And now for something completely different

After doing a bunch of blog browsing thanks to BlogMad, I have come to find that there is an odd phenomenon in the blogging world where people tell things about themselves.

No, not that that part is wierd. The new thing is that folks have things called the “Friday Fifteen” or the “Thursday Thirteen” or something like that.

Apparently what you do is tell things about yourself in list form and I think you’re supposed to do this every week.

That made me think about doing the Tuesday two, but since that seems kind of wussy-like, I’ll try the Tuesday 12 and see what happens.

1) I shave once a week. I should shave twice a week, but I never feel like it on Thursday.

2) I was once fired by my best friend. And he did it while I was taking a shit.

3) In high school I drove a 76 chevy van that looked kind of like the Starsky and Hutch car. It had wall to wall carpet, a queen sized bed in the back, a CB radio, a moonroof and an 8-track. this was in 1986.

4) I have ridiculously flat feet.

5) I know every zip code in the metro Atlanta area.

6) My wife’s nickname is butthead and I started calling her that in high school in 1986.

7) I have been in jail in two states.

8) On a related note, I was arrested and taken into custody by the Auburn Campus PD for stealing my own bike.

9) I have pierced my left ear over 100 times.

10) I can spin any relatively solid item on any finger on my left hand. (Pillows, books, serving trays, plates, cutting boards, etc).

11) I can whistle with any combination of two fingers from my left or right hands including both thumbs at the same time.

12) When I voted in the 1988 presidential election, I was EXTREMELY intoxicated.

There. Now I’m sure there’s no way I can do that again next week, but we shall see.

Ode To The Square Bagel: A Photo Essay

Someone asked for some pictures…

so here they are. Enjoy everybody!

Fat cheeks RULE!!

Holy crap!! Guess what today is?

Today is the 20th anniversary of my first date with Mrs. TMLSB. It was 1986 (obviously), she had just returned from spring break, and we went in my 1976 Chevy van (I may have to write about that thing later, as it deserves its own blog entry) to Lenox Square to see “Pretty in Pink.”

Since then, she’s been the best girlfriend, fiancee, wife, mother and partner that I’ve ever known. I don’t know what I am quantifiably, but I know that I would be far far less were it not for her advice, guidance, love and support. I’ve said it before many times, but she has always made me want to be a better man, husband, father, etc., and that’s no small feat.

Here’s to the next 20 years being better than the first 20.

I love you.

The management.

Does anybody want to buy 22,000 pounds of hardwood lump charcoal?

(To keep this from being an advertisement, I will not mention the product name here)

As some of you may know (or may not know), last year I started a little side business that was intended to bring a little extra income into the family and possibly lay the groundwork for the next career step for TMLSB.

What I got was a real life lesson in running a small business. Or more accurately, I got a real life lesson in running a small business into the ground.

Okay, that last part isn’t true, but you’d have a hard time telling my banker that.

It seems that despite the product being made from Brazillian hardwoods in areas that conform to the Forestry Service Commission guidelines, the government down there can still stop the harvesting of the woods required to make this unique blend of charcoals. So now, I am in possession of the last 2,000 bags of this product still available for sale outside of retailers that have already bought in the past and have inventory on hand.

I have basically consolidated my operations and the product is now available for sale, by me, out of my basement. I will no longer pay warehouse fees, handling fees, etc. It’s all just too much. So I arranged to move my 14 (and now it’s 18) pallets of product out of my warehouses and into my BIL’s building.

That project started with a half day last Friday that saw delivery scheduled for 12:30p-1:00p arrive at 3:30p and not on a city truck with a liftgate but a full-sized 18-wheeler despite my documented request for the liftgate, so we had to reschedule for yesterday.

The best part was that, in asking for the half day Friday, I actually said the following to my boss…in writing:

“If I can have this half day, I won’t be asking for any more time off until my vacation in May.”

So it was fun sending an email to my boss Sunday that said “I know I said I wouldn’t need another day off until May, and that’s why I am so proud to be asking for the very next work day off instead.”

He said yes, thank God.

So it was back to the worldwide headquarters of SEL for another noon-12:30p delivery that showed at 2:30p, and was unloaded at around 3:15p and then the truck left to get the rest of the delivery. From Lawrenceville. To bring back to Cumming. At 4:30p in the afternoon.

He got back at 5:30p. UnkTodd stayed and wasted his time waiting to help and lock up (which was totally unnecessary and very much appreciated).

Then one of the pallets (containing around 160 bags of charcoal) turned over in the truck. So we got to unload that pallet by hand two bags at a time.

We finally got done a little after 6pm, stopped by the BIL’s brother’s house to swap vehicles, and headed home. The BIL was out of gas, had spent nearly four hours helping me, and then when we got home, he and the two nephews helped get all 150 or so bags into my basement.

As usual, I am floored by his / their generosity, both of their time and their other resources.

From here, I will endeavor to bring it home 50-80 bags at a time on Saturday and Sunday mornings and stack it in my basement as though I’m building a reasonably flammable bomb shelter.

Hopefully I can get this stuff liquidated within a year and my loss will be minimized. Either way though, I’ve learned a LOT about business, about how government deals with small businesses, and what not to do next time.

I’m looking forward to a quiet day that sees me getting home at a reasonable hour to play with my kids and help my wife, who’s had a full plate of her own lately.

p.s. If you’re interested in one bag or 2,000 and are in the Atlanta area, visit this link.