The problem with Nordstrom Rack and earpieces

New Year, New Things! Time to start fresh!

I resigned from Nordstrom Rack on January 2! Didn't matter that I had shifts scheduled. Time to move on!

The problem was the new earpieces that were given to the employees on December 2017.

Here are my initial experiences with those earpieces as mentioned in an email to Nordstrom Rack managers

I was there when [store manager J.R.] introduced the earpieces on December 2nd. I give it a chance even though the volume issue came up. I was doing Shoe Markdowns in the stock room. Therefore, the longer wires were a problem when I was moving boxes. I heard a walkie talking with the earpiece off. I thought "maybe I should try that".

The next day (December 3rd) was Women's Shoes Markdowns. There wasn't much communication on the earpiece that day. 

December 5th, and 8th at Men's, I continued to give the earpieces a chance. I also experimented using the Walkies without earpiece and with the earpiece. 

December 9th- my first ringing shift at Customer Service. I had the earpiece on. It really bothered me when someone was talking loud on the air as I serviced the customers. I got to the point where I flicked off the earpiece and the customer I serviced was giggling. I don't mind the giggling, but the sudden loudness of someone talking into my earpiece really bothered my ears. It really interfered with my work and my mental health. 

December 11th at Men's section! I was working with [2 names deleted to protect the innocent] and Auli'i Michaud.[that person was non-innocent as will be explained later in this blog] [names and times those people left deleted] That was the breaking point with the earpieces. I could no longer take it anymore. The grace period for giving the earpieces a chance was over forever.I even told both [name deleted to protect the innocent] and Auli'i when we were closing that I was done with the earpieces. They seemed to understood my stance.

 Those earpieces had severe volume problems that drove me insane.  Sometimes they're too soft, But just turn the volume up slightly, it becomes so loud that it hurt my ears!Then I turned the volume down slightly. Next person I hear talks so softly that I have to turn the volume up, then the next person talks so loud that I have to flick the earpiece off my ear!

It turns out the new earpieces comes with a powerful mic that is so great in picking up sounds that it comes across as very loud if a person talks directly into the mic! 


The walkies worked without the earpieces, but some staff members demanded I used those earpieces. Actually, only 2.

One was a mid-level manager Fifi Wu! She nagged about it twice, but I refused both times.  I was so angry the second time that she backed down. She later claimed that I was being "aggressive". More like assertive in defense of my ears and my sanity! 

Here are excerpts from my email to Fifi Wu

The first time we asked me about not having an earpiece was on Saturday December 16th, 2017 (as you'll see, I'm pretty good at documenting what goes on everyday). When you asked "where's your earpiece?", I just said "I can't stand those earpieces", you replied "um, ok".  At that point, being that you didn't ask follow-up questions, I didn't feel the need to explain why I chose not to wear the earpiece. At that time, I felt that one sentence ("I can't stand those earpieces") was enough explanation needed. At that time, I didn't know you would be asking about the earpieces again on December 18th (I'll talk more on that date later). If I knew you would be asking about the earpiece again later, I would've given a more thorough explanation.

Also, on December 16th, when you first asked "where's your earpiece", we were in the staff area of the fitting room and [assistant manager for Mens/Kids] was present. I already told him how I felt about those earpieces a few days earlier (probably on Dec 11 or 14). On either of those dates, I just mentioned my thoughts on the earpieces and he just grinned and smiled! Never has he demanded that I put the earpieces back on. 

So I also thought that [assistant manager for Mens/Kids] presence in the staff area with me and you on December 16th was reason enough for me to feel that you probably wouldn't be bringing up the earpiece issue again on December 18th.

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On the following day, Sunday, December 17th, I was working in Accessories, meaning I was up in the 2nd floor where many department managers would be near enough to notice I didn't have an earpiece. Accessories Manager [name deleted to protect the innocent] was working with me that day. She was talking to me in my first hour of my shift when she was going over layout of the handbags/lingerie area, as well as going over what I would be doing there! She never asked me about my lack of an earpiece, even though we spent about 10 minutes talking and walking with each other within a 4 feet radius from each other.

On the same date, I did some ringing on Bay Level 2, in which both Customer Services managers [names deleted to protect the innocent] were present. Both were within a 4 feet radius from me during that time. For part of the time, [name deleted to protect the innocent] was on the register next to mine. For other parts of the time, [name deleted to protect the innocent] was assisting me on the register. Neither asked nor demanded anything about wearing earpieces.

Also on the same date, Shoes Manager [name deleted to protect the innocent] was MIC and therefore was walking around the 2nd floor. He even saw me talking to the walkie when I was on the Handbags Mobile Station. Not once did he asked nor demanded anything about wearing earpieces. And this is the manager who has a reputation for his intensity.

[note: The Shoes Manager is usually a nice guy, but I did witness a few heated discussions.  Let's just say he has high expectations, wants things done a certain way and speaks very fast when expressing all of that. However, even with all his intensity & strictness, he has never nagged me to use those earpieces, and therefore, he has earned my eternal gratitude  :)  ]


I skipped a few paragraphs.

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So on to the next day, December 18th. That day, I was back in the Men's Department for a 6pm-10pm shift. It was the 2nd time you asked about the "earpiece". My mind was thinking "really? you're going to nag about it again when I already told you that I can't stand them?"

Being that it was the 2nd time I was being "nagged" about the earpieces and none of the other managers got on my cases about the earpieces, I was already felt annoyed at your nitpicking on earpieces. When I mentioned that I will no longer wear those earpieces, you said that I "have to", that was what triggered my angry response. That was then I realized that I have to explain my situation, but I was also angry that you are being overly obsessive about wearing earpieces when nobody else was demanding that I continue to wear the earpiece. I felt that you didn't take my ear sensitivities and my mental health seriously enough. I felt that my protecting my ears is part of workplace safety and that your obsession with me wearing the earpiece was a violation of workplace safety. 

To her credit, Fifi Wu later said that she didn't know how seriously the earpieces were bothering me.


The other one is Auliʻi Michaud (aka Janyn Yuriko Michaud), a salesperson who thinks she's the boss.

This is what I wrote in an email about Auliʻi Michaud (aka Janyn Yuriko Michaud)

On Wednesday, December 27, 2017, I was working with the Shoe Department, focused mostly on Men's Shoes on the 1st floor.  During that time, I was doing the usual duties (organize the shoe stacks, assist customers and occasionally assist on Bay Level 1).

(note: the word "Bay" is what Nordstrom Rack employees call the cashier stations. "Bay Level 1" is the 1st floor cashier station. "Bay Level 2" is the 2nd floor cashier station)

  While I was assisting a customer on Bay Level 1, I heard a call for "Men Shoes" on the walkie.  I responded with a simple question "Who was calling for Men's Shoes?" Then all of a sudden Auliʻi Michaud appeared, she said "it was me", and then asking in a hostile and confrontational manner "where's your earpiece?" I replied "I don't wear earpieces" (I already told her on December 11 that I'm going to stop wearing the earpiece because of the loud volume issues, to which at the time she expressed no objection to what I said.)  Auliʻi Michaud responded in a hostile manner "you're supposed to wear an earpiece". I told her that I already communicated to [store manager J.R.] about the issue and that he said that I don't have to wear the earpiece. 

About 20 minutes later, I went to Auliʻi just to politely tell her that I was offended by the manner she talked to me and that "can you please not talk to me like that again"?. I also mentioned what I told her earlier, that I'm not wearing the earpieces because the volume issues has hurt my ears. I even apologized for the inconvenience it may caused her. Auliʻi then responded in a hostile tone "I didn't do anything" and "you couldn't hear me". She then said "I feel uncomfortable" (even though I was talking to her in a soft voice) then called on the walkie "MIC, please come to the 1st floor".

[note: MIC means "Manager in Charge", basically is the substitute manager when the store manager isn't around]

  In other words, Auliʻi started the verbal hostilities but couldn't handle my soft-spoken response to her verbal hostilities. 

At that point, I just went back to organizing the Men's Shoes. About a few minutes later, I saw the 2 MICs [names deleted to protect the innocent] walk to the men's fitting room to talk with Auliʻi.  I wasn't near any of them when they were talking so I don't know exactly what was said.  The MICs left me alone and didn't ask to talk with me about the issue. I did interact with [name deleted to protect the innocent] briefly later on, mostly to give him Kid's items left in Men's Shoes, as well as inspect the 1st floor for remaining customers after Closing Time. Both times, he was happy to interact with me and I saw no indication that he was disappointed in anything I might have done to provoke Auliʻi to call for him.

I also want to put it on written record that I have been able to respond to communications on the walkie without earpiece, almost all the time, with the only known exception being that I was helping a customer on Bay Level 1 when Auliʻi called for Men Shoes. In any other circumstances (ie. organizing items, watching the fitting room, talking with staff on the floor, talking with customers on the floor, ringing on the Mobile Express stations) I have been able to respond quickly. Even on the previous day (12/26/2017), I was able to respond to [assistant manager for Shoes] on the walkie when I was ringing for a customer on Bay Level 2. 

  I talked to the store manager about all these issues. The store manager [I'll just call him J.R.] is a nice guy who I have been able to get along with. He has been very accommodating with my work schedule. Not every boss is that generous, and for that, J.R. has earned my eternal gratitude. 


 However, J.R.  he also noted that the company's official policy is for the employees to wear the earpieces.  JR claimed the having the walkies on without the earpieces "disturbed the customer's experience" according to company's best practices (more like "official policies")

In a 12/30/2017 meeting, he suggested that I'll just use the walkie on that day and the following day (both weekend dates) and we'll test the use of the earpiece on 01/02/2018.


Well, New Year, New Things, I left Nordstrom Rack!

That's right, I decided on January 1st to leave Nordstrom Rack. Test the earpiece the following day? I tried that already!  I'm not going to make myself go insane in putting my ears at risk again!

So on January 2, I sent an email to Nordstrom Rack declaring that I'm resigning immediately.

Life is too short and you have to pick your battles wisely. That was my way of picking my battles wisely.

I already have another job to fall back on!  I'll have to reduce my spending, but as long as I'll find another source of income before the summer, then I should be fine.

But what about those who have nothing else to fall back on and have to suffer in silence? That's what worries me! 

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I did mention to Fifi Wu and J.R. that school security & administrative officials use walkies without earpieces. That seems to work OK with them!

But I did forget to mention the following facts

• When I was a seasonal worker at Macy's, we didn't use earpieces. The managers had the company's cell phones. If anyone needed help, we can call the managers or we can walk to another staff member to talk in each other's presence.
• I did a temp job at a local hospital where I spent a few weeks testing how well the employer-issued cell phones worked. Me and another temp worker walked around the hospital while using those cell phones. Basically, it's like the famous Verizon commercial "can you hear me now?".  The hospital's cell phones listed all the relevant extension numbers that the employees can use. The security staff had their own walkies. Nobody that I knew used earpieces. Notice that hospitals have to care about workplace safety and ear protection!

After I left Nordstrom Rack, I noticed the following

• There is a Bed, Bath & Beyond across the street from Nordstrom Rack. The Bed, Bath & Beyond had 2 floors. Nobody had earpieces. There were staff members with walkies.  It didn't disturb my "customer experiences" as JR claimed it would
• When visiting the WalMart in downtown Honolulu, nobody had earpieces. There were staff members with walkies.  It didn't disturb my "customer experiences" as JR claimed it would.
• At another WalMart (the big one near Ala Moana), some staff members had earpieces, others had walkies. 

Also notice that WalMart is the world's largest retailer, and if the walkies "disturbed the customer experience" as JR claims, well it sure doesn't show by the crowds at WalMart. 

 
Anyways, I want to share this  video,  where I talked about the problem with the Nordstrom Rack earpieces, I mentioned real names, and I noted other retail outlets (ie Macys,  Bed Bath & Beyond, WalMart) don't require earpieces. I also that security & administration at public schools used walkies without earpieces. Plus (damn, I really wish I remembered to mention this to the store manager), I worked a temp job at a local hospital TESTING COMMUNICATION DEVICES, which didn't use earpieces.


Here's the YouTube video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYaNaV45fPs
"The Problem with Nordstrom Rack and Earpieces"

YouTube speech by Pablo Wegesend

2017 music in review

[note: blog posts about the year in music have traditionally been posted at the end of the year. Due to time constraints (as noted in previous posts), I was unable to do so at the end of 2017. But it's finally here]

As I do every year, I write a blog post about my favorite music of the year.

Yes, I do my own music (as mentioned in my previous posts) but this blog post is dedicated to music by others.

I will mention top hits as well as songs that were over-looked by the mainstream.

These are purely my opinions and not to be taken personally. So if your favorite song of the year is not mention, it just means I didn't rank it as high as the ones I mentioned.

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You know the biggest song of the year was "Despacito" by the Puerto Rican studs Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee.

Despacito"

Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Justin Bieber

The song was already a hit with Spanish-speaking audiences,  but with Justin Bieber added to the remix, the song also got major airplay on English-language radio too!

Multi-lingual songs by major stars are a great bridge between cultures in the era of walls.

Mainstream English-language radio stations in the United States ocassionally play songs with non-English lyrics (remember 2012's "Gangnam Style") and I think they should play more non-English songs on the rotation.  There's just no way all good songs come in one language, and the rest of the world has much to offer American audiences, if US radio stations gave them a chance.

But then again, much of the songs I'll mention in this post are English-language songs, so maybe someone might call me out on that too 


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My favorite party song of the year is "What Lovers Do" by Maroon 5 & SZA

Maroon 5 & SZA  

"What Lovers Do"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Wiio4KoGe8

Maroon 5 usually do too many depressing songs of desperation, so  I'm happy they do a song of fun! Also happy to see SZA get a major hit record.

Also, this was a great record linking across racial lines in era where race relations don't always have the best news in the news.


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The top rising star of 2017 has to be Cardi B, the Latina rap queen from the Bronx! She is known as the reality show star with a crazy personality, as well as an outspoken defender of strippers and sex workers. 

Her song of the year was "Bodak Yellow", which is the female version of the lesser known Kodak Black's "No Flockin"

(Kodak Black had his playful response a few months later with "Bodak Orange".  When will the other colors have their turn)


Cardi B also had other hits this year including

-- the club banger with a multi-racial cast "No Limit (remix)" w/G-Eazy, A$AP Rocky,  French Montana, Juicy J Belly

-- slower reggaeton song w/Ozuna "La Modelo"

Ozuna w/Cardi B

"La Modelo"

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The other rapper of the year had to be Kendrick Lamar, who came back with another highly acclaimed album Damn


And the lead single tells us to "sit down, be humble"

The one memory I had with that song was when I was attending a high school graduation, right after the graduates met their family, I heard someone from the audience playing that song from their stereo!

It was like it was sending a message "dude, I know you graduated, but you have a lot more to learn & experience" 




===============

If someone was to go on stage now, and said for the first time "“Any artist that wanna be a artist and wanna remain a star, and dont have to worry about executive producers trying to be, All in the videos. All on record, dancing, come to ................."

I think everyone would now think it's referring to DJ Khaled.

Just like Sean Combs in the 90s,  DJ Khaled is everywhere, all in everyone's videos, all in their records, dancing, chanting out his company name ("We the Best Music")

DJ Khaled's hits of the year included

"I'm the One" w/ Justin Bieber, Chance the Rapper, Quavo, Lil Wayne

"Wild Thoughts" w/ Rihanna & Bryson Tiller  (w/ the guitars of Carlos Santana)

"Shining"  w/Beyonce & Jay-Z

==============


Pharell, another super-star producer who is also  everywhere, but actually contributes real classic verses to the songs he appears.

He appears with EDM super-star producer Calvin Harris for 2 hits this year

"Heatstroke" (also featuring Ariana Grande & Young Thug)
"Feels" (also featuring Katy Perry & Big Sean)


Pharell's also returned to his N.E.R.D.  group and dropped "Lemon" which features Rihanna rapping Cardi B style!


Calvin Harris also contributed another classic jam of the year: "Slide" with Frank Ocean and Migos.

 Calvin Harris w/Frank Ocean and Migos

"Slide"

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Chainsmokers continued to show that they are in the running for the top music groups of this decade.

They had the classic slow song with  Emily Warren "Paris" 

but they really topped it off this year with their collabo with Coldplay with "Something Just Like This"

Chainsmokers w/Coldplay

"Something Just Like This"

As for Coldplay, the singer Chris Martin had a great live collabo with Shakira "Me Enamore"

Shakira w/Chris Martin

"Enamore"

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One of the under-rated EDM producers who I think will rise to higher prominence in the new year is Marshmello

Just like Daft Punk, Marshmello  prefers to should himself with a mask, but he has the coolest mask out there

Marshmello released the song "Summer" during the previous winter.  Or maybe because it was summer in the Southern Hemisphere

Marshmello "Summer"

So romantic  :)

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And now Marshmello is graduating, sharing some nostalgic times before ......."Moving On"

Marshmello "Moving On"

And the reason why I think Marshmello will have a higher profile for the New Year? He finished 2017 with a collabo with an established superstar Selena Gomez

Selena Gomez & Marshmello

"Wolves"

I predict even more superstar collabos and classic hits from  Marshmello in the new year.

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Talking about Selena Gomez, she also has some other quality hits this year

she had her slow alternative song "It Ain't Me"

and the sad breakup song w/Charlie Puth "We Don't Talk Anymore"

Charlie Puth w/Selena Gomez 

"We Don't Talk Anymore"

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And talking about Charlie Puth, we had "Attention"

Charlie Puth "Attention"

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The singer who didn't get enough credit (mostly due to her previously more well-known collaborators) is Allesia Cara

First, it was her song with Zedd  -- "Stay"

Allesia Cara w/Zedd "Stay"

Then it was appearance with Logic & Khalid for their anti-suicide song "1-800-273-8255"

Logic w/Alessia Cara & Khalid

"1-800-273-8255"

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Of course, you can't have a year in review without Taylor Swift, who only needed a few weeks for her album to the highest selling of the year...... "End Game" (w/Ed Sheeran and Future)

Ed Sheeran of course had his great hit "Shape of You", where his video shows him being a male fighter falling in love with a female fighter

Ed Sheeran

"Shape of You"

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Drake has again shown he is a great singer of  slow songs, with "Passion Fruit"

Drake

"Passion Fruit"

J.Lo w/ reggaeton singer Wisin "Amor Amor Amor"

Miss Eaves shout out to thick-bodied women that they don't need to be ashamed, but they should embrace having "Thunder Thighs" 

Miss Eaves

"Thunder Thighs"

British pop group Little Mix  "Touch"

Little Mix "Touch"

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The musical  Ad of the year, this for Target

Lil Yatchy & Carly Rae Jepsen remade the 80's classic "It Takes Two" for the new generation

Lil Yatchy & Carly Rae Jepsen

"It Takes Two"

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Though rock music doesn't have the popularity it had decades ago, there's still some good rock out there

Ice-T's BodyCount gave a heavy metal voice for the Black Lives Matter movement with "Black Hoodie", a response to racial profiling and police shootings

Body Count 

"Black Hoodie"

It's not just the old guys making great rock songs, the young ones are still rocking, with Alarm for War having a teenage lead singer/rapper

Alarm for War

"Day Turned into Night"

Alarm for War

"Love Not Hate"

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Other greats hits deserving a mention here

Demi Lovato w/ Cheat Codes "No Promises"

Childish Gambino "Redbone"

5th Harmony w/Gucci Mane "Down"

Justin Bieber "Can We Be Friends"

Kehlani "I Wanna Be"

Cierra Ramirez w/Baeza "Faded"

French Montana w/Swae Lee (of Rae Sremmurd) "Unforgettable"

Clean Bandit w/Zara Laarson "Symphony"

Camillo Cabello w/Young Thug "Havana"

Halsey "Bad at Love"

Hailee Stenfield w/KATO, Sigale "Show You Love (KATO remix)"

Portugal The Man "Fell it Still"

Imagine Dragons "Thunder"

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For the really under-rated stuff, the songs that didn't get the publicity that they deserved! I'll give them some publicity here  :)

Phantom Sage w/Miss Lina "Kingdom" (has an video game/anime vibe)

Phantom Sage w/Miss Lina

"Kingdom"

TULE "Fearless" (listen to that beat drop)

TULE "Fearless"

Unknown Brain w/Aviella "Inspiration"  (a very sweet song)

Unknown Brain w/Aviella 

"Inspiration"  

Icehunt w/Helen Tess "Hover"

Icehunt w/Helen Tess "Hover"

LFZ "Echoes"

LFZ 

"Echoes"

Elektronomia "The Other Side"

Elektronomia 

"The Other Side"

Elektronomia "Sky High"

Elektronomia 

"Sky High"

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Last but not least, check out my Pablo the Mad Tiger Warrior songs on Soundcloud, iTunes, Google Play, CD Baby, Spotify, and more

Sadly, Microsoft's Groove Music stopped selling & streaming music at the end of 2017!

This year's "Sounds Like a Video Game" album had some brought me some streaming & licensing revenue though not enough to quit my "day job".

That's where you come in ;)  

Help me bring my music to the charts ;)

And have a happy New Year! 

2017: reflections

It's the 1st day of 2018 and I will do my usual reflections on the old year of 2017!

I wrote much of my reflections on the blog post I wrote last week titled "Need more success in my life"
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2017/12/need-more-success-in-my-life.html


I encourage you to read that blog post, before reading the rest of this blog post.

Now on some more interesting stuff

1.) Temp jobs

As I noted several times before, sub teaching doesn't come with paid vacations, so I did some temp jobs on the side.

For the previous winter vacation (2016-2017), I called a temp worker agency that I worked with before to see if they had work within the winter vacation. They had nothing for that time frame, but they had something for the last 2 weeks of January.

OK, I'm listening.

It was a temporary position at a local hospital for which I tested their mobile communication devices.  Basically, it was like the famous Verizon commercials where the characters said "can you hear me now?"

Of course, we did more than that! We walked various areas of the hospital to hear if our conversations can be heard in that area of the hospital.   Then we noted if there were any problems hearing the other person. We also noted various variables that might be contributing to how well we can hear.

Then we also inputted the data onto a spreadsheet so that the IT department can analyze and figure what & how things can be changed.

Being that it was for the IT department, other staff members in the hospital thought I was to have expertise in other IT matters. Sorry, but I will notify the IT staff! 

I loved doing the mobile communication device testing and data collection so much that I was willing to do it again later in 2017, one week in September, one week in October.  We were originally planned to try again in December but that was cancelled.

Those weeks during school weeks, but I blocked out any calls for sub jobs for those weeks.

I never thought I would ever work in a hospital, but now I can say I did.

I don't think I'll ever want the pressure and stress levels that doctors and nurses have to go through.  Life & death decisions on an daily basis. No thanks!

But I did appreciate the works of the whole hospital staff, ranging from the medical, administrative, security, custodial, cafeteria, and off course, the IT team!

---------
Another thing about hospitals, TV shows always show the staff running in the ER hallways.

But in real life, you really have to slow your pace in the hallways.

One time, I was walking my usual pace, when I turned a corner when I almost bumped in to a couple who just gave birth. Needless to say, it was in the section of the hospital were birth is given.

I also noticed the doors opened very slowly. The first few times I experienced that, my mind was thinking "hurry up, I got places to go".

But one time, when the doors were opening slow, I saw a child walking with IV tubes attached.  Now I understood why the doors opened slowly. Had I just walked out the door at my usual pace, I would've bumped into that child by accident, a child who happened to have extra vulnerabilities.

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I did have another temp job in the summer with a different temp agency.  It was a one-day temp job putting up fixtures at the new Ross Store in Ala Moana. Then we had to dispose all the boxes and bubbles wraps. We had to pull those pallet jacks from one side of the mall to the other. I could feel the strain on my quadriceps that lasted the next few days. 


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I also had a few-day temp job working with foreign exchange students visiting Hawaii. It was just going to the beach parks, or staying at the program's headquarters to play games. Fun times, but it only lasted a few days. 

2.) Music

In early 2017,  Pablo the Mad Tiger Warrior has released "Sounds Like a Video Game: an instrumental album"

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2017/01/sounds-like-video-game.html

The songs got some attention on Spotify, Apple Music and other streaming services.  Some individual track got downloaded on iTunes.

I did a few music videos for those tracks, for which you can view on Pablo the Mad Tiger Warrior   YouTube channel.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTp3x3norNTYDksJKCSfhXg

Unfortunately, I haven't done videos for all the tracks from that album due to time constraints.

I plan to work on them when time permits.

Also, if time permits, I would like to release a metal-oriented instrumental album before the end of 2018.  I made a few tracks on Music Maker software so far!  Still experimenting with various software options to make the songs unique and great.

3.) Parties

I only been to a few this year/ 

There was my friend's birthday party at Sky Nightclub, my birthday part at Rumours.

I went to Halloween party at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Waikiki. I wore my orange shirt and pumpkin hat, just like 2015! Fun times :)


  I also want to talk about the one that really counts  ................   New Years.

In the past few years, I went to the New Year's parties at Aloha Towers. 

This time, I wanted to do something different. I also wanted to do something less expensive.

Tiki's Grill & Bar had cheap tickets so I went.  Great place, great vibes, great times!


Now the announcement was made late in 2017 that Rumours will close late January 2018.  I'll plan to go before it closes. It will be an end of a great era! 

coming soon: reflections on 2017

I usually do a reflection blog post at the end of the year!

But the last few weeks have been busy.

So those blog posts will be delayed by a few days.


Happy New Year :)

Need more success in my life

End of the year is supposed to be a time of reflection!

On my Christmas cards, I printed some updates on my life (ie. still a sub teacher, working at a fashion retail store, volunteering with Friends of the Library, making and selling digital instrumental tracks)

An auntie called me a "success".


That's nice to hear!

But I know there's more to be achieved!

I want to ride this sub teaching thing as far as I can, but what I really want to do with my life is either work at a library and making more music.

As for the fashion retail job, it might be days or weeks when a decision would be made on how much longer I'll be there! While I respect giving people a chance to solve problems internally, tomorrow I'll find out if we're closer to a real solution. Otherwise, some info is about to go public on this blog! 


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I love helping out the Friends of the Library of Hawaii(FLH). I volunteer with their major booksales (next one is on Martin Luther King weekend at Washington Middle School) as well as their mini-bookstore (Books@Marks)  in downtown Honolulu for every First Friday.


FLH is a mostly volunteer thing, with only a few paid staff members. But if FLH has an open paid position, I want in!

Anything library-related is where I belong!

=============

As far as my music, Pablo the Mad Tiger Warrior has some downloads sold on iTunes, some licensing royalties from YouTube content ID, and streaming revenue from various sources.

But it's not enough to make big-budget music videos.

I need more time to even finish making music videos for the songs from the "Sounds Like a Video Game: an instrumental album".

I also need more time to work on songs from my next album! 

I think I'll do that right now

brief thoughts on my current life

I  have so much thoughts on latest controversies and more, but I've been super-busy the last few weeks. Didn't have time to blog! 


I'm still a sub teacher, but I also got hired to work at a fashion retail store in August.   That was because during the summer, schools weren't in session, so I got a 2nd job.   I did have past experience at Macy's, but this time, I'm at a competitor.

At the new fashion retail store, I'm a rover (I rotate among different departments). To get hired for that position, I agreed to work some early morning shifts (ie. start at 2am) on the condition I'm notified 3 weeks ahead of time. The store does announce the weekly schedule 3 weeks in advance, so I was in. We also agreed to those 2am-6am weekday shifts. For weekends, I agreed to "anything goes".

Well, last week, I did 3 days in a row of early markdown shifts (where we change price tickets before the store open).  3 days of 2am-6am, while still commuting to the sub teaching job afterwards. (no car, just bus or bike) This mess with my sleep schedule, and I lose hours I could be doing basic things outside of work. I told my manager I'm done with doing those early markdown shifts on weekdays. I'm still willing to do those early markdown shifts on the weekends, but I'm done doing them on weekdays. 

My foot is already in the door, so I'll probably be traded to another position in the store.


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Meanwhile I am looking for a permanent position in........................


............... well, anytime I actually announce that I'm about to get a job interview at a certain place, I never get the job.

But if I don't tell anyone about an upcoming job interview, I actually did get the job!  I sure didn't tell anyone that I was interviewing for the fashion retail job that I'm currently working at!  Same was true for other temp jobs and internships I had in the past! 

I'm superstitious like that!

You can be messed with

A lot of people talk as if they're so tough and so vigilant that nobody can hurt them! There's always sometime tougher than you, someone that can overpower you (even if takes sneaking a drug in your drink to do so). You can claim to be eternally vigilant all you want, you can preach precautions all you want, but EVERYONE eventually lets their guard down, and someone will strike at that moment, causing you eternal pain magnified because you are shocked that your tough/vigilant image couldn't protect you at all times!

Facts are that YOU can be messed with, and YOU can be violated! 

YOU are more vulnerable than you're willing to admit to anyone! That doesn't make you less of a person, in fact, that makes you like every other person!

Recently, there's been a social media campaign against sexual assault, with the hashtag #MeToo, to let people know that sexual assault has affected real people that they know, not just some hypothetical unknown person in a news report!

While much of the activism surrounding the fight against sexual assault has come from left-leaning feminists, the issue has affected people of all political leanings (conservative, libertarians, you name it).

One conservative woman thought that her tough-girl, street-smart image was going to prevent her from being raped. She learned the hard way that nobody is "too tough" or "too street smart" to get victimized in a really traumatic way!

Amy Swearer, “I’m a Conservative Who Was Roofied by a Stranger. Here’s What I Think of the ‘Me Too’ Hashtag.,” The Daily Signal, October 20, 2017

http://dailysignal.com/2017/10/20/im-a-conservative-who-was-roofied-by-a-stranger-heres-what-i-think-of-me-too-hashtag/

When someone confides in you that they were roofied, assaulted, molested, raped, or harassed, they have rendered themselves the most vulnerable they will likely ever be to you. Do not presume to sit in judgment of a person’s reaction to a horror you can never understand until you have lived it. And no, I promise you, you do not understand. I did not understand, either.

I have sat in quiet judgment of so many women who did not respond to victimization in the precise way I imagined “angry, no-holds-barred, take-names-but-not-prisoners” Amy would respond. I have sworn to anyone who would listen that many victims are partially to blame, that my handguns and I could take care of myself, and that I would always be vigilant enough and smart enough and prepared enough.

And then there I was, waking up on a gurney at 4 in the morning. In an emergency room. By myself. Surrounded by strangers, asked the most intimate of questions by people who did not know my name five minutes ago, still hazy from a drug-induced stupor, bruised and hurting and afraid and wanting desperately to disappear into a hole until it all went away … and I promise you, you do not understand.

You don’t understand the sickening internal debate over whether and how and when and to what extent you should tell your parents. You don’t understand the utter humiliation of being unable to recall any interactions you’ve had in the past 12 hours. You don’t know how incredibly small you feel when your first real memory is of a doctor you’ve never seen before accusing you of smoking crystal meth because your ADD medication showed up as amphetamine on a toxicology screen, and you can barely find words to ask where you are, much less to explain you’ve never done drugs.

And the flood of questions. You cannot comprehend the flood of questions. What if the detective thinks I was just drunk? What if I WAS just drunk? What if the urine analysis can’t detect any substances because the four IVs and 13 hours of delay diluted the sample? Will anyone believe me then, if there’s no proof? What if there are pictures or video I don’t remember? Do I even want to see any evidence that could point to a suspect? Would I rather just never know if it protects me from knowing something awful? How I am going to pay these medical bills? Why can’t I move my wrist? Where is my wallet? Has anyone fed my cats? Was I raped? What if I’m pregnant? How I am going to get home?

You. Don’t. Understand.

You can’t.

It’s not your fault. Honestly, I envy your lack of understanding, and hope you never, ever have to understand. But until then, stop demeaning the actions of those who do. The #MeToo hashtag may be a cop out for some, but others—myself included—it is a way to tell other women they are not alone. It is a way to process our own stories and salve our very real pain. It is a way to reclaim the voices we lost.

Some men might read this and think "I'm a man, nobody going to rape me" and "I'm not going to jail, so I don't have to worry about getting raped".

But if the same man talks and acts so tough that he gets into a fight, where will he end up? In jail!

And even men who claim to be vigilant could be hanging out with new friends (could be new co-workers, could be a "friend of a friend"), which places anyone in a vulnerable position. Who knows, that "new friend" might be on drugs, might be the next target for a police raid, might have other enemies you may not know about!  That "new friends" might even have "feeling for you" and can roofie you too! Your toughness will not save you when you are caught off guard in those situations!

Even someone like Terry Crews, a former NFL player (meaning he's physically tougher and psychologically braver than the average man) was so caught off-guard when another man grabbed his privates that his mind froze when it happened.  That's what happens to ANYONE who is caught-off guard like that! Even to the tough guys!

Let's also put it this way, even the losers of a boxing/MMA match spent hours/weeks/months/years practicing self-defense skills. They still lost!

If that happens to them, what makes you think it can't happen to you? 

What makes you think you can whoop everyone who messes with you?

What makes you think you're not vulnerable?

Talk all the about being "street smart" all you, even the most savvy of street criminals and police investigators get outsmarted! And these are people who spend hours planning to outsmart their opponents (who carry guns and more), spend hours figuring out how to commit sneak attacks on their enemies (who carry guns and more), and they still get outsmarted!

The same can apply to the Navy SEALS and the terrorists they're fighting! So much planning on sneak attacks and avoiding sneak attacks, and they still get outsmarted on the battlefield!

If the street criminals, police, Navy SEALS and terrorists all get outsmarted (and captured and killed)  even though they're experts in outsmarting dangerous people, what makes you think your street-smartness and precautions will immunize you from being violated?

So instead of demonizing rape victims for "not putting up a fight", "not taking precautions", "letting their guards down", why don't YOU recognize that YOU TOO can be very vulnerable in many situations, and that it can happen to YOU TOO! 

Tough Talk and Street Smarts will NOT save you all the time!