Customer Service?

So I'm at Target, armed with my list for school supplies. The shelves look like I just missed either a Tornado, or the best sale ever! To my dismay I find all but a few items and head off to check out.

I'm greeted by an OVERLY friendly associate (OFA) who quickly starts processing my order. The women in line behind me spots my composition notebook and asks where I found it. I told her it was the last one and was about to give her a suggestion of where she could find it when:

OFA: "Oh, if you haven't found it, good luck. Maybe in two weeks if you're lucky stores will restock"

Trying to help the now shell shocked woman. I suggest she try Kroger's or CVS Pharmacy who often carry supplies. Cheerfully interrupted again:

OFA: "Nope, you're not gonna find it there. I worked at CVS last year at this time and they had nothing. All the school supplies were gone. Maybe if you can find some out of the way small grocery store they MAY have some, but probably not"

With this I kept silent and gave a sympathetic smile to my line mate. So as I traveled to Office Depot, Michaels, HEB and CVS Pharmacy for my other errands and saw stacks of composition notebooks, I wished I had the woman's cell phone to give her the heads up. It also made me realize that "helpful advise" that is discouraging, is no help at all....even if you're cheerful.

Tuesdays with Edouard

A thought about Tropical Storm Edouard: It's name is very hard to pronounce. Everyone reporting on the news pauses so they can say it right. One website stating its closure even spelled it wrong. Note to National Hurricane Center - pick names easy to pronounce and spell.

Fortunately it did not turn into a hurricane and the storm moved a little more East than it was predicted. Good news for us. Today it is just a very rainy windy day. Most businesses are closed today so it feels like a Saturday. Everyone is staying inside. At our house it is currently 77 degrees 63% humidity (shouldn't it be 100% if its raining?) 6 mph wind (Robert just knocked our wind gauge which was registering 0 - so not sure if the wind reading is right)

So today is consisting of watching the news. Doing stuff on the laptop. There is a Risk game going on in the dining room and I spent about 45 minutes putting my new rain gauge together (my old one blew into the pool during the Mother's Day storm and for some reason stopped working). So I am happy to report that since 10:47 a.m. we have received .12 inch of rain. We have emptied the pool already a few times, so we are guessing we've had 2-3 inches since it started raining about 6 a.m. this morning

Edouard - Monday afternoon

All my tasks are done. There isn't a cloud in the sky. No wind. My thermometer outside reads 103.8 with 48% humidity. (It is in the direct sun right now - can you tell?) Some businesses are closing early today and tomorrow. Mainly school districts, NASA and their contractors. The good news is now my garage is straightened - though filled with patio chairs. I however, am a sweaty mess. We better not lose power.

Edouard - or how I am spending my Monday

Nothing can put a crimp in your plans like a "surprise" tropical depression/storm that "might" turn into a low grade hurricane by Tuesday morning. Though I have lived in Houston a few years, and evacuated from Rita, I am still a Californian at heart. Which means all I heard was ""surprise"..........hurricane.......Tuesday morning"

So what does that mean? Coming from the land of earthquakes and fire where you don't have any warning you just deal with it, I want to be a good Texan and take care of the appropriate things. Or at least what I feel will help

1. Don't panic - it will probably miss us and I will look silly. Plus my kids are reading me for my reactions. Actually I am feeling quite calm. I've already done wind (though probably not as strong) and lots of rain. So far we've stayed dry. Another new adventure. sigh!
2. Make Ice - no its not on the hurricane preparedness list but it just seems like a good idea
   
3. Cool the house down well - In these energy conservation times we have been running our indoor air on the "okay" level of comfort. If we lose power, I want to make sure the house has a way to go before it becomes stifling.
   
4. Double check batteries - my California days prepared us well. I always have batteries and water and a well stocked pantry. I just wish I'd bought more Pop Tarts yesterday at the store.
   
5. Pull "all loose articles into garage" This of course means I have to clear out and straighten the garage so I can fit those items in.
   
6. Finish laundry. Again not on the list, but if we loose power we will need all the clean clothes we can get to wear.
   
   All I can do now is watch the weather updates - and worry "a little" that my son is coming in from San Antonio late tonight from Fiesta Texas with our youth group.
   
   I'll keep you posted.

More Noise

It is quite obvious I am sleeping in too late. This morning again I was awaken by noise. To my defense it was 7:15 a.m. - I was not wasting away my day.

This time the noise was the familiar sound of roofers on the house directly behind us. Since our Mother's Day hail storm most of our neighbors have gotten new roofs. (to be noted our insurance company denied our claim and now isn't returning my phone calls for an appeal - but that is another blog!) All these roofers mean lots of echoing of pounding throughout the day. No big deal - unless you're our dog.

Rocky does NOT like pounding. I had to pull him out the door on a leash this morning to "do his business" because the scary noise was so close. You'd think he would have had fun barking at the men on the roof. I have also prevented him from crawling under our bed on a few occasions already this morning. Being a dog of course he does not know that the noise is no where near him - or can do him no harm. (Of course I also imagine if someone wants to break into our house all they have to do is pound on wood and it will take care of our dog. Oh my what will he be like if our roof does get fixed!).

His fear did make me wonder what things I am afraid of that can't hurt me at all. The sounds or situations that make me want to crawl under a bed. Certainly the economy, gas prices and parenting can make us all want to run for cover at some point. If we focus on the "noise" it can all be pretty overwhelming - it's at those times I need to remind myself where I am - safe in God's arms. No need to be afraid. Bring on the noise!

A Rude Awakening

With summer quickly wisking away, I decided to linger a little longer in bed and enjoy the quiet of the house.

That thought was quickly broken by the sound - the LOUD sound - of a horn blaring. Not the simple sound of a car horn. No, this sounded like a train or an ocean liner was coming down my street. I expected to see Captain Stubing if I headed out the door. As our dog ran in with one of those "Timmy's in the well" looks, I decided to see what this continuous noise was. Eventually I saw that it was not a ship but a large dumptruck that decided our house was the perfect spot to park and blare. Lucky us!

And so my day and week begins. What will it hold?

(As I write this one of my children walks in with a glass of juice and asks me to taste it - with my judgement obviously blasted away by the horn I comply. Yep it went bad - and now I'm feeling a little sick. Can't wait to get out of bed!)

Conversations Heard in the Orthodontist's Waiting Room #2

I do not intentionally try to listen in on people's conversations. However, at this visit when two friends greet each other from across the room and hold a conversation it is hard to concentrate on the magazine I have already reread a few times.

This time the topic was family and everything they were doing this summer. It was quite obvious they were dedicated to their children with fun family vacations, 3 week camps, special prep courses for college, special sports camps, classes before entering high school. I realized these women could truly afford orthodontics.

The mixed message I heard this time was one mom saying how she enrolled her son in an art class for credit since he won't have time for it during his next four years. She then went on about how the class was a joke and how the teacher didn't teach art at all (apparently she must be attending the classes with her son). His assignment was to draw 3 dogs and 3 horses. She had bought him a book on how to draw. Was this to help bridge the gap between his class and learning? No, it was for him to trace! So as her freshman son sat next to her dutifully tracing away; overhearing his mom go on about the joke his class is and how no one in the family is artistic, I wondered what lesson is actually be taught and learned.