Saturday, 31 May 2008

I started on my laundry today. I may have gotten half of my wet clothes washed. I'll do more laundry tomorrow.

This afternoon, I drove to Homewood and Mountain Brook for a little shopping. In Homewood, I went to ShoeFly and bought two pairs of Havaianas - a red pair and a pink pair. Then I walked to So Pink, the new Lilly Pulitzer store. I browsed for a few minutes. The lady working never looked up from her bookkeeping. Finally, she said "Hi". I took another look and then left. The owner of The Pink Pelican in Huntsville makes an effort to speak and carry on a short conversation with everyone that walks in the store. It was an effort for this woman to even say "hi". Then I went to The Pappagallo Shop in Mountain Brook. They no longer sell Pappagallo, but they had some cute things. The only thing that put me off was the fact that they sell Jessica Simpson shoes. I bought a kelly green bamboo bracelet. I figured that I can get a lot of wear out of it. I then walked over to J. McLaughlin. I didn't buy anything. I came home and laid around and watched TV until now.

Now I'm going to bed before I fall asleep at my computer.

Enjoy the remainder of your weekend.

Friday, 30 May 2008

They didn't show up to fix my ceiling. I was sort of surprised that they scheduled it. I don't think the ceiling is dry yet. Maybe it will be dry enough on Monday. I really don't want to look at this mess all weekend. Maybe I can get it organized in the morning. Not tonight, I'm too tired.

Queenie was so nice to me today. She regifted to me a bouquet of daisies that a customer gave her. I love daisies. She won't be at work most of next week. She has to go out of town for training.

I am sitting here eating a cobb salad from Newk's Cafe and drinking a glass of Harney & Son decaffinated raspberry iced tea (with lemon, of course). Yum Yum. I love a good cobb salad (although I've had better, but I wanted take-out)) and raspberry tea.

I'm not working at the liquor store this weekend, so I won't be back with any posts about our crazy (eccentric?) customers.

Thursday, 29 May 2008

The damage from yesterday's water leak does not seem to be as bad as it looked when I first got home. I had some clothes that got damp & the carpet was damp in the closet and the bathroom. The only problem is they are going to have to repair the ceiling. They are scheduled to do that tomorrow. I have a large walk-in closet that is packed to the gills. Moving all the stuff out is going to be a pill. I've already got the bathroom back to normal. I'll just need to clean up the mess from the ceiling repair. I'll probably spend the weekend doing laundry.

I have a dilemna. My BFF and I are going on a trip to Williamsburg, VA in October. We talked about maybe trying to squeeze a trip in to Maine for a few days. Well, BFF has decided that we need to take 2 consecutive weeks and go to both for a week each. I really don't want to. I keep bringing up how much lodging will be and she keeps responding, "That's because it is for two weeks." DUH! That still doesn't lower the cost. I suggested we limit our trip to Williamsburg and the surrounding area. She does not want to give up the idea. I think I am going to just not bring up the subject for awhile.

Wednesday, 28 May 2008

FREE SHIPPING AT KIEHL'S

On a more pleasant note - Kiehl's has free shipping on all orders over $45. Use code REFUEL upon checkout.
I was going to come home tonight, iron my clothes for tomorrow, wash my face, read my blogs and lay around and watch TV. Well, so much for that. When I opened my front door, I heard water. I went into the bathroom and water was pouring from upstairs into my bathroom. I ran to the closet and it was pouring in there and the ceiling was falling down. I covered my clothes with towels. Maintenance was here in just a few minutes and now has everything almost under control. I am so not in the mood to take everything out of my closet. I'm now waiting on the carpet man to get here to get the water out of my carpet. I was going to get all my housekeeping done tomorrow night so that I could chill this weekend. Now, I've got to deal with that. The leak is from my upstairs neighbors' apartment. He is not even at home. Boy, is he in for a surprise when he gets home. (Not as big of a surprise as I got - his is fixed) Wish me luck with this mess.

Tuesday, 27 May 2008

I was busy all day at work today. After work, I was going to stop by Target to see if they had any of the Whim daisy tumblers left. It was pouring down rain and I didn't want to get soaked for a couple of tumblers.

When I turned into my neighborhood, who did I see? The man with the ice cream truck. Who is going to buy ice cream in the pouring rain? It was raining so hard, I could barely see in front of me.

Monday, 26 May 2008

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. It was great to have an extra day off work. I did work at the store from noon to 4:00. The time drug by. There was not a lot of traffic out. As slow as it was today, we ended up having a great weekend at the store. We had a few leftovers from the full moon. Saturday night, two women and a man came in together. They were dressed like they were going "clubbing". It was a mother and daughter, and we couldn't figure out who the man was with. The mother and daughter had on identical outfits. The mother was in her mid to late fifties and the daughter looked mid twenties. They both had on white jeans and a black satin top with 1" wide straps. The mother had on creamy turquoise eyeshadow. Her eyelids reminded me of Mimi on Drew Carey. They also had on too much cheap perfume. I had to step outside until my nostrils aired out. I can't imagine going "clubbing" with my mother...and in matching outfits. To each their own.

Of course, I'm one to talk about someone's outfit. I did not notice until late this evening that nothing I had on matched. I wore some pine green capris from LL Bean, a pink Lacoste and flip flops that are navy with hot pink whales. I know I had on pink and green, but it was not the colors of pink and green that go together. Maybe nobody noticed, or everyone was saying, "Bless her heart".

I started South Beach today. It was not too difficult so far. I made it through one day. I didn't realize it, but I had gained 5 pounds. Maybe the 5 pounds will drop off fast (yeah, right).

Saturday, 24 May 2008

I think I have finally gotten my blogroll up to date. If I am missing anyone, just let me know and I will add you to the list.

This man just came in and bought some beer. He seemed like a nice, decent person, but he had an itch in a place where men should not scratch in public. He must have itched really bad, because he scratched for a long time. I couldn't wait for him to leave so I could wash my hands.
So far, we are having an awesome weekend at the store. I hope I don't jinx us by bragging. It was extremely busy yesterday. When I got here at 7:00, my mother was almost frantic. She said that it did not stop from 3:00 until I got here. My sister relieved us for us to go eat dinner. She was almost screaming when we got back. When we look at the figures at the end of the day, it is worth it. My late father would be so proud. The last year that he was alive, we only kept the store open so that he would have somewhere to go every day. Because of BRAC, the economy in this area is not hurting like it is elsewhere, and it is causing our business to really pick up. Has anyone tried the new BudLite Lime? For some reason it doesn't sound good, but it is really selling. I read on MSNBC news that a Belgian beer company was looking at bidding on Anheuser-Busch, but it already looks like it is a done deal. The Bud man is already started delivering Beck's and Stella Artois. Of course, if you don't work with it, you don't notice the changes in the beer companies. You may find this hard to believe, but we don't drink that much. I may have a beer or a glass of wine occasionally, but not very often. And, I do like me a Gin & Tonic every once in a while.

If you have Sirius radio, channel 8, the Big 80's, is counting down Awesome 80's movie music this weekend. I'm listening to it on my computer as I type.

I hope everyone has a good holiday weekend. I'll catch up with you on Tuesday.

Thursday, 22 May 2008

Today was a busy day. I waited all day on an email that I immediately needed to email to someone else. I got the email at 4:30. Queenie's boss emailed her and I and asked whoever was not busy to take a map of each floor and write down who sat where. I was in the middle of a report that was late (not my fault) and I was the only one in the department and two of the executives were traveling. I couldn't leave. I think she got mad, but she got over it.

I have decided that starting Monday, I am going back on Phase I of the South Beach Diet. I have lost 9 pounds since New Year's and need to lose 10 more. The weight will not budge. I think my occaisionally treats are not helping. After Monday, no more trips to Panera or Chick-Fil-A. I went to Publix tonight and bought my food. Then I made my last trip (for awhile) to Panera. I got an Asiago Roast Beef sandwich and a chocolate duet cookie. Both were delicious. Maybe that will hold me for a couple of months.

Did anybody watch Ugly Betty? Who do you think she chose, Henry or Gio. I'm hoping for Gio. I am getting tired of Henry. He is such a dork. And, why doesn't he marry Charlie if she just had his baby? Although, I've seen the actor that plays Henry when he's not Henry and he's hot! Betty still has some more life to live and I think Gio will help her live it.

I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend. Tomorrow afternoon, I'm off to my mother's. I plan to work at the liquor store on Saturday and chill on Sunday and Monday.

Tuesday, 20 May 2008

I just watched Sunday's episode of Desparate Housewives. It ended as if this was the last episode...ever. I couldn't believe that they had Gabrielle's daughter being a little chunk. We all know that she will grow up to be beautiful like her mother.

This afternoon, my boss called me into his office to "talk to me about something". I could feel my breath skip. I was afraid that he was going to tell me he was resigning. He told me that he was going to become the CFO. I breathed a sigh of relief. I almost forgot to congratulate him I was so relieved. He was CFO of our old bank until the merger closed. I then confessed to him that I had halfway lied to the trainer yesterday that I worked for the CFO and will continue working for him. His promotion fixed my lie. It wasn't long until word got out. When I went upstairs to help clean up after the board of directors meeting, the corporate secretary said, "I have a secret." I told her that I already knew about it. We are so excited for him. Of course, he is so modest that it takes away our fun. He'll do a great job. He is extremely smart (Princeton, Wharton) but yet he is so low key. Now maybe my job won't change as much. I was really scared about learning a lot of new things. I know that after the merger closes in 4 weeks, it will be a learning process, but not to the extreme that I thought it was going to be. I already feel a lot of stress lifted off of me.

I hear it thundering. I hope it is not going to storm. There are no watches or warnings on television. But..we do need the rain, badly.

Monday, 19 May 2008

My hair looks cute, if I do say so myself. I got several compliments on it today.

Today, I had to go to Account Opening and Maintenance training. I do not open new accounts. As a matter of fact, it has been about 5 years since I opened an account. I was told that I could leave after the navigating the system training. There were several of us that had been told that. When we mentioned it to the trainer, she informed us that we would be there for 3 days. I almost freaked. I had work to do back at the office. She said that the navigating the system training was mixed in with the other. This is not a drop in and drop out training. I left at lunch. When I explained to her that there was some confusion about me being in the training, she acted insulted. The more I tried to smooth things over, the more insulted she acted. This was not my fault. She acted like this was going to be a black mark on my permanent record. I need to tell my boss before he gets an email.

On the way back from my mother's house, I pass through a small town called Guntersville, Alabama. I noticed a new store on the main street (Gunter Avenue). Last night I parked in front of it and checked it out. The name of the store is All About Her. They carry Lacoste, Vineyard Vines, Lilly Pulitzer, Cutter and Buck, etc. I will be going back when they are open. I saw a cute pink shirt dress. I noticed a store next door called Looking for You. They had a ton of Vera Bradley. I will have to visit there also. It may be a few weeks. I'll report back after I check it out.

Saturday, 17 May 2008

I'm getting my haircut today. I think I am going back to a chin length bob. I've had it a little longer with layers for about a year. It has really been easy to style, but some days it looks a little shabby.

I saw on the news where Robert Mondavi, the wine guy, passed away at 94. We sell quite of bit of Mondavi wines. They are pretty good for the price.

I just had my least favorite customer. It is an old man that always says corny things to me. It gets so old. What's worse is he says sexually harassing things to the girl that is the manager. She's the type that would have him for breakfast, but she never says anything because she doesn't want to make him mad. I think she realizes that he's probably like a dog chasing a car, he wouldn't know what to do with it if he caught it.

We never heard back from the guys that stole the scoop and their mother that is suing us for slander. I guess they got over it. One of the guys that was in on it is supposed to come by and apologize to my mother. She hasn't seen him yet.

I hope eveyone enjoys to remainder of your weekend.

Thursday, 15 May 2008

Dear Panera: For some strange reason, I thought the Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup would uh.....creamy. Oh, I know, it rained in the soup pot.
Today was very busy. I was responsible for lunch for a meeting for my boss. I ordered from Jason's Deli and had them deliver. I put out soft drinks, ice and ice water. It wasn't too bad...but then I went in the conference room after they were finished and said "OH, MY GOD!" Another girl came running in and gasped. There was garbage everywhere. How can 10 people make such a mess? There were partially drank soft drinks sitting all around. It's a long walk to the kitchen and I can only carry about 3 at a time. Finally Queenie came in and helped.

There was a catered event in what used to be the executive dining room. After it was over the girl in charge brought down the remainder of the desserts...lemon pound cake with strawberries and whipped cream. Of course I helped myself to a piece. It was yummy. She also gave all the secretaries, including me, a bud vase with fresh tulips in it.

About lunch time, I was walking out of the kitchen that's in front of Queenie's desk when she says in a very loud voice, "I wish these cramps would go away." I wanted to say, "Why don't you say it a little louder, I think there's someone in Miami that didn't hear you." We work on a floor that is about 80% men. As far as they are concerned we don't have female troubles.

Wednesday, 14 May 2008

This morning, I put on my black linen skirt that is just a little bit too big and it was too tight. OH NO! I decided that it was the shirt that I had tucked in. It was rather thick. I still need to lose about 10 pounds. I am going to get real serious about my diet after Memorial Day.

Yesterday and today there was a training session on the 10th floor. I was nice and printed and copied some of their handouts. I also put out ice and ice water for them. When the training was over, one of the ladies came to our department with a tray with cookies and apples. I was on a phone call and my boss offered to help her. She was looking for someone else. I know our faces just dropped. I told him that I was telling myself how nice it was for her to bring that to us. He said he was going to splurge and eat one of the cookies. Oh well, I guess we didn't need it anyway.

Tomorrow, I have another lunch that I have to organize. It is for the president of the bank. This afternoon, Queenie decided to clean out the icemaker and change the filter. I guess I'll have to go to another floor for ice.

I am almost finished reading "Ex-Debutante" by Linda Francis Lee. The book is great. She also wrote "Devil in the Junior League". She mentions some of the characters from "Devil in the Junior League" in "Ex-Debutante". I recommend both if you haven't already read them. A couple of weeks ago, I saw "Devil..." on the bargain books table at Barnes & Noble. I may go to her website and see if there are any other cute books that I might want to read.

Monday, 12 May 2008

TAGGED

I was tagged by Preppy Sue to list 6 quirky things about myself. Here goes:

1. I am always looking out the front window. The last thing I do before I go to bed and the first thing I do when I get up is look out the front window. Sometimes if I wake up in the middle of the night, I go look out the window. I don't know what I'm looking for. I guess it is just a stupid habit.

2. Sometimes I'll cook something that I really like and I will eat on it all week. If it's something that I really like, I never get tired of it.

3. I wear my watch all the time. The only time I take it off is when I shower and wash my face. I feel lost without it.

4. Sometimes I'll leave to go to work and I'll have to turn around and come back to make sure that I locked the door. One time I was going to Atlanta and was 30 minutes away. I had to turn around and come back to check the door.

5. I love to have my teeth flossed at the dentist office. It is the same as having my hair washed at the beauty shop.

6. I don't like the taste of toothpaste. I use Tom's of Maine Baking Soda Peppermint toothpaste because it does not have much of a taste.

I tag anyone who has not done this.

COME SALE AWAY

Kate Spade is having a Come Sale Away offer May 12-26. Get an additional 25% off sale items. Promo Code: Saleaway at checkout.

Saturday, 10 May 2008

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all the mothers out there.
What a day of drama. Someone took the ice scoop from the store. A new one would probably cost $50. We have it on video tape. Several people identified the person that took it. My sister called him and told him. He claims that it was not him. He identified the friend but said he would never steal because he just got back from Iraq. If the guy doesn't steal, why is it on video that he's stealing? He claims that we gave it to him. Why would we do that? It's not the $50, it's the principal. Now he has his mother involved. She's suing us for slander. We didn't tell anybody. She is going to be here Monday morning with her attorney. We are to turn over the video and names. Not without a subpoena that has been approved by our attorney. She's not the only one that has an attorney. I've seen subpoenas typed by an attorney's secretary and they don't fly. She wants names of everyone that identified her son. She has chest pains and that will be an issue. We were told not to leave the store alone. Where do these crazy people come from?
I stopped by Target on the way to my mother's house. I got the bucket! They had a lot of things there, and they had things that are not at the Target by where I live. I can understand why. The Whim was all the way in the back in the corner. I had a hard time finding it.

Remember me talking about the girl that works at the store...the one that raises goats? Well, our manager let "Goat Girl" go the other day. She was real sweet, but she would never do anything that she was told. The girl that she replaced came back. Her new job did not work out. We are back to normal for now. I told my mother one of the things that bothered me about "Goat Girl" was these boots that she wore. They had some kind of muck on them and I did not want to know what it was.

Last night a couple of girls came in. When they put their stuff on the counter, I asked for ID. One of the girls handed me her license and the other just kept digging in her purse for money. I asked the second girl again for her ID and she said "Oh, I'm not buying it, she is". HELLO! You are digging in your purse for money and handing it to me, but you're not buying. I never did figure that out. The first girl (the one with ID) just stood there and did nothing and said nothing. This is liquor, not chewing gum.

Thursday, 8 May 2008

It poured down rain today. The weatherman said it was an inch an hour. Luckily we didn't have any bad storms in our area. Because of the threat of storms, there was not much traffic after work. I stopped by The Fresh Market and was still home about 10 minutes earlier than normal.

As I said, I stopped by TFM. I had to have some of their Waldorf Chicken Salad. YUM!! I going to eat it for dinner tonight and again for lunch tomorrow. I wanted a blueberry scone, but I decided that my hips and waist did not need it. I bought an apple instead.

It was not quite as slow at work today as it was yesterday. I took a couple of projects to work on and never got to them.

Wow, I must have had a boring day, because I can't think of anything to say.+

Wednesday, 7 May 2008

Work is slow. I am caught up until the first of the month. 23 days away. My coworker said to enjoy it because after June 20, my world at work will completely change. June 20 is the day of our conversion to the new bank. I researched vacation stuff today and looked up recipes for Clafuete. I had Clafuete for the first time this weekend and I am ready for some more. It is supposed to be made with cherries, but I want to try it with blueberries. In case you are not familiar with it, clafuete is a custard like dessert with fruit, particularly cherries. I am going to try to line up a few projects for tomorrow.

I remembered that there is a new Target on the way to my mother's house. It is in a rather (no offense) unsophisticated side of town. I may stop there Friday evening to see if they have a madras bucket. Maybe people on that side of town are not familiar with Whim. I'll tell you if I find it.

For some reason I have gotten hooked on the Sinatra station on Sirius radio. I have to listen to it every morning on the way to work. The next thing you know I'll be drinking martinis and smoking cigarettes with one of those long black cigarette holders. I guess there's worse things than being hooked on Frankie. I could be hooked on White Snake or Guns N' Roses.

Tuesday, 6 May 2008

I spent most of the day planning my fall vacation. BFF MAB and I are planning on going to Williamsburg and Jamestown (again). I could go to Williamsburg every year, but sometimes a girl needs a variety. We've been seeing signs that we need to go to Maine. I love Maine also. We have decided to try to do both...in one week. There are a few things that we want to see in Virginia (Ash Lawn, Montpelier, Poplar Forest, Monticello and Jamestown). I'm descended from John Rolfe, an original Jamestown settler. We then want to go to Dover, NH and then on to Bath, Maine. Has anyone ever been to Bath? It looks like a really cool place.

Monday, 5 May 2008

I stopped by Target this afternoon to get the madras bucket. It..was..gone. I stood there and stared at the spot where it sat on Saturday, hoping it would appear. It didn't. I walked around the display hoping that someone picked it up, changed their mind and sat it down in the wrong place. No such luck. I guess it wasn't meant to be. I did purchase the green and blue striped plates, another green and blue cereal bowl, madras plate, madras cereal bowl and 2 multi striped tumblers. I thought that fun dishes would help me with my diet. I'm hoping that they will make food fun.

Does anyone else watch "Desparate Housewives"? I want to know - if Katherine's husband is alive and working as a policeman in their town, whose buried in the back yard? For some reason, I think it is the real Dillon and the girl who is supposed to be Dillon is maybe a stolen baby or something. Earlier in the season, she didn't remember living there nor did she remember Julie, who was her childhood best friend. Maybe one day we'll find out.

Now I need to eat dinner and watch my other "stories": Gossip Girl and Greek.

Saturday, 3 May 2008

I went to Target this afternoon. I ended up with the green and blue square serving bowl and the green and blue square cereal bowl to use as a chip and dip. I also bought the multi colored napkin basket, the daisy tray, the pink pelican cocktail napkins and the madras frame. I had a hard time making up my mind what I wanted to substitute for a chip and dip. I should go back and get more cereal bowls to use for nuts, etc. and maybe a plate to use for relishes. I wanted the sailboat server, but I don't know if I will get much use out of it. I'm dying for the madras bucket, but have no clue what I'd use it for. I may go tomorrow and get it anyway.

I also went to Barnes & Noble. I bought "the ex-debutante" by Linda Francis Lee. She also wrote "Devil in the Junior League". I can't wait to get started. I only have a little bit left of "They Did it With Love" by Kate Morgenroth. Tickled Pink & Green recommended this book. It is a lot better than I thought it would be. I can barely put it down.

Tonight I'm making my favorite chicken and rice dish. It is so easy. It makes as many servings as you need. I put cooked rice in a casserole dish, lay raw chicken on top, dot with butter, and sprinkle onion soup mix over it. I add just enough water to keep it from drying out. I cover it with foil and cook it on 350 until the chicken is done. I remove the foil and let it cook another 5 minutes. Add a green vegetable and you have a good meal. It makes a good date dish. Most guys can't figure out what I season the chicken with.
Yesterday, my day started out being busy with the food for the training group. Queenie and a coworker went to an anniversay party for a fellow employee. After lunch, Qeenine told me that she had a stomach ache, it must have been the punch. Who gets a stomach ache drinking punch? We figure that she was wanting to go home. About 10 minutes later I saw her eating some potato chips. I guess they settled her stomach. A while later she ate a big chocolate chip cookie. She told me that it was so good that she was going to have another. I noticed that 2 were missing. I guess she got better.

BFF MAB's father is improving nicely. Tomorrow they are having a small birthday party for her mother. They invited me to come eat. MAB's brother is cooking a boston butt. I think I may go a little early and take some spinach dip and chips. Maybe I can find something cute and madras at Target to serve it in.

Thursday, 1 May 2008

The breakfast and lunch for the training class went well, but it was a lot of work. I know that I spent close to 2 hours setting out drinks, bagels, muffins and cookies. Then we had to clean up. The guys in charge of the training seemed really appreciative. After work, I had to go to a meeting of my women's civic group. It was like something off Jerry Springer. Nice well mannered LADIES who love tea parties for fundraisers got into a bickering match. Nobody could discuss, they had to bicker about everything. I was the treasurer last year. My books were audited earlier in the week. The president was not aware of the audit and read us the riot act for not including her. She wouldn't let it rest. One woman told us what she thought of all the projects that we had the last few years and of all the presidents. I didn't think she was going to let up. I excused myself to go to the ladies' room to get away. I thought it would work itself out while I was gone, but NO, they were still at it when I got back. One woman told me she felt like she was about to have an anxiety attack. I can understand why. I hope they calm down before the next meeting. I was so stressed that I had to stop at Publix and get me a chocolate chip yo-yo cookie. I deserved it.

Tomorrow, I'm going to dress really casual for work. I'm going to wear my navy LL Bean chino capris and my new Vineyard Vines St. Patty green polo and some navy sandals. Now watch someone important come in.