BusyBeeNews - January 2021

january 2021

BUT WAIT

THERE’S MORE

Did you know? New Year’s Trivia It is traditional in Scotland to kiss everyone in the room at midnight on NYE. The first known Gregorian calendar was used in 1582.

The first place to celebrate the New Year each year is the Kiritimati Atoll in Kiribati.

by: shannon highsmith

Americans drink over 360 million glasses of champagne on NYE.

WELLNESS TIPS

by: shannon highsmith

For wellness tips, I thought it would be good to give suggestions for healthy New Year’s resolutions.

• Find a physical activity that you can be passionate about, so that you look forward

to exercising. Examples are dog walking, dancing, hiking, and gardening.

• Concentrate on your health, not your weight.

• Read a book each month. Reading can reduce stress and improve your memory!

• Compliment someone every day. Being positive reduces stress.

• Reduce your impact on the environment. Try using reusable shopping bags and

use old towels for cleaning instead of paper towels or wipes. Store leftovers in

reusable containers instead of plastic bags.

• Stop multi-tasking! Focus on one thing at a time and you will be more effective

and less stressed.

• Call or facetime with friends and family instead of texting.

CURRENT JOB OPENINGS: Account Manager – Albuquerque Account Manager – Little Rock Factory Service Team – Central Texas (Austin or San Antonio) Warehouse Associates – Carrollton Inside Sales Associates – Carrollton

by Pat Armstrong

If you can read this article, thank a teacher, if this article loaded up and displayed correctly on your device, thank our IT Department! If it didn’t, you’ve probably done something to your device, and it’s all your fault! Hahaha – I’m kidding!!!

Often overlooked, until something doesn’t work, IT departments all over the world have been stretched and tested to the limit this year with the ‘all of the sudden’ work from home employees all over the globe. Our IT Department has similarly risen to that challenge this year. But getting remote employees all set-up and working efficiently from home was just a drop in the bucket this year. Our IT Department is also instrumental in implementing SAP B1 business software… no small task for any company, much less one our size.

Our IT Department is led by a truly wonderful person named Debra Dingess (IT Manager). She is assisted by Stephen Gardner (IT Support). These two are the dynamic duo that fuss at us for having too many emails, downloading an unauthorized program, taking up bandwidth, and not keeping our files sorted and stored properly, but it’s done with love and compassion. (I laughed as I wrote that.)

We forget sometimes that people were hired with different skill sets in mind. For example, I’m a pump guy. I was hired for pump sales and applications. My daily language sounds foreign to most people that were hired to do pipe, PRV’s or water heaters and boilers. Same holds true for our IT Department.

I’ve heard Deb put a sentence together that sounds like instructions for the International Space Station and then she will look at you like … ‘What, you didn’t get that? Just remap your drives to N:// … ajuhiuyg\asgs\ijr\\tert/80jfokf0i4tujh2347rh9… It’s not that hard!’

Still makes me laugh when it happens to other people! I say all the above with nothing but love.

Deb has been a friend to all of us for many, many years. We will miss her when she decides to retire, which I forgot to tell ya’ Deb, the committee met, and your retirement request was denied. (Just kidding!)

Thank Deb and Stephen when you see them because they are really carrying a heavy load for us to do what WE were hired to do!

debradingess

hire date - 11/1/1999

Which celebrity have people said you most resemble?

I don’t look like anyone in the world that I know of.

If money were no object, and you could have a house anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Grand Cayman Name one event in history that, if time travel were possible, you’d want to see.

I would like to meet my grandmother, who died when I was 11 weeks old.

What is one thing you look forward to most all year?

When life gets rough, I like to hold on to my dream of relaxing in the summer sun, just lettin’ off steam.

Bora Bora - Ralph and Deb

What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?

Keeps changing all the time, but Blue Bell Milk and Cookies is my current favorite.

stephengardner

hire date - 9/12/2016

What was your first car?

Technically it was a 1984 Ford Mustang, but I never got to drive it.

The first car I ever drove was a 1979 Toyota Corona. That thing was a POS. If you could have any animal in the world as a pet, what would you pick?

I saw a frog that looked just like Jabba the Hutt at the Dallas Zoo when I was a kid.

It was ugly as hell, but it would be cool to say I have a Jabba the Hutt.

Name a real person, living or dead, that you would like to meet or like to have met.

I will have to say my Father’s Dad. He died before I was born.

I would have liked to know what type of person he was.

Favorite vacation?

Any vacation is a good vacation. I think the best one is the last time I went to Cancun.

We visited the Mayan ruins. That was cool.

Worst vacation?

I drove to Florida; and halfway there we had our water pump go out.

So, I was on the side of the freeway changing a water pump in the rain.

Weekend Viewing THE IPCRESS FILE: The Thinking Man’s Goldfinger

by Michael (Mickey Carmine) Macchiaroli

The year 2020 meant a lot of downtime for me; no open mics, no improv jams, missed the gym for at least 4 months, and a lot of fear and loathing. It would only make sense that I would spend most of that downtime watching movies old and new. Aside from comedy, the spy genre is one that I enjoy very much. I grew up watching James Bond, Mission Impossible, and Austin Powers just to name a few and someone had asked me if I had ever seen Harry Palmer. I answered with a flat no, then followed up with a ‘whose that’?

My friend replied an alternative to James Bond circa 1960’s.

Today an alternative to James Bond would be the amnesiac yet reflexive Jason Bourne but back then it was the dry witted, bespectacled Harry Palmer. Played by acclaimed British actor Michael Caine, who has appeared in The Dark Knight Trilogy, A Muppets Christmas Carol, and Miss Congeniality, Harry Palmer is a duller, grittier British agent working for MI-5. An ex thief who works as a secret agent, albeit reluctantly, Palmer is a downtrodden, underpaid secret agent who’s day to day assignments involve stakeouts, filling out reports; a lot of legwork as one government agents puts it.

Palmer is soon entrusted with a mission, but not because of an international crisis. Unlike Bond, Palmer is promoted and is assigned to recover a missing scientist who is believed to be kidnapped by main antagonist Eric Grantby. Learning that this recent kidnapping is linked to the disappearances of many other scientists, Harry Palmer comes across a piece of audiotape marked Ipcress, which produces meaningless noise while played. As he progresses to find how Ipcress is linked to the missing scientists, Palmer finds himself in trouble with the CIA, believes himself to be the victim of a double cross, and soon uncovers what Ipcress really is.

While most spy films feature numerous large scale shootouts and fight sequences, there really isn’t a whole lot of that to be found in The Ipcress File. Instead we are treated to a mystery thriller full of tension and surprises that centers on an average Joe much like ourselves. Like Harry Palmer we wake up to an alarm clock, have coffee in the morning, socialize with coworkers, shop and cook, etc. It’s dull but I feel that’s what makes me relate to Palmer more than say Ethan Hunt, and it’s what kept me engaged with The Ipcress File. Sure other spy movies can keep you on the edge of your seats with over choreographed fight scenes and death defying stunts but I can appreciate a film in this genre that can make you think the entire time, make you think that you have the right answer about what’s going on, and prove you wrong in nerve-wracking fashion.

Fun fact: Harry Palmer is somewhat linked to the Austin Powers franchise in two interesting ways. Mike Myers had Austin wear glasses as a callback to The Ipcress File and its two sequels: Funeral In Berlin and Billion Dollar Brain. The second is the casting of Michael Caine as Nigel Powers in Goldmember; Mike Myers originally approached Sean Connery, the original James Bond, for the role but when he was unavailable he nabbed Caine for his portrayal of Harry Palmer. I would call that proof that Harry Palmer has as much impact on the spy genre as Bond, Jack Ryan, or Jason Bourne.

STEPHEN’S TOP FIVE MOVIES

BY MICHELLE MITCHELL

Lobsters have clear blood?!

Most of us are well aware that lobster shells change color when exposed to heat (like in a pot of boiling water, for example). But the sea creatures’ blood is also intriguing. Lobster blood is initially clear and turns blue when it hits oxygen.

Tales from the

Outdoors run! forest! run!

by Pat Armstrong

The sun started to light up the horizon, birds were just starting to wake up, the coffee was brewing, and the day promised to hold adventure and maybe a little mayhem for two young brother in Arkansas.

We were on vacation with the family and it was the first full day of being at the cabin. As I’ve mentioned in the past, we usually drove up on Friday night and went straight to sleep, so Saturday morning it was “On like Donkey Kong!”

My brother and I had already discussed where we were going to start exploring on the car ride up, so we were set. We got up, started the coffee for the folks, had a bite of breakfast, and took off!

Being the geniuses that we were, and it being summer, we dressed for comfort… you know 80’s style gym shorts with the blue trim on the edging, tube socks, sneakers, and a cut off shirt (we had to LOOK cool too!)

The plan was to explore the woods on the east side of the road down to the lake. The amount of land between the highway and the lake on that side was about a half a mile wide and ten miles long, so we had plenty to explore. Some of it was private property (we found out later) but most of it was just overgrown forest with no fencing.

We had been slugging thru the woods for hours, climbing over downed trees, dodging poison ivy, watching for snakes, etc. when we saw an old abandon trailer in the woods. (insert trailer pic) There it was! Our own little cabin that we could colonize, and turn in to a fort, where absolutely no girls were allowed!

We slowly made our way through the thick brush and stood quietly at the door contemplating what was behind the door… would it be a bear? A dead body? Gold and diamonds that someone stashed there and forgot about??? Our hearts were pounding with a mix of anticipation and fear, this was it, time to yank the door open!

BEES!!! AHHHHHHH BEEESSSSS!!!

We ran out of there so fast; but they were on us, we jumped, ran, ducked, crawled, yelled, swatted… We almost killed ourselves trying to get away. We made it back out to the road with only minor abrasions and only one or two stings, but we learned a valuable lesson.

If you plan to mess with something you don’t know about, make a good escape plan!

Go exploring and have fun!

Cheers -Pat

Manager’s Update Mark Kois General Manager Before drafting this article, I went back to my article in January 2020 where I asked, “What will be OUR STORY at the end of 2020?” Most people in the world, myself included, did not know how our lives were about to be impacted, and continue to be impacted today, as I pen this for our January 2021 newsletter.

It would be very easy to recap the many negative and dark moments we all experienced in 2020, both personally and professionally. I choose though to focus on the bright spots and lessons learned, as I hope most of you each will as we turn the corner in 2021.

INNOVATION thrived around the globe and here at HMC.

Restaurants, grocery stores, and many other retail type establishments had to ADAPT to a changing world that many had never seen before. With the strong support of our IT team, and many throughout the HMC organization, we transitioned into a REMOTE WORKER model for the first time in our company’s history. This was no small feat; it was truly a remarkable achievement.

AGILE WORK FORCE was no longer an option, but mandatory across the world, and also here at HMC. This move quickly changed behaviors and often created challenges that at times seemed unachievable. I am very proud to report that our TEAM at HMC embraced this model and made it a priority, as our vendors and customers continued to have a winning and positive experience through exceptional customer service while acknowledging the need for safety.

SPIRIT OF COLLABORATION came shining through each and every day, no

matter the situation. We are closing in on our SAP-B1 GoLive date, something that could not have been achieved without an extreme sense of urgency and willingness to work across department lines. I am emboldened with confidence that our TEAM will once again rise to the occasion as we introduce many new processes and technology tools to all associates.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING continues although in many non-traditional ways.

Gone were customer counter days, vendor factory visits, and other non-socially distanced activities. We embraced and capitalized on WebEx, Zoom and other video conferencing techniques. This will serve us well as we move our entire organization over to Office365 and Microsoft Teams and as a “next level” form of communication with our associates, customers, and vendors.

Lastly, below is a link to a YouTube video that I watch at least 3X a year. I hope you find this commencement speech from Admiral Bill McRaven, at 2014 UT graduation, as inspirational as I did the first time I heard it five years ago. Although there are many lessons in that speech, the two that stick with me during this time of our organizations’ inflection point are:

“If you want to change the world, find someone to help paddle” Teamwork is paramount.

“If you want to change the world, don’t be afraid of the circuses” We will experience failure, but don’t let that define you, it will only make you stronger.

In closing, as I stated in January 2020, I am extremely proud to be part of this organization.

We have come through what will be recognized as one of the toughest years our country, and the world, has ever seen. My heartfelt THANKS to each of you and your families for the many contributions you each make to our organization, the associates, and to the many members of your families across the USA and across the globe.

by: Elaine Self by: Pat Armstrong

WHAT THE HIVE CAN TEACH BUSINESSES ABOUT

LEADERSHIP, EFFICIENCY,

& GROWTH LESSON #12 - PRESERVE A POSITIVE WORKPLACE THE WISDOM OF BEES by: Michael O’Malley, Ph.D. Division of labor plays another important role in the life of the hive, in addition to the one it plays in the allocation of work. It limits the amount of physical contact that bees performing one type of task have with bees performing other unrelated tasks. Why is that important? It is a way to contain the spread of infestation and disease that can be colony killers.

Bees control epidemics in three other ways: First, bees detect, uncap, and discard infected brood so they have no chance of adversely affecting the colony.

Second, if a bee is in trouble, it asks for help. It performs a dance that elicits grooming behavior from other bees. Bees have no difficulty in requesting assistance when afflicted; nor do they have difficulty in giving it when asked.

Third, most sick and infected bees have a good sense to drag themselves from the hive before they become a nuisance to the colony.

Bees maintain a clean hive and try to ensure that only healthy bees associate with other healthy bees. In order to keep their space pure, they try to curb the transfer of diseases that would interfere with their work and endanger the colony. Remaining true to their evolutionary heritage, that the colony’s functioning depends upon a positive disease-free environment, the honeybee controls unwanted elements that afflict group performance not only as a means of keeping the bad out, but assuring that the good, in its many manifestations such as health and energy, stays in.

More Pollen Bees establish a healthy milieu by maintaining a disease-free hive. They instinctively know that they need to fear not only external threats, but also the decay that can occur from within.

Internal rot within a company manifests as cynicism. Cynicism spreads and settles when a company’s leadership envisions strategies it has little ability to implement or conjures new initiatives monthly without ever finishing anything it starts.

The idea of “staying positive” has many connotations in organizations with “satisfaction” as the most common. The most important frame of mind is for employees to be optimistic about the future and convinced that they can alter it for the better. These follow from the maintenance of healthy corporate climate in which managers help their employees to be successful.

juan hernandez

DAD JOKE