Laugh With Me

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Tricia Ransom

On Wednesday, April 10th at 9:30 AM, I got a phone call that most people believe changed my life forever. I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. Invasive (or infiltrating) ductal carcinoma. By 3 PM that afternoon, I was in the office of my oncological surgeon, and I had 7 additional appointments already set up for the next week.

But to me, I’m still me. Nothing in my life has changed so far. And based on all of the information we know right now, as one doctor said on Friday, “this could just be a blip in your life”.

When I tell people, their reactions are shock, fear, sadness, concern. And I’m starting to feel strange when they stare at me and I’m smiling. I know I’ll feel those emotions, but not right now. Right now I’m concentrating on learning this disease, establishing a good rapport with my medical team, and storing up as much laughter and happiness as possible.

For the rest of my life, I’ll have the word Cancer appended to my name. But for right now, I want my life to be as normal as possible. And since there is no surgery right now, no treatments right now, and no new knowledge right now, I think normalacy is an achievable goal.

Shortly I’ll have an MRI. That will help my medical team learn more, and as a result I’ll most likely have a new set of emotions to deal with. But until that time, I’m still Tree, Trish, Tricia, Patricia. I’m still me. And even after that time, I’m still me.

I love to laugh, and I’m going to search for laughter everywhere.

So please, when you see me, you don’t need to stare at me as if my Cancer is tatooed on my forehead. It’s not, trust me. Just laugh with me. Please.

ps: For those of you who are friends with me on Facebook, please do not mention this on Facebook! That is my normal hidey-hole for the time being, where I can just be me. Thanks!

Posted in Cancer, Personal | 4 Comments

Gamification: What’s in a name?

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Tricia Ransom

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”  Romeo and Juliet (Act 2, scene 2)

Mr. Shakespeare believes that a name is just a name. Me, not so much.

I believe that words and names are infused with connotations and under-currents. For instance, I’m addicted to old movies – particularly witty comedies from the 1930s with sparkling dialogue. One of the most common phrases? “We’re so happy and gay!” Does that sentence mean the same thing in 2012 America as it did in 1930 America?

Gamification: what’s in a name? In this case, a lot!

Here are some synonyms for game (from thesaurus.com):

Noun meaning entertainment:

Amusement, distraction, diversion, festivity, frolic, fun, jest, joke, lark, merriment, pastime, play, recreation, romp

Noun meaning plot or trick:

Device, hoax, joke, object of ridicule, ploy, practical joke, prank, scheme, stratagem

Each time you use the word gamification, it’s a pretty sure bet that your audience has at least one of these alternative meanings running through their conscious or sub-conscious.

Is it any wonder the C-suite tunes out when they hear “gamification”?

Don’t get me wrong – I am a firm believer that the principles of gamification are valuable in driving learning, learning transfer, and engagement.

I say let’s call a rose a rose! We want to engage people, encourage participation, apply knowledge, challenge learners. Why not call it Applied Challenges, Engaged Participation, Application?

Anyone else?

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Adventures in the Kitchen

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Tricia Ransom

It started innocently.

I thought to myself, “Self, I sure would like some ice tea.”  The problem? We were out of ice tea.  “No problem,” I thought to myself, “I’ll just make some.”

And so it began.

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Since the ice tea pitcher was dirty, I had to wash it. However, it’s  too big to fit in the dishwasher.

“No problem,” I thought to myself,  “I’ll just wash it out in the sink.”  That would have been a great idea, if the sink hadn’t been full of dirty dishes (which is a whole other story).  I took a deep breath, loaded as many dishes as I could into the dishwasher, and started it.

However (you knew there was another however to this story, didn’t you?)… However, I still needed to wash the remaining dishes by hand.  “No problem,” I thought to myself… until I noticed the dish rack was filthy.  I took a deep breath, put the rack into the sink, and washed it too.

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And then I asked myself, “Self, why are you even in the kitchen anyway?”

Oh yes, the ice tea.

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Now that the dish rack was clean, I could wash the rest of the dishes by hand.  However (surely you’re not surprised to see that word are you?)… However, I’m not the neatest or most graceful of people,  and I spilled water all over the counters and floor.

“No problem,”  I thought to myself, “I’ll just clean it up.”  I took a deep breath and cleaned the counters with bleach and mopped the floor.

Then I thought to myself, “While you’re at it, why not just wipe down the cabinets and fridge door?”  So I took a deep breath and cleaned the cabinets and refrigerator door.

And then I decided that since I was already wiping down the fridge door, I might as well wipe out the inside, right? I took a deep breath and cleaned out the refrigerator too.

That’s how I got my clean counters, cabinets, refrigerator, and kitchen floor.

a

And then I asked myself, “Self, why are you even in the kitchen anyway?”

Oh yes, the ice tea.

a

“No problem,” I thought, and I started the ice tea maker.

By now, the dishwasher was done, so I unloaded it while waiting for the tea to brew. As I was taking out the dishes, I noticed a white filmy goop over most of the dishes.

“No problem,” I thought, “I’ll just wash all the clean dishes by hand to make sure they really are clean.”  I took a deep breath and washed all the dishes that the dishwasher had just washed.

a

And then I asked myself, “Self, why are you even in the kitchen anyway?”

Oh yes, the ice tea.

a

So, two hours after my original ice tea craving, I had cleaned my kitchen counters, sink, dish rack, refrigerator, floor, and dishes.

a

However (you knew there had to be one last however in this story, didn’t you?)… However…

a

…wait for it…

a

I was out of ice.

a

And I asked myself, “Self, why are you even in the kitchen anyway?“

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How Facebook Changed My Life

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Tricia Ransom

Facebook has changed my life.

Literally.

I used to see everything as half-empty glasses and rotting lemons. Now I see everything as a classic status update.

It’s made me a much happier and nicer person.

 

Simply put, instead of focusing on the negatives when things happen to me, I find ways to spin it to make it a funny and/or interesting status update.

And you know what? That outlook has spread to all aspects of my life. If you look for humor, you’ll find humor. If you look for positives, you’ll find positives. If you look for goodness and laughter, that’s what you’ll find.

So yes, Facebook has changed my life.

Posted in Personal, Random Thoughts, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

American Values: What are They?

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Tricia Ransom

I’m the first to admit it. I LOVE reading the “Mugs in the News”. You know, where they publish the mugshots of people who’ve been arrested in Chicago, along with a description of the charges.

Right here is a story of a man accused of felony theft. He’s been denied bail. He stole an iPhone at knifepoint.

Right here is a story of a man accused of 2nd degree murder. His bail is set at $150,000. He has admitted to the shooting.

I’m not going to get into a discussion of any of the alleged facts, evidence, history, rap sheets, etc. I’m not going to mention race. All I’m going to ask you is this:

If a person from another country, who knew nothing about us, read both of those stories, what would that person think of our value system?

To me, one man is denied bail for stealing a phone and must remain in jail. Another man, who has admitted to shooting a person, has the opportunity to walk out of jail and be free while waiting for his trial.

America, I believe in us. I believe in our inherent goodness. But right now, I’m questioning our values:

Is it true? Do we value an iPhone more than human life? 

 

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