He’s Back

For better or for worse, I’m back to the blog.  I’m sure there are some who are groaning at the news (“Why do I read this guy?”), and hopefully some who looked forward to my return.  Well, it’s happened.

August was a busy month with lots of visitors, mostly family.  This was followed by clean-up and general collapse.  Last week, my wife and I got away for a few days to a resort hotel in south-eastern Ontario.  We had a great time, with good food, nice accommodations and great service.

It was the great service that got me thinking.  Everywhere we went that week, the service was helpful, friendly and prompt.  It really made the vacation much better.  But having said that, why are we surprised when we get good service?  Why does it stand out so much from the service that we seem to get day to day?  Now you can understand that at a resort hotel and community, good service is important to their businesses.  But why does it not seem to be important at other businesses?  Now, I live in Ottawa, which may or may not be different from other cities in this regard, but I don’t think so.  I’ve been in many other cities where good service seems to stand out.

What constitutes good service? 

Friendliness is a good start.  It starts with a pleasant demeanor rather than an attitude that the server is somehow doing you, the customer, a favour for even serving you.  On the other hand, overdoing the gushy attitude can also be a turn-off.  Please don’t tell me all of the problems you’re having with your boyfriend.  I can’t solve them.  Just be pleasant and serve with a smile.

Obviously, helpfulness is another major contributor to good service.  It’s one thing to be nice, but if you can’t be of any help to the customer, it really doesn’t do any good.  Helpfulness starts with knowing the product or service you’re providing.  I can remember car salesmen, for example, who knew all about the latest “deal”, but had no idea about the car they were trying to sell.  Or how about the sales clerk who doesn’t know the answer to your question and won’t bother to find someone who would know.   In that case, please don’t try to “fake” the answer.  You could get you and your company in trouble.

I’m a fairly patient person, particularly as I get older.  But sometimes my patience runs thin when I have to wait endlessly for service.  You’ve been there when the waitress or bartender is so busy talking to others that they don’t even acknowledge your presence.  A simple “I’ll be with you in a minute,” would make the customer feel that he is recognized. Then there is the situation when the sales person serving you disappears for extended periods with no explanation.  Promptness doesn’t mean that everything has to be rushed; only that things happen in a reasonable time. 

Those three things, in my books, constitute good service.  Why do we put up with anything less?  Why do we dutifully pay the 15% gratuity for the waiter’s bad service?  Why don’t we ever complain to the server or his management about bad service?  Is it because we don’t think we could do any better?  Or are we just apathetic, willing to put up with any type of service? 

Of course there is another side to this situation.  Are you a good customer?  Do you display a negative attitude to sales persons?  Do you treat waitresses like they are beneath you?  Are you excessively demanding even when there is no need to be?  You attitude could, and often does, make all the difference in the service experience you receive.  Good manners and good service usually go hand in hand.  A simple smile and a good morning usually is enough to set the right tone.  Try it the next time you want service.  It works for me.

You Talkin’ to Me?!

Language is the source of misunderstandings.
  - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I am unilingual English.  I have tried to learn other languages such as French and German, but alas, to no avail.  Nonetheless, having determined that English is my one and only language, I decided some time ago to make the best of it.  I, therefore, set out to master my language to the best of my ability and to use it as effectively as possible.  Apparently a lot of people don’t feel this is necessary.

A few years ago, an English teacher made the statement that grammar and spelling were no longer necessary because the language was evolving too fast.  Many people also feel that sticking to the rules of grammar stifles creativity.  Their belief being that creativity can only be truly encouraged by ignoring all the rules.  The result is that a lot of written works of “art” these days are unintelligible to the average reader.  Only a select few critics say they are able to interpret these magical words and phrases, thus making themselves “indispensable”. 

The remarkable thing about Shakespeare is that he really is very good, in spite of all the people who say he is very good.
  - Robert Graves

There is no doubt that language evolves and it should not be any other way.  Language, to be effective, must be able to express the thoughts and actions of the current society.  Shakespearian English could no more describe the present than could ancient Greek. But note that Shakespearian and Greek, as well as Latin and ancient German, are the roots to our current English.  But to be effective and precise, the evolution must adhere to some norms of structure, grammar and spelling.  Otherwise, we could not communicate.  And let’s face it, language is all about communications.  Creativity is a byproduct. And to be effective, communication must be understandable to the audience to which it is directed.  You can use LOL and OMG as long as all of the people you are communicating with understand what those mean.

Some years ago, I served as an exchange officer with the US Navy.  When I arrived there, I was overwhelmed by the vast number of acronyms that they used.  When I asked how to interpret these acronyms, I was directed to look them up in the DICNAVAB, which was no use whatsoever, since I didn’t even know what that meant.  It turned out to be yet another acronym, this one for the Dictionary of Naval Abbreviations.

I have come to love and respect the English language as probably the most important and powerful tool that I have.  Love, because it allows me to convey so many thoughts and emotions.  Respect, because it allows me to convey the precision that is sometimes required in, for example, engineering.  Without language, both written and spoken, we would never have emerged from the stone-age caves.

As an author, I learned how to use both the formal language and the odd quirks of the spoken language.  These are usually quite different.  Where, in the formal language, an author might say, “I saw the tree over that river”, in the mouth of a poor country person, it might come out as, “I see’d yon tree over that there river.”  They both say the same thing, but the context calls for a totally different way of expressing it.  However, the important thing is that both statements convey the message effectively. 

So, protect your language whatever it or they may be.  They are your tools to express your love for someone you care about; to express your description of something beautiful or ugly; to make sense of the instructions for your new smart phone; to describe the instructions of how to make that smart phone; to write that story you always wanted to tell; and, to read the letter from your publisher that they will, in fact, print your story.  Language, such a wonderful all round tool.

I wish people who have trouble communicating would just shut up.
  - Tom Lehrer

Her virtue was that she said what she thought; her vice that what she thought didn't amount to much.
  - Peter Ustinov

Maybe It’s Time

Justin Trudeau sure created a stir this week with his statement that he would support legalizing marijuana.  It sure got the Conservatives in attack mode.  Of course you would expect that from them, wouldn’t you? The NDP got upset as well, but that’s probably because they didn’t think of it first. It also got me thinking.  Maybe it’s time.

Politicians have talked about decriminalization of marijuana for some time.  This was seen as a progressive move because it would spare “recreational” users of a criminal record, but would, somehow, keep marijuana illegal. People would get a ticket, like a parking ticket, if they were caught with the stuff. This never did seem a viable approach to me.  It’s like saying it is a little bit okay but it’s really not. 

It is also obvious that a lot of people use marijuana using drug dealers for their supply, and many of those drug dealers are associated with criminal organizations. So the present situation is not working other than making some unsavoury characters rich.

What Mr. Trudeau is proposing is to legalize and regulate the drug, much as how we deal with alcohol today.  The success of this venture will depend on a number of things.  First, because legal marijuana regulation and distribution will undoubtedly fall under provincial jurisdiction, all provinces must agree to set up fairly similar rules and controls.  Secondly, easy means of determining marijuana intoxication must be found.  Employers, for example, will need to able to detect on-the-job marijuana use and be able to control its use in the workplace.  Do you really want your next car to be assembled by a few spaced out workers?  Third, society must adapt to the fact that marijuana is now a socially acceptable substance to imbibe.  As with alcohol, society will have to determine when it is socially acceptable to use the stuff; whether, for example, hosts would be expected to provide marijuana for interested guests. 

It would take time to adapt to the recognized presence of marijuana in our day to day world.  But if successful, what would be the upside?

The first result should be a significant reduction in the availability of marijuana as a street drug, available to any kid who wants it and can pay for it.  Legal toking age should be one of the laws governing its use.  Second, it will give the governments another source of revenue from the sale of the product.  I am a believer in the various liquor control boards and believe in the same sort of distribution network for marijuana.  Similarly, since the normal use of the drug is to smoke it, I believe that its use in public places should be regulated like all smoking.  Third, it will free up police forces from having to enforce marijuana use in order for them to concentrate on more dangerous substances and offences. 

In some ways the changes that will have to be made to introduce marijuana are the same legal and societal changes that were necessary when prohibition was repealed in the United States in the 1930s, and the easing of restrictions in Canada in the same era.  Most of you probably can’t remember taverns with separate entrances and rooms for men and women, or the liquor outlets where you had to fill out a piece of paper with your order which sent a man into a back room to retrieve the vile substance.  It is doable to introduce marijuana into the legal world as long as governments at different levels, regulatory regimes and society as a whole accept it and strive to make it work.

Not that I intend to ever imbibe in the stuff myself.

More “You Can’t Have it Both Ways”

I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.

Will Rogers

Summer must be the hardest time to write, particularly when you put pressure on yourself to produce.  After two false starts, let’s see what we can come up with today. 

There have been a few examples of people or organizations trying to have it both ways recently.  Actually, people are trying to do that all the time, but here are a few that stand out.

A few months ago, one of the large media companies was trying to buy a smaller company in the same business.  At the hearings before the Canadian Radio Television Commission (CRTC), who must approve such a sale, the main rival of the buying company insisted that the sale should only be approved if the buyer was forced to sell one of the entities of the company to be bought.  And oh by the way, the rival said, we would like to buy the entity when it is sold. 

Our dear federal government is refusing to turn over documentation about military procurement projects to the Parliamentary Budget Office, an office that they themselves set up.  Their argument is that it is “beyond the mandate” of this organization.  This at a time when government procurement, particularly for the military, is in the worst shape it has been in for as long as I can remember.  You would think in these circumstances, the government would appreciate any help they could get.  This is the same government that wanted to monitor your e-mail and tap your phone calls without a legal warrant.  Maybe our government should heed the words of John Stuart Mill, “If mankind minus one were of one opinion, then mankind is no more justified in silencing the one than the one - if he had the power - would be justified in silencing mankind.”

It's so much easier to suggest solutions when you don't know too much about the problem.

  - Malcolm Forbes

The Ottawa Mayor and council have got themselves in trouble because they wouldn’t listen to the people about whether or not they wanted a casino, or two, or three, but who’s counting.  They are charging ahead with decisions that aren’t even required yet and getting themselves boxed into a corner of their own making.  They have committed to one location and operator for something that cries out for a competitive process.  By doing so, they run a real risk of being sued by other potential bidders.  Now their only hope is that the next level of government will bail them out by allowing them to have two casinos, something that the provincial government has indicated they are not willing to do.  Even Toronto only gets one.  This is all being decided when they don’t even know if the majority of city voters want even one casino.  As one eminent personage from the past has said, “When it is not necessary to make a decision, it is necessary not to make a decision.”

In the United States, the “stand your ground” laws of several states are coming under attack.  The problem is not with those laws; it is with the whole concept of the “right” of gun ownership as it is practiced there.  Once you have allowed unfettered access to the sale and ownership of guns, the “stand your ground” laws are inevitable in order to justify the possession and use of the weapons.  After all, what is the use of buying these weapons if you cannot put them to good use in defending yourself?  And if the usual definition of self-defence limits your ability to do that, then you have to have laws that condone the action.  It’s just common sense, or complete nonsense, depending on your point of view.

Odd Thoughts

There have been a number of things going on recently that need comment, so here goes.

The situation in Egypt has many people concerned these days, in particular, the US government.  Egypt has become another source of argument between the parties and factions.  They argue over what to do (ignore, cut funds, take sides, invade), who in Egypt to support, and even who (between Democrats and Republicans) is to blame.  The thought that the Egyptian uprising has nothing to do American politics is never considered.  Neither has the thought that maybe everyone outside Egypt should just leave the Egyptians alone and let them determine their own fate.

It’s amazing, as some recent Ottawa news stories have shown, how much effort rich people will undertake to protect their money. They will move money off-shore, move themselves to any country that will not charge them income tax, hide money and even risk jail to accomplish it all.  I knew a couple who had built a successful business in Canada who, when they sold out, moved from one country to another to “tax havens”.  They left their grown children in Canada, but they protected their fortune.  When I asked them why, they replied that they didn’t owe anything to Canada. Huh! They were allowed to immigrate from troubled countries when they were young; they were given a good Canadian education both free and later subsidized; they were allowed to set up business in a country that protected their rights to ownership and legal protection; and they were given free protection, health care and education for their children; and they don’t owe anything to Canada?

There was great consternation in Ottawa this week when “Alfie” the captain of the Ottawa Senators chose to play for another team next year.  Great wailing and gnashing of teeth by all Senator fans could be heard everywhere. “How could he do that?” Some talked about his required loyalty to the Ottawa fans and what he “owed” them.  Never mind that when he first came here, many of those fans questioned the Senator’s sanity for opting for this undersized kid from Sweden, of all places.  Boy did he show them!  The one thing that he has missed out on in his hall of fame career was a Stanley Cup ring.  Not unnaturally, he felt that he wanted that to cap his career, so he made the decision to go where he considered it a distinct possibility.  So he has betrayed the Ottawa fans.  You wonder, if he had a bad year, how quickly Ottawa fans would turn on him.  The supreme irony of this situation would be if Ottawa and Detroit met in the Stanley Cup final.

A clear example of trying to have it both ways came up a few weeks ago.  One large communications company was trying to buy a smaller company.  At the Canadian Radio and Television Committee (CRTC) hearing into the impact of the purchase, the chief rival of the buyer was adamant that, if the purchase went through, the buying company must be made to sell off a particularly valuable asset of the smaller company.  The rival then stated that when that asset went on the market, they would be very interested in buying it.

Our Dear Lead . . . uh, Prime Minister has stated that he did not know anything about the pay-off by his chief of staff to a certain Senator.  This may or may not be true.  If it is not true, that is that he really did know, he has lied to the House of Commons and the people.  If it is true that he did not know, then he has failed as a leader by not insisting on knowing what is going on in his own office so that he can deal with any surprises that arise.  If his own staff did not tell him what was going on, they are guilty of misleading him in order, no doubt, to allow him “deniability”.  Either way, they and he are wrong.

I just retired for the third time.  I retired once from the Navy, once from full time work and now from part time work.  People ask me how long this retirement will last.  I must admit, I don’t have the foggiest idea.  I want to do other things, but whether they would constitute work is a good question.  Who knows what it may take to entice me to try for a fourth retirement. 

Eating Pie from the Wrong End

I admit it.  I eat pie from the wrong end.  I start with the crust and eat my way into the middle.  I have done this as long as I can remember.  I can remember doing it when out on dates in high school when we would end the evening at a favourite restaurant and have pie and coffee.  Cherry pie was my favourite in those days.  I don’t think I have had cherry pie since I was in college.  My thinking on eating pie this way is that I want to get the least tasty bit out of the way first, and then concentrate on the best parts. 

We probably all do things that are not in accordance with the “normal’ as determined by what most other people do.  There are other things I do and believe in that do not conform to what is considered the norm in our society.  I consider myself religious, but I do not adhere to any of the beliefs of any denomination.  I have political beliefs that don’t necessarily coincide with any political party.  Despite many years in the military, I do not agree with many of the decisions that are made by them and their political masters.

One of the things that I really don’t agree with is the way our privacy is being eroded in the name of “security”.  Security is equated with forestalling terrorist attacks.  This threat is seen by many as the price we must pay form “freedom”.  But let’s look at this a bit more logically.  There are many, many ways to die quickly and violently in our everyday lives.  Traffic accidents kill many more of us every year that any terrorist attack could.  The same applies to sports accidents, murder, falls (the leading cause of injury to the elderly) and choking on food.  We may also die suddenly from stroke, heart attack and a number of other health issues.  And yet, we are most insecure about the possibility of terrorist attacks!

This fear has become the rationale for recording your phone calls, reading your e-mail and spying on citizens of our own country.  The problem in giving up our privacy is that we will never get it back.  Once it is gone, it is gone.  We rely on a benevolent government to collect and store this information, and to use it properly.  But governments are not always benevolent.  Can you imagine all of this information being available to Richard Nixon and his paranoia?  With the severe partisanship being experienced in North American governments today, can you really trust the government if you happen to disagree with them.  I’m not talking about treason or threats; I’m talking about supporting the opposition or disagreeing with the government of the day’s policies.  Maybe I should watch what I’m saying here. 

And let’s not forget the hackers who have shown themselves so adept at getting into the supposedly most secure computer networks. (The only secure computer is an off-line computer.) Who knows what they could do with access to this sort of information. 

Now don’t get me wrong.  I’m not paranoid nor am I a conspiracy theorist.  I just like to retain a certain amount of privacy and, like eating pie from the wrong end, like to look at issues from the other end.

70!!!!

I’m about to turn 70.  Or as Abraham Lincoln might have put it “three score and ten”.  Can you believe it?

There was a time when I wasn’t sure if I would last through my forties.  But here I am, still alive and kicking. 

So how does it feel to be seventy?  Not bad really.  My wife and I still have our health and life is comfortable, if not luxurious.  Do I miss my younger years?  Let’s see.

My school years were not very exciting.  Nothing stands out about them except my uncertainty and shyness.  There was no burning love or much excitement.  It was just a time when I went to school and looked forward to the day it would be over.

Then there was college – military college actually.  It was certainly a time of great change.  Away from home for the first time.  A host of brothers, at last.  Lots of hard work and quite a bit of fun.  But the work was hard and I was never sure if I would survive from one term to the next.  The uncertainty was still there.  And still no real love life, although there were some interesting girls.  I guess that was the period when I grew into a man.  A young, inexperienced man, but a man nonetheless.  I must admit that there were some lifelong friendships made there, and some of them I still cherish to this day.  But do I want to relive it?  Once was enough, thank you.

Then love came within months of leaving college.  There was a quick courtship and a marriage in less than a year of leaving college.  It wouldn’t last they said.  It has been worth it to live this long and to prove how wrong “they” could be.

And then there was a naval career.  That was definitely interesting and included a lot of travel and hard work (again).  The Navy probably defined my life because not only did it keep me employed until I was 45, it drove my career and my interests even after I left. 

During this there came family life.  Three children dominated our lives for 30 years, and they still are the most important people in our thoughts.  The three of them had to put up with my frequent absences from home, often putting my wife on the spot.  She, the wonderful woman that she is, had far more to do with bringing the children up than I ever did.  Eventually, each child, now grown, left home and made a life for themselves in three different places across Canada.  And they all now have families of their own.

Is there any of those years that I want to return to?  There may be a couple of things along the way I would like to change, but they are derived only through hindsight.  I still have my wife, my lover and best friend.  In many ways it seems better now that we can live for ourselves and relish all of the little secrets we have learned about each other along the way.  My naval career is an interesting period to look back on, but no longer anything to look forward to.  The challenges of child rearing are behind us and since all three children have grown into responsible, interesting people, it is much more rewarding to spend time with them now. My working life since leaving the Navy was not all a happy experience, with for a time, bad bosses and insecurity.  There are only so many put-downs you can put up with.  It also coincided with the worst time in my life when I battled depression and had it held over my head by company management.  It was only in the last few years of my working life that I found a job that was interesting and fulfilling.  And after I officially “retired” from that job, I was kept busy with part time work at the same company.  But that is about to change.  Work will end just about the time of my actual 70^th birthday.  I won’t miss it.

There was one more accomplishment to remember – the writing and publication of a book, “We Are as One”, the story of one of the really dark episodes of my naval career and ultimately the cause of my depression through PTSD.  It was rewarding to write and to see the reaction of many of my shipmates who survived the episode with me.  It was a catharsis when I still struggled with the residue of depression.  But that accomplishment has only whetted my appetite for more writing.  And I cannot do that if I am still working or spending my time reliving my past.

And what of now and the future?  For me, I’m where I want to be.  I have a loving wife, a home that we have made our own including my library of books that I love, a great dog, and our health.  I also feel that for the first time in a tumultuous life, I finally have a handle on things: on the meaning of life; on religion and its importance; on the things that make life worth living; and on the importance of family and friends.

 And then there are the grandchildren.  I didn’t mention them before, but they are the future.  We love all eight of our grandchildren from the three year old twins to the 21 year old young woman, plus our months old great-grandson.  No, we don’t see them enough, but when we do, we relish their company.  I have developed a creed:  grandparents corrupt; grandfathers corrupt absolutely.

Is there anything I miss?  Well, now that you mention it, I have wondered where my waistline has gone.