Every Promise is a Present in Advance

I'm in the business of marketing--and it's a good business to be in--mainly because I love the psychology behind messaging. Every once in awhile I notice a little marketing tactic and I think, "that's really clever." I'm the first person to admit that I will become a brand loyalist when a company goes the extra mile to throw in the little things. It's all about the little things.

My tea, for example. It's one small pleasure in a morning full of busy-ness. I crack open my Yogi tea and there's a personalized little note, like a small hug from an old friend to start my day. I bought the tea because on an impulse, Ginger sounded good. I can't lie, the fact that they have killer packaging and the added touch of a personalized thought will keep me coming back for more.

What does that say about marketing? Maybe if we focus more on the little things, the "big picture" will come into clearer focus?

"Can" You Tip That?

It really seems like businesses are getting on the tip bandwagon these days--and I've just got to take a minute to rant about how absurd I think the whole thing is. I was in a drive thru over the weekend grabbing a breakfast burrito and saw this tip can. As the girl is taking my cash and handing me a bag with one item in it, it occurs to me that she has said approximately 10 words to me in total. How does that qualify as "service," people? I've worked in restaurants for gratuity and I'm far from a tightwad but I do recognize the distinction between service and simply being a cashier--that's what the girl at this window was, a cashier.

This is how I see it; if you have to walk over to my table, take my order, smile, bring me a meal and then clean up after me--and it's all delivered with a good attitude, I'll be gracious and leave a gratuity but the definition of this concept seems to have become muddled along the way. Maybe it's just me, but I really think that a gratuity should be earned. Merriam Webster defines gratuity as: "something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service; especially : tip"

So, if some one has gone beyond obligation to serve me, I'll go beyond obligation to tip. Makes sense, right? Am I just being an old, stingy lady here?

Wormholes

Funny how the most trivial things resonate with me--little things. Like associating the flavor of something you haven't tasted in awhile to a time you used to have it regularly (vague, I know).. but the other day I had a cup of coffee with creamer I haven't purchased for a few years and the flavor reminded me of Idaho mornings and riding up to the ranch to shoot photos. It was like a wormhole in time had sucked me back into a moment, if only for a moment.

Or how fresh beans reminded me of something I hadn't thought of in decades, sitting in a circle around my grandmother's house with buckets of green beans from the garden waiting to be snapped and canned. It made me want to plant a garden so that I can feel dirt under my nails and remember what it tastes like to eat food I've grown myself.

Time passes so quickly and the moments that seem inconsequential suddenly burst open with the biggest meaning. Lately, I just want to be home with my daughter, preserving and documenting our moments so that when I need to, I can take a wormhole back--if even for a moment.

How Did I Get So Lucky?

I read an article the other day that talked about the perception of luck. The theory goes something like this; a person who believes they are lucky, sees good fortune in situations that may otherwise be ordinary, thereby manifesting luck in their lives. People who believe they are unlucky see the difficulties in their lives as a sign of misfortune and feel as though they are being picked on by the universe. You know those people, right?

This is a hard-wired tendency, they say. You're either a glass half-full kind of person or a glass half-empty type. So, I've been thinking about how all my life, I've just sort of felt like I've had good fortune. Things just seem to work out for me somehow. Is this a result of my manifesting the positive things and choosing to disregard the negative (I've certianly had my share of heart-ache)? I'm a huge believer in Karma--the idea that whatever you put out in the universe comes back three-fold. It may sound new-agey, but I swear by this principle, and I've seen it in action--in my own life and others'.

Today, I feel lucky (well, yesterday, too). I was thinking about all of the things that seem to work out and how fortunate I am to have a little felicity in each day. Good fortune and luck isn't about the amount of lottery wins you rack up, or the things that fall into your lap. I've decided that it's about appreciating exactly where you are and what you have in that moment--about being present and learning to love a life that you've crafted. It's about seeing the beauty in change and having hope in the face of sorrow. A little bounce-back karma doesn't hurt, either.

Structure & Pork and Beans

Not that those things have anything in common--well, at least not to anyone other than me. It's just that I get so caught up in the pattern that is my life, when some odd wrench hurls itself into my day, I can't help but just laugh at the strangeness of it. So, I'm shopping on my usual day, at my usual store... buying my usual things (I'm serious when I say that I am very regimented, by the way). As I drive home in the rain, I notice how bright the lights look under that layer of rain water. It's a nostalgia thing--listening to Candlebox, watching the lights and thinking about how nice it'll be to open the windows and listen to the rain when I get home. I live in my own head most days and at a usual pace, I unloading my grocery stash. Guess what I find that just yanks me out of my internal world? This can of pork and beans. Did I put a can of pork and beans in my grocery cart? NO! I don't buy or eat the stuff--NO! How did it end up there? I'm thinking of a zillion scenarios here. Some two-year old stuffed it in my cart, mistaking it for his Mom's and thinking it looked pretty enough to be delicious. Maybe some teenage kid thought it would be a funny joke--because I looked like I needed to lighten up a bit. Either way, it made me smile and I'm still chuckling at the randomness of finding it in my grocery bag next to the hummus (must be a bean thing). If anyone can think of how this can wound up in my grocery bag, I'd sure like to know, but for now, I'll just hold on to it. This is how weird my life is.

Why do I get myself into these things in the first place?

I keep thinking to myself, "hey, I'm a writer for hell's sake... I should probably be blogging." It's just that the daily task list I carry around seems long enough already and social media requires just that: be social! Truth is, I'm kind of a hermit and being abundantly social isn't really my thing. But then I got to thinking... at the very least, my blog could be a great forum for my random rants, right? And that's something that I DO have in abundance. So, here goes. My first post (which is entirely random).

For good measure, and the viewing pleasure of an empty room (hopefully that will change), I'm going to throw up one of my favorite pics from a recent trip to Key West, where I experienced amazing sights, genuinely good people and outstanding service. The palm reader's shop was closed--I probably would have gone in if it hadn't been. It's not that I believe in that stuff, really, but I'm open to feedback on my life at the moment and at the very least, it might have been amusing.

Until later, people... and hopefully once I get the training wheels off, these rants will make interesting reads.