Club Scrap Community Blogs

It's so easy to get locked in to our own perception of reality.  No matter what the  subject matter is, we have a limited, and yes, even skewed view of what the reality surrounding that subject is.  That's understandable, because there is no way we can see things from every angle, or catch all those small nuances that could influence our perception.

The trick is to remain flexible, or to at least be open to making adjustments to our perceptions, views, opinions and impressions as new information comes in.

That's what happened to me last week.  

You may remember that I spent the week visiting my best pal Jac, and our friends at Club Scrap Headquarters and was privilaged to help out in some small way with preparations for the upcoming 10th Anniversary Cruise event.  Admittedly, my perception of what goes on there isn't totally uninformed, but even with that advantage, I feel the need to 'adjust' my perception of the folks at CSHQ and more importantly, adjust my expectations of them. 

Those folks basically work miracles.  I was astounded at all of the glitches, hitches, twists and turns that their operation faces in a day let alone the nearly week long time frame I was privy to the inner workings. They actually appear to run pretty smoothly, but things from outside the walls of CS are constantly throwing curve balls at them and they grab hold of the situation, whatever it is, take a few minutes to evaluate it and their possible options and then act.

And that's just with the normal monthly tasks.  As if that wasn't enough, they toss in things like the PSL and the need to create a whole new set of designs for that extra collection, and the Cruise and all of the designs and projects that go along with that.  And folks, they don't skimp, believe me. They design and review and tweak and review and adjust and review and review and review. and those goodies and such that we who have been to Retreats in the past are so familiar with?  There are not little elves somewhere putting all those things together.  Oh no, they are handmade by the folks at CS generally on their 'off' time after they finish their work day and at the expense of their time with their families.  I'm just blown away by the lengths they go to, to make these events so special for us, their members.  Way way beyond any other company I've ever been associated with.

So where is the adjustment being made? Well, I was amazed by their level of customer attention from the time I joined the club in early 2004.  But having seen what they do and how they do it first hand for a bit more extended time, I will be even more grateful for those "extras" they offer us throughout the year, because they don't have to do that,  and it adds huge amounts to their work load.  There aren't that many folks at HQ to shoulder the load of normal activities, let alone these extras.  If I'm ever heard (or read) to be whining, or complaining or anything even close to that, I hereby give Dinah permission to send those 'Pinky Swear' paper weevils to my house via Fed-Ex to remind me immediately that I should be appreciative of these friends who care enough about their members to give up their personal time for us.

To all of my friends at CSHQ, thank you.  Thank you for sharing a bit of your world with me last week.  For letting me help out and be a part of your special anniversary celebration and for making me feel like a part of the crew for the time I was there.  You bust your behinds to make this club a special part of our lives and I for one, appreciate that you do.