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 |  JOURNEY OF FAITH AND LOVE
My testimony |
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JOURNEY OF FAITH AND LOVE I guess the best way to describe my spiritual journey is to give a little testimony. It all began on a very hot day in July 1953. The day was the hottest of summer, or so my mother told me on many occasions. It was Sunday, a perfect day for my birth. I grew up in church but that does not mean I was a Christian it simply means I got a great foundation for my future life in Jesus Christ. I went to parochial school through eighth grade. My life between that time and April 22, 1980 were just passing time as I paid my dues in church. The day I met my Savior was a day like none other. I was working on my Sunday school lesson and the Spirit nudged me with the last question. It was more than a nudging, it was convicting, but that is the office of the Holy Spirit to convict a person to true faith in Jesus Christ. The question was “If I had to die for my faith today, could I?” It was a true/false question. It was the fact I couldn’t answer true to that question that brought me face to face with my Lord Jesus Christ. The joy was immediate and fulfilling. The journey began that day, and I’m still on that journey. Oh, I’ve wandered from the path on several occasions when my listening ear was paying more attention to my will instead of His, but overall it’s been a journey of faith and love like no other. I’m a Christian, it doesn’t matter which church I go to as long as the Word is taught, and it is the infallible Word of God. I believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God, and every word relevant for today as much as the day it was written. I believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit as indicated in 1 Corinthians 12. I believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. I believe in the rapture of the church, and that the day of Tribulation is closer than we might think, but we’ll know when it happens. I believe prayer changes things, so I have dedicated my life to making a difference through prayer. I love God, I love reading His Word, which brings me close to Him, and I love to pray. I love being with other believer’s. I love praise and worship to my King and my Creator, and I love to listen to the Word being preached, or taught. Whatever will bring me close to the heart of God is what I’m after. I can’t get enough of my Savior and my Lord, and I praise my God for the gift He gave me to write so I can continue His message through fictional stories or devotions that bring out the love of God through everyday situations. I am His and whatever medium He wants to use me in whether fiction, devotion, article, poetry, I will do my best for Him. This is a journey, and I’m taking it hand in hand with my Savior by my side. Valerie Jean |
| Tuesday, 21 May |
| Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing well, I am! Okay, my middle name should be Lost. My interview yesterday did not happen. I left in plenty of time to get there with time to spare. However I did not leave with plenty of time for getting lost. What happened? I am still trying to figure that out. I printed out the map directions and the map to get there. It should not have been difficult, unless you're like me and no map will be able to help you. I should have known, but I went with prayer, faith, and hope. I found the location after asking directions three times. I knew I was in trouble when I got to a town that was way out of the way. I had not seen a sign for the turnoff I needed. When I stopped for directions, it was an easier fix than I expected, I could still make it on time - yeah right. The second place I asked directions was very close to my objective, but I still could not find it. My third stop told me exactly where the place was. Why couldn't I find it? The office complex where the company is located is relatively new, still there is a sign board in front of the complex with the names of the companies on it, the one I needed was not on the sign, hence my inability to find the place. I was supposed to arrive fifteen minutes early, I was five minutes late for the appointed time, twenty minutes later than I was supposed to be. Hence no interview. It has been rescheduled for next week. Now the good thing with that is that I should be able to find it without any trouble next week. I hope. I completely understood why they did not interview me yesterday when I showed up. I was late. They are a company with schedules that must be adhered to. I hate being late for anything and if it were me, I wouldn't have interviewed the person either. So I will go back next week, leaving in plenty of time for getting lost. I was only there one time after hunting for the place, I could still get lost a second time, however not a third, let's hope there's a third time - being hired. On the good side, Manifest Destiny is coming along very well. I am under a hundred pages left to edit. Then I plan to read it through a final time for cohesiveness and making sure I haven't missed anything, and then it will be submitted. I expect right on time. It has taken a long time, but better to find the problems now instead of having blaring problems once submitted and having those who enjoyed Scarred throw this one against the wall and never read another of my books again. Hopefully I'll get it done today and can get the read through started. I have only 9 days to submission date. So while I get on with that, you all Keep on Writing Valerie |
| Monday, 20 May |
| Hi All, How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are doing great. I am!!! It has been a most pleasurable month plus of freedom from the job community. However, that freedom might end today. I have a job interview this afternoon, and believe it or not, I am excited about this job. I only hope it lives up to all my expectations, based on the questions I've already asked prior to today's interview. That said, I woke up this morning to a bit of a headache, no doubt stress related due to the upcoming interview. So four hours from now, I will be in the interview and will know if this is the 'perfect' fit for me as the e-mail offer suggested when I applied for this job. I had a rather busy weekend - Understatement - besides working on the final pages of Manifest Destiny - getting it submitted by June 1 is becoming more a reality every day. I am sure glad I didn't give them an earlier date, it wouldn't have happened. I have been working very hard on the editing, and just hope I have just as good a story as Scarred has turned out to be. I don't have any further reviews on it, but those who told me they ordered the book, or bought it from me told me what a great story it is, so I hope you have your copy as well especially since book 2 is a month from availability. This weekend was also my granddaughter's Baby Shower. That was fun. She got a lot of great things for the baby, now to get it all home to Texas. They arrived in this small car, from what I understand 3 adults and 3 kids. I am uncertain if everyone is going back, or if her friend who came with them, is staying, still the car will still be cramped going back. This weekend was also the Bridal Shower for my niece, as it was also yesterday, and because my car being what it is, I could not subdivide myself and be in two places at once. I did see she had a great shower from her status on FB. So I'm ready to relax and get back to the normalcy of life. What's that? Is there a normalcy of life? Or do we always go about like a chickens with there heads cut off trying to do multiple things and not accomplishing anything? Well, I have to get Manifest Destiny worked on before the job interview, so while I do that, you all Keep on Writing Valerie |
| Friday, 3 May |
| Hi All, How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am! I am still virtually headache free. At least the headaches I get now aren't stress related, and easily go away, unless they are triggered by the barometer. If you live in the US the barometer has been a factor this year. We don't know what kind of weather we're going to have from one day to the next. Earlier this week we were in the low to mid 80s. Yesterday it was so cold I was thinking snow again. It did snow in Colorado and Kansas. I saw a news report about the Kansas City Royals baseball team playing in the snow. The game was called due to the weird weather. You think? So anyway, things around the home fire are going okay for the most part. I got the e-mail I've been waiting for from college. I will be appealing financial aide. I really do want to go to college to get these skills necessary to all aspects of my life. However, if that is not an option, then I will need to seriously think about going back to work and will have to look into alternative routes to learning these basic computer skills I need for every job I apply for. What I'm not doing is using my gas to go all over town to look for work. With today's way of doing things being computerized all the way, I'm doing online applications. I'm fulfilling my unemployment quota of two a week. Finding any job I actually qualify for without going to fast food, is extremely difficult. Today's job market needs more skills than they did even ten years ago. So I either upgrade my skills by going to college or I seek other alternatives that will take care of my basic needs. My biggest priority of course is not losing my home, so I will do whatever it takes to not do that. On other news, being unemployed has one advantage. I am able to work more on Manifest Destiny so that will be submitted by my target date - June 1, and I'm on target for that to happen. I expect to have it available by the first day of Summer. So that is all the news for now. Now while I get back to work, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Sunday, 21 April |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am!!! One week plus since I was fired from that job and I am still happy. I have not found another job, and though I am not actively looking, I am still looking. I am however looking at going back to school for yet another career - Administrative Assistant. It comes to my mind that when I was little, the teacher asked us what we wanted to be when we grew up. The boys wanted to be firemen or policemen, doctors and generally people who helped other people. Girls wanted to be nurses or airline stewardesses. I was no different. I always thought I would be a nurse and even got my nurse aide certificate. That was a very long time ago now, and if I still wanted to do something in the healthcare industry I would need to go back to school. Ironically enough, my career path has changed several times since I 'grew up'. I have done many things. I not only hold a certificate as a nurses aide, but one as an offset press operator, and an Associate Degree in architecture. I have worked for the government as a Navy W.A.V.E. I was a wife, mother, actually I am still a mother, that role never changes even though children grow up and leave home. I worked in the Post Office, in the grocery store bakery, as an assembly line worker in factories, and I am an author. I have my diploma in children's literature. But the one thing I've never done or even considered was becoming a bum, living off the government, becoming a useless person to society, a sponge. I don't know if anyone ever thinks about those as career moves, yet when I look at the world around me, I see a lot of people living in those roles. Now, though unemployed, I am facing another career move in my life. I am about to be 60 years old, and I'm going to school to be a secretary or Administrative Assistant. Sounds fancy, and with everything that has happened in the past hundred years, the office of secretary has changed right along with the years. Administrative Assistants have to know so much more in order to do the same job. Education is ongoing, so it is no surprise I am going back to school yet again. I'm excited about this move. I'll be learning about being a secretary, though most of it I already know as I've done it in at least one of my jobs over the years, but with all the changes in industry, I will be more qualified in several areas, not least of which that of being what I am - an author. Two of the courses deal with editing and proofreading. At last, something that will directly relate to my passion for life - writing. I've come a long way in 60 years and so has the world, and I must progress right along with it, or be left behind. I have no intention of being left behind, so I'm going for yet another career move. Now while time grows late, and there's church in the morning, I will say goodnight and you all who are able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Tuesday, 16 April |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am! Well it's been five days since they fired me, and five days of living stress free, headache free, with a smile on my face. A friend from church said how great I looked on Sunday. She could see the stress was gone, and the smile on my face - well it stretched from ear to ear. It's been a long time since I was this happy. So okay, I still have to look for work. I qualified for unemployment, I've filled out applications with no return for my efforts yet. And yesterday I applied for a college program, or I should say, I'm taking the steps towards applying. I took the assessment. Now as a writer reading comprehension and sentence structure should be no brainers, but math on the other hand, is not a no brainer. It is a brain fryer. My brain hurt yesterday after I completed that assessment. I was drained of all life energy and only wanted to crawl home to my mindless games and let my mind rejuvenate. Only my mind didn't rejuvenate yesterday. I turned on the television to find out about the Boston Marathon bombings and the tragedy that turned a promising day into disaster. My mind went into shock, as I know a lot of yours did too. I know a lot of us are asking "What is this world coming to?" When I see events such as yesterday, I know what this world is coming to and I know who is in charge of this world. I know that ultimately we will find out who was behind yesterday's tragedy, but behind that group of people is Satan, commanding his minions to go out, seek and destroy the lives of innocent people. An 8 year old girl was killed in that tragedy, an 8 year old girl that didn't have the opportunity to even begin to live her life, and see her dreams come to fruition. There is no sense in this senseless act. We can only pray that people will wake up and turn to God before it's too late. We cannot keep going on about our own agendas without thought to the next person. We might believe we have the right to do so, but in claiming our rights, sometimes we take someone else's rights away from them. Jesus said we are to love God and love our neighbor. If we put that into practice along with the golden rule - Do unto others as you would like others to do to you, this world would be a far better place to live. Well, I have a full plate again today, so along with the job hunting, I will be spending time working on Manifest Destiny, and take advantage of something I have been unable to up to this point - joining in a Women's Bible Study. It will be so good to be around other women of faith for a couple hours around the Word of God. So now while I get ready for another peaceful, mind blowing day, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Sunday, 14 April |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing exceptionally well. I am! Yes I am. No, I don't have a new job yet, that does take time. In the meantime I'm going to enjoy every moment of every day to its fullest. This week in review. It was a typical week in the call center. All the CSR's were busy with back to back phone calls, me included. I knew I would be fired last week, I just didn't know the exact day and hour of my dismissal. On Thursday, late afternoon, somewhere around 5:30 my supervisor came to my desk and told me to log off after my phone call. I knew the hatchet was honed to perfection. The blade was sharp and the cut would be clean. However, I was ready for what was to come. My stomach did its butterfly dance, and I was only slightly fearful as I took that long walk to the executioners chamber. As you might expect, the executioner was without any kind of emotion. She did her job very well, without a backward glance to what she had just done. Now, let me just stop there and tell you about what happened after that. Friday, my son's girlfriend told him that my supervisor was not without emotion over what happened and what he was party to. She related that he was teary and broken up about firing me. In all my almost 60 years no one has ever been that way towards me, not even my X when we got divorced. There was no regret or remorse in the action, on either of our parts. So to find out that my immediate supervisor was upset about my leaving, made me feel like there is some hope for humanity after all. Some people do have a heart. Let me tell you why I was fired. I was fired because I gave GOOD customer service. I took the time needed with each customer to get the issue resolved properly. I did not rush the customer off the phone. That's why I was fired. All that adds up to Handle Time. It takes time to resolve an issue, and time wasn't on my side. I had no more than 7 minutes for each call. Mine were upwards of 8-30 minutes. Some issues were more involved. They tell you they understand that some calls will be longer, but those should be in the minority, so that the overall average for the day will be under 7 minutes. I was fired for giving GOOD, QUALITY focused, Customer Service. I understand that's a rare commodity these days, and oh one more thing I brought to the table, and another reason I was fired was because I have VALUES. Values are also something not seen in the work world very often, and when you do see it, those are the people you want on your team. Yes, I was a team player. I helped the customer to the best of my ability, and I got fired for it. Now, am I upset about being fired? Not on your life. I hated my job at that call center. I hated it because it demoralized me on a daily basis. I hated it because it was all about the client and not about the customer. I hated it because no matter how much you tried to help the customer, either the customer or the client wasn't satisfied with the answer I had for them. Will I work in another call center? Only God has the answer to that. I did fill out an application yesterday for another call center. I might have mentioned in the past that my daughter also works in a call center. She called me yesterday, and told me that where she works they are customer oriented and care about the needs of the customer. They don't rely heavily on handle time, but on the quality of the work between the employee and the person in need. Now, I've been saying for years that I would not work in insurance, but that is exactly what my daughter does, and does very well. She's a TL, and very good at what she does. In a matter of 20 minutes she had me convinced that applying for the job opening at her company would be beneficial to me. Also because with my work history, I'm not going to get the pay I need to survive. I just became debt free this past January, and I intend to remain debt free. However, that won't be possible if I don't find another job real soon. So I will enjoy my vacation time, fill out applications online, and even check into schooling. There is a program at the college I could take that would be completely beneficial to me - Information Technologies is a program that will help me as a writer/author. So that is my goal at the moment - education. And who knows, just maybe I will take off the pounds I put on the first time, and get back to my original great looking weight. It's a thought. I'm working on it. In the meantime, I will have more time to get the editing done on Manifest Destiny, and hope to have it submitted a lot sooner than previously projected. Now, while I get out the door for church, and begin this new day, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Friday, 12 April |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing exceptionally well. I Am!!! Now the best thing in the world happened yesterday, and you might not think it so great, and I've already taken steps to move forward, but I think it's great. I got fired yesterday from that awful job. I woke this morning without a headache. My stress level is completely gone, and I've got a smile on my face. Oh, and I didn't cry when they fired me. I left there with my head held high, looking forward to whatever God has in store for me. I spent the morning taking care of unemployment and all the requirements. Monday, I'll have to take care of more things, and check into a possibility that will keep the lights on. I got paid today, and I have another check coming that will have the few days I worked on this check and my vacation pay, which should also stand me in good stead until my unemployment benefits kick in or I get a job. I'm not looking to be out of the work force for too long, but I also intend to find a job I like this time instead of being tied for the rest of my life to something I hate. While I was considering all my options a thought occurred to me. Authors are never unemployed - they just write another chapter. So while I get back to the business of getting my life organized and get some editing done for Manifest Destiny, due out in a couple months, you all Keep on Writing Valerie |
| Tuesday, 2 April |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am! I want to believe that the reason I didn't wake with a headache today is because everything is going to go perfect today. My stats will be good and I won't lose my job. Or maybe I woke with a headache today because my stats are bad and I will lose my job, and then the pressure I've had over my job for quite some time now will be over. One way or another, I will find out in just a couple hours. In the mean time, I'm working on a couple different books. Manifest Destiny is coming along well with the editing. I have the book cover ready to go, the back cover copy, and my new bio all in place. Scarred continues to do well, and I found out I'm not perfect. I have one typo in Scarred. The change-all function didn't work for Emilae's name, there is one Emily in the book as was brought to my attention on Easter, by my brother. How was your Easter? I hope you had a good relaxing day with family and friends who are just as much a part of your family as your flesh and blood. Mine was okay. It had its good moments and its not so good. I went to eat with my family. My brother picked me up, no way was my car going to go the distance, and if it did, it would be by sheer luck alone. It was just my brother, sister, and me and our spouses, of which I don't have any at the present time, but I'm working on it. My older brother, the one next to me in age, I'm the oldest, didn't show. I know Dad wasn't pleased with that, but considering the circumstances, at least from my son's point of view, it's completely understandable why he didn't show. To say my parents have been surly since this year started would be an understatement. They were both in the hospital at the first of the year, and since then have made threats to those of my siblings who were able to get over to my parents home and help them out. Instead of being grateful for our assistance, Dad threatened to write them out of the will. So it wasn't surprising that one person, who helped out the most, wasn't in attendance at the family function. Me, I just stayed as far from that end of the table as possible so I wouldn't come under fire. Call me chicken if you like, I just once want to have a holiday that doesn't cause heartburn. I also had to provide dinner for the members of my family. I have two sons and a grandson living with me, and they need to eat as well. So I kept my food intake to a minimum without drawing rude comments from my Dad, and ate when I got home. What I was able to sidestep with the family, I walked into at home. My oldest son and I rub each other the wrong way most of the time, and Sunday was no exception. I wish it were, so while he ate at the table along with my grandson, I waited until he was finished before I had anything, which turned out very good. So why do holidays bring out the worst in us? Why can't we all get together as a family and have a nice time together? Why is the time always fraught with tension, sometimes so thick you can cut it with a knife? There were some good points during the day. It wasn't all bad. My younger son and grandson went to church with me, and we had a good overall day together. I was able to enjoy my time with my youngest brother and his family. His good natured threats to make me walk back to Green Bay because I love snow and it snowed most of the way home from the restaurant we were at was all done in fun. Though I would call the restaurant a cattle barn myself. They herd you in, feed you, and herd you out. At least that's the way it felt. Well, that was my Easter. I hope yours was good, even a whole lot better than mine was, though mine could have been worse, so I consider it a blessing that it wasn't. Now, while I get busy with writing, you all who are able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Wednesday, 20 March |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all blessed. I am! Well things are a bit worrisome around the house lately. I got a written warning for my handle time yesterday. I have a minimum of two weeks until termination from a job I've had for 11 years, and all because of handle time. It isn't anything else. Even during coaching yesterday, my TL told me that I'm the kind of rep people want to talk to - I care about the customer and I give good customer service. However, that's not what the focus is - it's handle time and how fast we can get the customer taken care of and get on to the next call. I wish it weren't that way, but I'm not in charge of the company, I'm just a lowly rep. So what am I doing to safeguard my job? Doing everything I can to lower my handle time, difficult, but it's coming down, and looking for another job. I don't want customer service, but that's what I know best at the moment. My TL also suggested that I move to another program, and that could be the best option plan right now. I would still be working at the call center, so I wouldn't have to start completely over, though each program has it's own pay scale and yes, expectations, so I could see a drop in pay going to another client. So anyway, things are up in the air right now, but I'm sure there's a silver lining there somewhere, and I also have a God who loves me and will see to my needs. In the meantime, I'm working on a book. At the moment it's not Manifest Destiny, which it should be, but it is one that I've been trying to get right for a long time. Several years ago I decided to tackle the romance genre. I'm not a romance writer, but I wanted to try it and see what happens. It's been a journey, and with this new look at the story, it's finally starting to come together, and I'm pleased with it. We all need to get out of our comfort zone and try something new. You never know where it will lead - me, I'm hoping on a paycheck, if I can get it done right, and so far so good for this go round. So anyway, that's my life at the moment. The book cover is done for Manifest Destiny, and the upgrade is paid for. I still expect I'll have it submitted by the first of June and out by Summer. It will happen. It's in the works. So now while I get ready for work, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Sunday, 10 March |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am! Happy Spring! Yes, I know I'm early, but the first sign of spring took place this morning. We changed our clocks to Daylight Savings Time. For most of us that is something we know instinctively how to do. We have the adage - spring forward, fall back. Only I have never quite figured out which way that meant I turned the hands on the clock, and this morning before I went to bed I told my boys to make sure they changed their clocks, and I proceeded to do so as well before I went to bed - in the wrong direction. Then I went to bed and set my clock to get up in plenty of time for church this morning. Everything was going well. I woke up, the clock said 7:10. No problem, I had two hours before I needed to get to church. The shower was in use, so no shower, turned out to be a blessing instead of a pain. I got dressed, took my time, and went into the kitchen and fixed a bowl of cereal, believing it was only going on 8 not 10. Then I sat down at the computer and looked at the computer clock and panicked. 9:47. I had less than fifteen minutes to get to church. It's a good thing I'm only a mile from church. Again the bathroom was occupied and so my wonderful hygiene went completely out the window. No shower, no combing my hair or brushing my teeth before I made a mad dash out the door and got to church with 2 minutes to spare. To say the least, I was very upset with myself. I wasn't upset with the person in the bathroom, when I needed to use it, I was upset with me. I changed the clock - the wrong way. I was already late when I got up this morning. Instead of being one hour off, I was two - in the wrong direction. So I have been beating myself up over this. My son told me God doesn't hate me because I was late or that I set the clock in the wrong direction. I made it to church on time, and that is all that mattered. NOT TO ME! I'm a person who is on time for everything. I'm not late. Now you might say I was two minutes early, not late for church. I was late. If I'm not at least fifteen minutes early, I'm late. I don't like rushing, and I don't like hunting for a place to plant myself in church. I did both this morning. I was in a panic, and I was late, by my standards. Okay, so now you know my day. Work has been stressful lately. Since leaving the International program, and being back on the Domestic, a new set of expectations are set in place. Goals that were not there for the International program, or they were, but they were more lax. I have to bring my stats under submission. I have to learn how to take control of the call, take care of the customer, and get him off the phone and back to his day in less than seven minutes. I know, impossible, right. Now, I know none of you want to sit on the phone with anyone for any longer than necessary, so when my handle time goes up because I have situations that take longer than seven minutes to fix, I'm looking at serious reprimands. I have already had two verbal warnings because of my stats and this week I will get my first written warning. I am 11 seconds off the goal for this week, and though that might not sound like a lot, and you might think I shouldn't get a written warning for 11 seconds, I will. So my life is just a mess and getting better or worse - I don't know. I would like to look forward to the day I don't need a 9-5 job outside the house. I would like to look forward to the day when my quarterly royalty check is enough to pay the bills until the next check. However that didn't happen. My first royalty check was very low. I was hoping for better, but I didn't have the means to advertise and promote my book the way it needed to, so it was low. I do expect a better check for the second quarter, for me, the first quarter of the year because I have seen good reviews on the book, and I've been told by various people that they ordered the book online. So I know I'll have sold more than 2 ebooks this time. I have some soft cover book sales as well. Okay, that's my rant for today. I'm going to go make a difference in my world. I'm going to get some editing done on Manifest Destiny, which is scheduled to come out in a couple months. So while I do that, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Friday, 1 March |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all blessed. I am! At the moment it might not seem as though I'm living a blessed life, but when you put all the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle together, you call my life, I can truly say I'm blessed. For a long time I complained I needed a vacation. Now, I'm getting that vacation in the guise of VTO - Voluntary Time Off. Work has been sssslllloooowwww, and when work is slow they punish the people with the worst handle time by sending them home. My handle time isn't great, in fact it's pretty bad at the moment. I'm on a 4 week plan to improve, in the mean time when it's slow, they send people home. That means I've had a lot of time off in the past couple weeks - YEA!!! When they send me home I fill out a sheet for pay, using my vacation hours towards the VTO. With as much as they are sending me home to do otherwise would be absolutely foolish. I wouldn't be able to make ends meet on the number of hours I've worked in the past couple weeks. So I'm getting the time off I badly need, but I'm also doing all I can to improve my handle time, and it's working. I am improving. My first week's coaching showed a huge improvement, so my forced VTO will come to an end, hopefully soon, as I don't want to use all my vacation hours on it. I want to actually take a real vacation this year. My niece is getting married the day after my birthday, and I always take my birthday week off. I don't see a problem with doing that, unless I use up all my hours before then. If that happens, I'm also quite certain I won't have to worry about making it to the wedding - I won't have a job. That 4 week plan means that if I don't make goal, I get a written warning I have to sign. The last one means I'm outta there. As I can't afford to lose my job just yet, I am working hard to improve my handle time. That said, things are getting real exciting around the home front. Scarred has done very well. I should be receiving my first Royalty Check this next week. I can hardly wait. My taxes are done and in the bank, this week, today is Pay Day, and I'll soon have a Royalty Check to add to it, and I'm hoping for a good one as I need it to get the next book published. Manifest Destiny is coming along really good. I finally broke down and bought a Scottish (Doric) English Dictionary so I would get the dialect spelling right. There were a few words that were spelled wrong, and I have this thing about misspelled words - it just doesn't happen with my work. Scarred might have some grammar problems, but not a single word is misspelled in it, and I aim to keep it that way while I work even harder on my grammar to make it perfect for Manifest Destiny. I have a cover artist this time, and I've got the proofs for the book and the one I've chosen is really GREAT!!! I can't wait to see it and handle it and yes, hold the finished book in my hands. I just praise God it won't take another 32 years to accomplish. I'll have it out in the next couple months. Well, that's all I have from here. I hope your day has gone exceptionally well, and while I get on with the business of writing, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Thursday, 14 February |
| Hi All, Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you are all doing great today/tonight. I am!!! The great news is that Scarred now has 3 5 star reviews. Two on Amazon and one on Barnes and Noble. I found that one yesterday before I went to work and that put a smile on my face nothing could wipe off for the rest of the day. It also gave me the incentive I need to get going on Manifest Destiny - not that I'm not already doing that. WestBow Press has been asking for the second book. I'm only halfway through the editing, and having to keep going back to make certain I didn't miss something. I have a dialect I need to make certain stays consistent. So it's time consuming and tedious and I'm going to make certain that it's completely ready before I send it to them. All I have to do is get my taxes done and my life will be good. I've talked to a few people about the new wrinkle in my life, and I think I'm ready to do the taxes MYSELF. I've always done them in the past, but with a book published, my life has changed in the way of how I do my taxes. I also found out that letting someone else do them is costly, and that is something I don't have at my disposal. Even though I am debt free at the moment, I am still living paycheck to paycheck. I'm hoping to change all that with my new status as Author. So anyway, I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day, and give your reader sweetheart a great book to read. It has 3 5 star reviews, and everyone who has read it has only good things to say about it. Scarred - available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Christian Book store customer counters, and WestBowPress.com. Now while I get doing the important things in my life, including writing, you also Keep on writing Valerie |
| Friday, 8 February |
| Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all safe. I am! First of all, my prayers are with all those in New England. I've been watching the Weather Channel all day because I didn't go to work either. I stayed home after coming home Wednesday night with freezing drizzle turning my windshield into glare ice. I don't have a fan in my car, so I had no way to get the ice cleared off my windshield. I was scared out of my wits. I have never been more scared in my life as I was then, and I know that what I went through, some of you are getting now and will get more of before this storm is over. I pray for your safety as you go through this storm. I stayed home from work yesterday. With freezing drizzle, I might have been able to get to work, using the bus system, but I wouldn't have that option coming home, and I would rather be safe and alive then risky and dead or another statistic with this storm. That said I still feel guilty being home when I'm not sick. I feel like I'm playing hooky from work, and maybe I am. I'm the one everyone can depend on in most any situation. It was time for me to think about myself instead of my job. And though I'm glad I did stay home, I would really like the guilt to go away because I did. Anyway, my job might expect everyone to be in their seat, regardless of weather conditions, with a car that doesn't have a fan, and no way to get rid of the ice on the windshield, I stayed home. So anyway, my prayers are with everyone in the path of this storm, not just in New England. Stay safe, healthy, and warm. With weather conditions what they are, you have no excuse not to write, so while I get to bed so I can go to work today, you all Keep on writing Valerie |
| Saturday, 26 January |
| Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am! Well today so far is a mixed up inside out upside down sort of day. I'm just getting started with it, technically, since I also end my day on the same day I start it, though at 4 AM and then start it when I get up. So already my day is mixed up. I think that might say a lot about me, anyway. Today was more different than usual. My son told me, well asked me, if I would pick his girlfriend up from work today. Now the time she got off work is the time I normally get up, so right there things were a bit weird. I got up on time - 11:15 so I could go get her and take my son and her to her house. He'll spend the night and I'll pick him up tomorrow after church. So okay, that's taken care of. Now I have a routine I don't normally deviate from, at least not too often because when I do things get really weird, like me sitting here writing this blog and I haven't even taken care of the essentials of my day yet. My routine is as follows, get up, put the dog out, take my shower, bring the dog in, do my Bible Study, post it, eat, work on my book or play a game or both and go to work. That's typical so that by this time 1:10 PM, I have done everything except work on my book. Today, I took my son's girlfriend home, I have already eaten, and I did just post the Daily Bible Study. I still have to shower, which I will do as soon as I have this crazy blog finished. So that is the start to my day, a day that I know will be hectic because work has been hectic the past several days. I don't know if they're trying to find out how much I can do at a time or how far my capabilities will extend before I start to come apart at the seams. I came apart yesterday. Normally I only do one thing, take International calls. On Friday I have to add e-mails to the list, so I'm doing two things at once, yesterday I did three and then at one point I was doing four. I was pulling my hair out with three. It took me five phone calls to take care of one e-mail. I was going nuts and then they throw in a bit of research too. I blew a head gascuit. I had some words with a TL and after I calmed down, did what I needed to do. I always do, but first I was in a state of meltdown. Do people think we are wonder beings who can do anything and everything? Anyway, today looks to be about the same, almost. There is another person I work with on Saturday, sort of. She has e-mail capability, and unless they sent her home, which they have a tendency to do with people if the call volume is low, then the e-mails should be done, or I will be looking at a night of all of the above again tonight. I hope not. I would like a sane night this week. I'll be working alone after 5:30 at any rate until midnight. So now that I've had my rant, I'll let this go, take my shower and get the rest of my day completed before I go to work. And all you who are able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Tuesday, 22 January |
| Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing amazingly well. I am! Did you see it???? What? Why Jupiter of course. It's so bright right next to the moon. This historic moment will not be seen again for 13 years. Well, the good news is, I talked to my parents yesterday morning. Mom is doing well, all things considered. She was completely lucid, no sight of her Alzheimer's during the conversation. No repeat questions, and she asked about Edgar and Jon, which in itself is amazing with her memory being what it is. Dad is still weak. I had the official update from my sister. She said Dad is just plain ornery, doesn't want to do anything for himself, and expects to be waited on hand and foot. Yep, sounds like my dad. The fact that my sister has back problems and can't do any kind of lifting was to my dad's benefit because he had to get himself moving, which he's supposed to do anyway, and was able to get things accomplished with little difficulty when he put his mind to it. I'm going to ask a rhetorical question - Why do we become children again when we get old? Why do we have to take care of our parents as though they were infants? Since this health situation came about with both my parents, and I've heard the war stories from my sister about what my brother's are going through, I've been wondering. Remember the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. Anyway the end of the movie showed the old man and then the baby and the fetus in the womb. Is that how we will be perceived when we are old and infirm? It makes me not want to get old, yet I crawl closer to that age every day, and so do you. We don't age backwards, yet it would seem that is exactly what we do. There will come a day when we once again wear diapers and eat baby food. Personally, I hope that day never comes. Just some thoughts about the state of things in my life. I hope your lives are going much better. Now while I think about getting some sleep, though it's still early, I've been asked to give my grandson a ride to school in the morning. Temps are way below 0 with wind chills even further down the thermometer. We need this cold snap, but I don't think we need it this cold. We need it just cold enough long enough to kill all the bacteria so we can get healthy. The flu was super bad this year, and the warm weather we had for so long this winter did't help, it actually hurt us. So viva la cold, but let's get back to some somewhat warmer temps. I did see we are supposed to get snow Wednesday - Saturday, so that will be good. It's always warmer when it snows because we have cloud cover to keep the warm air from escaping into the atmosphere. So there you have it - infant adults and chilly temps. Now while I move on to other things, you all who are wide awake and able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Friday, 18 January |
  Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am! Well today was a good so-so day. Good in the way that I got to work on time. Good in the way that work was not too difficult, no nasty customers. The plus with work is that I've lowered my handle time. I mentioned that I have to stay within a certain time frame - 425 or 7 minutes. I came down 50 seconds. I'm still high, but doing better. So that's a plus. Hopefully by the time I get transitioned completely back to Domestic, my handle time will be where it should be. On the home front, nothing happening, so I guess that's a good thing. So that leads to the prompt: Are you more likely to tell it like it is, or to hold your tongue? I've had too many years of holding my tongue. When I stopped letting people walk all over me, I also started telling it like it is. Now while I get the rest of my night squared away, you all who are wide awake, including me, Keep on writing Valerie |
| Thursday, 17 January |
Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am! Well, the move is on. Just one more month and I'll be back on the Domestic program 100%. I had my talk with the program Operations Manager today/yesterday about my schedule. As soon as the International program is dissolved here, and totally transitioned overseas, I'll be on 2-10PM, with the same days off. She wanted to give me a split, but I told her no way. I need two days in a row off. It's good when you know your OM. I've been part of this program for 9 of it's 11 years at this call center, and I've had her for a TL many times. We worked hard together to get my stats looking the way they should so I wouldn't be fired. I was young and naive and didn't know any better - less than five years at the call center, and less than a year on the program. I still liked my job. So anyway with all the history we have together, I was able to talk to her not only as OM to lowly CSR but friend to friend. I almost didn't think she would give me my two days together as they are now, but she made it work. So all's good in that respect. Please keep my brothers and sister in prayer as they deal with our parents. My brother next to me in age was in tears, my youngest brother doesn't want to go back, and my sister doesn't want to go over this weekend for her turn at helping out. Dad is being ultra difficult. Mom also took a whole bottle of meds in two days. It didn't cause any overdose, so I don't know what she took, but with her Alzheimer's it could have been a lot worse than it was. To say the least, the situation with my parents is desperate as my siblings do their best to take care of our parents. It's so hard to see them like this. On my own home front, everything is okay. I will say this, though. When I got up yesterday, Jon was home. I found out that he's doing finals and they only have a couple hours a day for school. When I was a kid, we went to school for the whole day, not just a couple hours. Edgar said, yeah and I walked uphill through the snow both ways. Not exactly, there was a hill, uphill on the way to school.  And when the tests were done, we just kept going with the rest of our classes. What do they teach in school these days? How to be lazy 101? It sure seems like it. Every time I turn around, Jon has a short day, or a delayed day. What do they pay teachers to do?Well, one thing they're going to be teaching teachers is how to deflect a shooter. I was reading the 23 points President Obama signed today/yesterday, and one of those points was to get more awareness of the shooter in the school systems. As I read through those points, I thought most of them were good, some I didn't understand, but then I like things black and white - easy to understand at all times. If my brain has to work something out to understand it, I get completely lost. Such is also the case with Philosophy entries. So maybe President Obama was taking the philosophical approach to gun control on some of those points. Anyway, other than that, life was boring today, and that's okay, especially when it involves my work. I had one difficult call, it was Domestic, and we who seem to think we are entitled to everything, even when the policy and Terms of Use state otherwise, will argue until we think we can get our way. Sorry. I might not like my job, but I also have no desire to be fired because I went against policy. Okay, that said, I come now to the prompt: Do you believe in the death penalty? Defend your answer. You know what? I do believe in the death penalty. As a firm believer in God and His Word, when God says that some actions are worthy of death, and He doesn't hesitate to follow through on His policy and terms, I have to agree. God said it, and that settles it as far as I'm concerned. I can say one thing, if we lived according to God's laws, I would be a widow right now instead of divorced. I also believe this world would be a lot better place to live in if we all followed God's laws. I know there will be a lot of people who disagree with me, but that's okay. I'm entitled to my opinion too, and my opinion is God's law. Now while I finish up and get to bed, it's after 3AM, you all who are wide awake and able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Wednesday, 16 January |
Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great! I am, sorta. Sorta is a good statement right now. I'm in that in-between place, if I was Catholic, I would liken it to Purgatory, not quite heaven, and not quite hell. I feel like I've been riding the emotional roller coaster for too long. Today I got into an argument with my son, and as a result, I got stubborn and walked to work instead of taking the car. Please don't ask what it was about. It was really a stupid argument, and I was stupid in return. However, I did get a ride home. A friend didn't want me walking the streets at midnight. So it turned out okay. Add on top of that the situation with my parents and I'm not the only one who's ready to pull their hair out. With my state of transportation and work schedule, I can't go to Mom and Dad's to help out. However, the e-mail I received from my sister wasn't reassuring. Dad blew up at my brother, next oldest to me, and had him in tears, and had my youngest brother in such a state he never wants to go back. She said Dad told my youngest brother he wants to change the power of attorney's and the will. My sister has her turn at Mom and Dad's this weekend. The really bad news in all this is what she said about Mom's medication. She took all her medication in 2 days. That is not good, extremely bad in fact. So please keep my brother's and sister in prayer as they deal with my parents, and my parents that Dad at least would see reason, and not be unreasonable to his children who are only trying to help. The alternative is to put them both in a nursing home, and that would devastate them. They have been independent all their lives and this is a complete turn for them. Okay, so that might explain the roller coaster of emotions I'm going through. Anyway, time for the blog prompt: Which food, when you eat it, instantly transports you back to childhood? Cotton candy. I was also thinking about a root beer float from A&W. Cotton candy reminds me of Bay Beach, the amusement park we have here in Green Bay. It reminds me of the 4th of July when I was a kid when the fireworks were held there, and we spent the entire day riding the rides, eating cotton candy and the picnic lunch Mom always brought with. Root beer floats also reminds me of those times when we would stop at the local A&W and order the floats and have the waitress bring out our order and hang the tray on our car window. Those were the days. There will never be a day like it again. The fireworks are held in downtown Green Bay now, between the two main bridges, and A&W restaurants, or any restaurant that has car service is almost a thing of the past. Thanks for the memories. Come to think of it, there was a circus that came to Green Bay, a regular tent circus. I think it was Barnum and Baily, though I could be wrong. I ate cotton candy on that occasion as well, watching those elephants perform and the trapeze artists. I guess I'm okay, if I'm remembering those long ago events. Another attraction that has taken over the arenas and isn't under canvas anymore. What a shame. You can't have a circus without cotton candy. Now while I finish up my emails and get to bed, 3 AM, you all who are wide awake and able Keep on writing Valerie |
| Tuesday, 15 January |
Hi All, How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing exceptionally well. I am! Day is done, gone the sun, from the lakes, from the hills, from the sky. All is well, safely rest. God is nigh. I return to work today, so I can't stay up until almost 6 AM as I did yesterday. Yesterday was extremely frustrating. I had just finished a blog for the Cartharsis: Writing to Survive group when I lost my connection and lost everything I had done. Being 6 AM I decided to tackle my wonderful computer when I got up. Even my computer wouldn't shut down when I tried, so I just gave up and hoped for the best. When I got up, forced up at 11 AM which equates to something like 5 hours of sleep, by my son who needed me to run an errand of mercy for him. Now his errand of mercy is one I will definitely force myself up for any time he asks. His girlfriend was baking and needed a stick of butter. She is the best cook around, that I know of. I also knew I would benefit from that stick of butter. I had also donated some ripe bananas a few weeks earlier, that I knew were in her freezer waiting for the right time to bake banana bread. By the way, it has already been delivered, a small loaf, and eaten. My taste buds and stomach were in heaven for a short space of time. When I returned home from this errand of mercy, I looked at my computer, sitting there with its black screen, just waiting for me to press the on button and activate this piece of machinery, that seems to dictate our lives these days. It worked. YEA!!! By the way, I just got a screen pop up that showed me my wonderful computer is acting up again. So I will hope that I can get this finished and posted without losing everything. If I post this at my usual time, you will know all is well. If I post this after noon, you will know I ran into trouble with it again, and just gave up and went to bed. So anyway, since this lovely machine is doing what its doing, let's get right to the blog prompt. If you could learn to play a musical instrument, one which you've never played before, which would you choose and why? I can play the piano, minimally, so that of course is out. I got a saxophone for my son when he was in school. He no longer has it, someone stole it from him. I felt the loss, even though it was his instrument. I love the sax however and would want to learn that instrument. My granddaughter also had the opportunity to play the violin. It plays such sweet music when played right. I wouldn't mind trying my hand at that. I wouldn't mind learning any number of instruments. I love music, I can read sheet music, upper hand at least, I'm doubtful with the left. I would like to master the treble and base clefts so that I can play what my eyes see, no matter what instrument I play. Mastering the finger movements for the stringed instruments would be a plus. I always seem to envy guitarists and musicians who play skillfully on their stringed instruments whether they use a bow or a pick. So I really don't know which instrument I would like to learn. All of them I guess. I love music. Now while I get some sleep, it's 2:35 AM, you who are wide awake and able, Keep on writing Valerie |
| Monday, 14 January |
Hi All, How is everyone today/tonight? I hope everything is GREAT with you. It is with me! One of the reasons I'm great is that it's my weekend. Two days away from the call center are the two best days of my week. I would imagine you know that after the chaos I went through with my job last week. I'm just glad that's over, for the time being at least. Well by now, if you're a football fan or watching the playoff's, you know the Packers lost to the 49er's. That's okay. I saw that two of my predictions did come about. The Falcon's beat the Seahawks and Baltimore beat Denver in double overtime. However, New England did beat Houston, so I'm VERY happy the Pack lost to the 49er's. They can deal with NE in the Super Bowl, and I hope they spank NE real good. As you might have guessed, I am not a Patriot fan. From experience watching them, they showed bad sportsmanship in the past and acted link infants on the ball field if things didn't go their way. I don't know if the same attitude persists with this group, but it wouldn't surprise me if it did. So today was relaxing and frustrating at the same time. Had to write a poem for the Catharsis group blog, and that was extremely hard to do, but since that blog is locked/private, I thought I would share the poem that I begged God's help with. The name of the poem had to be titled I Am. I Am Darkness fled when daylight shone I am at peace in God alone With gentle wings He covers me Safe in God I'll always be When life's storms seek to destroy God's calming presence brings me joy I'm bigger than my darkest fears His love for me dries my tears I'm His child I hear God say He watches me by night and day He said He would not leave my side In His presence I abide This took all day to write because I had no idea what or how to go about something that wasn't spontaneous and God conceived. So anyway, that was my day, and now the prompt: What is your worst quality as a human? Describe it in detail, and why you think it's bad. Now that's a hard one. I'm not saying I don't have any bad qualities, I most likely have a few, so I have to decide which one is my worst. Is it my impatience? Like Cindy, I can't stand being late and when I had to rely on someone else to pick me up for any reason, usually church, I clock watched, worried, waited, and sometimes got forgotten altogether. Another bad quality would probably be my housekeeping. Several years ago I used to feel extremely guilty because I spent more time writing than I did anything else, and housekeeping was definitely not on my to do list. Then I saw an ad in a Writer's magazine for the top 10 Christmas presents for writers. Number one was maid service for a year.  It seems I fit right into the writer's life.So which of those two bad qualities is my worst? I don't know, maybe both. I know if I ask someone to do something and it's not done according to my timetable, I get furious, and angry out of hand. Not a good thing, especially when I procrastinate about everything as much as I do. And being late for anything is simply out of the question. I can't stand being late, no matter where it is I'm going. If it's work, I have to get there in enough time to get a place to plant myself for 8 hours. We don't have our personal space, we share desks, and every once in a while, I've gotten there and there wasn't any available. And I can't stand being late for church. Absolutely not going to happen. Not as long as I can get there on my own power. I know one of my coworkers, who vacuums 3 times a day, and has floors you can eat off of, would consider my lack of housework to be the worst. As long as I know where everything is, it's fine, and as long as I have clean clothes for work, it's fine. It'll all get done eventually. So there you have it, not one, but two worst qualities, but I really don't see those as bad qualities, so much as annoyances. One thing I have found out about myself, is that even in my disorder, if my dishes, silverware, pots and pans aren't just so, I am really annoyed. I'm a perfectionist even in the midst of clutter. Okay, so what's your worst habit or quality? It will be interesting to see how much we're alike and how many other qualities I left out. So with that in mind, I'm going to close this and get to the rest of my emails, and other things I have to do around the site before I call it a night. It's 3:35 AM, but my day off, so I will be up for a little while yet. You who are able Keep on writing Valerie |
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Good luck with the book, as well!