The Poorly-Read Librarian

We left in the wee hours of Saturday morning (5 June 2010).  This is a picture of the airport at 5:00 in the morning as 6,000 Walmart associates begin to make their way home: Enough said.  I pity the locals who were trying to fly out that day. Arkansas,  thank you for everything. Also, thank you, Sam's Club lady in the airport, for actually mailing Dan's postcard for me.  I owe you 42 cents.    This was fun.

The adventure continued on Friday, 4 June 2010, with the Annual Shareholder's Meeting and the reason why I went to Arkansas.  I don't recall much of the official business that took place, but I do remember the famous people.  Jamie Foxx was our host and the star of the day.  He is a very twitchy performer; it was hard to get a clear picture.  He sang, he joked, he took Darell's jacket, he imitated Ray Charles... He was absolutely hilarious.  And I loved him on Sesame Street.    Famous person number two, and I still can't get over this: Enrique Iglesias. When in my life would I ever actually see him in a live performance?  That's right.  Never.  This may come as a shocker, so prepare yourself, but he's not actually the greatest singer.  He's really very pitchy, but his earpiece-thing came out, so I'll try not to judge too harshly.  Also, he's very pretty, and, he jumped off the stage and came out into the crowd about te...

Thursday's adventures began with an old guy from a lame cover band mocking me for texting during their "performance" (if that's what you can even call it) prior to our Walmart US meeting.  By far, the coolest real performance was given by Sara Evans. Once again, country music is not favorite, except that part of the brainwashing that occurred apparently included increasing my appreciation for and love of country music.  She is absolutely beautiful and she loves Walmart.  She said that when she's on tour, her whole family goes to Walmart and shops like they don't have anything at all. And her guitar player was adorable.  When I was cropping the picture, I noticed a ring on an oh-so-important finger, but I can still admire from afar. After our meeting, we had the rest of the day to spend at the Supplier Fair.  I didn't see as many famous people, but I did stop by the South Africa World Cup booth and here's the result: I'm not exactly sure wh...

On Wednesday, 2 June 2010, we went to a Supplier Fair where we were given all sorts of free stuff and met all kinds of famous people.  It was pretty great.  And I got the most amazing sunburn ever.  I missed the Coppertone booth. First famous person: Mr. Rollback, Darell himself, came to breakfast.  He is a real, live associate (he works in a store in Virginia) and he was only with the company for 4 months when he auditioned for the part and, as of June, it hadn't been a year yet.  Must be nice as far as careers go...he's got Walmart and Hollywood. Second famous person of the day: Kristi Yamaguchi.   She was totally my most favorite figure skater ever.  I even had her cereal box (I think it was Special K).  And no one even knew she was there.  We only went to the Cosmetics tent because we heard about the free manicures (and haircuts), and there she was sitting, no line, nothing.  And just to give you an idea of how stinking h...

We flew all morning, we stood around in the airport for a good portion of the afternoon, we took a bus to the University of Arkansas, we ate pretty decent food, and then we went to a concert.  Two of them, actually.  The first performer was the Zac Brown Band.                                                To be honest, I'd really never heard any of their music prior to that night.  Over all, it was alright, but their violinist/fiddler was amazing.    Our second performer was Tim McGraw.  So.  I don't mind country music, but it's just not always my favorite.  Tim McGraw, however, is a total superstar.  He totally knows it, of course, which is why he seemed so comfortable waltzing around the stage in his p...

My next most recent life adventure began on Tuesday, 1 June 2010. I volunteered and was chosen to represent my store at the annual Walmart Shareholder's Meeting in Northwest Arkansas. (a view from the University of Arkansas campus where most of our events took place) So much happened that I hardly know where to begin.  I traveled with a group of associates from the Central Pennsylvania area and we made a few friends along the way.  Our flights went fairly well, which is a good thing since a few in our group were first-time fliers and were a bit apprehensive about the experience.  Randomly, we traveled from Harrisburg to Detroit, and then to Northwest Arkansas.  You'd think it would be more cost-efficient to travel a more direct route.  Clearly, I'm not in charge. I may need to break this adventure up into multiple parts.  Quite a lot happened in the five days I spent with several thousand Walmart associates.  We did the cheer at least five times...

So, I guess Adventure Numero Dos would be the YSA trip to Kirtland, Ohio.  Here's the thing: I am not the biggest fan of Young Single Adult activities that involve dances and talking to people I don't know, which is the reason why I don't go to activities, ever. Also, I'm usually at work.  However, I'd never been to Kirtland and, knowing the amount of Church history that happened here, the pros definitely outweighed the cons on this one. Our arrival was perfectly timed; we didn't have to mingle at all on Friday night.  We got there a few minutes before John Bytheway spoke.  He is hilarious, by the way, and a cute boy with really good posture sat in front of me, so, all in all, it was a good night. On Saturday, we had a devotional-type meeting with John Bytheway and workshops in the morning, a service project in the afternoon (my group sorted donations for a local organization), and the dreaded dance that night.  I went, I danced, I two-stepped (badly), I alm...

In order of my most recent adventures, I guess my family's trip to Utah in April would be the first.  It seems so long ago, I can hardly remember what happened. I do know that we went for Gabrian's blessing and we had Psy'renee blessed on the same day.  I also know it was so good to see friends and family that I love and miss, like, all the time.  And every time I go to f.y.e. or the library , I wish I still worked there.  Although, recently I've noticed that I don't miss my old jobs as much as I used to; except that I just started a new position at work and I'm pretty sure I do miss my old jobs, all of them, and would pretty much rather be doing anything else besides what I'm doing.  But that's a story for another day. So, it's picture time.  Here are a few from Utah: Aw, look at the cute cousins! Paris practically lived for the pool and I love this action shot.  The rest of my family would probably not be so pleased if they knew I posted th...

So, I haven't blogged in months.  I'm pretty sure I was caught up in the monotony that is my life and didn't feel like anything post-worthy had happened.  But I guess I've had a few things happen somewhat recently that I'll try to blog about soon.  Things like going to a YSA Conference in Kirtland, OH, and being my store's representative at the Walmart Shareholder's Meeting and seeing many a famous person.  I also started a new position at work this past Saturday and I'm pretty sure I made a less than good decision when agreeing to leave the comfort of Personnel for a $2.40/hour pay increase but I've only spent two days on the job, so it may be a little too early to tell.  I'm on the wrong computer to post pictures of my adventures right now, and let's face it, pictures are the most important part of the story.  I'll try to post something soon...