This isn't rocket science people....

As many of you know, I am a secretary. And as a secretary, answering the phone is a major part of my work day. In my office there are 3 phones with 2 lines each. It's not unusual for all 6 lines to be ringing at any given time. Thank God for voice mail. Which brings me to my point in this blog. How to leave a message.

This is not rocket science people. All you have to do is listen to the recorded message and then follow the directions. Most voice mail prompts as you to "Leave your name and number and the nature of your call," and the person you're leaving the message for will if at all possible return your call. Simple you'd think right? Wrong! You'd be surprised at how difficult the task of leaving a message is for some people.

The first major issue is that people don't listen to the recorded message. They simply dial a number and then blurt out their message. Many times getting the wrong number. I work in the Rehab Services Department at the local hospital. If you listen to the recorded message, "You have reached the Rehab Services Department" is clearly stated. It never fails that when we check the messages (say for example after lunch hour) that there is at least 2 messages left for other departments in the hospital, another for the gift shop, and often times someone has left a message similar to ..."Bob, this is John Smith. Call me back." What's wrong with the last message you might ask? Well first off, No one named Bob works there in the department. And secondly when we call them back to find out what they wanted from said Bob, the typical response is "Rehab Services...? I was calling Bobby Brown. We play golf together on Fridays." (Insert heavy sigh from secretary here.)

Then we run into the people who get the right number, leave all the pertinent details in their message but then neglect to leave a return phone number. And when you don't call them back, they call you back all huffy mad that you didn't call them. *Note, in most offices the squeaky wheel gets oiled. If you left a message and it's been a week and no one's called you back, you might have forgotten to leave a number... Call back and we'd be happy to help you. (Insert secretary pounding their head on their desk in frustration here.)

My personal favorite messages are the ones where people don't understand that they are talking to a voice mail. (See not listening to recorded message above.) It never fails to amaze me that people will sit through the entire recorded message and then say "Hello.... Hello..I'm calling for __insert name here___..are you there? Hello..Hello!" Well duh....if we were there we'd be responding to you, not just sitting there in silence.

The truly sad thing is that this happens on our personal phones as well as work phones. And people wonder why secretaries don't like answering the phone after work hours. We've just spent the last 8 hours dealing with wrong numbers, belligerent people, and wasting hours trying to figure out what in the heck people want.

5 more minutes ma... 5 more minutes...

Hey gang,

I should be doing about 50 other things right now. But, I'm stalling.

I was sorting books to keep and to get rid of. But then I got bored and started sorting clothes into "these fit me," "If I lose 5 more lbs this will fit me," and these are way the heck to big" piles. Got bored again and started cleaning the bathroom until the fumes from the cleaning supplies were giving me a headache. Then I got hungry so I took a break to eat some dinner. Sat down at my computer and don't want to get up and start working again.

I really need to finish all these projects becuase I'm having people over to the apartment tomorrow. I'll get it done, but...

5 more minutes and I'll get back to work... I promise! 5 more minutes.

The gift of me...

2 gifts set before you. One elegantly wrapped in expensive wrapping with an explosion of ribbons and bows. The other simply wrapped in brown paper held together by a lone piece of twine. Which would you choose? Would you pick the same gift if you knew that one of the boxes contained a priceless item and the other contained nothing more than something found at a dollar store. 9 times out of ten you're going to select the fancy gift, right? You cant know which is which until you open the package.

As you know I've been on a diet. Working diligently to change my physical appearance. Attempting to make the "gift" of myself more attractive to others. The whole time the inner me is screaming "Notice me, (the gift) not my appearance (the outer wrapping.) See how valuable I am as a person. NOTICE ME!" But alas, today's society focuses on outward appearances. So, I keep plugging away at the diet and exercise. I'm 10 lbs away from my goal. And it's true what they say that the last 10 lbs is the hardest too lose.

The sad part is that even though I've lost 45 lbs and kept it off for a year, I still mentally see myself as the short heavy girl I was in the past. I look in the mirror and see the same person this morning that I saw the year before last. So, I've really been working on the mental change as well as the physical change my body is going through. I've come to the conclusion that gaining self confidence is harder than losing the weight. I am a beautiful woman with alot to offer. So watch out world the new me is here. And I'm here to stay! I'll always work on my figure and self confidence but baby, I've come a long way.

Here's me in December 2006:

And here I am now. 45 lbs off and still counting: