Meggs739

Long time, no talk team! Long story short, I work for an AV company and we are installing some sound-masking speakers for Google out of our Austin, Texas branch. Google has requested these be painted, and we don't normally offer that type of service. I have used sign companies in the past to do this for us (shoutout to Piros Signs in STL for helping us at Wrigley Field!), but we are trying to keep it local to Austin. Anything you guys can do to help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

McGill Marketing Group is needing an experienced Plastics Lead. This person needs to take the lead in our plastic face pulling department. We are a fast-paced work environment, so you need to be able to work quickly and accurately. This job is located in Cape Girardeau, Missouri (halfway between St. Louis and Memphis). This job would require the candidate to be in-house. Right candidate will grow this area of our business. Please send your resume to Mike Ketcherside at mike@mcgillmarketing.com. Please direct any additional questions to that email as well.

God bless you Sean. I hope that none of your friends or family were hurt. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to let me know.

AMEN!

Y'all nasty... but I like it.

Erik, granted we are not a sign shop, but I can tell you that we have sold more straight lengths than kits and cabinets lately. Some shops just seem more willing to fabricate their own cabinets.

For all of you in the San Diego area, how did that work out for you last night?

Thanks Sean, especially since I was considering selling my house... you know, like sometime in my life. Our president is a joke (please take note that I didn't capitalize his title). I'm so sick of this.

I don't even know what to think about it honestly. I forgot that now we a country of enablers, that we are supposed to take care of those less fortunate. How about no, Sparky? If I choose not to have health insurance, that is a choice, therefore it cannot be taxed. However, according to our wonderful new law, now we choose between insurance or a tax. That, my friends, is a choice between two devils. I can either pay a corrupt insurance company or a corrupt government. My, what wonderful choices! Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Why would I ever want to keep my own money that I worked my ass off to earn... you're right... I'll give it away! An even better option is to give it to the leeches the suck on the government's teet every chance they get because our welfare system is so screwed up that everyone takes advantage of it. You have an iPhone, a flat screen tv, new rims, and rockin' kicks, but you're on food stamps? Makes sense. The worst part is that the majority of Americans just sit there with a goofy ass grin on their faces and pretend like everything is hunky dory. Did everyone else get some sort of "happy drug" that I missed? Was I absent from school the day that everyone seemed to get magically brainwashed by the media and believed everything that they said? I guess I also missed the time that my generation accepted that it was okay to know more about Snooki and the Kardashians than the economy. Everyone is just walking around like America didn't change yesterday. Our whole future changed yesterday. Everyone is entitiled to their own opinion, and I am not going to belittle you or be disrespectful to you if your opinion is different than mine. However, i am BEGGING you... please be an informed citizen this November. Please vote responsibly. DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH AND DO NOT TRUST THE MEDIA'S RESEARCH! You are your own person with your own brain.

Congratulations guys! Best of luck

Matt, margaritas will be a definite at the Tri-States show! Gary... don't make me come through this computer. I may be short, but I'm a scrapper and I'm from St. Louis. We don't mess around there.

Brian, yes. Try to take it easy on them... it's not their fault they have a job that everyone hates. Dominic, dream big my friend. Someone has to have that dream for humanity to have any sort of future... it may as well be us. Erik, you know the hug I'm talking about... the kind of hug where you don't know what to do, or someone is hugging you that you don't know all that well, or just attacked you with a hug out of nowhere. The ass-out hug is always awkward. You're welcome for the image in your head now.

I woke up in a happy mood today. That hasn't happened in quite some time, so I wanted to pass my happiness on to all of you. For the past few weeks, I have allowed work to seriously stress me out. I had so much stuff to do that I didn't know where to start. I couldn't keep up with the amount of quote requests coming in, balanced with aluminum purchasing, all while trying to train our new CSR. Point being, I was letting myself get so worked up that it spilled over to my personal life. I was tired all the time, crabby, and I swear I could feel my blood pressure rise when I walked in the door every morning. Yesterday I reached my breaking point. I said, "It's about fuck-this-shit o'clock and I need a margarita." So I did. As always, my mind is full of infinite wisdom after alcohol has been consumed, so I gave myself a nice little pep talk. If you're stressed out at work, or at home, this may help you. If not, I hope it will at least provide some entertainment... [WARNING: I'm a little weird, so just prepare yourselves] It could be worse. I could be rotting in jail for a crime I didn't commit. I don't have nearly as much pressure on me as Obama does, considering half of the nation hates him. I could be unemployed. Pro: I wouldn't be nearly as stressed about work. Con: I would be much more stressed about not having a job. I have a roof over my head and clothes on my body. Right there I'm better off than the majority of people in third-world countries. I have access to clean water. Always a plus in my book. In the last year, I have had E.Coli, cancer, food poisoning, and a stroke. I'm healthy as of this moment, and isn't this moment the only one that really matters? Smile at someone. Say something encouraging to someone that is struggling. Be a friend. Tell your mom/dad/siblings/significant other/WHOMEVER that you love them. Have so much energy that you can't help but spread it around. Create a positive aura. Give whole body hugs, not the "ass out" kind (you know the kind where you wrap your arms around someone, but your ass is still awkwardly sticking out? Dedicate yourself to the hug). Be the kind of person you would want to meet. I know this all sounds a little corny (okay, a lot of corny), but I just wanted to let all of you know that I'm sending a smile and a high-five your way. You're doing a great job. Keep up the hard work. Now give yourself a hug cause YOU RULE! P.S. I'm even sending a smile and a high-five to you Dominic, regardless of your threats of sending me a Kings jersey. I'm just that nice. You're welcome.

Here comes the BOOM!

Steve, you're completely right. Knowing STL, people will definitely turn to bullets sadly. Brian, haven't you read the papers?! According to the media, we LOVE the government! The government is turning around! It's going to be butterflies and roses and rainbows from here on out! You didn't get that memo? Yeah, me neither. USA is going to hell in a handbasket. Or just become China's bitch some more. Whichever comes first.

This is what I was talking about in my worldwide protest post... it's my lovely generation that expects everything for nothing. They expect that the college degree they have in their hands translates into a six figure salary. They turn their nose up at starting from the bottom and working their way up. WHY?!?!?! It's drives me crazy!! They are delusional enough to think that they should be handed everything on a silver platter. I don't get it. I don't understand how someone doesn't have the desire and the motivation to make their own money. I'm a trust fund baby, but you would never know it. Why? Because that money isn't MINE. I didn't EARN it. Generations ago, someone in my family worked his tail off and decided to save instead of spend. That money remains untouched. I like EARNING MY PAYCHECK. I found a job where I didn't start at the top. I don't earn a six figure salary. I have friends that make more and I have friends that make less. I pay my bills from my paycheck and save from my paycheck. I'll never understand how people leech off the government or their parents or scam people to get money. The point is (surprise! I'm rambling again!), it is hard to find good people to do good work anymore. We are searching right now for new customer service reps and we are experiencing the same thing. Granted, like Matt said, it's a different field than what y'all are talking about, but I can still relate. Hopefully the next generation has a little bit more sense than mine does.

Definitely one of those weeks... This week I could serioucly torch one of the trucking companies! Between lost shipments and damged material all to the same customer is really getting old. Despite the effort we put into packaging our materials its amazing how much damage these trucking companies can do! Plus, how do you lose a 26' bundle!!? On the upside though, its Superbowl weekend!!! We have had more freight claims this week than any other week since I started. I had a customer from Alabama call me this morning. She ordered a kit last WEDNESDAY. It shipped on Thursday. On this particular truck line, she is a two day point from us so she should have received it on Monday, Tuesday at the latest. She calls me this morning and proceeds to tell me that she still hasn't received her kit... would I mind getting her the tracking number? As soon as I remember what she ordered, I start getting curious. Come to find out, OOPSIE! The truck line sent it to Minnesota. MINNESOTA! That's not even in the same direction! They realized their mistake and were sending it to Alabama, but no one decided to notify us. My rep tried to say that we can't hold them accountable because "we should label things better" and "watch their driver." I laughed and said, "Maybe your driver should do his job correctly because we have a clear area where our packing slip is located every time." Then she tried using the excuse that because we didn't refer to a quote that was given to us, her company has no obligation to stand by the estimated time. Now I was really starting to get heated. I told her that either the company is paying for the freight or we are going to have an outstanding bill for a long period of time. I understand that need to Cover Your Ass and you don't want to lose the company money. But REALLY?! You're going to try and make me pay for the added fuel of driving from Missouri to Minnesota to Alabama? What a joke. On a personal note, I'm doubly exhausted trying to recover from food poisoning. Damn Mongolian grill and their shrimp. I just wanna go home!

Thanks for the video Manuel! I love your shirt, by the way. Joe Tuineau (he attended the same university I did) and I were very good friends when he lived here in the States playing football. I think he plays for Southland and represents Tonga internationally now, but he always talked about the All Blacks. Happy Friday to you!

Haven't we all... at least it's Friday!

It's good to know I'm not the only one feeling this way!

That was a good read. Really enjoyed the article! I love the names of the new products

Ha! Self-labeling at its finest. Erik, I also would have thought that there would be a smaller percentage for the yellow books. I know that in some places, they don't even give out yellow books anymore, they just have them available to purchase.

Thanks Erik! Glad to be a part of this!

I think you're right Eric. IMO, the positive does outweigh the negative. I don't think this proposal is "a slap in the face to business," but rather returning trade associations to the purpose for which they were established. If ISA's board was actively following their own set of rules when it comes to ethics, I would take issue with this. However (and this conversation has been going on for quite some time), we rarely hear about the ISA actually standing up for the "little guy" and fighting for EVERYONE, not just the national companies. You bring up some great points that I think people should actively think about. Lobbying is a joke anymore and let's be honest here, it's all about kissing the tush of the guy who has the most influence. I personally like the proposal, but hey, that's just me. Thanks for the read this morning!