Day ninety

I'm at work right now, on my first break. I now have wifi access through the company's guest network.

Anyway, today I'm writing about something that I planned to write when the appropriate time came, but I was distracted by work issues and that time came and went. Still, it's important enough that I want to put this out there.

This last Friday, March 28, is the two-year anniversary of when I got saved. I can't believe I'd forgotten but I've had a lot of other things on my mind, mostly work-related.

I wanted to share about this since so much has happened in my life since I've gotten saved. So many things are different about me and my life for which I'm very thankful, especially the gift of salvation from Jesus Christ.

Maybe the best way to describe it all is this: the testimony I gave at church when I was baptized last year. I've given my testimony a few times, but this is the best, clearest way I've ever told it. Enjoy.

…

Before I was saved, I was not doing anything with my life. I was not accomplishing anything, I really had no goals, and I was deeply unhappy. I have been coming to Grace ever since I was born, but I had no spiritual life, and I wasn’t cultivating those relationships I thought I would have. I really did believe that I was saved, and even went so far as to be baptized; however, there was no spiritual fruit. I did everything I could to shut people out of my life, and all I did was try to make myself happy. All I got for that was a lot of wasted years and nothing to show for it.

2.

I was laying in bed one night in mid-February; something had been bothering me for days. I was so scared about what was happening that I started shaking uncontrollably for about two minutes. However, I didn’t tell anyone about it; I just sat on it for about a week and a half. One night after that, I just had a total breakdown. I realized that I was so unhappy, that I had nothing to live for, and most importantly, that I wasn’t saved. I prayed with my parents for God to come into my life. In retrospect, I realize that I hadn’t prayed for salvation, but that God would take away my loneliness. I started to attend the Doulos fellowship group, I began volunteering on the church campus, and I began attending the Men of the Word study on Wednesday nights with my dad. All throughout that month of March, however, I still was gripped by this crushing agony that wouldn’t go away no matter what. I just kept breaking down over and over again, such that by the end of March, I was wondering if this horrible heartbreak was what it meant to be saved; I was so despondent that I actually wanted to die. Still, I was so scared of what might happen that, reflecting back on it, God was keeping me from taking my own life. Someone had given a workbook by Wayne Mack as a means to begin exploring Scripture. While looking for a particular verse, I stumbled on James 1:8, “he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways”. It was in that moment that I realized that all that had happened was because I had not given myself to God. Two days later, I was talking with my dad, telling him that I was struggling with whether my faith was strong enough. He told me that genuine faith doesn’t come from us, but that it is a gift from God to us. In that moment, I prayed to God to save me from my sins, to give me the faith I needed to believe in Him and follow Him. When it was over, every bit of sorrow and grief that had gripped me was gone. I knew I was free and that God had taken them from me.

3.

Since then, God has caused me to grow in so many ways. The early going had its ups and downs, but God, through Scripture and the support of my new brothers and sisters, has carried me through. I had wanted people to care about me for so long, but what I really needed was to care for others. God has given me a heart that longs for others, and cares for their well-being. I have been blessed with opportunities to meet the needs of others, and others have been a source of encouragement to me. I have been exploring and considering opportunities for ministry and praying that God will lead me to those opportunities.

Day eighty-nine

This'll probably be another short post tonight. There's not much news today.

I'm feeling a little bit better after having been sick the whole weekend. I need to be at least well enough to go to work tomorrow. I need to turn in my insurance forms and tomorrow is the deadline not to be penalized at year's end. My brother Joe got me some cold pills earlier; they're the gel caps which I prefer as I think they work more quickly than traditional pills.

Other than that, not much else is going on. Joe is trying to get hired at a surveyor company in Van Nuys and he had to attend a "preliminary seminar" today. I'm so glad I don't work Sundays. It's bad enough that I had to drop out of my Bible study because I could no longer make the Friday night meetings.

I guess I would end this by asking for your continued prayer for personal growth and wisdom regarding work and finances. We've got big changes coming soon at work and I'm thinking about getting a credit card.

Day eighty-eight

Short post tonight. I'm too tired to write much (or to want to).

I am officially sick again. Pray that I would be well enough for work Monday, as I need to turn in my insurance paperwork by then. Otherwise, I'll be penalized at the end of the year for being uninsured at this time.

I did my tax appointment today. I made so little money last year that my parents were still able to claim me as a dependent. I'm getting back everything I paid to the state of California: $143.00. Apparently, the federal government didn't even collect anything from me.

It's almost 7:30 pm as I write this and I normally would've had "lunch-dinner" by this point. What's to eat?

Day eighty-seven

Today was a very good day, even better than yesterday.

First, we were able to get everything done on time, so no overtime. It turns out we don't have overtime on Fridays, so we had to get our work done by 10:30, or it wasn't getting finished.

Today was actually the first day over about a week and a half that we started to get ahead on our work. That must have been God's timing, since we had a big order come in late in the day. The other packer, Ana, was the one who actually did the order. I just put boxes together for her, and handled other orders.

I also had the opportunity to talk to our manager, John, letting him know that we very much need another packer/shipper in the digital room. He expanded on a remark that he made the other day. I learned that in as soon as a couple of weeks, the plan is to consolidate all the shipping back out on the warehouse floor. There seems to be a plan to reconfigure how shipping is handled, ultimately to hopefully streamline the process. We'll see what happens.

Meanwhile, I'm now home. It's 11:10 pm and and I'm winding down. I'm glad that the weekend is here, since I've had a raw throat for the last day or so. I hope this doesn't become a cold. Tomorrow is my appointment with our tax lady. Also, I have to pick an insurance plan and submit the forms to Human Resources on Monday. Pray that God will grant me wisdom in making the right choice.

Day eighty-six

I'm just sitting down to lunch as I write this. Today has been an answer to prayer. The workload has been much lighter today. Perhaps as a consequence of that, we seem to be getting things done faster than the past couple of days. Thank You, God, for giving us a day to get caught up.

I've been thinking about since this morning, and I've come to the conclusion that a big part of the problem we have in the digital room is that we need more people. We need at least one more packer in the second shift, since we get the lion's share of the workload. The first shift has two packers and one packer/shipper. If they need three people to do the packing and shipping, we need three at the very least.

Also, there is only one person in the whole company who does the folding work for digital. He works the second shift, but has to do all the folding work, first and second shift, plus overnight. The company has been trying to promote from within to find a first-shift digital folder almost as long as I've been here and that will be seven weeks this Monday. Since he does all the folding, he has to rush to get it all done on time, which means we rush to pack it. It's not really his fault; he has to so it all, when he shouldn't have to be doing so.

…

Update-11:35 pm: I am waiting for Mom to pick me up. What turned out to be an answer to prayer in a much less hectic workday has turned somewhat sour at the end.

I worked an hour of overtime which allowed me to get a little but caught up on tomorrow's work. It was also the first time all day that it was quiet in the digital room, since no machines were running apart from the actual digital printers, which make very little noise.

As I come out to where my bike is locked up on the sidewalk, what should I discover but that both of my wheels have been stolen. Admittedly, it's more annoying than anything else. The bike was bought secondhand for twenty bucks, and I can get replacement wheels easily; Dad probably has suitable rims in the garage.

The only major inconvenience is that I'll probably need a ride tomorrow. Oh well.

Day eighty-five

When I began the day, I had a sense of something being very bad today. I didn't know exactly what it would be, but somehow I felt something was coming, and that it was work-related.

Maybe about an hour and a half ago (8:32 pm as I write this), it was brought to my attention that I accidentally packed the item for one job together with another job that was sent out yesterday. Apparently, the client contacted the company about what happened, and from what I could tell, didn't seem upset about it.

I can tell that the company definitely wasn't happy about it. The telling thing is, two different bosses came to talk to us about it and each had two different attitudes.

The quality control guy was the one who first brought it to our attention. While he wasn't angry, he certainly wasn't thrilled. When he mentioned that "they" (whoever they are) were laughing at us, And I was thinking was, "I don't care if anyone's laughing." I have enough things go think about when I'm working.

The shift manager came in a little later and talked to us. I told him that  the problem was my fault, which was true. He said that he understood that we were under a lot of pressure to get things done. In the second shift, this is especially true since we are responsible for making sure everything gets sent out for shipping on time. Anyway, I appreciate that he understood the pressure we're under.

…

It's 11:09 pm and I'm home. I got asked to stay for overtime and I said no. I couldn't wait to get home.

Pray that God would grant me patience as long as He intends to keep me there. I really want to find something else now. I want to get out of there. It's an escalating level of aggravation, and frankly, it's pretty unrewarding. Today, I was sorely tempted to put down every piece of equipment the company gave me for work, walk out, and not come back. Of course, doing that would've been a very bad idea. I'm glad I didn't do it, but I've just about had enough.

Today was worse than yesterday, and I dread thinking how Thursday, our busiest day, is going to be.

Day eighty-four

This feels like it's shaping up to be "one of those days". It's very busy, the folder in the digital room is out today, and I'm sure I'm going to be asked to stay late tonight. On the upside, we've had. Hey days before, we'll get done what we can get done, and I'm already planning to decline overtime for tonight.

Today is my dad's birthday. He is sixty-three. His only plans for today were to take the day off and go to the movies. Dad had never been extravagant in regards to his birthday.

I actually don't have a gift for him yet (it's 4:05 pm as I write this; I'm on my first break at work). I'll probably just stop by the store and get him a gift card of some kind. That's the funny thing about Dad: he doesn't have a lot of tastes, which can make him simultaneously easy and difficult to shop for.

…

It's 6:03 pm, and I've just sat down to lunch. It's been a hectic afternoon. If you've had one of those days where it seems like you're doing a lot, but it feels like you've not gotten anything done, then you know what the last two hours have been like.

I've already decided that should I be asked to stay for overtime (I've haven't been asked yet but I fully expect I will), I will decline it outright. It just feels like, "I'm not staying late, not if you want me to come back tomorrow." I'm not saying I'd quit, but I just need to stop when 10:30 rolls around, just so I wouldn't be reluctant to come back tomorrow.

That's probably the clearest intangible benefit of working here; like my last job, it can leave it behind, good day or bad, and pick it up anew the next day. Of course, it's only Tuesday, and I already can't wait for the weekend.

…

Update-11:06 pm. I'm home. There was no overtime tonight, not that I would've stayed if asked.

I stopped by the market and bought Dad a Subway gift card. He was glad to get it. The thing is, it didn't occur to me to actually buy a birthday card until after I left the store. I found what I wanted to give him, and he was happy to receive it. That's what mattered.

Day eighty-three

Earlier this morning, I begun going through the paperwork for signing up for the company health plan. Fortunately, I've got until April 1st to turn in the forms. There's so much to figure out and I'm not yet sure which plan I should get. It's complicated. Pray that God would grant me wisdom in figuring all this stuff out.

I have been without health insurance for at least five years. Thankfully, I've been able to get by without it. Of course, in that time, I had to get a physical when I did my pharmacy externship and I have to pay for it out of pocket. Other than that, I've be able to avoid any major health issues. When I needed to get my eyes checked, I went to Costco and paid for an eye exam.

Of course, I don't know what could happen. It's all in God's hands. I pray for wisdom in all of this.

I realize this isn't much if a post today; there may be an update later.

Day eighty-two

We've celebrated my brother's birthday today. Actually, his real birthday is on Saint Patrick's Day, but this was the first day we could actually get everyone together to celebrate. Joe is now twenty-seven years old. It's funny to think that when I was saved, I was twenty-seven years old. This October, I will be thirty.

When I think back on my previous twenty-nine birthdays, only two really stand out. On my last birthday, I actually went to a party that was originally an unrelated get-together with some friends. When I told them it was going to be on my birthday, the party evolved into a birthday party. That's really the first time I'd had a party like that. The other birthday that stands out was either my sixth or seventh birthday, which my mom held at McDonald's. I don't know if they still do this, but there was a time when McDonald's would arrange and throw a party in a particular location for you, complete with cake. I had to have been my sixth or eventhubs birthday because I was still going to a Christian school at the time, and they were the only kids I knew and with whom I was friends, apart from our neighbors at the time.

This Tuesday is my dad's birthday. He turns sixty-three, as will Mom in October. He doesn't make a big deal of his own birthday. His only plan is to take the day off and go to a movie with Mom. Whatever they decide to do, I'll probably be at work when they do it. I'm not sure what I'd get him part from being some kind of gift card. To where, I'm not sure. At least I have a little time to think.

Incidentally, until about six or so years ago, the most famous person with I shared a brith date (October 25) was Marion Ross, who played Mrs. Cunningham on Happy Days. These days, it's Katy Perry

Day eighty-one

I just bore witness to one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time, and I can't say what it is, because it's kind of personal in regards to someone else. You'll have to imagine what it is. It's not dirty, just something that I can't really share.

Not much to speak of today. I found my copy of At the Throne of Grace by John MacArthur. Actually, I think I have two copies. Anyway, I've pulled it out and I'm going to start reading it tomorrow. I have a lot of Christian books to read and I admit I haven't made much progress in them. Part of it is making the time to read them, another part is wanting to read books that address issues that I'm dealing with in my own life. 

…

On a side note, pray for my friend Eneida. She is trying to go on disability so that she must rest. She is six months pregnant, and she is trying to avoid the risk of a pre-term delivery. We're all praying for her and her little girl. 

Day eighty

Today, I realized something: I don't like my job.

I mean, I'm blessed to have this job. It's close to home, it meets my needs, and I'm about to sign up for health insurance. I am truly blessed to be where I am. But, I don't really like my job.

When I got hired at the printing company, I didn't have any intention of making my career there. I still don't, probably now more than ever. I've really only come to terms with the fact that I don't really like what I do.

I think part of it is the environment. My old job was at least a semi-Christian environment, inasmuch as my boss was a believer and it definitely influenced his management style. In the now six weeks that I've been working here, I've not yet gotten any sense that anyone I work with is a believer. I would love to work in a Christian environment. I wonder why now should be the time that I would hear from church about an application for a job that I submitted nearly a year ago. Maybe it's to get me thinking.

All I know for sure that I would love to be working with other believers and that I would get out of where I am at the first opportunity. Please pray that God would grant me wisdom in pursuing that opportunity.

Day seventy-nine

After about a week and a half of being ahead on our work, we are swamped today in the digital room. In fact, as I write this, it's 4:03 pm and I've already been asked to stay for overtime. I said I could stay for an hour. I'll get home basically in time to post this today, barring anything happening. I'd forgotten that today was Thursday, so I really should've anticipated this happening.

Today, I finally got my information and forms for health insurance. I have until April 1st to submit, so this weekend, I want to go through all the information I have to make the best choice for me. Pray that The Lord will grant me wisdom in making the right decisions.

The additional deductions for my paychecks may mean picking up more overtime hours. I don't think I'd always take them, and of course, there will be times when I'm simply unavailable to do so. I also pray that God would grant me wisdom in making better use of the money I'm making. I've never been terribly good with money, but I need to get better, now that what I'm earning needs to go farther.

…

Update: 8:34pm. I am presently on my second break. Because of overtime, I will have one more break at 10:30. We are slammed with stuff to do. There's not a lot of stuff at present to pack, but there's tons of stuff still being cut and it's all due tonight at 10:00. Beyond that, it will be considered late. I'm praying that we can get it done.

Something doesn't seem to be working if we're having to rush to finish on time on a almost-daily basis. I don't know if we need more help (which we might), or if it's just how things are being done.

Something I meant to mention earlier: I got an email from church regarding a job I applied for nearly a year ago, ironically being the assistant in the church's printing room. The position opened up again and they had been trying to contact me for the past day or so. Finally, they emailed me this morning and I responded. They asked if I wanted to interview, but I had to ask if the position was full-time or part-time. When they said "part-time", I declined immediately. If they could have offered me a full-time position at the same per-hour I'm making now, I might've taken the interview. When I applied and didn't hear anything back, I didn't give it any more thought. I really did hear from them out of the blue. I hope the church finds someone who fills that need, because I know it's not me.

Day seventy-eight

Another typical work day. I finally got my login so I can start shipping our orders myself now. We rushed to get the last of our orders out, as we usually do. We had two different orders, one due today and the other tomorrow, that were the exact same type of item. Today's order was late because the orders got mixed together. Other than that, no big deal.

This might be one of those days where I'm just checking in. I don't want to skip any days and there have been a few times where I have come very close to missing days. Thankfully, I haven't missed one yet. So, here you go. May something more interesting come along tomorrow.

Day seventy-seven

I wasn't sure what I would write about tonight until I just sat down.

I've been going through a period lately where it seems very apparent to me just how rotten I am. My thoughts seem bitter and nasty, my attitude seems bad, and I find myself growing easily distrustful of The Lord and what He wants for me. I asked God in prayer to give me a humble heart, and I realize that it means having to confront and turn from bad attitudes that may linger in me and seek forgiveness from The Lord.

My dad has told me that he looks forward to being with The Lord in heaven because it means he will finally be rid of the sins that trouble him. It wasn't until I thought about it later, but I can't wait for that, either.

I admit that sometimes I have found the prospect of being with The Lord in heaven daunting because of the sins that trouble me. I know that Satan is trying to discourage me and lead me into distrusting God. The Lord has forgiven all my sins, and when I dwell in His presence, it will be in the total absence of sin. I need to be continually reminded of The Lord's goodness to me and to every believer.

Day seventy-six

Quick post tonight. It's late and I don't feel like writing much.

It's been a weird day. We've spent the whole day ahead on our work. I thought we were doing good being a day ahead. Now we may be two full days ahead. Turns out one of the guys who works the first shift, Marco, came in to work on Saturday. He made sure a bunch of stuff got sent off early.

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I think God is using this job to teach me some humility. I'll admit I could always be more humble, but I'm learning how prideful I still can be. I make mistakes when I work, mistakes I could easily avoid making if I avoided the common pitfall of getting into a lull in my work. I don't always have a good attitude about work, either. I'd like to move on at some point, but this is where God has put me on this point in my life.

Pray that God would give a more humble heart, as I very much need to be more humble. We all do.

Day seventy-five

This is something I've been sitting on for the past few days, and now I've got the opportunity To write about this subject. This topic encompasses what may be the single most complicating factor of my work.

I'd like to write about the rather convoluted and often confusing rules of packing and shipping paper goods. Please note that the guiding principle of these rules seems to be:

"Every hard and fast rule has a built-in exception, expect when it doesn't."

1. Orders are itemized by what time of day they must be shipped out. Anything being sent overnight and picked up on site must be done by 5:00 pm, 2nd day items by 7:00, and ground and home deliveries by 10:00. This rule applies every day but Friday, when overnights and pickups can be pushed back to 7:00, and 2nd days to 10:00 with everything else.

2. Every order to pack has a printed barcode to which a sample of the order must be attached. Most of the time, taking any one copy of the printed order for the sample is acceptable. Some orders are printed with a numerical sequence (tickets, invoice blanks, etc.) that must be kept in order. In that place, extras are printed that are un-numbered from which you draw the sample.

In the case of rolls of labels, there may be a sample taken from the printing, or there may simply be a picture of the item used.

3. Speaking of rolls of labels, when those are boxed, they must be placed into plastic bags to keep them safe for transport. However, some rolls are too big to bag and have to be paper-wrapped. The company doesn't necessarily like that we do this, but sometimes that's how it has to be done.

4. Every order is called a "job" and some job have multiple parts. Multiple-part jobs can and ought to be boxed together, because they will share a common receiving address. However, in the case of things like business cards, which can have multiple jobs printed but for different people at the same common address, each part is boxed separately, each box gets it's own sample, and then they are placed together in a common box for shipping.

5. At the moment, we as packers/shippers cannot send out anything ourselves that is being shipped internationally. Any international orders we receive, we may pack, but have to send to the main shipping department to be processed. The company may change this policy in the near-future.

…

I personally deal with at least any three of these rules on any given day. It makes for a complicated job, one that demands an enormous attention to detail. Fortunately, now that the digital room is becoming better organized, the process is becoming easier. I pray that as things improve, so will our work load.

Day seventy-four

Today was the wedding of Timothy and Samantha Sakaida (née Ferrante). It was all truly an answer to prayer. Everything went smoothly, everyone was happy, and I hope and pray that The Lord blesses their marriage as they seek to honor Him in it. I've only gotten to know the two of them fairly recently, but they really love each other and they love Christ. I hope that when the time comes, I will find the woman that I truly hope and pray God means for me. 

I took plenty of photos which you can see on my Facebook page. It was a small, intimate ceremony (of which I actually have no photos), and a similarly intimate reception. It was fairly comfortable, considering that it was outside and I didn't realize it was going to be so warm today. I thought about wearing my black sport coat since the tie I bought came with a handkerchief for the coat pocket. I'm glad I left it at home.

Mom and I left a little bit early. We weren't sure if we should, as we didn't want to leave anyone short-handed when it came time to clear up the reception. It's been a very busy week for everyone, and it's nice that things will start to settle down for a while.

…

On another front, Joshua and Samantha Bahruth leave for San Antonio at 4:00 am tomorrow morning. Josh told me that when the reception wrapped up, they had to head back to her parents' house to repack the truck. I realize that this may be something of a truism, but it seems that no moving job can ever happen without having some kind of major complication. Having gained a fair bit of personal experience helping others move, I've learned that no matter how much you prepare, you can never really prepare for everything. At the same time, you have to be ready for anything.

 I pray that they get to Texas safely. They're not planning to make many stops along the way; Josh wants to make it a straight shot into San Antonio. I've never made so long a car trip, but for me, the best possible thing that could happen on any car trip is nothing. By "nothing" I mean no breakdowns, no detours, no getting stranded anywhere. I guess it would be better to say that I prefer it when car trips are uneventful.  

Sending out one more prayer for everyone today, the. It's time to go to bed. 

Day seventy-three

I had originally intended to write about the convoluted rules for shipping our orders at work, but it's late, and I don't want to take the time tonight. I'll wait a couple of days.

One quick note: the last day marked the single highest one-day page view count at seventy-three views. I don't know what made the count jump so high, but I'm grateful that people are continuing to read what I'm writing.

It is 10:01 pm as I write this. I am at work, taking my last break of the day. I'm actually taking it a half hour late. Since I came in at 1:00 this afternoon, I'm into overtime now, and thus I'm entitled to an extra break.

Today was the first day all week that we spent most of the day working only on what was due today. We've gotten caught up, thankfully, but we still had an order go out late.

It was my fault, actually. The order had nine parts and one was missing, so I set it on the rack, thinking the last part would turn up. Not only the last part not turn up, I have placed the order on the rack for Monday and it was due today. So we had to rush to send out an order that was both late and incomplete. Only one of those things is not my fault. The system we have in place in the digital room works if you're paying attention, and I wasn't.

Day seventy-two

I got up twice this morning. The first time was a little after 8:00 to take a shower. The second time was at 10:35. HR called and asked if I could come in at noon; I said no, I had other things to do before work. I was again today if I could come in tomorrow at noon. This time, I said I could come early but not until 1:00.

Yesterday, I was asked if I could work a full shift this Saturday. Again, I said no, but I had the legitimate excuse of the wedding in Woodland Hills. Truth be told, I probably still would've turned in down without the wedding, but I don't feel bad about it when I have an actual reason to say "no" other than not wanting to do it.

…

In the digital room, and out on the warehouse floor, we are allowed to play music from a radio; headphones are a safety issue. Our label maker, Jeremiah, spent a good part of the day playing Filipino alt-rock. Somewhere along the way, some group started playing an alt-rock cover of the disco classic "I Will Survive" in Tagalog. At least, the male singer was alternating between singing in English and Tagalog. I can understand some artist wanting to take a bonafide hit and try to make it their own, but it was a series of odd choices. Shifting genres, changing the language of the song, and changing from a female to a male singer made for eSily one of the strangest some covers I've ever heard.

Day seventy-one

The first thing that happened when I sat down after coming in the door is Chewy coming up to me, yipping his head off, and rolling on the floor to get attention. I picked him up, started scratching his side, and found the spot that makes him kick his hind leg like he's scratching himself. He's a lap dog, but now he's getting too big for our laps. We love him, but really, he can't afford to get tossed out of another house. We think that's how he ended up in the street in the first place.

Other than that, not much to speak of for today. We're getting to the point where we are starting to get a day ahead on our work. Before the day was half-finished, almost all today's work was done. We've gotten to the point where we're spending at least two hours each day working on the next day's business. I'm thrilled and thankful that things are more streamlined. We also have more help and that is certainly making a difference.

I'm getting sleepy as I write this. I'm glad that I don't have to be anywhere early tomorrow. Of course, anything can happen between now and then. May I lean on The Lord for whatever happens.

Day seventy

This morning, I went to help Joshua and Samantha pack up his truck for their move to Texas. Most of their stuff was already boxed up, which made our work a lot easier. When Josh offered lunch afterwards, we went to Subway. I thought that I would get a footlong sub to have for munch and take half of it to work. Josh seemed to like that line of reasoning.

As Samie and I worked on the truck, she told me that it hadn't quite hit her that they were actually leaving. It's been a busy few weeks for her. On top of preparing for the move, she's been helping her friend Samantha prepare for the wedding on Saturday. When it's all done and head off for San Antonio, that's when that realization will come. Either that, or when they've been in Texas for a few days and she'll get that thought, "We should think about heading home", and then she'll realize, "We are home."

It's wasn't too busy a day at work, which was nice. It certainly wasn't so slow as yesterday, but we still had the opportunity to get ahead on our work. Also, the new organization system seems to be largely taking hold. That certainly seems to be contributing to the smoother work and quicker turnaround. I pray we can keep it up, especially now that we have someone in the digital room to do our folding work. We no longer lose time having to go back and forth taking orders onto the warehouse floor to be done.

I need to go do my daily Scripture reading. I'm getting it done late as it is.

Day sixty-nine

Today proved to be an unusual day at work. For the first time since I started one month ago, we had an uncharacteristically slow day. I mean, we have enough to keep us busy, but at the same time, we never had a major buildup of work. Our cutter (he actually cuts the orders that have been printed) actually left for a couple of hours and we experienced no backlog or had to play catchup at all. We spent the last two hours getting a head start on tomorrow's work.

Jeremiah, who makes rolls of labels, told me they get these slow periods every so often. It's an opportunity to get ahead on work, but apparently they don't last more than a day or so. That's not too surprising as work tends to be busier as the week progresses, peaking on Thursday. I would be very surprised if tomorrow was a repeat of today.

Last Friday, I was told by my manager that I was hired during what tends to be a busy time of year. This time is filled with summer-related printings, graduation notices, and an abundance of wedding invitations. He said it would slow down during the summer months into the fall, but would pick up again mid-autumn in time for the holidays. After New Year's, it'll drop off again for a spell.

I need to wrap this up; I have an early dy tomorrow and I'm having a late dinner.

Day sixty-eight

I just got home from a going-away party for my friends Joshua and Samantha. By this time next Sunday, they'll be on their way to Texas. Between now and then, I may be helping them get some stuff ready before they take off, and there's still the wedding this coming Saturday.

This is as good a time and place as any to talk about my friendship with Josh and Samie. They're the first friendships I formed as a believer. Josh was a source of encouragement for a struggling believer who was very young in their walk with The Lord. He was not only the first friend I've had as a believer, he and Samie were my first big opportunity for ministry when they were fundraising for the short-term mission trip to South Africa almost two years ago. As for Samie, I've never said this to her, but she was an early and valuable model of what to seek in a godly woman. I've tried to learn something about godly women from the sisters in my life, but Samie taught me (without ever knowing it) the virtue of seeking the right one, and being patient in doing so. Josh came to California to become a pastor and is leaving with a wonderful lady for a wife.

It has been a privilege and a pleasure to know them, and to be their friend. I thank God that they came into my life, and for the blessings that have come with them.

Day sixty-seven

I meant to write this post earlier, but I'm glad I didn't. If I had, I would've felt like I didn't have anything to write about today, which isn't true.

Today is my parents' thirty-fourth anniversary. Mom have Dad a resized copy of a photo they took on their wedding day. Dad wants to keep it on the dining room table. I'm sure what he got for her; I just know they went out earlier this anniversary to pick it out. I just got my gift for them, and I hope they enjoy it.

This was actually the second marriage-related item of the day. Today, I went to but a new dress shirt and tie for the wedding to which I've been invited next Saturday. I've already volunteered to help with set-up and breakdown since the wedding is in a bit of a rush. The date has had to be changed a few times, so we're all praying that everything will come together.

I've found myself thinking about the woman that I hope God means for me. I'd like to get married someday, but I'm not ready to be anyone's husband. Of course, there has to be someone to marry first, and I don't know that I've even met her yet. I pray for here, though, whoever she is. I wonder who she is, where she's at in life, or if she's even saved yet.

It's funny, though. Just now, I've wondered for the first time if she ever thinks about me.

Day sixty-six

I just got home from work, and thankfully, we had no overtime.

I had to go to work a half-hour early to talk to the people to work the first shift in the digital room at work. My boss and I talked about how we needed to figure out a better way to arrange the work so that things will get out on time and not be misplaced, making sure first things go first. It's not perfect, but it's better than it was before. Things went much more smoothly today than they have envelope I started working into the digital room.

I did feel bad that we wound up dumping a lot of work on someone who was not prepared for it. We had a bunch of labels that had to be packaged and we gave them all to a new guy who today finished up his first week of work. A bunch of us had to come together to help him get it done, and it wound up being late. But it got done, and I think we learned not to give that sort of responsibility to someone who was this new to the job.

As we were leaving, the intersection outside were temporarily blocked off by a couple of people in a trick and a sports car doing donuts. I prayed that I wouldn't get hit by either of them as I had to go by to get home. Fortunately, they were only out there for a few minutes. Sometimes it just seems like some people really don't have anything better to do.

Day sixty-five

I'm positng today's blog post early today. I haven't gone to work yet, and I don't leave for about an hour and a half.

Now that I've had the chance to pray and sleep on it, I don't think I'll look for another job right now. I need to give this job the best I can give it as long as God keeps me there. I've prayed that I would continue to work hard and be patient.

Today, this is especially important, since it's Thursday, and Thursday is always the busiest day of the week. If the last two days are any indication, today is going to be a nightmare. When we left last night, the rack where we place our orders to be packed was stuffed with orders that are due today. I already know that we're certainly going to need some help.

I think the first shift may be down a person. The digital room produces rolls of labels on a large machine, and it seems like all the labels have been getting done on our shift. The last couple of days, we've been getting stuff out to be shipped late, and it's tended to be labels. I'm not blaming our label guy, I'm just wondering what's getting done on the first shift.

I don't want this to turn into another complaint blog, but it's clear that there's something not working that needs to be fixed. So, pray that we can figure out what's going on, and that we can get it fixed.

There will probably be an update later, after work.

Day sixty-four

What does it say that I've worked at my present job less than a month and I'm already thinking about moving on? Within the last couple of days, it's become clear to me that I don't want to make my career here. Now, though, I'm thinking more and more about trying something else. As I said yesterday, I'd want to find something in a Christian environment. I went into this job with a vague degree of uncertainty, and I think it's finally come to the surface. I don't really want to stay any longer than I have to.

 I'm honestly not sure what I should do. Part of me thinks I should stick it out a little longer, at least a couple more months. Things can improve and I know that it takes time for things to change. I also realize that every job has its problems.

The upside of this job is that it meets the material needs I have, and I am thankful to God for that, truly. I don't have to travel far to go to work, and I don't have to wake up early to do it. That said, I think I move on at the first opportunity. I've been willing to do this job, and I certainly don't want to do a bad job, I just don't want to stay there.

In the time I've been working, which will be one month this coming Monday, I haven't given any thought to looking for another job. After the last couple of days, I'm thinking about seeing what else is out there. I don't have to commit to anything, but it's nice to know that I can keep my options open.

Pray that God would grant me wisdom in figuring out what to do next, and that I would be patient with my present situation.

Day sixty-three

Today has an…interesting day at work. Slammed with too much to do, trying to get orders to the right places to people who don't really want to be bothered with them, all the while still having to make sure that stuff due today gets out today regardless of what happens.

I don't want to complain, but today's been the confirmation of a lingering thought I've had since my first day here: I don't really want to stay here, and I'd honestly leave at the first opportunity. When I was hired, I hadn't considered making this place my career. Now I can say with certainty that if and when the opportunity to move on arose, I think I would leave with little if any doubt. I'm perfectly willing to work hard, but I'm certain that I wouldn't want to make a career in this place. Right now, I don't even feel like doing overtime tonight.

Ideally, I would like to work in a Christian environment, though I don't know if it's any place in particular.

…

Okay, it's two hours later. I'm in a much better mood. First off, we were able to find someone who could help us get caught up on the huge backlog of work. I'm very thankful to God and to she who was able to help. Also, HR came looking for me to get my time clock issues resolved. It's still not fully resolved, but on the plus side, I got what amounted to an extra break, and I was still on the clock. I think The Lord knew I needed it.

…

I still don't want to stay for overtime, though. I haven't been asked yet. That could change; there's still about two hours left.

…

Got asked, turned it down, came home.

Day sixty-two

Pulled some more overtime tonight, so I'm writing through my breaks again.

Today was the first time I've had to handle a freight shipment. I don't think it's a coincidence that we learned about freight shipping at the training meeting last Saturday. It wasn't too difficult, just a lot of things to back. Out of sixteen boxes, fifteen had the same type of item, which made it easy for a first time. It did mean that I spoke too soon when I thought that there probably wouldn't be any freight moving out of the digital room. Sixteen boxes, 128 rolls of stickers, and 800,000 stickers total. It's the biggest order I've ever boxed, at least in terms of sheer quantity.

Other than that, there's no big news today. They've removed two of the vending machines in the break room, including the only snack machine. That would explain why they were letting it empty out without being restocked. I was beginning to wonder if the company just didn't care that much about them.

It actually has been three weeks since I started. It's been so busy that it seems longer. Maybe it's because things aren't too different from one day to the next. It could be because I get a lot of overtime, though I don't always take advantage of it.

Actually, I had meant to finally get myself signed up for the digital clock-in system today, but then the freight shipment came up, and that took first priority. I figure, what's one more day at least using a paper time sheet? I wanted to make sure I got the order some correctly.

…

Just got off work. It's 11:40 PM and I need to hurry to post this by midnight.

…

Home with four minutes to spare.

Day sixty-one

Tonight is the Academy Awards. I haven't seen any of the movies that were nominated, except for Star Trek Into Darkness, which got the nod for Best Visual Effects. Of course, that also means that I haven't been to a movie theater since last May.  I thought about seeing The Lego Movie, and I still might, but it takes a lot to make me want to go to the movies. The Captain America sequel opens this month, and I enjoyed the last one a lot, so that might get be out to the multiplex.

Honestly, I really have to be interested in the story to get me to go to a movie. There are people who will see a particular actor in any movie; I don't have a favorite actor. I won't see movies based on who's in the cast, but that doesn't keep me away either. I'm not a Ben Affleck fan, but I'm looking forward to his turn as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the Man of Steel sequel even though the Internet practically committed hara-kiri over it. Everyone thought Heath Ledger was going to be bad as The Joker before anyone saw a single frame of The Dark Knight, until he proved everyone wrong.

I'm going to wrap this up. Apparently, my brother is sore because he made a remark that I honestly thought was a misfired joke. He makes a lot of jokes that don't go anywhere when they aren't genuinely confusing.

Day sixty

It's been an unusual Saturday for me. For the first time in quite a while, I spent most of this Saturday away from home.

This morning, I had to go to work for a four hour training meeting. Not a big deal, but it's become clear that a lot of things are going to happen or will hopefully happen that will increase productivity and efficiency. We had to learn how to prepare pallets for freight shipping, process orders for all manner of shipping, the company's desires to streamline the packing/shipping process, and we found out that the four new hires will finally start Monday. We have badly needed new people to handle the workload and in time they will get up to speed on how work gets done. I know that for me, it's involved having an attitude to learn and take instruction, something I prayed about when I started and continue to do as I take on more responsibilities. This has been particularly true this week as I've been moved out of the warehouse and into the digital printing room.

After leaving work at noon, I went with Mom to take my sister to work. When we left there, we noticed the battery light in our van had come on. We wound up spending the next three hours at the Sears Auto Center in Northridge waiting for them to fix what turned out to be an issue with the alternator, after they replaced a corroded battery terminal.

As I type this, Mom and I have just come back about twenty minutes ago from having dinner at Sizzler. Mom doesn't eat much meat these days and was in the mood for a steak. Chewy is at my feet, yipping for attention. He's so needy, he'll do anything good or bad (usually bad) just to get our attention. Rotten, rotten dog.