If you're wondering what the all-caps/shouting is about, you will find out momentarily. Until then, let's touch on other things.
Work is work, as in nothing bad and nothing exciting happened this week. I did start making arrangements as to days off during this Christmas holidays so some time can be spent with the family, so that's something. Otherwise it was normal; working at the cash register, working at customer service, putting books away, and cleaning up after patrons too lazy to do it themselves.
Editorial work is going well as well. The writers are turning their work in on time, and I actually caught a break this week because the two writers who usually post longer articles didn't, and post normal length work instead. Which was nice for reasons I'll explain down below. Otherwise, I got some really nice articles in terms of subject matter and photography; two were about fashion shows for designers Diane Von Furstenberg and Dries Van Noten, whose features pictures were awesome in terms of displaying the merchandise (don't know if I'd wear any of it, but it's nice to look at), and one was about this Japanese designer who makes her clothes with cloth she makes by weaving with leftover thread from waste fabric (those clothes were also pretty cool). So if you need some reading material, click here.
And in book stuff, the current book is going excellent; I'm still in the middle of the fight scene from last week, but there's going to be a dramatic turn of events as a fourth man enters into the fray with a weapon no one expected to help our heroine. Said lady, who you know is a cyborg, is part of a model line and has the designation M.O.A-27, the letters standing for Military Opts Automon, and has both lower legs up to the knee, her stomach, her right arm up to her elbow, and her complete left arm from shoulder to hand as army green robotics, with metallic eyebrows to boot! There's very little she can't do thanks to the super computer in her head, which can look up anything in the blink of an eye and all the gadgets she has stored away in her body; I'll admit her robotic abilities were inspired partly by Cyborg from the old Teen Titan cartoon I used to watch when I was a kid. But there's some added additions, like jet boots, sonic wave fists, mini missiles, and more (I should make a list of all I want her to be able to do), all stored in a bio-synthetic body with metal bones and electrical tissue. She's no Transformer, but she's made for anything, and with knowledge of every single fight style, she'll take you down!
Now onto the Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Want to know why I'm happy? I GOT MY FIRST CAR!!! This weekend while my dad was visiting, him, me, and my grandpa went used car hunting and made a day out of it. I did my research and found some really good cars at the local CarMax, but Dad suggested we try going to a dealer that's owned by one of his friends, and that's where I found my car! It's a silver 2011 Corolla with only 36K on it, has a 26 mile per tank capacity, has a clean cloth inside, and everything works! All under my price range. I'm happy that I have this, and I'm going to do my best to take care of it. I don't have a good picture yet, but I'll post one in next week's post.
Like 2: Family visiting! Both my dad and youngest sister came to spend a few days with us to celebrate my upcoming birthday, and it was fun. Other than car shopping, we had a nice lobster dinner at the neighborhood country club (it was delicious, with potatoes and corn and apple crisp for dessert), went out for lunch a bunch, and carved jack-o-lanterns (which I'll also post a picture of). It was great seeing them, and I can't wait to see them again.
Dislike 1: The Royals game getting rained out on Monday. I was supposed to go, but it got cancelled because of the rain and rescheduled to Tuesday night, WHICH OF COURSE IS WHEN I HAVE A NIGHT SHIFT AT B&N. Yeah, not very happy about that if you can't tell, and there was no time to call in and ask for a day off. GRRRRRR!
Dislike 2: The stoplight at 119th and Nall. It's fast in the sense that the green light lasts for only about ten seconds before turning yellow, and that drives me nuts, especially on my way home from work and there's a crapload of cars right in front of me. Does the light let us all go? No, it doesn't! And all I want is to go home after a long day at B&N. :P
And quote!
"The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have." -Vince Lombard
Good night,
Colleen
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Sunday, October 12, 2014
Insert STAR WARS Theme Song Here
In a galaxy far, far away ...
Actually, let's stick with the Milky Way. I'm no space explorer, though I wouldn't turn down the chance to discover/live on a new planet as long as the natives were friendly.
If you're wondering where all the space jargon's coming from, we had a Star Wars theme event day at B&N this week. Some of the events were three rounds of trivia, each one harder than the last, and for the kids there were activity sheets, bowling, a build-your-own-R2D2 table, and storytime in the kid's section. Unfortunately, Star Wars Day went completely unappreciated by the customers; NO ONE took part in the trivia, and I can count on one hand the amount of kids who colored, bowled, and built (not counting me; I made an R2D2 because I was the one told to keep an eye on the table and I was the one who cut out all the shapes in the first place). So I got a free Christmas tree ornament and a easy work day consisting of me watching the table when not putting away books and/or reading the backs of books I considered interesting, but I do wish the customers could've participated a little more. With all the people in the store doing early holiday shopping, you'd think we'd have a bunch of participates. Ah, what can you do?
The people I'm now editing for in my internship are very different from the others I used to look over, not just because they don't post their stuff late. Two of my three new writers actually write, as in their articles actually look like articles and aren't a few sentences separated by a bunch of pictures. Now it's starting to feel more like working an internship, but it's better because these articles are actually reporting on something (not to mention the pictures they include add to what they're talking about and look really good). Not that the third short writer doesn't do her job; it's nice I don't have to do three writer's worth of block paragraphs.
And since I'm talking about the daddy of all sci-fi this post, I'll mention my own sci-fi story MOA-27, which is the one about the cyborg in the post-apocalyptic city trying to get her memories back. According to the chapter outline I wrote, I'm about halfway through, and right now I'm currently in the middle in a fight scene. Our heroine has just gotten a major hit from the other cyborg she's fighting, and she's just getting out of her daze to see one friend panicking and the other one fighting the enemy cursing up a storm. And this is only the beginning of the fight; it needs to go on for a few more pages, and it terrifies me. Fight scenes are REALLY hard to write because you have to visualize it as you write so you know what's going one, there's the laws of physics to obey if you want it to sound real, you need a basic knowledge of fighting terms so you know different types of punches and stuff, AND you have to make sure you aren't using the same words/descriptions over and over to the point you don't want to read anymore (by the way, this is my advice to those who want to write fighting scenes). I've written my fair share, and read more than enough fight scenes (thank you fan fiction!), so that helps some. But I can't deny the feeling of relief I get when the fighting's over with and I can get on to the next exciting bit.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: I saw this on the employee comment board:
Thank you! I try my hardest!
Like 2: The little cross my grandparents gave me. They went to visit Grandpa's alma mater Notre Dame this week and brought me back a souvenir. It's a cross that can fit into the palm of my hand, and it's made of walnut with a sycamore bird on it. It was made by Grandpa's classmate Moore McDonough who makes them from fallen trees on the Notre Dame campus, and it's very beautiful. Thanks grandparents!
Like 3: I had dinner with some of my grandparents' friends again. It was simple pizza, but it was a good meal with some really entertaining and nice people.
Like 4: The Royals and their winning streak. Go Royals! (If they win the whole thing, I swear someone's going to make a movie out of it in the future).
Dislike 1: The fact barely anyone took part in Star Wars Day.
Dislike 2: Car accidents. There was an accident on my way to work one day this week because someone in front of me slid into the bumper of the car in front of it thanks to all the rain we've had recently. It was a simple matter of driving around it, and police were there to help, but I don't want to think about how that could've been me.
And quote:
Colleen
Actually, let's stick with the Milky Way. I'm no space explorer, though I wouldn't turn down the chance to discover/live on a new planet as long as the natives were friendly.
If you're wondering where all the space jargon's coming from, we had a Star Wars theme event day at B&N this week. Some of the events were three rounds of trivia, each one harder than the last, and for the kids there were activity sheets, bowling, a build-your-own-R2D2 table, and storytime in the kid's section. Unfortunately, Star Wars Day went completely unappreciated by the customers; NO ONE took part in the trivia, and I can count on one hand the amount of kids who colored, bowled, and built (not counting me; I made an R2D2 because I was the one told to keep an eye on the table and I was the one who cut out all the shapes in the first place). So I got a free Christmas tree ornament and a easy work day consisting of me watching the table when not putting away books and/or reading the backs of books I considered interesting, but I do wish the customers could've participated a little more. With all the people in the store doing early holiday shopping, you'd think we'd have a bunch of participates. Ah, what can you do?
The people I'm now editing for in my internship are very different from the others I used to look over, not just because they don't post their stuff late. Two of my three new writers actually write, as in their articles actually look like articles and aren't a few sentences separated by a bunch of pictures. Now it's starting to feel more like working an internship, but it's better because these articles are actually reporting on something (not to mention the pictures they include add to what they're talking about and look really good). Not that the third short writer doesn't do her job; it's nice I don't have to do three writer's worth of block paragraphs.
And since I'm talking about the daddy of all sci-fi this post, I'll mention my own sci-fi story MOA-27, which is the one about the cyborg in the post-apocalyptic city trying to get her memories back. According to the chapter outline I wrote, I'm about halfway through, and right now I'm currently in the middle in a fight scene. Our heroine has just gotten a major hit from the other cyborg she's fighting, and she's just getting out of her daze to see one friend panicking and the other one fighting the enemy cursing up a storm. And this is only the beginning of the fight; it needs to go on for a few more pages, and it terrifies me. Fight scenes are REALLY hard to write because you have to visualize it as you write so you know what's going one, there's the laws of physics to obey if you want it to sound real, you need a basic knowledge of fighting terms so you know different types of punches and stuff, AND you have to make sure you aren't using the same words/descriptions over and over to the point you don't want to read anymore (by the way, this is my advice to those who want to write fighting scenes). I've written my fair share, and read more than enough fight scenes (thank you fan fiction!), so that helps some. But I can't deny the feeling of relief I get when the fighting's over with and I can get on to the next exciting bit.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: I saw this on the employee comment board:
Thank you! I try my hardest!
Like 2: The little cross my grandparents gave me. They went to visit Grandpa's alma mater Notre Dame this week and brought me back a souvenir. It's a cross that can fit into the palm of my hand, and it's made of walnut with a sycamore bird on it. It was made by Grandpa's classmate Moore McDonough who makes them from fallen trees on the Notre Dame campus, and it's very beautiful. Thanks grandparents!
Like 3: I had dinner with some of my grandparents' friends again. It was simple pizza, but it was a good meal with some really entertaining and nice people.
Like 4: The Royals and their winning streak. Go Royals! (If they win the whole thing, I swear someone's going to make a movie out of it in the future).
Dislike 1: The fact barely anyone took part in Star Wars Day.
Dislike 2: Car accidents. There was an accident on my way to work one day this week because someone in front of me slid into the bumper of the car in front of it thanks to all the rain we've had recently. It was a simple matter of driving around it, and police were there to help, but I don't want to think about how that could've been me.
And quote:
"Do, or do not. There is no try." -Yoda, Star Wars. (I just had to.)
See ya,Colleen
Sunday, October 5, 2014
New Writers
Hey little ho, bros (and ladies)!
So, after those two eventful weeks I wrote about in my last blog, I had a rather average week of work, writing, and what not. Work was work; I had two night shifts this week, which wasn't so bad, and I've been working my hardest while trying to help the store out. I also had to do the music section again for one night shift, which same with the weekly look-over through the CDs for rogue labels. Which isn't the worst thing in the world, if I haven't said so already, but I did discover how I hate being interrupted when in the middle of this. I work slow because I'm thorough, so I only have a matter of time before the store closes to get this done, and the moment I feel like I've gotten into a groove and rhythm of doing things, someone breaks my concentration by asking them if I need help. And of course I help them, because I do want to help them, but it only adds a bit more stress to getting the look-over done on time. Not that it really mattered last night; apparently the store was so messy outside the music department we couldn't even finish straightening up before our boss took mercy on us and sent us home before it got too late. It'll take some practice, but I think I'll get better with CD look-overs.
Editing went incredibly well this week in that I don't have to edit a certain writer anymore. Basically, I got tired of working with the girl who was always sending her stuff in late, and told my boss as such. She agreed with me that it wasn't fair, so I now have new writers. Their skills are excellent (I won't say perfect; I am an editor, after all), but it does feel like there's not much to complain about on the weekly comment sheet I send to my boss. Which just goes to show how good they are. This week some of the articles I edited were about the perfect colors for fall, Fashion Week, in Paris, Milan, and London. and how a doll magazine can inspire Halloween costumes. If you haven't checked out "The Fashion Foot" yet, do so now!
No news on the writing front, so let's discuss another character from Burn in Light. This week is Jaeger, Enid's grumpy exorcist mentor. Like her, he's half human and half ghost, and he's a member of the Council, which is basically the government that looks after ghosts and exorcists: keeping the two worlds in balance, making new discoveries about ghosts, keeping track of new exorcists and assigning them teachers, etc. The Council is incredibly secretive, keeping all but the most need to know info from the public (thanks to some incredibly outdated rule of 'if no one knows, nothing can happen') and therefore Jaeger is not the most open person, which leads to some tension between him and Enid. Their relationship is complicated, but Enid still respects and likes him somewhat, and Jaeger willing to break the rules and give her pieces of info time to time whenever he shows up to check in on things.
And that's that for this week.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: It's October! The month of Fall, Halloween, and my birthday; how can this not be my favorite time of the year?
Like 2: 30 Seconds to Mars. Love this band, and Jared Leto is one of my celebrity crushes (love him in Dallas Buyers Club, though I hoped he's cut his hair since we saw him at the Oscars). The point is I was lucky to find their CD This is War in B&N's bargain CD bin for $4.99, and now I have very happy ears. :)
Dislike 1: I need to add another question to the list of stupid question people ask me when I'm at work: "Do you work here?" No, I don't, I just like wearing this B&N nametag for fun! Yes, maybe they don't notice it right away, but it's still one of those things you just want to roll your eyes at. :P
And quote!
Bye,
Colleen
So, after those two eventful weeks I wrote about in my last blog, I had a rather average week of work, writing, and what not. Work was work; I had two night shifts this week, which wasn't so bad, and I've been working my hardest while trying to help the store out. I also had to do the music section again for one night shift, which same with the weekly look-over through the CDs for rogue labels. Which isn't the worst thing in the world, if I haven't said so already, but I did discover how I hate being interrupted when in the middle of this. I work slow because I'm thorough, so I only have a matter of time before the store closes to get this done, and the moment I feel like I've gotten into a groove and rhythm of doing things, someone breaks my concentration by asking them if I need help. And of course I help them, because I do want to help them, but it only adds a bit more stress to getting the look-over done on time. Not that it really mattered last night; apparently the store was so messy outside the music department we couldn't even finish straightening up before our boss took mercy on us and sent us home before it got too late. It'll take some practice, but I think I'll get better with CD look-overs.
Editing went incredibly well this week in that I don't have to edit a certain writer anymore. Basically, I got tired of working with the girl who was always sending her stuff in late, and told my boss as such. She agreed with me that it wasn't fair, so I now have new writers. Their skills are excellent (I won't say perfect; I am an editor, after all), but it does feel like there's not much to complain about on the weekly comment sheet I send to my boss. Which just goes to show how good they are. This week some of the articles I edited were about the perfect colors for fall, Fashion Week, in Paris, Milan, and London. and how a doll magazine can inspire Halloween costumes. If you haven't checked out "The Fashion Foot" yet, do so now!
No news on the writing front, so let's discuss another character from Burn in Light. This week is Jaeger, Enid's grumpy exorcist mentor. Like her, he's half human and half ghost, and he's a member of the Council, which is basically the government that looks after ghosts and exorcists: keeping the two worlds in balance, making new discoveries about ghosts, keeping track of new exorcists and assigning them teachers, etc. The Council is incredibly secretive, keeping all but the most need to know info from the public (thanks to some incredibly outdated rule of 'if no one knows, nothing can happen') and therefore Jaeger is not the most open person, which leads to some tension between him and Enid. Their relationship is complicated, but Enid still respects and likes him somewhat, and Jaeger willing to break the rules and give her pieces of info time to time whenever he shows up to check in on things.
And that's that for this week.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: It's October! The month of Fall, Halloween, and my birthday; how can this not be my favorite time of the year?
Like 2: 30 Seconds to Mars. Love this band, and Jared Leto is one of my celebrity crushes (love him in Dallas Buyers Club, though I hoped he's cut his hair since we saw him at the Oscars). The point is I was lucky to find their CD This is War in B&N's bargain CD bin for $4.99, and now I have very happy ears. :)
Dislike 1: I need to add another question to the list of stupid question people ask me when I'm at work: "Do you work here?" No, I don't, I just like wearing this B&N nametag for fun! Yes, maybe they don't notice it right away, but it's still one of those things you just want to roll your eyes at. :P
And quote!
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." -John Quincy Adams
Bye,
Colleen
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Crazy Customers
Little hey, little ho, people! So I was busy last week and didn't have time to post anything, but I can write, and boy is there a lot to talk about.
So remember when I said how much I liked the old people customers that come to the B&N a few posts ago? Unfortunately, I've had my first run in with a rude customer this past week, and I think I also met my first real crazy person in my whole life while working customer service. Both situations were weird and something I don't want to go through ever again, but maybe it's a good thing such meetings happened so I can be prepared for the next time I run into such people. And it's not like I had nothing but bad customer meetings this week; there was this really nice customer WHO GAVE ME THE BOOK SHE BOUGHT.
But bad guys first. The rude person was this old lady in this nasty lavender jumpsuit with a neck brace and a voice like a frog who came asking about books by an author with the last name Kinley. I look it up, but I don't find anything, so I ask the lady if she could spell the last name. She acts all offended that I don't know this guy's work, because supposably he writes a really popular kid series, but she starts spelling out the name. But she gets distracted halfway into the name, and when I politely ask if she can continue (while eyeing my co worker Kari in case I need to ask for help) she basically tells me to find someone else to help her that can ACTUALLY DO THEIR JOB. At this point Kari steps in and I step back; I didn't say anything for the rest of the interaction, but believe me, I was mad. Not that I showed it in any other way besides crossing my arms. Kari told me later that while she was leading the woman and her daughter to the kids section to look for the book, the mean bag was rude to her too, still in disbelief no one knew what she was talking about, and instead of the daughter telling her mom to knock it off, she joined in the berating too. Afterwards Kari and I worked off some steam with some bad-mouthing, so I felt a bit better. But still! Just because you're wearing a neck brace, sound like you swallowed a toad, and have no fashion sense doesn't mean you have the right to be rude to people. (And for the record, she got the author's name wrong; it was Kinney. No wonder I couldn't find anything!) Bad karma on you!
The crazy customer came a few days later. I was helping some old guy with finding some pocket datebook refills when this other old guy comes up. He's hard of hearing but asks if we have a book about 'hollow earth'. The first old guy tells me to help the hard-of-hearing guy, so I do, but while plenty of books entitled 'Hollow Earth', I didn't know which one he was talking about. So I tried to figure out which one he was talking about, and it turned out 'hollow earth' was the book's subject. As it turned out, the hard-of-hearing guy was one of those conspiracy nuts, and when prompted by the pocket datebook guy, he went into this long rant that basically was him talking about how there's a city of aliens living under some city in California. Eventually he left, and the datebook told me that I 'owe him one', because he got the burden of the whole rant. And I was grateful, because he did save me, but good lord! I was not expecting to run into my first crazy person like that!
But there was one good customer this week. She was a girl my age, very pretty, who I was checking out at the cash register. She was buying one of those religious inspirational books, and we were chatting, with her talking about how she'd come in before (of course, I didn't recognize her). But after everything was said and done, she GAVE me the book she bought, saying I looked like I needed it. I was surprised, and said I couldn't accept it, but eventually she convinced me to take it, said she'd see me later, and left. It was one of the nicest things someone had ever done for me, and it proves that there really are decent people out there. As for the book, it's sitting on my bedside table, and every night I read a little bit of it. Very nice. :)
Other than a handful of bipolar customers, I was very busy these weeks with new experiences. I was placed in two sections I haven't worked before: second floor customer service and the kid section. Talk about two different beasts from what I'm used to. I had some help with the customer service part when it came to figuring out where stuff goes, but I was basically set adrift doing the children's section and accidentally put some books back that had been taken off the shelf for removal in the first place (because no one tells me anything!). :P Thankfully the bosses were understanding and told me to take this as a learning experience, which I will, so all's good there.
Editing is the same as always, which basically means I have two writers who do very well and one who makes me want to pull my hair out. I keep telling her over and over again how she links her source websites is wrong, but she either doesn't understand or isn't listening. It's not like I'm going to drop her for this, but I did write my feelings in the editor notes, so hopefully this will all work out. But for now, she hasn't posted this week's stuff yet, so I'm really hoping she does soon because I don't want to spend a late night doing editing work when I could be sleeping
And there actually is something concerning the writing department this week: I finally got my first royalty check! SHP finally got everything together and sent it to me, so there's some cash in the bank (I'm not saying how much, though). Otherwise, no new news.
Bi-Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: I saw a friend at the B&N. Tina is one of my greatest friends from high school, and we met each other totally by accident. Turns out she lives nearby and said I could stop over after work anytime. We chatted for a few minutes, and it was great catching up. Love you, girl!
Like 2: The mythical creature display. Our local museum had a display all about magical creatures from around the world, and I went to see it with my grandma. Hands down one of the best displays I've seen, and so informative considering I'm a fantasy writer and want to include these types of animals in my books.
Like 3: Red dot sale at B&N. Basically a few tables are set up in front of the mall entrance and are loaded with stuff with a red sticker on it, which equals 50% off. With my employee discount that becomes 80%, so I was able to pick up a nice how-to book concerning cats and their care (because I really want a cat someday).
Like 4: The nice customer and the book she gave me. See above.
Like 5: Being a membership sales master! For this weekend only if someone becomes a B&N member, they get 20% off their whole purchase instead of the usual 10%. I was able to sell and renew many memberships during my time on the register, so I feel rather accomplished.
Like 6: Souvenir from Las Vegas. My mom went there on vacation and was nice to send this beautiful gold and green cocktail ring that's awesome to wear. Thanks mom!
Dislike 1: Rude/crazy customers. See above.
Dislike 2: People who leave stacks of books lying around. This turns out be a phenomenon on the 2nd floor, and of course it drives me nuts! People can't take the time to put everything back where they found it? Yes, I put books on the shelf, but for one time only, because I am no janitor, plus I have other more important things to do than to clean up your unbought crap. If anyone's reading this, please put something you're not buying back in its rightful place, please.
And quote!
Bye,
Colleen
So remember when I said how much I liked the old people customers that come to the B&N a few posts ago? Unfortunately, I've had my first run in with a rude customer this past week, and I think I also met my first real crazy person in my whole life while working customer service. Both situations were weird and something I don't want to go through ever again, but maybe it's a good thing such meetings happened so I can be prepared for the next time I run into such people. And it's not like I had nothing but bad customer meetings this week; there was this really nice customer WHO GAVE ME THE BOOK SHE BOUGHT.
But bad guys first. The rude person was this old lady in this nasty lavender jumpsuit with a neck brace and a voice like a frog who came asking about books by an author with the last name Kinley. I look it up, but I don't find anything, so I ask the lady if she could spell the last name. She acts all offended that I don't know this guy's work, because supposably he writes a really popular kid series, but she starts spelling out the name. But she gets distracted halfway into the name, and when I politely ask if she can continue (while eyeing my co worker Kari in case I need to ask for help) she basically tells me to find someone else to help her that can ACTUALLY DO THEIR JOB. At this point Kari steps in and I step back; I didn't say anything for the rest of the interaction, but believe me, I was mad. Not that I showed it in any other way besides crossing my arms. Kari told me later that while she was leading the woman and her daughter to the kids section to look for the book, the mean bag was rude to her too, still in disbelief no one knew what she was talking about, and instead of the daughter telling her mom to knock it off, she joined in the berating too. Afterwards Kari and I worked off some steam with some bad-mouthing, so I felt a bit better. But still! Just because you're wearing a neck brace, sound like you swallowed a toad, and have no fashion sense doesn't mean you have the right to be rude to people. (And for the record, she got the author's name wrong; it was Kinney. No wonder I couldn't find anything!) Bad karma on you!
The crazy customer came a few days later. I was helping some old guy with finding some pocket datebook refills when this other old guy comes up. He's hard of hearing but asks if we have a book about 'hollow earth'. The first old guy tells me to help the hard-of-hearing guy, so I do, but while plenty of books entitled 'Hollow Earth', I didn't know which one he was talking about. So I tried to figure out which one he was talking about, and it turned out 'hollow earth' was the book's subject. As it turned out, the hard-of-hearing guy was one of those conspiracy nuts, and when prompted by the pocket datebook guy, he went into this long rant that basically was him talking about how there's a city of aliens living under some city in California. Eventually he left, and the datebook told me that I 'owe him one', because he got the burden of the whole rant. And I was grateful, because he did save me, but good lord! I was not expecting to run into my first crazy person like that!
But there was one good customer this week. She was a girl my age, very pretty, who I was checking out at the cash register. She was buying one of those religious inspirational books, and we were chatting, with her talking about how she'd come in before (of course, I didn't recognize her). But after everything was said and done, she GAVE me the book she bought, saying I looked like I needed it. I was surprised, and said I couldn't accept it, but eventually she convinced me to take it, said she'd see me later, and left. It was one of the nicest things someone had ever done for me, and it proves that there really are decent people out there. As for the book, it's sitting on my bedside table, and every night I read a little bit of it. Very nice. :)
Other than a handful of bipolar customers, I was very busy these weeks with new experiences. I was placed in two sections I haven't worked before: second floor customer service and the kid section. Talk about two different beasts from what I'm used to. I had some help with the customer service part when it came to figuring out where stuff goes, but I was basically set adrift doing the children's section and accidentally put some books back that had been taken off the shelf for removal in the first place (because no one tells me anything!). :P Thankfully the bosses were understanding and told me to take this as a learning experience, which I will, so all's good there.
Editing is the same as always, which basically means I have two writers who do very well and one who makes me want to pull my hair out. I keep telling her over and over again how she links her source websites is wrong, but she either doesn't understand or isn't listening. It's not like I'm going to drop her for this, but I did write my feelings in the editor notes, so hopefully this will all work out. But for now, she hasn't posted this week's stuff yet, so I'm really hoping she does soon because I don't want to spend a late night doing editing work when I could be sleeping
And there actually is something concerning the writing department this week: I finally got my first royalty check! SHP finally got everything together and sent it to me, so there's some cash in the bank (I'm not saying how much, though). Otherwise, no new news.
Bi-Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: I saw a friend at the B&N. Tina is one of my greatest friends from high school, and we met each other totally by accident. Turns out she lives nearby and said I could stop over after work anytime. We chatted for a few minutes, and it was great catching up. Love you, girl!
Like 2: The mythical creature display. Our local museum had a display all about magical creatures from around the world, and I went to see it with my grandma. Hands down one of the best displays I've seen, and so informative considering I'm a fantasy writer and want to include these types of animals in my books.
Like 3: Red dot sale at B&N. Basically a few tables are set up in front of the mall entrance and are loaded with stuff with a red sticker on it, which equals 50% off. With my employee discount that becomes 80%, so I was able to pick up a nice how-to book concerning cats and their care (because I really want a cat someday).
Like 4: The nice customer and the book she gave me. See above.
Like 5: Being a membership sales master! For this weekend only if someone becomes a B&N member, they get 20% off their whole purchase instead of the usual 10%. I was able to sell and renew many memberships during my time on the register, so I feel rather accomplished.
Like 6: Souvenir from Las Vegas. My mom went there on vacation and was nice to send this beautiful gold and green cocktail ring that's awesome to wear. Thanks mom!
Dislike 1: Rude/crazy customers. See above.
Dislike 2: People who leave stacks of books lying around. This turns out be a phenomenon on the 2nd floor, and of course it drives me nuts! People can't take the time to put everything back where they found it? Yes, I put books on the shelf, but for one time only, because I am no janitor, plus I have other more important things to do than to clean up your unbought crap. If anyone's reading this, please put something you're not buying back in its rightful place, please.
And quote!
"Few of us get anything without working for it." -William Feather
Bye,
Colleen
Sunday, September 14, 2014
The Music Department
Na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na BLOG TIME!
So this week at work, I actually got to man the music department by myself for the first time. Now, I'm watched the music department before, but this was the first time I've been in the section for a whole work shift. At first I thought it was going to be like working the mall cash register (meaning that barely any people buy stuff and I'm bored to tears), but not so! Apparently on a weekly basis there's a DVD and CD tag check, which basically means we go through the CDs and DVDs and make sure they have a price and security tag on them and there's no loose tags lying around. When I was working in the department it was time to check the CDs, so I basically spent my whole shift, when not ringing up customers, flipping through the entire CD rack and making sure everything was tagged and writing the amount of tags found on a chart. I didn't know flipping through CDs could take so long (on the bright side, I found a Black Veil Brides CD that's only five bucks; hooray for hidden treasures!) Not only that, it was a closing shift while I was in the music section, which meant closing that up, which entailed vacuuming the floor with a crappy vacuum, sanitizing the counter, phone, and computers, making sure the CDS and DVDs were all in place, dusting the shelves, and taking out the trash and whatever cardboard boxes were lying around. It's a lot of work, but it's nice to be in one section of the store while everyone else is out all over the place. I wouldn't mind doing the music department again.
The internship is going well. The writers are posting their stuff, and I'm editing while nitpicking all sorts of little mistakes. Nothing really going on this week except that I got assigned a third writer to look over. That might sound like more work, but she is by far the closest to professional out of all my writers with the least amount of mistakes. She is no problem at all.
No news for writing, so it's time for another BURN IN LIGHT character profile! This week we have Uncle V, Enid's uncle and legal guardian. His full name is Vincent Delacroix, and he's a Protestant preacher for a nearby church (he actually used to be Catholic but had to convert to be able to adopt Enid). As said, he adopted Enid because her mother died in childbirth and her dad's not in the picture, and all in all he's a good father figure; he loves Enid deeply, and she returns his affections by respecting his wishes and trying not to make him worry with her hunting ghosts (which he can see, by the way). He's also good friends with Al and Thad, and he's just a really likable guy that's hard to hate.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Black Veiled Brides CD find. See above.
Like 2: Extra shifts. I was asked to do an extra shift this week, and I was more than happy to take it. That may be surprising to others, but I'm happy when they ask if I want extra hours. Yes, it means some extra cash, but in asking me, the bosses are showing how capable they think I am and they trust me with these extra shifts (that's what I like to think, at least).
Like 3: Dining out with the grandparents and their friends. I got to eat out twice this week with my grandparents and some of their friends at two different restaurants, and it was great both times. I ate good food and had good conversations with my grandparents' friends, who I have a lot of respect for because of how awesome they are and make for good conversation. Good times.
Like 4: I got a somewhat new charger! My grandma read about how my old charger was cracking, so she gave me the one that came with her old laptop. It's in perfect condition, so thanks Grandma!
Dislike 1: Being sick. I haven't been feeling good the last few days, and it's not like I'm dying or not taking care of myself. I just feel like I want to doing nothing but sleep, and I hope I feel better soon.
And quote!
Bye,
Colleen
So this week at work, I actually got to man the music department by myself for the first time. Now, I'm watched the music department before, but this was the first time I've been in the section for a whole work shift. At first I thought it was going to be like working the mall cash register (meaning that barely any people buy stuff and I'm bored to tears), but not so! Apparently on a weekly basis there's a DVD and CD tag check, which basically means we go through the CDs and DVDs and make sure they have a price and security tag on them and there's no loose tags lying around. When I was working in the department it was time to check the CDs, so I basically spent my whole shift, when not ringing up customers, flipping through the entire CD rack and making sure everything was tagged and writing the amount of tags found on a chart. I didn't know flipping through CDs could take so long (on the bright side, I found a Black Veil Brides CD that's only five bucks; hooray for hidden treasures!) Not only that, it was a closing shift while I was in the music section, which meant closing that up, which entailed vacuuming the floor with a crappy vacuum, sanitizing the counter, phone, and computers, making sure the CDS and DVDs were all in place, dusting the shelves, and taking out the trash and whatever cardboard boxes were lying around. It's a lot of work, but it's nice to be in one section of the store while everyone else is out all over the place. I wouldn't mind doing the music department again.
The internship is going well. The writers are posting their stuff, and I'm editing while nitpicking all sorts of little mistakes. Nothing really going on this week except that I got assigned a third writer to look over. That might sound like more work, but she is by far the closest to professional out of all my writers with the least amount of mistakes. She is no problem at all.
No news for writing, so it's time for another BURN IN LIGHT character profile! This week we have Uncle V, Enid's uncle and legal guardian. His full name is Vincent Delacroix, and he's a Protestant preacher for a nearby church (he actually used to be Catholic but had to convert to be able to adopt Enid). As said, he adopted Enid because her mother died in childbirth and her dad's not in the picture, and all in all he's a good father figure; he loves Enid deeply, and she returns his affections by respecting his wishes and trying not to make him worry with her hunting ghosts (which he can see, by the way). He's also good friends with Al and Thad, and he's just a really likable guy that's hard to hate.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Black Veiled Brides CD find. See above.
Like 2: Extra shifts. I was asked to do an extra shift this week, and I was more than happy to take it. That may be surprising to others, but I'm happy when they ask if I want extra hours. Yes, it means some extra cash, but in asking me, the bosses are showing how capable they think I am and they trust me with these extra shifts (that's what I like to think, at least).
Like 3: Dining out with the grandparents and their friends. I got to eat out twice this week with my grandparents and some of their friends at two different restaurants, and it was great both times. I ate good food and had good conversations with my grandparents' friends, who I have a lot of respect for because of how awesome they are and make for good conversation. Good times.
Like 4: I got a somewhat new charger! My grandma read about how my old charger was cracking, so she gave me the one that came with her old laptop. It's in perfect condition, so thanks Grandma!
Dislike 1: Being sick. I haven't been feeling good the last few days, and it's not like I'm dying or not taking care of myself. I just feel like I want to doing nothing but sleep, and I hope I feel better soon.
And quote!
"We are what we believe we are." -C. S. Lewis
Bye,
Colleen
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Labor Day Rush
Yo, dudes!
Talk about being busy this week. I had my first taste of holiday rush with working Labor Day at B&N, and it was crazy. I was supposed to divide my time between the cash register and customer service, but I ended up working the register the whole time because of all the crazy amount of people coming to buy stuff. And there was a lot of people; they seemed to come in waves, like for a time there wouldn't be anybody, then one person comes, and you help that person, and by the time you're done with them, a whole line is staring you in the face and you have no idea where they came from! It's stressful, but the upside is all these customers keep you busy, which means no time to get bored and possibly goof off and get in trouble (not that I actively try to do that). I wonder what the holidays are going to be like?
So B&N is good, and so is the internship. My boss talked with the writer who's been giving me trouble, and said writer has one more chance before being let go. That said, this writer didn't let me down this time; she got all her articles posted on time, which means I didn't have to stay up late editing them. That's solved; now it's a matter of getting her to properly link stuff. With the way she does it, I basically have to track down the specific webpage the picture came from so we can properly source stuff, because she just gives me the main page of that website. But baby steps, people. We're getting somewhere.
No update on the writing front, so to tide you over, another character profile from BURN IN LIGHT. This time I give the gentle gentleman Al! His full name is Alastor Bachman, and he's the ghost of a nineteen-year-old lawyer in training. In the late 1800's his family integrated from England to Philly (he still has a bit of a British accent) so Al's dad could live the American dream by starting his own law firm, and Al was more than happy to study under him. Sadly, Al was killed in a mugging gone wrong by a slashed throat, and he's been a ghost ever since. Out of fear of what came after crossing over when it was earned, Al decided to be a guardian ghost (ghost version of a guardian angel) to prolong his stay, and for the past hundred years he's guarded many people. His latest 'ward' is Enid, and the two of them have been friends since the day she was born. Having been there for her growing up, Al knows all about her and can be somewhat of a father figure. But something in him might want it to be more, despite all the obstacles in the way.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Got a new book. It's the second one in Lev Grossman's 'Magician' series, and I got it for four bucks when it originally was 26! Ever since I heard the trilogy was basically a grown up Harry Potter, I've been wanting to read it. Can't wait to get my hands on the first.
Like 2: Closer gym. I've recently started going to the gym that's in my grandparents' neighborhood country club, and it's great. It's close by, it's got all the usual equipment, and it doesn't feel like a total drag to get up and go there.
Like 3: Writers who get their stuff sent in on time. See above.
Like 4: The fact they finally discovered Jack the Ripper's identity after 126 years. Who doesn't like a mystery being solved? (Click here for more info). This can't help but bring me to ...
Dislike 1: Serial killers. Who likes those guys!?
Dislike 2: Dumb questions people ask at the B&N. "Do we pay at customer service?" "Where is customer service?" "Where do we pick our books up?" "Where's the bathroom?" Granted, the last two aren't exactly stupid, but since when have you ever paid for something not at a register, and how can you not notice a giant 'Customer Service' sign? It makes me want to make a Q&A poster and hang it around the store (and before you ask, no, Mom, I didn't actually suggest this to any of my bosses. :P)
Dislike 3: My charger cord for my laptop has a tear in the plastic covering the cord part, exposing the wires. It's not big, and I've patched it with some tape, but I REALLY hope I don't have to buy a new one any time soon. Those things are expensive!
And quote!
Adios,
Colleen
Talk about being busy this week. I had my first taste of holiday rush with working Labor Day at B&N, and it was crazy. I was supposed to divide my time between the cash register and customer service, but I ended up working the register the whole time because of all the crazy amount of people coming to buy stuff. And there was a lot of people; they seemed to come in waves, like for a time there wouldn't be anybody, then one person comes, and you help that person, and by the time you're done with them, a whole line is staring you in the face and you have no idea where they came from! It's stressful, but the upside is all these customers keep you busy, which means no time to get bored and possibly goof off and get in trouble (not that I actively try to do that). I wonder what the holidays are going to be like?
So B&N is good, and so is the internship. My boss talked with the writer who's been giving me trouble, and said writer has one more chance before being let go. That said, this writer didn't let me down this time; she got all her articles posted on time, which means I didn't have to stay up late editing them. That's solved; now it's a matter of getting her to properly link stuff. With the way she does it, I basically have to track down the specific webpage the picture came from so we can properly source stuff, because she just gives me the main page of that website. But baby steps, people. We're getting somewhere.
No update on the writing front, so to tide you over, another character profile from BURN IN LIGHT. This time I give the gentle gentleman Al! His full name is Alastor Bachman, and he's the ghost of a nineteen-year-old lawyer in training. In the late 1800's his family integrated from England to Philly (he still has a bit of a British accent) so Al's dad could live the American dream by starting his own law firm, and Al was more than happy to study under him. Sadly, Al was killed in a mugging gone wrong by a slashed throat, and he's been a ghost ever since. Out of fear of what came after crossing over when it was earned, Al decided to be a guardian ghost (ghost version of a guardian angel) to prolong his stay, and for the past hundred years he's guarded many people. His latest 'ward' is Enid, and the two of them have been friends since the day she was born. Having been there for her growing up, Al knows all about her and can be somewhat of a father figure. But something in him might want it to be more, despite all the obstacles in the way.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Got a new book. It's the second one in Lev Grossman's 'Magician' series, and I got it for four bucks when it originally was 26! Ever since I heard the trilogy was basically a grown up Harry Potter, I've been wanting to read it. Can't wait to get my hands on the first.
Like 2: Closer gym. I've recently started going to the gym that's in my grandparents' neighborhood country club, and it's great. It's close by, it's got all the usual equipment, and it doesn't feel like a total drag to get up and go there.
Like 3: Writers who get their stuff sent in on time. See above.
Like 4: The fact they finally discovered Jack the Ripper's identity after 126 years. Who doesn't like a mystery being solved? (Click here for more info). This can't help but bring me to ...
Dislike 1: Serial killers. Who likes those guys!?
Dislike 2: Dumb questions people ask at the B&N. "Do we pay at customer service?" "Where is customer service?" "Where do we pick our books up?" "Where's the bathroom?" Granted, the last two aren't exactly stupid, but since when have you ever paid for something not at a register, and how can you not notice a giant 'Customer Service' sign? It makes me want to make a Q&A poster and hang it around the store (and before you ask, no, Mom, I didn't actually suggest this to any of my bosses. :P)
Dislike 3: My charger cord for my laptop has a tear in the plastic covering the cord part, exposing the wires. It's not big, and I've patched it with some tape, but I REALLY hope I don't have to buy a new one any time soon. Those things are expensive!
And quote!
“By doubting we come to the question, and by questioning we may come upon the truth.” -Pierre Abélard
Adios,
Colleen
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Frustrating Writers
Hi, lovely people!
So, one of my occupations is going well. I'm still enjoying my job at B&N with working the cash register and helping out at customer service. There's been a few times when I make some minor mistakes because I'm still learning stuff, but my coworkers are awesome and I'm getting better every day. Our customers are pretty sweet, too; a lot of them are people my grandparents' age, but they're so nice to serve, as are those with kids because they're cute and make good conversation (as long as they're not crying). And thanks to my padded socks, my feet don't hurt as much as they used to. Finally, I had my first closing shift. B&N closes at 10, and when it does the people left in the store basically team up and walk around, rearranging messes and putting back out of place merchandise where its supposed to go before leaving the store as a group. Usually it's the second floor that needs more work than the first, and everyone says it's going to be a nightmare when the holidays start. But for now, it was really easy, and it was satisfying to walk out the door knowing I helped out.
The internship is another story. Not that I hate it; on the contrary, I love it and love doing it. The problem are the writer's I'm assigned. If I didn't say so last week, I had six articles to look over, but none of them were posted until Sunday afternoon and evening and I had to stay up late to get them done in time. This time, one writer did post her articles on time, but the other has only posted two so far out of four, and I REALLY don't want a repeat of last week. If this continues, I'm going to ask my boss if I can have another writer because I can't afford late nights with the early mornings I have. This makes me, as a writer, worry about my own relationship with Rich-the-editor; I hope I was never like this with him when we were working on SA.
Writing wise, no big news. Still chugging away at my latest manuscript and getting into the story.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Phoenix Wright phone app. This is a game where you play as a lawyer trying to prove your clients' innocence in various cases, and it's addicting. It takes a fair bit of logic, but it really makes you think, and the stories are so funny. Worth it.
Like 2: My Pandora radio station. The radio in my car is busted, so my iPhone to the rescue!
Dislike 1: Writers who don't meet deadlines. See above.
Dislike 2: Not getting enough sleep and sleeping half the day away. Enough said.
And quote!
Bye,
Colleen
So, one of my occupations is going well. I'm still enjoying my job at B&N with working the cash register and helping out at customer service. There's been a few times when I make some minor mistakes because I'm still learning stuff, but my coworkers are awesome and I'm getting better every day. Our customers are pretty sweet, too; a lot of them are people my grandparents' age, but they're so nice to serve, as are those with kids because they're cute and make good conversation (as long as they're not crying). And thanks to my padded socks, my feet don't hurt as much as they used to. Finally, I had my first closing shift. B&N closes at 10, and when it does the people left in the store basically team up and walk around, rearranging messes and putting back out of place merchandise where its supposed to go before leaving the store as a group. Usually it's the second floor that needs more work than the first, and everyone says it's going to be a nightmare when the holidays start. But for now, it was really easy, and it was satisfying to walk out the door knowing I helped out.
The internship is another story. Not that I hate it; on the contrary, I love it and love doing it. The problem are the writer's I'm assigned. If I didn't say so last week, I had six articles to look over, but none of them were posted until Sunday afternoon and evening and I had to stay up late to get them done in time. This time, one writer did post her articles on time, but the other has only posted two so far out of four, and I REALLY don't want a repeat of last week. If this continues, I'm going to ask my boss if I can have another writer because I can't afford late nights with the early mornings I have. This makes me, as a writer, worry about my own relationship with Rich-the-editor; I hope I was never like this with him when we were working on SA.
Writing wise, no big news. Still chugging away at my latest manuscript and getting into the story.
Weekly (Dis)Likes:
Like 1: Phoenix Wright phone app. This is a game where you play as a lawyer trying to prove your clients' innocence in various cases, and it's addicting. It takes a fair bit of logic, but it really makes you think, and the stories are so funny. Worth it.
Like 2: My Pandora radio station. The radio in my car is busted, so my iPhone to the rescue!
Dislike 1: Writers who don't meet deadlines. See above.
Dislike 2: Not getting enough sleep and sleeping half the day away. Enough said.
And quote!
"If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door." -Milton Berle
Bye,
Colleen
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