I haven't even taken any photos! Of course the only thing outside my window is another big hotel and Interstate 35.
I'm here on job training with the State. This is my first solo trip to Austin. Wish I knew more about what's here. I did find out that there's a HEB south of the hotel. I need to go there for some ChocoVine. From Holland. Red wine with chocolate in it. Had some at the quilt retreat in Houston (where the 4-Runner got smashed by the tree limb).
Training has been boring, interesting, and a learning experience...all three. Tomorrow evening a couple/three of us are going to Pappadeaux to eat. Don't know what else we'll do, but it will be pretty tame...I'm not parking under any trees. :-)
You would not believe how many e-mails come in at the new job. Literally scads of them!! YES! "Scads" is a specific number...please do not doubt me...I am OFFICE MANAGER, you know. Woooo...did you hear the echo??
So...what do I do with all of these incoming e-mails? They pertain to webinars (web based seminars - eyeroll), meetings pertaining to area/regional Chamber of Commerces, Better Business Bureau bulletins, Texas Forestry whatever it was, etc. So...I've read these things for five weeks now. Hmmm...that one looks good, forward it. Nah...that one doesn't pertain to our corner of the world...delete. Hmmm...that topic looks interesting...forward. IRS messing with things again...forward...after all, the majority of the people are in business...and who wants to run a-muck of the IRS?!
Finally had a thought...I know...they are few and far between. With the next forwarded webinar information, at the top I asked, "Do y'all" (remember I'm in Texas and not only do we talk like that, we type like that too)..."Do y'all want me to continue to forward this type information?"
I had five or six answers. Count 'em. Yep...five or six or so. Only one person really wasn't interested because he got so much stuff at his office anyway. One "nay"...four or five "ayes." So, the ayes have it. Now off the top of my head, I don't remember how many members are with the Chamber of Commerce, but I can guarantee you that it is more than the five or six replies that I received. Still...majority rules.
Today...after the third forwarded FYI e-mail...I receive an e-mail from the president. NO! Not Obama!!! I could make a few more comments on that subject but I'll let it pass today...
So...the prez e-mails me and advises me that he has received several phone calls wanting to know why I'm forwarding these informational e-mails and please don't. Okaaaay. Ummm...and why did those so quick to jerk out their telephone not simply respond to my e-mail asking, "Do you"...excuse me..."Do y'all want me to continue...etc..." And tell me NO!!
He, the prez, did not know about the volume of that sort of stuff that came through the e-mail and was surprised. I replied back that today had been a slow day and generally the office received more than three...
I still can't figure out why instead of calling him and bugging him, they couldn't just reply to my query??!! eyeroll
Other than that...and the office is small...and the job is rather sedentary...I am really, really liking the job!
Tomorrow afternoon I'm going to the gym/exercise place/whatever it is to see about a membership or exercise classes or treadmill or whatever as long as there's an air conditioner. I've been leaving the house early every morning, going to the office and turning the thermostat down. Then I take a walk through town. Back to the office and change shoes. Fifteen minutes is all that I can handle...it is already...still...some more...too hot to walk long and go back to the office sweating. Fifteen minutes is about a mile. But believe me, not enough exercise for the job that I have. So...to the gym to see about a membership. I wish we had an air conditioned mall to walk in... Sigh...gym. Shudder!
This is where I work now. The entire section of the building in the photo below belongs to the Chamber. My office is in the red brick section with the two windows...and the functioning door. See the two doors that have been boarded up on the far right? It once was a separate business...now an interior door connects the two spaces (that one is rented to a government agency helping people pay bills). Some time before they were converted into one space, several businesses were housed there at one time or another...including...are you ready for this? 
My grandfather, Pa Bill, ran a taxi service out of that space on the far right! How coincidental is that?(The City has received a grant to redo the sidewalks. Can hardly wait for the improvement!)
Yesterday at work, I was going to vacuum. (Office Manager really means Jack of All Trades.) It didn't happen. I couldn't find the 'on' switch for the upright vacuum cleaner. My upright - at home - has the switch on the left of the body. I've seen some on the handle. I couldn't find it! It's a good thing I was alone. I started laughing at myself. I just coiled the electric cord back up, draped it over the handle, and parked the sucker (pun intended) back in its corner in the back room.
Sam visited me later. I laughed and told him about my troubles. We drug the vacuum cleaner out again. He tilted it this way 'n' that. Then pointed and said, "Right there." Sure 'nuff! You step on one corner of the top of the "head" of the thing. LOL See...I can talk technical too. ;o)
Today. I spent the day messing with the computer...doing a disc scan and deleting files. There were only 25,998 files in the recycle bin. There's also an external backup drive that preacher's wife told me her husband had tried to clean up but it didn't work...he couldn't delete the files. He thought. After plugging it back in, I discovered it was empty. I found the whatever file it was and opened the manager and ran the diagnostics only to discover that something's wrong.
I'm going to ask for permission to purchase a 'thumb' drive. They're cheap. And I can carry it with me. What good is a backup left beside the computer if there's a fire, severe lighting strike that fries everything, theft, etc.
I never got around to defragging the computer. That'll be tomorrow.
Training went well. I think I can handle it. Preacher's wife made a confession our last day together. After which I thumped her on her arm and said, "I don't like you." After the first of the year, she had updated forms, brochures, etc. with the new year...2010. She DELETED them! So that I would have 'something' to do!! Argghhh. I have never heard of that! Whenever I left a job, I made certain I had everything up to date before leaving so that my replacement could just step in and take over without having to wonder about what I left unfinished. eyeroll
But...I have a plan. She did make the statement that she never empties the recycle bin. Guess what I'm doing first thing Monday morning?!
Changing gears:
After changing sheets on Mama's bed last week, she said, "Come here." Ever the obedient daughter (PLEASE don't tell her I typed that!), I followed her. She handed me the epergne first. It was one of the goodies she hung on to during her antique buying and selling career. (The metal looks like a tree trunk.) 
I've stopped asking her if she's sure she wants to part with things. I find that she's generally thought it over, and her mind is made up. See the two thimbles? Those were Daddy's mama's thimbles. The hankies and the red scarf? They belonged to Mama's mama. I looked and looked at that scarf. Something was tugging at me. I opened it up. Examined the hemming. Not very good work. The reason? I hemmed that piece of sheer material and gave it to her! I don't know how old I was, but the hand work isn't that great. I used one stitch part of the way around, swapped to another, back to the first way. LOL It's come full circle! I HAVE to wear it with something...around my neck though, not holding my hair down. LOL
Oh goodie, goodie. GOODIE!!! 
The first day of new job training went real well. I've got today off to take Mama to the doctor, and we'll start again tomorrow. We spent quite a bit of time yesterday after lunch on the web pages. One page has a glitch in it that throws the spacing off. Preacher's wife said that she has deleted all the typing and started all over before...the bad code is still in there somewhere. We printed a section, changed some codes...it threw other sections off. ???? eye-roll So we had to retype it as it was before we started. That's minor...another day.
We touched on the biggest event of the year, Daingerfield Days. And will work on it more extensively tomorrow...along with the other events.
I baked a pie over the weekend and took photos. But I'm having trouble downloading them from the camera card for some reason. The anticipation will give you something to look forward to. ;o)
What's with this? Monday night I set the alarm on the hotel furnished alarm clock. Everything looked right. My first night out, I never sleep very well at all. I read. Turned out the light. Turned over. Turned the light on. Read. Repeat. Sometime over in the wee hours of the morning I went to sleep. I woke and checked the clock. The clock with the alarm set for 6:30. The red LED readout stated: 7:19. WHAT?! I jumped up, ran around the bed and grabbed the clock. The time was set 12 hours off!!! I had the alarm set for 6:30 in the morning...but the stupid clock was set on PM. Thank goodness I had showered the night before. I ran to the bathroom and did the makeup. Back to the bedroom and got dressed. Back to the bathroom, ran a brush through my hair and sprayed it...with the prettiest smelling hair spray I'd ever...I looked in the mirror and I had a yellow can in my hand.
But I pretty well figured out that this one would be safe.
Yes, breakfast. I still went down and got some milk and an apple to finish up.
I was so excited!!! I thought I better get two bottles. 
And if two bottles were good, then THREE was BETTER! 
This may become habit forming... :-)
