Don't Try This At Home

Sunday YouTube: Flight of the Conchords, Business

I had heard of these fellas, but had not seen them. Oh. My. Word. Actually, words cannot describe it. I swear it gets funnier the more I watch it.

Caption This #7

If you would like to post your own pictures for readers to caption, leave your link below and remember to link back to this post!

Library Porn and Endpapers

I've mentioned my love of libraries before. There is something about a library that makes me want to sit and forget time exists. Hot Library Smut is a blog post showing some of the most amazing library photos you can imagine. Here's a taste:

Then, if that's not enough, how about some endpapers to make you drool?

Placemat Purse

I went to Target yesterday to look at Halloween decorations. I have every decoration one could possibly want, but each year new items abound and I needed to see what was out there.

No trip to Target would be complete without spending 20 minutes in the Dollar Spot so I decided to get that out of the way first. And? I found the cutest placemats (they were $2.50, btw, so what were they doing in the DOLLAR Spot?). I had been thinking of making some placemat purses and decided these were just the ticket.

When I returned home I quickly found Scribbit's placemat purse tutorial, found some ribbon and some handles I had and got to work. If I weren't so OCD about the alignment of the ribbon holding the handles, the whole thing would have taken about 30 minutes, I think. Perhaps less.

Here is my finished product:

The total cost for the purse was about $8 (placemat $2.50 + handles $5 + ribbon $.50). I'll be keeping an eye out for inexpensive handles from now on. These purses are fun to make and they look great.

Worker Bee or Queen Bee? Part 2

This is a continuation of my earlier post about discovering whether you're a Queen bee or a worker bee. In that first post I discussed how stressed out I was as a manager.

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Green3’s dad, my uncle, asked me this summer if I’d ever considered becoming a certified project manager. That made me think. There is no question I could do it. The question is, at what price? Sometimes I still think I want to be the Queen bee. After all, I have a pretty good skill set and I’m flexible. I know what I’m doing, too. It’s prestigious to be the Queen bee.

I look good on paper. You’d want to hire me if you saw me on paper. You may even want to hire me as one of your managers if you saw me on paper. I would accept the job, too, because I’d let the money and the idea of managerial power blind me. We’d both be happy... for about ten minutes. Then we’d both be looking for a way out of that mess. Why? The bottom line is that I’m a worker bee, not a Queen bee.

The problem that poses is this: It’s hard for me to work for others because I have been a manager. Let me rephrase that: It’s hard for me to work for people who cannot manage me. I have ideas about how things should be done. I have ideas about progress reports and deadlines. I have ideas on how to best use my skills and the team’s skills. So it’s important that my manager knows how to manage my personality as well as my skills. In my life I have come across only two people who managed me and my skills effectively.

I used to think there was shame in not being the Queen bee. It’s taken me years to realize that it’s OK to be the worker bee. I am that worker who can manage herself, but not others. I am that worker who takes pride in her work, who doesn’t back down from a challenge, and who makes sure it’s done right. If I’m not managing, my only concern is doing my job well. If I have to manage, I tend to expect too much from everyone else.

This is true whether we’re talking business or social groups. Although I tend not to be a part of many groups, the ones I have joined have always asked me to become president. I even tried it once. I took on the problems of the members, made hard decisions, and failed miserably. The next few times I was asked to run for president, I declined politely, kept my head down, and continued to do my own committee jobs well.

No, I couldn’t become a certified project manager. My intentions are good, but my implementation and management skills leave something to be desired. I am a perfectionist and I accept no less from those people that work for me. If you aren’t going to give 100% and make this the best project ever, then we’re going to have a problem because it’s my reputation on the line and I’m a firm believer in no excuses.

More to come on Monday.

I Am Your Queen!

Since I'm talking about Queen bees and worker bees this week, I thought this light post from last August was appropriate. Enjoy! If you're here from Okie Blog Awards looking for some humor, please check out the Funny Stuff link on my left sidebar.

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In this photo you can see the people of Maine my minions paying homage to my greatness. Ah, it's good to be the Queen.

AP - Over 1,400 people gathered on Sunday to welcome the famous mommy-blogger Chilihead to the town of Gorham, Maine. She's known throughout the blogging community for her Groucho glasses and wicked sense of humor, not to mention her benevolence and beauty.

When asked if she had ever read Ms. Chilihead's blog, one minion had this to say, "Have I read it? Who hasn't read it? I check Don't Try This at Home multiple times a day. I use her advice and humor to make my own life better. She really is living the dream."

When Chilihead took the stage early Sunday afternoon, minions spontaneously erupted into a rousing chorus of God Save the Queen even though Chilihead is not British nor were her admirers. A few minions broke down into hysterical tears from sheer excitement.

Gorham, Maine was Chilihead's first and only stop on her whirlwind North American tour. She is available to host your bar/bat mitzvah, reception, cookout, party, or other event for a nominal fee and expenses.

Not buying it? Here's the real story. While you're off reading that I think I'll try on my tiara again and practice my wave.

(Thanks to Shannon and her friend for the link!)

Worker Bee or Queen Bee?

Which one are you? I'm a worker bee, but it took me many years to realize it. I want to tell you that story.

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Before I became a mom I worked as a technical writer. Before I worked as a technical writer I worked as a web designer. My position as a web designer was my most intense and professional job and shaped me more than any other job I had ever had. It showed me many things about myself and taught me things I'd never imagined.

In my role as web designer I was really a project manager. I had my own team of three: a dedicated programmer, a junior web designer, and a shared graphic artist. My clients included Dollar/Thrifty, Zebco, a local hospital, an oil company, and a world-wide publishing company and it's magazines. My clients routinely brought in the big bucks every month and I worked hard to make it happen.

The publishing company was by far my most demanding client. One magazine in particular was launching its own site and it was going to be big. Very big. I worked 70 hour weeks and ruined my mental health and came close to ruining my new marriage to make it work. I managed my heart out. I managed my team, my clients, my client's clients, and advertisers. I gave presentations and answered questions. I traveled to Houston at least monthly and sometimes weekly. I went to trade shows to display and sell the new web site. At the time I thought I loved it.

As a child when I looked into myself and wondered what I'd be when I grew up, I saw myself in a skirted suit with a brief case. I was going to be a professional. What kind I wasn't sure, but it would be important. As a web designer with important, world-wide clients I figured I'd reached that goal.

When I look back on that time of my life I realize how unhappy I was both professionally and personally. I was ready to throw away my marriage and punish myself in any way I could. I was deeply depressed. Once I realized how depressed I was I started subtle and not-so-subtle maneuvers to have my biggest and most lucrative client re-assigned to someone else or find another job altogether. (I ended up doing both.)

My job as a web designer/project manager, though, taught me something important: The stresses of being a manager are not for me.

Wednesday I'll continue my discussion of Queen bees vs. worker bees.

Sunday YouTube: You Can't Overlove Your Underwear

I first saw this in a movie theater. I could not stop laughing. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Caption This #6

I've missed the last few weeks of Caption This Saturday because we bought a new iBook Pro and I'm still trying to figure out just where my pictures are and how to crop them and all that other stuff. By a crazy fluke that I may not be able to repeat on my own, I have a picture for you this week.

 

While I was making dinner on Tuesday, I poured some olive oil in a pan. This is the design it made. I have my own thoughts of what it is, but I'd love to hear what you think.

If you want to see what I think, you can highlight the text on the next line. (I made it white so you can't see it without highlighting it.)

Mick Jagger's lips getting ready to chomp a guitar.

If you would like to post your own pictures for readers to caption, leave your link below and remember to link back to this post!

New Review

There's a new product review up at Chili Tried.