It's been a while!

Well, I guess I have been bad about updating this online blog- in my defense, there has been a lot of stuff going on, and I never seem to have a few minutes alone to update it. So here's the update of sorts: Bad Friend Update It's pretty much the same crap over and over again with Shell. I never ended up seeing her for her kid's bday, nor did she bother to plan a Sweet 16 for her (as far as I know, there could have been a huge party that I wasn't invited to.) Things continue to be strained between us, despite the many olive branches I extend and the many 2nd chances I give her. She finally admitted to me that she is still seeing that married guy she knew from high school, and has been seeing him for 2 years. He won't leave his wife because of the kids, and she is still married to the other winner that refuses to give her a divorce. It's an impossible situation that cannot be resolved without letting go of the boyfriend. She refuses to do that, so she must be ok with being 2nd fiddle in this guy's life. She never has been able to find a man that treats her with respect because she doesn't respect herself enough to know better than to stay involved with this guy. She calls him her "soul mate." She's clearly delusional- she can't see that he's getting the better end of the deal; he gets the wife and family, and the whore on the side that he gives expensive gifts to. She's little more than a prostitute, at his beck and call whenever he wants her. She jumps on a plane at a moment's notice to go see him (at least once a month) and yet she still cries poverty. Obviously he's paying her airfare and expenses. It's really sad. She knows that I don't approve of this relationship, and that I can see it for what it really is, but she doesn't want to hear it from me, so she avoids me. She also told me that she is planning to move to NY when her daughter graduates in 2 years. I'm sure she is hoping this guy will finally commit to her once she is in town full time. She's too blind to see that he won't keep her anymore once she becomes too accessible- he can't risk the wife finding out. My prediction is that he will break it off by the time she moves there. Time will tell if I am correct on that. Hubby's Health This past month has been really stressful. My dear hubby developed an enlarged heart- he had to have an angiogram (which showed no blockages, thank God) and is now on 8 different meds to control his condition. He was out of work for 3 weeks and just recently went back. Fortunately, it appears that this was caused by an errant virus that settled in his heart, causing the condition to occur. None of the tests could confirm that, however, but the Dr's have stated that they believe that is the case. After it's all said and done, he has an excellent prognosis and the Dr. expects a full recovery. Thank God! He has another cardiologist appt in about a week for a follow up exam. My Little Boy My boy turned 2 in February. He's a big boy 60th% weight and 90th% height- still a very picky eater. Most days he eats very little food, but loves drinking his milk. I go through almost 3 gallons a week! I changed him from whole milk to 2%, but he's still drinking up a storm. I tried 1% for a few days to see if he'd eat more, but he ended up drinking a gallon in 1 day!! So I have my work cut out for me...lol! Job Well, the job front has become more complicated. The owner decided to move the plant from FL to IN. All of the warehouse, production, and shipping personnel will be laid off in April or May. Supposedly my job will be ok, because they are keeping the corporate offices local. I am no dummy, I don't believe that for a minute. I think they will eventually close this office once they settle everything up north. I have my resume out and am open for opportunities. I want to be in control of my next opportunity, not be in a desperate position. I hope to God I find a job that I like as much as this one. Btw- Papparazzi left about a month ago- she found another job right away. I don't miss her, and wasn't at all sad to see her go. The drama level has gone down a few notches with her gone. Well, that's the update for now- I'll try to be better about getting on here more often. That's it and that's all....

Going with the flow.....

So, as the weeks go by with this job, things get stranger and stranger. The VP that hired me got canned a week ago, and since then, things have been pretty weird at work. I think that they couldn't decide what to do with me, so they assigned me to the Big Man. The Big Man is about 5 ft 8 in tall and about 350 lbs. He resembles a beach ball with legs...except he is totally ADD. Lord help me. They decided that they want to teach me his area, so that I can cover for him when he goes on vacation in July. Let's just say that his department isn 't the easiest, and since he is the only one in it...I'd be responsible for the entire thing when he's gone. Needless to say, I don't think I am qualified to do his job, esp since he is a manager, and I am a peon. Aside from that, there is not a chance in hell that I will gain enough experience in 6 weeks that will enable me to do the job adequately. His are big shoes to fill, no pun intended.

I think they they are about ready to hand over some responsibilities to me in the next week or so. I'm apprehensive about it. It will be the first time in my career in purchasing that I will have lines all to myself. It's intimidating. It's scary as hell. I am being overdramatic and I know it. LOL!

I guess the only thing I can say at this point is that I am continuing to challenge myself on a daily basis with the work I am doing. I learn something new everyday. I am also keeping the idea of building my resume first and foremost. This place is not a long term career for me. I will burn out before I ever have a chance to make it a career company. But then again, we have no idea what will happen. All I know is that for some reason, the President of our division of Jackass Co. has been stopping by my desk on a daily basis to "check" on me and to see how I am doing. Now talk about intimidating. This guy comes off as an affable, grandfatherly type, (think Santa Claus but taller and not as portly)....but I can see through those sparkling blue eyes lies the soul of a businessman with killer instincts. I do not for one minute think that he is stopping by to see me because he has taken a liking to me. I truly believe that he is checking to see that they are getting me up to speed so that he is showing R.O.I. I am not producing yet, therefore I am a liability. I'm no dummy, I totally see what he is doing. I recognize sharks from my days at XYZ Asshole Co.

I found out there were more than a few reasons for the VP guy getting let go. I had to do quite a bit of digging to get answers. And I had to get it out of 3 different people and piece all 3 versions together. This is what I found out:

1) VP man had a personality clash with the new President of the division. Apparently they never got along from the start when the new Prez came to the division in February of this year.
2) There were 6 senior employees in the dept that quit within a 6 week period last year. They got fed up with the way he ran the department and jumped ship. I heard that they all called corporate on their anonymous tip line to make complaints as they left. All of those people went to the competition to work. It was a huge blow to this division to lose the experienced talent to the competitors. I am sure that was the first nail in the coffin for him.
3) He hired inexperienced and incompetent people in his desperate search to fill the vacated spots in the department. He was either hiring them all from off the street or from the lower levels in the company that had zero qualifications. Two of the girls he hired were really bad - one was originally hired to be his assistant, (she was the girl that drove the golf cart at his golf club) and promoted her within 2 months. The other he hired in to replace golf club girl as his assistant, and she was the bartender at the local bar that he frequented. Others that he hired were from customer service and although had been in the company for a little bit, they had zero buying experience. I found out that this division has the worst numbers in the company. And I am sure that is the actual reason they fired him.
4) Big Man also shared with me that VP did not support the sales force at all, and pretty much never helped them when they needed support from purchasing. He pretty much instructed all the buyers to treat the sales guys like the pests that they are, and not to pander to them.

So after learning all this information, I wondered...what do they think of me? I am the last one hired in by this guy. He has a horrendous track record for his new hires. Luckily, I am the real deal and have enough background to pass muster. But it explains why Mr. President keeps hanging around my desk. I think he is trying to see if I was another bimbette or the real deal. Hopefully I am making a good impression. Big Man seems to have taken a shine to me. If he sings my praises to the higher ups then all will bode well. But as I stated before BIG SHOES TO FILL. So I try to keep my cool and get on with the show.

Oh, and about that job interview I had a couple weeks back....I never heard back from the lady. I think I was too expensive to hire. She probably settled for a lower paid, lesser experienced person. After thinking about it more, I realized that was not a good fit for me anyway. There was no future there at all. Not that I think I have a shining future at Jackass Co. However, I am getting the opportunity to totally shine at a time when there is an upheaval in management. I may be able to position myself as the ultimate team player and that may lead to bigger and better things. I am curious to see who we get as our new VP. Something tells me that Mr. Prez has something up his sleeve for us. I bet he had someone in mind all along, and it's going to be a person from another division that he trusts. I'll revisit that prediction one day soon. We will see....

That's it and that's all!!