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Lovely Transitions

Where do I begin to tell the story of how great humankind can be
The sweet love story that is older than the cosmos.

Maybe by now, you have noticed that I have started with those special words, customized by yours truly, from the lovely movie Love Story. Why did I start this way? Simple: On my ongoing journey of transitioning from the simple, uncomplex, fine 20th century to the thoroughly complex, thoroughly pathetic, and so hard 21st century, I could think of no other words to start this new act of transition on my part.

Do any of you all remember the movie Love Story? This story involved two people who absolutely loved each other; but one of the pair died, making this love story a tragedy. For me, myself, and I: I love life, I love being alive, and I love interacting with life. However, because of all the fall-d-rall of today’s world, I have major difficulty of loving life today, with even a 10th of what I did earlier in my life.

Where do I begin to tell the story …? Well, there are the numerous drivers who insist on breaking the rules when they are driving. What stop sign, honey did you see the stop light, no right turns, turning left on red; shall I go on? Or, what about today’s so-called customer service? Press 1 if you want a so-so answer, Press 2 if you want to talk to someone inside of the current continent, Press 3 if you do not mind waiting the next 3 days on hold without any muzak, or its equivalent, and …; you get the idea. Does any business or other such organization or government, have people who are willing to treat the customer/client/patient with the degree of service such people are accustomed to or grew up with? My immediate and major thought re Customer Service is this: our POTUS needs to declare a national service of mourning for the concept known as Customer Service that promotes that the customer is always right.

Nowadays, because no one, and I mean no one of the rich and greedy companies that claim to be the best in the world, wants to even suggest, imply, or micro-consider that mistakes are indeed possible. Instead, they will do absolutely anything and everything to insure that the blame is on the customer/client/patient. Now, we are responsible for any wrong doing, no matter what.

Alrighty, time to get a bit realistic: yes, I know that companies want to make trillions of money, that companies want to be the absolute best or quite near perfect, and that companies do not want a negative image of any and all types. However, I am a child of the fifties and sixties: I have grown up, and I have been taught, complete with the complementary spanking from my father, to operate throughout my life in a certain manner. Right? Is this the way most of my readers were raised?

Today, I do not believe children are being raised properly; this is based on my experiences and first-hand interactions with others. Today, I believe that every child born believes they are the king/queen/emperor of their very own existence. They are entitled, they are in control, and they want what they want when they want it, and no later than the next micro-second. Surely, many of you have met these children, usually in their teen years, or worse, in college, and found out that I speak some truth.

Well, dear readers, I am running out of steam and motivation. Yes, I do understand that everyone is going through transitions. Yes, I do understand that there are still people like myself who want a particular type of life. And, I believe, and know, that what I write is my own interpretation of life today. ‘Til next time, dear readers.


Automobile Drivers Past Present

Will someone, or can someone, tell me where all the fine, outstanding drivers of the past have disappeared to? You know, the ones who were courteous, kind, polite, watching the road and others, and … you get the idea. Where did they go? Were they, I hope figuratively, run over by today’s discourteously, obnoxious, and unkind drivers? Oh, the lament of one of those drivers of old, who must survive in today’s insane world!

When I was growing up, my parents were fine drivers: considerate toward other drivers, staying between the lines on the highway or interstate, driving at a safe pace, and, being very aware of their surroundings. Furthermore, my parents were: careful planners with regard to travel times, places to stop, and so forth; they had four kids, I was the oldest, to consider and remember as they drove from here to there. Today, my mother does not drive; however, if she did, I know that she too would have difficulty adjusting to the insane and, definitely dangerous, drivers of today. Zoom … Zoom … Zooming away. Does anyone remember how fast the Roadrunner was from the cartoons?

I truly, and thoroughly, do remember the Roadrunner and how fast he, the roadrunner was a he, wasn’t he, could run. I do not believe, with all my heart, and I hope to die-sorta way, that he, she, or it, the Roadrunner, would have a chance against today’s drivers. Wow and what the … [this is a polite rant; thus, all the same, I will not swear] are today’s drivers up to? To say they are speed-demons is to say too little; or, to say that they are inherently insane, is, again, saying too little. Who are these young drivers, and why do they put their brains to sleep when they get behind the wheel? Once more: were they brought up this way, is this a continuation or exaggeration of the self-belief that they are invulnerable to any and all danger of driving so fast?

Alas, I do not believe that there are any “of-course” answers to this dilemma. As I write this, I am reminded of the numerous drivers who raced at above-35-mph on a residential street, and of the ones that take up the whole middle of a driveway and demand, and expect, you, the other driver, get out of their way, or else!!!

I could go on and on and on and on; now, I am through, for the time being. I have said basically what I wanted to say, and there is always the next time. Maybe, just maybe, I have reached one of those very dangerous to humanity drivers, and that person will slow down. I wish; just like I wish we will all have a POTUS that is kind, considerate, knowledgeable, and truly a fine person for the country, maybe even the world. Yeah right?!? Enough.

Transitions, Part XXXVIIIIII

Greetings and salutations, my fellow readers, listeners, and the like. Once more, I have the need to rant some about that problematic journey, from the late 20th-century to the early 21st-century; also includes major observations.

Today’s transitions primarily focus on customer service: what was then, what I grew up with, and how I perceive said concept today and beyond.

When I was growing up, the customer was always right. Also, the customer was trusted, honest, and more; earned a second or fifth chance if a mistake was made, due to customer trust and respectability. Now … not ready to say yet.

I remember a corner store up the hill from my family home in Oakland, California: short walk from home, full of many things and items, and possibly quite fun to visit. Do remember that my parents did most, if not all, shopping at the Berkeley Co-Op; this was a relatively large operation. Oh, in those days, I lived in Oakland from, roughly, Kindergarten to the 1st grade, there was a milkman who hand-delivered milk.

Upon moving to Davis in 1963, we had a grocery store, locally run, that was near my family’s neighborhood. Do remember doing some personal shopping there; and: the ability for my mother to do some family shopping. She would go to a large-chain store to get major items, when we could afford said items. Oh: there was also a downtown, very local, clothing store; eventually there were a couple larger stores, later on.

Overall, overarching, thoroughly running over and through all these shops, markets, or grocery stores in my growing years was: a sense of right, a sense of honesty, and, most important: the customer was vital and was treated with care. Now … once more, I am not quite ready to admit.

Now, some of you may be saying or thinking to themselves: what country, century, or the like did I grow up in? Glad you asked: I grew up between the years 1955 to 1974, when I graduated from high school. People were in smaller numbers, streets were not clogged with tons of cars, few sales occurred, if at all, and, once more, the customer was valued, highly regarded, and supported by the store or grocery market; after all: return business was the primary goal back then; right?

Now having visited or described the past, my past, let us jump to the early 21st century. Ready? Are you prepared for this? Or, are so involved in the 21st-century, that my past is something beyond any and all comprehension; if the latter, I am sorry to take up your valuable time.

Today, customer-based businesses are all driven by the dollar; excuse me: by the multitudes of millions and billions dollars made, and little in the way of expenses. Am I correct? Yes, dear reader, I know that there are still some mom-n-pop shops, repair shops that still provide that “the customer is to be served” attitude, and the occasional large retail business, that hangs onto very old, ancient, values of the faraway past.

Do I even have to provide examples of insensitive sales people, of clerks and staff that insist on following scripts that have been analyzed and evaluated to achieve the highest, if not higher, profits for the company, or the down-right banks of people answering impersonal phone calls to a call center? I did not think so; we have, right, all experienced this.

For a man of the fifties, who was punished when he did wrong, was raised with very high morals and ethics, and who, when the time arrived to take on a job, career, or both, knew that he represented the company he was working for. Today … I doubt I have to say much more; or do I?

So many times, in the very recent past, I have been reminded that: the customer is not to be trusted, transactions must be thoroughly monitored by outside agencies, and, if someone dares to return an item for any reasonable reason, that person must jump through, what feel like millions of hoops. After all: who dares return an item, raise a consumer-related issue, or desire some advice from what was once a customer-based operation, instead of today’s profit machine? Oh, transition, transition, and again I say, transition; from a true customer-is-right approach to one, today, that declares the customer is to be considered fraudulent, or dishonest. Enough said.

Transitions

Today’s rant has to do with the unavoidable transition from the late-twentieth century to the 21st century. Basically, how difficult it has been for me, a 63 year old man, to adjust, to internalize, and overall, accept today’s century.

Primarily, I have a hard time to interact with changes, such as: customer service [then and now], those who break laws deliberately, and overall living in an ever-changing world; not to mention, in my very own community.

I had no choice, if I wanted to keep on living, to transition from 1999 to 2000+ on the calendar. Time passed, whether or not I was ready. I admit: I thought I could transition, that I could adapt, and that life as I knew it, would continue without forethought, reservation, or even a healthy pause to catch my breath. Truly: why could I not get a breather, an undefinable moment or 17, or even time getting cut in half, so I could pause, re-consider my options, and prepare myself for a whole new world.

Yes, I wanted some time to adjust. Naturally, I was given amble time to adjust to the 21st century, during the first few or couple years. Again, during those earlier years, I fully, thoroughly, and without doubt believed that I could handle any and all changes. Right? What could be so hard doing what every other 6 or 7 billion people were doing in their daily lives? It was, and continues to be, quite hard.

For now, I shall finish this particular rant by ranting about those who break any and all lives, to suit their needs, desires, and wants.

Yes, I have, and I fully believe this to be true, stated that many other people on this planet of ours are breaking the law. How? Simple: running through red lights, going much faster than the posted speed limit, driving through stop signs, making illegal left turns [e.g., making the left turn on a red light], or speeding through intersections, without any regard for human life, especially those who are children. How can, how does someone driving like a speedster at the Indy 500, not care, or not seem to care, if children get hurt by breaking a law? I mean, really? How does someone like this live?

Once again, simply. People today, especially our young, do not live beyond the current moment. Thus: there is no accountability for breaking the law, there is no responsibility for not following the laws of the road, and there is no concern about such actions, as any mistake, law breaking, or otherwise unhealthy act happened yesterday; or its equivalent.

Until next time, my readers, fellow ranters, and the like. Thank you for reading today.