He Has Been Beamed Up

I just found out that my favorite actor from any Star Trek, James Doohan, has passed away. I am one of the many Trekkies that believe that his was the best character in the Original Series. In addition to being a fine actor and master of many accents he was also a bona fide war hero fighting with his Canadian brothers during the Allied invasion of Europe on D-Day.

My favorite memory of him was from the very first Star Trek Convention I attended. Using his gift of accents he gave a long demonstration of what the Chief Engineer would have been like in every nationality imaginable.

"Mr. Scott, the word is given"

Has anyone's face ever frozen?

My wife has been, for several minutes, making faces at me. My grandfather used to tell me not to make faces because my face would freeze and I would have to go around for the rest of my life with a ridiculous face and my tongue hanging out. I wonder if I have to worry about her face being like that forever...

Customer Service?

I have been reading, (ok listening thanks to Audible.com) two books about customer service and the ways good companies are run. "The Wal-Mart Way" by Donald Soderquist and "Customer-Mania" by Ken Blanchard, Jim Ballard and Fred Finch. The books are about how Wal-Mart and YUM Brands (KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, A&W and Long John Silver's) create a culture of empowering employees to make the ultimate shopping / eating experience. Each book illustrates the way all of the locations manage their employees and expectations. How they strive to keep the stores clean, well stocked, and full of polite helpful employees. Unfortunately, at my local Wal-Mart shelves are often empty, however the aisles are full of unattended carts of merchandise waiting to be unboxed and go onto the shelves at all hours of the day. The employees are often surley or at best will just ignore you when you need assistance. My KFC often forgets to pack items in the orders, the food is often less than hot, and if you go through the drive-thru you often have to go back into the store to get your order corrected. The staff is in such a hurry to rush you through the drive-thru that they give you your total and order you to pull up to the window before you have finished ordering.

I certainly hope that the policies and procedures these books enumerate will soon trickle down to my local stores. It is more comforting to think that perhaps my little corner of the world has been forgotten by the corpoate trainers and coaches than the local employees are just don't care to be nice to their neighbors.

For the kid's sake

I truly hope and pray that last week's suicide terrorist attack in Iraq, where an "insurgent" attacked a Humvee around which children were standing receiving candy, will be the straw that finally breaks the camel's back. It would appear to me that there are many people in Iraq who, while they hated the old regime, don't like the current situation, and cannot think of the future are standing quietly by and allowing these attacks to happen. I cannot imagine that there are many people who don't know someone who is involved with the "insurgents" or knows someone who knows someone.

I could even understand if they said nothing when they were just attacking our troops, as wrong as it is, maybe they just wanted us to leave and thought this might help move us along. I can understand when they said nothing when they were blowing up new Iraqi police stations and training facilities, because they thought a thoroughly trained police force with the intent of carrying out just laws in a just manner was just too alien to their culture, and that the possibility of roundups, rapes and tortures of their friends and neighbors was really the best way to keep order, but I just cannot fathom the thought of these people standing by and letting little babies get murdered and not doing something about it.

I pray that this will be bring home to these people, that the insurgents are not freedom fighters, they are just murdering thugs who care nothing about who they hurt as long as they are hurting. Hopefully, this will lead to real cooperation from the average citizen of Iraq in finally getting rid of this blight on their bright future.

More Americana

I recently discovered a magazine called "Mental Floss" which is a dedicated to mostly useless but highly interesting trivia. This month's edition has a feature about commonly used Latin phrases.

The one I found most interesting was "E Pluribus Unum", "Of Many, One". According to the article the first use of this phrase was in Virgil's poem "Moretum". It was used to describe the flavoring of a salad dressing.

A very fitting way to describe a salad, salad dressing or our great melting pot. Now I am hungry, look out lettuce!

Happy 4th of July!!!!!!

Happy Birthday - USA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have always loved the Fourth of July, it is the best of all the secular holidays. It is a day to remember the early Americans who made so many sacrifices in order that we may have all the freedoms we so take for granted today.

I have also loved the Fourth of July because I am one of the blessed to be born on the Fourth of July.

There were many famous people who were born on the Fourth. Many more who were not, those who weren't include: George M Cohan (I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy, a Yankee do or do or die, A real live nephew of my Uncle Sam, born on the Fourth of July), He was born on the 3rd.

Tom Cruise (Actor, Movie: Born on the Fourth of July) was born on the 3rd of July.

P.T. Barnum (Greatest showman on Earth) missed by a day also, he was born on the Fifth of the July.

Happy Birthday America. Happy birthday to my birthdaybuddy Eric. Happy Birthday to everyone else born on the Fourth.

Viva La France or Something

Lance Armstrong, after completing the first leg of the Tour de France, was subjected to another drug test. This is his second of the tour and his sixth this year. Lance, not surprisingly, was the only rider forced to submit to a retest. I guess the French strategy is, if they cannot beat him fairly, drain him of so much blood he is too weak to win.

I am confident he will win again. Desptite the despicable tactics of the French. Let's hope the race officials will now go off and eat some cheese and maybe surrender to Vanuatu.

What is wrong with this picture?

Driving through my hometown the other day, I spied this new sign along the main street. Dozens of bad captions come to my mind, but I will leave this one to your imagination.

The Purina One Challenge

Recently, I have wanted to be a Talk Radio host. Not because I feel everyone needs to know my opinion on everything, (though more people should), not because I need the respect and adoration of a large population (but I wouldn't complain about being a celebrity) but because they get tremondous freebies.

Sleep Number beds, car leases, furniture, etc... they get them..., they pitch them all through their shows.

Recently all of the radio personalities have been talking about the Purina One Challenge, how their old dogs have new zip, their coats are shinier and the dogs just seem better.

Belle, our 10 year old Golden Retriever has been eating standard quality dog food for several years, she has always been fine, a bit lazy, and had a nice not exceptional coat.

The last batch of dog food that I bought at the local big box store was being rejected. Every morning for a week she ate a few kibbles to keep from starving then scrounged around the children during meals (Actually, with the amount of food they drop, dog food really isn't necessary).

My wife and I decided to try a bag of Purina One and now, a month later, Belle does have more zip, her coat is shinier and she has an overall healthier presence.

I really had not noticed, but it was brought to our attention by the older children who were not aware we had changed her food.

I have to admit, I am impressed. Even if we are not getting a lifetime supply of dog food for free, I will be letting all my dog-owning friends know that Purina One really delivers on it's promise.