RECYCLE YOUR CHRISTMAS TREE

It takes years for anything, even organic things like Christmas trees, to breakdown in a landfill. Tree recyclers turn trees into wood chips, which can be used to help prevent erosion on beaches and hiking trails.

Some municipalities handle the recycling - all you have to do is leave your tree at the curb. Below is a list of some local recycling programs or click here to find a recycling program in your area. If you can’t find information about a recycling program in your area, check with the company handles your garbage disposal and recycling.

HOW & WHERE
Mecklenburg County Foxhole Recycling Center 704-341-4962
17131 Lancaster Highway CHARLOTTE, NC 28277
Service limited to residents of MECKLENBURG COUNTY
http://www.charmeck.org/Departments/LUESA/Solid+Waste/Recycling+Drop+Off+Centers/nmeck.htm

Curb It! Curbside Recycling Program 704-336-2673
CHARLOTTE, NC 28202
Service limited to residents of CHARLOTTE
http://www.charmeck.org/Departments/Solid+Waste/CurbIt/Recycling/Home.htm

Mecklenburg County Hickory Grove Recycling Center 704-535-3781
8007 Pence Road CHARLOTTE, NC 28202
Service limited to residents of MECKLENBURG COUNTY
http://www.charmeck.org/Departments/LUESA/Solid+Waste/Recycling+Drop+Off+Centers/nmeck.htm

York County Drop-off Site 803-628-3195
Odgen Road ROCK HILL, SC 29730
SOUTH CAROLINA

City of Rock Hill Curbside Program 803-329-5539
ROCK HILL, SC 29731
Service limited to residents of ROCK HILL

YOU CAN RECYCLE ALMOST ANYTHING
So you got a new TV, computer, or cell phone for Christmas and need to get rid of the old one? Click here to find out how to recycle the old one and just about anything else!

inspired by an article on idealbite.com

PFC Lemberger, Holidays and Pottery

It's a gloomy Sunday. I'm happy for the rain (my big cypress trees really need it). I don't plan on doing anything today but watch football; it's been a busy few days and I'm ready for a rest.

We went to Parris Island for Tiffany's graduation from USMC boot camp. I'm glad we were able to go, it was great to see Tiff for the first time in months. She was so grown up in her uniform. We got to visit with Tiff and her fellow Marine, Brittany, for about 6 hours on Thursday (Family Day). Tiffany and Brittany seem like unlikely names for Marines, don't they? The night before graduation was sort of a free night for them, so Tiff bought about $20 of candy and chocolate. I guess when you've been deprived that long you want to make sure you don't run out.

Unfortunately, the graduation ceremony was held indoors due to rain so we didn't get to see the pass in review on the parade deck. It was a moving ceremony nonetheless. We're very proud of Tiffany and are impressed at her discipline, fortitude and ability to get the job done.

We had a gathering of the Smith family last night at Penny's house. It was part graduation/welcome home party for Tiffany and part holiday party. As usual, there was a constant roar of noise to accompany the low-grade chaos. It was great to see everyone, even if it was only for a short while. The kids were adorable of course.

Tiffany has worn her uniform EVERYWHERE since getting home. I guess it's true what they say, those Marines are PROUD. She got up early this morning and ran 3 miles. I told her I don't even want to drive 3 miles before 8am. Here’s a pic of PFC Lemberger at Parris Island:

My brother-in-law (from New Orleans) and his crew are coming for a short visit today. It will be good to see them and visit for a while.

I was very happy to finish my mom's home movies. It's been a huge project and has taken far too long. I've been working on it for about 2 years. YIKES. We had some computer issues which delayed things (in addition to the usual procrastination, I guess). I transferred all of her old VHS tapes to DVD. I catalogued all of the video, added menus and did some editing. Mom’s movies made 10 DVD’s, plus I gave her a movie of my Aunt Willie’s pictures. Definitely a big job. Glad it's finally done. I hope the next BIG video project we do will be our own home movies (which was the reason we got into this video thing to begin with). I made a little box to put the disc in. I cracked myself up with the box set thing. Here’s my label:

I've been a little out of sorts lately. Cranky maybe? Distracted? Not sure what to call it. Maybe it's the busy schedule, noise, chaos, driving, etc. Maybe its work related. Or maybe I'm missing pottery. I haven't thrown anything in weeks. My next class starts in about a month. I can't wait. I'll be taking Ron Philbeck's class for the first time.

I don't want the holiday to be over, but I'm anxious for Xmas to come. I'm like a little kid - I can't wait for Debi and the kids to open their gifts. Luckily, Debi has more will power than me, so when I suggested today that she open a gift or two, she was able to resist. If it were up to me, I'm sure we'd have no gifts to open on Xmas day. The most fun part OF COURSE is seeing the kids' excitement on Xmas morning. I'm sure I'll be posting pictures of that (if I have the presence of mind to take some pics).

Speaking of gifts, I've been pretty happy with our holiday projects. Most of the gifts we gave this year were handmade by us. I love the idea of handmade gifts. It's so much more personal and meaningful; I have really enjoyed the entire process. I've already started thinking about what we might do next year.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

Fruitcake

Fins Win!!

Pottery Hobbyist

In the course of posting a comment on Jen's blog I referred to myself as a pottery hobbyist.

I don't really like the sound of "pottery hobbyist," is there another name for what it is that I do with pottery? Junior potter? Potter-in-training? Potter apprentice? Hack? LOL.

Expectations

I was traveling at the time; I lived in airports and hotels. I had developed that jaded outlook on traveling that many frequent travelers have – avoiding eye contact (and thus conversation) with your fellow travelers because you don’t want to get drawn into a mind-numbingly boring conversation with someone whose passion in life is collecting vintage bottle caps.

After a long day of training at hotel in Arizona I went to the hotel bar for a beer. I was happy to see that the place was deserted and that the bartender was not one of those chatty types who wanted to play twenty questions. I could enjoy my novel in peace and quiet.

To my chagrin, a vintage bottle cap collector came in and sat down next to me and started yapping endlessly. I was about to escape to my room when an older couple came into the bar.

I noticed them immediately. They looked to be in their early sixties; very fit & energetic. I was somehow drawn to them. I found myself tuning the bottle cap collector out and watching this couple. I don’t make a habit of gawking at strangers, but they exuded an energy that was magnetic.

I KNEW these were the two happiest people in the world.

It was odd… how could I be so sure of something I had no way of knowing? There was no logic behind it, just a gut feeling. I couldn’t contain my curiosity – I had to talk to them.

Exactly how does one strike up a conversation with a couple in a bar without seeming like a weirdo? I couldn’t think of a good way, so I simply walked up and said something like: “Excuse me. I know this is going to sound strange, but I noticed you the minute you walked in and I couldn’t help feeling that that you are the two happiest people I have ever seen.”

They laughed. Not the nervous laugh of two people trying to pacify a lunatic, but an “oh, we get that all the time,” laugh. We introduced ourselves; their names were Jan and Dan.

They proceeded to tell their story. They’d been married to each other for 3 years. Both were married before and widowed. They’d led reasonably happy lives before meeting each other & neither was looking to get involved in a relationship when they met.

They met on an airplane. They had both stayed out late with friends the night before and were hoping to rest on the flight home. When Dan took the seat next to Jan, she cringed. She said to the stranger, “I hope you won’t think me rude, but I’m not feeling up to having a conversation and would like to just nap during the flight.” Relieved, Dan responded “Oh thank goodness, me too.”

That was the beginning of a conversation that lasted for the duration of the flight. As they gathered their things to disembark, Dan nervously asked Jan if they could meet again sometime. Jan agreed and they exchanged phone numbers.

By this time, a couple other people had joined us at the bar. Their story and their telling of it entranced everyone, including the bartender.

After several months of enjoying each other’s company as friends they realized they were madly in love and were married. During the short time that they’d been together they had many adventures and lived every day to its fullest.

Dan talked about how they accepted each other completely. Jan talked about the openness and genuine affection they shared. My original assessment was confirmed, they really were the happiest couple I’d ever met. I thought this was some powerful kind of magic. I asked them their secret for happiness.

Jan leaned back in her chair while she pondered the question. Finally with a far-away & thoughtful look, she said, “expectations will be the ruination of the world.”

Aside from my fascination with the word “ruination,” it had an immediate impact on me. The more I thought about it, the more truth and meaning I found in that one little statement. When I reviewed my life, I found that most of my disappointments came as a result of having unfair or unrealistic expectations of those around me. Jan and Dan were right… expectations will be the ruination of the world.

I also learned that it sometimes pays to talk to strangers when traveling.

Random acts of (coffee) kindness

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- A customer in a South Florida drive-through paid the bill for the customer behind him on Thursday, and the chain continued throughout the day.

Drivers at a Starbucks Coffee in Pompano Beach paid for drinks for the people behind them all day long.

"Your drink has been paid for by the driver in front of you," a Starbucks barista told a customer.

The barista said she had one woman convinced that they were on the TV show "Candid Camera."

It all started with one customer's gesture of paying it forward.

"I think it's awesome," one customer said. "Spreads a lot of Christmas cheer."

The manager at the Starbucks said the idea has made his work atmosphere cheerful all day.

"Every customer that comes through the drive-through has been smiling and saying, 'You made my day.'"

However, the chain of kindness started with anger. Arthur Rosenfeld said the man behind him at the drive-through on Thursday morning was honking and yelling at him. So Rosenfeld, a Tai-Chi master, responded with a bit of Zen.

"It wasn't an idea to pay anything forward, nor was it even a random act of kindness, it was a change of consciousness (to) take this negative and change it into something positive," he said.

Here's a link to the original article: http://www.knbc.com/news/14856317/detail.html

Why we do what we do

In the course of our careers, I’m sure that all of us have wondered whether or not we are making a difference… doing something important and meaningful. The answer is YES.

Most of our customers require nothing more from us other than the product or service that they are purchasing. Occasionally though, we encounter a customer who needs a little extra attention.

One of our Spa Coordinators, Whitney, encountered such a customer on Saturday. Whitney received a phone call from a customer (we’ll call her Mrs. Bailey) who wanted to schedule a day in the spa. To an inattentive person this might have seemed like an ordinary call, but Whitney knew there was something special about this customer.

Mrs. Bailey told Whitney that she is a fourth grade teacher and has a big parent/teacher event coming up and that she wants "to feel like a princess." Whitney asked questions and explained the available services to help the customer determine her itinerary for the day.

Mrs. Bailey opened up to Whitney and told her, with great sadness, that her husband of many years had recently passed away. Whitney listened with compassion and could tell that Mrs. Bailey was still grieving.

In the year since her husband’s passing, Mrs. Bailey had let herself go. She hadn’t noticed or cared until, shortly after Halloween, she overheard one of her pupils say that she looked like a witch. She realized it was time to shake things up.

Whitney asked what kind of budget she had planned for her makeover; she replied that she was not concerned with the price because "this was a present to herself that is long overdo." Whitney filled a whole sheet of paper with notes, from medical issues to how many inches her roots had grown out. Together they planned an entire day of pampering that included a Swedish massage with targeted stone therapy, a hydrating facial, brow/lip/chin waxing, lunch, and finally a designer cut and color.

Mrs. Bailey’s story had touched Whitney’s heart. She told her co-workers and her boss, Bill, about Mrs. Bailey. Bill made everyone aware that Mrs. Bailey was to be given the VIP treatment when she arrived as well as a special gift from the Spa.

Unfortunately, Whitney was not able to be here when Mrs. Bailey came for her treatments, but Jessica and the other Spa staff members took great care of her. At the end of her day of pampering, Mrs. Bailey commented that she was completely relaxed and satisfied. She said that it was a great experience and raved about how wonderfully Whitney and the others had treated her.

She loved her thoughtful gift and bought some meditation CD’s to help her maintain this newly achieved level of serenity. Before leaving she told Jessica that this was her first wedding anniversary since her husband’s passing; they would have been married 38 years. She said that she is going to return to the Spa every year on her anniversary for a special day of relaxation and meditation.

We’re not feeding starving children or rescuing wildlife from an oil spill, but the work we do is meaningful. We can make a difference when we listen and care.

Visit with Santa

Amelia's holiday masterpiece

Isabel's holiday masterpiece

Tom Petty at the Superbowl

Tom Petty is doing the half-time show at the Superbowl this year. How cool is that?

Click here to read the Rolling Stones interview with TP.

Click here to see the Youtube videos.

Artist

Santa at Glencairn Gardens

On Saturday we went to Glencairn Gardens where Santa read a couple of books to the crowd. He treated us to a reading of Rudolph (the book is longer than the classic TV special it seems) and Frosty. It was a beautiful day for stories in a park.

Coincidentally, we met up with the Wheless family. The kids had a great time; they especially enjoyed the cookies & hot chocolate. Santa was in good spirits and looked great, but he had a bit more of a southern drawl than I recall. I guess Santa's been spending time at his summer home in the South Pole.

On searching for higher meaning...

Sure, I have doubts about the path I'm on and the choices I've made, but it is what it is. A friend sent me this quote...

"Sit down on the pillow of your own good life and be still. Stop searching, demanding, aching, casting about."

Good advice I think.