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My Pre-New Year’s Present And What Kaiser Taught Me About Customer Service!
Keeping customer service and mission at the forefront of an organization’s work is often one of the most difficult things a company or principal can champion. I will discuss my feelings about the birthing process and my first days as a father in another blog, but I was moved during our process by the customer service we experienced. Kaiser Hayward was our birthing center and I must say, I was moved by every aspect of…
TO A RESTAURANT IN WEST OAKLAND: YOU KICKED US OUT OF YOUR KITCHEN!
*Note: I wrote this email the day after this event. As of December 1, 2011, no response. I’m torn about having or wanting to write this email at all. But the notion of building our communities and neighborhood is at the heart of this email. I came to your restaurant (Brown Sugar Ktichen) on more than one occasion and was impressed with your take on chicken and waffles. Being an L.A. native, Roscoe’s was my…
Occupy _________
So I’ve been watching this Occupy thing. And I don’t say that as disrespect. I went down to Occupy Oakland to see the skit. I was curious about what was going on. I was curious about this rubber bullet controversy. I don’t know the politics of Occupy Oakland, but I understand the politics of the Occupy logic. It’s interesting to think about motivated people standing up for whatever they see as righteous. I have to…
High Heels Destroy Love: Love Is Shorter Than 5’11 And Corny!
Thinking about love, relationships, and expectations again. I had a hilarious time at homecoming. I got to see friends from years ago and make new ones. I think about the friendship me and my wife have and the ongoing cultivation of that friendship. I also had a chance to reflect on what brought us together and the elements that can tear us apart. I told some new female friends I’ve made via AY, T,M,T, and…
Morehouse Men
Over the past couple of days, I learned some valuable lessons about friendship, similar experiences and appreciation. I also learned how I did not realize that I had not properly valued my HBCU education and experience. Don’t get me wrong, I valued both, but properly? Probably not. I went back to Atlanta, specifically Morehouse’s homecoming for the first time in 6 years. I missed it and I didn’t realize it until this weekend. I realized…
Unrequited Friendship: The Meter May Be Expiring
Over the past few years, I’ve encountered a number of friends who’ve spoken about broken friendships or unreciprocated friendship. As I think about the depth of these conversations, I realized that friendships define and say as much about you as your choice of partner. I remember childhood conversations about giving love and giving in general because it’s the right thing to do. Let’s be real though, as you get older, the very nature of unidirectional…
Troy Davis: Why Is There This Uproar? What You May Not See
I think about this Troy Davis case and I’m a quieted by the reality of the execution. It’s not a quiet brought on necessarily by protest, but of the death or execution of an African American (AA) male. This does not trivialize or minimize the death of the officer for which Davis was convicted of killing. It is this feeling or perception that African American males are expendable even when what was considered facts are…
There’s No Excuse For Disrespecting A Child
It takes a lot to get me upset. The other day I witnessed something that riled me. I was at the store running an errand while my son, The Littlest E, was in preschool. I was in the check out line and had the unfortunate luck to be privy to a mom/grandmother (who was behind me in line) demeaning her children/grandchildren. Now, I don’t know what preceded this and, obviously, I don’t know their family…
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