Chapter 1 -- Stay at Home Mom -- first time since 1982!
In 1997 I became a Grandma to a wonderful little boy named Matthew. His mother has the misfortune of being a single mother in an expensive world so I am working 16 hours a week demonstrating. Also, as I learn more about creating sites I will be starting a business creating them for others. I love to type and enjoy the computer world. I'll talk about my skills in the next chapter.
Chapter 2 -- My Job for 14 Years
The Job Hunt Begins
In 1982 I was sewing my daughters kindergarten wardrobe on Monday. Yes, I'm a fast seamstress! Wubbies (my husband) came home on Tuesday and as I was finishing her clothes, said to me (as he threw down the checkbook) "there isn't enough money for this!". So, I went into action (as is my usual reaction when a problem exists) and began working on my resume and hunting for jobs. By Friday of that week, I had accepted a job!
There Has Got to Be More to Working than THIS!!!
I began this phase of my life (away-from-home/mother/wife) working for Coopers and Lybrand. I won't say anything bad about the people, but if you are a secretary, you should be near the guys you are working for so they will ask you to do work for them. Well, I was all the way at the other end of the hall from them, so they'd ask the "hot shot" receptionist to do things for them rather than me. As a result of not being busy and never having anyone ask me to do things, I began to organize the "library". They had pamphlets that they'd send out to clients on a regular basis, but couldn't do it if, (a) the pamphlets were out of stock, or (b) they couldn't find anything! So, I took inventory and, as is my usual problem solving thought, I wondered what would be the easiest way to automate this little project so that I could stand to do it.
Computers are Cool!
This was all in the early days of computers, and they had Franklins (not Appples -- cost???) and I had no experience with them, at all! I don't remember now how it happened, but as I was asking about how I could accomplish my tasks (as I determined them to be in this little project) I stumbled upon the idea of using a computer. Someone taught me the basics of SuperCalc and I was off and running. I created a cool little data base (nothing as easy as they are now, but it was super cool at the time!). Well, needless to say, after 6 months of this little fiasco I decided that there were other challenges out there and that there were people who needed secretaries enough to use them often, so I moved on.
Moving On - - - and Sticking Around
I began the hunt for a new job and had one before my two-weeks notice was up. It was rather interesting how this new job unfolded. I worked through an agency that had the employer pay the fee.
A Miracle Begins
The agency sent me to a very well-known to others, but not to me, company. They didn't usually go through an agency and never did after they employed me. I couldn't find the office because it was upstairs in a building that was big and a retail store. Talk about understated! These guys had more money than I'll ever see, but their offices were nice, but very humble. [They had orange carpet (but changed after I had been there about 7 years) and orange paint on the walls. It was nice, but loud! We eventually replace that with forest green and thank goodness for that. But, the interesting and humorous thing is that the new carpet was supposed to be in my boss' home, but they changed their mind, after it had been ordered. These guys are very practical in a thrify way -- and I learned alot from them about doing this with my meagre means, let me tell you!]
The miracle was that they even spent the money to hire an agency to find me. The second miracle is that they decided to hire me so quickly. I began work there the day after President's Day in 1983. They rarely made decisions that fast and I marveled for 14 years over the speed that they made the decision to hire me. The nice thing about it was that they often said that they were glad they did. I was an asset to them and they told me so, with raises and praise -- not often but enough to keep me there and loyal and happy.
The Dinosaur PC
We inherited an IBM PC that by today's standards was a true dinosaur, but was an excellent piece of equipment back then. Nobody in the office knew a thing about it, let alone how to plug it in. So, I plunged right in and figured it out. I taught myself how to use WordStar (also a dinosaur version, even then) and was off and running on a new and more fulfilling treat than I could have imagined. When I left that job last year, I was the unofficial NetWork Administrator and kept those puppies humming. I enjoyed setting up the new computers for the guys to use at home and when they had a problem, they always brought the home computers in for me to repair and fix. My mother has always said that her "Willey can do anything!" and the bosses thought this was the case with me. I was out to prove that their faith in my skills was very accurate and sometimes it took me longer than I wanted, but we always fixed things up. I spent one Valentine's
day with my husband at the office trying to figure out why I couldn't get the second drive to work right. I had plugged it into the wrong spot and it took 1-1/2 hours to find. I don't have that problem anymore!
I was SUPPOSED to be a SECRETARY!!!
With all this computer stuff and a few other things (handling the repair and maintenance of all the office equipment) I ended up earning wages at the top of my "job description" pay scale. The week after Matthew was born, I was laid off. My husband and I were thrown for a major loop with this one, as you can imagine! They paid me a very nice severance which lasted long enough to let me get my feet off the ground and pull myself together. I didn't want to leave, but am grateful I would now be able to stay home and give Matthew the start in life he deserves. Day Care out of the home was not really in his mother's budget, but being let go was an answer to prayers and hopefully, in his best interests.
Chapter 3 -- Demonstrator Extraordinaire - - - How to Get Paid to Play (grin)
In 1996 I attended an open house for a nearby wholesale outlet for crafts. The gentleman handling the FIMO demonstration was doing a fine job, but was only working with one aspect of FIMO -- the molds. I had worked for quite some time with making "canes" and thought that for the next open house, I should volunteer to help them by showing people how to work with canes and what to put them on.
In 1997, I called to volunteer. They told me that another person was coming, but that I should call American Art Clay Company (AMACO) and let them know I'd like to help. So, I did and was at the open house and have been demonstrating FIMO and Cotton Press every since. It's pretty fun to get paid for showing people how to craft!
In 1998, we worked with molds, but I had everyone cover a BIC pen with the pre-made canes that AMACO sells. What a hit! The people who come to these open houses are "die hard" crafters and it was a joy to teach them. Our table was always surrounded with people wanting to learn. What a wonderful day!
The Cotton Press had the same effect. Dion Barron (the creator of Cotton Press) was there most of the time, but when she had to leave, I took over. We created gift cards and used some cool effects with glitter. This table was very busy also. Lots of fun projects -- with a craft that is so easy I wish I'd known about it while I was working away from home.
Chapter 4 -- What is Beta Testing Anyway???
Before a software product can sold to the public, it needs to be tested inside and out. So, the companies will send out versions to their BETA testers and we will do everything we can to find a "bug".
I loved testing a genealogy program a couple of years ago and plan to do the same for Home and Crafts (Amy Wilson)on their new software package, expected to be ready this fall.
Don't worry -- I can rattle on for a few more pages still!
Links to other sites on the Web
Cotton Press(hand cast paper)
American Art Clay Company - AMACO for short
Wee Folk Creations (FIMO and other clay creations)
Kris Richards makes clay creations
Great Site for Fun Scrapbookin'
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