Tuesday, July 31, 2007

exhausted? I think so

So, today I had the extreme pleasure of working in the plant. For those of you that don't know what Cintas (my company) does, they are a uniform rental company that also provides rags, towels, mops, door mats, etc to any and every company. Most of the clients are auto dealers, mechanic shops, concrete companies, etc. Basically, the messiest companies known to man - they serve. The back end of the business is more or less a laundry service....cleaning the uniforms, etc and sending them back out to the customers. So, today I got to do other peoples laundry. It was definitely not the most glamorous part of my work experience. Rags were oil filled and disgusting, uniforms are all kinds of jacked up, and that's what I was sifting through.
Separating everything out based on colors, pants, aprons, rags, and everything else.
Smells like throw up, no air conditioned which adds smelly sweat to the mix, and that was basically my day.
Luckily, everyone was very nice and helpful and they were actually short handed today so I got to get down and dirty.
My day:
1) 8:00 am - drink coffee and get the day organized
2) 9:00 am - start sorting through the nastiness of rags that needed to be cleaned
3) 10:00 am - loaded up the old ladies tables with dirty who knows what so they could sort
4) 10:15 am - loaded up washers with 400lbs of sheets
5) 10:30 am - loaded up washers with 750 lbs of oil stained rags
6) 11:00 am - took sheets out of washer and took them to the linen ladies and filled washer with a jack load of mats
7) 11:15 am - got to push the buttons on the hydralic lift (that was cool)
8) 11:45 am - LUNCH!!! Thank the Lord for Rosas and water
9) 12:45 pm - worked with the linen ladies
- lined up sheets to go on huge I wanna get one iron rotating thingy
- one by one put napkins on huge I wanna get one iron rotating thingy
- separated out aprons based on colors (you wouldn't think this would be difficult, but after they come out of the washers ALL of the strings and aprons basically make a HUGE knot)
10) 3:00 pm - worked with the loaders loading the trucks for next day deliveries
11) 4:15 pm - talked with a manager in training to see if I had access to my intranet login (NOPE)
12) 4:30 pm - Sonic for a 44 oz diet coke with vanilla (diet only because my dentist brother likes to gripe when i drink Dr Pepper
13) 4:45 pm - ON MY WAY HOME!! YAYAYAYAYAYA

All in all it was a great day. Definitely makes me appreciate the jobs I've had in the past as well as the one I have with Cintas. Tomorrow will be much like today, back working in the plant but Thurs and Friday I'll be back on Route with the Service Sales Reps doing stuff that is a lot more fun (goes by a heck of a lot quicker too.)

Next week will be even better because I actually get to spend thurs and friday with the Abilene sales reps..learning the actual position I'll be doing (can't wait to get back to selling....I miss it like whoa)

Anywho, we should be signing the contract on our house tomorrow. The loan is in place and the sellers agreed to our terms. Actually, I'll be giving them checks on Thursday for our first months rent until we close. So, I can move on Thursday if I so choose:)

Friday I'll be going to Arlington to see Julie and the dogs which I'm super excited about. Haven't see them since Thursday and it already feels like 2 months. I THOUGHT WE PUT OUR LONG DISTANCE TIME IN WHILE WE WERE IN COLLEGE:)
But, soon enough our family will be reunited (Reunited and it feels so good - haha sorry for the gay song, thought it was appropriate!!!)

Love you all - adios por que yo necesito una siesta (bye because I need a nap)

Monday, July 30, 2007

bada bing bada boom

Great news....we were approved for our house today. Looks like we're going to get the house Julie and I really want. As it turns out, we're actually going to be renting the place for the first month (basically paying a prorated rate of the sellers mortgage) giving us time to get our house sold and this house closed on. So that's awesome news!!! Julie and I are both really excited about the new house. Please pray it all goes well....the realtor (in abilene that actually acts like he wants to sell a house) is talking with the sellers tonight to get the contract written up.
Mean while, our house in san antonio has been viewed a few times over the last couple of days so that's good. The realtor down there still doesn't act like they want to help us much but oh well! It'll sell sooner or later!

I had my first "real" day at work today which consisted of me getting to work at 6:30 and not getting out of there until 4:30. I'm not going to lie....I'm exhausted!!! But, it went well. Everyone is very nice and helpful and I'm looking forward to working with a great company!
Tomorrow I'll be working in the plant - holy how hot can it be in a plant. There's no a/c and they are running at least 8 dryers that heat up to about 350 degrees. Man, it's frapping hot up in there.
My uniform still has the name of Dane on it which is cool. They got my patches today that they'll sow on tomorrow (hopefully) so I can be Jason again. Good stuff

All is falling into place for Julie and I know we could not have done it without the help of our family and friends with the prayers lifted!! We have an amazing God.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

crazy weekend

So, Friday was my first day with Cintas.
It's going to be a great place to work. Everyone I met was extremely nice and my boss is like me...pretty easy going.
It spent most of the day going over policies and procedures, filling out paper work, signing my life away, and the best part....watching 3 hours of safety, products, and health videos (oh yeah...straight out of the 90's) They were awesome. They were actual VHS videos which i haven't seen used those in years. Forgot you actually have to rewing them and that they can get fuzzy...thanks tracking:) haha
I got my uniform in for the next few months while training. It's pretty cool.....navy pants....baby blue short sleeve button down with maroon pin stripes....and yes.....they messed up on my shirt so Monday I'll be crusing around with the name of Dane.....how awesome is that!!
Monday I'll be riding with the route sales specialist....yeah we're leaving the plant at 6:30 in the am......I'm definitely not a morning person so we'll see how that goes.
All in all, i'm really excited. I miss my wife but other than that, I'm glad to be back in Abilene.
We still need to sell our house....but what can you do with a realtor that basically uses the internet as her only source of marketing...never follows up with anyone unless I call and ask her several times.....might have to market it myself.

Thanks for your prayers in this crazy time. Until I write again.....peace out...a-town.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

I actually worked today

Wow, what a feeling. I actually had to get up this morning....and learn stuff. It was great being back at work.
I had my ride a long today with the rep in San Antonio. It was great actually seeing first hand some of what I would be doing. You would never think it but there is A LOT more that goes into it than I ever dreamed.
I talked to a rep that had been with the company for 2 weeks and he showed me the huge 4 inch binder full of stuff I have to read. About 2 hours of reading a night for the first 13 weeks (training period.)
The rep i did my ride a long with was great. We had a few sales calls and a few just drop in calls to say Hi.
I'm looking forward to the challenge of starting fresh in a new city as well as doing something that is completely different than what I'm used to.
With SR I was talking to high level executives with a minimum yearly revenue of $60K (on up to 1.4 million dollars) With Cintas, I will be calling on mainly smaller facilities with 4-50 workers total and selling about 50-400 bucks a week in revenue. So the role is quite different but it will give me a great chance to make good money and live in a city that's perfect for Julie and I (and the kids:))

Hopefully tomorrow we'll get a showing on our house. So far, in the past week, we've had 2. None since Saturday!!! We're getting antsy since I'm leaving thursday for Abilene. but what can you do?

I'm tired which is why there are probably typos in this blog....but guess what....I DON'T CARE:)

adios senors y senoritas.....hasta luego.

Monday, July 23, 2007

big day tomorrow

I'm really excited....I have my ride along with a sales rep for Cintas. Not sure how long it will be but it will give me great insight on what my job will entail. I'm looking forward to gaining some knowledge...what works and doesn't....and find someone that can mentor me as I start this new job.
I'm not going to lie, i'm even excited about getting up every day and going into an office! With my personality, and being as outgoing as I am...the past 2 years of working out of my house has been difficult. So, it'll be great to be around people again to push me and train me as I get my feet wet!
I talked to my new boss today and they actually want me to start on Friday (7-27) instead of monday. I'll be going to Abilene Thursday night, working all day Friday, then coming home to finish packing and helping Julie with the house. Looks like there is going to be a lot of back and forth travel for the next month (hopefully less depending on the house.)
It's going to be hard to be away from Julie (and the kids) next week and I hope and pray that it will only last a few weeks!

It's still raining in San Antonio...man it's depressing. I miss the sun....No mas aqua por favor. We need it to dry out a little bit!!!!

We ate dinner with my parents tonight and had a great time. I am going to miss being 30 minutes away from them! Who knows...maybe we'll actually see them more when we leave!! With things being as crazy as they are, it's hard for both of us to find time to hang out. Luckily they'll kill 2 birds with 1 stone in the fact that they just have to drive to 1 city to see both of their boys and daughter in laws!

Did I mention, it hasn't stopped raining?
We had a river going through our back yard today....it was wild. I wish i had a tube so i could go chill in the rain.

Any who, I have a big day tomorrow so I'm going to bed. I'll let everyone know how tomorrow goes! I'm excited about getting out of the house:)

Sunday, July 22, 2007

pot holes and pull strings

Man, this was an eventful weekend. Julie had 2 flat tires bright and early Saturday morning. Took 1/2 a day to get them changed out. Change the tire to the spare.....take the bad tire to Discount Tire. Go back to discount tire to pick up new tire...back to car to change 2nd bad tire. Drive vehicle to Discount tire to get the 2nd new tire put on the vehicle. drive back to discount to pick it up. That was loads of fun.

Sunday, the first day in a few days (or weeks) it has not rained. Mowing the lawn was top priority. Well, i pull the rope to get her roaring and snap. The rope breaks. I drove to home depot to get a replacement and spent about 2 hours trying to get it working. For those of you that know me.....know I'm not mechanically inclined. Needless to say, the 30 year old lawn mower (which belonged to my grand pa) was not going to be fixed by this dude. So, I bought a new one. Spent probably less money buying a new (cheap) one than i would trying to get the old one fixed.

No one came to look at the house today. Come on now....I know someone in SA needs a house:)
But, it has only been on the market for 5 days.....so I can't get too disappointed yet.

Tomorrow, I do not have to work for SR.....I'm so excited about that! No more griping by needy customers, being blamed for something that wasn't my fault, no more being thrown under the bus because I did not have the support/tools I needed to do my job successfully! What a relief!!!!
Friday was my last day, and actually....I didn't have to work because they shut down my internet/email etc right at 8:00am. My boss was not happy but apparently there were a lot of lay offs within my company on Friday and they just threw me in with all of them. Oh well....I was happy and got a free meal.

Monday - Oil changed, packing, and cleaning
Tuesday - Ride a long with a Cintas superstar in San Antonio
Wed, Thurs, Fri......No clue

It's going to be a great week. Hallelujah for some time to chill before I start the new job!

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Yes Sir

So, it's official, we got a job offer today with Cintas. WE'RE MOVING TO ABILENE:)
Julie and I are extremely excited!!! My tentative start date will be July 30th. Gives me some time to rest up and get things situated before starting!
House news, we had our first showing today. Not sure what the outcome will be but we shall see!! Hopefully we can sell our house in 6 days like our neighbors did. that would be great!

I love you all very much!

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Things to do before we move

I love lists now - I think it's I married an organizational nazi!

1) Paint
a) Stairs
b) door
c) trim
2) carpets cleaned (Thursday at noon)
3) move stuff out of the garage (holy wow - it's ridiculous how much stuff we have in there)
4) Sell the house
5) Buy a house
6) Pack
7) Peace out
8) Work on my hand stands
10) have fun

My wife will read this and probably add eleventy billion items....but this list is good for me!! Makes me think that we don't have that much to do:)

That's what I'm talking about

Wow, these past few days have been crazy hectic.
SR countdown.......................................................1 day and a few hours!!!! It can't come fast enough!

We have some great news though....i had my 2nd interview today (which we thought would be my last before the job offer.) It went extremely well and he passed me on the 3rd and FINAL interview. I have a phone interview with the VP of sales tomorrow (Thursday) at 9:00 am.
"My" soon to be manager basically said since I got to this stage that i was a shoe in!
Praise the Lord because he is faithful and true to His word.
Thank you all so much for your continual thoughts and prayers for Julie and I. It is greatly appreciated!
So, it looks like Julie and I will be Abilenians again! CANNOT WAIT!!!!
It was so amazing visiting Jeff and Hayley this past weekend and we are so excited about the great journey that lies ahead.

Ya know, I did a lot of driving this weekend. Never once were we stopped by traffic and I never got frustrated (as I do often) while driving with stupid people on the road. It is going to be great for my blood pressure to get back to a city that people actually....kinda....know how to drive!!!!
Of coure, as soon as we got back to SA, 2 people cut me off within 2 minutes of each other! I LOVE SA!!!!

My list of reasons to move back to Abilene:
1) Job
2) Jeff and Hayley
3) AMAZING SELECTION OF GREAT CHURCHES!!!!
4) Traffic
5) Construction
6) Drivers
7) Rosa's
8) Taco Bueno
9) Slow pace of life
10) cheaper living
11) Because Julie wants to move there
12) Most importantly, Julie and I really believe that this is the place that God wants us to be.

Once again, we thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. The Lord is faithful and our family and friends are by far the best!

God bless each of you!!!

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

That's some good stuff

So....it was a great weekend.
We surprised Jeff on Saturday for his birthday which was on Sunday. He was definitely shocked and excited. We had a great time hanging out with them all weekend!
Monday, to say the least, was exhausting but very productive.
I had a 10:00 am interview with Bank of America, which went really well.
I was trying to get an interview with aa Land Leasing Company for the wind turbines, but that didn't work out.
So, around noonish Cintas called me and wanted to interview me this week in Midland for a position in Abilene. I told the guy I was in Abilene and would love to meet him that day......drove to midland....MOST BORING DRIVE EVER!!!!! But, it had to be done.
The interview went really well and he passed me on to the next stage which is a phone interview with his boss (Wednesday at 4:00pm)
Both of these jobs seem extremely promising. It's crazy.....4 weeks and nothing, then 1 day I have basically 2 great opportunities to land a job!

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Just for fun

Ok, so now I have to post a blog that's more Jason Webb style!!!

Crazy, scary, awesome, cool, wowza news: 5 work days left until I am done with my current job. WAHOO!!!
I'm not excited or anything:)

Random Thoughts
1) You wanna know what the most annoying song you can get in your head? Well, not even a song.....the stupid tones of the ice cream truck. For some unknown reason I had that in my head for like 2 hours today! It drove me absolutely crazy!!!
2) Champ has woken Julie and I up at 4:30 for the past 3 nights.......he doesn't realize yet that I'm not a morning person.
3) We need more Taco Buenos in San Antonio. 1 that is 20 minutes from my house just isn't cutting it.
4) queso with meat is very good on top of broccoli
5) I ate too much for super.....(2 servings of chicken, sausage, broccoli, potatos, and corn)
6) Its 2:17am and i'm delirious

Friday, July 13, 2007

Sermon, though I'm not a preacher:)

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Man, that's a tough pill to swallow for me. In the ever increasing stresses that life bring about, how can one always be joyful. And, giving thanks in all circumstances....that's difficult.
Life is hard, no doubt about it. God never promised it would be easy. In the midst of just getting married and adding the stress of trying to find a job, I will 100% agree that life isn't always as glamorous and easy as we would like it to be. But, that is life and we have to learn to accept it.
Honestly the only way we can always be joyful and to give thanks in all circumstances is through the middle part of that passage (verse 17) by praying continually.
All that life has to offer comes from God. The blessings are just that...blessings. They are not deserved nor guaranteed - they are gifts from the one who created us.
It's easy when life gets difficult to blame others or to blame God. It's easy when life gets difficult to forget about everything we have to be thankful for. Through prayer and strength God humbles us and helps us understand the circumstances placed before us are teachings for the future. And though we might not like them at the present, His will, will be uncovered.

This message, much like the last message I posted, truly rings home with me in the given circumstance.
I must ALWAYS be joyful, pray continually as that's the only way to make it through the day, and no matter what the situation, give thanks to Him because life is a blessing. Everything we have and do comes from someone so much greater than I and he deserves nothing less than our thanks and praise and more importantly our hearts in prayer.

God won't let us go through more than what we can handle and the trials we do have teach us the necessary lessons for the future.

The Bible - what an amazing...eye opening...amazing guide to get us through life's journey!!

I love you all very much! Be blessed this weekend!!

Monday, July 9, 2007

Sounds like someone has a case of the mondays...

Pretty typical day in the recent life of Jason Webb. Work was crazy as usual (8 days left). Dogs were crazy as usual. Julie cooked good meals as usual. I wanted to throw my computer out the window as usual. I applied for 30 some odd jobs as usual.
But hey.....I'm alive so it was a GREAT day:)

It's truly amazing how great God is! Even in times of desperation and anxiety His presence is still known and felt. With each step I take, he is taking it right beside me. When I cannot walk he carries me. When the burden of life seems overwhelming, he gladly takes the trouble away.
Our God is great.

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.
Romans 12:12

I love each and every one of you! Thank you all so much for the many thoughts and prayers through this great journey!

Sunday, July 8, 2007

Great Weekend

This was a great and lazy weekends. I love those kind of weekends.
Friday night, Julie and I did absolutely nothing. It was glorious. I really enjoyed spending time with her! With everything going on it seems like we're both going 90mph non stop.
Around 12:30 (Saturday morning) Boomer heard something outside and started going awol. We had no idea what he was barking at but he sensed something. It was crazy!!! So, being the brave husband I am....I got to walk around with a loaded pistol to check everything out. I knew there was probably nothing wrong but it gave me a good excuse to have my gun in my hand (I'm a huge dork that does not get to shoot his 9mm enough) haha
We finally calmed him down and all was good for the night. He still hasn't acted the same since. In fact, today (Sunday) we had to give him a sleeping pill so he would calm down. I know I know...we're great parents, but he was driving us nuts. Almost to the point that physical abuse seemed like a winning answer. Needless to say, the pill worked and he slept like a baby.
Champ, still has no idea what's going and barks at everything just for the heck of it. He loves to hear himself growl - which is not so much impressive or scary. More or less just annoyingly cute.
Saturday, Julie and I went to see License to Wed. It was pretty dang funny. Of course, they never show reality in any kind of married life - which all my experience of being married, things don't always turn out like you'd like them too. HAHA But it was fun going on a date again.
Julie is a GREAT cook. I got very lucky and am getting extremely spoiled. I don't know what's going to happen when her work picks up and I have to start cooking lunch and dinner again. Microwavable meals....here I come!!!! Good stuff, just like I'm back in college.

Well, I have 2 job interviews this week. 1 in Austin on Tuesday with American Health Imaging. I would basically be a marketing/PR rep in promoting the services they offer (diagnostic testin such as MRIs and Catscans etc.) Would be a great job and a great opportunity to move to Austin to really get my foot in the door for future careers. So we'll see how it goes.
The other interview is a 2nd interview with a Regional Sales manager. It is another phone interview for a graphics company. I would be selling their commercial print services (marketing pieces, 4 color, digital processing, etc) basically throughout Texas, NM, LA, and OK. As much as I do want to be in the print industry anymore, I cannot afford to be picky. So we'll see how it goes.

That's all i have for now.
SR countdown - 12 days until unemployment - getting nervous but I know that God still has a plan. Patience is still not a virtue of mine but I'm learning. Ask Julie - ;)
Peace out homies.

Thursday, July 5, 2007

Good times had by all

So this is funny....I got the 3rd degree today by a RECRUITER!!! What is that about?
She's supposed to be helping me find a job and she's questioning why I quit without having another job lined up and how she is supposed to explain that and why I'm not making commissions to a hiring manager.
I wanted to say - ya know what....if i wanted to get griped at i would call my co worker b/c she's great at griping. hahah
Good stuff.

That's it for now....I'm boring so I'm not sure what else I'll be writing about.

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Craziness

So, I'm officially a "blogger." Everyone is doing it so figured I'd jump on the band wagon.
As you know, I have now been married for 3 months. Married life is such a blessing and my wife truly is amazing. I know for a fact that I would not be where I'm at today without her in my life.
I'm going to preference this paragraph by saying, God is great and I know His will is being done in our lives.
So, about 2 weeks ago I put in a 5 week resignation with my current company. I have been looking for other opportunities for the past few months but definitely did not want to "quit" before I had another job lined up. Given the circumstance and the situation of basically being forced to do so, Julie and I (with the prayers of many) decided it would be best for us for me to go ahead and resign. It was a very difficult decision but had it not been made, a customer of ours that I have butted heads with for the past few months basically made it his goal to get me fired or to drive me to quit.
So, here we are, 2 1/2 weeks until we are out a paycheck and I still haven't had a job offer.
There have been several interviews....a few call backs for a 2nd interview, but I fell short due to my "lack of sales experience." It's frustrating but, what can you do? Keep on keeping on (joe dirt)
Monday I had a 2nd interview with a great company that looked promising. The competition was stiff and I was very well aware of what I was going up against. With lots of research done on the company, their competition, and how I was going to answer the questions asked, I felt extremely confident in my chances. Afterall, I made it to the final 4 candidates. Well, needless to say they went with another candidate which was fine (only makes me mad b/c I'm competitive) It was actually a great experience and one that I can definitely learn from. The interviewer was great, she asked difficult questions and put me on the spot for me to show my stuff as a sales rep. I spoke with her today and got a lot of great feedback on things I can improve on going forward in interviews to come. She actually gave me a huge confidence boost in saying that my answers were great, my sales presentation was great (she basically said, I'm the physician, sell me your product without any script etc), I was more prepared than any of the other candidates, and that I was very articulate for being as young a I was. Then she basically said that she would love to take me under her wing and mold me into this fantastic sales rep which she knows I have the potential and drive to be but unfortunately she did not have time as they had to have immediate impact on their territory. Best part about it, she said to please keep in touch and said she would keep in touch with me to let me know how things were going and if another opportunity comes about I would be the first person she called. So, even though I didn't get the job (still upsetting) at least I have the confidence to keep uncovering opportunities.
So I'm back to applying again. I know full well that God will provide. With the prayers of my amazing wife, my mom and dad, Mike and Barbara (in laws:)) and so many others I am filled with so much hope that things are going according to God's plan.
He's taught me so much patience through all of this and my faith is ever increasing.

I know this is long but I had a lot on my mind to let go of. Lord take control and open our eyes to your good and perfect will.

"For I know the Plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you, and not to harm you." "Plans to give you hope and a future."

-Jeremiah 29:11