Friday, November 25, 2011

Hi, I’m Trade Show Rhondi. Pleased to Meet You.

I was working the Toronto Golf and Travel Show in downtown Toronto about five winters back. It was midday Sunday, my feet were sore, my face ached from smiling, and I just wanted the ‘tire kicking’ questions to stop.

In complaining to my friend Peter Mumford (Publisher: Fairways Magazine) in the adjacent booth, I’ll never forget what he said. “Rhondi, every Trade Show is one day too long…even a one day Trade Show!” I howled with laughter when he said it and that saying still makes me giggle today.

Why the reflection? Fall Cottage Life (Great Outdoors – DIY whatever they are calling it now) starts at the International Centre at 11am today. You’ll be pleased to know that at precisely that time all the surrounding city traffic lights will align & I will miraculously morph into Trade Show Mode.

Ah Trade Show Mode – aka Trade Show Rhondi. It’s nothing scary. It’s not like a machine starts up or anything it’s a mind set. Even though I’m not there with my day to day team (I am helping out one of our customers) you still have to prepare and all I can say is thank God I have good teeth.  Just how much eye contact can one make with strangers? To do it right, and get results it is very hard work. And what’s the upside to a lot of hard work? 

It’s Friday. I’m in the City. SHOPPING!

Thursday, November 24, 2011

“Ah Ha” said my Credit Card to the Shoes!

Have you ever had a defining “Ah Ha” moment? You know the kind where your eyes roll completely around in your head or you slap yourself on the forehead and say “I shoulda had a V8”?

I have, in fact I did, yesterday.

Oh, the instant when the solution to a problem becomes clear feels good. For lack of a better word it’s liberating - even a little therapeutic.

Not proud to admit it but I’d had a problem I wasn’t dealing very well with since the beginning of October. (To the point where this “problem” was preoccupying my thoughts and taking up far too much of my energy.) I was stuck.

Finally, enough was enough. Yesterday I dug in my heels and met with it head on. I got up in the morning, told myself this is how it’s going to be and by the time dinner was served I was kind of smiling on the inside asking myself “why didn’t I do that two months ago…?”

I’m a simple gal. Why do the obvious answers always want to play hide and seek with me? Why can I be smart as a whip one day and dumb as a stump the next? Probably for the same reason there’s a party of fifteen going on in my head and I’m the hostess….

Because life is hard right up until the moment it isn’t!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

I LOVE You THIS Much......

About six months ago I got back in touch with a friend I hadn’t seen in years. (Our life paths had changed but we'd always tried to keep the relationship/conversation open via email.)      

You know deal:
Title: Hey
Body of Email: I Miss You.
To Which I Would Get the Standard Reply: “ditto”.


Neither of us would sign our names. No talk of the weather, no discussion of where we were at in life. Just a quick note to let the other know we were in each others thoughts.

Then one day the unexplained happened. A mutual friend unexpectedly passed.

Instantly, and without thought, I dialed the phone (hoping they’d kept the same cell number). “It’s Rhondi” I said… “OH MY GOSH call me”! I truly didn’t expect a return call & that night I didn’t get one. I climbed into bed at the cottage a few hours later not giving my dramatic call another thought.

Next day my cell phone rang at the office. Preoccupied, I didn’t recognize the voice at first... BUT as soon as they said who they were I was elated.

To this day, I play that very first reconnection conversation over and over in my head.  How silly was it that we’d been too busy to keep in touch? Hearing the others voice was like riding a bike, smooth and effortless. Kismet!

Months have passed since that fateful day. We text and/or email everyday, chat at least once a week, and make an effort to see each other once a month. 

It's simple. A TRUE friend is someone you don't have to talk to everyday to feel like you hugged them yesterday!

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Think Positive & NEVER Google Otherwise….

Had a tough week last week. The worst I’ve had in a very long time. To top it up, I have a very realistic grasp on why....

The proverbial  textbook reminds us that "negative thoughts NEVER breed positive result" but I have to admit that in the midst of feeling sorry for oneself there's never a textbook in sight.

"Feeling sorry" is a slippery slope. Personally, in the moment of any funk, I'll spark inner dialogue trying to downplay my mood. You know, that it's "not the greatest" and it's being caused by something other than what it really is (all in an effort to remain upbeat). 

So to the point of my post...

Last Friday I was a mess. My chin was in need of the support of my bra, my knuckles were dragging along side me and there were tears at lunch. All of a sudden I found myself saying the words aloud... "I'm lonely". 

As a girl always looking for info, I Googled “I’m lonely”… BIG MISTAKE! Or was it?

Having never really thought about it before Friday, I discovered that loneliness is self-inflicted. The only site I visited basically told me to 'smarten the hell up' and 'quit feeling sorry for myself'. That if I was in fact “lonely” it is completely 'my fault', which is unequivocally and absolutely correct!

Taking ownership for a mood is the only thing that will make it change. Seems it was just the kick in the butt I needed because I’ve made the necessary adjustments. Who knew? Take that glass half empty!

Monday, November 21, 2011

Well I Feel Stupid...

I was proud as a Peacock last night after I'd posted my first blog entry. So excited that I immediately shared the link with my Facebook friends & Twitter followers and I waited.
I must admit, I was not prepared for what happened next. I looked at the screen in horror as a fellow Facebook friend posted that I had missed the all-important and somewhat critical memo that “BLOGGING IS DEAD”!
Sufferin’ Succotash! How could this be? I love blogs. I appreicate the community of real bloggers who use real blogging software which now officially includes MOI! Dead...? If I were dead how could I still be typing? Come on it's a valid question...

All joking aside, the fact that I have never made the commitment to keep a personal blog going until now hasn't made them less appealing to me but why the perceived change in status? After all death is so final. 
Did the ease of Facebook send bloggers to the unproven grave? Did Twitter followers make the blogging community drink the Kool Aid? "Take a sip" and you'll never type 140 characters the same way again! 
I say the answer is neither. Blogging may be changing but you know what they say about change, "You can't stop it only manage it". Meaning there is an awful lot of URL shortened links on Twitter than lead us to one type of blog or another.
At the end of the day, if I peel the layers of the onion back, I am sure I'm just pissed at the fact that I missed the memo! Imagine how Perez Hilton feels!!!
Cheers.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Here We Go!

Okay, so it’s apparent that I’ve set this thing up without a plan. Once again, the cart is before the horse. Whatever, I’ll pat myself on the back, call it forward thinking and move on.

In the past I have kept several business blogs going for customers but I’ve wanted to create a personal blog for quiet a while. (Yep, believe it or not I’ve done this for business but never for pleasure.) You know the deal, five years ago too busy, three years ago too dark, last year too mad so in the midst of this mid life thing I have happening I say there is no time like the present.

I have a great job (a full blown extrovert with a flair for sales) and I have amazing friends.

At the end of the day if I am being totally honest with myself I’m high maintenance. You know the kind of “I’m worth it” lane occupier. The “if you don’t take care of yourself, no one’s going to do it for you” kinda gal. It is what it is. Again, moving on....

My hair and weight occupy a lot of my energy and both tend to make for my best stand up comedy material. Dogs and sex are a close three and four in the comedy material line up. (Just so were cool... the “doggies” are the four legged furry kind, not the style!)

Live and cottage in Muskoka which in itself surprises most and I love to read. I’ve been married for 24 years, have three great kids and my nest is empty. Uh, not entirely true, I have a Jim Morrison/Jimmy Hendrix/Beatles wannabe staying here (Hmmm, I’m thinking I have just discovered my fifth standup topic) but he’s an adult so in theory the nest is empty.

I’m simple (I know what I like and it stops there) some may call it narrow minded but why split hairs? I am brutally honest, which is not always the best way to approach things, so I try to consciously choose my words carefully to get a positive result. I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve (thank God for tank tops) and I pride myself never to judge anyone that hasn’t walked a mile in my shoes.

I hope you’ll follow along for the laughs, my only advice? Keep your hands and feet in the ride at all times!