Tag: Happiness

Posted in Five Friday Happy Bringers

Five Friday Happy Bringers (9/14/12)

Posted on by Neal Saye

Here are five of my happiness providers this week:

1. This little fellow resting in the curve of my Elephant Ear stems. I love how he embraces snugness.

2. Getting to know my new SCAD students from Taiwan, Colombia, India, China, South Korea, Panama, Vietnam, Denmark, Guatemala, and Puerto Rico.

3. Every now and then, quieting down, closing my eyes and enjoying the nourishment of stillness.

4. This scene from Breakfast at Tiffany’s when Audrey Hepburn sings “Moon River.”

“Moon River” is a Savannah standard, since local boy-who-went-famous Johnny Mercer penned the Academy Award-winning song. And btw I cross Savannah’s Moon River whenever I head out to Skidaway Island to visit my older daughter and family.

5. Next steps in life.

So those are a few of my bringers of happiness. What about you? What makes you joyful on this beautiful September Friday?

Posted in College Teaching, Humor, Savannah Joy

SCAD-ing Outta Retirement

Posted on by Neal Saye

BFF’s–Blog Follower Friends (or anyone at any restaurant where I’ve eaten for the past two and a half months; or at the Post Office; or at Savannah’s coffee shops) know that on June 21, I retired from Georgia Southern University after teaching English there for twenty-four years.  [First retirement post.  Second retirement post.  My final GSU Walking Tour.]  And I had such a fun retiring summer!  Sitting in my backyard, visiting a vineyard, embracing the Savannah Asian Festival, getting put in jail, exploring a fort, going to a Savannah Sand Gnats game, Tybee Island partying, etc.

But then summer started to come to an end, and (as all teachers know) the REAL new year started–the Academic Year.  I grew a bit restless.  And thought about getting a part-time job to keep me off the streets and such, but neither of my Top Five Prospective Second Careers panned out:

1.  Tug Boat Operator.

2.  Little Caesars Sign Dancer.  I became interested in this one because the LCSDers at the corner of Montgomery Cross and Waters here in Savannah always seem SO enthusiastic.  So I researched the job a little.  Here’s the description and qualifications from the Little Caesars website:

“Get paid to dance and have FUN!  Part-time Sign Dancer job available!  Are you an outgoing energetic individual looking for work? Are you someone who can attract attention? Do you like having fun at work and staying positive?”  So far, so good.  Work SHOULD be fun!  And I write a happiness blog!  This job seemed right up my alley.

“If so, this is the job for you! We are looking for a part-time Sign Dancer who can hold a sign and have fun at the same time. We are not just looking for your average sign holder. We are looking for someone who can dance with a sign and attract attention.”  Again, surely I could HOLD a sign and have fun in a non-average way.

Requirements:

  • You must be very ENERGETIC and get people’s ATTENTION!!!
  • You must be in decent health. You will be outside.
  • You must be able to wave at passing cars while on duty.  I’m friendly!
  • You must be able to stand the entire shift.  I’m a teacher.  I stand all the time!
  • You must have reliable transportation and arrive on time.
  • You must be able to pass a drug test.  What about Allegra or Tums?
  • You must be at least 18 years old.  I’m SO over 18!  This job is MINE, I thought!

But alas, after hours practicing with a broom in the backyard, I came to find out that Little Caesars wants sign dancers who are not quite so OVER 18.

3.  Quality Control Praline Taster at River Street Sweets.  (Pure pralines, NOT turtles!)  Jen, can you HELP ME OUT HERE??!!

4.  Famous Italian singer. 

5.  Part-time CEO of Apple.  Afterall, I HAVE read the Steve Jobs biography, I have an iPhone, and I realize that Jobs and I have a whole lot in common, well except for the LSD, and the no-deoderant issue, and the need for absolute control (okay, maybe we have that one a little bit in common).

Anyway, recently I started seeing all those pencils and notebooks and protractors (is there really such a need for those things nowadays?) and composition books (does anybody else out there like to smell, really smell, composition books?) at just about every store I entered.  And, still frustrated and pouting with hurt feelings over the Little Caesars debacle, I decided to go to Craig’s List to see what kind of jobs were available.  Bad idea.  I won’t even begin to tell you what kinds of “job opportunities” I saw there.  So after an hour and a half, I left that site.

Then, after Googling “part-time job” + “$250,000 per year” + “low-to-no work requirement” and only getting hits for “U.S. Vice President” and “Ostrich Feather Fanner for the Kardashians,” I got down to business and Googled “part-time job” + “Savannah” + “education,” and an adjunct position posting at SCAD came up.  SCAD is the Savannah College of Art and Design, an incredibly beautiful and innovative art school scattered primarily throughout the historic district of my city.  Thrilled, I looked into the requirements, and soon after was asked to come do a teaching demonstration.

Initially terrified that I COULD NOT TEACH ART (well, actually I can do some cool little foam-board pictures with macaroni, dried pinto beans, glitter and Elmer’s Glue), I stopped hyperventilating and realized I would be teaching composition (my old stomping ground).  The demo and subsequent interview process went well, and they offered me the job!  (I figure I can work in the macaroni pics eventually.)

Doing a tad of research about SCAD faculty, I discovered on the college website that SCAD faculty include:

  • Emmy® Award winners
  • Academy Award® winners
  • Fulbright scholars
  • Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize winner
  • National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship recipient
  • British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award nominee
  • LEED-accredited professionals
  • U.S. patent holders
  • Scholars published in academic journals
  • Best-selling authors
  • AIGA Award winners
  • Character animators for Beowulf, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and The Chronicles of Narnia
  • Illustrators for The New Yorker, Time, Disney and NASA
  • Visual effects artists for Titanic and Jurassic Park
  • Sequential artists for Dark Horse, DC Comics, Marvel, Cartoon Network and Warner Bros.
  • Producer of Fried Green Tomatoes and The Breakfast Club
  • Writer for The Cosby Show and As the World Turns
  • Script Supervisor for Driving Miss Daisy

WOW!

I felt a bit overwhelmed.  But then I checked back a while later, and lo and behold, something about Yours Truly was added!

  • Finalist, Eighth Grade Spelling Bee  (perhaps would have gone further but spelled “Georgia” as “Jeorgia” due to nerves)

*****************************************************************************************************************

I am thrilled, THRILLED to be a part of the SCAD faculty on a part-time basis.  I will be teaching international students English composition.  I’m looking forward to this next phase of my teaching career and life.

Here’s the building where I teach:

It used to be the old Savannah jail.

I put retirement in jail.

Later.

Posted in JoyInciters

JoyInciter # 4 — The Three Candles

Posted on by Neal Saye

Today I am sharing with you JoyInciter #4.  (Actually I briefly mentioned this strategy when I guest blogged on David’s terrific London-based 5thingstodotoday site recently.)

In my first post about JoyInciters, I defined them as a collection of simple practices or strategies which I use regularly to increase the level of happiness and joy in my life.  The first JoyInciter–the Thanksgiving Book (or Gratitude Journal), the second one–the Walking Into strategy, and the third–the Happiness Box,  are all techniques to make us more joyful in our day-to-day lives.

I love JoyInciter #4 — The Three Candles, because of its sensory simplicity yet powerful lesson.  Find three candles (any size or type will do).  Choose a quiet place where you can be comfortable and preferably alone.  Light your three candles.  Stare at them for a few seconds.  See the first candle as representing your past, the second your present, and the third your future.

Now move your awareness to the first candle.  The past.  Admit that you cannot really live in the past, it’s over, and regret is both painful and a useless waste of mental energy.  Living in the past keeps us out of healthy BALANCE mentally and even physically.  Bless the past with love as best you can … and let it go, as you blow the first candle out.  Release.

Now look at that third candle.  The future.  Realize you cannot reside in the future; it’s not here yet.  Worry about the future (like past-oriented regret) costs us our joyful mental health because we are trying to BE in a place where we never CAN be–the future.  Try saying this, “All will be well.  I will be well” and blow out candle #3.

Look at the second candle glowing in its oneness, its all-there-isness, its currentness, its presentness.  It’s your Now.  Think about this truth for a moment: the ONLY time any one of us ever really has is RIGHT NOW.  Everything is NOW.  When all is said and done, NOW is all there  is.  Keep this candle glowing for a few moments as you contemplate on a handful of positive aspects of your Now.

EnJoy JoyInciter #4 — The Three Candles.

Posted in Humor

The Revelation of Riboclavin (And a Dog Stealing Cabbage) (You Know You Have to Read This Post)

Posted on by Neal Saye

As faithful blog followers know, I have a buddy “named” Riboclavin who is quite a character.  (And of course we all know his name isn’t REALLY Riboclavin, come on, but as I said in a post from way back, “I’m just not very good at giving people fake names if they don’t want their real names ‘published’ on my blog because, heaven forbid, the ‘tens’ of people who follow my blog might see their name and … and … idk.”)  Anyway, here he is, rocking.  And even though that dualistic rocking chair looks über huge, Riboclavin looks comfortable and relaxed.  And, really,  isn’t that what counts?

[By the way (true story), on my 16th birthday, I received a rocking chair from my parents as my main gift.]  [Therapy has helped.  But only so much.]

Ribo loves two things in life (maybe more than two, but right now only these couple come to mind).  One, he LOVES his dog MisterDillHarris.

Here’s MisterDillHarris with a big ole bone:

Two, he LOVES (or maybe hates, I’m not sure) his obsession with health, or actually his perceived lack of health.  The guy can be standing in line at the movies to see, for example, Miley Cyrus in The Last Song, and all of a sudden he HAS to take his temperature.  Don’t believe me?  Well, here he is taking his temp.

And, look, here he is taking his dog’s temperature:

(For me, pretend this is normal.  Thanks.)

So anyway, recently Riboclavin texted me a video link, and as usual, made NO attempt to introduce or explain the link.  You can surely understand by now my trepidation and why I came two hairs close to deleting the text and pretending I never received it (as I do with any unwanted or ill-timed text, email, voicemail, regular mail, fax, postcard, Hallmark card, smoke signal, etc.).  Afterall, his most recent link took me to a medical site where a disgusting surgical procedure was in full “operation,” causing me to gasp and snort and vow to never speak to Riboclavin again.  But for some reason I decided, even with the high risk,  to open the link.  And I was pleasantly surprised!  (If you’re near wood, please knock on it for me.)

Here’s the video, entitled “Dog Steals Cabbage.”

Now isn’t that cute … and happiness-worthy?  Please tell Riboclavin thanks, and wish him good health.

Posted in Breaking News

The Twins! The Twins! They’ve Arrived! They’ve Arrived!

Posted on by Neal Saye

Last night at 9:34 and 9:35 Younger Daughter Emily finally gave birth to the much-anticipated TWINS!

Welcome, Welcome. Sweet Little Ones!

Mathew Anthony Olliff met the world first, weighing in at 6.1 pounds and measuring 19 inches.

Madison Noel Olliff yelled hello one minute later, tipping the scales at 4.9 pounds and lining up at 17.5 inches.

Don’t they just look so very intelligent?

We have things to do:

And places to go:

So look out, world!

And look! I’ve already won an award:

(Oh, by the way, Mom Emily and Dad Travis are doing well.)

[More later (much, much more, I’m sure).]

Posted in Encouragement

“You Is” — I’m Standing in Your Balcony

Posted on by Neal Saye

To Encourage Sincerely perhaps ranks at the top of gifts we can give one to another.  I will never forget the first time my daughter Amy and I ran, with tens of thousands of other runners, the annual July 4th 10K Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta.  (Perhaps “ran” is much too dynamic a word to describe what I did during those 6.2 miles.)  At each mile marker, and actually various places in-between, folks would appear in my peripheral vision with cups of cold water in outstretched hands, yelling phrases such as, “Keep it up, #4932, you can do it!” and “Just look at you running so fast!”  I would turn a corner or reach a hilltop and hear blaring cheerily from loudspeakers the theme song from “Chariots of Fire” or “Rocky.”  Such encouragement made me feel like an actual runner.

In a post from way back, I introduced the concept of Balcony People:  “Balcony people are those folks in your life who encourage you, lift you up, give of themselves to you in some way.  They make you feel valuable and important.  They climb the steps up into your balcony, lean over the railing, gaze back down at you as you struggle through life and yell, ‘You can make it!  Keep going!'”

In another post, Balcony People-Part Two, I introduced five guiding principles of Balcony People:

“1.  Balcony People are willing to take risks.  Because when we reach outside of ourselves to help or encourage someone else, we take the chance of being rejected, laughed at, embarrassed, or even thought of as a little weird.  ‘Old Man Saye, why do you keep telling me my yellow dress is just so very pretty?!  Please back away me!'”

2.  BP realize that what you reap, you sow.  Staying in balconies makes you happier and healthier.  Crouching in dank basements is unhealthy.

3.  BP give to give, not to get.  Because giving away good to others is simply the right thing to do.

4.  BP look for the good in others.  They realize the truth of the statement that we usually find what we’re looking for.

5.  BP express encouragement sincerely.  They don’t flatter or lie.  Okay, maybe except when I couldn’t think of anything good to say about one student’s essay, and all I could come up with was, ‘Cool font.'”

I know I have mentioned on the blog before that Kathryn Stockett’s The Help stands as one of the best novels I have read in the past few years.  I loved the story of black maids in the 1960’s south so much that I used it in several composition classes at Georgia Southern.  The book went over amazingly well, with many students telling me that they loved the book and would be passing it along to friends and family to read (and also telling me, disturbingly, that the book was the first one they had ever actually ever gotten all the way through).  The book ENCOURAGES the voiceless to realize that yes, they too have voices.

In the twenty-second scene below from the movie version of The Help, Aibilene explains to her young charge exactly what the girl is, and what she needs to believe about herself.  Oh, how our world would be beautifully improved if we would all see each other the way Aibilene sees Mae Mobley.

*******************************************************************

I challenge you to find someone today, tomorrow.  Encourage.  Lift up.  See the good.  Get in someone’s balcony.

Posted in Delicious Joy, Where Happiness Finds You

Repost — September Oaks: A Midsummer Afternoon at a South Carolina Lowcountry Vineyard

Posted on by Neal Saye

It seems that some of the pictures from yesterday’s vineyard posting did not show up!  Uh oh.  So being the tech-savvy blogger that I am, I’m reposting them all just for you, faithful blogosphere residents.  Thanks. 

Yesterday afternoon I ventured off the too-beaten trail, heading away from hometown Savannah across the Talmadge Memorial Bridge on US 17 into the South Carolina Low Country.  My destination: September Oaks Vineyards, a small but incredibly beautiful boutique winery hidden in the midst of towering, ancient live oak trees, just outside Ridgeland, SC.  September Oaks welcomes visitors along a magical shaded drive, reminiscent of an antebellum plantation approach.  I’m 99% sure that the Spanish moss tentacles waved a Southern welcome especially for me as I drove onto the property.  (And I hadn’t even tasted any wine yet.)

Before meeting a soul, I did a little exploration of the grounds.

The muscadine vines looked in excellent health, grapes drooping heavily and bountifully in the July heat.

I was transported back …

… quite a few years (don’t ask!) to my North Georgia upbringing in Ball Ground near the foothills of the Appalachian Trail, and my father, “Tub,” making muscadine jelly from the grapes we picked along area streams.  I closed my eyes, and Dad stood before me in our little blue-curtained kitchen as he measured grapes, sugar and Sure Gel to create the heavenly treat.  I blinked and there was my mom, “Neever,” pulling hot golden buttermilk biscuits from the oven.  My biscuit, halved and steaming, centered on green Corelle.  The butter melting and glistening.  The minutes-new, still warm jelly spread.  Little Neal smiling in edible joy.

Okay, for goodness sake, let’s get back to the winery tour!  I thought I rested secure in my world famous blogger stature until I stood next to this tree.  It cut me down to size.

Finally I saw the sign to the wine tasting, so started to mosey over that way.

Got sidetracked.

Find Neal:

The rustically beautiful tasting room.

And here’s Nikki, the wine tasting hostess/teacher.  (She’s also an English teacher, so a kindred spirit.)

I know next to nothing about wine, so the experience was fascinating.  According to their website, September Oak’s “goal is to create  unique and high quality wines, specializing in wines made from muscadine grapes (vitis rotundifolia). We’ll also be developing a variety of wines from different vinefera grapes as well as blending the merlot and muscadine grapes” (SOV Website).  The tasting included seven wines: a Chardonnay, SOV Family White (made from the muscadine grapes you saw earlier, and whose aroma reminded me of my dad’s muscadine jelly), White Merlot, Kiwi Gold (yes, with locally grown kiwi), Crescent Moon, SOV Lenoir (“a dry red that brings history home with the Lenior grape that originated in the Low Country in the 1700’s”), and SOV Family Red.  Some of these wines have already won prizes.  Congrats!

[Do you KNOW that at a wine tasting you actually DRINK the wine?!  Glass after glass.  Like SEVEN glasses.  Isn’t wine alcoholic?]

Here’s another wine-taster, Damon from Hilton Head.  (I asked him for a recommendation for a great HH restaurant, and he immediately said, “The Sage Room, on the south end.  Tell them I sent you.”  So I plan to, soon.  I’ll keep you posted.)  Damon knew SO MUCH about wine that I felt like one of the Kardashians trying to talk to Einstein.

I mean, he asked questions about grape growth patterns and parent vines and bouquets.  The foremost, burning question on my mind was, “Yall think I shoud buy this?  It’s so cool!”

It was my lucky day …

… because after the tasting, I ventured behind these doors (Wizard of Oz-ishly) and met the September Oaks owner Grady Woods (cool and appropriate last name, don’t you think?) and his polite son Kent, as they were working.

Grady showed us some of the equipment and explained about plans for expansion of the winery.

I stood behind a barrel and made the announcement that maybe I would just start up a winery/vineyard.  (As some of you know, I have frustratingly abandoned my desire to be a tugboat operator.)  I thought that perhaps I could call my winery something like NealNowReallyEnJoysWineTastings.  But I got no respect at all from Nikki and Damon:

But I got even by confiscating a big ole barrel of wine.  “I gotta load this by myself?!”

What a great Low Country afternoon.  I will definitely go back one of these days.  You go with me!

Now which way is Savannah?

See you next time.