WordSisters

  • “Go On, Git”

    Elizabeth di Grazia's avatar

    Elizabeth di Grazia

    I’m excited about Juan Jose’ and Crystel growing up. Each milestone they have, I celebrate.

    Sometimes, I’m ready before they are.

    I couldn’t wait for Juan Jose’ to learn how to ride his bike without training wheels. Crystel had been riding for months. Finally, I convinced him to give it a try. We went to a grassy knoll at our nearby park. Along with his bike helmet, he insisted on wearing knee, elbow and wrist pads. If he could have figured out how to bungee a pillow around his waist, I’m sure that he would have.

    With a push, I launched him. At high speed, he sailed down the rise, pedaled when he hit the flat field, and after he biked as far as he could, he fell.

    From that moment, he had enough confidence to bike on his own.

    Some parents lament time passing too quickly for their children. I’m loving it. It can’t come quick enough for me. Is this because I’m an older parent? I’m 58-years old with two 14-year olds. I want to be present for all of their firsts.

    Or, is it because I was numb as a teenager? I thought I’d be dead by the time I was 25.

    Through Juan Jose’ and Crystel, I experience their thrills, their excitement, and their fear. I get to see what being alive looks like.

    Recently, Juan Jose’, Crystel, and a friend attended a moped driving class. I expected there to be other 14-year-olds in the classroom. When I opened the door, I was surprised. There were adults with tattoos, mustaches, beards, muscle shirts, and bulking biceps sitting at desks.

    I pushed the children into the classroom without any protective gear. All of a sudden, they were surrounded by a classroom of grownups. They were launched.

    I told the teacher, “I found these folks looking for the moped class.” Now, they are learning to drive.

     

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  • Shopping? Let Me Grab My Laptop!

    Ellen Shriner's avatar

    Ellen Shriner

    When I received a gift of money recently, my first impulse was to grab my laptop and shop online. Maybe there are some summer tops on sale. Wait. What? I’m going to shop online despite having a stack of 30% off and $10 off coupons from local department stores? Even though I might have to pay shipping charges? Um, yeah. For me, online clothes shopping is more fun than in-store shopping.

     

    It wasn’t always this way. A long time ago, in a land far away, when my sister and I accompanied my mother on shopping trips to department stores, it was a fun excursion (for us, anyway). We all had to change out of our grubby around-the-house clothes and into something more presentable. There was a saleslady and cash register in every department. She’d help you find another color and bring the item to your dressing room—so my mother didn’t have to get completely dressed again or send my sister and me on a mission to fetch another size. Sometimes Mom would treat us to Cokes in the store’s coffee shop, while she had a cup of coffee.

    Fast forward to today. On the rare occasion when I shop in-store at places like Macy’s, Kohl’s, JCPenney, or Herberger’s, my chances of finding a sales clerk are slim. Plenty of times, I’ve zigzagged through the store before I spot one several departments away. And this bored underpaid person doesn’t look too happy to see me with my question about another size.

    To be fair, I have an uneasy relationship with sales clerks. The ones I remember from my girlhood often looked down their nose at me and my teenaged girlfriends as we flipped through the racks. When I was older and clearly a serious shopper, often a saleslady’s “help” turned into pushy upsell.

    Today, if I want a snack to fuel my shopping, I can buy bottled water and a candy bar at the checkout. Not exactly the same as sipping a leisurely Coke while spinning on stools at the counter with my sister and mom.

    I do get that customers like me helped change the retail experience. We don’t come because it’s no fun, and it’s no fun because we don’t come.

    Nevertheless, if I want to shop for clothes these days, I’m most likely to be sprawled on my bed in my nightgown. There I can happily scroll through several store websites at once, checking for clearance items and considering the possibilities. Maybe the blue patterned one. No wait, what about the green one? And my coffee’s near at hand.

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    9 responses to “Shopping? Let Me Grab My Laptop!”

    1. bbachel Avatar
      bbachel

      I still have not embraced online shopping other than for books…feel like I already spend far too much time at my computer plus I’m not a big shopper…but your post me realize that a little attitude adjustment might go a long way in how I view the experience. Thanks for that.

      1. Ellen Shriner Avatar
        Ellen Shriner

        No need to embrace online shopping unless you prefer it to in-store shopping!

    2. Ann Coleman Avatar
      Ann Coleman

      I think online shopping is the way of the future, but I have to admit, I’m not a fan. I miss the stores, and the whole experience. Plus, I like to feel the material and try things on before I buy, because my body is actually several different sizes. That being said, no one is designing clothes for middle aged women, and the stores aren’t being kept up at all!

      1. Ellen Shriner Avatar
        Ellen Shriner

        Agreed! I was returning something last week and the store’s carpet had stains in numerous places. I can’t figure out why designers don’t design for us — we spend more than teenagers!

    3. Life of Janine Avatar
      Life of Janine

      How many of us have some of our best memories from the mall on Saturday afternoon? I do still go to the ‘real’ mall and try on clothes. Then I come home and buy them online! LOL

      1. Ellen Shriner Avatar
        Ellen Shriner

        That’s funny!

    4. Eliza Waters Avatar
      Eliza Waters

      Sad, but true. The retail experience isn’t what it was. When I do go, I try on umpteen items (with no clerk to get another if the size isn’t right) and I’m lucky if I come away with one thing. Needless to say, I rarely go! Luckily, garden grubbies is pretty much all I need to wear. 😉

      1. Ellen Shriner Avatar
        Ellen Shriner

        What I didn’t mention was how frustrating it is to find styles that make sense for women my age. Fortunately, I can be casual most of the time!

        1. Eliza Waters Avatar
          Eliza Waters

          Yes! Not everyone is shaped like a teenager, hello!

  • It Happened Like This …

    Elizabeth di Grazia's avatar

    Elizabeth di Grazia

    Crystel and Tio Scott Photo by Tia Anna

    Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how I choose to look at it, I have many personal examples when I hold employee meetings or talk with my children regarding undesirable behavior.

    This past week I met with employees in Grand Forks, North Dakota to discuss profanity in the workplace. In meetings, I first try to establish that I’m not much different from who they are. My position today as a Human Resources Manager was not where I started. I began my career more than thirty years ago, running an inserting machine on the night shift, was promoted to lead person, then Supervisor.

    I told the employees that when I was a supervisor, I would say,“What did you f..k up now?” when I dealt with a challenging employee who was constantly making mistakes. My boss informed me that my language was not appropriate. Even so, the next night before I even knew it, before I could stop myself, I said the exact same thing to the exact same employee who once again had screwed up. This time, my boss made it clear that I would be fired if it happened again.

    I had heard that profanity was a sign of a limited vocabulary. Whether that’s true or not, I don’t know. What I do know is that it took me concerted effort to stop swearing. It certainly was embedded behavior.

    Juan Jose

    Recently, our employee meeting was focused on hygiene in the workplace. Our manufacturing plants are Safe Quality Food certified, meaning that we are held to a high standard when it comes to conditions on our manufacturing floor. I used the example of my father coming to one of my brother’s football games without changing from his farm clothes. They laughed watching my face turn red at the memory. “Whatever you are doing before you come to work, change into your work uniform and your work shoes. Don’t bring the dirt from the fields in here.”

    “It happened like this,” I said, to Juan Jose and Crystel, when I was teaching them about why bullying was wrong. I began by telling them how I bullied a kid mercilessly and often was in fights in middle school. “Did you ever run away from home?” Juan asked. “Once,” I said. “I was going to hop a train. I can’t imagine you or Crystel ever running away. Even parents want to be adopted by me and Mama Jody.” I paused. Well, unless it’s drugs, alcohol, or sex, I thought but didn’t say. Then again, if that happens, we’ll deal. I’ve got examples of that too.  

     

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    One response to “It Happened Like This …”

    1. Jody diGrazia Avatar
      Jody diGrazia

      Nice blog post. I didn’t see it on facebook but might have missed it.

      ________________________________

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