Friday, June 5, 2015

Fast Fact Friday

OMGsh it's finally Friday!!  Is anyone else excited??  Me too!


Here's another Fast Fact Friday post.  Today’s theme is work.  
I know, not as fun as play, but it’s something we all have to do, and it's over for this week anyway!

1. How did you learn how to work?  (What chores/jobs around the house did your parents have you do? How did they teach you how to work?)
I had chores around the house, my job was dishes.  Really the whole kitchen and dining room.  I always kept my room clean too, not that my parents made me.  My sisters and brother did NOT keep their rooms clean.  You couldn't even walk in there and touch the carpet!  I guess I leaned my work ethic from the chores and by watching my parents.  they both worked outside the home.  At one time my dad even hold 3 jobs and went to night classes.  Not sure when he slept.

2. What was your first paid job? (What did you like or dislike about it?  Describe your duties, and pay if you remember.)
I did a lot of babysitting when I was a teenager, I got paid for that.  I always made sure to pick up after any mess we made while I was there, and sometimes even straightened up small messes that were there when I got there.  Not sure what it was about cleaning up at someone else's house that was somehow more fun than doing it at my house.
My first actual real job was a K-Mart in the Shoe Dept.  Does that really surprise anyone...shoes??  LOL  I was only 15, but lied about my age and said I was 16.  Duties were really just making sure the shelves were stocked and straightened up, and being able to help customers if they needed it.

3.  List all the places you have worked.  (Record  the dates if you remember them (even just the years), salary and duties that you remember.  Add in any co-workers and bosses that you remember.)

  • K-Mart Shoe Dept - My first real job in the Shoe Department.  The only co-worker I really remember was a girl named Kathy that worked in the pharmacy.
  • Miller's Outpost - I worked this job for about 3 years.  It was a lot of fun and the clothes were cooler.  Plus we got an employee discount and a credit card that auto drafted the payments out of your paycheck. I started on the floor but was soon lead cashier.  Co-workers I remember include: my Manager Al, Assistant Mgr Cyndi, other co-workers were Dean that I had a crush on, and I remember a blond girl I was friends with and a black guy that was really cute too.  It's been too long to remember names though and I haven't kept in touch with anyone.
  • Temp Agency - I did this for a short period of time after I graduated High School.
  • Pathfinders Financial Corp (PFC) - This started as a temp job, but turned into a permanent position  I was in the Accounting Department and started out doing data entry and then started learning to do the ledgers and daily deposits.  Co-workers I remember include: Bunny, Debbie, Sue, there are a couple more ladies that were in my office that I can clearly picture but cannot for the life of me think of their names.
  • The Associates - I got this job and left PFC.  I interviewed for 2 different positions before getting on when I was 19.  I started in their Support Call Center and moved around about every 2 years before it was bought out by Citigroup.
  • AVON, Mary Kay - At different times over the years I signed up to be a representative of Mary Kay Cosmetics and of AVON.
  • Chili'sThere was a period of time when my husband was out of work that I picked up a second job to help supplement our household income.  I was a server.  I had a brand new baby at home and it was really hard.  I only stayed like 3 months.
  • Citigroup - Since this was a buy out, it really isn't a separate job.  I had however gotten my layoff notice when an executive in Auto (George) scooped me up and offered me a job.  I was able to transfer over before the layoff date and kept all of my seniority and benefits.  I have continued to move around within the company and have worked on several projects and in several lines of business.  I am currently a Project Manager for the Cards organization.
  • The Dinner Station - This was another second job I had to take during another time when my husband was out of work.  This place was a meal preparation place where people came in and put together meals that they could freeze, then thaw and cook later for dinner.  I became an assistant manager, leading shifts and either opening or closing the store.  I think I may even still have the key to the front door! LOL
  • Macy's - This too was a second job I picked up after my divorce to help support 2 teenagers as a single mom.  I quit right before holiday season while I was dating my current husband.

4.  What tips/tricks/shortcuts did you learn at any of your jobs that you still use? 
Hmmm.....the only thing I can think of here, is the PM skills necessary to organize my time with 2 kids.  It also attributes to my list making obsession and helps with party planning.  I would also say that I probably picked up some stuff at Dinner Station about spices and customizing meals, as well as shortcuts in the preparation process.

5.  Which job was your favorite job and why?
That's tough, I'd really prefer to be independently wealthy and not have to work at all.  But if I had to pick,  I could say that Miller's Outpost was fun, I liked working there and everyone I worked with.  Or my current job, because it challenges me, has way better benefits and salary than anywhere else I've ever worked, and work with a great bunch of  people.  Plus I get to work from home and only have to get up 15 minutes before work and commute about 5 feet!

What about you?  What's your work history?

Thursday, June 4, 2015

May in Pictures

Time for another month of pictures of what I was up to last month.  It was pretty busy for me, if it's possible, it felt like it went by faster than April!  Even with the monsoon!

We went out with our good friends to the local brew house for a cold one and some live music...

Me & Sue
...I got to see Darcy for her birthday...

Vicki, Me and Darcy
...it started raining, so we stayed in for drinks the next week.  I tried my hand a fresh pineapple / jalapeño margarita, and it was pretty dang tasty, if I don't say so myself!...

Pineapple Jalapeno Margarita
...we took my mom out for lunch for Mother's Day...

Me, Mom & Randee
...and it kept raining...

Downtown Krum
...we celebrated Mother's Day with a tornado....

My front yard

Wayyy too close!!

Storm Damage

More local damage

...it stopped briefly in time to catch a ballgame with my honey...

Elvis at Bat

Me & Studhubs

 ...I went out of town for a girls weekend and worked on my blog and some scrapbook pages.  After an adventurous 4 hour drive, we finally made it to our retreat.  And were treated to a nice sunset...

Maypearl

...back home it kept raining...but a few days later this strange thing appeared in the sky for a few minutes...

7:30 AM

...then it was gone...

9:00 AM
...took Studhubs out for his birthday, but came home for cocktails....

Fruity Cocktail I Made Up

...threw a birthday for my step-daughter, now 18!...

Jen and her own cake
 ...made Jen a monster cake for her party...


Piñata Cake
 ...my family came...
Jennifer, Doug, Lauren and PaPa
...and all Jen's friends, a rousing game of Apples to Apples ensued...


...love these crazy kids!...
Kaylee, Lauren, Josh & Jen
...it rained here literally 25 days during the month of May this year.  There was a LOT of water....everywhere!...



...when it finally stopped raining, Studhubs and I wandered out for a walk...

Studhubs
...we live near the creek and there have been turtles everywhere!  They've been displaced by the flooding.  One of my neighbors mentions helping a turtle cross the road almost every other day....

...we even found some crawdads...


...I tested my bartender skills one more time with a watermelon margarita...there was nothing else to do apparently, it was too wet. LOL...

Watermelon Margarita


So what did you do this month?  Did you stay dry?

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Tell Your Story Tuesday...Challenge #12

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that is so popular with weddings that goes, “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” Well, this week’s challenge goes right along with that!

You really could inserts whatever you want here: something green, something squishy, something metallic, something cheap, something round, etc., but just to keep it fun, see if you can try to make it rhyme!

I’m still a newlywed so I went ahead and did it the old fashioned way.  Here were my something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue from my wedding in September.



Challenge 12: Find your favorite somethings and record a little bit about them!

Something...

...Old
I wore my great grandmother’s necklace.  I’m not even really sure what the center is, but it’s a silver necklace with a diamond in the center.  It’s really pretty and everyone loved it.



...New
Of course the dress and shoes were new.  Plus I bought new earrings.  The girls of course all got new dresses and shoes too.



...Borrowed
Really the only thing we borrowed, was the home where we got married.  It was a very small, private, laid back event, and our good friends Austin and Sue let us use their house.



...Blue
The blue was in my flowers, and on my cake.  And I made all the kids where blue as well.  They weren’t all formal or matchy-matchy or anything, but ya know….it was still a wedding.

As I mentioned, it was very small and informal, but it I still stressed all day to make sure everything was perfect.  And of course it was, I got to marry the man of my dreams! 





So how about you....what are your favorite somethings?

Link up and play along.