I love that we went from a high in the mid-80's yesterday to it currently being 55F at 7:30pm. No, seriously, I'm lovin' it. Fall is my favorite time of year, followed closely by Spring. I get to use my oven again (without feeling guilty)! Bust out the sweaters, breakout the knee-high boots and settle into some flannel sheets. The forecast looks as though we're in for some more 70's within the next 10 days, but I see no more 80's in sight. Ahhhh.
On a separate note, work has been crazy busy this week. The county public schools just came back into session, and we're contracted to hold all the staff meetings at work. It really tickles me pink when they call the day prior and request numerous changes to set up, food and beverages and AV. I realize I can't complain though; I have a job I enjoy for the most part when many others are much less fortunate. I just constantly have to remind myself of that fact this week as I seem to be surrounded by stupidity.
This weekend we have no major plans. I'm looking forward to keeping busy in the kitchen, and we're also kitty-sitting for my boss. I haven't had a kitty in so long; I'm really looking forward to it. Buppy? Not so much as he claims he's allergic. Whatever. He has plenty of allergy meds I've scored for free, so he should be fine for the next 10 days.
Alright . . . off to finish my movie!
Well, vacation is officially over (has been since Sunday evening when I landed back in Bmore) and I'm almost completely settled back into work. Good thing, too, because I've taken over duties for our social catering sales person for the entire week, plus those of our corporate catering sales person for today, tomorrow, Monday and Tuesday. Between 3 emails to monitor, 3 voicemails to check, my normal work load, incoming phone calls, non-appointment clients and an insane RFP (request for proposal) I have to complete by Tuesday, I'm almost wiped. Almost. By the time the bid (proposal) is complete, I'm pretty sure I'll be 100% spent.
It didn't take long to break back into the swing of things work-wise. It's definitely taking longer to unload my suitcase and do/fold/put away laundry. My toiletries still aren't in order, but I don't care. Honest. As long as I can find my deodorant, brush and perfume each morning, I'll survive.
Saturday is the fundraiser for the charity organization I belong to (where Buppy works). It's unfortunately slated for a day where there are several other large events in the area, so we have no idea what type of crowd we'll draw. We're hosting a beer pong tournament, but no, it's not simply a drunkfest. We actually put water in the cups for play, not beer, per official beer pong tourney rules. Yes, there is an official beer pong tourney organization --- crazy, isn't it? Well, anyway, Buppy and I will both be working the event, along with 1 other person, and we have to take the kids too. Should be an interesting day. I'm taking the camera and will hopefully have some fun shots to post next week.
Other than settling back in, there isn't much new here. I have to menu plan for next week this weekend; my mom helped me come up with some fun ideas while I was in Wisco, so thanks Mom! I already made the sloppy Joe's, and they were a hit. It's one of the first recipes she ever taught me, and it's as delish as ever! Oh yeah, not mention super simple, so I'm all for it.
I have a few vacation pics, a few new recipes/pics and some random posts I need to work on soon. I've been a slack-a-saurus again blog-wise. Shame on me. Off I go now to try and finish the arduous process that is unpacking. Wish me luck folks!
Can someone please tell me how the heck we got to July 2011? Great, thanks.
Man, time sure flies. I can't believe our annual party is only a week away. I'm excited, don't get me wrong, but there is still a lot of shopping/cleaning/prep that needs to be done. Luckily, I have a beautiful 3-day weekend to get most of it taken care of. I already hit up the liquor store last night (and spent $100+ on booze) because as of today, the liquor tax in Maryland went up to 9% (from 6%). I figured I might as well get it when it's a little cheaper, right? And I love the store I shop at most of the time; they pay me to drink! They track your spending by your last name if you join their club, and every time you spend $100, they give you $5 in cash. Not huge, but hey, no other liquor store in my area gives me anything back. I received $5 back yesterday after my purchase and was told I'm $3 away from my next $5. How nice of them.
I think I know where our crabs will be coming from and plan to order them sometime this weekend. I'm sure everywhere is swamped for the holiday weekend, so maybe on Sunday or Monday I'll give 'em a ring. If I heard correctly when I called to price them, they're by far the cheapest I've found. They're the same price I paid last year per bushel ($175), which was expensive at that time. However, this year, that price is a steal. Thank goodness I have a nice paying job now and have been able to save up money for this party. Crabs at this price wouldn't have happened if unemployment was still payin' my bills. Now Buppy and I just have to decide if a bushel will be enough or if we'll have to get one and a half. I'm not doing 2 bushels regardless of how many guests we have because I refuse to have leftover crabs to pick. Nu-uh. Not this girl.
On a totally unrelated subject: we had the strangest visitors stop by our office on Thursday evening (5:15pm). They said they were there for a tasting with the woman I work closely with. Uh . . . she doesn't do tastings and she already left for the day. Our social caterings sales manager is pretty much the only person to do them because really, only weddings get tastings. Anyway, come to find out they drove up from Annapolis in rush hour traffic to taste . . . . . wait for it . . . . . . . box lunches. Yup. They honestly thought they were going to taste a turkey club sammy and a chicken salad sammy. What's wrong with people these days?!?!!
Tonight is my last night home alone. Buppy's been gone to NY all week with the kids; they left last Saturday around 10am to head up to spend time with his family. From what I can tell, they've all been having a great time. Anyway, they'll be home tomorrow afternoon/evening, then the kids go to their mom's house for the week on Sunday morning. Super, 'cause that means I then have Buppy to help me with our long list of party prep tasks. Whew.
Well, happy 4th of July weekend to all. Mine will be busy, but I'm positive I'll make some time to relax outside by the pool and soak up some sun. Oh, and I'll make time to grill some brats too, because really, it can't be the 4th without 'em. Have fun and stay safe everyone!
Hmmmm. A person never knows what to think when they first hear the term 'employee luncheon' at a new job. Apparently my hotel used to have them monthly, but they've been few and far between so far this year. I think we're blaming the economy and busy schedules. Anyway, while I wasn't sure what to think leading up to it, it turned out to be a welcome break in Friday's work day.
There were 5 game stations and we played as teams. My team came in 2nd, and if I'd nailed my challenge, which was stacking chapsticks with chopsticks, we'd have won. I was definitely leading the pack (thanks to my love for sushi) until someone next to me (on a different team but at the same table) bumped our table and I lost one in my stack. Oh well. All I can say is: it's a lot harder than it looks, and it looks hard!
There were a wide variety of prizes to choose from, and the majority of the winning team chose the booze. Two of the vodkas were types I'd never tried, but I can't say I walked away empty-handed, or even with a lesser prize. Once all of team 1 had chosen their prizes, my team was called up to the table to see what we wanted. There was an over night stay at a local hotel, tickets to the zoo, tickets to a local dinner theater (definitely decent prizes!) and several restaurant gift certificates. As I was reaching for a $25 one, I glanced over to see a $50 envelope for the same restaurant. Which do you think I scored? Yup, I now have a $50 gift certificate for Basta Pasta, which is located right at the intersection next to the hotel. I figure it'll be nice for a night when Buppy can shoot up from work and we can check it out. I've browsed their online menu, and it looks very appetizing. Chicken Oscar, chicken piccata, spaghetti carbonara --- I think I'll have one of each, thank you!
Oh yeah, they also gave out 3 prizes for 'employee of the month' for April, May and June at our luncheon. I've only been there 2 months, so I obviously wasn't expecting anything, but it was nice to see the reward for winning, which is added incentive to do one's job even better --- $100 cash. For doing my job. Yes please! Here's a big thank you to work for a nice lunch, fun games, useful prizes and a little time away from my desk!
Last Friday I received a nice thank you gift from one of my clients. It was her first meeting at the hotel, and only a small one at that (10 people). The client said she appreciated my attention to detail throughout the planning process as well as the friendliness of the hotel staff. Turns out it's a package of 150 note sheets with my initial on them and cute little decorative tray to place them in. Little gestures like this are so thougthful!
Whew. Where does the time go? I’ve been asking myself that for the past few weeks now, maybe because it’s gotten nicer outside and I’m spending more time laying out on the deck with a book or magazine. Or maybe because I’ve taken on more projects at work. Or maybe because I have a great (for the most part) group of coworkers who I actually want to do things with nowadays. Thursday happy hours are becoming a ritual!
That I don't hate my job? It's feels strange to enjoy my new job as much as I do. Without a doubt, there are stuggles in the hotel, but as long as I do my job well, the blame never falls back on me. While I'd prefer there be no blame at all (if all events went as they should), it's nice to know that I won't be the scapegoat for someone else who didn't feel like doing their job that day. I actually wake up every morning wanting to go to work, and that's a feeling I haven't had since I bartended in college.
Speaking of work --- the biggest accomplishment for me after only 2.5 weeks of time there? I've already snagged 6 accounts away from my 'supervisor' that are now all mine, start to finish. Can we talk about how happy I am that her paws will be nowhere near these darlings?!
Tomorrow is Friday, and I think I'm slightly over where I should be time-wise (can't have overtime!), so I think I have to leave a little early tomorrow. Awww, poor me, having to leave early on a beautiful Friday afternoon! Please, pity me.
I plan to go tanning this weekend, which I haven't done in eons. It'll be my first experience with spray tanning (tanning beds are bad for me but I used to love them!), and I'm excited that it's free. Thanks to one of the blogs I read, I found out one of the tanning salons (a nation-wide chain) in my town is offering a $25 tanning session free to anyone who has never used (or hasn't used within the past 12 months at least) their services. Yes please! Plus, it should be perfect weather to lay out on the deck, too. Bring on that deep bronze-y glow!
Buppy has to work Saturday morning and early afternoon, and I'm hoping (provided I get my butt in gear and try to make an appointment tomorrow) I can get my hair bleached that day. No doubt I'll be too late in calling, but maybe I'll luck out and they'll have a cancellation. I can't wait to see blonde again!
Other than that, not much else planned for the weekend. We're going on a leisurely ride on the back roads on Sunday with some friends (most likely), and if all else fails, we'll head to Frederick to walk along their precious little creek and shop their new olive oil and vinegar store. Good thing it wasn't there when I lived there; I'd have spent a small forture on their wild mushroom and sage olive oil. I might even splurge and head to my old place of employment for a bowl of their divine lobster chowder. Honestly: out of this world. Ah, how I miss Frederick sometimes.
I'll do some laundry, clean a little, menu plan and most likely make some good eats this weekend. I also have to do a little homework and try to map out in my head (or on paper, if I'm that ambitious) some tricks to getting organized at work. My predecessor worked in panic mode all the time, which is completely not my style. I'm organized from start to finish, so I need to come up with a new filing system for some of our frequently-used forms, as well as an easier way to assemble the weekly packs of info I distribute. Ah, I love being able to do things my way.
Maybe I did find my niche, more so than I thought at the beginning anyway. *knock on wood* While I don't agree with the way half the things are done around my office, I'm luckily in the best position to change them. My trainer's last day was yesterday, and today went much smoother. I think a lot of times when a person is training and getting ready for their new job at the same time, too much garbage gets crammed in. I can almost find the majority of my desk, my voicemail actually has my message on it, I correctly handled several clients today and everyone in my office is very helpful. On the home front? We were surviving with my unemployment alone for the past few months, but this move provides me with more than my base salary plus commission from my last position. That's a lot that I can hopefully save up! Plus, the drive is shorter --- always a bonus.
What have I again reminded myself of this past week? Not to give up on myself and others so quickly, especially when it puts me in a better position both career and salary-wise. That, and to be thankful for all the opportunities that come my way. Amen.
This week, I found a job I anticipated enjoying. Interviewed one day, started the next. Now? I'm not 100% sure I made a great decision by accepting. Without going into major detail, the person I depend on most in my position has been with the company over 35 years and is not changing the way she does things. If things worked as she did them, I'd be all for "no change", too. However, they don't. Day 2 is under my belt and I'm already completely frustrated by the vast majority of those I now call coworkers. Wish me luck.
While this blog is generally about things like coupons, food, recipes, grocery trips, etc., every now and then I must reflect on the good that comes from my efforts.
Sept. marked a new beginning for me; I left my place of employment where I'd been working for about 1 1/2 yrs. since moving here to MD. I was offered a position as a manager of a restaurant/BBQ/catering shop and was beyond excited for the opportunity to slide back into hospitality. However, after 2 weeks there, I found it to be nothing that it was promised. I was incredibly unhappy, again. Boo. I quit working for a few weeks but spent a great deal of time and effort on the prowl for new jobs that sparked my interest.
It has finally paid off. I've been offered (and accepted) a position as a catering sales manager on the north side of Baltimore with a large hotel there. It's doing exactly what I've wanted, what I've been searching for, since moving here. I start tomorrow and am ecstatic. I only hope it isn't as misleading as my last offer was, but I feel confident that the DOS (director of sales) was up front and honest with me, plus I felt a great connection with her. Ah, to be able to stop searching for jobs and concentrate on the more important things in life! :o)
Plus, it's now becoming my favorite time of year. Added bonus!
