Graduation

Richard Edward McNeeley is named for his grandfathers. Richard for my Dad, Edward for Monica's father Eddie (yes, Eddie is his legal name on his birth certificate. We didn't want Ricky to be Richard Eddie all his life.) I didn't want him to be nicknamed "Ricky", by the way. Say it out loud  "Rickeee McNeeleeee" That's why his maternal grandparents call him Rick. "Damned if I know what went wrong," as fathers everywhere say. Ricky he is.

December, 1995

5 months old

I one time several years ago told Ricky that he was one of the smartest kids I ever knew. I told it to him because, frankly, he was acting like an idiot regarding his schoolwork. But it was true. Someone with his gifts was basically being disrespectful to himself and others by not taking advantage of and using those gifts. I don't know if that's why he buckled down a bit from then on, but not until "Senor-itis" set in a couple of months ago did we have any other serious school issues.

Back when he was in 6th grade, he went to Thurgood Marshall Middle School in Cane Ridge. Our schedules were crazy back then, and driving him to school was problematic. The school bus stopped literally 20 yards from our front door, so for that whole school year, we went to work, Monica with the other two, and he put himself on that bus every day. He only missed the bus one time that whole year. I didn't say one word when he called me at work, except not to worry about it. I was very proud of him that year, taking on that responsibility. He started at Martin Luther King Magnet the next year.

Ricky is the one who got Scouts started in our house. Back about 3rd grade, he was going to Edison Elementary, and he brought home a flyer from school about joining Cub Scouts. I honestly didn't think he knew what it was, so I poo-pooed it off. And I did it again in 4th grade. Finally, in 5th grade, he acted like he really wanted to go, so we did. He is still technically in scouts, even though he's not very active. Proof that I wasn't giving him enough credit back then. I've tried not to make that mistake again.

The voice you hear in this video is First Lady Michelle Obama as she addresses the Class of 2013 at MLK


And now he has graduated from high school.

What can I say? How many times do we hear parents say that they can't believe that enough time has gone by that their baby is graduating from high school? It is hard to believe, but isn't this what we've worked for? Sure it is, and Ricky has done wonderful. I still consider him one of the brightest people I know, and especially over the last two years, he has become the type of well-rounded person I'd hoped for. He is primarily a geek, but he was on the school wrestling team one season (he liked it well enough, but not enough to do another year), he was in the Fencing Club his Junior and Senior year (where they actually learned how to fence), and he joined the school Tennis team this year (and really enjoyed that). He's a Life Scout (one rank below Eagle), he volunteers at the church (he's cheerfully been the puppet at Vacation Bible School for several years now), and he does several chores around the house (notice I didn't say cheerfully!).

He's going to Tennessee Tech next year, looking to get a degree in Computer Science so he can be a game designer. His future looks bright. I'm eager to share it with him and see what happens.

Love you, bud. Have fun.

A Renewed Enthusiasm

I've been in a variant of the retail food business all of my life. My various job positions always had me being directly involved in the things that resulted in sales and customer service/satisfaction. Everyday was full of "opportunities" that had to be overcome or our sales would suffer and/or a customer would be unhappy. These are known as "Operations" positions, because (SURPRISE) they impact the way the business operates. Operations, in a very real sense, are where it's at. That side of the business really is the biggest part, and to me, the most important part. No matter how well things may go on behind the scenes, it's the operation that determines the success or failure of the business. That being the case, it's important for the positions that can or should contribute the most to the operation to be available any time of the week. That's why I've always had a schedule that required me to work nights and weekends. 

It takes magic to get schedules to work sometimes

It's also important to remember that operations positions are very much based on customer traffic flow, so a high sense-of-urgency is needed, a polite way of saying that it has to get done NOW! You never have time to do it all, you can only get the high points. Gets hectic at times.

Finally, I'm not getting any younger (yes, I know that no one is, but that's beside the point). My produce position involved a lot of stocking, which is another polite term for lifting 50 pound boxes and stacking them on other 50 pound boxes. A lot of lifting and stretching and bending and carrying... you get the point.

SO, when a position came open that was out of operations, I applied for it. The position is Inventory Audit Associate, or Audit Team. The Audit Team makes sure that everything that has to do with keeping a proper count of the inventory on hand in the building is done properly, and that the inventory is properly accounted for. This controls "shrink", which is a loss of product, that can seriously affect the profits. These people go through and count different departments on a rotating basis and investigate and reconcile discrepancies  and they verify the numerous reports that are done that affect the inventory. It's a lot of counting and paperwork and such, but no where near as physical as operations. 

I just finished my first week in the position.

Imagine looking for two individual boxes in all of this. My first
audit this week involved that. Two items in boxes roughly 3x5 feet
were stuck high in the steel on the back side of the club from
the display. Took me 30 minutes to find them.

The schedule for this position is Monday through Friday, 4am-12:30pm. Yes, that's early, but not that much earlier than produce. I've never had a M-F job. I can't imagine what it'll be like, but I'm looking forward to it. I like the job very much so far, and I'm working with two people that I've long considered friends at work, so it's great. So far.

But what I really wanted to say is this: It's exciting that, after all these years working, and with 14 1/2 years at Sam's Club, I'm in a position that I know virtually nothing about. It's a whole new experience, and a whole new way of life. That's why all the backstory above, to help you realize how big a change this is for me. I'm not anywhere near as tired when I get home from work as before. Every hour at work produces a new topic. My outlook on the job is turned around. I have a renewed enthusiasm, which the General Manager has already noticed. 

How long will this New Attitude last? Who can say? We're getting a visit from the Regional person Monday, so it may change after that! (Just kidding....I hope).