Days of glory?
If I harken back to those thrilling days of yesteryear to when I was as a young man of 14 to 18 years old, it seems to me this week of this month always brought me a fair amount of consternation.
The end of the summer vacation was eminent.
The nights longer; days shorter.
Humidity and temperatures where high because those ‘dog? days of summer were upon us.
. . . and . . .
. . . the ever-loving, if not highly-dreaded ‘two-a-day? football practices started. I think I am wilting now just remembering. Up early. Six mile bike ride to Clarkston High School. Morning stretch, run, sweat. Relax a few hours and then do it all over in the afternoon.
‘If you ain’t pukin’, you ain’t giving it your all!? Barked coaches. Then bicycle the six miles back home. Good times.
Gosh, I used to have some big, ol’ tree-trunk legs.
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A little on produce
This year’s veggie garden has yielded me a ton of sugar snap peas, yet the pole beans puked out early. This year I am making small batches of salsa as the tomatoes and peppers ripen. I whip them into ye olde Hamilton Beach food processor with onions, garlic, herbs, spices and lemon juice; press the whirly-gig button and call it good. One pint to eat. One to put up in the freezer.
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Sales Tip #5,297 . . . don’t be a sales person
I am pretty danged positive the sales force here at my stables here at the newspaper refuse to or cannot imagine believing me when I say to them, ‘Don’t be a salesman.?
It’s my belief if you only show up to your customer’s door when you have something to sell them, soon they will only see you as somebody who want them to buy something and that means paying for something they don’t want. They will not see you as a person.
I tell the staff, and I hope they listen, ‘Get a schedule going. Go see people on a regular basis. Pop in weekly for a minute or two. Say, ‘hi’ ask how things are going. Find out not just about what is going on with business, but also with that business person’s life.
Become the trusted confidant, the valued asset and sales will follow . . . not because you are selling, rather because you know what their business needs, you know how to help and you’re not just a salesman.
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The eighth month
So, I wanted to end with information about August, it’s history, if you will . . . here’s what I found from the website, InfoPlease.com
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‘After Julius Caesar’s grandnephew Augustus defeated Marc Antony and Cleopatra, and became emperor of Rome, the Roman Senate decided that he too should have a month named after him. The month Sextillus (sex = six) was chosen for Augustus, and the senate justified its actions in the following resolution:
‘Whereas the Emperor Augustus Caesar, in the month of Sextillis . . . thrice entered the city in triumph . . . and in the same month Egypt was brought under the authority of the Roman people, and in the same month an end was put to the civil wars; and whereas for these reasons the said month is, and has been, most fortunate to this empire, it is hereby decreed by the senate that the said month shall be called Augustus.
‘Not only did the Senate name a month after Augustus, but it decided that since Julius’s month, July, had 31 days, Augustus’s month should equal it: under the Julian calendar, the months alternated evenly between 30 and 31 days (with the exception of February), which made August 30 days long. So, instead of August having a mere 30 days, it was lengthened to 31, preventing anyone from claiming that Emperor Augustus was saddled with an inferior month.
‘To accommodate this change two other calendrical adjustments were necessary:
‘The extra day needed to inflate the importance of August was taken from February, which originally had 29 days (30 in a leap year), and was now reduced to 28 days (29 in a leap year).?
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Oh, and one last thing about August. Take it in. The heat, humidity the last days of summer . . . and the last month of leisurely morning driving. Starting in September every high-school kid with a car will be on the road, high-tailing it to class all between 7 and 8 a.m. Can’t wait.