Tamara's Blog

Can You Spot the Big Dude?

2009-07-03T06:09:55-07:00

Recently, I wrote about my 10-year-old nephew getting his black belt. That day, I also had a "lesson-learning" exchange with Rocco, his 5-year-old brother.

I had just pulled up to Hwang's Taekwondo School. As I'm parking, my sister's family drives up. We all get out of our cars - and since my sister had not told my nephews that I was coming - I was greeted with a very surprised and delighted look from Rocco.

"Hey, Little Man, how you doing?" (Granted, I've called him "little man" on multiple occasions since he seemed to bypass the "baby look" altogether.)

"I'm a Dude!" he exclaims.

"Okay, Little Dude."

"I'm a BIG Dude!"

"Really!!? Okay. Big Dude it is," I reply back, as I observe that he still only comes up to my kneecaps. Duly noted.

Can you spot the Big Dude in this picture?

This is a great shot of my sister's family taken the same day. They went to the Great Wolf Lodge after Nicco's ceremony to celebrate.

Big Dude. Big Dude. Big Dude. Remember that Aunt Tam.

A Black Belt at 10

2009-06-27T13:07:43-07:00

Earning a black belt in martial arts is a phenomenal accomplishment. At any age. But last Saturday, I went to a Taekwondo black belt ceremony for Nicco, my 10-year-old nephew. And the crowd - especially his family - went wild!

I guess this makes up for the fact that he doesn't care much for baseball like his Aunt Tam. See for yourself. (Note: The photo you're about to see is still one of my all-time favorites.)

Of course, the celebration wouldn't have been complete without an amusing Nicco-ism. As he stood there with his new black robe and pants on, I asked him, "So no more whites? You get to where your black robe all the time now?" Nicco responded: "Yes, and the great thing is that my mom doesn't have to work so hard to get the stains out!" A son who knows his mom all too well.

So here we have Nicco trying to put some serious black belt moves on me. I'm clearly frightened by the "attack." If only he could stop laughing so hard. That's our Nicco!

Congratulations Nicco! We're all very proud of you and this amazing accomplishment!

Twitter Puts the Fun Back in Customer Service

2009-06-07T20:37:42-07:00

Timmy: awesome. and can we please continue to talk about Timmy in the 3rd person? Timmy likes to boost Timmy’s ego by talking about Timmy that way

Jonathan: Jonathan would be happy to neglect the use of pronouns for the duration of this conversation.

This is an excerpt from the most hilarious customer service exchange I've ever read. Todd from SiteLead - posing as "Timmy" - wrote about his live chat experience with Jonathan at Zappos.com last week. If you missed it, you can read it here: Zappos Live Chat.

A bit of the backstory: My friend Char emailed me the link to this post and commented:

Char: I don’t know why but I follow Zappo’s CEO on twitter.

Me: This was great! I tweeted it. And of course you follow Zappo's CEO. Anybody who's anybody follows him. :)

Char: Hahaha. I must BE somebody then!

Indeed you are, Char. Indeed you are. Thanks for passing this along.

The reason I share this bit is the fun aftermath that resulted after I tweeted this link on Twitter. Twitter is helping make the customer experience real and "fun" again.

From me (@tamaradull):
Gotta luv Zappos! Read this awesome live chat with customer service. Jonathan rocks! (via @CharleneSeim) Zappos Live Chat
9:23 PM Jun 3rd

From Todd (@sitelead) who wrote the blog post:
@tamaradull my blog died from traffic but is back :) original zappos chat post: Zappos Live Chat
12:25 AM Jun 4th

From @Zappos_Service:
@tamaradull I'm definitely going to let Jonathan know that you complimented him! Thanks so much!
8:40 AM Jun 4th

In response to Todd:
Sorry about that. It was a great post! :)
11:14 AM Jun 4th

In response to @Zappos_Service:
This world definitely needs more Jonathan's in customer service. Keep up the great work you guys!
11:17 AM Jun 4th

@Zappos_Service responds back:
I will make sure to let him know! Thank you so much! :)
11:18 AM Jun 4th

@Zappos_Service responds again:
Hi Tamara...Jonathan was touched by your kind words. He does rock and so do you! Have a great weekend!
6:07 AM Jun 6th

My last response:
@Zappos_Service Thanks! I am now a Zappos.com customer-just ordered my fave Converse All Star Slips. 2 pairs even! LOVE the free shipping.
about 24 hours ago

One of my Twitter buddies - @SwitchingGranny - adds:
@tamaradull You are going to love Zappos.com I don't know a company w/ better customer service. And free shipping both ways!! Awesome
about 23 hours ago

Zappos.com and I are off to a wonderful start: Great customer service (as demonstrated well by Jonathan) and a new pair of my favorite shoes. Life is indeed good.

A Saturday Matinee: "Sunday in the Park with George"

2009-05-03T09:07:55-07:00

Yesterday, my friend Char and I headed to Seattle to see Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's musical "Sunday in the Park with George" at the 5th Avenue Theatre. Neither one us knew the story going in - heck, I didn't even know who George was - but we had heard great things about the production from people who would know about these sorts of things.

In a word, the performance was: BRILLIANT! It was unlike any other production I've seen. It was a complex mix of art and technology, of old and new, of courage and fear - filled with intense emotion. It was a story about neo-impressionist artist Georges Seurat, situated in Paris in the late 1800s, and the creation of his painting "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of Grand Jatte" (picture above). That was Act 1. Act 2 took place 100 years later in an American museum and centers around this painting.

In the program guide, I learned that this musical started in London in 1984. Then it went to Broadway and won a Tony Award in 2008. And now it's finishing its run in its third city - Seattle! David Armstrong, Producing Artistic Director for the 5th Avenue Theatre, writes:

It is our [Seattle's] dynamic theater scene that really sets up apart. Across the country, and especially in New York, Seattle is acknowledged as one of our nation's three major theatrical centers (after New York and Chicago).

Check out this video from Good Morning America. Hear Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine talk about this masterpiece. And then see how this "old" story comes to life with amazing technology. Enjoy!

Some Twitter Cartoon Fun

2009-04-17T06:45:25-07:00

Here's a few Twitter cartoons that my friend Dr. Jane passed my way. Enjoy!

Anthem: What is Your Story?

2009-04-09T06:14:37-07:00

Seven cities. Seven lives. Ordinary people living incredible lives. That is what a new documentary called "Anthem: What is your story?" is all about.

Andrew Morgan and Matt Deuel are part of a movement called Broken Voices. In this documentary, they pack up their families and head out from Atlanta in a beautiful RV - loaned to them by a generous stranger who believed in what these guys were doing! - to capture the voices of ordinary people living incredible lives.

In New Orleans, we meet Jeannie who was called to raise the bar and connect with teenage girls ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. Next we go to Austin and meet Tim who lives a simple, but inspiring life as a gift to the people in his community. In Dallas, Kyle shows us how his life was changed after he started prayer walking the streets in south Dallas.

Russ captures the hearts of high school kids in Plano, TX. It's inspiring to hear from these kids - now that they're adults - and learn how Russ impacted their lives. In St. Louis, we meet Ally and Kelli, two high school friends, who get together with their friends to sell their crafts so that they can buy baby items to donate.

In Chicago, we meet Len, a businessman who talks about his work with Jobs for Life, a program designed to train people who are homeless and jobless how to not only get a job, but also get a life - a life of hope, meaning and love. And finally in Grand Rapids, Jon tells us his story of depression and addiction, how he recovered, and how he's now helping others through heartsupport.com.

The stories are compelling and inspirational. In the end, Andrew reminds us that God is changing the world and we all have a role to play. When he and Matt set out on this road trip, he was asking the question "Does God want to use me?" When he returned, the question transformed into: "Am I willing to follow him?"

Check out the short documentary trailer below. Hear some of these people for yourself. Then get the DVD, hear their stories, be inspired, dream, and then share with others. Not just these stories, but yours too.

What is your story? Will you join God in the dreams he is dreaming for your life?

You Know You're Dutch When...

2009-04-07T05:41:42-07:00

A dear Dutch friend sent this to me awhile back, and even though I'm not Dutch, it certainly captures my Dutch friends' idiosyncrasies charming approach to life. It's a great list whether you're Dutch or not. One thing I'll never get used to is the "mayonnaise on french fries" bit. That's just wrong. Happy reading!

You know you're Dutch when...

The temperature is so low in your house that 2 sweaters is a bare minimum if you want to be remotely warm.

During the winter it's warmer outside than it is inside.

You burst in laughter when someone bumps their head or stubs their toe.

You open the freezer and are excited to find a container of ice-cream, only to open it and discover it's full of homemade soup or stamppot.

When looking in the fridge, you never trust that the yogurt or margarine containers contain what the label says.

You were green before it was popular. Why recycle when you can just reuse!

You have a pair a wooden shoes in your house.

Your china cabinet is filled with Delft.

You like pickled herring.

You've eaten oliebollen at New Years.

You enjoy chocolate sprinkle (hagelslag) sandwiches.

You have cousins who wear size 14 shoes and are over 6'4".

You wash and reuse plastic cups and plastic cutlery.

You have soup and open-faced sandwiches for Sunday lunch.

The most frequent phrase uttered growing up was "Turn off the lights!"

You get a chocolate letter every year for Christmas.

All the tables in your house are covered in tablecloths.

You like krokets.

You know that Vla is better than regular old pudding.

You drink tea with breakfast, coffee at 10 am, tea at 3 pm, and coffee again at 8 pm (with cookies or biscuits of course!).

You have an afghan knitted by your Oma.

You collect coupons like they're going out of style.

Your Oma had a calendar with everyone's birthdays & anniversaries spelled out in capital letters (bonus points if it hung in the bathroom!).

You've been known to recycle aluminum foil. And ziploc bags.

You own a special utensil that is only used for cutting cheese.

You know that Gouda is the best cheese ever.

You have at least 5 relatives with the same name (and somehow you always know which one is being talked about).

You reuse teabags.

When you hear all the "new ways to save energy" you yawn and say "I've been doing that all my life!"

You eat your sandwiches open-faced. "What? You want another slice of bread? I'll make you another sandwich."

You rarely have both meat and cheese on the same sandwich.

You have never met half the relatives at your family reunion.

You drive a minivan to fit all the kids.

You have 100 roles of toilet paper in your house because they were on sale.

You put a little water into the jar of tomato sauce and shake it to make sure you got it all out.

You have trouble shopping for hats. There should be at least two sizes: 'one size fits all' and 'dutch.'

You wipe the last of the butter out of the container with your bun.

All your cookies taste like almonds.

You make the bed in your hotel room.

You have lace on your windows but not on your underwear.

You like dubbel zout drops, and have occasionally tricked a friend into trying one.

You've put mayonnaise on your french fries.

You enjoy 'pindasaus' on all your foods.

Your kitchen is filled with milk bags drying, waiting to be reused in the freezer.

You drink Heineken out of pride.

You have a front room but nobody sits in it (or it's only used for special occasions).

You have a spoon collection.

Your favourite mustard comes in jars that can be reused as drinking glasses.

You leave a window open year round to get fresh air.

You eat stroop waffles.

You love the colour orange.

You have a vegetable garden because there's no way you're paying that much for veggies at the grocery store.

Your fridge is always stocked with leftovers. Throw out food? Never!

You go to the "Dutch Store" because the smell brings back so many childhood memories.

You have pictures of windmills around your house.

Everything is Do-It-Yourself - it's cheaper than hiring someone.

You use "washandjes" (facecloths that you can put your hand into).

You have to explain what 'oom' and 'tante' means when you're discussing your relatives with non-Dutch people.

You own tea towels and oven mitts patterned with windmills and dancing women in clogs.

You call it "MELK" not "milk."

All your cousins have the same names as your brothers and sisters because everyone is named after Oma and Opa.

And finally, you know you're Dutch when...

You're laughing along with this list because you can relate to most it.

I'll Believe It When I See It

2009-04-06T02:00:00-07:00

Hey, this is just a quick post to let you know that I'm jumping back into this blogging thang. For my faithful readers (you're still here, right?), you can expect the same random assortment of this-&-that:

Kewl Web 2.0 tools - C'mon, if I didn't talk about this stuff, you'd think something was wrong
Great videos - I have a few that I'm sure will make you wanna dance
Things I'm reading/watching - Not everything, though - who's got that kind of time?
Shout-outs to the wonderful people in my life - The list is long...
Interesting things in and out of the missional church - Wow, what a time we live in!
Etc.

I figured out this next month's list of topics to write about. I'm ready. Are you? Let's do this thang! Okay? Yea, uh-huh.

My Top 10 Tweets

2009-03-08T16:52:32-07:00

My life is all a-Twitter these days. Well, not really - but it should be no surprise to you that I'd be ~~sucked~~ ~~dragged~~ ~~coerced~~ lured into this social media phenomenon called "Twitter." I must admit that a lot of people I know are either asking "What is it?" - or if they do know what it is, they're asking "What's the point?" Most are asking the latter.

Fortunately for you, if you're not doing the Twitter thang, this post is not about convincing you to give it a whirl. Instead, I just thought I'd share my most popular "tweets" (140-character Twitter posts) so far. You may want to check out some of the links yourself. Do you see any sort of theme? The 9th link is my personal favorite. Enjoy!

The 50,000 Pairs in 50 Days Challenge

2008-11-10T00:30:00-08:00

Donate 2 pairs of shoes in 2 minutes for $5 and you will be entered to win a trip to Mexico to give someone their very first pair of shoes! Visit www.50000shoes.com to donate $5 now. 3 clicks & you're done!

Forbes.com released the story on Friday: Soles4Souls(TM) Inc., the Shoe Charity, Launches Large Scale Charity Challenge Using Social Media. And today, bloggers, tweeters, Facebookers, and social media users around the world are uniting to spread the word about this new charity challenge: If you, I, and 24,998 of our closest friends donate $5 before the new year chimes in, 50,000 people will be getting their very first pair of shoes!

Please take a moment to visit the site and donate now. If you're anything like me, you may read something like this and think it's a great idea and want to contribute - and you have every intention to do so later when you have a bit more time - but then later comes...and you know the rest of the story.

The site is www.50000shoes.com. Please visit now and help spread the word. Thank you!

www.50000shoes.com