brand.  I refuse to pay big bucks just to have a recognizable name on any article of clothing.  After we are done shopping, we're going to go the movie theater to see the latest Harry Potter movie.  It's hard to believe it but Ricky has NEVER been to a movie theater.   So this will be a big treat for him.

My free time is now up.  Ricky is dressed and ready to head out the door but I'm still in my jammies.   I guess it's time for me to get ready to leave.  Take care my friends and I'll write more whenever I have a free moment.

"Life Update"
 
These last few weeks have been stressful and very busy.  I can't get into the details but my nephew, Ricky, is living with me temporarily.  Of course we have no idea how long "temporarily" actually could be.
 
On the work front, things have gotten MUCH better.  We have had a week of quiet since L stopped working at Watkins. It's amazing how quiet the phones have become without all her personal calls coming through.  Next week should prove interesting, it's time for my 6 month review.  Let's see if my boss shows just how much he appreciates me with a decent raise. 
 
The love life still sucks and won't be getting better anytime soon.  While my nephew is here, there won't be any happy hours or social life.  Then again, I didn't have much of a social life before his arrival.  My time is being spent trying to think of things to keep him occupied.  Anyone have suggestions on how to occupy a 12 y/o male?  Don't tell with to get him a 12 y/o female!   He does enjoy basketball so we may shop for a ball and free-standing hoop this weekend.   I don't have any place to hang a hoop so it has to come with it's own stand.
 
I guess I should get moving along.  We need to buy groceries today since Ricky has cleaned out my refrigerator.  The kid can eat!  I asked him to write a list of things he wants at the grocery store.  I need to add things like fruits and veggies since he didn't list any of those things.
 

Fireworks Update

Ok Leslie, here's a quick update since I'm getting ready to head out for the day.

When I arrived at work Monday, L wasn't there. Her desk had been cleaned out but no one said if she was coming in or quit what was going on. Later in the morning, I spoke privately with my boss about the verbal exchange that had taken place. I explained how shaken I had been, that I eventually lost my temper and was afraid to go to my car without an escort. He agreed with me completely this kind of behavior would not be tolerated and he would speak to L when she arrived at work. Apparently she had submitted a vacation request for a 1/2 day on Monday.

He did speak to her privately Monday afternoon and I have since learned she gave her two week notice to the Ops Manager after I left friday. I was prepared to give my own notice if she was not terminated or had not given her notice.

Since Monday, I have learned this is NOT the first time L has does this. She had been ordered into Anger Management classes the last time this happened. Somehow I don't think she learned much in those classes. I can only guess at what the outcome would have been if she had not given her notice. Because of it being the 2nd occurrence, I'm pretty certain she would have been terminated.

One good thing that came of this exchange, my boss assured me that he is extremely pleased with my work and very happy that I will be staying on with Watkins.

"Fireworks in Cheshire"

Yesterday was probably the biggest office fireworks display I have ever seen. You see, we have a couple of self-proclaimed "prima donnas" (L&M) in the office. You know the ones, too busy with their work to answer phones and do "customer service" jobs. They do all the work and everyone else sits on their asses all day doing nothing.

The prima donnas were doing some major bitching this week about the temp that was hired to answer the phones. First let me say the temp did a great job this week. She was quick to answer the phones, wrote pick-up slips and routed calls to the proper people. Exactly what she was suppose to be doing! The two prima donnas decided the temp HAD to sit at the front desk so she could tell WHO was on the phone and not send any customer service calls to them. They had too much work to do, to handle customer service calls. Besides "it's not their job". Having the temp at the front desk meant the person that sits there, would need to move the contents of her desk and the computer. This argument lasted for two hours until they called in the OPS Manager to settle it. He saw no reason for anyone change desks and told them so. Well that response didn't go over too well! For the remainder of the afternoon, we got to hear the bitching and repeated "It's not my job" being chanted. Not to mention the "I'm too busy to answer phones right now."

One of the prima donnas (L) has been doing the daily bank deposits, simply because I hated climbing the 3 flights of stairs to the parking lot. She volunteered, so I said "ok". It seems to take anywhere from 60-90 minutes daily to do this errand. Having never done the run, I had no idea how long it should actually take but I suspected it should be under an hour. So, to free up some of her time, yesterday I decided to start doing the deposits. Let's see, I went to the bank, stopped at the store for paper plates (pizza party for lunch yesterday) AND went to the post office. Somehow, I wasn't surprised when I returned in 50 minutes and to a VERY cold office.

L was PISSED and stormed out of the office. She could no longer screw around for 90 minutes everyday then take her 30 minute lunch break. She returned about 3:00 and wanted to know WHY I decided to change "policy" and do the deposit. So I told her why. That's when the "oh isn't that so precious I do the deposit in the snow and rain and shitty weather but now it's nice outside, you'll do the deposits." I was biting my tongue and told her if she had a problem with the way I do my job, then to speak to my boss. At that point she started to insinuate I was receiving preferential treatment from the boss. Screaming how I didn't know the first thing about the trucking industry (I agreed with her on that point) and I NEVER answer the phones. At that point I lost it -- and a line of 4-letter words came out of my mouth and a hush fell over the office AND dispatch. I looked at the clock, it was 3:20 and I announced "I'm going home, I've had enough for this week."

L stormed out of the office and headed towards the parking lot. I finished what I had been working on and started to lock up my desk. I wanted to give her plenty of time to LEAVE the parking lot since she strikes me the type to get physical when no one is around. While I was clearing off my desk she returned and was packing up her belongings when I left. Will she show up for work on Monday? I doubt it. Will she quit? Probably. Would I apologize for what I said? NO WAY, it was time someone said it to her.

"Interesting Week Ahead"

The work week should prove to be an interesting one this week. Amid all the turmoil of having no HR person and short about 10 FT dock workers, Jeff (my boss) will be at the corporate office in FL for the remainder of the week. He left me with a short "to do" list that includes walking a co-worker through the paperwork associated with new hires. In other words, I just busted my ass learning a process, on my own, so I could teach someone else how to do it.

Jeff also informed me he is bringing in a temp to help with the telephones. The last temp we had was a real ditz! We reminded her daily that Jeff was on vacation and she still put calls through to his phone. Jeff has given me "complete authority", if this person isn't working out, to get someone in that can do the job. With both Operations Managers covering the night shifts and my boss being out of town, does that put me in charge?

On top of the lack of manpower, we are expecting new PC's to be installed this week. For the most part it should be simply a change in equipment. There are a few of us that have access to our hard drives and store confidential documents on the drives. My PC happens to be the biggest concern. I've managed to move the majority of the non-confidential documents to the network. It seems most of my documents are confidential - Injury/Worker's Comp Cases, Job Reviews, Employee DataBase.... they can't be moved until the new PC is ready to go on my desk. At that point I'll copy the docs to the network, set up the new PC and immediately copy the documents back to the hard drive. Then delete what is on the network.

Thankfully, my back is feeling a little better each day. I still have twinges of pain when I stand and walk but nothing close to the major pain I had over the weekend. I don't think I would be of much use at work if I were on Flexeril all week.

Weekend Plans :(

For last 6-8 weeks, I have been looking forward to the Annual 3-Day Pool Party at Big Bill's and Wig's. Today is the stary of this big bash. It starts on friday afternoon and lasts well into the night on sunday. People bring pitch tents in the backyard, enough food for TWO armies. Last year Bill hired a DJ. This year he was going to roast a pig. Wouldn't you know it, I probably won't be at the party anytime this weekend. Why? I was bending over to tie the trash bag, this morning and my back went out without me! Before leaving the house, I grabbed my bottle of Flexeril and took two as soon as I got to work. Good news, it definately relaxed me - I was ready to take a nap about 10:00 AM. Bad news, after 6 Flexeril, my back is still killing me. My weekend will probably be spent popping Flexeril, soaking in a hot bath, and lying on my back in bed.

I hope everyone reading this has a better weekend than me :(

Ask and you shall receive.....

Today started like an ordinary day -- busy! While I was working on checking everyone time clock punches from yesterday, one of our sales reps approached me. He asked me to verify that tickets to a concert were in the safe. I couldn't do it at that moment but told him I would check as soon as I had a chance.

Later in the morning, I had a few minutes to look for the concert tickets. Of course I had to see where the concert is and who is playing. Hmmmm Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire at The Meadows -- sounds like a great concert to me. Sure enough, there are 8 tickets and 2 parking passes.

When Doug called, from the road, this afternoon, I relayed the information. I added in that it sounds like a great concert. He then asked if I wanted to go. It seems he had purchased an extra ticket and doesn't have a date for the night. The only stipulation is that I can't tell anyone in the office! Something tells me he realizes just how much gossip takes place in that office!

Just a little run down on the gossip -- DL has a "thing" going on with SO, but don't tell either of their spouses. LN is engaged to MR after only dating for a couple of months. CB's boyfriend is in jail for abuse but she still loves him and is trying to get him out of jail. MP, although a newlywed, has a fling going on with JH..... Does this sound a little like Peyton Place?

Monday Madness Meme

1. In your opinion, what is the perfect temperature?
2. If you have a garden, what do you plant in it? If not, what would you plant in it?
3. What is your favorite summertime beverage?
4. How many times a year do you rearrange your living room?
5. How fast do you drive in a '55 mile-an-hour' zone?
6. How many minutes per day do you usually talk on the phone?
7. What is your favorite software program?
8. How many music cd's do you own?
9. How many memes do you participate in on a regular basis?
10. Name 3 blogs that you have on your 'blogroll' list. (any 3.)

1. The perfect temp is 75 with a 2 degree differential. How do I know this? It's called 20 years of working in a temperature controlled computer room.

2. This year, I have a container garden. It's the first time I've ever tried growing veggies so it should be interesting. I have an array of flowers - Impatiens, Marigolds, Miniature Pansies, Petunias and Coleus. Since I'm the only one here, the veggies are limited - String Beans, Tomatoes, Green Peppers. I also planted a few herbs - Chives, Basil, Dill, Oregano.

3. I don't limit a beverage to a season. My favorite non-alcoholic beverage is coffee! For an alcholic beverage, Margarita - on the rocks with salt.

4. At the moment, it's very easy to rearrange my living room. There's no furniture in the room. I used the furniture in a spare room to create a den. Now I'm searching for "reasonably" priced wicker/bamboo living set. Once the living room is set up, the only time I move furniture is to place the Christmas Tree or when I move to a new apartment.

5. 55 MPH? I think I reach that speed on the highway on-ramp. My speed is usually in the 70-75 range and I'm riding along with the traffic.

6. I spend way too much time on the phone, working. After working too many years as IT Help Desk, I hate being on the phone. When my last employer started closing down the office, a "contact list" went around so we could keep in touch with our co-workers. In the "telephone number" column, I wrote "Do you really think I answer my home phone?"

7. I miss having an organizer. The one I've come to like is Lotus Organizer. I've been trying out a "shareware" program called C-Organizer Pro and it's pretty good. Having an organizer at work is easier that having post-its stuck all over my desk. Paper gets lost too easily on my desk.

8. I probably have about 40 CD's. My collection is rather limited since I won't buy a CD unless I've heard most of the songs and like them. The cost is too high to buy a CD and find you only like 1 or 2 songs and can't stand the rest of them.

9. I do believe this is the first time I have answered a Meme. Victoria has them all the time on her blog. While I enjoy reading the questions and her responses. I don't think I've ever responded to one.

10. I don't think I have many more than 3! Let's see, friends Karl, Victoria, Bonnie and Marsha

Welcome to Summer!!!

The official "Summer Kick-off" weekend is here. That calls for a BBQ and the official Caribbean National Anthem -- everybody get your body moving to the beat and sing-a-long. Not sure of the tune and words? Well here are the words and I bet you know the tune!



Ole ole, Ole ole,
Ole ole, Ole ole

Me mind on fire, me soul on fire,
Feeling hot hot hot
Other people, All around me,
Feeling hot hot hot
What to do, on a night like this
Music's sweet, I can't resist
We need a party sound
It's fun, they'll get to jam
So we can um bum bum bum
Yeah we'll um bum bum bum
Feeling hot hot hot
Feeling hot hot hot

Ole ole, Ole ole,
Ole ole, Ole ole

Me mind on fire, me soul on fire,
Feeling hot hot hot
Other people, All around me,
Feeling hot hot hot
What to do, on a night like this
Music's sweet, I can't resist
We need a party sound
It's fun, they'll get to jam
So we can um bum bum bum
Yeah we'll um bum bum bum
Feeling hot hot hot
Feeling hot hot hot

"Bad Day"

I'm having one of "those weeks" where I'm rethinking my employment at Watkins. With the HR Recruiter now living in Hawaii, it seems the majority of his job has landed on my desk. The stress level has more than doubled with the demands that everything be done NOW. Of course, without any proper training either. Things I had specifically asked to be shown, I was told "don't worry, someone else would be handling that process". Well, that process is on my desk and all without the knowledge the "someone else" possesses.

I've put in way too many hours doing other people's work, while my own work goes on the back burner. Yesterday, I was finally seeing the light at the end of the paperwork, when we lost power. Against my better judgement, I chose to go out to lunch with the rest of the office workers. With no outside lighting and only one emergency light in the office, it wasn't like we could do any work. Our discussion at lunch turned to the heirarchy at Watkins and job progressions. That's when I discovered NO ONE is considered for any position in manangement unless they have worked the dock. Even the HR Recruiter would not have been considered for a management position unless he voluntarily accepted a demotion to "Manifest Clerk".

We returned to the office (90 minutes later), the power had returned. Of course I was now 90 minutes behind in my work with fresh "must do now" demands coming from the Operations Manager. More demands from Lakeland because the "managers" in our office wouldn't know how to read and fill out a form properly if their lives depended on it. Quite frankly, they don't care if the form is filled out properly. They completely ignore the requests for more information from Lakeland.

This morning, I updated my resume and will start sending them out, again. With all that I have seen and heard at Watkins, I won't be staying with the company. I'm having a very difficult time holding my tongue with management, that can't be bothered with doing anything for themselves and expect me to do all their paperwork at 1/2 their pay. All this, while they know I will never be considered to work as their equal.

What a week!

Again, it was a hectic work week. Our HR Recruiter moved to Maui and I have been assigned several of his duties. Was I wrong to think not much would be happening in HR until a replacement was found. Just yesterday I typed (yes, they still use typewriters!) 4 status change forms, 2 change of address forms, processed 1 new hire and 1 termination. Then I spent about an hour at the copier, making copies of all the paperwork being sent to the corporate office.

Late Thursday afternoon one "rumor" was finally confirmed. The New England District Manager, Mike, was promoted to Vice President of the Southwest Region. His official last day was friday and he flies to Dallas on Monday. My boss, Jeff, is next in line for Mike's job as DM.

If that isn't enough people shuffling for you, how about the District Secretary, Doreen, has applied for the HR Recruiter's job. If she is moved to the HR position, that will leave the District Secretary job open. Chances are very good that job will be offered to me.

On the homefront, I broke down today and purchased an air conditioner. I don't want to find out how miserable I can be this summer with hot flashes. This is not the "normal" place in the window A/C. It's a portable A/C AND dehumidfier. It doesn't go in the window but has a vent hose (like a dryer vent) that is placed in the window. The unit is freestanding and on wheels. This means I can easily move it from room to room and I never have lift it in and out of the window. It also has a 24-hr timer so I can set it to a warmer temp, while I'm at work. The filter is a reusable filter, so that won't need to be replaced. It can be washed and reinserted.

Debbie and I are going to a play tonight in West Hartford. I kept thinking it was a play by Shakespeare but it's not. It's "The Lion In Winter" by James Goldman. Prior to the play we're going to check out a local pub - Duffy's Bar and Grill. Sounds like it should be a fun place and it's a block from the playhouse. If we like the place, we'll probably spend some "Happy Hour" time there.

Shopping

I finally shopped for garden flowers and veggies today! The back seat of my car was loaded with Impatiens, Coleus, Mini Pansies, Petunias, Sweet Basil, Dill, Chives, Oregano, Bell Peppers, String Beans and Tomatoes. The trunk carried 4 large bags of potting soil.

After shopping I went to Debbie's for a birthday cookout. Dinner was a joint effort. Fred cooked the burgers and dogs, Debbie made the potato and pasta salads and Peter made the tossed salad and garlic dip. Debbie also made the most delicious strawberry shortcake --- Mmmmmmm good ---- and presented it to me with a lit candle. One of Freddy's long time friends stopped by with a dozen fresh bagels and cream cheese.

The first thing I did upon arriving at home, was to unload all the plants. For now they are in the back yard until I have a chance to plant them. Of course the potting soil is still in the car. I looked around and realized I don't have an outside faucet. That means running a hose from my kitchen to water the plants. Oh well, it's easier than using a watering can! Next week will be a busy one, trying to get everything planted.

Secret Admirer

I have a secret admirer that wants to please me. Whoever it is, has left me gifts on my front steps twice this week. I believe I know who my admirer is and can't help but laugh at the situation. You'll laugh too when I tell you the gifts are a bird and a mouse. I do believe "Bumbles" is in love with me and leaving me presents.

Yesterday I came home and found a dead crow next to my front my steps. As I left the house today, there was a dead little mouse (on it's back with feet in the air) lying at the foot of my steps. The mouse looks like an offering to a Goddess left at the foot an altar.

After seeing what is being left at the front door, I'm afraid to look out the back door! I really hate to disappoint my admirer but I don't like dead bodies!!! Does anyone out there do body removal?

New drug information:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Pfizer Corp Announcement -

Pfizer Corp. announced today that VIAGRA will soon be available in liquid form, and will be marketed by Pepsi Cola as a power beverage suitable for use as a mixer. It will now be possible for a man to literally pour himself a stiff one.

Obviously we can no longer call this a soft drink, and it gives new meaning to the names of "cocktails", "highballs" and just a good old-fashioned "stiff drink." Pepsi will market the new concoction by the name of: "MOUNT & DO".

Interesting Happenings At Work

Yesterday, I typed a review and request to promote a person to the Operations Manager position. Which leads me to wonder where the current Operations Manager is going. Rumor has it, the District Manager applied for an opening in Atlanta and my boss is next in line for the District Manager position. I can't help but wonder if there will be a change in management in the near future. The District Secretary has applied for the position of HR Recruiter, which means there could be an opening soon for a District Secretary as well. Chances are good that if my boss were to be promoted to District Manager, I will be asked to become the District Secretary. That would mean no more playing with Payroll, telephones or insurance claims :)

1: Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, find line 4. Write down what it says: Mashed Potato Mix, dry - 1/2 cup. Gee, did you guess the closest book is a cookbook? The recipe is for Rosemary Potato Bread.

2: Stretch your left arm out as far as you can. What do you touch first?: Well if I stretch my arm forward, it reaches my ashtray first. To the side, it touches nothing. If my arm could reach, the first think it would touch is my bread machine, on the other side of the dining room.


3: What is the last thing you watched on TV?: Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone


4. WITHOUT LOOKING, guess what the time is: 7:00


5: Now look at the clock, what is the actual time?: 7:01 (I had just looked a minute or two before)


6: With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?: Birds chirping, traffic on I-384


7: When did you last step outside? what were you doing?: About 5:30 pm. - coming home from work.

8: Before you came to this website, what did you look at?: I was chatting with Marsha on AOL.


9: What are you wearing?: Light tan dress slacks, off-white short sleeve sweater


10: Did you dream last night? Yes. I don't remember all of it but it had something to do with moving into a new house/apt. and the bathroom was really small.


11: When did you last laugh? Tonight when Marsha told me about a letter sent to her sister.

12: What is on the walls of the room you are in? Not a whole hell of a lot -- decorative plates, wall sconce lights.

13: Seen anything weird lately?: Yep, Stromberg payroll sofware really sucks! Today, one person appears it have worked 120 hours last week.

14: What do you think of this quiz?: It's cute and something to do

15: What is the last film you saw?: Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone

16: If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy first?: Drinks on me at J&G's.

17: Tell me something about you that I don't know: Some people know this but not everyone. I didn't speak English until I was 5 and ready to start kindergarden. My first language is Canadian French. The school wouldn't accept me in kindergarden because I didn't speak English. I never went to kindergarden and started school in the 1st grade when I was 6.

18: If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?: Eliminate political parties. They are nothing more than "labels" that don't really describe what the party really is about. I would place a low limit on how much any business or private person can donate to a campaign. Also, make it so EVERY vote counts (not the Electoral vote)and every vote is counted - prior to announcing any election results.

19: Do you like to dance? I like to slow dance :)

20: Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?: Well it's never happened for me and I do believe it's too late to happen now. However, if I had been blessed with a daughter, her name would have been Emily Elizabeth.

21: Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him?: I'm not too set on any male names, there are a few I like - Andrew, Jonathan, Dylan but it would probably take a little more thinking before I decided.

22: Would you ever consider living abroad? Only in the Caribbean :)

23: Will you pass on this survey? Not through e-mail but my friends are welcome to copy it from my blog.

I'm Still Here

I thought today would be a good day to update my blog with news.

Work:

Work has been very hectic. Corporate installed a new release for payroll that had MAJOR bugs in the software. Everytime they fixed one bug, it created five more. We had almost two weeks of reporting that needed to be corrected after the programs were fixed. I told everyone, in the office, if their paycheck was accurate, I expected a tip!

Our HR Recruiter, James, gave his notice last week. I'm contemplating putting my name in for his job. The job itself doesn't appear to be difficult but he could be efficient enough to make it look easy. I must add our terminal "appears" to be a "good old boy" office. There are no women in management positions. There is a big difference in the way office "clerks" are reviewed and the reviews of other workers. All the females are office clerks or secretaries. We are reviewed on our appearance; how neat our work area is; how helpful we are to customers; attendance and of course knowledgeable about our jobs. I haven't seen reviews for the dockworkers so I can't comment about those. However, I do know there are no women working on the dock. As for the Manages, Dispatchers, Supervisors, Manifest Clerks - they are all males. Their reviews all have to do with goal setting and reaching those goals. There is nothing in their review pertaining to appearance and clean work areas. What I find most interesting is that James is in a salaried position. He is not a manager or supervisor and yet he is reviewed the same as they are. I think it would be very interesting to get his job and see how I would be reviewed.

Health
One of the first things I did, after starting at Watkins, was to make an appointment with my OB/Gyn. It's is now official, I have started menopause. Oh this is so much fun! I absolutely love having nightsweats and hot flashes. I have another appointment at the end of May to discuss how to eliminate the hot flashes and have a bone density test. My blood pressure is great. I've lost 10 lbs. and cut my smoking to 1 pack (instead of 2 pack) since my last physical. On the downside, my cholesterol is a bit high. I think she said 228. She suggested I contact my primary physician and have that checked out further. First I need to FIND a primary physician.

Home
I have a variety of containers ready to be filled with flowers and veggies. Now I just need to purchase the plants. Several of the smaller pots will have herbs - chives, basil, oregano and dill. I want to try drying or freezing the my own herbs.

I had to stop the neighborhood kitties from coming into the house. Although they are very affectionate and friendly, my allergies got the best of me. Of course they still try to get through the door but not as often.


May
The month of May will be a very busy month. Mother's Day is the start of the year's busiest week, for me. That week will include Mother's Day, 3 birthdays and 1 wedding. I'll be spending the 14th-16th in Maine, attending my cousin's wedding. While there, I'll celebrate my birthday at
Pat's Pizza in Orono. No trip to Maine is complete without a stop at Pat's! There will also be a breakfast stop at Governor's in Stillwater.

On the 22nd, Debbie has picked up tickets for a play at a local theater in West Hartford. We're going to meet for dinner first and catch up on the latest gossip. We still need to decide where to have dinner.

Well I guess that's about it for the updates. Don't be a stranger, leave comments and say "Hi".

I'm A 1960s Geek

You're pretty quirky and weird but we know you're smart and love you anyway!

find your geek decade at spacefem.com

Joke ..... or is it?

George W Bush goes to a primary school to talk about the war. After his talk he invites questions. One little boy puts up his hand, and the President asks him his name.

"Billy!"

"And what is your question, Billy?"

"I have three questions," says the boy. "First - why did the USA invade Iraq without the support of the UN?; Second - why are you President when Al Gore got more votes?; and Third - whatever happened to Osama bin Laden?"

Just then the bell rings for recess. George W Bush informs the children that they will continue after recess. When they resume, the President says: "Okay where were we? Oh that's right, question time. Who has a question?"

A different little boy puts his hand, George points him out and asks his name.

"Steve!"

"And what is your question, Steve?"

"I have five questions: First - why did the USA invade Iraq without the support of the UN?; Second - why are you President when Al Gore got more votes?; Third - whatever happened to Osama bin Laden?; Fourth - why did the recess bell go 20 minutes early?; and Fifth - what happened to Billy?"

Calyspo Weather

There's nothing like a warm spring day to get the Calypso blood flowing through New England veins. Right now I have Byron Lee blasting. It keeps me bouncing and dancing around while I do house work. Later I'll listen to some Belafonte and Marley. The music alone is enough to get me longing for a white beach with turquoise water. Bring on the sunshine and margarita's!

HAPPY EASTER

I know it's been awhile since I've written but there really hasn't been much to write. Work has been busy, which is good most of the time. I can do without the last minute "this must be done today" drama and overtime. There seems to be alot of last minute work.

Update on the kitties: My allergies decided the kitties can not stay here. Of course, now I need to make the kitties realize that! They continue to run into the house and straight to the food dish. I don't know if it's because they are hungry or just that I have better food but, they always have a very hearty appetite when they are here.

Yesterday I spent several hours at the hair salon. I'm not going to say what I had done to my hair except, WOW! What a difference!!! You'll just have to see it for yourself. I did pamper myself a bit while I was there and had a pedicure. The salon has a new pedicure room with full massage chairs and foot jacuzzi's. Ohhh was that soooo nice.

Today I'll be driving to my parent's house for Easter Dinner. While I love visiting with my parents, I never look forward to being around my sister. As far as I'm concerned she is continuing to use my parents to support her and raise her children. Recently she blew the engine in a car my parents bought for her about 5 years ago. She actually asked them to buy her another car! Yes, she is working. Yes, she has two children to raise. However, she was also the one that made the decision to get pregnant and raise the children. This was not a case of "oops". She wanted a baby and got pregnant on purpose.

My parents have remodeled their house, again, to make room for her children. They turned their dining room back into a bedroom. They gave up their spa, for a place to put the kids toys. It pisses me off to know my parents will never hear so much as a "thank you" from her lips. Easter is a time for mending and renewing relationships. Unfortunately, I can't find it in my heart to mend the relationship with my sister. My sister will need to do the mending, not me.

Next month I'll be heading to Maine for a weekend. One of my many cousins will be getting married on the 15th. Wedding's are a good way to visit with relatives in short period of time.

Have a Happy Easter!

Jan & Dean

Jan Berry passed away yesterday at the age of 62.

I had the pleasure of attending a concert, on their first tour, since the 1966 accident. It was a very emotional night when they sang "Dead Man's Curve". The song has long been associated with the duo and the devasting accident that left Jan partially paralyzed and unable to speak. I don't believe there was a dry eye at the Hartford Civic Center when they performed the song. At the end of the song, the crowd cheered with a 10 minute standing ovation.

Spring Has Sprung!!

What a fantastic spring day. The doors and windows are opened wide. Clapton's Unplugged blasting from my CD player. I'm blues boppin through the housework and getting the spring cleaning done. Oh Brother Where Are Thou will follow Clapton as house work music. Then, just to confuse the neighbors, vacuum to Vivaldi. If I get everything done today, I'll mellow out tonight with a margarita, and Loreena McKinnett.

Bumbles is outside enjoying the day, soaking up some rays. Last night he brought home a friend. I swear this cat told the neighborhood about the "nice lady with lots of good food". Both cats zoomed past me as I opened the door. While the cat looks well fed, it seems to be afraid to get too close. This one is with with a few black patches. Hence the name my neighbor gave it -- Patches. Sorry but that name is just not creative enough for me so I'll change it :) I bet none of you realized I'm running a boarding home for wayward kitties.

"Laugh Of The Day"

This morning I sat quietly at home, enjoying my morning coffee and reading e-mails. When I look at the clock, it was 7:00 and I still hadn't showered and gotten dress. And so began the frantic rush to get ready for work. I never cease to amaze myself, in 20 minutes, I showered, dressed, brushed my teeth, made my "travel coffee" and headed out the door.

To my surprise there was very little traffic as I sped off to work. Don't tell anyone but I was doing about 75 the whole distance! It's about a 5 minute walk from the parking lot into the building today I was doing a fast walk and made it just in time to punch in and not be marked late. As I walked through the office I looked at the clock. Something isn't quite right - did someone change the clocks? Yep, it was only 7:00 AM and I didn't need to be here until 8:00 AM.

Oh well, atleast I can enjoy my coffee and have a chance to relax before the rat race starts.


Note to self: Finish first cup of coffee before looking at the clock!!

Have you ever noticed some "bloggers" take the written word too seriously to notice when people are being funny? To those people I say, lighten up and laugh once in awhile. Life is too short to take seriously all the time!

Adoption

As I noted in a previous post, there has been a VERY friendly kitty hanging around. It runs down the road to greet me when I come home. It's outside my door when I leave in the morning. It has even come into the house a few times. I talked with my neighbor yesterday and apparently when I don't see the kitty it's because SHE has brought it inside. During the snowstorm she found the cat huddled next to our dryer vents trying to keep warm and dry.

This morning, I found the cat on my front steps, shivering and hungry so I let it inside. Since I still have food and kitty litter, I decided the kitty will stay inside today. The cat went through 2 cans of food before I left the house! I just have one really major problem -- I'm allergic to long haired cats!!! Because of this, I don't know how well the kitty is going to work out being in here.

Don't ask me if it's male or female --- there is too much fur to tell at a quick glance. At the moment, the kitty is playing "cat in the bag" in the kitchen and having a great time! It managed to find the catnip stash while I was at work. It's a long-haired pale orange cat - very pretty, very friendly and very affectionate. As for a name, well it has to be unisex for now so I'm thinking of "Bumble". It would be named after the snow monster in "Rudolph". Then again, I may come up with a completely different name.

I guess I just broke my promise to myself! Only time and allergies will tell if kitty gets to stay or not.

Strange Happenings

Apparently I have recently been adopted. Stay tuned for further details.

Video Voyeur - Norwich/Colchester CT Searcher

I have noticed my site has been found several times by a person/people searching for information on a video voyeur in the Norwich CT area. Curiosity has gotten the best of me and I would like to know if you are looking for information regarding Ronald LaMontagne. I wish I had more information than what is posted but I don't. The State Police never contacted me after I gave my statement. If you happen to have information on the case, that I have not mentioned. I would appreciate hearing from you.

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. I've been keeping myself busy at work and at home. Yes, I do miss Smokey but I'm feeling MUCH better about my decision and enjoying no kitty underfoot in the kitchen. A new kitty in the neighborhood has been hanging around and greeting me every day. It's a lovely cat - very friendly, talkative, light tan and long-haired. The cat runs up to my car as soon as I get in the driveway, walks me to the house. It even comes inside to visit for a few minutes and then leaves. There is no chance it will become a replacement for Smokey. I'm allergic to long-haired cats. Besides, I think the cat belongs to a neighbor. I just think it's funny the way the cat greets me and visits. Last night, the cat saw me coming down the road and ran to my driveway.

This week was a comedy of errors for me. Most of you know I love to bake and I also decorate cakes. We celebrated a co-workers birthday yesterday and I volunteered to bring the cake. On wednesday evening I mixed up the cake batter, poured it in the pan, only to discover the pan required TWO cake mixes. At 7:45 pm, I found myself getting dressed and running to the grocery store for another cake mix. First mistake - always buy TWO cake mixes for large cake pans.

Thursday night was for making the frosting and decorating the cake. From past experience I have learned to mix only one batch of frosting at a time. I've blown the motors in two mixers trying to save time and double the frosting batch. I mixed the first batch and frosted the cake. Knowing I wanted green as the main color, I made the remaining frosting dark green and decorated all the borders of the cake. Then it was time to mix the 2nd batch of frosting. I had all the ingredients in the bowl and was adding the powered sugar. That's when I realized error number two - always read the recipe!!! I was so used to making a double batch of frosting, I had doubled the amount of water needed. Of course I don't keep extra baking ingredients on my shelves, so another 8:00 pm trip to the grocery store was necessary.

Finally all the frosting is made. The next color I needed was a light shade of purple. Having only the basic colors - red, blue, green, yellow - I knew mixing red and blue SHOULD give me purple. Well that didn't happen Thursday night. It came out the most disgusting shade of brown I have ever seen!!! That bowl of frosting went into the trash and so did my thoughts of how to decorate the cake. I needed light purple to make Forget-me-nots or violets.

At this point I have a cake frosted in white with green borders. If I use red as a secondary color, it beomes a Christmas cake. Yellow alone doesn't look good on a white cake. Blue just doesn't go well with green. Brainstorm hits! BALLOONS!! Red - yellow and blue balloons! I mixed a little of each color went to work. Since I was only going to use a little of each color I opted to not use a pastry bag. Instead I filled a decorating tip with the frosting and pushed it through with my finger. Gee, I forgot just how well food coloring works on fingers.

Finally, Friday morning arrives - the cake is all decorated and I'm wrapping it in plastic for the trip to work. After the cake was wrapped, I looked at it to wondering if it would make it to work in one piece. That's when one more minor error jumped out at me. I spelled the person's name wrong!! At that point I said "fuck it" and prayed no one would notice.

After all that I went through to make the cake, decorate it and get it to work, no one was hungry enough to eat it!!!! We had a "pot luck" lunch and everyone was full from all the baked ziti, salad, kielbasa, chicken wings ..... Around 3:30 I made the birthday girl cut the cake and hand it out. She brought 1/2 the cake home with her.

"It's Over"

I brought Smokey to an emergency clinic and she was put to sleep today. The Vet said she was very dehydrated, showed definate signs of a stroke and quite possibly experiencing kidney failure as well. She couldn't be completely certain without testing but the signs all pointed in that direction. Knowing there really wasn't much I could do, I had her put to sleep.

I know she's happier now and no longer lonely. It's just going to take a lot of tears and major adjustments for me to get past this.

"Not a good weekend"

For the last several months I've been very concerned about my cat, Smokey. She had lost a lot of weight and the move seemed to have a large effect on her. Suddenly she was in a new home and minus her two playmates, Demitasse and Binky. She was very lonely and depressed without her playmates. She wandered around the apartment, yeowling and looking for them. I know her hearing was going and the yeowl was probably what she thought was a meow.

She had started to get used to being an only cat and having me home all day when I started my new job. When I came home at night, she would be at the door crying for me. That's the same place she would be when I left in the morning.

Last Thursday, I fed her and we went through our morning ritual of her crying at the door as I left. When I came home, she seemed to be walking a bit strange, sort of staggering and not very vocal. I didn't think too much of it, fed her again and went about my business. Before I went to bed, I noticed Smokey hadn't eaten her food. She can be very picky and we occasionally go through these "I'm not eating that" fights. Smokey has discovered, I can be just as stubborn as she is finicky and usually gives in.

By Friday morning, the food was still there, so I put down fresh food. She sniffed it and decided to drink her water instead. When I returned home on Friday, the food still hadn't been eaten, now that's not like Smokey to not give in. I tried fresh food and she still turned her nose up at the food and instead drank water. At this point I knew something wasn't right with Smokey. Just to be certain I went to the cupboard for a can of people tuna. She NEVER turns down people tuna but she did this time.

In the meantime, Smokey is holding her head strange. It's hanging down and she looks up at me through the corner of her eyes. She appears to be having a difficult time walking, it's more of a stagger, and she only walks a few feet at a time.

I spent Saturday, doing housework and trying to get Smokey to eat ANYTHING. She has turned her nose up at all food. She does drink a little water but that's all. I tried giving her chicken broth (Jewish penicillin) and she won't touch that either.

In my mind, I know what has to be done and I just can't handle it. Seeing her suffer is heart wrenching but so is having put to sleep. Smokey is 14 years old and I've had her since she was 4 WEEKS old. Her sister, Bandit, was put to sleep several years ago, after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. Having gone through this before, I can't handle it again.

So, here I sit, knowing what MUST be done and I can't do it! Just writing about it has me in tears and thinking about something a lot stronger than coffee for a morning drink.

Bad Me!

Shame on me for not taking a few minutes to update my blog. I've been keeping pretty busy at my new job. I don't get home until after 5:00 and then I spend atleast an hour sorting through e-mails and making my Scrabble moves. By the time I finish that, dinner is ready and soon I'm off to bed.

Last weekend, I attended a "spur of the moment" wedding. My sister-in-law called me about 10 days prior to announce her dad (Bill) was getting married. Bill and his fiancee, Carol, were going to get married by a JP and then tell the family. Well they changed their minds and wanted a small church wedding with a reception at my sister-in-law's house. Everyone pitched in to make the wedding and reception a success. I made about 80 finger sandwiches (ham salad and chicken salad) for the reception. Since they were trying to save on the costs and didn't require gifts, I also played wedding photographer. Now I'm waiting for the pictures to come back to see if they came out ok. I'm having them put on CD and will also set up a webshots page for the couple. This will allow them to share the photos with family and friends much easier than having reprints made.

Many of you know I cruise with lots of friends from on-line. Every year there are several "land parties" where we gather for a "meet and greet". This year, I'm planning the first ever New England Bash and it's going to be held in October. Many of the cruisers want to be in New England during the fall folliage season. I started to set up a web page with all the details for the cruisers party. So far it looks pretty good. I have my own folliage pictures but if anyone has some good folliage pics they can e-mail to me, I would appreciate it. Make sure you tell me where the picture was taken. Some cruisers may ask me these questions. Also, if you know of any great spots for leaf peeping, let me know and I'll include it on the web page.

Busy time

It's great to be busy again! After months of job searches and sitting at home, I now look forward to a busy schedule. By the time I get home from work, cook and eat dinner there isn't much time to do things like housework. I spent yesterday doing just that -- housework. Cleaning, laundry, trips to the bank, grocery store and video store took up most of the day. It felt great being able to balance my checkbook and pay bills with out worrying I'll have nothing left over for groceries!!!

I finally rented "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and watched it while doing laundry and cooking dinner. Excellent movie, as usual though, I liked the book more than the movie. I also rented "Dreamcatcher". It's based on a Stephen King novel by the same name. It didn't do well in the theaters but most of King's movies don't do well in the theater. I've read the book and enjoyed it, now it's time to see if I like the movie. If I do, then I'll probably buy a copy and add it to my King Collection of books and movies.

Today will also be a busy day. I'll be meeting Colette in Middletown about 10:45 and we'll be attending a Psychic Fair. There is a shop in Middletown, The Knight People, that has a psychic fair the first sunday of every month. Whenever I attend, I make sure to get an appointment with Dee. She's the most popular reader and in my opinion, very accurate. There have been things Dee predicted that I thought would never happen in a million years. After the reading we're going to lunch and catch up on some "girl talk".

After Middletown, it's a drive up to Suffield and install a web camera for Wig and set up AOL software for Bill. I've never set up a web camera before so it should be an interesting challenge. Then it's a walk across the street to the Super Bowl Party. I'm not a sports fan but I do love a good party and I'll watch some of the game. I'm not sure I'll stay for all of the game since it's about a 30 minute ride home and I don't like starting my work week being tired.

Great Neighbors!

This morning, I was prepared to offer a neighbor cash if he would clear my driveway and sidewalks with his snowblower. I went through my regular morning routine and still didn't hear the snowblower running, so I headed out the door with shovel in hand. When you aren't sure which house the neighbor lives in, it's not nice to go knocking at 6:30 am. I shovelled a small path to my car and by the time my car was cleared off the guy (Wayne) was out with the snowblower. I went over and introduced myself and asked if he could do my sidewalk and driveway. He explained he was already late for work but would be happy to do it when came home. That was fine by me, my little car wouldn't have a problem getting out of the driveway.

When I arrived home, about 5:30, my driveway was clear, sidewalks all clear. It was great!! Wayne was outside using a shovel on his back walk so I went over to pay him. That's when I found out, he had just gotten home and didn't do my driveway and sidewalk. My neighbor, Debbie, shovelled everything!! I immediately knocked on Debbie's door to thank her and pay her shovelling. She refused to take the money. I need to find a way to say "Thank you" to her and I'm open to suggestions.

In the meantime, Wayne has agreed to do our driveways and sidewalks for the rest of the winter!!! YIPPEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

As I was getting ready to leave work yesterday, I FINALLY figured out why I can not connect to the Watkins Intranet. The connection that was being used is so antiquated, I had only heard stories about the connection and how it worked. It was the dust bunny connection!! They link together for a direction connection to the server in Lakeland, Fl. Unfortunately, I can not recreate the connection since these were version 2.7 dust bunnies and they were tossed out when I cleaned. The current version is 352.7 and no longer contains the static electrical current necessary for the connection.

BUSY first week!

This week has been FULL of work to do. Not only am I learning new jobs (time card/payroll, cash deposits) I'm also secretary to the Terminal Manager. Between last night and today, he had 2 dock performance meetings, one all day budget meeting and a customer appreciation dinner tonight. I spent yesterday locating, updating and printing (on paper and overheads) various charts, graphs and agenda for the dock meetings. Then it was onto gathing budget (actual and projected) information for the all day meeting, setting up a few spreadsheets (thankfully no calculations) writing the agenda and creating identical folders for all the managers that would be in the meeting. I was doing all this while attempting to fix the intranet connection for my computer --- it's still not working!

When I arrived at work today, my first call went to the Help Desk -- my password was locked out for some reason. About 30 minutes later I placed another call to the help desk about my intranet connection. A gentleman from the networking group finally called back about 9:30 -- we spent TWO HOURS!!! trying to get my computer to a "custom" intranet logon screen and finally gave up. Neither of us has a clue how my predecessor was connecting previously. We set up an terminal emulation program so I can sign onto the mainframe and process the cash deposits. However, the time card/payroll function is a network based program. So, until I get a new computer, I must use someone else's PC to access the software.

After I finished "playing" with my PC, it was back to the learning phase at another computer. The time cards/payroll is suppose to be done by 10:00 but because of the computer problems, we've been late. Today we finished up about 1:30, just in time for the Watkins Birthday Party. They opened our terminal 4 years ago today. There was a pizza party and cake for lunch today. The afternoon was spent creating placecards and a cheat sheet for tonight's customer appreciation dinner.

Now for the fun news. I had the pleasure of breaking the news to my new boss, the PC I have WILL BE REPLACED within the next 6 months, by corporate. All those documents (HUNDREDS OF THEM!!) I have been complaining about, must be weeded through and either deleted or saved. Watkins is currently going through the same process I went through at International Paper. They are replacing old PC's and installing new ones with Windows 2000. Any software we are currently using (hmmmm bar code scanner software) will need to be upgraded as well. Thankfully he was very understanding and said my predecessor was afraid of corporate doing just what they are now doing. He will contact corporate and try to obtain a schedule so we can be prepared for the new PC.

Oooooo I'm having so much fun!!

Great First Day!

The morning was rather slow but interesting. I spent about an hour filling out forms. You know all those tax, health insurance, life insurance, 401k, disablity forms we so dearly love. The rest of the morning was spent watching video tapes about Watkins, phone etiquette, customer service and proper procedures for hazardous waste handling. The hazardous waste video came with a test that I needed to pass. It's not as easy as it may sound. Mostly because it's not just the proper handling of the material as much as what information must be included on the shipping papers and it must be in the proper order. Of course, I probably will never need to use the information but everyone must know the procedures.

All that took me right up to a few minutes before lunch. That is when James (HR Manager) finally showed me that I have desk. There isn't any place close enough for a 30 minute lunch but the usually order out and one person picks up for everyone. They do have a lunch room and there I met a few of the guys that work on the dock.

This afternoon was spent CLEANING my desk. Tomorrow I will be armed with 409 and paper towels, to complete the cleaning task. There was a guy in the position previously and he apparently didn't clean. Everyone else has nice clean work areas --- not so with this cubicle. I'm also "special", I have the only PC that works as a stand alone or on the network. Yes, I will be "tweaking" this PC and cleaning up the hard drive before I create more data. They do not have internet access via their network, which surprised me. However, I have a dial up modem and will have my own internet access. I haven't been shown what they have yet for dial up access. Sorry Vic and Bonnie but I won't be doing many Scrabble moves during the day.

I couldn't have hand picked nicer co-workers. There is also a good possiblity these people are crazier than the zanies I worked with at International Paper. I will definately fit in there!!! They are all extremely friendly, joke around with each other and just plainly have fun during the day. That was something I picked up on when I interviewed and my first day proved my thoughts to be accurate.

The commute this morning wasn't as bad as I anticipated. The roads were in better shape and I forgot today is a holiday. It was about a 35-40 minute ride but tomorrow will be a better judge on the timing.

Now for the funny part of my day. When I returned home, I had a message waiting. Apparently Henkel-Loctite is still asking for me and wants to know if I am happy at my new job. I guess they didn't take me seriously when I said I really don't want to work 3rd shift. The money at Henkel is really good but sometimes it's just not about the money.

Watkins

Today I start working for Watkins Motor Lines. Currently I have a severe case of the first day jitters and "let's skate into work" today shakes. Mother Nature decided to show me the bad part of my 35 mile commute on the first day of work. My car is in the process of de-icing itself, while I sit cozy and warm inside.

I am more nervous about starting at Waktins than I was at Scan-Optics. That could be simply because the job at Watkins is not working in IT. I'll be an Administrative Assistant at Watkins. While I am certain I can do the job, it's still a new challenge for me and there is always an uncertainty when faced with a new challenge. One aspect I am looking forward to is "playing" with PowerPoint. While I have viewed presentations, I haven't been involved with creating them.

Well, I guess it's time to put on the coat and head out the door. Cross your fingers for me today!

Dilemma

Here's a dilemma for you.... With all your honor and dignity what would you do? This test only has one question, but it's a very important one. Please don't answer it without giving it some serious thought. By giving an honest answer you will be able to test where you stand morally. The test features an unlikely, completely fictional situation, where you will have to make a decision one way or the other.  Remember that your answer needs to be honest, yet spontaneous. Please scroll down slowly and consider each line - this is important for the test to work accurately. You're in Florida...In Miami, to be exact. There is great chaos going on around you, caused by a hurricane and severe floods. There are huge masses of water all over you. You are a CNN photographer and you are in the middle of this great disaster The situation is nearly hopeless. You're trying to shoot very impressive photos. There are houses and people floating around you, disappearing into the water. Nature is showing all its destructive power and is ripping everything away with it.

Suddenly you see a man in the water, he is fighting for his life, trying not to be taken away by the masses of water and mud. You move closer. Somehow the man looks familiar.

Suddenly you know who it is - it's George W. Bush!

At the same time you notice that the raging waters are about to take him away, forever. You have two options. You can save him or you can take the best photo of your life. So you can save the life of George W. Bush, or you can shoot a Pulitzer prize winning photo, a unique photo displaying the death of one of the world's most powerful men.

And here's the question (please give an honest answer):

Would you select color film, or rather go with the simplicity of classic black and white?

Do I feel like an ass!

I came home straight home tonight, to wait for my new laptop to delivered. I need to install Cox Internet before I can bring it to Scan-Optics for them to install VPN and install their software.

While waiting for the delivery, the phone rang. It was Michelle in HR at Scan-Optics. They have apparently hired my replacement and she will send me a paycheck for last week and the two days I worked this week. She was under the impression the VP had spoken to me (no, had not!) and told me they weren't ready to have anyone to start working from home yet. He had mentioned it to me last week, but I was under the impression everything would be in place for me to start working from home, on the 19th.

So as it stands right now, I no longer work for Scan-Optics and won't be until someone gets off their ass. Needless to say, I believe I just spent $1200, on a laptop, needlessly!! They way this has been handled has not left me with a warm and cozy feeling. Michelle left it with "We'll call you when we're ready to set people up at home."

I AM NOT A HAPPY CAMPER!!!!!!!!!

Ex US-Treasury Chief: Saw No Evidence of Iraq WMDs

"In a new book chronicling his rocky two-year tenure and in an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes" aired on Sunday, O'Neill said removing Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was a top priority at Bush's very first National Security Council meeting -- within days of the inauguration and eight months before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "

Job Updates

I started working at Scan-Optics, tuesday morning. The work is mindless data entry work but it's money coming in. When I arrived home tuesday, I had a message from Watkins -- I HAVE THAT JOB TOO!!! When I explained about working for Scan-Optics and currently in training. We arranged for me to start at Watkins on the 19th. This will give me a chance to complete the training and get set up, to enter the data from home.

Friday, I spoke to the IT person at Scan-Optics to make certain my system is able to run their software. Bad news -- I need a MAJOR upgrade to my system. I held off upgrading the operating system because I knew it would require major work to upgrade. Now I have a choice, either buy a new hard drive, install a new operating systems (roughly $400) and then reinstall all my current software on the new harddrive. This will take me most of the week to accomplish. OR I can bite the bullet now and purchase a new system with the "bells and whistles" I have been wanting - like a CD writer.

Well, today, I bit the bullet and called my parents for a loan. I found a Compaq Presario laptop with everything I want, already installed. The cost after rebates -- $1000 plus tax from Office Max. The only software I need to install prior to working at home will be my Cox Internet connections. The other software (Office Pro 2000, Webshots......) I can install whenever I chose.

This week has been a little hectic, trying to get back into the working mode. Last night I joined several friends at J&G's to celebrate my return to work. It's nice to have a place to go where people know your name..... Yes, it IS a lot like Cheers in the atmosphere but not the decor. I was given many hugs, congrats, hand shakes, free drinks.... and all from people I call my friends.

IT'S PARTY TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have officially re-joined the ranks of gainfully employed people!! This morning, I was interviewed, offered and accepted a position at Scan-Optics in Manchester. Tomorrow morning, at 7:30 am, I start training in Data Entry. I will be starting as a data entry clerk and at the end of the training period, depending on my abilities, move to the open supervisor's position. While the pay isn't even close to what I was making, it is close to home - less than 5 miles and 1st shift hours.

I am also waiting for a call today from Watkins Motor Lines. The hiring manager at Scan-Optics is aware of the possible job offer from Watkins. If Watkins offers a position to me, I can accept and work for Scan-Optics on a part-time, work from home basis. So, by the end of the day, it's possible that I will have TWO jobs and not just one.