What Are You Waiting For ?!

Everyone has their own pet peeves when it comes to driving.  I know I've blogged before about some of mine (most recently regarding tailgaters), but it's been a while since I've mentioned my two biggest irritating situations.

#1 on that list is people who DO NOT know how to use the right turn merging lane.  Just turn right and then speed up so you can simply merge with flowing traffic.  This is less difficult than parallel parking ... or almost any other driving technique or skill.

#2 on that list is people who CANNOT commit to turning left at ANY intersection.  If there are no cars coming ... GO!  If the stoplight changes yellow and you're in the intersection ... GO!  If we both have time to turn left before that car gets to the inersection ... GO!  GO!  For heaven's sake ... GO!

I apologize for anyone who has to have me sitting behind them at an intersection.  Whether you are turning right into a merging lane or going left against oncoming traffic ... I am just not very patient when you are not actually moving closer to your destination.  I also apologize for going around YOU if you take too long.
I just can't think of any other way to help you see that there is nothing to wait for or be afraid of.  Follow me if you're not going to lead!

Song Of The Day:
Although the song is about love, the title is perfect for this post ... "Just Go" by Lionel Richie is exactly what I want to (and often do) yell or shout at the person behind the wheel of the car in front of me in these scenarios.  Please.  Just.  GO!

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Did He Really Say That ?!

I have been thinking on this particular blog post for a few days now, since shortly after the whole hoopla around Abercrombie and Fitch's CEO Mike Jeffries began.  And I have a problem.  I have a concern.  I am bothered.  I am upset.  I am disappointed.  And I feel the need to share those concerns in my blog post.

But I am not angry with this CEO, nor am I offended by his comments.

Instead, I am frustrated with how our society lives by 'sound bites.'

If you care about my opinion, please read on and see things from a different perspective.  If not, that is your choice and I do not judge you for it.  Life is busy.  We all have to prioritize where we spend our time.  Honestly, my opinion shouldn't be very high on anyone's list.  Not even mine.  But I write my blog because it is a good release for me to share my thoughts.  I never expect anyone in particular to read them or even get much out of them.  But if you do, I thank you for your time.

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The original article (linked HERE if you actually care to read it) was written back in 2006.  I doubt you can remember the 'world' at that time, let alone the state of the economy.  Spend a few minutes thinking about what you were doing around that time and then I encourage you to read the WHOLE article.  Be forewarned though, that you might have a change of opinion ... that is, if you can be open-minded enough after the deluge of media lambasting the CEO and company.

For those that won't take time to read the whole article, I've made it a little easier by sharing the portion where I presume the major brouhaha came from:
As far as Jeffries is concerned, America’s unattractive, overweight or otherwise undesirable teens can shop elsewhere. “In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids,” he says. “Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely. Those companies that are in trouble are trying to target everybody: young, old, fat, skinny. But then you become totally vanilla. You don’t alienate anybody, but you don’t excite anybody, either.”

What is interesting to me is how these comments have been taken out of context of the whole article.  The primary discussion of the article was to learn more about how this company became successful amidst many other companies losing market share and/or changing their business models to meet the changing demands of consumers.  I am certain there are many things we each say in our everyday lives that could be twisted in all sorts of ways.  I just wish the average person was willing to dig a little deeper and understand more fully where someone is coming from when they speak.

I find it not at all amusing, but sad, that the people who expect to be "understood" are so quick to judge another person without understanding where THEY are coming from.  Do you not see your own hypocrisy with this attitude?  This is, in fact, the biggest challenge to creating a more diverse and inclusive world.  We are slowly being led down a path where anything and anyone is acceptable as they are rather than maintaining certain standards.  It's a little too close to the scary world depicted in the movie Wall-E for my tastes.

So boycott (or girlcott?) the company and CEO.  As a consumer, that is completely your right.  But be careful when you justify your decision based on 'sound bites' that are directly intended to elicit an emotional response.
You may think you are deciding for yourself, but if your decision is based on ANY information you heard, then you ARE being influenced by others.

Choose wisely my friends.

Song Of The Day:
I am using the great Michael Jackson classic "Human Nature" today for two reasons.  First, it is human nature to judge others.  Judging isn't always bad, but it often comes with many unintended consequences.  Second, in the song there is a repeated refrain of "Why?  Why?" and this is my favorite kind of question.  If we asked "Why?" more often, we'd all be better able to understand one another and be understood.  And that's my interpretation of the Golden Rule.

If you've read this far, please feel free to comment below or on my Facebook post.  I welcome your opinions and will read every one in their entirety.  I would apologize if my comments offend you, but then, if you truly know me you would already know that is not their intent.

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When Are You Too Old To Have A Snack Lunch ?

Today, like many days, I did not plan adequately for lunch.  I just did not leave enough time for myself between work and errands to eat a proper meal.  Considering I only have to have "three squares a day" this should not happen as often as it does.





This is NOT a smart lunch

This marks at least the 4th time in less than two weeks when I ate what could barely be considered an acceptable "meal" for lunch.  Here are the recent examples:

 - three large handfuls of Mountain Man trail mix (3 kinds of nuts, raisins, M and Ms) and about 16 ounces of water

 - two chocolate covered granola bars, one 50-calorie fruit cup, and a snack size bag of cheetos, with a can of lemon-lime soda

 - about 50 pieces of pepperoni sandwiched between about 30 wheat thins crackers and doused with a 12-ounce grape soda

 - one donut (apple fritter) and some ritz crackers ... and another donut (maple glazed) with about a pint of chocolate milk

As I finished my "lunch" today it occurred to me that I have eaten these kinds of lunches before ... in high school and my early college years.  I think at those times it was probably more acceptable and didn't likely do much damage.  But now ... well I'm really just getting too old for this to happen.  Even occasionally, this kind of unhealthy eating should be phased out if I intend to live past retirement.

Song Of the Day:
I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say that my bad lunchtime habits could be considered my "Dark Side" although I am certain that's not what Kelly Clarkson intended to sing about here.  It's a great song though so enjoy.

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Is That Why I Have Short Fingers ?

Disclaimer: I know that there is no actual connection between my fingernail chewing/biting and the size of my hands or length of my fingers ... so please don't try to explain to me how it is not medically possible.  I'm just drawing logical but ill-founded conclusions from unrelated pieces of information.

I have been a fingernail biter / chewer for as long as I can remember (well over 30 years now).  I know it serves no purpose and makes me look nervous, immature, etc.  I have tried to stop more times than I can count.  I've made it months before, but I always end up nibbling them down to the soft tissue eventually.  Even when I clip them regularly, I still find myself chewing them.

I have done a good job to not chew them in front of my children, because I don't want them to pick up this stupid habit.  And thus far that has been a success.  Which got me to thinking ...
 - My hands are fairly smallish compared with someone my height, and my fingers are definitely shorter than they naturally should be.
 - My oldest son, 13 at the time of this post, is already on par to exceed me in height ... and his hands are already as big as mine ... AND ... his fingers seem to me to be freakishly long (they are probably normal sized).

My hand on the right
Josh Jr's (13) hand on the left

I am now convinced that his ability to avoid chewing/biting his nails has allowed his hands to grow at a normal rate, while mine were made shorter because I chewed them off before they could grow fully.

It is the only rational explanation.

I wonder what it would have been like to have full-sized hands.  :)

Song Of The Day:
Any post about hands would have allowed me to use the great song
"Hands To Heaven" by Breathe, but this was the first post I could think of about hands.  Perhas one day, after this life is over, I will no longer be trapped in a fingernail chewing habit AND I might even get a regular-sized pair of hands to use.  That seems fair.

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Are You Working Hard Or Hardly Working ?

I have heard it said many times over "Find something you love to do and somebody to pay you to do IT and you'll never work a day in your life."

I suppose that could be true and I'll be sure to let you know if I ever prove that theory ... but I can safely say that 'working hard' is a phrase I try to use sparingly and only in the right circumstances.

Here's an example:
 - Yesterday (Monday, my day off) I spent about 8 hours 'working hard' outside on my never-ending landscape remodeling project.  I moved (lifted, loaded, pushed, unloaded, and placed) at least a literal ton of rocks.  I dug out a trench for one downspout.  I cleared about 10 wheelbarrows of rock/dirt/weed-filled stuff from the front and side yards.  I laid and positioned and eventually trimmed the excess landscaping fabric in our small front easement.

I.  Worked.  HARD.

 - Today (Tuesday, a.k.a. my 'Monday' at work) I spent 9+ hours hardly working.  Oh sure I attended two meetings, facilitated three coaching sessions, met with my boss, met with my new 'loan-in' Supervisor (who I am mentoring), cleared at least 50 emails, rescheduled two other meetings, and checked in with most of my team members.  But that wasn't "hard" and it wasn't necessarily "work."  I was doing something all day long, but by comparison to yesterday I was hardly working.

So I'll have to think for a little while the next time before responding to some acquaintance who asks me this cheesy blog post title question.  I'm not sure which answer is more preferred anymore.

Song Of The Day:
I can think of no more fitting song than "Bang On The Drum All Day" which I guarantee you have heard before.  But did you know who did this song?  Well I didn't.  His name is Todd Rundgren.  Now you know.  You're welcome (special shout out to YouTube for the info).  :)

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Should I Just Sell 'Em ?

While driving south on Powers Blvd the other day,

I came across the following billboard sign:

Two thoughts crossed my mind:

First, I've got 7 "little" Cases ... and I often wonder what they might be worth?  Looks like now I might be able to find out ... and legally at that!
Second, at the very least I should get myself reviewed
(as offered in the lower part of the sign).

Sometimes it's fun to have a unique (or not-so-unique if you think about it) last name.  I get to chuckle quite often in my day-to-day life about my last name.
I'm proud to be a Case!

Arguably our most famous product is equipment designed to move heaven and earth.

We've got our own place of higher learning, although I've never heard of our Eastern campus and I have never understood why we don't have "active" status ... always just "reserves."

And ALL mothers bring one of my could-be-a-family-members along with them when they go anywhere ... just-in-case!

It's good to be part of this crazy family!  :)



Song Of The Day:
I'm not sure if it will be released as a radio tune, but "In Case" by Demi Lovato is a nice song that just has my family name repeated over and over and over again.  She has a unique voice and I like her song "Skyscraper" so this is a nice way to tie it to the blog post and share that song too.  :)
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How Was Your Mother's Day ?

I think it is terribly wrong that Mother's Day always comes before Father's Day.  Of course there is nothing that can be done to change it, but every year it bothers me a little more.

Husbands are left to 'set the bar' for pampering of wives and mothers on their one holiday of the year.  Obviously they deserve much more than we husbands could ever do for them in one day, one week, or even one month.  But we try in vain every year.  We coordinate breakfast in bed and delivery of gifts and handmade cards, or phone calls once the kids are away from the nest.  We try to make the day stress-free and keep 'mom' from having to do any cooking or cleaning or other, 'everyday' activities.

No matter what we do, mothers have the advantage.  If we failed miserably on their day, they have the right to fail equally as much the following month when dad's day rolls around.  They never do though.  Instead they go overboard to make sure we feel even more guilty for having planned and implemented our efforts so poorly.  If we deliver a virtually perfect day, mothers have the chance to perform the perfect 'do-over' where they eliminate the one thing that kept the day from being spotless.

It's just not fair!  :(

That said, I am one of the lucky ones because I married an awesome wife and mother.  Karen is both forgiving and supportive when it comes to Mother's Day.  She accepts whatever offering I make in praise to her awesomeness.  She doesn't rub it in (too much) when she makes Father's Day an actual perfect day (every dang year!)  She reminds me of what I should be doing to help her day be better during the day itself.

I love you Karen!  I am so grateful to you for your constant mothering of our whole family (myself included).  You never get a break.  You never get a day off (unless you're seriously sick, and even then you still never take more than a few hours for yourself).  You are always tired.  You are always working.  You are deserving of multiple mother's days each month.  Thank you for everything!

Song Of The Day:
My 'Pretty Lady' isn't known as "Karen" to very many people.  In fact, most of the day, every day, she is just mom, or mommy, or mama.  In the spirit of that reality, "Hey Mama" by Mat Kearney is the song for this Mother's Day.  Thanks for being the hot mama of our 7 wonderful children.  I love you so much!

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