GARBAGE FOR SALE?

I know you’ve seen them.  There are tons of groups and pages on Facebook for people wanting to sell and trade all sorts of stuff.  If you aren’t familiar with them (what, do you live under a rock?), it’s a virtual yard sale chock full of new and used furniture, phones, cars, houses, guns, clothes, jewelry, lawn mowers, and everything else under the sun.  The seller posts a picture of what is for sale or trade and lists a description, price, and any other details necessary.  Easy enough.

But when I scroll through the various posts and pictures of what people are selling, I’m amazed at what I   What I see is that people are trashy.  Sorry, no sugar coating it here.  People are dirty and they live in filth. Image after image shows the item for sale sitting amidst clutter and with garbage in the background.  And often, the item for sale/trade is still dusty and dirty.  For that person thinking of selling/trading online, here are a few tips that come to mind:
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Tip #1:  before you snap that picture of the bed you have for sale, clear off the bed and fix the sheets, pillows and bedspread.  I can see that you sleep under a pile of clothes, toys, and candy wrappers at the edge of your bed.  Yuck!  And if you are selling a fabric chair or sofa, do not bring it out in the yard to snap a picture.  Where the ants and bugaboos can crawl all over it and a nice layer of dust/dirt can get into the fabric.  Makes me think of that hoarders show on TV.

Bonus tip:  pick up your dirty underwear off of the floor or make sure not to include that area in the picture.  Seriously, please do this.

Tip #2:  If you plan on selling any baby items, please do not lay them on your floor to snap pictures.  This tells me that the only place in your house that is clean/clear enough to take a picture is your floor.  Also, these are baby items.  Even though I’m going to sterilize any second hand stuff I purchase, I still want my baby’s items to be as clean and sterile as possible.  Snapping photos of them on the floor hinders the sale to people like me who like clean stuff.

Bonus tip:  make sure that any shots of baby stuff do not include a dog, cat, or any other pet in the background.  Pets = germs = no sale.

Tip #3:  When selling your dining table, clear it off first so that we can see the surface.  This means removing plates left over from dinner, mail with your name and address on it, and assorted pens, scissors, etc.  Sometimes, I can’t tell what’s for sale until I read the description.

Tip #4:  Price your stuff appropriately and don’t lie about the description.  I can tell that the white laminate press wood bookshelf that you have listed as “barely used” (uh, huh) for $50 is in fact, a cheap laminate bookshelf that I can buy brand spanking new for $30.  And you wonder why your stuff doesn’t sell.

Tip #4:  “Asking $50, but will go as low as $40”.  Really?  You’re just going to put that right out there from the start?  And people are going to offer you $35.  Just saying.

Tip #5:  Please learn the difference between the word “sell” and “sale.”  It is beyond irritating to see someone post “I need to sale this item.”  Ugh!

So to sum it all up, clean your house, clean your stuff, and check your spelling and math.  You might just sell more and make more money!

I Don't Want To See My Teacher's Feet!

The new school year is upon us again (YAY!!!!) and we are in the throes of back-to-school preparations.  Today, I spent a couple of hours with my daughter at school for orientation where we paid for school fees, picked up agendas and schedules, and ordered yearbooks.  While waiting in the numerous, long lines, I realized something significant:  I couldn’t tell who the parents were and who the teachers/administrators were. 

There were some adults that were dressed professionally and waiting in lines with their children.  Obviously, these were working parents.  But amidst the throngs of teens, a majority of the adults were clad in summer apparel.  And by summer apparel, I mean the very casual kind that you wear to bum around the yard on the weekend.  Cargo shorts, t-shirts, tank tops, sandals, and flip flops were everywhere!  To my shock and dismay, I realized that the teachers and administrators were wearing this summer apparel.  The principal himself was trotting around in crocs (ugh!), shorts, and a t-shirt.  This is just sad.

This may not seem significant to some people, but to members of the Y-generation, it’s huge.  Our generation believes in having manners, good work ethics, and we respect authority figures (even when we don’t like it).  So, seeing all the teachers and administrators dressed like they were on a weekend vacation at the beach was disheartening and it shows the degradation of our business and work ethics.

Yes, I understand that it’s technically not a school day, since school doesn’t officially start until next Wednesday.  But the teachers have reported back to school and are officially on the clock again.  They should be dressing for the job.  I don’t care that it’s 100+ degrees outside and all the students are in shorts.  The staff should still dress professionally for the job.

Sadly, the problem stems from the fact that the dress code for the school staff has also changed over the years.  Capri pants, blue jeans, and open toed shoes are the norm for women staff and rarely do you ever see anything dressier.  For men, I see them in jeans and casual pants with a golf shirt.  (And I’m happy to report that I don’t usually see the men wearing open toed shoes in the classroom.)  Unfortunately, the casualness of it all is totally unacceptable.  What happen to the days where you dress to impress?  Where men wore a sport coat and slacks and women wore dresses, skirts, and dress slacks with work appropriate shoes?  Which, by the way, cute sandals (aka, fancy flip flops) are not. 

What’s more frustrating, is the fact that the students have to adhere to the school district’s strict uniform policy.  Yet, the teachers and administrators can “dress down.”  And this dressing down business is NOT the same thing as business casual.  It’s just plain sloppy.

Teachers and administrators often complain that kids don’t respect them anymore.  Well, if the teachers would present themselves in a more authoritative fashion, maybe they would gain back some respect.  Dress to impress, own the classroom, assert themselves as the authority figure and command the respect.  They will be taken more seriously and probably be liked better by the students and fellow teachers.  And if not, at least they look good.  J

An Impressive Resume Won’t Land You The Job Or why Not Leaning In is often viewed as the equivalent of leaning so far back that your chair is practically falling over backwards.

I’m currently seeking employment and rather than just get a new job, I’m trying to change roles.  I’m ready to leave my position as director of a department and do something else in a more subordinate role.  Basically, I’m looking for less stress and want to take a step back.

Which is why I keep hearing HR and recruiters say, “You have an impressive resume!”  But what this translates to is “why in the world is someone with your skill set applying for this menial job?”  And what’s worse is that even after I’ve explained that I want to transition to something else, I’m still disregarded for the job.  Yes, I’m overqualified.  I am aware of that.  And when I say that I want to step back and have less authority and responsibility, it seems like nobody believes me. 

Listen up HR recruiters:  Not every woman wants to Lean In.  Didja get that?  Not every working woman out there has the drive and desire to claw her way to the top.  Not every woman wants to be a money-driven, power-hungry force to be reckoned with in the boardroom.  That, is not me. 

I simply want a full-time, dedicated position with a secure company where I can go in each day and do a job.  During business hours, I will be prompt, work hard, and give you my all.  I will be a team player, but I will not be used and abused; nor do I wish to take part in office antics or silly gossiping cliques.  I don’t want overtime at time and a half.  I just want an agreed upon salary and benefits and a safe place to perform my duties.  And coffee.  I definitely need coffee.

So, while I’m obviously not leaning in, I wouldn’t exactly call that leaning out.  I call it, getting back to the basics and letting go of the pressures.  And there is nothing wrong with that.

Obviously, I’m not Leaning In.  I don’t want to live for my job.  Instead, I’m trying to take back control of my job so that I can be a better me.  Which makes me a better employee for you.

Is It Real or Is It Memorex?

BEEP… BEEP… BEEP… BEEP…  WACK!

Ahhh, the sounds of morning.  No, not birds chirping and bacon sizzling.  I mean those darned alarm clocks beep, beep, beeping us awake.  Well, me anyway.

So there I was, sleeping so peacefully and soundly when my alarm clock goes off.  I reached over and hit my best friend of the morning –yes, the snooze button –so that I could get in just a few more winks . Just as I was settling back in to my comfort zone, it hits me.  I’ve already hit the snooze button quite a few times this morning.  (!)  Which means, I’m probably 30 or 40 minutes late!!  I pop upright and try to focus my contact-less eyes so that I can make out the time on the clock before I decide how mad my dash to the bathroom will be.  5:01 am.  Huh.  I sit there in a state of confusion, rubbing my eyes and trying to figure out how in the world is it only 1 minute past my alarm time when I hit snooze all those times.  And then it occurs to me that I had been DREAMING that I was sleeping and hitting snooze repeatedly. 

Which kind of freaks me out.  If the dream was real enough for me to believe it when I was awake, what would have happened if I had dreamed that I actually got up on time, yet I was hitting the snooze in real life? 

I went from peaceful slumber, to being jarred awake, switched to panic mode, moved to utter confusion, and then finally, a sigh of relief –all in a matter of 5 seconds.  Ugh.

p.s.  Dear morning:  Bite Me.  HA!