I bought the Dyson yesterday. Called around and it was the same price everywhere, so I got one of those 20%off coupons for Bed Bath & Freakin Beyond and we bought it there. Came home and did the “test”…used our old one to sweep an area then went back over it with the Purple Monster. OH. MY. GOD. It was like a Biore strip. So freaking cool and gross at the same time. Bleagh. It picked up so much stuff out of the “clean” area that both Phil and I were just amazed. Very cool. Hopefully it will help cut back on the allergies in this house as well.

So what do you think about this Don Imus thing? Anyone have some thoughts? I heard a very valid argument about it last night in the bar. This guy said, “I’m not saying that what he said was correct, or that he maybe shouldn’t be punished for it. However, show me the day that Chris Rock gets penalized for saying something, show me the FCC coming down on someone other than a white guy. I’m sick of the double standard here.” Of course then the other guys at the table jumped in and the conversation just went all Redneck Retard and I had to bow out. But the first part I actually could get behind. There was another guy who said he had no idea the phrase “nappy” was racial. . . because he has some stringy ass dirty hair most of the time and thought it pertained to himself. Bwa ha ha ha. Not really. But I thought that was interesting, that this guy truly had no idea the phrase was racial. Now, maybe it was the ENTIRE phrase “nappy headed ho’s” that was racial…whatever the case, Imus has been suspended for two weeks from both the radio and MSNBC.

Freedom of speech. . . . really? Thoughts? Comments?

And finally we got new music for our jukebox at the bar last night. That my friends, was a fun errand to run. Went to CD Warehouse, which isn’t near as good as the one Reno and I used to haunt in Cincy. But we managed to get about 10 new cds, and made lots of people happy. If I could find one that was mostly greatest hits, that is what we bought. AC/DC Back in Black was my first pick. Along with KISS, Steve Earle, and the essential Ozzy. Some Garth, Shania, the best of America (horse with no name will get the shit played out of it!) and a double cd of 38 Special. The Cars greatest hits went on there as well. So that was just fun. I wanted a copy of Guns n Roses Appetite for Destruction, but no such luck. Joe Ely was also a flop, but I’m still looking for him. So fun to buy music with someone else’s money!

Ok, am out for today. Must go take my taxes to be “done” and get to work. New girls starting today, so that should be fun.
Huzzah and Happy Tuesday and I love George Clooney.

. . . but this is what I think I’m buying today. Dyson DC15 Animal. Yes, I know it’s expensive. But I’m working and making good $$. AND let’s not forget folks, I have four cats in residence. LOTS of cat hair. bleagh. I’ve done the research, and there are two people out of four hundred gozillion in the world that don’t like this vacuum cleaner. TWO. I’ve read reviews till I’m cross-eyed and they all say the same thing. Love Love Love. And reading them is just making me want one all the more.

So. I’m off to run errands, sign up for the Red Bud race next weekend, and maybe buy the most expensive vacuum cleaner I can find.

Wish me luck.

That’s really all I had to say about that.
S. L. U. R. P.

The title is actually a quote from Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way. I think we’ve all done, or TRIED to do this. Anyway, those are her words. Not mine. Observed and credited.

I did some shopping for my Team today. Went to the EVERYTHING IS A DOLLAR STORE. I bought lots of little things. Pop Rocks. Gum. Chocolate. Terra cotta pots with sunflower seeds just add water things. Blue Ribbons for being “caught doing a good job”. Just some stuff.

I asked today if the company would give us a reimbursement for team incentives. Apparently no one had done this before. We get $20 bucks. That’s great with me. I’ll spend 20 at the dollar store and use their 20 for an end of month prize for our “who can prebook the most clients” contest. Think I’ll get it from Starbucks. Everyone in my group LOVES the Starbucks.

I’ve also done a lot of quote research. Tomorrow, I’m going to have our first team meeting before work. I’ll start the contest next week when the new girl is with us. But for Friday and Saturday I have quotes and goodies. I think that this will be fun and motivating. Totally dorky, but they will remember it.

Tomorrow is Easter Bunnies. Stuffed animals. Word association with stuffed animals…childhood…soft…security…AH HAA!!!!!!!! SECURITY!! Security/Teams/Trust/Working Together/TEAMS! Finding security in ourselves, in our goals and in our teammates. . .

This is my quote for our Easter Bunny Friday:

It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.—Alan Cohen

I am still open to lots of ideas and suggestions. Meanwhile,
Huzzuah and Happy Friday and as you well know,
I love George Clooney.

At my salon, we started implementing team-building at the end of January. We also moved stations. Our actual cubby/stations move so we change chair/mirrors. This caused such havoc the first time around that one stylist was removed from his Team Leader duty and eventually three people quit/walked out/were fired.

Embracing change people. No one likes it, but at least we know when we have to fake it, yes? Yes.

So, new month, new spot, new teams, new team leaders. I’m one of the leaders. My team consists of three other stylists, and one of the new kids fresh from our school who’s starting next week.

We have a team goal/team focus and we each have individual goals to work on this month. Well, they’re all the same. Prebooking our clients. I don’t have a big problem doing this. It’s fairly easy enough. I remember being surprised at how easy it is because I myself am SOOOOOO not a pre-booker. for ANYTHING. If I prebook an appointment, I’ll wake up that day, having totally forgotten it, not wanting to do it, or having planned to do something else. We try to combat that with a day before confirmation call, which works well. So…

Teams. I think I’m going to do a contest with my team each week. Whoever does the most prebooks gets a prize. Starbucks or movie passes or something. I have also researched quotes (you know I love the words!) and will cut them up and put one in our mailbox daily/every other. . . still working that out. Yesterday I put one in with one of those little individual water flavoring things like crystal light…everyone liked it. We’re all trying to do well eating wise, so I don’t want to do lots of candy, but may get some Easter candy and do that…

I’ve said all this to say this:
I need ideas. Team building ideas. It’s been a long time since the “road manager” days…ideas for prizes (cheap ones if I have to pay for it) ideas for motivation and ideas for contests. I think I’m also going to randomly reward people for doing above and beyond things like complimenting another team members client, or sweeping for someone else. . . we’ve got a lot of self centered workers here people.

Yesterday went ok. I have one girl who WANTS desperately to do better. One girl who kind of wants to do better, but not enough to do anything because she’s already good at everything, and another girl who frankly, just WEARS. ME. OUT. That is my goal for this month. Patience and understanding in communication with this girl.

Dear God,
Make me a bird, so I can fly, fly far far away.

Huzzah and Happy Thursday and I love George Clooney.

After yesterday, anything else seems boring to post. From all the comments, I can see that my taste in boyfriends is clearly my own. I did have some love with Matt Lauer from JRH. And damn, look at those abs and tell me that is not better than a corn dog at the state fair????

Ok… Nothing is really better than a corn dog at the state fair, but you get my drift.

Now you tell me. Who’s on your list?

1)My boyfriend David Boreanez…I first loved him on Buffy. Then I loved him in his spin off. I don’t however love him in Bones. A title like that, starring a man like him should have some boom boomka mow mow music behind it, and not be about dead bodies.

2)My boyfriend Chris Noth…Mr.Big. B-I-G. Those clothes, that smile, so sexy. Is it ok to just love the character and not necessarily the man? Absofuckinlutly.

3)My second ex husband Coach Bob Stoops…leader of the OU football team. Fall football, Boomer Sooner, screaming fans…makes me want a hot dog reeeeeel bad. again. ( I don’t know why he’s an ex husband and not a boyfriend. It’s just what I say.)

4.)My boyfriend Adrian Peterson. Signs screaming Yo Adrian will once again be in the stands, just as soon as the NFL draft happens and I know which team to cheer for. One can only pray that he likes white chubby girls from El Reno. Ya think?

5.)My boyfriend LL Cool J. . . Ladies Luv Cool James. Yes. Yes we do.

6.) My boyfriend Luke Perry. I’ve loved him forever. Skinny and sideburned. He saved my life once. For real. sigh. I. LUUUUUUV. HIM.

7.) My boyfriend Al Pacino. . . GOD. Look at that hair willya? Sexy sexy man. I could say ‘Ello to his lil friend on any given Sunday. Makes my whoohaa go Whoooyaaaa!

8.) My boyfriend Matt Lauer. Mornings are delicious in my living room. Me, scantily clothed, sleepy eyed, holding a mug of coffee, staring right at him. I have dreams about him, and in those dreams he drives a big blue SUV and smokes like a chimney. I’d like to smoke his chimney.

9.) Not really my boyfriend just a crush on Joe Ely. Musician. Writer. Funnyman who has no dishwasher in his house. Spent some time with he and his fam one summer and rang in Y2K with him in his kitchen smoking cigarettes with him, Reno, his formidably fabulous wife and myself after one of his shows where his wife dressed us up in the craziest of gypsy costumes and we paraded in the new year onstage. Apparently I wasn’t giving it my all cuz she bonked the shit out of my head with a piece of wood. She probably recognized the want in my eyes. But I still heart him. He’s fabulous.

****My Emmy-winning-storm-chasing-boyfriend-David Payne. There were no photos so I’m giving him special placement with a go to thing to click on for his face.*******

10) and of course my boyfriend George Clooney. He’s kept me occupied on many a rainy afternoon. June 8th baby. Me in the theatre’s back row with a six back and a vibrator. Do Not Disturb.

Huzzah and Happy Tuesday and I love all of these men. But especially George Clooney.

Yesterday was quite eventful here in lil ole OKC. Around 4pm the tornado sirens went off..it’d been just raining crazylike all day long. Constant. Sometimes gently, sometimes with rage, but all the while it was constant. We talk a lot about rain here mostly because as Oklahoman’s/Southerners, that’s what we do. But we have been in a serious, serious drought the last three years, so this really is newsworthy. But I digress.

We’d had some nasty tornadoes, killing two people in the panhandle the night before. This was that line of storms. All of a sudden the sirens go off, we at the salon race to the back room to turn on Gary England. ***SIDEBAR***I cannot stand Gary England. I don’t care for his reporting, I don’t care for his personality, I don’t care for him at. all. period. I love Channel 4 with Mike Morgan and my
emmy-winning-storm-chasing-boyfriend David Payne. Anyway, there were reports of tornadoes just dropping out of the clouds right on top of homes, some homes close to where some stylists live. It was a titch chaotic for awhile. We ourselves weren’t in any danger, it was way northwest of us, but friends, loved ones, etc. Apparently there were really no warnings for these yesterday. Wrapped in rain, they just flopped down and worked it good. North of us there was quite a bit of damage, Cashion and parts of that area.

Welcome to Springtime in Oklahoma.

For those of you unadjusted to this, yes. It’s freaking scary. For those of us who’ve lived it our whole lives, it’s any day that ends in “y” unless it’s right on top of you and you’re in the beer walk-in sitting on cold ass kegs of beer with your best friend and your boyfriend and looking around at all the beer that does NOT twist off and you without your beer opener so you drink a stupid zima. . . then that’s sometimes scary!

If it makes the national news, then it’s been pretty bad somewhere and that sucks. The property damage is crap too, but at least you’re alive for it. We know this, and we understand. I will always keep you up to date re: spring weather, either here or on the phone…breathe in breathe out move on.

Just a clarification from yesterday’s post. I will NOT be ceremoniously cutting off my fingers on June 8 to celebrate the opening of my boyfriend George Clooney’s new movie Ocean’s 13. Been there. Done that. The boyfriend was Bobby and it was 1985. 22 years ago. I would however, gladly throw myself across an alter for any kind of sacrificial fornication that would be needed by him (George, not Bobby) at any given time. Let it be written. Let it be said.

Had dinner with Clemo last night. What a joy!! How hysterical it is to be with someone you haven’t seen in 8 years, compare stories, and fill in the blanks…I had a lot of blanks as did he. It was a memory jig saw puzzle and we had a blast putting it all together. I decided NOT to cook, we went to Texas Roadhouse instead. So good. Phil went too, we had a delightful time. I am still processing our visit, and am writing a longer post with specifics that I’ll put up in a few days. Meanwhile, these are for you Kizz…

After I get off work tonight, I’m going to the hotel to pick up Clemo. Talked to him last night, and because it was my late night to work, we didn’t hook up. I did tell him, because we’re due some severe spring Oklahoma weather, that if there were tornados, I’d come get him and take him with me to the safe place. If we’re going down, he’s not going alone in a hotel room!!! It suited his fabulously twisted sense of humor just fine. I’m excited to see him, and will be sure to post pics soon! Can’t decide what to fix for dinner. . . may be too wet to grill out. . . we’ll see!!

Till then, Huzzah and Happy Thursday and I love George Clooney (who’s Oceans 13 comes out on June 8 which is also the date that I cut off my fingers)