Friday, December 5, 2008

Coffee in Winter

     Today's post comes to you from the Grand Traverse Pie Company in Muskegon, MI. I'm sitting on a stool looking out one of their wall-sized windows, watching the snow fall. Today's snow is the light and fluffy variety. It's the kind that gently falls to the earth, unlike the sleet that crashes down as quickly as possible. :)

     Sleet comes down the way that I ski. I like to downhill ski. Once I took lessons on how to ski, and it turns out there is more to it than just pointing the skis down the hill and staying on your feet. You have to learn how to move back and forth, and stay in control. Yet, to this day I still prefer to get to the top of the hill, point the tips straight down the hill and move as quickly as possible to the bottom of the slope.

     I love the speed of downhill skiing. In fact, I'm a pretty big fan of speed in general. I think it would be awesome to travel somewhere with no speed limits just to see how fast my car can go and what it feels like. Darn speed limits.

     The snow is letting up now. The store is fairly busy. The coffee is still good - getting a little colder though.

     Trying to find the motivation to get to work. I like what I do, but it doesn't get me out of bed in the morning. I desire to be one of those people who is passionate about their work. I don't know if that requires a change in me or a change in my work. I'm certainly passionate about some things. I'm becoming more passionate about communicating. I work for a "Communications" company, but honestly, they are not the best at communicating in the sense that I'm passionate about.


     I'm passionate about quality video. I'm passionate about training people. I've gotten to train people before, and I think my passion shows through, and makes me a better teacher. See, I'm kinda addicted to information. When I'm assigned something new, I want to learn everything I can about it. The thorough knowledge I gain puts me in a position to help people. I help people understand the thing I'm good at. It could be a product, or service, or compay, or idea.
 
     Here's an example: last night our dryer broke. Actually, I suppose you could say I broke the dryer. I was cleaning the inside of it after a red pen found its un-timely demise in the last load of laundry. I was turning the drum by hand and something snapped inside. Now, I like to fix things like that myself. They have a system, and I believe that the average consumer should be able to understand and fix their own appliances.

     Long story short, I found the problem - the belt had slipped of the motor. BUT there is a piece laying in the bottom that is not attached to anything. I don't immediately know where it goes and I can't figure it out. I'll look up a manual online today to figure it out and get it fixed. But I don't just stop at fixing the problem. My mind is constantly absorbing extra information while the dryer is apart. I'm looking at the felt the drum rides on. I'm noticing the setup and positioning of the heating element. I noted how many btu's the gas burner was, and how it was shielded. I even looked at the extra holes in the chassis - how one body could be used for several models by reconfiguring where the panels are bolted.

     Some of this information will come in handy later and some will not. I take it all in because I enjoy it though. I want to be able to understand and visualize it when a friend has a question with their dryer. I'm not going to hang a dryer repair sign outside my house, but it's handy to know. It's my nature.

     Not sure if there is a point to all of this :) Maybe it will encourage you to evaluate what you are passionate about. Maybe it just helps you to get a better idea of what makes me tick (scary thought) ;). Maybe it's just the ramblings of a young man in a coffee shop on a winter's day.

     It's snowing again. Time to warm up the coffee. Then, my journey begins.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Matt,
That pie shop is as good a place as any to spend a snowstorm in. I prefer cross-country skiing and there's a good place to do it in the park which has the luge. Since you say you like to instruct people, I wonder if you could tell me if there is a way to answer a comment right in the comment section of the blog. I've seen it on other blogs but can't find how to do it. Thanks.

Matt Tennison said...

Hi Kay!
I always just comment on my own blog post to respond to comments. So I just pull up the actual post, and then post a comment. Hopefully that helps! :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Matt. I think I get it. Have a great Christmas.