Do I Own a Store?

Readers of Joie de Blog may have noticed a lack of posts in the last two weeks.  The blog writer's ladder related injuries have not gotten worse, in fact, the scars are almost gone.  There is a much happier reason for this silence - an actual two week vacation!  At the beautiful New Jersey Shore, specifically, Long Beach Island.  Finding that there is something about swimming, thunderstorms, sunsets, light on the water in the late afternoon, playing cards, cooking, reading and catching up with family that puts thoughts of Boston and Joie de Vivre right out of my head.  So, apologies to anyone who misses our posts - and soon - we promise, we'll be back!!

On Visible Signs of Trauma

Struck by how unlike a typical Joie de Vivre blog post title that is! But during the last days of having a face that shows clear signs of trauma, I am also struck by the varying responses I get. Some people immediately say "what happened to you?" Anyone I know personally clearly falls into this category - as well as some customers and people I see everyday at the coffee shop,etc. And I'm seeing that some people say hello without really seeing you - they give their normal greeting and then a few minutes later, out comes the "what happened??" It's surprised me how many people who I see on a regular basis - customers, people at the bank, did not say a thing. I do understand the reticence of a complete stranger - for all they know I have a crazy boyfriend or a drinking problem - though friends in the know - those who ride bikes and have accidents - have assured me that my face looks scraped, not punched. Anyway, I have my store of funny lines at the ready: You should have seen the last guy; or never talk politics at a fancy dinner - or, wow, that last customer of the day on Saturday was really difficult. I just haven't gotten to use them as much as I imagined! And the other thing that strikes me is how lighthearted I feel about the whole thing. I can imagine how differently I would feel if I had been beaten up or abused; would perhaps want to stay inside and forget the whole thing, so it's making me look at other's faces in a new way as well. All in all, that fall from the ladder has brought up a lot of interesting thoughts. And of course, not least of those thoughts is how lucky I am that it wasn't worse!

Proper Use of Ladders

The Joiedeblog scribe has a confession to make. Said scribe is not the most careful person in the world, and often does things too quickly and somewhat recklessly. Said scribe probably breaks more things at the store than all the customers and other staff combined, simply by "virtue" of her impatience and foolhardiness. So far, she has never broken herself, but her luck almost changed the other morning. There is nothing quite like the sensation of being high up on a ladder - with one foot off the ladder balancing a bit precariously on a shelf, and feeling the ladder start to wobble. Sometimes you are lucky and can get down before it collapses. Research has actually shown that luck is just about the only thing that can help you in a situation like this, and sometimes your luck runs out, and you crash to the ground, scraping your face on the ladder as you go, ending up looking like - well, we won't go there. Then just a little bit of luck kicks in - you stand up and realize that although your face is a mess, you can walk and move all parts of your body. So, as a public service, the Joie scribe would like to alert readers to the fact that, ladders, improperly used, can be dangerous. Please use them correctly, as we will be trying to do from this point forward. And . . . if you're here in the next few days to a week, now you know - "we" haven't been in a bar room brawl or arguing with a difficult customer. But, see magnet above - happy to be of service in some way.

Whoops!

Arrived at work today and found this post it on our front door! Thank you, child of the 70s, for setting us straight - and for preventing further embarrassment. The television is now right-side up!

Well then - what IS it?

We were unpacking a box today and noticed a new sticker on one of our old favorite products - the floating penguins. These two penguins are real surfers - you can tilt their container and make all the waves you want - they will remain resiliently afloat. The new sticker says - as you can see below - NOT A TOY. And we want to know - if it's not a toy, then what is it? It's clearly something one plays with . . . otherwise the penguins will just sit there. And it doesn't "do" anything besides make you smile. And though the definition of this word is rather elastic - we're pretty sure it's not art!