Isn't it funny sometimes how people get so excited about the past? My son was on Netflix the other day and I saw the OLD Transformers cartoon on there. I believe I let out a little squeal of delight and insisted he watch that. He only made it through an episode and a half before he said, "Dad, the characters look funny." Then he followed up with "What's that thing?" He pointed to the cassette that popped out of Soundwave's chest. Wow.
Today I was on Facebook and saw that Self, a band from Murfreesboro that I was a HUGE fan of, is playing a "reunion" show in December. I, of course, immediately bought tickets. While purchasing the tickets, I remembered seeing them at Mainstreet a couple of times and anxiously anticipating their second album and all that. It also brought up general memories of high school. Oddly enough, only good memories.
Why do we get so nostalgic? Is it that we gloss over the painful, uncomfortable parts of our own history and only choose to remember the good stuff? Then we want to escape back to a time when life was "simpler"?
Like many of you, I am thankful for my own history. I had a LOT of good stuff happen in my previous 33 years. I also had my fair share of bad stuff. ALL of it shaped who I am right now. I do get nostalgic when some songs come on the radio or I see some old toy. I think it is healthy. It keeps us connected to our own history and thus, our own identity. Embrace nostalgia but don't live in it. The past made you you and you are pretty cool. Even if your kids don't think so. Happy Thanksgiving. Hug the people you love.
What are some things you get nostalgic about? Give specific examples so we can all join in the trip down memory lane.
Showing posts with label fun. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fun. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Traditions
This is the very first guest post for www.harmonworksharder.com by none other than the beautiful Cynthia W. Harmon, Realtor Supreme with Weichert Realtors the Andrews Group. She is also Banker extroidinaire at US Bank in the Smyrna Publix on Sam Ridley Parkway and an amazing Wife and Mother to 2 charming children...(yes, i wrote that intro myself...how did you like it?)
We are Harmon’s, and we can have Easter any time we want!" Sound familiar to your family? Being blessed to have all our grandparents still living when we started dating, Jonathan and I had 4 different family gatherings to make it to on Easter Sunday in the year 2000. After that very stressful Sunday with really full bellies, we decided some adjustments had to be made, and we started some new holiday traditions. For example, the Waldron’s (My father's side of the family) have Thanksgiving the second Saturday in November. It's a little strange to my boss when I ask off work for Thanksgiving on that Saturday; I just tell her "We are Waldron’s, and we can have Thanksgiving any time we want!" That opens up the 4th weekend in November for Jonathan's side of the family on Turkey Day, Shopping on Friday, and the Duggin’s (my mom's side of the family) on Saturday. In addition to celebrating Thanksgiving on the 2nd Saturday in November, the Waldron's also celebrate Independence Day somewhere around the 14th of July, which happens to be Bastile Day (French Independence Day) as well as Jonathan's birthday. Perhaps this tradition started because we are frugal (it's okay to read that as *cheap, we don't mind) and want to save money on fireworks and watermelon, or maybe it started because we just couldn't all get together around the 4th of July. Either way, I still get the strange look from my boss when I request off work for Bastille Day; but isn't life all about having fun and making some great memories? What strange or fun traditions do you have with your family?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Pet Peeves
So I have some pet peeves. I know most everyone does. Here is a list of my top pet peeves. If you do these things, know that it gets on my nerves. I will probably not EVER tell you that you are getting on my nerves (because I know that I just need to get over it). Feel free to share your biggest pet peeves
1) Redundancy--It drives me nuts when people say something like "VIN number" or "PIN number" or "ACT Test" or "3 AM in the morning". VIN stands for vehicle identification number so VIN number is "vehicle identification number number". And "3 AM in the morning", oh really, as opposed to 3 AM in the afternoon?
2) Left lane loafers--seriously, if you are doing the speed limit or less, get out of the left lane. It is called the passing lane, not the lane to be passed in. I know a lot of people don't like this but it REALLY gets on my nerves. A close derivative of this is the two people riding next to each other on a two lane road where you can't pass on either side. See, I am not a speed demon (anymore) but at the same time, if I need to go, I want to GO.
3) Ignorance coupled with arrogance--I know a lot of stuff. I also DON'T know a lot of stuff. I will be the first one to tell you that I don't know some particular piece of information. Then I go look it up. One thing I am good at is finding information. There is nothing more annoying than someone who is misinformed (or sometimes just plain making some info up) and is arrogant when you correct him or her. Another version of this is someone who WILL NOT listen to reason, no matter what.
4) Media devotees--I strongly value the ability to think on your own. I do place some value on the media (in general) for disseminating current events. I don't put a lot of value in much of the opinion that is in the media. I definitely don't care what some goofball celebrity thinks about his or her pet cause. I also don't care to listen to the "national media" spout numbers about the "national housing market" and the "national economy". We live in states, counties and municipalities. There is no such thing as a national housing market. Every submarket and every submarket of the submarkets is different. Many people see these national numbers as gospel and it is so hard to get through to them that we, in the Nashville area (for the most part), have NOT been hit nearly as hard. There just plain isn't an over abundance of decent condition homes for 50cents on the dollar here! Some people just won't hear it.
5) Time wasters--I work in a service industry--period. I talk to people about their (typically) most valuable asset. I spend time with people. I get to know them. I put them in my life and put their lives into mine. All this is what makes my job awesome. That said, there are some people out there--and you know who you are--who have 0 intention of ever doing anything real estate related, whether it is referring me, listing with me, buying through me, anything but still find it ok to waste my work time. I had a guy one time that called me about every other day to make offers on my listings. His formula was to offer $20,000 per bedroom. This means that the 3 bedroom, all brick, on almost an acre, over 1400 s.f. home was only worth $60,000 to him. I am fairly polite and I humored him for a moment because I didn't want to be rude. Eventually I told him that it wasn't going to happen and had to hang up on him. He called me a few days later from a different number. This person was a time waster. I also encounter (only occasionally) this scenario--phone call,
"Hello this is Jonathan"
"Hi, we would like to see 0000 Elm Street"
"Ok, are you currently working with a real estate agent"
"Yes but they said they didn't have time to show it to us"
"Oookaaayy, well I guess I can show it to you (because I still want to sell it). I just need to let your agent know so they don't get angry"
"Well, they won't care because we can't buy for a while"
"Why is that"
"We just filed bankruptcy and the lender said there is nothing they can do"
"So why are you looking now"
"Well we just want to see the inside of the house"
This is either a time waster or they are thieves. Either way, it floors me that someone would actually think this was ok.
Would love to hear your opinions on my pet peeves. Would also love to read about your pet peeves.
1) Redundancy--It drives me nuts when people say something like "VIN number" or "PIN number" or "ACT Test" or "3 AM in the morning". VIN stands for vehicle identification number so VIN number is "vehicle identification number number". And "3 AM in the morning", oh really, as opposed to 3 AM in the afternoon?
2) Left lane loafers--seriously, if you are doing the speed limit or less, get out of the left lane. It is called the passing lane, not the lane to be passed in. I know a lot of people don't like this but it REALLY gets on my nerves. A close derivative of this is the two people riding next to each other on a two lane road where you can't pass on either side. See, I am not a speed demon (anymore) but at the same time, if I need to go, I want to GO.
3) Ignorance coupled with arrogance--I know a lot of stuff. I also DON'T know a lot of stuff. I will be the first one to tell you that I don't know some particular piece of information. Then I go look it up. One thing I am good at is finding information. There is nothing more annoying than someone who is misinformed (or sometimes just plain making some info up) and is arrogant when you correct him or her. Another version of this is someone who WILL NOT listen to reason, no matter what.
4) Media devotees--I strongly value the ability to think on your own. I do place some value on the media (in general) for disseminating current events. I don't put a lot of value in much of the opinion that is in the media. I definitely don't care what some goofball celebrity thinks about his or her pet cause. I also don't care to listen to the "national media" spout numbers about the "national housing market" and the "national economy". We live in states, counties and municipalities. There is no such thing as a national housing market. Every submarket and every submarket of the submarkets is different. Many people see these national numbers as gospel and it is so hard to get through to them that we, in the Nashville area (for the most part), have NOT been hit nearly as hard. There just plain isn't an over abundance of decent condition homes for 50cents on the dollar here! Some people just won't hear it.
5) Time wasters--I work in a service industry--period. I talk to people about their (typically) most valuable asset. I spend time with people. I get to know them. I put them in my life and put their lives into mine. All this is what makes my job awesome. That said, there are some people out there--and you know who you are--who have 0 intention of ever doing anything real estate related, whether it is referring me, listing with me, buying through me, anything but still find it ok to waste my work time. I had a guy one time that called me about every other day to make offers on my listings. His formula was to offer $20,000 per bedroom. This means that the 3 bedroom, all brick, on almost an acre, over 1400 s.f. home was only worth $60,000 to him. I am fairly polite and I humored him for a moment because I didn't want to be rude. Eventually I told him that it wasn't going to happen and had to hang up on him. He called me a few days later from a different number. This person was a time waster. I also encounter (only occasionally) this scenario--phone call,
"Hello this is Jonathan"
"Hi, we would like to see 0000 Elm Street"
"Ok, are you currently working with a real estate agent"
"Yes but they said they didn't have time to show it to us"
"Oookaaayy, well I guess I can show it to you (because I still want to sell it). I just need to let your agent know so they don't get angry"
"Well, they won't care because we can't buy for a while"
"Why is that"
"We just filed bankruptcy and the lender said there is nothing they can do"
"So why are you looking now"
"Well we just want to see the inside of the house"
This is either a time waster or they are thieves. Either way, it floors me that someone would actually think this was ok.
Would love to hear your opinions on my pet peeves. Would also love to read about your pet peeves.
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