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Job Blues

Usually my job is not too stressful but last couple of days have been a real bugger. Monday got my blood boiling when one of my lenders went behind my back and tried to do a deal direct with my customer and cut us out of the process. Without going into too much explanation, just take it at my word that this is the cardinal sin of third party funding and a major betrayal to our working relationship. The funny part was that when we went back and confronted her on it, she lied about it! Can you imagine?! Fortunately for us, this is a loyal customer whom we have had a relationship with for over 10 years so they are still working with us. But boy did it ruffle my feathers.

But Tuesday was one of the most unpleasant work days I've had in a long time. We have had a couple of transactions that booked recently wherein there was an error in the way the tax was constructed. After the transaction had already been booked and funded, the vendor came back to us in a panic saying that they had 48 hours to reverse and correct the transaction or face potential damages. Boss was on vacation and unreachable on a European cruise. Other owner of the company was out. None of us in the office new the answer at the time. The lender and the vendor needed to work it out amongst each other but they were not cooperating. Based on my limited knowledge I made a recommendation as to how to correct the situation that I thought would work but a couple of weeks later and well past the "window" we are just now discovering that the situation has not been resolved. Vendor is pissed. Lender is not being helpful. No matter what the customer is going to have to end up paying more taxes. We've identified the solution but still have to get everyone to cooperate even though we are the only ones with no liability in the situation and advised against this structure in the first place. Anxiety is high and tempers are flaring as this is most definitely a red flag for an audit and with our bankrupt state on a blood hunt for any and all sources of income they can drum up, nobody wants to do what needs to get done to correct the situation and draw any more attention to their books. Of course I feel a bit like a bit of a failure for not being able to handle the situation while boss was on vacation but unfortunately didn't have enough experience or knowledge in the matter to fully understand it. This one scenario has given me a world of knew knowledge and understanding in a lot of parts of leasing that I didn't have before so there is very much an element of now I know better and we won't have to run into this situation again. However, at this point, I just want it to be over with and done. So all of that combined has gotten me a little wound up and I'm not sleeping too soundly tonight as you can tell.

On the flip side of the equation, I have started to notice that every time I have a bad day at work Don has a good one. He's sold three cars in the last two days! Although, one hasn't totally closed yet but they've already put down a deposit and are coming back Friday to finish the paperwork. It sure makes a difference when he closes a sale. Obviously, we've established by now that this job is just a passing ship until something better comes along, but for all of the hard work and sacrifices that go into it, it's nice to be rewarded with a satisfied customer and some freaking income. The job has been hard on both of us. I of course am sensitive to and absorb all of Don's stress and unhappiness. I tried helping him with his job search but it turned out to be just a bunch of wasted time which wasn't helpful. So I'm sitting back in the stands to cheer him on and let him find his own way. When I have to, I remove myself from the situation mentally and physically and do a little self care. My treadmill is getting a LOT of use lately. But it was very nice last night to actually have an enjoyable evening with my husband who was feeling happy and good about himself. Of course he also had a bit of an extra spark as we discussed and internet browsed for what is about to become our newest prize possession - a new barbecue! More to come on that one. I'm running out of sleeping hours so I better get back to bed.

Let Freedom Ring

We celebrated 4th of July this year with a trip to the beach. Destination was Zuma Beach north of Malibu where the water is clean, the parking is free (if you get there early enough) and not too crowded all things considered. What all is needed for a one day trip to the beach? Coolers, water, towels, blankets, chairs, tatami mats, food and snacks, shade umbrellas, swimsuit, sundress, extra change of clothes, sandals, games (horseshoes, badmitton, and volleyball), books, and extra toilet paper incase the public facilities are not sufficiently stocked (which usually they are not).



Unfortunately, I started the day by braking the zipper off of my hoodie.


The view from our sand plot.



Given the swimming atire, not many photos we can share worthy of posting on a public website, but here's a headshot of myself, Paige, and Camille that captures the spirit of the day. Matt D and Jessica also joined us and Paige's friend Ben also stopped by for a few hours to join in the beach fun.



Because Don's job sucks, he had to work for most of the day but we were ecstatic to get his texts that he was getting off early for once. He headed over to the beach in the early evening as it was starting to get cool and got lucky with a parking spot as people were starting to pack up and go home. We had a few minutes to take in the fresh sea air and squeeze in a beach snuggle before heading home to finish off the day with a little backyard BBQ.




Don had a most unusual craving on the way to the beach -- cheap American beer to celebrate our Independence. Pabst it is! So we picked up a case at Ralphs on our way home along with some fixings to make sliders on the grill. I think the wife beater tank and trucker hat really sell the photo more than the cheap beer does.

Hope everyone had a happy and safe 4th.