Yesterday's News

Yesterday, all the merchandisers were pulled into a conference room at 4:25pm.
After we all filed in, our CEO came in and told us he was stepping down at the end of the year.
I don't know what to think. But since this company wasn't doing very well in the past years, and this year we seem to be doing much better. I'm not so bad it's a bad thing, but it's still a little scarey.

Two major things I heard from the Rumor-ites yesterday:

• "What if the new guy comes in and turns it all "corporate" on us?" --My secret thoughts on this matter... If that happened, I think it could just be a good thing. If the new person makes the office more professional, I think that buisness will follow. I've had many concerns about this issue, that I've expressed to several of my friends.
• "I bet he was forced out." --My secret thoughts...It's probable. If a company has not been doing well for a long time, why wouldn't the shareholders or board or whatever want to out the guy that was at the helm?

I don't exactly know what I think about it. I am an advocate for change, so it doesn't really worry me too much. This change could make things a heck of a lot better around here. And if it doesn't make things a heck of a lot better, then I have a positive looking resume and can find something else that suits me. And if it is worse around here, then maybe that is a sign that this isn't the place I'm supposed to be. Know what I mean?

Here is the press release if anyone wants to read it:

For Immediate Release

Wilsons Leather Chairman, CEO to Resign

Joel N. Waller to Step Down by January 31, 2005


MINNEAPOLIS – October 28, 2004 – Wilsons The Leather Experts (Nasdaq: WLSN) today announced that longtime Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Joel N. Waller will step down by January 31, 2005. A search to replace Waller as Chief Executive Officer is currently underway and the Company expects to make an announcement regarding his successor within a month.

Waller, 65, who has been with the Company and its predecessors for 28 years and served as its CEO for 21 years, said the timing is right for a leadership transition.

Earlier this year, Wilsons Leather began an aggressive turnaround plan to improve profitability and strengthen its financial position. During the first half of 2004, the Company streamlined headquarters positions, closed two distribution centers and exited 111 underperforming stores to realign costs with revenue. And in July, Wilsons Leather secured $35.0 million in private equity financing. As a result, operating margins and comparable store sales have improved significantly.

“The business is on the right track for success,” said Waller. “We have a solid strategy in place and we have made excellent progress toward our goal of improving our overall business performance. As I transition my leadership, I’m confident that our strong management team will continue to advance our initiatives and drive Wilsons Leather forward.”

Under Waller’s leadership, Wilsons Leather has grown from a small regional concept to a nationally recognized brand. His vision has been integral to the success of the Wilsons Leather brand for more than a quarter of a century.

About Wilsons Leather
Wilsons Leather is the leading specialty retailer of leather outerwear, accessories and apparel in the United States. As of October 2, 2004, Wilsons Leather operated 453 stores located in 45 states and the District of Columbia, including 328 mall stores, 109 outlet stores and 16 airport stores. The Company regularly supplements its permanent mall stores with seasonal stores during its peak selling season from October through January.

Historical Look Back

I'm sitting here at my desk, thinking back on what happened on this day last year....

On this day last year, my sweet loving husband (then exboyfriend. That's right, you heard me) had already finished with harvest and chisel plowing. All except for one "small" strip of land. (I say small, because it's small in relation to the rest of the land that he owns/works. But in reality, it's quite a chunk of land.) On this day last year, he was chisel plowing his proposal to me in that strip of land.

I myself, was probably working at Pier1 and most likely was scheming up some sort of plan with my friend Cesar to make him jealous when I am back there for my cousin's wedding. Maybe I should talk about how great my new -all be it ficticious- boyfriend was. Or maybe I should bring someone along to act as my boyfriend....

Little did I know that he had a little scheming going on of his own. (Which really is a miracle in itself y'all. He never plans anything. He comes from the land of non-commitment.) Although signs were there that something was a'brewin', I didnt' have a clue, and didn't notice the signs until the proposal was in full swing.

I remember my wise friend Cesar telling me, "He's going to propose. What are you going to do if he proposes?!" And I remember telling him, "No way, he won't be doing that. And if he does I'll say no!" The reason for this crazy logic was because I had assumed that if the "creep" DID propose it'd be in some bad way such as proposing to me over diner or something uneventful. I just thought, at this point, since we're broken, and I he had not spoken to me about a. missing me, b. still loving me, or most importantly c. getting back together because he can't live without me, that there is nothing he could or would be willing to say to me to make me feel like I should marry him. Again, he surprised me there too. Although, to this day I only remember snipets of what he said to me in that airplane. I was completely taken off gaurd by what he said, and did that day. Shock and surprise sure do strange things to you. (like vomiting) I keep asking him to write it down for me, but he has not done that yet, and I suppose by the time I nag him enough to write it down, he'll have forgotten himself.

Anywho, back to my point. At this time last year, Darin was writing those famous words in his field, and probably causing himself an ulser worrying about what I'd say in two days. While I was sitting at my desk, worrying about being late for my flight.

Funny how fate always brings things together, even when you think things are completely over.
If it's meant to be, fate will eventually find a way. You can fight it, and prolong it. And probably cause yourself more heartache, but if it's meant to be it's going to be. Whether you want it to or not.

Sigh.... I love my husband. I'm so lucky to have him. (As he is me!!!) Boy, is that a change over from what I thought about him last year at this time! ha!

Something to Think About. Very Good Lesson

Dart Test...

A young lady named Sally, relates an experience she had in a seminary
class, given by her teacher, Dr. Smith. She says that Dr. Smith was known
for his elaborate object lessons.

One particular day, Sally walked into the seminary and knew they were in
for a fun day.

On the wall was a big target and on a nearby table were many darts. Dr.
Smith told the students to draw a picture of someone that they disliked or
someone who had made them angry, and he would allow them to throw darts at
the person's picture.

Sally's friend drew a picture of who had stolen her boyfriend. Another
friend drew a picture of his little brother. Sally drew a picture of a
former friend, putting a great deal of detail into her drawing, even
drawing pimples on the face. Sally was pleased with the overall effect she
had achieved.

The class lined up and began throwing darts. Some of the students threw
their darts with such force that their targets were ripping apart. Sally
looked forward to her turn, and was filled with disappointment when Dr.
Smith, because of time limits, asked the students to return to their
seats. As Sally sat thinking about how angry she was because she didn't
have a chance to throw any darts at her target. Dr. Smith began removing
the target from the wall.

Underneath the target was a picture of Jesus. A hush fell over the room as
each student viewed the mangled picture of Jesus; holes and jagged marks
covered His face and His eyes were pierced.

Dr. Smith said only these words... "In as much as ye have done it unto the
least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto Me."
Matthew 25:40.

No other words were necessary; the tears filled eyes of the students focused only on the picture of Christ.

Completely UnProfessional!

I sometimes cannot believe this place that I am working. The dress attire I am still getting used to and don't know if I ever will. How can a person get used to seeing these girls thong underwear, and bare bellies everywhere. I don't know how anyone could take them seriously as a proffessional. But I guess in this place, and perhaps state, they do.

About half an hour ago, I heard the departments VP/GMM in someone's office screaming at the top of her lungs about something she was clearly unhappy about. She was screaming, "God Damn blah blah", and other cuss words. Now. I don't know about what other peoples opinions are on this topic, but I think that is completely unprofressional, and if it were me she was screaming at like that I would not tolerate it. Even if she is a VP, there is no reason why someone in a position like that should act in such a childish and unprofessional manor. I could not believe it. This screaming went on for a good amount of time too. I don' t know how this person got into this position with a temper like that. That kind of verbage, and emotion really should be left for a persons personal time. There is absolutely no reason why that should have gone on in an office building in front of, and directed at collegues.

I think as a woman it's already hard to get the needed deserved respect from men in a workplace, and women that behave like this in the workplace, only make it harder for those that do deserve equal respect. As a woman, and as a professional, I can say that this person has definately lost my respect. I believe in a work environment, actions and reactions such as that should never happen, and should definately have not gone on for that long before she corrected herself. No matter what sex the person is. It not only reflects on that person, it also reflects on the company.

One Horrible Way for Me to Realize Just How Fat I Really Am

So, I admit it. I watched that stupid "Big Fat Loser" show last night. I think it might actually inspire fat asses like myself to do something about their horrible, grotest, and apparently publically apalling fattyness.

In the first 15 minutes of the show they required all "players" to weigh in. They are players because they are all vying to win $250,000 or something. The person who loses the most, wins. To my horrible shock. I only way 2 pounds less than one of the lard asses on that show. Is this not horrible? And a month ago I weighed more than her!!!!!! Is this not a horrible way to realize just how fat and ugly I really am? I looked at this girl and thought, it's OK there is no way I look like that though. I must be more muscular or taller or something... Aparently I was in denial. But this morning it is clear. I am just as horrifyingly fat as the people on that show.

This girl looked very round to me, and seemed to have a lot of round fluffy fat on her. I wonder if this is how people persee me? When I see myself, I see areas that need work, but I don't see big ole rolls of fat. I wonder if that is what other people see when they see me? I haven't worked out since before my wedding, when I lost a lot of weight (not as much as I would have liked becuase I had that accident, but still, I was pretty happy at the amount I had lost. Even though few people noticed) I attribute the lack of working out two reasons, a. No money to join a gym, and b. I don't like to just go lift weights. I like to do the classes, they keep me interested and motivated. So the little gym in my apartment complex has only held my attention once in the 3 months that I've been here. So, turns out, I'm not more muscular than this fatty on TV last night. I must look just like her to people around me.

Of course, I'm not in denial about my fattyness in the first place. But I in no way would have thought that I could have been a candidate for a show like this. Isn't that a horrible way to realize that you are morbidly obese instead of just pleasantly plump? I know I have my problem areas, but I didn't think I looked like a Wolly Mammoth to other people. So now I don't even want to be undressed in front of anyone. I just want to find baggy cloths and hide it all.

And to make it all worse, what is the point of even trying to make myself look good at this stage in the game anyway? My husband has has said that all women after having a baby have ugly stretch marks and just aren't as nice looking as they were before having the baby. Not even hot girls look good after they have a baby, or even the girls that work hard to get back into shape because the stretch marks are still there. So, even if I worked my ass off to look good now, it's not going to matter in a few years because my body will just be permanently ruined to him after I squeeze out one or two of his love children. So what's the point anyway??? Of course, there is the slim chance that I will be one of the lucky girls that doesn't acquire these lovely stretch marks. And maybe, just MAYBE that could be true if I don't lose weight, because the baby could just grow underneath all of my nasty fat, and noone will even know I'm pregnant. Then I wouldn't have any stretch marks, and after that I could work my ass off to look like a hot super model.

Before the wedding, on the rare occasion that I would go out and eat a full meal with a friend, I would get sick. (I'm sure this is a result of my dieting, and not eating big meals at one given time, and that I wasn't eating really rich foods, so don't think something is wrong with me.) This would happen not even at times that I would stuff myself. Just a couple bites, and I'd be sick. That was gross... but also kind of great, because I continued to lose weight. I think the Anorexics of the world aren't so bad off afterall. I mean, of course they are, because some people really have a problem where they weight 60 lbs and think they are fat. But people like me could probably benefit from their methods. I'm thinking more and more, that is the way to go on days that a person over does it. Maybe I should just stop eating altogether.

Wow

My manager just called me into her office to talk to me.
She told me that my buyer came in to talk to her about me.
Apparently, she thinks I'm doing a really great job and wanted to share it with my manager.
So my manager proceded to tell me what a good job I've been doing, and how I've been taking initiative and showing really good leadership in situations.

Wow. That was so nice to hear today! Go me!

Totally Stoked!

So, I was walking out to lunch (Alone as usual. I'll complain about that later) and my manager saw my "handbag". She totally thought it was cute. Then the garment manager looked at it and liked it too. They told me to show Randy, and the two handbag buyers. (Randy is the Big Manager guy) So, I showed it to the two buyers and they both like it and want to look into it.
I haven't showed Randy it yet, but I totally think it's cool that everyone likes my bags!
(Plus it helps since I'm thinking about making a business out of it now)

The next big trend in accessories is Embelishments. So like, charms and extras on things. Like Brooches, pins, chains.....blah blah blah. So everyone likes my bag because the handle is a scarf. Which is why I loved it when I got it. --If your my husband and you are reading this, I'd like to point out that it was a free gift with purchase. Of something that I was going to buy anyway. Thought I'd throw that in there so I am not accused of buying something just for the free gift. Which I have been guilty of before. ;o)--

Anywho. My ego is totally boosted. It makes me feel like I'm not so far out of the Fashion loop, even though I am in the middle of nowhere 1/2 the time.

Amazing Discovery!

Some of you that know me well, know that for some reason I have frequent headaches. Today, the hipocondriac next to me shared one of her little "crazy lady theraputic lotions" with me. To my surprise I am in love with it. It is this stuff from Origins called, ...are you ready?... "Sensory Therapy, Peace of Mind". I have to go get some of this stuff. It's a lotion, and you rub it into your pressure points. Like temples, back of neck, wrists, whatever. It tingles a little, but it makes you feel refreshed, and then my headache was gone in almost 5 minutes! It was so fabulous. We're calling it head crack. She also has some, eye crack that I'll have to tell you about some other time. They are these cool eye drops that work really well. Anyway. I have to go buy stock in this item.

Christopher Reeve

I was driving to work this morning when I was completely taken aback by the news that Christopher Reeve died on Saturday of heart failure. Now I know he's been pretty bad off since tha horrible accident, but it was still surprising and stunning to hear. Since he was "superman", I guess I, like many people in America I'm sure, thought that he'd eventually overcome his obsticle and be able to walk and live on his own again someday. It was just very shocking to me this morning to hear that he passed on. He seemed like such a great man, that it's a terrible loss.
But I take comfort knwing that it is Gods great gain to have with him now.

This Past Weekend

My husband and I were true rednecks this weekend. It was actually pretty great. We took out his rifles and went shootin'. His dad has these little metal targets. There are four that hang down, and one that sticks up. The object is to shoot all the hanging ones so they flip up and at the end shoot the one that sticks up so the other 4 fall back down. I think my man was pretty surprised by my technique. My first rifle didn't have a very good site on it. So I missed the first time, got used to it, and hit 3 out of 4. My man of course, did the same with that gun. Then my next turn I used a slightly better rifle that had a better site on it. I liked this one a lot, and missed only 1 out of my 10 rounds. Darin of couse got them all. (showoff) The third rifle was just fun because his dad had a new scope. So it was easy sailing. I hit all ten of ten. Darin did the same. At one point it was pretty cool because I was standing and Darin was kneeling and we both shot at the same time, and hit the two targets next to eachother at the same time. It was like we were in a redneck gun show! ;o) he he he. Anyway. It was pretty fun, and I think my man was impressed that I was such a good shot. Maybe I'm just a redneck at heart.

How Cool is This?!

So yesterday I showed one of my favorite purses (aka Handbags) to one of the buyers here. She liked it and is sending it off to the vendor to have them copy it. Is that not cool?! My accessory taste is so good that someone wants to copy it?! :o) I think that rocks!

Plus there is another perk. She told me today that she has them make me my own sample. So not only is my bag going to be copied. I'm getting another one! Woo hoo! I love it! This rocks!

Please Participate in My Pole

I'm taking a Pole.
I need a good idea that I can turn into a business.
Any great ideas anyone's had????

Cloths
Furniture
Shoes
Accessories
Imports

What is your opinion on any of those?
What would make you shop at a new store?

Yosemite Sam Look Alike

I came to a realization last night. George Bush resembles an increadible likeness to Yosemite Same of Looney Toons. He has a short temper just like him, when he gets irritated he wiggles around just like him. Last night he got so frustrated at Kerry I thought he was going to pull out two side pistals and start shooting at the ground just like Yosemite Sam does when he's throwing a temper tantrum.

Next time you watch a debate, think of this when you watch Bush get agree. You'll see what I mean!

Democratic State

You know...It's very strange living in a state where Democrats are in the majority instead of the minority. I'm not sure how I feel about that. But I can say, I'm starting to get anoyed with their liberal crap. So many of these Donkeys sound like idiots when they talk about politics. I'm starting to wonder if I should switch over just so I'm in the minority party again. :o$ ha! not.
But I do wish that more Donkeys would sound like they knew what they were talking about that way they wouldn't always look like fools to the opossing party. It just brings the whole party down. Not everyone is an idiot in the Democratic party. Or so I hope...