HOPE

This is that week every year where the kids are off from school, tons of people are on vacation, and many others are “chowing-down” before they start their New Year diet which will be over by February 1^st.   It’s also where we look back over the past year and then look forward.  Looking back at this blog I have posted 26 times this year (unless I squeak in one more), so about one post for every two weeks on average. I could certainly post more and I often “think” about it but then days will pass and the reason to post whatever was then on my mind will seem old and historic.  In viewing the statistical analytics about this blog it tells me my most popular post for 2011 by far was about Hydrangeas and a Fire-Pit.

http://androscogginbloggin.blogspot.com/2011/05/hydrangeas-fire-pit-and-other-things.html

I not sure why this would be the most popular post but perhaps it is telling me people like to read about flowers.  With this knowledge in hand maybe I should post more about flowers to meet that market demand.  The thing is I’m not a flower expert and I have a limited selection in my yard but that shouldn’t stop me from trying right?  It’s hard to conceive about writing on things growing when the ground is now covered with snow and will be that way for months to come. 

Do I have goals for 2012?  Yes I do.  The first goal is to be here for Lauren. After her cancerous kidney removal last March we can’t take the future for granted.  The second goal is to be conscious of appreciating each person in my life and what they have to offer. This is easier said than done with some but what I mean is I intend to “listen” for understanding. The third goal is to earn a bit more money (or win the lottery). I’ve come to a point in life where I really don’t value money as that important however I do have those needs that require some of it and more then I appear to be making currently. The fourth goal is to do those house projects that I can which are on the inexpensive side.  One last word about goals; I’m currently reading The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown and she states that …Hope is a combination of setting goals, having the tenacity and perseverance to pursue them, and believing in our own abilities.

May you all have hope for 2012. 

A Letter to Smoke Alarm Manufacturers

Dear Smoke Alarm Manufacturer,

I would like to pass along a suggestion.  This suggestion could even set you apart from your competitor and help increase your sales if you implement it first.  My suggestion is: would you please design a smoke alarm that when the battery level gets low it only chirps between the hours of 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM.  For the past 30 years my smoke alarms only begin to do the low battery chirp usually between 1:00 and 4:00 AM.   Last night at 2:08 AM one of my First Alert smoke detectors began to chirp.  It woke me out of my sound sleep.  I was hoping it would not chirp again but then every five minutes…chirp…chirp.  I have five smoke alarms and one carbon monoxide alarm of which I try to change the batteries every year.  I even write the date that I install the new battery on masking tape and stick it on the back side of the detector.  Even with these efforts the low battery chirp seems to find me in my peaceful slumber usually about twice a year and usually on the coldest nights during the winter.  I really don’t enjoy leaving my warm comfy bed at 2:00 AM to stand in the middle of a cold room waiting for the next chirp to determine which smoke alarm I need to address.  Last night I picked the right alarm the first time and removed the battery but then I had a very hard time falling back to sleep.  Once I removed batteries from three different smoke alarms before I picked the right detector.

I do understand that this does not appear to be a problem for everyone.  For example my wife slept through this whole ordeal quite well, right next to me.  She never heard the chirping, never heard me get up, and never heard me drag the chair over so I could stand on it to reach the alarm.  But she is a member of the “sleep elite” who can sleep undisturbed by such noises as car alarms, passing trains, and police sirens.  

If you were to implement this new design suggestion I would gladly pay one to maybe two dollars more per smoke alarm for this feature.  Think about that.  I believe you might be able to increase your bottom line by millions of dollars with this new design feature.  Let’s do the math.  I have six detectors in my home but let’s say each home has minimum of just three detectors.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html there was 131,704,730 housing units in the United States in 2010. So 131,704,730 X 3 = 395,114,190 alarm units.  Now I understand that a number of homes are “hard wired” to the electrical system which do not require batteries.  So let’s just use some round numbers.  We’ll take a potential of 400 million smoke alarms and divide it in half to allow for hard wired systems and people who can sleep through air raids.  That leaves 200 million units in the U.S.   If you can charge one dollar more for this feature, which I think you can, then you have 200 million dollars to put in your bank account.  So please think about this and if you feel the need to pay me some sort of royalty for this suggestion then leave me a comment below and I will gladly give you instructions on where to send the funds.  Sweet Dreams….Peter