It's the end of the year....SURPRISE!!

Wow...the end of the year.....it's truly gone by so fast!! Especially the last 4 months. Wild. I've been at the salon for nearly 2 years now. How is that going?? Slow but steady. One of my clients predicted that 2011 was going to be my year...let's see if she's right!! I've learned how to handle/accept my co-workers for who and what they are, which has made life in the salon much easier. I still get frustrated with them, but, it's a lot less than what it was!! Katie made contact with her other family. A big thing, for the both of us. Yet again, I've discovered that if everyone leaves us alone, Douglas and I do just fine. When others stick their big beaks where they don't belong, it causes problems. His sister-in-law was all about being up my backside until she found out I have no sympathy for Douglas' trials & tribulations. Then, POOF, she disappeared. We're still "friends" on Facebook, but there hasn't been any one on one contact for over a week now. Which isn't really a bad thing....she's a bit schizo, really, so it's okay. My reasoning for contact with his relatives on FB is to notify when Katie's birthday is. Don't want them to feel excluded!!! Sigh...it stinks being the grown up sometimes. I've lost 20 lbs since July 21st. I've got 40 more to go before I reach my ultimate goal of 125 lbs. I get bored with WW frequently, so I'm not taking the new program terribly seriously right now. And, it's the holidays, where I'm eating foods I don't normally eat. I'm trying to be careful of the quantities of food that I eat, so that I don't overdo it. I did have a problem with all the pork I've been eating...we had spiral ham for Christmas, then I made a pork roast the other day. On top of all the salty foods I've been craving lately, my body went into over load and I wound up sick. I also had pierogies, which we never eat ( the homemade kind, not those nasty frozen ones), which are quite rich for me to eat, now that I've changed how I eat. So, it's been a dicey couple of days. Now, I'm eating "kosher'" (no pork of any kind) to kind of "cleanse" my system. Bad experience with the pork...won't be eating it for quite a while, I think, even with "Fatty's" coming up!! Really, I should have lost more than 20 lbs by now....but, like I said, I haven't been following the program like I should, so, my weight loss has been slower. But, at the same time, if I lose it slowly, I'm more likely to keep it off, which is my ultimate goal. So, once New Year's is out of the way, I can focus on what's important. Which is: lose 16lbs in 11 weeks. A bit daunting, since really, it will be 10 weeks, as I know I've gained weight this past week. That's 1.6lbs a week. Can I do it?? Absolutely. It's a matter of knuckling down and following the program!! Continuing to keep our finances under control. Tricky, especially when Doug skips child support and I don't know it until I check my account. Sigh. I don't make quite enough to cover his heiney, YET. Purchase the study materials for the national color exams. That will happen after I get my taxes back, as well as the finances thing. I won't be taking the exam until 2012, so I'll have from February (sometime) until July of 2012 to study, practice, absorb the entire process. My goal is to only take the damn exam once. And, I have to go to Boston to do it. I believe I will be calling upon my "sister", Lisa, for help in both staying in and getting to Boston. Her parents live in Methuen, which is MUCH closer than we are to Boston!! Continue to keep the lines of communication open between Doug and I. Which is difficult at best, since his girlfriend "manages" all his electronic accounts for him, so she does a lot of "editing" for him that he's totally unaware of. Keep Katie on an even keel because of all of this. Her life has turned upside down, courtesy of herself. And now, it's my job to keep that mess straightened out!!

The emotionally unavailable

What is it with guys that are emotionally unavailable? How is it that they're attractive to me??? I guess you could blame it on my Dad...boy, he was emotionally unavailable!! But, seriously...what is it with guys who think they're ready to move on, yet really aren't?? Is it so hard to admit you need some time, some considerable time, to lick your wounds?? To maybe sit in a corner, sucking your thumb and crying while holding your blankie?? I can tell you that coming on fairly strong to a new someone, then switching it off like a light switch doesn't get it done. While I understand that the holidays are hard when someone is freshly divorced (and boy, do I mean fresh...just shy of 2 months, a mere 6 months total since the separation), and has always had someone else to take care of things like Christmas shopping, etc., for them, let's try focusing on establishing and maintaining a family routine before we try adding someone new into it. Now, I'm not the first woman he's had a date with where he dropped them shortly after. But, here's the thing: YOU'RE NOT READY TO MOVE ON YET!!! Isn't there a self-help book out there somewhere for this very thing?? I may have to do some investigating after the holidays!! Thanks for letting me vent!

Just because....

I've sought the advice of many, because it's been a long time since I've been in the dating pool. All have said to tread carefully, due to the fact that he's recently divorced. Even my own gut said so, when listening to him lament about the same things...how he's never had to shop by himself before, an empty house, can only talk so much to your kids, etc. I both sympathize and empathize with this dilemma. Been there, done that. The best advice I've gotten is to ask him to something harmless and see what he does. (we did last week and had a great time!) This week, I got shot down. Ouch. Now, the adult in me realizes this is not the time frame to do this...the holidays are fast approaching, he owns his own business, and orders must be completed before the holiday. I get it. The giddy teenager in me is not impressed, at all. From blowing pretty hot to not so much in the course of a few days, well, it sucks. There are a lot of factors and/or variables that I'm not taking into consideration, because, well, I'm not there to listen to what his kids are saying to him. I'm too sure, because this is always the way, regardless of how old the children are (his are 16 & 12) that they are majorly affected by the divorce. And, no one but the kids know what Mom says when Dad isn't around. (and any of her friends). And, I only know what he's like around me. So, I've got nothing to go by, really. However, it still hurts, even though there isn't much invested in this. I hate the self-doubt, insecurity, and indecision that's involved in all of this. I'm sure that it's equal on both our parts...he's freshly divorced, and doesn't know which end is up, I've been out of the "dating pool" for 6 years. I use quotes because my last "dating" experience was with a full-blown, first class alcoholic. I always manage to find the emotionally unavailable and get attached. So, here I am, pity party, table of one. I'd like to say that I'll be optimistic about all of this, but, that's unlikely. I'm nothing if not one of the best doubting thomas' around.

In my life....

So, as you've read, my life has gone topsy-turvy. Katie's dad is back in the picture, and it's been "interesting" so far. Katie's aunt (Doug's sister-in-law) is back in my life, for which the jury is still out on. We used to be great friends, until she decided to feed Doug a bunch of crap which he then used as the excuse for us to originally break up. Really, he more than likely met someone else (the man has NEVER been faithful) and was ready to move on. Water under the bridge, really. However, the whole situation with Jennifer caused me to be forever cautious around her. She likes to "stir up trouble", so I'm careful what I say. She is full of "useful" information, though....even if I take most of it with a grain of salt. To add to the mix, just for fun, I've met someone. Now, normally, I do not look at my client base as dating fodder. Completely not cool, totally unprofessional. However, at the beginning of the month, I had a new client in my chair. We struck up conversation. (when you have someone in your chair, you can cover a LOT of territory in the time they're sitting with you!) And I heard the audible "click" that told me this guy could possibly be "IT". I watched him, and he heard it, too. By the time he left, not only did he tip me HUGE, he also suggested we all go skating sometime. (one of the conversations we had) So, when I got home that night, I found him on Facebook, and sent him a nice little message about how nice it was to talk to him today. And we've been talking ever since. He wanted to take me out last Saturday night, however, that just wasn't possible, since I was in Greenfield, waiting for Katie to be dropped off by her father. I did suggest that we go to lunch instead. Which we did. Here's the story: I drove over to his shop at the appointed time (did I mention he A) owns his own business? B) owns his own home?? C) has freshly signed divorce papers??) and let myself in. He's a machinist. Which was kind of neat to watch, even though it's all done by enclosed (mostly), computer run machines. He kept apologizing for not being ready. To which I replied: "Relax....it's okay, really!" Winchester is a really small town, much like Hinsdale is. So places to eat lunch are at a minimum that don't involve copious amounts of grease. We started off at the take-out Chinese place (which stunk to high heaven of grease). As we were standing there, contemplating the menu, James (did I mention his name is James??) suggested going to this bake shop/deli on the other side of Hinsdale. So, I said, "Sure. I've never eaten there before." And, we climb back in his truck, drive towards Hinsdale. As we approach the race track (where the new Walmart is located), he asks me if there's an Applebee's in Brattleboro. "No, but there's a 99" "I love 99! Lets go there!" "Okay!" So, we go to 99 for lunch. The food took it's sweet time getting to our table, so we had a chance to talk. It was a bit awkward at first, because this is all new to the both of us (it's been nearly 6 years since I was involved in anything vaguely resembling a relationship). But, we did okay. Our food arrived, we ate and talked some more. Then, we finally decided to leave. We get back into his truck (fully loaded, brand sparkly new pick up truck with vanity plates, I might add) and he asks me if I mind going back to Winchester via Chesterfield. (which, for those that don't know, is in the complete OPPOSITE direction from whence we came) By the time we got back to his shop, we had been gone for over 2 hours!! Now, nothing happened other than a whole lot of conversation. However, I haven't been able to wipe the smile off my face ever since. We're going to try to get together again, for either lunch or dinner, SOON. Stay tuned!! :)

Nobody likes a liar...

Anybody who has known me for any length of time will tell you I don't lie. I don't have the energy for it, I don't have the memory capacity to remember all the lies, so, I just don't bother. I've always operated (especially since becoming a parent) under the policy of "honesty is the best policy". I've been known to drop someone like a hot potato if I catch them lying to me, and it's intentional. I have tossed friendships aside for this. I will also cut you off if you start spreading gossip about me, which is something else I ABHOR. We went out to dinner with Doug, his girlfriend, and her son. It was a great time...the dinner wasn't so great--Applebees, which is okay, but the waitress STUNK, and Doug's girlfriend was less than impressed. We all had a chance to talk, which was nice. I specifically addressed a couple of issues with Katie about her other family in front of Doug & Brenda, so they knew how I felt. One was no more cornering her grandmother about things from long ago....not worth it, especially where she's not well and won't be here forever. (Doug told me what the issue is, all I can remember is that she needs a pacemaker and won't have the surgery). The other was that she could only corner her father when no one else was around. No publicly humiliating him. Totally uncool. He and Brenda both agreed about this. She can ask him whatever she wants, but it has to be in the right setting. During a couple different conversations, Zachary, who is 7, let some things slip, as all little kids do. I had suspected a while back that Doug had maybe changed jobs. He didn't change jobs, he added a job...he now has his own business. Which, by the way, I happen to think is FABULOUS. It's what he's always wanted. He does auto body, and does a damn fine job. It is his love, passion, reason for existence, and he does it well. The fact that they chose to shush Zachary up instead of just admitting things is what bothers me. I know why they're not saying anything (at least, I think I do). They don't want to get "popped" for more child support. I can understand that, particularly if I had been continually taking him back to court to get more (which I'm totally entitled to). However, I've never taken him back in all the years since the court order was put into place. I need the money to come every week, at a predictable time, so I can do with it what I need to. I don't want any extra, as much as we could use it. I'd much rather see him just continue to step up to the plate, man up, and be a Dad. That's waaay more important than an increase in child support. And, there's no way to let them know this, at this point, without letting the proverbial cat out of the bag, there by causing some serious uncomfortable-ness between all parties involved. Sigh...I hate being an adult sometimes.

So.....

We got home last night and Douglas was on the answering machine again. This time, inviting us out to dinner. They'll be in our area, bringing his girl friend's youngest son to his father, and wanted to get together so we can chat. So, we called him back to accept. Then, I handed the phone to Katie so she could talk to him. First thing she did (after all the "how are you's" were done) was ask him why he didn't try to contact us before now. His reply was the only phone number he had was my mom's from when we lived in the trailer park and he didn't know we had moved, so he didn't know if the phone number still worked. Are you feeling this is a weak excuse, too?? Mind you, in our court order (which we haven't followed since May of 2000), it states that if either of us move more than 100 miles away, we need to contact each other. Since I never moved 100 miles away, I never bothered to tell him. AND, since his actions from May of 2000 indicated that he wanted nothing to do with Katie, I also didn't bother. Was that the right thing to do?? No, probably not. However, it's all over and done with. Stay tuned for the next exciting episode of "As The Stomach Churns".....

Things I hear people snivelling about

Snivelling, whining, moaning and groaning, bitching and complaining. They're all the same thing. Snivelling & whining tend to refer to children (except for some in my orbit), and the latter two are more "adult". I know that I do my fair share (and more, sometimes), however, there are times when I can't take hearing some of the same issues OVER AND OVER!! 1) "I'm a teacher, so I don't make any money" is probably my personal favorite. Currently, on "The Biggest Loser", one of the contestants who got voted off used that one. He lives at home, doesn't have a family to support. I get that he has student loans...so do I. However, I would GLADLY trade with him. He (and a lot of other teachers) make more than 2x what I do. I understand that there are some teachers who go way above and beyond because they love what they do and they do it well. Personally, I feel that these people should get a raise. It's the one's who stink as a teacher, who are only there to collect the paycheck, that I have a problem with!! 2) "How do you like what our current President is doing" and other snottily phrased comments about our current administration. To which I tend to reply (especially to the die-hard republicans I know) "I'd hate to have his job...he can't make anyone happy!" Because, really, he can't. Conversely, as much as everyone likes to say he's the head cheese, really, he's not. Congress is usually who is running the show. They are the ones who tend to get things "done", whatever they are, and the President is the one available for the photo op to sign something into law. At least, that's how it appears. I don't dislike our President, on the contrarey, I voted for the guy. But, even if I didn't, I'd still say the same thing. 3) " I don't have time to exercise". Really?? In the 10 minutes you've taken to snivel about how you don't have time for it, you could have gotten SOMETHING done. It's all about priorities. And, when you don't make you a priority, whoops! There it is! (this is the same person who can carve out time in her "busy" schedule to Christmas shop, but can't find the time to exercise..go figure) 4) "OMG, I'm so broke, I can't afford X". Listen. I'm tired of hearing that one, too. My income is relatively "fixed"--I say relatively because my tips change everything, and how often my clients want me to come in when I'm not scheduled--Yet, I can somehow manage, on very limited benefits from the state and child support (which I haven't gone up on in the 13 years I've been receiving it), to keep my cupboards full, my fridge full, clothes on our backs, a roof over our heads, a kitty to love, and a car to drive (complete with full coverage insurance). Would it stink beyond all measure to lose the one benefit I receive from the state?? (the Fed, actually, as it's food stamps) Yes. I would have NOTHING extra, EVER. But, I would find a way. I'm resourceful like that. The other thing I try hard to do is..................................................(drumroll) LIVE WITHIN MY MEANS. I'm not one to compete with the Jones's or anybody else, for that matter. I do not drive a fancy, expensive car, I don't wear designer clothes, (neither does my kid, for that matter)most of what I own is 2nd hand, or I've had it FOREVER. And yet, every 8 weeks or so, I can manage to pay for an expensive haircut, as my special treat to myself, pay for WW every week, pay for the laundry, and put gas in the car. How totally odd. I'm not trying to prove that I'm perfect. FAR from it. But, I've learned my lessons, the HARD way. I just wish everyone else would, too.

A Blast from the Past

So, Katie being Katie, she pulled a very sneaky move last week. She located her other grandmother's phone number (which my mom has in an ancient Rolodex), called her, and had quite the chat with her. To which Arlene (other grandmother) passed the information on to Doug (Katie's dad) and he called Katie Tuesday night. Katie had told me that her other grandmother had called here "by mistake". Which is probably the worst lie she's ever told, bar none. It was poorly delivered, badly done, you name it. She even went so far as to clear out the caller ID so phone numbers wouldn't show up. So, after freaking out, and calling my best friend, Sandy, on Tuesday night to chat/have a therapy session about Doug being on my answering machine, I called him back, since Katie wasn't at home (at Vanessa's for a sleepover). An hour later, Doug called me back. We talked for 45 minutes, catching up 10 years worth of time. It was very ODD talking to him. It was like no time had passed at all and we were still best friends. He updated me on all his family (because I asked), and himself, to some extent. He asked a bit about Katie, such as what she looked like. He also told me about the phone conversation Katie had with her grandmother. (not so much the details, but the fact that it happened). And, he was also okay with Katie calling him back when she got home last night, which she did. Katie and her father talked for just under 2 hours last night. It was a big "get to know you" phone call, with the both of them asking tons of questions. It seemed like he was very interested in her and was willing to answer all her questions. When we got home and Katie listened to the message he had left, she completely cried. We had talked about the whole thing on the way home from Vanessa's house. I told her I understood why she did things the way she did, that it can't be undone now, so let's just keep moving forward. Do I have fears about this?? TONS. During the conversation I had with Doug, I noticed he was still blaming others for the crappy parts of his life. He had a girlfriend named Terry back when he used to see Katie, and it was UGLY with her...I wasn't allowed any further than the foot of the driveway when I went to pick her up, Doug and I couldn't have any conversations regarding Katie, whatsoever. Not even "Here's the medicine she's on, here's how to give it to her, this is when she took it last, this is when she needs to take it". NOTHING. And, big surprise, she turned out to be a complete mess who apparently embezzled money from her employer. Now, when all of that was happening, and they broke up, I received a phone call from Doug, (a message, actually), stating that he wasn't coming to pick her up that night, as scheduled, and wouldn't be taking her for the holiday on Monday, either (Memorial Day, which was a holiday he pushed to always have her on). And, POOF, that was it. He was gone. He and his mother always had my mother's contact information. I don't know what happened to the stuff his mother had, but, according to him, Terry threw out a bunch of his paperwork, including Katie's contact information. When we talked the other night, I made it CLEAR that he was NOT to hurt her again. He was to do this completely, and not half-assed. That he couldn't just pop in and out of her life whenever it suited him because she really needs her dad. We'll see.

I'm Baaaaaaack!!!

We finally got hooked back up to the universe today!! A 20 minute job turned into an 80 minute job because "The system is down". I feel bad for the technicians that go to people's houses to hook them up. It's not the technician's fault. Their part of the job, running the line in, drilling a hole for the line, connecting it to the box on the side of the house, hooking things up to the computer inside the house, is all their job is, really. Then, they get on their version of the phone (it's kind of a cell phone and a work computer all rolled into one, not like a Blackberry, though), and the wait begins. This particular company does not have a separate call center to handle the technicians calls from the customer calls. So, they use the same number you do when calling and they have to wait for the next available operator, just like a regular customer does. Do you see what's wrong with this picture??? Anyway, I got hooked up. My computer is still acting a titch strangely, ever since that fabulous virus was running around in my system. There's still some glitches to be worked out. I need PaPa Brian to come up here and work his magic to fix things. I've done everything I know to do, I even think I know where it's coming from (which almost never happens), however, this needs someone far more "expert" than I. Work has been busier, of late, which has been nice. A bit more cha-ching in my pocket, thankyouverymuch! On a work-related note (well, kinda), all is not right in Evelyn's world. There's a strong suspicion that her husband, Lester, is cheating on her. Suddenly, she and Les have "date night", they're doing all kinds of things together (according to Evie), blah blah blah. What I see is Evelyn making a whole lot of effort, and Lester reaping the benefits, yet still carrying on with his "shenanigans" behind her back, but not really covering up his tracks a whole lot. It's sad, really. I'm certainly not crowing about it, nor laughing maniacally, or thinking Evelyn is getting her just desserts. When your spouse cheats on you, and you have to face that reality, and the rest of the reality that goes along with it, it SUCKS. Big time. They also have a little boy, who is unbelievably affected by all of this. In other news, KatieKatherine is actually doing well in school! Her bff, Vanessa, has taken over the job of getting her to do her homework and pass it in. Consequently, her grades have improved, tremendously!! I'm very pleased with her work, and have rightly told her so!!! Bulletins, as they happen!! :)

Until Further Notice.....

It's official, we're moving. Which means, all of my spare time (thank GOD I actually have spare time!) will be spent cleaning out and moving!! Here's today's list, to identify and deal with all unnecessary items: KITCHEN: Book case: empty it out, box it up, move it! White plastic shelves: Bring all appliances except toaster and chopper to new apartment. Cabinets: empty out all that isn't necessary to determine how much room is needed for what IS necessary! LIVING ROOM: Brown cabinet:empty out (not much really), bring to apt., put in bathroom Brown book case: pack up all books Video cabinet: pack 'em up, move 'em out! Color drawers: Bring entire unit to apt. FOYER: (yes, I have a foyer. It's pretty cool, actually) Corner bookcase: Empty out photo albums, bring over. Determine if case is actually needed (it's kinda awkward to have, being that it actually fits in a corner) Full length mirrors & wall mirror: take down, bring over. Coat hooks on back of back door: Katie's. Weed out, leave behind what's necessary, bring over the rest. MY BEDROOM: All totes under my bed (mostly quilting fabric projects, sheets, that sort of thing) Old night stand: I've had it since I was 5, it'll hold the phone at the new place. Wicker mirror: hasn't had a home in forever. Will go into the bathroom. Both closets: One has my clothing and some junk in it, the other has all the bedding in totes. Totes will be emptied so I can use them to haul stuff upstairs (yes, I'm still on the second floor) Knitting stuff, small pieces of furniture (tall bureau drawers that will be cleaned out and reappropriated, a small CD cabinet that will hold other things, possibly) Wicker trunk: has sheets and other unnecessary items in it. KATIE'S ROOM: Truly, not too bad. My desk can go Tall lamp in corner Empty out toy box and reappropriate Spare cabinet (for things like paper towels & toilet paper. Cabinet belongs to landlord) Throw out stereo in corner (only the radio works, and it takes up entirely too much space!) BATHROOM: Go through shampoo/hair product cabinet & get rid of stuff that's not used!! Empty out underneath the sink, too! ATTIC: This is the most important space to clear out, and, it actually gets done first, while Katie is at school. There is sooo much CRAP up there, it's pathetic! When I'm done, it will be down to winter things, Christmas stuff, luggage, quilting fabric (if I can pawn some of that onto my mother...), and the gift bag of gift bags. I already know that I'll need to store (someplace else) mine & Katie's bed frames, and the Christmas stuff that's not stored in a gift bag ( I may be able to reappropriate some of my totes when I'm done!) and the bicycles (I'm hoping my landlord will let me park them in the cellar at the new house!) It sounds incredibly un-doable when it's all written down. Most of it can be done fairly quickly, it's a matter of doing it. ANNNNND HERE I GO!!

Color Class

So, I had my first official color class as a practicing hairdresser. Guess what I learned?? That I still don't know diddly squat. I also learned that the educators can sometimes be "snobs" about older methods that should still be in use...for example, a good, old fashioned double process. I got the "that's old-school". Like I was discussing life before the polio vaccine!! The funny thing about the industry I'm in, there are so many different "disciplines" to each phase of this career. Some people agree, some do not. However, Chrissy and I both found some interesting answers to provide the next time we do something that Ginger doesn't want us doing. An example: The color line, Color Sync, (which is a demi permanent color...has no ammonia) is applied to the hair with either a squeeze bottle (kinda like the red & yellow condiment squeeze bottles) or with a bowl & brush (like painting). It is left to process on the hair for 20 minutes, with NO HEAT, according to manufacturer instructions. Ginger, on the other hand, prefers us to apply it either method, then put a cap on their head (so they look like the cafeteria lady) and have them sit under a hood dryer, set on #2 or #3 (medium or high) for 25 minutes. According to the two educators we had today, that is not necessary. It doesn't hurt the hair to introduce heat (since there's no ammonia to swell the cuticle), however, it doesn't really help it, either. I also mentioned good ol' 11A in reference to using it like a high lift color. You should have seen the face the educator made!!! :) She showed us some techniques, however, she focused more of her attention on the two younger girls from JC Penney, and even more to Chrissy than to myself. It was obvious to her that I'm quite a bit older than the rest of the girls in the class. However, she didn't realize (because she didn't know) that I'm just as new to hairdressing as the others are! I do feel I have a slightly better grip on the Matrix color line than I did before. Hopefully, I can take what I've learned and apply it!! :) It also occurred to me that a good majority of my clients are haircut clients, not necessarily color clients. I need to work on that!!

What to blog about....

Sometimes, I don't blog because I've got nothing to say. For those that know me, it's a tad hard to believe, because, well, I don't shut up, most days! While much goes on, I don't always talk about it. There's a possibility we could be moving, too. My landlords (who are FABULOUS people) recently bought the home my father was born in (Mimi, you've been there!), and truly, I want to live there. I'm even willing to live in a smaller apartment (which means downsizing, not a bad thing) to make that happen!! The only problem?? Away from not knowing if it's going to happen (yes, I know...make a phone call, idiot!) is the actual moving process. When I moved from the house I shared with my Mom to my first apartment in my hometown, I used my best friend's suburban and moved most of it myself. She came and helped, and so did my Sister-in-law. It was a cute apartment (also owned by my landlord), but it was a storage unit due to all of my stuff. I had started to downsize when my current apartment became available. We've lived here nearly two years. The rent/bills are a titch of a struggle, and the smaller apartment at the ancestral home would be a small relief, financially ($75 a month cheaper), especially since I need to start looking for another car...the heavy chevy won't be lasting forever, unfortunately... And, it also means less privacy for the child and I...our bedrooms are part of each other (hers would be an alcove off mine), and not necessarily access to the attic space to store the off-season items. So, downsizing is the only option to making it work. If I had the ability to post pictures, I would. My landlords have done an amazing job of cleaning/repairing the ancestral home. Once my family sold it (when my Great Grandmother moved in with my Great Aunt back in the late 60's-early 70's), it pretty much became a slum. And, according to my mom, the apartments have been hacked up, pretty badly. There are walls where they weren't when my parents lived there, stuff like that. However, it's a fabulous home. And, apparently, there are ghosts there, too. More than likely, my family members. The other tenant (that I know) said she's heard party noises, random doors have shut, and she's heard music (not enough to identify the music, just the sound). When my parents lived there, they had quite a few parties (this was before children, obviously). While they weren't "hang off the chandelier" types, they had a good time...I've seen some of the pictures of my parents, pleasantly smashed. And, I have the pictures of my Grandmother (Nana, actually) and my Great Grandmother (Old Nan) with tons of people around, drinking & eating. I'm sure that when my Great Uncle (Eddie) came home on leave (military), they had parties to welcome him home. If nothing else, my family loved to get together and EAT!! (okay, drink, too...) So, that's currently on the horizon. The thought of downsizing is rather daunting, but it's necessary. The other thing I will be doing if the move does happen is GET RID OF MY STATION IN MY HOUSE!! I'm quite tired of doing hair at home. I don't do very much of it, but there are times when I feel taken advantage of. There's sometimes an issue with payment, which would NOT happen if I were doing this person's hair at the salon, which may be happening soon...stay tuned!!

Last week....

I was on vacation. It was great. I got a bunch of things done. Katiekatherine's room got rearranged, and her work station is where I wanted it to be. She now has a work area big enough to accommodate her computer (which doesn't have the internet) as well as work space to do her homework at. There's room for a lamp, there's a small book case at one end and a drawer unit at the other to hold various supplies (paper, folders, etc.) I'd like to resurface the top with something, but I'm not sure what. Right now, it's just plywood. I'm thinking some sort of tile surface. Any ideas?? After the fair, last weekend, we both wound up sick. Katie started on Saturday, and mine kicked in by Tuesday. Because I'm prone to sinus infections, whammo! My sinuses took the hit, and I was on the phone and in the Dr's office by Wednesday afternoon. I've been taking antibiotics, ever since! Katie is finally feeling better, too. (she went to the Dr's on Thursday, and had nothing more than a cold). However, I had a weird week at work. It started off slow...had a regular client completely blow me off...called me at home 2 days later to apologize. Which brings me to this: When it occurs to you, just 24 hours before you're supposed to go to ANY appointment, please actually make the effort to call the place and cancel the damn appointment!! And, DON'T wait two days to buck up the courage to call!! Especially if you've recently complained about someone keeping you waiting at an appointment!! The even bigger kicker of all this?? The salon has an answering machine that you can actually leave a message on, to cancel your appointment. Enough said. Okay...anyway...My week started off slow, and picked up speed. I went in on my day off to take care of a client, and was busy both Friday and Saturday (today). YAY!! I've also noticed, quite regularly, that I'm running ON TIME now, which is very exciting! I still need extra time for new people, and for certain services, but I'm on time more often than not!! :) Out of all my projects, I still didn't get to work on MY bedroom. It currently looks like FEMA needs to be called in and Federal Relief needs to be applied!! However, it will get there. I also managed to walk a total of 50 miles while I was on vacation, which enabled me to lose 2.6 pounds that week!! My first "large" weight loss since I started WW!! Then, this week, I lost another 2.4 lbs!! WOO HOO!! I made my 5% goal!! I did go walking Friday morning, while still feeling rather cruddy. I made sure to not take my MP3, so I wouldn't push myself any further than I was by walking 5 miles in the first place! My walk, which usually takes me 1 hr 20 minutes, took me 2 hours!!! But, like I said, I kept my pace pretty even, and didn't have too difficult a time walking up and down all the hills that I normally do. I just did them slower. So, I'll be back to walking again tomorrow, same as always. I walk, normally, 4 days a week, 5 miles at a time. I'll try sneaking in an extra walk, too, weather permitting, each day that I do walk, just so I can have decent results at weigh in on Wednesday. I'm not expecting another 2+ lbs loss. Any loss will do!!

Oooohhh look....Squirrel!!

Otherwise known as, totally random post!! I'm on vacation this week. The last one of the year. And, it's turned out to be a fabulous week, again! (my last vacation was fabulous, weather-wise, also) What have I accomplished?? Well, let's see................................ Katiekatherine's room has been re-arranged and cleaned all at the same time...just have her stereo (which only the radio portion now works) and the craft corner to deal with. As an aside....I'm also seeking any of my things that she's helped herself to while I've been at work. So far, not too bad, mostly because I've searched her room before. However, nothing has solved the problem of keeping her out of my private things (aka: the things in my room), so more drastic measures WILL be taken.... I've been going to Weight Watchers since July. I've only had one week where I didn't lose anything...it was "That Certain Week", too, so I felt I did well! Anyway....I've been losing it slowly, anywhere from .2 to 1.6 pounds a week. This week, however, I lost a surprising 2.6 pounds!! Woo Hoo!! And, I felt I was really struggling, too... (realize, a week runs from the previous Thursday to the current Wednesday, as WW is on Wednesday nights), So, this week, because of vacation, I've been walking more. Both to and from school, most days. So, I've logged an amazing 32 miles...12 miles more than what I'm used to doing!! I'm definitely feeling it in my lower calves (down around my ankles)...Mama 'Zan showed me how to "rip" some CD's, so I was able to load up my MP3 with fast paced music to walk to. Managed to shave off 10 minutes of my walking time, too!!! Getting my mix of foods down has been tricky, too. WW uses the "points" system, which is okay, except that it doesn't keep track of things like how many carbs you eat, how many calories you're eating, etc. So, sometimes, the points value of what you've eaten may stay the same (say, 25 points), but you've eaten 1200 calories today, 1700 calories tomorrow. All the research I've done (thank you, internet!) has shown me what I need for calories, carbs, fats (including the dreaded saturated fats), fiber, protein to complete my day. Thank goodness, at a health magazine website, you can use their calorie counter and activity counter for FREE...you just have to sign up for some newsletters. Which is okay by me, the more I learn about utilizing my body effectively, the better! So, I keep track in both...keeps me relatively honest. I'm not one of those people who constantly "BLT's" (Bite, lick, taste)...once in a while, but not all the time. I'm a SNACKER who doesn't remember to eat fruits and vegetables!!! So, that's a huge effort for me. But, I'm getting there. My doctor informed me I needed to lose 60 pounds, so I'm working on it. With WW, I've lost 7.4. On my own, I managed to lose 2.4. So.....ten pounds down, 50 more to go!! I've broken it down by pounds and weeks, divided it out, and figured out what the minimum is I need to lose each week. Truly, it's not a lot...1.2 pounds a week. It's making sure I do that every week that's the challenge!! I'll also be incorporating other exercise into my schedule, since I won't be walking 32+ miles a week once I go back to work!! I have put off my color study all summer...not going to lie about that one. However, now that it's fall, I'm getting back to it. The child and I switched work stations (made hers bigger, mine smaller), in an effort to reorganize my stuff (and hers, too!). That being said, I'll be back at it, soon! Tonight, we'll be going to the Franklin County Fair with our friends...should be a blast!!!

Hmmmmmm.....

Let's see...what's been going on since my last bloggage?? I missed commission by thismuch, again! Talk about frustrating!! My weight is coming off oh so slowly...my own doing, although I don't want it to all come off in a week, either. What I really need to do is quit sabotaging myself!! So, the salty veggie sticks (which really aren't good for you) are going away, TODAY. Thank GOD there's a dumpster in the driveway!! We hiked Mt Monadnock on Monday...a good-bye to summer kind of thing. Having never hiked before, I slowed the whole thing down, considerably. It didn't help that it was 85 degrees & sunny out, either. The climb up was all rock...BIG rocks. The climb down was all smaller rocks, once you got away from the top area. By the time we were about 3/4 of a mile from the end, I got very snivelly and nearly cried, it hurt so bad! I had Katie come back (she was ahead of us, but still within eye sight) and help me down. My right knee couldn't take it any longer (and that's my good knee!!) and both legs were shaky! She's truly an awesome kid! I'm so proud to know that she can totally step up to the plate like that! After the hike was when I sabotaged myself. We went to Mom's the next day, even went swimming. I stepped on her scale (which lies in terms of accuracy) and there was a drop in my weight. What did I do?? Apparently, had an internal panic and started eating salty snacks, knowing I retain water. Idiot. What the hike taught me is that I really CAN do anything! What my reveal at the WW scale taught me....can't use the extra points gained from activity...it allows me to eat too much. So, back to the routine. I'll still be walking and doing other exercise, just not using those activity points!!

Busy Busy Busy!!

I've been crazy busy lately!! And, not even with true "back to school" stuff--just regular clients! I suspect I'll be busy Friday night and Saturday with the kids...Chrissy is off this Saturday (Again!)so, I've got some opportunities!! I haven't even done anything with all my master color stuff lately!. I've also joined Weight Watcher, with the idea of losing a SIGNIFICANT amount of weight over a long period of time. I went to the Dr's back in July, and had blood work done, to eliminate any health issues, if there were any. Lo, and behold, I don't have any health issues, other than GLUTTONY!! So, I have nothing to blame my weight gain on (not diabetes, not thyroid issues, which run in my family, on both sides)but myself. So, I grabbed the bull by the horns, and started changing my eating habits. It's not been easy. However, being the numbers geek that I am, I've taken the supplies I get from the meetings, re-doing them so they're large enough to write on, and created a binder of stuff to write everything down that I eat, all day long, and count points, blah blah blah. I'm losing weight, slowly, and fairly steadily, which is exactly how it's supposed to come off. I now also shop huge once a month for my groceries, then pick up the necessaries each week (milk, eggs, bread). While I'm still not a huge vegetable eater, I have eaten veggies I wouldn't normally eat...which is a HUGE improvement over things just a few months ago! I'm also walking 3-4 days a week, at least 4 miles at a time (making sure to throw in a few hills, just for fun!), so I definitely FEEL better than I did two months ago! Once Katiekatherine goes back to school, I'll be able to incorporate other exercise-stuff into my routine. She doesn't prevent me from doing these things, I'm just using that change in schedule to change things up! I'll need other things to do for the days that it's just too damn cold to walk outside! Although, my Mom has a tread mill now, so I'll be able to use that in the winter time, as well! Happy End of Summer!!

I've got the keys!!!!

Alas, it's only temporary. A bit of back story: A couple of weeks ago, before I went on vacation, I noticed that for August 7th (just yesterday), both Evelyn & Ginger (the only one's besides Ginger's family members who have keys) were leaving work early for different things (one was a funeral in VT, one was anniversary). Chrissy took the weekend off to go to the beach, which left Maude & myself at the salon. Maude, God bless her little heart, leaves early, ALL THE TIME. So, I knew she wouldn't stay until the very end. And, she didn't. But, I'm jumping ahead. I spoke to Ginger about this before I left on vacation, and her reply was "well, I guess someone will need some keys". And, I knew, she and Evelyn would find a way to make sure I didn't get a set. It's happened before. From what I can figure, it comes from a bunch of different angles. 1). Ginger is very OCD, and has major control issues, because of it. She also has HUGE trust issues. 2). Evelyn's nose gets all out of joint when she's perceived as not 2nd in command any longer, which means Ginger won't do anything to hurt Evelyn's feelings, even if it " hurts" someone else's. 3). Ginger also doesn't take the time to really get to know her co-workers/subordinates, and it shows. So, lets now jump ahead to Friday, August 6th. My book was pretty full, so I was busy all night (well, until 6:30ish). I went up to the desk (to check out a client) and noticed a note with names of my clients and phone numbers, with notes to call them to get them to come in earlier...this is to prevent me with getting the keys, so everyone can leave at the same time. Since no one discussed with me exactly what those notes were about (no, I'm not dumb, however....), I didn't bother to call my clients. Now, it's Saturday. Ginger gets done before Evelyn, and she's hanging around. Evelyn helps her do something with her hair (put it up), so they're farting around. FINALLY, Ginger has put things off long enough. She hands me the keys, tells me which one is for which door (there's 3 total), and proceeds to collect her things, asking me if I'm going to be all right here by myself, stuff like that. I looked her right in the eye and said "Gee, I've closed a salon, many times, before, Ginger. I think I can handle it." At my previous salon employer, Not only did I close two nights a week (Tuesdays & Saturdays), but, I had the keys and I was TRUSTED. Talk about frustrating!! I'm surprised I haven't gotten a phone call, as of yet, regarding my closing of the salon. Mind you, I only had to shut everything down and lock the doors. I didn't have to balance the drawer (which I'm completely capable of, even though I've never been shown "Ginger's way" of doing things). And, the fun part of most salon software, it's relatively idiot proof. It's a matter of following the directions. And, as long as a password isn't required, all is right and wonderful. Can't wait to turn the keys back in on Tuesday!!

This week....

I'm on vacation. My first one in three years. It's a paid vacation, too, THANK GOD. I have a list going of the things I should be doing this week. Have I accomplished any of it?? No, not really. I'm still trying to keep up with the dishes! And, I get to do laundry, AGAIN. When you don't wear your work clothes, and just wear "civies" all week, suddenly there's a ton of laundry! We also did Vacation Bible School this week (MTW), so there's extra from there, as well. And, I'm back walking with purpose, so, there's clothing there from being so sweaty. Oh, yeah...extra towels from showering extra (yes, I do use the same towels for the body & hair, it's the wash cloths that are piling up rapidly), as well as scrubbing the makeup off my face from VBS --we were "Egyptians" this time...so I coated my face in copious amounts of bronzer & did a bit of detail work to look Egyptian...even wore a black wig! It was fun, but I'm glad it's over. My face has NEVER been this clean! However, we must get some serious work done today. SiSi & NiNi are coming up tomorrow for a sleep over, and there must be space figured out in KatieKatherine's room both for the sleepers and for walking in the middle of the night when I have to pee!! I'm also supposed to be making a dent in the hair swatch situation....haven't done very much, I must say. Cleaned up the mess I left from a couple of weeks ago and that was it! However, the sleep fairy deemed it necessary that I get up at 0:dark thirty this morning, so, perhaps I ought to get to it before the child gets up. Not that she interferes with my work in the first place!

And so, the battle continues.....

I posted, a couple back, about how KatieKatherine is to be doing chores now if she wants money. It's not going well. Today, she called me at work, to tell me she had SUCH a headache that she couldn't do her chores. However. She was well enough to eat the last of the Blondies, watch movies, mess around on the computer (which she denied), and play in general, as well as call me to tell me she was just too sick to do her chores. (insert dramatic pose here) I'm thinking she's hoping that if she comes up with the right angle, I'll just give up on her doing chores and just do them myself. No such luck, kiddo!

To tip, or not to tip...It's always the question!

I had an interesting conversation with my daughter a few days ago. It was her math teacher's philosophy regarding tipping waitstaff. It's a "theory" that's been around forever, and it's never been my favorite. It is this: If you receive good service, tip accordingly. If you receive horrid service (and every one's definition of either is open to interpretation), you leave a penny. This is to show the waitperson that they stunk. Now, while I'm not waitstaff (never a job I wanted), I am someone who receives tips (most of the time) for the services I render. Personally, I would rather receive NOTHING than a penny, if my service was horrid. A complaint to the manager would be in order, as well, from you, the patron, instead of leaving a penny. There are many courses of action to take, rather than leaving a penny. And, this is what I talked to my daughter about. Tipping in my industry. Many people ask me what is an appropriate tip. Jokingly, I'll tell them "$50!" Then, I'll seriously tell them "Tip us exactly like you'd tip waitstaff". Which means this: whatever percentage you generally tip your waitstaff is the same as you would tip your hairdresser. Waitstaff get paid minimum wage + tips. That's why tips are intensely important to waitstaff. Does this knowledge prevent them from giving poor service once in a while?? No. Stuff happens. We don't know what's going on with their day, and quite frankly, it's hard to leave your personal stuff behind and be "ON" for your patrons all day long. It's draining. Yes, it's the profession they've chosen, so they should just suck it up, I know. However, they're still people, too. With actual lives outside of their profession. And, occasionally, they overlap. Hairdressers get paid commission. Some employers are able to pay an hourly rate until you start hitting commission, some do not. So, those tips we receive are equally important. The owner of the salon is not supposed to receive tips. They own the place. The owner of my salon, Ginger, does not realize this. I know this because she gripes every once in a while about the $1 tips she receives (from the nice old ladies she's had for 25 years) for a $55 perm. She's owned the salon since 1988, and it makes a profit (although this year may be a bit interesting, numbers-wise), so, according to industry standard, her paycheck (and she should be receiving one) is a percentage (I have no idea what it is) off the top. I admit, I will gripe if I don't get a tip, particularly if the client was a bit "difficult"...either very demanding, or very indecisive, or their hair was quite a challenge on its own. However, I'm truly not in this industry for the tips. Because, I've learned (even before becoming a hairdresser), you will be disappointed, every time, if you count on them. Do I need my tips?? Sure. They're gas money, laundry money, extra groceries, lunch money, stuff for the child money, stuff for myself money, stuff to continue my education money, cat food money, you get the picture. Could I survive without them?? Yes. Do I want to?? No, not really. But, I would, if I had to. My other "beef" is this: If someone "squeezes" you in, manages to get you done, ON TIME, and gives you the same quality of service, don't be a snot and tip less because you felt "slighted" by the service getting done in less time than normal. There isn't a one of us that enjoys running behind for ANYBODY. It messes up our whole day and makes everyone cranky. Please appreciate the fact that we "squeezed" you in. Or, better yet, schedule accordingly so you have the time you need. Seriously. My point is this: If you like your service, please tip your service provider accordingly. 10% and up works well. If you didn't like your service, please leave NOTHING for a tip, and, if you feel it's necessary, talk to management about your poor service. Please do NOT leave a penny.

Second generation hairdresser....

So, Katie-Katherine has expressed a fairly serious interest in becoming a hairdresser. I'm both thrilled about this and cautious about this. Thrilled, because I'm glad I've inspired her! Cautious, because, well, she's 13 years old. Things change as she gets older. There's very few things, in her life, that she's been consistent about. Her love of cats, horses, wolves. That's about it. The rest of it changes faster than you can say "Gone With The Wind"! She's also had an interesting summer, my Katie-Katherine. She didn't want to go to day camp, so I told her that's fine, but you're going to do stuff around the house. Especially if you expect to get paid for doing some of these things. So, I've started a "Katie-Katherine Do" list. It's not terribly complicated: wash, dry, & put away the dishes, fold all laundry, clean out the cat box (not the big clean, just the basic clean), collect all trash and take to the dumpster. There are also jobs she doesn't get paid for, like putting her own laundry away, making her bed, things like that. She hasn't actually gotten paid yet, because, well, money is at a premium, and she knows it. However, there IS a running tab going. I collect each chore list she does and assign a monetary amount to each chore, based on the quality of work performed. She also knows this, although she doesn't know the monetary value of each chore. Now, being Katie-Katherine, she has most definitely tried to get out of doing things. The first chore list, she tried getting out of doing the dishes, until "later". When I got home from work that night, and discovered what she'd done, I had her come right back out into the kitchen and get the dishes done. And, explained that the list is written in order of importance, and there's no negotiating what does or doesn't get done. If the chore is a paid chore, and she chooses NOT to do it, she doesn't get paid. Conversely, if she only does a half-way job, she only gets half pay. She understands all of this. Whether or not she remembers all of this when payday finally comes is a completely separate issue!!

Tired.....

I worked 9a-7p yesterday...I don't do these very often. I usually work til 3. I changed my schedule this week because my niece's graduation is this Saturday. By the time I got home last night, I was FRIED. Ate my dinner, talked a little to Katiekatherine, talked to the bff on the phone, soaked my feet, went to bed. And I'm still tired today. I can hear you: You're just a hairdresser. All you do is stand behind someone and do their hair. Yup. I do. I stand in one spot, with my arms raised to roughly chest high and keep them there until I'm done with what I'm doing. If it's a first time haircut, I'm like that for an hour, with my arms up and moving back and forth, moving through the hair. If' I'm doing foils, same thing, only I'm also plotting which piece of hair to capture in the foils next. If I'm doing a cap highlight, then I'm attacking some one's head (while encased in a plastic cap) with a crochet hook, picking out "random" pieces of hair to be colored/bleached, again with arms raised at about chest level, for at least a half hour. If I'm perming or setting hair, I'm creating sections of hair to wrap around a rod of some kind, again with my arms up at chest level for at least a half hour, if not longer (depending on what I'm doing). Oh, did I mention that during any of these procedures I'm also chatting (most animatedly) with my client about whatever we wish to talk about??? Sometimes I'm bent over a sink, either washing the hair, or waxing eyebrows, moving back and forth while bent over, making sure I've either thoroughly washed the hair or thoroughly removed the hair! So, now you see why I'm tired. But, I'll recover. I always do. I do these things because this is the career I love and waited 20 years to have. I wouldn't trade all these experiences for anything !!! And, tired means I've been busy!! :)

I've been busy!!

I really have!! Last week, I was actually in demand!! So much fun!! While I wasn't booked out straight, I had enough clients that I didn't have time to work on my swatches!! So, that's what I'm trying to work on this week. I've gone through the cupboards at work, and have written down what's available for colors. Then, I've gone through my pile of pre-torn foils and written on them the formula for what I'm going to work with next...truly, that's half the battle...the paperwork!! The CHI swatch book is thisclose to being done. I finished up the very last of the swatches today...they're drying out right now. All the rest of them are on white file cards, with the formula, as well as what the hair swatch is. For example: Level 6 (the color of hair...darkest blonde) Color treated (what has previously been done to the hair) CHI High Lift (product I've used) BB & 30 volume (the color & the developer) 2 hours (how long it processed) No heat (conditions in which it processed) I've had to accommodate for the fact that the hair is not connected to a human head, so I've extended the processing times for certain products. The high lift/no lift series actually requires heat for 25 minutes, cool for 5 minutes. It's kind of difficult to put swatches, encased in foil, under the hood dryers and not have them blow around! Especially when the dryers are being used all day long!! The swatches are taped onto white file cards,with this information, then glued (with that scrapbooking glue tape) to black cardstock paper, then three hole punched, and (eventually) put into two 3" binders...one for the no lift colors and one for the high lift colors. I've gained a lot of education throughout this particular experience. While I would work with some of the colors...I wouldn't work with all of them. Next?? Bleach!! :)

Hair swatches and color experiments

So, because you've been reading, I've been spending my spare time making hair swatches (what a mess when all is done!), and testing out hair color. We have, at the salon, a line of hair color that we didn't get the book for. All hair color lines have a pre-made swatch book, showing the professional what the colors may look like. Two things with these books: A) the hair is both artificial and white, so the color isn't accurate (however, it does show the true pigment), B) it's truly meant for the professional to look at, not the client. This is because the pigments aren't accurate (see A). Any way....the color line is CHI...not a brand I particularly like, all the way around. These particular colors are high lift and no lift. They will do what they say: High lift will lift up to 7 levels, and it will lift color treated hair (most high lifts won't do this). However, on color treated hair, the lift is completely unpredictable. It could lighten (lift) one level, or it could go all the way to blonde...there's just no way to predict what it will do. Which means, if you're using it on a client, you have to watch it like a hawk. And do a thorough consultation before hand, so you know what the client is looking for in the first place! The No lift line only doesn't lift (lighten) when you use 10 volume. It doesn't really deposit, either. Every swatch I did in the no lift, it seemed to just rinse away and leave nothing behind for color. The catch?? Here it is, and a fun one, too. Because we didn't have the book to tell us the details, we didn't realize this: if you are doing a high/low (high light & low light all on one head), you must rinse each foil, individually, instead of pulling out all the foils and rinsing the hair. Why, you might ask?? Because the browns have a chemical mix, that, when you introduce ANYTHING (water, shampoo) to it, it instantly turns COBALT BLUE. Now, if you're only using the one color, say a high lift brown to put a different color into, say, black color treated hair, then you're fine. The blue actually rinses away and no one is the wiser for it. HOWEVER, if you are using lightener, and you pull out all those foils at the same time, you had better like brown and cobalt blue colors in the client's hair. That blue will run all over the high lights, and turn them the prettiest shade of blue you've ever seen. And, it's nearly impossible to get out. How do I know this?? Evelyn, in her infinite wisdom, used the color line without reading the directions (which are conveniently located in the box of color, in tiny, hard to read letters, in 6 languages, including English). In doing my experiments on the swatches, I made sure to do each color this line offers (that we have) on each color of swatch that I have. So, there are blondes, golds, reds, browns, and a little bit of black involved. Now, I was asked to do this on the dark colors. However, I wanted to see what each one would do on each different type of hair. Because, you know, at some point, some girl with blonde hair is going to do something crazy and want to put a bright red stripe in her hair. Which, by the way, is about all the good this hair color is for. The reds in this line, both the no lift and the high lift, are unbelievably artificial in appearance. The RR series is Ronald McDonald red, the RO series is more like Bozo the clown orange, and the RV series is a very VIVID magenta. (RR: Really Red, RO: red orange, RV: red violet) The blondes lift really nicely, but they don't deposit worth a damn when you use 10 volume. However, introduce 20 volume, and they lift quite nicely. The browns are the best of the bunch, until you introduce it to color treated hair. Cleaning up after yourself: this becomes almost an exercise in futility. Unless you use either a glass bowl, or a hard plastic bowl (like Lucite), this color NEVER completely rinses out of the container you put it in. Even scrubbing with soap won't pull it all out of the bowl. Not the brush, either. Most hair color, you scoop out large amounts (because you didn't measure out what you need) into the trash (it congeals in your pipes if you dump all of it down the drain)into the trash, then rinse for a minute or two in the sink and it's clean. Not CHI. And, it makes a mess on stainless steel, too! Oh, yeah...stains the back splash and anything it touches. I told Ginger the other day "the more I work with this color line, the less I like it." And, I wasn't kidding.

It didn't get any better....

So, Friday rolled around, and KatieKatherine had her appointment at DHMC, with her cardiologist. She has to go back for a stress test after school is over. The really fun part?? The entire time we were waiting for the Dr., unbeknown st to us, my mother was having a heart attack! Her complaint was really nasty heart burn. Well, guess what, folks?? That's a classic symptom in a woman! If you rate pain on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, she rated her pain at a 12 and never said a WORD!!! "I just thought it was heart burn...." AAAHHHH!!!! By Sunday, Mother's Day, my brother and I (katiekatherine, too) had taken her to the local emergency room, where they ran tests. Her complaint was shortness of breath. So, Respiratory Therapy came in and measured her peak flow, which turned out to be in the realm of normal. Then, he took an EKG. He very calmly collected his things and left the room to give the EKG to the doctor on call. Bells and whistles are going off in my head. The doctor comes back into the room, telling us, very plainly, that my mother had had a heart attack. He then explained where this diagnosis came from: When you have a heart attack, and you don't catch it in time, the muscle, which is the heart, starts to deteriorate, and releases an enzyme into your system. This enzyme likes to party, HARD. It causes lots of damage when it's left to it's own devices. So, she was rushed, by Rescue, to DHMC. We followed, at a discreet distance, arriving there roughly 15 minutes after my mother did. By the time they let us into CVCC (cardiovascular critical care), she had oxygen (which she had here), a heparin drip (to prevent the blood from clotting) and nitroglycerin, to control everything else. Now, my mother is 69 years old. At this point, she looked 79. Her eyes were huge and she was scared. So were we. Even my big, scary, hairy brother was down right frightened. She spent the night, trying to rest. Her blood pressure was pretty low, for her. She's been struggling with high blood pressure for a few years now. Her hands and feet were cold and she looked so tiny & frail..... I got no sleep that night. I called the hospital at 6am (before shift change) to find out the latest news. She got a little sleep, but still had pain. At 7am, they took her to the Cath lab and inserted a stint into her right coronary artery. She was awake the entire time, and never felt a thing! (they insert it through the groin area) After she got back to her room, she no longer had any pain, so, one thing fixed!! When I called this morning, she slept MUCH better. She sounded MUCH better, too! During the night, she had a little "flutter'...arrhythmia, so they adjusted her medications. She was off the heparin & nitro, and on a beta blocker and the other drug they always give after a heart attack (I forget what it's called), so after the "flutter', the took her off one of the drugs. When the cardiologists came around to check on her, and listened to her heart, they discovered she's got a squeaky valve!! Lube job, anyone??? Myself, I'm completely worn out. I've gone through the entire gamut of emotions, in a very short period of time. I had songs on the radio send me into a complete melt down (which wasn't really a bad thing...trying to hold it together for Katiekatherine). I've spent more time talking to people on the phone that I haven't talked to in YEARS, and have done more running around!! We've put 600 extra miles on my mother's car in the last 5 days! And, I'll be putting another 100 on the car Thursday when I go see her, then my brother will probably take the car to go get her on Friday, so there's another 200 miles!! I'll be so glad when she's home!!

What an awful week!

OMG!! I can't wait for this week to be over!!! Monday must've been okay, because I don't remember anything major that happened. Did laundry early, worked on more hair swatches, puttered around at home. Tuesday: We had a weather "event" blow through here. It had all the earmarks of a tornado-type thing. I have "cousins" up in East Barre, VT who took pictures of the beginnings of a funnel cloud! KatieKatherine was home alone while I was at work and completely FREAKED out when all the weather started to kick up. She called me at work, begging me to come home. I felt soooo bad, but I couldn't leave. I had clients coming in, and unbeknown st to me at the time, the road home was blocked by multiple trees in the way! From what I understand, WMUR in Manchester, NH was here and showed some of the damage in our area. All the surrounding towns had damage, power outages, etc. Consequently, she was very clingy when I got home. BTW, she wound up downstairs with "Cat Lady", pulling herself together until I finally got home! (Thank you, "Cat Lady"!!) Wednesday: It started off GREAT. Got caught up on "Dancing with the Stars", "Biggest Loser", Facebook, emails. Took KatieKatherine to school. I stop in traffic on Main Street because the school bus is picking kids up at the bank. I am paying attention to the traffic in front of me. An aside: every one's windows on their cars were covered in condensation yesterday morning, due to the previous evening's storm) All of a sudden, BAM!!! There's a turquoise Pontiac Grand Am that has smacked into my passenger door!. AAAAHHH!! So, I get out of the car. The driver is freaking out, her boyfriend is already dropping f-bombs. I ask her if she has a phone. She does. Okay...call the cops. She calls it in, freaking out the whole time. She's apologizing to me, right and left. She's also rattling on about how she couldn't see out the back window, doesn't have insurance, money, she'll lose her license again, she just got this car, there's a baby in the back seat. The boyfriend is swearing up a storm, yelling at her that it's her fault, now he has to call work and tell them he'll be late. He gets on the phone and starts yelling at whomever is on the other end that his "old lady just fucking hit this fucking car and I'm going to be fucking late". Did I mention yesterday's episode was brought to you by the letter "F"?? The genius wanted us to move the cars out of the road (both were drive able). I said "Uh-uh. Nothing gets moved until the cops get here" "Well, You (meaning the girlfriend) need to get the fucking baby out of the fucking car." Again, I pipe up with "You can't move him....not until the cops get here and check things out." The entire time this is going on, the baby was in his car seat, drinking his bottle, not disturbed at all by the events unfolding around him. The police arrive. Thank goodness, he's a very large individual, because pip-squeak boyfriend is still flipping out. I'm expecting a domestic dispute to be on top of the accident. By now, we've drawn a crowd, all because of his mouth. I finally said "Hey. Enough of the f-bombs." Girlfriend is still freaking out. Now, she's hysterically crying, calling her mom to tell her what happened, swearing at her mom, swearing at her boyfriend, then calling Mom back to get her to come get the boyfriend. She's also telling me about how she's got an "uncle" who owns a local garage who can fix my car, cheap. Hang on...because I'm not doing anything until my insurance company takes a look at things. Eventually, we get this cleared up, and people can move on. I kept trying to emphasize to her that it's okay, it's just a car, no one was hurt. She's freaking out because this is not the first time she's done this, she has no insurance, it's the only thing she owns, and I must be rich if I'm not freaking out about my car being damaged. I looked at her and replied "I'm not rich , I'm no better off than you. This car is all I own, as well. However, NO ONE GOT HURT AND THAT'S WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT!" So, the insurance company calls me later in the day. I'm covered. Once they look at the car, they'll be able to assess whether or not the repair is worth more than the car is, because my car is a 99. If everything is a go, they'll cut me a check, and then go after her to repay it. I told them that I didn't want to have it cost a small fortune for her, but she I felt she needs to be responsible for the repairs. And I'm not using some schmo that she knows, I'm going with a reputable repair shop that I would feel more comfortable dealing with. My insurance company agreed with me (as they will). Let's hope for a better ending to the week!!

Got some "new" stuff !!

So, Wayfarer, Wifeness, SiSi & NiNi came up yesterday...actually, they brought Katiekatherine back from her overnight to see "Annie", and brought with them my hairdressing chair (Thanks, Maeve!) and new-to-me hairdressing station! Currently, I am unable to post any pictures, or else I would!!! The chair is "vintage": from the early 80's. It's Lucite (just the seat part), and it drops down low enough for me to see the top of a person's head (without having to stand on something or ask them to slouch!) The cushion will need to be replaced, though. Too many years stored in some body's cellar makes the foam inside very stinky! (not to mention the fact that mildew and I don't get along very well...that's what the stink is!) The station part is really just a big plywood "bench", previously used as a room separator (for the teenager in residence at Wayfarer's house), but now she's got a big girl bedroom, sooooo..... I have a new station!! I may wind up putting some kind of veneer on the sides and maybe tile the top, but, for right now, PSYCHED!!! I've also been making hair swatches, again. Managed to amass 7 sandwich bags of hair this week. I wanted to get it all done today, but, I was getting extra cranky messing around with the hair strands, so, it was obviously time to quit! Why do I have the chair and station in my house?? Wellllllllllll............. occasionally, I do hair at home. Ideally, I'd like everyone to just go to the salon and see me there (really, we do have the cheapest prices around), but, I also like to help people in my life out once in a while. I do charge them, mind you. I will NOT work for free.....just ask my mother. However, I don't charge them what the salon charges. I charge enough to cover the materials needed, plus my water usage and electricity. In the case of Wayfarer house, we have a special deal right now.....I get organic vegetables, they get haircuts!! The best part?? We all get to visit, quite regularly!!! Which is much nicer than when I used to have to re-arrange the cosmos to get to see them!! I am also one of those psychotic fruit loops who live, eat, and breathe the job they love. I have sooo much stuff around her that all ties into what I do for a living!! I may even be getting an even better printer (one that will accept my camera disk thingy) so I can put pictures all over the Internet (no,not really), and continue to print things I find like a mad woman!!! Thank GOD, BJ's has 1/2 inch binders in bulk!!! This week should also be "fun" at work...Ginger is going on vacation and none of us are booked solid! Most of Evelyn's clients for the next 10 days are actually Ginger's!!! Here's to hoping I fill in!!! Chrissy, too! I found, in the cabinet when looking for something else, some old postcards that Ginger saved (because she throws NOTHING out, even if it's got the wrong name on it), with an offer of 10% savings on your next visit. I just needed to fill in a note for the client, and the dates to use the coupon by. Hopefully, Ginger mailed them out today, along with the birthday coupons we always send out! Then, between both coupons, maybe I'll be a busy girl for the next month(That's how long this coupon is good for)!!! I believe that's all the updates, for now, at least!

I have a game plan............

So, along with this big color project, I've got an actually game plan in place to get me to being a Board Certified Hair Colorist. Step 1: Make up hair swatches and test out all the color I currently have access to, at work, at home, and at my cosmetology school. Make notes and learn from this. Step 2: Try out new coloring methods on my friends to get the hang of them. Step 3: Purchase copious amounts of education to take me to the next level. (I've already done or am in the middle of doing these things) THE NEXT LEVEL..................................................................................................... Step 1: When my taxes come back next year, purchase all the materials needed from a professional website http://www.certifiedhaircolorproducts.com/ to use to educate myself and get familiar with the testing method to be NATIONALLY CERTIFIED in hair color. Step 2: Spend all of 2011 experimenting and studying for the exam, learning how they want things done, getting ready for the next level. THE NEXT LEVEL.................................................................... Step 1: When my taxes come back in 2012 (provided the world doesn't come to an end by then...) Step 2: go to http://www.haircolorist.com/ , purchase the study kit, which also makes my appointment for the exam, and Step 3: TAKE THE DAMN EXAM!!! (which requires me to locate the exam site, a hotel to stay at, etc. Someone will be going with me, they just don't know it yet!!) My goal is to pass the stupid thing the first time. The study kit (which, technically, I'll already have) has everything in it I'll need to learn their methods so I can successfully take the exam. Oh, by the way, I'll be raising a teenager at the same time. I think I'll need copious amounts of both therapy and DRUGS to get through it all!!!

Improvements....

As I have said before, I keep track of what I do for services each month. And, I compare it to this time last year. I use a 6 column ledger to do this. For this year, I allotted 2 full pages (front & back of 1, really) for this. We are headed into the last week of April...I'm not sure I'll have enough space to track everything!! :) This time last year, I saw 28 clients, 6 of which were clients who requested me (this is important). As of yesterday, I saw 50 clients, 32 of which requested me! WOO HOO!!!! A client asked Ginger (as they often do) if the salon was busy. Her standard reply is "Well, I'm always busy, booked every 1/2 hour all day long. However, the salon isn't busy." Very soon, I'm going to have the actual numbers in front of me to speak up and say " Well, compared to last year, I've almost doubled how many clients have been in my chair, and I'm currently $100 ahead of what I did for service sales this month last year, AND, my requests are over 4 times what they were last year." Just to be a smarty pants. Oh, yeah...and took in 15 new clients, most of which asked for my card so they can ask for me when they come in/call back. Yee frickin' Haw!!! I'm also still working on my color project...I think I mentioned how I'm collecting hair to make swatches out of??? As of right now, I've got everything made up. I do have duplicate colors...apparently everyone in this area is either a level 5 (lightest brown) or a level 6 (darkest blonde). I actually have a 5 x 7 envelope FULL of level 5, on top of the envelopes I have made up that I take to work with me every day, in the hopes that I can get some of these swatches colored at work, too!! I'm a big believer in my version of "Murphy's Law". Instead of "If anything can go wrong, it will", it's "If I bring something with me to occupy my time, I will fill in with clients." It's worked so far!! :) An example: I started Friday with one client...one of my sweet little old ladies that I absolutely ADORE. Then, I filled in with 5 more haircuts, a bang trim, and a brow wax. WOO HOO!!! I didn't leave until almost 8pm!! ( I never used to be there that late!!) On the "snothead" side of things: Evelyn is still not booked every day. Ginger must've said something to her, because now she is taking down clients addresses to send them a note (I'm presuming here) to find out where they've been. She's also been doing the call back list (something she NEVER used to do), as well as a lot of the cleaning. (washing the dishes, making the coffee...wait, brown water posing as coffee..even folding some laundry) The down side of things?? Poor Chrissy is getting terribly discouraged. She's not filling in very quickly. I've talked to her about what I do to get my clients in (send them reminder note cards), but, I guess she's not feeling that one. I have started passing out HER cards, too. We had a potential client come in the other day, asking about our skin care services. So, I gave her Chrissy's card (after writing her hours on it) and a brochure, so she could look things over at her leisure. I love Chrissy to death, don't get me wrong. I think she expects clients to just materialize out of thin air. Ever since I started, I've made sure my clients don't forget about me. There are some who do not respond to my cards, for whatever reason, but most do. And, that's how I keep my book somewhat filled. I'm thinking that's why Ginger is getting Evelyn to do this, as well. And, lastly, I have this fabulous client, who comes in every week to get her hair done. "Miss Georgia" is a wonderful lady who only has her hair dealt with in the salon. She's from Connecticut, and always points out (nicely, mind you) when I do something very different from what her other hairdresser does. Well, this very nice lady has fine hair that is not terribly abundant. So, she gets it colored every 5 weeks, it gets washed and styled (including TEASING) every week, and wants her hair permed every 3 months. So, I permed her hair yesterday. What a mistake that was. Her hair was fragile before I permed it, now it's even worse. This is SO not what I got into hairdressing to do. I get to have the talk with her this week about choosing her chemicals because her hair just cannot support all she's had done to it. She also takes medications for various things, and this all plays into the god-awful condition of her hair, even before I permed it. Right now, for the next few MONTHS, I'll be setting her hair on rollers and putting her under the dryer instead of blowing her dry and using the curling iron...her hair is THAT bad...chemical haircut waiting to happen. When I talked to Ginger about it, she, again, made the comment "well, you should've done this..." after remarking about seeing her hair. I wanted so badly to say to her, AGAIN, "so, why didn't you step in and say something???" Like she's done COUNTLESS times before??? So, I'm suspecting that Ginger is letting me make these mistakes, intentionally not stepping in until after the fact. Need to remember that. So. That was my week. How was yours???

A funny thing happened in the salon last week...

Ginger has been talking, for quite some time now, about doing some interior changes in the salon. I've talked about this before. We have 5 stylists and only 4 chairs. I think, back when she built this salon to be bigger than the last, she didn't take into account she'd grow. Between Chrissy and I, we are bringing in more business than the woman that I ultimately replaced. And with Evelyn not pulling her weight... So. This past Monday, Ginger went to a class on salon/spa design. They take your salon's measurements, enter them into a computer, and reconfigure your space to make it work. It should be interesting to see what they come up with!! Saturday, the three of us (Ginger, Evelyn, & I) goofed off and measured the salon..a bit incorrectly, because Ginger averaged out her measurements (I don't think she can read a ruler, really). After Evelyn finally gave up and left, Ginger and I got to talk about a lot of stuff. I suggested maybe ripping down the manicure room wall, since that room is mostly used for a storage locker, and open up that space for the dryer chairs, opening up that space for at least one more station, if not two. Room for Chrissy to have her own station, and for the ability to hire someone else. Ginger liked that idea, a LOT. I also suggested moving the wall back at the tanning room, creating more space at the reception area for retail shelves, and asking for a cabinet (one with solid doors that looks more like a piece of furniture than a cheap cabinet) to secure all the JUNK that amasses behind the desk. She also liked that idea. HOW EXCITING!! Chrissy and I had a class on Monday, also, about pedicures & manicures. We came back with ideas rolling around in our heads, to make improvements to the pedicure and manicure business, the room the stuff is in, and even in Chrissy's facial room...painting, pictures on the walls, fans for Chrissy's room for air circulation. Ginger is being VERY receptive to all of this, which is even more exciting! It will be interesting, as all of this continues to unfold, how Evelyn takes all of this. Her nose will probably be bent out of shape for quite some time, especially if I'm apart of all the physical work to make this happen (I already offered up my services for painting, etc). I've even been drawing out on graph paper, my "vision" of the salon. Ginger told me, while discussing paint colors, she wanted a "classy" look for the salon. I wanted so badly to comment on the mismatched fixtures and the lawn chairs posing as the waiting area chairs as not being classy, but, I held my tongue!! (close your mouth. It's not attractive to be agape and agog) Stay tuned!!

Random stuff

Took a phone call yesterday " Um, hi. My hair is brown and I bought a box of blonde hair color, used it, and it turned my hair yellow. How much will it cost to fix it??" "Are you wanting to take your hair back to brown??" "Oh, no! I want to be blonde, just not yellow." "Well, the thing with box color it that the developer is at a low speed, and that's why you turned yellow...that's as far as your hair can lighten with that box of color. To fix your color, we'd really need you to come in so we can look at it and figure out what's the best thing to do." "So, you can't give me a price?" "Not without seeing your hair first. We'll need to look at the color and condition of your hair to best assess what needs to be done." "um, uh, oh, okay, thanks. 'Bye." Now, I realize I didn't give her the answer she was looking for. I get that. However, here's the thing. 1) Telling me your hair is brown doesn't mean a thing. Truly, all hair is a shade of brown. Be more specific. Chocolate brown, tan, light brown, dirty blonde...something DESCRIPTIVE...use your adjectives, people!! 2) "My hair turned yellow"..again, describe: inside a banana yellow?? Lemon yellow?? Orangey-gold?? While I know I'm supposed to be asking these questions, realize I'm still trying to absorb what you've just told me. This past Sunday was Easter. Not a big holiday, in my book. I'm not religious, so the significance of Easter doesn't do it for me. I know the significance, just not interested. So, anyway, it means a get together at my mother's. Which includes my brother. I've never told you about my family, and those that do know my family, well.... My mother grew up in the 40's & 50's...when girls worked hard to do their hair. As an adult, she also permed her own hair, my grandmother's hair and my hair (good ol' Lilt home perms!!). She set my Gram's hair every week in pin curls, too. Really, she's always been a frustrated hairdresser. She also has a very set opinion of hairdressers, and my accomplishments in cosmetology school did nothing to change that. She feels they're dumb party girls who don't do a damn thing all day long, except "do hair"...how tiring is that?? I made the comment on Sunday that I was tired. By the end of my work week, I'm worn out. Right now, I know I need new shoes..working on that. Also, as a hairdresser, you are always "on" for your clients. It's mentally exhausting, and, by the end of the day, as Beth Minardi says, "My charm tank is empty". Sunday, for me, is a day of rest, in more ways than one! The comment my mother made?? "How can you be tired?? All you do is stand behind someone and do their hair. Your job is about as strenuous as mine." ( she works at Walmart, in the cash office, so she sits and counts money for her entire 4 hour shift) To which I replied, in a pissed off tone of voice "I'll trade with you, any time." She then tries to make it up to me by asking me how many clients I do a day. So, I have to explain to her (actually, I don't have to, I choose to) how I don't have daily clients, I have monthly clients. However, I also take every walk-in that comes in the door, as does Chrissy. Mom dropped it after that. Did I mention I dislike being with my family?? It causes a lot of internal tension that I just hate trying to deal with. I also have a teenager, now. Which means, if given the choice, she would stay in bed all day long, doing NOTHING. I remember it well. What's especially entertaining is when she knows the rules and thinks I'll bend them, every time. Example: Get out of bed before 6:30 and I'll be happy to cook you something for breakfast. However, roll out of bed at 7:15?? Not happening. There's enough in the fridge to feed yourself with. Get busy. She's also thoroughly convinced that I'll be doing all the things I do now when she's 25. Thinking NOT!! Okay. I'm done complaining, for now....thanks for reading!!

Color Geek.... Numbers Geek...

So, as you can tell, I've been busy...busy enough not to post. I'm one of those anal retentive people who track their progress every month. It's something I picked up from my days in retail and constant report reading. I actually have a ledger that I keep track of everything in...how many clients, how many of them are new to the salon, how many request me, what they have done, how much everything cost, and how they tipped me (as in cash or credit, not lousy or great...Uncle Sam needs to know these things)..oh, yeah, how much they spent on retail, too. I actually keep track in a day planner, then transfer it to my ledger later on...because I can't remember diddly-squat!! I have last year's figures, I've made sales goals for myself, both in services and in retail, and track my progress. Then, I go into work, dig up the same information on the computer to see if everybody matches...it doesn't always...I miss writing things down, and ultimately go by what's entered into the computer. When I create my goals for next year, I take this year's amount, and add 10% to it. 10% seems like a lot, sometimes, but a double digit increase is always a good thing!!! Ginger doesn't know that I do this. It's not like it's a covert secret, or anything. I just haven't bothered to tell her. I like knowing what I did last year, what I'm supposed to be doing this year. It's helpful. Do I always make my goals?? No. What it points out to me (and I knew this already) is that I'm lousy at selling retail. I should be, since I have clients that tell me "I will make the effort to save the $5 do get the "good" shampoo at the grocery store!". I can't help myself, I cringe. I get where money comes into play. But, dear God in heaven...that stuff is full of WAX, silicone, and other various floor strippers. Sigh. It's an on-going battle that I don't always want to engage in. Truly, we need more samples to give out to clients so they can experience what good products do for their hair. The trick with that is Ginger won't spend the money. A separate battle. One of my other projects is making hair swatches and experimenting with color, both at home and at work. (Yes, I have Ginger's permission to do this). When we get a client who is cutting off a fair amount (3 inches or more) of hair, I swoop in, save it, bring it home, fire up the glue gun and make swatches to experiment on. For me, this is fun. When I was in school, we had a color project and needed to collect various types of hair: color treated, permed, various percentages of grey, virgin, that sort of thing. Then, we got to try all the various types of color (temporary, permanent, semi & demi, bleach) on these types of hair. For me, the color geek, this is fun. One of the things I did to collect the hair was purchase some on Ebay. There's a guy who owns a salon (isn't a hairdresser) who sells the hair. People buy it to make dolls with real hair, weaves, extensions, wigs, etc. Why am I telling you this?? Well, I contacted him the other day, asking if we could make a deal so I could score some more hair. Nice guy that he is, he's sending me hair, free. All I have to do is recommend him when I hear about people looking for hair to make doll wigs, etc. SUH-WEET!!!