Note: In the interest of laziness and posterity, I've decided to repost old work from previous blog attempts. I like them, and they might provide more insight into why I struggled to maintain these blogs. They are reposted in rough chronological order.
Orinda Theater is old fashioned and beautiful, and the Square (which is not shaped square or have a central open space) is charming and filled with fun little shops. These places deserve their own posts.
I have recently visited Orinda Theater to watch Brave with my friends. Brave was an excellent movie, and the first animated mother-daughter movie done by Pixar or Disney. (Does Disney own Pixar like it does so many other things?) It also had no romance. That is definitely a first. Brave has gotten mixed reviews; praise for its female lead, criticism for an overall shallow plot. See http://www.npr.org/2012/06/22/155449235/pixars-fast-and-brave-female-comedy-delightful and http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-mendelson/review-brave-2012_b_1620964.html
Edit: This is clearly an old post......
Monday, March 24, 2014
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Old Post: A day in retail
Note: In the interest of laziness and posterity, I've decided to repost old work from previous blog attempts. I like them, and they might provide more insight into why I struggled to maintain these blogs. They are reposted in rough chronological order.
I work in a department store, I won't say which, in the East Bay. We get a lot of customers and the place is usually quite busy. I work as a 'floater' which means I'm bounced around to which ever section is short-staffed. Here are some basic observations of life in retail.
1) I have found that if things are organized in a way that is ascetically pleasing and easy to touch, people are more likely to purchase it. 'Ascetically pleasing' means different things for different products. For instance along with the usual organization of brand, size and discount percentage, clothes are also often organized by color. This is true for new merchandise or old merchandise hanging on racks. Stacks of clothing are preferably placed on tables at waist level, which is where the nice, new products are placed. Discounted, or old merchandise gets relegated to less favorable positions on low tables or on higher shelves. Sweaters, for instance, are typically folded as they can stretch. There are exceptions to this height/touch rule with essential products like jeans and shoes. Available space comprises another exception to this generalization. The store I work in is always overstocked. The backrooms are overflowing with merchandise itching to be sold. Seasonal items for weather or fashion such as hats, gloves, scarves, purses or jewelry decorate the walls, often beyond easy reach as there is no other place to put them. The draw back to this is that these walls are only purchased from when something is required, not from spontaneous browsing. Toys also need to be organized and well placed, but in a different way than clothes. For instance faces (if the toy has one) need to be facing out and preferably down, so the kid can make eye contact and demand the parent purchase it. Unfortunately there isn't enough floor space for all the toys to be at hand- or even eye-level. Kids also have hit-or-miss control over their parents' pocketbooks. Typically what happens is that an item is put on the Birthday or Christmas list as some kid is dragged along on mommy or daddy's shopping expedition. Kids are also frequently dropped off at sections with toys to play and touch unsupervised. Rather like how some parents use TVs as pseudo babysitters. If these unsupervised children falls in love with something and refuses to put it down, the parent usually buys it, especially if it spares them a tantrum.
2) This brings me to my next observation of parenting. What a mixed bag. From parents who whistle for their kids to parents who never let go of little hands. Most common seems to be the whining toddler/child/tween and a harangued-looking mother tuning the kid out. Teenagers are let to wander freely, often with their parents credit cards. Which store policy doesn't allow them to use in case of credit card theft.
3) Manners. Most of my customers are laid back; not always patient, but friendly. Sales associates are expected to be cheerful, friendly and helpful during all customer interactions. I try to do a good job, usually to positive results. Typically there is at least the token response of 'Hello' or 'Yeah, thanks.' As long as the customers know I am there and approachable I leave them to their browsing. Most people respond well to this, and alert me if they need something. Others have been very rude. The people I have experienced as most likely to be rude to me are older women with expensive-looking jewelry and 'elite' clothing brands as well as late-teen girls wearing scant clothing and who stink of perfume. Those without expensive-looking jewelry or inappropriate clothes are often neutrally polite, even friendly. Others seem to be more appreciative of help, such as young mothers, mothers with more than one kid under five and fathers who need a specific item (like a dress shirt for his son) but have no idea about the details, like size, cut, color or probability of wife/mom approval.
Edit: In someways working in retail was a fascinating experience. In many other ways it was.... This will likely be my first and last post about my retail experience.
I work in a department store, I won't say which, in the East Bay. We get a lot of customers and the place is usually quite busy. I work as a 'floater' which means I'm bounced around to which ever section is short-staffed. Here are some basic observations of life in retail.
1) I have found that if things are organized in a way that is ascetically pleasing and easy to touch, people are more likely to purchase it. 'Ascetically pleasing' means different things for different products. For instance along with the usual organization of brand, size and discount percentage, clothes are also often organized by color. This is true for new merchandise or old merchandise hanging on racks. Stacks of clothing are preferably placed on tables at waist level, which is where the nice, new products are placed. Discounted, or old merchandise gets relegated to less favorable positions on low tables or on higher shelves. Sweaters, for instance, are typically folded as they can stretch. There are exceptions to this height/touch rule with essential products like jeans and shoes. Available space comprises another exception to this generalization. The store I work in is always overstocked. The backrooms are overflowing with merchandise itching to be sold. Seasonal items for weather or fashion such as hats, gloves, scarves, purses or jewelry decorate the walls, often beyond easy reach as there is no other place to put them. The draw back to this is that these walls are only purchased from when something is required, not from spontaneous browsing. Toys also need to be organized and well placed, but in a different way than clothes. For instance faces (if the toy has one) need to be facing out and preferably down, so the kid can make eye contact and demand the parent purchase it. Unfortunately there isn't enough floor space for all the toys to be at hand- or even eye-level. Kids also have hit-or-miss control over their parents' pocketbooks. Typically what happens is that an item is put on the Birthday or Christmas list as some kid is dragged along on mommy or daddy's shopping expedition. Kids are also frequently dropped off at sections with toys to play and touch unsupervised. Rather like how some parents use TVs as pseudo babysitters. If these unsupervised children falls in love with something and refuses to put it down, the parent usually buys it, especially if it spares them a tantrum.
2) This brings me to my next observation of parenting. What a mixed bag. From parents who whistle for their kids to parents who never let go of little hands. Most common seems to be the whining toddler/child/tween and a harangued-looking mother tuning the kid out. Teenagers are let to wander freely, often with their parents credit cards. Which store policy doesn't allow them to use in case of credit card theft.
3) Manners. Most of my customers are laid back; not always patient, but friendly. Sales associates are expected to be cheerful, friendly and helpful during all customer interactions. I try to do a good job, usually to positive results. Typically there is at least the token response of 'Hello' or 'Yeah, thanks.' As long as the customers know I am there and approachable I leave them to their browsing. Most people respond well to this, and alert me if they need something. Others have been very rude. The people I have experienced as most likely to be rude to me are older women with expensive-looking jewelry and 'elite' clothing brands as well as late-teen girls wearing scant clothing and who stink of perfume. Those without expensive-looking jewelry or inappropriate clothes are often neutrally polite, even friendly. Others seem to be more appreciative of help, such as young mothers, mothers with more than one kid under five and fathers who need a specific item (like a dress shirt for his son) but have no idea about the details, like size, cut, color or probability of wife/mom approval.
Edit: In someways working in retail was a fascinating experience. In many other ways it was.... This will likely be my first and last post about my retail experience.
Friday, March 21, 2014
Old Post: Sugi's
Note: In the interest of laziness and posterity, I've decided to repost old work from previous blog attempts. I like them, and they might provide more insight into why I struggled to maintain these blogs. They are reposted in rough chronological order.
I’m unsure about the business of writing blogs. How do I generate interesting, relevant content? Must it be truthful? Must it be personally experienced? Ideally, the answer would be yes. ’Truthful’ and ‘personally experienced’ are simple enough while ‘interesting’ is more difficult. Must a blog actually be a narrative? Can a good blog consist of disjointed episodic installments? I know I can manage episodic installments according to a specific theme. The idea of a narrative is much more daunting.
To begin our adventure, we will take small steps, to one of my favorite stores in Lafayette: Sugi’s Fine Bedding and Gifts.
Sugi’s Fine Bedding and Gifts has been a family owned and operated Japanese bedding and gift store in Lafayette California for 11 years. Sugi’s resides in a cute yellow shop with little rainbow whirligigs outside. Inside Sugi’s is a warm, welcoming, meditative atmosphere with soft Japanese music in the background. They have earned a stellar reputation with their authentic Japanese goods, their patient and detail-oriented customer service, and their reasonable prices. Sugi’s prices are frequently lower than those in San Francisco’s Japan Town for items of equal or higher quality. They offer Japanese incense sets, beautiful boxes, mugs, scarves, robes, meditation cushions, and tons of other great stuff. Yet Sugi’s strong reputation actually stems from their custom-made futons. A futon is a Japanese-style bed which rests directly on the floor and can be folded to be put away in a closet or trunk. Traditionally, Japanese homes are small and feature many innovations to conserve living-space. Sugi’s futons come in a variety of sizes and are wrapped in luxurious patterned covers with 1500 thread count. The covers are available in a dizzying plethora of colors and designs, and can be selected right in the store. The futon mattresses are made of natural, soft, and durable materials, and are also immediately available to the customer. This diversity and immediate availability are typical of Sugi’s as they have been known for their efficient business, with prompt and friendly customer service and a well-stocked variety of merchandise.
In fact, I have been so taken with the quality of their futons that I have ordered my own to be made. It should be ready in about a week. I’ll let you all know how it turned out.
EDIT: I LOVE my new futon! It is simply fabulous. My futon is incredibly comfortable and sturdy.
Post Edit: Futon has endured frequent use & abuse well. Highly recommend.
I’m unsure about the business of writing blogs. How do I generate interesting, relevant content? Must it be truthful? Must it be personally experienced? Ideally, the answer would be yes. ’Truthful’ and ‘personally experienced’ are simple enough while ‘interesting’ is more difficult. Must a blog actually be a narrative? Can a good blog consist of disjointed episodic installments? I know I can manage episodic installments according to a specific theme. The idea of a narrative is much more daunting.
To begin our adventure, we will take small steps, to one of my favorite stores in Lafayette: Sugi’s Fine Bedding and Gifts.
Sugi’s Fine Bedding and Gifts has been a family owned and operated Japanese bedding and gift store in Lafayette California for 11 years. Sugi’s resides in a cute yellow shop with little rainbow whirligigs outside. Inside Sugi’s is a warm, welcoming, meditative atmosphere with soft Japanese music in the background. They have earned a stellar reputation with their authentic Japanese goods, their patient and detail-oriented customer service, and their reasonable prices. Sugi’s prices are frequently lower than those in San Francisco’s Japan Town for items of equal or higher quality. They offer Japanese incense sets, beautiful boxes, mugs, scarves, robes, meditation cushions, and tons of other great stuff. Yet Sugi’s strong reputation actually stems from their custom-made futons. A futon is a Japanese-style bed which rests directly on the floor and can be folded to be put away in a closet or trunk. Traditionally, Japanese homes are small and feature many innovations to conserve living-space. Sugi’s futons come in a variety of sizes and are wrapped in luxurious patterned covers with 1500 thread count. The covers are available in a dizzying plethora of colors and designs, and can be selected right in the store. The futon mattresses are made of natural, soft, and durable materials, and are also immediately available to the customer. This diversity and immediate availability are typical of Sugi’s as they have been known for their efficient business, with prompt and friendly customer service and a well-stocked variety of merchandise.
In fact, I have been so taken with the quality of their futons that I have ordered my own to be made. It should be ready in about a week. I’ll let you all know how it turned out.
EDIT: I LOVE my new futon! It is simply fabulous. My futon is incredibly comfortable and sturdy.
Post Edit: Futon has endured frequent use & abuse well. Highly recommend.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Goals and other challenges (again)
In a previous post, we almost talked about goals. Almost. I was so close!
Instead of talking about goals, I engaged in a meandering rant that vaguely had to do with why goals are hard and believe helps difficult things happen. Or something. That post redacted. Stream of consciousness is over rated.
ANYWAY.
GOALS.
I'm learning about them. Goals require structure to build, maintain and achieve. Goals also require some kind of renewal or check-in to stay on course. Many adults fall down in their goals because they're required to create their own structure. Many people also fail to renew or reassess their goals. Personally, I've found both difficult as before parents & school provided the structure and assessment. Bah.
Goals also require time. All goals require an expenditure of time to be completed. Some goals need to be competed within a certain time frame. Deadlines or due dates create a built in accountability factor. Personally, I've found due dates are only effective if I need to answer to someone else. It's the other person that creates the motivation and urgency, not the date. For example, I'd always lose motivation to work on a project if the professor pushed back the due date. Not only did I suddenly have more time to work, but I knew that the "deadline" was a softer "injury line" (or something) and that I could probably take advantage of the professor's show of weakness to turn the project in even latter. Urgency? Significance? Naaaah.
(On the flip-side, while I prefer clear and consistent instructions, I hate to be micromanaged.)
Goals seem simple in theory. They are much harder to apply in real life. The unknowable future is always throwing curve balls forcing perfectly good decisions to be reassessed. Sticking to goals also requires discipline and a fair amount of foresight. As in years of foresight. Not next just an awareness of next week or next month, but years. Decades. I suspect this gets easier with age, when temporal perspectives are backed by personal experience. Ironically, this would mean that the longer I live, the less time I have to apply my lengthening foresight. Unless of course I make plans for great grandchildren or other factors not to be experienced in my lifetime.
As for discipline....I'm learning it. One big thing I've found is that structure makes good habits the path of least resistance, and in making habits, the structure gets reinforced, round and round it goes. Another big thing I've learned is that making decisions in advance avoids choice-overwhelm. Competing interests? Already prioritized. Duplicate menu items? Ignored. Too many choices? Already assessed. By making decisions in advance I can simply cut out new factors that only cry for my attention without really changing things. This strategy falls down when I have trouble determining which new factor is only a distributive, shiney bauble or actually important. As with anything else learnable, discipline requires practice. Discipline, being a "virtue" is easier to practice if it's considered it's own reward. Not like a tedious obligation or chore or bore or obstacle to fun. No, those mentalities make it much harder. >_<
Instead of talking about goals, I engaged in a meandering rant that vaguely had to do with why goals are hard and believe helps difficult things happen. Or something. That post redacted. Stream of consciousness is over rated.
ANYWAY.
GOALS.
I'm learning about them. Goals require structure to build, maintain and achieve. Goals also require some kind of renewal or check-in to stay on course. Many adults fall down in their goals because they're required to create their own structure. Many people also fail to renew or reassess their goals. Personally, I've found both difficult as before parents & school provided the structure and assessment. Bah.
Goals also require time. All goals require an expenditure of time to be completed. Some goals need to be competed within a certain time frame. Deadlines or due dates create a built in accountability factor. Personally, I've found due dates are only effective if I need to answer to someone else. It's the other person that creates the motivation and urgency, not the date. For example, I'd always lose motivation to work on a project if the professor pushed back the due date. Not only did I suddenly have more time to work, but I knew that the "deadline" was a softer "injury line" (or something) and that I could probably take advantage of the professor's show of weakness to turn the project in even latter. Urgency? Significance? Naaaah.
(On the flip-side, while I prefer clear and consistent instructions, I hate to be micromanaged.)
Goals seem simple in theory. They are much harder to apply in real life. The unknowable future is always throwing curve balls forcing perfectly good decisions to be reassessed. Sticking to goals also requires discipline and a fair amount of foresight. As in years of foresight. Not next just an awareness of next week or next month, but years. Decades. I suspect this gets easier with age, when temporal perspectives are backed by personal experience. Ironically, this would mean that the longer I live, the less time I have to apply my lengthening foresight. Unless of course I make plans for great grandchildren or other factors not to be experienced in my lifetime.
As for discipline....I'm learning it. One big thing I've found is that structure makes good habits the path of least resistance, and in making habits, the structure gets reinforced, round and round it goes. Another big thing I've learned is that making decisions in advance avoids choice-overwhelm. Competing interests? Already prioritized. Duplicate menu items? Ignored. Too many choices? Already assessed. By making decisions in advance I can simply cut out new factors that only cry for my attention without really changing things. This strategy falls down when I have trouble determining which new factor is only a distributive, shiney bauble or actually important. As with anything else learnable, discipline requires practice. Discipline, being a "virtue" is easier to practice if it's considered it's own reward. Not like a tedious obligation or chore or bore or obstacle to fun. No, those mentalities make it much harder. >_<
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Narcissistism and post killing.
Big shocker, like most people I have narcissistic tendencies. I'm a bit embarrassed by this tendency. In looking over never-published drafts of things, I've found blatant egotism or naval gazing to be the #1 reason why I'd write something and never publish it. After all, I'm very important to myself, and I think I'm really interesting; but I don't see why anyone else would feel the same way. No, I'd like to write things that have genuine appeal to other people.
Why else would I bother to write things down when it's so much easier to talk to myself? In the past, this would be the primary reason I'd never post to a blog. Regardless of initial grand visions of carefully researched, lengthy articles, or funny social commentary imbued with dry wit, I'd be too self conscious to actually post something.
This time round, I'm much more interested in having words to my name than what anyone else might like of me or my words. Ya'll can go fuck yourselves! (But please feel free to leave comments. Seriously. I want your comments. Please?)
When ever I do something or start something that isn't clearly for work or school or family, I always ask "why bother?" "why do I want this?"
Why bother indeed?
Well, I've found that I'm happier when I'm just writing. Not writing for a clear purpose or goal, just writing. And, honestly, I do want to talk about myself. A lot. Writing is an outlet for a topic that isn't often raised in conversation, lest the conversation be killed or the relationship strained.
Why do I want this?
Well, if it's for fame, glory or money, statistically speaking, I'm barking up the wrong tree. While a few sparkling souls, like Allie Brosh of Hyperbol and a half are launched into spectacular prominence as the masses can empathize, laugh and imagine reflections of themselves in her work, most of us are only moderately clever and have short attention spans. Oh well.
Fame & glory sound like way too much trouble. Have you ever looked at celebrity magazines and only felt pity rather than envy or curiosity? But money sounds nice. I'd like to have money. Who here has made any money from writing? Riiiiiight.
So why am I persisting in the vain, needless effort in blog writing? That's a good question. I suppose it really stems from the belief that if I can write on a regular basis, all the other parts of my life will fall in to place, While I'd like to have writing interesting enough for others to comment on, the main reason I return to blogging, is accountability. Regardless of whether my work is any good or of any interest to anyone, I'd really like to have a record of growth that can be witnessed by any who care to look.
Why else would I bother to write things down when it's so much easier to talk to myself? In the past, this would be the primary reason I'd never post to a blog. Regardless of initial grand visions of carefully researched, lengthy articles, or funny social commentary imbued with dry wit, I'd be too self conscious to actually post something.
This time round, I'm much more interested in having words to my name than what anyone else might like of me or my words. Ya'll can go fuck yourselves! (But please feel free to leave comments. Seriously. I want your comments. Please?)
When ever I do something or start something that isn't clearly for work or school or family, I always ask "why bother?" "why do I want this?"
Why bother indeed?
Well, I've found that I'm happier when I'm just writing. Not writing for a clear purpose or goal, just writing. And, honestly, I do want to talk about myself. A lot. Writing is an outlet for a topic that isn't often raised in conversation, lest the conversation be killed or the relationship strained.
Why do I want this?
Well, if it's for fame, glory or money, statistically speaking, I'm barking up the wrong tree. While a few sparkling souls, like Allie Brosh of Hyperbol and a half are launched into spectacular prominence as the masses can empathize, laugh and imagine reflections of themselves in her work, most of us are only moderately clever and have short attention spans. Oh well.
Fame & glory sound like way too much trouble. Have you ever looked at celebrity magazines and only felt pity rather than envy or curiosity? But money sounds nice. I'd like to have money. Who here has made any money from writing? Riiiiiight.
So why am I persisting in the vain, needless effort in blog writing? That's a good question. I suppose it really stems from the belief that if I can write on a regular basis, all the other parts of my life will fall in to place, While I'd like to have writing interesting enough for others to comment on, the main reason I return to blogging, is accountability. Regardless of whether my work is any good or of any interest to anyone, I'd really like to have a record of growth that can be witnessed by any who care to look.
Monday, March 17, 2014
In search of an independent future
In the previous post, I mentioned the first reason for this blog's name "Independent Future."
I very much hope that the extremely broad, relatively meaningless title will mitigate bouts of writer's block, paralytic perfectionism and all sorts of other angst self-induced obstacles.
The second reason ties into my purpose for writing a blog at all. I hope that if I can write regularly, I'll be able to extend that discipline and creative force to other areas of my life. Publishing my work will serve to hold me accountable to an invisible "audience."
Discipline, creative energy and accountability will go a long way to helping me achieve my goals.
Here are some goals wants currently at the forefront of my mind.
1) Financial Independence. What does this mean? Good question. I don't know yet. Probably either finding a role I'm truly passionate about and would love to dedicate my life to that also earns a stable income. OR having enough stashed away that I can afford to donate my time to activities that I love but are unlikely to produce much of an income. (Either way I need to learn fiscal discipline, or I'll burn everything no matter what I earn.)
2) Independence. Wow. Even vaguer than the last one. I'd like to know… of all the things I'd like to do, which are truly important to me. There are a lot of things I'd like to do, so many in fact that I could never do then all or at least do then all well. These ambitions also have prerequisites: skills I'd need to learn and experiences I'd need to earn. These skills and experiences would also be major time sinks and I'd have to cut other activities to make room for them. This leads to point three.
3) Control. I suspect that if I can control myself and my surroundings, I can initiate all the positive results that I desire. From what I've read and what I've seen, this level of self determination starts with self-discipline. I'm certain there's a way to get most of what I want with a reasonable amount of effort, if I can only be strategic enough. I'm still learning the 'how' bit. If I come across anything promising, I'll share!
4) A home I've built. (That sounds so melodramatic and angsty!) Yes, I can always move in with my parents or even my extended family if things got tough & I asked nicely. Yes, I have wonderful friends. Yes, I have a good, positive, stable relationship with my parents, extended family and friends. BUT. I very badly want my own little corner of the world. This little corner will have a yard (likely in various stages of decay from my brown thumb), S.B., whom I adore, a dog (maybe a cat if S.B. insists) and of course a guest room for family to visit (briefly). This little patch of world may even have kids on it, but that really depends on what S.B. thinks of the matter.
Sunday, March 16, 2014
To an Independent Future.
That's kind of a vainglorious, pompous,
ambitious name for a blog, huh?
Oddly enough, my first few choices were
already taken. Drat. (And yet they were all more pretentious than
this one.)
I've decided to call this blog
"Independent Future" for two reasons. First, it's nice and vague. I hope the vagueness will increase the
longevity of this blog. Like many other people, I've started countless
"blogs" and then let them wither and die for fear of being boring.
In the past (maybe some can relate to this) I've started blogs with silly
or overly specific names, and then ran out of things to say on the
"theme." Or I'd realize that my meanderings were entirely
solipsistic and narcissistic, of no possible interest to anyone but myself.
Or worse yet, I'd be locked into a paralytic state of
perfectionism.
No more!
This blog will deal with the widest
possible subject matter. I will edit as lightly as grammatical decency
allows. Of the many, many subjects that interest me, I will focus on the
broader implication and not only on why I care. I'll also keep my work
short.
Once I've produced a fair amount of
content, I'll organize it around topics and themes. I'll refine the content.
I'll focus on consistent interests. But to do that now would result in
pages and pages of unfinished work and a blog with no content.
Here's to a thematically challenged yet
active, living blog.
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