It seemed a lot simpler then…

The First Job.

I read an article by Ken Whiting on LinkedIn this week about the experience of our first job – Everyone Can Peel Bananas.  To quote his opening:

We all had our “first job”. It was either a nightmare, a tremendous success… or somewhere in between. It may have had nothing to do with career aspirations, or it could have been perfectly aligned with where you saw your future going. No matter how it turned out, it became the start of your lifetime of work experience.

It was likely your first taste of having a boss, co-workers, needing to be on time, in proper dress code, being responsible, and even earning a paycheck….and then you probably asked your first question about… taxes!

Well, in the mid-60s there weren’t so many options for girls.  I immediately thought of two jobs I held in the summer I was 15 and a year later when I was 16.  But the first job was actually volunteer office work at a Family Services Center, and the second was bagging at a Commissary on an Air Force Base where we earned tips but no salary.  I also had a job at age 14 as a teacher’s assistant in a primary school during the summer, but there I earned high school credits and no money.

So the lessons about being on time, responsible, etc, applied, just not the paycheck part.

Then I had a “d’oh” moment and realised that I had begun to work even before all that.  Because when I was 12, I began to babysit.  Mostly around the neighbourhood at first, then my client base began to grow citywide, including people from a larger circle of friends and acquaintances.  It was an important source of pocket money for me in those days!  And  (*cough cough*) not taxed…

At first, when I just started (and let’s face it, 12 is pretty young to start having that much responsibility), I had a back-up.  My folks had portable intercoms that plugged in to any outlet, and we used them around the house instead of shouting up and down the stairs.  So when I babysat in the neighbourhood, I took along one of the intercom sets and if I had a question or a problem I could “buzz” my mom and ask.

Once I had a 2-yr-old who refused to go to sleep, and just sat in bed and cried, no matter what stories I told him or songs I sang.  After over an hour of his wailing, I finally buzzed my mom on the intercom and asked in desperation what to do.  The kid shut up and stared wide-eyed at the little box as my mother’s voice told him to go to sleep now!  He asked me in a hushed voice “You got your mom in that thing?”  I said “Yep.”   He looked at me for a minute…and he rolled over and went to sleep!

I took it all very seriously.  My mother got hold of a book for me – The Baby Sitter’s Guide, by Mary Furlong Moore.  Published in 1953.

Hm.  What does it mean that I still have the book?  Yes, I had to dig a little in an old cupboard with children’s books, but I found it.  Some pages are loose, some at the back are missing, but I’ve got it.

I followed the author’s advice and made a babysitting binder.  (That I no longer have…)  With a page for each family.  Address, phone number, names of parents and kids (plus number of kids and their ages).  Each day, date and time I was expected to babysit.  Any special instructions from the parents.  How to reach them each time if necessary.  How things work in their house that I would need to know about. Kids’ special likes or hobbies.  TV rules.

Again following the author’s suggestion I had a little brightly coloured babysitting “suitcase”.  With lots of basic toys and games and crafting things.  Yes, most of the kids had those things themselves, but they loved to play with my stuff because it was new and different.  I carried it along to each job.

The book told me what questions to ask, how to approach the kids, activities to plan, and more.  Just check out the contents:

Lots and lots of common sense advice and guidance.   Rereading it now, I’m quite amazed by its practicality and simplicity.

And it’s quite striking how much it prepared me for teaching, not to mention parenthood.  You would think that a book written over 60 years ago would be dated in its advice and approach.  Well, a few things are, but most are not.

It made my first paying job a lot easier.  And taught me some invaluable lessons about responsibility.

My first jobs are not on my resume.  Employers usually ask about the last places we worked, not the first.  Even though those first jobs we held may have shaped who we are as employees.

Do you remember your first job?  What did you learn from it?

 

What we have here is a problem of communication

User-friendly my patootie.

I’ve been fighting with my printer all day.

I want to print out some envelopes, for business mailing.  I prefer to print them, it looks more professional, and that’s important for a small business.  I go through Word → mailings → envelopes…  I select the size of the envelope.  and how it loads into the printer according to the printer instructions.  I type in the address and the return address.  And I hit “print”.

Ding-dong, the printer tells me the size of the envelope isn’t what I selected.  And spits the envelope back out.  Blank.    I also get a pop-up in Word telling me the same thing, but there it has a button to click if I want to print it anyway on the current envelope.  Obediently I put the envelope back in the tray and I click.  Nope, the printer isn’t buying that trick, out comes the blank envelope once again.   With the accompanying ding-dong.

I re-check all the settings.  Go over all possible options.  Print.  Ding-dong.  And again.

I ponder that perhaps the measurements written on the packet of envelopes is off, so I grab a ruler and measure the durn thing.  Nope, the manufacturer got it right.  Even so, I punch in some other measurement options to try.

Nope.  Nope.  Nope.  Ding-dong.

I go out and buy a different size of envelope.  Start over.  Same story.

I type and arrange the addresses in a regular Word document (which prints out just fine on paper), and try to print that on the envelope.  This jams the envelope inside the printer.   I try this three times.  And three times I have to open up the machine to retrieve the jammed envelope.  (And throw it away, because now it can’t be used.)

I’m not happy.

It’s not like I’m a novice at this nonsense.  I have been using Word to print out envelopes for years.  But this printer is determined not to cooperate.   It does fine with other stuff.  Yet despite advertising to the contrary, it just doesn’t want to print envelopes.  And is not persuaded by my polite requests, heart-rending pleas, nor my expletive-laden tantrums.

Piffle.

I have wasted a day on this.  I will now address the frigging envelopes by hand. go eat some comfort food and then knit to calm down.

You’ve let me down, printer.  I don’t think I’ll ever be able to see you in the same way again.

WIPs, KALs, and Tests

I’m finding this working-at-home gig pretty interesting.  On the plus side:  flexible hours that can fit around other committments, business meetings at nice cafés, “working” clothes that often incude slippers, interesting networking channels and finding contacts, learning lots of new and widely varied things on different projects, being reasonably available when “mom” is needed, more time to pay attention and take care of the house.  Oh, and no boss.   On the minus side:  all responsibility on me, including networking, accounting, reporting, taxes, etc. , making nice to customers (most are very pleasant), chasing after those who take their time paying,  occasional distractions at home.  And my blog has suffered.  Back on the plus side, I’m actually getting my work and my housework done, which hasn’t happened in years.

Granted, the business is still very new, I’m still busting my butt to find customers, and I’m not yet breaking even.  Business is picking up slowly. For now marketing is taking the most time.  Natural.  Full steam ahead, and all that.  I have some excellent advisors, and support when I need it.  I’m trying to discipline myself properly.

Yet another plus is being able to schedule some knitting time.  Whereas before I could knit (or sleep) during my commute to and from work, now I can schedule knitting whenever I have time to take a break.  And before, I had to use the weekend to catch up on all the housework and errands that there was no time for during the work week, but now, I can do all that during the week and use the weekend to REST.  And read.  And knit.

Bliss.

The Curious Collective shawl KAL is over – a wonderful textured shawl that was the result of over 2000 knitters voting.  For my Collectively Curious I mixed Indigodragonfly Merino Silk in the colourway Not your regular heart medication with Indigodragonfly Merino in the colourway Ruxpinosferatu:

 

I also did a test knit for Laurie Beardsley of LaurieBea Knitting – a long crescent shawl/scarf called Still Got the Blues.  It will be part of a series based on classic rock.  One of the best parts of the pattern?  Links to videos of the song – I loved Eric Clapton’s acoustic version, and listened to it the entire time I was knitting.

I used Indigodragonfly Twisty Tweed Sock in the colourway Grrr…..Argh.

 

Indigodragonfly held a summer KAL/CAL, the “Accessoregatta” – any and all accessories knitted with Indigodragonfly yarn or patterns written by Kim.  Both of the above projects counted in the KAL, and I started the Mayflower socks as well.  Didn’t finish them by the deadline, but they’re a fun knit and I’m almost through with the first sock.  This is before the cables go wacko:

Knitted up a Smart-Ass club pattern, for the Selfish Knitters and Crocheters group’s Palate Cleansing COWL K/ CAL – the Lonicera Cowl by the Sexy Knitter – with Indigodragonfly Filament o’ Squid in the colourway Squalor Amongst the Ankles.

Wonderfully soft and drapey!!

I also finally finished the scarves for the grand-nephews!  Had to force myself – the acrylic yarn actually squeaked while being knitted, and it was not very nice to work with.  But it was so worth it.

Added the boys’ names with duplicate stitch, so they wouldn’t get them mixed up (or taken by some jealous fan).

Yes, it seems like all I’ve been doing is knitting, but hey, I haven’t posted in a long time.  And there’s more.  But that’s for another day, another post.

Now… back to work.  ‘Tis time for some more networking…

A bouquet of parsley

The wife of a former colleague of mine once told me a story that when they had been married only a short time, he came home from work and suddenly realized that it was their anniversary and that he had totally forgotten to get her anything.  He ran down to their garden to at least “bring” her flowers, but unfortunately there was nothing in bloom that day.  Not one to be easiiy discouraged, he quickly grabbed what he could, and came back inside to present her with….a bouquet of parsley.  (And then to a dinner date at a fancy restaurant…)

I have been so busy I have neglected my blog, and have missed my fourth blogoversary.

No excuse.  I am now planning a belated-blogoversary giveaway, because four years of sharing must be celebrated!  Details will be posted soon!

I’ve been terribly occupied opening my own business, becoming a self-employed businesswoman at a point when others are beginning to contemplate retirement.  So life is… interesting.  And moving way too rapidly.  Time seems to rush by and disappear without stopping to say hello.  (Time can be like that.)

Luckily there is knitting to keep me sane, and all projects will be duly discussed as that pesky time allows.

Hm.  Four years deserves so much more than parsley.  How about a yarn bouquet from Jimmy Beans Wool???

Happy August !!

A New Toy! Um… Tool!

I am typing this post with my brand new computer.  Sitting in a café while waiting to pick up kidlet from where she’s visiting friends out of town.

Now, you’re going to laugh, but for all the years I have been online I have only had desktop computers.  This is my very first laptop, and I’m busy learning everything.  (Once I got through the rather embarassing moments of trying to open the wrong side.  But you didn’t hear that, right?)  Ahem, yes.  Learning everything.  Including trying to figure out Windows 8 after having worked for years with nothing newer than xp on my old dinosaur that died.

I do enjoy a challenge.

I did pick up a little mouse for the laptop, but right now it’s put away, I want to get the feel for this without the old familiar toys.  The shop threw in a nice headset and a computer bag, which was nice.  I also got the newest Office, which will take some getting used to as well.  And there are miscellaneous ports and burners and card readers and all that fun stuff.  Yes.

Oh my, I do like the portability.

I have great plans for this new acquisition.  But first I’m having a whale of a time setting things up to my satisfaction.  Is it silly to be so tickled about it?

Now to keep kidlet’s paws off of it.

 

And the wheel goes round and round. Or goes flat.

I’m taking a course in business management.  Wildly varied group, in age, experience, background, goals.  One of the exercises we did was the Life Wheel, a common coaching tool.   There are many versions, with some concepts common to all and some with variations.  Some versions of the wheel ask you to name your own wedges, what’s important to you.  This is the one we used (in Hebrew, of course):

Focusing on your life/situation in the here and now, you rate each wedge on your satisfaction with that area on a scale from 0 (unbearable) to 10 (just about perfect).

None of the wedges are truly independent, obviously some of the areas will affect some of the others.  But it is a useful division.

You can either fill out the wedge according to the score you gave it, or mark the score along the line and then connect the dots.  Either way, you get an overview of how you’re doing (or think you’re doing) overall.  Which we sometimes ignore or don’t see because we’re totally focused in only a few areas.  This gives you the big picture.

The ideal is, of course, that your wheel be as balanced as possible.   The point of the tool is to point out what areas need to be addressed or redefined to create the best creative and productive  – in other words balanced – environment for success.

As the folks in the course gave their own ratings in different areas, it led to some pretty interesting discussions about how we define ourselves, our priorities, and our lives.   And since the ages in the group range from 19 to 60, there were some vast differences in perspective.   One of the questions the lecturer often asked is  “What would bring that score to a 10?”

There were very few scores of 10.  Lots of scores from 7-9, though.  None 0-1, but there were some 2’s and 3’s.

My scores ranged from 2 to 9, depending on the wedge.  Which leaves me very unbalanced!!  One of the hardest scores to rate for me was fun and recreation, since some things I truly love – like reading and knitting – I would rate a 10, and others I love just as much – like hiking, touring and exercising – would get a 0 in my current situation.  So I balanced it out to a 5.  Health….don’t even ask.   😀

It seems my life wheel has a flat.  Time to start patching.   Interesting way to arrange priorities.

So….is your life wheel balanced?  What would bring your scores to 9-10 all around?