Baby Steps

So I loaded up all my food and drinks, ice chest, book and headed into my second job today. I failed miserably last week and started having second thoughts about this job as I drove into work, running five minutes late because I had to put water in the car radiator before I left. I'm borrowing my sister's spare car which although even twenty five years old still runs great, just needs a little extra attention from time to time. I clocked in and opened up the store and sat down to eat my breakfast. I thought that I would be better at this job and was a little disappointed.

Not one hour later a woman came in with her grand daughter  and started looking around at  mattresses. You know me, I started asking where she lived and where she had grown up. Found out she went to the same high school my husband did and we compared notes about growing up in East Point. She said she was looking for a full sized mattress for her grand daughter and selected one. Then we sat down on a huge memory  foam mattress and chatted some more. She commented about how good it felt and I told her to kick back and lay on it. She loved it and decided to buy the king size mattress for herself as well. She needed box springs too  and I was more than happy to oblige. She wanted it all delivered today and paid for it all before leaving. Before noon I was on  the board with over $1600.00 in sales.

Then being the doubting Thomas that you should NEVER be I sat back down in my chair thinking I was done for the day.

Another guy came in and wanted a queen size bed. We had one he liked but asked if we had any sale going? I told him it was a pretty good price anyway but said I would let it go out the door for the marked price and we'd pay the sales tax. He said he didn't have a truck and couldn't afford delivery. No problem! I had the exact same bed in the back in boxes and they slid right between the seats of his SUV.

Now we're getting somewhere!

I thought to myself, NOW I'm done for  the day. One hour later the phone rang and noticed the number was my brother's. He just bought a house in Orlando and asked me if we had a queen size bed and dresser? Heck yeah! Then he added  a mattress and box springs.  He wanted it all delivered to his Atlanta office where they would ship it to him.

Granted it was my brother but was a really good deal. $299 for a queen size Cherry sleigh bed, $699 for the bed dresser and mirror.

I hauled everything to the back door of the store for pick up...no small task. The only thing I didn't move was the huge king size memory foam mattress, it weighs twice what I do.

Don't ask me how my delivery dude managed to get a king size mattress,  two box springs, full size mattress and box springs, queen mattress and box springs, dresser with mirror and a queen size sleigh bed into the back of a pick up truck but he did. These Latinos are some amazing workers!



In the mean time an Asian man came in to price full size mattresses. His wife and  children were coming here from Japan to join him. We only had two left and he needed two. I told him he needed to come back tomorrow before we sold  one of them, he promised he would. When he left I said "Konnichiwa." (Good afternoon in Japanese)  He smiled and I quickly said that was about all I knew not to get too excited when he bowed, said "Sayonara" and I perked back up and said "HEY I know that one too!"

That's  the way  you sell. You don't just sell the merchandise, you sell yourself. I've been doing it for a few weeks now and finally it is all starting to pay off.

I posted my numbers from today on the  computer when I ran my report at closing and not five minutes later the owner of the company called to congratulate me.

Yep, I was the big dog today. I know it was MY biggest day and def  caught the boss man's attention.

I truly think I may have some MoJo going on and beginning to reap rewards of  the seeds I've sown.

Going in again tomorrow and  giving it my best  shot. Wish me luck!

Til next  time...COTTON

Staying Positive

Today was my last day at  the furniture gig. Tomorrow is the actual last day it will be open but I'll be slinging dishes at  the restaurant. I'm moving to the mattress store here in Newnan but it doesn't start  for a couple of weeks so I'm back to being a plate slinger full time for a while. I wasn't as busy as I'd like this week and  today seemed like more of the same until seemingly out of the sky fell almost $3,300 of merchandise sold and out the door. Go me! (and go figure)

It's been a tough week. Tim's still looking for a job and spends hours every day on  the Internet filling out applications and searching for opportunities. He had an interview the other day and on the way home his car broke down. Now the only people in our house with vehicles are our kids. On one hand, how sad is that? On the other hand, guess we're pretty lucky those two kids still live at  home!

I'm going to my bank Monday to apply for a thousand dollar personal loan to try and go ahead and get my car I have been paying a hundred dollars a week on, trying to get it paid down to the drive out point of  being half paid off. Guess I'll dig out my cute black dress (every woman owns one) and trot my self down there like I'm somebody and beg for a loan. It's highly unlikely (considering my crafty banking ways) they will say yes but the president of the bank comes into the restaurant all the time and knows who I am. My boss kind of softened him up for me when he was in last Sunday by  explaining my circumstances and what I needed. He said to come by and talk to him. That made me feel good...Talking is definitely my forte'.  The worst they can do is say no. Actually the worst  they can do is laugh in my face but I think banking laws strictly prohibit it. (at least I hope they do)

I was kinda getting down in the dumps by Friday morning. I had a slow, sweltering week at  the furniture store and was feeling like a fifty three year old failure, having to bum rides from my seventeen year old daughter until my sister reminded me we bought her car for her. Looks like that was a smart move on our part. She shuttles us around and loans us the vehicle whenever we need it. Unfortunately, HER car has been acting funny and we just keep our fingers crossed it's nothing major.

Last night I bummed a ride home with one of the servers at work (a college student). She drives right past my street and is a totally great girl so of course said she didn't mind one bit. Once again, feeling like a loser (it was slow at the restaurant too) I climbed in her car. It was a short ride but a big lesson.

She told me how much  she admired us. She told me how amazed she was how I busted my hump at two jobs to help keep my family afloat. Let me add she is pretty straight shooting chick. She makes "ME" look like a shrinking Violet!

That made me start  thinking again. I "Am" a lucky woman. Yes lately we've hit yet more bumps in the road but at least we are ON the road, albeit bumming rides. We've struggled by (with the help of so many I can't count them all) but struggled on. We may continue to struggle for a while but giving up or having a defeatist attitude won't help one stinking bit.

I have two weeks to wait tables full time, pick up as many shifts as I  can, march into bank and at least try to get my loan. If they tell me no, I'll simply withdraw my twenty three dollars, close my account  and go join the credit union the rest of my family belongs to. That will show them! (not really but will make a twenty three dollar point and make ME feel better)

Today helped even more. It was slow at  the furniture store and once again began to doubt myself . In the last hour I sold the most expensive couch in the store and two of the most expensive recliners. I sold a queen size bed, mattress and box springs, then pushed through  financing for another six hundred dollar sale. Guess I'm not a failure after all.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, "When in doubt, don't."

If I can hang on two more weeks,  make some decent money slinging plates and  (fingers crossed) Tim lands a job we'll be back on the top of the bottom!

I'll be selling strictly mattresses and bedroom furniture in my new store and feel more confident about those products.  At least I'll be going in ready to sell. When I started managing at the  furniture alone, I spent my entire first day constantly praying no one would come in and want to purchase anything because I wasn't even certain I knew how to ring up a cash sale much less run a credit card or God forbid  a finance application.

Look  who's all grown up now! I know a lot more about mattresses and have done pretty well at  selling them thus far.

Actually, I can't believe they haven't fired the woman in our Human resources department who recommended me for the job. I made a lot of mistakes early on but learned a tremendous amount since starting in February. HUGE shout out to Vicki for having faith in me and making me have faith in myself!

My server friend last night on  the ride home urged me to contact our local paper with a sampling of my writings and  thought I was a perfect fit to write a column. I already have a name for it..."Column Cottons" (get it?)

Going to bed feeling much better about myself, my life and our situation.

Quoting yet another one from my buddy Ben Franklin, "Having been poor is no shame, but being ashamed of it, is."

My life is what it is, what I choose to do with what I have is what it will become.

The good things in my life far out weigh  the bad. Sometimes I just need a kick in the pants to remember.
Consider my pants kicked!

Til next  time...COTTON (or hopefully as I will be known in the future "Call 'em Cottons"