Don’t bite the hand that feeds you…

I have seen day in and out people who feel like they are owed something from their employer.  People seem to think that they do their employer a favor by simply existing and because of that they are entitled to something.  To those people I pose the following question:

“Who was hired to do a job?”

Seriously.  Who was hired?  Before you were employed you either did not have a source of income or were relying someone else to provide you with one.  Working in the ministry field I have often been faced with the thought that I may come in to get my paycheck and there not be any money to pay me.  So what motivates me to do my job?  It’s the thought that I am doing something to better society and I am doing something I love.

Now before I am called a socialist, I still expect to get my paycheck.  But it is a far cry from thinking that someone owes me for existing.

I wake up every day knowing that what I am doing with my life is exactly what I want to do.  Work is not work because I am paid to do what I love to do.  The paycheck just happens to be a bonus.

Working at Zaxby’s I see people stealing cookies all the time.  I call them out on it and they literally say that they are not stealing.  When they say they are not stealing I ask them what the act they are performing is called and they cannot give me an answer, they just do it anyways.  Why is it that they think they are entitled to something that is not theirs?  Does that mean that because I work at the radio station that I should be free to take one of the mics because I do not think that they pay me enough?  That would be ludicrous.  When I was hired by the radio station (which by the way I worked at for free for 4 months) I agreed to work at a specific pay scale.  I signed a contract.  That contract says what my payscale is and I agreed to it.

We as humans have to stop believing that our employers owe us something.  Think about what you can do to help other people with your job.  And stop biting the hand that feeds you.  Because if you do not, it will eventually stop feeding you, and that is never fun.  Because then you starve.

Have an opinion?  Leave a comment below…

Ever wanted slow food? (The Microwave conundrum)

Would you go to a restaurant if it were called slow-food?  “Your food is cooked to quality and delivered without sacrificing any aspect of your dining experience” would be the slogan.  After about two days I have the feeling that restaurant would be closed because of lack of business.  One day for people to realize the service is slow, and one day to tell all their friends.

Why are we such an impatient society?  I have worked at two fast food restaurants in my life.  At both of these jobs I worked the drive through quite a bit.  These jobs both required the cashiers to keep a certain time on every order that came through the drive-thru.    If we did not keep this time down below a certain average we were reprimanded.  The one thing that I never understood is why people would get such an attitude if their food is not handed to them the moment they come to the window.  Oftentimes we were apologizing to the customer if their food took longer than five minutes and offered them free food. FIVE MINUTES!  We have become so impatient and selfish that it has trickled down into every facet of our lives.  Even the fast food drive-thru.

We live in a society so adept at speed that we as human beings cannot keep up.  I call it the microwave conundrum.  We have gotten so impatient as people that we cannot wait to cook something in the microwave because it takes too long.  We have to have our food, internet, phone conversations, bills, entertainment, etc. instantly.

Long gone are the nights spent at home with family.  The mother cooking an oven cooked meal and having the whole family together at the kitchen table.  Each child telling his mother and father what events happened at school during the day and every enjoying a thing called “family time”.

To be honest I have become subject to this as well. (We all have to some degree if we are honest.)  I have a kitchen table in my apartment that I have eaten at a total of three times.  Two of those were when company was over.  I far prefer to eat my meals either in front of the T.V. or in front of the computer where I can gather new information or entertainment while I enjoy my meal.  I cannot just sit at a table and enjoy a dinner.

But what has this done to society?  We have become so impatient and selfish about “Our” time that we forget to spend it with others or for others.  Take some time this week to sit down with your family and enjoy their company.  Because remember that people are only in your life for so long.  When they are gone the e-mails/ cell phone/work will still be sitting right where you left it to come back to.  And I promise that although you might miss your computer, it could care less about you.  When was the last time your computer called and said it missed you?

On Sushi…

Isn’t it amazing how talented Japanese people are?  They can convince people to do the strangest things.  How many people have you convinced to take a raw piece of meat, covered in random adornments to make it look pretty, and shove it in their mouth?

Sushi literally means “food art” in Japanese and is actually a fine art of the culture that many people study for years.  My taste buds were not to convinced of this “artistry” as it were though.  Sushi to me was not “food art” but more of a stretching of my boundaries.

On my 21st birthday my parents and I went to a sushi bar to enjoy my “birthday meal” having never even known that such a restaurant existed.  Surprisingly, what I ordered was quite a unique experience and it made me think of how rarely I try new things.

As human beings we tend to fall into a routine because it is comfortable.  I can’t count how many times I have eaten at the same restaurants, driving by the ones I would love to try but do not want to take the risk of not enjoying what I get.  I can narrow it down even more to the items I tend to buy off of restaurant menus.  If it’s Mexican food, it’s Chicken Fajitas.  If it’s Wendy’s, it’s a “Crispy Chicken Deluxe combo”.  Even when I’m making a sandwich it always ends up being a ham and cheese sandwich with spicy mustard.

Our comfort zone keeps us safe.  We often miss out on so many opportunities in life because we do not want to step out of our comfort zone.  If I had never stretched out of my comfort zone I would have never known the joy of eating sushi.  Although it was not my favorite food, the experience was wonderful and I would be fully willing to do it again.  I almost missed out on that.

I think this “comfort zone” bleeds into many parts of each person’s life.  Your sushi may be your job, it may be your creative style, it may even be where you live or a vacation you always wanted to take.

So be brave, try some sushi tomorrow.

Passionate people

I did an interview at the radio station yesterday involving a young man working on an exciting project in the area.  He was so passionate about what he was saying that I would have to stop him during the interview at points because we were running out of time.  He was beaming from ear to ear just to be talking about the program he was involved in.  The man only intended to move here for 3 months and has been doing this job now for over 4 years!

It is a wonderful blessing to truly find what it is that you are passionate about.  I know for a fact that this man wakes up everyday and feels a fulfilment in his life that very few people will ever experience. Each one of us should strive to find our passions.  I understand that finding and enjoying your passions generally does take sacrifice.  But with only one life to live, do you really want to say, “I wish I had done ________” when it is all said and done?  I for one would rather come to the end my life knowing that I had explored all the possibilities of who I could be.

Haiku of the day

Life blows far away

Like a sea it roars softly

relaxing my mind.

Why is music different?

Working in Christian radio I often hear people make comments about Christian artists like, “Why did they sing a secular song?” or “they must have sold out to secularism because they were signed by Sony records”.  These kinds of statements have always baffled me. 

If someone entered a career as a vacuum salesman, would someone comment that he was “selling out” God’s plan for his life because he was not selling Christian vacuums? (work with me)  What he sells does define him to a point (more on that later) but it does not effect his belief system.  Those vacuums do not change his beliefs in any way.  He will live his life the way he wants to regardless of whether he is a good salesman or a bad salesman. 

Now when it comes to Christians singing secular music the same things applies.  If someone is truly a Christian then the music they sing will fit with their worldview.  They would not sing something that would compromise their beliefs. 

I know quite a few artists that looked into working in the Christian music versus secular and after weighing the pros and cons decided to be a secular artist with uplifting lyrics.  Why you ask?  Because this allows them to sing quality moral music at venues that would never have a “Christian” artist.  After their concert they then have the opportunity to speak with people about Christ that would never be in a situation to hear about Him otherwise.

I believe that we should be bringing up quality Christains who sing music instead of people who sing “Christian music”. That mentality is the fight that churches have fought for many years.  It is the mindset that people come to church and then go live their lives during the week.  This “dualism” is hurting Christianity faster than anything else. 

The secular world sees people who live a life completely different from beliefs that they say they agree with.  This shows non-Christians a hypocritical lifestyle that turns them off to Christianity.  This applies to music for some reason as well.  Music might be looked at differently than other mediums because it seems to be more closely connected to the human soul than many other things in life.

So, be a Christian who happens to sing, not a Christian singer.

Toilet Paper (and the value of choice).

One of the nice things about being a college student is that your parents are always giving you free stuff.  Sometimes it’s the more down to earth items that are commonly used in real life yet never talked about, namely toilet paper.  Being a single college student living by myself, (and rarely ever being at home to use it) I have amassed quite a large collection of toilet paper.  My mother seems to think that I go through large quantities of toilet paper at regular intervals because I will often open a care package only to find that half of it is filled with biodegradable dried former trees.

Of course, being the thrifty woman that she is, the paper in question is always the sale brand at Wal-Mart.  Which, although I am not complaining about free toilet paper, is not really all that good.

I’m sure everyone has experienced that moment in the bathroom when, after doing the things implied, you reach to grab the good old “papers” only to realize you are grabbing a piece of cardboard.  That is the moment where you weigh the pros and cons of getting off the toilet to find some more in a very compromising position, or find some way to kill yourself so you don’t have too.

Fortunately in my case I have a well-stocked supply underneath my sink for just a situation.  At this point I look over to see what selections I have to choose from. (Benefits of Wal-Mart rotating sale brands.)  I see, “PREMIUM BATH TISSUE! *extra soft and quilted*” (emphasis mine) in two different packages, one with a green logo, one grey.  First, I know this is a misleading statement because neither of these tissues, although the package subtly implies “premium”, are extra soft or quilted.  This gives me a feeling of discomfort immediately which is never a good thing when you are in your private time.

The big decision comes down to green or grey.  I finaly decide after weighing the pros and cons that to a color-blind person it would be a moot point anyways, so I grab the grey.  I carefully pull it out of the packaging and place it on the roller and proceed to do what the item was intended to be used for.

I say all of that to make a point.  Because of capitalism we are free to make choices between different brands in our everyday lives.  Although this may seem simple, without capitalism I would not have been able to choose between grey and green.  What if green was all that was offered to me and because the grey logo package was found to be OBVIOUSLY better after thorough testing, (Trust me, it was thorough) I missed out on a better bathroom experience.  It is these kinds of things that I reflect on after a Fourth of July weekend.

So make your choice America.  YOU live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.  YOU have the right to choose your bathroom tissue, whether or not it feels like sandpaper.  Run to your local capitalism-supporting Wal-Mart and prance down the tissue isle.  Look at all the brands.  YOU have the right to buy every type of toilet-paper known to mankind, take it home, and try it to your satisfaction.  YOU even have the freedom to choose your favorite brand and swear by it when you talk to your friends/spouse/dog/cat/etc.

But that would be awkward and no one would know how to respond.  So it is best just to giggle inside and enjoy your freedoms.  God bless America.