Friday, January 16, 2009

Don’t take candy from strangers!

I’ve been working at my job for about 8 months now. For a beginner job, I love it! Co-workers are great, work environment’s great—they only thing I could complain about was wearing the dress and nylons every day. (It’s just every consecutive day since May 5, 2004 I feel I’ve been stuck in a frumpy dress and fingernail polish spotted nylons! I’m ready to go back to when I worked in a car shop! Give me those jeans and sweatshirt with the smell of car grease! That was a good job. . .)

I was quite intimidated when I first started working at LDS Philanthropies because of all the new faces. (I always hate being the new kid—everyone seems to know you, but how are you supposed to line up 300 names and faces?!) I felt needed to meet everyone and learn to adjust sharing turf with them. My solution to this problem was a candy dish, (which has also helped with my secretary spread !)
There’s been all sorts of different candy in that dish—chocolates, Jordan almonds, Swedish gummy raspberries and even truffles! The whole point of this dish, (which is strategically placed so anyone who’s walking past my cubicle can see the bright array of sugary sweets,) is to have people stop by 5x5 ceiling-less work box and talk to me! (Co-Workers: I want to get to know you!)

With this is mind, I’d like to share with you this week’s events:

Monday, January 12: Noticed my candy dish, (which I stole from my mother) was empty and desperately needed to be filled.

Tuesday, January 13th: I dropped by the BYU Bookstore and purchased a ½ lbs of Valentine colored Jordan Almonds and placed them in the candy dish in my cube.
Wednesday, January 14th: Very few people stopped by to talk to me and/or take my candy.

Thursday, January 15th: Was in a meeting from 8:00 to 5:00 in the Student Athlete Building, resulting in my absence from my regular 313C LDSP Building residence.
Friday, January 16th: I arrived at work at 7:58 and noticed an empty candy dish. My heart was broken.

People take my candy when I’m not even in my office!!! AURGH! What’s the whole point to the candy dish when I’m not here?! I guess people have a candy complex. They only take it when no one’s looking. I’m tempted to leave a sign stating:

“Please feel free to take these delectable, delicious pieces of heaven when I’m here so I may get to know you better. If you choose to take some when I’m absent from my desk, please fill out the attached survey stating where you’re from, where you graduated, how many kids are in your family and do you know any eligible, wealthy, smart, tall with a totally rockin’ bod, LDS men that you can hook me up with? Thank you, and have a good day.”

(Okay, that last part about the guy just might be a violation of HR, but I just had to squeeze that in there somehow. . .)

I mean, it’s not like my work actually tries to do things to build teamwork! We should have events where we do things like rafting and celebrate the Olympics and use our talents at huge conferences. Hmmm, now that I think about it—I guess we do things like that . . . maybe I should take advantage of those things to get to know my co-workers better. . .now that’s a good idea.
This was our "Lighting of the Torch" for the LDSP Olympics. (You can't beat a sparkler and a chocolate drumstick. Gives new meaning to Fire and Ice!)

Our fearless Janalee (Staff Assistant of Athletics) gives her all in the spear throwing contest!

And the crowd cheers on the athletes!
The tough girls of LDSP. (That's my boss standing above me.) Okay, so not everyday we're in a dress!
It's a messey job working here. But hey, somebody's gotta do it!