I'm handing over my tiara

If you've read my blog for a little bit, you've probably gathered that part of my job is safety management for my company. For the last year and a half, I've desperately been trying to get away from doing this, either by pawning it off on someone else (I was told there's no one else) or by finding a new job entirely (I've been very actively looking). The reasons why aren't important for this post, but they were very strong, trust me. Well, low and behold, my reign as the Safety Queen is OVER! We recently hired a new person on our team for another reason. My boss knew I was trying to quit since I'd told him SEVERAL times how unhappy I was. Guess what the new guy got as part of the team realignment? SAFETY. YES, it's time for a HAPPY DANCE. I'm not sure what else I'm getting, but I am THRILLED to be free from safety. I'm training the new guy now, and I am hoping for a complete hand off soon. I'm still supposed to be his backup when he's traveling, on vacation, etc. but that is an easily bared burden. Am I still looking for a new job? Yes, but more passively now. I'm ready to do something different, but my current gig suddenly became much more tolerable in the interim.

Thankful for the small things

I try to be a thankful person. I don't always succeed, but I make it a point to incorporate gratitude into my life. I had a moment yesterday that reminded me to be thankful even for the small things. Last evening I sat outside at Dairy Queen enjoying a candy shop blizzard. First of all, this was the first evening in what seemed like forever that was beautiful AND cool enough to be outside without the imminent danger of heat stroke. Secondly, this blizzard is amazing. You need to try it. Finally, I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to do this. Blizzards aren't that expensive, but they are certainly not a necessity, even though I dearly love them. For some people, they simply can't afford one. I was so thankful as I sat there and considered how very blessed I am.

How can you be this dumb?

The following story happened at the company where someone my boss knows works.

Employee D (for dumb), a guy in his early 20s, had a picture of his wife on his company issued cell phone. She was either totally or completely naked from the waist up. Yep, you probably already know this isn't going to end well. He sends the picture to one of his buddies at work. who of course also forwards it on to more people. Employee D also left his phone at work one day, and someone else used it to forward the picture onto others. Another employee (who didn't know who the person in the picture was) showed Employee D the picture. He got mad and went to complain. Um,  probably not the brightest move. The company is in the process of investigating the incident, but Employee D has already been canned.

It turns out there is even more potential trouble for the company. Someone tried to show the picture to another guy, a married guy in his 40s. In a clear illustration of old and wiser, he told the person to put it up, that he was not interested in seeing it. What did this display of good sense get him? His desk got moved from an air conditioned room with all his coworkers into an unairconditioned area in their distribution center. In HR-speak this is known as retaliation, which is a BIG problem.

Are you feeling smart by comparison right now?

Mango Sweet Chili Shrimp

I hadn't cooked any real food since well before I went on vacation last month. Today it was time to end that streak. I had some shrimp in the freezer I'd purchased several months ago. I thawed, peeled, and deveined it. I put some oil olive in a pan, added the shrimp, and threw in some steak seasoning (great on shrimp if you've never tried it). Once the shrimp had partially cooked, I added some defrosted mango pieces and some sweet chili sauce. I simmered everything until the shrimp was thoroughly cooked, and then I poured the mixture over couscous. Here is the final outcome:

It was delicious.

4th of July Food

For my family's 4th of July gathering, I made chocolate covered stawberries and chocolate pizza.

Around Valentine's Day one year, I was shocked to see chocolate covered strawberries sold in the grocery store for almost $10 for a 6 pack. CRAZY. If you can operate a microwave, you can make them for a fraction of the cost in just a few minutes. What you see is about a pound and a half of strawberries, $0.99/pound at Aldi. I bought the dipping chocolate some time ago, but I paid no more than $3, probably more like $2. So, at most I had $4.50 in the whole tray. A tip for making them: the strawberries need to be completely dry so the chocolate won't clump when you're dipping them. The easiest way to do this is put them on a towel or pan and leave them overnight. Make sure you flip them once so all sides will be dry. You could of course wash them and dry each one right before you dip them, but who wants to do that?

Give it a try some time. The presentation is beautiful, and it tastes amazing.

Attention kettle: the pot is calling you black

Earlier this week a group of people from work went out for lunch to celebrate one of their birthdays. When my coworker asked one of the attendees how it went, she got an unhappy response. My coworker asked if it was the food. The attendee (we'll call her associate A) said no, it was watching coworkers B and C (both married, to other people of course) flirt and otherwise interact with one another.

I said "She's really one to talk". Two weeks ago I had to suffer through a business dinner watching her (unmarried) flirt and otherwise interact with coworker D (married). In addition, she wore a totally cleaveage-inappropriate dress. Let's just say the girls were for sure on display. Now, I'm not a hater. There's a time and a place for the amount of cleavage she had on display. But that place is a club, not a white tablecloth business dinner.

The pot was certainly calling the kettle black in this instance. Or perhaps as the saying goes "it takes one to know one".

Happy Birthday

Please join me in a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday.

Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to my car!
Happy birthday to you!

Yes, today is my car's birthday. And not just any birthday. It is now ten years old. It's hard for me to believe that 10 years ago today I drove it new off the dealer lot. I had always wanted a sports car, and now I finally had it. I'd wanted a convertible too, but my budget only allowed for a convertible or the bigger engine. My dad always said choose the biggest engine available, and I did. It was the right choice. Thanks dad!

I've been very blessed with this car. I've only had one nonroutine repair in a decade, and it was only about $150. It's completely reliable, and I love driving it. I still get compliments on it, and I've had people tell me that if I ever sell it, they want to buy it. Happy birthday to one sweet ride.