Monday, June 30, 2008

My first letter to the editor

I guess last Saturday morning cartoons, overwhelming stress, random moments of disparagment and staying home with my cats 89% of my evenings hasn't been so bad. I watch movies, either putting all my chips in on an On Demanded one and losing $4.50 or getting a dvd from Netflix. I'm quite proud of that queue. All hand picked and searched. I keep a notebook in the purse to make notes of films/ music I know I'll forget to look up. The short-term doesn't hold up like it once did. Presently, I've taken on the exhaustive undertaking of catching up on all my magazines. They're looming at me by the bed. Oxford American was first, the May issue of this year. Reading that they recently indured a money embezzlement, my heart broke. It's a hard one to endure, especially when other parts of your life decides to fall apart. A letter-to-the-editor was born in this mess. Well, here it is:

please edit if you print. i am a painter, a history student, not a writer. andy earles was my boyfriend you met. he has a new cd out on matador. a comedy cd. and, it's funny. thankfully. cc

Salut Marc,

Sadly, I've missed the last two issues. I promise to not let that happen again. We met one another in Memphis at a party before our Indie Film fest last year. You and your OA entourage thought my boyfriend at the time looked like Jeff Tweedy. No, you guys actually thought he WAS Jeff Tweedy. Not so surprisingly, he gets that often. We were confused for about 5 minutes, but, it all came together. I'm not here to reminisce, though. My concern in writing you is that I can empathize with the embezzlement the OA experienced recently. I own a business based in Memphis I started seven years ago. I created it's operating system, oversaw the handbook, live every moment of my life for it...everything. It's growing, ethical and successful, monetarily and environmentally. I hired a close friend when I needed an office manager to help with the bookkeeping. All was well for several years, but, quickly headed south. I tried to make it work. My naivete did not allow me to even consider she was to blame for the biz losing thousands suddenly with a forged signature and some checks. Not a friend, someone I thought was one of my best and who vocally praised being part of a 'green' company. Never. Don't say 'never', ever. Did she not consider others while pilfering the back account, putting in jeopardy almost thirty jobs and my livelihood? I will never forget the overwhelming shock, feeling of inadequacy and ineptitude. Doubt, depression, double chocolate ice cream. Repeat. I jumped out of the haze and knew this history student would not allow this (enter obligatory four-letter word) to happen again. Instantly, I knew my first mistake was to trust her without checking over the work. There needs to be trustworthiness in an office as well as a leader. At that time I was not as involved as I should have been in the daily operations of my office. I admit it. I didn't pay close enough attention for the last three months of her tenure. I'm an entrepreneur and we learn a lot through experience, right? My heart broke when I read that the OA endured a similar travesty. I promise to never feign loyalty to the OA. I know that I am a mere reader in Memphis, but, we can all make a difference by making just decisions based in ethics and piety. My dad always says, "you wake up in the morning and you have the choice to make the wrong decision or the right decision. Make the right one". It's not always that black and white, but, now I think of that quote every morning. Maybe we will all meet again. I will say hello, and, maybe you can introduce me to the real Jeff Tweedy one day. No substitutes for the real thing.
cheers, Candace Mills
Memphis, TN

1 comment:

Elizabeth said...

Oh My Dear! We seriously need to catch up!