I’ve never worked in customer service, but I’ve been a customer ... thousands of places. That has to count for something. I have a great idea, but it seems the old fashioned suggestion box, like to face to face communication, is no longer the norm.

I read an article the other day that recommended if you want to communicate with a 20-30 year, old don’t email or call, text. Calling is so last decade and email is so five years ago. If I had the contact info for the customer service representative of every fast food restaurant in the country, I would text this message: “For better service and less customer frustration implement a “beverages only” line.”

I do consider the fact I live in a tourist town and in the summer it’s just easier to drive to another town for anything, but drive-through and walk-up counter service everywhere would work so much better if there was a separate line for those only wanting something to drink.

The other day I was going to drive-through McDonalds and the line was so long I parked and went in. Big mistake. Longer lines were inside probably because is was a toasty 103 degrees outside. I was actually running 20 minutes ahead of schedule so I took a deep breath and got in line.

After a few minutes the woman ahead of me turned around smiling and said, “Wow this is crazy, where are you from?”

“Right here in town,” I smiled back.

“Really? You live here. I’ve never met anyone who lives here,” she looked surprised.

I hear that a lot and wonder how people think the town operates if everyone is a visitor.

She told me about all the shows she and her friends had seen, every restaurant they had eaten in and that they would be headed back to Iowa later that afternoon. We both agreed the heat made most folks irritable, especially if they had screaming, hungry kids.

I ran my “beverages only” line idea by her and she thought it was fabulous. “It could be like the returns line at TJ Maxx,” I explained. “When no one is returning anything the clerk jumps over to the purchase register and rings customers up. So if no one wants a beverage only the server could move to the regular register to take orders. There are always at least two idle registers at every fast food restaurant I’ve ever been in anyway.”

“You are so right!” she said as she finally placed her order. “You should make that suggestion somewhere.”

I felt so validated.

After my 15 second exchange at the counter of my $1.09 and the large Styrofoam cup I knew my suggestion would be a good one because it had been 15 minutes since I had left my car in the parking lot.

Sometimes I wonder if I’m put into situations to strengthen my underdeveloped spiritual gifts. Instead of working on patience, I usually dream up ways other people can do things better. I don’t like that about myself and it stings a bit when I realize I need to refocus.

I still think my “beverages only” line is a good idea.

Have you ever thought something sounded like a good idea, but then it played out differently than you imagined? I found myself right there recently. While flipping through the Sunday paper I saw a coupon for the Shrine Circus; one free kid’s ticket with one full paid adult ticket. I could take two of the grandkids for the price of one. I’m a sucker for coupons and I hadn’t been to the circus in over 20 years, so I carefully tore along the dotted lines.

The following Friday, Jackson, Mollie Jane and I were off to the 4:30 matinee at the Shrine Mosque, Abeem-Aboom-Something-or-Other. I’ve decided the Shriners make up names to challenge us civilians. The circus raises thousands of dollars for the Shriners’ Hospitals to help kids secure needed medical help they might not otherwise be able to have. Once outside Mazzio’s Pizza, ten-year-old Travis was walking funny because he had spilled Coke in his lap during lunch when he was goofing around with his friend Ross. A man approached Jim Brawner and said, “I’m a Shriner. I can help your son. Here’s my card if you want to give me a call later.”

Jim smiled, thanked him and bit his lip to keep from saying, “You want to give it a try?”

The fellas in the maroon tasseled hats guided us in the ticket buying process and through the maze up to the front door. The minute I stepped in, the smell of cotton candy, popcorn, and elephant, transported me back in time.

Two sodas, one bag of popcorn, a snow cone, and cotton candy in hand we headed for the seats. But wait, there were really cool lazar swords and butterflies we couldn’t pass up. Juggling our goods we finally settled in. Wow, three rings, clowns, elephant and pony rides had all three of us staring with our mouths open.

“Sue Sue, can we get our faces painted too?” Jackson asked, bringing me back.

“Let me see,” I said as I dug through my wallet.

“Oh Buddy, I don’t have enough money left and these guys won’t take my debit card. They want cash,” I said in disbelief realizing I only had a five dollar bill left from the $80.00 I had punched out at the ATM.

“That’s OK. We can do that next year,” he smiled as he bit into the cotton candy.

While I was silently trying to figure out how I had just spent $75.00, the lights lowered and the crowd cheered. The Ringmaster stepped into the spotlight in the traditional too-tight pants and tailed jacket, “Laaadiees and geeentelllmen, boooys and girrrls ....” Are you kidding me? It’s as if those words hit a button in my memory and here came the tears. I instantly needed my Dad.

Suddenly I realized Mollie Jane was watching me. Come on Suzette, get it together! “What’s wrong Sue Sue,” she asked?

“Oh, I think I got popcorn salt in my eye. It’s OK now. Wow, would you look at that!”

Two hours later we slowly walked out with the crowd discussing if the lions were really mad or just pretending, how scary it was to watch the guy on the high-flying wheel and the reason our feet were sticking to the floor.

When I tore the coupon out of that Sunday paper I never planned on what I was really going to experience.

Two admission tickets, one coupon $28.00

Popcorn, cotton candy, sodas and a snow cone $17.00

A lazar sword and a lazar butterfly $30.00

Memories ..... old and new Priceless!

Each year in grade school we had election of officers. Of course there were the glamorous positions of president, vice president, secretary and treasure. They all had the normal responsibilities someone in that office would be expected to fulfill. But, the office with the most important responsibility was fire Marshall. He or she got to go to a meeting in the principal’s office at the first of each month to decide when the fire drill would be for that month. That person also got to boss everyone, including the teacher, when the fire drill siren when off. I thought it would have been really cool to be the classroom fire Marshall. It was the bossing part I wanted to do, I’m quite sure.

Now the warning systems set in place in schools and in communities are a bit more sophisticated. This time of year tornado warnings are frequent. When we were in Mexico in the fall, the minute the hurricane warning was issued everyone jumped into action to prepare. Fortunately it by-passed us. We have flood warnings and fire warning we evacuate for. But, the one thing that hits without warning is an earthquake.

The only time I even got a hint of what an earthquake felt like was from a slight tremor when I was visiting California. Honestly I thought I had just had too much morning coffee, but the suddenness of it made me realize there is no warning. For one who has borderline control issues, that is an uneasy feeling.

The horrific destruction from the earthquake that hit Japan is mind boggling. They had no warning. Then the tsunami hit with short warning. The devastation and loss of life are more than I can wrap my brain around.

Watching the new reports and reading the different accounts are a bit overwhelming. My friend Jack asked the other day if I had noticed a thread running through all the reports. He went on to point out how calm the Japanese people seemed waiting for water and supplies in single file lines. When questioned some had been waiting for 2 days but answered they were sure they would have water in a little while. There was no looting, no shouting, no swearing at the government for not moving fast enough. There was no sense of entitlement, but of gratitude for help when it did arrive.

I’ve always heard if you want to see the true character of a person watch what spills out when he gets bumped. The Japanese people have not been bumped, but slammed and to watch what spills out of them is convicting to say the least.

Warning ... maybe we need to learn a thing or two.

When I was a kid, the day ended with my dad whistling for my brother and me to come home. We could go anywhere in the neighborhood if we were in earshot of his whistle. If we went inside a friend’s house, we called home as soon as we did to let Mom know where we were. There was always a jumprope spinning, bikes to be ridden, or a kickball game to join. We were always moving

I told my boys once that I never remember sitting in front of a TV during daylight hours. Travis was shocked we had TV back then. Of course there were only 3 channels and the test pattern showed up at midnight right after the national anthem, but we had TV. It just wasn’t the focal point of life.

Things are really different for this generation of grade schoolers. Where we had to get our kids to slow down, now parents are trying to figure out how to get them to move. Childhood obesity is rising at an alarming rate. The amount of food consumed and the number of calories burned is no where near in balance.

I realized how serious the problem is when I saw a public service announcement the other day featuring a boy about 10-years-old who simply said, “Don’t Super Size Me” and folded his arms as he looked sternly into the camera.

I recently received information from Emily Patterson about a fun contest promoting family health and wellness, The Family Dance Off. I’ve included the contest information below. Get your video rolling and bust out some of your best dance moves with your kids or grandkids. There are some really great prizes to be won and you will be helping the Children’s Miracle Network too. Enjoy!

Get Up and Dance with Primrose Child Care!

Dance can be a fun, easy way to introduce physical activity into your family's daily routine. As a provider of educational child care, Primrose Schools has recognized and is actively fighting against the childhood obesity epidemic.

The Family Dance-off supports Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, a non-profit organization that raises funds for more than 170 children's hospitals, which collectively treat 17 million children annually for every illness and injury imaginable.

Families are encouraged to record and submit a 30 second video of their family dancing having fun and at the same time promoting fitness.

Participating in the Family Dance-off is easy:

1. Record a 30-second video of your family's best dance moves. Don't be afraid to let loose and be silly!

2. Visit The Family Dance-off site and upload your best take by March 19.

3. Share your video with your friends via email, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

4. View and vote daily (you can place five votes per day) for your favorite family dance video!

Now for the prizes:

Not only does your family win, but the whole community wins, with $65,000 in donations to local Children's Miracle Network Hospitals:

· Grand Prize: $5,000 and Primrose will make a $30,000 donation to a local Children's Miracle Network Hospital

· 2nd Prize: $3,000 and Primrose will make a $20,000 donation to a local Children's Miracle Network Hospital

· 3rd Prize: $1,500 and Primrose will make a $15,000 donation to a local Children's Miracle Network Hospital

· All 14 Finalists will also receive a FLIP camcorder

Visit the competition site for more details on how to take part in the fight against childhood obesity, participate in the competition, and view past competitors!

Submitted by Emily Patterson on behalf of Primrose Preschools

“Hope smiles on the threshold of the year to come.”

~Lord Alfred Tennyson

New year resolutions are a tricky sort of thing. The last few days of December I like to consider the past 12 months and make decisions, not necessarily resolutions, because the word resolution sounds a bit daunting and semi-impossible to me.

Last year I made a decision and issued myself the challenge of writing every day for the coming year. Today marks 365. I’d be lying if I said it was a joy and pleasure every day to sit and stare at the computer praying ideas worth writing about would skitter across my mind. Many times I woke up at night to scribble down something so I wouldn’t lose the thought. I often caught myself daydreaming how I would write things out. I felt like Cameron Diaz’ character in The Holiday when her mind played her life’s events out like copy for ads and she couldn’t get the voices to be quiet. That’s when I understood why many playwrights and classical authors drank too much or went a little crazy.

As I think about it, a year long writing project has not only been a discipline I never thought I could handle, it’s been like free therapy. I lost my brother-in-law and a life long friend to cancer. I’m still in disbelief from a car accident that took a young friend much too early. And I finished out the promise I made to Mom just before she died, “Don’t worry about Dad, I’ll take care of him.” The first half of the year I walked with him on his journey to join her.

I’ve had the honor and privilege of traveling with friends and family this year, writing from new and wonderful places. I’ve been reminded time and time again nothing is more important than relationships. That’s really all we own.

When I look back at the year I think of decisions I’d like to make for the next one, things I’d really like to do. I’d like to be kinder and more appreciative. I’d like to be in less of a hurry and I want to pursue a deeper awareness of God’s grace and love. I hope to remember everyone I meet is fighting a battle of sorts and that a smile and a hug is all most people want or need.

So here’s to an exciting new year full of anticipation and promise. Thanks for your encouragement to press on. You’ve helped me live out a decision I was just stubborn enough to not give up on.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”

~Jeremiah 29-11

Everything is a discovery to one-year-olds because everything they encounter is new. It’s refreshing to watch Kaylin and Vivian’s surprise with simple things we take for granted like falling leaves or the dog eating food that’s thrown on the floor. Sadly in the growing up process we lose our amazement and wonder. But if you think about it, the amazement factor might not be lost, maybe we just get so busy we simply become unaware.

When I checked the dictionary, discover is defined as uncovering or finding something unexpectedly. I’ve often thought what it might be like to make a Christopher Columbus type discovery, something so big it changes the course of history. I think that falls in the uncovering category because he set out to find the new world. Things like discovering you have mice would be the finding unexpectedly part of the definition.

Researchers are on the hunt for discoveries every day. Knowing great things are out there just waiting, like the ultimate cure for cancer or yet another application for Driod, is what gives them purpose and drive.

Because we fail to notice, we pass up amazing discoveries every day. They may not be things that would make it to the cover of People magazine, but common stuff that makes us smile if we pause long enough.

Jill’s husband, David, is one of the most analytical thinkers I know, yet he takes the time to enjoy simple amazing discoveries. In fact, he is the one who reminded me to take note. Not long ago he opened the dishwasher and I heard him say, mostly to himself, “Wow, don’t you love it when you open the dishwasher and the dishes are still dirty?”

“What did you say,” I asked, thinking he had spent way to much time on the computer that day?

“You know, if the dishes are still dirty you don’t have to unload everything yet,” he said, as if I had missed the whole point. I had.

I suppose it’s the same as waking up at 3AM realizing you don’t have to get up for three more hours or getting a check in the mail because you overpaid a bill. It’s amazing and surprising. If you think about it, a great parking spot, a short drive through line, and a “No waiting on register number 10” announcement are all amazing discoveries.

In our lifetime most of us will never find a new vaccine or the real location of Sasquatch, but we have the opportunity to recognize and smile at amazing discoveries every day.

“Oh, no!” Mortified is the only word I can think of to describe the look on my sister-in-law’s face. We were standing at a hotel lobby check-in counter with five sandy, sweaty kids in wet swim suits when Rayanna noticed I had forgotten to make the necessary cover-ups after nursing baby Jill had fallen asleep. No wonder the desk clerk kept looking at the ceiling. A faux pas at it’s finest.

Faux pas is a fancy sounding French word meaning violation of acceptable social norms. The definition evens sounds uppity. It just feels better to say than mess up. I know social norms change, but how could my major faux pas twenty years later be Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction? Surely she was embarrassed.

I’ve laughed until I can’t breathe listening to others recount embarrassing moments. Maybe it makes me feel better to know I’m not alone with my faux pas. I’ve stopped more than one woman leaving a public restroom with a six foot strip of toilet paper trailing on a shoe or from underneath her skirt. I’ve signaled to people I really don’t know at dinner parties that broccoli is stuck between front teeth or dressing has dripped on a tie or a chin. I hope others would do the same for me.

Falls, spills, and miscalculations aside, I think what can be the most embarrassing is the things we say. Sometimes people don’t know they should be embarrassed for saying what they do and it makes the situation even funnier.

When I was eight months pregnant, three year old Travis asked a friend of ours if he was going to have a baby too. I guess it was better than, “Your belly is so big you look like you’re eight months pregnant.” Kids are forgiven so easily because they don’t have much of an editing filter yet. They can get away with saying what the rest of us are thinking.

A verbal faux pas may be funny, but so many times it’s hurtful. I never want my slip-ups to step on others’ feelings. My constant challenge is to not let my mouth run faster than my brain. I should be the only one embarrassed by my faux pas.

“Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep a watch over the door of my lips.”

~Psalm 141:3