Baking bread

Waiting for the dough to rise...

When I Became a Man

"When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things."

I Corinthians 13:11

Winter garden

Something I Learned in Tech Support

"Man, that lady sounded mad about it."
"Yeah, well she wouldn't be calling if she didn't have a problem."

There it is. I learned something in that interaction with one of my coworkers. Much of my customer service experience comes from Restaurant Land and it's given me a tremendous amount of experience with people who are mad about something or another. The big difference is that people generally don't go to a restaurant because there's a problem. They go to a restaurant to eat, drink, and be merry. When someone's calling tech support it's because there's a problem. They're not calling to have a good time. That's not to say that most people who call are really mad. Most people are cool and just want a solution to their problem. Nevertheless, underlying even the kindest person's call is something negative that needs to be resolved. They'd rather not ever talk to you.

Yeah, you could say that hunger is a problem that a restaurant is looking to solve but most people aren't frustratingly hungry and mad about it. Yes, again, you can argue against that, too, but I'm speaking in generalities. Most people who go to a restaurant are there for positive reasons. Most people who call tech support are there for negative reasons.

Either way, the duty of the employee is to ameliorate the customer's woes and make sure they leave happy and satisfied. As a server or a retail clerk or a help desk technician or a car salesman, your duty is the same: make sure the customer leaves happy.

Lift Weight, Lift Spirit

Happy April!

Today was bicep and tricep day. Felt strong with the weights I normally do but couldn't jump it up a notch. Next week. Strike that...I did go to a higher weight on the tricep pulldowns. Apparently I have pretty strong triceps. I mean, relative to my other muscles. Shoulders are probably my strongest. Weakest...um...of all the days I probably feel weakest...guess I'll say legs. I don't feel like my squats and leg presses are where they should be. But what does "should" mean anyway? I want to lift more on everything.

I'm 35 and never lifted regularly in my life. I played around a few times in high school but that was minimal, a handful of times at the most. I was athletic my whole life until after high school when I turned to pretty much just sitting around all the time. Never got fat because of my fortunate metabolism but couldn't say I was fit. Somewhere around my mid-20s I read that book, Body for Life, and started running a lot. That lasted maybe 6 months or so. Last January I started running regularly because I wanted to get fit for my wedding. I maintained a good routine for 6 months or so. I ran 3 or 4 times a week during that stretch. Also did lots of Wii Fit, which is no joke, so don't hate. I got down to about 150 for my June wedding and was in the best shape I'd been in since being a teenager. After the wedding my running routine fell away.

In February one of my friends, who's been lifting regularly for a while now encouraged me to join him at the gym. I went along and loved it. I joined Anytime Fitness on Valentine's Day and I've been there 5 days a week since then, except for a few slack days. I can see and feel the difference and it makes me happy. I really enjoy working out. It clears my head, strengthens my body, and makes me feel better overall. I'm happier and more energetic. I feel stronger at the end of a long shift and I sleep like a rock at night.

Life is good.