Can you Read my Mind???

Generally, I like to think of myself as a fairly considerate person. I am careful not to interrupt anyone when they are speaking. I send thank-you notes when I receive gifts. I don't call people after 9pm unless I know for a fact they are awake. I don't invite myself to dinner or parties. There are a multitude of things I try to do to ensure I'm being thoughtful...

Nonetheless, I may occasionally hurt someone's feelings unintentionally. I may not think of that extra mile I could go to be extra nice. I really meant to, but...

I AM NOT A MIND READER!!!

In no way am I psychic. I do not know what is in your head. I can't fulfill your wildest dream unless you have specifically shared it with me, and asked me to help you. If you want me to do something, PLEASE share that desire with me. I can't be expected to know what is your unspoken expectation of me.

PS. This rant is NOT about my husband. (See, that's me trying to be uber-considerate of his possible concern that people might mistakenly think I'm talking about him.)

Appreciation

Although I have thoroughly enjoyed my training in Sarasota the last week and a half, I must say that I will be glad to get back to my office and normal routine. Sort of. I did get kind of spoiled by being around so many great places to have lunch...and by the Starbucks where I grabbed my mocha's on the way home each evening. But, it is going to be nice to only have a half-hour commute each day instead of an hour. And my boss has been telling me how much she's missed me while I've been gone. Ahhh....it's nice to be appreciated. But, I got a taste of appreciation while I was in that computer training this week. A couple of ladies who were rather high up the ladder talked to me about offering me a position as a corporate trainer, although it was probably just idle talk. Still, it made me feel good, and if the offer came with a raise to counteract the additional fuel and travel time, sign me up! We'll see what happens along those lines...

Ooh, and that dining room table I made reference to in my last post? It now has a home here at La Casa del Hollomans! It is so pretty, and I am such a happy girl! I picked it up in my vehicle yesterday, and Shannon came over to help us unload it and set it up. Today, I assembled the chairs, and I'm feeling like a rather handy girl. Wrestling with the Allen-wrench left me with a sore thumb, though. Perhaps next time, I'll talk hubby into springing for delivery, 'cause then they'll put it together for us. I'll probably have to wait for a while before the next time comes, because I think Matt probably thinks I'm getting spoiled...and maybe I am. But, I am appreciative.

Bureaucratic Hell

I need to take a moment and rant.

Before I do so, let me state unequivocally that I am supremely happy to be living in the lovely state of Florida. But that is SOLELY because of my wonderful husband.

I am having the most difficult time registering my stupid car here! Between the tax appraiser's office and the company my vehicle is financed through, apparently there is some kind of gross miscommunication. The tax appraiser's office needed the title of my car to issue a registration and license tag. The finance company sent it, but it has my maiden name on it. The tax appraiser's office says that they need permission to change the title to my married name. I relayed this necessity to the finance company, and they faxed a letter authorizing me (with my married name prominently displayed on the letter) to register and title my vehicle in the state of Florida to the tax appraiser's office. However, the tax appraiser's office states that they need the finance company's permission to change the name on the title. I called the finance company again, and they act like they've never heard of such a request! They told me that they (the finance company) don't EVER change titles, but that it is up to the issuing authority (i.e., the tax appraiser's office) to make such changes on the title.

At this point, I asked the customer service rep at the finance company, "So you're telling me that it is the tax appraiser's office's JOB to change the title, and that the permission to do so is IMPLIED?!" And she said, "yes." I asked her if she would fax a short sentence to the tax appraiser's office stating, "You have the permission of ____ Finance Company to change the name on the title from _________ to ________." And she said that she couldn't do that, because they just don't DO that.

I just want to register my vehicle and have a tag so that I don't get pulled over for driving without a valid Florida tag and registration. The temporary one I have now will end at the end of the month. At the rate this is progressing, I may have to start hitchhiking to work every day to avoid violating the laws of the lovely state of Florida.

*SIGH* I don't know what else to do...

Life in the Fast Lane

My goodness! Life has gotten pretty hectic around here lately. But it's good! School has started back, and so there has been an increase in the things going on at work, what with the back-to-school specials, the re-opening of the Teen Center, and the After-school program beginning for the year. Additionally, I am in the process of trying to help with the audit of our programs that will be loaded on to our new computer system, as well as reformatting all of our branch's job descriptions. This past week, I've been in Sarasota attending computer training for our new system, so that I will be able to train everyone at our branch before we go live in October, and I will be in Sarasota all next week, also.

I don't mind the drive, but I wish Matt was with me, so that we could dash over to the beach after work...Well, he DID go with me on Wednesday, though! Wednesday was precisely six months from the day we married on the beach. I can scarcely believe that much time has already passed! It seems like we just married a month ago, really. I'm still finding myself amazed by how sweet he is, even though I should KNOW by now.

Anyway, Wednesday was great. I had to be at training at eleven in the morning, so we had a leisurely breakfast together and drove over. Matt dropped me at our admin building and took off to the bookstore to kill a few hours. When my training ended for the day, he collected me and we drove down to Main Street and parked. We walked a good ways down the road before we decided to pop into a wine bar called Grape. They have wine tasting on Wednesdays, so we tried a few, then lingered on to have dinner there, as well. It was excellent! Afterwards, we ducked into a store and both of us picked out some duds to try on for fun. It was good times, and I found the PERFECT blouse and purse!

As we left that store, it was raining. Chivalrous as always, Matt offered to run down the street to get the car and let me wait in the dry sanctuary of the store's awning. I declined, however, and we embarked on a romantic walk in the rain to our car...Well, as romantic as you can get with a husband grousing part of the way about the weather....But, he came around, thankfully. We actually had a lovely time.

Now that it is the beginning of the weekend, I feel myself unwinding a bit. I have been SO busy, I scarcely have had time to even check my WORK email, much less dedicate myself to blogging as regularly as I have in the past. I had told myself I would blog about the lovely hand-carved tables we discovered last weekend that we happily purchased to adorn our home, but now feel as though the time to gush about them has passed. I've got my eye on a new dining room table that Matt also loves which may be coming to live with us very soon. I will endeavor to find more time in the future to keep you posted...