Tuesday, January 31, 2012
50 by 50
Playing music to brighten up your work day is just a Band-Aid. Whatever happened to physically healing the economic wounds? 50 by 50
Monday, January 30, 2012
2012 The Journey Back to America: Page Nine
If you're going to dig make it an entire shovel full. The Journey back to America continues.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Winter, Summer, Fall...Christmas, Halloween your fricken Birthday. Mile Markers that decide for us to invite change. There's a genius in all of us. What is your genius? Grab the journey...
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The President Forgot To Say, "I will protect people from workplace bullying!"
Katie Byron reminds us: You are the teacher and healer you've been waiting for. Thanks to the bad economy workplace bullying is at its highest peak. How can you save you? LINK up
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Forgetfulness Versus Today
How many days has it been raining? Is it playing games on your imagination? You're going places that aren't too safe. Where is Superman to save your day?
Monday, January 23, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Music is just rhythmic mud...
Have you ever had one of those days when your intended destination is set on a mind driven performance and without notice and preparation a whisper of wind from the heart shifts the position of the sails requiring the journey to glide northward?
Growing up in a pair of Montana shoes, a child learns his or her foot loosely planted in the dark, heavier than rocks but extremely mystifying mud made in the
Big Sky Country has a way of affecting outside lives.
Commonly found in cow pastures and a struggling farmer’s growing field the newly formed section of land that’s taken shape on the bottom of your soles has a way of deflating a Mother’s beautiful home intentions while heightening the presence of a young one’s imagination.
Mud makes people move.
I call it your true signature.
Montana mud is deeply enriched with incredible thickness giving it the strength to stick to everything…
For some God forsaken reason I find tremendous amounts of energy and inspiration in wet dirt; believing anyone, everyone, bad bosses and your worst enemy have the ability to make it. Once generated the gift isn’t a line left in the sand but the remnants of knowing someone has made you move.
Take the new song Good Feeling from Flo Rida. What did I just step in?
If the streets of Heaven are truly made of gold I think a chunk of it just bopped the pop which stopped the talk forcing me to drop the needle on a stack of wax that’s gonna last longer than forever. Somebody call the future! Good Feeling is gonna be ripping up car speakers from here to twenty thirty seven!
Flo Rida has sampled a shiver making set of rhythms that swipes the Blues from Soul.
Good Feeling doesn’t rip Etta James from her fame but spreads her greatness like Montana mud across our present day kitchen floor.
Something’s Got A Hold On Me from Etta James was released in my birth year of 1962. I don’t know if my farmhand Mother used to sing it while mending fences, branding calves and breaking horses but Flo Rida’s remix has elevated my senses beyond a stereotypical Hollywood drama based on the powers of reincarnation.
Etta’s early sixties release isn’t surface level church choir Aretha Franklyn-esque but downright Preacher man is disappointed that he didn’t see you in the Holy House this past Sunday.
But like Montana mud…music has a way of offering separate shades of reaction and destinations.
What I find earth quaking, shaking and mind-crater baking might in fact be the cheap rubber heal of an old pair of leather boots scraped across a set of finely designed hardwood floor planks made to gift your smile with an I’ve made it to greatness kind of day.
Sort of like the words we share.
Like the melody of a song, it won’t be long that something someone said will stick to your feet like Montana mud basking in the opportunity to be stretched from the open doors of policy through a foundation that doesn’t belong to you.
And just like Good Feeling from Flo Rida, fifty years after its birth the impact of the message shared today will be part of decisions made.
Respect…
Don’t expect…
The abused becomes the abuser…
It’s what you say and how you deliver it that makes the house look dirty.
Shhhhhh…let me lean over here and help you steer. Time to shine. Pour some vibes in the heart vines. I’m gonna release into the air the songs that put you there.
Not to take you back because that’s too much fat. The weight isn’t freight… it’s belief from a leaf, the seed of light for your tree of life.
Thanks to Flo Rida I’m singing me some Etta James!
Oh sometimes I get a good feeling…
I get a feeling I never never never had before.
I just wanna tell you right now
I believe.
I really do believe yeah…
Something’s got a hold on me right now.
Oh it must be love
Let me tell ya now I got a feeling I feel so strange
Everything about me seems to have changed.
Step by step I’ve got a brand new walk
I even sound sweeter when I talk.
Oh, Oh, Oh!
Let me tell you it must be love!
I will always believe in you first…
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Growing up in a pair of Montana shoes, a child learns his or her foot loosely planted in the dark, heavier than rocks but extremely mystifying mud made in the
Big Sky Country has a way of affecting outside lives.
Commonly found in cow pastures and a struggling farmer’s growing field the newly formed section of land that’s taken shape on the bottom of your soles has a way of deflating a Mother’s beautiful home intentions while heightening the presence of a young one’s imagination.
Mud makes people move.
I call it your true signature.
Montana mud is deeply enriched with incredible thickness giving it the strength to stick to everything…
For some God forsaken reason I find tremendous amounts of energy and inspiration in wet dirt; believing anyone, everyone, bad bosses and your worst enemy have the ability to make it. Once generated the gift isn’t a line left in the sand but the remnants of knowing someone has made you move.
Take the new song Good Feeling from Flo Rida. What did I just step in?
If the streets of Heaven are truly made of gold I think a chunk of it just bopped the pop which stopped the talk forcing me to drop the needle on a stack of wax that’s gonna last longer than forever. Somebody call the future! Good Feeling is gonna be ripping up car speakers from here to twenty thirty seven!
Flo Rida has sampled a shiver making set of rhythms that swipes the Blues from Soul.
Good Feeling doesn’t rip Etta James from her fame but spreads her greatness like Montana mud across our present day kitchen floor.
Something’s Got A Hold On Me from Etta James was released in my birth year of 1962. I don’t know if my farmhand Mother used to sing it while mending fences, branding calves and breaking horses but Flo Rida’s remix has elevated my senses beyond a stereotypical Hollywood drama based on the powers of reincarnation.
Etta’s early sixties release isn’t surface level church choir Aretha Franklyn-esque but downright Preacher man is disappointed that he didn’t see you in the Holy House this past Sunday.
But like Montana mud…music has a way of offering separate shades of reaction and destinations.
What I find earth quaking, shaking and mind-crater baking might in fact be the cheap rubber heal of an old pair of leather boots scraped across a set of finely designed hardwood floor planks made to gift your smile with an I’ve made it to greatness kind of day.
Sort of like the words we share.
Like the melody of a song, it won’t be long that something someone said will stick to your feet like Montana mud basking in the opportunity to be stretched from the open doors of policy through a foundation that doesn’t belong to you.
And just like Good Feeling from Flo Rida, fifty years after its birth the impact of the message shared today will be part of decisions made.
Respect…
Don’t expect…
The abused becomes the abuser…
It’s what you say and how you deliver it that makes the house look dirty.
Shhhhhh…let me lean over here and help you steer. Time to shine. Pour some vibes in the heart vines. I’m gonna release into the air the songs that put you there.
Not to take you back because that’s too much fat. The weight isn’t freight… it’s belief from a leaf, the seed of light for your tree of life.
Thanks to Flo Rida I’m singing me some Etta James!
Oh sometimes I get a good feeling…
I get a feeling I never never never had before.
I just wanna tell you right now
I believe.
I really do believe yeah…
Something’s got a hold on me right now.
Oh it must be love
Let me tell ya now I got a feeling I feel so strange
Everything about me seems to have changed.
Step by step I’ve got a brand new walk
I even sound sweeter when I talk.
Oh, Oh, Oh!
Let me tell you it must be love!
I will always believe in you first…
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
2012 The Journey Back to America: Page Seven
Over the weekend a Presidential hopeful was stridently grilled of his assessment to publicly debate that our current place in history is captained by a Food Stamp President. Immediately he was labeled a racist.
Calmly, the former Speaker of the House explained how research has put a face on the number of American’s currently receiving monthly government help. At no other time has there been such a demand.
Is it wrong to say there aren’t enough fingers and toes on my body to count the number of hungry families I know? Should I be embarrassed by the height of the mountains keeping school children unfocused in class because they’re not getting proper nourishment?
As a child I never knew why I wore the ugliest shoes. I couldn’t figure out the reasons why other’s would point then laugh at the jacket barely covering my shivering skin. I didn’t eat lunch at school because I was embarrassed to let co-students see me drink powdered milk, eggs and anything extremely cheap. By junior high the system had changed and we were allowed to keep a card the lunch lady would punch but mine was always a different color than the others.
But this isn’t about me…
And I refuse to make this writing endeavor a political statement.
Nobody wants to talk about homelessness not even those living on the street.
I can’t hide the numbers that are invisibly growing. Therefore the journey has become a walk through a manmade forest. Why should this collection of eroded gullies and ancient canyons be any different? Shocking isn’t the new face of homelessness but the silence so many hold in what they brag as being an open door or warm heart and palm.
So this week I traveled outside the trees, to a different ridge. To the assumed grand beauty of a section of the nation so proud and even here the soil is poisoned.
Because Native American’s don’t believe in fate; I find no reason to locate a purpose as to why the footsteps of my path have led me to a trail baring the name of Jerry West.
A quick glance at his bio and even my mother would question the decision to enter the sacred circle holding the often ignored questions. His Florida ministry is based on identifying demons. He travels the country dressed in heavy makeup and large metal like shielded costumes that a younger generation finds Super-Hero-like only to learn there’s a much deeper message.
Trusting gut instinct and the knowledge of knowing how showmanship can be an extremely powerful tool, I tightly held the glossy promotional photo of Jerry laced up and ready for war and hardly took the split in a fast paced second to decide, “This guy has story which will help build bridges over valley floors on this journey back to America.”
I am the interviewer. Every week for fifty two total I’ll ask only five questions.
Interviewer: No matter where you travel you can’t hide the differences that separate the rich, middle class and poor. But if you stop long enough a fourth class is beginning to appear closer in rearview mirrors. Do you see this as the start of a third world?
Reply number one: I’m not an optimist or a pessimist but a realist. I see things the way they are. The south has always been known as a different group of people. But that’s what makes this country great. We have the south, northeast, southwest and the Pacific northwest. But for some reason conditions in the south have always been different which can be traced all the way back to the civil war…the south has never lost a painful stigma of being like a third world country of helplessness and homelessness. Personally I believe if enough of us ban together to do something about our current conditions without relying on the aid of the government then the south won’t return to the way it was. If each person would agree that enough is enough and do one thing to change the face of today an entire nation will change. We have the power to affect everybody.
Interviewer: Can churches and rescue missions afford to keep helping people?
Reply number two: We’re in a position to always provide help. I’m not talking about a particular denomination but every denomination. Forget what the marquee says outside on the wall and realize that the word “church” is a single body that never stops reaching into lives requiring help.
Interviewer: What’s more important dropping a couple of bucks in the plate on Sunday morning or offering your time at a soup kitchen?
Reply number three: When you share five or five hundred dollars know the majority of the churches in America will be helping the homeless. Whether it’s for food, clothing, temporary shelter or a chance to grasp hope again…by providing a couple of extra bucks someone’s life will change for the good because they believed in themselves enough let a church or rescue open the door for them to locate a new job.
Interviewer: Are the new faces of homeless the birth place of new missionaries and teachers? Basically meaning, could these experiences be an extremely valuable education for future Americans?
Reply number four: Anybody can teach. You don’t have to be homeless. Any experience is a life experience. You can spend thousands of dollars on the best education and walk out a dummy. I’m not against education because I believe we need to educate ourselves. A life experience is the best way to communicate a more peaceful tomorrow. Use the experience to teach other’s how to survive when things look bad. Don’t be shy with your experiences…what you went through can change another life so they don’t endure the same experience. These are the mistakes I made…let me help you make the right choice.
Interviewer: In the past five years a lot of jobs and lives have been destroyed because of corporate cutbacks that tend to finance the pockets of CEO's and Stockmarket Share Holders rather than the hardworking employee...how do you react to the Presidential hopeful that believes Corporate America is not a corporation but rather a person? If it truly is a person then what laws should be enforced to help correct conditions at work?
Reply number five: People are people. The Government is for the people by the people. A statesman speaks on behalf of the people while a politician speaks on behalf of the person giving them a vote. We the people of the United States need to hold those controlling our tax dollars accountable. If you want to look at it from a Corporate American standpoint then someone needs to remind them that they work for us.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Calmly, the former Speaker of the House explained how research has put a face on the number of American’s currently receiving monthly government help. At no other time has there been such a demand.
Is it wrong to say there aren’t enough fingers and toes on my body to count the number of hungry families I know? Should I be embarrassed by the height of the mountains keeping school children unfocused in class because they’re not getting proper nourishment?
As a child I never knew why I wore the ugliest shoes. I couldn’t figure out the reasons why other’s would point then laugh at the jacket barely covering my shivering skin. I didn’t eat lunch at school because I was embarrassed to let co-students see me drink powdered milk, eggs and anything extremely cheap. By junior high the system had changed and we were allowed to keep a card the lunch lady would punch but mine was always a different color than the others.
But this isn’t about me…
And I refuse to make this writing endeavor a political statement.
Nobody wants to talk about homelessness not even those living on the street.
I can’t hide the numbers that are invisibly growing. Therefore the journey has become a walk through a manmade forest. Why should this collection of eroded gullies and ancient canyons be any different? Shocking isn’t the new face of homelessness but the silence so many hold in what they brag as being an open door or warm heart and palm.
So this week I traveled outside the trees, to a different ridge. To the assumed grand beauty of a section of the nation so proud and even here the soil is poisoned.
Because Native American’s don’t believe in fate; I find no reason to locate a purpose as to why the footsteps of my path have led me to a trail baring the name of Jerry West.
A quick glance at his bio and even my mother would question the decision to enter the sacred circle holding the often ignored questions. His Florida ministry is based on identifying demons. He travels the country dressed in heavy makeup and large metal like shielded costumes that a younger generation finds Super-Hero-like only to learn there’s a much deeper message.
Trusting gut instinct and the knowledge of knowing how showmanship can be an extremely powerful tool, I tightly held the glossy promotional photo of Jerry laced up and ready for war and hardly took the split in a fast paced second to decide, “This guy has story which will help build bridges over valley floors on this journey back to America.”
I am the interviewer. Every week for fifty two total I’ll ask only five questions.
Interviewer: No matter where you travel you can’t hide the differences that separate the rich, middle class and poor. But if you stop long enough a fourth class is beginning to appear closer in rearview mirrors. Do you see this as the start of a third world?
Reply number one: I’m not an optimist or a pessimist but a realist. I see things the way they are. The south has always been known as a different group of people. But that’s what makes this country great. We have the south, northeast, southwest and the Pacific northwest. But for some reason conditions in the south have always been different which can be traced all the way back to the civil war…the south has never lost a painful stigma of being like a third world country of helplessness and homelessness. Personally I believe if enough of us ban together to do something about our current conditions without relying on the aid of the government then the south won’t return to the way it was. If each person would agree that enough is enough and do one thing to change the face of today an entire nation will change. We have the power to affect everybody.
Interviewer: Can churches and rescue missions afford to keep helping people?
Reply number two: We’re in a position to always provide help. I’m not talking about a particular denomination but every denomination. Forget what the marquee says outside on the wall and realize that the word “church” is a single body that never stops reaching into lives requiring help.
Interviewer: What’s more important dropping a couple of bucks in the plate on Sunday morning or offering your time at a soup kitchen?
Reply number three: When you share five or five hundred dollars know the majority of the churches in America will be helping the homeless. Whether it’s for food, clothing, temporary shelter or a chance to grasp hope again…by providing a couple of extra bucks someone’s life will change for the good because they believed in themselves enough let a church or rescue open the door for them to locate a new job.
Interviewer: Are the new faces of homeless the birth place of new missionaries and teachers? Basically meaning, could these experiences be an extremely valuable education for future Americans?
Reply number four: Anybody can teach. You don’t have to be homeless. Any experience is a life experience. You can spend thousands of dollars on the best education and walk out a dummy. I’m not against education because I believe we need to educate ourselves. A life experience is the best way to communicate a more peaceful tomorrow. Use the experience to teach other’s how to survive when things look bad. Don’t be shy with your experiences…what you went through can change another life so they don’t endure the same experience. These are the mistakes I made…let me help you make the right choice.
Interviewer: In the past five years a lot of jobs and lives have been destroyed because of corporate cutbacks that tend to finance the pockets of CEO's and Stockmarket Share Holders rather than the hardworking employee...how do you react to the Presidential hopeful that believes Corporate America is not a corporation but rather a person? If it truly is a person then what laws should be enforced to help correct conditions at work?
Reply number five: People are people. The Government is for the people by the people. A statesman speaks on behalf of the people while a politician speaks on behalf of the person giving them a vote. We the people of the United States need to hold those controlling our tax dollars accountable. If you want to look at it from a Corporate American standpoint then someone needs to remind them that they work for us.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Monday, January 9, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
When your boss walks into the room do you duck?
The birth of a business New Year should be caught on video then connected to Reality TV…
Priceless are the resolution hunting bosses and company owners that hap heartedly believe changing the last digit of the presented next 52 weeks is reason to stand up straight, stop picking your nose and kick into a new gear everything that seems deep, dark, unspoken and bleak.
The initial first step is to get control of the minions dipping into your biweekly pocket. Immediately sent out are office emails bleeding with threats; then the full staff meetings reeking with intimidation. And who will ever forget the extremely classic
“We are a team” speech. We are the biggest! The best! If in doubt please see HR for a free bus ride home.
Coming from Montana I know threats and intimidation may move the cattle and sheep away from the silent wolf casually watching in the nearby trees but we all know that true success isn’t about the present moment but rather long term. But the importance of documenting the number of bodies that once sat in the chair Johnson just took over is numb, null and void.
Working relationships are what we did when Microsoft, Apple and Muzak introduced to big business a come as you are, wear what you want day of freedom. I remember the gray walls at Jefferson Pilot being repainted to yellow, a comfortable brown and an infamous purple near Master Control at WBTV Channel 3.
Then something before the recession happened. Threats and leadership by way of intimidation blazed the tall forests of productivity turning 7.2 hour days into fully documented IRS watched 40 hours a week knowing full well the amount of time spent off the clock shoved the rule books into that little place called, “He doesn’t work here anymore. I’m now in control.”
Show me a company that’s presently having a sip of success and I’ll show you a fully built barrier fed by fear and resentment.
I remember laughing at the announcement of there being a recession in America. I thought, “The Calvary has come! Businesses will be forced to change their standards.”
Fired were the coaches. Lost were the captains of the ship that would’ve stood at the helm of that sinking Titanic if given the opportunity but someone from a village twenty six states away didn’t feel comfortable with a set of numbers and without questions, concerns and or reasons to believe in…the face of finding and maintaining success changed from developing a monument to becoming a moment.
One quote from Art Williams still holds true, “Fear isn’t the most effective management tool.”
Build a better today by taking note of your possibilities in July, October and next January. Darth Vader dies in Star Wars.
Learn to invest your passion for the sport in untrained souls. I’ve yet to meet the Linguistics Major that can properly speak the street. Workplace success cannot be book or research taught. You’ve heard of people complaining about the world having too many lawyers. Same goes for consultants and CEO’s.
“Pay me this! I will give you this!”
Meanwhile six months of totally uncool Chapter 11 no member FDIC, get written permission from the NFL while seeing the dealer for details later…the company continued to fall eventually leading to close doors and no Christmas.
“Yeah…if you would’ve had BBQ only on Monday’s followed by more beer for my personal parties on Thursday thru Sunday while hiring someone to pinch hit for me on the golf course you might have seen your numbers rise. But because your place of business uses bad toilet paper, the stuff without flowers and perfume scents; it just didn’t seem inviting to new customers. And what’s up with your recycling habits? I feel that maybe its best you find yourself a new beginning.”
Every employee should be shown new opportunities in the company! Give the tail busters a reason to believe they can help deliver success to the owner’s addiction to gold cards and Martha’s Vineyard.
I grew up thinking only the world of broadcasting was the only place on earth that didn’t share the Help Wanted section of Radio and Records Magazine. Getting caught with your nose buried in a job opportunity in Fargo, North Dakota was far worse than your mother discovering magazines under the mattress.
I still can’t get over Mitt Romney’s victory speech in Iowa, “I will help people get back to work.”
Here’s an idea: stop trying to create new jobs and generate the guts to free the people from fear, intimidation and a lack of self confidence. Mastermind a policy that reshapes the business relationship sky like those that swiped smokestacks and factory pollutions from the air.
The American dream is dead not because we are a lazy people… Have you ever stumbled onto the scene of a dog that’s been abused? He or she offers nothing except glances toward the one holding the chain. Like abuse, in order to receive we look to our bosses and company presidents to get permission to accept success.
Relationship! Connectedness! Rather than hoist the flag that says, “You’re the man!” Give July, October and next January a fighting chance to be a continuation of success not just a quick fix. Growing up we called them beer buzzes. Then we went home and felt like dieing because the fricken bed spins were killers.
When your boss enters the room do you duck?
I will always believe in you first.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Priceless are the resolution hunting bosses and company owners that hap heartedly believe changing the last digit of the presented next 52 weeks is reason to stand up straight, stop picking your nose and kick into a new gear everything that seems deep, dark, unspoken and bleak.
The initial first step is to get control of the minions dipping into your biweekly pocket. Immediately sent out are office emails bleeding with threats; then the full staff meetings reeking with intimidation. And who will ever forget the extremely classic
“We are a team” speech. We are the biggest! The best! If in doubt please see HR for a free bus ride home.
Coming from Montana I know threats and intimidation may move the cattle and sheep away from the silent wolf casually watching in the nearby trees but we all know that true success isn’t about the present moment but rather long term. But the importance of documenting the number of bodies that once sat in the chair Johnson just took over is numb, null and void.
Working relationships are what we did when Microsoft, Apple and Muzak introduced to big business a come as you are, wear what you want day of freedom. I remember the gray walls at Jefferson Pilot being repainted to yellow, a comfortable brown and an infamous purple near Master Control at WBTV Channel 3.
Then something before the recession happened. Threats and leadership by way of intimidation blazed the tall forests of productivity turning 7.2 hour days into fully documented IRS watched 40 hours a week knowing full well the amount of time spent off the clock shoved the rule books into that little place called, “He doesn’t work here anymore. I’m now in control.”
Show me a company that’s presently having a sip of success and I’ll show you a fully built barrier fed by fear and resentment.
I remember laughing at the announcement of there being a recession in America. I thought, “The Calvary has come! Businesses will be forced to change their standards.”
Fired were the coaches. Lost were the captains of the ship that would’ve stood at the helm of that sinking Titanic if given the opportunity but someone from a village twenty six states away didn’t feel comfortable with a set of numbers and without questions, concerns and or reasons to believe in…the face of finding and maintaining success changed from developing a monument to becoming a moment.
One quote from Art Williams still holds true, “Fear isn’t the most effective management tool.”
Build a better today by taking note of your possibilities in July, October and next January. Darth Vader dies in Star Wars.
Learn to invest your passion for the sport in untrained souls. I’ve yet to meet the Linguistics Major that can properly speak the street. Workplace success cannot be book or research taught. You’ve heard of people complaining about the world having too many lawyers. Same goes for consultants and CEO’s.
“Pay me this! I will give you this!”
Meanwhile six months of totally uncool Chapter 11 no member FDIC, get written permission from the NFL while seeing the dealer for details later…the company continued to fall eventually leading to close doors and no Christmas.
“Yeah…if you would’ve had BBQ only on Monday’s followed by more beer for my personal parties on Thursday thru Sunday while hiring someone to pinch hit for me on the golf course you might have seen your numbers rise. But because your place of business uses bad toilet paper, the stuff without flowers and perfume scents; it just didn’t seem inviting to new customers. And what’s up with your recycling habits? I feel that maybe its best you find yourself a new beginning.”
Every employee should be shown new opportunities in the company! Give the tail busters a reason to believe they can help deliver success to the owner’s addiction to gold cards and Martha’s Vineyard.
I grew up thinking only the world of broadcasting was the only place on earth that didn’t share the Help Wanted section of Radio and Records Magazine. Getting caught with your nose buried in a job opportunity in Fargo, North Dakota was far worse than your mother discovering magazines under the mattress.
I still can’t get over Mitt Romney’s victory speech in Iowa, “I will help people get back to work.”
Here’s an idea: stop trying to create new jobs and generate the guts to free the people from fear, intimidation and a lack of self confidence. Mastermind a policy that reshapes the business relationship sky like those that swiped smokestacks and factory pollutions from the air.
The American dream is dead not because we are a lazy people… Have you ever stumbled onto the scene of a dog that’s been abused? He or she offers nothing except glances toward the one holding the chain. Like abuse, in order to receive we look to our bosses and company presidents to get permission to accept success.
Relationship! Connectedness! Rather than hoist the flag that says, “You’re the man!” Give July, October and next January a fighting chance to be a continuation of success not just a quick fix. Growing up we called them beer buzzes. Then we went home and felt like dieing because the fricken bed spins were killers.
When your boss enters the room do you duck?
I will always believe in you first.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
If you don't do...then you can't.
Winston Churchill said, “If you’re going through hell, keep going. You only have to endure to conquer.”
General Douglas MacArthur believed that age wrinkles the skin but quitting wrinkles the soul.
Former Presidential candidate Ross Perot, “Most people quit on the one yard line. They give up in the last minute of the game.”
After barely winning in Iowa 2012 Republican runner Mitt Romney clearly spouted to supporters, “When I go to work I’ll put American’s back to work.”
First…I don’t support Romney or any other person that’s scientifically situated their backbones in a position of public display that may or may not lead to becoming the leader of the most incredible nation on earth.
What I do find interesting are the entanglements candidates put themselves in only to cackle like chickens when the golden egg leads to a payoff.
You’ve got CNN and Fox News to tell you about how two months ago Mitt was barely a viewpoint.
Fascinating is the journey. To shave the hairs off the open financial wound of this country and pull off an eight vote victory is every reason why the best investment is a personal drive to move through the mountain, bust down the skyscraping walls of Corporate America and succeed.
In martial arts we are trained to break boards and thick concrete bricks. My first degree mentor Nathan Richie took the challenge to a higher level by blindfolding his only view of the world then jump turning hook kicking 6 to 8 feet in the air an apple from a sword.
What are the real chances such a kick could save your life?
While nonbelievers chant, “The wood is cut in ways that shatter easily!”
No hand, foot or head will touch the realms of the other side unless there’s a journey first. It’s almost like an agreement, a contract or trust designed to better understand the vision or final destination.
I’m constantly telling people about where Montana is…but after being in the Carolina’s for 27 years I haven’t a clue as to how I’m gonna one day get back to my hometown.
Why should the drive toward personal success be any different?
We’ve been trained to want therefore we shall receive. Goals are set too high which makes it nearly impossible to reach. If you can’t do it who will? We’re trained that being a manager or company leader brings dreams to the surface. You now have the control to hire and fire.
I don’t know how many times I heard Carolina Panther Steve Smith and Cam Newton telling reporters, “If you can’t live up to what’s being asked…you shouldn’t be here.”
And every time I became less of a fan.
Steve and Cam have come across as the top dog sales people in a company that’s no different than most who are extremely lucky enough to have a couple of loyally dedicated go getters. But to display an I’m better than you attitude immediately erodes the foundation that furthers the journey toward a winning season.
In an atmosphere of martial artists the act of being better than teaches lower belt students how to quit. The moment your foot touches the mat, you bow to the flag and allow the white color of your uniform serve as reason to believe that you always have room to grow and showcasing an interest in other people’s journeys will forever have an impact on the very place your foot is currently placed.
Guidance, courage, wisdom and leadership turned Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill into monuments that continue to change lives many chapters after their final breath.
When a red belt is wrapped around the waste of a student it opens the door for them to refocus their journey. Although it may sound easy to ax kick a solid brick into two…I learn more from the chance taker that didn’t succeed the first, second or fifth time. Doubt destroys willingness. Without a will there is no way.
Who influences your need to quit? The best players on the team will never come out and clearly say, “Move away from the end zone.” Nothing inspires a need to quit more than a coworker that barely does what’s expected but is constantly awarded with gifts and or recognition from decision maker’s that wouldn’t share the sunshine with you if today was blessed with too much.
Other people’s actions and reactions invisibly undo what you do.
You can’t break a brick unless you envision your hand, foot or head moving through it first. When was the last time you gave yourself permission to see beyond your biggest let down? How often do you turn an extremely bad day into an opportunity to step back and revaluate the destination of attempt?
At the extremely old age of ten in itty bitty Billings, Montana I sat in a barely built bedroom pretending to be a morning show radio DJ in Los Angeles. Get close enough to me and you’ll quickly realize that after 33 years only my desire to quit stands in the way of making it a reality.
Ryan Seacrest wouldn’t have become this generations Dick Clark without having those conversations with family and friends in Atlanta about one day being.
Be truthful to your budding self. Push those unique flower petals through the metal. Twenty twelve is the 52 week period that’s officially open for your leadership, unconditional support and dedicated desire to learn from every chapter that resembles a bleak, dark and gloomy reason to say stop.
Not today…it’s time for victory.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
General Douglas MacArthur believed that age wrinkles the skin but quitting wrinkles the soul.
Former Presidential candidate Ross Perot, “Most people quit on the one yard line. They give up in the last minute of the game.”
After barely winning in Iowa 2012 Republican runner Mitt Romney clearly spouted to supporters, “When I go to work I’ll put American’s back to work.”
First…I don’t support Romney or any other person that’s scientifically situated their backbones in a position of public display that may or may not lead to becoming the leader of the most incredible nation on earth.
What I do find interesting are the entanglements candidates put themselves in only to cackle like chickens when the golden egg leads to a payoff.
You’ve got CNN and Fox News to tell you about how two months ago Mitt was barely a viewpoint.
Fascinating is the journey. To shave the hairs off the open financial wound of this country and pull off an eight vote victory is every reason why the best investment is a personal drive to move through the mountain, bust down the skyscraping walls of Corporate America and succeed.
In martial arts we are trained to break boards and thick concrete bricks. My first degree mentor Nathan Richie took the challenge to a higher level by blindfolding his only view of the world then jump turning hook kicking 6 to 8 feet in the air an apple from a sword.
What are the real chances such a kick could save your life?
While nonbelievers chant, “The wood is cut in ways that shatter easily!”
No hand, foot or head will touch the realms of the other side unless there’s a journey first. It’s almost like an agreement, a contract or trust designed to better understand the vision or final destination.
I’m constantly telling people about where Montana is…but after being in the Carolina’s for 27 years I haven’t a clue as to how I’m gonna one day get back to my hometown.
Why should the drive toward personal success be any different?
We’ve been trained to want therefore we shall receive. Goals are set too high which makes it nearly impossible to reach. If you can’t do it who will? We’re trained that being a manager or company leader brings dreams to the surface. You now have the control to hire and fire.
I don’t know how many times I heard Carolina Panther Steve Smith and Cam Newton telling reporters, “If you can’t live up to what’s being asked…you shouldn’t be here.”
And every time I became less of a fan.
Steve and Cam have come across as the top dog sales people in a company that’s no different than most who are extremely lucky enough to have a couple of loyally dedicated go getters. But to display an I’m better than you attitude immediately erodes the foundation that furthers the journey toward a winning season.
In an atmosphere of martial artists the act of being better than teaches lower belt students how to quit. The moment your foot touches the mat, you bow to the flag and allow the white color of your uniform serve as reason to believe that you always have room to grow and showcasing an interest in other people’s journeys will forever have an impact on the very place your foot is currently placed.
Guidance, courage, wisdom and leadership turned Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill into monuments that continue to change lives many chapters after their final breath.
When a red belt is wrapped around the waste of a student it opens the door for them to refocus their journey. Although it may sound easy to ax kick a solid brick into two…I learn more from the chance taker that didn’t succeed the first, second or fifth time. Doubt destroys willingness. Without a will there is no way.
Who influences your need to quit? The best players on the team will never come out and clearly say, “Move away from the end zone.” Nothing inspires a need to quit more than a coworker that barely does what’s expected but is constantly awarded with gifts and or recognition from decision maker’s that wouldn’t share the sunshine with you if today was blessed with too much.
Other people’s actions and reactions invisibly undo what you do.
You can’t break a brick unless you envision your hand, foot or head moving through it first. When was the last time you gave yourself permission to see beyond your biggest let down? How often do you turn an extremely bad day into an opportunity to step back and revaluate the destination of attempt?
At the extremely old age of ten in itty bitty Billings, Montana I sat in a barely built bedroom pretending to be a morning show radio DJ in Los Angeles. Get close enough to me and you’ll quickly realize that after 33 years only my desire to quit stands in the way of making it a reality.
Ryan Seacrest wouldn’t have become this generations Dick Clark without having those conversations with family and friends in Atlanta about one day being.
Be truthful to your budding self. Push those unique flower petals through the metal. Twenty twelve is the 52 week period that’s officially open for your leadership, unconditional support and dedicated desire to learn from every chapter that resembles a bleak, dark and gloomy reason to say stop.
Not today…it’s time for victory.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
What if Ace and TJ don't like me?
Remember when being angry usually came with an invitation from an elementary school teacher, “Please turn this sheet of paper and pencil into a tool and spend recess writing about what’s made you extremely too moody for my class. When finished, I’ll show you the fine art of ripping it up and tossing your anger away.”
With barely a whisper of wind to hold, life thrusts your feet into a pair of adult shoes; eight, nine and ten evolves into 25, 31 and 50 where the idea of putting focus on the methods of madness that make you lean are no longer important enough to invite peaceful conclusions to. So…we horde bad vibrations like an 80’s song overplayed on the radio.
Come on Eileen from Dexy’s Midnight Runner’s might serve as a happy place while Betty Davis Eyes from Kim Carnes ignites a fire that rages out of control at work, home or while slipping through the cracks on Independence Blvd.
According to the author of Loving What Is; Katie Byron, “Never stop judging your neighbors.”
She invites you to rip open your heart and land your flight above all things ignored on a runway of resolution and solution. Write about your past, present and future. Jot down your dislikes and worries about people. Unveil your sadness on paper! If this seems too revealing and it’s a safe zone you’re searching for check out www.thework.org.
Anyone who’s followed Julia Cameron’s Artist Way knows of the truths she’s introduced you to through being faithful to Morning Pages. Getting to know you is a gut wrenching task filled with more Halloween masks than Morris Costumes on Monroe Road in Charlotte, NC.
Trust is constantly the battle. How is it possible to be open, honest and revealing of what paints pain on the path if you live or work with someone whose eyes constantly search for weapons to use against you?
It took ten years to leave my daily writing out for anyone to view. Having the guts to whip out the pages to showcase a thought isn’t necessarily brave but rather truthful. Rather than judge the way I think know who I am first.
Penning out your points of view isn’t just a family squabble thing!
Because of my 2009 heart attack doctors have asked that I step on a scale twice daily. Although 2011 was an incredible year for weight loss, a sudden gain over the weekend put their methods of education into play. While the nurse calmly accused me of eating and drinking wrong while forcefully reminding me of the dangers of her purpose, I was able to bring peace of mind to her reasons by pulling out my writing and sharing my handwritten thoughts, blood pressure and weight changes for the past thirty days.
Have you ever documented the journey of the common cold? You’ll learn more about you when you do.
Back to Katie Byron, “If you find yourself sending out the index finger of blame the most important rule of true happiness has been shattered. The focus is no longer on you.”
Remove the censors.
That in itself is an extremely dangerous game to play. By dropping the curtain that reveals the wizard, knowing when to be open and direct is the key to walking in peace. Just because it seems fitting on paper, anyone nearing your daily circle won’t understand your reasons for becoming and staying real.
According to Katie, “When you do the work, everything outside you is a reflection of your own thinking. You are the storyteller, the film projector, he or she that promotes an image. The moment we recognize a flaw in the screen we want to change the person.”
Is it true?
Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
How do you react when you think that thought?
Who would you be without that thought?
Julia Cameron leads readers into believing, “Anger isn’t the solution. It’s only a symptom.”
Have you ever asked why you suddenly become depressed the moment your toes walk through the front door at work?
Rather than place blame on coworkers and the cleanup crew that constantly forgets your trash; look into the bucket and see if you recognize the lines that keep you connected when the biggest ambition is to sever the ties.
I suffer from a horrid disease called OPBWE. (Other people’s bad work ethics) I become extremely angry and depressed when confronted by what I assume is laziness, a lack of caring and or they find no reason to invest in success. Guess what? It’s not their job to keep up with me! In fact people find my addiction to working completely a pain in the a**!
Keeping up with the Jones’ at work creates mountains. Not living up to the boss’s expectations generates craters that surround the mountains. Becoming angry at drivers who don’t move when the light turns green is the evil claw connected to a fire breathing dragon too ugly to put in a Hollywood movie. From the outside it truly looks like our purpose in life is to be unhappy only to assume we’re too late to fix it.
Why are Grandparents more open and playful than the parental figures they were when you were growing up? My stepfather Joe was brutal on bad behavior. We’d get five minutes to talk on the phone and 30 seconds into the conversation, “Your time is up!” Combine that with radio station program directors that screamed at you if the thought over the song lasted longer than eight seconds. Now ask me why I can’t stand emails longer than a paragraph.
Why do I instantly become a demon when a company raises their prices? I’ll know that answer when Stepfather Joe shows me shows me how he kept his family from being homeless. We literally had nothing and yet when I look back I see a man that never gave up. He let no wall serve as a mountain he couldn’t climb.
In 2012 stop pretending to change and grasp onto a couple of minutes to locate an answer as to why something might be bothering you. I haven’t a clue as to why the sun always rises in the east then sets in the west. Rather than challenge it, I’ve learned to accept new beginnings while never forgetting to say thank you for the light that unveiled paths to chase.
I will always believe in you first…
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
With barely a whisper of wind to hold, life thrusts your feet into a pair of adult shoes; eight, nine and ten evolves into 25, 31 and 50 where the idea of putting focus on the methods of madness that make you lean are no longer important enough to invite peaceful conclusions to. So…we horde bad vibrations like an 80’s song overplayed on the radio.
Come on Eileen from Dexy’s Midnight Runner’s might serve as a happy place while Betty Davis Eyes from Kim Carnes ignites a fire that rages out of control at work, home or while slipping through the cracks on Independence Blvd.
According to the author of Loving What Is; Katie Byron, “Never stop judging your neighbors.”
She invites you to rip open your heart and land your flight above all things ignored on a runway of resolution and solution. Write about your past, present and future. Jot down your dislikes and worries about people. Unveil your sadness on paper! If this seems too revealing and it’s a safe zone you’re searching for check out www.thework.org.
Anyone who’s followed Julia Cameron’s Artist Way knows of the truths she’s introduced you to through being faithful to Morning Pages. Getting to know you is a gut wrenching task filled with more Halloween masks than Morris Costumes on Monroe Road in Charlotte, NC.
Trust is constantly the battle. How is it possible to be open, honest and revealing of what paints pain on the path if you live or work with someone whose eyes constantly search for weapons to use against you?
It took ten years to leave my daily writing out for anyone to view. Having the guts to whip out the pages to showcase a thought isn’t necessarily brave but rather truthful. Rather than judge the way I think know who I am first.
Penning out your points of view isn’t just a family squabble thing!
Because of my 2009 heart attack doctors have asked that I step on a scale twice daily. Although 2011 was an incredible year for weight loss, a sudden gain over the weekend put their methods of education into play. While the nurse calmly accused me of eating and drinking wrong while forcefully reminding me of the dangers of her purpose, I was able to bring peace of mind to her reasons by pulling out my writing and sharing my handwritten thoughts, blood pressure and weight changes for the past thirty days.
Have you ever documented the journey of the common cold? You’ll learn more about you when you do.
Back to Katie Byron, “If you find yourself sending out the index finger of blame the most important rule of true happiness has been shattered. The focus is no longer on you.”
Remove the censors.
That in itself is an extremely dangerous game to play. By dropping the curtain that reveals the wizard, knowing when to be open and direct is the key to walking in peace. Just because it seems fitting on paper, anyone nearing your daily circle won’t understand your reasons for becoming and staying real.
According to Katie, “When you do the work, everything outside you is a reflection of your own thinking. You are the storyteller, the film projector, he or she that promotes an image. The moment we recognize a flaw in the screen we want to change the person.”
Is it true?
Can you absolutely know that it’s true?
How do you react when you think that thought?
Who would you be without that thought?
Julia Cameron leads readers into believing, “Anger isn’t the solution. It’s only a symptom.”
Have you ever asked why you suddenly become depressed the moment your toes walk through the front door at work?
Rather than place blame on coworkers and the cleanup crew that constantly forgets your trash; look into the bucket and see if you recognize the lines that keep you connected when the biggest ambition is to sever the ties.
I suffer from a horrid disease called OPBWE. (Other people’s bad work ethics) I become extremely angry and depressed when confronted by what I assume is laziness, a lack of caring and or they find no reason to invest in success. Guess what? It’s not their job to keep up with me! In fact people find my addiction to working completely a pain in the a**!
Keeping up with the Jones’ at work creates mountains. Not living up to the boss’s expectations generates craters that surround the mountains. Becoming angry at drivers who don’t move when the light turns green is the evil claw connected to a fire breathing dragon too ugly to put in a Hollywood movie. From the outside it truly looks like our purpose in life is to be unhappy only to assume we’re too late to fix it.
Why are Grandparents more open and playful than the parental figures they were when you were growing up? My stepfather Joe was brutal on bad behavior. We’d get five minutes to talk on the phone and 30 seconds into the conversation, “Your time is up!” Combine that with radio station program directors that screamed at you if the thought over the song lasted longer than eight seconds. Now ask me why I can’t stand emails longer than a paragraph.
Why do I instantly become a demon when a company raises their prices? I’ll know that answer when Stepfather Joe shows me shows me how he kept his family from being homeless. We literally had nothing and yet when I look back I see a man that never gave up. He let no wall serve as a mountain he couldn’t climb.
In 2012 stop pretending to change and grasp onto a couple of minutes to locate an answer as to why something might be bothering you. I haven’t a clue as to why the sun always rises in the east then sets in the west. Rather than challenge it, I’ve learned to accept new beginnings while never forgetting to say thank you for the light that unveiled paths to chase.
I will always believe in you first…
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Monday, January 2, 2012
2012 The Journey Back To America: Page Five
Visually, scanning the jagged edges of homelessness seems approachable, without hard to digest challenges, some might even call it a vision quest to connect with a higher understanding of where this generation might be drifting.
Now that the writer whose footprints have been muddied by thirty two years of radio broadcast has stepped into the mysterious dark hole; the faces of assumption line the unmarked nights as to who is and isn’t homeless versus which family, friend or coworker will charter a headless dream giving permission to hope, faith and ambition to seize it’s desire to receive air?
Homelessness is more visual than you see.
It’s disguised to look like other methods of acceptance such as multiple families living under one roof, the same quarter acre of land featuring small one to two bedroom no bigger than a shack landmarks that resemble housing, bankruptcy terminates mortgages but in some cases you have until a year to physically leave the setting or if you spend ten minutes driving in any direction on a freeway you’ll bump into the modern gypsy; American’s that have walked away from neighborhoods and city streets, country cabins and lakeside waves to accept constant moving by way of RVing.
Homelessness isn’t just the bum snuggled up in a blanket at a bus stop begging for a buck or scratching his or her fingers across five strings of a heavily weathered guitar chanting songs written along the way.
Pastor Flo was extremely clear when explaining, “Are they houseless or homeless? Do they suffer from disconnection?”
Standing outside Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, NC on New Year’s Eve, my conversation with a short dirty bearded man with crusted fingertips and stained tips smoking the last 1/8th of an inch off his only smokes began with, “Are you without a home tonight?”
“I have a home!” His well focused reply instantly bounced off me. “If they let me back into this place I know exactly where I’m gonna be tonight.”
Pulling from his jacket was a nicely folded sheet of paper that categorically in a lawyers way explained that because he chose to smoke that he wouldn’t be allowed in. Sucking in a lung full of what used to be he found no reason to believe that he fit the category I had suggested, therefore every question I very politely shared was blocked by what Scott a former street warrior called my misunderstanding.
It was I who was uneducated.
Scott explains, “If you’re watching TV and a man walks into your house without knocking, you’d feel invaded. Walking up to the assumed homeless man put his defenses up just like yours.”
I would never walk up to someone in an RV and start things out with, “How long you been without a roof?”
If it looks like a duck, waddles like a duck…in the world of homelessness that doesn’t mean you’re standing next to something that’s going to quack.
This week The Interviewer took not five but one question to the web with shielded five different answers: How should I approach the homeless?
Reply number one: Homeless people aren't all necessarily the cliche "hobos" the media displays for us to see. I've talked to many, and they're all normal people. All the homeless people I've met so far have spoken perfect English. You have to remember that most of these homeless people were once average people although some others may have been born homeless which is a rare case. Talk to them like normal people, really! In your world, there are fat, pretty, ugly, skinny, mean, nice, tall, and short people. -Well, it's basically the same in the homeless world. Offer them a meal with a drink, sit down beside them and ask a simple question "Hi, my name is ________. Do you care for a meal? I've been walking around this whole day, the weather is really nice. How are you today, sir/ma'am?" If they nod or reply yes, hand them their meal politely. Don't start to personally, and don't ask for their name too early, instead ask them as you leave "It was wonderful meeting you. I'll come again next weekend if you don't mind. Oh, and what is your name?"
Replay number two: I did a project on people and their different life styles and one day while I was going to grab some lunch to go…this guy who, when he talked sounded like anyone else not like "change change, can I have a dollar, do you have any money to spare?" He was really polite. I asked if he had plans for the rest of the day. He said, “No…” like expected. I asked him if he would like to join me for lunch. I found out how he became homeless and the inside "scoop" on the homeless journey to survive and make it to the next day.
Reply number three: I usually just smile and say, “Hi!” I've seen people engaged in conversation with homeless people and I think as long as you're friendly and treat them respectfully, you can begin a conversation too. If you're doing this for a project, it would only be right to give them a few dollars or buy them a meal while you're talking, because their time is valuable too.
Ok stop right there. This brings me to a conversation with Scott whose personal vow is to take $300 from his entrepreneurial pocket and hand out the money $50 at a time.
Instantly I gulped! $50 is a ton of cash to give to a person you don’t know especially since society has taught us that nearly every cent of it will be spent on drugs, alcohol or cigarettes.
“At least I know they’ll be warm tonight,” was Scott’s reply. “Warm with hope. The first thing you lose out on the street is hope. A man walks up and gives you fifty bucks and for the first time in weeks your heart feels something incredibly special.”
Interviewer: How should I approach the homeless?
Reply number four: I once stayed in a homeless shelter in Denver for a while. Went into a stupid "Work Oriented" rehab program there. Did it instead of going to jail for four months. Worked 13 hours a day cleaning up human waste and puke, being eaten up by bedbugs, cooking dinner and washing dishes for our "guests" and putting up with all manner of verbal and physical abuse from them. A few, really just a few, were friendly and appreciative. The rest were just ornery, dangerous, ugly, shiftless, disgusting human junk. I got in a lot of fights. More than I did in jail.
If they can get away with it, most will kill you and strip you in ten minutes flat. Kill you for ten bucks. If I had it to do over I'd just go back to jail.
Reply number five: I encounter homeless people five days out of the week. A few months back, I had a good discussion with a friend about homeless people. He was passionate in a practical way. He had experience. His advice was simple - just talk to them. They're human too. That's scary. They're not like me. They may smell. I'm in a hurry. Talk to them about what? What if they ask for money? He proceeded to tell me that homeless people just want you to talk to them. They don't want to be a project. My friend mentioned the idea of keeping a few cans of chili in the back of my car just for a homeless occasion. I didn't have to store those cans for long. Anthony was his name. I met him at a Shell just down the street from school. He asked me for money. I asked him if he was hungry. And out came the chili. We sat on the sidewalk with our chili and talked, like new friends. He is 28 years old and was jumped in the park the night before. He told me of his family and how long he had been homeless (10 years). His dad finds him from time to time and gives him money. He has a driver's license, but only for identification. He showed me where he slept the night before. All the while I was holding back tears.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
Now that the writer whose footprints have been muddied by thirty two years of radio broadcast has stepped into the mysterious dark hole; the faces of assumption line the unmarked nights as to who is and isn’t homeless versus which family, friend or coworker will charter a headless dream giving permission to hope, faith and ambition to seize it’s desire to receive air?
Homelessness is more visual than you see.
It’s disguised to look like other methods of acceptance such as multiple families living under one roof, the same quarter acre of land featuring small one to two bedroom no bigger than a shack landmarks that resemble housing, bankruptcy terminates mortgages but in some cases you have until a year to physically leave the setting or if you spend ten minutes driving in any direction on a freeway you’ll bump into the modern gypsy; American’s that have walked away from neighborhoods and city streets, country cabins and lakeside waves to accept constant moving by way of RVing.
Homelessness isn’t just the bum snuggled up in a blanket at a bus stop begging for a buck or scratching his or her fingers across five strings of a heavily weathered guitar chanting songs written along the way.
Pastor Flo was extremely clear when explaining, “Are they houseless or homeless? Do they suffer from disconnection?”
Standing outside Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, NC on New Year’s Eve, my conversation with a short dirty bearded man with crusted fingertips and stained tips smoking the last 1/8th of an inch off his only smokes began with, “Are you without a home tonight?”
“I have a home!” His well focused reply instantly bounced off me. “If they let me back into this place I know exactly where I’m gonna be tonight.”
Pulling from his jacket was a nicely folded sheet of paper that categorically in a lawyers way explained that because he chose to smoke that he wouldn’t be allowed in. Sucking in a lung full of what used to be he found no reason to believe that he fit the category I had suggested, therefore every question I very politely shared was blocked by what Scott a former street warrior called my misunderstanding.
It was I who was uneducated.
Scott explains, “If you’re watching TV and a man walks into your house without knocking, you’d feel invaded. Walking up to the assumed homeless man put his defenses up just like yours.”
I would never walk up to someone in an RV and start things out with, “How long you been without a roof?”
If it looks like a duck, waddles like a duck…in the world of homelessness that doesn’t mean you’re standing next to something that’s going to quack.
This week The Interviewer took not five but one question to the web with shielded five different answers: How should I approach the homeless?
Reply number one: Homeless people aren't all necessarily the cliche "hobos" the media displays for us to see. I've talked to many, and they're all normal people. All the homeless people I've met so far have spoken perfect English. You have to remember that most of these homeless people were once average people although some others may have been born homeless which is a rare case. Talk to them like normal people, really! In your world, there are fat, pretty, ugly, skinny, mean, nice, tall, and short people. -Well, it's basically the same in the homeless world. Offer them a meal with a drink, sit down beside them and ask a simple question "Hi, my name is ________. Do you care for a meal? I've been walking around this whole day, the weather is really nice. How are you today, sir/ma'am?" If they nod or reply yes, hand them their meal politely. Don't start to personally, and don't ask for their name too early, instead ask them as you leave "It was wonderful meeting you. I'll come again next weekend if you don't mind. Oh, and what is your name?"
Replay number two: I did a project on people and their different life styles and one day while I was going to grab some lunch to go…this guy who, when he talked sounded like anyone else not like "change change, can I have a dollar, do you have any money to spare?" He was really polite. I asked if he had plans for the rest of the day. He said, “No…” like expected. I asked him if he would like to join me for lunch. I found out how he became homeless and the inside "scoop" on the homeless journey to survive and make it to the next day.
Reply number three: I usually just smile and say, “Hi!” I've seen people engaged in conversation with homeless people and I think as long as you're friendly and treat them respectfully, you can begin a conversation too. If you're doing this for a project, it would only be right to give them a few dollars or buy them a meal while you're talking, because their time is valuable too.
Ok stop right there. This brings me to a conversation with Scott whose personal vow is to take $300 from his entrepreneurial pocket and hand out the money $50 at a time.
Instantly I gulped! $50 is a ton of cash to give to a person you don’t know especially since society has taught us that nearly every cent of it will be spent on drugs, alcohol or cigarettes.
“At least I know they’ll be warm tonight,” was Scott’s reply. “Warm with hope. The first thing you lose out on the street is hope. A man walks up and gives you fifty bucks and for the first time in weeks your heart feels something incredibly special.”
Interviewer: How should I approach the homeless?
Reply number four: I once stayed in a homeless shelter in Denver for a while. Went into a stupid "Work Oriented" rehab program there. Did it instead of going to jail for four months. Worked 13 hours a day cleaning up human waste and puke, being eaten up by bedbugs, cooking dinner and washing dishes for our "guests" and putting up with all manner of verbal and physical abuse from them. A few, really just a few, were friendly and appreciative. The rest were just ornery, dangerous, ugly, shiftless, disgusting human junk. I got in a lot of fights. More than I did in jail.
If they can get away with it, most will kill you and strip you in ten minutes flat. Kill you for ten bucks. If I had it to do over I'd just go back to jail.
Reply number five: I encounter homeless people five days out of the week. A few months back, I had a good discussion with a friend about homeless people. He was passionate in a practical way. He had experience. His advice was simple - just talk to them. They're human too. That's scary. They're not like me. They may smell. I'm in a hurry. Talk to them about what? What if they ask for money? He proceeded to tell me that homeless people just want you to talk to them. They don't want to be a project. My friend mentioned the idea of keeping a few cans of chili in the back of my car just for a homeless occasion. I didn't have to store those cans for long. Anthony was his name. I met him at a Shell just down the street from school. He asked me for money. I asked him if he was hungry. And out came the chili. We sat on the sidewalk with our chili and talked, like new friends. He is 28 years old and was jumped in the park the night before. He told me of his family and how long he had been homeless (10 years). His dad finds him from time to time and gives him money. He has a driver's license, but only for identification. He showed me where he slept the night before. All the while I was holding back tears.
arroecollins@clearchannel.com
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