These last two weeks have been especially busy. Ashley has been working 14 hour days and in order to even see her, I went to the Painted Clay Studio to help prepare Christmas ornaments, painted by local school children. Not really hard work, but definitely time consuming.
My Job has been going very well, I love customer service! I can separate myself from any problem the customer is having, and while I might not be able to tell them exactly what they want to hear, I can tell them exactly what I can do for them, and for that they seem grateful.
I've recently enrolled in another semester of fulltime Kirkwood classes. When moving down here, I had intended on taking classes at MTSU. I've decided to finish my AA at Kirkwood and maybe by that time next semester I'll know what to do.
Tiger has been a very lonely cat, he rushes to the door every time we get home, just to say hi. Thats all for now!
-M
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Friday, November 30, 2007
Wow
Another month has slipped by without too many major changes. My Mom visited again, and she, Ashley, and I spent a majority of the time letterboxing. I can't remember how many we found exactly, but it was definitely in the teens somewhere.
I absolutely like my job, no not love, but it'll do just fine.
I'm in the process of enrolling in anytime/anywhere classes at Kirkwood, sos I can finally get a big boy job. I'll have one more semester to complete after this one for my AA, and another 2 years or so for my Bachelor's. Probably not a BA in time management though.
Ashley has a nasty cold, but still goes to work everyday, most of the time for the entire day. Wow
Thats it for now!
-M
I absolutely like my job, no not love, but it'll do just fine.
I'm in the process of enrolling in anytime/anywhere classes at Kirkwood, sos I can finally get a big boy job. I'll have one more semester to complete after this one for my AA, and another 2 years or so for my Bachelor's. Probably not a BA in time management though.
Ashley has a nasty cold, but still goes to work everyday, most of the time for the entire day. Wow
Thats it for now!
-M
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Backpacking...
We have been talking for awhile now about investing in backpacking equipment. So, the other weekend we took a trip into Nashville to visit REI. After spending three hours in the store, we were driving home with backpacking essentials, packs, bags, and tent! Dying to use our new stuff we decided to go camping...
Yes, in our living room!
-A
Yes, in our living room!
-A
Saturday, November 3, 2007
The White Collar Amongst The Blue.
Our latest slow down of posting isn't due to a lack of subject matter, just a general flurry of other activity, which I will attempt to summarize now for any interested parties.
As many of you know, I hold a position with one of the largest companies in the world. When I interviewed for that position, I had dollar signs in my eyes. My options went something like this: Puleo's Grille, waiting tables on non-prime hour shifts barely making it, or taking a lucrative sales position with a fortune 50 company. Placed in that context the decision was a fairly easy one. What my mind failed to consider was my lack of TRUE sales experience. I'm new to the expectation of meeting quotas (although I have always been a hard worker). To consistently meet these quotas, though no one would ever say so, requires one to put aside their innate care for the consumer(Some have less than others). The idea preached there is, keep the customer's needs in mind when positioning a package, but don't forget about your own needs when doing so. To compound the issue your friendly computer sales representative can see, plain as sunshine on a summer's day, how much money the company stands to make in dollars or as a percent of the total value of the package. I'm sure anyone can see the conflict of interest this situation creates. After 3 months in my position there, I had had enough. I am not a salesman, and will never be again, ever. I'd like to meet a person that can, with goodness and truth in their hearts, and a solid foundation to stand on, rationalize the necessity of the salesman. Wow, am I ranting mad, or what? Please pardon my rant, I digress...
I was jobless for all of 3 hours, I took a position as a customer service representative with Waste Management. Yes, I'm a garbageman. OK, not really. I work in a call center still, but instead of being in a position that is always taking, I am now in a position that is always giving, and I feel much happier. To boot, I make nearly the same as I did when I was evil, er...I mean 11% less. Well worth peace of mind.
During training I was afforded the opportunity to ride-along with a garbage driver. I was in a roll-off truck We drove all around Nashville during a 12 hour shift starting around 5AM. We picked up and emptied 8 - 20, 30 and 40 cubic yard dumpsters, or as they say in the industry, containers. I've a new found respect for all of those on the front lines of carrying away our waste. The service they provide is taken for granted by nearly everyone, myself included, yet it is so incredibly important to our constantly consuming lifestyles.
I've said much about jobs, and maybe more underneath about society, and my head hurts a bit from thinking about it all. I hope that the next post will be much more light-hearted.
P S <--This is what part of the alphabet would look like if "Q" and "R" were eliminated.
-M
As many of you know, I hold a position with one of the largest companies in the world. When I interviewed for that position, I had dollar signs in my eyes. My options went something like this: Puleo's Grille, waiting tables on non-prime hour shifts barely making it, or taking a lucrative sales position with a fortune 50 company. Placed in that context the decision was a fairly easy one. What my mind failed to consider was my lack of TRUE sales experience. I'm new to the expectation of meeting quotas (although I have always been a hard worker). To consistently meet these quotas, though no one would ever say so, requires one to put aside their innate care for the consumer(Some have less than others). The idea preached there is, keep the customer's needs in mind when positioning a package, but don't forget about your own needs when doing so. To compound the issue your friendly computer sales representative can see, plain as sunshine on a summer's day, how much money the company stands to make in dollars or as a percent of the total value of the package. I'm sure anyone can see the conflict of interest this situation creates. After 3 months in my position there, I had had enough. I am not a salesman, and will never be again, ever. I'd like to meet a person that can, with goodness and truth in their hearts, and a solid foundation to stand on, rationalize the necessity of the salesman. Wow, am I ranting mad, or what? Please pardon my rant, I digress...
I was jobless for all of 3 hours, I took a position as a customer service representative with Waste Management. Yes, I'm a garbageman. OK, not really. I work in a call center still, but instead of being in a position that is always taking, I am now in a position that is always giving, and I feel much happier. To boot, I make nearly the same as I did when I was evil, er...I mean 11% less. Well worth peace of mind.
During training I was afforded the opportunity to ride-along with a garbage driver. I was in a roll-off truck We drove all around Nashville during a 12 hour shift starting around 5AM. We picked up and emptied 8 - 20, 30 and 40 cubic yard dumpsters, or as they say in the industry, containers. I've a new found respect for all of those on the front lines of carrying away our waste. The service they provide is taken for granted by nearly everyone, myself included, yet it is so incredibly important to our constantly consuming lifestyles.
I've said much about jobs, and maybe more underneath about society, and my head hurts a bit from thinking about it all. I hope that the next post will be much more light-hearted.
P S <--This is what part of the alphabet would look like if "Q" and "R" were eliminated.
-M
Monday, October 15, 2007
Yes...we are still ALIVE!!!
So what have we been up to for nearly 2 months? Good question, Matt and I are talking about what we should blog about. Anyways...
First, Rachel and Duane came down to visit us for a long weekend around the 24th of August. We showed them the usual tourist stops, painted pottery, and took them to Burgess Falls to swim at the base of the falls. This was apparently the first waterfall Rachel had ever seen in real life. Points for us! We enjoyed the weekend they were here but it was too short like always.
About 2 weeks ago, Matt's computer crashed and the hard drive had to be replaced. Luckily, a few days prior to this, he backed up every file on his computer to reboot the system. This is something that Matt hasn't done in years! So, the crash wasn't devastating at all. In fact, Matt found it to be quite enjoyable. He did all the repairs himself (with some advice from JD) something he hasn't had the chance to do on laptops.
Work? Matt is surviving day by day. He says his job isn't that horrible but the bad days out weigh the good days by a long shot.
I still love the pottery studio! It was rough for awhile because I had no employees. One of my employees took a break due to being 9 months pregnant and her due date approaching and my other employee quit due to pregnancy health reasons. I was glad to see the other girl go because she was calling in sick constantly! I would rather know I have to work all day everyday than have to work at last minute. So, I am left to run the studio with Teresa working most weekends. We just hired a new girl and things are looking pretty bright!
Other than working constantly, we have been keeping up with our Sunday hiking/letterboxing ritual, assuming that nothing else has taken up our Sundays. One Sunday was taken because I volunteered us to help move a studio from Atlanta and another was taken with Rachel and Duane's visit. We are up to 28 letterbox finds! Our plan for next Sunday is to hit Virgin Falls an 8 mile hike if the weather permits.
We have also been working on crafty Christmas presents. Of course we cannot tell you what we have been up to.
This past weekend, the Rila side of my family (Dad, Sherry, Grandma, and Grandpa) came to visit from Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. Their visit was enjoyable consisting of a General Jackson night cruise on the Cumberland River!
-A
First, Rachel and Duane came down to visit us for a long weekend around the 24th of August. We showed them the usual tourist stops, painted pottery, and took them to Burgess Falls to swim at the base of the falls. This was apparently the first waterfall Rachel had ever seen in real life. Points for us! We enjoyed the weekend they were here but it was too short like always.
About 2 weeks ago, Matt's computer crashed and the hard drive had to be replaced. Luckily, a few days prior to this, he backed up every file on his computer to reboot the system. This is something that Matt hasn't done in years! So, the crash wasn't devastating at all. In fact, Matt found it to be quite enjoyable. He did all the repairs himself (with some advice from JD) something he hasn't had the chance to do on laptops.
Work? Matt is surviving day by day. He says his job isn't that horrible but the bad days out weigh the good days by a long shot.
I still love the pottery studio! It was rough for awhile because I had no employees. One of my employees took a break due to being 9 months pregnant and her due date approaching and my other employee quit due to pregnancy health reasons. I was glad to see the other girl go because she was calling in sick constantly! I would rather know I have to work all day everyday than have to work at last minute. So, I am left to run the studio with Teresa working most weekends. We just hired a new girl and things are looking pretty bright!
Other than working constantly, we have been keeping up with our Sunday hiking/letterboxing ritual, assuming that nothing else has taken up our Sundays. One Sunday was taken because I volunteered us to help move a studio from Atlanta and another was taken with Rachel and Duane's visit. We are up to 28 letterbox finds! Our plan for next Sunday is to hit Virgin Falls an 8 mile hike if the weather permits.
We have also been working on crafty Christmas presents. Of course we cannot tell you what we have been up to.
This past weekend, the Rila side of my family (Dad, Sherry, Grandma, and Grandpa) came to visit from Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. Their visit was enjoyable consisting of a General Jackson night cruise on the Cumberland River!
-A
Monday, August 20, 2007
Swimmy Sweaty Sunday
Sunday, Ashley and I decided to combine hiking with letterboxing. We planned a route taking us about 80 Miles Northeast of Murfreesboro. Our first stop was a Burgess Falls State Park (one more to check off the list). The hike was short, only about 3/4 Mile, but was well worth it. Along the way we encountered 2 small-ish waterfalls, and at the end of the trail one gigantic one! We took some pictures along the trail, which you can see here. We didn't find the letterbox we were hunting at Burgess Falls. We descended the trail to the base of the falls. When we got there we were all alone, save for a family of 3 looking down from the observation deck 250 feet above. Looking at the falls, and the pool at the base, we were overcome with a sudden and overwhelming desire to jump in, despite not having packed our bathing suits! As we swam in the warm water, families and hikers began to arrive. We ate lunch and went for a final dip before packing up and hiking back to the car. How perfect!
We continued onward to the second letterboxing/hiking destination. The Bridgestone/Firestone Centennial Wilderness Area. I know it sounds kinda weak, owned by a tire company and all, but it was amazing! We hiked about 1/4 mile down the Polly Branch trail to find our 1st box of the day, before returning to the car.
We continued onward past our intended destination (bad navigating on my part), and arrived at Yellow Bluff Trail. After hiking in about 1/3 mile, we came to an overlook. We could see the Cumberland Plateau laid out before us. The plateau is broken here by a snaking valley 1000 feet deep. Cut by a river that has since run dry. We found our letterbox, stole a last look at the valley, and continued on our route.
We arrived at Virgin Falls Trail. We are intending to hike this trail in its entirety, but thats for another day. We set off to find 2 letterboxes on this trail. We located the first easy as pie, and the second minutes later. We were set to head home, but walking on the trail back to the car, Ashley spotted something lying on the ground about 2 steps off the trail. She stopped dead in her tracks, and looked at what appeared to be a big black leather wallet, which I then also saw. We looked at each other, confused for a moment. My brain knew what it was immediately, I'd seen one like it before, but my reasoning was getting in the way. How could we just find one sitting on the side of the trail? In disbelief, she reached down to pick it up. We had accidentally found another letterbox. We guessed it had been pulled from its hiding spot by a squirrel or raccoon. The outside of the case had a few small punctures in the shape of a tiny mouth. What's more, when we opened the letterbox to stamp our logbook, the stamp itself was beautifully hand-carved in the image of a raccoon.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
And we finally have a...shower curtain!
Going on 4 months and its finally done! Pretty ridiculous. But I guess we'd rather wait 4 months than spend $20 plus on a shower curtain when I can make one for around $10.
-A
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