Monday, November 19, 2012

A Cup of Joy

all the way to Seattle....

Despite the burly rainstorm we drove through to get here, and despite both of  us lacking a good nights sleep, I woke up this morning feeling comforted with the very real presence of the Holy Spirit and I knew I was going to get through the day just fine.
bright eyed and bushy tail at 6am

Despite the walls being thin  and thinking our neighbors were really elephants-- or perhaps were playing a rousing game of lawn bowling, and despite thinking that a fierce windstorm was raging outside, only to discover how really close to the freeway this motel is located as being the source of the sound of wind, life can't be too bad when you drink your morning joe in a cup like this.

seriously, why don't I have a mug with this label on it??
Orientation was pretty much both what I expected and what I never imagined.

I expected to feel a little overwhelmed by outside stimulation (people, noises, new surroundings) but I never imagined they'd want to take my picture first thing upon entering the building. Oh yah, I can't wait to see my new employee ID Badge after I have run across the parking lot in the driving rain and wind and am still drip-drying in the lobby of the office where I have reported!

I expected to have to fill out more paperwork and be shuffled to a room with all the other new hires but I never imaged we'd spend the first 35 minutes watching an old Abbott and Costello DVD while we waited for the rest of the class (stuck in traffic due to the high volume of wind and rains on the freeway) to arrive.
I'm not kidding. One of our trainers popped in the DVD, reminded us we were getting paid even as we waited and encouraged us to relax and enjoy the time! Too funny!!

I expected that orientation would be an employee handbook and lots of power points, much talk about conduct and legalities, attendance, safety and performance. I never imagined that my instructor would speak with such an accent that I would think he said he was hired to be a Christmas Casserole... something he repeated about a dozen times before I finally understood he was actually saying 'casual' not casserole.... casual is in temp. labor for the holiday mail, not something crunchy and fattening made with Campbells soup.... not that I really thought he was hired to BE a casserole for Christmas but after watching A&C for a half an hour, I really didn't know what to make of this!!

The postal distribution center is Ginormous. It's the largest one on the state. I only got to glimpse a small portion as we walked across it to the training room. there are conveyor belts and little trains hauling boxes and boxes of mail.... there are people riding those adult tricycles with big baskets on them with more mail. It is quite a sight to see and hopefully we will get to see more maybe tomorrow.




I met a woman in the class whose name I cannot pronounce nor can I spell but it is a very very long name and I am not sure of her nationality nor the language but I did learn her name means '70 times 7" any guesses where that name came from? I am quite fascinated with this and would like to have asked her more questions but I will have to figure out a way to do it without making her feel uncomfortable. Although I suspect she must get asked questions a lot about her name. It has about 28 letters in it and even though she said it 3 times i can't wrap my tongue around it.

Finally, after training Bruce and I stopped at a little corner store for coffee filters and my eyes fell on some books the proprieter had on his counter.... all of them had great titles and I recognized at least 3 books by Lee Stroble. (The Case for Christ among other book titles) He recommended I take a closer look at one book entitled "When A Nation Forgets God" by Erwin W. Lutzer. 7 lessons we must learn from Nazi Germany. I was interested and contemplated buying it but lacked the $8.99. I said I would have to come back. He put it in my hands and said "I trust you. Take it, read it, have your husband read it. You can bring me the money later"
So.... We have a new book to investigate. Anyone heard of this book?

I am pretty wiped out from my adventerous day, Bruce is wiped out from day 7 of this bad cold and he has crawled back into bed to sleep. I have a dinner date with our niece who is coming by after work to pick me up-- we'll see if hubby is up for it.
Quite a full day for a Monday.
Quite a full cup. Of Joy.

3 comments:

  1. I do like that coffee cup! Sounds like a good day of orientation! Had to laugh at you trying to figure out what your trainer was saying; welcome to my world (I do medical transcription and there are lots of English as second language doctors I try to figure out what they are saying :)

    I haven't heard of that book; sounds interesting and something a lot of us should be reading. The store owner must realize it is an important message to get out to people that he is willing to have the book go out there and collect payment later!

    betty

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  2. Love that coffee cup!

    I also studied Medical Transcription, so your story about the trainer was especially funny to me as well! :)

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  3. I just am in love with this story. You are aso funny, and I love the cup too. I like what you've done with the place, the side bars are cute its so fall like.
    Love and Blessings

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thank you so much for taking time to read and comment! have a great day!