Social – Chris Kindred

A Dad’s Response To #YesAllWomen

As a dad there are certain things that I need to teach my daughters before they are old enough to be on their own.

For those of you that don’t follow the crazy Internet news, there is a new hashtag trending called #YesAllWomen.

To quickly explain, #YesAllWomen is a way for women to tag their posts, updates, tweets letting people know what all women have to deal with. It started in response to Elliot Rodger’s killing spree where he posted a YouTube video blaming the “cruelness of women” for his actions. He basically said that because girls wouldn’t give him a chance he was a going to have a “day of retribution”. You can read more about it on this CNN article.

As a dad there are certain things that I need to teach my daughters before they are old enough to be on their own. I use the word daughters because the only children I have are girls but this would apply to any boy as well.

Respect

There are many things that can be solved by showing everyone the level of respect that you demand back. Always say yes ma’am and yes sir. Always look a person in the eyes when you shake their hand. It doesn’t matter if they are twice your age or half your age.

Be Aware of What Around You.

Bad things happen in bad places. That is just how the world works. That doesn’t mean they can’t happen in good places but statically the chances are smaller. I will always drop everything to come get you no matter where you are.

Trust Your Gut

If you get a bad feeling about somebody, get away from that person. If you have a bad feeling about a situation, get out of the situation.

Never Leave Your Drink

It doesn’t matter if you are at a Bar, Frat Party or hanging out with friends. If you set your drink down and walk away from it, get a new one.

Stereotypes Exist For A Reason

You will be judged based upon how the world sees you. It sucks I know but it is how the world works. If a girl walks around dressed like a Hooker, people are going to say she’s a hooker. If a guy works out all the time and makes himself look like he does steroids people are going to say you are on steroids. That is how the world works. Deal with it.

Always Have an Exit

The very few people that know I do this make fun of me for it. When I am somewhere I have never been before I am always scanning the area for the exits. When I get to a restaurant I have never been to the first thing I do after getting seated is go to the bathroom. When I walk to the bathroom I scan the area. I see what food looks good. I notice where the two or three extra emergency exits are. I know this sounds silly but it has saved me multiple times and not just from ordering garbage. This doesn’t apply just to physical exits either. On a first date, have a polite way to leave if you are uncomfortable.

I think #YesAllWomen is a great way for women to bring to focus what they have to go through. I don’t want my daughters to have to deal with any of the things I have read on Twitter or Facebook. I also would’t want my son to have to put up with a lot of the things guys do on an everyday basis either. #YesAllWomen brings both of these out into the open and if it can even help make a single person rethink what they say or do in the future then I am all for it.

Some people suck, some people were not raised based off the “Golden Rule”. It is something we have to deal with as a society. Just because one guy treated a girl like trash doesn’t mean all guys are that way. Just because one girl treated a guy like trash doesn’t mean that all girls are that way. That is just the way the world works.

Riding For Isabel

The Courage Classic is a bike tour to help raise money for the Children's Hospital Colorado starting July 16th and lasting till the 21st.

The Courage Classic is a bike tour to help raise money for the Children’s Hospital Colorado starting July 16th and lasting till the 21st.

When we were at Isabel’s Cath last week, we had one of the nurses talk to use about the Heart Institute’s team, Cardiac Climbers. They have been riding in the Courage Classic for 11 years and have raised almost $700,000. All the money the team raises goes directly back to the Heart Institute for new equipment, education, research and family assistance. The team consists of cardiac parents, members of the community along with many of the Heart Institute employees including doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, echo technicians, surgeons and support staff. Each rider dedicates their ride to a cardiac patient.

This year one of the Cardiac Climbers will be riding for Isabel. We need to get them a little more information and then I will post how to support the team and Isabel’s rider. I was amazed at all of the resources that we had available to us while we were in the hospital and I am sure some of those were because of the Cardiac Climbers. Go check out the links above to learn more about the team and the Courage Classic.

Go like the Cardiac Climbers on Facebook to show your support and help spread the word about the Courage Classic.

Smile, It’s Monday!

I don’t understand why people say that they hate Monday’s so much. Looking at Facebook this morning I notice that there are two or three of my friends that post every Monday that they hate Monday’s. It is kind of silly to me.

I don’t understand why some people hate Monday’s so much. Looking at Facebook this morning I notice that there are two or three of my friends that post every Monday that they hate Monday’s. It is kind of silly to me. You would think these 20 or 30 somethings would have figured out that no matter what they do Monday is coming and they should prepare themselves for it. Today I am going to list out a few things I do so that I don’t hate Monday’s. Maybe you can use them to help out your Monday’s.

Don’t Quit Early on Friday

If you have stuff to do on Friday get it done. Don’t leave early because it is a Friday and leave a bunch of work that will have to get done first thing when you walk into the office on Monday. If you have a stack of paper work waiting on you Monday morning, how can you possibly have a good attitude about heading into the office.

Plan Your Monday in Advance

I set aside 20 minutes before I head home every friday to list out my To Do’s for the following Monday. This gives me the opportunity to see if I need to send out any last minute emails and have an organized starting point when I walk into the office Monday.

No Monday Morning Meetings

I try to never schedule meetings or phone calls on Monday mornings. This gives me the opportunity to put out any fires that might have happened over the weekend without having to worry about making it to that 8:30 conference call.

Be Early

One of the guys that used to work in the office with me when we were living in Tulsa used to always come in 45 minutes late each Monday. He would always blame it on the weekend and it being a Monday. He would spend the next hour apologizing for being late and rushing around trying finish up everything that should have been finished up on Friday.

Be a Nice Person

Say good morning to the people you meet. I suggest doing everyday but if you don’t start on a Monday. When you see somebody smile and say good morning. Smiling is contagious and puts everybody in a better mood. Plus being a nice person is just the right thing to do. You never know what the other person is going through and you might have just made their day by saying hi. I know I have had some days where another person smiling at me and saying good morning helped me have a better day.