Tag Archives: Kindness

It is too bad that such a doll wastes all her time being good. How can she make any money from that?Nicely, Nicely.

I know you’re not going to believe this….but the world is full of nice people. People who don’t even look nice.

This was my week:

Monday…attend a Town Hall meeting with our Republican Congressman. Now, he’s been kind of avoiding these meetings since the %$&* hit the fan. And he’s had quite a few run-ins with unhappy people since the last presidential election. Also, I had some trepidation about going to this town hall. First, my husband was going too. I didn’t know if they would make us sit on opposite sides of the aisle, because we are often that way, even in our living room. Second, I have to be honest, there’s so much anger out there, I was a little scared. But let me tell you, this audience and this Congressman were respectful, intelligent and willing to listen to everything. Well, almost everything, the audience did ‘boo’ one time quite loudly when the Congressman said he had to look at a case-by-case basis for drilling in National Parks. But everyone booed….so I found that nice.

Tuesday–My mom and I  were to meet with a representative from the American Legion who was going to help get my Dad’s name memorialized in his home town of Beacon, New York. At the last minute, my mom found the documents we were missing and the American Legion guy no longer needed to help. But this guy was going to come from the next town over just to make sure a Veteran, killed in service to his country over 55 years ago, would be solemnly recognized for his service and sacrifice. Nice, right?

Wednesday–I met with my sister and brother-in-law to help them with some legal matters. Of course they were nice, too. They better be! But the notary we went to at AAA was extraordinarily kind.  But here’s the thing, at first glance, she seemed kind of cranky.  You took one look at her and thought “uh-oh.”  She was extremely thorough, made sure everything was correct, and was not rushing us at all. And she was super nice. As we chatted for a bit between documents, and later, she revealed that she has been a long time caregiver for her parents. When they passed away, she continued, as she does today to go to the nursing home to visit her dad’s roommates. They have no other real visitors.  She said it helps her have a purpose and in some ways keep close to her dad. I don’t care what you say…that’s just nice. Really nice.

Thursday–I received an email from a total stranger who heard of me through a class I had taken. I don’t know what pleased me more…that she thought I was funny in that class or that she googled me and I seem to have taken the lessons we learned to heart and put them into action. I think I was just happy to hear from a nice person.

Friday–I received my weekly free email newsletter from Dan Blank at WeGrowMedia, Dan is kind and generous with advice and support to artists of all kinds. The best part of Dan’s newsletter today was at the end. He said this:

What can you do this week to support someone else’s dream?  and this:

What small action can you take this week to support the work of someone around you? Something that, if the dominoes fall correctly, will have them thanking you more than a decade later for the profound effect you have had on their life?

How’s that for nice? Do it. You can, you really can. There are nice people all around you, and you are one of them, too. I just know it.

So from now on…laugh and assume everyone you meet is nice…they just may prove you right!

“You Just have to Laugh…..”

©2017 Cathy Sikorski

10 Doubts and Desires for 2015……

HAPPY NEW YEAR  to all my kind and faithful readers!  In the spirit of the New Year, I am taking a Nostradamus point of view and a Pollyanna perspective.

Five things that will not change in 2015:

1. Medical Insurance Companies will not make our lives easier:

I know this is true, because I have already received confusing literature about co-pays, prescription drugs, and durable medical equipment. This from three different places for my brother-in-law, myself, and my friend with the traumatic brain injury. Wading through complicated, confounding medical gobbeldy gook will continue as before.

2. Hospital stays will still make everyone crazy.

Now, granted, no one likes to be in the hospital. But as my brother-in-law just returned home from a bout with the flu (yes, we all had flu shots, to no avail) it still rankles that your own doctor doesn’t come to the hospital any more. You get a ‘hospitalist’ who doesn’t know you, does tests you probably don’t need (because he doesn’t know you) and get a crappy diet because they think you’re a diabetic when you’re not.

3. The skirmish about Obamacare

I am all for everyone having health insurance…..as frustrating as it can be, because I’ve seen first hand what happens when you don’t have it. However, when the new and improved arrives, there will always be problems, glitches and the need to massage it into a better place. And when it is a hot button political issue to boot, well, the conversation will continue to exasperate us all like those year end car sale commercials……endlessly.

4. Dieting

Yep. Here we all are again. Like my Nana used to say, “fat, ragged and sassy.” Will we never cease this battle? Nope.

5.  Facebook.

That’s it. Just Facebook. Persistently annoying and enthralling as it was in 2014 and will continue in 2015.

Five things that will change in 2015:

1. Hotels will give you free WIFI.

Yep. I discovered that in today’s newspaper. Yes, I still have delivered and read an actual newspaper (perhaps that too will end in 2015, but not because I want it to).

2. Airline fares will abate.

C’mon. They just have to. Fuel prices are dropping like flies every day.  The excuses are running cold. Airlines need customers like a fish needs water. Obviously metaphors and similes will dictate cheaper airfares.

3. Customer Service will improve

See #1 and #2. Pundits claim that true business success will return to the customer service model. We can only hope, as customers, that is.

4. People will be kinder and gentler.

I think we are all getting tired of boisterous debate. I declare 2015 the year of the kinder, gentler human being. We saw the film, “Unbroken” on New Year’s Eve. The humiliation of one human being to another is probably the most palpable part of that movie. Perhaps people will stop that, and just be nice, goddamnit.

5. People will stop dieting and laugh more.

We all know that by February 1st most diets will end. And thank God, people don’t seem to laugh so much when they are eating celery and carrots, and nothing else. I predict beer sales and comedy clubs will begin to prosper right around Ballentine’s Day. (yes, I said Ballentine, but for those of you who didn’t grow up on the East Coast, Valentine’s Day is just as good).

I wish you all a happy, hilarious 2015……because……..

You just have to Laugh……..

©Cathy Sikorski 2015

What do a Pediatrician and Blanche DuBois have in common?

Fun at the Pediatric Dentist!
Fun at the Pediatric Dentist!

I have been searching for 2 years for a dentist to treat my brother-in-law, “L” who has MS. The issue is that L is wheelchair bound and cannot get out of the chair at all without the assistance of at least two people or a Hoyer Lift.

The dentist, eye doctor and any other pyhysician or medical facility that we have to go to, must have a wide enough room for him to enter, leave, turn around and be treated in. Thanks in great part to the Americans With Disabilities Act, most medical facilities have come to the place where L can be accommodated. But the dentist is a challenge.

Most dental offices here in Smalltown, USA are converted homes and even if we could get into the lobby, we can’t get into the treatment room. And on top of all that, since L can ‘t move from his chair to the dental chair, many dental offices I have contacted would not see him.

To be fair, his own dentist offered to try and get the lift from the wheelchair van to come even with the outside deck of the dental office, and then maybe we could skootch him through the glass sliding doors and into treatment. And I considered it until we had snowstorm after blizzard after ice storm.

And then L broke a tooth.

Now I had to put this into high gear.

I called the MS Society, who put me in touch with a dentist who was far away. Kindly, that dentist agreed to see him, but had no openings for 3 weeks. I called my own dentist who had no access at his office, but I thought he would have a recommendation. The first office was unable to help me. The second dentist was a pediatric dentist, so I was pretty sure that was going to be a wash. Never assume.

Pediatric Dentist, Dr. Zale, agreed to see L. We entered the office and were immediately surrounded by picture books, Legos, toys for every age, and a beautiful array of kids from toddler to teen. I told L not to smile too much because the broken canine in his mouth might scare the little ones. But those kids played around the wheelchair like it was a dining room chair at home. If the toy they wanted was on the other side of L, they just looked him straight in the eye and walked around him to play.

Dr. Zale and his staff took my brother-in-law into a very large and airy treatment room, somehow got him x-rayed and fixed him right up. There was no time to do a standard cleaning so they made an appointment for him to return before I even got back to the desk to pay. He was now their actual patient!

Six weeks later, the Jeff Gordon of wheelchair drivers, my brother-in-law, hits the high speed button on his wheelchair, bonks his head on his computer and completely breaks off the new tooth. I called Dr. Zale, they got him right in and took yet another two hours to fix that smile right up. Because it had taken longer than they expected the front desk ladies said they would just send me the bill. This is the bill I received:

No Charge per Dr. Zale..
No Charge per Dr. Zale..

Sometimes you just have to be ever so grateful for the kindness of strangers,  and

You still just have to Laugh…….

Cathy Sikorski