Is this thing on?

I hate my new supervisor.  I dread going to work now.

It's terrible how the management can completely change the entire staff's morale.

So I found something to occupy my time finally.

Yesterday I bought the shoes pictured below on a whim because I liked the style and overall appearance and they're Isaac Mizrahi from Target - to which I normally would have given a big thumbs up except I wasn't crazy about the color.  However, they were on clearance for $7.00 so I figured I'd get 'em and try my hand at turning them black - which goes SO much better with my work uniform.

I'm feeling moody.  I've only been awake for the past hour and I'm already noticing my demeanor fluctuating pretty quickly.  I don't get extremes of anger or anything like that, but I find myself being annoyed much more easily than usual and I'm terribly restless.  I want to get out and do something but at the same time I don't - I kind of wish I was at work right now.  I guess the fact that I cried twice watching The Lion King last night should have given me a clue for what I'd be in for today.

I've got a free rental coupon hanging around for the month of July.  I'm going to have to go use it.  Of course, that means I'll have to shower (because I don't go anywhere without showering, I have to shower everyday before I leave the house) but I really don't want the hassle of having to dry my hair and put on some make-up.  Maybe I'll just forget it and go out looking like some do - like they rolled out of bed and went to the store.  But I always feel so embarrassed.  And of course that would be the time you'd run into someone you know - or some totally hot guy.  This blows.

I'm vaguely listening to the A's game my mom is watching on TV.  The announcers keep talking about Dibs.  You know, those ice cream chocolate-covered block things that Dreyers makes?  They talk about them during EVERY SINGLE game.  It's pretty funny.  Now I want some.  Maybe I'll get that when I get out too.

Now, just need to take that shower...

It's different than down here.  A friend and I visited Calaveras Big Trees State Park today.  It certainly is very pretty there - and definitely full of BIG trees!  I was there a few years back but I forgot how nice it was to just be out amongst.. nature!  It's nice for about 15 minutes until it starts to get hot and you get sweaty anyway.

Show us something that's ridiculously cute.

Casey

No plans.  Not going anywhere.  It's so nice.

Today ended a strangely eventful yet very brief week.  I've experienced a few run-ins at work with some odd members.  Found out today that my supervisor and basically partner in managing the nubs is headed downtown and I'm getting a new supervisor on Monday.  Already hearing less than spectacular things about my new supervisor.  I'm going to remain positive.

Yet again I'm teetering back and forth about what to do about work.  I swing rather violently from wanting to stay and see how far I can advance myself - and then suddenly wanting to tell them to take a hike and going back to school more frequently than I do now.  I'm told that I have the potential to advance further and my mother keeps kidding me that I'm going to be making more than her pretty soon.  Half of my family is telling me that I should just work there and forget school and the other half says I shouldn't.  I don't know what to do - I want to do my best but even if I went back to school full time right now I don't really know what I'd be going for.  And maybe I don't want to go to school and get myself in debt to wind up still not knowing what I really want.

I'm sure I'll just keep working until I come to a real firm decision about school.  We'll see what works itself out - I'm sure something will.

Tomorrow is BIG TREE day.  A friend and I are heading to Calaveras Big Trees state park for the day.  It's beautiful there!  I've been once - and my friend needs the extra credit for class.  I'm more than happy to drive and accompany the journey.  Pictures when I get back!

That's right.  Today is basically Friday for me.  Any day that precedes a day I have off from work qualifies as Friday.

Tomorrow is the fourth - don't really have any plans.  Aside from having some quality Wii-time with a few of my friends.  I definitely need to practice my tennis skills.  Obviously I'm already naturally gifted at bowling considering my superb abilities in the "real world".  Oh, and sleeping in without waking to an alarm clock.  That's on my list of things to do as well.  Maybe get a little further along in some of my studies for work, we'll see how ambitious I get.

I've got a fleeting thought to buy some fireworks for tomorrow.  However, after some research I discovered they're illegal in my county.  Still, if I get ambitious enough to drive to Sacramento County I can set them off there.  Ridiculous.

Fireworks

Speaking of work - I had a bit of a bi-polar type day today.  Morning started off well enough with a staff meeting which actually went pretty well.  Once the workday really started I was met with a number of frustrations all at once.  I keep butting heads with the loan department.  It drives me crazy when another department is completely dependent on another department to do something they request - but then once that request is completed the department that requested it (and has no clue how to do what was requested) complains about it. Hey, how about you shut the fuck up since you can't do what you're asking me to do - and you don't know how to do it anyway.  A lot of time gets wasted, my frustration is wasted, it's overall irritating.  I get a lot of junk because I'm so young I think.  Not only am I young but I look like I belong in middle school and when I'm giving directions to someone who's older than my mother they just don't always take it quite so well.  And I've been over this issue with my manager because she sees the problem, and she sympathizes because she's not exactly that much older either, but there's really not a lot that can be done about it.  As much as I enjoy being in a kind of supervisory role there are plenty of downfalls.  I'm still getting established - I just haven't earned quite everyone's respect.  Yet.  Not long after that the day became much more positive.

A rerun of House is on.  The third season comes out on DVD in late August.  I can't wait to add it to my collection!

How do you sign your emails?
Submitted by rosemarypepper.

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Well, it depends.  Typically I don't send a lot of e-mails.  If I'm writing something personal, from my home computer, I usually don't sign at all. 

If I'm in the right mood, I'll just simply add "Ashley" to the end of something, or "AshlerZ" if I'm feeling like it.

Work e-mails are different.  I sign my complete name, my title, my branch, and the name of the company.  (Which is really quite pointless now that I think it over, considering all the e-mails are within the company, it's not like they won't know.)  And if I'm feeling REALLY creative, I'll add in our slogan:

Ashley Thurston
Head Teller, Pershing Branch
Financial Center Credit Union
"Better Than A Bank!"

Personal Responsibility.  Is it so difficult?  If you ask me it's the problem with America.  (That sounded way more epic then I had planned.)

So, well all have responsibilities, commitments, various tasks associated with our job.  It's what we get paid for.  It's what we do.  Now, I work at a credit union - which is basically exactly the same as a bank, and we all are well aware that being careful and paying attention to your job and what you're doing is extremely important.  You know how hard it is balancing your own checkbook?  Try balancing an entire branch.

Just some background information - I'm the Head Teller, which is really not a glorified teller, like it sounds. I'm basically the supervisor of the tellers.  Now there is a "Teller Supervisor" who is above me - but when he's not around and on his days off (today for instance) I'm him.  So, today is a reasonably busy day.  A steady flow of members in and out.  Plenty of complaints and issues for me to deal with.  Normal activities.

End of the day hits - time to balance.  I'm not the only head teller, there is another.  However, you don't see him as much, he seems to disappear when angry members start complaining - he's just not that helpful.  Fine, whatever, I can handle it, that's not my complaint here.  The issue arises when - you'd think that as little as he does, he could at least do it right, right?

So, let's make this short.  We're $21441 and some cents short at the end of the night - which is, odd, but okay we can handle it.  I direct myself and my cohort (ha!) to go through the normal process of things to look for.  After all of that it's still not found - and it gets to a point of desperation and a LOT of extra work to find the problem.  It took two hours longer than it should have - and once the issue WAS found and addressed, it was also discovered it could have been corrected much sooner if ONLY the other head teller had done what he was supposed to do in the FIRST place.  And you know what drives me crazy?  If I had done this, I would have had to have had all this coaching and crap about it because I'm new.  But him?  No way.  He's been here six years, can't tell him anything!  It just always seems to get overlooked when he screws up.  I mean, the action he would have had to take to fix the problem earlier was SO much simpler - and he SAID he did it!  And he didn't!  It's your JOB!  Just do it!  I just don't get it, what was the problem?  Did you want two hours overtime THAT badly?  Because I know I didn't.

I need to get paid more.

How often are you wrong?  Do you find it difficult to admit it when you are? 
Submitted by emily ann.

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I'd have to say that I'm wrong about 50% of the time.  It's all about the law of averages, man.

No, really, I'd like to think that I'm right more often than I'm wrong.  Just due to the fact that if I'm feel like I'm right I've almost always thoroughly thought it through so I'm willing to stick with my conclusion on whatever the matter happens to be.  I'm not incredibly stubborn and I'm always willing to look at the other side, but I'm usually not swayed very easily.

When it comes to being proved wrong, I'm open to admit my mistakes.  If there's sufficient evidence to prove that I'm incorrect in whatever matter I'll be the first to admit I was wrong.  There's really no point in prolonging an issue by remaining stubborn.  If I'm wrong - I'm wrong.  The world keeps turning.