JOY!!! This Sunday our pastor spoke about having joy at work. Of being able to "rise above" things and be happy. Wow!!! Who knew I would need that this week (hmmmmm...could it be GOD???). Wow, it has been a very interesting week and there has been lots of emotional things going on (on top of the regular stuff). I am trying to rise above it and be "better" but boy is ir hard! I never wanted to be a "leader" and "different". I mean yes I want and in some ways "need" (hey i did not make me an administrator...HE did!!)to be a leader...but in no way did I want to be a "light". Hey, that is for my pastor and the leaders in church...for my daughter and her friends...for my hunny bunny...but NOT me!!! *sigh* So today what happened...a time to "shine"??? Well...i don't know, but I do know I wanted to be "better" so I called hunny bunny and told him what was going on and well...hunny bunny being hunny bunny...he "helped" me to take the "high road". Yes, i feel a little better...but once again...who signed me up for this daily??? Not me. Anyway...i am still hurt and a bit confused but I will survive and all in all I did not destroy anyone so that is good. *sigh* I am sure there will be more on this subject later...i am sure of that!!!
Tonight Gigi is suppose to call so we are excited (especially hunny bunny who was not home when she called on Monday night). We sure miss her!!! *sigh*
Tonight is also the last debate....hmmmmmmmmmmm.... *sigh*
Well...i am off to do some things from my weekly list...clothes!!!! *sigh*

Today was a really interesting day for me...My team went on a team building outing. We choose to go fishing on a boat. We stayed on the boat for over 6 hours! We fished and fished and fished some more! I am normally a very "city" girl...take me to the mall, shopping, movies, a fancy dinner and I am in my element. Well...as a team player I wanted to do what the majority of out team wanted so...fishing i went! I bought a fishing license and a scooby fishing pole (i have pictures of the event but to be truthful I am to tired to post them...i will do this later). I worked last night so I think this was perfect. i was able to be mellow and enjoy the "moments'! It was GREAT!! I really enjoyed being on the water and sharing some down time with my peers and boss. Boy, it fishing relaxing!!! I think I was able to leave my normal mentality on dry land and in doing that I was able to enjoy myself! I also enjoyed taking pictures and watching my peers relax and let their "guard" down. It was great! I could see where we all needed to do this and I could see where we all enjoyed it! Yes, the water smelled fishy, it rained (which i discovered brings the fish up and after hours of catching nothing we were able to catch 7-8 fish!!), some of us had water come up from the waves and "get" us, the sun burned some of us, there were some "hook" injuries...but all in all IT WAS A BLAST!!! I am so glad I participated and... I can't say I would do it again...but I can say I am soooooooooooooo glad for today!! It was awesome to put away worries, concerns, work, home and just enjoy the "moments" with my peers!! Who would have ever thought that would happen on a team building event! teeehehehehe!

Friday!!! Wahoo...it is the weekend! Boy this week went fast! Real fast! I was busy at work and slothfully busy at home (you know the "barely keeping up to make sure nothing goes crazy but really not doing much at home thing!!!). Did some laundry, made some dinners, grocery shopped, paid bills, watered the lawn...you know!!! And this weekend....hmmmmmmm i know i want to catch up on some scrapbooking so I am hopeful, I also need to see what my baby girl wants to do on her birthday and plan it!!! FUN stuff!!!
I have been in 2Peas and it feels good! I forget how much I love looking at other peoples work! It truly inspires me! I am also looking for another kit club (2 replace the 2 i left) and they have lots of ideas there!!! I am hoping to post some of my work there this weekend...time will tell.
Well last night was one of those 10+ hour days so I am going to get going to bed (we had Happy Hour and the team loved it...thanks hunny bunny for "making me do it!!). I made spinach dip, had ice cold pops, we listened to old Motown music and played a game!!! I am glad I did it...now to plan for next week!!!!
I have been working on my 101 list (who knew it would be such a challenge!!). I am hoping to finish by this weekend!! Time will tell...

Today I was in an all day training. It was way better than I thought. Lots of information and motivational stuff. I feel inspired and ready to go back and motivate my people. It was also a day of meeting new people. It got me to thinking what kind of first impression did I make? I met some people for the first time and I have impressions of them. Are the correct? Did the impressions they make what they wanted? Or were they aware of the first impression? I know I am not always aware of the fact that I am making first impressions all the time. I was reading this article on JOHN TESH and I thought it was some good information to be aware of...


You have just 7 seconds to make a good first impression

A man named Roger Ailes, a media strategist, famously said, "You have just 7 seconds to make a good first impression." And he was pretty much right. Our primitive ancestors needed to be able to size up a situation quickly and decide if they were faced with a friend or a foe. And we do the same thing today.
According to Yale University psychology professor Marianne LaFrance, 90% of a first impression is based on appearance, posture, facial expressions, and tone of voice. So here’s how to put your best foot forward.
First, know this, when you meet someone new, your hair style will get noticed more than your facial features. Long hair says, "My looks are important to me". Short hair says, "I’m confident and successful". And shoulder length hair says, "I’m intelligent and level-headed".
Next, your handshake matters. The Yale study found that people who make eye contact while offering a handshake that’s firm, dry, and vigorous – as opposed to clammy, limp, and wimpy – not only makes a better impression, but makes people believe you possess the qualities associated with your grip. Also, here’s something just for women.
Your instincts about other women are more accurate than your instincts about men. Why? Because women are programmed to want to make a connection with a man, so your opinions aren’t as harsh. Chemistry throws off your radar.
Now, what about charm versus cheekbones, which goes further? A good looking face or a charismatic presence? Charisma wins over beauty. If you seem confident, open to new experiences, and interested in others, you’ll get better marks than the good looking guy next to you.
But here’s the one thing you need to remember – a first impression is less about you, and more about making the person you meet feel good.
Want to go further? Check out the book "First Impressions: What You Don’t Know About How Others See You".

wow!!! today was one busy day. I spent the day in training. It was fun and i am glad i was able to meet other people. I also learned a few things and I am anxious to try some of them out on my team and personally. The first thing I need to do it get a rubber band (long story....) and I bought some Thank You cards on the way home so I am halfway there (smile). I have another huge training this Thursday and I am not sure how that will go...it is with our division and looks to be huge!!! All this training is going to make my schedule very interesting!! (and I am sure I will be exhausted by the end!!)

I am back to my regular schedule...graveyards. Last night was my first night and I must confess today I am dragging. As I look back I realize that I did like working days and being off at night was great! I am going to have to access my scheduled and see if I want to continue on my current shift during the next shift bid. The good thing about being back on my "regular" schedule is that I am back to cooking! The good old days of coming home around five and dinner being ready are gone (*sighy*). Yesterday I cooked a new recipe (I will post it later)! I want to bake something this month and only have 2 days (I hope I can do it!!). Another thing that has changed is blogging. I have not been able to blog as much as I would like but I am hoping that will change.

FINALS ARE DONE! TRAINING IS DONE!! wahoo...our training is done and we are back to our regular schedules next week. gone is the 8-5 Monday - Friday schedule *sighy*. i will miss it... and at the same time i am glad it is finally over. it has been 3 very intense weeks and now that i have passed i can say WAHOO!! it is over. i am also excited because this is the first month of the year and i was able to work on one of my changes...learning new stuff for my job (work related). So...i now have a 3 day weekend and i am planning on chilling tonight and then doing some stuff around the house this weekend and on Monday running errands (which i sooooo hate!!). i would also like to do some "baking" and maybe, just maybe some scrapbooking and some DVR catching up!! On top of that my daughter has pictures and i have to take my other baby girl to buy school books! Wow...it looks like i am going to have a busy weekend....teeehehehehehe. wish me luck!

It is amazing how this new year has already CONFIRMED CHANGE for me in 2008 and just recently it has SHOWN me CHANGE in 2008. In showing me the change it also let me know that the changes that will happen this year will not only happen within me but it will also happen around me. I had a major change occur yesterday that stopped me in my tracks. They were shocking and sad. I cried. And the sad thing the change occurred at work! And I cried at work (of all places!). The good thing is I was ok with that, I was ok with showing my emotions in public (something I normally do not do!!!), I was ok...with being ME!!!! In that I see change, and change is good! (*sighy...David I sure will miss you...)

this weekend i need to get somethings done...

* sit down and work on my financial diet plans.
* do some shopping (Christmas money...teehehehehe)
* watch the Borg win!!!!!
* work on my scrapbooking area (yucko!!!)
* study
* catch up on some shows (our DVR is at 90%!!)


if i can get this list done i will feel like i "owned" this weekend.

speaking of "owned"...i do feel like i owned this week at work. I was able to go through my training with a positive attitude (for the most part...sitting around doing nothing still gets to me but i have learned to get beyond the frustration) and i really do believe i am learning some new things and also things that will help me become a better and stronger leader. i am liking that!!!!!

today starts three weeks if training! yucko! i know it will benefit my team, the company and myself....i know this, but still...yucko!!!! actually it was fun relearning somethings and learning some new things. i am looking forward to learning some things that i have been wanting to learn for awhile. i love learning (even if it is broadband related...teeehehehehe). this is also great for me because one of my changes in 2008 is to gain more technical knowledge! i have had to change my schedule (i am not thrilled about that) and i only had one day off this week and...it just occured to me that i am whining.....(someone want some cheese to go with that wine???? teehehehe). ANYWAY...here is to three weeks of interesting "changes".

dreams....wow! have you ever had one of those nights where you have a horrible dream and it sets the tone for the whole night? Last night i had a horrible horrible dream. My hunny bunny had to wake me up because i was making simpering noises. well...i could not get into any real good sleep after that. it was a very fitful and sleepless night. YUCKO! i hate nightmares!! hate hate hate them (one of the reasons i do not see scary movies). i sure hope this is the only horrible dream i have in 2008!!

monday....i did own some of my day...i was exhausted but i still did a half mile walk (it is a start), i did some laundry and some cleaning. now if i can work on my "thankful" 2008 book it would be a real "productive" day!

wow! I had to get up early this morning (on my day off!!) to go into work and take some test (knowledge about our trouble shooting and equipment skills). Wow! What a way to start the new year...feeling stupid! Yes, I said it! For a few minutes, at the beginning of the 1st test, I felt stupid! Man so I hate that feeling. And to be honest I have not felt like that in years and years! I could feel myself becoming insecure and ugly! Well, I had to stop it and stop it quick! I stopped for a minute and went over the test and then I assessed the test and myself. I reminded myself that I have never been "officially" trained on any of this. I went onto my current job and my training was "on the job". I then started to breathe and think..should I mark something down or be honest and not answer if I do not know the answer. Well, since this was an assessment test (to see what I knew) I decided to be honest and not answer if I did not know (why guess and if I get it right I would not even know it!!! what good would that do me in needing to learn what I don't know). So, I answered what I knew (not much) and did not answer what I did not know (lots). Looking back I am glad I did it the way I did. I feel good about being honest about my knowledge in these areas. I also feel excited because we will be training in these areas and when the training is done I will be able to answer those questions I was unable to this morning!! Wahoo!!! I love learning and knowledge (and this is one the areas of change I want in 2008). I also feel this helped me to NOT feel stupid. I was able to assess the situation, throw away my stress and react only after I thought about it!!! I actually feel powerful because of this! Not a bad way to start my first "work" day of 2008!!

I have the morning off so I need to run some errands (including getting my cousin something for her birthday and paying some bills off!!). I am taking the girls with me so they can visit Grandma G and Auntie Virgie. OK...that is the plan...now I just need to OWN THIS DAY and so it!!!! teeehehehehe

fun day...rockin out with my team! We had a great time decorating our area and dressing as rockers! I love the fact that my whole team participated! They Rock!!

i love learning!!

i have been in a leadership training course for the last two days and we finish tomorrow! i am always reminded when i go to any trainings how much i love to learn! i think knowledge is wonderful and so empowering! i wish i could spend more time learning and taking courses! however...time gets in the way. i do look forward to the days when i can get back into school full time and bask in all the knowledge that floats around campus!
i am excited to take the things i am learning this week and use them on my team and in my daily work interactions. i was so motivated that i stopped at Barnes on the way home to look at their books! i bought a few and can't wait to get started on reading them! there are a few things i will be working on right away and i will be spending some time this weekend "polishing" them up. i have even started thinking about something that i might want to present to my manager to help moral!
wow!! it's amazing what a little time away from work can do for someone (especially if they are with peers who are as excited and motivated as yourself!). I am really going to focus on keeping this attitude going forward!!! =0)