Failed Bagel Courier Career

As you may know, one of the thing New York is known for is its bagels. One of the favorites is Ess-a-Bagel, Inc. with its two locations in NYC. Shortly after getting my new job, good friends of ours put in their bagel order. However, in the three trips that I have subsequently made to NY, I have not had time to deliver on the bagel request. Hence, I may be fired from my short-lived bagel courier career.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Happy Birthday Dad S!

Very Un-Washington Like

My United flight from Washington Dulles to Miami was Sunday morning with 13 inches of snow having just fallen, I was more than just a skeptic that my flight would be leaving. Although, after a call to United and constantly refreshing the flight status, my flight said "on time." Brian took me to the airport and my flight boarded on time. Although we waited a little more than an hour for de-icing, we did take off to my amazement and many of my fellow conference attenders. My friends who flew American all had flight cancellations; my United flight was nearly on time. Could the difference be a Chicago-based airline versus a Dallas-based airline? One can only speculate! (PS Lest you think I escaped to a warmer climate...Miami had freeze warnings and barely hit highs in the 60's.)

Milk, Bread and Toilet Paper Beware!

Once again, the Washington area is "predicting" snow. Although, it has been mainly flurries, which are melting on contact, meteorologists are still saying 8-14 inches. Check back for an update.

UPDATE: Well, I'll hand it to the meteorologists and eat humble pie. We got 13 inches!

Double-Fisted...BlackBerry that is!

Technology has not been my friend today. My laptop finally arrived, but I could not download my contacts or my calendar. My BlackBerry also began working, but I synched it once with the desktop and then it wouldn't connect again. So, momentarily, I'm carrying TWO BlackBerrys or as most people that are close to me affectionately call it the CrackBerry. One has my contact list and the other can email. Also, I have no intranet or internet access. AND, to top it all off, I'm using Lotus Notes for the first time ever so I have no idea what I'm really doing. I'm hoping tomorrow will be a better technology day.

Cardboard...Purple...Elvis

The 6:50 a.m. Delta Shuttle to New York City, new employee orientation, several introductory meetings and the Delta Shuttle home was enough to make my first day, a full one. A poignant moment was viewing the gaping construction site that was once the World Trade Towers directly east of the building. An ever present reminder of 9/11.

The new co-workers I met in New York and my fellow colleagues in Washington are all so very kind, friendly and helpful. This new era seems like it will be a good one.

So, you're asking, what does "Cardboard...Purple...Elvis" have to do with my first day? In the new employee orientation, I learned that one of the first credit cards was actually made out of cardboard, it was purple and was issued to Elvis Presley!

The Beginning of a New Era

Well, that title sounds pretty daunting. For those that know me well, or maybe even not so well, change does not immediately come easy for me. So as I embark on this new job, it does seem like an era in some ways.

My new title will be director of federal government affairs and my responsibilities will be to manage the political involvement programs. If you are like most members of my family, the best you can do at explaining my job is that "I work in Washington, DC." If you really want to know what I do, read on! What are some of the components of a company's political involvement programs?

• Political Action Committee (PAC) – A PAC enables employees or members of groups - such as corporations and professional organizations - to pool their political contributions and support candidates who will help the organization achieve its legislative objectives. My responsibilities include raising money from management employees for the PAC and also the process of overseeing the disbursements that we give to candidates. Something that will be new to me is "PAC Match," which is a benefit offered by thePAC where all of a person’s PAC contribution is "matched" by a contribution to charity. (For example, if an employee contributes $100 to the PAC, the company will make a $100 to a charity of the employe's choice.)
• Grassroots – Organized company-wide program to inform about legislative issues important to the company, recruit and deploy the political power of constituents. In the case of a company, the constituent group could include any of the following: employees, retirees, shareholders, vendors and customers.
• "Get out the vote" (GOTV) – Organized efforts to assist employees in the electoral/voting process.

Political education is the foundation. As you can see, all of the above programs require the company to provide constant political education to their employees, retirees, shareholders, vendors and customers on why a company is involved in the political process. Without informing our audiences on the legislative and regulatory issues that we face, we can't expect them to want to support us on our grassroots efforts when we need their help or contribute to the PAC to help elect candidates that understand our legislative and regulatory issues.

So, maybe this has clarified some of the questions you've alway had about my job. Or perhaps, it's more confusing than ever! Regardless, for me, a new era embarks.

"You Can Still Change Your Mind..."

"You Can Still Change Your Mind..." has been the recurring theme for the past two days in the Exelon office. That's because these were my last two days in the Exelon office. They were days filled with mixed emotion, fond farewells and anticipatory excitement.

Thursday was highlighted by a lunch with the entire Exelon office (rare to have us all in one location) where I was presented with a card full of sentiments, a pair of beautiful black pearl earrings and a wall hanging artist sketch of my favorite Green Bay Packer quarterback, Brett Favre. Exelon also hosted a happy hour for me that evening inviting the American Express office; family; friends; and former and current colleagues.

Friday was marked with misty-eyed hugs and "see-you-laters" rather than good-byes. Yet it was a busy day of forwarding contact information, changing passwords and messages, explaining a few instructions, packing the few remaining items, and last but very last my final ExelonPAC newsletter (no easy feat).

I have many thank you cards to write and many Exelon memories to remember. As I expressed in my final note to the Exelon staff, I think it sums it up best, "I cannot begin to describe my gratefulness; it has been a pleasure working with and knowing each one of you. Exelon forever will be one of my fondest memories and I hope that you will promise to stay in touch. Of course, do not hesitate to contact me at any time. Thank you again, for making Exelon a very special place to work."