August 30, 2013
CJ has not been getting a lot of sleep lately. Between school, band, and work he has been a busy boy. So yesterday when he came home from his day completely spent, I asked him if he was okay. His reply was that he had only gotten about 3 hours of sleep the night prior since he was worrying about something. It turns out that that something was the issues his GF is having. In addition to all of the same things CJ has been dealing with, GF has been troubled by the less than encouraging feedback she recently got from her soccer coach. He is not a man to candy-coat things and his opinion of her play in the last game was not covered in sprinkles.
So I stopped worrying about CJ for a few minutes and decided to worry about GF. I would love to sit down with her and say some things to make her feel better, but since she has been witness to some of the decisions my son has made and probably assumed they were due to my parenting skills, my advice is certainly not something she would seek out. However, my contention is that his inability to keep a tidy personal space, or his friendship with Rowan, or his unkempt facial hair choices, or even his entertainment preferences ("Hey, let's go see Kick Ass 2"); are not issues to which he first sought out my guidance.
Therefore, I thought I would get the advice out of my head and onto my blog so that it would be out there and available. Do with it what you wish.
Here is what I, as an elder in the community, have learned about life. Sometimes it sucks. There, I'm done. Just kidding. Actually, I have decided that there is a reason that sometimes life hands you a challenge. I firmly believe that each of us has a plan. It is not a definitive plan right up to the point when you know you are going to die due to the expiration date on your birth certificate, but it is a plan from up high. I am not going to declare outright that the plan is from God as I am not in tune with your religious inclinations. Therefore, you can believe the "plan" can be from any of a number of gods or god-like influences: Jesus, Allah, Buddha, Ozzy Osborne, Hillary Clinton, Yahweh, Alf (you may have to look him up-it is short for Alien Life Form), that little talking dog from Men in Black, Vidal Sassoon (I know how important your hair is to you), or Lady Gaga.
Nonetheless, there is a plan. Along the way you will make choices involving right and wrong, vanilla or chocolate, and Coke or Pepsi, but these decisions are not going to make or break the plan. Ultimately, you will be where you need to be. For you, the sky is the limit. With your talents, personality, and parents that care about you, your job simply becomes rolling with the challenges you face along the way. AND learning from them.
Since I am brand-loyal to Jesus, here is a religious example. In The Bible, there is a story of how the Apostles (Jesus' friends) were in a boat on a lake when a storm came upon them. They were frightened for their lives. Out of the darkness, Jesus came walking up to them on the water. No jet ski or inflatable alligator. He invited Peter to walk to Him on the water and he did. At one point, Peter started to doubt that Jesus would protect him, and he started to sink. He lost faith. Jesus then saved him. The point some people miss from this story is that Jesus did not calm the storm right away or take away the cause of their dilemma, he simply guided them through their troubled waters. Two of the apostles, Simon and Garfunkel, later wrote a song about the experience.
So take some advice from your elder. I have been through countless times in my life during which I wondered why I was being handed such a challenge. They never stop coming. You have seen some already in your tender years. Divorce, tough coaches, and bad haircuts have caused you strife.
No, your hair looks fine, why do you ask? Oh, I forgot how sensitive the female psyche can be. I didn't mean a bad haircut, I meant an unfortunate wardrobe choice.
Ugh. No I am not referring to the time you wore boots with your shorts and came over to our house. I thought you looked fine. And by fine, I mean perfectly appropriate given the event and weather and...oh never mind.
Anyway, my point is, that all of the events that we encounter along the way are meant to shape us for who we are to become. Survive, learn, grow and move on. This is how we do it. ( Now get that song out of your head the rest of the day.)
For all you know, your current coach could be the turning point in your life that helps you either become the next Abby Wambach, or the President of these United States. My only caution to you is that if you choose to keep my son around for that second choice, I am not sure how good a First Lady he would be. First Man? First Gentleman? First Dude? Not sure. His inability to clean up after himself and his drum set in the White House basement could be a problem.
From which you would have to survive, learn, and grow.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Friday, August 9, 2013
How much was that warranty?
August 9, 2013
Today was computer shopping day. Earlier this week, CJ's computer died. Beth informed me that he was pretty devastated and was going through the 7 stages of grief. She had seen anger, sadness, confusion, sneezing, Donner, and denial. I did my duty as a father and put him through my grief counselling class. "You could read a book." I suggested. Wow. If looks could kill.
So we took the computer to a fix it shop guy who said that one side where the lap top opens around the hinge had come loose, thus creating a strain on the other side where a wire connects. This wire had come loose creating a short. Therefore, every time that CJ touched the computer, it turned off. Not especially helpful if you are trying to use it. That sounds rather easy to fix though, don't you think? Well, he could fix it for a mere $250, but he could not guarantee that it would stay fixed.
This led CJ and his friend, Rowen, to scour the Internet site Newegg in an attempt to buy and build the perfect computer. You can buy the necessary parts there, have them shipped to your house, and then put them together. If it is anything like buying a bicycle and then assembling it in your living room on Christmas Eve, I am assuming it also involves eggnog and cursing. The price for this venture, they assured me, was $694. I thought this was something I could maybe live with.
Oh, by the way dad, we forgot to add in an operating system. How much? Another $150. So an operating system is essential? It is if you don't want all the other parts to become a large, over-priced paper-weight. Perfect. And, the person helping you assemble it is the same friend who cut himself by swinging an axe and missing the log? Yes.
Okay, let's go to the computer store.
So dude at the computer store takes CJ's parts list and assembles one of his own. By the time he was finished, this computer was going to cost around $1100, assembled. Awesome. We did not make any purchases today.
On the way home, I noticed the license plate on the car in front of me was 694 YDA. (Please do not use this info for anything illegal!) I could not help thinking that this plate was a omen. It was trying to tell me that me agreeing to, or believing in the original computer price of $694, really meant You're a Dumb Aaaaas. Here, let me check my pockets for an extra $700 much less $400 more.
So we were at home and Beth and CJ went online to bring the price back down into dad's acceptable blood pressure range. They found a prebuilt Dell for around $700 that would work and we would even get a 10% rewards bonus if we used our Discover card. Okay, I am back in the game.
About 20 minutes later, the guy called from the computer repair shop. We had asked him to put the broken lap top back together and then we would pick it up. He had obliged with the putting back togetherness, and suddenly Peaches and Herb starting singing. "Reunited and it Feels so Good..." The computer was working again. The price, $45. And several hours of my day off that I will never get back. CJ, I love you. The proof is in the pudding...or travel time...or whatever.
Today was computer shopping day. Earlier this week, CJ's computer died. Beth informed me that he was pretty devastated and was going through the 7 stages of grief. She had seen anger, sadness, confusion, sneezing, Donner, and denial. I did my duty as a father and put him through my grief counselling class. "You could read a book." I suggested. Wow. If looks could kill.
So we took the computer to a fix it shop guy who said that one side where the lap top opens around the hinge had come loose, thus creating a strain on the other side where a wire connects. This wire had come loose creating a short. Therefore, every time that CJ touched the computer, it turned off. Not especially helpful if you are trying to use it. That sounds rather easy to fix though, don't you think? Well, he could fix it for a mere $250, but he could not guarantee that it would stay fixed.
This led CJ and his friend, Rowen, to scour the Internet site Newegg in an attempt to buy and build the perfect computer. You can buy the necessary parts there, have them shipped to your house, and then put them together. If it is anything like buying a bicycle and then assembling it in your living room on Christmas Eve, I am assuming it also involves eggnog and cursing. The price for this venture, they assured me, was $694. I thought this was something I could maybe live with.
Oh, by the way dad, we forgot to add in an operating system. How much? Another $150. So an operating system is essential? It is if you don't want all the other parts to become a large, over-priced paper-weight. Perfect. And, the person helping you assemble it is the same friend who cut himself by swinging an axe and missing the log? Yes.
Okay, let's go to the computer store.
So dude at the computer store takes CJ's parts list and assembles one of his own. By the time he was finished, this computer was going to cost around $1100, assembled. Awesome. We did not make any purchases today.
On the way home, I noticed the license plate on the car in front of me was 694 YDA. (Please do not use this info for anything illegal!) I could not help thinking that this plate was a omen. It was trying to tell me that me agreeing to, or believing in the original computer price of $694, really meant You're a Dumb Aaaaas. Here, let me check my pockets for an extra $700 much less $400 more.
So we were at home and Beth and CJ went online to bring the price back down into dad's acceptable blood pressure range. They found a prebuilt Dell for around $700 that would work and we would even get a 10% rewards bonus if we used our Discover card. Okay, I am back in the game.
About 20 minutes later, the guy called from the computer repair shop. We had asked him to put the broken lap top back together and then we would pick it up. He had obliged with the putting back togetherness, and suddenly Peaches and Herb starting singing. "Reunited and it Feels so Good..." The computer was working again. The price, $45. And several hours of my day off that I will never get back. CJ, I love you. The proof is in the pudding...or travel time...or whatever.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
What did I ever do to you Montezuma?
August 4, 2013
I can't believe it has been a month since I last posted. I have been working so much that I just don't feel like being on the computer that much. And any funny in my head is very gone by the time I sit down to type. You will see the reality of that statement very soon.
I have been working a lot due to various reasons, but a good reason was that my sister was coming to visit from Georgia with her family. I worked 13 days in a row to be able to get the time off when they were here and then 5 more right after they left. Fortunately, it was for a good cause. It was a very good visit with awesome weather and fun times. We went to Kings Island Friday, Newport for GameWorks and a walk on the PurplePeople Bridge on Saturday, and a fun-filled family day here at our house Sunday as my brother and his family drove up from Louisville to visit. It is always good when my brother visits as he has way more health problems than I do. He was diagnosed as a diabetic when he was in the 8th grade when no one else in our family had ever been one. Boy was our mother thrilled with that circumstance. The strange thing about mothers is that they can blame themselves for their child becoming a diabetic even though there was absolutely nothing she could have done to prevent it. Now he has a Thyroid condition and Low T. Dude is falling apart. I showed my empathy towards him by making several low testosterone jokes. He was thrilled he told me. As was his wife, though she did seem to confirm his inabilities in the bedroom.
Aside: does anyone else miss the days when we cut our grass by having cows graze on it or with one of those push things with the blade going around? Man, it seems like every time I sit down to relax, my neighbor cuts his grass. We don't have large yards so I could probably deal with just the cutting more sanely. However, not only does he use a gas lawn mower, but then a gas-powered trimmer to be followed by a gas-powered blower. Boy do I want to break his toys some times.
Anyway, I should be grateful next door neighbor did not feel the need to cut his grass during our family day. That typically happens.
So family day on Sunday finished up around midnight when whatever stomach bug my brother-in-law had contracted reared its ugly head. As Beth and I heard him and his body's food evacuation plan starting up, we both did a systems check to see if we also felt ill. Food poisoning at a family outing is always a joyful end. However, since it has taken until Friday night for me to catch the bug, I am guessing it was not food poisoning. Furthermore, with all the potential germs on the money I handle every day, it is not without question that I caught my bug from someone other than my brother-in-law. Thank goodness I have this weekend off so I can feel better just in time to go back to work.
The past two weeks have also included band camp for CJ. During these two weeks they learn their show for the year and, thankfully, have fun doing it. I got to see it Friday night, and in my fever ridden state, thought it was better than any show they did last year. I hope I was right and that this year goes better for them than last. The final night involves initiating the Freshmen by toilet papering their houses. Thank goodness it does involve beating the crap out of them as it did at some colleges. Therefore, if you are drving though our neighborhood this weekend, we are not a community of vandals, those houses belong to the incoming freshmen in the band. I'm sure the parents that have to clean it up are thrilled.
Gotta go. From the hills of Montezuma......
I can't believe it has been a month since I last posted. I have been working so much that I just don't feel like being on the computer that much. And any funny in my head is very gone by the time I sit down to type. You will see the reality of that statement very soon.
I have been working a lot due to various reasons, but a good reason was that my sister was coming to visit from Georgia with her family. I worked 13 days in a row to be able to get the time off when they were here and then 5 more right after they left. Fortunately, it was for a good cause. It was a very good visit with awesome weather and fun times. We went to Kings Island Friday, Newport for GameWorks and a walk on the PurplePeople Bridge on Saturday, and a fun-filled family day here at our house Sunday as my brother and his family drove up from Louisville to visit. It is always good when my brother visits as he has way more health problems than I do. He was diagnosed as a diabetic when he was in the 8th grade when no one else in our family had ever been one. Boy was our mother thrilled with that circumstance. The strange thing about mothers is that they can blame themselves for their child becoming a diabetic even though there was absolutely nothing she could have done to prevent it. Now he has a Thyroid condition and Low T. Dude is falling apart. I showed my empathy towards him by making several low testosterone jokes. He was thrilled he told me. As was his wife, though she did seem to confirm his inabilities in the bedroom.
Aside: does anyone else miss the days when we cut our grass by having cows graze on it or with one of those push things with the blade going around? Man, it seems like every time I sit down to relax, my neighbor cuts his grass. We don't have large yards so I could probably deal with just the cutting more sanely. However, not only does he use a gas lawn mower, but then a gas-powered trimmer to be followed by a gas-powered blower. Boy do I want to break his toys some times.
Anyway, I should be grateful next door neighbor did not feel the need to cut his grass during our family day. That typically happens.
So family day on Sunday finished up around midnight when whatever stomach bug my brother-in-law had contracted reared its ugly head. As Beth and I heard him and his body's food evacuation plan starting up, we both did a systems check to see if we also felt ill. Food poisoning at a family outing is always a joyful end. However, since it has taken until Friday night for me to catch the bug, I am guessing it was not food poisoning. Furthermore, with all the potential germs on the money I handle every day, it is not without question that I caught my bug from someone other than my brother-in-law. Thank goodness I have this weekend off so I can feel better just in time to go back to work.
The past two weeks have also included band camp for CJ. During these two weeks they learn their show for the year and, thankfully, have fun doing it. I got to see it Friday night, and in my fever ridden state, thought it was better than any show they did last year. I hope I was right and that this year goes better for them than last. The final night involves initiating the Freshmen by toilet papering their houses. Thank goodness it does involve beating the crap out of them as it did at some colleges. Therefore, if you are drving though our neighborhood this weekend, we are not a community of vandals, those houses belong to the incoming freshmen in the band. I'm sure the parents that have to clean it up are thrilled.
Gotta go. From the hills of Montezuma......
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Happy 4th
July 4, 2013
Happy Independence Day to all of you. If you have anyone in your family who is serving our country in the military, or has served, please thank them for me and my family for keeping us safe. I am so glad they are the troops as I would make the worst troops.
As for Independence Day, Martina McBride sings a song with the same name that is one of my all-time favorites. If you ever get the chance to hear it, you will find it has very little to do with the freedom of our county. However, she does a version live not long after 9/11 that is very moving.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sslFmCepE_0
There is the link if you want to have a look and have six minutes of free time.
As for the safety of my family, I am very lucky to be alive this morning. (No, not really) Last night was the night our local community celebrates the holiday. It is done with a mile-long race for adults and children and then a shorter fun race for the little kids. The kids are adorable. One adult ran the race backwards while his dog ran with him, but forwards. I am not sure what the significance of this was except to prove that dogs are smarter than humans. If you know who Bill Cunningham is, he interviewed people at the finish line. He is a local celeb who achieved fame as a radio DJ and has moved on to have a national television talk show. I haven't seen it since, ironically, it is not shown locally.
Anyway, the race is followed by a parade in which my son's high school marching band participates. This is his third year marching with the drum line and he has come a long way from the kid who had to have someone lift the quads off of him at the end of the route since he was too tired to do it himself. He is in such good shape now that he marched and then went to the fireworks afterwards with his GF. He looked great and they sounded great.
That leads to my concerns for our safety. I went to bed around 10:00. As you can tell from the number of times I have posted lately, I have been busy at work. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but I have been working a lot. Even when I am at home, I get texted a lot. I just had my monthly visit from my district manager on Tuesday and it went great. He was going to take the traveling trophy for the store with the best numbers with him when he left to hand out at the next meeting, but then saw my numbers and knew he should just leave it with me. I told him I didn't mind bringing it with me so the other managers could at least sit near it for a couple hours. but he didn't think they would be up for me trash-talking. I guess we will see.
So tired was I. When I sleep, I sleep like a mom. I hear everything that is going on whether it be a storm, Beth walking around when she can't sleep, or a baby crying. Our baby hasn't woken up crying for 14 years or so, but I still listen just in case. However, last night, Beth got a text from CJ to come pick him up around midnight and went to get him. Our house is not big enough that a person can enter the house and not be heard. Except by me last night. When I woke up at 7:00, I had to wonder if my peeps were here. I looked to my left and Beth was there. I was pretty sure that if she was still waiting for a text from CJ at 7am, that she would not be doing so calmly. So everyone survived the holiday intact.
So I have a couple days off, but our weather isn't going to be great. Rain in the forecast.
I just got a text that the 8am cashier hasn't shown up. Here goes the holiday.
Happy Independence Day to all of you. If you have anyone in your family who is serving our country in the military, or has served, please thank them for me and my family for keeping us safe. I am so glad they are the troops as I would make the worst troops.
As for Independence Day, Martina McBride sings a song with the same name that is one of my all-time favorites. If you ever get the chance to hear it, you will find it has very little to do with the freedom of our county. However, she does a version live not long after 9/11 that is very moving.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sslFmCepE_0
There is the link if you want to have a look and have six minutes of free time.
As for the safety of my family, I am very lucky to be alive this morning. (No, not really) Last night was the night our local community celebrates the holiday. It is done with a mile-long race for adults and children and then a shorter fun race for the little kids. The kids are adorable. One adult ran the race backwards while his dog ran with him, but forwards. I am not sure what the significance of this was except to prove that dogs are smarter than humans. If you know who Bill Cunningham is, he interviewed people at the finish line. He is a local celeb who achieved fame as a radio DJ and has moved on to have a national television talk show. I haven't seen it since, ironically, it is not shown locally.
Anyway, the race is followed by a parade in which my son's high school marching band participates. This is his third year marching with the drum line and he has come a long way from the kid who had to have someone lift the quads off of him at the end of the route since he was too tired to do it himself. He is in such good shape now that he marched and then went to the fireworks afterwards with his GF. He looked great and they sounded great.
That leads to my concerns for our safety. I went to bed around 10:00. As you can tell from the number of times I have posted lately, I have been busy at work. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but I have been working a lot. Even when I am at home, I get texted a lot. I just had my monthly visit from my district manager on Tuesday and it went great. He was going to take the traveling trophy for the store with the best numbers with him when he left to hand out at the next meeting, but then saw my numbers and knew he should just leave it with me. I told him I didn't mind bringing it with me so the other managers could at least sit near it for a couple hours. but he didn't think they would be up for me trash-talking. I guess we will see.
So tired was I. When I sleep, I sleep like a mom. I hear everything that is going on whether it be a storm, Beth walking around when she can't sleep, or a baby crying. Our baby hasn't woken up crying for 14 years or so, but I still listen just in case. However, last night, Beth got a text from CJ to come pick him up around midnight and went to get him. Our house is not big enough that a person can enter the house and not be heard. Except by me last night. When I woke up at 7:00, I had to wonder if my peeps were here. I looked to my left and Beth was there. I was pretty sure that if she was still waiting for a text from CJ at 7am, that she would not be doing so calmly. So everyone survived the holiday intact.
So I have a couple days off, but our weather isn't going to be great. Rain in the forecast.
I just got a text that the 8am cashier hasn't shown up. Here goes the holiday.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Soylent Green is people!
June 15, 2013
Good morning all. I have to work later today, so I have time to blog this morning. Yesterday was catch up day at The CVS. I have hired two new people, which turns out to be quite the adventure with our hiring software. The two new hires will bring much needed stability to my team. I finished last week under 60 hours on payroll and am nearing 90 hours to the good for the month. For you aspiring retail managers out there (God help you), this is not a good thing. If your sales are down, then you should cut your payroll. But if your sales are up like mine, and the company gives you X number of hours to use, do not use X-90. This causes people in the forecaster department to think that if you can accomplish an 8% sales increase on X-90 hours one year, you can do it again the following year. They do not assume that the missing payroll hours were made up by the salary guy that works there. Salary guy is tired.
So there is your retail tip for the day. Your welcome. So yes, I do currently hold the floating trophy for our district for numerical results for the month of May, but it was not without more effort than it should have taken. I am hoping that things level of for the rest of June and that July should be an easier month before August gears up for inventory. Knock on wood, here's hoping. Gotta keep forecaster person in front of their green screen predicting adequate payroll numbers. El Nino or not.
Currently, my son CJ is sleeping. This is significant because he has had an impressive summer thus far. For example, this week he has gotten up every day at 6am to go running. Summer in Cincinnati means humidity, so 6am is a much better time to go running than noon. He runs a couple miles and does a "hill drill" at the high school. This involves somewhere between 23 and 33 wind sprints up and down a hill at school. You do them in sets like 35753 or 57975. Not too easy. He looks good though. He is around 6' tall and 144 pounds. Pretty lean. I never looked like that since my height topped out at 5'10" Not a lot of workout DVDs that will help you increase your height. CJ even turned down pizza last night since it doesn't help you look better. Good for him.
CJ has also spent a couple days helping the middle school kids put on a Summer on Stage program by providing instructions to the tech team. At least that is what he thought he would be doing. However, since no one signed up for the tech team, he has actually been the tech team. This only involved three days of volunteering, but last night's show would have had no sound or lights had he not helped out. Good for him.
Later today he has to work at the pool. A lot of his coworkers were unavailable to work this weekend, so he is working a long day. We double-checked the minor laws to make sure no minors were getting violated. That is how long his shift is. Everything is both hunky and dory, so I am letting him sleep in to be ready for this shift.
CJ has awakened. He is dressed in workout clothes, so his dedication to the task is admirable. Sounds like weight-lifting is on the agenda. Good for him.
Finally, in this "all things CJ" update, he started his driving instruction classes this week. These are four hour classes that you sit through leading up to the actual road instruction. Class number one involved four hours of watching people wreck their cars, lie dead in the street, and interviews with their children saying things like, "I don't know why I will never see my parents again." Kind of a scared straight version of driving instruction. Sounds like the same videos they showed us 32 years ago. Perhaps they intend to show them all the After-school Special videos including Cipher in the Snow, and Soylent Green. Perhaps not.
Oh, one more thing. Did you hear the oldest living human died this past week? He was 117 years old and was the only person left who had lived in three decades. We have decided to make this our goal. Who is with us? CJ has a good chance since he was born in 1996. For Beth and myself, we would have to live to be 135 and 136 years old. Our "baby boy" will be 106. Beth has assumed her health will be good as she declared to me, "I will not be changing your diapers!" I prefer to assume some machine will be changing my diapers by the year 2100. I will have to keep my wits about me though so I choose the machine that changes my diapers instead of the one that turns me into food.
Good morning all. I have to work later today, so I have time to blog this morning. Yesterday was catch up day at The CVS. I have hired two new people, which turns out to be quite the adventure with our hiring software. The two new hires will bring much needed stability to my team. I finished last week under 60 hours on payroll and am nearing 90 hours to the good for the month. For you aspiring retail managers out there (God help you), this is not a good thing. If your sales are down, then you should cut your payroll. But if your sales are up like mine, and the company gives you X number of hours to use, do not use X-90. This causes people in the forecaster department to think that if you can accomplish an 8% sales increase on X-90 hours one year, you can do it again the following year. They do not assume that the missing payroll hours were made up by the salary guy that works there. Salary guy is tired.
So there is your retail tip for the day. Your welcome. So yes, I do currently hold the floating trophy for our district for numerical results for the month of May, but it was not without more effort than it should have taken. I am hoping that things level of for the rest of June and that July should be an easier month before August gears up for inventory. Knock on wood, here's hoping. Gotta keep forecaster person in front of their green screen predicting adequate payroll numbers. El Nino or not.
Currently, my son CJ is sleeping. This is significant because he has had an impressive summer thus far. For example, this week he has gotten up every day at 6am to go running. Summer in Cincinnati means humidity, so 6am is a much better time to go running than noon. He runs a couple miles and does a "hill drill" at the high school. This involves somewhere between 23 and 33 wind sprints up and down a hill at school. You do them in sets like 35753 or 57975. Not too easy. He looks good though. He is around 6' tall and 144 pounds. Pretty lean. I never looked like that since my height topped out at 5'10" Not a lot of workout DVDs that will help you increase your height. CJ even turned down pizza last night since it doesn't help you look better. Good for him.
CJ has also spent a couple days helping the middle school kids put on a Summer on Stage program by providing instructions to the tech team. At least that is what he thought he would be doing. However, since no one signed up for the tech team, he has actually been the tech team. This only involved three days of volunteering, but last night's show would have had no sound or lights had he not helped out. Good for him.
Later today he has to work at the pool. A lot of his coworkers were unavailable to work this weekend, so he is working a long day. We double-checked the minor laws to make sure no minors were getting violated. That is how long his shift is. Everything is both hunky and dory, so I am letting him sleep in to be ready for this shift.
CJ has awakened. He is dressed in workout clothes, so his dedication to the task is admirable. Sounds like weight-lifting is on the agenda. Good for him.
Finally, in this "all things CJ" update, he started his driving instruction classes this week. These are four hour classes that you sit through leading up to the actual road instruction. Class number one involved four hours of watching people wreck their cars, lie dead in the street, and interviews with their children saying things like, "I don't know why I will never see my parents again." Kind of a scared straight version of driving instruction. Sounds like the same videos they showed us 32 years ago. Perhaps they intend to show them all the After-school Special videos including Cipher in the Snow, and Soylent Green. Perhaps not.
Oh, one more thing. Did you hear the oldest living human died this past week? He was 117 years old and was the only person left who had lived in three decades. We have decided to make this our goal. Who is with us? CJ has a good chance since he was born in 1996. For Beth and myself, we would have to live to be 135 and 136 years old. Our "baby boy" will be 106. Beth has assumed her health will be good as she declared to me, "I will not be changing your diapers!" I prefer to assume some machine will be changing my diapers by the year 2100. I will have to keep my wits about me though so I choose the machine that changes my diapers instead of the one that turns me into food.
Monday, May 27, 2013
For one last night, I was a Young Volcano
May 27, 2013
I know, two posts in the same weekend. But I remembered that I need to tell you about our concert experience.
About a month ago, I came home from work and found CJ in the basement. That was not the surprising part. However, I was surprised to see that he was forlorn. Apparently, he sat and watched as the last two tickets were sold to the Fall Out Boy concert he had hoped to attend in Columbus, Ohio. Sad was he.
This huge desire to go to a concert with his GF was spawned during her road trip with her mom. They had taken a trip over Spring Break that toured some of the East coast due to GF having a soccer game with her select team. Exactly where, I cannot recall. I do remember that her mom turned the trip into a mother-daughter road trip that included some college visits to universities such as Georgetown and ended with a visit to friends of theirs in Pittsburgh. The end of the trip also included a couple of concert tickets for GF and her mom to see Green Day. The favorite band of CJ and GF. Jealous was he? Green Day green-eyed jealous he was? You betcha.
So he hashed a plan for he and GF to see a band together. Their other favorite bands included The Killers and Fall Out Boy. I am going to assume Fall Out Boy ranks ahead of The Killers for reasons I will explain later.
So there he was, in the basememt, Skyping with GF and watching the last two tickets drip from his concert canteen out onto a desert of sadness. Since I have rarely seen my son in this state of despair, I decided I needed to hero up and fix this situation. I promptly proceeded upstairs to my computer and searched for tickets. CJ had only looked for tickets on the venue's site, so I was able to find them elsewhere-Stub Hub I think. Then, I did the unthinkable. I ordered tickets without consulting Beth first. I KNOW! I am in the future also. Four of them I ordered for a concert in Columbus (two hours away) on a Friday nite that, rotationally, fell on my weekend to work. No issues, I thought, we can work it out. Even if I cannot attend, perhaps GF's mom can go with Beth and the kids. We get along very well with her and I assume she will be game. Less thrilling would be to include GF's dad as the driver. It's not that we do not get along with him, we just don't know him as well as mom. They are divorced and share custody. This does not typically create awkward situations except for when I went to pick up CJ at GF's house the other night and went to the wrong house. Oops. I am so glad that everyone else thought that was pretty funny.
Anyway, you may have noticed that none of the concert limo services involved Beth as the driver. She is not wild about driving and a trip such as this did not fit into her driving skill set.
I need to shorten this story, so here is the preconcert Reader's Digest version. GF's mom was going to be in Chicago that night-not available. I was able to get Friday night off but was going to have to work 7am-10pm at work on Saturday. CJ had a full weekend of activities upcoming and GF had a soccer game two hours away on Saturday. All adults involved in the situation were a bit anxsty that Steve bought tickets. Children-still way excitied. Adults-see definition of anxsty.
Determined to make it work, I soldiered on. We left Cincinnati around 3:30. We encountered the "everyone leaves work early on Friday" traffic, but made it out of Cincinnati in decent time. I had picked a resteraunt close to The Lifestyle Community Pavillion for us to eat prior to the 7:00 concert. We actually made it to the eatery around 5:45, so that was working out. The meal and the company were excellent.
Now some of you may have noticed, that in the name of the concert's venue, was the word "Pavillion". It had never dawned on me that this meant "outdoors". And that a 50% chance of rain was not ideal. Another potential issue was the fact that all the seats for the concert were general admission. "Even though my ticket has a seat number on it?" "Sorry, sir (old dude), but even though there is a ticket number, all our seats are general admission and the only people that will be under cover are the band." This was told to me over the phone by less than enthused guy at the venue switchboard.
No problem, I hoped. Oh, and the opening act? Hollywood Holt. Excuse me? I have heard of Fall Out Boy, but Hollywood Holt? Or Diamond Dan as Beth calls him. Oh, a rapper. Perfect. My favorite genre of music.
Real long story short...the concert was FANTASTIC! The weather was in the high 60s and not a drop of rain. We cut the really long line to get in and got great seats. Not in the pit. OMG! I have never witnessed a concert with a pit before and it was mesmerizing. Three hours of teenagers bodysurfing from the back of the pit to the front and nobody died. We split up from the kids, but we could see them the whole time since the place only seats 4000 and is a big grass hill. They loved the concert and Beth and I did also. I even recognized three of their songs. Quite the show. Diamond Dan only performed for 30 minutes, starting at 8pm, and then there was a 30 minute break before FOB came on to do a 90 minute set. For those of you keeping time at home, that placed us back in Cincinnati around 1am. Everyone was a bit tired on Saturday, but we all survived.
Beth has taken away my "credit card on the intenet services", but I am still glad I did it. I was there for my son's first concert and saw him behave perfectly. At no point did I have to worry about him trying to sneak anything even though alcohol flowed freely and wafts of weed found there way to those of us at the top of the hill. I was pretty hungry by the end of the concert for some reason.
So there is the short story of our concert. Were any of you guys at FOB in Columbus on May 17th? If so, please remember for next time that it is a non-smoking environment. Especially in the pit.
And by the way, The Killers were playing a concert in Cincinnati the same night. At an outdoor venue here. BUT IT RAINED HERE! Boo-yah.
I know, two posts in the same weekend. But I remembered that I need to tell you about our concert experience.
About a month ago, I came home from work and found CJ in the basement. That was not the surprising part. However, I was surprised to see that he was forlorn. Apparently, he sat and watched as the last two tickets were sold to the Fall Out Boy concert he had hoped to attend in Columbus, Ohio. Sad was he.
This huge desire to go to a concert with his GF was spawned during her road trip with her mom. They had taken a trip over Spring Break that toured some of the East coast due to GF having a soccer game with her select team. Exactly where, I cannot recall. I do remember that her mom turned the trip into a mother-daughter road trip that included some college visits to universities such as Georgetown and ended with a visit to friends of theirs in Pittsburgh. The end of the trip also included a couple of concert tickets for GF and her mom to see Green Day. The favorite band of CJ and GF. Jealous was he? Green Day green-eyed jealous he was? You betcha.
So he hashed a plan for he and GF to see a band together. Their other favorite bands included The Killers and Fall Out Boy. I am going to assume Fall Out Boy ranks ahead of The Killers for reasons I will explain later.
So there he was, in the basememt, Skyping with GF and watching the last two tickets drip from his concert canteen out onto a desert of sadness. Since I have rarely seen my son in this state of despair, I decided I needed to hero up and fix this situation. I promptly proceeded upstairs to my computer and searched for tickets. CJ had only looked for tickets on the venue's site, so I was able to find them elsewhere-Stub Hub I think. Then, I did the unthinkable. I ordered tickets without consulting Beth first. I KNOW! I am in the future also. Four of them I ordered for a concert in Columbus (two hours away) on a Friday nite that, rotationally, fell on my weekend to work. No issues, I thought, we can work it out. Even if I cannot attend, perhaps GF's mom can go with Beth and the kids. We get along very well with her and I assume she will be game. Less thrilling would be to include GF's dad as the driver. It's not that we do not get along with him, we just don't know him as well as mom. They are divorced and share custody. This does not typically create awkward situations except for when I went to pick up CJ at GF's house the other night and went to the wrong house. Oops. I am so glad that everyone else thought that was pretty funny.
Anyway, you may have noticed that none of the concert limo services involved Beth as the driver. She is not wild about driving and a trip such as this did not fit into her driving skill set.
I need to shorten this story, so here is the preconcert Reader's Digest version. GF's mom was going to be in Chicago that night-not available. I was able to get Friday night off but was going to have to work 7am-10pm at work on Saturday. CJ had a full weekend of activities upcoming and GF had a soccer game two hours away on Saturday. All adults involved in the situation were a bit anxsty that Steve bought tickets. Children-still way excitied. Adults-see definition of anxsty.
Determined to make it work, I soldiered on. We left Cincinnati around 3:30. We encountered the "everyone leaves work early on Friday" traffic, but made it out of Cincinnati in decent time. I had picked a resteraunt close to The Lifestyle Community Pavillion for us to eat prior to the 7:00 concert. We actually made it to the eatery around 5:45, so that was working out. The meal and the company were excellent.
Now some of you may have noticed, that in the name of the concert's venue, was the word "Pavillion". It had never dawned on me that this meant "outdoors". And that a 50% chance of rain was not ideal. Another potential issue was the fact that all the seats for the concert were general admission. "Even though my ticket has a seat number on it?" "Sorry, sir (old dude), but even though there is a ticket number, all our seats are general admission and the only people that will be under cover are the band." This was told to me over the phone by less than enthused guy at the venue switchboard.
No problem, I hoped. Oh, and the opening act? Hollywood Holt. Excuse me? I have heard of Fall Out Boy, but Hollywood Holt? Or Diamond Dan as Beth calls him. Oh, a rapper. Perfect. My favorite genre of music.
Real long story short...the concert was FANTASTIC! The weather was in the high 60s and not a drop of rain. We cut the really long line to get in and got great seats. Not in the pit. OMG! I have never witnessed a concert with a pit before and it was mesmerizing. Three hours of teenagers bodysurfing from the back of the pit to the front and nobody died. We split up from the kids, but we could see them the whole time since the place only seats 4000 and is a big grass hill. They loved the concert and Beth and I did also. I even recognized three of their songs. Quite the show. Diamond Dan only performed for 30 minutes, starting at 8pm, and then there was a 30 minute break before FOB came on to do a 90 minute set. For those of you keeping time at home, that placed us back in Cincinnati around 1am. Everyone was a bit tired on Saturday, but we all survived.
Beth has taken away my "credit card on the intenet services", but I am still glad I did it. I was there for my son's first concert and saw him behave perfectly. At no point did I have to worry about him trying to sneak anything even though alcohol flowed freely and wafts of weed found there way to those of us at the top of the hill. I was pretty hungry by the end of the concert for some reason.
So there is the short story of our concert. Were any of you guys at FOB in Columbus on May 17th? If so, please remember for next time that it is a non-smoking environment. Especially in the pit.
And by the way, The Killers were playing a concert in Cincinnati the same night. At an outdoor venue here. BUT IT RAINED HERE! Boo-yah.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
I think I'm back to being a human
May 25, 2013
I know many of you have started new jobs before, so you know what it can be like. You may have also encountered the challenge of starting a new job with something to prove. Therefore, you know the challenges of what I am going through right now.
I knew that there were many of my peers who were upset that they got passed over for the store manager gig I got. There are plenty of reasons that they thought they wanted this store, but most of them centered around the numbers it is pulling in. The previous store manager had done a lot of good things and saw the store through a transition to becoming a 24-hour store, so they knew it would not be a bad store to inherit.
I feel the same way. It is a great opportunity for me. Close to home, good volume, good people, excellent chance for bonus. Considering the pay cut I took to leave Target and join CVS, it has the potential to get me back to par by the end of my first year. I am blessed.
However, I have worked very hard my first three weeks for two reasons. First, that is who I am. Everywhere I go, I take me with me. Sometimes I leave parts of me behind and reinvent other parts, but my work ethic always tags along. I am not unhappy about this. My mother instilled this in me and I feel like I would be letting her down if I changed.
The second reason I have been busting it for three weeks refers back to my "something to prove" intro. I know there are people out there pulling up my numbers every week hoping to see them dip. "I knew I should have gotten that store." "Can you believe they let a new manager go in there and mess things up?"
Does anyone want to be inside my head? No, I thought not. Sometimes the voices get really loud. Needless to say, when you are hearing things like this in your head, you go about your business with something to prove. And I have. My numbers are great so far. Sales are up, payroll is down. Controllable profit is very good. The end result: Steve is burnt out after three weeks.
My best employee followed the old store manager to his new store. One of my shift managers was in Ghana on vacation when I started and his return was delayed 2 weeks when he contracted malaria. Even after taking anti-malaria medication. Is anyone grateful to be living with indoor plumbing right now? I am spoiled. Good reminder of how lucky we are. I am still haunted by the images in the movie, Slumdog Millionaire. It makes me hate myself for complaining when I have to clean the bathroom at work. Fortunately, this young man returns to work on Monday. (And yes, I do know that Ghana is not in India).
I have another employee who works third shift who has been working two full-time jobs. 80 hours a week will make anyone fatigued. Unfortunately, he has decided over the past few days that showing up to CVS is optional. Therefore, Steve has had to work all day, come home, go to bed, get woken up by a distress call, and go back to work all night. Unpleasant. Do you know anyone who wants to work third shift? Call me.
So here I am, Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. I have scheduled myself off until Tuesday and my assistant has promised me he will try to keep the problems to a minimum. Here's praying that this happens. And here is also a prayer that each of you have a great holiday weekend as well.
CJ starts his new job today at 4pm. He working the front desk at the local pool. Great gig except for the hat they are supposed to wear. Not especially cool. The bosses have told the newbies they only have to wear the hat if they see the food inspector show up. I will not be eating the food at the local swim club.
CJ also got his temporary license yesterday. In Ohio, this is what you get so you can start to take driving lessons and so you can drive with a licensed driver before you take the actual driving test and get your license. You have to have your temps for 6 months, so CJ will be getting his license right before Thanksgiving. He only missed three out of forty on the temps test, so not too bad considering he barely read the book. And one of the ones he missed was because he thought everyone in the car had to wear a seat belt instead of just those in the front seat. I like his answer better.
The weather isn't supposed to be too bad this weekend, so we are going to Wang Chung. I hope it works out for you as well. (And you remember who Wang Chung is so everybody can have fun tonight). Beth and CJ are done with school for the summer, so they have already played some Pink Floyd and eaten their pudding.
Perhaps I do need some thought control. Gonna go get some coffee. Have a great weekend.
I know many of you have started new jobs before, so you know what it can be like. You may have also encountered the challenge of starting a new job with something to prove. Therefore, you know the challenges of what I am going through right now.
I knew that there were many of my peers who were upset that they got passed over for the store manager gig I got. There are plenty of reasons that they thought they wanted this store, but most of them centered around the numbers it is pulling in. The previous store manager had done a lot of good things and saw the store through a transition to becoming a 24-hour store, so they knew it would not be a bad store to inherit.
I feel the same way. It is a great opportunity for me. Close to home, good volume, good people, excellent chance for bonus. Considering the pay cut I took to leave Target and join CVS, it has the potential to get me back to par by the end of my first year. I am blessed.
However, I have worked very hard my first three weeks for two reasons. First, that is who I am. Everywhere I go, I take me with me. Sometimes I leave parts of me behind and reinvent other parts, but my work ethic always tags along. I am not unhappy about this. My mother instilled this in me and I feel like I would be letting her down if I changed.
The second reason I have been busting it for three weeks refers back to my "something to prove" intro. I know there are people out there pulling up my numbers every week hoping to see them dip. "I knew I should have gotten that store." "Can you believe they let a new manager go in there and mess things up?"
Does anyone want to be inside my head? No, I thought not. Sometimes the voices get really loud. Needless to say, when you are hearing things like this in your head, you go about your business with something to prove. And I have. My numbers are great so far. Sales are up, payroll is down. Controllable profit is very good. The end result: Steve is burnt out after three weeks.
My best employee followed the old store manager to his new store. One of my shift managers was in Ghana on vacation when I started and his return was delayed 2 weeks when he contracted malaria. Even after taking anti-malaria medication. Is anyone grateful to be living with indoor plumbing right now? I am spoiled. Good reminder of how lucky we are. I am still haunted by the images in the movie, Slumdog Millionaire. It makes me hate myself for complaining when I have to clean the bathroom at work. Fortunately, this young man returns to work on Monday. (And yes, I do know that Ghana is not in India).
I have another employee who works third shift who has been working two full-time jobs. 80 hours a week will make anyone fatigued. Unfortunately, he has decided over the past few days that showing up to CVS is optional. Therefore, Steve has had to work all day, come home, go to bed, get woken up by a distress call, and go back to work all night. Unpleasant. Do you know anyone who wants to work third shift? Call me.
So here I am, Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. I have scheduled myself off until Tuesday and my assistant has promised me he will try to keep the problems to a minimum. Here's praying that this happens. And here is also a prayer that each of you have a great holiday weekend as well.
CJ starts his new job today at 4pm. He working the front desk at the local pool. Great gig except for the hat they are supposed to wear. Not especially cool. The bosses have told the newbies they only have to wear the hat if they see the food inspector show up. I will not be eating the food at the local swim club.
CJ also got his temporary license yesterday. In Ohio, this is what you get so you can start to take driving lessons and so you can drive with a licensed driver before you take the actual driving test and get your license. You have to have your temps for 6 months, so CJ will be getting his license right before Thanksgiving. He only missed three out of forty on the temps test, so not too bad considering he barely read the book. And one of the ones he missed was because he thought everyone in the car had to wear a seat belt instead of just those in the front seat. I like his answer better.
The weather isn't supposed to be too bad this weekend, so we are going to Wang Chung. I hope it works out for you as well. (And you remember who Wang Chung is so everybody can have fun tonight). Beth and CJ are done with school for the summer, so they have already played some Pink Floyd and eaten their pudding.
Perhaps I do need some thought control. Gonna go get some coffee. Have a great weekend.
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