Tony Brewer

Thanks to Athena Goode for the guest post

One of the things that I find very confusing is trying to figure out what is appropriate to wear at the office. I have a lot of female coworkers that dress like they’re trying to flaunt everything they’ve got! I’m not really sure who to blame for this problem – whether it is the fashion industry, the entertainment industry, bad parenting, or inadequate education within the public school system.

I think part of the problem may be that the fashion industry is making it impossible to even purchase clothes for women that don’t require some form of Seamless shape wear because everything you can buy seems to be skintight. Part of the problem is the entertainment media - more people are watching television programs that are basically infomercials about which is the best body shaper to wear under skin tight clothes. I think that is testament to that is the fact that I have to resort to buying a Bra and Cami with cleavage cover if I want to dress modestly for work.

I think that parents are also largely to blame because so many of them are allowing their young children to go to school dressed as if they are young adults getting ready to go nightclubbing; out on the prowl looking for more than they can handle.  I also think that schools should crack down on their dress codes and include classes about appropriate clothing to wear to work before kids even reached the tenth grade.

I have to wonder how some of these people driving on our roads ever got a driver’s license in the first place? I mean, some people actually NEED signs like these to keep them on track. They could easily post these signs at the state borders to inform people of the rules of the road.

My parents sent me to public school and I feel that I did get a pretty good education. I don’t regret anything from my school days other than the fact that some of the required classes were boring and I would sit in class wondering why on earth did a high school student need to know about some of this stuff. But the way children are taught in public school and the way we are taught as adults is a world of difference. For example, an adult taking a medical teaching course is going to learn from a variety of teaching materials, not from a teacher giving a lecture and writing on the blackboard in front of 30 other children.

There is an amazing difference in the way information is presented to adults, who are there to learn this material because they need to learn and they have the desire to learn it. Adults are usually given a variety of materials, such as textbooks, handouts, graphics, models and samples to have a hands on experience and real world relevancy. Can you imagine taking a medical management course without ever having been inside a doctor’s office? Adults get the benefit of relating the coursework to real life experiences.

A friend of mine shared some insight with me on how adults are evaluated, as well. Students of a consultant interview course actually practice their interviews and have the sessions videotaped. Their interviews are then evaluated by professionals and the student gets feedback on areas that need improvement. That is such an effective way to make sure someone has learned what they need, as compared to a standardized exam with multiple choice questions.

I can remember when someone new moved into town a Welcome Wagon lady would go to the new neighbor’s house with a basket full of goodies and local information to share with the new neighbor. I think it really helped the new neighbor feel welcomed!

But now it has been reduced to the newcomer calling Welcome Wagon and letting them know they are new in town and all they get is a coupon book. I think that is a doggone shame – there is no warm, personal touch. And the newcomer isn’t felt welcome at all!

But I do have to say that I can understand why a woman would not feel safe these days approaching new people. There are a lot of whack jobs out there these days. I certainly wouldn’t want my wife out there alone. So I think that they should bring back the Welcome Wagon but send them out in teams, since there is safety in numbers.

It is true, you are never too old to learn. I have to be honest I had no idea that there was such as thing as an order fulfillment or a product fulfillment industry and probably wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t been spending some time cruising around online for a bit last night before turning in. I ran across a site for a company, AMS fulfillment, where I learned that there is indeed a need for this type of service.

I would have spent more time reading about it but the wife started in on me about getting prepared for the up and comming hurricane threat that has everyone so freaked out. So I had to sign off and run around the house gathering up all the things that are required for a scare like this one. After assuring her that we had it all covered we settled down in front of the TV for a bit, watching The Weather Channel to see how things are progressing. It always freaks me out that there are so many people that refuse to evacuate at a time like this, it just doesn’t make any sense to me. As I stated – you are never too old to learn, so I wish that this strong willed folks would eventually learn and certainly not the hard way.

Looks like we are in for a long weekend folks.