More Change

Automatic Response

Note: Last time I was at Greenheck the sign was gone. I'm glad I took the picture when I did. No one would have believed me. The original posted referenced my Treo - hot technology for 2006. You'll be glad to know that now I have an iPhone.

Old Habits Die Hard

Originally Posted Sunday, July 09, 2006

Change is often hard...especially when the change is about something you've been doing for a long time. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Clean your plate. Flush the toilet. Sense a pattern?

We all have behaviors planted firmly in our hearts and minds, reinforced over and over by years of doing. We do these things without one moments thought - they are habits. Whole systems are built around them. Public restrooms for example. For years, architects and builders counted on the fact that you would hear your mother's voice before you exited the stall, reminding you to flush! Worked well, mostly.

Then along came change. Automatically flushed toilets. A novelty at first. (Honestly, they scared the you-know-what out of people the first time they encountered one. My favorite is when they flush before you're done.) But of course, they weren't everywhere so we continued responsible flushing. But as Malcolm Gladwell taught us, there is a tipping point.

Finally there were more automatic flush toilets in public places than the old-fashioned do-it-yourself variety and our habits started to change. Mom's voice was silenced. We expected the flushing to occur without our active participation.

Hence the sign I discovered on the stall door in the public restrooms in the Greenheck Field House in Weston, WI. After trying to figure out why it was there, it dawned on me. The Greenheck Field House, although fairly new, was built before automatic toilets became the norm and is now frequented by people who no longer believe they have an obligation to flush. Problem! Some clever person must have decided that this sign would fill the place vacated by a mother's voice saying, "Don't forget to flush, dear." At least the day I was there the sign seemed to be working.

What I'm working on now is the equivalent for changing that clean your plate message.

On another note, this blog would not have been possible without another big change - phones you carry with you and have cameras built in. If you write a blog that is tied to pictures, more important than American Express, you never want to leave home without your Treo!

On The Ice

Note: Quinn is now nine years old and still plays hockey and spends most of his time upright because he's become a pretty good skater.

Change in the Hockey Rink

Originally posted Saturday, November 26, 2005

My five year old grandson, Quinn, has started playing hockey. Saturday morning at 11:00 is practice. His call came at 9:15.

"Grandpa, are you coming to hockey?"

Yes, Quinn I'll be there."

"Is Ahma? And if she says no, tell her she has to come."

His first 3 practices found me out-of-town - an excuse that carries little weight when you're five - so this was the you-could-get-toppled-from-the-top-of-the-grandparents-list session. I knew my job: be there and smile a lot. (Smiling not laughing, just to be clear.) It occurred to me as I watched that five-year olds do change pretty well. Think of what hockey does to your world.

Skating not walking.
Coaches not parents.
Ice not grass.
Rules for everything.

Oh, by the way, this is all at once! The minute you venture out on the ice everything is different and the only way you can change back is to leave the rink - with everybody else watching you give up.

So, you fall down a lot! The adults in the stands think it's cute and comment on the luck of a lower center of gravity. You just think it's hard - falling on ice - what's a center of gravity any way? You look around and watch all the other kids and do what they do - get up every time you fall. That's right, every time you fall you get back up and skate a little further the next time.

Practice is only 45 minutes. When you're done you go into the locker room, change out of your gear with your Dad's help, towel off the sweat, and come out to hear your mom, your Grandpa, and your Ahma tell you you did a great job. But still you'd really like a nap. And because you're 5 that's exactly what you do! No apologies cause no matter what age, change can be hard and naps are a good idea.

 

 

 

Can You Recycle Blog Entries?

When I first started blogging several years ago, my blog was on another platform. The other day I got to thinking about those entries. They were good and no one would see them in their current location. So I decided I would transfer them to this blog.

If I can figure the system out, they should be set to post over the next few weeks. I'll add some notes to update the events and situations they cover. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have as I've taken this trip down memory lane.