Fiori De Como by Dale Chihuly

I recently spent 4 days in Las Vegas attending 

a work related convention at the Bellagio. 

I was very impressed with the 

Fiori De Como by Dale Chihuly, 

which dominates the lobby of the hotel. 

I took the following photos with my iPhone.

It was impossible to get the entire piece in one photo.

I like this photo with the beautiful flower arrangement 

juxtaposed in front of the glass.

However, I love the composition of this photo with the flowers off center.

I also love the yellows and oranges in the upper left corner.

This may be the best picture I have ever taken with my iPhone.

I have not taken the time to see the 

Dale Chihuly exhibition at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 

but it is most certainly on my "to do" list now.

Have you seen any of his works?

New Job (Yes, another one!)

January 2, 2014

I started a new job.

It is with the same company 

where I began a temporary position, 

 on September 23, 2013.

It's a good company.

My preference, 

at this age, 

would be 

to win the lottery, 

take the lump sum, 

and ride off into the sunset.

Unfortunately, 

The Husband says that is not going to happen.

What does HE know?

Back to Work

I started a new job last week.

It's a 4 month temporary assignment at a local oil and gas company.

Here's the view from my new office.

Downtown Tulsa.

Looking south from the BOK Tower,

down Boston Avenue.

The people I work with are very nice.

The work is repetitive.

 Some folks would consider it boring and tedious. 

I don't agree.

 I am learning new things about the oil and gas industry.

I like learning new things.

How about you?

Random

I'm enjoying not working in corporate America again.

I had a late breakfast at my favorite bagel shop this morning.

I went to two estate sales.

I purchased items to re-sell in my antique booth.

I took a nap!!!

Friends came over the happy hour on the front porch.

What could be wrong with this life?

Nothing.

That is the answer.

NOTHING!

A Day Trip

I took a day trip this past week. The red-eye to Houston.

3:30 am - wake up
4:30 am - drive to the airport
5:45 am - plane takes off
7:10 am - arrive in Houston
7:50 am - arrive at the office
8:00 am - meet new people
9:00 am - 2:30 pm - brainstorming and process mapping session, lunch
3:00 pm - leave for airport
3:30 pm - arrive at airport
4:50 pm - depart Houston
6:10 pm - arrive Tulsa
7:00 pm - arrive home
7:15 - 8:45pm - out for dinner
8:46 pm - hit "the wall" (as in, I have to go to bed NOW!)
9:10 pm - snoozing in bed

It was a L O N G day.

I used to make this Houston trip on a semi-regular basis. I don't bounce back from it as quickly as I did a few years ago. I was exhausted the next day.  :-(

What did you do this week?

2013 New Year's Resolution

I don't do New Year's resolutions.

2013, however, is different.

I've returned to the dreaded Corporate World.

Did I not tell you?

Bad blogger!

I resumed work on October 30, 2012.

Three+ years after I retired.

My primary 2013 New Year's Resolution is to go to work every day,

with a smile on my face and a positive attitude.

I took an unexplained sabbatical from my blog beginning October 25, 2012.

Wait a minute, perhaps it was that pesky new job 

that interrupted my blogging mojo?

My secondary 2013 New Year's Resolution is to blog again.

I plan to once again post stories about the random bits and pieces of our life.

Draft posts documenting the final stops of our
2012 Western Road Trip are waiting to be finalized. 

I will complete those posts as I have time, energy and motivation.

Finishing them will satisfy my Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

(You have OCD, like me, don't you?)

Do you have a 2013 resolution?

Hard Work

Wow, I've worked all day long. Well, except for nap time!

What you ask, have I worked on so diligently? I attended several estate sales last week and purchased quite a bit of inventory for my booth. Those items, coupled with the cup & saucer collection I unpacked this week have kept me busy.

It is amazing the time it takes to "work" new merchandise. The process looks like this:

1. search out inventory
2. research values
3. research current pricing
4. clean and/or repair the item
5. add item information to booth inventory spreadsheet
6. create price tag
7. photograph item for inventory & for blog and/or facebook
8. attach price tags and pack for transport
9. write blog post with photos
10. transport items to booth and incorporate into existing stock, which typically means creating new displays
11. photograph booth
12. publish blog post
13. upload photos to facebook 
14. tweet about new blog and facebook posts
15. plan next inventory shopping trip
16. start at #1 above

No wonder I needed a nap today.

Tomorrow morning I will iron, photograph and price the linens I'm taking to the booth. I'll add the new stock and publish a new post on Cindy's Cupboard in the afternoon. 

Then, I'll probably take another nap!

 

What are you planning to do tomorrow?

My Elevator Pitch

I worked on my elevator pitch today.

What, you ask, is an elevator pitch? Click here to read all about it.

I've edited my pitch at least 10 times. I've read my pitch to The Husband twice. Tomorrow, I plan to edit the pitch one last time and practice my delivery.

Why, you ask, am I working on an elevator pitch?

I have an interview with a staffing agency at 11:00am on January 11th. One of the options they offer their registered job candidates is a video resume that is available to their clients. What a great opportunity to make a good impression with hiring managers so they will 1) want to read your resume and 2) speak to you in person.

On Wednesday, January 11th, I'll be able to honestly say, "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up!"

I'm A Happy Girl

Thursday is the last day of my part-time, temporary, contract job. It was supposed to last two months, however, it turned into a four month assignment. It was a good experience to re-enter the working world, as I was able to exercise skills not used since my exit from "Corporate America" in October of 2009.

The ending of this assignment is fortuitous because of the approaching holidays. I'm excited to start planning Thanksgiving, which will be at our house, and our Christmas festivities. And, with my new free time, I plan to post more frequently on this clipboard. 

I suppose after the New Year I will seek out another job. If you know of any projects in the Tulsa area that might fit my skill set (organization/coordination), drop me a line.

Status

Hello. Let me introduce myself. I'm Cindy. I used to maintain this blog on a more regular basis, but I took a new job and a trip all in a 10 day span.

I'm back from my trip, which I will blog about soon. (BlogHer'11 in San Diego)

I've started my new, part-time, temporary assignment. It's been tough adjusting to a work schedule after 22 months of setting my own pace; i.e. waking up whenever I want to. Working the office job, in addition to maintaining Cindy's Cupboard is going to take some juggling on my part.

I just wanted to let you know I haven't forgotten about Cindy's Clipboard. I'll be back before you know it!

Cindy's Cupboard is Open for Business!

I've been absent from here because I've been busy with my new venture! Cindy's Cupboard is open as of today.

If you live in the area, I'd love for you to visit my booth.

If you don't live in the area, I think you need to take a vacation to beautiful Jenks, OK and shop the local antique scene!

In related news, I'm exhausted tonight. I haven't done this much physical labor in one day in years. Years, I say!

P.S. I'd love for you to become a follower of Cindy's Cupboard blog, Twitter and Facebook. Thanks!

The Week

So what, you ask, have I been doing this past week?

As I wrote here, I've been working on my closet. This week I completed the project. I took another 5 large bags, plus 20+ hangers with clothes in dry cleaner bags to Goodwill. It's really ridiculous the clothing I have hung onto, that I could not or would not wear. I'm happy other people will have the opportunity, at a low price, to wear the items.

For those of you who know me well, you know that I'm a collector of things. I have recently decided to act on my long time desire to allow some of my "pretties" to go to other homes. I am seriously working on opening an antique mall booth.

You may follow my journey on my new blog, Cindy's Cupboard. I've also created a Facebook business page here that you may follow. Be patient with me on Facebook, as creating a business page has been a bit of a challenge! And last, but not least, I've created a twitter account for Cindy's Cupboard.

As I mentioned in this post, The Husband has returned to the work world. We are still adjusting to the change in our routines. You might say it's been a good thing, since I've had the luxury of uninterrupted time to clean out my closets and start on the cupboards. However, the poor dear is afraid of what he will find (or not find) when he returns home!

So, what have you been up to?

10,303 Days

10,303 Days = 28 Years & 83 Days = Number of Days employed by a global oil company

Today = Day 1 = Retirement

I'm so excited!

Purging The Old Office

I've been spending time the last few days purging files in my home office. It certainly feels good and has provided me with a few laughs.

Most of the corporate files are no longer relevant. I really have embraced the "paperless office" concept, but even with my discipline of disposing of work papers as projects end, there is still a considerable amount of stuff I kept. About half of it I can just toss in the trash, but the other half needs to be disposed of by shredding.

Other files are personal stuff, which have caused me to shake my head and/or laugh when reviewing.

The most fun file to review so far has been my "decorating ideas" file. You know the one...the one where you rip pages out of magazines, catalogs, or newspapers showing everything from house plans, to furniture, accessories, paint colors, etc. that "speak to you" and you would like to incorporate in your home.

As I've aged, my tastes have refined. I could still absolutely see why I pulled every one of those pages and filed it away for future perusal. I confess, some of the pages I didn't have the heart to toss. Guess I'll be keeping a "decorating ideas" file for a while!

It will be energizing to have a cleaned out, re-organized home office, with space for new project materials.

I just have to finish the work!

I Am Happy to be HOME !!!

For a variety of reasons, this past week has not been the best.

I spent the majority of the time waiting for a specific discussion to occur (which never did) and fretting over some other things. Things over which I have absolutely no control. I was EXTREMELY happy to arrive home Thursday evening. Tough times always seem less tough and more managable at home.

And, to add to my delight of being home, my new peacock necklace was waiting for me.

I've been coveting this necklace ever since the artist posted it on her blog, Sunny Rising Leather. I finally took the plunge and ordered it. May I just say it is gorgeous? Thanks to Allison for creating the necklace. It has jumped to the top of my favorites list already!

For those of you who have not found Allison previously in the internet world, take a a few moments to visit her blog and her two Etsy shops:

Sunny Rising Leather and Sunny Rising Metal

It is time well spent.

July 20, 1981

What did you do on that day in history?

I walked through the doors of an office building in downtown Tulsa, OK to begin my new job as an experienced secretary at a major US oil company.

I had no idea how much my life would change as a result.

I was a secretary for 5 years and then moved into an assistant role, where I was given ever increasing responsibilities. After a change in my personal circumstances, opportunities presented themselves to transfer to Calgary, Chicago and Houston, where I worked in a number of professional roles.

I have learned a lot, about a lot!

I have worked for and with many talented, smart, interesting women and men. People who took the time to mentor me. I will be forever grateful to them for helping me develop my job into a CAREER.

Who would have thought that the secretary of long ago would end up the manager of a global website? Certainly, not me.

So, here is a "shout out" to 28 years of corporate experience, enhanced by priceless mentoring.

It will be interesting to see what happens next...

Heating Up...

As I've mentioned here, I've been traveling to Houston since April to assist with a big project for a global company. We are implementing a new system that is replacing existing systems and websites.

We are now officially a week away from the "go live" of the new system. There are tasks still to accomplish, decisions still to be made/agreed and action plans to be implemented. All of these activities are typical at this point in a large project.

A number of people have worked on this project 1-3 years. A good many of these folks have worked on this project for many months, and then there are newcomers like me who have arrived at, what seems to be, the last minute.

Personally, I had been tasked with keeping one of the old systems operational until it's replacement date. Since April, I've been juggling my old job, along with trying to understand the new system and the specific task I was asked to help with.

As you can imagine, people are tired and stressed. They are working 12, 14, 16+ hour days; and have been for an extended time. Some folks live in Houston, but many of us are traveling from far flung US locations every week.

Everyone's families are impacted. Personal milestones like children's school events/graduations, family birthdays, anniversaries, vacations, deaths, purchases of new homes, etc. have all, in MANY cases, taken second place. Let's not even discuss the impact to friendships.

We turn on the new system June 25th. I'll keep you posted on how it goes...

A Continuing Theme...

for this week..forgetfulness!

I left the office today and drove to the airport. Upon arrival, I realized I left my CELL PHONE at the office. Do you know how hard it is to find a pay phone nowadays? I kept thinking "I'll call 'so and so' and ask them to look for my phone." How could I? 

I HAD NO CELL PHONE!

Oh...Pancake!

The project I'm assigned to gives me the opportunity to work with people of many ethnic heritages and people who have been privileged to work in many different cultures from around the world.

One of the folks is married to a native of Azerbaijan and was able to work there for a number of years. There are many languages spoken in the country, Azeri is the most widely spoken, but Russian is also spoken.

This person told me the word "blin" in Russian has two definitions. One is "pancake" and one is "damn." He worked with a woman who said "blin" a lot.

Our little team has adopted "PANCAKE" as a polite way to express frustration without offending any of our other co-workers.

We have to have fun where we can!

I Brought The Camera...

...to Houston. But I forgot the docking station and cord that would allow me to upload photos and post them to my blog. Oh well...

It was 87 degrees and mostly sunny today. But I wish I was in Tulsa where it was rainy and cool.

Work has been interesting this week. The clock is ticking on the global website that I have managed for a number of years. We "turn off the lights" on June 30th. If I'm lucky enough to keep a job after June 30th, I will transition from someone who is an "expert" in her area of responsibility to a "newbie."

I'm not good at being a newbie.