Okay, I know what I said yesterday, but this was just too good to not pass along.
The response I received from Starbucks Customer Care:
I was very sorry to hear about your recent experience at the Lamar & Loop 286 Starbucks store. I appreciate you taking the time to bring this matter to our attention. I will share your comments with the management team responsible for the store in order to address the issue properly.
In order to invite you back into this store, I have arranged for a couple of beverage coupons to be sent to you. You should receive them soon.
If you have any further questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact us at...
Randy and I have learned a large portion of what we know about managing our business by watching other companies mismanage theirs.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
A Parting Double-Shot
Before I get started with this, I just want to say that I do understand that a Starbucks closing is not the worst thing in the world that can happen. I am not that shallow. There are tragedies large and small taking place all around the world every moment of the day, and billions of people would love to have no bigger problem than a coffee shop closing.
I get that. Truly I do.
And this will be my last post about it.
That being said, I've also come to realize that I can only control what I can control. I can't make everyone in Paris recycle, but I can recycle here at home, then talk to people about what I do, and encourage them to start. I can't feed the world, but I can take a bag of groceries to Christians in Action. I can't stop war, but I can encourage people to vote.
I can't keep Wendy's from being taken over by Arby's, but I can vote my measly 52 shares against the merger. And I can't keep our Starbucks open, but I can make a little bit of noise when I think they treated their employees shabbily on their last day of business. I posted the following as a customer comment on the Starbucks website on Saturday morning:
Yesterday was the final day of business for the Paris, Texas, location. I am most disappointed in the way the closing was handled. Instead of giving Starbucks’ loyal customers and friends one last chance to stop in and receive our normal legendary service in the customary, wonderful environment the Paris store has always provided, some bright light made the decision to send in people from another store to start packing everything up DURING BUSINESS HOURS. You couldn’t have waited until the store had actually closed to do all this? Unbelievable.
What this meant for customers trying to say goodbye, was that our favorite baristas, shifts, and managers had to try their hardest to work around strangers who were running around with power tools, taking fixtures off the walls, removing product from the serving line, and generally making nuisances of themselves. It also meant that we customers had to sidestep piles of boxes and packing materials in the lobby. Rather dangerous and extremely irritating. One of the people who came in was, I believe, the store manager from your Texarkana location. Besides the fact that she had a visible tattoo and a pink stripe in her hair (when did that become acceptable?), she was rather loud and obnoxious as she yelled directions at the people she had brought with her. “Take this! Pack that! Don’t leave that behind – we can use that!” They took so much product off the line, that the last few customers in the store at 5:30, there for the 6:00 close, had to wait while one of the Paris baristas had to go look in one of the Texarkana crew’s truck to get STRAWS for the drinks that were still being sold.
To their credit, and despite all the mayhem, the Paris staff still managed to work with smiles on their faces, putting out terrific products, taking time out for hugs, or pictures, or answering questions about where they’d be working next from their longtime regular customers. They have stayed positive and upbeat, even as they knew that their store would be closing. We customers never heard a single, negative word from them about your ill-considered and idiotic decision to close this store.
Since you're closing 600 of your stores, one would think that you ought to be getting pretty good at it, but it's apparent that you have a long way to go to figure out how to close a store. Quite obviously, The Starbucks Corporation doesn’t give a rat’s ass about your now-former Paris customers, but your partners in this store deserved much, MUCH better from you.
That is all.
I get that. Truly I do.
And this will be my last post about it.
That being said, I've also come to realize that I can only control what I can control. I can't make everyone in Paris recycle, but I can recycle here at home, then talk to people about what I do, and encourage them to start. I can't feed the world, but I can take a bag of groceries to Christians in Action. I can't stop war, but I can encourage people to vote.
I can't keep Wendy's from being taken over by Arby's, but I can vote my measly 52 shares against the merger. And I can't keep our Starbucks open, but I can make a little bit of noise when I think they treated their employees shabbily on their last day of business. I posted the following as a customer comment on the Starbucks website on Saturday morning:
Yesterday was the final day of business for the Paris, Texas, location. I am most disappointed in the way the closing was handled. Instead of giving Starbucks’ loyal customers and friends one last chance to stop in and receive our normal legendary service in the customary, wonderful environment the Paris store has always provided, some bright light made the decision to send in people from another store to start packing everything up DURING BUSINESS HOURS. You couldn’t have waited until the store had actually closed to do all this? Unbelievable.
What this meant for customers trying to say goodbye, was that our favorite baristas, shifts, and managers had to try their hardest to work around strangers who were running around with power tools, taking fixtures off the walls, removing product from the serving line, and generally making nuisances of themselves. It also meant that we customers had to sidestep piles of boxes and packing materials in the lobby. Rather dangerous and extremely irritating. One of the people who came in was, I believe, the store manager from your Texarkana location. Besides the fact that she had a visible tattoo and a pink stripe in her hair (when did that become acceptable?), she was rather loud and obnoxious as she yelled directions at the people she had brought with her. “Take this! Pack that! Don’t leave that behind – we can use that!” They took so much product off the line, that the last few customers in the store at 5:30, there for the 6:00 close, had to wait while one of the Paris baristas had to go look in one of the Texarkana crew’s truck to get STRAWS for the drinks that were still being sold.
To their credit, and despite all the mayhem, the Paris staff still managed to work with smiles on their faces, putting out terrific products, taking time out for hugs, or pictures, or answering questions about where they’d be working next from their longtime regular customers. They have stayed positive and upbeat, even as they knew that their store would be closing. We customers never heard a single, negative word from them about your ill-considered and idiotic decision to close this store.
Since you're closing 600 of your stores, one would think that you ought to be getting pretty good at it, but it's apparent that you have a long way to go to figure out how to close a store. Quite obviously, The Starbucks Corporation doesn’t give a rat’s ass about your now-former Paris customers, but your partners in this store deserved much, MUCH better from you.
That is all.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Changing Habits
So it seems lately that many of the things that I have come to depend on are changing. This is causing me, a girl who likes her routines, a good bit of consternation.
I've already covered the whole thing with $tarbuck$. Their last day is September 19th. I have a new espresso maker, a source for the correct beans, and Roger has promised me a box of green straws, so I can make do. And while it still won't be the same, it'll be acceptable. Still ticks me off, though.
Now there's also a thing with Ocean Spray. I've been drinking their 100% Pure Natural Unsweetened Cranberry Juice for well over a year now. Twice a day. 3-4 64 oz. bottles a week. I hold it largely responsible for my 100 point DEcrease in cholesterol. Suddenly, I wasn't finding it on the shelves at Wall-E, so I figured they were just out. Days turned into weeks, and I asked, but nobody knew anything. I had Randy looking in Lubbock, and every time we went anywhere, I'd stop at all Wall-E stores we passed, and they were out also. I found a few bottles in Tuscaloosa when we took the kids, but that was the last I could find. Finally, I sent an email to Ocean Spray, and got a nice email back from them saying, in so many words, "so YOU were The One who was buying it!" They're not bottling it any more, because sales were so low. Well, crud. I like the tartness of the unsweetened. The other sixty million kinds of cranberry juice they sell just don't do it for me.
Then, there's this steak marinade that we've been using for EVER. My parents first brought us a bottle way back when we lived in Boone, North Carolina, and we've loved it ever since. Wall-E doesn't carry it anymore, and Kr0ger only has it every once in a while. What the heck?!? We can get it online, or anytime we travel back to Alabama, but STILL.
AND...for a couple of unpleasant weeks, all my local grocery stores were also out of my favorite breakfast cereal. Scary, but it was only temporary. It's back now. Whew!
And not that I'm one of those post-nuclear hoarders or anything, but I've got six boxes in my cabinets, and I'm wondering if that's enough. It's not like they'll go bad or anything. The cereal might get kind of stale...but once you pour milk over it, who'd be able to tell?!?
I've already covered the whole thing with $tarbuck$. Their last day is September 19th. I have a new espresso maker, a source for the correct beans, and Roger has promised me a box of green straws, so I can make do. And while it still won't be the same, it'll be acceptable. Still ticks me off, though.
Now there's also a thing with Ocean Spray. I've been drinking their 100% Pure Natural Unsweetened Cranberry Juice for well over a year now. Twice a day. 3-4 64 oz. bottles a week. I hold it largely responsible for my 100 point DEcrease in cholesterol. Suddenly, I wasn't finding it on the shelves at Wall-E, so I figured they were just out. Days turned into weeks, and I asked, but nobody knew anything. I had Randy looking in Lubbock, and every time we went anywhere, I'd stop at all Wall-E stores we passed, and they were out also. I found a few bottles in Tuscaloosa when we took the kids, but that was the last I could find. Finally, I sent an email to Ocean Spray, and got a nice email back from them saying, in so many words, "so YOU were The One who was buying it!" They're not bottling it any more, because sales were so low. Well, crud. I like the tartness of the unsweetened. The other sixty million kinds of cranberry juice they sell just don't do it for me.
Then, there's this steak marinade that we've been using for EVER. My parents first brought us a bottle way back when we lived in Boone, North Carolina, and we've loved it ever since. Wall-E doesn't carry it anymore, and Kr0ger only has it every once in a while. What the heck?!? We can get it online, or anytime we travel back to Alabama, but STILL.
AND...for a couple of unpleasant weeks, all my local grocery stores were also out of my favorite breakfast cereal. Scary, but it was only temporary. It's back now. Whew!
And not that I'm one of those post-nuclear hoarders or anything, but I've got six boxes in my cabinets, and I'm wondering if that's enough. It's not like they'll go bad or anything. The cereal might get kind of stale...but once you pour milk over it, who'd be able to tell?!?
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Nothing New Under the Sun
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
--Ecclesiastes 1:9 (New International Version)
A million years ago (actually? 1971), there was a TV series called Rollin' on the River, hosted by a group called The First Edition. The lead singer was this hippie-lookin' guy named Kenny Rogers. With long brown hair and granny glasses, a gold earring and a full beard, who knew that he'd turn into The Gambler dude with a ska-zillion hit singles and a really botched plastic surgery job?!?
One thing that I saw on that show that has stuck with me for lo, these many, many years came (I believe) on the last show of the series. In 1971 (listen up, youngsters), we were smack in the middle of the muddle that was Vietnam, and it was a tough, tough time in the country. People were horribly, violently, polarized - everyone had an opinion, and most people thought that everyone ELSE was wrong.
Remind you of anything you've seen lately? Nothing new under the sun.
Anyway, Kenny came out at the end of the show - just him, a stool and a spotlight, and he read a poem. The only poem ever written by Mark Twain, it was written in 1904 (during the Philippine-American War), but was not published until well after his death - at his own request, but due to his family's urging, as they felt it might be considered by some to be sacrilegious. "I have told the truth in that..." Twain is reported to have said, "and only dead men can tell the truth in this world. It can be published after I am dead."
I have been reminded of The War Prayer recently, after hearing the quote from one of our national candidates about praying for "our national leaders...sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God." At the risk of offending some of my friends, and some of my family, I wonder: is this, really, what we think we are praying for??
The War Prayer
Mark Twain
written in 1904, first published in Harper's Monthly in November, 1916
It was a time of great and exalting excitement. The country was up in arms, the war was on, in every breast burned the holy fire of patriotism; the drums were beating, the bands playing, the toy pistols popping, the bunched firecrackers hissing and spluttering; on every hand and far down the receding and fading spread of roofs and balconies a fluttering wilderness of flags flashed in the sun; daily the young volunteers marched down the wide avenue gay and fine in their new uniforms, the proud fathers and mothers and sisters and sweethearts cheering them with voices choked with happy emotion as they swung by; nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory which stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts, and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause, the tears running down their cheeks the while; in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country, and invoked the God of Battles beseeching His aid in our good cause in outpourings of fervid eloquence which moved every listener. It was indeed a glad and gracious time, and the half dozen rash spirits that ventured to disapprove of the war and cast a doubt upon its righteousness straightway got such a stern and angry warning that for their personal safety's sake they quickly shrank out of sight and offended no more in that way.
Sunday morning came – next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers were there, their young faces alight with martial dreams – visions of the stern advance, the gathering momentum, the rushing charge, the flashing sabers, the flight of the foe, the tumult, the enveloping smoke, the fierce pursuit, the surrender! Then home from the war, bronzed heroes, welcomed, adored, submerged in golden seas of glory! With the volunteers sat their dear ones, proud, happy, and envied by the neighbors and friends who had no sons and brothers to send forth to the field of honor, there to win for the flag, or, failing, die the noblest of noble deaths. The service proceeded; a war chapter from the Old Testament was read; the first prayer was said; it was followed by an organ burst that shook the building, and with one impulse the house rose, with glowing eyes and beating hearts, and poured out that tremendous invocation
God the all-terrible! Thou who ordainest! Thunder thy clarion and lightning thy sword!
Then came the "long" prayer. None could remember the like of it for passionate pleading and moving and beautiful language. The burden of its supplication was, that an ever-merciful and benignant Father of us all would watch over our noble young soldiers, and aid, comfort, and encourage them in their patriotic work; bless them, shield them in the day of battle and the hour of peril, bear them in His mighty hand, make them strong and confident, invincible in the bloody onset; help them to crush the foe, grant to them and to their flag and country imperishable honor and glory –
An aged stranger entered and moved with slow and noiseless step up the main aisle, his eyes fixed upon the minister, his long body clothed in a robe that reached to his feet, his head bare, his white hair descending in a frothy cataract to his shoulders, his seamy face unnaturally pale, pale even to ghastliness. With all eyes following him and wondering, he made his silent way; without pausing, he ascended to the preacher's side and stood there waiting. With shut lids the preacher, unconscious of his presence, continued with his moving prayer, and at last finished it with the words, uttered in fervent appeal, "Bless our arms, grant us the victory, O Lord our God, Father and Protector of our land and flag!"
The stranger touched his arm, motioned him to step aside – which the startled minister did – and took his place. During some moments he surveyed the spellbound audience with solemn eyes, in which burned an uncanny light; then in a deep voice he said:
"I come from the Throne – bearing a message from Almighty God!" The words smote the house with a shock; if the stranger perceived it he gave no attention. "He has heard the prayer of His servant your shepherd, and will grant it if such shall be your desire after I, His messenger, shall have explained to you its import – that is to say, its full import. For it is like unto many of the prayers of men, in that it asks for more than he who utters it is aware of – except he pause and think.
"God's servant and yours has prayed his prayer. Has he paused and taken thought? Is it one prayer? No, it is two – one uttered, the other not. Both have reached the ear of Him Who heareth all supplications, the spoken and the unspoken. Ponder this – keep it in mind. If you would beseech a blessing upon yourself, beware! lest without intent you invoke a curse upon a neighbor at the same time. If you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbor's crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it.
"You have heard your servant's prayer – the uttered part of it. I am commissioned of God to put into words the other part of it – that part which the pastor – and also you in your hearts – fervently prayed silently. And ignorantly and unthinkingly? God grant that it was so! You heard these words: 'Grant us the victory, O Lord our God!' That is sufficient. the whole of the uttered prayer is compact into those pregnant words. Elaborations were not necessary. When you have prayed for victory you have prayed for many unmentioned results which follow victory – must follow it, cannot help but follow it. Upon the listening spirit of God fell also the unspoken part of the prayer. He commandeth me to put it into words. Listen!
"O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle – be Thou near them! With them – in spirit – we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it – for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts. Amen.
(After a pause.) "Ye have prayed it; if ye still desire it, speak! The messenger of the Most High waits!"
It was believed afterward that the man was a lunatic, because there was no sense in what he said.
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
--Ecclesiastes 1:9 (New International Version)
A million years ago (actually? 1971), there was a TV series called Rollin' on the River, hosted by a group called The First Edition. The lead singer was this hippie-lookin' guy named Kenny Rogers. With long brown hair and granny glasses, a gold earring and a full beard, who knew that he'd turn into The Gambler dude with a ska-zillion hit singles and a really botched plastic surgery job?!?
One thing that I saw on that show that has stuck with me for lo, these many, many years came (I believe) on the last show of the series. In 1971 (listen up, youngsters), we were smack in the middle of the muddle that was Vietnam, and it was a tough, tough time in the country. People were horribly, violently, polarized - everyone had an opinion, and most people thought that everyone ELSE was wrong.
Remind you of anything you've seen lately? Nothing new under the sun.
Anyway, Kenny came out at the end of the show - just him, a stool and a spotlight, and he read a poem. The only poem ever written by Mark Twain, it was written in 1904 (during the Philippine-American War), but was not published until well after his death - at his own request, but due to his family's urging, as they felt it might be considered by some to be sacrilegious. "I have told the truth in that..." Twain is reported to have said, "and only dead men can tell the truth in this world. It can be published after I am dead."
I have been reminded of The War Prayer recently, after hearing the quote from one of our national candidates about praying for "our national leaders...sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God." At the risk of offending some of my friends, and some of my family, I wonder: is this, really, what we think we are praying for??
The War Prayer
Mark Twain
written in 1904, first published in Harper's Monthly in November, 1916
It was a time of great and exalting excitement. The country was up in arms, the war was on, in every breast burned the holy fire of patriotism; the drums were beating, the bands playing, the toy pistols popping, the bunched firecrackers hissing and spluttering; on every hand and far down the receding and fading spread of roofs and balconies a fluttering wilderness of flags flashed in the sun; daily the young volunteers marched down the wide avenue gay and fine in their new uniforms, the proud fathers and mothers and sisters and sweethearts cheering them with voices choked with happy emotion as they swung by; nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory which stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts, and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause, the tears running down their cheeks the while; in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country, and invoked the God of Battles beseeching His aid in our good cause in outpourings of fervid eloquence which moved every listener. It was indeed a glad and gracious time, and the half dozen rash spirits that ventured to disapprove of the war and cast a doubt upon its righteousness straightway got such a stern and angry warning that for their personal safety's sake they quickly shrank out of sight and offended no more in that way.
Sunday morning came – next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers were there, their young faces alight with martial dreams – visions of the stern advance, the gathering momentum, the rushing charge, the flashing sabers, the flight of the foe, the tumult, the enveloping smoke, the fierce pursuit, the surrender! Then home from the war, bronzed heroes, welcomed, adored, submerged in golden seas of glory! With the volunteers sat their dear ones, proud, happy, and envied by the neighbors and friends who had no sons and brothers to send forth to the field of honor, there to win for the flag, or, failing, die the noblest of noble deaths. The service proceeded; a war chapter from the Old Testament was read; the first prayer was said; it was followed by an organ burst that shook the building, and with one impulse the house rose, with glowing eyes and beating hearts, and poured out that tremendous invocation
God the all-terrible! Thou who ordainest! Thunder thy clarion and lightning thy sword!
Then came the "long" prayer. None could remember the like of it for passionate pleading and moving and beautiful language. The burden of its supplication was, that an ever-merciful and benignant Father of us all would watch over our noble young soldiers, and aid, comfort, and encourage them in their patriotic work; bless them, shield them in the day of battle and the hour of peril, bear them in His mighty hand, make them strong and confident, invincible in the bloody onset; help them to crush the foe, grant to them and to their flag and country imperishable honor and glory –
An aged stranger entered and moved with slow and noiseless step up the main aisle, his eyes fixed upon the minister, his long body clothed in a robe that reached to his feet, his head bare, his white hair descending in a frothy cataract to his shoulders, his seamy face unnaturally pale, pale even to ghastliness. With all eyes following him and wondering, he made his silent way; without pausing, he ascended to the preacher's side and stood there waiting. With shut lids the preacher, unconscious of his presence, continued with his moving prayer, and at last finished it with the words, uttered in fervent appeal, "Bless our arms, grant us the victory, O Lord our God, Father and Protector of our land and flag!"
The stranger touched his arm, motioned him to step aside – which the startled minister did – and took his place. During some moments he surveyed the spellbound audience with solemn eyes, in which burned an uncanny light; then in a deep voice he said:
"I come from the Throne – bearing a message from Almighty God!" The words smote the house with a shock; if the stranger perceived it he gave no attention. "He has heard the prayer of His servant your shepherd, and will grant it if such shall be your desire after I, His messenger, shall have explained to you its import – that is to say, its full import. For it is like unto many of the prayers of men, in that it asks for more than he who utters it is aware of – except he pause and think.
"God's servant and yours has prayed his prayer. Has he paused and taken thought? Is it one prayer? No, it is two – one uttered, the other not. Both have reached the ear of Him Who heareth all supplications, the spoken and the unspoken. Ponder this – keep it in mind. If you would beseech a blessing upon yourself, beware! lest without intent you invoke a curse upon a neighbor at the same time. If you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbor's crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it.
"You have heard your servant's prayer – the uttered part of it. I am commissioned of God to put into words the other part of it – that part which the pastor – and also you in your hearts – fervently prayed silently. And ignorantly and unthinkingly? God grant that it was so! You heard these words: 'Grant us the victory, O Lord our God!' That is sufficient. the whole of the uttered prayer is compact into those pregnant words. Elaborations were not necessary. When you have prayed for victory you have prayed for many unmentioned results which follow victory – must follow it, cannot help but follow it. Upon the listening spirit of God fell also the unspoken part of the prayer. He commandeth me to put it into words. Listen!
"O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle – be Thou near them! With them – in spirit – we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it – for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts. Amen.
(After a pause.) "Ye have prayed it; if ye still desire it, speak! The messenger of the Most High waits!"
It was believed afterward that the man was a lunatic, because there was no sense in what he said.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Blackjack!!
It hardly seems possible, but Amanda Jayne was born twenty-one years ago today! My, how time flies.
Randy and I both had dark hair. Wow.
I told her this morning when I called that the day she was born was one of the three best days of my life. But it was really oh-so-much more than just a good day.
Because, when she was born, everything changed. Instead of just being two married people with a couple of dogs, she turned us into parents...and we became a family. A noisy, messy, funny, loving, irritating family, made complete 20 months later when James was born.
And so, on this momentous day, I'd just like to say that everything I ever hoped for in a daughter, I found in Amanda. I could not have asked for a sweeter, funnier, smarter, happier baby girl. And to have the privilege of watching her grow up into a sweet, funny, smart, happy woman has been one of the great gifts of my life.
So much of me is made of what I learned from you...you'll be with me like a handprint on my heart.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Breathe In, Breathe Out...
Contrary to popular belief, I have not dropped off the face of the earth. July was just a really busy month. We got Amanda home from Italy (yes, she thought it was spectacular), had an awesome almost-the-whole-family reunion (see picture below), got the Hot Springs condo spruced up and on the market, got almost finished with the den remodel (just working on the doors and trim now), I did Wii Fit every day in July except the days in Gulf Shores, and did the best I could to keep our $tarbuck$ open by consuming as many Iced Lattes and Blended Lemonades as I possibly could!
This awesome picture is the whole family, except for Hal,and Tom and his family, and Amy, and they just couldn't make it this year. Next time, for sure! From back left, there's Mark and Eve with Cody Lynn, Adam and Susan, James, Amanda, Laura and Walt, and Barry and Kim. Front row - Sam and Colin, Grace and Luke, me, Randy, Lola and Jack, Will, Donna, and Pierson. The first picture we took was the best one - can you believe it?!?
August is shaping up to be pretty full also. The kids are going back to Tuscaloosa next week, even though they just got here. Or so it seems. James is going to be able to transfer to the $tarbuck$ in Tuscaloosa, and is pleased about that. He's still thinking about changing his major to MIS. Amanda will finish up all her Art History hours this semester, and is starting to look into graduate schools and programs.
So until we get back from T-town, I just have a few random thoughts to share:
- Sammie declined her walk this morning. It was the funniest thing I've seen lately. It was raining, and I know she's not accustomed to seeing that. But, me? I was ready to suck it up and get on out there. I got her leash on, we went out through the garage, and when we got to the door, she stopped, peered out at the driveway, took a couple of steps and paused...took a couple more steps, shook, then came back in the garage and sat down! I stood there with her for probably five minutes, talking to her and sort of trying to move out toward the driveway. When she decided she'd had enough of THAT, she stood up, turned around and walked back toward the door to the house. What. A. Wimp.
- If you order four shots of espresso often enough in your latte, three shots is kind of flavorless.
- Brett Favre has gotten on my last sports nerve. Spoiled brat. I do, however, hope he helps the Jets, for Greeny's sake.
============================
This doesn't really go here, but I just need to say something. John Edwards has both broken my heart and pissed me off. What a clueless, idiotic jackass. Lord, please be with Elizabeth and her kids.
This awesome picture is the whole family, except for Hal,and Tom and his family, and Amy, and they just couldn't make it this year. Next time, for sure! From back left, there's Mark and Eve with Cody Lynn, Adam and Susan, James, Amanda, Laura and Walt, and Barry and Kim. Front row - Sam and Colin, Grace and Luke, me, Randy, Lola and Jack, Will, Donna, and Pierson. The first picture we took was the best one - can you believe it?!?
August is shaping up to be pretty full also. The kids are going back to Tuscaloosa next week, even though they just got here. Or so it seems. James is going to be able to transfer to the $tarbuck$ in Tuscaloosa, and is pleased about that. He's still thinking about changing his major to MIS. Amanda will finish up all her Art History hours this semester, and is starting to look into graduate schools and programs.
So until we get back from T-town, I just have a few random thoughts to share:
- Sammie declined her walk this morning. It was the funniest thing I've seen lately. It was raining, and I know she's not accustomed to seeing that. But, me? I was ready to suck it up and get on out there. I got her leash on, we went out through the garage, and when we got to the door, she stopped, peered out at the driveway, took a couple of steps and paused...took a couple more steps, shook, then came back in the garage and sat down! I stood there with her for probably five minutes, talking to her and sort of trying to move out toward the driveway. When she decided she'd had enough of THAT, she stood up, turned around and walked back toward the door to the house. What. A. Wimp.
- If you order four shots of espresso often enough in your latte, three shots is kind of flavorless.
- Brett Favre has gotten on my last sports nerve. Spoiled brat. I do, however, hope he helps the Jets, for Greeny's sake.
============================
This doesn't really go here, but I just need to say something. John Edwards has both broken my heart and pissed me off. What a clueless, idiotic jackass. Lord, please be with Elizabeth and her kids.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Sending Out an SOS...
...as in "Save Our Starbucks!"
Several folks have asked me if there's anything we can do to convince Starbucks to let us hang on to our store. I know that corporate seems to at least be willing to listen. Here's what I know for sure:
The Seattle Times quotes Brad Stevens, Starbucks' vice president of customer-relations management, in this article about store closings: "customers could make a difference but added he (Stevens) has not heard much reaction from them. 'That's such an amazing thing, that customers would actually take up that cause,' he said. 'How lucky we are that we as a brand have that kind of relationship with customers. I think we would listen carefully.'"
So, what that says to me is they might not change their minds, but they'd maybe be willing to consider it. If any of you IT wizards out there can go to the Starbucks website and find an email address for Brad Stevens, PLEASE post it in a comment. I have poked around there myself, to no avail. They don't seem to want to give out individual emails. Go figure.
Here is the phone number for Starbucks Retail Customer Relations:
(800) 235-2883
Mon – Fri 5 AM – 6 PM (PST)
Sat – Sun 6 AM – 3 PM (PST)
Call 'em up. Tell 'em why they need to keep Paris open.
You might also go to their website at http://www.starbucks.com/customer/contact_forms.asp?nav=3e and fill out their comment form.
Obviously, you should also be buying stuff at our Starbucks as often as you can! If you don't like coffee, but you like the idea of Paris continuing to have a Starbucks here in town, they are going to be offering "Coffee for Troops" again starting this coming week. You can buy a pound or twenty of ground coffee, and they will get it to our troops for you.
Also, in a kill-two-birds-with-one-stone kind of thing, the Red Cross is collecting items to make available to the 600++ troops who will be training this month at Camp Maxey. Go to Starbucks, buy non-perishable stuff like bottled water, trail mix, CDs, books, etc., then take it to the Red Cross drop-off point at Ramseur Baptist Church this Friday, July 18th, between 9 and 12.
Remember to be positive and encouraging to the partners in the store! They're holding up pretty well, most of them, but it's a bummer to think that they might be out of a job soon. Many of them have been there since Day One, and this is a tough road. Tell them what you've done - if you've called, or emailed, or whatever. Tell them to keep their chins up - that you're not giving up, and neither should they!
And, finally, REPRESENT!! Carry your Starbucks cup with you when you shop, show the logo, talk about the store to people you know, and people you don't. Talk to the movers and shakers in town that you know (like Chip Harper, who loves Starbucks) and get them to call, email, write letters.
If we try, and they still close, at least we will know that we've done what we can.
Several folks have asked me if there's anything we can do to convince Starbucks to let us hang on to our store. I know that corporate seems to at least be willing to listen. Here's what I know for sure:
The Seattle Times quotes Brad Stevens, Starbucks' vice president of customer-relations management, in this article about store closings: "customers could make a difference but added he (Stevens) has not heard much reaction from them. 'That's such an amazing thing, that customers would actually take up that cause,' he said. 'How lucky we are that we as a brand have that kind of relationship with customers. I think we would listen carefully.'"
So, what that says to me is they might not change their minds, but they'd maybe be willing to consider it. If any of you IT wizards out there can go to the Starbucks website and find an email address for Brad Stevens, PLEASE post it in a comment. I have poked around there myself, to no avail. They don't seem to want to give out individual emails. Go figure.
Here is the phone number for Starbucks Retail Customer Relations:
(800) 235-2883
Mon – Fri 5 AM – 6 PM (PST)
Sat – Sun 6 AM – 3 PM (PST)
Call 'em up. Tell 'em why they need to keep Paris open.
You might also go to their website at http://www.starbucks.com/customer/contact_forms.asp?nav=3e and fill out their comment form.
Obviously, you should also be buying stuff at our Starbucks as often as you can! If you don't like coffee, but you like the idea of Paris continuing to have a Starbucks here in town, they are going to be offering "Coffee for Troops" again starting this coming week. You can buy a pound or twenty of ground coffee, and they will get it to our troops for you.
Also, in a kill-two-birds-with-one-stone kind of thing, the Red Cross is collecting items to make available to the 600++ troops who will be training this month at Camp Maxey. Go to Starbucks, buy non-perishable stuff like bottled water, trail mix, CDs, books, etc., then take it to the Red Cross drop-off point at Ramseur Baptist Church this Friday, July 18th, between 9 and 12.
Remember to be positive and encouraging to the partners in the store! They're holding up pretty well, most of them, but it's a bummer to think that they might be out of a job soon. Many of them have been there since Day One, and this is a tough road. Tell them what you've done - if you've called, or emailed, or whatever. Tell them to keep their chins up - that you're not giving up, and neither should they!
And, finally, REPRESENT!! Carry your Starbucks cup with you when you shop, show the logo, talk about the store to people you know, and people you don't. Talk to the movers and shakers in town that you know (like Chip Harper, who loves Starbucks) and get them to call, email, write letters.
If we try, and they still close, at least we will know that we've done what we can.
Monday, July 07, 2008
How Starbucks Broke My Heart
Or: When Numbers on a Corporate Spreadsheet Don’t Tell the Whole Story
I love Starbucks.
I’ve never made any apology for that. I like their products, the personality of the stores, the friendliness of the baristas. I’ve had Starbucks iced lattes from far west Texas to downtown Chicago, from south Alabama to Istanbul, in airports, malls, and on opening day at brand-new stores, and they’ve all been consistently wonderful.
Welcome to Paris, Texas.
A small-ish city of 25,000 in northeast Texas, we Parisians like to think of ourselves as more than a typical small town. Rumors frequently find root here about new businesses that are looking for locations. More often than not, the rumors are quickly debunked (Old Navy? Target? HAH.), but occasionally one turns into reality. Such was the case about two years ago, when the rumor began to spread that Starbucks was coming to town.
When that rumor did turn into reality – well, it was a happy day in Paris! Finally, something measurable that says that Paris is, indeed, more than just another small town. A Starbucks!! We have hit the Big Time, baby! We all watched eagerly as construction began and the store took shape. And when it opened, it didn’t take long for Starbucks to become THE place to meet friends.
No one was more excited than I when the often-dreamed of Starbucks became a reality for us. I’ve been there from Day One. Not daily, but close to it - and since James started working there this summer, it’s been more like a couple of times a day! They know my favorites – my morning Iced Quad Venti Non-fat Latte, my afternoon Venti Shaken Passion Tea Lemonade, or my new favorite, the Venti Blended Lemonade with Passion Tea. They tsk-tsk when I forget to bring my cup from home, because they know that I’m trying to consume less plastic. They remind me to pick up the iTunes pick of the week.
Many of the baristas remember me from Aikin, or they were in class with one of my kids. They call me Mrs. Reed, even though I’ve tried to get them to call me Frances, but now with James working there, they’re starting to call me Momma Reed. I like that. But what I really like the most, is that I’m not the only customer that they know so well. It’s amazing to me to see the number of people come in that the baristas automatically start working their drink as soon as they hit the door.
I’ve been reading with interest all the press Starbucks has been getting lately, as they’ve started to make some decisions about changing the trend that they have found themselves on – declining sales, unprofitable locations, all the corporate things that so often affect the folks on the front lines far more than the folks in the corporate offices.
As multi-store Quiznos franchisees for nearly ten years, Randy and I have seen many changes take place within our own corporate structure. Quiznos, like Starbucks, has suffered greatly from opening way too many stores in too short a period of time and with (in many cases) puzzling real estate choices. Many of our fellow franchisees have been unable to keep up with the changing requirements of a corporation taking sometimes drastic measures to steer Quiznos back onto a profitable path, and have closed or sold their restaurants. This is never an easy choice for a franchisee. No one goes into business thinking they will fail. So we are not unfamiliar with turmoil within a corporation as those in charge try to affect change that will strengthen the corporation as a whole.
How this manifests, unfortunately, is that decisions are made that affect not only the employees of a company, but also the communities involved.
Much to our dismay, we hear that OUR Starbucks is one of those 600 stores currently on the chopping block. At the risk of sounding a tad melodramatic, this is heartbreaking in many ways. As a business owner, I fully understand the need to streamline operations, to cull out the locations that are not profitable, and to reduce overhead. But I would hope that someone, somewhere in the corporate structure of Starbucks might stop looking at the balance sheet for just a moment and see what we – the customers of the store in Paris - see.
All of the things which Starbucks has always been about are present in the store in Paris. Partners who provide quality products, made to correct specifications (which I do not always find in other Starbucks I visit), in a clean and welcoming store. Partners who know their customers, by name and by beverage, frequently starting a drink when they see a familiar car pull into the lot. Partners who are involved in their community. From the store manager, Roger Courson, who seems to be everywhere in town talking about coffee and inviting folks to stop by, to the shift managers and partners who provided coffee and water at the recent Relay for Life – and didn’t leave the stadium until 4:30 a.m., Starbucks employees here in Paris embody the traits I believe that the corporation aspires for all their partners to display.
I know that this location is probably not currently profitable. Sales are probably not what they had originally hoped for. One of the things that should be taken into consideration is that for the entire time the store has been open, the highway directly in front of the store has been undergoing a major construction project. Access to the parking lot is weird right now, and commonly, a visitor to Paris has a hard time figuring out how to get there, and then get back to where they were headed. Even people who live in town try to avoid the area when they can. Many neighboring businesses have been deeply hurt by this project, and the whole city is ready for it to be done. When access is better, I am certain there’d be improved sales. Another thing to consider is that, even if sales are not what they had hoped for, what sales they do have here aren’t going to transfer to another location. Nobody’s going to drive for an hour just to get a Frappuccino.
Randy and I know from experience that sales and profits can come the longer a store has been open. Our store in Hot Springs was not profitable for the first three years it was open. The vast financial resources which Starbucks has at its disposal? The best we had was a MasterCard with enough available credit on it to keep the landlord and our food suppliers happy. It was a challenge to decide whether to keep going there, but we stuck it out, and now it’s doing very well – and getting stronger all the time. That, I believe, will be the case with Starbucks in Paris.
Plus, then there’s the whole goodwill and bad publicity thing. We in Paris don’t need another closed-up building to remind us that Oops! Just kidding! You’re really NOT the big small town you thought you were! PLEASE - close a location where you’ve got three in the same block, or a free-standing store across the driveway from the one in Target, but leave us our one store here in Paris.
IF (and I’m still holding out hope that someone will come to their senses and change their minds) this store closes, I will not feel the same way about Starbucks that I would have felt had they never come to town.
Because now?
Now, they’ve been here, and if they close, they will have screwed over people I have come to know and care about.
HOWARD SCHULTZ, ARE YOU LISTENING?!? Look up from your spreadsheet for just a moment and see what we’re looking at. This Starbucks has barely been open a year. We aren’t giving up on it. It’s far too early for you to give up on it.
I love Starbucks.
I’ve never made any apology for that. I like their products, the personality of the stores, the friendliness of the baristas. I’ve had Starbucks iced lattes from far west Texas to downtown Chicago, from south Alabama to Istanbul, in airports, malls, and on opening day at brand-new stores, and they’ve all been consistently wonderful.
Welcome to Paris, Texas.
A small-ish city of 25,000 in northeast Texas, we Parisians like to think of ourselves as more than a typical small town. Rumors frequently find root here about new businesses that are looking for locations. More often than not, the rumors are quickly debunked (Old Navy? Target? HAH.), but occasionally one turns into reality. Such was the case about two years ago, when the rumor began to spread that Starbucks was coming to town.
When that rumor did turn into reality – well, it was a happy day in Paris! Finally, something measurable that says that Paris is, indeed, more than just another small town. A Starbucks!! We have hit the Big Time, baby! We all watched eagerly as construction began and the store took shape. And when it opened, it didn’t take long for Starbucks to become THE place to meet friends.
No one was more excited than I when the often-dreamed of Starbucks became a reality for us. I’ve been there from Day One. Not daily, but close to it - and since James started working there this summer, it’s been more like a couple of times a day! They know my favorites – my morning Iced Quad Venti Non-fat Latte, my afternoon Venti Shaken Passion Tea Lemonade, or my new favorite, the Venti Blended Lemonade with Passion Tea. They tsk-tsk when I forget to bring my cup from home, because they know that I’m trying to consume less plastic. They remind me to pick up the iTunes pick of the week.
Many of the baristas remember me from Aikin, or they were in class with one of my kids. They call me Mrs. Reed, even though I’ve tried to get them to call me Frances, but now with James working there, they’re starting to call me Momma Reed. I like that. But what I really like the most, is that I’m not the only customer that they know so well. It’s amazing to me to see the number of people come in that the baristas automatically start working their drink as soon as they hit the door.
I’ve been reading with interest all the press Starbucks has been getting lately, as they’ve started to make some decisions about changing the trend that they have found themselves on – declining sales, unprofitable locations, all the corporate things that so often affect the folks on the front lines far more than the folks in the corporate offices.
As multi-store Quiznos franchisees for nearly ten years, Randy and I have seen many changes take place within our own corporate structure. Quiznos, like Starbucks, has suffered greatly from opening way too many stores in too short a period of time and with (in many cases) puzzling real estate choices. Many of our fellow franchisees have been unable to keep up with the changing requirements of a corporation taking sometimes drastic measures to steer Quiznos back onto a profitable path, and have closed or sold their restaurants. This is never an easy choice for a franchisee. No one goes into business thinking they will fail. So we are not unfamiliar with turmoil within a corporation as those in charge try to affect change that will strengthen the corporation as a whole.
How this manifests, unfortunately, is that decisions are made that affect not only the employees of a company, but also the communities involved.
Much to our dismay, we hear that OUR Starbucks is one of those 600 stores currently on the chopping block. At the risk of sounding a tad melodramatic, this is heartbreaking in many ways. As a business owner, I fully understand the need to streamline operations, to cull out the locations that are not profitable, and to reduce overhead. But I would hope that someone, somewhere in the corporate structure of Starbucks might stop looking at the balance sheet for just a moment and see what we – the customers of the store in Paris - see.
All of the things which Starbucks has always been about are present in the store in Paris. Partners who provide quality products, made to correct specifications (which I do not always find in other Starbucks I visit), in a clean and welcoming store. Partners who know their customers, by name and by beverage, frequently starting a drink when they see a familiar car pull into the lot. Partners who are involved in their community. From the store manager, Roger Courson, who seems to be everywhere in town talking about coffee and inviting folks to stop by, to the shift managers and partners who provided coffee and water at the recent Relay for Life – and didn’t leave the stadium until 4:30 a.m., Starbucks employees here in Paris embody the traits I believe that the corporation aspires for all their partners to display.
I know that this location is probably not currently profitable. Sales are probably not what they had originally hoped for. One of the things that should be taken into consideration is that for the entire time the store has been open, the highway directly in front of the store has been undergoing a major construction project. Access to the parking lot is weird right now, and commonly, a visitor to Paris has a hard time figuring out how to get there, and then get back to where they were headed. Even people who live in town try to avoid the area when they can. Many neighboring businesses have been deeply hurt by this project, and the whole city is ready for it to be done. When access is better, I am certain there’d be improved sales. Another thing to consider is that, even if sales are not what they had hoped for, what sales they do have here aren’t going to transfer to another location. Nobody’s going to drive for an hour just to get a Frappuccino.
Randy and I know from experience that sales and profits can come the longer a store has been open. Our store in Hot Springs was not profitable for the first three years it was open. The vast financial resources which Starbucks has at its disposal? The best we had was a MasterCard with enough available credit on it to keep the landlord and our food suppliers happy. It was a challenge to decide whether to keep going there, but we stuck it out, and now it’s doing very well – and getting stronger all the time. That, I believe, will be the case with Starbucks in Paris.
Plus, then there’s the whole goodwill and bad publicity thing. We in Paris don’t need another closed-up building to remind us that Oops! Just kidding! You’re really NOT the big small town you thought you were! PLEASE - close a location where you’ve got three in the same block, or a free-standing store across the driveway from the one in Target, but leave us our one store here in Paris.
IF (and I’m still holding out hope that someone will come to their senses and change their minds) this store closes, I will not feel the same way about Starbucks that I would have felt had they never come to town.
Because now?
Now, they’ve been here, and if they close, they will have screwed over people I have come to know and care about.
HOWARD SCHULTZ, ARE YOU LISTENING?!? Look up from your spreadsheet for just a moment and see what we’re looking at. This Starbucks has barely been open a year. We aren’t giving up on it. It’s far too early for you to give up on it.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Often Rumored but Seldom Seen
I had heard that some people were able to actually get two cars in their two-car garage, but I had often thought that must be one of those urban myths.
However...after getting mostly finished with our large-scale remodeling projects, and being very selective about what items were allowed back in the house, and having a pretty awesome garage sale yesterday...after all was said and done, we are now capable of keeping two cars in the two-car side of our garage!!
Neat-o!
Monday, June 16, 2008
Fame and Dignity
I like Bill Clinton. I always have. As president? I thought he was awesome. I don't, however, like some of the things he has done, or how he has handled much of his personal life. But I can compartmentalize. His personal life is pretty much his business, and should remain between him, Hillary, Chelsea and God. In my opinion.
Having said that, this little blurb in The Arkansas Times (scroll down to "Girls Gone Wild") about the pay-per-view business that Paula Jones and Gennifer Flowers have created in order to milk a little more...whatever...for themselves has a quote from G. Flowers that I had not read before.
"Flowers says her infamy was no ticket to riches and adds, 'What is fame without dignity?'”
Indeed.
I can't figure out quite what point she's trying to make here. This is a question that it seems to me should be asked OF her, not BY her.
What IS fame without dignity? Gennifer can't answer that, because she has neither.
Having said that, this little blurb in The Arkansas Times (scroll down to "Girls Gone Wild") about the pay-per-view business that Paula Jones and Gennifer Flowers have created in order to milk a little more...whatever...for themselves has a quote from G. Flowers that I had not read before.
"Flowers says her infamy was no ticket to riches and adds, 'What is fame without dignity?'”
Indeed.
I can't figure out quite what point she's trying to make here. This is a question that it seems to me should be asked OF her, not BY her.
What IS fame without dignity? Gennifer can't answer that, because she has neither.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
FIRST PICTURES!!
Pictures up on Amanda's Picasa!
She climbed to the TOP of the Duomo in the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, the cathedral of Florence. 463 steps!! Whoa.
Monday, June 02, 2008
You Say Arrivederci, I Say Goodbye...
Saturday was an interesting day for me. I put my baby girl on a plane bound for a month-long stay in Italy, and I didn't even get teary eyed!
Actually, it all began on Friday, when Amanda and I drove to the metroplex to spend the night so we could make our early flight. We met Randy (who was coming home from Lubbock) in Rockwall for dinner at our favorite St. Louis-based burger joint. Our waiter had a name tag that said "Bilbo", and he actually did resemble Bilbo Baggins. Then Amanda and I drove on to Euless, where we spent the night. I pointed out to her the W3ndy's on Main Street, where Randy and I first met ("right there...by the front Frosty machine!"). Then we checked into the LQ, and had a nice room overlooking a new $tarbuck$, which we took advantage of before grabbing a quick breakfast and heading to the airport.
We had a 7:45 flight to Atlanta, and got there right on time. So that meant we had about 5 hours to kill before she was to meet her group. We ate, wandered around, then snagged a couch in the main terminal area, where we could people-watch, read, and snooze. In a nice turn, Amanda saw her Florence roommate, Braegan (isn't that a lovely name?), and her mom, who came and sat with us until it was time to go. So we had a nice visit, and I think both Braegan's mom and I felt better for having the chance to meet the roommates and see them together before they left.
So finally 4:00 came, and we went to meet the group at the Lufthansa counter. The group leader was there, with someone holding a Bama windsock aloft, so we knew we were in the right place. Amanda had gotten all her eye-rolling out of the way on the drive to the airport (as I was trying to get in all my last little admonishments: be careful, but don't be afraid to get out of your comfort zone), so that when I said goodbye, she let me get a little mushy without being too terribly embarrassed!
I was able to get on an earlier flight back to DFW, so I got home about an hour and a half before I had expected. And when I got home, the oddest thing happened.
First of all, you have to know that anytime anyone comes into the house who is new, or who hasn't been there in a while, Sammie tends to go nuts. We're working on being a little calmer, but she wants to jump and lick and dance and celebrate when someone arrives.
Usually.
When I came in, she was lying on the floor in the den near the garage door, and SHE DID NOT EVEN LIFT HER HEAD TO SAY HELLO. I put my things down, leaned over to pet her, and if she even thumped her tail, I didn't notice it. I think she was ticked off at me for leaving her.
It was the first time that she's spent a night in the house that I wasn't there. Randy and James both had stories about how she acted that at least let me know that she had noticed that I was gone, but for the rest of the night, she hardly gave me a second glance. As I went to bed, I was trying to figure out how I could get back in her good graces - maybe an extra-long walk the next morning, a new tennis ball, or a cup of the $tarbuck$ ice that she loves so much. Then in the middle of the night, I woke up to find her using my legs as a pillow, which she NEVER does, so apparently she decided to forgive me!
Amanda called on Sunday morning our time/afternoon her time, to say that she and her suitcase were on the same plane into Florence, so that was one big concern out of the way. She said their apartment is a nice, small, two bedroom, one bath flat that they are sharing with a couple of other Bama girls in their group. They are close to the Arno River, and they had found a couple of likely places to grab dinner before going back home and collapsing! Their schedule started today, with meetings and planning and stuff before classes begin tomorrow. She sounded tired AND happy AND ready to get on with exploring and learning and experiencing everything she can.
She promises to TRY to blog and post pictures, so when she does, I'll be sure and post links for y'all to see!
Actually, it all began on Friday, when Amanda and I drove to the metroplex to spend the night so we could make our early flight. We met Randy (who was coming home from Lubbock) in Rockwall for dinner at our favorite St. Louis-based burger joint. Our waiter had a name tag that said "Bilbo", and he actually did resemble Bilbo Baggins. Then Amanda and I drove on to Euless, where we spent the night. I pointed out to her the W3ndy's on Main Street, where Randy and I first met ("right there...by the front Frosty machine!"). Then we checked into the LQ, and had a nice room overlooking a new $tarbuck$, which we took advantage of before grabbing a quick breakfast and heading to the airport.
We had a 7:45 flight to Atlanta, and got there right on time. So that meant we had about 5 hours to kill before she was to meet her group. We ate, wandered around, then snagged a couch in the main terminal area, where we could people-watch, read, and snooze. In a nice turn, Amanda saw her Florence roommate, Braegan (isn't that a lovely name?), and her mom, who came and sat with us until it was time to go. So we had a nice visit, and I think both Braegan's mom and I felt better for having the chance to meet the roommates and see them together before they left.
So finally 4:00 came, and we went to meet the group at the Lufthansa counter. The group leader was there, with someone holding a Bama windsock aloft, so we knew we were in the right place. Amanda had gotten all her eye-rolling out of the way on the drive to the airport (as I was trying to get in all my last little admonishments: be careful, but don't be afraid to get out of your comfort zone), so that when I said goodbye, she let me get a little mushy without being too terribly embarrassed!
I was able to get on an earlier flight back to DFW, so I got home about an hour and a half before I had expected. And when I got home, the oddest thing happened.
First of all, you have to know that anytime anyone comes into the house who is new, or who hasn't been there in a while, Sammie tends to go nuts. We're working on being a little calmer, but she wants to jump and lick and dance and celebrate when someone arrives.
Usually.
When I came in, she was lying on the floor in the den near the garage door, and SHE DID NOT EVEN LIFT HER HEAD TO SAY HELLO. I put my things down, leaned over to pet her, and if she even thumped her tail, I didn't notice it. I think she was ticked off at me for leaving her.
It was the first time that she's spent a night in the house that I wasn't there. Randy and James both had stories about how she acted that at least let me know that she had noticed that I was gone, but for the rest of the night, she hardly gave me a second glance. As I went to bed, I was trying to figure out how I could get back in her good graces - maybe an extra-long walk the next morning, a new tennis ball, or a cup of the $tarbuck$ ice that she loves so much. Then in the middle of the night, I woke up to find her using my legs as a pillow, which she NEVER does, so apparently she decided to forgive me!
Amanda called on Sunday morning our time/afternoon her time, to say that she and her suitcase were on the same plane into Florence, so that was one big concern out of the way. She said their apartment is a nice, small, two bedroom, one bath flat that they are sharing with a couple of other Bama girls in their group. They are close to the Arno River, and they had found a couple of likely places to grab dinner before going back home and collapsing! Their schedule started today, with meetings and planning and stuff before classes begin tomorrow. She sounded tired AND happy AND ready to get on with exploring and learning and experiencing everything she can.
She promises to TRY to blog and post pictures, so when she does, I'll be sure and post links for y'all to see!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Thought for the Day
"I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult."
E.B. White
US author & humorist (1899 - 1985)
E.B. White
US author & humorist (1899 - 1985)
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
VOTE TONIGHT: This is Really Important....
OKAY, so it's not important in a this-is-the-most-important-election-of-your-lifetime, pick-your-government kind of way, but important nevertheless, in a pop-music-needs-this-guy-BAD kind of way:
Click if it doesn't load.
David Cook. American Idol. Tonight. 1-866-IDOLS-01. Vote early and often.
Seriously.
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David Cook. American Idol. Tonight. 1-866-IDOLS-01. Vote early and often.
Seriously.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Rules to Live By
Since Amanda's going to be studying in Italy this summer, I've been poking around on the internet to see what I could find about students, and Italy, and studying. I've happened on several interesting blogs by Americans who, for various reasons, have taken up residence in Italy. One of them, Allora, Aspetta! is by a young American woman living in Macerata, on Italy's Adriatic coast. She is teaching English to a group of young Italians, and they have their own blog, English No (Know) More, as a way of practicing the English they are learning. They have written a post entitled "Rules to Live By" with the list that their class has decided on, and they have asked for readers to come up with their own set, and then let the class know what they are. I have long had a set of guidelines I've thought everyone should follow, so I thought I'd write them down. Now, many of these are things I have adapted or stolen from my friends and other stuff I have read or seen, so please don't hang me on the copyright gallows, but here's what I think, in written form.
cruisermom's Rules for a Happy Life:
1. Flexibility is the key. Attitude is everything.
2. Read everything you can, whether it's the back of the cereal box, a cheap novel, or the New York Times. There is always something to learn.
3. Flush. Turn out the light when you leave the room. Clean up your own messes.
4. Don't eat junk.
5. Chocolate is NOT junk.
6. (a) No decision is irrevocable. (b) Don't marry a jerk. (c) If you do marry a jerk, remember - no decision is irrevocable. (credit Marilyn and Robert for that one!)
7. Travel as much as you can, to as many places as you can. You can't gain perspective if you never get off your beaten path.
8. Remember that everyone has a point of view. Just because it's not the same as yours doesn't mean it's wrong, it just means it's different.
9. Never say "it's too late," or "I'm too old." Even if you have only one more day, there's still time. Start somewhere.
10. You should always look for an opportunity to say "I love you."
So - that's my list. What's on yours?
cruisermom's Rules for a Happy Life:
1. Flexibility is the key. Attitude is everything.
2. Read everything you can, whether it's the back of the cereal box, a cheap novel, or the New York Times. There is always something to learn.
3. Flush. Turn out the light when you leave the room. Clean up your own messes.
4. Don't eat junk.
5. Chocolate is NOT junk.
6. (a) No decision is irrevocable. (b) Don't marry a jerk. (c) If you do marry a jerk, remember - no decision is irrevocable. (credit Marilyn and Robert for that one!)
7. Travel as much as you can, to as many places as you can. You can't gain perspective if you never get off your beaten path.
8. Remember that everyone has a point of view. Just because it's not the same as yours doesn't mean it's wrong, it just means it's different.
9. Never say "it's too late," or "I'm too old." Even if you have only one more day, there's still time. Start somewhere.
10. You should always look for an opportunity to say "I love you."
So - that's my list. What's on yours?
Friday, May 02, 2008
The House Is Perfect. What Should We Change Next?
Every time I go to downtown Paris to shop or take care of business, I think how much fun it would be to live there. I think Randy and I would be good downtown loft-dwellers. I could ride my bike every day, to the post office, the farmer's market, the bank, the grocery store, the library, the wine bar.
But then I realize I'd be farther away from $tarbuck$. Oops.
And then I think about how much I love this house. And how we - and Sammie - would miss having a yard. And I'm growing vegetables this year! And I have a compost bin! And we just redid our bedroom, and the windows, and most of the front yard landscaping. And now we're about to start on the downstairs den.
Yep, the Summer Project is about to begin!
We're taking up the carpet and laying bamboo flooring. This will be our first time to lay flooring. We've done just about everything else I can think of - tile, wallpaper, plumbing, paint, drywall, faux stone, wiring, but we've never laid wood floors. Will be interesting. We...well, Randy...will scrape the ceiling, which will be a challenge, since it's so FAR FROM THE FLOOR. Then we'll paint, replace the French doors with a slider to match the one in the kitchen, rearrange the room to make it better for the new TV, and MAYBE replace the wood railing between the den and the kitchen with something a little more Mission style. That's still in discussion.
Randy said once that it's so odd that we keep saying how much we love this house, even as we have changed just about everything in it since we've lived here. Sometimes more than once.
I prefer to call it fine-tuning.
Because next? I want to stain the back patio, probably tile the front porch and stain the front walk, replace the trellis over the back deck, turn the greenhouse into a garden shed, build some raised planting beds for more vegetables, do that rain garden/dry creek bed thing Randy's been talking about for the marshy spots in the backyard...
But then I realize I'd be farther away from $tarbuck$. Oops.
And then I think about how much I love this house. And how we - and Sammie - would miss having a yard. And I'm growing vegetables this year! And I have a compost bin! And we just redid our bedroom, and the windows, and most of the front yard landscaping. And now we're about to start on the downstairs den.
Yep, the Summer Project is about to begin!
We're taking up the carpet and laying bamboo flooring. This will be our first time to lay flooring. We've done just about everything else I can think of - tile, wallpaper, plumbing, paint, drywall, faux stone, wiring, but we've never laid wood floors. Will be interesting. We...well, Randy...will scrape the ceiling, which will be a challenge, since it's so FAR FROM THE FLOOR. Then we'll paint, replace the French doors with a slider to match the one in the kitchen, rearrange the room to make it better for the new TV, and MAYBE replace the wood railing between the den and the kitchen with something a little more Mission style. That's still in discussion.
Randy said once that it's so odd that we keep saying how much we love this house, even as we have changed just about everything in it since we've lived here. Sometimes more than once.
I prefer to call it fine-tuning.
Because next? I want to stain the back patio, probably tile the front porch and stain the front walk, replace the trellis over the back deck, turn the greenhouse into a garden shed, build some raised planting beds for more vegetables, do that rain garden/dry creek bed thing Randy's been talking about for the marshy spots in the backyard...
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Lucky Thirteen
Randy and I were married on April 13, 1984.
It was a Friday.
Many people looked cross-ways at us when we set the date, but neither of us suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia, and it was the only weekend night in April that was available at the place we wanted to use for the ceremony (Thistle Hill in Fort Worth). So we threw caution to the wind, cackled in the face of superstition, and set off on our journey. This means that last Sunday was our 24th anniversary.
Or as Randy put it, "8,766 days of pure...bliss. Counting leap years."
No, but really. There were so many things that could have kept these last 24 years from happening. Early on, when I said Carter, he could have said Reagan. When I said dogs, he could have said cats. When I said beach, he could have said mountains. When I said kids, he could have said you have nieces and nephews, don't you?
But he didn't say any of those things.
And while ALL those days maybe haven't been total bliss, the one thing we could count on is that we were in it together. From Texas to Virginia, to North Carolina, and back to Texas, we've been a team. And when the kids came, we were still a tight little group. And now that the kids are starting to stretch their wings, and our nest is a little closer to emptying, we're still in it together.
When the going was tough, we didn't give up on each other. On the balance sheet that is the last 24 years, there are millions more entries written in black ink than in red. I couldn't be prouder of the life we have built and the family we created. Together.
No one makes me laugh more, have to think faster, or want to work harder to learn new things to TRY to keep up. And there's no other hand I'd rather hold on to as we head in to the second half of our lives.
Happy anniversary, sweetie. I love you.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Milestones
We spent the weekend in Tuscaloosa. It was A Day weekend (always a fine excuse for a visit) so we got to go to the spring training game (we won!!) plus the campus is a fun, fun place to be on a game weekend.
Then, in a happy turn of events, we also got to stay on Sunday for the spring 2008 Ring Ceremony, where Amanda received her University of Alabama Class of 2009 class ring!
I am so proud of her. After some initial missteps, she has found the field of study where she feels comfortable and can excel. She didn't let her early troubles and setbacks garbage up her mind and hold her back. She learned the value of perseverance, and discovered that she is much stronger than she had perhaps thought. What a bright future she has waiting for her.
James is approaching the last year of teenage-hood, and is finishing up his freshman year in fine fashion. He's learned a lot this year, both academically and on a personal level. He's expanded his culinary horizons (he ordered salmon at dinner the other night!) and he's benefited a good deal from the vast diversity that is dorm life at Alabama. There's not a wiser, funnier, more quick-witted kid in the world than he is. He's a cool guy to know.
There are a lot of things that I hope my kids have learned from us, but the one single thing that I hope they both will always remember and never forget is that their father and I are continually awed to see the people they have become. How blessed we are that two doofuses like us could have played a part in creating two so amazing human beings.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Size Matters
Randy's been working diligently at losing weight, and so far he's lost 28 pounds! I'm very proud of him. He came downstairs this morning and started showing me how baggy his jeans are.
Me: Looks like you need to hike in your belt!
Him: But these are my new jeans!
Me: Really? Those are your Tommy Hilfigers? What size are they?
Him: 36, I think. A quick check verified this. But I think they're probably vanity sized.
Me: I never though of men's clothes as being vanity sized. Since they're sized by inches. I mean, a 36 is a 36.
Him: HONEY. When it comes to inches, all men have vanity.
Boy, I walked right into that one.
Me: Looks like you need to hike in your belt!
Him: But these are my new jeans!
Me: Really? Those are your Tommy Hilfigers? What size are they?
Him: 36, I think. A quick check verified this. But I think they're probably vanity sized.
Me: I never though of men's clothes as being vanity sized. Since they're sized by inches. I mean, a 36 is a 36.
Him: HONEY. When it comes to inches, all men have vanity.
Boy, I walked right into that one.
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