Business Pulse: Marriage advice made simple
It’s truly a great day to be alive. The sunshine, the fresh air, and most of all it’s my sixth wedding anniversary.
I say it’s great to be alive because after six years of having to tolerate my silliness, it’s a miracle Cupcake hasn’t killed me. (Note: disregard this column if I should turn up dead before tomorrow.)
Since it is my anniversary, the most common question is: “How does it feel to be married for six years?” After giving this some thought, I’d say my six years of marriage has been like a ball of happiness sprinkled with confection sugar (you know that good stuff they put on funnel cakes).
I’ve heard all sorts of theories about ways to achieve a successful marriage, a number of them from a bald guy with a moustache named Dr. Phil. The thing that amazes me most about Dr. Phil is he’s just a few donuts shy of being pleasantly plump and the guy has diet books on the market. Go figure.
My point is I don’t need Dr. Phil to give me marriage advice because I’ve discovered the best way to make your marriage work is to simply hand over the TV remote. I hope all the guys out there are listening.
Believe me, I know how easy it is to grab the remote, a tall glass of lemonade, and hunker into that easy chair for the night. When the wife reaches for the remote, it’s almost second nature to slap her hand away. But for those of us who are committed to our marriage, we have to fight this impulse.
As painful as it may be, we have to hand over the remote every once in a while – even if we know full well we’re in store for a Lifetime original movie. The worst part is those Lifetime movies all have the same plot: 1) a woman is trapped in an abusive relationship; 2) she escapes it; 3) the man comes after her; 4) she kills him.
The scary part is women love this stuff. But I will admit a happy marriage takes a little more than handing over the remote. You have to read women. As men, we have to analyze their statements and figure out what they really mean.
For example, if Cupcake looks sad about something but says, “I’m not upset” it doesn’t mean she’s not upset. It means something is terribly wrong and I need to start guessing what it is.
Here are a few more examples:
The wife says: This kitchen is so small and inconvenient.
The wife means: I want a new house.
The wife says: We need to talk.
The wife means: I need to tell you what you just did wrong.
The wife says: If you want to go with your friends, go ahead and do what you want.
The wife means: You’ll pay for this later.
The wife says: Do you love me?
The wife means: I’m going to ask for something expensive.
You get the idea. I could go on with some more examples but what I really need to do is say “Happy anniversary Cupcake” and bring you this week’s Business Pulse.
Standard kicks off new real estate book
If you’ve been eager to take a look at a comprehensive real estate and home improvement guide, the Standard is getting ready to satisfy that craving. Beginning next month, the Standard will be publishing an all-color book called “Welcome to the Neighborhood.”
The publication will be available in racks around town for free. It will naturally contain real estate listings, but it will also be packed with information about building, remodeling and financing homes. There will also be space for individual listings for anyone selling a home on their own.
“We believe this monthly publication will compliment the Warren County real estate book that’s published at the beginning of each month,” said Standard publisher Patricia Zechman, who stressed I better find plenty of nice things to say about the Standard’s new undertaking. “This will be handy for anyone who wants current real estate information in the middle of the month.”
The kickoff date is Sept. 15 and new books will be released monthly around the middle of each month.
“We’ll start small as with any new publication, but we believe it won’t take long for this to grow,” said Zechman. “It will also include real estate information for Smithville and surrounding counties.”
Anyone interested in getting their real estate information in the new book can call the Standard at 473-2191. I know I can’t wait till Sept. 15.
New store with an Attitude
Nedra Davenport has been in the retail clothing business for around 11 years. Through those years, she’s been working to get to the point where she can open her own store. That moment will happen this Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. Nedra’s store is called Attitudes and it’s located in Northgate Shopping Center.
“I always wanted to have my own place,” said Nedra. “It’s just that you’re scared to do it. But I decided to take the chance and do my own thing.”
Nedra has a fascinating line of clothing, if I can use the word fascinating and not sound too much like a dork. Her business card calls it, “an eclectic collection of fashions, accessories and gifts.”
In addition to nice work-type clothing, Nedra offers more casual outfits like the popular John Deere line.
“I’ve already sold some of the John Deere stuff,” said Nedra. “A friend of mine came in to look at the store and she ended up buying about $100 worth.”
Attitudes carries all sizes from Junior to Misses to Plus. Nedra says she has clothes for any price range. She has jeans for $30 all the way up to jeans for $70. The phone number is 507-1080.
Lowe’s shopping center gains another tenant
I figured as soon as Lowe’s opened its doors, the remaining storefronts at Cumberland Plaza would be snatched up like hotcakes. That hasn’t exactly been the case, but the shopping center is gradually filling up.
The latest addition is a high-end home accessories store called P.D. Trunk. Owned by Jane and Benjamin Wilhite, the business brings a dash of class to the neighborhood.
“Everybody thinks this is a franchise, but it’s not,” said Jane. “You wouldn’t believe the amount of traffic that’s in this area and the number of business cards we’ve been able to give out.”
Jane says she’s been well pleased with all the people coming and going at her neighboring stores, which are China Wok and Myers Communication. When we talked outside her store Friday afternoon I was stunned so many people ate Chinese food and needed a cell phone.
Outside of location, Jane has an impressive, upscale line that’s sure to draw customers. She has fine Portuguese stoneware which is an exclusive for this area. Jane sells everything from lamps to custom-order furniture and bedding lines.
Jane retired three weeks ago after cutting hair for nearly 20 years in Murfreesboro. For years she has sold her fine home accessories to her hair customers. She has also sold out of her home.
“To take this business to the next level to where it needs to be, I had to go storefront,” said Jane. “There’s only so far you can take it selling it from trunk sales. Some people naturally don’t want to come to your home.”
The official opening is this Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Regular store hours are Tuesday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Appointments will also be available on request.
“I’m sort of used to after-hours shoppers anyway,” said Jane. “You get that way when you sell out of your home.”
She said people who work odd shifts and can’t make her store hours can set up an appointment by calling 808-8252. During regular hours, the business phone number is 507-4090.
“We’re shooting for unusual items you can’t see everywhere,” said Jane. “The specialty items.”
Dance to the beat with Kindermusik
Paddi Smith is now offering the world-famous Kindermusik program right here in McMinnville. I had the chance to see Paddi and her class in action Tuesday at the library and the kids were dancing away.
The basics behind Kindermusik is it’s a program that involves children and their parents in activities, music, movement and more. Parents are also supplied with home materials to make music and learning part of their family time together.
Kindermusik is the world’s leading music and movement program for children from birth through seven years of age. In over 35 countries around the world, licensed educators are using Kindermusik to bring the joy of music to children’s lives.
Paddi currently has two programs available that are getting ready to start in mid-September. The first one is for parents and children from 1-1/2 to 3 years old and it begins Sept. 15. The other program is for children ages 3-4 and it starts Sept. 14.
For more information, you can give Paddi a call at 815-2525. Her e-mail is [email protected].
That’s all folks
I just realized I wrote a column about my anniversary and didn’t inform people that I am currently accepting anniversary gifts here at the Standard office. And it won’t hurt my feelings if gifts are made payable to the James Clark Foundation, a foundation devoted to increasing the checking account of James Clark.
For business news, give me a call at 473-2191.