Welcome to DD from another Southerner, down here in New Orleans.

Personally I love NC, have vacationed there twice, love Lake Lure, one of the most beautiful areas.

I ran into the same error as Peachy today while trying to do the survey also.

So do I, it's been a long time coming and much appreciated.

To top it off, most of the people not leaving their number are also by-passing my voice message.  They can press 1 to go directly into leaving message.  So even when I state "please leave your name, phone number and a brief message", they don't hear it.

TGIF, here's to a great weekend

Why don't people state their telephone number when leaving a voice message?

I would say half of the people who leave me messages daily, just say "call me" and then I have to look up their phone number.  I have atleast 4 sets of office telephone numbers as well as the multi-company directory online.

It just ticks me off sometimes... thanks for letting me vent.

I never leave a message for someone without stating my purpose for calling and my telephone number and I usually repeat the number twice.

6:45 to 3:45 with either 45 minutes or an hour for lunch.

Love it, since I can be home with my daughter early enough to watch Sesame Street "Elmo" rules!

THE DAFFODIL PRINCIPLE
                                                     
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. "I will come next Tuesday, " I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.
       
Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my grandchildren, I said, "Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see bad enough to
drive another inch!"                                      
                                                         
My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time,
Mother." "Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.            
                                             
“I was hoping you'd take me over to the garage to pick up my car." How far will we have to drive?" "Just a few blocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this." After several minutes, I had to ask, "Where are we going? This isn't the way to the garage!"  
           
"We're going to my garage the long way," Carolyn smiled, "by way of the daffodils." "Carolyn," I said sternly, "please turn around." "It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."                    
                                 
After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign that read, "Daffodil Garden."    
                                                     
We got out of the car and each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight. It
looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns - great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, saffron, and butter yellow.      
                   
Each different-colored variety was planted as a group so that it
swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers.      
                         
"But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn. "It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She lives on the property. That's her home."
Carolyn pointed to a well kept A-frame house that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house.          
                                                         
On the patio, we saw a poster. "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline.                                                                

The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and very little brain." The third answer was, "Began in 1958."                                

There it was, The Daffodil Principle.                                              
                                             
For me, that moment was a life-changing experience! I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun – one bulb at a time - to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Still, just planting one bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world. This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had created something of indescribable magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.            
                                                   
The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration. That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time - often just one baby-step at a time -
and learning to love the doing; learning to use the accumulation of time.                    
                                                         
When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily
effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.              
                                           
“It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn.                
                                               
"What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a
time' through all those years. Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"              
           
My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said.  It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, "How can I put this to use today?"                        
                                               
So, stop waiting...                        
                                               
Until your car or home is paid off                                    
Until you get a new car or home                                                      
Until your new job comes along  
Until your kids leave the house        
Until you go back to school
Until you finish school                              
Until you lose 10 lbs.                                    
Until you gain 10 lbs.                                      
Until you get married                        
Until you get a divorce                              
Until you have kids
Until you retire            
Until Summer                        
Until Spring                              
Until Winter
Until Fall                      
Until you die...                
                 
There is no better time than right now to be happy.                    
Happiness is a journey, not a destination. So work like you
don't need money, Love like you've never been hurt, and
dance like no one's watching.  

My company deals primarily with Natural Gas, here is a very helpful website for the Oil & Gas Journal - www.ogjonline.com

Good Luck

Looking for ideas on how my company's Admin. Group can celebrate "our" week, We very limited budget - probably out my own pocket and that of the two other co-chairpersons.

This is the first year we have regrouped and started conducting quarterly meetings as well as 2 or 3 "lunch & learn" sessions per year.  We already have a "Accounting Dept. lunch & learn" meeting scheduled for that week on Monday, (the company is paying for the lunch) but I want to acknowledge our accomplishments as a group.  

I first thought of having a cake, but almost everyone is dieting and don't want to have temptations around.

Any ideas or suggestions would be welcomed.

Thanks,

Welcome to my world

I process expense reports for over 1,000 employees and have been doing it for about 8 years now.  Just when you think you've seen it all, someone will come up with a new one.

Some memorable items (not paid):

kennel/pet sitting fees for pets
house sitting/plant watering fees
body shots - aka drinks at strip club
Tuxedo rental


Our company policy allows a $10.00 incidental expense per night, when traveling overnight, for such items as movies, gym fees, books, magazines, etc.  Thankfully I can't see what type of movies are being rented.

nolalady - aka "The Expense Police"

Our flex time covers our core hours of operations (7 to 5) with start times anywhere between 7:00 am and 8:30.  Employees have an option of taking lunch from 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours.  So your leaving time depends on how long you take lunch.  My core hours are 7:00 to 3:45 with a 45 minute lunch.

I love flex time, it's wonderful  if I'm running a bit late or need to take a longer lunch I can just adjust my time.

The policy does state that the supervisor/manager of each section is responsible to ensure adequate coverage during core hours.  This way no one section is shut down at 3:45

nolalady

Our intranet is not limited to F&A information.  We have links to a telephone directory, benefit and payroll information and contacts, all Corporate policies & procedures, various press releases - company news as well as all internal templates needed (expense reports/memos, etc.)  It also has space available to bookmark your top 5 sites (my Desk Demon link is there).

Can't give you a url it is restricted.

Depending on how much you want to spend, most arts & crafts stores carry "Craft Organizers".  Most have multiple folders, pockets, places for pens, markers, scissors, etc.  Several come with wheels.

I would try www.michaels.com

Down here in the land of super humidity, we are resorting to buying a portable air conditioner for upstairs.  Our a/c units - god bless them - just can keep up.  The pregnant woman needs her a/c!!  I will be able to move this a/c from room to room!!  Technology at its best.

Good Luck Andrea, I can't even imagine!!!

nola

My company has several levels of Administrative Assistants.  The titles are Administrative Assistant I (junor level), II and III (level below Executive Assistants).