Tell Your Story

There are stories every day. Every living day a story is born. Every living night a story is born. Stories can be created in a person's sleep. Nobody doesn't have to be an English major or famous writer. Live life to the fullest with strength and integrity. The stories follow.

I believe telling our stories to friends, family, acquaintances, co-workers, and people bring everyone together. Stories are easier to tell when a person lives an active life. I have stories to share. The best stories started on Sat Oct 4, 2008 when I realized I must grow up. On the other hand, I have best stories before Sat Oct 4, 2008; these stories I remember because I don't want to repeat the mistakes I learned. These best stories are positive and negative. I can share stories when I rode the San Francisco Cable Car and walked on the Golden Gate Bridge for the first time. I can share stories when I lived a lonely life. I can share stories visiting Canada. I can share stories embarrassing myself. I can share stories from my ballroom dance classes. I can share stories of moments that made me sad.

Every day people live we have a story to share with another person. Don't live a boring life. Live a life to tell a story. Job promotions, graduations, marriages, meeting new people, traveling, cooking new foods, reading books, taking a weekend trip, school, shopping, gardening, etc. Job loss, deaths, car accidents, injuries, rejections, relationship break-ups, sicknesses, etc. There are people who are interested in happy stories and sad stories.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

My Dream Ignored Me

I dreamed last night I was a student in an unknown college campus. The campus size was about 4 to 5 street blocks in length and 4 to 5 street blocks in width. There were buildings up to ten stories tall. The color was a consistent dark blue with a shade of black. There were no bright colors such as red, orange, and yellow.

I walked on campus between classes. Everyone ignored me. Two people who were my friends in my past appeared in my dream. They ignored me, too. I said after waking up, "That was a sad dream." Next I said I blog my dream after work sharing a fear. The fear is the world ignores me. The fear is I'm lonely.

I don't want to be lonely. I want to be a good person attracting good people. I want to spend my time with good people. We benefit from each other's good company, kindness, and joy. I want to prove the world I'm a good person. I'm a good person such that good things happen to me. I belong to the good crowd. I don't belong to the loser's crowd.

I'm always meeting new people and making new friends. I believe nobody can have too many friends. I always improve my social skills and human relationships. I never live my life being lonely. The world can count on me meeting new people. I do my best to lower the world lonely population by one when I make new friends.

My future looks good. I'm looking forward to have a better life. I create more circle of friends as my life continues to get better.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Plants Around Your Front Door

Establishing a presence at the front of your residence is a good and easy way to provide a deterrent from criminals and burglars. Criminals who sense activity move on. They want to avoid encounters. If they commit a crime, they want to go in and out quickly. Keep the front area clean. Pick up newspapers. Remove trash. Turn on lights at night time. Maintain the grass and plants.

My favorite way to keep my residence active with security and peace of mind is potted plants next to and around the front door. The plant height should be about 1-1.5 feet. The height is tall enough to hid packages. Hidden packages behind plants lower the chances the packages are stolen. Criminals want to steal quickly. They don't waste time walking up to the front door because it increases the chances of them getting caught. Criminals move on when they see nothing.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

I Remember These Tragedies Forever

Here are some tragedies which made the top stories nationally or globally. I remember where I was and what I did when I heard of the news.

Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting, Dec 2012. I read the news from a friend's Tweet. I turned on the television minutes later. All major networks covered the shooting.

Michael Jackson Died, June 2009. My Facebook timeline was filled with "MJ RIP", "Michael Jackson is dead", and the like status. All media including radio and internet focused their attention on Michael Jackson.

Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, LA, Aug 2005. I visited my friend who lived in Washington. I heard of the evacuations on a radio inside a bookstore at Port Orchard, WA. I saw the destruction on television when we visited Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

9/11, Sep 11, 2001. My alarm clock broke. I called my co-worker telling him I'm coming to work late. He asked me if I heard the news. I responded with an answer work related. He corrected me saying the Twin Towers in New York City, NY blew up. I went to the television minutes later confused. The pictures showed the whole story.

Columbine Shooting, Apr. 1999. I turned on the news radio going to work. I said to myself, "What the f*ck!"

Operation Desert Storm, Jan 1991. A friend I called told me we attacked Iraq in response to Saddam Hussein invading Kuwait. He found out from another person at a local park.

Loma Prieta Earthquake, San Francisco, CA, Oct. 1989. I studied Algebra I in my room.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

My Own Most Interesting Man In The World Quotes

I'm a fan of The Most Interesting Man In The World commercials and radio ads. I do my best to blog the latest quotes. I created my own quotes. These quotes are not aired on TV or the radio to the best of my knowledge. Enjoy!

(Jonathan Goldsmith is the actor who portrays The Most Interesting Man In The World for the Dos Equis beer commercials. The narrator is Will Lyman from Frontline.)

*When he pays in cash, he always has exact change.

*He doesn't know the taste of sore throat lozenges.

*Last night's nightmare was their own nightmare.

*He's allowed to drive in the carpool lane solo.

*If he was a police officer, he drives a manual transmission police sedan.

*He always sleeps with the right amount of blankets every night.

*Bigfoot thinks he's an urban legend.

*He can put a crying infant to sleep when he sings, "Mary Had A Little Lamb".

*He knows how to say "thank you" in 50 languages.

*He's a good driver, a good pilot, a good motor cyclist, a good bicyclist, a good skateboarder, etc.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

The Philosophies Of Raymond Mar 3

My third version is a lighter and funnier side of living life. Here are my answers for those who have life's small questions and confusions. Enjoy

Physical activity. We're human beings. We have arms and legs. Routine walking is not a physical activity. Gardening is not a physical activity. Physical activity involves arms, legs, body, and breathing.

I like Mondays. Monday is the most important day of the week. If I have a good start of the new week, then chances are high my week is good. It takes effort and focus. I recently discover and I create a new rule I perform my best to like Mondays. Starting a project or responsibility on a good note is important to succeed. The same attitude applies to like Mondays.

No shoes in the house. There should be a federal law against wearing shoes in the house. Shoes attract dirt, dust, and anything from the outside indoors. I don't want to live in a dirty house. Leave the shoes at the doorway.

There should be a shoe police force specializing in enforcing no shoes in the house. People need jobs. The government can use extra money from the $500 first offense fine and higher dollar fines for repeated offense.

Smart phones for people. Smart phones are part of our lifestyles. They are convenient, time savers, and valuable in emergency situations. Smart phones are part of our lifestyles, especially communicating with others via talk, text, email, chat, and social networking. There is a smart way and a dumb way using smart phones. My smart phone helps me live my life; my smart phone is not my life.

If you have no friends, you might as well be dead. I mean real friends you physically see and socialize with.

T-shirts. A person must have a good selection of t-shirts with a PG or PG-13 theme. If you have trouble finding t-shirts, I suggest Woot's Shirt Of The Day and Threadless online stores. Wait for Threadless' $12 sales.

I'm happy and I support the plastic bag ban at retail and supermarkets. I have a less chance of spending too much on goods and groceries.

Books and newspapers. I'm old school such that I prefer holding the book and newspaper in my hands. They give me an opportunity to read something not from a screen and to stay away from the computer or smart phone. It's unfortunate I eventually read both electronically in the future.

Fresh fruits and vegetables. I believe in taking the time and spending a few extra dollars buying fruits and vegetables at a local farmer's market. Costco's fruits and vegetables selections stink.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Work Sat May 24, 2014

I had a sore throat and allergies during the entire week Mon May 5 to Fri May 9. I also experienced fatigue and mosquito bites on my hand. Fortunately, the work week was the easiest ever. I didn't work in the front-end. I worked at the second store on Fri only. President Obama visited a Wal-Mart near our store on Fri. My manager said everything was normal. Nothing happened. Finally, I learned the difference between front line cost and net cost. I remember the lesson because there was confusion when I priced wines for a tasting the following day.

There is a new procedure for new products. The shipping and receiving person must find new products to give to the data entry people to scan the barcodes. The owner wants to utilize barcodes for more accurate stock counts and less chance of ringing up wrong products to the customers at check-out.

A six day work week began on Mon May 12. My sore throat was gone. My fatigue continued. The beginning of bad health at work began on Wed May 14. I wanted to go home. I was hot. It was record hot temperatures throughout the Bay Area. Also, I was really late to work because the expressway was backed up for an unknown reason. I drove another route to avoid.

I wanted to go home at 2pm on Thur May 15. The assistant manager asked I stay the entire day because we were short-handed. I worked the front-end starting at 2pm to close. I don't know how I survived the entire work day. My bad health was the reason I didn't feel like trying Saki for the first time in my life. Saki was today's tasting.

There were lots of deliveries at the second store on Fri May 16. I experienced three bloody nose moments. I was hot. It was very warm inside the store. I was a wreck. I needed sleep badly.

Today's tasting wines were delivered last minute via will call. The rep and his co-worker personally delivered the cases. The rep also poured the wines. I talked with the rep regarding careers in the wine industry. He started his wine career working part time in a wine & cheese shop while in college. He worked at other positions involving wine. His number one knowledge he shared with me was nobody works in the wine industry for the money. The money is terrible. People work in the wine industry for the love of wine. He has a Masters Degree in Music.

There was a blessing in disguise working on Sat May 17. The reason I worked today was covering a co-worker on vacation. The part-time data entry/bookkeeper also worked today. I was productive. Very productive. I wasn't needed in the front end which was fortunate because I was coughing. I went to an urgent care center after work. Sun May 18 and Mon May 19 were my scheduled days off.

I called in sick on Tue May 20 because I slept for zero hours last night. My sickness consisted of a throat infection, coughing, post nasal drip, and an eye infection. I apply anti-biotic eye drops to battle my sickness. Today was my six month anniversary.

I went back to work on Wed May 21. Tue May 20 was a good day to miss. My manager was able to fulfill my duties when the entire store was dead. I was behind in emails only.

My manager admitted his mistake for the first time in my six months working in the company on Thur May 22. He accidentally double charged a customer who's well-known with the ownership. Wow. I caught up my emails.

The tasting sheet at the second store was revised three times on Fri May 23. The revisions took up too much time on my end. Fortunately, I finished everything ahead of closing I tasted Italian wines under $20 during the 6pm hour. All the workers including myself went home early.

Sat May 24's shift was like Sat May 17's shift. Productive, productive, and productive. I worked at the front-end for 20 minutes to cover a worker who went on break. I told the assistant manager before I went home to count me in for Sat shifts if I'm scheduled. My coughing has improved and I'm getting more sleep.

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

I Blog, You Comment Sun May 4, 2014

I share some comments, opinions, and feedback from my blogs. I appreciate those who took the extra effort to find an email address at my webpage Innovate Infinitely. My new feedback email address is feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com.

I continue to receive complements for growing up Five Years Ago Today I Grew Up (Fri Oct 4, 2013).

I'm happy you grew up back then. We need those immature people to act their ages. --Bertha Smith, Pittsburgh, PA

Start with growing up. . . . being a mature and professional person follows. Responsibility, admitting mistakes, smiling, earning your successes, etc. Too many youths are getting away with trouble. Where are their parents? It seems their parents were not grown up at the time they choose to have children. --Steve Oldermeyer, Oklahoma City, OK

I work at a high class restaurant. There are customers who sure can't be comfortable around. Bad manners, bad language. I'm happy their not my parents. My parents taught me to be responsible. These people are greedy and they care about themselves. Big egos. --Samantha B via email

I blogged about having the friendly and optimistic feeling in I Got This Feeling (Sun Nov 3, 2013). These feelings include being independent and being more concern about me. There is hope. My curses are broken.

Never underestimate hope. --Hope Johnson, Portland, OR

Now that you have that feeling, never lose that feeling for the rest of your life. Find ways to practice, practice, practice and remember, remember, remember. We live in a fast pace world. We forget many things easily. There is hustling and bustling. There are people who even don't have time to go to church. There are parents who work too many hours and forget their kids. Having that feeling I hope you don't become one of those people who forget human kindness and being friendly. God bless you! --Curt Rodriguez, Houston, TX

Not bad blog. If we can have courage to express our feelings, I think we can get along with more people. There are less enemies and conflicts between us. --Debbi Iment, Toronto, Ontario

We hear the ironies in daily life. I blogged my Top Ten Life Ironies (Wed Dec 25, 2013).

I lol at number 10 and been there, done that at number 6. My childhood hobbies, my mother's profession, and my brother's high school textbook I read when I was bored helped me earn A's in a few of my college classes. I didn't even do all the homework. --Roger Best, Durham, NC

Going back to Blockbuster was not ironic, stupid! --Kate Tan, Reno, NV

Quitting your favorite hobbies wasn't ironic. It meant you grew out of them. --Paul Ice, Santa Barbara, CA

I like Indian curry. I hate Japanese curry. --John, Chicago IL

This ironic blog sucks! --Ronald Ball, Fort Wayne, IN

It's ironic you're learning life reading books. Shouldn't you learn life experiencing it outdoors? --864icecream via email

What a waste of time reading this blog. --Leonard Sanchez, Modesto, CA

Change requires deconstruction. Almost everyone agreed in the blog Clean The House With Deconstruction And Reconstruction (Fri Jan 31, 2014).

I read that blog and I thought about the times I made changes in my life. Yeah, your right. The changes I made were for my better. I never realized I lost some friends, some people in my life, neighbors, and former co-workers. In the end, I had to. My life needed that change. My life couldn't satisfy everyone. --Gina Davoe, Boston, MA

I moved out of my abusive husband. I dumped my friends who were unsupportive. I quit my old job. Life is so much better now in my new city and new life. --Rachel Morris

We see deconstruction and reconstruction in major cities. Old buildings are demolished for new buildings. Local governments pass new laws and eliminate outdated laws. Out with the old and in with the new. There's nothing wrong with being old fashioned. There are some things that need to be eliminated forever. --Stanley Morris, Atlanta, GA

Don't be afraid to change. The blog you wrote put a positive thought into change. There must be sacrifices for the better. We all don't want to be on the losing end of change. That's life. It is what it is. --Will Mitchell, Memphis, TN

I agree 100%. The deconstruction and reconstruction you experienced when you grew up on that Oct day is the perfect example of people changing. We see people change in movies and television shows. We think that's not going to happen to me. I like my life. Everything is fine. There's going to be a moment in time when we are going to be those people. There's going to be crying. There's going to be anger that that person is changing and others don't like it.

The world changes daily. We can't fight it. We must be strong and take full advantage of changing. Don't resist. --Jeff Kim, Detroit, MI

There is always going to be change. Change can be positive or can be negative. Always think positive. When change is positive, then you're going to be better. [When] change is negative, then you roll with the punches and make the best out of it. I believe some people are afraid of change is because they experience negative change in the past. Again, not all change is negative. In a general sense, change is good. When I hear the word change, I think something good is going to happen. Most of the time, it does. --f12f11 via email

Email: feedbackininblog@innovateinfinitely.com

Work Sat May 3, 2014

Mon Apr 21's shift was scheduled for a short staff. The store was dead throughout the day. I was assigned customer pick-ups in the back of the store. There was no activity.

A corporate customer picked up his big order for his big client on Tue Apr 22. I handled the order because the front-end manager was busy. I should have let the customer wait for the manager. The big order was special. I wanted to be a team player and help the front-end.

Wed Apr 23 was the data entry/bookkeeper meeting. The meeting started late. It was productive. We needed more time to discuss more concerns. A new pricing grid was created to help the owner price new products more consistently. I clocked out for lunch at 3:30pm ordering a broccoli beef lunch take-out at a Chinese restaurant two blocks from the store. I waited inside the restaurant watching the San Francisco Giants vs. Colorado Rockies. I saw Hector Sanchez hit a grand slam in the top of the 11th inning.

The second store was staffed in full for my Thur Apr 24 workday. The store was entirely dead. The tasting was delayed because the rep was sick. One of the managers submitted a two week extended leave of absence due to a physical injury. I realized walking around the aisles we have plenty of popular wines in stock. I must refer customers from the first store to the second store when the first store has zero inventory and the second store has positive inventory; for example, Cherry Tart pinot noir. My blue pen ran out of ink.

Mon Apr 28 was surprisingly busy. I worked at the back-end the entire day because the other data entry/bookkeeper was out with a migraine. The day was easy for me.

Most of my Tue Apr 29 shift was at the front-end. The email special of the day Hindsight wine sold out at the end of the day. Everyone at the front-end took phone orders. The other data entry/bookkeeper received front-end training at 4pm and I worked at the back-end. I entered nine new products; fortunately, we received samples to eight products for which I looked at the labels that helped me.

I worked at the second store on Wed Apr 30. The air condition broke at the back of the store and the tasting room. The tasting at the first store today and the tasting at the second store tomorrow were cancelled. Two of my co-workers set up a desk in the tasting room for the other data entry/bookkeeper. I didn't know why a desk was set up. We divide the time working at the second store each week.

There was training at the first store on Thur May 1. Penfolds, an Australian wine producer, provided the first training. The second training was beer for the first store staff.

Everyone arrived early at the second store for our Fri May 2 shifts. Everyone was at the front-end because the air condition was still broken. The repairman said Sat is the earliest the air condition works. The wine tastings for both stores were switched. I assisted and solved the first store's tasting problems and confusion. I didn't know why. I sensed unnecessary stress.

There were no customers when the wine maker arrived. The staff took turns being a shill. The owner and staff were relieved more customers entered the store and tasted wine towards closing. The winemaker is known for wearing overalls. A beer rep provided free goodies for the staff including bottle openers on key chains, pens, and beer lip balm.