RedJen's Rearview Mirror

Work - crazy busy, but also providing external validation
Home - still toying with the idea of painting either the kitchen or my bedroom
Reading - Off the Cuff
Playing - City of Villians/City of Heroes
Recent IM - Thespis
Frustration - lives by a lake and doesn't like to follow the rules

I have a new battle cry for my CoV character: "I hereby void your warranty, and send you back to God!"

I wonder what would happen if I started using it as a tagline at work...

Note for those who matter:
If you ask me a question and I give you an answer, my answer won't change if you ask the same question again (and again). To change the answer, you have to either change the question or the circumstances. I'm way too stubborn and a bit too bright to fall for something so transparent.

According to a national survey by the American Institutes of Research, 20 percent of U.S. college students completing four-year degrees have only basic quantitative literacy skills.

Basic quantitative literacy skills are those necessary to compare ticket prices or calculate the cost of a sandwich, the study said.

The National Survey of America's College Students, sampled 1,827 graduating students from 80 randomly selected two- and four-year public and private colleges and universities.

The study targeted students near the completion of their degree programs to help illustrate what had been mastered while in college.

I saw this today while doing some web surfing

Be easily amused but skeptically impressed.

There are days when you wake up and just know it is going to be a good day. Despite everything else, that’s how I woke up this morning. In the middle of a tempest, I’m having a ball!

Not only has today been a good day, but it has actually been a good week. I’ve been quietly moving through the trenches at work to make some changes and tighten up existing processes. My motivation is that I’ve been worried about what would happen if the process was stalled by a certain piece of the business. This week, a small bubble of what I’ve been afraid of came to light.

Am I being cryptic? Sure, but the bottom line is that the little bubble got the attention of the right people. These right people are in the right place to help add the weight behind the work I’ve been doing. Even better, before anything bubbled up, the steps needed to minimize the impact to the business were already in place and working. I put those steps in motion and I did it before anything started to seem messy. Yesterday, my executives were worried because someone said the sky was falling. Today Chicken Little looks like they were overreacting, because every issue they raised was either negated by noon or on target to be negated within the next two days.

My managers went into a command performance meeting with less than 24 hours notice armed with the information needed to completely defuse the situation AND show that steps are already in place to any prevent future occurrences.

Does it get much better? To the top brass, it looks like we have our stuff straight. To the local brass, I just made them look really good and did it in such a way that was drama free. The “I”s were dotted, the “T”s were crossed and all my people look good.

I’m sure some people would think this was stressful, but I’m excited. I thrive on making positive changes. In this case, I had the foresight to put backup plans in place, I’ve designed mapped out the strategy to prevent future mishaps and I’m having fun!

Now where did I leave my white horse?

• I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
• I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.
• I would have talked less and listened more.
• I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded.
• I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
• I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.
• I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.
• I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
• I would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.
• I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life.
• I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
• Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
• When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."
• There would have been more "I love you's." More "I'm sorry's."
• But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute...look at it and really see it, live it and never give it back. Stop sweating the small stuff.

Don't worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what.

Instead, let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.

Let's think about what we have been blessed with. And what we are doing each day to promote ourselves mentally, physically, emotionally. I hope you all have a glorious day.

Maybe we should all grab that purple hat.
Feel free to pass this on to five (or more) phenomenal women today.
If you do, something good will happen: you will boost another woman's self esteem.
In memory of Erma Bombeck, Patricia, Heather and all the incredible women who have touched my life on the way through their own.

Want to talk to an actual person instead of a VRU (voice response unit)? This man behind this may be my new favorite person: http://www.gethuman.com/

I'd like to thank the New York Times for bringing this to my attention in "Your Call Should Be Important to Us, but it's Not"

If you can't find it on the NYTimes site, I've saved it for my own reference.