"Life will find a way"

This photo was taken by a friend a few blocks from his house, and he calls it "Life will find a way."

Heard from Delta

I had gotten a "how did we do?" survey from Delta for my flight down, and told them how I thought they did, relating my experience. Just got a call from George in customer complaint resolution, and I have to say that he did as good a job as he could. He just kept totally agreeing with me. Said stuff like "we dropped the ball" and that sort of thing.

At one point he said something like "we just didn't communicate with the customer" and I said to him that I have sat in countless meetings and I can imagine all the meetings that took place about this change. That it is stunning that no one placed "communicate with customers" as the #1 priority.

I did praise the Delta employees who were really doing the best they can. He did tell me that the vans were different so that no one really could tell which were Delta vans and which weren't. You'd think someone would make giant banners for the vehicles that said "get on this shuttle for Delta's Terminal C." In a case like this, I don't think you can have too much signage or too much obvious signage.

I really can picture this meeting where the self-satisfied execs said "we'll have people outside getting people into the vans and signage inside pointing the way" and that's enough.

Delta sends out a "it's time to check in" email the night before. You'd think (and George agreed) that you could have included the change in terminals in that email.

I also pointed out that Delta knew for weeks that this change was going to happen. It's not like a tornado went through LGA -- and if it had, then Delta would have done a good job. So I concluded by saying that Delta took a great positive happening -- expanding its presence at LGA and turned it into a way to piss customers off.

By the way, when I returned on Thursday to LGA, the confusion was still going on.

There's No Place Like Home

Here I am in Tampa Airport, clicking my shoes and saying, "There's no place like home." My shoes let me down, and I was forced to get on an airplane instead.

Other than the normal indignities of travel, all was well. When I was going through security, there was a soccer Mom type who had been pulled aside and I couldn't believe my eyes. They smoothed down her entire body, including the underneath area of her boobs (with the back of the hand, as if that makes it better) and up between her legs. Honestly, I found it quite invasive, and I said something to her when it was over like "that was quite a pat down" and she cheerfully said, "After three babies, you can do anything to me." Wow, too bad you're in an airport, lady, and not in a doctor's office. I don't want to seem too rabble rousing, but I find it somewhat alarming how quickly we are willing to submit to anything.

As for me, the only incident was this old lady getting up in the row behind me. I was in half-sleep/half-awake with my head back. She pulled herself up, holding on to the back of my seat at which time she practically yanked my hair out of my head. Totally oblivious as she toddles off to the restroom.

However much I bitch, moan, complain, kvetch, etc., I do know how lucky I am. I returned to a gleaming apartment with clean sheets on the bed as well as my garden totally cleaned with the cushions on the furniture and everything ready for planting. Ana had been here today, and Ray (the handyman) came sometime during the week.

There is no place like home, and I'm glad to be here.

More flowers

Melissa says the Texas bluebells are abundant this year... check this out:

And Mary's cleaning woman, Eneida, would have been a fancy florist in another life. She creates these stupendous arrangements almost all year long from things in Mary's yard. Here's spring's first:



Wednesday and all is well

Last day at the show for me. It got hotter today -- 85 and sunny. My two events went off without a hitch. I have to say I have one of those rare moments of "all's well with the world" when I am at one of my events and it's going well and I'm admiring how well I have executed it. I like just standing/sitting at the perimeter and seeing this nice buzz, people enjoying their food, the business part of the event going off well, etc. Both today's events were well-executed and well-attended. Happy Clients.

I had to laugh at myself at the press lunch. First comes the press conference and you really don't know who or how many people will show up. Of course, it's the more the better, but you never know. So I always go through Oh my God, no one is coming... to people start to arrive one and two and three at a time and then I sit there and worry there won't be enough seats and then when it's standing room only, I think damn, I'm good.

Just checked and I'm all set for going home tomorrow. Let's hope the return trip is uneventful.

Texas Bluebells!

Compliments of Melissa

Today is a Better Day

Of course I can't be entirely cheerful so my day started out with a bad shower. I like a strong gushing fire hose type shower. Most hotels have a weak little dribbling faucet for a shower. They try to fool you with fancy shower heads as if you can change it to get pulsating, massaging etc. but they are all the same weak dribbling streams.

I am on time and get in the car, and again, I can't get it into gear. Back to the owners manual. I now have the ultimate advice. Oh, but first, this is a Nissan Altima, not Integra. I don't know where I got that word. If you ever rent one, have the key fob thing anywhere with you inside the car. I have to say that must be a hard habit to break as I always leave my hotel room with the car keys in my hand.

Ok, so you're in the car, with the key fob thing. You put your foot on the brake and press down as you push the start button. It's just an easy push of a button -- you can't miss it. I talked to a bunch of folks today who have had the same problem I had. I don't know why the rental car people don't put some sort of explanation in the car.

My day went well. My one client picked me up in a golf cart from a parking lot and brought me to the building I needed to be in, and then picked me up again and brought me back to my car. We had pre-arranged this until I got my parking pass, but when he asked if I wanted him to do it for me tomorrow, I fought the impulse to say no, trying to be low maintenance, but instead I said Yes! Thank you! Saw a bunch of people, had four meetings and got hired to do an event in Oshkosh that I've done before but I saw the guy and asked him straight out if he wanted me to do it again this coming year and he said of course. So that was good.

Tomorrow I have two big events I'm handling -- a press lunch and a customer reception. I try not to be overly confident because I don't want the universe to smack me down for taking things for granted, but I should be in good shape.

I have to say the weather today was picture perfect -- high 70s, low 80s, sunny, breezy and my four meetings were all in this screened in porch area and there's nothing like a screened in porch in this weather.

Thank you for all of your very kind sympathetic thoughts. Oh, I saw something I've never seen this morning. About two blocks from my hotel, on the other side of this two lane on each side road with grass in the middle there were all these cop cars and I didn't see an accident or anything, but in the middle of the road was a body with a canvas tarp over it. I guess a pedestrian got hit. Very sad. And then I heard about the JetBlue captain who lost it during a flight and went hollering down the cabin and had to be restrained by passengers. That's sad as well, but at least I wasn't on that flight.