http://www.omaha.com/article/20090806/ENTERTAINMENT/708069896
I was recruited recently to contribute to this column for the Omaha World-Herald. Click above to read the entire article. She placed me in Key West, but I've been to Nebraska. It would be easy to make the mistake. Heck my cousin's kids used to think I lived at the Magic Kingdom! I have highlighted my submissions.
On the drive home, I thought about my 21st birthday and the many life lessons I’ve learned since, whether I wanted to or not.
Now that Vero’s an adult, I’d like her to know 21 things about being one. I enlisted the help of a life coach and a bartender, who came up with 21 things to know about being 21.
Here’s what they had to say:
1. Lose your ego. You won’t miss it.
2. I have never liked gin. I hate tonic. Put them together and they taste fantastic. Try new things.
3. Say “I love you” and say “I’m sorry.” These really are the magic words.
4. Ask questions and question the answers.
5. Never lose your self-respect. It’s the one thing you can take with you.
6. Get a job. Learn the value of hard work.
7. Learn to forgive. Hurtful things are going to happen to you. Learn to let it go.
8. Presentation is everything. Tuck in your shirt.
9. If you learn a really good cure for hiccups, people will think you are magic.
10. Just because you can afford them, don’t break the bank on quarter pints.
11. When trying to defuse a heated situation, follow this mantra: “Speak slow. Speak low.”
12. Best way to sound smarter and more polite: Say “yes” instead of “yeah.”
13. Follow your heart and listen for your voice of wisdom.
14. Expect obstacles on your road; they’re part of the game of life.
15. Tips come in many forms. Money is nice, but so is food, small gifts or nice comments to my boss.
16. If you are a bad tipper and a jerk, you will be remembered. Not in a positive way.
17. Invest in good shoes. Your body will thank you.
18. You’re never too big to take out the trash.
19. Be prepared. I start each shift with two bottle openers, two pens, two lighters. You get the point.
20. Asking a bartender if he has ever had a drink on the job is like asking a chef if he has ever eaten.
21. When all else fails, show them your teeth.
(Sources: JoAnn Bouda, a life coach in Omaha, and Mark Woods, a Key West, Fla., bartender who works with the Mad Gringo Hawaiian shirt guys based in Dundee.)
Contact the writer:
444-1075, j.loza@owh.com
