Inventory 3

Today after work several of us gathered at the Salt Hill Pub for a few drinks. While I'm still the quiet one of the group, which was remarked upon by Christy ... and one extremely drunk girl from the machine shop ... I'm doing my best to show up at any and all of these social events. So far I'm 3 for 3. And it was a pretty good time, although somewhat subdued as we were all dead dog tired. Jim was of the opinion that the cute bartendress was flirting with me, but I don't know if that was really true. She is working in a bar, after all, and it's part of her job to be a good hostess. Even so, I think I'll be making another visit to Salt Hill in the near future.

Tomorrow morning is inventory. Normally such a thing would have been done today so that everyone can begin their X-Mas holiday. However, the powers that be decreed that today would be a production day so as to increase the number of guns put out before the end of the year. Tomorrow's inventory started off as voluntary, but so few of us (I was one of them) volunteered that Jim, Fred, and Brad were officially asked to come in to help out. Brad had a good excuse, but Jim and Fred, and now most of us, are showing up to work on the inventory. A normal Saturday morning shift is only 5 Am to 10 AM, but since it's inventory I have no earthly idea what time we'll be getting out of there. Even so, after that's over with I'm off until January 2nd, which will be my first vacation in a year, so I can deal with it.

This is my third inventory since being employed at Rugers. The first one was on my second day there. We all counted the parts and then most of the senior crew was set loose while Cooter, Jason, and I stayed to take care of the things the computer kicked out. Last time it was the same thing, and Cooter, David, and I stayed behind. See the pattern? Guess who's probably going to be staying behind tomorrow until god knows when. I'll be one of them. Hell, I don't care. It's good money.

At some point on Monday I'll be leaving for Massachusetts. Before then I will be writing a series of posts for this wrapping up this whole incredible year. Right now I envision the series as a trilogy, climaxing with my "Christmas Letter", which will also be crossposted into the family e-mail chain. Some of my other relatives do a Christmas letter every year, but none of them do it quite the way that I have it in my head to write it, so it could cause a bit of a stir. The middle post of the trilogy, however, will be a far more controversial post, but the good thing there is that nobody but you fine readers will ever see it.

Speaking of, I'd like to wish my regular Stray Bullets readers a terrific holiday, and in case I don't post from Massachusetts, a happy New Year as well. 2008 is going to be an amazing year for me, because I have plans. Big big plans. And to the four readers I know about -- Guinevere, Colleen, Rachel, and Cinderella -- I want to thank y'all for tuning in and making this blog experiment a success. I really appreciate it.

Stay tuned.