Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Taking my Employee Discount to Bed

As threatened nearly a year ago, I finally gave the bedroom a bit of a facelift with my employee discount. I should qualify that statement with the following information: my employee discount on top of markdowns on top of a 15% off all markdowns flash sale. Victory!

New bedding


Restyled dresser with new candle and new snail


The candle is lavender from Meow Meow Tweet. I love these bath products & home scents so much, I bought up 3 sets. Yum! The ceramic snail, I can't explain. When he arrived at the store, I wasn't feeling him. Slowly, after seeing him around, he grew on me, until I had to bring him home. I like to think he will remind me to slow down. 



Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Oh. No.

Never, never, never.

Features a 3 inch wedge heel for only $265 from Piperlime.



Monday, February 11, 2013

Photographic Evidence

Most often Marigold and Kenji ignore each other. Occasionally they fight with each other. Once in a blue moon they cuddle with each other.


Also note that they are actually lounging on one of the many pet beds at the 1952 House. Typically they opt for the people furniture.

Friday, February 08, 2013

Taking Inventory

Yesterday the retail store at which I work nearly full-time lately closed half the day for inventory. I spent seven hours quietly researching item numbers, solving mysteries of the "what the heck is this item and how old is it?" variety, counting and double-checking other people's counting. I enjoyed it. After inventory the store opened for business. I spent just over an hour trying to hide from customers as I restocked items on the selling floor.

Taking inventory at work prompts me to take an honest self-inventory. I'm struggling with what I want to do for work. I make far too little money for how hard I work at that retail store. In the six months of the fiscal year that I worked there, I produced just over $250,000 in sales. My reward (other than the sad hourly wage)? Business cards with my name on them. Yes. I am also underwhelmed.

Because my first true love for avocation and vocation is acting, I figured that a retail job would give me a somewhat flexible schedule and a "leave it at the workplace" job description. I am growing restless with the dinner theatre scene, and feel ready to step away from that. I left my talent agency this year after too many fruitless commercial auditions. I do not consider smiling until my face breaks into spasms while talking about car dealers or computers to be acting.

I want more personal fulfillment from my time. I also want to make more money for the time I spend working.

I have a preternatural sense for color, scale and placement when it comes to decorating rooms, curating outfits or sewing projects. I hoped to join the visual display team when I took the retail job. Unfortunately, I am pigeonholed as a great salesperson. While I stay calm in the face of angst, confusion and conflict, it takes a toll on my emotional energy. I need to step out of customer service before I turn into a misanthrope.

I want a job that challenges me creatively with a balance between visual problem solving and communicating. I also want more control of deliverables besides telling a client whether or not an item is in stock. If that must-have item is out of stock at my current retail job, it's probably literally on a slow boat from China.

I need to find a new job. Yesterday.