Captain Planet Saver !!!

 

                                                                                       Edition 381 Monday 29/05/17

 

Hi,I am fascinated by the change of seasons no matter what the time of year however the Autumn colours are hard to beat.The rich tapestry of vibrant colours on the trees through out the City is a site to behold.We spent time at a couple of parks over the weekend running and laughing knee deep in a thick shag pile of Autumn leaves, simple stuff but priceless fun!

Our first ‘hint of Winter’ excuse to crank up the log fire last week also a real highlight!

Fletcher reckons two 5 year old birthday parties and three games of Soccer in one day is a big ask but someone has to do it so why not him….right.He also reckons he was in far better shape than Mum and Dad once the dust settled on that particularly social Saturday!

Something funny happened after driving around all week wondering what the beeping noise and flashing dash light was??So Christine my non mechanical wife jumps in the car for 5 seconds before simply identifying that it was related to a sensor button being left on drrr.

Thanks for all your kind feedback re Oscar last week, we all appreciated it greatly during what has been a sad time for us.Have a great week and a relaxing Queens Birthday weekend with family and friends…………….Cheers Jonesey!!

 

Kate Henderson reckons its no fun not fighting for a prime fireside spot anymore!

 

“Passion is oxygen of the soul”. Bill Butler

 

I am thankful I grew up in a household where nothing was wasted and things were seldom thrown away but stuff others threw away was often saved and hoarded by us!

My Dad would often be heard to say”That will come in handy for something one day”.

Some work on the theory’ that day’ will never come and therefore regularly declutter!

So I was pleased to hear that an aluminium window my Dad had saved for over 20 years had its day come recently and was used on a project to transform and lighten a room!

It restored the horder faith in me and gave my Father a great “I told you so ‘ moment of satisfaction to finally close the ‘reuse’ R of the three R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)!!

Crikey no wonder I am mad about saving the planet in my Keep New Zealand Beautiful tee shirt and horder genes!!

So in character I received a mayday call from my ship salvage contacts last week.

There was another kauri launch washed up on the shores of Great Barrier Island , subsequently wrtten off by the insurance company and destined for the landfill!!!

Phone booths are hard to come by these days so I got changed into my cape and mask in the car and swung into rescue mode!!

Seems the launch has form in fact she is a former grand lady of the Gulf having been built in 1924 no less , so 93 years young!

How could anyone call time on such a magnificent example of wooden boatbuilding from a famous bygone era…….no way……….not on my watch.

After a number of phone calls and some empassioned negotaiation I was able to divert her from landfill albeit for another month at least.

So if you know anyone interested in investing in saving and restoring this once magnificent old Lady of the Waitemata then let me know.

In the meantime,yet again, I get to make a difference !!!!Wow that makes me happy!!! J

 

 

“Be in love with your life every minute of it”. Jack Keronae

Oscar Henderson R.I.P

                                                                                    Edition 380 Monday 22/05/17

 

Hi,if ever there was a dog that deserved to speak it was Oscar Henderson.That dog was so intelligent he knew exactly what we were saying and would have loved to have added his 5 cents worth. He even worked out our code words for different stuff we didn’t want him to know like when we were planning dog walks and when dogs were or were not coming on outings or trips!He used to look at us so intensely and always cock his head knowingly…I am sure he had an opinion on everything if the way he looked at us was any indication J

We were devastated this week to lose our dear Oscar as he slipped away peacefully at home after a tough time recently with various ailments. He was as close to human as it gets and whilst he and I had a bit of a love hate relationship at times we always licked and made up!

Fletcher reckons whilst his head gash and emergency dash (that was clever eh) at Daycare this week was a bit of drama it pales to insignificance with the loss of his best friend Oscar!!Harry Jones was a fluffy favourite but his Okkar was a super hero!

Something funny Oscar always did was sleep upside down with his feet in the air.He was the ultimate picture of satisfied canine relaxation and I reckon he knew it looked hilarious.

Crikey a week like the past one makes you realise yet again nothing is more important than family (pets totally included)take good care of yours…………….Cheers Jonesey!!

 

Kate Henderson reckons life will never be the same without her big boys!!!

 

“You cant put a limit on anything.The more you dream the farther you go”. Michael Phelps

 

Interesting thing happened the other day….

Fletcher was promoted up a swimming class which we were all thrilled about.

So we turn up for the first new class and things are ramped up significantly.

There is a new air of expectation that puplis in this class have attained an acceptable standard of both skill and behavioiur.

Fletcher struggled with the new intensity level afterall nothing can prepare you for going up a level until you are actually there doing it….or not.

He looked longingly at me I looked nervously at him….yes we were on the verge on the edge between this is too hard or harden up?

There were tears as reality sank in, time to toughen up if you want to swim with the big boys I guess. To our nearly five year olds credit he chose to feel the fear and do it anyway!

I found this interesting because what Fletcher experienced was something that we can either choose to happen to us in our lives too or not……how so?

Well once we are adults we get to choose whether to extend and challenge ourselves to learn or reach higher levels or to get comfortable in neutral just going through the motions.

Just like Fletcher we teeter on the edge of ‘too hard’ or ‘why bother’ when if we make the effort then we get better and get to the next level or achieve more success.

After Fletcher made the decision to push through the pain, shock and surprise barrier both he and I were amazed at the transformation and his improvement.

It went so well he didn’t want to get out of the pool afterwards!! I was proud and inspired.

I thought if my son can make the effort then so too must I so instead of being complacent or just cruising this week I am going to look for new challenges…why don’t you join me J

 

“Fearlessness is extending ourselves beyond our limited view”.Chogyam Trungpa

High Expectations

 

 

                                                                                       Edition 379 Monday 15/05/17

 

 

Hi,my time driving a plain car is coming to an end and as far as I am concerned it cant come soon enough!Since I havent been driving a sign written car all my bad old habits have returned and surprizingly I find myself not liking it at all! Its hard being anonomous and thinking you can drive any way you please. I have decided that having a distinctively noticeable and traceable car is the best thing that could have happened to me!

Fletcher reckons it was only a matter of time before his goal scoring efforts were rewarded with the Norwest Falcons Player of the Day trophy.In an emmotionally charged acceptance speech he thanked his Mother for her unconditional love and his Father for his unbelieveably  high expectations! It was particularly motivational to have big brother Matt and his partner Aleisha in attendance swelling the Jones cheerleading squad to four!!!

Something funny about parents with high expectations is their behaviour can often be harder to manage than an entire team of 4-5 year olds!.......hmmmm

Ok I admit  sulking because my son felt ‘too tired’ to participate wasn’t a good look however he miraculously recovered to be player of the day!....so maybe I sort of contributed? J L

It was a Happy Mothers Day at 48 with plenty of creative home made presents and a special visit for a lazy lunch in the West Coast sun with Nana and Poppa. We are so lucky we can still spend time with the extra special people in our lives…long may it continue.

I hope you were able to take time out to pay tribute to your Mum too….Cheers Jonesey

The Hendersons reckon high expectations spoil many a good dogs day!!

 

 

“High expectations are the key to everything”. Sam Walton (founder Wal Mart)

 

Staying on the ‘high expectations theme I wanted to ponder the pros and cons?

We talk about the need to be focused and to have written goals and objectives.

This is well and good but are we in danger of placing too higher expectations on ourselves or others in our business and personal lives?

I talked above about my expectations for Fletcher at soccer and swimming but have I lost sight of the fact this may be unfair given he isnt even five years old?

Maybe,but is it too much to expect a level of commitment regardless of age?...hmmm.

Like with Fletcher I have high personal expectations as a sales professional which I find can have a positive and a negative effect on my business and sales success.

It certainly assists me to be motivated to get out of bed in the morning and target the best prospects to provide the required sales revenue.

It can also however have a negative effect as I get over enthusiastic pursuing deals from slow decision makers or procrastinators and end up pushing too hard.

The interesting thing about this is when I back off the pressure and don’t get as anxious about outstanding proposals and quotes they have a knack of coming to fruition?!!

So is it ok to have high expectations?

Yes it is however you need to make allowances when they are needed so as not too place too much pressure on yourself or others.

In summary….high expectations are better than no expectations.

It is essential to learn from our failures and to modify behaviours to suit each situation!

 

“Expectation is the root of all heartache”. William Shakespeare