Noise to Focus

If you're one for ambient noise to help you relax, focus or go to sleep and you're especially fond of rain, RainyMood is for you. The only function of the site is to play the sounds of a gentle storm, no toggles or options to mess with, just the sounds of a storm.

If you want something more involved, Atmosphere Lite will do the trick. There are both sound and visual options with this program. The sheer amount of options could be overwhelming, but the end result is a winner.

While Atmosphere Lite is a free program you can download, RainyMood is run completely from their site - No download needed.

Has anyone seen my umbrella? How about my pillow? :o)

Walking

Maybe if I write it down, put it out there, I will actually do it. We're all aware that my goal this year is to get off the blood pressure medications. I have this goal for a number of reasons, some personal, some not so much, but all relevant.

I've been to the doctor entirely too many times in the last year for my blood pressure and other related issues. I believe it's time for the next step.

I've joined the American Heart Association's Start! program. It's a free program that puts together weekly walking regimens for you based off some questions, which for me had a sobering effect.

I realize I need to be a participant in my health going forward. The bright side is that this'll help with not only my blood pressure and weight, but my anxiety too. Go figure. I bet my health insurance company is jumping for joy about now!

I'll keep you updated on how the walking goes.

Thoughts on 2012

There are numerous books written about it, a couple of movies and countless documentaries…2012.

Since I have a lot of free time on my hands these days I watch lots of things on the computer. I was on the History Channel site and ended up watching "Nostradamus Effect: 2012 Extinction". It summarizes how many diverse cultures point toward December 2012 as the end of our time ushered in by disaster.

The possibilities range from a magnetic pole shift, to a nuclear/biological war, to an asteroid or comet colliding with the Earth. You remember this scenario from the dinosaurs, right?

Anyone need a happy moment? It's okay. Go ahead. Take a moment.

So is it really the end of the world or just another holiday season filled with consumerism?

Either or, folks are getting prepared for the worst. The Norwegian government has constructed The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, or as the media has dubbed it, the Doomsday Vault. It opened in 2008 and has over 400,000 seed samples stored inside. The vault was carved into the side of a mountain on the Svalbard islands, just north of Norway, where the warmest temperatures during summer reach about 45°F. This vault has been constructed and filled in the event there is a disaster which wipes out all of our existing crops. Smart, yet depressing at the same time.

While there are many cultures that have 2012 as an eventful year, are people reading more into the writings and calendars then they should? Sure the Mayan calendar cumulates on 12/21/12, but is it because it's supposed to be the end of time, or is it perhaps something more simple?

The Mayan calendar is actually multiple calendars tracking various cycles including astronomical and harvest. The calendar begins around 3114 BC (before their culture existed) and ends in 2012 AD. That's a 5,126 year cycle before resetting to zero. So is it the end of time or is the calendar just resetting, like we do every December 31^st?

December 21^st is the winter solstice. The interesting detail for this date in 2012 is that it is also the date that the sun, for the first time in about 26,000 years, will be aligned with the center of our galaxy. While interesting, is it relevant?

So is this another Y2K (Do you remember where you were for Y2K)?

Are people working themselves up for nothing or is Armageddon upon us?

Candy cane anyone?

Monday Morning Leadership – Week 2

Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing

If every time you turn around you find yourself donning fire gear and a hose, then you're not being a leader. Leaders are to whom people turn during a crisis, but they should not be continuously putting out fires. You can't lead when you're the one holding the hose.

Instead, a leader should keep themselves and their group focused on their goals…the main thing. The leader needs to ensure the group knows and understands the goals, rather than just assume they do. "... [W]hen you depend on another's perceptions to match your expectations, you're setting yourself up for disappointment." You have to make certain everyone is paddling the boat in the same direction.

What if your boss is a poor leader with whom you have no relationship? Cottrell suggests that the relationship between a leader and his boss affects the workers and he's absolutely correct. I've been there.

I remember how frustrated I was with that person and how much I sincerely did not understand how they were in their current position. I soon realized my poor relationship with her was affecting my relationship with my associates. I had to do an about-face and work to develop a positive relationship. It was a difficult task. Instead of ignoring her and only giving her the basics of what was going on during the course of a day, I coached up. I put together my own spreadsheets and reports and started tracking the information I believed needed to be tracked from a daily and weekly stand point. I then began reporting it to not only her, but to her boss during our daily and bi-weekly meetings. After a few weeks passed Not only could I tell a difference in the relationship, but so could her boss and my associates. It forced her to be more in tune with the needs of the department which led to two things: 1) She had to spend more one-on-one time with me and 2) The positive relationship developed.

Do you know what the main thing is in your area? Is there more than one main thing? How's your relationship with your boss? Is it positively affecting you and your group?

Simply Random

Staying with the theme of haphazard, this really cracked me up and I'm not sure why. It's a useless gadget that helps you accomplish absolutely nothing.

Honestly, I'd like to have one on my desk. You know everyone would ask, "What is it? What does it do?" .

It definitely compliments my personality, don't you think?

 

Together

It's so very nice to have Ray home. We don't do much when he's here…comic book store, Wal-Mart, cook, play board games and "borrow" football games off the internet. To me, it doesn't matter what we do, just as long as he's here.

Anyone out there feeling nauseous yet? :o)

Seriously, we could sit here all day and not do anything but talk and I'd be content.

I can't wait until I too reside in Indianapolis!

Monday Morning Leadership – Week 1

I am currently reading the book Monday Morning Leadership by David Cottrell. It's a short concise book with 8 chapters or mentoring sessions which was recommended to me by a fellow manager. As I am going to go through the book a chapter a week, I will be summarizing what it's about and what I think of it. And since the book is titled Monday Morning Leadership, I think Monday's will be a good day to post.

Aren't you excited? Here we go.

Drivers and Passengers

The difference between a driver and a passenger is that the passenger has no responsibility for the road, its conditions, the other drivers or the rest of the passengers in his vehicle, while the driver is responsible for all of the things. Relating this to a working environment, the difference between an employee and a successful leader is that the leader is responsible for the employees and their work instead of just their own position.

The key word in all of this is responsibility. In order to be a leader you must take responsibility and not make excuses. You have to back your upper management and their decisions and be willing to make adjustments to reach your goals. Blaming people and/or situations for your short-comings is no longer acceptable. When you utilize blame, then you are still looking behind you, in the past. When you utilize responsibility, you are making plans for future successes.

So, are you a driver or a passenger?

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service

Martin Luther King, Jr. worked for equality and social justice through his speeches and marches, his nonviolence and service. His charismatic personality inspired the subjugated surrounding him. His message gave hope and dignity to the black and the poor and spurned them to be an active part of the needed social change. On April 4, 1968 Dr. King was shot in Memphis, TN protesting low wages and unbearable working conditions for sanitation workers.

Hopefully, Monday, January 18, 2010 people will think of the "Beloved Community" envisioned by Dr. King and join the rest of the nation in celebrating him and his vision through service. If you need assistance finding somewhere to serve, click here and type in your location.

What are you doing to serve?

The Saw Mill

Growing up I spent a lot of time with my grandpa – Harvey Lee Sasser. He took the time to teach me to read and worked with me when it became apparent my stuttering was more than just a small problem. He taught me there's nothing better than the truth and that like it or not, you have to trust people until they prove otherwise.

We spent mornings, afternoons and evenings either in his backyard on Pin Oak or on his back porch on Foxglove. During that time we'd watch my grandma's current chihuahua run around the back yard believing it was the largest beast for miles around. He would share stories of his childhood, of him sitting in a school house upset with himself because his father was out there working hard to support the family and he wasn't, so he decided one day to not return to school and instead go to work with his father. About how he had entered a small German town with his troop where everyone had been gunned down before they arrived yet he came upon a family in hiding and sat and shared his rations with them. About how he slept in a trench with nothing above him but the night sky for protection and how he jumped from train to train to get home after he returned from the war. About how he and his sons-in-law would go fishing together – and how good of a fisherman he was compared to them!

Now that I am married to my husband who grew up working alongside his father in a saw mill, it is my grandpa's saw mill stories I miss the most. I wish he were still here with us to share those stories with Ray and for Ray to share his stories with him. I truly believe they would have enjoyed each other's company and Harv would have enjoyed sharing that part of his life with someone who could genuinely relate.
I am very thankful I am easily amused by a good story and that even when he would tell me a story for what seemed like the hundredth time, I treated it like the first. He used those stories to share life lessons with me as a child and even as a young twenty-something, when he forgot more than just who I was, those stories and their lessons were still relevant to me.
Remember to share your life stories with those around you; they very well may help mold them.

The Interview

Today was the day of my interview. I think it went really well. I was nervous all last night to the point where I only slept for three hours. Then I was nervous with sweaty palms all morning. When the interview started all of that went away. I felt comfortable, relaxed and confident. The interviewers were very personable and, from my own experience as an interviewer, did very well at balancing the "script" of questions to be asked with personal interest.

Fingers crossed for a second interview!

It’s A New Year

It's January 2010 and there's plenty on my mind.

Indianapolis: Ray moved to Indy the first week of December '09. I'm still in Alabama. I have not enjoyed living apart, yet there are folks witho whom we work which have done it for months at a time and one couple which have lived apart for a year and a half already. I just can't imagine. I've had one job interview and was no'ed due to my lack of floor experience. Not meaning to be a snot about it, but I do have floor experience and since they had just gotten the TPR and some other reports and programs with which I am very familiar, I could have been a big help. But that's okay. I just have to believe that the Lord has something better planned for me.

I do have an interview for another position Tuesday 1/12 at 10:00. It is a step down from what I am currently doing, but that's okay. My ego isn't wrapped up in my job title. Then again, there is a small part of me that really likes being the "boss". I figure it'll give me a chance to prove I can run an operation on the floor and work my way up...again. Very similar to the situation in Baytown now that I think about it. Hmm...

Blood Pressure: Mine is high. It has come down from what I was running in May of '09, but still isn't at an ideal level. It runs around the lower 130's over the mid to high 90's, and randomly peaks. I was eating poorly, stressed and overweight (236 lbs). I have addressed some of this by improving my eating habits and am losing weight (200 lbs). I'm still working on the stress piece. Maybe stepping down to an area manager will be good for me. I will only work 4 days a week instead of being responsible for a 24/7 operation. Wow, that actually sounds appealing. If I get the job, we'll see how long it takes me to get bored.

Lease: Moving to Indy before August will require us to break our lease. I've never done that before and it makes me nervous. It also makes me sad because I had a contract with someone and I will have to break it. It makes me feel slimy, like I've gone back on my word. My grandpa wouldn't have like that at all.

Family: While I don't get to see them very often, I'd like to see them more, especially Farrah and Claudia. They always make me smile. Claudia is just a mess! Dad always keeps up with me and how Ray and I are doing...since he has so much time off *cough*. And mom is mom. She's always up to something. :o)

So what's my resolution for the year?
Get off the BP meds!
This involves me continuing to eat better and continuing to lose weight. It will also involve me getting active. We'll work on that one soon.