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Musings from a Work-at-Home Mom
The Dog Ate My __________! By Carol Ward My husband came down the stairs peeling remnants of a wet paper-something from the soles of his Doc Martens. “Is this the check from your new client?” he grouched, waving the shards of the drool-covered check, each stuck to a different finger, in my face. “So that’s where it is,” I responded without thinking. “I had it on the kitchen table ready to go to the bank earlier today, and I guess Boomer (who is just shy of 100 lbs and tall enough to easily rest his chin on the kitchen table) must have grabbed it.” Each time one of us walks in the door, Boomer picks up the first item he sees or smells, wags his tail and begs for someone to play fetch with him. “At least he didn’t find a dirty old sock, right?” I teased. Unfortunately, my husband has no sense of humor when it comes to money, so he didn’t laugh. He just told me to call my client and get another check. Yep, I thought, my client will think I’m real professional and want to give me more work when she hears that. Not! You see, I’d been able to hide the fact that I share my home office with a dog and two kids. Only once, did Boomer, named for “Boomer Sooner” (Go OU), boom his wolf-like howl while I was on the phone with a prospective client. Maybe that’s why I didn’t get that business. Anyway, the client who sent the check hadn’t heard a woof. In an attempt to sidestep the embarrassment, I called the phone number from the on-line banking service that sent the check. Unfortunately, Boomer had eaten the key numbers they needed. The customer service guy told me I’d need to call my client and get it reissued. I finally got the guts to e-mail my client with the story and sent her a scan of the remnants of the check. She, too, works at home so chuckled and gladly reissued a check. Bank of America didn’t charge one cent to do that. Whew!
Now if only I can get my seven-year-old to shush while I’m
talking on the phone! That’s the inspiration for my next column, “Quiet
in Here!: Duct Tape, the Mute Button & Hiding in the Garage”, which
will be about the ways Work-at-Home Moms (WAMS) keep a professional home
office. If you have suggestions on WAMS stories, send your stories to
Carol Ward. Carol C. Ward, APR runs a public relations business out of her home in The Woodlands, TX. She and her husband of 22 years, have two sons, ages 14 and 7. Her contact information is below:
Carol C. Ward, APR
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