Chicago: customers are advised to allow extra travel time

What's stopping you?

If you go to Peru, you have to eat guinea pigs. It's a law.

Nothing's really stopping me at all, except knowing that travel is expensive. It seems like an opportunity worth seizing, though, since Kr probably couldn't afford to go at all if her expenses weren't being paid for.

I'm going to start brushing up on my Quechua.

I think experience outweighs cost. You have time to save a bit of $$ between now & then. I would just make it a priority & plan on going!

Word to that.

Why wait until you are a moldy oldy to get in some traveling??

Word up.

A friend of mine went backpacking in Peru over the summer, he loved it (I think he has some family down there). Apparently the fresh fruit is unreal.

How long will she be there?

(nb I am horrible about actually spending time and money on traveling, I never do it)

Not sure, maybe 5 days?

Bbut Jordan, you travel alot with the band!

My friend 3rica has been to Peru 2 times now I think, and has nothing but good things to say. Also, my ex-boss spent his last vacation down there with similar ravings. Do it! I am jealous, South America (and Argentina in particular) is #1 on my international travel list.

I want to take a year off to travel. Also, I want some money to travel with.

I meant besides the band. The band makes it easy because someone tells me to go, and I'm with a bunch of friends, and I'm getting paid to go and do something. I have some weird block about taking time off just to go, but I'm sure the right opportunity will come up.

I have contemplated doing some extended travel like that with my severance pkg from work. It'd be kind of irresponsible considering I am also thinking of going back to school but damn it, what else am I going to tell my grandkids about?

excel spreadsheets, maybe?

i kid.

I have often not felt able to travel within the last few years because there's always been the chance that I would need to save my vacation days for the band.

I figured out I've used 12 out of a possible 10 vacation days already this year. Thankfully, no one is counting but me.

Well, that's convenient!

Yup. I'm still concerned about asking off Christmas week though.

I mean, everyone gave me a hard time about taking off 7 days for the wedding/honeymoon, as though the office almost collapsed without me here to make copies and answer the door and what-not.

But I'm hoping it will be besides the point since I'd probably be the only one in the office anyway for those 3 days.

Are you serious about people giving you a hard time for taking time off for your wedding?!

nice:

"your butt is not a chocolate frozen yogurt dispenser."

- dan s@vage via his podcast.

As it has been established that Sarah works with some of the worst people in the city of Chicago, it doesn't surprise me that much.

xpost Do I even want to know the context there?

Sarah needs new coworkers.

the context is that a girl called in to ask about what she can do to prepare for anal sex.

bite down on a leather belt?

Sarah's coworkers at her old job were worse. Actually, Sarah's coworkers at any of her old jobs were worse. Sarah has a bad history of coworkers.

Hire a sitter?

Sarah deserves to spend her thirties in the company of empathetic, funny co-workers, and to be paid handsomely for it. So, basically, you guys have to move to Sweden.

(Hire a sitter so that the kid isn't yapping during the session.)

The worst was when she worked for the county in Virginia while I was finishing up college. They paid her a xmas bonus, but accidentally made it a recurring bonus (ie on every paycheck). Sarah assumed it was a raise. When they found out that she had been getting the extra money the whole time, they said she had to pay it back. They figured out some system where they TOOK a portion of each paycheck to pay themselves back for the mistake that THEY made. She was basically in indentured servitude for like a year.

the prep stuff was more along the lines of "cleansing" beforehand.

I don't really remember why I didn't just go into someone's office and start screaming at them. I guess I was in college and more mild-mannered then or something?

I like the two incongruous conversations going on here.

http://static.rateyourmusic.com/album_images/12852.jpg

sarah, not to be nosy nellie or anything, but any news on the law job front?

Apparently, I keep the bossman calm, cool, and collected. When I'm away, he throws fits.

Oh, well, not so much. I sent a resume to an employment law place but haven't heard from them. But then I was thinking maybe I should try for an Exec Secretary position instead, so I shot off a couple resumes.

You guys just need to pull off one bank job, and after that you guys (N & S) can just work part-time shifts at Laurie's Planet of Sound.

I am never working in any kind of customer service again.

Oh, unless I become a librarian.

Open Sarah's Starburst Clock Emporium.

hmmmm. maybe your co-workers need to petition to give you more money so you will stick around longer . . .

I can't stop listening to this today:

http://www.facethewaste.com/aopbig.jpg

Probably my favorite cover art of the year as well.

I can't stop thinking about all the wii boxing I'm going to do later.

Ahhhh, that story about Sarah's old employer is so fucked up. That can't be legal.

I would like to check that band out, but I cannot, as the AMG description calls them "irreverent." That can only lead to bitter disappointment.

Ahhhh, that story about Sarah's old employer is so fucked up. That can't be legal.
Also, they expected me to write them a check immediately. I don't remember how much it would have been but I was right out of college and living paycheck to paycheck. I started crying in HR basically. I kept saying "I don't have that kind of money! I don't know what to do! Why do I have to write a check right now?" And they said, "Now, Sarah, if it were the other way around and we'd been paying you less than you were supposed to get, I'm sure you'd be in here expecting a check from US pronto." That's when we worked out the overtime/paycheck deduction arrangment.