Fed Ex picks up at 6

It is inevitable in the world of an EA that as you are packing up your stuff, jotting down to do's for the morning that last fed ex of the day will need to be sent out. You know the one, you were not expecting it, it's been being prepared all day and no-one mentioned it, you feel the need to breathe deep and count to 10 when you are typing the label and while you try to get it to the fed ex box in time everyone asks for something...

4:30 p.m., the boss calls from the airport having forgot something important needed for his meetings tomorrow. He flys out in an hour. The airport is 45 minutes away with traffic. Let's fed ex it to the hotel for morning delivery, no worries. I hang up the phone and the fun actually begins. First, get the item off his desk. Then find a fed-ex box of the proper size. Oh, we don't have any here in the office that will work. Hmm... I'll look online for the closest fed ex store, it can't be far, please, please, yes! just down the street a mile. Grab a fed-ex label and run to my desk to hand write it. Digging through my door... pencil, felt tip pen, where are all my ball point pens? Back down the hall to facilities for a ball point pen, what! no pens there? None at all? I can have a pencil? No! Borrowing a pen from my cubby neighbor, I'll give it back, I promise... Now looking up the hotel address, the company's fed ex number, call the hotel to confirm what the package needs to say in order to get there and get to the guest without issue, filling out the form and out the door. I kept the pen. Toss it in the pocket on the car door so I'll bring it back tomorrow, I did promise not to keep it. Race down the street... tick tick tick.... starting to feel like I will not be able to meet my husband in time (oh yeah, I was packing up to leave as I had to pick up my husband and get home to meet someone by a specific time, no pressure of course). It's dinnertime at the sandwich shop next door to the fed-ex store so I park at the end of the lot and walk fast. While walking check if I have the item, the fed ex slip and my wallet as I don't know if they can put a box on the corporate account... wait in line, this will make it there tomorrow morning, it's important, please package it tightly, sign- sign and done.

That's it
Walk back out to my car
Pleanty of time to meet my husband
All that stress? All that rushing?
Oh well, it'll get there.

(and the next morning, that pen is still in my door and the fed-ex tracking number in my back seat...)

Solve it with Candy

Something in the training manuel for every EA tells us that everything can be made better with candy. I keep a candy dish at my desk for just that reason. However then everyone makes requests. "I like the chocolate candys." "You should have mints." and the latest had to do with Candied Apples. You remember the kind? The granny smith apples with a hard red candy shell that tastes like cinnamon and cracks when you bite into it.

So this week one of the sales guys and I got talking about Candied Apples and since it's turning into fall how there should be state fairs soon to get one. I googled it and found out they are not that hard to make. So I went home, bought some apples, some red hots and boiled them up. Candy making experience - now 2! Candied apples add to my previous skill with carmel corn. And unrelated, if you have not tried to make homemade carmel corn, it's easy to make and tastes delicious! Back to the story, today I brought in Candied Apples. Apparently perfect flavor but the shell wasn't cracking correct. I guess next time.

I explained to one of the girls that being an EA is like being a mother except you don't have to bring the kid home at night... Every day I believe more and more that I am correct.

Scheduling

Job Priority #1, keeping an executive on schedule for at least 6 out of 8 hours a day. Today this involves running interference and learning football tackle moves. You must catch the schedule intruder before they reach the executive as once the intruder states he needs "just a minute" it's too late.

Our offices are set up with the executives on their own hallway... we refer to it as the hill, and now that I'm at the end of this hallway, I have no direct view to the executive's door. Therefore I have to listen constatntly in order to catch the intruders. Today it was one of our sales team. Just one minute he says as he walks down the hall and interrupts a meeting. Somedays the job would be easier if I didn't wear heels. I laugh at the crossover picture, it's either a linebacker posed to tackle wearing stiletto heals and a mid-calf length skirt with a thought bubble over his head showing his concern over running his pantyhose. The other picture in my head is all five plus feet and hundred some pounds of me in full football pads with the black lines under my eyes, posed at the door of an office to tackle anyone who passes.