Friday, March 31, 2006

Work or blogging?

Guess I just need to get into a rhythm--right now, the new job is taking a big chunk in my brain, so I forget to blog...lol
BUT, in the meantime, here's a new toy I found for you to download if you're into MESSING WITH PAINT ...and it's free!

Monday, March 27, 2006

New baby pictures---->

(And a few more added on the 28th...lol )

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Birth of a Saleswoman

Yesterday was simply amazing.
I 'shadowed' an excellent saleswoman. Cruising the aisles, she was all kinetic energy, but with customers she slowed down and settled right in, answering questions and showing possibilities. She doesn't use humor as much as I would, but for her it wouldn't be as appropriate...and I can't explain more than that....lol

I'm SO ready for this kind of knowledge and challenge right now in my life. Even two years ago, it would have been wasted on me, but now I have the credibility and drive to play the game wholeheartedly. As a friend pointed out, all of life IS a game. LOL...yes it is!

BTW, I'm going to see the baby tomorrow, so watch for more pics. She'll be a whole month old on Tuesday!

Friday, March 24, 2006

Because you NEED to know, that's why.

You know the idea of good, better, best? Man, everything at Becker is shades of BEST, honestly.
Today, we'll be working on sales techniques. The last two days have been spent getting familiar with some the lines we carry, and 'sensory overload' doesn't begin to describe it....and there's MORE to go...OMG.

Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter!
xoxo

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Wow, and whew!

Due to overwhelming demand (see comments on yesterday's post...lol), I'm reporting on my first day as a salesperson trainee:

Ohmigawd, there's a LOT to learn there! It's fascinating, and the atmosphere feels charged but cheerful. This new sales class is five people, all rarin' to go....lol I'm in Upholstery--that's couches, chairs--anything upholstered. It's GREAT fun!
Tomorrow, we start at the Distribution Center to see how it works and to put faces on our support people. This is really an adventure for me, and lucky YOU'll hear about it in chapters 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8...

Ahhh, Life IS good!

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Back to the real world?

Whew. After 4 1/2 months of truly delightful unemployment, I'll be starting a new career tomorrow morning....and I still can hardly believe it.

It took me awhile to realize that I was tired of being a florist--but when I thought of the years to come, what came to mind was just more Mother's Days, more Valentine's Days, more proms and weddings and special events, NOT all the wonderful customers I'd dealt with over the years, or the amazing colors and varieties of flowers, or even my delight in glitter and helium.
If your job becomes drudgery, it's probably time to look for something else.

So, I knew what I didn't want to do, but that leaves a WHOLE WORLD of choices and possibilities. Luckily, I'm not interested in brain surgery or rocket science. Happily, I don't need a huge income, my truck's paid off and dependable, and only the cat cares how long I'm gone from home every day.

When my kids were little, I remember getting almost to the breaking point at the thought of
One. More. Diaper.
And then it was over. Blessed continence was achieved...lol.

On March 1st this year, I was at the same point with job hunting and idleness....and suddenly, THERE was the job I wanted, the job that would use my skills and that I'd only vaguely considered before:
The ad said, "Sales Associates, Design Consultants" for a well known local furniture company...WOW. How perfect for me....

So, as of tomorrow, the 'Florist' in the title up there will truly become Ephemeral.: Lasting for a markedly brief time, about 38 years.

LOL

Saturday, March 18, 2006

Houseplants

My livingroom is a greenhouse--it's become the room where my
25 biggest plants 'overwinter'.
It's a serene room with light olive walls and a slate-color
ceramic tile floor. I love the 'arboreal ambiance' there,
but by spring, I'm pretty tired of cleaning up dead leaves,
and I have a growing sense of guilt for torturing innocent plants.
It's Minnesota, the winter sun is low, the windows few and the furnace keeps the air-moisture content around zero.
It's only March, and I want those plants outside!

The rule of thumb for tropical plants to survive outside is
that nights need to be about 60 degrees
(some years, that's May, some years June...lol).

SO, if they're inside from October to May, that means they're stressed
for 7-8 months, and then THRILLED for 4-5.

But look, the word is HOUSEplants...shouldn't that mean
they're to grace the inside of the house most of the time, with a nice vacation outside as a reward?
Guess I need to re-think my 'winter warehouse' idea...maybe less plants
but spread around the house more?
Maybe start collecting mirrors for the walls in there, too?
Would a church accept a 6 foot norfolk island pine from a heathen??

Heh. And people ask WHY I blog.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Need a little nostalgia today?

The "wiki" idea is pretty popular, and amazingly useful.

Here's a MEMORY WIKI that you can browse, and then add your own memories if you want.
Cool, huh?

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

TWO weeks old already


It's funny--I wanted to get pictures of her with her eyes open, but when she was awake (and I could watch her eyes and feel her wiggle) I forgot I had the camera along...

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Bullwinkle!

This is one of the funniest parts of when-I-was-a-kid: THE ROCKY AND BULLWINKLE SHOW --and this one has a Fractured Fairy Tale built in!
lol...enjoy!

Zoe gets high

When I give my kitty catnip, it's from what I've grown in the yard...but evidently, homegrown isn't as potent as "the good stuff" I bought yesterday....

The routine is that I take a paper grocery bag and fold the top down to make it firmer (she knows that sound and comes running) then I toss in maybe a tablespoon of hooch and set it on the floor for her.

Normally, she's wowed for maybe 15 minutes, rolls and plays in it, goofs around ON the bag and then falls asleep on it. The next day, she's peed on it, and I take it away.

WELL, this new stuff is Acapulco Gold by comparison...she's been centered on that bag for almost 24 hours, there's catnip spread all around it on the floor and in her fur.... and I guess I'll leave it as long as she's fascinated....lol


(She's in the middle of a yawn, here, but then she stretched and fell asleep again as if to say, "G'head and take your dumb pictures, I have better things to do with my timmmmmme....." lol)

Monday, March 13, 2006

Fickle March

Remember this from three days ago? Blue sky, lotsa brown grass....?



Well, here's the yard this morning...but I'm not complaining.
Yesterday, the worst predictions were 4-8", and this just covers the ground...lol



...but it's a helluva lot more dreary, isn't it?

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Job news!

I found out this morning that I start training on March 20th--LOL--

HOORAY!

Friday, March 10, 2006

Mishmash:

OK, you should be able to TELL which browser I'm using just by the font and whether there's a picture...

(Oh, lord, why am I posting such drivel?? Isn't it better to just SKIP posting if there's nothing to say? lol...on the other hand, that's never stopped me before....)

It's 49 right now, and I'm going back outside to take some pictures just for lucky ol' YOU!
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
LATER:

(BTW, this part of the post is fueled by Caramel deLites Girl Scout cookies, just so you know.)

Here're the promised pictures: The first one is the muddy alley next to the house with it's major puddles. Good memories of the "creek" behind the house when I was a kid (it was actually a drainage ditch, but we were romantics even then)......
















When you can't take your shoes off and play in the water, the storm drains were the next best thing, like here:











I love the way willow trees' branches get bright yellow in the early spring...like this one in my backyard:


And finally, the red door that's visable now! Are you SURE I shouldn't have painted the garage door, too??



I took about 10 more, but this is enough for now or I won't be ready to go out tonight...lol

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Does this make sense?


It looks like I can post pictures here as long as I use my Firefox browser, but NOT if I post on IE.
(Hey, at least I CAN, and you'll no longer be deprived. Hooray!)

The strangest part, though, is that when I check the post here on Firefox, the picture is a red X, and I have to go to IE to SEE it....LOL

It's amazing what I do for YOU.

Spring in Minnesota, finally?

Ahhhh, today we have 36 and sunny here on the northern prairie. Good day for a bike/run with Mog....soon as she gets here.

Blogger was down most of yesterday, but I didn't have anything to report then either...lol

BTW, I did go clothes shopping, and YES I found cool stuff, ALL on sale.
You're REALLY excited by that, I can tell.

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

For New Yorker subscribers:

Page 38 in the March 6th addition--did it make you laugh out loud, too?

Monday, March 06, 2006

Shopping for clothes

In the past, when have I ever NEEDED clothes?
My closet is stuffed with things I've accumulated over the years, only some of which are "nice".
In fact, I did a purge the other day (all those white turtlenecks with cruddy cuffs from floristing? Out. The dress I last wore in a play eight years ago? Out. And who needs 26 tee shirts? lol...I do!)

Tonight, we went clothes shopping again.
(Yes I know, that makes a total of two times....but my tolerance is low, ok?)

I found a shirt. Period.

BUT, now I do have a stunning collection of jewelry from Shari. Big beautiful clunky wild necklaces mostly. I can actually see myself wearing them.....IF I have the right clothes.
Oh gawd.....maybe tomorrow.

"So, Birdie, how DO you feel about country music?"

Glad you asked. Here's a long and entertaining review that's only marginally about Johnny Cash...read the FIRST PARAGRAPH for my answer.

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Gifts from Hawaii!

Awww, Mog brought me a CD of slack key guitar music (lol...I always forget that people bring gifts home from vacations!) I'm listening right now, and it's BEAUTIFUL MUSIC for sure. Very calming, with surf-sounds in the background...aahhhhh.

We had a delightful visit, ate lotsa rolls, and I got to tell her ALL about the Cheney episode, which she knew nothing at all about! LOL

What do you call the beautiful fabric wraps that women tie around themselves on the beaches over there? Mog brought me a gorgeous light red one with a here-and-there bamboo print, AND a bright red-with- white-batik scarf...and a shell necklace! Wow, an embarassment of riches...but the very best part is that she's home right when spring seems to be arriving here.

(I showed her EVERY baby picture I have, too. She was suitably impressed (ooo'd and ahhh'd) and can't wait to meet Kendall...a great excuse to drive back down there, huh?)

Amazingly, she went to Hawaii without a camera!

O-kaaaaay....

Proof that Americans will buy ANYTHING...lol
Chicken Poop Lip Balm
Aaargh.

Saturday, March 04, 2006

"Eh Russell, You Get Poi?"

(With apologies to Lalo for using his headline from May 19, 2003...lol)

Mog's home from Hawaii! She'll be over tomorrow morning for coffee and talk. (I have cinnamon rolls ready for the oven, too).

She hates flying, but it's the only way to get there OR back home, and I'm sure she has stories about it.

Yeah, you know I've got lots to share with her, too.

Gotta remember to ask about poi...wink, wink

Harumph...

(...that's a valid cartoon word of disgust, right? It's appropriate here!)

STILL can't load pictures here, but I'm pretty sure the problem is on this end.
Nevermind...new baby pics from yesterday will be up on the baby site in a few minutes...lol

Thursday, March 02, 2006

The advantages of no TV

Wow, I have no idea who this guy is, but you probably do...watch all three clips in order...the "finale" one's the coolest!
CHRIS BLISS

Hmm, an idea

A Post That's NOT About The Baby
*************************************

I was just blog-cruising and happened to check gapingvoid.com. Here's the post that got me thinking:


"Jon Husband, of "Wirearchy" fame made an
interesting point recently in the gapingvoid comments:
Blogging will get
much more *local* in the next few years, in my opinion, in a range of
interesting ways, and then one of the questions will be how to get global
microbrands to become more effective and responsive on the local level and in
local ways.
This issue may become, for blogging, the equivalent of the
*centralization / decentralization* pendulum swing issue that larger
organizations continually re-visit as their markets or the org's capabilities
change.
Watch for geo-localization of tags."

I admit I don't understand some of the jargon, but I think the basic idea is that bloggers so far have enjoyed the possibility (and the hubris) of reaching readers around the world. It's a thrill: "I got a comment from someone in Holland!"
But in the real world, those people close to you are more relevant than people you'll never meet.

So what if I have a strong political opinion, or a great idea, or a bushel too many potatoes in this years' crop--what good is posting it in a comment on a blog out of Huston?
And, isn't it easier to be 'vocal' (read: "obnoxious") if I won't ever have to see the people I've offended?
Does my liberal opinion make ANY difference in Vancouver or London?
And WHO will take those damn potatoes??

(As a proud Minnesota blogger, I do have the "wow" factor of showing snowstorm pictures to people in Panama, and of course, my charming northwoods humor to share...but that gets me...where?)

Now, if blogs were mostly local--say, 10-15 people within 50 miles of here--all contributing to one blog, then no one would need to write everyday, and ideas could be built rather than flung.
Opinions would evolve.
Surpluses could be easily shared.
There would be respect among the contributors because they know each other in real time, off the 'net.
Local issues could be brought up and discussed to death.
Shoot, blogs could sponsor local softball teams!

If your 'community' consists of 10 people scattered around the globe, that's cool. It's truly fun, but by definition, it's limited.
On the other hand, if it consists of 10 people close-by, there's a shared sensibility and auto-respect built in, I think. (If not, that person gets booted).

Hmmm, have you ever been in a play? The thrill of what you accomplish TOGETHER is ephemeral, and much greater than any one actor or stage-hand or crew member. Local people come to see it, and when it's over, it's gone.....but the glow lasts, and the community is tighter for it.

Something I've wanted to do here is form a mixed choir. Not religious based, not for competition, just for fun. I've talked to a HS choir director, but it never happened. Maybe I could lobby on a local blog?

Anyway, the idea's planted now, in me at least. Let's see if I can make it grow.

She's two days old already

It's funny how blogging takes on an ebb and flow...sometimes, when there's lots in my head, you get 3-4 posts a day. Then again, when there's nothing to blab about, you get to anticipate (mmm, and that builds character).
Yes, I'm only here to HELP you...

This Grandma business is pretty cool so far. Son sent me some of the pictures he took on Tuesday, and my heart turned over again at the miracle she is.
I'm still not able to post pictures here. If it's my ISP or computer, then why can I post them on blogster? A sign, perhaps, that THIS is for flowers, and THAT is for baby. Okay.

BTW, the middle picture on the fourth post...what famous black singer does she remind you of? lol...I can't put my finger on the woman, but she's from the 40's or 50's. (Besides, I need a nickname for the baby--so YOU can help ME!)
That's only fair....right?
xoxo

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Ok, try this:

http://littleone.blogster.com/born_yesterday.html

Dang, I think I still like blogger best....!