This is an email that our Director sent to our VP regarding the set-up of a new Project Manager...

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V,

Just wanted to let you know that Maria and Bea have done an outstanding job in setting up everything for A. After only one day in his job he is already fully equipped with absolutely everything he needs, just pending his business cards (this depended on the assignment of a cell phone number and fixed line, which has now also been completed).

I think we are now managing the introduction process a lot more effectively (when I started it took me many weeks to be at the same stage), and that is in large part attributable to the good organization that Maria and Bea have shown.

Saludos,

J

One of my managers just wrote me an email...
"I somehow lost the documents for the car, you know, the insurance car and the technical document...can you please get me replacements? Thanks!"

wha....eh??...WHA...??

The "technical" document is THE CAR REGISTRATION CARD!!!!...I have to go to the Legal Dept and get the company's legal representative to go to the police station to file a report before I can start procedures to "get a replacement"...and, if I don't do that, we are minus one car, because noone can drive that car right now...if stopped by the police, the car would get impounded and the driver would be sent to jail pending the proper investigation as to the ownership of the car!...

You'd think that, with all their studies and privileged brains, these kids would KNOW better and take care of the things entrusted to them!!...

In the meantime, all I can think of is What would be the most painful way to kill him?? ...because, I will get the heat for this! (shoot the messenger! seems to be the company motto regarding this sort of mishap...which, unfortunately, happens most often in my unit than in others!)

well, I've seen my deposit and, it seems a bit higher than what I'm used to...I'm wondering why, but, cannot access the intranet to look at my payment voucher (imagine half the company is looking at it right now, too!)...
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woo-hoo! I WAS right, the pay WAS higher than usual....$80 more!...since the bank discounted the $160 for July's month payment and, since payroll tried to deposit it just to find it was paid, the company is reimbursing me!!...this means I get to put those $80 (and, potentially, another $80 next payday) towards my CC!!

HR's new thing is to give employees a present on the month of their birthday...today I finally made the time to go...it's a special pass to the movies for 2 people... I'll save it for our holidays and go watch Garfield 2 with Ale (or see what else is playing that she might like!)

Another one of my bosses (H) --who's been away because he's in charge of a project to open a new company in another country-- came back this weekend and, said he wanted to talk to me ... He had spoken to my boss who gave me the loan (J) and, wants to give me a loan to cover the rest of my cc/extrafinancing debt (actually, they are very good friends and H lent J money to pay for his MBA, that's where J got the idea to lend me money)... his rate is higher than the other guy's (12%), but, still lower than the cc (28%) soooo...I'll move whatever is left over after that last payment I made! (have to look at the account, I don't want to leave $0.01 there!)...I think I'll take lower payments over the same period of time, though, just to make sure I can pay all my debts (or, leave smaller payments for the next 7 months, and go to larger ones once the phone bill is paid off!)..that would effectively rid me of all CC debt...of course, my level of debt would still be the same, but, at least my payments WOULD make a real difference!!-- I would be done with J's loan in a year and, with H's probably in about a year and a half or two years...also about the same time I'd be rid of the car payments!...It would be like getting a HUGE raise!...and THEN I could start seriously saving for a house! (my life savings right now total $700...no, I cannot touch it, they are with the company co-op and, the only way to have access to that would be to resign from the co-op and, to do that, I would have to repay my loan in full -- $2,900...It's a requisite at the coop to put some money into that account each month, and I don't regret it...some day, it'll come in very handy!)

I realized yesterday night (we both had to work late due travel arrangements for different people) that the thing with the other admin and I is a difference in attitude....she had a quarrel with people from travel earlier that day and so, no matter how desperately she kept asking for help, there was none to be had...(can't say I blame them, she called them inept in an email!)...while I, too think they leave MUCH to be desired, whenever I need their help I practically beg for answers...when I sent the email explaining the problem and the reason for the urgency, they called me and told me how to solve it (temporary solution, we still need to fix the problem, but, hey, the person can/will travel on Friday, which is what we needed...we then have 1 week to keep working on a permanent solution!)...and, these people have never seen me, so, no, it can't be the looks!

--in her defense, she works a lot more with them, so that means they have a lot more opportunities to stress HER out!

This is one of the pictures of our scavenger hunt in Vegas (actually, is the one that started that "who cares if it doesn't get us points" string that actually won us the "special mention" --mind you, the 2 guys in wigs are 2 of our managers! --I don't make much $$$, but, as you can imagine, I DO have lots of fun with these people!

They called me!!!...I have my interview on Friday at 10:00am!!....I have to go there and explain my idea!!

Ok, now I have to go to my boss and ask for permission to go!

LOL! one of the managers was asking me to finish some travel arrangements for some visitors today, so he could put together all the info I have been sending him, and so I told him not to worry and that I had even consolidated the info by traveler already so all he would have to do was forward it...he got so excited, he just bent down and kissed me on the cheek! (no, that's not sexual harrasment here, plus, it WAS totally innocent, plus he has a girlfriend that works at our office..it was just a spontaneous gesture!)...I'm guessing it's just that I took the time to put this together in one user-friendly format, just one email per passenger, which saves HIM time, and allows him to look better in front of these potential customers...(it took a while for us, even involving our VP, to get the authorization for them to fly business, space confirmed, as there was a mix-up with the authorization levels in the system...after several emails back and forth, it finally got resolved!)...but, see, that's the thing...the other admin would have done the same thing...she probably wouldn't have consolidated ALL the info in just one email...but, compared to the rest, that's really minor!...he would have been grateful (he's one of our nicest managers, and always makes a point to show he's grateful for the work we do for him), but I don't think this would have been his reaction if it had been her!

I swear sometimes I feel like the other admin hates me...and I swear sometimes I understand why!...like today...she's out sick and, everyone's been asking about their travel arrangements (which she's in charge of...I get to do the expenses when they come back!)...and, just for ASKING pass bureau or other departments whether the reservations were made, I got 3 "you're such an angel"...which she never gets!...
people DO treat me differently...nicer than they treat her...Everything I do is like I'm doing them such a big favor...most of what she does they take for granted...I don't know why that is...it's not like I have an attitude or anything like that...nothing that would make people think I was doing them a favor just for doing my job...maybe it's just the opposite, that I enjoy doing stuff for people...

Well, my online application did NOT get submitted...on top of that, I called and they told me the category of Entrepreneurial Women had closed at 9:05! (this was not specified in the website!)...the categories still open were tourism, ethnic products and Information and Communications Technology...I submitted it under the latter, maybe they'll accept it! ((sigh))

Will keep you updated!

******************
updated to say they accepted the application....and they warned that they are backlogged processing them, so it will probably be 2 weeks before they contact me with further information!

well, no, not really...but, I hate it that yesterday I stayed after work to fill out my application to the contest and, it took me 30 minutes to fill out (and it read great, if I may say so myself!) and, when I hit the SUBMITT button, I got a message that said: field "name" is mandatory....I went "huh?"...guess what!...my whole application had been deleted!! ...
so, now I don't know if 1. my application went through and it's just that the site doesn't have a confirm message or 2. my application really got lost and I have to resubmitt it!...

So, I guess I'll re-submitt it (just to be on the safe side!) UGH!

Today, there was a very important meeting and, one of the analysts was supposed to coordinate lunch...problem was, nobody bothered to tell him!...that is, until 11:30am, when somebody asked him what he had ordered for lunch!...He somehow got out of the meeting room and phoned for HELP!...of course, I helped him out and everything went OK (except for the food being served at 1:00pm instead of 12:30 as usual!=...he had ordered a couple of extra lasagnas and, gave me 2 to take home!! woo-hoo!!

Free dinner always tastes the best!

Let's start with day 1...I got up at 4am and we arrived at the airport at around 5:45am...checked in, got lucky (we travel space available) and we all made it into the flight... arrived in LAX at around 11am and went to the hotel where the managers, directors, VP and part of the training team were staying/having a workshop...were dispatched to lunch and asked to come back at 1:30pm...then told to wait until 2:00pm...had a problem with the meeting room and finally started our meeting at around 2:30pm...this lasted until 9pm, at which time we went for dinner and started our drive to Las Vegas...(no, I cannot sleep on planes, and I couldn't sleep in the car either, despite having the back seat all to myself!)...by the time we arrived in our rooms, it was 3am (which was 4am ES time!)...and, believe it or not, it was as hot as ES at noon!!!...funny thing (gross, too!)..they brought us a rollaway bed and, when we unfolded it...A CHICKEN BONE!!! eeeewwwwww!!!...they sent us a new one!! (bed, not chicken bone! LOL) --(depending on hierarchy, we were sharing either 2 or 3 to a room!...this was done to keep costs down to be able to have as many people as possible attend the event!)...we even had some people that are no longer in our unit, and they gave a presentation on what they have been doing and why/how their experience in our unit has been useful to them in their new roles!...
next day, we were supposed to meet at the lobby and watch the opening game of the World Cup together...most didn't make it, but watched the game in our rooms instead!...then we had lunch and, at 12 were again at a meeting...we discussed the current situation of the company (confidential), upcoming and current projects of our unit (confidential) and, had a team-building exercise in the form of a trivia quiz...we were asked to solve the test together and then put on teams to "consolidate" answers...of course, we all got much higher group scores than individual ones!...we were also asked to fill out/present our findings regarding: why we are proud of being part of this group, what -if anything- makes us feel embarrassed to be part of this group and, what can we do to correct things...then we had the directors and VP talk to us about the upward feedback they had received from us a few days before--very interesting exercise!...the meeting lasted until 6:20pm...(which was cutting it really short, since we had to be dressed up and ready to go to Jasmine at Bellagio at 7:00!)...went to dinner (beautiful place, and our VP had requested the tables right in front of the window that overlooks the fountains!)
We had a wonderful dinner and then went to see the Cirque de Soleil (sp?) at the same hotel...the show started at 10:30 and ended at about 12:15...it was impressive...I really cannot think of other word that describes it that well!...my sis and I had often seen those shows on TV and commented that going to one would be such an amazing dream! (and it was!)...the company paid for 1/2 the ticket and, employees were required to pay the rest..except the other admin and I, who were invited to this one by our VP!...for some, the combination of exhaustion, fine dinner, drinks, dim lights, sound of falling water and soothing music was too much and they fell asleep during the show!...Others (like me!)where too excited by the whole experience and watched in awe! --I didn't even know WHERE to look, so much was going on at the same time!!...from here, some of us went to zzzzz, while some others went gambling or partying...
The next day we had brunch at Treasue Island (yumm! great food!...we all did the same thing! first we had breakfast and then we attacked the lunch foods!LOL!)..this was our last "sponsored" event...from then on, we covered our own expenses!...we were separated into teams and given our instructions for the scavenger hunt!...that was so much fun!...We were dismissed at around 10am and, had until 6pm to gather as many points as possible and to put together a presentation for our judges!...Our team was 4th (out of 5!) but, we were given a "special mention" because we really looked like we had the most fun!! LOL!...
One of the things you had to do was take a picture with a REAL bride and groom inside a chapel! -- we went up to a couple and said: Congratulations on your marriage...could we crash your wedding? and explained the situation!...they were wonderful, and said yes!... we took our picture and, they asked if they could take a picture with their own camera...we agreed and, as we started to move to get out of the picture, they said: NO! we want a picture WITH you guys! LOL! ...I guess we are part of their Vegas-wedding experience! (this was at the Say I Do Drive trhu wedding chapel, by the way!)...we took tons of pictures (most of which did not meet eligibility criteria for points!), but, we had sooo much fun!!!...Other things included were a video of the whole team singing the national anthem in front of the Paris (funny how none of the teams that presented the video could spell anthem! LOL!...we didn't have ours, the lady that "took" the video didn't press the ON button!!) and a video/picture of one team member being thrown into the pool!...Ours was entitled Safety First! as that was what the guy being thrown into the pool kept saying, even while we were dropping him on the side of the pool, from where we proceeded to roll him in!... At 6:30 we finally were able to start reviewing the presentations (you can imagine what a riot THAT was! with all teams wanting to invalidate each other's points!)...after all teams had shown their pictures/videos and, after the judges gave their verdict, again some went to sleep and some to party!...the next day, my roomies and I woke up at around 8:00 and went for breakfast and then shopping...we had to be back at 4pm to drive back to Los Angeles...some groups were driving and some others were flying (3)...1 of these groups did not make it (flights were full) and ended up renting a car and joining us in Los Angeles!...our flight was leaving at around 1:30am...we were all put on the stand-by list because the flight was supposed to be full...in the end, there were 14 of us on stand-by (including some people NOT from our unit) and there were 16 spaces available!!! yay!!! so we all made it back home!...we arrived at 7:07am, and, went home to shower/change to go to the office...we didn't stay the full day, though, just took care of the most urgent matters (for me, that meant leaving for home at 4:30pm!)...our faces were "variations of a theme" and the theme was "Beat Up!"....we all looked tired, sleepy and wrinkled...we are doing much better, and are almost back to normal now!--but, we are still consuming inordinately large amounts of water!!...we were asked to send in our feedback on the whole event by end of day today, so I guess the results of that will be the official closing of the event!

...we came back yesterday, but I'm just now starting to be capable of some coherent thinking!...a mixture of exhaustion, sleep deprivation and dehydration...will blog at length some other day!...for the time being, as a friend so aptly said: Let's just put an end to this ceaseless spending! (I spent about $180 in total, of which about $40 are refundable...$10 were for a calling card...about $15 for non-refundable meals...$83 for clothes for Ale and myself - more for her than for me, but will write separately on this...some souvenirs for my family...the rest is mostly for water and non-alcoholic beverages!)

The trip was fun, and I don't regret going! It was definetely worth it!

someone said: bring your bathing suit to Vegas...well, they've sent us the weather forecast and, temps range from 97F to 101F...will definetely need my migraine pills! (yep, heat is a trigger...as is extreme cold!...)..add sleep deprivation and the odds don't look good! (we have to be at the office at 4am on Thursday to leave together to the airport...)ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!

we had to do upwards feedback reviews for the 2 directors and the VP of our area...due by end of day today...(the form was given to us about a week ago) ...I hadn't done them yet, as I wanted to think about some of the questions a bit...sad to say that, in the end, the toughest ones were left blank (which areas do I think they should improve)...I was as honest as I could in the other ones, though...truth is, the top guys give me so little trouble!...and, as bosses go, none of them is particularly annoying or aggravating...and, while they are all demanding, their requests are generally sound and delivered in a nice way...they have also been very understanding both in work-related issues (while I was learning a new set of skills, say...cutting me some slack at the beginning and explaining things when it would have taken less time to do things themselves) and in personal ones (letting me work weird hours to see my mom or my sister at the hospital, to go teach English to increase my income, etc)...
now, if you were going to ask me about the managers, that's another thing...some of them are really bratty, others are whiny...THEY are the ones that drive me nuts!

the unit's offsite this year will be in Las Vegas...AND, this year they decided to invite us (admins)...we are leaving on Thursday and coming back on Sunday/Monday...all expenses are paid until Saturday brunch....so all we have to take care of is meals on the weekend...
We'll see how I do in a "non-controlled" environment!...(my daily routine keeps me away from places of "temptation"! LOL!)

ok. I have to blog about this because this was not AN event, this was THE event...the company is based in ES, but, flies to 35 cities in 19 countries...they flew people in from all the stations...not only employees (manager or higher hierarchy), but also media people from all 19 countries, as well!...Revenue management people said that 70% of the flights were carrying at least 20 people traveling on space-confirmed passes that day!...

Well, I received my invitation and I thought...maybe someone made a mistake...but, later in the week there was an email confirmation, so...I had decided to splurge and have my hair done...but, work committments kept me at the office until 6:15pm! (the invitation was for 7pm!)...so I had to forget about it and just rush home to change!...I went for the LBD approach, because the invitation said: FORMAL...so, I didn't want to be overdressed...but I also didn't want to be UNDERdressed, either!...I put on some makeup...it was sooo funny...Ale kept looking at me and, just before I left, she said: "Mom, you look....I love you!" and came to hug me...I guess she wanted to see if I was still the same mommy...(answer to that is YES!)...

I got my invitation out and noticed there was no indication of which ballroom the event would take place in...only the hotel...and I thought: hmm, how are we supposed to know where to go?? Oh, well, I'll ask at the hotel...

About a block from the hotel (it's on top of a hill) I realized WHY there was no room name...they had red, blue and yellow (the company colors) spotlights lighting the sky....((just follow the batsignal!))...

I had also decided that I was NOT going to leave my car outside and traipse uphill in my heels and nice dress, so I had decided to use the valet parking....I had my $2 ready...so I left the car with the valet...and was given a voucher that said: paid for! woo-hoo!..they even paid for the valet parking for any attendees that chose to use it!! (I imagine they told very few people about it, though!)...

As we went in, they had the photographer to take pictures...we were kept waiting in the hall until about 7:30 or 7:45...just mingling and commenting...and then, they asked people to walk down the corridor to the main room...the owners of the company were there and also the 4 Senior vice-presidents...so we got to shake hands/ kiss hello as we went in...((I kept feeling someone was going to courtsey to them! LOL!))

As we went down the corridor, we could see the "smoke" of the dry ice and, they had some girls dressed up as macaws (the company's mascot)...it was a very fancy tulle thing...you could tell they were supposed to be macaws because of the beak-like hats on their heads...it was very Las Vegas-like dress...

As we came into the room, we heard the swwwwoooooshhhh of an airplane taking off...and, as you came in, lots of pictures of airplanes taking off being projected on giant screens across the room ...they also had acrobats hanging from the ceiling!...it was VERY impressive!...and more dry ice "smoke", of course...

They had ice statues of planes on EVERY table...and a souvenir on EVERY place...a glass cube with the 75 Anniversary logo sketched inside...very tasty...very pretty....very heavy!! ((LOL!...someone mentioned this was NOT the thing to have around during an argument with your spouse!))...

There were also little menues on the table: ((markio, here's the menu!))
Salmon napoleon with asparagus, lemon sherbet, meat in wine/mushroom sauce, sauteed shrimp, potatos and vegetable napoleon...everything was yummy!...but, let's continue with the party!!

They started off with a video of the owner's son (in his 20's, very handsome boy!) saying what the company means to him and how much he admires his father ...then the owner read his speech (difficult, as he hadn't been told about the video beforehand, so it was a total surprise, and a very emotional moment for him!)...the President of ES also made a speech...and then they called to the stage a man that is a curator for the Smithsonian, who wrote a book about latin american airlines, and included a chapter on the company...THEN they called the grand-niece of the original founder (he was from New Zealand) ...

THEN they played a video highlighting the history of the company...where it started and were it is hoped it will get...they ended with: "if someday there are shuttles from Central America to the moon, we hope to be the ones operating them..." swoooshhh of space shuttle taking off .....

and the doors swung wide open and in comes a batucada group (10 people, drums only!...each drum playing a slighly different rythm, but in harmony)...you could see people wanted to get up and dance...but, I guess we were all too dressed up to give in! LOL!...good thing, too, as right after the batucada group, in came a group of dancers dressed in traditional costumes from different countries and paraded around the room, as if it were a carnival... in front of every small group of dancers came a girl with a banner with the name of the country being represented and a picture of a macaw (think the presentation of the countries at the Olympics)...then the batucada stopped and the first group of dancers -representing ES - danced a bit of traditional dances....there were 19 short dances in total!...very nice, very energetic!...(of course it was the same 20 people getting changed into different costumes, but, still!) in the end, all 20 dancers came to the floor and danced a couple of verses of "Pero si son latinos..." (there's some that mentioned the names of Latin American countries, they chose the ones that mention the ones we fly to) and the dancers even brought some people to dance from the closest tables...

After that, they presented the new campaign, which will be based around cultural diversity, will start officially in June 5th...

After that, they brought dinner (this was around 11:30pm!)...and a jazz band played all through the dinner...

Part of the room was curtained off and, at 12:00, we could see light coming from behid it...we thought it might be a cake or something...but, it wasn't...it was a band (Orquesta San Vicente, quite known here)...playing Happy birthday...after that, the dancing was to start!...this is when I had to leave, it was already 12:30!!...they tell me it went on until 3:00am!

As I was leaving, I saw the pictures on the table...also a special magazine and postage stamps...I took my picture, a copy of the magazine and 2 postage stamps envelopes!!...I went outside and requested my car...end of the night for me!

As we say here: they threw the house out the window on this event!

I am trying to de-clutter my desk...right now, my goal is to handle everything new as it arrives and process it...for the backlogged stuff, I'm aiming at a minimum of 10 documents per day to be either filed, processed or destroyed (if I haven't used it in 1+ year and it's not legal requirement to keep it, it goes out!)...I figure I have about 65,000 documents on my desk, so it should take me about 18 years to have a clean desk!! LOL!...no, seriously, I DO NOT have 65,000 documents ...at least, I don't think I do...but, while it's looking a lot better, I still have a lot of work to do!!...wish me luck!

The company I work for celebrated its 75th "birthday" on Friday...they took pictures as people were coming in (very "prom-like")...it was a HUGE event (I'm glad I went! it was really impressive!)

Anyway, here's the pic:

**2005** 2006
level of satisfaction with my life, on a scale 5-10, with 5 being "sucks" and 10 being "perfect", looks like this:

Family : **6 (DD "boosts" the score! so you can imagine!) With my sister sick, I'm chauffer, messenger, administrator, cook, maid and even provide moral support (who's giving ME moral support??)** We're doing much better, I'd give it an 8 now
Spiritual: 6 - **have not had a prayer meeting/attended my praying workshop in ages!!** The praying workshop ended and, the prayer meetings sort of got cancelled - the others didn't come anymore!...so, I'm going to church to pray every Thursday, to thank God for all his mercies and ask for some more blessings! I'd give that a 9!
Work: **-3....right now, I like my job, I just hate everyone around me!!** LOL! I definetely don't hate the people around me anymore...hmmm, I'm still overloaded, though, but, still retaining my sanity...mainly due to the fact that I HAVEN'T got a raise - nor will I get one! - I'd give this a 7...financial considerations aside, it would be more like an 8+
Physical: **6 - I'm not exercising, I'm not eating too well, I'm always tired...I try to get 3 meals a day, though, and remind myself to breathe often!** er...no progress here!...except, I'm less stressed!
Financial: ** do I REALLY need to score it?? or can you guess? -4 Creditors keep calling and things seem to be looking down, rather than up, lately!** I'd give it a 5...I'm less than happy, but, it's a HUGE improvement from last year...no creditor calls, no late payment fees, several cc's paid off...there's still a lot to be done, though!

As you see, all areas show significant improvement! Yay!

LOL!...the people at the co-op made a mistake...I reduced (or thought I had!) the amount going to my savings account from $90/month, to $65/month, thus "cancelling" the increase from the old loan to the new one...the guy misunderstood me and he deducted $65 per pay period! (or $130/month!)...fortunately, it's all sitting in my savings account! oh, well, I already sent an email correcting it and, will try to live without it! (this fund is to be used towards Ale's school expenses anyway!)...no wonder my salary seemed so low!!

well...parts of it, anyway!!...which, believe me, is a HUGE step in the right direction...now, if I can stay clear of any storms, this could be decent by the end of June! LOL!

Now that I'm done with the data entry and presentation, I'm back to normal work, and, the 1st thing in my "abandoned in favor of training-related work" list is "travel Expenses"...back to seeing who got paid what on which date, and making sure that if any payment has not been made yet, it gets pushed for the next pay period or, if something has not been approved yet(either by my boss or by Travel Control), to make sure that it gets approved before Monday, so that the payment is made next Friday...then I get to file the corresponding paperwork...oh,joy! ((sigh))...

I also have some translations pending, but, as you can imagine, the Project Managers and Directors get a little edgy when they don't get their money back on time!

I managed to finsih the presentation on the feedback forms today!...as of 10am, I was still missing 7(out of 36) forms, but, I managed to get them!...I also made the paperwork for 6 payments, made 1 flight reservation, paid the telephone (for one of the expat houses) during my lunch hour, typed up a letter and faxed it...scanned 3 documents...made a deposit in the bank...helped one of the analysts with info he needed to request internet access (very few people organizationwide have access)...updated a file ref status of requisition for laptops from our unit (total of 3 requisitions, for 1, 2 and 7 laptops = 10 total)...realized last requisition (submitted by the other admin) overlapped with the second one (submitted by me...we need to work on our communication!)...went around the dept to see if there was something that might make it OK...and found it! (2 analysts have REALLY old laptops that should have been replaced at least 6 months ago!)...resent info to my boss so he can complain about 1. requisition #1 being submitted in FEb, with laptop in customs for over a month now!!! ...#2 being late already...#3 -they haven't even issued the purchase order, eventhough he authorized the laptops on 21/april!!...
Did some other vague stuff that I don't believe provided much value...

See? I'm getting better at recognizing my own contributions!

LOL! I was in a panick today, thinking that it's already the 15th and I hadn't processed the payments for the domestic employees at the (expat) houses...and hurrying to get them ready for signature/submittance today, so that at least they'd be paid on Friday, when I noticed...the forms I was updating said from May 1st through 15th....so I was like: hmmmmm....I called accounting and they told me the cheques are ready!! (which means I submitted them either last Monday or the one before last, in preparation to the crazy week of training logistics, and I didn't even remember!!)...I amaze myself sometimes!!

Of course, the fact that I didn't remember gives you a clue as to how "spaced out" and disorganized I can be, too!

they had the wonderful idea of bringing the training groups here for their final presentation, and throwing a cocktail for them (here at the office, too!)...guess who's in charge of logistics for THAT??...so, I'm still at the office, waiting for the thing to at least START...in the meantime, I also have about 600 fresh feedback forms to process....and 35 final feedback forms...plus this year they've added a "peer feedback form", so that is 210 more feedback forms...plus the VP's feedback on the presentations...
guess who's in charge of THAT!! ((sigh)) ...and they claim slavery no longer exist!

Things are definetely looking better...My sister is in full recovery from the neurocysticercosis (sp?) and we are only pending the results from her last MRI (THAT deserves a separate entry!)...and, eventhough money is still my major source of worry, my situation is veeeery different than what it was last year...I got the cc issue under control, am not getting any creditor calls, and, despite the additional expenses from the new car loan, I think I can handle things so that I don't default on anything...I'm still overworked...still love my job...but, right now I don't feel like I hate my co-workers...none of them!...not even the annoying ones! LOL!...
((contented sigh)) I definetely don't hate my life (the way I did last year!)
Oh, and the "frugality" thing, while still a challenge, is not as hard anymore!

Thanks to all for your continued support!!

Woo-hoo!...one of my "children" (analysts) was recently promoted and left for another dept...today, he brought me 4 movie passes (his family owns a large cinema chain), as a Thank You for the support while he was in our dept...sniff!