The Missing

Today, the last Saturday of August, I've listened to more than 100 audio clips and, either named them, or deleted them. I easily have a hundred clips to go. Some of them go back two years to my previous smart phone. It's not 'live' anymore but it does have the data.

I am gathering the stories for the next book. And I notice some of what is missing; those folks that I have not recorded merely because I collected their business card or made some other paper note.

Chelsea, the illustrator and natural scientist. Sam, aka Professor Lego. Albert Lo, PhD and SCORE counselor. Bob, the SeaDog sailing captain. Mike, the robot integrator. Gypsi, the energy worker. Qiao Qiao, the young Chinese entrepreneur that could not admit to wanting to hook me up with the Market America business plan.

These are the cards and notes surfing the current wave that washes over my workspace.

I have met so many people, experts in their own lives, with expertise in dozens of disciplines. People living with life and death. You will not see them on the news.

You will see them almost everywhere else though. In lines, in elevators, in transit, in waiting rooms; waiting. Waiting for someone, for you perhaps, to notice them. Or, if YOU slow down a bit, they might notice you. Wouldn't that be a nice change of pace?

"Competition is what keeps us hurtling along in solitude. Collaboration allows us a peek into meaning." ~ David L. White

The very next morning

We saw something on television about the theft of babies from hospitals and two days later I meet John who works as a software engineer at a company that makes the anti-theft anklets for those newborn babies. 

He’s telling me about designing the sensitivity into the product; resistance, capacitance, and temperature? No, actually, not temperature. It’s too slow a change to provide an actionable alert. But we could do that. We expect enough and not too much if we are going to lock down a hospital when an alert bracelet goes off.

On another note we see old friend Tom for supper last night and he's carrying an O2 tank connected to nasal cannula; his oxygen for COPD. And this morning - THE VERY NEXT MORNING - I meet a woman who retired a little early to stay home with her husband who is in the end stages of COPD.

I'm working on this reflection idea that we see what we believe and we find what we're looking for.

I'm not sure that's exactly it. If you ask someone 'do we find what we're looking for?' They may say “Hell no."

I wonder if the fractions and distractions of life play into this. In other words, the lack of focus on any one particular thing ends up being a scattering, a smattering, of everything that goes into every day.

If we find brokenness, division, negativity, and those types of things, is it because that's what we expect to see? Do we expect to find fault in order to unload the burden of blame we might be carrying?

If you say no then let's ask the opposite questions. 

How often do you expect to see goodness? 

How often do you actually encounter goodness?

How often do you expect miracles? 

How often do you actually encounter miracles?

How often do you expect serendipity? And synchronicity?

If you don't have a ready answer for the positive questions then perhaps the former questions have more bearing on your reality then you might have immediately admitted to. If. Might.

Raspberry Crazy Ants

Tarry does interior decoration for a living. He runs his own business. Things are looking up at the moment. He has big new homes by the well-to-do in Oconomowoc and the western Lakes area. 

I've met him a few times. He has an ongoing problem with his truck. Toyota knows about it. They've seen a few cases. I think things are getting better. We don't talk about it much.

He is on his way to Florida to help a buddy move back to Crivitz. The buddy spends a few years in either location and then moves again. 

This time the reason is ants. Apparently these are new, tiny ants and they are everywhere. Every where. Apparently they do not bite or sting. Apparently they are in the sugar, the bedclothes and the electronics. I told him to take some pictures. 

I also asked him to stop in Memphis and hose down in a clean room so as not to bring the critters home.

I thought these ants were probably already on Youtube and that I would look.

Lo and behold.

Raspberry Crazy Ants

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2k7YNGG2ng

Perceptions, expectations, and definitions

The dealer has two buildings; a repair building and a maintenance building. They have words painted on them. That could have been thought out a little better, but, they have words painted on them. One is north and one is south. Maybe those are the key words. Still customers come in and have to be rerouted.

We understand what we mean when we tell customers which building their appointment is at, but the difference between maintenance and repair makes very little difference to someone who simply wants their car serviced.

We say we have a shuttle service; a customer courtesy vehicle. We have done little to define to the customer what we actually mean by that. My personal definition of shuttle is a group bus ride between two points. That is not what the dealer means by it. The dealer means something along the lines of a route defined by the particular group in a given time frame. So we use a word, twist the definition and occasionally run into surprises.

We have a new afternoon driver. She’s been with us for a month. I have heard that there have been a couple angry folks lately surprised that have not been picked up when they expected to be picked up. I don’t put this all on the driver. It seemed to be less of a problem with the previous afternoon drivers. I do not know how to factor that in the equation. 

 I suspect that the afternoon pickups are a bit trickier to negotiate than the morning. First off people have already put in a full day. I am the morning driver. I do not encounter these problems. Still, I do set some expectations and it finally occurs to me that I might have a say in this. Perhaps I could do more to enlighten the customers to our procedure.

Today I drafted some text that might be used in a sign in the waiting room. I wrote this before I examined my personal definition of the term. Maybe we do need to call it a courtesy car and not a shuttle. I’ll update someone besides you on this idea.

….

Courtesy Shuttle Service

We can take you home or to work and return you when your vehicle service has been completed. 

We regularly shuttle people up to 10 to 15 miles from this dealership.

We leave at 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. and other times as required. There is no set return schedule.

We make the most efficient route possible given the times and locations of those returning to the dealership.

There may very well be other customers on your ride/time.

If you have questions please ask your service advisor.

….

I started driving for Boucher Volkswagen in October 2010. They called it a courtesy shuttle. I don’t recall questioning it then. I called my blog ShuttleBug. Volkswagen. Bug. When I started with Toyota I gave myself the nickname ShuttleDave. Some say you can’t give yourself a nickname. That’s okay. If you ask me my name I don’t say Dave either.

I don’t think I am going to scuttle the shuttle or upend the industry, but it all gives me a little pause.

Okay, Ron

A met a union printer from the power company recently. Talking about printing again was fun; ink, paper, finishing. He started with Wisconsin Gas Company and stayed on after the merger with WE Energies. 

Unfortunately people are lazy, out for themselves and don’t care about anything any more. Quality? Who cares. That’s him talking and he’s happy to continue along that line of thought. Traffic is too heavy. Cops don’t do anything. Management is oblivious. The sky is too blue. On and on.

I met a guy named Ron today that was pretty much the same way. Nothing was right at all. If anything I offered up might look bright he waved it off. Abnormal.

And, while he thought he was being funny, he was loudly mouthing off about my driving when we got back into the service drive. Completely making stuff up. Really? That’s not funny, Ron.

I told him a story about a guy that came in and wanted a discount for service. He just asked for it after he was given a base price. He asked three times. Each time the response was - not if you don’t have a coupon.

The final response to the guy asking for a discount was this question. “If I brought a gallon of milk up to the checkout and asked for a discount the checker would ask for a coupon. That’s the way it works.”

This particular fellow was of an ethnic origin known for this behavior.

Ron said he had a coupon. He thought. Maybe it was at home.

“I really can’t take you back. We are on the way to pick someone else up.”

“Oh, that’s okay. It expired and I probably threw it away.”

Okay, Ron.

Meeting Jesus

The morning I met Jesus he was carrying a book he intended to read if he had to wait for his car at the dealership. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. He’d been to a training. I failed to follow that in the conversation. What did he learn? When was it? Has it stuck with him? Does he practice it?

I mentioned this in a post that day about the people I met that day. I had told some of this 'meeting Jesus' story to the very next gal Karen. She said that she had attended two Covey trainings courtesy of her employer. I failed to follow that line of conversation also.

The Covey book came to my attention again recently because it is celebrating its 25th year since publication. I told Jesus that I had been looking for my book in order to reread it. And here I meet two people that had had the training and I failed to pick up on that. Hmmm.

We were have pleasant conversations. Nothing hurried or forced about either of us trying to make a point.

Jesus and I talked a bit about the shortcomings of self-help material. Karen and I talked about quality of life issues. She sees end-of-life issues on a daily basis in her medical practice. And we all talked about importance of friends and family.

Karen and I talked about pharmacological drugs and intentional death and state executions. I brought it up and she offered her knowledge. I asked why veterinarians do not encounter the problems that the state execution team has been encountering with botched executions so recently in the news. 

She said that vets proceed with animals in an inhumane way. While we may love our pets and feel incredibly close to them, we proceed as though they do not have sufficient awareness to warrant a more humane method with which to dispatch them. 

That evening I spent some time writing the story of the day. Early the next morning it occurred to me how to proceed with the second Drive Time book and Do Happy Better. I could finally see the interweave between the stories. The cross-stitch that knits the stories together is the exchange of ideas with the intent to make things better. By those ‘things’ I mean some mix of product, process, and purpose.

This morning I came across and article giving pointers on animal communication. The article said we are born telepathic and can recover that if we slow down and become more intentional. Verbal language has limited uses. It reminded me of the celebrity dog trainer Cesar Millan when he says he trains owners more than he trains dogs.

I do believe we will find collaboration getting an upgrade over competition as an important evolutionary step.

Meeting and greeting people is an important ingredient in collaboration. I hope to demonstrate the value of that and encourage the practice of it.

Drive Time was collected from stories in the shuttle. In order to flesh out the book I added the autobiographical stuff I talk about when customers ask about me and my life. I think it’s time to talk about ideas.

The Jesus in the title of this story refers to Jesus Lopez.

Happy Birthday, Krishna

Monday. New Moon. I met Jesus this morning. 

He was my first ride out this week. It was just the two of us. Yes, Jesus*. 

He was carrying Stephen R. Covey's book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

“How is it going?” I asked, pointing to the book.

“Fine.” he said.

I told him I was recently looking for my copy so I could read it again.

“Have you been to the training?" he asked.

“No." I said. I don’t know why I didn’t ask about his experience of the training. We must have made a turn. Now I am curious what that’s about.

Otherwise we spoke generally of self-help and quality of life. I told him I’m working on a book. I have been polishing my opinions on this topic of course and added a little spit to the shine.

We spent a few minutes in front of his house before he got out of the shuttle. He has two boys and a girl and he has given considerable thought about the life-time cash from a part-time job versus the value of family time. He’s going with family time.

Karen was my next rider. She knows cancer drugs and cancer. She’s a pharmacological oncologist at a local hospital.

“I assume your job is to provide comfort and care to people recovering from cancer or moving into death. Can you talk to me about the intentional use of drugs to induce death?”

“Sure.”

"I have been curious about why botched state-sanctioned executions have been in the news lately. How is it that veterinarians do not take two hours to put a pet to sleep?” I asked.

Basically she said that we (the culture) do not consider that our pets are sentient and self-aware beings. We do not communicate with them at the verbal level. Or, more correctly, they do not do that with us. So, we allow our vets to induce a coma-like state and then a heart-stopping drug.

Apparently we need to be more humane to humans because apparently they/we know more about what’s going on. As if pets don’t. I did mention a couple books on plant consciousness. She might look them up. Here is another specific time that I wish I could take notes. Here I am, having private time, with a doctor that is conversant with death.

Anyway, it is possible that I do not have this drug thing exactly right even though I am writing now less than 12 hours after we met.

We also got on the quality-of-life issue, the miracle of the very breath itself, the distractions … And, she also, has been to two Steven Covey trainings, courtesy of the hospital. Another reason to hope that I meet her again.

We did not speak about her land of origin. I am pretty sure she did not grow up in America and western culture. I can’t believe I missed asking that particular question. Her car is in the body shop for this next week or so. Maybe we'll meet again.

Speaking of distractions; I met T again; mother of 3, a control operator at the power plant. She’d been a nuke controller in the military, which I imagined as;

“Navy?"

“Of course.”

I then get to chime in about my younger brother, the USS Shark, the USS Kitty Hawk … as if I knew anything about any of that … but still ….

And so, she, mother of three … here we are with endless questions and comments from the kids. 

While there is a great deal of love around the miracle of life, one can easily imagine the distractions. There they are, in the back seat. "Mom. Mom. Mom?"

“To touch the soul of another human being 

is to walk on holy ground.” 

~ Stephen R. Covey

*Jesus? Yes, Jesus Lopez.

Further, there is a small Indian congregation here in the neighborhood. There was a birthday party recently in the front yard. For several days there were tents, tables and the vinyl party sign was up for days.  It read: Happy Birthday, Krishna.

Off and on

In 5 weeks in March and April this year I published 4 books. Things are going fine as far as I am concerned. Marketing, distribution, event planning all have learning curves that are not about writing.

Anyway, those activities have kept me from the keyboard. There have been a few shuttle stories lately that remind me what fun/work it is. And, then there is the self-help material that waits begging.

Summer is not over but I don't think I am waiting for the chill to set in before I sit back down at the typer.

Talk to you soon.

Swayz Mexican Restaurant

I met a couple ladies yesterday. A mother and daughter duo. We had some high-spirited fun while I took them home.

I asked what was for lunch. It was noon. I was looking for ideas. They thought Mexican. I said this, this and this place and they said no, and no, and no.

It turns out that they own a Mexican restaurant. Well, no wonder they are so discriminating.

We're nearing their destination and I said the name of their place. They were surprised. They had not told me. I said it had been a couple years but that I had eaten there and had always meant to return.

Anyway, we had been talking about things they know and I do not; tacos al pastor and corn tortillas specifically. What kind, where from, etc.

I invited myself to dinner soon with the idea that they might take me into the kitchen and show me how to handle fresh corn tortillas on my own. 

The mama seemed to enjoy our conversation enough to give me free margarita coupons.
I think she likes me.

Swayz

4048 S. Packard Avenue Saint Francis, WI 53235

www.swayzrestaurant.com

Reviews

A couple friends surprised me with reviews of Drive Time. I'm touched. Very lovely.

Bing Video Mapper

On the 4th of this month I posted a pic on another blog of a Bing video mapping car I saw in town. It was blue with Colorado plates. The very next day a few blocks away I saw another one. It was silver and had plates from a different state. I couldn't get close enough. He turned. I had customers on board. 

The very next day after that here was that second car up on the rack in our dealership. Amazing.

The magnetic Bing signs were removed and the camera was down and wrapped carefully. 

The car has been in the shop a full week. Apparently a new transmission was in order. Today it's done.

I 'd like to meet the fellow that operates that car. I have questions. I did ask one of our service advisors if he might bring it up in conversation with the fellow. 

I figure he's not working and I'd buy him a root beer float and he could tell me a couple stories for my next book. So far nothing.