Words

People have been asking me this week, "So, are you enjoying your new job?"
I'm not quite sure how to answer this. Last night M. asked me why. "Is it because you're not sure whether you should enjoy a job that only exists because people are homeless and hungry?"
It's probably not as profound as that. It's because I'm just learning the job. Lots and lots to learn.
Today I learned about old typos on letters we've sent out. One letter apparently was trying to say something about "neighborhood shut-ins"--I bet you can guess the typo that was made on that phrase! Something like a hundred letters got mailed before the mistake was found, too...
Another time a guy said to Cookie (the organization's founder), "I think you made a mistake on this letter you sent out looking for more volunteers."
"Oh?" she said.
"You said, 'It's been quite busty around here lately.'"
She was able to cover the mistake up on that one though. Quick as anything she said, "I meant to say that! I was trying to get more men to volunteer!"
Speaking of putting the English language to creative use, Cookie was just telling us about one of our guests who complimented her on her makeup: "Oh! Your face always looks so pretty! Can you bring in some costume-medics for me sometime?"
I think "costume-medics" is a GREAT descriptive phrase, don't you? Reminds me of my friend D. who works at a place dealing with legal issues for people. She gets calls from folks saying, "Hi, I need to get my record 'sponged." That makes so much more sense--I mean, why would anyone want to get their record ex-sponged?