Lowly Peasant Errand Girl

Wow, July 11th, huh? Really? That was the last time I blogged? And I’m pretty sure I told you all that I would be back here regularly, updating this page, yada yada yada.

Well. Lots of change has happened, I suppose, but that’s really a crap excuse for me not blogging.

So, let’s begin.

Le Chef moved in officially in August, I suppose. He was let go from the restaurant job that we had done together, and had a hard time finding work after that. He helped out a small restaurant who desperately needed help, and asked for it, but it did not seem like they were truly ready to make the leap. It’s hard to help someone who asks for help but doesn’t really want to use it. He finally found a great position as one of four chefs working for an executive chef who has worked for the top french chefs in the world. It’s a great place for him to learn, and even though it’s a bit stressful and the hours are long, he’ll be learning a ton working under this man.

Once he got that job, which is right up the street from where I live, we decided to make it official. He moved all of his things up here, I cleaned out my closets, and we made space for him. We are both lucky enough to live in a small town, and are both able to walk to work.

Yup, that’s right, I can walk to work. That’s the other big change. When I wrote my last post, I was bored with work, and had planned on working on my resume and website, in order to possibly look for subcontractor work. I had reduced my hours at the firm (we were slow, and I had other subcontracting work for The Emperor), so I figured I could use a break from that place for the summer, and pick them back up in the fall.

Well, The Emperor got so busy that in July, he offered me a full time position. Me! At his independent firm! His first employee! You remember The Emperor, right? He’s the inspiration for the blog name!

It was a huge step for both of us. He had a ton of work to do, and not enough manpower to be able to handle it. And he assured me one year’s employment, and if we did well this year, we’ll hopefully be busy enough next year. It’s this industry, and there’s never any guarantee. So he took the leap and decided to hire his first employee, and I took the leap and accepted the offer. I’m making slightly more than I was, PLUS I don’t have an hour’s commute on each end. It’s been nice coming home for lunch and seeing Le Chef before he heads to work, and getting home at a decent hour in the evenings.

In July, I went to Chicago for a work conference, and was really inspired by some of the things I heard there. I’m trying to become more involved with the group of Emerging Professionals in my area, since I am technically the go-to person for my industry for people in similar career paths (in my state). Each state has someone like myself, plus each college has someone. We all get together and talk about the things we can do for interns/emerging professionals, and how we can help them become licensed. Which, incidentally, is what I am trying to do myself. And because the conference was so inspiring, it pushed me to sign up for my next exam, the hardest one, that I’ve been pushing off for over a year.

And now it’s on Thursday. I figure even if I do fail, I can easily retake it, and the next time I’ll know what exactly is on the exam. I’m worried about the formulas really – it’s structures and I’m not an engineer. There’s a reason I’m not an engineer – talking about steel puts me to sleep. And having worked in residential architecture for so long, I’m very accustomed to working with wood and concrete, but rarely do we run into steel. And who cares about sizing! I just want someone to tell me how big it is – I don’t want to do those darn calculations!

Dinner’s finished. I suppose it’s time to get back to those calculations