Ugh...ok, I'm starting to think it's operator error. I have tried to comment on Shirley's and Karebare's post and I get and 'error on page' message. This isn't the first time it's happened...they we nice comments too! I'm posting this from my phone...I'll try to comment using my laptop at home tonight.

I must apologize for my behavior in class this evening. It clearly states in our syllabus that texting is not allowed. Well, I did text, but in my defense I blame our wonderful instructor. Yes, I blame you Mandy!

Every week in class we cover something that just gets my mind to racing. I'm like, "ooh, I can apply this concept there, or I can apply this tactic here, etc., etc. Well, tonight was no different, however, this time I could not wait. I texted my niece, who is planning an event for a few hundred people and I asked her if she had considered a few things--things that Mandy was covering in class tonight. I would have felt personally responsible if my neice had an unsuccessful event because I had some information that may have helped her but failed to share it with her because I forgot!

So, my neice and I exchanged a few emails and I feel better knowing that I shared what I learned in class.

You rock Mandy!

OMG! I just learned how to post to my blog via text! Look out world...let the thoughts of my mind flow!!!

I apologize Microsoft, but only a little...LOL

Ok, I found the solution to my problem and it took less than 2 minutes to search Microsoft's website, select the result I thought was closest to my issue, read the solution and follow the directions.

I'm sorry, because the feature I was ranting and raving about not being an easy find was right in front of my face the entire time. HOWEVER, in my defense I will say although it was there, they changed the wording so it didn't stand out to me when I looked for 3 days!

Yes, I do feel a little bad about my post, but it still doesn't take away the frustration I felt for 3 days, so I call it even. At least I was able to vent and de-stress.

I am so frustrated right now!!!!

I recently upgraded to Microsoft Office 2007 and I hate it!!! I hate it because you have to re-learn things you already know or they change some features/functionality!

For example, "Freezing Panes" in Excel. Before I could select the cell where I wanted the panes to be frozen, so that as I am scrolling through the spreadsheet the headers (labels) at the top and the columns to the left don't move. This feature is very helpful because it keeps you from scrolling back to see what information your looking at.

I'm in Personnel, so my data is people; names, employee numbers, titles, etc. In this particular spreadsheet, I need to freeze the 1st 4 columns on the left HOWEVER, in the newever version of Excel it only freezes the first column. My first column is the employee number, I can't identify who I'm looking at by the number, so my option would be to move my columns so that the last name is the first column. Well, this doesn't help. Why? We have employees with the same last name. So, I'm back to square one trying to figure out which employee I'm looking at. So, when you're working with a large spreadsheet this can be frustrating---scrolling back and forth. I don't know how many times I've scrolled back only to forget the data I was looking at originally. So, I scroll back, try to remember the number in my head, and scroll back to the front section--UGH!!!

So, let me stop complaining and start looking through Microsoft's website to determine if there is a solution to this. I'm sure there is, but this is a part of my frustration....why change these features that have been common with all versions of Excel, only to have to go hunt for the solution. I just need to calm down long enough to find the fix, but then I start thinking about the other features that are no longer a simple task, but a long drawn out process of many steps.

Wish me luck!

It's a Brand New Day-- So, Why Do I Feel the Same as Yesterday?

Before I stepped foot out of bed, I promised myself that today would be a new day. I had that gut feeling that today would be a new day. Well, it is now 8:17 AM and today is not a new day. Why isn't it a new day? Because I'm struggling with IDONTWANNABEATWORKITIS. I've been affected with this bug for 3 days now. Perhaps I should schedule an appointment with my doctor.

This bug could be deadly. For example, yesterday I spent a good portion of time contemplating playing the lottery. If only I could win the lottery. If only I would win the lottery, I kept chanting. Then I could do as I please. I confided in a dear friend with my struggles, but he told me winning the lottery would not solve my problems. "On the contrary!" I said. I know myself well enough that I would not go overboard with my spending if I would come into a lot of money. I'm a financially responsible person. I'm so financially responsible, that I didn't play lottery last night, even though the Powerball Jackpot was $96 Million. Why? Losing my money gambling is not being a good steward. Let me give you some other examples:

I went to the casino with my younger sister. My intentions were to have lunch with her and just enjoy our time together. I talked as she put her money in the slot and pressed the button. (on a side note, I think they took the fun out of pulling the handle and hearing the coins clink clink clink if you did win any thing). Well, I guess she got tired of me just standing there, so she handed me two $1 dollar bills and told me to play. I held the money in my hand and thought to myself, "I can put these two dollars in my pocket and be ahead" but then I knew that wasn't right, if I was going to do that, I should give my sister back her money. So, I figured she was going to play the $2 dollars regardless so I might as well do it. I put the money in the slot machine and just started pushing buttons and lo and behold, it's flashing and the counter is moving fast. I WON! I was so excited. I exclaimed, "I'M CASHING OUT!" My sister and her friend were excited for me and waited anxiously to find out how much I won. $8 DOLLARS! I said with excitement. Her friend asked me if I was serious. "Yes!" as I clapped my hands with joy. I took my ticket to the redemption machine, gave my sister back the $2 dollars she gave me and pocketed the remaining $6 dollars. It wasn't a lot of money, but I could say that I was $6 dollars richer that day.

So, you see, if I were to win the lottery I think I wouldn't succumb to the "lottery curse." I would manage my money well enough that I could take an extended leave of absence from my work. But until that day comes, I guess I better get my head out of the clouds and do some work!

I'm Back!

I'm back from vacation. How was it you ask? It was good. I was a little surprised at myself when I visited a few of the monuments...I wasn't moved as I thought I would be. I truly felt as though I had been there many times before, therefore there was no excitement. How strange was that.

OH, I did have a high point. I tried taking a picture of a squirrel eating on something for my daugther. (She loves animals and I'm certain this is the one picture she'll be most interested in.) A homeless person tried to scare the squirrel away, then he tried to scare me away. I stood my ground and aimed my camera at the squirrel and ignored the man. My suitor, made a successful attempt to distract the homeless man's attention on me to him. And it worked.

I wasn't the least bit scared of the man, probably because it was in broad daylight and there were tons of people around. My date was so proud of himself for distracting the guy, that I had to bit my tongue so I would say "but I wasn't afraid of the guy." I know men need to feel needed and that one small statement could have ruined the rest of our day. I thought it was rather noble of him to "protect" me so I gave him a big grin and said "thank you!"

Washington DC Here I Come!

I am so excited that I'll be spending 4 days in DC. I've always wanted to visit DC, mainly because of it's history, but now I'm visiting for other reasons too! Let me get back to my excitement. I am so excited that I started packing for my trip Tuesday evening. The only problem, by Wednesday evening I had completely forgotten what I had pack. I tried running through my mental list, but to no aval, I had no clue if I had packed just pants and no tops or only tops and no pants. What about my toiletteries? Dang!

So, I just finished UNPACKING and REPACKING my bag. I actually had everything in the bag, minus a scarf and the gifts. I wish I had not unpacked it, because now I shoved a few extra items in the bag JUST IN CASE. I just realized I need a pair of black trouser socks!

Let me get up and put that in my bag right now!

Advertising Works

Advertisement does work! I enjoy looking through the fashion magazines, namely just to waste time and see how out of touch I am with fashion. But I don't think I'm too out of touch. Why? Because I have yet to see the majority of the population wearing some of the stuff seen in these magazines. Some of the color combinations are to over the top for me, including the fabric combinations.

Well, a few weeks ago I was flipping through a magazine discard by one of my co-workers. This magazine had a section featuring First Lady Michelle Obama and her sense of fashion. I like her style, but what caught my attention was one outfit in particular. It was a purple dress and snake skin type pumps. The color of the dress wasn't too over the top, and I have been wanting to add color to my wardrobe, but I get stuck in certain areas. In this particular case it was the shoes that I loved. They complimented the dress perfectly. They weren't plain jane, but had some "umph" to them. I said to myself, that's what I've been missing.

This weekend I was in the mall and came upon the shoe clearance rack at Macy's and there they were. A pair of snake skin, taupe/black/white peep toe, 4 inch pumps! The first think I thought was, those are just like the shoes Michelle Obama had on. I have NEVER been moved to buy anything worn by a celebrity. It is an insult to my intelligence to have someone I don't know, who doesn't know me try to convince me that I'm not "with it" because I'm not rushing out to purchase whatever the hottest celeb is wearing. Well, I laughed at myself, because they won...the faceless marketing people, hawking someone's product got me....lol

I'm still glad that I made the purchase, because I truly was looking for a nice pair of pumps that where not black or brown to add to my wardrobe. I think I will stop looking through these magazines with a slightly turned up nose. They can actually be useful, because although I like to dress nicely, I don't care to shop, unless I know where I can find exactly what I'm looking for. In most instances, this isn't the case. You spend hours going from store to store looking for the right whatever. I will know use these magazines as a resource, to help me fine tune what I'm looking for to add to my wardrobe.