Monday, October 19, 2009

i've been so bad at this...




these last few weeks have been so busy...between a promotion at work (promotion=longer hours), a trip to california, my bff coming in town (for only 48 hours :[ ) and preparation for my upcoming surgeries, something had to fall by the wayside...and unfortunately it was el blog-o :[

so...

here is my attempt to make it better. first of all, here's what's been going on, in case you're curious :]

1. promotion: some of you know, and others of you may not, but i have been working for the same restaurant company for 6 and a half years. what started out as a cashier and frycook job at 17 (a way to work through college) ended up becoming a career. i have been blessed to be a part of such a wonderful company and operation for many years and have had so many exciting opportunities through them. Raising Cane's is a place where we work hard *and* have fun. oh-so much fun :] here's proof:

i love my store. lovelovelovelove

pigtail day!!

brad, or as he's known around these parts: bradimus prime...gearing up to be egged by the crewmembers :]

we made all the guys wear this at one point i believe :]

defending my chubby bunny champion title at the annual easter egg hunt :]

these mustaches make an appearance somewhere in the store almost daily :]


well, are ya?

walrus, anyone?

Cane, our namesake :]


i started out as a crewmember, working at the base level, but quickly worked my way up and into the elite group of trainers belonging to the NRO team (new restaurant opening) with them, i traveled the country as part of this training team opening new locations all over. at the age of 20, i was promoted to the corporate office after 3 years in the field, where i planned corporate events (parties and conferences), helped to develop new training programs and materials, helped as part of a focus team researching and developing new menu items, contributed to the first few drafts of the company's very first operations manual, and continued to travel as a part of the new restaurant opening team training new managers and crew (my first love)

a little over a year and a half into my stint at the Restaurant Support Office, i started getting that itch...you know the one...where you realize that what you were doing before this great "opportunity" was much more fulfilling. i started thinking about moving back into operations (the actual restaurant field, rather than an office) i started looking into management options, and decided that i wanted to eventually manage one of our locations on my own. i moved back into OPS as a shift manager and worked my tail off for the last year and a half perfecting my management style and incorporating my admin skills into the mix and have finally been promoted to Operations Manager of Raising Cane's #63 :] and this girl couldn't be happier.

but just as any overly ambitious person does, i realize i can't just settle with this. now that i'm here, i want the next step. my journey to this step is over, but it begins a new one...a journey to something greater! and i'm totally ready for the challenge :]

2. "if you're going to san francisco...be sure to wear some flowers in your hair" a month ago, i tagged along with my parents and sister to the beautiful san francisco. let me tell you, it was amazing! i'm still working on getting all the photos rounded up, including two whole rolls of fish eye photos! but here are a few that i do have...






3. for those of you who have been reading along for a while, you might remember a post about moving my very best friend to kentucky back in march. brittany and i have been friends since the ages of 2 and 3, and we have always lived in the same town. we even moved away to college together! this was her first trip back home since the move, and even though she was only in town for a very short 48 hours, we made the most of it and had so much fun! of course, i left my camera, so i have to wait for her to send me photos to share :] so instead, here are some of my recent favorites of us...







4. lastly, the scariest thing happening in my life right now...surgery. :/ it's really not that serious, and it's totally outpatient, however that doesn't make my anxiety level any lower. i've never been under the knife and as the date moves closer (nov 10) i'm freaking out more and more inside. the procedures are supposed to be simple. they will be cutting a slit in the carpal tendon under the palm of my right hand to give my median nerve room to breath. the nerve is currently being suffocated by a tissue growth on my tendon and if left like it is, i could lose the use of my hand. the other procedure is on the ulna nerve in my right arm. the nerve generally runs along the outside of your upper arm, wraps around your elbow and continues down the outside of your forearm down to your hand. they will be moving this nerve to the inside of my arm to reduce stress on it. this is the nerve that makes you feel all numb and tingly when you hit your funny bone. well, imagine having that sensation almost 24/7...that's what i've been dealing with for a while, so yep, it's time to fix that bad boy. the conditions that caused both of these situations are really not that serious, but for someone as young as i am it's pretty rare. my orthopedic specialist laughed and asked me, "are you sure you're not 45? you never see these conditions, especially this advanced, in someone your age." haha...my mom's theory is right...maybe i really do have the body of an old woman!


one more thing before i leave you...we had our first cold snap this weekend, and it's about dang time! it's the middle of october and these mid to upper 80 degree temperatures were beginning to dampen my fall spirit. well, mother nature decided to throw me a bone and gave us all here in south louisiana one glorious weekend of lows in the 40's and highs in the 60's. unfortunately, it all goes away tomorrow :/ it's like the strike of midnight in cinderella...poof! gone. but the three days we were able to enjoy were so worth it. and in honor of this fall weather weekend (and as an "i'm sorry for not blogging in almost a whole month), i will be giving away one of my autumn mini album kits!








just leave a comment with your favorite cool weather article of clothing and i will pick a winner during photobooth friday! (maybe another video??? :] ) entries will be closed friday morning at 10 am central.

love you all!
emjay

19 comments:

Ashley Morris said...

Whoa...busy busy girl!! Congrats on the promotion! And you've made me want to travel even farther west now! lol

Hope everything goes well with surgery...and that it fixes that pesky feeling in your arm (I just don't think I could deal with that at all! lol)

LAs weather has to be just like GA's, lol we're getting the same thing! I was all excited this morning when I woke up and it was 32 degrees...then someone tells me it's going right back up in the next couple of days. :( boohoo lol

Hmm...as for my cool weather answer...I think my favorite thing ever are scarfs! I totally use them as part of my outfit a lot of the time! lol

xo!

Anonymous said...

you have so much going on! remember to just take it one day at a time. i'll be sending lots of happy thoughts your way for your surgery!!!
you have to protect that hand so we can still be handwriting twins!!! :)

&&&& my favorite cold weather clothing piece are boots! LOVE them. rain boots, ugg boots, snow boots, leather boots. love, love, love them!!

Jamie said...

Goodness, girl!!! 1st of all, CONGRATS on the big promotion!!!!
That's awesome!!!! You're awesome!!!
These pics of you are so pretty, btw!
Good Luck with your surgery!!! Keep us posted!
Busy, busy, busy! Be sure to take care of yourself!!!!
And now you can pick ME, ME, ME for that journal kit!!! ;)
My favorite for cooler weather is definitely colorful scarves. As I'm sure lots of people will say that, I'll also say, colorful tights with cute dresses and shoes!!!

Unknown said...

wow you are one busy girl!

good luck on the surgery i hope all goes well

my favorite right now is scarves and all the colorful tights out there right now!

have a great day!

Haley said...

you. are. so. cute!
i loved all of the pictures of the restaurant. so adorable.
xo.haley
p.s. good luck with your surgery :]

angela said...

congrats on the promotion...it feels good to be on top doing something making you happy. weather here in kansas has been stupid and cold. wish i had some warm weater.
hmmm...my favorite gear for autumn/fall weather has to be my boots. i wear my cowboy boots almost everyday that i can. also i'm really into knitted hats, my hair has finally grown out enough that i don't look like a boy this year.
hope your week is good and good luck on the surgery. (it will be ok, i promise)
xo! angela

Caitlin said...

Wow. This is my first time actually READING a lot of your blog. I cannot believe how much stuff you have going on! And I always see Raising Cane's but I have never eaten there. I think I will give it a try soon.

Anonymous said...

So happy for a few reasons: a) your promotion (which I already knew about but am excited all over again!) b) seeing your best friend is always amazing c) you blogged!! i am jealous of the fact you went to SF.

As far as the surgery goes, I had ankle surgery about 4 years ago and it was the first time I ever had surgery or anything like it. I was really really scared. BUT it turned out fine. I didn't even take the pain meds they gave me (it still hurt though. ha!). Just know that I will be praying for you and will be anxiously awaiting word that all went well. Granted, I don't know if you will be doing much texting/blogging around that time... but... i hope you will let us know somehow.

Thanks for the late night read. lovelovelove youuuu!

erin

Mandy Ferrugia said...

I feel so much better knowing I'm not the only one that has neglected her blog :P these past few weeks have been waaaaay too busy!

I hope your surgery goes well! Fingers are crossed, prayers are being said. Oh! And congrats on your promotion!

Okay, my cold weather clothing addiction is....HUGE COWLS! Like big funky chunky crazy huge cowls. LOVE them. seriously.
loveyou! xo.

Jari said...

yay for promo & trip!!!
boo for surgery but it will all be worth it in the end! :)
i've had quite a few surgeries - all different... and the anxiety eventually goes away. think of the brightside :D

fave fall clothing... scarves and cardigans! you can bet that EVERYDAY i'm wearing one!... or both!

xo!

Kim J. said...

oh i am so glad you are back for the moment and totally know exactly how you feel!!
i have missed you so and am glad you are doing good!
my favorite cool weather clothing...scarfs and boots. love them.
it has been too hot here too. in the upper 70's, so only a few scarf days so far.

janel. said...

Yay! i miss you when you are gone!!
I love love love ya! and your blog :)
My fave article of clothing for winter weather aremy new fingerless mittens :)

Anonymous said...

favorite cool weather item?!

perfect:

http://www.karmaloop.com/products.aspx?ProductID=60169&VendorCode=BBD&utm_source=google&utm_medium=comparisonshopping&utm_campaign=datafeed&CAWELAID=392375365

i'll be praying for you mucho. you will be back at it in no time! :)

Brenna said...

Hmm...well I love wearing sweaters in the fall!

And the whole surgery thing...don't worry, it will be fine! When I was in high school I had to have pretty major surgery on both of my knees. They had to move ligaments and even break and reset a bone (now I have a few screws that go off in metal detectors and some store security sensors). Even though it was scary, everything went very well.

I know it is hard not to worry about these kinds of things, but it really will be OKAY!!! Plus, think how great it will be once your hand and arm is better!

If you need someone to talk to...just send me an email!

<3 Brenna <3

brenna87@gmail.com

Carol Anne said...

I hope your surgery goes well!

My favorite cool weather article is sweaters. I get so anxious to pull out my sweaters!

BWatts said...

i want one! you should send me one cus you miss me so so much.

BWatts said...

oh and you know that my favorite is scarves...and boots!

Shaina Longstreet said...

hey girl! loving all your pictures you shared in this post. looks like your job is a blast! :D

as for my cold weather article of clothing i would have to say scarfs. now that its cold i don't look like such a retard wearing them everyday. wasn't so back in the 90 degree weather. hahaha!

good luck with your surgeries. my mum had carpel tunnel surgery when i was little. the doctor let my brother and i take out her stitches. she was not happy! lol. i'll never forget that...
:D

Ashley said...

It's about time for that promotion! :) I know you'll do great.

Good luck with the surgery... I cannot even imagine a constant bumped funny bone feeling... owie.

Oh, and as for the favorite cold weather clothes... very hard to choose. This is my favorite time of year. I love sweaters, boots, fingerless gloves, toe socks... OH, I guess my favorite this year is my new jacket... It's a chocolate brown zip up hoodie with faux fur lining.

Anywho, good luck with everything! :)