Bits & Pieces

Just in case y'all wanted an update on the Admin. Asst. situation from last week. My boss was livid, to say the least, that he would try and take advantage of the fact the she was out of the office and say he worked the whole day. So, because of that, she has reigned him in- BIG TIME. She sent him a list of guidelines that he is to adhere to and he is to be here at all times except for his one hour lunch break (which now must be the same time every day) and any other times he must have prior permission. He is also no longer allowed to "work through lunch" so that he can leave early, and if he needs to leave early for an appointment, he must take a lunch and then use annual leave. So, his wings have been clipped because of his antics in trying to pull the wool over her eyes.

In other news, I just thought I'd be able to keep up with blogs, but nope- now my laptop is dead...again. This time it looks like I need a new hard drive. So no computer at home until I can order a new hard drive and have the web guy at work install it- which will probably end up being next week.

This weekend I have another bachelorette party (this time at Lake Murray) as well as a home & garden shower on Saturday evening for a separate wedding, and a birthday cookout on Sunday, so I'm going to be super busy! This past weekend I went home and spent a relaxing weekend with my parents, as well as went shopping in Charleston for various upcoming gifts and supplies for parties, showers, etc. I did get a new pair of tennis shoes on sale at the Nike Outlet, and my mom bought me some new white Jeans from the Ann Taylor Outlet (on sale that day for $30!!).

That's all the news I've got today- I hope to have something more exciting for you really soon!

Holy giveaway, Batman!

So, I had never stumbled upon Fantabulously Frugal's website until all of you lovely ladies posted about her giveaway. I am ashamed to admit I have just become a follower and didn't find her sooner.

Now, talk about a giveaway! This is THE giveaway of ALL giveaways...seriously. I would not lie.

Here's what she's giving one lucky person:

Decorative envelopes from etsy seller Adnagam
Frango Dark Chocolate Mints
Sunshine Yellow Hair Pins from etsy seller creamrose
Purple Rain Amethyst Earrings from etsy seller Sew*Cool Design
Paperchase 8 Folded Cards with Envelopes
Small change purse from etsy seller Made by Hank
Cucumber Melon Salty Soap Scrub from etsy seller Sissy Soap
Soap Nuts from Laundry Tree
Spring Flower Garden Cupcake Liners from etsy seller Layer Cake Shop
2 Vera Bradley cloth napkins
Musings Recycled Notebook in Blue from etsy seller subu
Fleur de Lis Necklace from etsy seller Bumble Beadz
Marc Jacobs key fob
Stationery and small letter-pressed notebook from etsy seller Sarah Drake
Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Protective Recovery Complex
Coriander Ivory Small Cosmetic Bag from etsy seller The Sweet Sugar Beet
Smashbox Lip Gloss
Reusable Sandwich & Snack Bags from etsy seller Green Street
Reversible Coffee Sleeve from etsy seller LilE
Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
OPI Nail Polish
Stick With Me, Kid Shopping Tote from etsy seller Earth Cadets
As well as MANY MORE surprises!

Go over there, now to register and tell her that USCEmily sent you! Her button is on my sidebar or you can click on one of my handy links. Hurry up!

An Addendum to the previous post

AA came in sometime while I was at lunch from 12:15-1:15. I had already emailed my boss to let her know the situation today (I didn't rat him out for anything else this week). At about 12:45 she had emailed me to see what the update was because AA sent her his timesheet for this week saying he had worked all day today.
Oh.No.He.Didn't.

Shirking his duties

To say I am annoyed with our administrative assistant would be putting it mildly. Our boss has been out this week with both the death of her mother and birth of her granddaughter- yes, she's had quite the week. Because she has been out, the AA has been taking FULL, and I mean FULL advantage of it.

Here's how.
Tuesday- He said he worked through lunch so asked if he could leave early- this is acceptable sometimes, but only when we get prior permission.
Wednesday- He worked til 4:30 and then asked to leave- I can't even remember why.
Thursday- He took a 2 hour lunch and then proceeded to ask to leave at 4:30 so he could go to the dealership to do something with his car- what, I don't know (I highly doubt this was even true).
Today- He is not here- AA called the other guy in the office (our web guy) saying he was having nosebleeds. Which, he may or may not be having, but seriously- sounds like yet another excuse to me.

Here is why I am aggravated. Technically, I am over him when our boss is not here. However, given the fact that he is 32 and I am 27, I don't really know how to just put my foot down and tell him he needs to quit slacking. I know for a fact he was out late last night because one of the student assistants (yes, I said STUDENT assistants) from down the hall came in and said he had been out with one of her friends last night. See, that's the thing- I know he goes out like every single night with all of the students that work in the Dean's Office, and then he'll call in late or just come in late. We have a policy that if you are in by 8:45 (the work day technically starts at 8:30) then you don't have to call in. Well, this is pretty much every day for him. And the thing is, he's the AA- he's supposed to be here at all times except for a one hour lunch break so that he can answer the phone- it's in his job description. My boss gets really upset when she calls in and nobody answers the phone because we are the office of External Relations (in other words, we cater to our alumni and the public and can't have the phone ringing off the hook unanswered). So when he goes on these 2 hour lunch breaks and someone else's lunch break coincides, it leaves nobody here to answer the phone.

Maybe I am being petty, but it's just annoying because that is his job. I'm not trying to act like I am better than him because I am not the AA- lord knows, I'm not that high on the hog around here. However, if my job was to be here to answer the phone and that meant being in the office at all times, except for a one hour lunch break, by God I'd be here. And apparently, according to the web guy that AA called, he may or may not be in today. C'mon- a nosebleed does not last ALL FREAKING DAY. Coincidence that he went out last night and it is Friday? I think not.

Oh, and I would also like to add that he was on vacation all last week and Monday, so it's not like he's even worked a full week lately. Grr. I could get him in all sorts of trouble with our boss if she knew just how far he pushed the boundaries this week, but I won't because I'm not a tattletale. So, I'll just vent to y'all.

Thanks for listening (I am beginning to sound like a complete griper). Sorry :-(

Thursday Tidbits

• I just had a White Chocolate Caramel Creamice from Starbucks- Major FAIL. I was reminded why I don't generally like Starbucks. This drink was WAY too sweet. I drank like half of a small and was beginning to feel sick. I would not recommend this drink in that particular flavor (I can't speak for the other flavors, however)- steer clear if you don't like sickly sweet drinks with a coffee aftertaste.
• I am finally caught up with posts in my Google Reader- hopefully I can stay that way at least until next weekend when I'll be on another Bachelorette party and not able to read for 2 whole days.
• I need a nap. I have been dragging today and almost falling asleep at my desk. That is probably what prompted me to think that the Starbucks next to my office was a good option for a caffeine burst. Not so much.
• I'm ready for a weekend at home with my family for Father's Day. Sometimes you just need a low-key weekend with your parents to slow down and relax!
• Before next weekend, I must purchase: birthday gift, lingerie gift, and home & garden shower gift, as well as bachelorette items, which I will not name specifically since Carolyn, the bride, reads my blog. Saturday will be spent with my parents in Charleston purchasing said gifts.
• I have completed 7 days with Jillian and The Shred and gained 3 pounds. Um, NOT FAIR. WEG says it's muscle, but I am not seeing the muscle yet, so it's discouraging. However, I am going to charge on and hope that results start appearing. So far I only missed Friday- wedding day and Sunday- cleaned the house and did various other things, so I'm pretty proud of myself.
• Is it really only 2:39?! This day is never-ending.

That's all I have for now- sorry that was so random, but I have a lot of hodge-podge bouncing around in my head!!

I must confess...

My google reader is a bit out of control! Because of the wedding weekend, I didn't read any blogs from Thursday afternoon through Monday morning and, as a result, they have piled up!

Therefore, I am doing my best to keep my finger from pushing the "Mark all as read" button. In the process, I will confess that I am somewhat skimming blogs. If something pops out at me, you may get a sporadic comment here and there. I feel bad about doing this, but I would feel worse if I didn't read anything at all.

So, if you're wondering where my comments are, I promise I will catch up today and tonight and be back to commenting tomorrow...hopefully!

Just wanted y'all to know I haven't forgotten you!!

Introducing.....

MY NEW BEACH CHAIR!! :-)
The Ostrich 3n1 beach chair is pretty much the bomb- yes, I just called it "the bomb"

This chair is great. You can sit up and use it as a sand chair, pull the bottom up and lounge back, or lay on your stomach. It even has a place for your face where you can lay on your stomach, place your arms through the arm holes, and read a book. No more holding myself up while on my stomach trying to read. It has a carrying strap and a cupholder, as well.

A few weeks ago my friend Holly spotted this chair at the beach and asked the lady sitting in it all about it. Well, when it came time for WEG to get his sister a birthday present, he was drawing a blank. I knew this was the perfect gift because she's a teacher, has the summers off, and lives in Charleston- therefore, she goes to the beach a lot! I told him about the chair (the mack daddy of all beach chairs, I think I called it), he liked the idea, and he ordered one for her.

Well, when we got home from the wedding Friday night, the box with the chair was there. WEG asked if I wanted to look at the chair and of course I said yes. I commented that the box sure was large for one chair, and as he was opening it he told me "Well, I thought I'd get another one as a surprise for someone else who really deserves it." (aka, me!!) I was so freaking excited because I certainly wasn't going to buy myself an expensive beach chair. WEG deserves major props for surprising me with the best beach chair I've found in a long time!!

And, a little secret- these chairs usually cost around $85-$90, but you can get last year's version (the one I have) for $45 here- CampingStation.com The only difference is the new version has a pillow that folds over, but for $40 difference, you can buy one of those bathtub pillows and make do or just not use one!! Seriously, if you like sand chairs, but also like to be able to lay on your back and stomach this chair is for you!