New link for blog and website

My new Website is up and running, however is is still in the infancy stages so please be patient!
The link is as follows:

www.hiltonshaven.com


Please refrain from laughing, joking, prodding, or any other juvenile tactic as it is not even scratched the surfaces yet. And yes I realize it CURRENTLY looks very GAY!!!!!

Today: There will be no title!!!!

Today I am going to do my absolute favorite type of blog. This is the one where I don't have any point, rant, message or anything else other than a few random thoughts. First of all, and by far the absolute most important thought of them all, my daughter graduated from 8th grade yesterday. She received special recognition with a select few other kids for earning straight A's throughout Middle school. There truly is no way for me to emphasize just how proud I am of her as a person, but anyone who knows me, understands. She truly is a special person. Perhaps I may be biased, but you really don't see many kids like her. The only kid I have met who impresses me as much is Vantage Kings and Marlboro Lt. 100's in a boxes daughter.(names withheld for privacy.) I am very excited about her starting high school, however I feel I just aged 10 years everytime I tell someone my girl is now in high school. Perhaps getting old is one of the saddest things in life, however, there has not been a more beautiful event than watching my daughter grow up. We have a lot of fun plans for this summer, as I want to make it extra special for her before she starts a whole new journey in life.
The other important event for me(tiny in comparison) starts tomorrow evening. The tennis team I coach and play on won our division for the FOURTH straight year, and have our first round playoff match tomorrow night at the MAC club downtown. 26 teams were narrowed down to 8 with only one team advancing to the Pacifac Northwest Championships. To get there we have to win three straight matches without a loss. We did it last year for the first time in the clubs history , however our team is not as strong this year. Luck was not on our side this year. Two weeks ago a key player tore a muscle in his calf and will miss the playoffs. Also a couple of players are out of town(or country for that matter). Either way we will fight our hardest, as that is who we are.
One last thought, name withheld for privacy, but anyone who is anyone will figure this out. One of my employees and dear friend has reentered the technological world, and is learning so much in a short amount of time. It's so good to see as it really is a vital part of the world we now live in. While living life with our blinders on we constantly miss important facets. Both of us are guilty of that in different ways. As we get older life becomes harder and harder to comprehend. Whether it is trends, society, technology, or the world in general, we seem to fall behind rather quickly. The internet is quite possibly the easiest tool for maintaining some sort of understanding. Thank you for reopening this, and I will do the same with the cave I have been living in.
However, I do have to include one teeny small rant to my customers. PLEASE PUT DOWN YOUR FUCKING CELL PHONES WHEN YOU PULL UP TO MY WINDOW. AS GAY AS THIS WILL SOUND NOT ONLY IS IT RUDE, BUT YOU DENIED ME THE POSSIBILITY OF A NICE CONVERSATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MY BLOG!

First of all, this is my fucking blog, as simple as that. I understand that, and realize, as with life in general, it is very difficult to appease everyone with anything you do. My agenda for what this is suppose to accomplish has changed constantly since it first began for a variety of reasons.
Not one of them is actually legitimate because I lost touch with the fact that THIS IS MY FUCKING BLOG, and I will write in it what I damn well please. I attempted to appease the masses and as always someone comes along and rips it to shreds because they feel it is not what I should be putting out. Should I give a rats ass, not at all. Do I care, yes for some unknown, illogical reason, I do. Perhaps this has been my downfall in life in general. I think I care way too often. The simple response to any mistake a person makes that affects you, is to tell them to eff themselves and make sure they know how pissed off you are. I have always had endless amounts of hatred running through my head for which I have no right to be bothered by.
It pisses me off to watch some 19 year old punk tatted up with his pants around his waist and hat turned sideways with a hot chick. If it worked out fine, but almost always the girl ends up bitching about how he cheated on her, or left her alone to go hang with his possee. I have to respect the guy for playing the game so well, it's just the game itself that I hate. I hate the fact that I work my ass off to manage numerous responsibilities. I own my own business, raise a daughter 50/50, play endless tennis tournaments, and coach a men's tennis team. At the same time it's really tough listening to people criticize what I don't keep up with. I realize my store could be better stocked, cleaner, more organized etc., my tennis team lost two matches this year, which to me is unacceptable, I haven't won a tournament in over a year, and my daughter
is quickly developing some of my bad habits. While I wish and strive to achieve a perfection, I just wish people would look at what they have on their plate before they open up criticisms. Many people in this world take on way more than I could ever fathom, and many others have it pretty fucking easy. I love my life, I'm dedicated to my world, and I will always do my best to help others as much as I can, however, sadly I realize you can please some of the people some of the time, and others you just have to learn to tell them to go EFF themselves.

NO RHYME OR REASON!

I realize I write generally in the same style, using the same words, perhaps even paraphrasing the same general thoughts over and over again. Perhaps this is because I kind of see life the same way. The number of times the same events repeat themselves is actually scary. I played in a tennis tournament this weekend and while waiting for my match to start, a leading sports equipment company set up a demo down on one of the courts giving away free items. One contest is where they set up a small cone directly inside the T of a servers box and give a prize to the first person who can hit it. After waiting in line I served and nailed it with a radar clocked serve of 90mph on my first try. Everyone cheered and I got my prize. A brand new t-shirt. Exactly 20 years ago I did the same thing only without radar and I won a racket that time. The coincidence actually bothered me because it showed just how much some things never change. The other thing which is also a general trend of society is you don't get nearly what you used to anywhere. Back to my writing style which is the original idea of this blog before I so rudely veered off track. I have never had any style regarding fashion or anything in life. I am generally a very plain, boring, ordinary, average, JOE SCHMO, whose head is filled with bizarre thoughts and for the most part they just rot there until I feel like letting something squeek out into mainstream society. Most people don't understand me, most don't know me, and very few are ever lucky enough to experience who I am. Off hand the only person I know who consistantly gets me is my daughter. She is truly an amazing person, and I can't imagine the thought of her never knowing what I really am about. I just wish there were about ten more of her in my life. Some people see glimpses, some see episodes, many share brief moments only never to cross that path again, but so far only her knows me for who I am. It saddens me at times, especially when I am alone. Dammit I digressed again...Perhaps it's not my writing style, it's my head. I suppose I could attempt to write in an alternative genre causing solitude for only a select few individuals sustaining enough internal composition to comprehend the magnitude of the ever expanding mind, but by doing this I quite possibly could see a drastic reduction in people willing to delve deep enough to explore my other side. Most likely this sentence would never even be read, and I would continue to project this verbal assault at and only at my daughter. Perhaps the analyzation of my writings would greatly diminish causing an increased likelihood of them becoming more prevalent on the web. Perhaps and most likely correct, I'd continue like I always have...with no rhyme and no reason!!!!!

Advice? WHY ME?

I really have been in a funk for a while now. My mind has been out of control with a very large number of small tasks that need to be taken care of. I am not sure why I have been so inefficient when it comes to taking care of them. I truly need to spend one week and just take care of everything. I spent the evening alone debating whether to be productive or just relax and enjoy the peace and quiet. I decided to watch a back episode of Nip/Tuck, possibly one of the most thought provoking shows I've seen in a while. I just finished the second season and thoroughy enjoyed it. So often the plots parallel my inner challenges with myself as a person.
While I am usually bombarded with compliments and positive reinforcements as to who I am, I virtually finish every night thinking I could be doing so much more in this world. I have my priorities, and I don't seem to stray too far from them, but I know I need to expand my horizons a bit. One of my favorite customers put it best with, " If you want the guacamole, then you have to dip your chips." I thank her for that, and in due time I will break out of my shell, and live life a little more. This leads me to talk about a couple of themes I've been bombarded with lately.
Having been in the same area for a while I have watched many relationships grow and fail at the same time. Recently an ex employee told me "IT IS OVER" with her husband, not a day goes by that I don't hear a man or woman complain excessively about there spouse, often with offers or words that would immediately end the marriage. Somehow I have ended up with the title of the go to guy to vent about how crappy the womans husband is. I haven't quite figured out if I offer great advice, if I somehow remind them how good they really do have it after realizing their husband could be sitting on a stool working at a convenience store talking to other woman all day, or perhaps I am suppose to play the middle man and creatively relay the message in a better way to their husband when he comes by later for his beer. As with every conversation I have at the window, I like to assume or at least pretend that my opinion truly does count. I could not imagine it if nobady gave a damn about what I had to say. One last dumb note pertaining to me giving relationship advice. This is coming from someone who failed at his own marriage. However, today would have been 15 years, so at least it is longer than most out there.

I have no Effing Clue!

I realize it has been a really long time since I wrote my last blog, and I really thought I would be better about that. I would love to throw out a whole list of excuses, but it still leaves the last month and a half pages blank. However, I will throw a few thoughts out regarding this. First of all, I am really confused as to what this is supposed to be about. My initial intention was too futher communicate to all the store peoples my various rants and thoughts in general. Somehow I branched off quite a bit making it far more personal than I intended. My general audience is very spread out from relatives to customers, to people googling certain words and continuing to read it after discovering it. I realize so much of what I write only interests a certain segment of readers, so I tried to mix it up. Then I found it hard to write about certain things because I knew what emotion it would bring out to the wrong person. Everyone seems to arrive at their own interpretation or desire to believe what it was I was really saying. Sadly, and I realize it is all my fault, this led to a constant procrastination. For this reason, I am only going to write what I want to write and I'll just hear out the comments and live with it. As I get older and possibly more jaded by society I discover myself caring less and less about others opinions concerning how I lead my life.
I am real aware that for the most part I am considered your proverbial nice guy. I have always gone out of my way to make others lives more comfortable doing so in a manner which minimizes what I did. I don't want or care for recognition, I only really want the knowledge in my mind that what I did or have done made a difference in that persons life. Whether they realize it or anyone else ever does really doesn't matter.
Part of the reason I have become jaded at the integrity, morals, and general nature of mankind is what I see and deal with on a daily basis. Don't get me wrong, I truly love my world. It's how others behave in my world that upsets me. Watching what society gets away with on a daily basis sickens me. Knowing how I live my life makes me a "better person," yet seeing the results of everyone else making their own rules and living the high life because of it gets real old.
Certain sayings scream in my ears all day long and will until the day I day. "Nice guys finish last" has to be the most painful of them all. So often I wish I could just break free of my paranoia of setting a bad example for my daughter or having my actions adversely affect others lives.
I hate understanding how the game is played, but not being willing to play it myself... I often live vicariously through others, sharing their excitement listening to the intense stories, and then finish my night sorting coupons, or doing paperwork or something pretty darn mundane.
Now that I have that off my chest I will say a few thank you's for some jestures of the past month. Names ommitted but it somehow always seems to get back to them. Many acts are actually by the same people but I will list them separately to psychologically lead myself to believe the acts are virtually endless..
I truly appreciate it when someone brings me breakfast sandwiches from McDonalds. Easily that tops my list for kindness. I appreciate all who bring back empty packs of cigs for my ceiling, I am thankful for the many girls who upheld the tradition of Mardi Gras. Especially Coors light 12 pak can girl(name withheld for respect), I appreciate the lady who actually picked up her cigarette off the ground after I told her how classy that is. I know it would have been easier to drive off with an attitude. I appreciate those who take a minute to tell me about their life or something that happened recently. I think I appreciate the girl who keeps telling me she left a Christmas present for me at home and swears she will bring it next time(unfortunately I forgave my right to an opinion on procrastination after going over a month without writing.)
I appreciate patience dearly. I know I can talk longer than I should to certain people, and it really hurts to be the car behind them. I think, all in all, my greatest appreciation will come from those who understand what my store really is about. I see it, I realize it, and most of all it makes all I do so much easier.
Last thought on this blog will be a little darker. I never have understood how certain occupatons ever find employees. Morticians, hazmat clean-up crew, crime scene clean-up, etc.
However, I really have it easy when it comes to what I do. Recently while cleaning up blood from an incident at the store I realized a few sad thoughts. One it no longer fazes me. It really now feels the same as a coffee spill. Two it's a lot easier cleaning blood from someone you don't know than from an employees, and three no matter how much you clean it up, you always find some you missed later on. Anyway I think I will end on that note. As always I have to be up in a few hours.

Don't Ask!!!!!

Not more than two minutes ago, I was helping my daughter with her algebra homework. As I sat there I found myself wiggling trying to find something else I could do while she applied what I had explained to her. I am not sure why I have such a hard time staying focused or sitting still
without actually doing something. I realized what a perfect time to write my blog. Usually I do it at 11:00pm or later after she has gone to bed, but I realized how perfect this could work out. You see my girl has the same problem I do. STAYING FOCUSED. This is the ultimate in multi-tasking as I can stop at anytime to help her without any repercussions. My computer will not shut itself down, or time itself out and she is right next to me the whole time, so I can make sure she stays on track as well. I just need to figure out a way to hold conversations in the drive through window while stocking the cooler and sweeping the parking lot at the same time. Believe me I have tried. I usually have four or five projects going at the same time. Unfortunately I rarely give any one the true attention it deserves. However when it comes to holding conversations at the window I do my best to make it as pleasurable as possible for both parties. However, I realize there are two areas where I need a lot of work. For the men out there, please refrain from any conversation relating to cars, especially when it comes to rebuilding them. I can fill my gas tank, and change my oil(if I felt like it) and that is about it. After that I am simply nodding while thinking I hope to God his wife doesn't have to listen to this all the time because I suffered immensely for the two minutes I had to hear it. I can only imagine what she is going through, and for the women, I can and will talk about absolutely anything you want. However, if you are looking for sympathy or understanding please don't tell me about the boyfriend who is beating you, or getting drunk every night, or sleeping with the whole damn neighborhood, or whatever he is doing because I know that deep down that is the excitement you are looking for. If Prince charming came along and gave you the world on a silver platter, you would create drama solely for the thrill. While I am not bitter at the fact that this is true, I am upset that I don't have the guts to play that game. It's tough to watch, but even tougher to accept.
While the vast majority of you probably don't know who this is, New York Times best selling author Tucker Max actually wrote a book emphasizing this. While he both made himself rich and a social icon of sorts, he managed it completely at the womans expense. You have to laugh, but at the same time it really is sorta sad.

My Friend's

Sometimes I have the urge to write something I know I will I will be taking some flack for. This one will definitely lead to a series of comments about who I am. Fortunately I could care less deep down how I am perceived.
Every morning without fail(except during major storms) I have a group of friends that come visit me at the store. These friends mostly visit me because I provide them with a steady flow of goods to help their existance. While they by no means would not be able to survive without me, I definitely make their lives easier. I do this with the help of a major corporation, Frito-Lay.
Sometimes the generosity of these corporations leads to better lives for everyone. Usually out of code chips are thrown away for liability purposes, however I have saved these bags to help my friends in need. I am 100% sure they would never sue FritoLay and deep down I know it's the right thing to do. My friends come to me knowing I will take care of them, however there is always one who stays behind just to make sure the others are okay. I never have found out any of their names, and would have to queston my insanity if it really made a difference. They have come to represent a sort of beginning to my day. They are my caffeine. My day is just not the same if they don't stop by to visit me. They represent another small piece in the life of Hilton's Haven. I decided to take a few pictures of them to put up on my blog figuring there is no way they can complain considering what I give them religiously every day. However, I felt it right to take their pictures while they weren't paying attention so as to not offend them or make them feel uncomfortable. This guaranteed the most natural positions possible. Once a camera is on us, it is very hard to act the same. These photos are for posterity as there is always the possibility another store might offer them something more appealing. As with all "customers" I will do my best to make their lives a little better. Whether they appreciate it enough to stick around is their choice. I know there are more photos than necessary, but these guys really do deserve the recognition. Loyalty is one of my favorite traits. Thanks guys, and see you in seven hours. We are having bbq fritos for breakfast tomorrow. And I apologize for the photo of you eating, I know that is very rude of me!!!!!!!




I am a little offended by the last picture. It almost feels as if they were holding out on coming down until I give them something better. They are very well fed. I am sure they were just keeping an eye on the store for me. Actually that is where they go whenever a car pulls up to their breakfast table.

Crazy days of Winter

Well considering it has been over a month since I last wrote, I should have a lot to write about.
I DO. First of all, this last storm we just had really messed up the roads and lifestyle of many people. I enjoy my Mustang most of the time, but it does not handle worth a damn on snow and ice. It definitely hinders your ability to just relax and drive wherever. The number of appointments, and errands skipped because of it really sets things out of whack. On the otherhand, I don't think anything is more magical than seeing snow fall out of the sky.
I played in one of the tougher tennis tournaments in the Pacifac northwest and got my butt kicked royally in both singles and doubles. I won a total of six games between the four sets. To put that in perspective I won a game for every 40 miles I drove to play in it. However, besides playing indoors in 30 degree weather, I loved every minute of it. My lungs burned for about four days afterwards. The best part was watching the University of Oregons players play and get knocked out one by one with their #1 player losing in the finals to a 39 year old ex professional player who still has an amazing game. Although I am not even close to their level, I enjoy and appreciate the talent they possess.
My daughter got two pet rats for Christmas, and really enjoys playing with them. It's fun to watch her enthusiasm when it comes to playing and taking care of them. She does a very good job of taking care of all the pets at both houses. The only thing she gets more excited about is when she doesn't have to run the 1600 at school for weather reasons.
Boring but irritating subject. Contract negotiations have been going on for over a week between my store, RJ Reynolds, and Philip Morris. It is now close to physically impossible to please all three. RJ is starting to get a little big for their britches, P.M. is raising the stakes big time to keep RJ down, and I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. Feb. 1 is when the official contract is available for RJ and I am nervous is won't be good enough to not go higher with P.M. My tough part is I have built an amazing relationship with the Rj rep afters years of hatred for their company. Business is business, but I don't want it to all end over $$$$.
Oh and by the way everyone brace themselves for another month filled with price changes.
I forgot to write about the beautiful oxymoron thrown out by the state of Oregon. We as a retailer will not be able to sell single stick cigarettes after Jan. 31, due to tax reasons. They have been stressing the importance of health and quitting smoking and at the same time they are now forcing anyone who really needs a smoke to buy a whole pack.
My tennis team starts back up the first week of February. YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.
Quite possibly my favorite thing to do. I enjoy the challenge of putting together and coaching a good team. You can see how good you are on paper at the beginning of the year, but you never really know. This year should be our best yet. We have some real talent. Our combined reord the last 3 years is 20wins and 2 losses, winning our division all 3 years. I enjoy knowing we are the team to beat.
One quick rant about the store. My most recent hire has received more complaints than any clerk I have ever hired, mostly surrounding behavior. He is young, learning, and still immature, but he has a good heart and will surprise you if you can get past his initial demeanor. I ask you to look a little harder at this one and I think all will be good. However I do appreciate complaints because I can't solve or attempt to without knowing about it in the first place.
Last thought of the day. Katie you are strike three on the PINKIE SWEAR. I now truly understand. It is just a silly saying, it doesn't actually mean anything. My bad for thinking otherwise.
One truly last thought. I finally secured the Domain name Hiltonshaven.com and will have an incredibly cool, bizarre, twisted, abnormal, borderline questionable, website to convey what HH is really about. The amount of radical ideas that have been frying my brain waiting about three years for this will finally happen. The world will never be the same. At least mine won't. By the way anyone in internet land stay away from Hostingplex.com as they truly suck. I would go into greater detail but I'm trying to keep this somewhat clean, unlike my up and coming website.......
As a forewarning to the world. My mind truly is warped I just have enough sense to confine it to the back of my head, I just felt this would be a good place for my disclaimor statement.
One last last thought... Kudos to Irish Brothers coffee stand on 181st for not only hiring pretty, intelligent, and cool woman, but actually staying open long enough for me to patron them. Class act all the way around.

Tough Planet!

Okay first of all yesterday represented the 5 year anniversary of the day Tom Chase was murdered at my old business. Of any date in this world that is by far the toughest. To make it a little tougher Tom and I had a standing deal of him taking me to a bar to watch Monday Night Football anytime the Rams played(which was usually only once sometimes twice a year.) Well yesterday both coincided making the day very tough for me. There are certain events in everyones lives that can have a dramatic effect on them, and this is probably the one with the most profound effect. I never had the best opinion about society as a whole, but this was sort of the icing on the cake. Often I wander how such evil can be found on our planet, but I quickly force myself to think about all the wonderful people who do make this planet a great place. In the same thought I always ponder how your time can come at any minute, therefore it is probably best to live life to the fullest. I decided to use this time to note a few quick lines about the truly important people in my life. While I could easily write a book for each person I decided to name what they represent the most to me. As a disclaimer, I apologize if I miss anyone, and more importantly I hope I don't offend anyone, because by no means is that my intention. And finally before I start this is a completly random order.
I thank my mom for teaching me the value of taking care of others before yourself. She always worked herself to the bone to provide for my brother and myself. She is by far the most giving person anyone could ever meet in their life. I thank my dad for teaching me the value of integrity and respect. He by far has the strongest set of core values I have ever come across.
I thank my ex-wife Jeannette for being an incredible mother. She has been through an incredible amount of misfortune in her life but has always taken great care of my daughter. I thank Lisa Merkel for providing me with great conversation while immediately calling me on anything she knows I truly think otherwise about. She is one of the few people I know who is completely unbiased about each person in my life. I thank my brother for turning out to be such an incredible person as well as father. While in college I constantly worried that he would not turn out okay. Genetically both him and I were given a near perfect set of genes both physically and mentally. To have wasted those would have been a shame. I always hoped he'd turn out to be good as person as myself, however he eclipsed me a long time ago. Considering how he was as a teenager, he turned into a truly special person. I thank Scott Grider for teaching me at an early age exactly what drugs can do to a person. As sad as it sounds it has made dealing with that side of society much easier. I thank Tom Chase for showing how tough mankind can be.
He was probably the toughest person I have ever met. He had the perfect combination of toughness, morals, and protectiveness you will ever meet. Watching and hearing the female clerks talking about how he handled himself was awe inspiring. I finally understood it when I drove by one night and saw him standing out front of my store smoking a cigarette. I felt like my store was so well protected. After being shot, lying in his pool of blood, his last audible words were "has anyone called Rudd?" I can't imagine anyone else on this planet who would have been more protective of myself. Lastly and by far most important to me is my daughter. I think her for being such a wonderful person. I still have never heard her say a bad word)however she will get a sheepish grin when one comes on in a movie or song.) I thank her for trying so hard in everything she does. She has done incredibly well in school, unlike her father. I thank her for being so polite to everyone around her. I thank her for understanding at times when most kids throw a fit. But most importantly I thank her for just being herself.

She Understands!!!!!!!!!

I have stated many times throughout my blogs and at store level one very important thought.
I try to create a environment that inspires happiness, relaxation, spirit, or whatever it takes to make it a pleasurable experience. While everyone has to be treated different, I only hope I am able to make my customers understand what my store is truly about. Some people do get it while many others never have and never will. There is one woman who I think understands my store better than anyone else. Elizabeth Carson. Between her spirit, nature, and general demeanor, she emulates the true Hilton's Haven experience. This became even more evident today when she handed me the following letter copied here in its exact text.
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A Note to Make This World A Better Place!
To those of you who can't find anything nice to say:
I recently moved to the Laurelhurst district from Gresham, and still, every day, I drive to Hilton's Haven to get a Rockstar energy drink. After reading the latest posting on the window, I was VERY compelled to write this. If you don't have anything nice to say, Don't say anything at all! There are a plethera of Seven-Elevens and Plaid Pantry's in Gresham and Portland, but yet you choose Hilton's Haven for a reason. For me it's the friendly service and the price. If you want to complain about something, think before you speak: These guys are working hard so that my life is a little better. Why would you want to give them a hard time? Do you want me to come to your work and complain to you? No! so, please let up on them.
Oh, and on a side note: I am a young female feminist, and "rule #5" makes me laugh. Part of feminism is being proud of being a woman and being proud of your body. Think of it this way: my chest has the power to put men in a trance, now go out and use your female power to do what you please. And if you're a guy, just admit you'd want to see a chicks chest if you had the chance! Friend and Supporter of HH's since 2005!
Elizabeth Carson
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I just wanted to say thanks for understanding what my store is about, but more importantly, thank you for being a part of making it what it is. Without people like you, I would never enjoy coming to work each day. You make it all worthwhile!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just feel like bitching!!!

Every once in a while you just feel like bitching. While I really don't have a lot to complain about, I decided to whine about some of the things that have pissed me off in the last month. There is no rhyme or reason, just random thoughts. First of all, the next girl who offers me a pinky swear runs the risk of losing it. Evidentally the universal definition of a pinky swear does not apply to females. Second of all, I'm sick and tired of people saying, "I haven't seen you in a while, where have you been? I work close to 60 hours a week inside and almost live at the store, to which they reply, "well I moved to the other side of town." I don't know why, but that really chaps my hide. Third, if you are coming in for a job, please don't bring in a irritating, obnoxious, friend with you. NOT SMART!!!!! Fourth, telling me to "keep the change" when it is a penny, "I'm a big tipper," is funny the first time, not every fucking time you buy a cup of coffee, which is every morning, five days a week, four weeks a month, twelve months a year. JOKE OVER!!!! Fifth, no kid should ask for a dum dum the day after trick or treating. Sixth, when I get mad at you for throwing your Black and Mild wrapper in my parking lot at tell you,
"that is real fucking classy, maybe I should throw my trash in your car" please come up with a better excuse than "I'm sorry it's just habit." Seventh, when I ID you in your car, and you don't have it, please don't check your glove department, then your center console, hoping a magic license might appear. In the last 6 years, no one has pulled one out of there, and I don't see it happening anytime soon. Eighth, and I apologize for the insincerity of this one because I understand and feel bad for everyone who has watched prices go through the roof in there life, but please don't tell me what you used to pay for a pack of Chesterfields when you were a kid, because A: I've heard it a billion times. B: I have no control over the prices C: the store owners were also running of a higher margin in "Those Days" and D: It's always a boring conversation. I promise to spare you all a recap of game five of my last tennis match in exchange. Ninth, My desire to have your business greatly diminishes when you tell me" You Have To Drop Your Liggett Prices 30cents(why the hell does my keypad have a dollar sign and not a cents sign. This must be a true sign of our current economy, evidentally cents aren't even worth wasting a key on. However I have NEVER used this funky pointless sign on the #6 key) if you want to keep my business. Sorry about the digression but as I get older I tend to forget what it is I want to say so I have to get it out immediately before it goes away. Tenth and final bitch for this session.
For the love of God, if your ex-girlfriend screwed you over hard and left without giving you any reason, move on.... What the hell good could possibly come out of talking to her. SHE LEFT..SHE LEFT.. SHE LEFT..catch the drift. Anyway I truly enjoy listenening to you whine every day. MOVE ON..MOVE ON..MOVE ON!!!! One final thought. I have been waiting to do this for a while now. ^ Oh that felt good!! Now I understand the value of that key.

My membership is now cancelled!

Fight of the week!

Two nights ago a customer came up to the drive-thru window, ordered HIS smokes and read the stores "rules" while waiting for his change. These rules have been in the window for close to two years with virtually no objection from anyone. Most all my regulars are aware of them especially the infamous rule #5. After four serious rules about no checks, coupons, or alcohol through the window, I threw in rule #5, which states exactly " women must flash in order to receive there change." Let me clarify that this is the only rule that is not strictly enforced. Why? Because it is a joke, a big fat joke. Nothing more than trying to add a little humor a page full of rules inacted to make the store more profitable and the clerks jobs more enjoyable. Anyway some male came inside after reading that and made an absolute scene. In the meantime he almost managed to get his ass kicked Gresham style. He whined about rights to everyone who felt the only rights being violated were him interfering with them trying to buy stuff. I only have one message to him and society in general. Please pick your battles carefully as often the outcame will not make it worthwhile.
Other thoughts for the last few weeks. Thank you to pheasant girl for getting me the giant burrito from Rico Taco. There is no greater feeling than going from a miserable day of working from open to close dwelling on many irritating facts then to having a beautiful young girl come in and chat with you and then go get you lunch. It is truly appreciated and will be recipricated in the future. I sure am glad to have football back on. I don't pull off the whole hunting and cars conversations real well, (and telling most men about the great approach shot I made right before a put away volley just doesn't get that same respect.) Also a special thank you to my regular doubles partner for playing so well this last weekend. We finally won our first tournament together, which was important to both of us. It bothered me that I enjoy playing with him the most, but my results are absolutely fantastic when I play with other partners. In the last two years we are 16-12 together with one tournament win, while I am 12-1 with other partners including two tournament wins. All I know is I would never switch because I enjoy playing with him so much more than anyone else.
Madison has been doing well. She been receiving an amazing amount of homework in Algebra, which keeps her really busy. Our lifelong sheltie, Andrew, was diagnosed with cancer, which has been hard on everyone. He is fifteen dog years old, so it wasn't a huge shock. Otherwise all is well except for the fact my last hire turned out to not be such a good one. Good person, just wrong time of life to be hiring her. MY BAD. One final thought... I am so friggin tired right now, I really wish I could take two days off and disappear only to be found later sleeping in a tree house
with a pile of back issues of any magazine in the world. Nothing in this world has to make sense, it only cuts down on the fustration of explaining things when it does. Good Night!!

BC well represented!

I just finished a tennis tournament earlier this evening, and was reminded why I love this game so much. Although I didn't play consistantly well overall, I truly enjoyed my last match.
The player was from British Columbia and traveled all the way down to play in this tourney.
First of all, I like the fact that when you check the computer for his record, it doesn't show anything. On top of that no one around here has ever played him, so you have no idea what to expect. The first thought that popped into my mind was how cool it is to travel five hours to play in a tourney and have a beautiful girlfriend make the trip with you. What a lucky guy.
As the match progressed I truly enjoyed conversation with him and never once felt a bad call was made. His sportsmanship was immaculate and his behavior was very genuine. He really gave British Columbia a good showing. After he beat me 6-4,6-3 I actually felt really good about my loss. VERY RARE! I realized how much I need to learn to generate pace off a kick serve, as well as on groundstokes. Our final conversation was very refreshing ending up with his encouragement to visit him up in B.C., which I will. Anyway my final thought before he left had switched to what a lucky girl that was to be with such a nice guy. Thank you for a great match and more importantly, thank you for making the game as enjoyable as it is.

Fallen Angel

Approximately two months ago a young girl came into the store and asked if I was hiring. Unfortunately I had literally just hired someone only a few days earlier. We talked for a while and she left an application in case the other person didn't work out. I promised her I would not hire anyone else without talking to her first. I really liked her personality and thought that she would be a great fit for the store. When I got home that night, I was really bummed that I had hired the other person, and proceeded to write an emotional blog concerning my feelings. I noticed the girl had read my blog and even bothered to post a comment.
My blog included a personal promise to her about the hiring and a bunch of info that probably would be better left unsaid considering I had only spent 5 minutes of my life with her. I had formulated so many opinions in such a short time, that I had to question my thought process.
I ended up erasing everything on the thoughts that maybe after a few more times in the store I would have a different opinion about her.
Well I hired her today and I feel so good. While time will only tell if I did good I do know one thing for sure. NO MATTER WHAT LIFE THROWS AT YOU, JUST REMEMBER TO SMILE...
IT'LL MAKE YOUR BUTT CHEEKS TINGLE!

Fouad Kaady and Gerry Spence

Often in life I wonder on whether It's better to fight a battle for the possibility of justice being served, or just swallow a little pride and move forward. Most of these decisions are trivial in the spectrum of life. However some people do have the worst case scenario thrown at them forcing the decision to remain with them forever. I think that is the case with the shooting of Fouad Kaady a little over a year ago. The only reason I am back on this subject is because the family just hired a World Famous, first class, high-powered Lawyer in Gerry Spence. While it is tough to tell the true motive of the filing of the lawsuit, one can assume it is either about the money or about forcing the authorities to be held liable.
While I was not at the scene of the crime, I STRONGLY believed the process in which they had to decide the officers level of guilt, if any, was greatly flawed. I was subpoened to give my statement and answer any questions the jury had regarding what I knew about that day as well as other facts relating to his lifestyle and what he smoked. I realize I was one of many people to testify, and I was a borderline irrelevent witness, but one thing became crystal clear to me as I left the room to go home for the day. There was no way on Earth those officers were going to be found guilty. The only people in the room during my questioning was the jury pool and an attorney(I believe District) for Clackamas County and myself. I don't want to come off sounding jaded over the system because it is the only system to protect me, but it really disturbed me that no one was able to question me who had Fouad Kaady's best interest in mind and the person directing the questioning was working for Clackamas County just like the two officers involved. The economic ramifications for Clackamas County were and still are beyond my comprehension. They were well aware of the size of the Kaadys family as well as the amount of money behind them. Fortunately for the county they had complete jurisdiction over the hearings and were able to dodge a huge bullet. Unfortunately for them I think they just ran into a major brick wall at full speed in that of attorney Gerry Spence. His biography is unblemished. He has not lost a jury trial since 1969, and has more million dollar verdicts than any lawyer in United States history. He also is the author of 13 books.
Anytime you have an Attorney with that strong of a record, virtually untouched in the courtroom, along with an EXTREMELY touchy subject, as well as a lot of ambigous details, it is safe to say a settlement will be offered very quickly. At this point I think the Kaadys were so injustly served by the last hearings that they will fight it to the end, more for the idea of holding someone accountable. All I can say for sure is I can guarantee you the Sandy Police Department and Clackamas Count Sheriffs Department got really quiet upon hearing the news of the new lawyer.

What makes the store what it is

As a few people in this world, and I mean a very few people, know my store is and never will be a normal store. While there is a really fine line with operating a profitable business, a pleasurable business, and a legal business without crossing the lines. I want the world to know if the owner truly cares anything is possible. It is easy to get caught up in the funner parts of the business, unfortunately a balance must remain to keep the doors open. I realize for every girl who flashes me, some drunk will come along and threaten to kill me if I don't sell him a beer. Life goes this way as well. We for the most parts control our destiny as long as we are paying attention to all aspects of life. I am sure one is wondering where I am going with this. I do have a point.
My store is MY HAVEN. It is a place that allows me to provide a future for my daughter, to teach her about life while she is there with me in the morning, a place where I can experience all walks of life in a 1000 square foot radius. It is a place where I can be myself, where I truly don't care what others think of me, a place where all ages can appreciate what I try to make of it. A place where all my inner self can come out. It doesn't have to make sense. It doesn't have to be cool, nor does it have to be politically correct. All it has to do is bring an ounce of joy to someone elses life and it served its purpose. With all this in mind an example of how I operate must be told while it is still fresh.
For the last week or so this girl has been coming in to whom I told a story about how I almost ran over a pheasant walking across the street early in the morning. Evidentally this story brought much joy to her as she always talks and laughs and asks if I hit any pheasants lately. She noticed my endless amount of empty packs on the ceiling and thought it was so cool. The next day she comes in borderline demanding to have one of her packs put up on a special isolated area. WOW back up girl. That is not how this store works Missy. This store works on earning a piece of its soul. Once you do that, then I will make you a special area way more endearing than you would ever come up with. While you have already slowly crept into my heart with your livliness, I have yet to feel that one sign of the fact that you truly understand what this store is about. While your pack might be a trophy to you. For me, it will represent far more. It becomes a special moment whether I ever see you again or whether you become a true regular.
Just so you know someone can earn a place in my stores soul with one minute of there presence, while some may shop here forever and never get it. That is my decision. I know you will get it, I am just not sure you understand what I am asking for. I simple terms I need a little piece of your soul shared with the store. Sorry for getting so esoteric with this one, but like I said earlier,
THIS IS MY HAVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!

Highly Classified Trade Secret!!!!

I will start with something that I am not sure will go over well but as always, do you really think deep down I care? I live with the assumption if my customer does not appreciate my ways than the store will probably be better off without them. With that out of the way it's time to get something off my chest. I can not possibly tell everyone what a pain in the ass cigarette promos are. The vast majority of my customers want them, and most of those want more than they normally buy. With this in mind, I am always on the immediate defense when a new customer comes in and asks "do you have any specials? 99% of the time the answer is no. The main reason to me is I don't have enough to take care of my loyal customers so why should a new customer walk in and make that share even less. Having owned stores on the East side for over 13 years now I have come to get a pretty good read on the "bottom feeders." I named these people this because they drive around town and only shop at a the store with the lowest price. Thrifty, yes. Do I have any desire to have their business. NO. While I know it's still a sale, it takes away from my ability to take care of the people who take care of me rain or shine.
Just an example of how scarce promos can be. Last week, from RJ Reynolds, I received a total of 8 cartons of Buy one get one free(bigif) turkish blends. I can think of probably 15 customers who would buy all 8 cartons. Each carton saving about ten dollars. According to my contract I have to put them on display. Very rarely do these last one business day when I put them all out. This is why I save the majority for my best customers. While there is literally no limit to the # of (BIGIF) cartons I would buy if I had a say, I dream of the day I go a whole week without having to Lie about whether I have any. Years ago there was an abundance of tobacco money, unfortunately due to the lawsuits and government regulations the promos have decreased significantly. Now that everyone is thouroughly bored I want to say If you every get a whole carton of promos from me, you should go home, smile to your kids, and realize you must be doing something right in this world.

The power of Irony!!

Today was actually a very relaxing day. I took my daughter out to Hood River for the afternoon and we just goofed off all day. We had a great time with most of the exitement coming later in the afternoon. We had dinner at a nice restaurant at about 5pm and decided to sit outside to enjoy the warmth and great view. Unfortunately a few yellowjackets shared in the desire to consume our chicken wings as well. I told Madison not to agitate them as it will only make matters worse. She continued to be paranoid about them and then asked me how bad it hurts when they sting you. Being diabetic I told her the shots she gets hurt worse, which may have been a mistake because she has built quite a tolerance for them. We finished and left home when I decided to take the Washington route instead, going out of the way, but seeing more new stuff. While exploring a hill that might possibly have a nice view of the Gorge, a young deer walked right in front of our car. My window was down and he then walked literally 6 feet from my window giving both of us a great shot. Wow. what a great finish to our day.
Upon arriving at home Madison went upstairs and got on the internet. Being hot inside she opened up the sliding door and then came back inside and sat down. The next thing I know she comes running down the stairs freaking out while fighting back tears. She tells me her leg really hurts and shows me some small thing that came out of her leg. I immediately recognize it as a bee stinger and tell her she just got stung on the leg. She shows me her leg and thats exactly what happened. After doctoring her leg up I tell her that at least whatever stung you died shortly after and is probably on the floor in the room. We search for a little bit when I find a dying young yellowjacket. Somehow this doesn't appease her the same way it did me as a child and even still today. I got stung in the neck about a year ago and remember thinking, yeah this hurts but at least I survived the battle.

How Embarassing!!!!!

Wow did I make a complete ass out of myself. One thing I pride myself on while working is trying to go a little extra to make certain customers feel special. 99% of the time it goes real smooth, but boy did I mess up on that 1% this time. One thing I occasionally do is very carefully open a pack of cigarrettes, slide in a note of encouragement or perhaps a joke or whatever I feel will make a difference in that persons day into the pack, and carefully reseal it to its original form. I have gotten so good at this that you would never be able to look at the pack and see that it was doctored. And I don't even touch the cigarettes themselves. After doing so I hide that pack until the person comes in and give it to them acting as if everything is normal, always a complete surprise to them. Well this time, after doctoring the pack I hid it behind a row of cigarettes the we NEVER sell a pack of, knowing they will never be seen. HUGE MISTAKE. The tobacco rep for the slow cigarettes came in checked all the codes on her products, found that pack of Marlboro lights and put it in front of the Marlboro rack causing them to immediately be sold to a random customer. About a month went by of me wondering who the hell got that pack by mistake. Considering the note was borderline pornographic in nature I prayed it did not get into the wrong hands. The original recipient would have laughed hysterically because of the inside joke, however anyone else would probably not know how to take it.
Yesterday a customer came in handing me a coupon for a free pack of smokes. I informed him I don't take coupons when he told me he got it because Philip Morris sent it to him after he mailed my note and the pack of smokes back to the company. He thought the note was put in their at factory level(which I took as a compliment). He seemed shocked and confused when I told him it was me and the pack was meant for someone else. I now have to wander if Philip Morris is doing a internal investigation or if they just threw the note away. Either way I want to apologize for causing them to give away a free pack because of my mistake. Hopefully I didn't hurt their bottom line.