Courier and Field

Semantics. How you say things. A matter of the right words. Communication is the way we get our point across and some people have a better way than others of doing that. Years ago, I worked with a woman named Debbie. She could take the most mundane task and make it sound so important. My job description entailed handing out the doctors mail and customer telephone calls. On occasion, if I was on vacation, Debbie took over for me. After a few years, Debbie wanted to look for a new job. She brought in her resume. As part of her job responsibilities she listed "courier of documents". I asked her what she was talking about as I knew her daily routine. She told me that putting the doctors mail into their mail slots was couriering documents. Wow. Here I thought I was delivering mail, while Debbie was a courier. When I read further down on her resume, she "fielded patient inquiries". I answered phones but Debbie fielded inquiries. No wonder why she got every job she interviewed for. Who wouldn't want to hire a person that is a trained courier and knows how to field?

Sweeeeet Potatoes

The other day, I was in the mood for chicken and went to my local take out restaurant to buy dinner. It is the type of restaurant that you order at the counter and take your tray to the table by yourself. I had just placed my order of roasted chicken, stuffing and mac and cheese, when a woman and her young daughter arrived on line behind me. They each ordered 1/4 roasted chicken. The girl behind the counter asked what 2 side dishes they wanted. They stood there looking at the choices and decided upon mashed potatoes and gravy and macaroni and cheese. A minute later, the fun began. Out from behind the kitchen door came a man carrying a tub of sweet potatoes. I guess they had run out a few minutes before and sent the man to get a refill. As soon as the mother saw the sweet potatoes, she started jumping up and down in joy. Actually jumping. Then her daughter joined in. Jumping. They both started to yell, "Sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes". It was as if they hit the lottery. They called to the girl that was filling their order. "Hey, wait! We want the sweet potatoes!" The girl changed the order, as we all stood there laughing. I never knew how much joy a potato could bring.

Key To A Man's .....

There are many differences between men and women. They are wired differently. Things that bother women do not phase men. There is one phenomenon that I will never understand. Keys. Both sexes carry them but for some reason they have a dual purpose for men. Women use them to open locks. Men also use them to open locks but they use them for something else. To clean their ears. I am not talking just one man. I am talking many men. Just this week alone I saw two men digging in their ears with a key. Jiggling it around as if they were stirring a pot. It reminded me of when a dog scratches its ear with its paw. When the key is finally removed form the ear, the men have a look of satisfaction on their faces, like they just climbed Mt. Everest.

Written Off

I was reading an AARP magazine and came across an interesting article titled "Going, Almost Gone, Gone". It was about things in the lives of the over 50's generation that are fading away. One of them was Cursive. A word that most of us have not heard in years and the rest of us do not know. Anyone under thirty has no idea that it relates to handwriting and not foul language. The article said that most school districts are eliminating teaching cursive and that in the future they might have to have it as an independent course. The course would be taught to people that want to have the skill to read historical documents like the Declaration of Independence. Imagine a country that can no longer have the ability to read its own doctrine. Mind boggling.

Just Say Yes

I am the first one to lend a helping hand, when I am asked. If I am busy when someone needs my help, I always think of a good alternative, so I can be there when needed. I am always open to change and go with the flow. Unfortunately, I am surrounded by "excuse makers". When they are asked to help out, the roll call of excuses flows. They have to do this, they have to do that. There is some sort of complication that gets in the way. An argument ensues. Now comes the funny part. In the end, they always wind up doing what they are asked to do and even go the extra mile. Why couldn't they just agree with things, from the beginning. It would save so much effort and aggravation. Maybe the arguing is just a way to work up the necessary adrenaline to do the job.

Town Pride

I can't believe that another year has flown by. Today is my town's annual pride day. Businesses will have tables set up giving away pens, cups, tee shirts and informative information. Restaurants will have tents set up feeding the entire neighborhood. Pizza, hot dogs, soda, ice cream and candy. I remember the years when there was fried chicken and biscuits. Too bad that restaurant closed. I used to attend pride day with my children but they are grown now and have better things to do. I am still loyal and will be there at 10am when the booths open. I can always count on meeting someone I have not seen for years and catching up on what has been going on since we last met. By the time the event ends at 1pm, I will have a bag full of goodies and a stomach full of food. I will also have a smile on my face!

Part Deux

Today is the second part of my four part lecture series. It is a beautiful day so the ride to the library will be a nice one. Today's lecture will be about success. Each person has their own definition of what success is. One person may consider making a gourmet meal a success. Another may consider opening up a business as success. There is one common ground in achieving success. You have to work at it. You get out of life what you put into it. Hard work and focusing on your goal will get you results. It bothers me when people complain about things in their lives that are not going well. If something is not living up to your expectations, change it. Re-tune your "frequency" to allow a new way of thinking. If you keep your brain tuned to the same channel you will never get the information that will lead to success.