Short stories using Old School thought for today's society. Join me and let's change the way we think today for a greater world tomorrow.
Author:C.S.I
United States Navy veteran, over the road truck driver, welder, plumber, truck driver trainer, sign installer and haulage truck driver for copper mine. After injury in mine (which retired me early in life) I am now blogging the wisdom I have learned through life, with hope of helping others using common sense and old school thought.
What does make us who we are? Heritage would be one. Our family structures. Someone we looked up to while growing up. Who was that for you? Mom, dad, brother, sister. Maybe it was an aunt, uncle or one of your grandparents. No matter who it was for you, the question is, was that person a good influence or bad in your life?
In my case, it was a toss up between my stepdad and my grandfather. They were both very honorable, standup men. I got lucky. Others are not so lucky, and their choice of whom to follow may not be the greatest person to follow.
Of course, education helps define who we are. When I say education, I mean learning hands on as well as book learning. The old adage is book smarts and street smarts. I’m more on the lines of street smarts I guess because even though I have a fair amount of book smarts, I have always learned more on the go.
Furthermore, we have to add if something tragic happened in your life, especially if it were at a young age. I have seen some with tragedy in their lives do very well and others not so well.
Be who you want to be
In all the cases I have presented, you have a choice how to respond to the things in your life, whether good or bad. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to follow the good influences or bad? Are you going to get back up after a tragedy, or wallow in self-pity?
Again I ask, “What makes you who you are?”. I believe this is self-evident, You are who you make yourself! Now go out there and tackle this world and give it everything you got. I’m with you, Remember, we are all in this together.
We all have a certain mean streak in us. I believe some people have an easier time showing their mean streak than others. Well, that’s the nice way of saying it, anyway. Now let’s dig into what I truly believe. I like to look at this in another way. Everyone has kindness in them somewhere. It may be a very tiny bit, but it’s there. Most mean people are lacking something, and I would venture to believe it is because they have a low opinion of themselves. Why should anyone possess this low opinion of themselves? A lot of the time it is because someone they looked up to told them they are not as good or as smart as someone else, which ultimately causes jealousy.
Jealousy can cause great anger in somebody that has been knocked down by someone they admired. Now, this could include mental and/or physical abuse. If no one steps up and helps this person, it could turn into something terrible. Maybe it’s terrible for themselves, but could also lead into abuse or worse of someone else. Either way, it’s not good. I believe a kind word at the right time to someone in this situation could spark the kindness that has been buried deep inside just looking for the light to flicker, so it can shine.
I’m not saying there aren’t pure evil people out there, but I have never seen a newborn baby showing evil before. Something in this person happened after they were born.
Some people do have psychological problems and need special attention, but that doesn’t explain to me how someone could become pure evil. Evil enough to do evil things to others (especially children). Next time you feel the need to tear someone down or hurt them in some way, think about it, you may be helping create a monster. That’s how I feel. Remember, we are all in this together.
I feel the need to write about supervisors and their health today. I have worked for a variety of people through my long working history and have seen many supervisors react to various situations. There are ones who take things as they come and others who go into full-blown panic mode. To be a successful supervisor and also keep your health in good shape is a hard thing to do. I will be the first to stand up and say, if your health is deteriorating because of the job you hold, it’s time for a change.
Now, I’m not suggesting you quit your job or step down from your position, I’m saying you need to calm down and take one nightmare at a time. Having a heart attack because you are too stressed at work is no joke! Here is my suggestion, if you work in a high stress position, then you need to prepare for it before getting to work. What do I mean? Okay here goes, I’m preparing to go to work, let’s say in the mining profession, I have one hundred people I am responsible for when I get there.
Now, when working in the mines, equipment breaks, people get hurt and upper management wants more out of my crew than I can produce during my shift. Do you get the picture?
Firstly, let me throw this out there, keep home at home and work at work. This will keep your family happy and keep your mind on your job. Now back to our mining job.
When you leave your house for work, you should go into work mode. Always leave one hour early in case of traffic, flat tire or weather. Also, leaving early will help you prepare for the nightmare that’s about to happen. When you get to the parking lot don’t go directly into work. This is your prepare time. I suggest you do not carpool if you are a supervisor. I know it saves gas and all but you need to prepare yourself without those that work with you taking away your focus. Now you are sitting in your car alone with the radio off. Just imagine the worst day that could happen today. Keep this going for half the time you have before you have to go into work. Did a piece of equipment break? Did you lose electricity or water or something else that is essential to the company? Did a person or persons you need there call off sick? Think of all these things happening today.
The other half of your time is imagining how you’re going to fix these problems. Did you find your solutions to each situation? Now you are prepared to go to work because you have a plan! If you go in and some or all of these things happen today, it’s ok because you have already figured out how to cope with each situation. If you go in and none of these things happen, well then, you will have that fantastic day you have been waiting and wanting for a long time.
Always remember, when things do happen, deal with one nightmare at a time. If five employees are talking to you at once, you can’t hear anything but noise. Pick one employee to tell you their problem, and then move to the next person. Usually picking the calmest one is the best because it gives the others time to settle down before it’s their turn to talk.
I know it’s hard out there, and I feel for you, but you chose this job, so learn to work within your abilities and most of all keep your health. Your family needs you as much, if not more than your company. Be safe, healthy, and deal with one nightmare at a time. Remember, we are all in this together.
I cannot fail. Wow, Billy, that’s a bold statement! That’s right, let me say it again, I cannot fail. I mean every word of that statement, too. Let me see if I can explain why I stand by that bold statement. Through life, we have our ups and downs, our good days and bad. We have our successes and our what? Well, I just talked about no failures, so what is the second part? Success and our learning curve (not failures).
The only way that you and I can fail is if we give up. I cannot fail because I have learned not to give up! There is a saying, “We learn from our failures.” I say hogwash to that saying. My feelings are if it wasn’t a success the first, second or even the hundredth time then what do I need to do to make it successful?
Therefore I am looking for an alternative to fix whatever the situation is I’m dealing with. It may be an hour, a day, a year or even years before I find the solution but I never quit! Until I find the solution to the problem at hand, I’m in training to learn all I can to fix it. I may be asking for help from someone that has more knowledge than me or looking up the solution on the internet but I’m still working on it.
A wise man once said “What is a oak tree but a acorn that held it’s ground?” That acorn didn’t give up even when the squirrel was hunting it to eat. Will you stand with me and wipe out failure? Say it with me “We cannot fail!! That is alot better than learning to live with failures I think. Until next time, remember, we are all in this together.
I know you have seen those big rigs and some are driving them as I write this post. Truck drivers deserve all the respect in the world.
I drove some of these big rigs before I worked in the mines (and sometimes when I was on layoffs from the mine). Now let me say this first, I was in the military where I was a firefighter. I also have worked in plumbing and welding along with my time in the mining industry. Now I’m not saying those are easy jobs, but in my experience, over the road (O.T.R) drivers have the hardest job with the least amount of pay for the work they do.
Not only are the hours ridiculously long, but some of the people you have to deal with on a daily basis are, well…. not the most understanding, saying it nicely. People look at these big rigs and think, how hard can it be to sit on your butt all day and hold a steering wheel? Let me say that is the break you get when doing this job unless you are driving in a blizzard, on black ice or even during hurricane force winds!
If you want to be a truck driver, there are plenty of schools to get your CDL license and give it a try. During one of the layoffs from the mine, I worked as an instructor to teach this valuable job. I knew It was a difficult job, but I never knew how few make it a career. On average, about 15% of people make it the first year, and it drops to about 2% that make a career of it. What’s the reason for this? It’s simple, it’s a very hard job! Don’t believe me? Let me give you a small example that happened to me.
I showed up at a grocery warehouse with a 42,000 pound load of canned green beans, canned corn, canned mixed vegetables and canned carrots all mixed up together on slip sheets (these are flat cardboard sheets they sometimes use to avoid using pallets). When I showed up at this warehouse in California, I was informed that lumpers (guys you can hire for unloading your truck for you) were not allowed on the property! Oh, it gets worse. Not only was I not allowed to hire somebody to unload this massive load, but they wanted all these mixed up cans separated and put on pallets. Wait, that’s not all, after they were put on pallets, they had to be staged at dock number one where they will be checked by the fork truck driver that worked in the warehouse. Now they had me docked at number twenty-two. I had to use a manual hand pallet truck to haul them to dock number one because the guy “resting” on the fork truck wasn’t allowed to touch anything until all the product was checked at dock number one!
Needless to say, this task took all day to accomplish. After all was said and done, I thought well at least my company is going to pay me for it. This company MNX out of Joplin, MO. (which is no longer a company that I know of) would pay a lumper $100-$150 depending on what they had to do. I was thinking this had to fall into the $150 range. Imagine my surprise when I got paid for this massive undertaking, it was $35! This has to be a mistake! Of course, it wasn’t, this was the highest amount they would pay their truck drivers for unloading.
Anyways, if you are planning to be a truck driver, toughen up, because it’s nothing like the movie Smokey and the Bandit. Show some respect to these hardworking men and women. Remember, the truck drivers keep this country going!
It’s funny and sad how we think about the well-being of others but don’t take better care of ourselves. Why is this? I am guilty of this myself. I catch myself looking for a reason to help others and in the same turn, I am horrible about taking care of myself.
I have a hypotheses about this phenomenon. First, we never think it will happen to us. We look at someone that is homeless, and we want to help them by giving food, money, clothing, a job or whatever else we may have to offer. Now I’m not saying to not help others because we absolutely should! But what about us? Why do we eat and drink things we know will hurt us, or do things that may leave us broke or broken? Fun, pleasure, pressure, stress or something else?
I believe we truly believe we are indestructible until we aren’t. I am very guilty of this. When someone says that I need to take better care of myself, my first thought is to look at what’s wrong in their life. This is a poor way of thinking, and I believe it is this attitude that is hurting all of us. Some people get the worst of it and become homeless, in the hospital, or even die from something that was easily avoidable.
Sometimes things just happen, but most of the time it’s our own stupid mistakes. Nobody is perfect, but I believe we can do much better. Think of when you became a teenager, and you knew everything. Mom and Dad were morons, and the old man at the corner was just crazy when they try to tell you something about life.
Now for those that have teenagers, (God be with you) are you catching yourself in the same position as your Mom and Dad were? Why is it technology gets so much better but we as a society keep making the same mistakes? Maybe if we were to lend an ear to our elders and pay a little more attention (in some cases, A lot more attention) we would evolve as a society like technology keeps evolving?
If you think I’m wrong, that’s okay, I’ve been wrong many times. But I believe I have hit on something, and I am trying to follow my own advice. I’m taking better care of myself and listening to others (especially my elders) more. I have been learning a lot, and I’m feeling better both physically and mentally. Take care and remember, we are all in this together.
I have had the conversation about tomorrow with my children many times. This is what I’m talking about, we have lived the past, and we are now living the present, but tomorrow never comes. Let me explain further. Everyone understands the first two parts about the past and present, however the third part gets people thinking real hard and some just think I’m crazy.
When I say tomorrow never comes, I’m dead serious! Let’s examine this concept. If you think like I do (around corners), then you will get this quickly, but for others I will make this as simple as I can. Think about tomorrow. As I write this, it is Friday. The next day coming is Saturday. We all agree with this, right? Okay, if I were to tell you we are going to the park on Saturday, then you would know on Saturday we are headed to the park.
Now if I were to tell you we are going to the park tomorrow, then we may never go because when we get to Saturday it will be today. I know, sounds kinda crazy. Think of it this way, we are here today, and we already used up yesterday, but there is no tomorrow that we can live in. Are you mad at me yet? I know that you think I’m talking crazy, but there is a point I want to make, and I hope it will help you through the rest of your life.
Here goes, we can’t change what has already happened and we can’t fix tomorrow. So if this is true then we have to do our best today. Don’t live in the past. Don’t worry about the future. Do your best today! If you follow this advice then the mountains (problems) that are put in your way won’t be anything but small hills. We can conquer any thing that gets in our way if we do the best that we can today and put worry behind us! As far as yesterday, it’s over. We are not going to fix yesterday! All we can do is learn from yesterday and change our ways to make ourselves better today. Live your best life today and everything will work out. Remember, we are all in this together.
Do you have an opinion, and do you want to share it?
Have you ever heard the saying (Opinions are like buttholes, everyone has one, and they all stink!)? This is true in some cases, but I’m here to say your opinion matters. Don’t let the right, the left or anybody else tell you otherwise. Wake up and let it be known that you and your opinion matters. It took me a long time to come to this conclusion. I have opinions/views myself. You may not like them and that’s okay, however if you are going to change my opinion on any subject, you better have some good reasons why. I believe in common sense. Remember, we are all in this together.
Don’t be fooled, we can change the world given enough like-minded people working together. One of the things I hate are those that follow blindly and don’t form their own views. Why choose what others want? I believe that we all matter, not just the chosen few. Take some time and meditate on that simple concept.
It always amazes me to hear someone complain the organization they are with, or the government does something they don’t like. However, when asked if they attended the meeting to choose board members or if they voted in the election, the answer is no. Are you kidding me? If you aren’t part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem.
Let me know what you think… Please, before you speak, think. I don’t want anyone to look like an idiot. YOU Do Matter!! Stand up and make the difference. If you decide just to follow the rest of the flock, then don’t complain when it doesn’t go your way! Remember, we are all in this together.
How am I seen by others”? I think a better question is “How do I see myself”? Have you ever just studied yourself in the mirror? Don’t lie, we all have. The outer appearance you possess is not what I’m talking about. It’s your inner self that matters.
Think about this, we are all different. Who made the determination of who is good-looking and who is not? Look back through history and what was considered good-looking say 100 years ago, and it doesn’t match what is today. But, your inner self? A good person on the inside is the same today as he or she was 100, a 1000 or even more years ago. Our values may have changed (whether for the better or for the worse, you can decide). What I’m trying to get you to understand is, it’s more important to have inner beauty than outer beauty.
A good person at heart will make more of a positive influence on someone than a beautiful outer person with a rotten core. I’m not saying that outer beauty is bad, I’m saying inner beauty is more important. Not only will people come to adore who you are, but you will feel better about yourself. Take Care of yourselves. Until next time… Remember, we are all in this together.
First off, I want to say that I’m not trying to make this blog political or about religion. I wanted to do this blog solely for helping people and for telling my true stories that will get a laugh here and there. There is however a new story out that is really getting my dander up. If I am understanding correctly, there are six Dr. Seuss books that have been targeted and are being removed from print. I grew up with Dr. Seuss books, and they taught me a lot about how to treat others no matter how big or small, along with being very funny like “Green Eggs and Ham”.
Even though I feel these books are something that I cherish, this is not what gets in my crawl. The part that bothers me, we are supposed to be in a Free country with Free speech, and we are going to allow this to happen?
I know there are countries that follow this example, however, this is the United States of America 🇺🇸. People of all colors and religions flood into this country to have freedom of speech! This may not seem like a big deal to some or in some cases, most, but I want this to sink in a little if you will give me a chance to open some closed eyes.
It may seem like a long time ago, but the 1940s really were just the other day in the grand scheme of things. I seem to recall a man with a funny little mustache and bad comb over that was keen on burning books that he felt were not what he wanted the people to have. Of course, the worst of all in his eyes was the Holy Bible. Now I understand he was not American, actually he was running Germany at the time and wasn’t even German. I’m not saying that you should follow one religion or another, I’m just putting it out there for an example to make a point. This man did a lot worse things than ordering books to be burned. His idea was complete control of not only the people he controlled, but all people in the world. Good thing he was stopped!
Now I got off the subject a little, but not really. If this is a free country with free speech, then why are we removing books that give so much joy? Why are we removing books at all? What’s next? Are we going to sit back and let other books be removed? How about the holy books of the religion you follow? How about math books, science books? Why not all books? This is just too much. We are headed down a bad road, my friends. Well, I hope I got my message across. Remember, we are all in this together.
If you follow the first sentence, you will go far in life. Question, do you walk with your eyes down or do you pay attention to what’s in front of you. I know it’s a silly question, but, I want you to really put some thought into this. It is said that the eyes are the window to your soul. I want you to take this literally and not just in passing. Here’s another question, when you have a conversation with someone, are you looking at their eyes? You can tell a lot about a person from their body language, whether you know you are doing so or not.There are many people that don’t get the job they are seeking or a promotion within the company they are already working for just because their body language was wrong.
The number one thing people notice about your body language is in your eyes.I’m feeling some skepticism from some of you. “This Billy guy is off his rocker”! It’s okay, you can think what you want, but I know I’m right about this. Here’s an example. If you see someone walking past, and they are walking slumped over, then you would automatically think that person is either very sad or has low self-esteem. Now, without thinking of how slumped over they are, think of their eyes. Where are their eyes looking? That’s right, they are looking towards the ground. Now try this, I want you to walk slumped over and look forward at the same time. It’s hard to do, right?
Everything in body language starts with the eyes. Stand straight, look forward and people will think, hey that person is walking with authority and very confident in themselves. Think of the picture above. We all think of the Lion as King of the jungle. The lion walks with authority. In the picture, the lion is getting a drink of water, but look at his eyes. He is still looking up and showing authority! I hope this small idea becomes a big idea for you. Remember, we are all in this together!
Have you ever felt like your road goes on forever with no end in sight? That’s great! That means there’s still hope for you. This is known as life. Ups and downs. My question to you is “Are you on the top, the bottom or in the middle”? If you are in the middle, are you on the uphill or downhill swing?
Throughout our lives we have our ups and downs, and we hope to be on the uphill swing at the end of life. Are you planning your life in order to be on that uphill swing? Everyone’s top of the hill is different. For some it’s money, for others it’s simply that your children are happy. I can’t, nor should I try to change your opinion on what you believe to be your hilltop. I just want you to look inside yourself and decide what is right for you, and don’t let others stop you from reaching your top!
Here’s the trick that a lot of people forget. We have no idea how much time we have to reach our goal. Life happens as well as death. You may have eighty-five years or two weeks.So what are we to do with the time we have?
Remember when I asked if you were on the top, the middle or the bottom? Well the bottom is easy, gotta go up right? The middle is what some would call a cross road, meaning it’s your choice. But, what about the top? If you believe that you are at the top, then I challenge you to change your goals. That’s right, my friends, there is Notop to the hill of life. The only thing that is keeping you from reaching higher is you! If you are content where you are, then your dreams are over.
The proper way to setting goals is setting more goals once you reach your goals. No matter who you are, you have not reached your true potential. If life knocks you down, then get up and go again. If life was easy, it would be boring, and I don’t deal in boring. Keep your heads up and keep climbing that hill we call life. I have faith in you and you should too. Till next time, this is your author, Billy. Take care out there and remember, we are all in this together!
