8.28.2008

Made It - One Day Down, Four More to Go

Made it to Moline, IL tonight. I always love the drive through Illinois, as I pass signs for cities that I've lived in or spent memorable moments in. Chicago, Rockford, Sterling, Peoria...DeKalb, Princeton, Dixon. Good times. The Quad Cities is a place especially close to me, since my Grandpa S. lived here since I can remember, so there is not a place in this city that doesn't remind me of him and the time we spent together.

I took a few pics from the road, but am too tired to load them. I'm starting day 2 at 7am tomorrow, so I should try to get some sleep.

And...I don't want to jinx it...but I think the Bears are going to beat the Browns. Yeah!!!

Luck is with me. So far.

This morning I awoke at 4am and couldn't get back to sleep. This afternoon I head to Iowa to pick up my mom's surprise. I got up, finished packing, did a little house cleaning and left a little bit later than my normal time. Made it about 13 miles north on the interstate where I was, at most, six cars behind a set of cars that would be involved in a pretty bad collision. I was lucky enough not to see it, and even luckier not to be in it. And also lucky that the guy behind me who was following me exceptionally close didn't run into the back of me when we had to go from 60 mph to 0 in a matter of seconds. (Squealing tires and seeing the car behind you pull to the shoulder to avoid you is never a good thing.)

It turns out one of my accounting department employees was almost in the crash. She saw some of what happened but didn't stop. Don't agree with it, but I'm glad she's ok. Too many close calls before 7:30am; with those out of the way hopefully the rest of the day will be smooth sailing. If I'm awake enough, I'll drop a line when I'm in Iowa.

8.26.2008

Wallace and Gromit...Fashion Models???


As a big W&G fan, I was surprised to find this news article this morning here.

Even more exciting is that I didn't know they were making another W&G movie. If you have not seen "The Incredible Adventures of Wallace and Gromit" (1996), it is a must-see. Good stuff.

"Cheese, Gromit! Cheeeeeeese!"

Thoughts From a Cat

I can't believe I just did this, but I came up with a poem for the card I'm making for the cat to "give" to my mom. Yikes.

Today is an appropriate time to say,
I appreciate all you do for me each day.

Feeding me, brushing me, giving me pills,
In an effort to cure me of all of my ills.

Letting me lay in comfortable baskets,
While I look out the windows at stray cats making a racket.

Petting me, soothing me, calling me yours,
As a cat I could never feel more adored.

Holding me in your arms, rubbing my head,
Putting up with my loud cries when I want to be fed.

As my mom, you're at the top of the list,
No one else in this world would have treated me like this.

So on this Monday, first day in September,
I want to wish you a Happy 60th Birthday to remember.

8.25.2008

Operation Hot Mother

Since Brad convinced me that this is the new, hot thing to do, I created a Facebook account on Friday. I'm not sure why, especially since I have no time to devote to it these days. But, it's there. I'm doubtful I'll stick with it for long, as I'm a big fan of Blogger, but you never know. At minimum I'll use it to provide me with quotes from shows like "Arrested Development" and "The Office" so I can start my day with a smile.

This weekend was entirely consumed with birthday planning for my mom. I keep referring to it in my head as "Operation Hot Mother", which is an "Arrested Development" thing. In this case, the word "Hot" refers to my mother possibly being really steamed at me bringing my Grandma here as a surprise. Yes, it's weird, but by doing something nice I could possibly get myself a wall of silence from my mom for an undefined amount of time.

So what have I accomplished? Well, I made test cake #2 and test frosting #3, and actually decided to use it for the real thing. The recipe is from the Magnolia Bakery in New York, and I had recently seen them highlighted on a Food Network show. I'm using their "Vanilla Vanilla" recipe, except I'm having to adjust it a bit since the cake will be 11" x 15". It is, by far, the best cake I've made from scratch.

I managed to get most of the cake decorations put together, which consist of scrapbook decor, mini photos, Scrabble letters and a few calculator keys. It seems like it would be an easy thing, but it took me hours to put together. You'll see why when I post pictures of the final cake. I made restaurant arrangements, planned meals and grocery lists, finalized travel, and got some stuff to make a unique birthday sign/banner. Bought a gift for the cat to give my mom, which is a nice frame with a cute picture of him before he got cancer. (He's still alive, which is why she can't bring herself to leave him and visit family in Iowa). I tried different decorating tips for the frosting, deciding which ones I was going to use when I had the real, final cake in front of me, and also made a few store stops for odds and ends.

When I type this out it doesn't seem like much, yet it took me all weekend to accomplish it. Tonight I'm going to go to the Party Station and pick up some containers for food transportation, since we'll be having a picnic at Blossom (an outdoor music venue) Sunday evening before hearing the Cleveland Orchestra's "Night at the Movies". I need to make the banners and birthday signage, and go through the fridge and cupboards to see if there is anything I can toss before buying the huge load of groceries tomorrow night for the weekend. I have to do laundry, pack, hand-make two birthday cards (one from Brad and I, another one from the cat), wrap gifts, and make a list of stuff I need to get during my short time in Iowa, like the good C&H sugar that you can't find in Ohio (yes, the sugar we have here is really that bad). Oh, and I need to clean my car, since right now it looks like a car I spend 65+ miles a day in. Is it possible that I can accomplish all of this in three evenings, between the hours of 6:30pm and 10:30pm? Hmmm...probably not, but I'll die trying.

I'm hoping that through my hard work and long hours now, that Friday evening will come and I'll be able to just sit back and enjoy the family. Well, at least enjoy them in between the cooking of meals and of course baking and decorating the cake. And if my mom is ticked at me for all I've done...well, then hopefully at least everyone else will enjoy themselves. There's no stopping Operation Hot Mother now.

8.22.2008

Mission: Take Down the Ohio Healthy Families Act

I know my mission is impossible to accomplish on my own, but I have one key goal from now until the November election - do everything in my own power to get people educated and informed on the Ohio Healthy Families Act that is likely to be on the ballot so it's voted DOWN.

First of all, I'm not against people being "healthy." In fact, I'm all for it, especially since I have a huge lack of health myself. I do, however, have a problem with this new potential mandate that could take effect in Ohio this December.

This Act would mandate that all employers with 25 employees or more provide a minimum of 7 paid sick days per year. Here's what else it requires:

  • The new policy must take effect within 30 days after it is approved by the voters
  • Employees must be allowed to take off sick time in hour increments or smaller, whatever their payroll system allows
  • Employees may not be asked to provide proof of being sick unless they are out three full consecutive days
  • Employers are not allowed to reduce vacation, personal or holiday time once the bill is enacted, which would probably be in an effort to make up for the increased amount of sick days and the additional financial burden it could put on the company
  • A minimum of up to 7 days of sick time must be allowed to carry over into the next business year
  • Part-time employees must receive prorated sick time based on the average hours worked per week
  • Employers are not allowed to factor in any sick time taken in their attendance policy, nor can employers include it as a factor on any type of "employee review"
  • Employees can take sick time not only for themselves, but to care for any type of family member.
The proposed Act is so poorly written that it does not address PTO time, whether sick time has to be "paid out" if an employee quits or is terminated, etc. It gives the employer no ground to stand on when it comes to employee "sick" time; the employee is in complete control.

Here is my issue. Ohio is already considered a horrible state to have a business in. Businesses are failing left and right, the unemployment rate is high (especially in Cleveland), and pretty much everyone is suffering in some way. The state is a mess. Companies are leaving the state, and people have few employment opportunities. So, this group - Ohioans for Healthy Families - decides that the best way to become an "employer friendly" state is to force 7 days of paid sick leave, giving the employee all of the power and the employer absolutely none. Seriously, they think this is going to entice companies to come here, or so they say. The main backers, from what I can tell, are unions and the Democrat party, though the Governor is saying he is against the Act.

This group's argument is that dozens and dozens of Ohioans have lost or almost lost their jobs because they had to take time off to care for themselves or a loved one. Yes - dozens, according to their spokesperson. They quote statistics such as "Only 52% of Ohioans have paid sick leave." Um...are they counting PTO time? No, just sick leave. It's all about wording. Every statistic they quote is craftily worded, and more than half of them are regarding other states or regions/cities. They talk about how people are finding it difficult to take off work. Sure, I relate to that. It's tough to take time off with my responsibilities, but it in no way has to do with a lack of paid sick time. That's what happens when you are a working adult - you have responsibilities and choices.

I'm going to use my own company as an example. We offer employees up to 30 days of sick leave. Yes, 30 paid days. If someone is sick less than 4 hours, we don't count it as sick time. When we do employee reviews we mark someone down in the attendance category if they are out more than the company sick day average (4 days), unless there were special circumstances. It rarely impacts the employee's increase. When we think people are abusing the system, such as constantly taking 2-3 hours off several days a week for claimed doctor's visits, we ask for a doctor's note. After all, we are a service business, and if someone is unreliable and constantly taking off and calling in late due to sick-related excuses, it hurts the department and the company.

If this new Act passes, we are forced to change our whole system. Why? Because now we offer up to thirty days, but with this new Act it MANDATES that employees have seven full sick days to use however they wish. Sure, the seven days are to be used for sick time, but when an employer can't do anything to control the usage, those seven days become additional vacation time for those who typically have minimal sick time. Remember, our average employee takes only 4 days of paid sick time per year, not seven.

And it is not just our company who is looking at having to reduce their sick leave policies. I've spoken with a lot of companies who are very generous and flexible on their sick time, who are also looking at having to reduce their vacation and holiday time off prior to the Act passing/being enacted so the financial hit is minimized. Remember, 30 days after the Act is voted for the company is stuck with whatever policy they have for all time off at that point. Days off could be increased, but not decreased.

I hate to say this, but most Ohioans do not actively follow what is going on in their city, region, county or state. It is completely different from living in Minnesota, when the media outlets did a great job of educating people, and it was easy to gain additional information. I always felt like I knew what was going on. In Ohio, I feel like most issues are worked out behind closed doors. No one knows what is going on, and there is a huge lack of places to find this information out. It is a very shady system, and the people allow it to happen.

What will likely happen in November is that people will go to the polls and see this Act on the ballot. Most people will have no clue about the details Ohio Healthy Families Act, but when they have the option to vote whether employees should get seven paid sick days a year, the majority will vote yes. Unfortunately those individuals will have no clue what other stipulations come with that "Yes" vote. They won't think about the financial implications it will have on companies and job opportunities. They will vote it in, and Ohio will just sink further. It's another reason B and I are looking to leave here as soon as it's feasible.

So, from now until election day, I will do my best to inform people of the initiative, contact government representatives, do what I can to protect my company and the employees, and hope that in the end the people of Ohio will vote this thing down. If you are reading this and live in Ohio, I encourage you to do your research on this issue before you vote. Nothing in this world is free - everything comes with a price.

8.19.2008

Only nine days???

Exactly nine days from now I will be finishing the quarterly financial review with the Board members. Always a big task, but this time the meeting will be held in the morning, at a country club on the east side. While everyone will be making their way to the golf course afterwards, I'll be getting in the car and driving eight-plus hours to Moline, Illinois.

I remember when I started planning my Iowa trip several months ago. At that point I had plenty of time ahead of me to get things done for my mom's 60th. Now, however, I'm left with nine days. Nine very, very short days, and most of them workdays as well.

This is the point where I start beating myself up mentally about not getting things taken care of sooner. Granted, a large part of my procrastination was due to my health. I was hoping by the time Summer came that I'd have some sort of diagnosis and subsequent medication. Well, for me there was no miracle, so I'm now worse off than I was at the start of this, and I have nine days to get everything done. Yes, I've been slowly working on things over the last few weeks, but I feel I've made little progress. A slip on the stairs Friday caused a hurt right knee and sharp pains to the left of my spine (different than what I typically have), so this past weekend was worthless.

There are reservations to make, meals to plan, supplies and groceries to buy, a house to clean, a bathroom to finish painting, gifts to wrap, a car to clean and many, many other "to do" items. Oh, and then there is the cake I need to make and design. Yikes, it's even worse when I type it all out! It's comical, yet...not.

Well, nine days are better than one, so I better start crossing some stuff off the list. I have exactly two minutes left of my lunch...maybe I can get one reservation made.

8.11.2008

One of Many Reasons I Hate The Cleveland Clinic

So today at lunch I had to do what I most hate - try to get a hold of my doctor's office and request a prescription refill. It sounds so simple, doesn't it? In the old days, you'd pick up the phone, call the office, talk with a secretary or nurse. They would then call you back, refill the prescription and you're done. If it took you more than 5 minutes it was a rarity.

But now the trend is automation, voice mail, hold buttons and transfers. I now have to call the main Clinic line; waiting on hold until the one operator is available to take my call. I then say the doctor's name, and that I need a prescription refilled. They transfer me; I'm put on hold again. After a few minutes someone answers. I indicate my name, that I need a refill, and I'm transferred again. And once again I'm on hold.

Then, something new happened today. While I was waiting on hold for the third time, I find myself in an automated prescription refill "center". I'm told my a pre-recorded voice that I will be asked 11 questions, which I am to answer. After I'm done with each answer I am to press the # key.

So I answer the first five questions. Fine, no big deal. Then I get to a prompt that says if I need the prescription mailed, to leave my mailing address. I don't need it mailed, so I don't say anything and hit the # key. I'm then told that there was nothing recorded...and then I'm booted from the system with a "goodbye."

I then start the process all over again, except this time the fourth person I talk to is willing to take down my information on the refill. The total conversation time that took - less than 1 minute. The total time it took me to refill one prescription - 24 minutes.

And this doesn't include the hassle I go through to get the prescription. Usually they write it a day or two later, typically after the point where I'm completely out. It then shows up on my electronic medical record that it's been sent to the pharmacy. Except when I check my pharmacy account online, it's no where to be seen. That's because it takes them an extra day or two to call it in once it's been written.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again - "The" Cleveland Clinic is a joke. Unless you're a celebrity who will get them press, you're just another cow in the pasture.

8.08.2008

An Opportunity

Just when I think I have no luck at all, I get this sent to me this morning. The tides are turning! Since I'm the type of person who likes to share the wealth, if anyone wants to join me on this life-changing venture just let me know.

Hi,

Permit me to inform you of our desire to go into business relationship with you. And let me start by para-phrasing the content of this message to your understanding, I work with Blackwater U.S.A, a US Security Contractor in Iraq that provides security protection for
American diplomats.

Two months ago my team carried out a raid in a Shiite militia stronghold south of Baghdad,Iranian-made weapons were among a large cache of arms and ammunition found during the operations and amount totaling US$35 Million in cash believed intended for use to purchase more arms or to finance the militia activities to frustrate US rebuilding of Iraq goals.

3 of the Senior officers in my team which includes me, have agreed and decided to keep this amount to ourself, reason why i have contacted you to assist us transfer this amount out of Iraq, and after our time in Iraq in some months time, we shall come for the sharing of the
money.

We are willing to offer you the sum of US$3.5M (10% of the total sum) if you could assist us, we hope to hear from you soon in this regard.

Laurie Zaleski
Blackwater USA LLC
Baghdad-Iraq.

08/08/08

I always find it amusing when people make a big deal when the month, day and last two digits of the year are the same. Maybe it's just me, but I don't understand the infatuation of some people with symmetrical dates. And what's funnier is that while some view it as good luck, others think the world will end. I'm sorry, but to me it's just another date, and just another Friday.

Then again, maybe if the Bears had played the Chiefs today, they would have won. Did the "08/07/08" throw them off their game? On the other hand, B is I'm sure thrilled with that result, because the Chiefs are his team. So confusing.

8.07.2008

Poor Cleveland

So this morning I'm driving up to the office building, and the cars are backed up to the street corner. As I neared the entrance, I saw that the cause of the backup was a car search going on for the parking garage next door - which is the Cleveland Federal building.

Security had two lines of cars, and they were going through trunks and the main part of the cars. I saw one security guy digging through someone's bag. Interesting.

While nationally it's received no attention, Cuyahoga County (where Cleveland is located) and several cities have been under investigation by the FBI in recent weeks. Offices have been raided, and they continue to expand the search. Is this extra security related to the investigation? Is it a random act they are required to do once in a great while? Or is there a perceived threat?

Exciting times in Cleveland. Oh, and did you hear the city also was #4 on the "Top Ten List of Dying Cities?" Hence why no one questions us from here when B and I talk openly about getting out of here in the next year or two.