Life

Hey there my fellow Bloggers...how is everyone? Life sure has its share of curve balls doesn't it? I mean one moment things could be just peachy, then the next, you find yourself standing on the ledge of the 2nd floor window only to realize that you might want to go up to at least the 5th floor if you plan on doing more than merely breaking a leg! There have been so many waves and turbulence...ebbs and flows...showers and storms lately--soooo needless to say, I need a little catharsis.

Why don't I start with my career...you know I really DO love my job. I love the difference that my programs make in the community. And for every youth who earns their GED or better still a degree, or client who transitions from public assistance to earning a sustainable, living wage, or laid off worker who figures out what they want to be when they grow up and enrolls in school on our dime, I am most elated. I am extremely, intrinsically motivated by this work and honestly even though this is not what I set out to do when I went to college--I have to feel like this is the right thing for me to do. So you may ask...okay Tera, what's the point? Well, the point is it's not my job that makes my ass hurt...it's the people who work here. So I have been spending a lot of time praying, because I know there's a place out there who will accept me for who I am, won't criticize my every move, and will not describe me as "loud and large, thus at times intimidating" in the same breath as saying that I do, "great work."

My love life...hmmm is there really even such a thing? I mean I've tried this dating thing, I've tried the "friend" thing, and although my lean is celibacy these days, even the strongest person has relapse tendencies when the going gets tough. So I think I am still waiting it out. And as badly as I want a little spice in my life, I am going to concentrate on what's important and hope that the rest will fall in to place...someday...soon.

I shared with you that I would begin the house buying process...well things are working out quite well. So well in fact, I believe I will have a new address in about a month. :-)

Kids you ask? Oh they are SUCH a treat! They have also acquired a new hobby...so, on top of Boy Scout-, Beta Club-, Brothers of Peace-, Basketball-, Band-, Mom, I have to figure out how to add Football to the equation. Of course that doesn't count the "night-time" parties that my teenager attends where his entourage greets him at the door. Nor does it include the miscellaneous activities that my younger son prefers to do so that he won't appear to be lame. I have just got my hands full...beyond measure!

What else is going on out there. I am drafting a post (slowly) that I am debating on posting but it will take a little work. Post your comments please, and someone, if you have the time, FedEx some Calgon to me...Pronto!

Flashback Fridays---I've Got Your B*T*H!

Hello out there in Blogland. I had every intent on posting this of Friday, but I was side-tracked 50-11 times before I realized...it wasn't Friday any more!!! Anyways, as you know, I dedicated Fridays to digging in the archives and posting some things from the past, so for your reading pleasure, the following blog post can be used as a point of reference:

http://peruseandponder.blogspot.com/2009/05/can-i-get-2-piecehold-stank-ass.html#comments

So you ask...or you may not have asked, but I don't give a damn, because it's my blog..."why did Tera choose this post this week?" Well, get ready, because I am about to share a story with you.

I was preparing for vacation and noticed that one of my Rx's needed to be refilled before I hit the road. So I remembered that a local pharmacy--which I will not name, but it begins with a K, ends with R and has r-o-g-e in the middle--mailed out a circular which included coupons...consumers get $20 loaded on their card for every new or transferred Rx. Easy enough right? So I called my doctor at around the ass crack of dawn and asked them to call in the Rx. When I arrived to pick it up at around 6:00 p.m., things did not go as planned.

In a nutshell, they did not fill the Rx and made me stand there over 10 minutes while they scurried around to figure out what happened. After all else failed, they tried to blame my doctor's office by saying that when they called, they didn't give them all of my info, and when I asked why they didn't call them back, they compounded the lie by saying that they also did not share the doctor's name/info for reference...only the name of the Rx. So, I stormed off, because I was already irritated, it was time to hit the road, and I didn't have my Rx. I would handle it when I returned home...the only problem is the first in the series of coupons would expire the day before I was to return.

When I got back in town, I called my doctor's office. They didn't have to tell me that the pharmacy was lying, because I already knew that. To take it a step further, she told me how they rushed her off the phone, but assured me that she would call them to straighten the matter out. So I called the pharmacy manager to tell him my story, and with this call, I wanted 2 things accomplished. #1, He needed to address the apparent customer service issue, #2, He needed to honor my coupon which I missed out on because of said customer service issue. Our conversation went something...no, a LOT like this:

Me: Hello, I would like to discuss a customer service issue that I had in your store last week. I came to pick up an Rx that had been called in, but it was not filled because your....(he cut me off).

Manager: Ma'am what is your date of birth?

Me: It's 6-3-** (wink), so instead of just telling me that they neglected to fill the Rx, they tried to....(he cut me off AGAIN).

Manager: Ma'am what is the issue? I don't know what you want me to do about it.

Me: Well, if you would let me explain the issue without cutting me off, I would tell you how you can help me. You see I had those coupons you all mailed...(he cut me off yet AGAIN).

Manager (LOUDLY): A coupon?? A coupon?? Is that what this is about, a coupon?? I will honor your coupon if it's that big a deal.

Me: Wow! If you don't mind, I would like you to give me the number to your Corporate office. Perhaps they will hear me out and assist me with this matter.

Manager (henceforth known as Needledick): (Lying the phone down loudly announcing to his staff, and consequently any customer that was standing there, considering his volume) What a BITCH!!

**Needledick comes back to the phone with a stern voice and rattles off the number to Corporate**

Me: Thanks, and um excuse me, but did I just hear you call me a bitch?

Needledick: Well that's what you're acting like!!!

Me: I'm trying to explain a situation to you, a manager, and you call me a fucking bitch (I know, I know, I shouldn't have cursed, but I was pissed!)?

Needledick: See, you've been dropping f-bombs this entire conversation!

Me: I've said it once, and that doesn't excuse nor justify what you said about me.

Needledick: You know, I'm not sure why I'm even still talking to you.

And he slams the phone down...hanging up on me.

Okay...Blogland, seriously??? Your thoughts on that, puh-lease!

Flashback Fridays

Hello all!!! Since I haven't been on in a while (as my dear friend Nina keeps reminding me), I decided to look through my archives for some laughs...found a few tears too, even pisstivity in some shit that...wait...I digress. Anywho, I came across one of my favorites, and since it's been about 8 months since the last time I "did the grown-up," reading this was almost torture, but I can appreciate the flashback in its entirety!!

Enjoy...

http://peruseandponder.blogspot.com/2008/08/sometimes-you-feel-like-nut.html

Falderal and Fiddle Dee Dee...Fiddly Faddly Foodle!

Well hellloooo there Blogland! It's been ages, but for some reason, I have this burning urge and desire to post something! :-) I think I will just provide an update of the goings-on this past year and open the floor for you all to catch me up on what's going on with you.

With that said...

I guess you could say that I pretty much gave up on dating. I mean I dibble and dabble a bit, but at the end of the day, I think I'm quite happy in my own little world. I concentrate mostly on work, church and kids. Sure, I would LOVE to meet Mr. Right instead of Mr. Right Now, but I just don't have the energy to search. Perhaps he shall fall in my lap one day and we will join in Marital bliss.

Will is now on the verge of being a teenager...I mean right on the cusp. I'm sure you all know about the longer showers, the cologne that makes you gag, the girls getting all googly eyed etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Oh yeah, it burns my ass. And you see both my boys get excellent grades in school, in fact Will earned straight A's this last time. The only problem is this puberty thing is breeding bad behavior and he keeps getting in trouble! I am going to keep praying on that one, because not only am I "Old School" when it comes to consequences, if he keeps it up, he will not be permitted to do much more than eat, sleep, shit, shower and breathe the rest of his childhood years!

I have finally decided to buckle down and purchase a house. All the money down the drain in rent for something that I will never own has me well on my way to record levels of pisstivity. So I will keep you posted, but so far, it's looking pretty good!

And now for the most earth shattering and monumental event that has happened in my life in the past year...I just got out of the hospital last week. I went to the doctor for what I thought was a pulled muscle, and it turns out that I have Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in my left leg, and a Pulmonary Embolism (PE) in my right lung. All the doctors were looking at me in amazement saying how lucky I was because the pieces that broke off in my leg and traveled to my lung had to have passed through my heart. In my estimation, I am blessed and am quite elated that God has other plans for me. To this day, they cannot figure out what caused it, but I know that I was on Yasmine for a number of years...I will be contacting them upon closing this post.

So (exhaling vigorously), what about you all? Are you still out there? Talk to me...what has been going on in Blogland?

Can I Get A 2-Piece...Hold The Stank Ass Attitude?!

You know...I hate to make a come back on some complaining s-h-i-t, but is all that's on my mind at present. For some odd reason unbeknownst to mankind, GOOD customer service no longer ranks very high among workers' list of priorities. Allow me to elaborate...

Today (as well as a gazillion other days lately) I left work late. In this day and age of stimulus funding, my job is extremely hectic. As of February 17th, I was awarded roughly $1.4 million for one of my programs, and basically I need to shit a miracle by June 1 in order to make the program a success...so in case inquiring minds want to know where I've been, there you go! I digress. My boys needed to be at Boy Scouts today by 7 p.m. so of course, there's no time to cook. I tend to like the new grilled chicken at KFC, so I decided to stop to pick up some grub.

I waited in line for MORE than 10 minutes. I was highly agitated because there was like 9.2 workers in the back, and surely they could assign more than one person to the registers, right? Wrong! I stuck it out and prayed that the 50-11 people in front of me had simple orders. By the time it was my turn, I was VERY specific in that I wanted---the 10-piece family meal special, NO WINGS, legs instead, 1/2 grilled, 1/2 crispy. Easy enough right? I have no idea why hell I didn't check my bucket, I just made haste to get home in enough time for the boys to eat.

We washed our hands and prepared for dinner. All the way home, my hungry dial went from 5 to 5,000 as the wonderful aroma burst out the of the little holes in the top of the bucket...so needless to say, I was ready......I popped that top off grinning like a Cheshire cat, looked down, and to my dismay........right at the top of the fucking bucket.........5 WINGS!!!!!!!! That really burned my asshole! So I made several attempts to call and speak to a manger and belly-ache about it, but they never answered the phone. Finally, the fax machine picked up. Then finally a person picked up......and hung up on me! I immediately call the Corporate office.

***After 14 minutes of AWFUL elevator music***

Numb Nuts: "This is Numb Nuts, may I help you?"

Me: "Yes, and acutally I called to complain about my local store, but should I also complain about my nearly 15 minute wait time?"

Numb Nuts: "Ma'am just as you have something to say so do others, so when we finish listening to what others have to say, then we can pick up your call and listen to what you have to say."

Me: "Excuse me?"

After repeating exactly what he said in an exponentially nastier tone...

Me: "I would like to speak to a manager. I am highly agitated, I have waited on this phone forever, and I don't appreciate your tone with me."

Numb Nuts: "Oh, if I were getting smart with you, you would know it, for sure!"

Me: (In sheer disbelief) "Really? Well perhaps I should report you."

Numb Nuts: "Perhaps you should."

Okay...what is wrong with that picture? The nerve of that guy to speak to me in that manner. Of course I get my money back and a call from the local manager, but that PISSED ME OFF!

I will truly need 2 or 3 more blog posts to share my bad customer service experiences from the past week, so...in an effort to not be greedy, I will open the floor for comments of your recent experiences.

P.S. Please accept my apologies in advance if I don't make it to all your blogs. I am stressed, tired....and I guess we'll add pissed to the list.

Smokers Really Blow!

Hey folks! I had time for a quickie, so I thought I would oblige.

**Disclaimer: I will not be held responsible for any thoughts shared on this post, and will not apologize for my views on this matter as it is MY blog and I can say whatever the hell I please...so if you don't like it, KICK ROCKS!**

Now forgive me if I'm wrong, but I kind of thought that there were a few pre-requisites (if you will) for living such as food, water, and hmmm...I don't know, perhaps...breathing??? Apparently, in some parts of the country, this is not the case, and it really burns my ass, so I must vent.

Do people that smoke think they are the only ones who exist in the universe? I mean do they think that everyone wants to inhale their carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, hydrogen cyanide, with a splash of ammonia, cocktail along with the rest of the toxins and carcinogens we are already subject to via pollution? Yes, they do, because each day when I arrive at work, after walking through the garage and past the nursing school (where they congregate in droves and block pedestrians' access to the sidewalk) I am on the verge of an asthma attack before I can even get to my office door!

Please note my top 10 gripes regarding smokers (these are in no particular order):

1. There are dumb asses who warn you about how everything causes cancer from McDonald's fries to putting lotion on your boobs (okay, maybe that's a bit dramatic--but someone--yes, a smoker actually DID tell me that)....but they blaze a pack a day!

2. Doctors and nurses--you know, those officials who preach health--at hospitals--you know one of those places which allegedly "promotes" health--meet regularly in the courtyard for coffee...and yes, a cigarette.

3. Your co-workers who smoke not only take a 15 minute smoke break before they start work, mid-morning, after their 1 1/2 hour lunch, and mid-afternoon, they also take one in the late afternoon right before leaving 15 minutes early tallying up their total amount of actual hours worked to a whopping 2! While us non-smokers bust our asses...well maybe not while blogging, but I'm making a point here!

4. People in the Club or at social gatherings clearly can tell that you are a non-smoker--of course because your nails aren't yellow, your teeth aren't stained, and your voice isn't one octave below its normal level--and they stand right by you and exhale their ghastly fumes!

5. There are certain individuals who will buy a carton of cigarettes on a regular basis, but use WIC and other social services for formula and pampers.

6. How about those folks who stand right in front of no smoking signs and blaze them up?

7. Do you enjoy watching the elderly man who wheels his oxygen tank along side him yet smokes 3 cigarettes between the time he leaves his car and walks into the doctor's office?

8. Have you not heard that there are those who get lung transplants shortly after they've used and deteriorated their original lung(s) by smoking...........and they still smoke!

9. Now don't you get really get fired up when you see those who work in fast food restaurants and they're outside smoking as you walk in...don't wash their hands...and go right over to wrap your sandwich, package your fries, and grab your cup (at the rim) to make your drink.

10. And how on EARTH could I leave out the idiot who as your sitting at a red light and glance over at them, they're on their cell phone, smoking a cigarette and through the misty cloud, you can see a baby in a car seat, a child in a booster seat, and a pre-teen in the front.......and the windows are up!

Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Okay, now I feel better...not really....but at least I got that out. In comments, by all means, agree, disagree, and/add to the list!

I Am Here...Therefore, I Blog

Greetings, and thank you for those of you who have reached out to me via e-mail to check on me and make sure I was still alive and kicking...I appreciate your concern and sincerely apologize for my absence. Yes, I'm still here, but I have been busy, busy, BUSY!

In this day and age of an economic crisis where states and local governments are being forced to skim down and cut back, I happen to be among the thousands whose salary is on the old chopping block. So the stress of having to take furlough days and watching what little savings was there, slowly dwindle away, has overwhelmed me...I have been forced to get a 3rd job.

So my friends, that's where I've been...at the local auto parts store during my free evenings, getting greasy and dirty, meanwhile still juggling those other fun activities like basketball games, Boy Scouts, band, track...and trying to maintain sanity by going to church. Contrary to popular belief, I was not abducted by aliens...I did not run away and join the circus...or join a nudist colony or a convent (wow, that almost felt like blasphemy to put those two items side by side!)...I am here...therefore, I blog.

In comments...what has been going on with all of you? I dare not try to catch up on all the reading I've missed, so I will count on you to give me an update and will try as much as I can to pick up where I left off.