Ray Charles addressed this issue about as well as can be addressed in his song Born to Lose.. One of the truisms of life is that we are all going to lose sometimes. In fact every time someone wins then someone else loses. As parents I believe that our primary function is to build up our children to believe that they are winners. Then we must build that concept so high and deep that when they lose, which they surely will, that they still believe that they are winners.
We are fortunate if we have someone who believes in us. That is the role of a Mother I think predominantly. I believe that there is a bond between child and Mother that is like no other. A Mother accepts and nourishes her child no matter the shortcomings of her life's creation. Is that always the case? No, not hardly. There are many people who give birth in an act of misgiving over bad choices. They then spend the rest of thier lives resenting and disavowing that child. The child fights an uphill battle in trying to amass some feelings of self esteem. Many times serendipity provides a collateral artery of life giving affirmation. It could be a coach, a friend, a church congregation, a spouse, a cause, etc. There has to be something occur in the life of every human being that resonates with the idea that they are important to someone. They are a winner.
I watched Alabama play LSU last night. It was a very entertaining game. Alabama lost in overtime. No one scored a touchdown. It was a clearly defined, oldtime defensive battle. Both teams made mistakes. The mistakes were magnified because of the lack of scoring. I was intrigued by how the coaches stood up for the players on both teams. Les Miles, the winning coach, bragged on his players and the opposing teams players. Nick Saban, the losing coach, bragged on his own players and the LSU players. Is it a possibility that successful coaches mirror the nurturing nature of a successful Mother? It would be hard to carry that analogy too very far.
When we lose at anything there are lessons to be learned. We miss out on a job we want. We don't get accepted to a particular school. We don't get the promotion at work. We get the crap kicked out of us in a particular form of competition, golf, tennis, bridge, chess, a beauty contest, and so forth. It is hard to isolate the lessons in losing.
Losing teaches us to be humble. Humility is a valuable lesson. The other side of humility is arrogance. Arrogance is more of a negative factor for living than losing on occassion. We have all met people who are not gracious losers. They are numbered amongst those who are embittered and brooding personalities.
Losing also teaches us that we need to train harder. If you lose a marathon with a lousy time then you know if you ever want to win you need to train harder. If you lose consistently at golf becaue you cannot putt, then you need to practice putting until your back hurts. If you consistently miss the business as a salesman then you need to work on your closing skills, presenting skills or get out of the business and become a mortician.
You can bet that Alabama is going to go out and recruit the very best kickers they can find for the upcoming seasons. I suppose that the definition of a loser is someone who does nothing after they lose. Becoming a winner is a proactive pursuit and requires a lot of help along the way. That help comes from people who, for one reason or other, chooses to believe in you.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Some call it sexual harrassment
When Eve told Adam why she ate the apple she explained that she was beguiled by the serpent and he influenced her to make an unwise choice. So called Lucifer, the son of the morning star, must have had powers of suggestion, some sort of compelling appeal, charisma. He used those along with his other talents to change the course of creation. To this day this sort of influence continues all across the network of humanity.
A little third grade boy gives up his favorite dessert from his lunchbox to a little third grade girl for no other reason than she influenced him with some sort of fascination with her personna and appearance.
Some years ago the corporation where I worked for thirty years required that I attend a conference that was dedicated to sexual harrassment in the work place. I spent a week in a luxury hotel listening to a team of hired specialists that represented a hired consultant organization that had developed training on this subject. I was required to sign a document that stated that if I ever became aware of any sort of sexual harrassment in the workplace that I had a singular responsibility to report it to our human resources department.
Why do you suppose that they would go to all that expense and effort to lay down such a footprint on the conduct of business? The answer is clear and concise. There had been many instances of supervisors intimidating female workers into embarrassing situations that surrounded their jobs and the security of their jobs. Some had filed law suits successfully and had received large awards for having had to endure these unsolicited advances. Once a person had attended one of these seminars they were locked into a dangerous place. An off color joke, a ride in a car unchaperoned with a person of the opposite gender or a compliment on appearance could land you in some hot water. The female person only had to raise the spectrum of impropriety. If they threatened a lawsuit the corporation was safe because they had held a work shop on the issue. You see Mr. John Doe attended our workshop and agreed that he would abstain from such tomfoolery. Here is his written affadavit that he would eschew such a practice. You can go after Mr. Doe, who incidentally doesn't work here anymore, but you cannot pursue us because we have done all that is necessary.
The roll out on all this over the years has been interesting. Did it curtail fooling around in the work place? Not hardly. To me it seemed like it put the whole work place into absolute role reversal. It was always presumed that the more aggressive male workers were the culprits. I have personally seen that it seemed to make women much more bold. They seemed to become more aggressive. Not only in their new supervisory positions but in their speech and actions. It seemed to me that whereas males were on alert as to anything that they said and did might be interpreted as sexual harrassment, women went just the opposite direction.
I have been out of the workplace for almost ten years. I work by myself and have not thought much about all that until the headlines of this morning and Mr. Cain's predicament brought it back to my mind. In the court of the people's minds, the accusation has only to be raised and the perpetrator is considered guilty. Mr. Cain is most likely guilty of repeating a joke delivered in bad taste. If you are the boss, welcome to the world of sensitivity of the female mind. "Why, I was appalled by his comments. I was made to feel diminished, small, an object of lust and derision." I have been in the presence of females who have unabashedly told a joke or made a comment to which they have no accountability. If you were a man and went to human resources reporting that you were sexually harrassed by a female co-worker you would be laughed out of the office. Yet we all know it goes on and have experienced it at one level or another.
At the heart of all this is the tort system that protects some of us and throws the rest of us under the bus. The same book I read the stuff about Lucifer and Eve I also read a quote about lawyers and hypocrites. And so it goes in this fallen, ever worsening world that we live in. You just have to wonder what is next?
A little third grade boy gives up his favorite dessert from his lunchbox to a little third grade girl for no other reason than she influenced him with some sort of fascination with her personna and appearance.
Some years ago the corporation where I worked for thirty years required that I attend a conference that was dedicated to sexual harrassment in the work place. I spent a week in a luxury hotel listening to a team of hired specialists that represented a hired consultant organization that had developed training on this subject. I was required to sign a document that stated that if I ever became aware of any sort of sexual harrassment in the workplace that I had a singular responsibility to report it to our human resources department.
Why do you suppose that they would go to all that expense and effort to lay down such a footprint on the conduct of business? The answer is clear and concise. There had been many instances of supervisors intimidating female workers into embarrassing situations that surrounded their jobs and the security of their jobs. Some had filed law suits successfully and had received large awards for having had to endure these unsolicited advances. Once a person had attended one of these seminars they were locked into a dangerous place. An off color joke, a ride in a car unchaperoned with a person of the opposite gender or a compliment on appearance could land you in some hot water. The female person only had to raise the spectrum of impropriety. If they threatened a lawsuit the corporation was safe because they had held a work shop on the issue. You see Mr. John Doe attended our workshop and agreed that he would abstain from such tomfoolery. Here is his written affadavit that he would eschew such a practice. You can go after Mr. Doe, who incidentally doesn't work here anymore, but you cannot pursue us because we have done all that is necessary.
The roll out on all this over the years has been interesting. Did it curtail fooling around in the work place? Not hardly. To me it seemed like it put the whole work place into absolute role reversal. It was always presumed that the more aggressive male workers were the culprits. I have personally seen that it seemed to make women much more bold. They seemed to become more aggressive. Not only in their new supervisory positions but in their speech and actions. It seemed to me that whereas males were on alert as to anything that they said and did might be interpreted as sexual harrassment, women went just the opposite direction.
I have been out of the workplace for almost ten years. I work by myself and have not thought much about all that until the headlines of this morning and Mr. Cain's predicament brought it back to my mind. In the court of the people's minds, the accusation has only to be raised and the perpetrator is considered guilty. Mr. Cain is most likely guilty of repeating a joke delivered in bad taste. If you are the boss, welcome to the world of sensitivity of the female mind. "Why, I was appalled by his comments. I was made to feel diminished, small, an object of lust and derision." I have been in the presence of females who have unabashedly told a joke or made a comment to which they have no accountability. If you were a man and went to human resources reporting that you were sexually harrassed by a female co-worker you would be laughed out of the office. Yet we all know it goes on and have experienced it at one level or another.
At the heart of all this is the tort system that protects some of us and throws the rest of us under the bus. The same book I read the stuff about Lucifer and Eve I also read a quote about lawyers and hypocrites. And so it goes in this fallen, ever worsening world that we live in. You just have to wonder what is next?
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
For the love of money
It has been a while since I posted to this BLOG. I have just sort of been in a dry spell as far as ideas. I decided to post on a subject that is far too wide to say anything especially cogent about. That is money and the relative merits of what it does to drive or lessen our basic characters.
Over the past couple of months I have made it a point to volunteer to feed the homeless at the local shelter. This is an effort by our community to deliver some of the charitable means that are garnered by many. The United Way and part of the city of Tallahassee's budget are pointed in this direction. Food and commodities are made available from those budget funds. What is needed are actual boots on the ground to serve the food to the 150-200 consistently hungry folks that are the recipients of this effort. I generally feel good about participating.
This morning I happened on to a live Senate hearing on the subject of charitable dollars and their eligibility as tax deductions. Several members of a committee chaired by Utah's Orrin Hatch queried numerous holy men who represented those who cling steadily to that tax deduction allowance. It seems that the recession is having its toll on those funds. People are more in survival mode than ever at the lower rungs of our society. The question on the table, as I watched, was would it be possible to set limits on what people gave or put a bottom level on how much you could give and still deduct it from your taxes. There was great animus reflected amongst the participants.
There is also this phenomena ongoing called "occupy wall street". This is an effort that seems to take its bearing from the communist manifesto. It seems that the homogeneity of this group is the theme that they represent the 99% of Americans who think that corporate greed is a decidedly bad thing. I for one think it is dangerous to qualify the free enterprise system, the root of capitalism, as "greed".
This system has fostered the greatest society that has ever peopled the planet. What is the solution according to these misdirected people is to attack our system and demand that there be a redistribution of wealth. That would flow from the greedy one percent of the haves to the 99% of the have nots. Those who have applied their creativity and taken great risks and become wealthy would, if the anti-greed people have their way, give all their money to them.
I feel that what they fail to see is that the same love of money prevails in their minds as it does in the minds of those who have strived to attain wealth. They seem to take the position that their thirst for money is more noble than the wealthy.
I do not see a demarcation between the two camps.
Do yourself a favor and copy and paste this little video link into your browser. Takes 2 minutes to run and is a quick study from a great mind.
http://dauckster.posterous.com/a-31-year-old-video-clip-absolutely-worth-you
Over the past couple of months I have made it a point to volunteer to feed the homeless at the local shelter. This is an effort by our community to deliver some of the charitable means that are garnered by many. The United Way and part of the city of Tallahassee's budget are pointed in this direction. Food and commodities are made available from those budget funds. What is needed are actual boots on the ground to serve the food to the 150-200 consistently hungry folks that are the recipients of this effort. I generally feel good about participating.
This morning I happened on to a live Senate hearing on the subject of charitable dollars and their eligibility as tax deductions. Several members of a committee chaired by Utah's Orrin Hatch queried numerous holy men who represented those who cling steadily to that tax deduction allowance. It seems that the recession is having its toll on those funds. People are more in survival mode than ever at the lower rungs of our society. The question on the table, as I watched, was would it be possible to set limits on what people gave or put a bottom level on how much you could give and still deduct it from your taxes. There was great animus reflected amongst the participants.
There is also this phenomena ongoing called "occupy wall street". This is an effort that seems to take its bearing from the communist manifesto. It seems that the homogeneity of this group is the theme that they represent the 99% of Americans who think that corporate greed is a decidedly bad thing. I for one think it is dangerous to qualify the free enterprise system, the root of capitalism, as "greed".
This system has fostered the greatest society that has ever peopled the planet. What is the solution according to these misdirected people is to attack our system and demand that there be a redistribution of wealth. That would flow from the greedy one percent of the haves to the 99% of the have nots. Those who have applied their creativity and taken great risks and become wealthy would, if the anti-greed people have their way, give all their money to them.
I feel that what they fail to see is that the same love of money prevails in their minds as it does in the minds of those who have strived to attain wealth. They seem to take the position that their thirst for money is more noble than the wealthy.
I do not see a demarcation between the two camps.
Do yourself a favor and copy and paste this little video link into your browser. Takes 2 minutes to run and is a quick study from a great mind.
http://dauckster.posterous.com/a-31-year-old-video-clip-absolutely-worth-you
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
A Home does not have to be ostentatious to be special
I have been doing some reflection here lately on the brands and styles of homes that are the current appeal to consumers. I am in the home sales business. I see a current trend towards simplifying in choice of homes. Most of the press I read expresses the fact that people in general are leaning towards this simplification in terms of housing. Not that long ago the McMansions were the order of the day. A home purchase was predominately for the purpose of gaining equity so that you could spin off and buy something bigger and better eventually with that equity.
Now you are lucky if you have a mortgage payment that is manageably within the framework of your family budget. There are many, many homes sitting without occupants that are memorials to the tendency of Americans to use the home for a cash cow in second and third mortgages to finance expensive vacations, buy bigger cars and purchase those beach houses. Those are all lovely things but unfortunately the current financial crisis has exacerbated many people in the direction of short sales and foreclosures. If you do a walk through of the current MLS I would wager that 1 in every 3 offered for sale is a short sale. We live in hard times. Hard times that are largely of our own making.
Back in the early 70's my sweet wife was into needle point. She loved to make little samplers with pithy little sayings, framed for display in the homes of those she loved. One she made for her parents said this: " A house is made of brick and stone. A home is made of love alone." That is a pertinent call for reflection.
Her parent's home was a monument to living within one's means. It was just the three of them in that home. You had to search very far to find a little family that just flat out loved one another and led a more happy life than they did.
I was raised in a home that my grandmother owned in southern West Virginia. There was a total absence of indoor plumbing. I had to follow a well worn path some 500 yards from the house for bio-function. We drank water from an old cistern that was gathered from the rain when it came. I remember very well getting our first TV and our first telephone.
I now live in a much nicer house. It has three full baths indoors. We have phones galore, wireless ones, cellular ones and have a TV in three of our four bedrooms and of course one that is much bigger in our family room. There is a pool in the back yard and a golf course 50 yards from the front of my house.
Do all of these amenities make me a happier person? Not in the least. My happiness is drawn from the person I am married to. The three children who have given us, so far, 7 grand children are the reservoir of happiness for myself and my wife.
So I sit back and reflect now at 66 yoa and think back to a thirty year career chasing a paycheck which could buy me a little bigger house, car and play things and realize that the pursuit was superfluous to the things that matter. Perhaps that is one positive aside from this recession/depression that we find ourselves mired within. I think that we have all learned a valuable lesson from this belt tightening experience.
Now you are lucky if you have a mortgage payment that is manageably within the framework of your family budget. There are many, many homes sitting without occupants that are memorials to the tendency of Americans to use the home for a cash cow in second and third mortgages to finance expensive vacations, buy bigger cars and purchase those beach houses. Those are all lovely things but unfortunately the current financial crisis has exacerbated many people in the direction of short sales and foreclosures. If you do a walk through of the current MLS I would wager that 1 in every 3 offered for sale is a short sale. We live in hard times. Hard times that are largely of our own making.
Back in the early 70's my sweet wife was into needle point. She loved to make little samplers with pithy little sayings, framed for display in the homes of those she loved. One she made for her parents said this: " A house is made of brick and stone. A home is made of love alone." That is a pertinent call for reflection.
Her parent's home was a monument to living within one's means. It was just the three of them in that home. You had to search very far to find a little family that just flat out loved one another and led a more happy life than they did.
I was raised in a home that my grandmother owned in southern West Virginia. There was a total absence of indoor plumbing. I had to follow a well worn path some 500 yards from the house for bio-function. We drank water from an old cistern that was gathered from the rain when it came. I remember very well getting our first TV and our first telephone.
I now live in a much nicer house. It has three full baths indoors. We have phones galore, wireless ones, cellular ones and have a TV in three of our four bedrooms and of course one that is much bigger in our family room. There is a pool in the back yard and a golf course 50 yards from the front of my house.
Do all of these amenities make me a happier person? Not in the least. My happiness is drawn from the person I am married to. The three children who have given us, so far, 7 grand children are the reservoir of happiness for myself and my wife.
So I sit back and reflect now at 66 yoa and think back to a thirty year career chasing a paycheck which could buy me a little bigger house, car and play things and realize that the pursuit was superfluous to the things that matter. Perhaps that is one positive aside from this recession/depression that we find ourselves mired within. I think that we have all learned a valuable lesson from this belt tightening experience.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Biding our time
One of the Associate editors of the Tallahassee "mullet wrapper" did an interesting little column this weekend on his experience of waiting an excessive amount of time in a physician's office and finally walking out without seeing the physician. I think that all of us have had that experience.
For twenty years of a thirty year career I used to have to try and access physicians in thier offices to detail them on our pharmaceutical products. I facetiously called myself a professional waiter. The drill went thusly: you walked into an office and presented your card to the receptionist and asked if there was any possible way that you might grab their doctor for a moment. You then sat down and waited. Many times the receptionist was kind enough to tell you that there was no time today because they were slammed. Towards the mid part of that twenty years, I would wait 30 minutes maximum and then leave some literature and be on my way. Otherwise you could be sitting in the corner there for hours.
I have observed steamed patients giving the receptionist an earful of painful monologue, interjected with severe profanity after having spent 2-3 hours in the pursuit of an appointment and still no face time with the physician. " If I ran my business as inefficiently as you run this business, I would starve to death." I had a man almost attack me once in a parking lot as I was putting my detail bag back in my trunk. I had just spent 30-45 minutes with the physician talking about drugs, football, the war and telling jokes. This man had been steaming in the waiting room to see the physician and blamed me for holding him up. His wife held him off from taking a swing at me as I advised him that the samples he held in his hand came from my trunk or one of my competitors. He was old, agitated and markedly short tempered. Of course who is to say that he didn't have a handgun in his pocket. I was therefore apologetic and diplomatic.
I could tell the personality of a physician before I ever met them. If you walked into a bright, cheery office and were greeted civilly, you can bet that the physician was bright, cheery and fun to be around. He enjoyed his job and took good care of his patients. If you were greeted cooly by a grouchy receptionist and the staff looked cowed and nervous, you could bet your boots that the physician was a near tyrant having a bad day. Best to steer clear and be on your way. I always liked that part of my job. I could have a very unpleasant exchange with the physician or a staff member and get my plow cleaned. However, as I drove away I assured myself how lucky I was to not have to work there. I had so many potential clients to call on that I really never had to go back into that office. Pity the poor people who had to go there everyday.
My wife has to go see a vitreoretinologist here in Tallahassee. One time she waited for 4 hours to have him spend 1.5 minutes with her. Cost? $120. That office is sheer chaos. The up front staff are the most sanguine, unfriendly people you will ever meet. Why do you suppose that is? I would conjecture that they catch heat every day from one or more patients over the extraordinary wait times. The physicians are overworked because there are no other such specialists within 2-3 hours of Tallahassee. They are the only show in town. You would think that they would set a schedule and adhere to it very rigidly. If they got off course then maybe you would be 30 minutes to an hour off your appointment time. But FOUR hours? Hardly excusable.
I remember calling on a physician in Blountstown named Elga White. He was a general practitioner and had a very busy practice. He would see drug reps just before lunch and just before 5:00 PM. On occassions he would see you in between I am assuming if he had a no show or two. On those occassions he had a nurse who monitored his time. If you got too embellished with him and took too much time she would come into the room and advise him that he was 5 minutes off pace in seeing patients. He would politely conclude his visit with you and return to his patients. Now that was a man in control.
I once read a book on time management. I cannot remember the name of it but I do remember one very impactful quote." Time is life. It is irreplaceable and irreversible. Waste your time and you waste your life." As I have meandered down the road of life I find myself into my 66th year. I am becoming more and more conscious of how I spend my time. I am prioritizing more than I used to. I am irritated when people waste my time. They will do that seemingly intent on sucking the life out of you. You have to get in control of what you agree to do and you act on decisions related to time investment. It is a precious commodity. Bide your time and do it with stinginess and thought.
For twenty years of a thirty year career I used to have to try and access physicians in thier offices to detail them on our pharmaceutical products. I facetiously called myself a professional waiter. The drill went thusly: you walked into an office and presented your card to the receptionist and asked if there was any possible way that you might grab their doctor for a moment. You then sat down and waited. Many times the receptionist was kind enough to tell you that there was no time today because they were slammed. Towards the mid part of that twenty years, I would wait 30 minutes maximum and then leave some literature and be on my way. Otherwise you could be sitting in the corner there for hours.
I have observed steamed patients giving the receptionist an earful of painful monologue, interjected with severe profanity after having spent 2-3 hours in the pursuit of an appointment and still no face time with the physician. " If I ran my business as inefficiently as you run this business, I would starve to death." I had a man almost attack me once in a parking lot as I was putting my detail bag back in my trunk. I had just spent 30-45 minutes with the physician talking about drugs, football, the war and telling jokes. This man had been steaming in the waiting room to see the physician and blamed me for holding him up. His wife held him off from taking a swing at me as I advised him that the samples he held in his hand came from my trunk or one of my competitors. He was old, agitated and markedly short tempered. Of course who is to say that he didn't have a handgun in his pocket. I was therefore apologetic and diplomatic.
I could tell the personality of a physician before I ever met them. If you walked into a bright, cheery office and were greeted civilly, you can bet that the physician was bright, cheery and fun to be around. He enjoyed his job and took good care of his patients. If you were greeted cooly by a grouchy receptionist and the staff looked cowed and nervous, you could bet your boots that the physician was a near tyrant having a bad day. Best to steer clear and be on your way. I always liked that part of my job. I could have a very unpleasant exchange with the physician or a staff member and get my plow cleaned. However, as I drove away I assured myself how lucky I was to not have to work there. I had so many potential clients to call on that I really never had to go back into that office. Pity the poor people who had to go there everyday.
My wife has to go see a vitreoretinologist here in Tallahassee. One time she waited for 4 hours to have him spend 1.5 minutes with her. Cost? $120. That office is sheer chaos. The up front staff are the most sanguine, unfriendly people you will ever meet. Why do you suppose that is? I would conjecture that they catch heat every day from one or more patients over the extraordinary wait times. The physicians are overworked because there are no other such specialists within 2-3 hours of Tallahassee. They are the only show in town. You would think that they would set a schedule and adhere to it very rigidly. If they got off course then maybe you would be 30 minutes to an hour off your appointment time. But FOUR hours? Hardly excusable.
I remember calling on a physician in Blountstown named Elga White. He was a general practitioner and had a very busy practice. He would see drug reps just before lunch and just before 5:00 PM. On occassions he would see you in between I am assuming if he had a no show or two. On those occassions he had a nurse who monitored his time. If you got too embellished with him and took too much time she would come into the room and advise him that he was 5 minutes off pace in seeing patients. He would politely conclude his visit with you and return to his patients. Now that was a man in control.
I once read a book on time management. I cannot remember the name of it but I do remember one very impactful quote." Time is life. It is irreplaceable and irreversible. Waste your time and you waste your life." As I have meandered down the road of life I find myself into my 66th year. I am becoming more and more conscious of how I spend my time. I am prioritizing more than I used to. I am irritated when people waste my time. They will do that seemingly intent on sucking the life out of you. You have to get in control of what you agree to do and you act on decisions related to time investment. It is a precious commodity. Bide your time and do it with stinginess and thought.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
One Frosty, Cold, Day in Tallahassee
I had an interesting experience in Tallahassee a few months ago. Florida State University was hosting an intercollegiate men's golf tournament at Southwood golf club where I played most of my golf. I noticed a petition for volunteers to help with the tournament and called a phone number listed in the paper and soon had a volunteer job.
Now this was mid-March. You non-north-Floridians most likely think that the weather was warm and tropical with our palm trees gently flowing from a soft gentle breeze. Those of us that live here year round know that the opposite generally holds true January through March. The weather for this tournament was bitter cold. The first day had wind gusts in the 30 mph range and the wind chill was in the teens. I was out there with sweater, jacket, gloves and thermal underwear.
My job was pretty simple. I was to drive a 6 passenger golf cart between green and tee box on particular holes. I generally had a threesome of players from the 12 universities participating. I loved rubbing shoulders with them and shooting off my big mouth. To me it was a mitigated carnival atmosphere. Shuttling the players helped to move the pace of play.
On the second day that I was there, I drove to the course to start my shift by 7:00 AM. Once I got there I found that there was a frost delay 'til 8:00 AM. In order to fill my time for an hour, I went up to the practice tee to watch the players warm up.
I spoke to several parents and friends of players watching their golfer. I welcomed them to Tallahassee, asked about their player and made general chit chat. They didn't know for certain that I was not some tournament official so everyone made nice to the old geezer, entertaining my arcane questions and comments. Until I came to this one older couple.
The man was in his late 60's to his early 70's. I said to him, " Welcome to Tallahassee. Are you enjoying your stay? Where are you from? Who is your golfer?" The man turned towards me as if his neck was stiff from sleeping on a strange pillow. He had a snow white cardigan sweater on and enormous cigar clenched in his teeth. He did not speak to me or acknowledge my presence for one split second. As a matter of fact he looked as if it was taking all he could do to restrain himself from expectorating on me. The BIGGGGGGG FREEEEEZE ! I felt like a complete doofus.
Almost instantaneously his wife jumped into the conversation. She was as ebbulient as he was condescending. She advised me that they were from Sarasota and were in Tallahassee to follow their grandson who was a North Carolina golfer. She was a lovely lady with a confident and pleasant air and I felt better. She was obviously trying to make amends for the frosty treatment this man had given me.
I made my way to the snack bar and got a drink and a snack readying myself for my shift. Mike, the Southwood golf pro, came over to sit a moment and visit. During our visit this couple walked by. I asked Mike who the old guy in the white cardigan was. He responded with do your remember the name Tony Jacklin? I thought for a moment and I said sure. Didn't he win the British Open in about 1970? He did. He was also the lead player on the 1969 European team that won the Ryder cup in a brilliant performance. I told Mike about the experience on the practice tee and he said that was a shame. I responded to him that I didn't mind. Can you just imagine how many people interupt him around golf courses when they find out who he is.
I later told my wife the story and she of course never heard of him and categorized his demeanor as unacceptable, no matter who he was. I told her, " He is Tony Jacklin, a living legend. If I was him, I would probably act just the same way." She told me that no I wouldn't. I was a pronounced people person and no matter the other person's station in life I would treat them kindly, because that was just the sort of person you are. He on the other hand is a jerk." I really couldn't argue with her.
Now this was mid-March. You non-north-Floridians most likely think that the weather was warm and tropical with our palm trees gently flowing from a soft gentle breeze. Those of us that live here year round know that the opposite generally holds true January through March. The weather for this tournament was bitter cold. The first day had wind gusts in the 30 mph range and the wind chill was in the teens. I was out there with sweater, jacket, gloves and thermal underwear.
My job was pretty simple. I was to drive a 6 passenger golf cart between green and tee box on particular holes. I generally had a threesome of players from the 12 universities participating. I loved rubbing shoulders with them and shooting off my big mouth. To me it was a mitigated carnival atmosphere. Shuttling the players helped to move the pace of play.
On the second day that I was there, I drove to the course to start my shift by 7:00 AM. Once I got there I found that there was a frost delay 'til 8:00 AM. In order to fill my time for an hour, I went up to the practice tee to watch the players warm up.
I spoke to several parents and friends of players watching their golfer. I welcomed them to Tallahassee, asked about their player and made general chit chat. They didn't know for certain that I was not some tournament official so everyone made nice to the old geezer, entertaining my arcane questions and comments. Until I came to this one older couple.
The man was in his late 60's to his early 70's. I said to him, " Welcome to Tallahassee. Are you enjoying your stay? Where are you from? Who is your golfer?" The man turned towards me as if his neck was stiff from sleeping on a strange pillow. He had a snow white cardigan sweater on and enormous cigar clenched in his teeth. He did not speak to me or acknowledge my presence for one split second. As a matter of fact he looked as if it was taking all he could do to restrain himself from expectorating on me. The BIGGGGGGG FREEEEEZE ! I felt like a complete doofus.
Almost instantaneously his wife jumped into the conversation. She was as ebbulient as he was condescending. She advised me that they were from Sarasota and were in Tallahassee to follow their grandson who was a North Carolina golfer. She was a lovely lady with a confident and pleasant air and I felt better. She was obviously trying to make amends for the frosty treatment this man had given me.
I made my way to the snack bar and got a drink and a snack readying myself for my shift. Mike, the Southwood golf pro, came over to sit a moment and visit. During our visit this couple walked by. I asked Mike who the old guy in the white cardigan was. He responded with do your remember the name Tony Jacklin? I thought for a moment and I said sure. Didn't he win the British Open in about 1970? He did. He was also the lead player on the 1969 European team that won the Ryder cup in a brilliant performance. I told Mike about the experience on the practice tee and he said that was a shame. I responded to him that I didn't mind. Can you just imagine how many people interupt him around golf courses when they find out who he is.
I later told my wife the story and she of course never heard of him and categorized his demeanor as unacceptable, no matter who he was. I told her, " He is Tony Jacklin, a living legend. If I was him, I would probably act just the same way." She told me that no I wouldn't. I was a pronounced people person and no matter the other person's station in life I would treat them kindly, because that was just the sort of person you are. He on the other hand is a jerk." I really couldn't argue with her.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
The luckiest of weeks
My goodness. I am overwhelmed at the luck that has followed me around this week. It has been a stellar week and I am afraid to wake up on Monday morning to see what else wonderful is going to happen to me.
I was nominated for the prestigious Who's Who in America. This prestigious distinction is determined by Frank and Moe's panel of business excellence, headquartered in Pathetic, AK. Not only was I nominated by this panel but dozens of other panels with even more prestigious credentials. It is just overwhelming. I knew all along that I was born to greatness but this is way beyond expectation. I am just numb with shock and awe that I have been so fortunate.
The nice folks at Frank and Moe's have gotten sort of upset at me because, I hate to admit it, I am a procrastinator. I keep neglecting to acknowledge my candidacy and they are now threatening to take me off the list of candidates all together. Golly, gee-whiz they just sent me a FINAL NOTICE for acceptance. I put it in the pile of the twenty other FINAL NOTICES from similar Who's Who in Business, Who's Who in Agriculture ( I grew a fabulous tomoato plant in a pot this spring ) and Who's who in Golfing prowess and too many others to list.
If that is not enough I got an e-mail from a lady named Tammy Sue, who told me that I was the love of her life. I have not divulged this to my sweet wife, Nancy, with whom I just celebrated 38 years of marriage. Tammy Sue tells me that she has fallen madly in love with me and that she has posted pictures of herself on a select internet site for my viewing pleasure. She encouraged me to follow the link and make sure I had a credit card handy as I logged on. I have not done so because I am really not in the market for a girl friend but I don't want to hurt her feelings. After all to have expressed the undying love and devotion she has for me is quite humbling.
Then to just set everything else aside, I got an e-mail notification from an attorney in Nigeria. He represents a member of Nigerian royalty who is in exile and it turns out that this man is my Uncle. He has no other heirs and I am in a direct line to inherit millions of dollars. Of course there are understandeable bureaucratic hurdles that need to be overcome. That will require that the attorney represent me before the Nigerian consulate of dispensation to heirs. Looks like I am going to have to up front $10,000 and most likely more before we get the estate through probate. But, c'mon, what's a few thousand dollars against an inheritance of millions?
So you can see, that I have had an unbelievable week. Heavy emphasis on unbelievable. My son works as a financial crimes investigator and he tells me that all this pales against some of the other schemes out there. Good thing I have him to consult to keep my feet on the ground, huh?
I was nominated for the prestigious Who's Who in America. This prestigious distinction is determined by Frank and Moe's panel of business excellence, headquartered in Pathetic, AK. Not only was I nominated by this panel but dozens of other panels with even more prestigious credentials. It is just overwhelming. I knew all along that I was born to greatness but this is way beyond expectation. I am just numb with shock and awe that I have been so fortunate.
The nice folks at Frank and Moe's have gotten sort of upset at me because, I hate to admit it, I am a procrastinator. I keep neglecting to acknowledge my candidacy and they are now threatening to take me off the list of candidates all together. Golly, gee-whiz they just sent me a FINAL NOTICE for acceptance. I put it in the pile of the twenty other FINAL NOTICES from similar Who's Who in Business, Who's Who in Agriculture ( I grew a fabulous tomoato plant in a pot this spring ) and Who's who in Golfing prowess and too many others to list.
If that is not enough I got an e-mail from a lady named Tammy Sue, who told me that I was the love of her life. I have not divulged this to my sweet wife, Nancy, with whom I just celebrated 38 years of marriage. Tammy Sue tells me that she has fallen madly in love with me and that she has posted pictures of herself on a select internet site for my viewing pleasure. She encouraged me to follow the link and make sure I had a credit card handy as I logged on. I have not done so because I am really not in the market for a girl friend but I don't want to hurt her feelings. After all to have expressed the undying love and devotion she has for me is quite humbling.
Then to just set everything else aside, I got an e-mail notification from an attorney in Nigeria. He represents a member of Nigerian royalty who is in exile and it turns out that this man is my Uncle. He has no other heirs and I am in a direct line to inherit millions of dollars. Of course there are understandeable bureaucratic hurdles that need to be overcome. That will require that the attorney represent me before the Nigerian consulate of dispensation to heirs. Looks like I am going to have to up front $10,000 and most likely more before we get the estate through probate. But, c'mon, what's a few thousand dollars against an inheritance of millions?
So you can see, that I have had an unbelievable week. Heavy emphasis on unbelievable. My son works as a financial crimes investigator and he tells me that all this pales against some of the other schemes out there. Good thing I have him to consult to keep my feet on the ground, huh?
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