Our First Hay House Event

My wife and I attended the I CAN DO IT! Orlando today. We had no clue what to expect. She had seen or heard a couple of the presenters on YouTube or other web sites or shows and liked what they had to say, but we still did not know what to expect.

We arrived at the Orange County Convention Center at approximately 7:30 am. The doors to the first Keynote were not scheduled to open until 8:00 am. As we approached the show area, we were presently greeted and welcomed to the show and provided information regarding what we needed to do to get into the event.

The book store was setup so we started looking at books. We looked up and saw the lines to get into the theatre were getting long. Time to get in line. The doors opened promptly at 8:00 am. The line moved quickly as everyone's badges were scanned. We entered the theatre and quickly found a seat. The number of ushers in the theatre were more than sufficient and they were all helpful and friendly.

The first keynote speaker was Dr. Brian Weiss, talking about Many Lives, Many Masters:  Finding New Levels of Healing. Dr. Weiss is an excellent presenter offering a great deal of information which was right on target. The hour he spoke went by so fast we couldn't believe it was actually an hour. I would definitely attend future events where Dr. Weiss is speaking.

The second keynote speaker was Robert Holden, PhD. Talking about Life Loves You.  Robert is a very high energy and excellent presenter. The information provided and the stories told were great. We found several times where we were laughing quite a bit. A great feel good presentation.  We thought time flew with Dr. Weiss, this session seemed to last twenty minutes. I would definitely attend future events where Robert is speaking.

I have attended many keynote presentations at many conventions or conferences and don't normally go to most of them anymore. They all seem to be look at me, I am great, this is what I did to get here, look where you are...I must be better than you types of events. None of them follow the theme of the event and many of the keynote speakers can't even get the event name correct if they use it during their speech

This was absolutely not the case here. Both keynotes were very interesting.  The presenters were dynamic, interesting, experts in their field but did not come across as being better than anyone else in the room. Wow, what a breath of fresh air.

Next, we had a thirty minute break. This was not a sufficient amount of time to get to the restroom, grab a cup of coffee and get to our first breakout session. This is no fault of the meeting organizers. This is an issue that we often encounter at the convention center. 

The first breakout session was lead by John Holland with a topic of The Spirit Whisperer:  Power of the Soul. The breakout sessions were scheduled for ninety minutes.  The first part of this session was an informative presentation surrounding how John works and what he does. Basically setting the expectations for the second part of the session, where he performed readings  He was able to complete four readings. The first reading was also a medium and as someone not being read, it seemed that what he was saying was obvious, but it took a great deal of time to get the person to acknowledge the information being provided.  The second reading was another medium, who could have guessed, two mediums in a row...this reading went pretty good.  On to the third reading, this person was also a medium, how can you randomly select three participants in a row and all three are mediums. The fourth reading was......not a medium, what a surprise.  This is someone I would like to see again. 

Next was an hour and a half break for lunch. What a mess. The lines in the food court were long. The seating was minimal. Several of the people we bumped into, literally, we're so rude it was unacceptable. As we were looking for a table, a nice couple from Virginia offered to share their table with us. We had a nice conversation with them during our meal so things ended up working out.  Another case of the convention center not being prepared to handle the crowd that the organizers planned for. 

The first session of the afternoon was Kyle Gray with The Wings of Forgiveness as the topic. Each of the session rooms had a stage with a table where some of the presenters materials were displayed and a chair for them to use if they chose. Kyle would not use the stage. Basically his reason was that he is a person, no better than any of the rest of us.  If we were sitting on chairs on the floor, then he could stand on that same floor to talk to us. This session was also excellent with great stories and lots of information about making your life better by forgiving yourself and others. He was clear that forgiveness is not an acknowledgment that you accept or condone what was done or said, you are just telling yourself that you are moving on and you will no longer be held back by this life event.  There was a nice question and answer session with direct answers to the questions asked. This was a very refreshing presentation and I look forward to seeing more. 

Our next session was Sonia Choquette, Walking Home. This session started out with music, dancing and singing....what did we get ourselves into. Then it progressed into a very high energy interactive session....oh no, time to get out of here...then on to a nice meditation. This was all followed by more of Sonia's life story which lead her to where she is today.  The session end with another interactive session of music.  This was an interesting and informative session, but I am not sure we would do it again, but we are happy to have completed the full session. 

The Last keynote of the day was Caroline Myss, Standing at the Crossroads. The presentation started out very slow and after everything we had attended for the day, we could not manage to sit through the entire presentation. The topic was interesting and she had the full attention of the audience and was talking about an interesting topic, we just could not sit any longer. 

We had a great day.  This was one of the best organized events we have ever been to.  The organizers did a great job.  The presenters were great.  The topics were on target and interesting. What a great day.  We actually wish we had purchased the entire conference package and the additional pre-conference workshop. 

Thanks to Hay House for the great day.  We are already making plans to attend I CAN DO IT! In Ft. Lauderdale next year.  

As en editorial note, if you are thinking this event is anything like the various psychic medium shows on TV, you couldn't be more incorrect. This group is a very diverse group of professionals interested in the self help and self improvement of their participants. They offer a very diverse set of options and choices that should meet most anyone's needs. 

Podcasts - A Way to grow or a time sink

I have been listening to podcasts for several years. As I built my list of casts, I noticed that I had picked technology casts primarily from a single network. In doing so, I was getting a single focused view of technology and its impact on society.

I determined that everything I was listening to was technology focused. As a result there was no room for growth and the information I was getting was limited. 

I had roughly fifty podcasts that I was subscribed to, with frequencies ranging from daily to monthly. The episode lengths ranged from five minutes to two hours.  As things progressed I was falling more and more behind on episodes and it was beginning to create more and more stress. 

Is it worth it, I am not sure.

As I started thinking about this, I ran into a self help / inspirational podcast and added it to my subscription list as a priority so it was always at the top of the list. As I listened to this cast, I became more aware of the fact that I had been too focused on a single network and a single topic.  

I started reviewing my subscriptions and removing casts that were redundant. I began diversifying the networks where I was getting my information, which started giving me varyious views on how the technology world was perceived. In my professional life as a technology professional this seemed to be a better fit for my career. Then I got back into the stage where there were to many episodes and not enough time. Back to the stress of not listening to everything and a growing list of unlisteened to episodes. 

As I got through the inspirational casts, I started to realize that I was not paying attention to the fact that self imposed stress is really crazy and I needed to do something again. 

I ran into another podcast with a personal growth theme. Another wake up call. I pruned out a few more subscriptions from my list. As I moved along. I kept tuning my list and now I am up to sixty three subscriptions, more than ever. I am still have roughly one hundred twenty episodes to listen to, but the stress to complete everything is gone. I am getting a nice mix of technology, entertainment, travel and personal growth.

I am looking forward to each episode and very few of them are time sensitive like my original list, so the stress to keep up with the backlog is gone. 

For those episodes which are time sensitive, I set them as a priority and get to them once a day while walking the dog. After they are done, I start on a cast from the backlog. By time it is done, it is a new day and I start over.  More information, more entertainment, more learning, less stress.

I am at a point now where podcasts are now back to a way to learn and less of a time sink. I have also learned that to continue to grow I will need to revaluate the list of casts I am listening to periodically as I grow and as things change. 

It is interesting how the changes in technology that are supposed to help us place us in the same position we were in the years before it was so widely available. Which books to read, which tv shows to watch, which movies to watch, which courses to take, etc.  

Also here we go on a new endeavor using podcasts as an entertainment and educational tool. No more time sink and back to a way to learn.

Maybe this will be of use to some, maybe not.  I just fealt this was one more way for me to better understand what I am doing and will be a reminder to keep re-evaluating the tools I use and making timely adjustments.

Insurance Fraud or Helpful Contractor

The other day we had a visit from a roofing contractor who was going through the neighborhood. He climbed up on our roof and left with the desire to come back and sit down with both of us to discuss replacing the roof on our house. 

The other day when he called me to schedule the visit, I started asking questions. 

There was a severe thunder storm that had gone through our area, and most of the rest of central Florida and they were visiting home owners who had roof damage with the intent of filing all the claims and paperwork with our insurance company. 

Our only obligation would be to pay any deductible which we may owe. 

Now the interesting part is that our home and as far as I know, none of our neighbors homes suffered any damage from any of the storms from the past week or so. 

We also have to remember that we live in central Florida. During the summer months. We have a storm pass through almost every afternoon. This roofing contractor could have picked any day and any storm to seek business. 

I did some research on the contractor and pretty much everything that I could find was positive, including the better business bureau, and most ratings sites where he is listed. He also has a valid license with the state and there are no complaints affiliated with the licenses they hold.

So, is how this contractor seeks business legal?  Is it ethical? Is it insurance fraud?  

I don't know the answer to any of these questions but I did not feel comfortable doing business with this contractor and I don't see any evidence that any of our neighbors fell for his sales pitch either.  At a minimum, we can not allow people like this to undermine our trust in any group. We will need a roofing contractor at some point in the future. I hope I remember this company so we don't do business with them. 

Turn Signals - Feature or Safety Device

Turn signals as we know them today were invented somewhere around 1907.  They are typically activated by a stalk, stick, lever, or whatever else you wish to call it, on the left side of the steering column. 

Based on some reports, drivers fail to properly activate or deactivate their turn signals over 750 billion times per year. The neglect of turn signals results in nearly 2 million accidents per year while distracted driving results in approximately 950.000 accidents (based on data from. 2012). 

I have been noticing an increasing failure to use turn signals in our area. I have been in situations both walking and driving where I have almost been hit as a result of a driver failing to activate or deactivate their turn signal. I have also set at an intersection waiting to turn when driver after driver turns without a turn signal on causing unneeded delays in traffic. I know, better safe than sorry.  

It is  aggravating when something as simple as a stick and light bulb or two that have been around for over a hundred years is so difficult for drivers to uses properly. Is it sheer ignorance, lack of consideration for other drivers, failure to operate a motor vehicle safely, or some other reason?

I know that federal and international laws and regulations are fairly strict regarding how auto makers must implement turn signals. With this understanding and the statistics referenced above, I think that turn signals are installed on our vehicles as safety devices. 

I don't think that those pretty little blinky things in yellow or red are there for looks. As a matter of fact, I think that the manufacturers could design some really unique cars if they didn't have to include all of the safety devices we have on our cars today. 

At this point, what are we to do?  Maybe everyone could at least use their turn signals when they are turning from one roadway to another. Maybe they could also use their turn signals while changing lanes on multi lane roads and highways. Maybe they could follow at least one portion of our local traffic laws and improve the level of safety on our roads for our fellow drivers and pedestrians alike. 

--- source data ---

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_lighting

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/04/30/turn-signal-neglect-results-in-over-twice-as-many-crashes-as-dis/

Comcast Does It Again

The saga with Comcast continues. We received our last invoice and services we had singed a contract for were removed from our account. We did not authorize any changes to our account and we did not place any orders that would have caused changes either.

After contacting the call center and being transferred two times, I found someone who could help resolve the situation.

As it turns out, the corporate complaints department issued the cancellation order while trying to fix our cable outage from a week or so ago. So, while on vacation, we had no alarm service. Great job Comcast. In addition, we were charged a $510.00 cancellation fee.

Now for the good news. The representative was able to reinstate our account retroactive to the original installation date so the service should not show up as a new contract. They were also able to issue a credit for the $510.00 cancellation fee and for the inconvenience that they caused, we were given a credit of $39.95, which is $10.00 more than the service actually costs per month.

So all in all, even though this is a major customer service issue, the representative who finally handled the call was able to resolve the issue on the first call.

Thank you Comcast for another customer service FAIL.

Thank you to the customer service representative who fixed the issue on the first call

Family Reunions

Are family reunions worth attending is a question that can be difficult to answer for many people. In my case, we just attended a family reunion for my dad's side of the family. In a way it was a little sad because all of the grand parents and great aunts and uncles are no longer with us. At the same time, it was a good time to celebrate because we had many grand children there that would not have been there several years ago.

This reunion is something that my dad decided to plan and worked long and hard to get everyone there. We got lucky, there were only four members of the family who were unable to attend due to various reasons. We ended up with twenty three to twenty six people and one dog there, if my memory serves me correctly. 

The conversation and stories that were told were interesting. It is amazing when so many people get together how many things everyone can remember as a collective group but no single person can remember at all. Of course, this can get a bit interesting when we had hoped that some of the stories would never be repeated, especially in the presence of our moms, dads, or children. 

We had more than enough food for everyone and plenty of iced tea and lemonade and of course many brought their favorite drinks, mainly Mountain Dew. 

Many just sat around talking while others played horse shoes or went for a walk. The reunion was held at a community park in a location with real restrooms were available, not a portapot, which those in need appreciated greatly. 

It was a very warm day, but the humidity wasn't too bad and their was a nice breeze as well.  All in all, it was a beautiful day for a potluck dinner and family reunion.

Some members of the family traveled from as far away as California or Florida,  others were just a few miles away and many more from somewhere in between.

Pictures were also taken for each part of the family and the entire group of attendees. This of course turned into a time for joking and kidding around as everyone was in very close proximity to one another. Dads other sister coordinated all the photo taking as she has done for as long as I can remember.  I hope that the joking and kidding around didn't ruin too many of the pictures. 

So the committee made of the three eldest members of the family brought the family tougher in one place for one afternoon for what should be a memorable experience for all. 

So back to the original question; are family reunions worth attending?  In my opinion, I believe it will be a memorable moment in my life and it reminded me that waiting fifteen years to return home to visit family is way too much time between visits.

We miss a lot of important moments in everyone's life which telephones, Twitter, face book, email,or whatever method of sharing information you may use are the primary way we communicate with our family. 

I would say, that family reunions are an important part of every familie's lives and gives the elders a little extra time to share stories of the past with the younger generations who can then pass on to their children and grand children. 

If you have not had a family reunion in a while, I would say you need to talk to your family and see what you can do. It may well turn out to be one of the better moments of your life. 

The Sad State of Communications Services

The level of service provided by today's communications carriers has become so bad that the average customer is being left without service for extended periods of time and has no one to help rectify the issue.  In our case there is no state or local regulation.

Whether we wish to admit it or not the communications carriers are in simple terms a monopoly in most service areas. Yes, there is perceived competition. In our area we have Comcast as the primary cable and broadband provider, AT&T as the primary telephone provider and of course the satellite providers.   Each of these providers offer various services in an effort to spur competition, but none ever rises to the levels of the incumbent carriers. 

This past week we had an issue with our cable TV. We thought through some basic troubleshooting that it was our cable box. We made numerous calls to the regular toll free support line with no help. We had a second level on demand support representative actually completely disable our cable box. No one at comcast cared that they completely bricked the box and we're not going to fix it. 

We finally contacted comcast corporate offices complaint department. They were not much better than the regular customer service lines with one exception;  they at least made follow up calls when they had committed to. 

Finally on Wednesday they had to have a technician at our house to replace the cable box. When I arrived home for lunch, prior to the commitment time, there were three cable trucks at our neighbors house. After they were done at the neighbors, one of the technicians showed up at our house. After talking to him for a couple of minutes we figured out he was a brand new technician.  As he was doing his work, he ended up completely disabling the second cable box. Additionally, we were told that there were a number of houses in our community who had not had cable and Internet service since Saturday. 

Additionally they had found that one of the amplifiers had suffered some storm damage on Saturday afternoon. They had to dispatch a repair tech from another county to repair the service and the techs decided to go to lunch while they waited for him to finish his work. 

He stopped by our house after he was done and we still didn't have service. He started working to find the problem. He was very customer focused and was trying to do the other techs job. We had to leave for a short time to go to an appointment and he volunteered to wait for our return in about twenty minutes. 

Once we returned, he finished his work and found a couple of problems created by the new tech. He got our service restored and everything has been fine since. 

All in all we ended up with four techs in our house and the only one who wanted to fix the problem was the outside plant tech and that wasn't even his job.

The techs all tried to their best but they are really limited by corporate policies and procedures and inconsistent call center and support staff. 

In all honesty the technicians are the only part of the company worth anything when it comes to customer service. 

The bad news through all of this is that Comcast is not going to do a thing about resolving any of the customer service issues that exist within their organization and it is quite probable that the field techs will have even more restrictions placed on them as time goes by. 

How do we, as consumers battle these huge giants?  I am not sure we can. Our city and state governments rely too much on the franchise fees so they aren't going to do anything about it. In reality Better Busunes Bureau complaints are worthless and at a federal level, the lobiests for these companies have way more power and influence on our representatives than we, the people that elect them to office. The FCC is only a figure head group of appointed officials who expend more energy looking like they are protecting the consumers while basically rubber stamping everything the legislators and corporate lobbiests want done. 

For the foreseeable future, I don't feel that we have a hope in receiving any better service. 

The cord cutters are attempting to take a stand against these behemoths but in reality they are still tied to them for the internet service which are required to provide the services they get through the alternate service providers. 

Only time will tell how things will end up, but in my opinion I don't see any hope for us as consumers.