Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Faith in God?
There is a question mark in the subject line for those who do not know what "Faith in God" means. It means that you trust God to provide for you no matter what comes your way. People have a problem believing in something they cannot touch, see, nor feel, but that is what "Faith" is all about. Believing in something that you cannot really touch, see, nor feel. I have always had faith in God, believing that God will provide for me until the day I die. It takes the worry about where your next meal, where you will live, and how you will survive off your mind. If you have any spiritual inkling within you, you should be able to have faith and move along in life without worrying how you will be taken care of. You see, God will make sure that you are taken care of. It may not be exactly the way you thought it would be, but you will be taken care of.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Purpose in Life?
All of us have a purpose in life. The job that we do is important to somebody, no matter what that job is. Somebody sewed the suits together that the astronauts wore on the Columbia mission. Somebody planted the vegetables and raised the animals that puts food on your table.
We all have an impact on all of those with that we come in contact with. In some way we shape them, based on their impression of us.
I feel that I have made positive impressions on those that I have come in contact with during my life time. In some way, I have left each person that I have met with a positive outlook on life, whether it was the way I smiled at them, laughed, worked, or played with them.
Life has been good and it can only get better as long as we remember that we are important to others and they are important to us.
Remember to tell the person and people that you love, that you love them.
You never know when you walk away from them if it will be the last time you will see them or not.
Live each day as if it were your last.
Do something nice for someone. It will make you feel better about yourself and about the world.
Always remember that everyone has a purpose and a reason for being.
We all have an impact on all of those with that we come in contact with. In some way we shape them, based on their impression of us.
I feel that I have made positive impressions on those that I have come in contact with during my life time. In some way, I have left each person that I have met with a positive outlook on life, whether it was the way I smiled at them, laughed, worked, or played with them.
Life has been good and it can only get better as long as we remember that we are important to others and they are important to us.
Remember to tell the person and people that you love, that you love them.
You never know when you walk away from them if it will be the last time you will see them or not.
Live each day as if it were your last.
Do something nice for someone. It will make you feel better about yourself and about the world.
Always remember that everyone has a purpose and a reason for being.
Psalm 23
My Mother referenced Psalm 23 many times. All of her sons were in the military, and each of them had befallen danger while in the military at some point or another. One of her daughters also went into the military. For the daughters who were not military, they became involved with and married military men. It was Psalm 23 and reinforcement that God was with us that brought us through the perils of evil.
When we thought of our Mother, we were always reminded that God was with us, at all times, good and bad, and even though we may not be able to see him, we definitely feel his presence when danger approaches our protective area.
Thank you Mom for sharing Psalm 23 with us, and thank you God for providing Psalm 23 so our Mother could share your word with us.
When we thought of our Mother, we were always reminded that God was with us, at all times, good and bad, and even though we may not be able to see him, we definitely feel his presence when danger approaches our protective area.
Thank you Mom for sharing Psalm 23 with us, and thank you God for providing Psalm 23 so our Mother could share your word with us.
Friday, January 12, 2007
Working for a Living
I have worked since I was thirteen years old. I have never been without a job and on unemployment until I worked for LexisNexis and was put out on the street at 50 years of age.
I began my work life as a dish washer. I worked for a restaurant called Harvest Hill near Columbus, Ohio when I was only thirteen years old.
My next job was with a restaurant called Frostie in Sabina, Ohio, as a diswasher, when I was sixteen.
I worked for Colonial Food Stores, otherwise known as Albers, while I was a member of the Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) while in high school. I followed in my brother's shadow and was the president of the DECA class at a newly opened Joint Vocational School (JVS) that went into the recently closed Wilmington Air Force Base located in Wilmington, Ohio. The name of the JVS was Laurel Oaks.
From there, I followed in my family footsteps and went into the military. Everyone in my family was enlisted in the military. My father, three of my brothers, and one of my sisters were Navy and one brother was Army. I enlisted in the Air Force to be different. I worked as an Avionic Radio and Radar Communications/Navigations Systems Specialist.
I traveled the world, Germany, Spain, England, Panama, Puerto Rico, Antigua, Spain, Suriname, Ascension Island, to name a few locations.
When I left the Air Force I went into Civil Service as an Electronic Equipment Specialist and then became an Electronic Techician, Computer Specialist, Information Systems Analyst. I left while working as a Computer Specialist to work for LexisNexis when the Defense Electronics Supply Center (DESC) was moved from Dayton to Columbus, Ohio.
I worked as a technical rep at LexisNexis, assisting customers via telephone, helping them resolve problems related to LexisNexis proprietary software. I listened to attorneys who cried when their print jobs for a case in a couple of hours was not printing. I had the power to resend the prints and hear their tears turn into joy when I resent their prints and they received them.
I moved into other positions at LexisNexis before it was determined that my services were no longer needed and "close professional acquaintenances" determined that other individuals were "better qualified" to perform jobs available within their areas. My last position at LexisNexis was as a Web Developer in the eServices area, coding web pages for the internet facing pages that customers and prospective customers view.
When I was "let go" from LexisNexis I went through their "hired outsourcing" agency to prepare my resume and business cards to try to find another job in my area of work. After preparing my business cards and resume, and searching for a job for several months with no luck, I landed a job driving a truck after going through paid training for a Commercial Drivers License (CDL) with Schneider.
I now work for Schneider National as a truck driver, making half the salary that I made while working for LexisNexis.
There is going to be another layoff at LexisNexis in 2007 and my wife and I are fearing that she will lose her job as well.
It would be so nice to hold money over Reed Elsevier's head, like a carrot, as they have done to their loyal employees for so many years. I hear there may be a hostile take over attempt of LexisNexis. That would only be poetic justice if it were to happen.
I began my work life as a dish washer. I worked for a restaurant called Harvest Hill near Columbus, Ohio when I was only thirteen years old.
My next job was with a restaurant called Frostie in Sabina, Ohio, as a diswasher, when I was sixteen.
I worked for Colonial Food Stores, otherwise known as Albers, while I was a member of the Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) while in high school. I followed in my brother's shadow and was the president of the DECA class at a newly opened Joint Vocational School (JVS) that went into the recently closed Wilmington Air Force Base located in Wilmington, Ohio. The name of the JVS was Laurel Oaks.
From there, I followed in my family footsteps and went into the military. Everyone in my family was enlisted in the military. My father, three of my brothers, and one of my sisters were Navy and one brother was Army. I enlisted in the Air Force to be different. I worked as an Avionic Radio and Radar Communications/Navigations Systems Specialist.
I traveled the world, Germany, Spain, England, Panama, Puerto Rico, Antigua, Spain, Suriname, Ascension Island, to name a few locations.
When I left the Air Force I went into Civil Service as an Electronic Equipment Specialist and then became an Electronic Techician, Computer Specialist, Information Systems Analyst. I left while working as a Computer Specialist to work for LexisNexis when the Defense Electronics Supply Center (DESC) was moved from Dayton to Columbus, Ohio.
I worked as a technical rep at LexisNexis, assisting customers via telephone, helping them resolve problems related to LexisNexis proprietary software. I listened to attorneys who cried when their print jobs for a case in a couple of hours was not printing. I had the power to resend the prints and hear their tears turn into joy when I resent their prints and they received them.
I moved into other positions at LexisNexis before it was determined that my services were no longer needed and "close professional acquaintenances" determined that other individuals were "better qualified" to perform jobs available within their areas. My last position at LexisNexis was as a Web Developer in the eServices area, coding web pages for the internet facing pages that customers and prospective customers view.
When I was "let go" from LexisNexis I went through their "hired outsourcing" agency to prepare my resume and business cards to try to find another job in my area of work. After preparing my business cards and resume, and searching for a job for several months with no luck, I landed a job driving a truck after going through paid training for a Commercial Drivers License (CDL) with Schneider.
I now work for Schneider National as a truck driver, making half the salary that I made while working for LexisNexis.
There is going to be another layoff at LexisNexis in 2007 and my wife and I are fearing that she will lose her job as well.
It would be so nice to hold money over Reed Elsevier's head, like a carrot, as they have done to their loyal employees for so many years. I hear there may be a hostile take over attempt of LexisNexis. That would only be poetic justice if it were to happen.
Work Ethics?
Before we talk about work ethics perhaps we should talk first about employer ethics? I mean if you want employees to be loyal to you, shouldn't you be loyal to them? If you want employees to walk your line, then shouldn't you be expected to walk some of the employees' line? What ever happened to treating employees with respect? I mean you want employees to treat the position that you have bestowed upon them with respect, meaning that you do not want them to do anything that would reflect the business in any negative manner, and that you would like for them to be loyal, honest, and forthright, but what about you, employer? Are you being honest, forthright, and respectable when you decide to let employees go just because you can find somebody else who will do a half ass job for you for about 10 percent of the cost? What ever happened to quality, standing behind your product, and assuring your customer that you have the best goods and services to offer them at the lowest possible cost? I guess greed has taken priority over ensuring the work is of the best quality. Loyalty has no merit any longer since employers do not care about the quality of life of their employees. Employers would much rather get more return for their buck than to worry about the quality of life their employees have. It is all about the quickest and biggest bang now, and not about tenure. Did any of you employers learn anything from your elders?
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Happy New Year?
Here comes a new year, new events, new situations, a chance to start over? Well, we will see how prosperous it is. Last year I lost my job and had to start over, driving a truck. This year, we are not sure if my wife will keep her job or not. We have already been through financial readjustment to meet the current income level. If she loses her job, we are going to have to tighten the belt even more. I am not sure where we will be able to tighten up unless we sell our home and rent. We have several other options that are not desirable, but possible.
What is it with "greed"? All corporations are doing it, getting rid of their faithful and hard working employees, trading them in for "cheap" labor. The days of the past, where our parents and grandparents were able to work for a company for years and then get a comfortable retirement are over. From this point forward, all of us are going to have to work the rest of our lives.
Our only hope is to win the lottery in order to enjoy a happy retirement, otherwise, we will be lucky if we can stay out of the soup lines and not end up with the homeless.
What has become of our country's values and taking care of each other?
What is it with "greed"? All corporations are doing it, getting rid of their faithful and hard working employees, trading them in for "cheap" labor. The days of the past, where our parents and grandparents were able to work for a company for years and then get a comfortable retirement are over. From this point forward, all of us are going to have to work the rest of our lives.
Our only hope is to win the lottery in order to enjoy a happy retirement, otherwise, we will be lucky if we can stay out of the soup lines and not end up with the homeless.
What has become of our country's values and taking care of each other?
