Because I like to share

We finished inventory! (and all God's children said "Amen.") This year we counted close to 107,000 items. That's about 10,000 more than last year. I personally worked 33 hours during those three days. Which really isn't so bad. As far as I know, we had no real glitches. Everything seemed to go smoothly. I took some pictures so I could remember this momentous occasion. (Not that I am likely to forget. But I am getting older. Hmphf. I actually typed odder as opposed to older. I suspect that both might be true.)



Anyway, this is the back room. The rule of inventory is that you can start early (before 9pm on Saturday night) and count anything that a customer cannot reach. So, we stuff as many things into the back room as humanly possible and count away. I was mildly concerned that we might have lost an employee back behind all of this but I figured they could get out when we put the store back together on Monday. Oh wait, what's this we stuff? I am off today! So when everyone else puts the store back together. We crafty inventory people make sure to drag back all the itty bitty collections of things that take enormous amounts of time. Things like jewelry or pass it on cards or novelties or bumper stickers. We forgot the highlighers though. Sorry, Byron.



This is the middle room. See all the boxes? Those mostly contain VBS. Which came on the truck this week. The truck we weren't supposed to get. They promised we wouldn't get this truck. But we aren't going to talk about that. Because it's all behind us now.



This is MJ's magical cart. I made the signs. Because I am crafty like that. MJ is the coordinator of trouble. (I think I'll have to make her a name tag that says that.) She is responsible for doing something with all the items that no one else can figure out what to do with. It's an ugly job but somebody's got to do it. So I nominated her. Because she can handle me most of the time and we all know how much trouble I can be. (No, MJ, I would prefer that you not comment on that statement. No matter how much you want to.)

And this? This blooming extravaganza was waiting for me when I got home. This is Mabel. Mabel the tree. He's a boy tree. Josh got him for me one year after I had surgery on my hand. He (Josh, not the tree) brought me home, still drugged up, and showed him to me. In my anesthesized state, I declared him to be "Mabel the boy tree." (the tree, not Josh.) And so he (both Josh and the tree) has been ever since.