Check this out.

Truly, the joy of a man and his dog.

First things first – thank you, my dear and gentle and faithful readers, for being joined with me in holding this up in prayer. I know that God has something better planned for me, and now it’s just a matter of listening to what He has to say.

I got up a little bit later than normal today – TMBWitW was working from home, so she didn’t have to rush right out first thing, and I certainly didn’t have anywhere to go…

An offshoot of this episode is that I figured out why I wasn’t sleeping very well. I now think that the stress and uncertainty of not knowing if I had made the right decision (going back to this job after a previous offer didn’t pan out) was keeping me up.

Anyway, the house is a little cleaner, my job prospects got shaken out a bit, the resume got massaged, and the dogs got played with. Turns out that was the most enjoyable part.

I’m even asking the Lord for guidance on whether to stay in this industry (cabinetry), or use my knowledge to tangent into another industry with similar skills (layout and design), or even to walk away from this and start on a new career.

Yeah, at my age.

Talk about a leap of faith.

Thanks for listening, and stopping by. I’ve gotta go talk to the Counselor about my career path. I’ll keep you posted.

God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and get in on the Baby Pool!

Why are you posting, Cary? Did something happen at work?

Yes, yes it did.

IT happened.

I left. This time, I don’t think they’ll be asking me back. I left in a bit of a temper, after being told, basically, that following procedures and processes, including questioning unclear portions of an order, was not good enough. Apparently, one needs to go above and beyond filling the order placed by the salesman and actually read the mind of a customer one doesn’t interact with.

In a way, I am going to miss that place – I have – uhm, had a very high level of respect and synergy with the people I work with – excuse me, worked with – including the manager I walked out on.

So – if anyone knows of a position where cabinet software, some CAD ability and a work ethic that normally leaves Type A personalities in the dust would be required, left me know. E-mail me at carycartter AT gmail DOT com. And no, I don’t want to sell pharma-anything over the internet. Nor do I wish to be involved in Multi-Level Marketing, no matter what name is behind it.

Actually, right now, a position that requires me to test my golf clubs at various locations around the Valley of the Sun would be really good. Maybe Secret Shopper has a position like that…

God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and get in on the Baby Pool!

I experienced a new manifestation of a feeling I have had for a while.

I was in a large warehouse store the other day (red letters, rhymes with “bostco”) and I was waiting to check out. A gentleman walked by, a little older than I am, a little shorter than I am, dark complexion, with a splash of gray at his temples. He was walking with a purpose (he was a vet, I’ll tell you that right now. most vets walk with a purpose, unless they are on the golf course, but that’s another story…) and it wasn’t his coloring or his facial features that I noticed first – it was his ballcap. It was black, and along the side of the bill was stitched, in very small letters, “RANGER.”

“Ah,” I thought to myself. “A Ranger. Tough birds, those Rangers.”

Then I saw the tatto on his right upper arm.

2nd Btn Viet Nam 1966 1969

A rare bird, indeed.

Under his tatoo, the parachute insignia. Airborne Ranger.

Very, very rare bird.

I caught myself tearing up. I actually had a Tear of Pride in my eye – from seeing this complete stranger walk by with the earmarks of a distinguished and challenging service record.

TMBWitW looked at me, glanced where I was looking, and asked “Ranger? Isn’t that one of the elite?”

“Yup.”

“Why are you crying?”

“I’m not crying. I’ve got a Tear of Pride in my eye. Marines can have a single Tear of Pride; it’s in the code.”

“I think I need to see a written version of this code.”

“They don’t write it on paper, they write it on your heart. That way you can’t lose it.”

Just then Ranger walked back by, behind us, and commented on my red shirt. I thanked him for his service, and said “Welcome Home.”

He nodded back, and as he turned away I could see he had his Tear of Pride in his eye.

Go here.

Order a shirt (or two, or five) and Wear Red on Fridays – Support Your Troops!

Unlike certain Senators from Massachusets, I don’t think the “American Fighting Man” is uneducated. Think about what it takes to become an officer – and if you think they are uneducated, then you’ve got the wrong picture. The typical member of the fighting forces today have more than a high school education; fewer and fewer are dropouts – even the ones that did not complete high school usually earn their GED before the end of their first enlistment. The average officer not only has a Bachelor’s Degree in their field of expertise, they have also gone to their branch’s version of Officer Candidate School (OCS) – which means at least twelve and possibly more months of intense instruction without the beloved breaks that college gives you. Plus, each and every member of the enlisted ranks are exhorted to enroll in and complete as many additional courses as possible. Not becasue they are a requirement, but because the more subjects you are exposed to, the better your ability to adapt to situations. The more knowledge you have, the more ideas you can bring to bear on a situation.

Unless you are stuck in Massachuesets, and being forced to serve the people as a Senator – then you can only see things one way – and that usually includes the thought stagnation behind “Bush is Wrong” and “Cut and Run” – certainly not the type of leadership anyone I associate with would want representing them.

I tell you, the folk back east are strange. Must be in the air.

God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and get in on the Baby Pool!