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A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl………… Court Ordered

Posted on March 4, 2013 by in Clients

A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl………… Court Ordered

I’ve written about Ms. Z before. See this to get some background: http://wp.me/p22j3r-2v. The divorce took a year to finally get agreed upon. In the divorce decree it was stated that “Sue Blumenfeld, The Errand Girl will act as Mr. Z’s shipping agent”. This meant I had to go to the house they once shared and gather together the items listed on 3 pages in the court order, pack and ship them to Mr. Z. I know why they did this. It was much easier on both of them to not have to see each other much less be in the same house trying to pick up belongings. Mr. Z. was a military man so many of the items were military related along with a lot of large works of art.

I had been inside the house many times so I figured it wouldn’t be too hard to find the things listed. Two of us set out early one Saturday morning on one of those 100+ degree days. Ms. Z. had told me that she had ‘all of the stuff gathered together’. I really had no idea how much stuff we were going to be dealing with. Yes, we had a 3 page list but without seeing any of it ahead of time I had no idea how many boxes were needed or if all of the stuff would fit into one van load, etc. The first thing Ms. Z. says to us when we arrived was, “I’m sorry I don’t have any fans for you to use in the garage”. It just seemed a bit strange that it was the first thing that she said when we hadn’t even asked about a fan. She walked us to the garage and showed us the ‘stuff’ she had gotten together. We started by going through this stuff and checking it off the 3 page list. It sounds much simpler than it was. He listed some books he wanted but they weren’t by title, just by subject. I found 8 books on ‘fighter planes’. I didn’t know which book he was referring to or wanted. I didn’t think he wanted to pay for shipping on all 8 books (because this was only 1 item on the 3 page list of things to ship!). We only got a few things checked off that list from the ‘stuff’ she had gathered. I think she was hoping we would just pack it up and not inventory it and we would be satisfied. Now, the real search begins…. We started in the attic.

Because Ms. Z. had been my client for the previous year, I had been in her home many times and was fairly well acquainted with the entire house and its contents. It was quite obvious that she had ‘cleaned house’! Drawer after drawer were empty. We were supposed to be looking for the ‘guest pass’ to get into the military cemetery where Mr. Z’s son (from a previous marriage) had been buried. The filing cabinets were empty. Drawers that had once been overflowing with papers were empty. Ahh, Ms. Z was going to make this as difficult as possible. Another item on the list was the American Flag placed over his son’s casket at burial. Ms. Z said she had no recollection of ever seeing that flag in their house. It went on like this for hours. Most everything we tried to find she said she had never seen before. We dug through more stuff in the garage looking. Granted this was another 100+ degree day in Arkansas, so the garage was much hotter by now!

I called Mr. Z often throughout this process. I emailed pictures to him so he could see exactly what we were talking about. Technology made this much easier, especially when it came to artwork. He mentioned the paintings by name but the names weren’t written on the paintings so it was sometimes hard to determine which was which. We did end up finding all of the artwork except for one large one. Mr. Z is afraid she just threw some things in the trash just to spite him.

When Mr. Z left a year ago he had no intention of not coming back. He was just going to his daughter’s house to recover from a hospitalization. He took a suitcase with him but not much more. Clothing was included on the list. Not much. He just wanted me to pick out 5 long-sleeved shirts, all of his black socks but none of his white ones, and a few pairs of slacks. Ms. Z had put ‘all’ of his clothes in a box in the garage. Amazingly he had no black socks or even underwear! She included a few pairs of blue jeans but he didn’t want those. It seemed as if all the clothes he wanted were nowhere to be found, but the clothes that were available were the ones that he did not want.

It is sad to see people in their 80’s to be so bitter and vindictive towards one another.

At the end of the day we were satisfied that we had found everything that we were going to find. Mr. Z. agreed and told us to go ahead and ship what we had. I had gone to FedEx Kinko’s the day before to let them know that I would be coming late the next day with a large shipment. After taking a full van load to the Goodwill, we filled the van again with everything that needed to be shipped. FedEx Kinko’s was absolutely wonderful! It took 3 hours to get it all packed and boxed but they did it as quickly and safely as they could. 20 boxes were shipped in all.

Boxes, boxes and more boxes!

And more boxes!

Mr. Z. said all 20 boxes arrived over a period of a few days time in perfect condition. He was pleased with our work.

A week later, Ms. Z. calls me and says she ‘found’ some more of Mr. Z’s things that he ‘might’ want. Somehow his navy dress hat turned up, the flag from his son’s funeral, and a bunch more of Mr. Z’s personal clothing. I am not sure where this stuff had been hiding as we did a complete search of the house but I am just glad she ‘found’ it. Mr. Z. was thrilled too.

A Day in the Life of An Errand Girl….. A Love Story: 50 Years Later

Posted on July 15, 2012 by in Clients

A couple of weeks ago I received a phone call from a woman needing a notary. She was from California but was in Arkansas with her fiancé and they needed some document notarized ASAP. I told her I could be there in an hour and a half. “Oh, no, I’m not ready for you now. I don’t even have the paperwork”. I told her to call me when she had the paperwork and was ready to sign. A week and a half later and she calls me, “This is Mary, I’ve got the papers and I am ready to sign them now”. Maybe I am supposed to remember everyone, but my brain just doesn’t believe that. I did not have a clue who she was. She reminded me that she was the one from California who was with her fiancé in Arkansas and needed something notarized. Oh, yes, that did ring a bell. She then wanted to schedule me to come out to their house the following week. I guess, ASAP does not mean the same thing to everyone!

The day to see “Mary” was finally here. I approached the front door of the address she gave me and a much older man walking with a cane answered the door. I asked if this was Mary’s house. He looked at me a bit strange and said, “Yes, it is Johnny and Mary’s house”. Just then, “Mary” pokes around the corner and I realize my mistake. I assumed that ASAP meant it was an emergency and needed to be done as soon as possible. I also assumed that I was speaking to a young woman on the phone talking about her fiancé – a young man. WRONG! This was a very delightful older couple.

Mary proceeded to tell me their story…….

Johnny and Mary had been college sweethearts 50 years ago! His parents really liked Mary and wanted their son to marry her. He was only in his 20’s and didn’t want to get married just then. Mary went on to marry someone else. Mary and Johnny’s parents maintained their friendship with yearly Christmas cards and such. His parents never spoke of Johnny and she never inquired about him. Mary had a 40 year marriage that ended in October 2011, with the sudden death of her husband. At Christmas that year, Mary sent her usual card to Johnny’s parents letting them know that her husband had passed away unexpectedly a few months earlier. Mary never received a card from Johnny’s parents that year.

Johnny’s mother had not been in good health for a long time and she passed away earlier that year. His father was left broken-hearted and died a short 5 weeks later. Johnny had lived his whole life in California. His parents decided to ‘retire’ to Arkansas about 20 years prior. Johnny, an only child, came to Arkansas to help his dad after his mom had passed. Luckily he was still here when his father slipped away also. He had stayed on in their house in Arkansas to try and get things settled. In December of 2011 Mary’s Christmas card arrived at the house in Arkansas. Johnny then realized that Mary had lost her spouse. It took a few months, but Johnny finally called Mary to let her know that his folks had both passed away and that is why she had not received a Christmas card from them that year. He also gave his condolences to her in regards to loosing her husband. They chatted briefly and said goodbye. Neither of them could stop thinking about the other. Johnny called her back and they picked up right where they had left off. Johnny had a number of relationships over the years but never married anyone. He asked Mary over the phone to marry him. She said YES! He knew both of his parents would be pleased with this information.

Mary flew to Arkansas on a Saturday to help him get his parents house in order and ready to sell before they went back to California to get married three months later in October of 2012. On Monday of that next week, Mary found herself sitting in the waiting room of the hospital. Johnny had passed out and was rushed to the hospital. He had to have emergency by-pass surgery!

I met them a week later when he was recovering at his parents house and Mary was working like crazy to clean out the house. Mary told me that after the first conversation with him on the phone she went and dug out the box from the attic that had all of the love letters that Johnny had ever written her and she read them one by one. She told me he was just as sweet now as he was back then.

It was REALLY nice to hear such a nice story with what will hopefully be a happy ending for them.

Feeding a family for $40 per week – it CAN be done!

Posted on May 2, 2012 by in Articles, Clients, Sue

I received a phone call this week from a TV news reporter who wanted to do a story on feeding a family for $40 a week.  She asked if I could help her out.  I explained that most of my clients were not very concerned with the amount of money that they spend at the store but that because I shop all of the time at lots of different stores I can feed my family on $40.  She said then I was the person she wanted to talk to.

OK, so now I need to come up with a plan because I KNOW I could spend $40 per week, I just don’t.  Granted, I am very thrifty and am always watching the price of food, I have never limited us to $40 per week.  I prefer to eat with very low carbohydrates and no sugar which is VERY hard to do on $40 per week.  If I wasn’t so concerned about health, I could easily do it.

Let’s see:

Breakfast: We both love oatmeal so that would be good for a couple of times per week.  Eggs and toast also fit the bill.  We don’t eat sugary cereal and I have found some bran types for $1.30 per box on sale at some stores.  Pancakes are also cheap, especially if you buy a large box of generic pancake mix.  Buying large quantities of some things pays off for us.  Pancake mix will keep a long time so that is another way to cut costs.  Grits is another low-cost breakfast staple.  Some people may not see grits as a main breakfast dish but a large bowl will satisfy us all morning.  I do think it is wise to also have fresh fruit first thing in the morning.  I have found bags of oranges (about 12 oranges) for $1.48 per bag!  With fruit, you just have to go with what is in season and which stores are having sales.  Fresh fruit is something you can’t stock up on so it will always be changing.  Recently I found a bag of apples (10 Gala apples) for $1.68 per bag.  It is hard to find fresh fruit any cheaper than this.  Remember, what is in season and what is on sale.

Some other breakfast items that are within the $40 per week range are: fruit and grain cereal bars (8 count for $1.49), eggs & toast (using homemade bread), cinnamon toast, homemade biscuits, flavored breads or muffins are always a nice change of pace.

Lunch: We are both pretty easy at lunch.  We like Mac & Cheese, hot dogs, soup, etc.  It is cheaper to make your own mac & cheese than to buy the pre-packaged boxes even though they are pretty cheap.  This just requires buying the cheese in bulk to make it cost-effective.  Hot dogs can often times be found on sale for $1.00 per pack.  When they are, we stock up on them and freeze them.  We do buy the turkey dogs so they are a little ‘less bad’.   We will take two hot dogs and wrap them up in one tortilla instead of a bun.  Besides being cheaper it is also less carbohydrates.  When it comes to soup, I prefer to make mine homemade.  A couple of times a year when we have a turkey I will get as many slices of turkey for sandwiches as I can.  The rest of the turkey is for soups and casseroles.  I make the soups up using the stock I make from the turkey and using whatever vegetables I have lying around.  Adding pasta or rice is a great filler and makes a healthy meal.  I usually freeze the larger bits of turkey to make casseroles at a later date.  Grilled cheese sandwiches are easy and relatively cheap.  For a hardier meal we will sometimes have grilled cheese sandwiches and soup.  If you aren’t prone to making your own soup, Bear Creek has soup mixes that are about $3.00 for 8 servings found in the grocery store.

Dinner: I have found quite a few items that would definitely work for the $40.00 per week meals, but I must say they are not the healthiest!  Fish sticks, corn dogs, canned vegetables are very cheap.  You can get 48 fish sticks for $4.29!  That is about .09 each!  Or 16 corn dogs for $5.49, or .34 each.  Canned veggies can usually be found on sale for .50.  Buy in quantity when you see these and stock up.

We like to eat meat with our dinner meals so I try to buy in bulk and when meat has been marked down.  Meat that has been marked down is still good it just needs to be used that day or put in the freezer.  Our freezer is often full of a variety of meat.  If you look closely as you shop you will find some affordable meats.  Wal-Mart has a selection of ribs of all different varieties.  Once when digging a little deeper in the meat case I found a rack of pork ribs for under $8.00.  I thought it was just a special or a mark down price but it wasn’t marked as special.  The next time I went I found the same ribs at the same cost.  I have since realized that it is the regular price for these ribs.  There are other much more expensive ribs right by them but for some reason these are priced low.   I usually buy a few at a time and put them in the freezer.  I have also found some pre marinated small pork roasts that are similarly priced.  I bought one to try, and we were very happy with the taste. I have since bought more and stuck them in the freezer.

As a child, my parents always purchased half a cow at a time.  We don’t have that kind of freezer space but if you do it would be a good idea to do this or at least split part of a cow with some friends as you can get a much better rate.

When it comes to chicken the price really varies depending on what you like.  If you like dark meat, like we do, then it is much more affordable to buy chicken legs and thighs than it is to by the breasts.  Boneless skinless breasts are nice for a lot of different meals but thighs work just as well if you like dark meat.  Buying a whole chicken is always much cheaper and then you have the benefit of using the ‘leftovers’ for soups.

Pasta, potatoes and rice are good ‘fillers’ that make meat go much farther.  Casseroles can be so much more than the ones your Great Aunt Mabel used to make.   You can use a pound of ground beef to make 8 very small hamburgers or you can use that same pound of beef to make a casserole with 10 servings.  No one will miss the amount of meat per serving if the casserole is filling!   Lately we have been trying to use ground turkey instead of ground beef.  Just keep an eye out at the grocery store as the prices are similar but sometimes one is on sale.

I like to have fresh veggies or salad with dinner each night.  Some tips on fresh produce to follow.  Making your own salad dressing is a lot cheaper than buying ready-made dressings.   We prefer just plain balsamic vinegar and oil which is quick and easy and we always have it on hand.  Just be aware of what vegetables are in season and buy accordingly.  Last summer I noticed a “new to me” vegetable.  Calabactias is a “Mexican Zucchini.  It looks very similar to zucchini and tastes the same to me.  Our garden had a very rough time last year like many gardens in Arkansas.  We got very few zucchini from our own garden so ended up having to purchase them.  Since produce was ridiculous last summer, zucchini, even though in season, was way above the normal price.  I found Calabactias to be half the price.  I had never heard of this veggie before but since it looked so much like zucchini I bought one and took it home and we cooked it just like we would zucchini.  Voila, it tasted just the same!

Desserts/Snacks: homemade brownies, homemade cookies, baked apples, cobbler, etc.  Popcorn made the old-fashioned way is fun for the family and very cheap per serving!   Homemade yogurt is relatively inexpensive.  Homemade popsicles are a fun summer treat.  Always be on the lookout at the grocery store for mark-downs.  Fresh bakery items are often marked down in a certain area of the store.  BEWARE of the name brand items that are 2 for $.  You often see 2 packs of name brand chocolate chip cookies for $4.00.  If you look you will find store brand chocolate chip cookies for much less than $2.00 per bag.   If you have a discount bakery (sometimes called day old) nearby that is always a good place to find some bargains.  You might even find good deals on hotdog/hamburger buns.

Fresh produce: The best/cheapest way to have fresh produce is to grow it yourself.  We have an ever-growing garden – it gets bigger each year!  We use raised beds and add additional beds each year.  Lettuce for salads can be grown almost year round in Arkansas.  There are many good books out there that will help you plan and figure it out.  The next best way to find great fresh produce is at your local farmer’s market.  It is wise to get there early to get the best pickings, but if you are looking for mark downs it is more likely you will find them right before closing time.  Fresh produce in the grocery stores varies widely.   We eat a lot of cauliflower.  Cauliflower has been $2.48 per head at our local grocery stores all winter and spring.  Aldi’s, which is a name brand store has had their cauliflower for $1.68 all winter and this spring it has been UNDER $1.00 per head.  That to me is a huge difference!  Aldi’s produce is always cheaper than the regular grocery stores.  Some people say the quality is not as good.  If it doesn’t look good I don’t buy it, otherwise I think it is comparable.

Coupons:  Personally, I am not a coupon clipper.  I find that often people buy items they would never buy just because they have a coupon and it is a ‘good deal’.  Other times you purchase the item because you have the coupon but don’t bother to look at the prices of the similar items.  I have one client who wants me to use her coupons.  I have noticed that the coupons are usually for ‘new’ products.  For example, I bought her some dishwashing liquid with a coupon.  I think it was for Joy.  It was a ‘new’ type of Joy soap that is supposed to clean better.  It was a smaller size than the usual bottles of Joy that I bought for her and it was more expensive even with the coupon!  That is not a bargain to me.

Pre-packaged foods:  This is where a lot of people waste a lot of money.  People think of it as ‘convenience’ food therefore they buy it.  If money is a concern which it should be to all and time is precious then try setting aside one weekend a month to make your own ‘fast food’.  Yes, it will take some time and a lot of planning but in the end you will be saving a lot of money and possibly your life since it is much healthier.  Yes, fast food is fast and convenient but it does not stay with you long so you are hungrier sooner and the nutritional value is gone.

Some suggestions for your monthly cook fest

*6 of your family’s favorite casseroles – make double batches and freeze singly.

*Make a huge pot of tomato sauce with fresh tomatoes and spices from your garden.  Freeze in containers for quick pull out meals in minutes.

*Make 4 batches of pancakes and freeze in bags of individual servings.  These are easy to pull out and heat up for a quick breakfast.

*Make as many loaves of bread that you might need for the month.  Pre-slice before you freeze for easy toasting.

*Make a couple of pizza crusts to put in the freezer.

*You can even cook up some brown rice or pasta and put it in individual serving containers in the freezer.

*Buy cheese in bulk and divide into portions that you like (shredded, sliced, block, etc.) and freeze them.

*You can even make up a huge pot of mashed potatoes and freeze in serving sizes appropriate for your family.

*Soup, soup, soup!  Make different varieties.  Chili, broccoli cheese, stew, ham & bean, etc.  So easy to freeze and pull out for a quick meal.

*Make some cornbread up and freeze it to go along with those soup meals.

*In the summer when you have those excess fresh veggies cook them up different ways and freeze them.  Or if you are into canning go for it.

Green bean casserole

Stewed zucchini & tomatoes

Sautéed squash

Whole tomatoes (cut out the core and freeze in bags with the skins on.  When ready to use just run under water and the skins peel right off)

Glazed carrots

Peas & carrots

Corn off the cob (conserves space)

 

*Be sure to utilize your crock pot during the weekend.

BBQ beef

Chicken & dumplings

Applesauce

Scalloped potatoes

You see the possibilities are endless!

Two hours before our scheduled ‘interview’ the reporter sent me an email letting me know that her “superiors decided to take the story in a different direction”.   I was ok with that because I got a nice blog post out of this!  I hope some of you will find a benefit from some of the information.

EEeek! A Mouse! Another Day in the Life of an Errand Girl……..

Posted on March 28, 2012 by in Clients

I’ve started taking care of another family.  I’m not talking just buying their groceries, but really taking care of them.  There is a husband, a wife, 3 children and an 80 pound English Bulldog.  I was originally contacted by the husband.  He said he needed some of my services on a regular basis.  He wanted to hire me for 6 hours one day each week.  I rearranged some things in my schedule to allow for a whole day to be devoted to this one family.

The Sock Monster!

On my way out to their house the first time, the wife sent me a text message asking if I could pick up some coffee from her favorite drive-thru which was right on the way.  She was so impressed that I would do that.  That’s what an Errand Girl does, isn’t it?  When I got to the house she greeted me and told me she had never even heard of me until the night before when her husband told her I would be coming!  We sat down at first to get acquainted and to explain to her how I could make her life easier.  She then gave me the grand tour of the house including the “Sock Monster”.  I know everyone probably has a sock monster living in their home but this one is different.  They have a huge overflowing laundry basket full of mis-matched socks.  No one wants to take the time to ‘mate’ them.  That is, until The Errand Girl came along!  I asked what they did for socks.  By this time the husband was in on the conversation and he replied that if they couldn’t find two that matched they would just go out and buy new ones.  Hence, the huge overflowing laundry basket full of socks.  They did admit to wearing mis-matched socks on occasion.

On my 2nd visit out to the house no one answered when I rang the bell or knocked.  They were expecting me so I just opened the door.  Her car was home, but his wasn’t so I figured one of them must be there.  I stood in the doorway and called out hoping someone would answer.  I had this 80 lb. Bulldog staring at me!  I’m not afraid of animals but I know that they are very protective of their homes and I had just intruded in his!  I had met him the week before but wasn’t sure he remembered me.  I called him by name and stuck out my hand trying to get him to come and smell me.  I kept trying for a while and eventually he came towards me.  Then he was FREE, out the door crack he went!  He had no interest in me, he wanted outside to the big world with no fences.  Since I didn’t know him I wasn’t sure how he would react outside.  I was a bit panicked, so I set my water bottle down on the front walk and walked closer to him.  I know not to chase animals because it just makes them go farther and faster.  I didn’t get him.  I had left the front door to the house wide open in my rush to catch him.  Luckily it wasn’t cold outside like it usually is in February.  Down the street the dog went.  Down the street I walked after him.  He stopped at some bushes to pee and I thought I would get him.  When my hand reached out for his collar he was gone!  Further and faster!  This time he headed for a neighbors back yard.  There were some dog toys in the yard so I tried to coax him with the toys.  He wanted to play but he knew better than to get close to me.  He was free and he wasn’t giving that up.  Just what I dreaded…………  He headed to the neighborhood golf course.  Great!  There were some older ladies out in their golf carts playing that day.  I was hoping one of the women would grab him by the collar, but I didn’t even ask seeing their age and his size.  Of course he went straight for the golf carts, they were moving.  One of the ladies asked if it was my dog.  I explained that it wasn’t my dog but I was trying to get him to go home.    Then she very rudely said to me that “Dogs are NOT ALLOWED on the golf course”.  Really???  It seemed quite obvious to me that I was trying my best to get him off of the course and get him home but maybe she didn’t see that.   I finally was able to coax him close enough to me with an empty bowl of dog food that was outside at some neighbors house.  I grabbed his collar and off we went.  Now, how do I get this 80 lb dog home 8 blocks away?  Have you ever tried to walk fast while stooping over and having 80 lbs of force pulling you?  My body was sore for 3 days after this bit of exercise!  We made it back to the house, the front door still wide open and no one in sight.  I got the dog and myself some water as we were both dry from panting so much.  Then the wife comes out of the master bedroom and says she didn’t even know I was there.  I’m glad it’s a good neighborhood and nothing happened while we were off on our little jaunt.

80 pound Bulldog

One week when I was there I was determined to tackle the pantry.  It is a large walk in area under the staircase.  It had kind of become a dumping ground for all things miscellaneous.  When I organize something I start by removing everything.  I was about halfway finished removing items when a little mouse poked his head out and stared directly at me!  EEeek…..  A Mouse!  I HATE mice.  I can take spiders and snakes but mice are a different story.  I KNOW they are small and are more afraid of me than I am of them (so people tell me).  It doesn’t matter, I can’t stand them.  I can’t even stand dead ones!!  I have never felt so terrified of anything in my life.  I just couldn’t go back into that pantry!  I shut the door (even though there is a 2 inch gap under the door) and pondered a bit.  I was there all by myself so there was no one I could tell.  I sent a text message to the husband that I had seen a mouse.  All he wanted to know was if it was dead or alive.  I wanted him to come and rescue me.  I didn’t know how I would get the pantry done at this point.  I had ½ of the contents sitting on the dining room floor!!  I really was not going to go into that pantry again.  I decided instead of wasting time, I would begin to tackle the “Sock Monster”.    I went and got the laundry basket and brought it out to the couches in the living room.  Boy, there were a  LOT of socks!  Most of them were the white athletic kind but I have never seen so many different kinds.  Some had red thread at the toes, some had green and others had gold.  Then there were the tops of the socks!  Man, there are a lot of patterns of socks.  I was able to match about 20 pairs before the husband came home.  I explained to him my fear of mice.  Luckily he completely understood because his wife is just the same.  He finished emptying the pantry for me!  I was able to go in and sweep up all of the mouse droppings without any problem.  Needless to say this pantry organizing took much longer than I anticipated – but they got some sock matches out of the deal too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl – Party Hosting

Posted on January 23, 2012 by in Clients, Sue

This weekend was the benefit concert for the John Harrison Opera Foundation at The University of Arkansas. It was a homecoming of sorts for the main attraction, Sarah Mesko, a mezzo-soprano and University of Arkansas alumna. You’re probably wondering how this fits in to “A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl” – well, we got to do one of our favorite things – Party Hosting! Mrs. Harrison hired us to do the serving, man the bar and assist with clean-up at the reception. The event took place in the Harrison home which was probably built around the 1890′s. The home is both beautiful and unique. It has very skinny hallways and doors in strange places.

Part of the 'spread'

The narrow hallways made it difficult to maneuver through carrying food and drinks while the guests were hanging out there. Why does it seem that people always gather in the kitchen? Every room in the house was full, not just the kitchen.

Brian playing 'bar tender'

The event was a great success and Mrs. Harrison was happy once again. She had used us in the past so she knew that our work is top-notch!

Sue doing 'clean up'

A good time was had by all and the foundation raised a significant amount of money.

A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl…………My Thoughts………

Posted on December 11, 2011 by in Clients, Sue

A week or so ago I was contacted by a young woman who was looking for transportation for her brother. We discussed the cost and she went ahead and scheduled with us to pick him up on Thursday afternoon. We were to pick him up at his dormitory at The University of Arkansas and bring him to his families home in a town 45 minutes away. She told me he did not have a telephone so the only way she communicates with him is via the internet. I asked who would be responsible for payment and she indicated that he had ‘the’ ATM card. No problem, we could do this. On Thursday morning I telephoned the number that the woman had called me from just to make sure everything was still on since I could not contact her brother. A young man answered the phone. I asked for the woman by name. He questioned who I was calling for???? I repeated it and he said she was at the hospital having a baby! I asked if he was “Mike”? He said he was and so I told him who I was and that we were scheduled to give him a ride in the afternoon and was wanting to confirm. He acted as if he didn’t have a clue what I was talking about. When I told him she had arranged to have me pick him up at The University and bring him home, it dawned on him who I was. He said “Oh, you must be talking about my son, Mike. He is named after me”. It all seemed a bit odd to me but we just do what we are hired to do. I showed up at the dormitory at the agreed upon time. After about 5 minutes a young man came around. I asked if he was Mike and he said he was.

I didn’t want to have a silent 45 minute drive with this 18 year old boy, so I started asking him questions to get the conversation going. I made sure he had the cash and didn’t need to stop at the ATM on the way home. He referred to it as ‘the family ATM card’. Apparently it is a very tight knit family. I found out I was taking Mike to an apartment complex (a very large complex owned by a man who owns most of the apartments in the area and builds them CHEAP!), which is the ‘family home’. He lives there with his Dad (Mike), Mom (who is recently employed out of state), his sister (the one who made the reservation), her boy child and soon her baby girl that was born that morning. I’m not saying living in an apartment is bad, but the number of adult people living in this one apartment and sharing one ATM card is amazing! I don’t know any other University student that doesn’t own a phone (usually a smart phone) and most of them have their own cars. Mike said his family only has one car for all of them and his mom is currently using it out of state at her new job. I (being the nosy one I am) asked how his sister got to the hospital this morning to have her baby. He said the hospital sent a van to pick her up! *NOTE* For those of you that don’t live in this area we do not have public transportation available.

I asked him the usual questions about his major and thoughts about The University. I then asked him about his grades. He said he went to a private high school (in a different state) and they prepared him well for keeping up with his college work. He said he makes mostly B’s. He plans on transferring to the University close to where his mom has taken a job and move along with the rest of the family. He was such a nice, polite kid. I was just so impressed that this kid (and family) that obviously didn’t have a lot of extra money was determined to get his education and get good grades to better himself.

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Yesterday morning I received a call from an ‘older’ woman asking me if I was a mobile notary and would I come to her. I told her that I was. She seemed thrilled to have found me. She asked about my charges and thought they were fair. She told me that she lost her husband a few weeks ago and she had 2 teacher retirement papers that needed to be notarized. I told her that I had some time that day that I could stop by. She told me she had some ‘errands to run and Christmas shopping to do’ so she wouldn’t be able to meet me at her house until after 3:00 pm. Fine. I would meet her there then. What seemed very strange to me about this was that she was obviously able bodied and could get out. She was even going to be out, why not get it done while she was out? It would definitely be cheaper for her! Again, I don’t ask why I just do what clients want. When I arrived at her house I asked her how she was doing (knowing that she just lost her husband), she was honest with me and told me ‘not very well’. I noticed her house was decorated for Christmas. I complemented her on going ahead and decorating during this difficult time. She pointed out that she didn’t have a Christmas tree up and just “wasn’t going to” do it. Her house really looked beautiful and very Christmasy. Again, to make small talk I asked her who had been the teacher (I knew I was notarizing teacher retirement papers), she or her husband. She told me that she had been the teacher and her husband had been the principal. THEN it dawned on me who she was. I had never met her or her husband before but I knew there was an elementary school named after her husband! I should have made the connection when she told me her last name. She was thrilled that I knew that. I then told her that I had been a teacher in a previous life. We seemed to have an instant bond from there on. My phone rang a couple of times while I was at her house. I just hit the ‘ignore’ button but did notice it was someone from the same number calling each time. That usually means they want something right away. She was so nice and so sweet. She told me she knew she could have gone up to the school or to the bank to have those papers notarized but she just didn’t want to have to see everyone. NOW, I also understand why she wanted me to come to her house to notarize the documents! She told me how glad she was that she found me. What a nice warm feeling that gives me! I asked her how she found me (I try to ask everyone so I know what advertising is working) – she pointed to the phone book. She said, “right in here, you are listed in a lot of different places in this book, you do so much”.

After I left her house I checked my phone expecting to find a voice message from the person who had been trying to call so desperately. No message. In a few short minutes my phone rang again – the same person. It was a young man wanting to know what I did. I told him that I ran errands for people. I asked him what he was interested in. He wanted to know what ‘types of services’ I offer. I’ve heard this tone of voice many times before but not usually during the mid afternoon. I explained that I bought groceries, walked dogs and general errands like that. He sounded so disappointed and said, “Oh”. I then had to explain to him, like so many others, that even though “Escort” and “Errand” are right next to each other in the phone book they are not even similar businesses! He quickly apologized and hung up. I’ve had this conversation with many men over the years so it was nothing new for me. I figured the Principal’s wife (the woman whose house I had just left) would get a kick out of it since she had just told me she found me in the phone book. I called her and she had the biggest hoot over it. It was so nice to hear her belly laugh and she thanked me for that.

A Day (a few weeks!) in the Life of an Errand Girl – Our busy season……

Posted on December 3, 2011 by in Clients, Sue

I know it has been quite a while since I’ve posted! This is our busy time of year and I have gotten caught up in it all. This is what we have been up to these last few weeks……

Each year for the past 3 years I have always organized a group of people to volunteer for what Golden Corral calls Military Monday. It is always the Monday after Veteran’s Day. Golden Corral Restaurants across the nation serve free buffets to all current and retired military personnel. They ask for volunteers each year to assist with getting the Vets and their family members to the tables, serving drinks, cleaning tables, offering bread, etc. We spend a lot of time just ‘chatting’ with them and hearing their stories. It is a lot of work but always leaves us with a great feeling after serving those who served for us. I usually drum up volunteers from the Ambassador group of the Rogers Lowell Chamber of Commerce which I am active in. I also recruited a couple of friends to help.

I spent a bit of time over the past weeks getting a car licensed for someone who had moved out of state. Then I had to take the car to get serviced and cleaned so that the client’s son could fly into town to drive the car back to the east coast where my client is now living. This may sound easier than it was. It was part of a nasty divorce between two clients of mine and somehow I got put in the middle. I just try to make my clients happy by doing what they ask. I don’t always get the fun parts!

It became apparent that a trip to the account was necessary! Regina Young is a wonderful accountant and very patient with me. She didn’t try to convince me, she just came right out and told me I had to start accepting credit cards! Because The Errand Girl pays for all clients merchandise up front and because I have hired so many new contractors she said it was a must for my cash flow to work. I am fairly obedient when people in authoritative positions tell me to do something. So, I set it up online that evening! I now accept Visa, Master Card, American Express and Discover! It has already proven to make things easier!

In addition to all of the regular shopping we do for clients I was also asked to do a TV spot with a local station about what we do. For those of you that have followed me, Ms. Irma was on the interview with me!! She was so nervous – it was cute. Here is the clip in case you haven’t seen it 10 times already.

http://www.4029tv.com/video/29827725/detail.html?taf=fts

Thanks to Angela Taylor of 40/29 who did a great job of editing and putting both me and Ms. Irma at ease!

I made quite a few donation drop-off trips for clients. This always inspires me to ‘clear my own clutter’ at home, so we made some donations too. It always feels so good to get rid of STUFF that is just taking up space and/or collecting dust! One of the errands was taking a 50 inch television that had ‘died’ to be recycled. Yes, a female client and I got that TV in the van by ourselves. I am not going to say we did it without any scraps or bruises, but we did it! I took the TV to my friend, Brent Leas, who works for ESCO Processing and Recycling, LLC. They make it easy to recycle electronics.

Being a Notary Public I was honored to assist a young couple with notarizing some documents for their upcoming adoption of a child from China. I had to meet them at the Washington County Sheriffs Office. Usually when I go to the Sheriffs Office to notarize something it is not such a happy and joyous occasion as this one. This was a nice change of pace!

The cleaning side of The Errand Girl is really taking off. We have acquired a few more bi-weekly contracts. This meant I needed to hire more cleaning contractors. This is a very good thing, but interviewing people is taxing!! How do you tell someone that smells like cigarettes and has rotten front teeth that it wouldn’t be a good idea to hire them to represent you to clean someone’s house? I was able to be honest with them about the cigarette smell – I didn’t bother bringing up the rotten teeth issue. Another person I just spoke to on the phone had to be told, “I don’t think you are what I am looking for”. She asked what I was looking for. I had to be honest with her too and tell her “Someone that doesn’t talk as much”! She told me a LOT more details about her life and the people she had cleaned for than I needed to know. She told me she probably didn’t want to work for me anyway. Whew! Glad she saw that!

Over the Thanksgiving holiday we visited with lots of cats and dogs. They were all very grateful when we walked in the door! They were just getting us ready for all of the visits we will make over the next few weeks. We still have some openings for pet sitting for Christmas.

I spend a lot of time at doctors’ offices. No, I am not the sickly type, I am there with clients. It is amazing to me how impatient older folks are at the doctor. It is very rare that you don’t have to wait for a long period of time to get from the waiting room to the exam room. It is just a fact of life! You would think that older people would be more patient because they have been doing this for much longer than I have (sitting and waiting) and what else do they have to do???? Needless to say, I have spent some time waiting in doctors’ offices lately.

Lunch time! I don’t usually get to sit down and eat lunch (it is usually on the go). The last few weeks I have had the opportunity to attend a couple of luncheons. One of them was the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) luncheon. We heard some really sad sad stories of local kids (and families). We also heard from volunteers for this organization who are making a difference in the life of a child. I was also invited to attend 15 cent hamburger day at a local senior apartment complex. The administration wanted to bring back ‘the good ol days’ of .15 hamburgers for the residents. That was a lot of fun meeting a bunch of new friends with all kinds of different backgrounds and stories to tell.

Someone called me this week asking me to make a delivery of some large boxes for her business. I always ask people how they heard about The Errand Girl. I really expected her to say she saw us on TV. That is the response I have been getting from most people lately. She said she saw the van on the road a long time ago and put the information in her phone because she knew she would ‘need us someday’. Smart lady!

We were successful in avoiding the stores for Black Friday. Mrs. C. called and tried to get me to go but I told her it would wait until Monday (it wasn’t a special item on sale). I did have to go to the grocery store for a couple of clients but it was not a big deal.

The Christmas wrapping season is now upon us. Today was the first day of gift wrapping mania. It seems as though a lot of people are shopping earlier this year – which is a good thing! I don’t recall seeing so many people in the stores actually buying things this early in December.

By the way………… we did hire another cleaning ‘girl’! Welcome Kim Jones to the team!!

Oh, yea, we also updated our website as you can tell with this post! Thanks to Jeannette at Scribe Marketing for her great work!!!

It has been a very busy few weeks, but we are ready for the next one …………..Bring it on!

Tales & Tidbits…… A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl (The doctor and the pharmacy)

Posted on November 14, 2011 by in Clients

A visit to the doctor’s office…..

I took one of my ‘older’ clients to the doctor.  The clients daughter had asked me to go into the exam room so I could relay what the doctor said to her.   The nurse was doing her initial intake questions – “What’s going on today”?    My client noticed a big shiny gold bracelet on the nurses wrist and mentioned that it was nice.  A few minutes later my client mentions again that she really likes her bracelet.  The nurse said  it was on sale and she felt like treating herself to something nice.  My client said in a very serious voice, “Oh, did you get it at a garage sale”?  I saw the look of horror on the nurses face!  It must have been quite an expensive bracelet.  The nurse just smiled, after she closed her mouth that had been hanging open, and said it wasn’t from a garage sale.

The last time I had taken this woman to this doctor her daughter had asked me to ask the doctor to look at her mom’s swollen ankles.   He looked at them and said they were not swollen.  I am not a doctor and I could tell they were swollen! He said most of his patients her age (80) would be thrilled to have ankles her size.  The daughter was quite disgusted to hear that the doctor showed no concern over her swelling.   This time the daughter insisted that I have the doctor look at her mothers ankles again.  I knew it probably wouldn’t go over well, but I did what I was asked to do.  The doctor again said there was nothing to worry about over her swelling.  My client chimed in at this point, “I guess I will just go to Mayo (clinic) to get them to tell me what is wrong”!   The doctor told her she didn’t need to do that – he would order a CT Scan of her legs.  We got what we wanted, just not how I had expected to get it.

After the doctor’s visit we needed to stop by Petsmart to pick up some cat food. As we walked inside I grabbed a basket because I knew we would be purchasing a lot.  She grabbed the basket away from me and told me she needed to hold on to it.  She said, “Go get your own if you want to hold on to one”!

A trip to the drug store………………..

Mrs. C. called and left her pharmacy list on the voice mail.   She asked for, “2 Kotex sanitary belts, a box of safety pins, and a box of Whitman’s chocolate” When she has an unusual item she usually calls the store ahead of time to make sure they have what she is looking for.  I went to the drug store she specified (it is a more elite drug store than your local chain) and looked everywhere I could think of for sanitary belts.  I couldn’t find them so I thought maybe she had special ordered them.  I went to the counter to ask.  The girl looked at me like I was nuts and said, “I am not sure what you are asking for, a sanitary belt”???  I knew then that Mrs. C had not special ordered it.   The girl passed my question off to a very young looking female pharmacist.  I began by asking her if she even knew what a sanitary belt was.  She assured me she did.  She walked around the store with me following looking in all of the same places I had looked previously. No luck.  No sanitary belt.  They also didn’t carry safety pins at this store which surprised me.  They did have her box of chocolates so at least she will have that fix.  Now, how was I going to explain to her that I didn’t think they make sanitary belts any more?????  When I got to her house I told her I had bad news.  She said, “Did you find the chocolate”?  Yes, I assured her and showed her the nice Christmas tin that they came in.  I told her they didn’t have any belts.  She asked if I had ordered some for her – I usually just go ahead and special order some of her unusual requests.  I told her I didn’t think they even made them any more.  She seemed to wonder how I would know that if I didn’t order any.  I explained that it had been many years since they made sanitary pads that attach to belts, so I was sure they weren’t making the belts any more.  She seemed like she was ‘hurt’.  She said she found a couple of boxes of Kotex pads in her closet and thought she would put them to good use.  I reminded her that pads had been made with sticky tape in recent years.  She then sheepishly said, “Do you think Walgreens would carry them”?  I don’t think I got my point across at all!  I have a feeling that this coming week I will be going from store to store looking for sanitary belts that don’t exist!

On the road again………….. A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl

Posted on November 7, 2011 by in Clients, Sue

We are driving back from spending the week in Illinois visiting Brian’s family that lives there (2 sisters and his father).  It is hard for us to get away during the holidays as that is a very busy time for us, so we were celebrating Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years all in one week!

Before I left I felt as though I had to let certain clients know.  My older clients often call me during the week and need something that day.  I sat down with Mrs. C. (see previous post “Some background history of Mrs. C”:   http://errandbiz.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/some-background-history-of-mrs-c/ ..)  a week ahead of time and we wrote it on her calendar when I   would be gone.  The two times I saw her the week before I left I reminded her again.  Of course, she called me on Monday morning to go shopping for her because she knew we were leaving that afternoon.  After I dropped off her groceries and headed to the door she said, “I will miss you”.  In all the years I’ve worked for her she has never said anything like that to me before.  I said, “really?”.  She replied, “Yes, you’ve become a necessary part of my life – I don’t want you to go”.  She touched my heart!  She said, “It’s not fair, I want you to be in town for me!”   I assured her that I would be back before long.  It wasn’t the first time I felt bad ‘leaving’ her, but it was the first time she ever indicated that she missed me when I was gone!

Knowing that we would be celebrating holidays I wanted to buy Christmas gifts to take with us.  I hate paying shipping costs!  Brian’s sisters are really easy to buy for – even though Brian didn’t think so before I came into his life.  We had both sisters taken care of and wrapped before we left.  The hard one is his dad!  What do you buy for an 80 year old man that doesn’t NEED anything???  I have the same problems shopping for my own father.  They have more clothes than they will ever wear again because they don’t go out any more. They don’t need more ‘stuff’ to collect dust as they already have more than they know what to do with.  The slippers we bought last year haven’t been worn enough to warrant a new pair.  Restaurant gift cards aren’t much fun when you’ve lost your life partner.   Tools, pictures, dishes, towels, etc.  No, they already have more than they need!

Brian’s dad is a big man (very tall, solid & with bad knees) who is set in his ways like most people his age.  The one thing we’ve gotten him in the past that was the best idea was ‘stability arms’ that attach to the toilet.  I’m not sure what they are called at the moment but it is like a walker placed backwards on the toilet to help you get up.  He loves it and it is useful!  I’m really into useful or necessary when it comes to giving.  We’ve bought his dad some other ‘help’ gadgets over the years but this is the one he uses.  The As Seen On TV foot scrubber that we gave him is still in the box on a shelf in the bathroom with another one identical to it.  I guess someone else had that grand idea!  I get catalogs that have lots of ‘help gadgets’ in them, I thought to bring the catalogs with me this year to look at them with him!  Great idea!!  We were looking through the catalogs and he didn’t seem to think the things I had in mind would be of use to him, although he had never seen catalogs like this before.  I left the catalogs with him just in case he sees something he might need.  : )

As we were coming back into his dad’s house after going out to eat, I noticed what trouble his dad had getting up the two small steps on his front porch.  I asked him if he ever used his cane (I’ve seen a couple around the house in the past), he said it was in his car when he needed it.  In his car doesn’t do him much good getting in and around the house!  I asked him if having a railing to hold on to would help.  He said he had thought that one might be good but hadn’t done it yet.  That was it!!!  We were going to put in a railing on his front steps for his Christmas present!!!  Very useful and needed!!  He thought it was a great idea too!  Sometimes he balks at people doing things for him.  He seemed much more willing to let us help him with projects around the house this time.  It sounds like a good thing, but it really isn’t.  It means his dad is getting older and less able to do things for himself.   Both, Brian and I saw a definite decline in his physical being from last year.  We really NEED to take the time off to go see him more often!!!  Once a year is NOT ENOUGH!!!  Plus he has a lot more chores around the house!

The railing…………….  We went to Menards (home building store) to look and see what they had.  I wish we had a Menards store where we live!  I love that store!  They had a very large selection, but since I am not the Engineer, like his dad, I didn’t take the two steps into consideration.  I may not have the skills to build it, but I sure can ask for help.  I asked a guy that worked there to help “us”.  He and Brian exchanged a bunch of garble that I didn’t have a clue about, but it looked like there was one that would work!  Yea!  His dad looked at it and he liked it too!  We bought it and headed home.  You know how things always seem much simpler than they turn out to be?  The store clerk made it sound so easy too!  I guess we forgot to tell him we were putting it into concrete steps.  After starting the project we find out there is rebar in the way on the steps.  It seemed like it was one issue after another.  While Brian worked on that project, his sisters followed my lead and we cleaned out the flower bed in the front that was overgrown.  The railing didn’t get finished before dinner time, so we stopped for the day.  Of course it rained all day the next day so we couldn’t do anything on the railing the whole day.  That was Thursday.  We were supposed to leave on Friday as both Brian and I had to work on Saturday.   We got up early on Friday to get started so we could finish and leave.  I had wanted to mow his yard, but couldn’t the day before because of the rain.   While Brian worked on the railing again, I mowed the very tall, wet grass!  YUCK! When I finished mowing, Brian was still having some issues – mostly with the drill.  I became his ‘assistant’ and we finally finished the project.  It was complete!!!  Yea!  I feel so much better knowing his dad has something strong to hold on to while getting in and out of his house.  Such a relief!  By now it was close to 3:00 in the afternoon (we had an 8 hour drive ahead of us) and we had hoped to leave that morning.  You do what you have to do.  So, we got on the road again………

Another death……….A Day in the Life of an Errand Girl

Posted on November 3, 2011 by in Clients

On Thursday last week I got another call from a woman seeking a mobile notary.  Her father was at the local Hospice House and he needed to sign over Power of Attorney to her.  I shouldn’t have been excited, but secretly I was.  He was at the brand new Willard Walker Hospice House!  I missed the grand opening/ribbon cutting that they had, so I was excited to get to see the new building.  I had heard lots of great things about it and it has been needed here for years.

I walked inside this beautiful, quiet place.  The daughter told me her dad was in room #6, but she and her husband were staying in room #4.  Wow, the family had their own room!  She did tell me it was only because The Willard Walker Hospice House had only been open for 6 days and they were not full, so they had the room.  The daughter and her husband were here from California so it was a nice break financially for them.  I went to their room first and we were going to go together to see, George.

This is what the daughter tells me to give me a little background before meeting her dad:  George and his wife had both been ‘eaten up’ with lung cancer.  His wife smoked 4 packs a day.  George did not smoke, but the effects from 2nd hand smoke got him just as bad.   His wife had died 5 days earlier (yes, DAYS).  The daughter and her husband headed to Arkansas from California right then.  His wife’s death caused George to have a heat attack!  When the daughter arrived they told her his cancer was so far along and now that he had the heart attack that he needed to go on hospice because he didn’t have much time left.

I hear lots of horrible stories but this one is right up there!

We went to room #6 to see George.  He woke up when we walked in and he sat up and shook my hand.  He didn’t appear ‘sick’ at all!  No IV, no oxygen, no tubes, nothing.  He actually swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat on the edge of the bed with the hospital table pulled up so he could sign the papers.  He was completely coherent and well aware of what he was signing.  I’ve been around hospice patients before and George did not seem to fit.  His daughter only wanted us to sign Power of Attorney form.  She did say that they would probably have me come back in a couple weeks to get him to sign a Quitclaim Deed for his house but she didn’t have it ready and they weren’t in a hurry.

I thanked George for signing the papers and told the daughter to enjoy this time she had with her dad.  I left feeling quite positive.

Sunday evening (3 days later) I had three desperate messages from the daughter, one on the office phone and two on my cell phone.  She told me we needed to sign the Quitclaim Deed NOW as her father was dying tonight.   I know things can take a turn for the worse, but this seemed very odd to me.  I got there as quick as I could (it was 7:30 pm on Sunday evening).

Luckily, the daughter had the Power of Attorney so she could sign for her dad.  The issue is that the POA that George had signed expires when he does.  So, we needed to get this done while he was still alive!  George was still hanging on when I got there although it didn’t even look like the same man I had seen 3 days before.  He was laying down with his eyes closed, struggling to breath.  This time there were more people in the room – friends & family.  I get very nervous under pressure and especially at moments like these.

George opened his eyes and called for his friend to come over.  I heard him ask his friend if he needed to sign more papers.  Poor guy, he seemed to know that he was supposed to hang on for a reason.  I told him that I was, Sue, the notary who had been there before but we assured him he didn’t need to sign any papers now.  He settled back down and I proceeded to get the witnesses identifications and signatures, etc.  Then George raised his hand as if to ask a question.  His daughter went to be at his side and I heard her repeat, “You’re ready to go now, dad?”  I started becoming very uncomfortable and nauseous.  I don’t have a good record when it comes to hospital situations and staying in an upright position.  I’ve passed out more than once in a hospital room!  I excused myself and decided I would finish my part out at the nurse’s area where I could sit down and breath.  I finished what I needed to do but I still needed the daughter to sign my book for my records.  Her husband told me to go on in even though I was hesitant.  I went in and the daughter was holding George’s hand and crying.  I felt horrible, but she knew what I needed so she came over and signed my book.  She thanked me profusely and we hugged.  She said if she lived locally, she would recommend me to everyone.  That was kind.  I left feeling awful with a bad case of nausea which lasted the rest of the night.

I just can’t seem to get George and his daughter out of my head.  I am hoping that by writing this it will take it off my mind now that it is on ‘paper’.

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