Another Highlight

Another highlight of the week was a sale in my Etsy shop. I was thrilled to find a buyer had chosen not one, but four bibs! So thrilled, in fact, that I threw in one more bib for free. Now I need to get busy and get some more bibs posted.

Nothing Prosaic

I have worked a ton this past week, so I'm short of time. I'll have to give pictures and more details later, but here are the week's highlights.

• The quilt show was marvelous, as usual.
• I entered the selvage purse in the North Georgia State Fair, and I happen to know that it won a ribbon, but I'm not telling which one just yet.
• We opted out of the Braves game last Saturday because of so much rain in the area. A few years ago, I would have gone anyway, but I'm way over the desire to sit out in the rain and watch a baseball game.
• Speaking of rain, we had over 11" at our house over six days. Much of our county had it far worse, with some places getting over 20" in a day or two. Atlanta saw flooding of historic proportions. Thankfully, we had no water in the house nor in the basement.
• I made pralines and entered them in the fair as well. I don't know yet how they fared, ribbon-wise.
• The only sewing I did was to make valences and a patchwork pillow for Caleb's room. I'll show those later.
• I'm hoping that by this time next week I will have all my bookkeeping work caught up and I can resume a normal schedule. But it'll be a long shot.

Work and More Work

The folks at American Vision called me last week and asked for my help. For years we've been trying (without success) to integrate the online store with QuickBooks, the software that pretty much manages all aspects of the ministry (sales, inventory, donations, financials, etc.). The president and vice-president were in agreement that it was time to scrap all that, and find another way, which they asked me to do. I spent some time studying and testing options, then I went into the office on Monday, spoke with all the worker bees and explained the changes to the way the system would operate, and then set about trying to bring order to over two weeks (or ten months, take your pick) of backlogged chaos. In short, my work-at-home hours have been averaging 6-8/week. Last week, I worked 28 hours, some of them doing hard time in the warehouse. I don't mind, though, since I have my eye on a $1,200 sewing machine! Next week I will only go into the office on Wednesday. Monday is a holiday, Tuesday is babysitting day, and I'll need Thursday and Friday to get ready for the 90th birthday party on Saturday. I'll have another couple of months of extra hours, although a good many of them will be from home, until my work routine should settled down to about 12-15 hours per week of off site work.

So, not much sewing happened this week, although I did get the borders attached to the baby quilt. No pictures are forthcoming until it's finished. I still have to layer backing, batting and top, then quilt it and attach the binding. It's a good thing I still have three months to get it finished.


Finally! The peppers are starting to ripen. I don't remember what kind of plant I bought, only that they are sweet peppers and that they would turn orange when ripe. I thought maybe they'd go from green to yellow to orange, but nope. They're going straight from green to orange. It's hard not to pick them now, but I'm trying to wait until they're completely orange. We're now harvesting more tomatoes than we (I) can eat from our single plant, and that's with some critter still munching them. Fine. You have some, I have some, and there's still a surplus. BLTs on the lunch menu today.

Working at it All

I didn't get a chance to post yesterday because I worked 6+ hours at a desk job in a real office at Creation Ministries International. Then I came home, waited for the supper fairy (who didn't show -- I forgot to wear my ruby slippers, I guess), then worked three hours at my home desk in my remote office at American Vision. I have more work to do for CMI, but it probably won't be until next week. Meanwhile, the Inspector (pictured) did a walk-through of the bathroom, and has said that I must do housework due to the cat hair she found on the toilet seat.

The Final Finale, Really

I think this post really is the last* about my retirement. One of the things in my former office I needed to photograph before I left was the Quote Board. It started soon after I came to American Vision. I was attempting to install a printer cartridge for someone. It was the kind of cartridge that fits atop a cartridge carrier, for lack of a more technical term. When I was trying to explain how it all fit together, I said (of the toner cartridge), "It rides piggyback on the doodad." AV's president, Gary DeMar, liked the sound of that phrase and thought it would make a good book title: Riding Piggyback on the Doodad. (So far as I know, my title has not been used.) He wrote it on a nearby white board, and the Quote Board was born. When we expanded our office space, I got a 4' x 8' white board, and the far end of it became the permanent spot to record profound statements from within our ranks. Here's (mostly) what it looked like, and then some close-ups for easier reading. Finally, my favorite, uttered in a discussion about various shapes of pasta, and whether or not they were really all the same:Here's a sign that was created in the warehouse for reasons I can't recall now, and it eventually found its way into my office.Last thing before I went out the door, I left it on my boss's desk.* "Last Post" - subject to change without notice

More of the Last Hurrah

This is the only "before" picture I have of my desk at work, and you can't see too well because of the giant cake, but I usually had lots of files and stuff everywhere.Here is a picture of the desk when I left, along with some other shots of the office I vacated. I am especially proud of the visitors' chairs that I reupholstered to match the decor. I wonder who will inherit them. I should have removed the overflowing wastebasket before I made the picture!

The reflection and shadow is James, patiently waiting for me to make pictures before helping me load up the car for home. The reflection is not a mirror, but privacy-film-over-glass in a window that looks into the lobby area of the main entrance to the office.
Here's a picture of the gift basket given to me by the staff. It was filled with yummy treats and a couple of cat books. My favorite item in the basket is a memory book with pictures and mementos, although a close second is the Molly Maid gift certificate. Someone knows I dislike housework!

Retirement Lunch at American Vision

Here are some pictures from Tuesday's lunch for me at work.

This is the centerpiece -- in the center of the room instead of the center of the table. All those candles smelled really good. Ooooh. I didn't mean to get a shot of the bald spot.

Here's Reece, wearing the bib I made for her before she was born.Liz, slicing the cheesecake. She pulled the whole event together and she did a great job, as she does with everything. Jerry is about to snag a slice of cheesecake, and Dan is pouring a beverage.
Here's the slice of cheesecake I was served. I ate about two inches off the pointed end, and then ate the topping off of the rest!

Here's Liz's artwork from the calendar that hangs in my (now former) office. She predicted that they would all be dead today with me not there, but I've seen some of 'em on Facebook, so I think all is, and will be, well. For me, it seemed like any other Friday.

Look carefully at the small details in this post, and you'll discover why this office lunch/party was quite out of the ordinary.

In Conclusion

I stayed at work until 9 p.m., but I accomplished everything on my list so as to leave no loose ends for anyone at the office. James came with a fast food supper when he got off work so that I wasn't there by myself. I'll have additional post mortem comments, but for now, I have officially retired from my full-time job at American Vision. Parting is such sweet sorrow indeed.

Bittersweet

Tomorrow will be my last day as Office Manager - Bookkeeper at American Vision, but due to various scheduling conflicts, my party was held at lunchtime today. While I'm looking forward to having more time for other responsibilities and interests, I'll be sad when I no longer see my dear friends and coworkers every day. It will take me several posts to describe the marvelous lunch and the various ways I was honored because it was all over the top. At least I can tell the story electronically, so if my eyes mist over and I have to swallow hard a few times, you won't see.

Maniac Monday

I did one 45-minute task at work today. Aren't you proud of me? I spent virtually the entire day sharing a small portion of everything I know about American Vision's operations with our new Operations Manager who will assume a good chunk of my duties when I finish up in another couple of weeks. I feel like I barely scratched the surface, and my brain is nowhere near picked clean. My instructions from the Vice President were to share "the good, the bad, and the ugly," so that's what I've done. When we got to the end of the day's lesson, I asked him (the newbie) if he felt my pain. His response, which I think was in jest, "Do I have to come back tomorrow?" He is coming back, and I'm convinced he has the knowledge and expertise to take American Vision to the next level. My throat is really sore (I'm not sure if I'm catching something or if it's because of talking all day), so I hope the transfer of information can continue tomorrow.

Note to Self (Today at Work)

Do not put a long, skinny lipstick on the desk next to a green highlighter.

Tasked

Just before quitting time today, my boss gave me an assignment: Write a job description for myself so that he can post the job opening. I could say, "Office Manger - Bookkeeper." The End. But here are some other things that I do on a regular basis.

• Make sure the community plastic ice cream pail is stocked with an assortment of Dove chocolates.
• Run the carpet sweeper in my office and my boss's office, especially after his children have been in the office.
• Keep endless supply of paper towels handy for when boss slops his coffee everywhere.
• Fix, or at least attempt to fix, anything and everything including toilets, printers, postage machines, computers, and telephones.
• Sanitize the water cooler.
• Provide feedback for online store issues, new cover designs, marketing materials, proposed book titles, and fundraising letters.

And last, but not least, strive to demonstrate Christlikeness and a calm spirit for those times (often) when the customer service waters are turbulent. On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand.

The News is Out

A week or two ago I made a list of things I would do if I no longer worked full time. I had been thinking along these lines for six months or so, and thinking seriously for about the last six weeks. There never seemed to be enough time for me to do all the things I wanted or needed to do, and when there was time available, I was too tired. After a final agonizing week of gnawing the issue down to the bone, I decided to give it up. Working full time, that is. (For the record, James would have been happy if I had reached this decision a long time ago.) I went into work on Monday morning with my resignation letter in hand. Even though my boss keeps hoping it's just a bad dream, he made the announcement to the full staff this morning at our regular staff meeting. Although there were some feeble (and one vehement -- thanks, Liz) protests that American Vision couldn't function without me, the truth of the matter is that they did quite well for 25 years before I ever came on the scene, and I have great confidence that those in my wake will continue do well. And I'll be watching.
Footnote: My employment officially comes to an end on November 15th, although the 13th or 14th will be my last day in the office.

Thursday Thought for the Day

This is straight from the lips of the President... the President of my company, that is. To put it into context, his comment is about someone outside the company who was determined to do something the slow, tedious, hard, painful way.
If someone wants to pull his nose hair out, let him.

Fun Fundraising

American Vision had a fundraising dinner last Thursday. It was at Chene Rouge, a new facility in an old house in Hiram, about three miles from the office. It is a beautiful venue, specializing in weddings, but it worked perfectly for our catered dinner as well. The dinner was a great success, and quite enjoyable for the staff. Dr. Gary North spoke about the growth in technology from the mid-1800s to today, and AV's president, Gary DeMar, followed up with how AV is using that technology to get our message out to more people than ever before. AV's vision is this (from our website): An America that recognizes the sovereignty of God over all of life and where Christians apply a Biblical worldview to every facet of society. This future America will be a “city on a hill” drawing all nations to the Lord Jesus Christ and teaching them to subdue the earth for the advancement of His Kingdom; and our mission statement is: Restoring America’s Biblical Foundation—From Genesis to Revelation (Psalm 11:3).

Here are some pictures from Thursday's event.

Vice-President Brandon Vallorani, Dan (warehouse), Linsay (customer service), Ashley (event planner)

Eric, Audio-Visual Manager (with his famous gaffer's tape)

Dr. Gary North

Dr. Gary DeMar

Brandon, his wife, Jan, and baby Charity

Newlyweds Catie (customer service) and James DeMar (web design)

Too Tired to Type

I finally gave up at work last night about 8 p.m., but I got our software back up and running at 11 a.m. today. For more news, chick here.

Terrible Tuesday

I'm writing this from my office at work at 5:25 p.m. and the trip home does not appear on the horizon. Our primary software went down around 1 p.m. today, and I've been working on the problem ever since. Right now, the data base is backing up so that I can then attempt a rebuild of the data. The backup is about 75% complete, but it's been running for two hours. I have no idea how long the rebuild will take. I probably will leave when the rebuild starts, but if something goes awry, then when everyone arrives in the morning, they still won't be able to work. Nothing like having six people on the payroll sitting around doing nothing.

Motivated to Save... And Write about Saving

I got up early this morning, shopped at CVS and Publix, and still made it to work at 7:55 a.m. Then I went to Publix again on my way home from work. I saved 66% at CVS, 68% on my first Publix stop, and 56% on the second Publix stop. I have boat loads of Lipton tea now, but that's my primary beverage, so all is well.

Today I learned that my boss wants to use one of my blog posts as next month's fund-raising letter. Since American Vision is not-for-profit, we depend on donations to supplement income from book sales. Back in July, I wrote about the growth of the company in the four years I've been there. An edited version of that post, along with an opening and closing paragraph that I wrote today will hit about 35,000 mailboxes in late October. I'm honored. Maybe next month they'll let me drive the fork lift.

Fun and Full Friday

Today I:

• Worked remotely for about an hour
• Went to the grocery store
• Fielded three or four phone calls from work
• Went to Emily's house to assemble several chicken meals for the freezer
• Cleaned house (sort of)
• Ordered Chinese food for supper and enjoyed it with Dave, Emily, Caleb, and Alexa
• Played Wii with Emily and Dave (Caleb had aWii-mote with no batteries, but he thought he was playing, too)
• Played more Wii tennis with James after kids left
• Uninstalled a bunch of stuff off my computer to see if I can get it working better
• Listened to the Braves lose in Washington
• Blogged
• Crashed

... til tomorrow

Terrible Tuesday on Wednesday

Invoking my previously proclaimed privilege, I had my Terrible Tuesday today. I won't even begin to go into all the reasons why it was not a good day at work. At one point, I needed to chill, so I got some chocolate, went into my boss's office, and watched cartoons with his small son. My boss knew some of the issues involved, and knew I was about to have a melt-down, so he wisely didn't say a word while I watched Sylvester in his futile attempts to catch and consume Tweetie. Cartoon Therapy. You should try it sometime.