2014 Off to a Great Start

The first month of 2014 has come and gone. It’s already time to do the first update on the status of my resolutions for this year.

My first resolution is to revisit the project and decide what direction to take it so I can finish it that year. If I had to base my success on completion of the first resolution, I’d be in trouble. Despite having more snow days than work days, I didn’t do anything toward the project. Obviously, I will have to remedy that if there is to be any success for this particular resolution.

My second resolution is post to the blog at least three times per week. This will make my 14th blog for January, so if we consider that 12 per month would average to three per week, then I can claim success for this resolution.

My third resolution is to read 84 books for the year, which is up from 75 from 2013. In order to do that, I need to average at least seven books per month. With all the snow days, I’ve managed to get off to a great start here. I have finished nine books this month, and if all goes well, I’ll have another finished late tonight or tomorrow. I’d really love to keep this pace going. As part of the 84 books, I intend for the Bible to be one of those, and I have stayed on track with my daily reading schedule to make sure that happens. As of now, I’m thinking this is shaping up to be a successful goal by year’s end. Last year, I detailed all the books I’d read for the month in the update blog, but I think for this year, every couple months, I’ll just do a blog to share what I’ve read during those months.

My fourth resolution is to lose an additional 40 pounds. In order to do that, I need to average 3.3 pounds per month. January was a bit difficult because with so many snow days it was hard to get motivated for the exercise portion of the weight-loss program. I’m definitely going to have to work on that. Even with my lack of consistent exercise, I have still managed to lose 4.4 pounds this month. I’ve got to rededicate myself to the exercise portion of this so that I can see better success, but for now, I’m very happy to say that I’m on track to meet my goal.

My fifth resolution is try something new at least once a month. I’m excited that this resolution is going great. This is one of the resolutions that will be the easiest to keep. In January, we actually tried six new things: Pioneer Woman pot roast (a recipe for my new Dutch oven) chicken tacos at Chili’s restaurant, vegetable soup (a recipe created by combining my soup recipe with Jimmy’s), pizza from Papa Murphy’s Pizza in Lexington, crispy broccoli (a recipe we saw online), and spicy pork chops (cooked using our new two-burner cast-iron indoor grill). We were very pleased with every choice except the crispy broccoli.

My sixth resolution is to keep a prayer journal. I’ve been doing well with the keeping part of this resolution, but I feel like I could do better with the prayer part. Having the prayer journal is a good idea to help assist with productive prayer, but making sure to use the prayer journal more frequently is a better idea.

My seventh resolution is to keep a gratitude journal. I’ve also been doing well with keeping up with this, and I have something that I’m grateful for for every day of the month. I’m looking forward to going back and rereading this at the end of the year. This is one of my favorite ideas.

Considering there’s only one resolution on which I’ve accomplished nothing, I’ll have to say that overall the success rate for the resolutions is great. Now I just have to keep it up for the next 11 months.

That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles

One of the great things about eating at a Chinese restaurant is getting the fortune cookie at the end of the meal. Typically, a fortune cookie contains a little piece of paper that contains lottery numbers and a Chinese word. One would think that piece of paper would also contain a fortune, but lately, that’s not often the case.

The last couple of times my husband and I ate at the Chinese restaurant, our cookies did not contain “fortunes.” The idea behind a fortune cookie is best defined on dictionary.com as “things that happen or are to happen to a person in his or her life.” While it’s understandable that a fortune won’t be as specific as “you will win the lottery,” it is expected that a fortune will be “you will see a change in your finances.” The latter is just vague enough that almost anything, from finding a penny on the curb to losing $5 out of your wallet, can allow the person to feel like the fortune was accurate.

The newest fortunes, though, aren’t worded as fortunes. A fortune is based on the premise of luck and chance. The fortunes we’ve received lately sound a lot more like advice.

Recent fortune cookies have delivered the following messages to us: (1) Avert misunderstanding by calm, poise, and balance, (2) You have a reputation for being straightforward and honest, and (3) The smart thing is to prepare for the unexpected.

Which of those is a fortune? That’s right. None of them are. Each could easily be tweaked to become a fortune, but as they are, we have two pieces of advice and a description. Why not say, “you will avert a misunderstanding by being calm, poised, and balanced”? It’s not great, but at least it’s a fortune. What about, “you will develop a reputation for being straightforward and honest” or “You will be prepared for the unexpected”? Again, perhaps not the greatest of fortunes, but they are fortunes.

The fun of a fortune cookie is breaking it open to see what fate has in store for you. It wasn’t something I took seriously, but I enjoyed being able to laugh when I’d read what the future had in store. If they want to dispense advice, that’s fine, I guess, but let’s not call them fortune cookies. A cookie that dispenses advice should be called an advice cookie, one with a description a description cookie.

Personally, I’d prefer they leave them as fortune cookies and make sure that each cookie contains an actual fortune, one just vague enough that it might come true. If I want advice, I’ll ask somebody I trust. If I want to read an inspring quotation, I’ll go to Barlett’s. If I want a description of myself, I’ll ask somebody. When I go eat Chinese, I want a fortune cookie that contains a fortune.

Read This Blog at Your Own Risk

My husband and I recently tried a new restaurant. Upon approaching the sidewalk beside the restaurant, I looked up and saw a sign that read “Use stairs at your own risk.” There was a set of steps going up the side of the building to an entrance on the second floor. After reading the sign, I assumed the steps must be in disrepair, perhaps with some missing or rotting. Imagine my surprise when I looked at the stairs and they were perfectly fine.

I didn’t use the steps, but I did look at them for a bit. To my untrained eye, the steps seemed equally spaced. None were missing or rotting. They were constructed of what appeared to be quality, treated lumber. Needless to say, I’ve been curious about that set of stairs ever since, and I can’t stop wondering why there’s a sign warning visitors to use them at their own risk. I can’t decide if businesses assume their customers are so stupid that they need basic instructions and warnings for everything, or if the world of the frivolous lawsuit is now so widespread that businesses are going to ridiculous lengths to protect themselves. While neither option is desirable, I think I would prefer the latter reason.

While there are strange and curious warning labels on a variety of products, for now, I’m going to focus on signs. Of course, there is an abundance of signs out there that don’t make a lot of sense. For example, a sign posted on a balcony that reads “Caution: Please be aware that the balcony is not at ground level” is senseless. Of course the balcony is not at ground level; if it were, it’d be called a patio. Additionally, one should be able to see that the balcony is not at ground level without ever even having to get close to the railing. Another senseless sign out there reads “Caution: Water on road during rain.” Really? Who would have ever guessed?

For other signs that offer warnings, expectations are set by the reading of the sign. Failure to meet those expectations leaves the reader scratching his head. For example, you would expect signs that read “State Prison: Do not stop for hitchhikers” or “Hitchhikers may be escaping inmates” to be placed around a jail or prison. If the signs are placed anywhere else, they are senseless. For a sign that reads “Beware of dog”, you expect to see a dog in the vicinity. Even if the sign is meant sarcastically and all that’s there is a Yorkie, you still expect to actually see a dog.  For signs that read “Warning: Horses may bite or kick”, you immediately look around to find the horse. If you don’t see a prison, a dog, or a horse, you’re left wondering “what’s up with that?”

That’s where I am with the “Use stairs at your own risk” sign. Is there a trip wire on the stairs I need to avoid? An invisible layer of ice that makes them too slick to use? What’s so risky about these soundly built steps that I can only use them at my own risk? The funniest thing about it, though, was that once we were inside the restaurant, there was another set of steps going to the second floor. These stairs were a spiral staircase that was very narrow, completely different from the sturdy, wide steps that simply went straight up the building outside. If one of the sets of stairs needed a warning, it would have been more sensible to place that warning by the steps inside the building.

I really hope that the sign isn’t there because someone had the misfortune to trip or fall down the stairs and then decided to sue the restaurant. I also hope that the practice of over-warning customers doesn’t become so widespread that we end up seeing warnings such as “drink from glass at your own risk” or “sit in chair at your own risk”. There’s only so much room in the world for signs that don’t make sense (at least I hope so).

Everybody Has a Bad Day, but I Didn’t Order Yours

I understand that being a restaurant server is one of the most difficult jobs out there. Between the long hours, constantly being on your feet, dealing with customers who are not always gracious, and dealing with co-workers and managers, this is a job that doesn’t often get a lot of respect. The pay isn’t great and most servers have to rely on tips to even make a decent wage. And that’s why servers have to deliver great service with a smile.

I’ve tried to teach my children to have respect for these servers, and I think they do a pretty good job with that. I’ve told them that when they are asked if they would like a refill, they should answer with a “yes, please” and when that refill arrives, they should respond with “thank you”. I’ve told them that every time that server brings or does something for them, every action should receive a “thank you”.  I try to lead by example on this one. Even when the server is having a bad day, we try to be polite because we know that he or she has a rough job.

Despite how rough that job is, that sever has to deliver service with a smile, to every customer, every day. Even if he or she is having a bad day, service has to be delivered with a smile. When he or she is given extra tables, those tables become his or her customers as well, and they should receive the same service as the regular tables. All the server’s tables need the same attention.

Our family believes in tipping well. However, we don’t just tip to be tipping. The tip has to be earned. While we are sympathetic to the rough job the servers have to do, if we choose to eat at a restaurant, we do expect good service. Yesterday, we ate at a restaurant where the server was having a bad day. It was hot, she’d been assigned extra tables, it was crowded, she was pregnant, and the list goes on. I know most of this because the time or two she did stop by our table, she shared her complaints with us. We were one of those extra tables. We watched as she took care of her assigned tables, and we sat and sat and sat and waited for her to take care of us. She took our order, delivered our order, and came by once or twice during the meal. At one point, we waited more than twenty minutes for her to notice we needed a refill. The manager came by to check on us, and we told him that the food was good but the service wasn’t. We asked for our ticket and a to-go box. When the server brings these to us, she apologizes and goes through her litany of complaints again, and asks didn’t we get that refill, you know, the one we waited more than twenty minutes for her to even notice. This rarely ever happens, but we left the restaurant and we did not leave a tip.

Restaurant serving is tough. We try to be good customers and not make it any tougher than it has to be. However, we are paying for a service, and we expect quality service. We all have bad days, but sharing all of that with the customers is not the best way to handle it. I have a job. I have bad days. I don’t go in and share all the ins and outs of that bad day with my students. There are lines that it’s better not to cross. Restaurant customers can be sympathetic to a server who’s having a bad day, as long as that bad day doesn’t disrupt the service. When it does, though, the server should not be surprised when the customer does not leave a tip. Customers leave tips based on the quality of service, not out of sympathy for someone’s bad day.