FIND YOUR WAY--A Musical Mockery

It's still a tough economic climate out there, so it seemed like the perfect time for a little motivational song (even if it incorporates a little "tough love"). So please click on the photo above to watch the next video from the "Musical Mockery" series called "Find Your Way." It's a A humorous song to hopefully motivate those who are struggling during these troubling times.

The Unexpected Surprise of a Stranger’s Support

“I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” Those fateful words, uttered by Blanche Dubois in the classic Tennessee William’s play “A Streetcar Named Desire,” have always struck me as a little odd. Mostly because I have never depended on the kindness of anyone, let alone a stranger. Though it certainly would be nice to rely on perfect strangers to get me through my life, I realized quite early that you can’t really depend on anyone. With the possible exception of your immediate family and a few close friends, most of the people you rely on in life tend to let you down.

And before you think me too cynical, I’m only suggesting that going through life with the philosophy that other people should take care of you is most likely going to result in many disappointments and heartache. Unless, of course, you happen to look like a supermodel, in which case, you can probably subscribe to Blanche’s method of acquisition and do very well at it too. Not being a supermodel myself, I’ve found that anything I really want to achieve, I can only rely on myself to get there.

That’s why it's always such a pleasant surprise when somebody decides to take it upon themselves to help you out. Without any idea of gain on their part, or any solicitation from you, someone independently gives you a little show of support. These are the kinds of things we can never depend on, but always benefit greatly from. Not only because it's one of those little moments in life that take you by surprise, but also because you are reminded of the generosity and kindness of others. (Strangers or not.)

This happened to me recently. I have several people on YouTube that I maintain an ongoing casual friendship with, mostly because we share similar interests in video production, creative ideas or our love for animals. It is similar to some of the wonderful friendships I have established through this blog. It was one of these unique individuals, Twish1999, who one day decided that I needed more subscribers and viewers for my YouTube efforts, as she thought my “Cat Clips” were especially worthy of attention. She also thought it wrong that YouTube recently turned me down as a partner, and figured that a boost in subscribers might help the cause.

You can imagine how touched I was that anyone would care, let alone do something about it. But true to her word, Twish1999 created a video for her subscriber base (currently in excess of 1,800) that not only introduced my Cat Clips to all her friends, but also showed several clips from her favorite Cat Clips videos as well. The result of this incredibly selfless act was a boost of nearly 90 new subscribers over the following week. Not only was I floored, but very appreciative as well.

Twish1999, also known as Trish, is a very creative British woman who always has some kind of interesting video to share. Whether it’s giving us a pleasant little walk around her beautiful English village, or creating some kind of funny video using her cats or other subjects, or sharing a funny little poem she created, Trish is always delighting her fans with something unique and interesting. She is one of several people I follow on YouTube on a regular basis. And though we are technically still strangers, the bond of mutual interests has brought us together as friends in the amazing world of cyberspace.

And the amazing show of support didn’t end with Twish1999, as now other subscribers have jumped on the bandwagon to help me out as well. It’s amazing to think that something you do could affect people in such a positive manner that they want to go to bat for you. Needless to say, I am learning a great deal from my adventures on the World Wide Web.

But that’s just me. What has someone surprised you with lately?

We Can't Let This Bank Fail!

When I was ten years old, my father gave me a hardbound blank book for Christmas. He knew that I liked to read and write stories, and so he thought maybe I might someday write something in this one. To his surprise, I spent the rest of the day and the following two days filling those blank pages with a story of my own invention called “Hands of a Rhino.” It was about a boy who bumps into a deaf homeless man one day while walking through his neighborhood. The two strike up a friendship, and the boy eventually helps the homeless man integrate himself back into society again. As I was writing it, I imagined the whole thing as a sort of happy Hallmark Hall of Fame special.

When I presented the completed book (which included a forward, a chapter breakdown, illustrations, and an epilogue) to my Father three days later, he was shocked and amazed. And after he read the story, he got all choked up and praised me for my ideas and imagination. He was also amazed that a ten year old boy from rural Ohio would have any knowledge of homeless people at all. After all, we didn’t see the streets of our town lined with any, and we rarely ever heard of any vagrants in our area, so how I came up with such a heartfelt idea was beyond his comprehension. But somewhere deep down inside, I always knew there were people who were less fortunate than me, and that I should always try to help them whenever I could. Especially in this time of recession, it seems like there are a plethora of people in need, and not enough help to go around.

Which brings me to the real subject of today’s post: The Community Food Bank of New Jersey. For more than 25 years, the Community FoodBank of New Jersey (CFBNJ) has been a beacon of hope for the hungry families in the state. But with food donations down significantly and demand up 30 percent, their shelves are nearly bare and the FoodBank is struggling to meet the need. More than 500,000 people in New Jersey turn to emergency food pantries and soup kitchens dependent on supplies from the Community FoodBank. More than half of those assisted are children and the elderly. Those numbers are growing. It’s up to us to make sure there is enough food to distribute so that our hungry neighbors are not turned away.

They need your help now. Please make a Deposit of Hope by filling out the coupon below. You can also visit http://www.njfoodbank.org/ or call 908-355-FOOD to donate. The payoff will feed your soul…take that to the bank.

Legendary music icon Bruce Springsteen will be lending his voice to the fight against hunger in New Jersey by appearing in a major advertising campaign for the Community FoodBank of New Jersey – the largest food bank in the state. A supporter of the FoodBank for 23 years, this ad marks the first time Springsteen has publicly lent his image to the campaign, due to the urgency of the situation. The Grammy award-winning musician often donates proceeds from his concerts to the organization.

In this season of giving, let's all try to dig a little deeper into our pockets to help out this worthy cause. And don't just do it for Bruce. Do it for your heart.

How to Deftly Deal with a Distracted Listener

Have you ever been in the middle of a conversation with someone when you suddenly realize they’re not even listening to you? Sure, they appear like they’re listening—they nod their head at various intervals, or interject pointless questions to keep you going. But as far as "active listening" is concerned, they obviously “checked out” long ago.

This practice is becoming a standard during phone conversations, when people are easily distracted by other factors while talking to you. Especially people who insist on calling you when they’re in traffic jam, so you can listen to them constantly scream expletives at other drivers. (So much fun!) Or the parent who calls you just as his child is having a tantrum, so you can suffer through two simultaneous conversations—the one the parent is having with you, and the one the parent is having with his child. And guess which conversation eventually wins? That’s right, the escalating argument with the child. Sometimes the parent even leaves your conversation to go yell at his children, and then never returns. They also forget to hang up the phone, allowing you an uncomfortably intimate peak into their domestic dynamics, an opportunity best left untaken. (Trust me!)

Nevertheless, I am used to people zoning out during phone conversations. We tend to be a society addicted to multi-tasking, so most phone conversations now take place while people are working, driving, on the computer, reading a book, or any number of other actions which allow them to talk at the same time. (However, if I ever hear anyone flush a toilet at any time during our conversation, I immediately end the call. After all, there are certain “distractions” I don’t need to be a part of.)

So during phone conversations, I give some leeway when it comes to a person’s attention span. But when someone is standing directly in front of you and you suddenly notice their eyes glaze over, or their attention shift to the table next to you, chances are they’re thoughts are elsewhere. At this point, I usually stop talking, allowing their processing system to catch up on their lack of participation. The more abrupt, the better, because this will immediately jolt the inactive listener into “defense mode.” They suddenly become very attentive and scramble to remember the last tangible thing they heard you say. Usually it was something you said at the beginning of the conversation, a realization that not only embarrasses your distracted listener, but hopefully keeps them attentive for the remainder of your exchange.

So whatever happened to good listening skills? Have we become so busy and over-extended in our lives that we need our conversations served to us in small bite-size portions in order to fit them into the rest of our schedule? To me, there is nothing more satisfying or stimulating than a good conversation with people I enjoy. I hope the era of text messaging doesn’t eventually encapsulate our interchanges into a series of blips and beeps, because the human voice is a terrible thing to waste.

But that’s just me. What do you do when you notice someone zone out during a conversation? Or do you even notice? (Which may have completely different implications.)