back. and better than ever.

oh friends it is sad that we have not talked in so long. 

but.

i’m here with great news. 

be ready for a post a week. since my return from world travels and my return to an american college campus, i have seen humans both winning and losing the human race and i’m here to tell you all about it.

so, get ready. 

this time next week, you’ll have some brand, spankin’ new material to read. here’s a hint of what’s coming:

• crosswalk etiquette
• how to walk on a sidewalk
• garbage cans
• rules of “thank you”
• tips for the gym
• doors – when should i hold it open?
• cell phone manners
• and many, many more fun topics.

so get ready! talk to you again soon! (PROMISE!)

yahoo!

check out this article.

way to go, yahoo.  here’s a little checklist for those of you who want to know how you’re doing when it comes to teaching manners to your kids.

i know lots of 9-year-olds who have great manners.

checking in.

hello faithful friends.

to blame the lack of blogging on being too busy would not be fair.  while my sister and i have been busy – we neglected the blog and that is unfair to you, not to mention very, very impolite.  if anyone is still reading, let me apologize for the silence.  we’re sorry.

there’s a lot going on for us but we promise to not let the blog be forgotten.  after all, people still need tips on being human and if we’re going to make it big here at h2bah then we must keep the posts coming.

i’d like to make a vlog for you…that’s in the works.  see, tips on being good drivers are just too complicated for writing.  these tips require dialogue and visual aids.  just wait for it – the premiere “how to be a human” vlog will not disappoint.

so, there are no excuses for our absences, as most good humans take responsibility when they’re wrong, and we promise to not be so absent.  we love you and shall remain connected.

happy summer.  don’t let the sunshine distract you from being polite.  because manners matter, it’s just how to be a human.

exam week etiquette.

i know, i know, your brain is full of chemistry, religion, and spanish verbs. but that does not mean that you may empty your brain of manners and the knowledge of how to be a human.

here are a few things to keep in mind during this stressful time of exams:

• tables in the library are tables, not forts. yes friends, the other day there were girls who were laying underneath the table studying. what’s wrong with this? first of all, that’s not the purpose of the table. secondly, they were loud and doing more imaginative play in said fort than actual studying causing a distraction. and finally, when they left, they did not clean up from their fun game. the chairs were still on their sides and stacked in odd positions. please, just sit your butt down and study properly.
• i understand that i am currently sitting in the “community” study section, but still, there are noise levels that are just straight up wrong for any section of the library. and you my friends, yes you, two tables over, i can hear your every word. sooooo, yeah. you’re too loud.
• oranges or other smelly foods are not good snacks in small spaces – aka the library. they make everyone wish they had fresh produce.
• having a phone on vibrate is not quiet. every time you get a text, i know about it. and it throws off the mojo of my studying. so please, pretty please, either put your phone on real silent, or don’t let it buzz on the hard wood tables. you’re making me, and everyone else CRAZY.

now, don’t be alarmed. not everyone loses manners during exam week. let me share a little upper. i made the long, obnoxious walk back to my dorm because i forgot my power cord for my computer. when i walked into my dorm, a dad was there. i didn’t know him, but he asked me how my exams were going, if i was having productive studying and then said, “just stay strong! you’re so close! you’re gonna make it!” and i smiled. what a great human.

oh and dear girl having a deep conversation with your boyf in the stairwell – thanks for the entertainment tonight. : )

so friends, whether you are in school or not, let’s be kind to those of us who are working our little tails off. it’s just how to be a human.

and now, let the studying continue.

one better.

check this out, friends.

i love angie smith.  she is definitely a human, knows what to do.  she’s not a know-it-all.  she’s totally real.

you must read her post, then come back to h2bah and finish reading my post…go, go now and read…

okay.

how great is this concept, do one better.  i love it.  isn’t that what being a human is all about?  what task can i do better at?  sure, i can hold the door for the person behind me – what would it look like to do one better?  yes, i’ll say please and thank you to my barista – let me do one better and ask them about their day.  winning.

so friends – let’s excel here and do one better.  it’s just how to be a human.

humans do exist!

imagine me doing a happy dance right now as i have interacted with a quality human.

you all know i’m a janitor. if not, now you do. typically, when i am working i just get pity stares, or disgusted looks. pity stares because, well, who wants to be emptying surprise boxes at 7am and disgusted looks because i actually AM emptying surprise boxes at 7am.

but, friends, guess what?

thursday morning.

second floor.

arena restroom.

a perky red head walks in. she uses the restroom and comes to wash her hands (side note, i should’ve known she was quality as she did wash her hands – good personal hygiene counts as good manners, you know) and she says “good morning! how are you?” i swear, my jaw hit the floor.

what? someone acknowledged me as a human being even while i was wearing blue latex free gloves and a tshirt that proclaims to the world my misfortune of having a job as a janitor? wow.

she asked me if i had weekend plans, when i got off of work…we had a lovely little chat. she then wished me a good day, and i wished her one back (again, that’s polite) and we both continued on our way. gosh, i think i smiled for the last 30 minutes of work!

and oh, you think it can’t get better? it can.

i’ve seen her 2 more times since than every time, she says good morning and gives me a smile. love.

so red head, work out clothes girl with the lime green headband – thank you for being a human! when i make it to ellen degeneres thanks to this blog, i’ll be sure to give you a shout out!

see friends, nothing extravagant, just how to be a human. : )

more manners for the weather.

friends. it has been a long time since i have sat down to share. i’m sorry. it is not polite to ignore you, my faithful blog readers. even if it’s only 3 people. : )

it rained today. and around campus there were GIGUNDO puddles. i’m talking mini ponds. it was gross. lucky for me, i have galoshes. they are bright yellow. with white polka dots. and so. stinkin. cute. but that’s not the point.

the point is this: not everybody has galoshes. and even if people wear galoshes, not everyone likes splashing in puddles. so to the girl walking in front of me on the path – STOP SPLASHING IN EVERY DANG PUDDLE!

i’ll be the first to admit it – i love puddle jumping. but it is not appropriate to puddle jump and splash when you are surrounded by other people who are not participating in said splashing. you see, when little miss jumpy jumped, my pants got wet. and i had to stop abruptly so i would not run into little miss jumpy. my friends, this should not be.

so let’s recap.

puddle jumping is fun. on. your. own. people don’t like wet, cold pants on a yucky day. so keep your puddle jumping to your self. it’s just how to be a human.

ps. a new installment of the janitorial series in the works. *wink*

common courtesies, winter edition

I know winter is (hopefully) nearly over, but I can’t pass up the opportunity to point out some common courtesies for snow covered parking lots…so, adding on from our previous list…

4. Visualize, people…we’ve all been in parking lots a million times – we certainly (should) know what enough space between cars looks like and we really really (should) know what too much space looks like.

That being said,

5. Please don’t park so close to my car that I brush up against the lovely layers of winter filth that have built up on the side of my car.

6. Please watch where your car is going in relation to me and the slush puddles.  No one likes to get sprayed.

So, don’t let the snow give you a brain freeze that causes you to forget your manners…because manners matter in every season.  It’s just how to be a human.

*We here at h2bah offer our deepest apologies for being absent recently in the blog world.  We’ve been busy – but that’s no excuse.  You matter enough to us that we must work harder at making time to post our musings on manners.

**If you are dissatisfied with the rate of postings, take action!  Be on the lookout for manners mishaps and send us a message – we’d love to feature your submission on h2bah.

how to be a human: janitorial series.

it’s true – i’m a janitor. well, i actually prefer the title “cleaning lady.” 3 mornings a week i wake up before the sun and clean. mostly i clean women’s bathrooms and locker rooms, on occasion i vacuum. but as a cleaning lady, i have a learned a thing or two about manners. allow me to share.

the first few are janitor to janitor manners:

1. if you finish it – re stock it. you see, we janitors push around a huge cart filled with supplies. it has glass cleaner, trash bags, rags, toilet paper refills etc. these carts have the ability to be handy, but if you use the last roll of toilet paper, put a new one on the cart!

2. empty the trash, means empty the trash. at the front of our carts is a little area for a trash bag. it is so great because then i don’t have to carry the trash around. the only downfall is that sometimes the stench of garbage is always under my nose. now, this is not a problem when it stays empty. but some of my fellow cleaning friends never empty it. 3 day old trash – gross.

now are are a few janitor to common man rules:

1. trash goes in the trash. one of my jobs when cleaning girls bathrooms is to empty “surprise boxes.” they are exactly what you think they are. some girls however, do not have very good trash skills and their “product” does not make its way into it’s special receptacle. therefore, i get to “go fishing” for it. nasty. kindly work on your aim.

2. if i am vacuuming the middle stair case, kindly pick another. thursday morning i vacuumed. as i was vacuuming the middle of three adjacent staircases, a young woman began walking up the middle one and gave me quite the look when i was standing in her way. oh i’m sorry, miss. i didn’t meant to get in your way. i also forgot that the other 2 staircases are inferior to this one.

anyways, there are more, but i don’t want to get lengthy. plus, i want to save some stories for further installments of this mini series.

next time you see a janitor, just smile. and if you are a janitor, do to your fellow cleaning persons as you would have them do to you. let’s be real, it’s just how to be a human.

even 7.year.olds know how.

Today’s post is a guest submission.  How cool that someone sent us their story about manners!  Yeah!  So, to be polite, I’ll say “thank you” and I won’t take the credit for this public service announcement.

The credit for today’s manners matter tip goes to a dear 7-year-old – she is just as precious as can be…I have many memories from growing-up that include her parents, they were our “out-the-back-door” neighbors.  Now they have two cute kiddies!  This is a girl after my (and my co-author’s) own heart – she knows about manners.  Here’s the story, straight from her mom (the story is in italics and my comments are in parenthesis and non-italics):

While trying to shovel yet another snow storm, a young next door neighbor, with a snow blower, came out to clear his driveway. During this time, our neighbor across the street, an older lady, who is a widow, was out clearing her driveway. My 7 year old asks to go help her, which she did (AWESOME). The neighbor with the snowblower NEVER approached her to see if she needed any help (way to go, that’s some initiative!). I went to help when I finished (nice, leading by example), and while there a wonderful neighbor stopped by with his truck and plow, and cleared her driveway. (He had been clearing her driveway “anonymously” up to this point. When she mentioned something about repaying him, his request was for her to pray for him :)) (Rock on!  Those random acts of kindness…)
My point being, that this young “wippersnapper” did not have the common sense or good grace (clearly not a H2BAH blog reader) to help out an elderly neighbor. To you and I – it’s a no brainer – common sense, being a good neighbor, good Christian, a decent human being. Thankfully my 7 year old has these qualities. Sadly, my next door neighbor does not. 😦

I’m oh so happy for this little 7-year-old and very proud of her!  She is growing into a person who doesn’t just think about herself, can see other people’s needs, and is committed to help…I think she’s got potential as a guest writer someday here on the bloggy-blog and maybe can take over when I (and my dear co-author) can no longer write…

So friends, it’s quite simple…take a lesson from this 7-year-old and help someone in your neighborhood.  Please, it’s just how to be a human.