Love,
Margot
Boople Chat, Thurs Oct 12, 3:01 PM
Lisa
yo yo
Crystal
sup
Lisa
did you see my email?
Crystal
the one with the NDA?
Lisa
ja
Crystal
it still doesn’t tell me what the project is about
Lisa
of course not
Lisa
you have to sign the NDA first
Crystal
uggggggggghhhhh
Lisa
you got something better to do?
Crystal
than sign away my first-born child?
Lisa
c’mon it’s not that bad
Crystal
have you read this thing? it’s creepily thorough
Lisa
it’s no big deal
Lisa
everyone at boople signs them
Crystal
is that supposed to make me feel better?
Lisa
just sign it so i can finally tell you what i’m working on
Crystal
ok fine
Crystal
i’m pretty sure i just signed away the rights to my genetic code
Crystal
so if crystal clones start popping up all over the boople campus, it’ll be on your conscience
Lisa
:D
Crystal
so are you going to tell me or what?
Lisa
oh i have to wait for the NDA to appear in our system
Crystal
how long does that take?
Lisa
somewhere between 4 hours and a week
Crystal
that’s a pretty big range
Crystal
especially for a place like boople
Lisa
/shrug
Crystal
so that’s it then?
Crystal
you’re just going to leave me hanging
Lisa
it’s my contractual obligation
Crystal
>_<
Margot’s Journal, Monday October 16
Today was challenging. Dr. Jackson pulled me aside and said that he’s going to cut my hours by 40%. That’s almost half of my income! He didn’t even seem sorry about it, either. He gave me some explanation about diminished insurance payouts and decreased appointment times.
We’ve had plenty of talks about that before. Some of the other hygienists might feel ok dashing off a cleaning in 33 minutes, but I take pride in my work. You need at least 48 minutes, and that’s pushing it. I don’t even know how they have time to ask “How are you?” in those 33-minute cleanings. In fact, I’ve watched, and they hold one-sided conversations with patients as they work. The poor people can barely gargle in reply. It’s inhumane.
And then there are those fancy new machines Dr. Jackson keeps bringing in. Those have to be expensive, and I gave up my entire weekend to learn how to polish with salt water, because regular old prophy paste wasn’t good enough for him anymore. It’s all part of his “modern office initiative” but right now, all it seems to do is confuse our regular patients.
Dr. Jackson let me off a couple of hours early, and my head is still reeling. I haven’t told Crystal yet. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I could continue working there with a 40% pay cut, and it would be more of the same. It’s clear that Dr. Jackson doesn’t appreciate my talents, and he has no clue how to run a business. In fact, I think I’d do much better running it myself.
Not that I’d want to run a dentists’ office.
I can’t leave though. I have some savings, but it’s for retirement. And at my age, it’s not a good idea to gamble with it. We’re probably due for a recession soon, and who knows when I’d see that money again.
But on the other hand, I’ve been working for almost 30 years. Crystal has barely been working three, and she’s taking some time off. So don’t I deserve the same? I could take off a couple of months at least, and look for a new dental office after that. If I were home, I could really support Crystal. She’s seemed pretty depressed lately. She says that she’s writing during the day, but she doesn’t have that many pages on her novel yet. I bet if I was there to cheer her on, she’d have more motivation.
I could start a side project, too. Maybe a side business? That might be a little too ambitious. But would it really? You read stories all the time about people who get rich from home-based businesses. They just followed their passions. I have lots of those, so I’m sure I could think of something.
What if my business really takes off, and I never have to clean teeth again? I could be an entrepreneur, and be my own boss. No more boring training videos, dental drills, or halitosis. That’d be nice.
I’ve got some hard thinking to do. I’ll use tonight to do some good research, and then I’ll be able to make the right decision.
I can just see the look on Dr. Jackson’s face when I resign. He won’t know what hit him.
Gratitudes:
I am grateful for Dr. Jackson, for opening my mind to other opportunities.
I am grateful for Crystal, for inspiring me to take time for myself.
I am grateful for Sophia, for showing me what kind of hygienist I don’t want to be.
Boople Chat, Tues Oct 17, 8:58 AM
Lisa
mom just sent me a text saying that she’s leaving her job to make marshmallows
Lisa
is this a joke?
Crystal
no she put in her notice this morning
Crystal
dr. jackson was going to cut 40% of her hours
Lisa
oh man
Lisa
did you tell her she could get unemployment benefits if she stayed?
Crystal
i tried but she was pretty determined to leave
she was really upset
Crystal
she said all this stuff about how toxic the work environment is and how they don’t appreciate her there
Lisa
:(
Crystal
i think some of it is true, and i don’t think that office was a good fit for her
Lisa
when did she hear about losing her hours?
Crystal
yesterday
Lisa
she heard yesterday and she resigned today?
Crystal
yeah she said she knew it was the right thing to do after sleeping on it
Lisa
for one day
Crystal
yep
Crystal
i tried…
Crystal
you know what she’s like when she makes her mind up about something
Lisa
yeah
Lisa
so what’s this about marshmallows?
Crystal
she wants a side project
Lisa
ah ok so she’s not expecting to make a profit
Crystal
eh i think she’s hoping it’ll be a profitable side project
Lisa
:/
Crystal
she said that she wants to sell baked goods at the farmers market
Crystal
but apparently they already have a bunch of people making cookies and chocolates
Crystal
so she found an untapped market in marshmallows
Lisa
has she ever made a marshmallow before?
Crystal
i didn’t want to ask
Lisa
well she’ll figure it out i guess
Crystal
yeah
Crystal
i’m not really in a place to criticize her about income
Crystal
i’m at her mercy in cas
e you hadn’t noticed
Lisa
aw
Crystal
but i’ll keep encouraging her to be practical when i can
Lisa
sounds good
Lisa
glad you’ll be there to keep her from going off the deep end
Crystal
oh i think she might already be there
Crystal
but i probably am too so it’s all good
Lisa
i didn’t realize unemployment was contagious
Crystal
once you get a taste you can never go back bwahahahaha
Lisa
oh before i forget
Lisa
your boople NDA came through
Lisa
so i can finally tell you what i’m working on
Crystal
TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME
Lisa
ok check your email
Crystal
what is this?
Lisa
it’s an application
Crystal
yeah but for what?
Lisa
:)
Crystal
what the hell is a “smart companion”? is that like one of those smart home speaker things?
Lisa
keep reading
Crystal
“meals will be compensated”?
Lisa
keep reading
Crystal
Crystal
OH MY GOD
Crystal
lisa are you working on a ROBOT?
Lisa
technically, i’m in community relations, not design or engineering
Lisa
but yes :)
Crystal
OMG OMG this is SO COOL
Lisa
haha
Crystal
so is it like one of those metal dudes with blocky legs or can you make it look like Jude Law in that robot movie? because Jude Law is way hotter
Lisa
guess you’ll just have to apply and see
Crystal
urrrrggghhhh
Crystal
i sign away my firstborn to boople and still all the secrecy?
Lisa
well we haven’t rolled out the program yet, so we’re still finalizing some details
Lisa
it’s all very experimental
Crystal
i see
Crystal
so if i ask nicely, there’s a chance i can get Jude Law? and he could bring me chocolates and do the dishes and stuff?
Lisa
and here i thought you were going to ask if he’d be your gigolo
Crystal
ick why would you think that?
Lisa
he was a gigolo in that robot movie
Lisa
or were you too busy drooling to pay attention?
Crystal
:P
Crystal
oh wow this application is super long
Crystal
“estimated four hours to complete”?
Lisa
yeah boople likes to have all the info upfront
Crystal
what do they need, my life history?
Lisa
i haven’t actually looked at the questions
Lisa
only the dev team gets to see that stuff
Crystal
oooo super secret
Crystal
ok i’ve gotta get back to writing
Crystal
mom’s coming home for lunch and i haven’t written anything yet today
Lisa
good luck
Crystal
yeah have fun making ROBOTS
Crystal
i mean community managing ROBOTS
Lisa
;)
Margot’s Journal, Thursday October 19
It’s been an exciting week. I’ve officially registered my new business, Margot’s Mallows. I had several other excellent ideas for the name, including Hallowed Mallows and Margie’s Marshies, but Crystal insisted that I keep it simple and sweet. So Margot’s Mallows it is.
I drove all over town today to look at commercial kitchens, because you can’t sell marshmallows that you make in your home. It turns out that I also need to have a Food Safety Manager Certification, and liability insurance. The manager certification requires an 8-hour training course, and then an exam at the end. I was able to get registered for a class next week, but between the training and the exam it’s going to be awhile before I can start cooking. I was hoping to be at the farmers’ market a week from Sunday, but that seems unlikely. In the meantime, I’m going to have to look at insurance and get my recipe down.
It’s much cheaper to buy ingredients in bulk, but I have to know what I’m going to use first. It would’ve been easy just to order a gallon of corn syrup and whatnot, but I’d heard about the dangers of it so I’ve been looking into alternative recipes. It’s a good thing, too, because the woman from the farmers’ market said they won’t allow their vendors to sell foods made with corn syrup and artificial ingredients. She also asked me if I’d make vegan and gluten-free products, which sounded nice, so of course I agreed. That was before I knew that I’d need a certified gluten-free kitchen, which costs an extra $5 an hour, and that vegan marshmallows are much harder to make. Apparently there’s a lot of challenges because of the no-gelatin thing.
It can’t be too hard though, right? I just need to get to the grocery store and start experimenting in the kitchen. I’m sure I’ll find my signature recipes in no time.
I just wish it wasn’t all so overwhelming. And expensive. Every time I hear about a $25 per hour commercial kitchen rental fee, or a $100 food safety certification, I remind myself that this is an investment. If Grace can sell soaps at the farmers’ market, I can certainly sell marshmallows. Granted, she probably didn’t have to go through the same strenuous certification process, but this is a sacrifice I’m making for my customers. Why should people feel left out because they don’t eat gluten or animal products? Marshmallows are fun, and everyone should be able to enjoy them.
Gratitudes:
I am grateful to finally be a business owner!
I am grateful to Crystal for helping me narrow down the names.
I am grateful to all of the people who helped me learn about starting a marshmallow business today.
Text Messages, October 19
Mom
Are my glasses in there?
Crystal
reading or regular?
Mom
Reading
Crystal
no
Mom
Not on the bathroom counter?
Crystal
hang on I’ll check
Crystal
nope
Mom
Did you see me leave them anywhere?
Crystal
the kitchen, maybe?
Mom
I already checked there.
Crystal
are they on your head?
Mom
Yes! How did you know?
Crystal
it’s a mystery
Boople Chat, Fri Oct 20 11:03 AM
Crystal
i think the universe is mocking me
Lisa
aw, what do you mean?
Crystal
i’m a finalist in the ero fiction contest
Lisa
congrats!!!
Lisa
i told you velocirapture had potential
Crystal
no this is terrible
Crystal
they want a full draft by mid-january…75k words
Lisa
this is your big chance!
Lisa
you could get 10 grand and become a published author!
Crystal
i’d rather not make my debut as a dino fetishist
Lisa
just use a pseudonym :)
Lisa
ero makes good money
Crystal
nah this is just a distraction
Crystal
and even if i wanted to, there’s no way i could write an ero novel
Crystal
i’m having a hard enough time writing the rapunzel one
Crystal
mom is around ALL THE TIME
Crystal
she interrupts me constantly
Lisa
so write when she’s in the shower
Lisa
or making marshmallows
Crystal
A) mom gets ready in like 15 minutes and B) she’s talking about having me come with her to the commercial kitchen (she wants an extra pair of hands since they charge by the hour)
Lisa
just think about the ero contest, ok?
Lisa
i know it’s not your ideal project, but it’s still a good opportunity
Lisa
i bet there are hundreds of authors who’d kill for this
Crystal
fine, i’ll think about it
Lisa
btw did you get a chance to fill out the smart companion application?
Crystal
ah not yet
Crystal
having a hard time finding a spare four hours
Lisa
well i’d really appreciate it if you could :)
Crystal
i started filling it out, but i didn’t finish
Crystal
TBH i’m not really comfortable with the robot thing
Crystal
i don’t really like the idea of something following me around and trying to make me happy
Lisa
but that’s what puppies do
Lisa
everyone loves puppies
Crystal
that’s different
Crystal
it’s like how the whole smart home thing makes me uncomfortable, too
Crystal
it’s not about things spying on me as much as my growing too reliant on it
Crystal
and then eventually i’ll have to give it back
Lisa
makes sense
Lisa
but if these trials go well, smart companions will be on the market soon :)
Crystal
:)
Crystal
i’m sure it’s really cool, i just don’t think i’d be a good tester
Crystal
i’d be too scared of it to use it properly
Lisa
well if it’s any consolation
Lisa
we’d still love to have your help
Lisa
we want all types of testers, even the reluctant ones