Faded Memories, New Beginnings and Slow Bus Days

It's been a little bit since I last posted. It wasn't like I didn't have things to share (there's LOADS on my mind right this instant) or some kind of mental blockage (aka writer's block). I've simply been a little preoccupied and pressed for time. I've been trying to incorporate my new job with my old routines but have found this extremely difficult at the moment. But after this weekend, I hope that things will be better.

SO HERE'S WHAT'S NEW...on May 15th I started a new job as a legal assistant/collector at KBWLO. This is literally my first "grown up" job-I work 40 hours a week, have to dress business casual, have a cubicle of my very own and company email. Not to mention benefits and 401K and accrued personal time off (eventually, say after my 90 days). I called people or they call me about medical debt that they've gotten into and sometimes I help set up payment arrangements, individuals agree to pay their debt in full or they become irate, curse me out and hang up. No matter what happens, there's never a dull moment at KBWLO and I'm still thoroughly surprised that I even got hired. So I've been working here for about 4 weeks now and I've just gotten comfortable with being on the phone and discussing financial matters. On Friday, I sent out my first suit listing letter to a debtor. I actually got excited about typing and printing this letter and the excitement didn't subside even as I folded it and place it in a envelope marked for certified mail. KBWLO offers opportunities to advance throughout the company and it's a family centered office, should that actually exist. Attorney Wilson comes through the office each day and speaks/slash chit-chats with each collector. When he stops at my cubicle he often scares me cause he just pops out of no where. He thinks it's amazingly funny that someone can scare so easily. Perhaps he may be popping up b/c he know this. I'm uncertain. Overall, I'm enjoying this experience and the pay's pretty good. So good that...

I'VE GOTTEN MYSELF A NEW "USED" CAR! It's a 1999 Black 2 Door Chevy cavalier that's been appropriately named 'Black Magic' from one of my fav Santana songs. At the dealership, it just would sink in that I now had an automobile of my own. While signing my signature to a bazillion pages, it still didn't sink in that I now had an automobile of my own. The thought didn't truly hit me until I was sitting inside it at an automatic carwash. White masses of foam were surrounding me, I reached out and touched the steering wheel and screamed at the top of my lungs, "Damn, I've got a car!" I go to bed a night, still praising God for this blessing b/c for a minute there, I didn't think it would happen. But it did and Black Magic is sitting in our apartment parking lot resting for tomorrow's 20 minute commute.

MY SAMSUNG FELL INTO MY CEREAL BOWL some Sundays ago. I fished it out as quickly as I could and even dried it out but ALAS, it died like week. Was reduced to a fuzzy, blinking screen so I switched my phone back to the Nokia. Oh, how I'd missed it. Some of the phone numbers transferred to the Nokia and others didn't so I've spent a nice amount of time trying to rebuild my phonebook. Can we say that's so freakin' boring! Rebuilding has allowed me to purge myself of numbers of people who rarely call me and I don't call them, officially placing them on the "Dismissed" list.

WITH THE NEW JOB, COMES NEW CODING AND POLICIES TO LEARN so my slow bus days have multiplied 10 fold. I got a real job and had to learn a whole new set of numbers, codes, computer systems and even abbreviations. My first week at my desk (after 2 weeks of training), I was a wreck trying to key in the correct responses to phone calls and such. Now I've got some more practice under my belt and check this: I even dreamed about answering and coding phone calls in my sleep. Maybe I won't be such a slow bus after all.

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND WAS WONDERFULLY spent with family and few friends. I even spent the night with my mama. She and I stayed up for hours my first night in Memphis, talking and laughing and just reminiscing about the good and the bad. I told MG that it was almost like playing catch-up with an old college roommate you haven't seen in years. Mama expressed how proud she is of me and as usual, I cried. It never fails. Sometimes I just don't feel deserving of her praise. I think about the pain we both brought into each other's lives, wondering she can ever find pure goodness in me, my sister or my niece but she does. Motherly love is just amazing.

I'm praying that this new week is just as awesome as previous ones. I think that I'm becoming more profficient as a collector and I absolutely love getting up and going to work each day. Let's hope that this feeling doesn't disappear or waver any time soon.