The String Puller

Maybe, just maybe, some talk is stirring around the corporate office of Envoy about bringing me along on the Circle of Excellence trip as the official blogger. Here’s the scoop. Last week, my fine Bosses provided lunch for Envoy’s corporate office (remember, we’re a branch of Envoy – the very best and smartest branch) to thank them for all the support they provide us. More on that lunch later this week. For now, here’s what you need to know.

At this lunch someone very important named Brad approached me. Brad is so important that when I asked him what he does for Envoy, I had no idea what he was talking about when he responded. But, oh you better believe I acted like I did! I gave him my winning smile, nodded appropriately, and even kept my eyebrows raised in my “I understand you” look. Then, I tried to change the subject, see? Because this Just the Assistant doesn’t much like staying in conversations in which I have to doggy paddle just to stay afloat. “So, you’re wearing a blue shirt! That’s great!” was where I’d planned to direct our little chat, but Brad, no doubt sensing my devious ways, beat me to it and changed the subject for me.

“So, you’d like to go on the Circle of Excellence trip, I hear?”

Insert record-coming-to-a-screeching-halt-sound here. Ruuurrr! (That’s the best I could do grammatically to get us there. Work with me.)

Do I want to go on the Circle of Excellence trip? The trip Envoy Mortgage provides for the top producers of the company, the cream of the crop, the business folks with the know-how? Do I? It’s only my highest career aspiration in the whole world (besides finishing my book in which I have two awesome opening paragraphs already started.) Yes, Brad, I want to go on the Circle of Excellence trip! And I want to blog the heck out of that thing! Sign. Me. Up.

“Brad, I’m the least important person in this entire organization. You’ve got to help me.” And he did. Now, Brad isn’t the one making the decisions about who gets brought along to blog about this fine trip (though I, for one, nominate him as that person from here on out), but he does know the gals who do make that decision. I stood nervously with Brad as those ladies made their way through the lunch line towards us.

I’ll leave the rest a mystery. Well, kind of because it’s still a mystery to me. I think I have a shot of being your very own Circle of Excellence blogger, but I don’t know for sure. I’ll keep you posted as things progress. For now, I need you all to send flowers to a nice lady named Kim Nguyen at Envoy Mortgage with a little note reading, “Christina Ledbetter: COE Blogger 2013!” And then send a nice box of cigars to Brad with a little note reading, “Thank you!”

Just the Assistant and the String Puller

By the way, if you are wondering why my face looks as though it’s been injected with a saline solution, that’s because I’ve been experimenting with Botox. Kidding. This was the night after our bingo extravaganza where I didn’t drink enough water. I didn’t drink enough water because, frankly, I didn’t want to have to pee at the bingo hall. And this, friends, is what my face looks like when I’m dehydrated.

Stay tuned for more on that! In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a house update.

Construction has begun, folks! Below, Just the Assistant enters her soon-to-be front door holding a sack of organic produce with some fresh flowers sticking out of the top of the canvas bag. Just the Assistant is actually wearing a linen dress with her hair in a nice, relaxed braid, and not running shorts and a frizzy bun:

Don’t mind me! Just returning from the market!

If you’d like to learn more about how much of a house you can afford (because after all, you might only be able to afford what you see above) send me a friendly email telling me how great of a blogger you think I’d be on this Circle of Excellence trip, oh, and asking me about a mortgage and so on. I’ll forward the blogging praise to Kim, and send your loan inquiries straight to my Bosses, the finest mortgage bankers in this great state of Texas.

Off to plant these organic flowers in my garden.