Reflections From a Country Girl

Ever think about why those television ads are so cute and creative?  Notice that ads are everywhere?

Advertisements are a big part of life.  You can say you are not affected all you want to.  There is simply no way you can get around them unless you totally ignore each one when they are on and refuse to look at them when they pop up on your computer screen or in magazines.

I am one of those that advertisements are wasted on.  I learned long ago that it was all about money.  I don’t ever look at pop ups unless I am trying quickly to get rid of them and I leave the room when a commercial comes on to “multitask.”  I rush to get dishes out of the dishwasher and put them away before the show comes back on.  I also use that time to fold clothes in the laundry room and often quickly fixing a drink during that minute or so.

In addition to that, I comparison shop like crazy at the stores and purposely avoid name brands because there are generics that are just as good and much less expensive.

That is not, however, the case with many of us.

Many of us, including our children, are mesmerized in front of the television watching sensual, emotional, humorous and often socially acceptable ads that promote bad habits – gripping us immediately and trying their best to make us believe their product is the best and most desirable.

It happens constantly and it is seizing our very souls.

As adults, we are supposed to be able to manage this responsibly.  The key word here is supposed.

Let me say here, that there is nothing wrong with making a wise choice when it comes to quality and dependability.  For instance, I learned long ago that there are carmakers that have better reputations for producing quality products than others.  I held out as long as I could when it came to buying American made cars.  My problem is, they stranded me on the side of the road one too many times and I felt my safety was in jeopardy.  When it was time to buy another car, I went with a foreign made car that has a longstanding record of safety and reliability.  Couldn’t help it.  I needed something I could depend on long term.  I haven’t been disappointed yet.

Media experts are savvy at making sure they create a culture and environment through ads. They are masters at making sure they take products and price them well, place them in a high profile area and promote them like crazy.  We are all exposed to it when we see a race car, a bus, a website. Even schools have displays that advertise items.  Those companies are pretty smart. They support school information while they “advertise” around the edges or at the bottom of the ad.

Did you know that advertisers even know where to place the wording on a picture or ad to get the most attention?

Yes, folks, media is BIG business.  There are ads specifically tailored to the more mature generation, the baby boomers, and the teenagers. Much of it is aimed right at our children.  After all, kids have more buying power that we do.   They are easy targets for marketers because of their lack of experience.  While we adults are spending our money on car payments, food, house expenses, etc, our children have lots of disposable income.

One of the participants at a recent seminar on media marketing asked if this problem wasn’t about something much deeper.  His question was answered well, but he was playing the devil’s advocate and doing a good job of it.

Quite frankly, I agree with him. In fact, this IS much more about what is going on with our society in general.

Bottom line is, our children follow our example as adults.  If they see their parents or grandparents grasping at the products that are highly advertised, they learn from them that this is what they should do as well.  If they see adults on the ads looking like they are having a good time, they like what they see.  They have no idea what the consequences of those behaviors might be.  Quite frankly, it is up to us to make sure they know the real picture.  Sometimes, adults don’t even know all the ramifications.

Look in your house and see what you have in there.  Is it the full of the best of everything?  Do you have the finest car, the biggest boat, the fastest computer, the largest house in the neighborhood?  Do you give children an allowance or do they work for it?   Do you wear the finest clothes and buy them the same?

It’s really all about marketing and what is important to you as parents and grandparents. If we model and teach responsible behavior, more than likely our children will be responsible individuals.  If we communicate responsibly about drinking, partying, smoking and live a good example for them, they will likely do the same. The key is communication.

Now this puts a great deal of pressure on each of us as role models.  But isn’t that what parenting and being a responsible adult is all about?  I mean, we did sign up for the job when we decided to have children.

Media marketing reminds me of the song “Stuck in the Middle with You.” It was written in the 1970’s when a blitz in marketing was just getting started.  The song talks about staring off with nothing and being proud you’ve accomplished a great deal on your own. Friends come looking for something from you…etc.  You get the picture.

“It talks about trying to make sense of it all but it makes no sense at all.” They continue singing about “keeping a smile on their face but they are losing control and there are clowns to the left of them, jokers to the right”…and they are stuck in the middle.”

Yes, we can get wrapped up in all this media hype real fast.  We can quickly believe we have to keep up with the Joneses when, really, it’s all about what we let the media convince us is important.

In the big scheme of things, it is fine to be in a modest house, ok to drive an older car, have less expensive clothing, and comparative shop for the best and most dependable items whether they are name brand or not.  It’s also wise of us to teach our children that media is just telling us what they want us to know to buy their product…they are not out there to be our friend and they don’t tell you everything you need to know about what they are trying to do.

My wish for you today is that you do not succumb to the high pressure of media and that you keep your focus on what is really important in life. You know, like health, peace, love, responsible behavior.  It might sound sort of corny, but these things can make for a more sensible and happy you and they are certainly things your children need to see you modeling.  Try it and see how much better the quality of your life can be and you’ll never feel “stuck in the middle.”

~ Joellen

There’s a cute country song – Good Directions – that Billy Currington sings these days. It’s about a country boy selling fresh turnip greens off the back of his truck as he crunches on a pork rind.

This girl, the prettiest one he has ever seen, comes along with a “Hollywood” license plate and asks directions to the interstate. He points in the direction she needs and tells her she should stop by the little store and ask Ms. Bell for some of her sweet tea before she gets back on the highway.

He gives her two choices once she gets to the store. Left goes to the interstate. Right brings her to that same place where he is selling greens.

He thinks he’s seeing things in the Georgia sun when he spots the “the woman of his dreams” coming right back there to him. 🙂

These days, if you are driving, you pray for good directions. I mean gas is way too expensive for getting lost.

More importantly, what do people do that drive an hour one way to work every day? Guess they don’t even want to think about driving around for fun.

I used to drive a long way to work when I was living in the country. It was a 45 minute through the swamp everyday. Now I drive less than three minutes to work.  On a pretty day, I could even walk there.

My father used to pack us all up in the car on Sunday afternoons when we were young and “taek us for a ride.” We loved going to the waterfalls nearby, driving around the curves and getting so close to the edge that it felt like we were on the verge of going over the falls.

We loved driving around as a family and seeing the local sites.

Then there were the times when I would drive to my favorite mountain town on a Sunday afternoon. The one and one half hour drive took me from the foothills of SC to the mountains of NC. I did that pretty regularly and sure did enjoy the ride straight up that mountain and around those frequent curves where you could see over the edge and way down in the valley.

Yesterday it was such a beautiful day that I seriously considered driving to the beach after work. After all, it was only two hours away and daylight savings time would have given me plenty of daytime once I got there to put my feet in the water and enjoy a drink at one of the restuarants overlooking the beach.

Nope. I didn’t go. Experiencing the prices at my favorite station as I gassed up made me think twice.

I still had going for a ride on my mind though. I called my mother up and asked if she wanted to go for a spin. We picked up a sandwich and drove to the lake, parked, enjoyed seeing all the boats gliding along the clear, calm water, and ate our supper. We then drove around a little more and ended up visiting friends who were sitting on their front porch as we drove by.

Yes, I guess gas is still affordable enough for a local leisurely ride.

My wish for you today is that you are able to manage these gas prices and that you take the time, amidst all essential driving, to enjoy a spin in your wheels and visit friends.

Life is too short not to “take a little ride” on a pretty day.

~ Joellen

This past weekend I had the best time. I was back in the saddle again with the cowboys. It was just a different group of them this time.

The threat of rain was quickly gone as the sprinkles subsided and the stars could be clearly seen as dark approached.

Flowertown Elementary School in Summerville, SC had a Cowboy Campout for staff, students and families. There were lots of folks who came for the activities of the evening. Many pitched family tents. It was great to see the more seasoned campers helping some new campers take their tents out of the boxes for their first time to camp.

The campfire started to take shape and, before too long, the flames were welcoming marshmallows and hotdogs on the open fire. Moms and Dads alike visited each other as tents began appearing around the campfire and back in the wooded area.

At the far end of the school there were tables with cowboy math games, three card draw, animal tracking, the FES livery stable, real branding, lassoing, cowboy checkers, panning for gems, mining for gold, and a cowboy store where students could buy various cowboy goods and cocoa. There was also storytelling and singing around the campfire.

After dark there was a cattle drive for about 45 minutes of walking around the local neighborhood. It reminded me of “Git Along Little Dogies” the old cowboy song where the cowpuncher rounds up the cattle after a hard day’s work of sending them down the trail a little closer to their destination.

JP Hara – wagon trail boss - a physical education teacher at Flowertown Elementary, began this effort several years ago to promote physical activity for students and their families. When JP is not a physical education teacher at the school he is a cowboy himself. You see, JP is a cowboy sharpshooter with a wide west re-enactment group -SASS – based near Charleston. Many of his cowboy and cowgirl friends from Charleston and Columbia areas helped out with the branding and other activities. They even came dressed in their cowboy gear.

The children had so much fun doing this. There were often both mothers and fathers accompanying their children. Some families brought their children’s friends because those parents had other commitments to attend to. There were grandparents who brought grandsons, and a mother who brought her daughter alone for the first time. Her husband was in Iraq on assignment and she was due to have another child in 1 ½ weeks.

Many campers – including the principal – stayed up most of the night just talking and visiting around the campfire. Staff visited with the families in quite a different atmosphere than the usual school day environment. It was a great way to get to know people in a more relaxed atmosphere.

My wish for you today is that you have a chance to experience a “Cowboy Campout” or some other type of school sponsored activity like this with your family at some point in your lifetime. Life is full of rich experiences like this if you just take advantage of them. Your family will grow closer because of people taking the time to get an event like this going and you’ll likely make a new friend or two.

Thanks, JP, for sharing your passion with the rest of us.

~ Joellen

I was driving back from Charleston early this morning.  I would say it was just the usual uneventful drive back after a very pleasant weekend.  That is, until something on the car started sounding different. 

Different really was not the word for it.  It was a shrilling sound of metal hitting metal when I put on my breaks and I knew I was in a little trouble. 

I slowed down as best I could and, when I needed to, I geared down to 2^nd and then 1^st just enough to slow myself down.  I had also put my cruise control on and used the button to slow the car down as well. In addition took the car out of overdrive several times for additional slowing down. 

While I’m sure most mechanics would tell you to get off the road with breaks like this, I had just enough spunk in me to try getting home and to my own trusty mechanics.  After all, there weren’t many drivers out that time of the morning and I thought it would be better to just drive to Columbia rather than wait and take my chances with a mechanic in Charleston I didn’t even know.

All in all, the trip went just fine.  I made sure I kept my distance from other vehicles and, since we adjusted to daylight savings time, I also watched extra careful for deer in my headlights.  Yes, it was almost two hours home and mostly in the dark or early dusk. 

I had some achy breaks that needed some tender loving care. 

Since I have the mechanics from heaven, I made sure I called on the cell as soon as they opened to see if they could fit me in.  Thank goodness they were able to.

I’ll go pick up my car in a bit with those new breaks.  I think my car may ride a bit more safely now. It will probably cost me a pretty penny, but at least I didn’t wind up in the back fender of someone. I do know this, when you don’t ride with the metal hitting metal, you likely don’t have to replace rotors.  In my case, I did find out I wouldn’t have to.

While I don’t suggest you do this if your breaks give out, you may want to consider that strategy for emergencies.  I suspect you could also try your emergency breaks as well.

My wish for you today is that you never lose you breaks.  If you do, I hope you are in a place where you don’t run into anyone or anything and that you remember these strategies I tried as a possibility.  Considering all your resources can help out in times like these.

Happy and safe driving!

~ Joellen

It’s no surprise that we’re getting older every day.

At this stage in my life, I’m actually glad to have every day I do.

It’s when someone from your past comes up to you and says, “Ms. Cook, do you remember me? I was in your group of middle school students at Great Falls!” that reality sets in that you’ve gotten older.

That happened to me last night. I was doing a book signing at a librarian’s conference and this young lady comes up and says that. Turns out she is a school media specialist.

I sat there counting back to remember how many years ago that was….23 to be exact. My second son was about to be born. I was a middle school counselor and we were getting ready to move to a new SC town where my minister husband was appointed.

I listened to her talk to her friends about me briefly. It was AMAZING she even remembered me and I knew I had changed a good bit since then. She was gracious in her comments.

One touching thing I did appreciate was that she took the time to speak and remembered me. We talked about a few folks we remembered there and she was on her way before I knew it.

When you work in the education field students come up to you all the time.

Yes, it is very nice to see students who you cared about in your work grow and mature into responsible and caring adults.

You know, it’s not so bad to get old after all.

My wish for you today is that you cherish those moments as you age. Be thankful that anyone can remember what positive things you did with them as they grew into young adults…and celebrate their successes whenever you can. Making a difference in a young persons’ life is one of the most important things you’ll ever do.

~ Joellen