Happy Saturday! David and I are here at the bar, but in addition to our beverage and meal plan, we are thinking about the people affected by the recent hurricanes. I know some former coworkers who live in the affected areas, and I follow some bloggers who may or may not have been affected. My heart goes out to anyone who has suffered injury or damage, and I hope things get back to normal soon. Those thoughts are also being held for our challenge host, Linda Hill, as she hopes her recent roof repairs will hold up to a storm.
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “clip.” Use it as a noun or a verb, use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
If we were having a beer, you’d be late…again.
“Should we just change the meeting time to three-thirty, David?”
“Some people say ‘Hello,’ Dan.”
“I’m sorry. Hello David. I couldn’t resist poking fun at you. You’re normally the one waiting — not patiently, mind you — a few minutes for me.”
“I know. But you should know that as much as your being late bothers me, my being late drives me insane.”
“I’m not sure if you want to drink and drive, but I ordered a John Howell’s Special for you. I see Curley bringing it now.”
“Hi David. Here are the assorted components of your drink. Dan, here’s that cold Modelo I promised before the keg kicked.”
“Thanks Curley. The timing worked out well, since David was late.”
“Not another accident, I hope?”
“No accident, Curley, I entered into marriage by choice.”
“Uh oh. Maybe I shouldn’t ask.”
“Well, if you won’t Curley, I will. Trouble with the in-laws, David? I know your wife is a gem.”
“She is, Dan, but her mother was mined from a different vein.”
“Is she visiting?”
“No. She’s having computer problems.”
“And she called you? I’m sorry, I’m having a hard time understanding that choice.”
“Every other option she has costs money.”
“But they might actually be able to solve her problem. No offense intended.”
“Ah yes, ‘No offense intended’ — the catch phrase of people who are about to offend or who, as in your case, have recently offended.”
“I only meant that tech-support is hardly your forte.”
“No, but I’m the one who bought her he software subscription to manage her finances. I use it myself, and I’m trying to help he use it more effectively. You know, to improve her productivity.”
“Performance.”
“Excuse me?”
“Productivity is a corporate goal. Performance is a personal goal. She should want to improve her performance.”
“This from a guy who says I’m pedantic. What brought that on, Dan?”
“CLiP.”
“Clip what.”
“It’s an acronym for a training program I developed with a friend of mine back when I was working.”
“Training for you?”
“No, training that I provided to others — my coworkers to be specific.”
“And the acronym stood for…?”
“Continuous Learning – Improving Performance”
“I can see the coffee mug now.”
“You laugh, but we did have coffee mugs, and coasters, and a logo and lots of branded material for the presentations and our newsletter — CliP News.”
“I’m sure your coworkers lined up early and packed the room. How often did you do this?”
“I developed over sixty different programs, and I taught each one as many times as necessary to accommodate people who couldn’t attend the first showing due to travel.”
“I would have traveled just to miss the class.”
“Some were mandatory. Subjects like various security topics, using our company calendar, and effectively using email.”
“Riveting stuff. As my father used to say, ‘There probably wasn’t a dry seat in the house.’ Sorry.”
“That’s cute. You can believe I heard all the jokes.”
“Still. I bet some people wish they had paid attention.”
“I was told that by some people who retired before I did.”
“What was the hardest course you taught?”
“Hardest meaning difficult, or not being accepted by the class?
“I would assume those would be the same, but go ahead, bore me with both. No offense intended.”
“Touché. The most difficult course was the four-unit series on using Excel. Basic use, Common Formulas, Advanced Formulas and Modeling Business Activity.”
“And you’re telling me there was a subject less desirable than that?”
“Word Styles and Templates.”
“I hate styles.”
“I’d need a spreadsheet to track the number of times I heard that comment.”
“But you taught the course anyway.”
“We wanted to have a consistent look to everything that was published. Styles are the absolute best way to accomplish that.”
“If you say so. If my mother-in-law wants to write her memoir, I’ll have her give you a call.”
All five of my current books are now available in audio book form thanks to Amazon KDP’s Virtual Voice process. The voice is AI generated, but I can honestly say, it’s pretty darn good. The audio books are reasonably priced (all below $7 US) and, if you already own the Kindle version and want to add an audio version, you can do that for $1.99. There is a five-minute sample on the book page for each book. If you’re interested, click on any of the Dreamer’s Alliance book links below the image or on the link below for my latest book.
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