Hindsight!

So I have been thinking recently about my daughter and the things she goes through as a five year old. I tend to catch myself thinking back to when I was 5. I remember it being pretty tough. But now when I watch Lorelei it seems so easy. Its not like I went through a bunch of stuff that Lorelei got to miss or anything. I really think it has to do with perspective. As a child we think everything has to do with toys and candy and playing outside. As an adult I see that if you just clean your room and listen you can have all the toys and candy you want while your playing.



This got me thinking about a lot of other things, such as high school. When I was in high school all I cared about was new clothes and hanging out with my friends and boyfriend. As an adult I no longer fit in those clothes, am friends with the same people, and that boyfriend is now my ex...who I just settled visitation and child support with. So as you can see that stuff no longer matters. But it was the same thing. As long as I cleaned my room and listened I could get new clothes, and hang out with my friends and boyfriend all I wanted.



So now here I am an adult. All I have to show for the days of eating candy and hanging out with my boyfriend is a five year old who like candy from my ex boyfriend. Which got me thinking, Where the hell am I gonna be in another ten years. Now I know the things that are a big deal wont matter then, so what matters? Everyone says being a good person matters, but as a child when I was a good person I just got more candy, which doesn't matter now. Not saying that we shouldn't be good people, but the only thing that has stayed consistent my whole life is to get what you want you have to clean your room and listen. But who am I listening to know? I'm 23 years old, my mom lives in another town and my dad in another state.



I'm not sure hindsight is really beneficial. No, I know its not. It really just frustrates me as a parent. I now know that the things that bother Lorelei so much will not matter to her when she's older. So I am really stuck. Do I give her the things that make her happy now, like candy and toys, knowing that in a few years they wont matter and she wont remember. Should I wait till she's older and the things I give her will last longer and she will remember? Should I do what all of the magazines say. Spend time with her, don't spoil her, make her do chores? If I spend more time with her then I already do she would be going to work with me. If I spoil her any less then she wont have anything, and we all know that for the rest of her life she will be cleaning her room, she has a lifetime to learn how. Besides, everyone deserves a messy room at some point in life.



If you go to a playground and you see a child climbing on something your first instinct is to help them down, so they don't get hurt. If they fall they make break a bone, or need stitches. Well, as a parent of a recently injured child, I know that stitches are a big deal. But even bigger than that is the lesson the child learned. In two weeks I have not had to tell her to stop climbing or to be more careful. Is that not what life is all about. Learning little lessons to get you further along and allow you to survive more independently. She can think for herself now in a way she couldn't before falling off of her doll house.



As children our parents always say, "Just wait till you have a kid, I hope they are exactly like you so you can see what I go through." Well, I must say my parents got very lucky! Lorelei is a good kid. She is also smart. At five years old she completely bathes herself, knows not to climb, can count to over 100, knows her ABC's, can almost read, and sleeps in on the weekends. My parents were very lucky!



So, what have I learned from all of this "hindsight"? Well, for starters the only thing that matters is that you clean your room. Listening is not important because as an adult your parents live far away and you only really need to pretend like your listening. And finally, when you are threatening your kids never tell them that you hope there kids are just like them because that, my friend, is not a threat.



So I hope you all have learned from our little session today. For those of you who are not parents....just wait, someday somewhere someones kids, whether its your own or your friends, you too will understand all this talk about hindsight!

Just sharing the truth,

Jessica

Did you really say that?

So, I have noticed something that I feel should be brought up. I know that when you get mad at someone and are later telling the story to a friend you say something like, "Then I was like ". Then the person you are speaking to asks "Did you really say that?"

Lets take a second to think about this. When you ask a person "Did you really say that?" you are really saying "HA! you would never say that and now I am going to call you out!"

So, back to the other persons shoes. No, I did not say that! Would I ever say something like that? Did I grow a six pack over night that I dont know about? Does my well being as a person not matter to you? No I didnt say that. If I had I would not still be mad about the situation...instead I would be saying something along the lines of, "OMG! Guess what I said to ".

So, in the future if someone approaches you about the subject instead of questioning the person, just jump in and take the opportunity to tak about them. Also remember that in that persons situation you would do the same.

So, this is all for tonight. Its late and im tired! I have also decided that presenting you with too much information in one day may be overwhelming. Ill give you time to digest this and we can move on to the next subject. So take the time to practice this, and I never want to here, "Did you really say that?" again!

Just sharing the truth,

Jessica

Blogging

So, I made the decision a couple of wees ago to start blogging. I decided that I would blog about things or events that take place in my life and those around me. It will be very witty and fun to read. People will look forward to reading my blog and one day a magazine will stumble across my blog while searching for a new blogger to be featured. Then I will be famous.....until then I get to blog about normal stuff.

First of all I wanna talk about an old friend of mine from school. It will be brief because it has been almost five years since I have talked to him. Jordan Tyler passed away today. I as in classes with him since middle schoolish. He was always nice to everyone. Well, at least he was nice to be, and I was a nerd, so I assume if he was nice to me he was nice to everyone. I heard he was in a car accident Saturday evening. So, I would like to "dedicate my first blog" to him. I wasn't close to him or anything, but this feels right. I am not saying this blog will be great or dedication worthy, but its all I can do at this point....besides I did say I would be famous right! :)

So, if you read this and feel compelled to post a response of some sort about Jordan fell free!

Now, to the topic of discussion for the evening. I feel like it is important to point out that almost all companies that use a customer service line outsource there calls.

What does this mean?

Well, for one that means they pay another company to inform there employees of there services or goods. They are taught all of the information necessary to assist any consumer who calls in needing information on the goods or services provided.

This does not mean that the person on the phone makes any kind of decision for the company, The person who answers the phone does just that, sits at a desk with a computer and a phone all day and answers your calls. We do not go off to big meetings with the decision makers of the company and talk about what you have t say.

What else does this mean?

This also means that when you call into customer services line the person answering the phone does not make enough money to put u with your attitude. They have probably been in your same situation and do honestly feel bad for you. They also hear the same thing everyday, so while, Yes, they do feel bad they are also desensitized to the issue and are only trying to help you as fast as possible so they can move on to the next call so they can keep there stats down to make more money.....still not enough to put up with your attitude.

Also, I feel I should reiterate that the person answering the phone has been trained on the products or services provided and therefore KNOWS MORE THAN YOU! When you call into the line remember you are calling to ask a question. Th person answering the phone really does know the answer. That answer will stay the same no matter how you word the question or how many times you ask. Th answer will be the same no matter how nice or mean you are. If the person makes a recommendation it probably means they know how it will work ans they really think it will benefit you. Also, unless you are calling the bank cellphone company or something the person is not trying to "sell" you anything. Its just a recommendation.

When calling these lines don't scream "HELLO" into the phone as soon as the hold music ends. The person answering has to push the mute button to take the phone off mute so you can here them. Don't act brave on the phone because you are on the phone, The person is also on the phone and is no way intimidated by you. If the person wants to send you a coupon or check they will do it, demanding reimbursement for something is not a good way to start. If you threaten to talk to the manager it only lessens there talk time and they are probably happier to not have to deal with you anyways. As soon as you get off the phone with the manager the said manager will walk to the consultants desk and chat about how much of an idiot you are.

Most importantly, do not call and complain that a product or service did not work and claim to have read the instructions in there entirety and followed them to the t. When you do this you make yourself look like an idiot. The reason...well first of all you didn't. You know you didn't and so does the consultant. You wouldn't be calling complaining that the service or product did not work if you followed the instructions. Most instructions say to do tests and things like that. If your hair is green after coloring your hair and you call and tell the consultant that you followed all of the instructions and your hair is green all over then you are dumb!!! You missed a big part of the instructions which means you did not follow them in there entirety.

Also please keep in mind that the person on the phone was not there with you when you desided to use whatever product it was, so it is not our fault you are in your situation.

I would like to leave you with that to think about. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to lave them!

Just sharing the truth,

Jessica