Hi! Your host is Bev Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". . Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!
1. What was your proudest moment?
Coming out.
2. What is your favorite childhood memory?
I would say anything I did with my Mom. I watched her cook, do laundry, iron. She taught me how to embroider.
3. Describe your dream vacation.
I would leave my house, get in my car, drive to somewhere that is not my house, and stay somewhere that is not my house. There would be a swimming pool, game room, fitness room, and I would eat food that is not fast food, and not made by myself or a member of my family. I’m not picky. ANYWHERE that is not my house! Even before the pandemic, vacation was never something I did much because I never had the money. My vacations as an adult have consisted of 1 trip to Disney World and Epcot with my sister, going to WI State Fair (which was an annual thing for us, then stopped for about 10 years, then went in 2019, then stopped because of the pandemic), also camping, mostly staycations. That’s it. I’m tired of seeing several Facebook friends show off their 6 times a year vacations. That’s 6 vacations per year, per person. They must all have a huge bank of vacation days and definitely more money than I have.
4. Do you see yourself as an optimist, pessimist, or realist? Why?
Mostly pessimist. Things just don’t seem to go my way, so I tend to be pessimistic and don’t expect much.
5. What is something you wanted to do as a child, but never got to do?
Family vacations. We once took a day trip to Chicago to visit a relative of my Dad’s. Then there was the trip with my Grandma, Aunt, cousin, and my sister to Disney World/Busch Gardens/Key West. That’s it. Never went on a family vacation as a child.
6. What board game do you hate the most?
Clue. I just thought it was boring.
7. Describe the worst haircut you ever got.
How much time do we have? I went with my kids and my now ex husband to a haircut chain in Chicago. The woman who cut my hair did not speak/understand much English and it seemed like she had no training to cut hair. I asked for a cut, collar length in the back and feathered on the sides. Basically just shorten the cut I had. Next thing I know she goes at my hair with an electric clipper, lopping off chunks of hair, here and there. The cut I wanted did not involve electric clippers until the very end to clean up the back of my neck. I told her to stop, she didn’t understand, so I got off the chair and stood. She got flustered, speaking whatever language she spoke, grabbed scissors and a comb and started hacking off hair in sections with no regard to cutting evenly. I couldn’t say anything because 1. She couldn’t understand English, and 2. I was so upset my brain would not allow words to come out of my mouth. When she removed the cape, signaling that she was done, I paid, went to the car, and started to cry when I saw my hair the rear view mirror. My sent my now ex husband back in to find out who was the owner or manager. If it was her, we were going home, end of story. It wasn’t her. I went back in and I showed the manager the hack job on my hair. She “fixed” it, but it was still off because you can’t fix the too short sections. Ever since I have to psych myself up for weeks to get a haircut. Then I would be incredibly nervous when a stylist started cutting. No joke. It’s not so bad now because I’ve been getting my hair cut very short. Really short on the sides and back. I’ve taught myself to cut my own hair and my daughter’s hair with my Flowbee during the pandemic. I’ve cut my son’s hair since he was a toddler. Started with the mushroom cut, then buzz cut, then fade, and now layered and longer and using clippers only to clean up his neck. I have my own scissors, 2 sets of electric clippers, and a Flowbee. If I were to get a bad cut I could fix it myself. I got my haircut this week. I went to Great Clips (my go to where I’m comfortable) because my hair was much too long for me to try to cut it with the Flowbee. (I had a 4 inch ponytail!)
8. What’s the worst job you ever had?
There were so many. All of them were in Illinois after I moved here. First the beauty school whose owner told me, on my first day, that I needed to be more friendly to other employees because they complained that I didn’t talk. So, the very next day I started chatting up everyone. Not long chats, short, just to show I was being friendly. At the end of the day the owner called me into his office and YELLED at me telling me I was spending too much time talking. At first I apologized, then excused myself, went to my desk, got my offices keys out, went back to his office, handed him the keys and quit. At the time I was still driving back to WI, staying at my Dad’s, and worked all weekend at my former employer. When I quit I worked 4 day weekends so I could job hunt the rest of the week. I had money coming in and I refused to work for a nutjob. Next job the receptionist screamed at me on a daily basis because she thought I was stealing parts of her job that were accounting related. I was doing what the president told me to do. When I complained to him I was told that was the way she was and I would have to get used to it. I couldn’t quit at the time because I was pregnant with my daughter. I was so stressed that I had to go on medical leave/short term disability in January, when my due date was April. I was on strict bed rest. I returned to work 6 weeks after my daughter was born. I was laid off about a month later because a new manager was making cuts in all departments. I couldn’t have been happier! Cut to my last job where I was told repeatedly in the interview that everyone there were like family. That should have been a warning, but I had no choice but to take the job. Turned out they just meant “straight” family. They were big haters and did all kinds of things to get me to quit. They accused me of doing bad work on a huge client. After I was confronted I went over my supposed errors and made copies and notes proving it was the client who sent bad information. They did not let up. The false accusations continued and then 2 employees who were pals with my supervisor began YELLING at me on a daily basis. One of them yelling at me, in my face, that I was DISGUSTING. When I reported it to my supervisor I was called into a conference room with the supervisor and the 2 employees where all 3 yelled at me, basically saying ‘too bad, we’re not going to change’. They yelled so loudly that my ally on the 2nd floor heard them, and the partners on the other side of the reception area. My ally told the partners either they transfer me to her department, or be prepared to be sued by me for a hostile work environment, discrimination, and on and on and that I definitely had a case and could also go to the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) and that agency would investigate and they would find many violations of federal employment law. Suddenly I was transferred. Then I had the car accident that necessitated back surgery. I went on short term disability, then long term disability due to chronic pain. Even while I was on leave they tried to mess with me, trying to get my benefits stopped. I ended up contacting the EEOC twice. It was 3 years before that employer stopped contacting me.
9. What is one thing you want to be remembered for?
How I took care of and advocated for my 2 children, now adults, who have the same mental illness.
10. On a scale of 1-10, what is the highest level of pain you’ve ever experienced?
12.
11. What fashion trend do you wish would go away?
Dresses and skirts that are super mini. I just find them gross.
12. What’s the weirdest dream you’ve ever had?
The weirdest was starring Tom Hanks as my sadistic gym teacher. We were in the gym and were supposed to climb one of 2 ropes attached to the ceiling. Tom Hanks wore a gray sweatshirt, sweatpants, a whistle hanging around his neck, holding a shotgun to his side. It was my turn. I was a fat kid through most of high school. No way could I climb a rope. I refused. He picked up the rifle, raised it and cocked it. He told me to start climbing or he’d shoot me. I tried, my hands and legs raw and bleeding from trying to climb, but never really going up. He kept yelling at me to climb and blowing his whistle. He took aim…then I woke up. From later analysis of that dream and what was going on in my life at the time I figured it meant “dammed if you do, dammed if you don’t.” I still think that was an accurate analysis.
13. What are 2 weaknesses you have?
I can’t tell you that. Then you would know my kryptonite!
14. How would you spend your 100th birthday?
Hopefully not 6 feet under.
15. What food/drinks would you pack in a picnic basket
Sandwiches, vegetables to snack on, fruit, bottled water, or sparkling water. I would bring wine, but I’m the only drinker at my house. Kind of a boring picnic, but I’d stick to foods that didn’t need to be kept ice cold. Who wants food poisoning from potato salad?
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Sandwiches
