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| Diva and the Staph |
| 01.28.09 (6:41 pm) [edit] |
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I had to go back to the dermatologist this afternoon. The cyst looked even uglier. It was hurting to walk or stand up. Um, ick. |
| Diva BitchFest |
| 01.28.09 (6:34 pm) [edit] |
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I do a lot of business functions for networking events. There's a woman I've crossed paths with quite frequently that comes off as a snobby beeyatch. She goes to the events and then spams all the attendees telling them how she can 'fix' them. She's a life coach. I've been polite but I keep my distance. Last week she practically attacked me insisting that I sit down with her. I knew that she'd be smaller-time than our company minimums. She said she was deciding between 'me' and 'a company in Vegas'. I explained that what my company does and the other company does is quite different. I also told her that our minimum is $500/month. She sent me an email the next morning saying she was going with the other company. I replied wishing her the best of luck. Then she called me back a little later saying she wanted to meet with me again, and her husband, who is 'a marketing expert' because he wants to sign up too. I looked at his website. It was a really bad template website that looks like a 13 year old did it. I did the appt. I thought she was bad, her husband was 100x worse. Arrogant ass. He gave me a print-out of 21 pages of keywords,. He was really rude. I'm thinking the entire time that I want NOTHING to do with either one of them. He says he wants a proposal. I told him we don't typically do proposals - that we have one that is system-generated but would highlight the backbone of our services. I promised him he would have it the next day. Then he sent me an email saying he could refer a lot of his clients to me, and wanted to know how much I would pay him for referrals. (Pfffffffffffft! His clients all use the same crappy website template.) Because his wife is fairly active in the groups that I frequent, I couldn't just blow them off. So I sent the proposal. I recapped what we had specifically talked about in the meeting and re-explained that the proposal was more generic. I spend more than an hour doing research with coming up with budget recommendations... Here was his reply with my commentary in purple: I really don’t understand why the concept of quantity vs. quality is so complex to grasp. It really makes no difference to me if millions of people on Yahoo are searching for those terms if they are not the right type of prospect. (The email that the proposal was attached to said clearly that we would be focusing on Google only.) This is a generic proposal which does not reflect what I am looking for. (I told him we don't usually do proposals because we have to use the standard company one but it did overview what we would do.) (For example as we discussed, I don’t track phone numbers or coupons.) Your budget number seems to be pulled from thin air and don’t (sp) reflect my prior spending. (In fact I thought it was strange that you never asked me about budgets in our discussion.) (It's actually somewhat irrelevant with what he was spending on his own - our platform makes recommendations based on my entering a lot of customized information to achieve prospect's desired results but his wife told me how much he was spending and it was in line with my recommendation.) If you’re serious about my business send me something that reflects the time I invested in learning about your services and the discussion we had. This is just a boilerplate proposal and makes me concerned about the quality of services should I decide to use you." (I replied that if his focus was on a flashy proposal instead of focusing on the client itself, then he should continue what he is already doing.) This guy is such small potatoes, I don't want him as a client. Can you believe this guy???? |
| Now I have a Staph! |
| 01.26.09 (7:10 pm) [edit] |
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I've had a little mosquito-bite sized bump on my left leg for years. When I saw the dermatologist in October, I mentioned it to him. He said it was a cyst that would need to be removed next time I came in. Thursday, it started feeling throbby and swelling and hot. I called the doc's office and they said to come in on Monday. It kept growing and bruising to the point that the bump was the size of a 1/2 a tennis ball protruding and the bruising went out the size of a grapefruit. Hot. Angry. Throbbed so bad I couldn't sleep. Showed the doc the 'tennis ball' and his jaw dropped. He couldn't believe that this progressed so quickly. Shot me full of numbing stuff and then he sliced it open to drain it. (Think of it like popping a really huge zit!) He said it was definitely a staph infection. I couldn't believe that I could have a bacterial infection considering I've been on antibiotics for 5 weeks straight. I have to go back on Wednesday to have more draining. (However, it appears that Herman is leaving me...) On the upside, there weren't maggots or spiders coming out when he drained it. I was hypothesizing that I was growing a third eye. Gross, but cool. |
| You asked for it |
| 01.24.09 (6:18 am) [edit] |
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Friday morning, another morning meeting. At 8am, I asked a teammate if she'd like to bet on when the meeting would start. I said 8:20, she said 8:17. We started around 8:14. Boss starts off the meeting asking us "What can I do to be a better manager?" Dead silence. Then he said that this was an open forum and he wanted us to be candid. The most senior rep of the office said in a more diplomatic way, that if we are speaking to him in person or on the phone to ONLY be communicating with us. (He typically takes calls and texts while you are in his face.) Rep said that it really makes us feel unimportant. Boss didn't really take that with an open heart. He said what if it's an emergency, etc - he never knows unless he answers the phone. Well, if its an emergency, the person will call back or text you. This was reiterated when we are in a meeting with a client and he takes calls or texts while we are presenting. It is distracting. He said he only does it during 'a natural break in the sales presentation'. (Um, not exactly.) Then another new rep said that he really got fed up with him always referencing another rep he had worked with on the west coast. He didn't mention her on EVERY meeting, but more often than not, he'd mention her repeatedly. He got huffy about that too. (We were looking at each other saying "WTF??") That led to a very uncomfortable exchange between them. Another rep got involved - she is sort of like the mom of the office - she said that the boss shouldn't be jumping down his throat - that it was clear he was shutting down. She talked about how low the morale is now. This went on for more than 90 minutes. The boss finally said that he was going to talk to his mentors to see if he does it. (Um, if a room of 18 people are in consensus about it, you'd think we might have a point?) Considering his response to most of the constructive feedback, there is no way in hell that I'd ever bring anything up to him. EVER. And the likelihood that things will change for the better? Pigs flying in formation more likely. |
| Yo Yo Who? |
| 01.22.09 (5:57 am) [edit] |
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Tuesday, I had a 9am appt with a client - the boss has been wanting to meet clients, so I confirmed with client (husband and wife) and the boss a week before, and the client called me Monday am to confirm. I gave them the heads up that he would be in attendance. Early Tuesday am., I texted him directions. (He never responds to email, seldom answers his phone and his voicemail is eternally full.) I'm at the client meeting a few minutes early. (He is late 90% of the time.) At 8:56, he calls me to say he's 'taking a personal day'. Um, okay. So I have a rather pointless client meeting - we were all there for him. They were rather miffed. I talk to another coworker later who tells me that the boss decided on Monday evening to drive up to DC for the Inauguration. Me miffed that he would leave me hanging so cavalierly. We have a 'mandatory' meeting on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. 8am. It is usually monotonous, repetitive and rarely productive. Goes on for at least an hour, sometimes almost 2 hours. Wednesday morning, 8am, he's not there. I have a 9:30 meeting. He shows up at 9:10am, telling us to all gather around for the meeting. Which consists of him showing us his pictures of the trip on his Blackberry. (Great, but this isn't what we would refer to as a 'revenue-generating activity') I work with an entire office of Democrats. But they are completely clueless. One guy was talking about how 'moving' Joseph Lowery's speech was. (Sort of amusing as this guy is Jewish and locally Lowrey is well-known for being a race-baiter - particularly against Jews.) I tried to get off the political sappiness by saying that I was impressed that Yo Yo Ma was able to perform so well in the cold weather. The brilliant coworker thought Yo Yo Ma was a rapper. Only one other person out of 14 knew who he was. At that point, I grabbed my stuff and exited to go to my appointment. Boss then started yammering about how it is 'critical' that we take him on client appointments. I bit my tongue. |
| Not THAT kind of bed rest |
| 01.20.09 (7:09 am) [edit] |
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Most people in my life know about my medical situation. I've been pretty open with folks about the hysterectomy and my ongoing recovery.
And then I couldn't go back to sleep. I watched old Hitchcock, the two movies. I didn't sleep further. Got up and ready to take on the day. With the 8 degree windchill. |
| Diva, the Doctor, and Herman |
| 01.18.09 (7:13 am) [edit] |
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It was a balmy -5 windchill Friday morning. I headed to the doc. The pain is tolerable in the mornings, but by 10am, I'm uncomfortable, by noon, I'm really hurting. And there is a lot of bright red blood. The doc gets up in my hoo-ha and tells me that I have a 'very large hematoma' and an infection at the place where my cervix once was. (Again). He starts writing a flurry of more prescriptions. I didn't know what a hematoma was. He said if I'm still bleeding in a week, that we'd have to 'talk' about some other procedures. He gave me a stronger perscription for Flexaril - problem is - even on the lower dosage - I am too loopy to work/drive on it. Went into the office, caught my boss for a moment and told him the doc told me another week of 1/2 days. I got the scripts filled (which took more than 2 hours) and went home. Researched hematomas. If they aren't painful, the normal protocol is to let them 'absorb' themselves. It can take months. However, if the pain is bad, they will drain them and do more iv antibiotics. (hospital stay). NOT liking that. I've been good - stayed in bed all weekend except to pee, feed felines and myself. Bored out of my ever-loving mind. However, when I'm in bed like this, the pain and the blood is significantly reduced. I'm really really really tired of all this bedrest. I've decided to name my hematoma, Herman. And I want Herman to leave me immediately. |
| Diva and Demerol |
| 01.18.09 (6:57 am) [edit] |
|
The pain and blood had been increasing significantly. On Thursday, I was in so much pain, I was hunched over. I called the doctor. I was near their North Atlanta office after a meeting, so I hung out in a parking lot, waiting to hear back. The nurse said he was in surgery and I should see him first thing Friday morning. In the interim, she was getting him to sign off on another round of Demerol. She'd call me back when he signed it. It was 2pm when we got off the phone. I tried making the most of the time by calling some clients and doing some follow up. At 3:30, I called back. The nurse told me that he had left a while ago and forgot to sign it. (Gee, thanks!) That I needed to go to the other office to pick up the prescription. And, by the way, they close at 4. So I haul butt to the other location and pick up the script. Then I have to go on the holy grail of pharmacy searches to find one that carries this med. I was almost in tears at 5:45 when I finally got the prescription filled. Texted the boss that I wouldn't be in the office in the morning for the meeting b/c I had an ultrasound scheduled. Took a double dose of Demerol and went to bed. |
| Dead Letter Office/Hairdryer |
| 01.14.09 (10:58 pm) [edit] |
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My hair dryer died this morning.
Terrible news. Then I went out on a quest to find a suitable replacement. And checked the mail when I got home. Had an official-looking letter from a bank that I've never done business with. I have gotten a lot of junk mail from this bank for a while - for some reason, I opened this letter. Turns out I had totally forgotten I had an account with a bank that went under 18 months ago... And this bank took it over. And I had a balance of just under $400. Cool. Money I didn't even realize I had. I think that calls for shoe shopping, don't you? |
| i choked |
| 01.09.09 (1:05 am) [edit] |
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got my bill for the hospital side of my xmas 'vacation'. $33,734 that doesn't include anesthesia, labs, radiology, or drs portion. i almost choked. The atty i talked to said it will be over $50k when its all added up. my insurance has a max out of pocket expense of $5000 calendar year, so fortunately, i csn't be out of pocket more than that. |
| Knock me down and tickle me toes |
| 01.07.09 (5:42 pm) [edit] |
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Long day. I overdid it. Hurt really bad. Seeing a prospective client this morning near Hot Stud's. Called him to say hi that I was in the area. He said to drop by. We chatted for about half an hour. Got a couple of hugs. He went in for kisses, but I didn't intentionally dodge them, I was just aligning for a hug. He said he wished he could do naughty things to me, but I'm in no shape. (Doctors orders no sex for at least 7 weeks and 2 more days.) It's not like I have sex regularly at all - however being TOLD you cannot have sex. Well, that makes it a lot more frustrating. My brain is fried. I took a double dose of the new pain med my doc prescribed. It ain't working. |
| Only 426 emails! |
| 01.05.09 (10:37 am) [edit] |
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I'm weeding through them. One customer has been trying to get out of a contract with us - I've repeatedly offered times to meet with him and he wouldn't reply until the day of a time I suggested and then suggest an alternate time. So I kind of enjoyed emailing him back telling him that I've been in the hospital... I hope he feels like ca-ca. Speaking of feeling like ca-ca. I do too. Running fever. pain. Projectile vomiting. Will be heading home around lunch. |
| Pluck Off |
| 01.04.09 (9:12 pm) [edit] |
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I watched Top Gun this morning. I was distracted with Tom Cruise's unibrow. I kept thinking why no one would break out the tweezers. Just a little bit of plucking would have made the movie so much more enjoyable. |
| Hospital Recap |
| 01.04.09 (3:22 pm) [edit] |
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Realized that I left out a lot of important things that happened while I was in the hospital... The hospital food was heinous - from chicken fried steak, to chicken fingers, to chicken pot pies. (I ended up eating dry soggy wheat toast for most days) The nurses either rocked, or were the bottom of the barrel. I was there for the first 4 days to get IV antibiotics every 6 hours. I would give them some leniency, but when the IV was 90 minutes late, I'd ring the nurse. (This happened at least 2 out of 4 times each day.) They'd get really nasty about it. It took the tech 4 tries to get the IV in me the first time. And when that vein collapsed, getting the next one in was a piece of cake, (Another tech) I was supposed to get a demerol shot every 4 hours - one nurse argued with me saying it was every 6 hours. Another time she insisted I had gotten one right before she started her shift. (Trust me, if I had gotten the shot an hour previously, I'd be in happyville.) I was nice and thanked them profusely, I shared my holiday candy and gave them my magazines. My boss showed up at the hospital to visit me. Being drugged up on demerol, in a hospital gown, was not exactly how I wanted to spend 'quality time' with the boss. The demerol left me so jacked up that I could barely focus. (Rumor was from a coworker that he really didn't think I was in the hospital.) I do recall him asking me repeatedly when I'd be back in the office. I told him that I would be out at least a week after the surgery. One of my friends that was in town for Xmas visited as well. The IV antibiotics left a really icky taste in my mouth, so he brought me some peppermints. He also brought me a really big crossword puzzle book. (Otherwise I would have told you that the visit was a drug-induced hallucination) Hot Stud visited too. The demerol made me want to do nothing but sleep. He showed up, baring magazines, another crossword puzzle book and lots of lotions and goodies. He left me a voicemail saying he loved me. (Yes, it's saved.) Someone else came by - I don't know who they were. Left a gift bag of a stuffed animal and a toy tiara. No clue who it was. (After surgery, I was on a morphine pump) My guy friend D came by and fed the felines and got my mail. He played with them some too. (Which is sweet/cute because he's allergic to cats.) My car was at the medical complex from when I arrived at the doctor's office on Tuesday morning. Saturday morning, when I was released, I had to figure out how to get myself and my car home. Xray doc has been back in town on assignment. He picked me up at the front of the hospital and dropped me off at my car in the parking deck. I drove home after going by 5 different pharmacies to find some place to fill my meds. (Probably not the wisest of decisions, but I arrived safe and sound.) Since then, I've been home, in bed, being cared for by Nurse Tux and Nurse Velvet. They've been super-attentive, staying in bed with me almost all the time. I've watched oodles of movies. Slept a lot too. Gained at least 10 lbs from all this inactivity. Inclination would be to hit the gym, but standing up is exhausting right now. Lots of friends have been great at checking in. I was really surprised that I didn't get flowers or a gift basket from my office. Terribly tacky. |
| Method Acting |
| 01.04.09 (11:13 am) [edit] |
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Watching "Top Gun". Oh how dreamy I thought Val Kilmer was. |
| So I've been cuffed? |
| 01.04.09 (11:09 am) [edit] |
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Did some reading this morning. Site called HysterSisters. (Dealing with hysterectomies) I feel kinda clueless about life post-op. I was kinda grossed out by what I read. They refer to the vagina with cervix/uterus removed as 'the vaginal cuff'. (So if I get piercings down there, are they called 'cuff links'?) All the reading said that recovery time from work was 4-6 weeks. I'm a week out of surgery and I'm going back to work. My instructions also say no sex for at least six weeks. Well, it's been more than six weeks since I had carnal knowledge of a guy anyway. |
| Back among the working |
| 01.04.09 (9:38 am) [edit] |
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(Velvet is blogging with me - sitting on my lap - she sends her regards)
Sunday morning. Heading back to work tomorrow. Saw the doctor on Friday. Still running low grade fever. He said I have an infection at the suture site. More antibiotics. Hurting. More I stand up, the more I hurt. Off pain meds other than motrin. (It ain't enough.) Doc told me prior to surgery that I'd up and kicking in a week. So when I asked for a note to return to work tomorrow, he asked me if I was sure. (Yeah, I've been out for two weeks and I'm going stir-crazy.) I saw three different docs through this experience - two of them used the word 'malpractice' and the other one said that he had utterly no idea why the previous doc did the procedure on me last year. Have a huge pile of laundry to attack today. Totally bummed about the Falcons. :( Anyone want to guess how many emails I'll have waiting for me tomorrow? I haven't checked emails in two weeks. I usually get 70-80 emails a day. Guessing with the holidays to reduce the daily count, I'll have at least 600. |
| Three Thumbs Up |
| 01.01.09 (11:11 am) [edit] |
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Since I'm resigned to bed rest, I've been watching a lot of movies. Yesterday I watched the HBO series "John Adams". What an incredible story - from the infancy of our country to the powerful love story and the relationship between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. |
by Redonthehead