Driving...The wheels on the bus...again....

You know I really took being able to drive for granted. After my Epilespy diagnosis, it was recommended that I not drive for a while. I was very lucky that my neighbor and close friend, Sarah works close to where I work. And she was able to take me to and from work.

But once I got to work, I couldn't go anywhere!! I couldn't go out to lunch, or run down to Walgreens to pick up a prescription, or cash a check. Or even go get a pop.

One day I walked half a mile to the QT on the corner to get a pop and candy bar. One day I had a doctor's appointment and everyone at work was gone.

So I decided to ride the city bus. This is actually a very complicated procedure!!! I looked up the fare online and it said it was $1.25. So I made sure I had enough quarters to get there and back. I waited on the corner for the bus, and he waived at me that I had to be on the OPPOSITE corner before he could pick me up. So I jogged over there.

I step up to the bus to put my fare in, and he announces that the fare has gone up THAT DAY to $1.75. So I have enough change to get there....how am I going to get back!!! I dig a few more quarters out of the bottom of my purse. Whew.

I look a tad bit out of place on the bus with my business clothes on and my leather jacket.

And that was just a simple route....God Forbid you had to switch buses. I don't think I could have handled it. Transfers they called it.

But no one can say I'm anything if not resourceful!!! I made it to the doctor's appointment and back!!!

And I will add that many people were kind during this difficult people and took me places and offered rides. But it feels like a huge loss of freedom.

Late For Work

We have never let any of our kids go to bed with us. But since she has been out of a baby bed, Carlie has snuck into our bed during the middle of the night.

The first full Monday of my new job started out at a really rough time for my family. It was also second week of high school morning basketball practice. So Bob was getting up at 5am, getting Frank and Libby up at 5am as well. And our whole morning routine was different.

Because we have half our stuff at the farm and half our stuff at the house in town, we only have one alarm clock.

Be patient...I'm setting the scene....all three of these things come together.

Because as a part of our "new" morning routine...Bob set his alarm for 5am, got up and then reset the alarm for me for 6am (because we only have one alarm clock). This had been working pretty well....until Monday morning.

I am sleeping like the dead. I vaguely hear the alarm clock buzz two times and then it stops. I sit up in bed just in time to see Carlie hitting the snooze button!!!

I look at the clock at it is 6:37am!!!! She has been hitting the snooze every few minutes since 6am. And I have to leave the house at 7am to make it to work on time.

I start shrieking and throwing on clothes. I asked her WHY she'd hit the snooze button and she said "Well, I was still sleepy!!!!"

I made it to work on time, but only because I was speeding!

Working Out In The Field

This is a picture of me and two co-workers. I am in the middle. Normally we work in the coporate office. But this week, we actually went out to the pipeline terminals to work with the field guys. It was a fun trip. I got to go to the top of a 150,000 bbl tank.

Two's company, but not in a revolving door.

I normally post about my kids. But tonight I got an email from an old friend. And I had to post about one of the funniest things that every happened to me at work.

About 8 years ago, I got my first job as a Supervisor. I was asked to build a production support team, and that meant interviewing and hiring a couple of employees. Josh was THE VERY FIRST person that I ever interviewed. My first impression of Josh was that he was very large and athletic looking (He's probably 6'4" and has the build of a football player), very smart and pretty quiet. And he's fresh out of college.

He showed up for the first day of work, and told me right away that the company had issued him two checks for his moving expenses. They'd accidentally paid him twice. I was really impressed with his honesty!! I told him that we needed to go talk to HR to get it straightened out, and that HR was in another building that was serveral blocks away.

Instead of trying to give him complicated instructions about how to find the build and the office, I decided that I'd just walk him over there. It was a hot sticky day in August. The front of our building had a revolving door entrance.

Leading the way, I stepped into the revolving door. And instead of waiting for the next slot in the door, he got in the revolving door WITH me. WHAM, the door comes to a sharp halt and we ping pong back and forth against the front and back panels a couple of times. LOL.

Now we have ANOTHER problem. We are crammed into a revolving door together like sardines in a can and we are stopped. We had so little room, that we had to take teeny tiny baby shuffle steps to get going again!! I felt like I was on a Saturday Night Live skit. LOL.

Poor Josh, once we got out of there, his face was beet red.

Josh's first week doesn't get alot better though. Our building has a parking garage. And the only open parking spots are on the roof. So you have to drive through the entire parking garage to get to the top to park. There are signs in the garage that warn you to please turn your lights on while inside the garage.

Well Josh is driving an old junker college kid car. And apparently the warning bell that lets you know you left your lights on doesn't work in his old car. So he turns his lights on to drive through the garage, gets to the top...its sunny....he doesn't realize he left his lights on....and his warning bell doesn't work!!!

I'm sitting there at the end of his second day of work and Josh shows up at my desk. He goes "Mmmm....Julie....I need your help." So the first day, he gets in the revolving door with me, the second day....I have to jump his car. Poor Josh!!

I actually had to jump his car a couple more times in the following weeks. LOL. He did it, not just once, but SEVERAL times. As soon as he got his first paycheck, he went out and bought a new car!

Josh turned out to be a GREAT employee. He did a fine job, and I always enjoyed working with him. I got to attend his wedding, and he has two little boys now who are as cute as bugs in a rug.

This is what Josh has to say about the revolving door incident

"I am glad I gave you a story to break the ice with your new employees. I also have a story that I get to tell anytime somebody asks "What is your most embarrassing moment?" It always gets the most laughs out of all the stories. Any time we go through a revolving door, my wife still starts laughing or makes some sort of gesture like she is going to get in with me. It never gets old....for her. :-) "

I'm glad you keep in touch Josh :0)