Deer hunting with Elmer Fudd....

     If you're my age, you know who Elmer Fudd is and it doesn't need it's own explanation when you use the the name in a story....
     I was at a banquet the other night and the subject at our table turned to hunting stories. I told mine, at the end the youngest person at our table said "who's an Elmer Fudd?"   The rest of us really cracked up.
     Last year on Opening Day ( which is a school holiday in our area-no kidding!) of deer season, my husband thought it would be a swell idea to take me along. I don't hunt, but he seemed to think I cold be useful anyway.
     I dragged out my bibs and boots and proceeded to get myself ready. By the time I got my pants, extra socks, extra shirt, bibs, boots, huge buffalo coat and my babushka on, I had to go pee. Really bad! So...off it all comes, On it it all goes again.
   Looking back- I am actually surprised that by this point he hadn't already decided this was a bad idea.

    Off we go...We get to the section line and hop out of the truck. The snow is already three wires deep on the fence. My husband just steps right over the fence. (he's 6'4") I had to wiggle through it. (I'm 5'2 and a little on the fluffy side) The snow was really deep! Up to my thighs almost.

   Hubby was striding through the snow like no big deal. I was trying to use his foot prints to find my way. I was high stepping it with big exaggerated movements just like Elmer Fudd- He got up ahead of me about 20 yards, I lost may balance and went Whomp! in the snow face first! I had put my hands out to break my fall- bad move- the snow was really powdery and I went all the way down.

   So there I am wallowing around trying to get my feet back under me. I can't seem to get going because I have so many layers on. My husband turns around and glares at me...puts his finger to his lips and goes "SHHHHHHHH!"  Like I wanted to be face-planted in the snow????

    I managed to get up- then he looks and me and signals that I should walk around the other side of the field to scare the deer his way.
   There was definitely some signaling going on. I believe mine was more universal! I went back to the truck and waited for him..... Didn't take him long at that point to realize this was a bad idea.

Waitressing my way to the White House!

     I am seriously considering WAITRESSING my way to the White House. 

    

       For those of you who know me, you know this isn't just idle talk.That’s right, the big house on the hill. My goal is to prove you can get a job where ever you go. No matter what.

         I tend to get a little pissy (OK, maybe a lot pissy) when ever President Obama gets on the television and says WE the people need to find a way to provide more jobs for the unemployed.  I don’t really think it’s a matter of creating jobs, but more a matter of being willing to work at whatever job is at hand. As a small business owner my self, I resent that attitude that it’s only Tech or high paying industries that anybody wants.  Mr. Obama had a woman on TV once that said she couldn't find a job. It was implied that we need to find a way to creat a job for her. (and others like her that are out of work) My beef is; she could get a job if she really wanted one. It probably wouldn’t pay what she normally is used to, and might not be what she feels she is good at, but none the less–there are jobs out there. I personally feel it’s matter of survival of the fittest.
     Greed will keep you from getting what you want when you think you need it. A simple willingness to do whatever it takes, makes it possible to take the next step to getting back on track.
   I was taught that ‘any job was a good job, so long as it's a job well done and keeps a roof over your head’. My grandpa told me that. And it's as relevent today as it was in the 30's. What ever happened to pride in a job well done? Are we such a self-entitled people that we would rather lose our homes, than do a job that we might consider beneath us? I tell ‘ya what, I have taken some jobs that I maybe didn’t like or were way outside my comfort zone, but my kids were fed, warm and happy! And that was all that mattered at the time. Plenty of time while I slept to figure a way back out and to the top!
    Listening to the people around me, my own peers included, the general attitude seems to be ‘Why should I go be a clerk when I am a computer whiz?’  or ‘Why get off un-employment when I’m making more than a different job?’
How about PRIDE? Or SELF-RESPECT? Or how about setting a great example for your children to follow? We have plenty of friends who have been laid-off, and won’t even consider a different type of employment, that have the nerve to get pissy when their own kids refuse to get a job because it’s ‘not what they want’. Well, we all started somewhere! Our grand-parents and great-grandparents would be ASHAMED of us. They built this country into what it is with just their dreams and plain old hard work. How many of us have Grand-parents that walked (gasp!) miles just to be a day laborer during the depression???
     Let’s use the Hospitality industry as an example…..I am well aware that the first thing people think of when you mention restaurant work is a) fast food or b) bus-boy. That’s not the way it is. True story- I know a lady in Kansas that is upper-management at a KFC. After bonuses, matching 401k, salary and insurance benefits she makes over 100,000 A YEAR!  Managing and motivating people is the same whether you're in an office or in the trenches! It’s the perceived social stigma that goes with the food industry that makes some people too good to give it a whirl. I my self have waitressed off and on for years and have owned my own restaurants to boot.  Just working part-time at a truck stop you can easily top the 40,000+ mark a year. I know a lady in Longmont, CO that makes almost 200 bucks A DAY! in 6-8 hour shifts. That’s way more than most people I know make regularly. Not to mention the personal freedom that comes with work in hospitality. It’s an industry that favors the worker. Yea, sometimes it’s cruddy work- but where else can you take time off with a moments notice? In hospitality it’s very easy to trade a shift with someone, or pick up extra ones if you need it. You can’t do that in an office job! Who would the accounting etc  if you just took the day off?
     Hospitality is more than what you see in the cafes. It’s a huge multi-billion dollar industry that encompasses everything from hotels to cafes to airlines & tourism. It’s all the unseen people that make your experience a pleasant one when you go on a trip, out to dinner, to a museum or state park and so on. Think about it. 
     I am thinking that if I waitressed my way to the White House, it would prove a point and make a statement at the same time. I had the opportunity to travel all the states when I was  younger and there was never a town I came to that I didn’t get a job when I tried.
     Once again I would be willing to go town to town on the way from North Dakota to Washington DC. I am willing to just stop at random, find a job, work until I have enough money to go a little further down the line, and do it again. There IS work to be had. And I for one, am NOT afraid to get my hands dirty.
   I went back to work at a place that I freely admit I am not thrilled about. I like the people I work with, I like my customers, just not the place in general. No particular reason for it. Just not thrilled. IT'S A JOB!! And I am fourtunate to work in an indusrty I have always genuinely enjoyed. But the fact is, with fuel so high and health insurance premiums skyrocketing,  we needed to off set some expense on the farm and the money also helps support my endevor to spread the word about small towns and opportunities in them! I drive a lot!
I know that I could get me there and back, cover my expenses and probably send some money home to boot. How’s that?!

In the end, "NO" is just a word! There is always a way if you believe in yourself.

Katy

I did it!

   For those of you who know me- this was a time consuming feat! I am not the most computer literate, but I understand it's intristic value.
  I actually have a blog http://www.prairieaire.blogspot.com/ that I will be moving over to this site.
I think it was the lure of being able to have ads, that made me change. While I can write about all the things and places I go, there is a sincere desire to be able to post ads, especially from my local towns!
  So....This is where I re-create some earlier posts....
Katy