While checking out F1 weekend downtown.

Me: wow, I can't believe we didn't even see one celebrity.

SB: well, I guess they probably don't want to come around all this hoopla - their limos can't even drop them off in front of the good restaurants because the streets are blocked off. I mean, people are only staying away from me because I'm el cognito.

Me: You're Al Cognito? Does that mean I can be Sue Cognito?

SB: Not Al Cognito, el cognito. You know, undercover?

Me: You mean IN cognito.

Long pause.

SB: Shut up.

Long pause, and a walk of about a block.

Me: Maybe I'll be Janet Cognito....

The first thing I will do is write myself a big fat paycheque

Here we are, officially "in it". I still don't feel different. Although our home office feels a bit cramped since I haven't had a yard sale yet and it was already stuffed full of crap. I mean... fabulous articles which will soon be for sale on our front yard. So come on down!

We had a fantastic closing dinner with my two ex-employers on Friday night, and their significant others. It was really a blast, and I am sad that I only got to know these girls and their guys through work stuff and now we are parting ways. We spent the whole dinner talking about fun Maritime traditions, Trailer Park Boys, Office Space, and what I have to look forward to as the proud owner of HHH. And there was of course lots of alcohol. Wine and martinis - does it really get any better than that?

Last night I collapsed into slumber at like 10:30. After moving the office to our house and making the schedule for next week, plus a to-do list of like a million things, I decided I would treat myself to a crossword puzzle interlude. For the longest time, I have been without a printer because mine just up and decided it didn't want to configure with my Mac anymore (WTF?), and now that we have a brand new (three years old) PC (scary viruses - ick!), I thought I should take advantage and print off a big giant crossword puzzle and work through it while watching, oh, I don't know, maybe some CSI? Ya, only I fell asleep after like three clues, and don't even remember Sexy Boyfriend coming to bed and removing my crossword, and pen, before I impaled myself.

I realize I have been a blogger slacker, which is terrible, because I'm already the consummate email slacker, and my excuse has always been "well, I have a blog, so there's no reason you still can't know what I'm up to." So, I apologize, and I figure that now that I work from home for several hours per day, I will be looking to slack off a lot, as people who work tend to do, so yay for you, more blog posts to come!!

My view from inside the bubble

So I'm still not stressed yet. Just getting tired out from early mornings and late appointments and eating dinner at 8 then working til ten or eleven on stuff I can't do during the day cause I don't have access to a computer yet. But I'm not stressed. All of the client feedback has been more than amazing, and flattering, and makes me feel like there's no way we could lose on this one. One client told me today "We're so happy and excited for you - you're our favorite walker!"

Everything will be taken care of by Friday, and then we are going to be able to move the office to our house, which will be FABULOUS because I find it very challenging to share control, and equipment, and I think the girls do, too. I can't wait to start my own organizing, and accounting, and all the little details you get to do when you own a business. Right now I am doing too much "continuing" with the way they do things, which is fine to learn by, but I have so many ideas about how to work things my way.

I'm also discovering how much I love meeting the pet owners. You can really tell a lot about how your visits with an animal are going to be when you meet their owners, and see how they interact. Yesterday there was a neurotic woman who wanted validation that her dog was needy and problem-ridden, but really he was pretty normal and really cute. Last night I met a couple with two cats and a new puppy, and they spoil them maybe even more than we spoil our little critters. I never thought I would enjoy dealing with people again after all the shitty times I had while working in customer service, but I'm really having fun!

So, that's the update. I hope everyone is doing well in the outside world. I miss you.

Maybe the stress just starts now

It's officially ours.

Tomorrow is my first day as the official owner/operator of HHH. We're using this week as a transitional period to tie up all the loose ends along with the previous owners, but as far as billing, payroll, and responsibilities, it's all ours. By loose ends, I mean pretty much everything imaginable, it seems, but one big thing is to get the website updated with all my info, and all the current walkers. The current owners haven't updated the site in quite some time (I think it's cause they have dial-up in their office - boo to dial-up), so keep checking in there for updates!

We decided on the plan for this final week yesterday, and even though I have quite a to-do list, I felt a sense of calm when our meeting was done. Everything is scheduled, and not a crazy, unattainable schedule, but realistic. Everyone seems happy with the arrangement, and really excited to get going (me to get started, them to get out).

During this whole period of negotiation, planning, transition, etc., I haven't really felt that much anxiety or stress. It's weird, right? I fall asleep hard and quickly, I feel energized most of the time, and happy. But I could tell this morning that maybe I really had some underlying fears and stresses, cause last night I dreamed I was in Cuba. Now that everything is in order and we are really digging in, I dreamed that I was in the most relaxing place I know.

And not only that, but in my dream we were deciding to stay an extra week just because we could.

Dear Thief,

I'm not sure why you chose to break into my little Jetta. Was it the giant dent in the front fender from when my landlady backed into it last week? Was it her cute little VW smile? Was it my iPod? Yes, I guess it was that. Because that seems to be the only thing of any value to you of all the things you pillaged from my vehicle. I will miss my little 20GB, with her cute little purple cover. I hope you enjoy all the REM on there.

I also hope you have a good time reading My Life, Bill Clinton's autobiography. I'm glad that you took it, actually, because I was halfway through, and now the suspense will really build up as to how it ends. By the way, that book was on loan from my grandfather's wife - don't you feel good that you stole from a (semi) old lady? Also, please take good care of the first edition copy of Adultery that you stole. I'm sure you will. Don't break the spine, and it could really be worth something someday. Or just throw it in someone's recycling if actually reading something is too much of a bother for you.

I would love to know what kind of tool you used to pop the lock off of my door, then manipulate the electric system of my car in such a way that all the windows were down, the trunk was popped, and the gas tank door was open when I found it. Oh, and the alarm didn't go off either. Did you do this to show how Fancy you are? Or did you think that maybe it would rain, and thus, with all the windows down, I would have had a wet ass all day today? Boy, that would have been a funny joke. Too bad it was sunny this morning.

I also want to applaud you on your mastery of thievery as a whole. I can really tell you are a real professional. Not only by the sophistication of your break-in method, but also your eagle eye that spotted my iPod under my cup holder. Oooh, ooh, and you know what else was good? The way you grabbed my giant North Face backpack full of books you will never read, a battery charger with no batteries in it, some masking tape, two crossword puzzle books, sunscreen, handcream, and lip gloss, but the way you neglected to grab my purse, which was semi-hidden (although not well, I admit, I'm a bit negligent for this) behind my trash bag, and which held all my ID, credit cards, debit cards, and $20 cash. And my digital camera. (Hey, you missed the opportunity to be the second person to steal my camera this year! Darn it! Maybe next time, I guess!)

So, Thief, happy thieving. Keep on rockin' with my iPod. Wolf Parade is really good, huh?

Your BVF (Best Victim 4-Evah),
Jules

Captain Sexy Boyfriend

I'm probably the worst car trip companion in the history of motorized travel. I wasn't always this way. I used to be able to occupy myself by reading, or doing crossword puzzles, and chatting with Sexy Boyfriend while we barrelled through snow/sleet/volleyball-sized hail between Montreal and Moncton to visit our families. There were sing-alongs, seat dancing, DVDs on laptops, and even a few rip-roaring games of I Spy.

But, alas, the good times ended when we started travelling with my sweet little man, Simon.

On our first few trips, we tried the whole "stuff him into a carrier, shove him in the back window, and drug him til he can't see straight" method. But Simon will not be deterred. He would meow and meow and meow, for hours and hours and hours. Each stop we made we pumped more Gravol into him, but all this did was make him sound like a drugged meower, or like someone had run him over on the side of the road and he was clinging to life whilst crying out for help with his last ounce of strength.

Soon, Simon wised up to the fact that the Gravol was the source of the spinning, and he would not take it. For any of you who have ever tried to give a cat a pill, it can be difficult. You need to be forceful. Sometimes you need to be devious. With Simon, you need chain mail and a syringe. He scratches, he bites, he froths at the mouth. He has this amazing ability of regurgitating the pill even when you do manage to shove it down his throat. We tried making a solution of Gravol and water, then Gravol and milk, and shooting it into his mouth like you do with an infant. But he would just froth and froth and froth at the mouth until we thought we were killing him, and/or he was infected with rabies. We tried mashing it up in some soft Whiskas (hello, treat food - the one thing he would steal from the fridge if he was two feet taller and had opposible thumbs so he could break into it), but he just turned up his nose and took a few nibbles of his regular kibble.

Also, with the whole carrier thing, his hard-sided carrier got way too small. So, we decided to try a soft-sided, dufflebag type carrier. Everything was great until he freaked out and clawed his way out while Sexy Boyfriend was driving alone along a two-lane highway. Then he decided that he would like to work the pedals.

So, now we have a new approach to travelling with Simon. Simon can install himself pretty well wherever he wants, and pillows will be placed all around the car so that Simon may have several perches to choose from. Sadly, Simon's favorite perch is on Mama's lap. Mama being me. And my lap being where the DVD player/crossword book/novel used to rest back when I was a good travelling companion. But now that's where Simon sits, on a pillow, with his head rested on the door, his nose against the glass. And with nothing else to keep me occupied, I spend the bulk of my time sleeping.

Poor Sexy Boyfriend.