Chismville

I’ve gotten to experience a good bit of snow and ice during my first full winter on the east coast. So far, I’m surviving. The funny thing is, I actually don’t mind 20 degree weather most of the time. It is rather dull and boring when it is in the 40′s in the middle of winter. My thinking is…if it is winter, let it be winter. However, what I really like about winter is not the freezing cold mornings or days. I love SNOW days. Every time it snows it is just gorgeous. It is so peaceful and beautiful to watch. The first major storm we got, I was sick with pneumonia but I just had to go outside. I bundled up nice and warm and sat on the front porch swing for probably a good 45 minutes listening and watching the pleasant snow fall!

Having cold weather has it’s share of problems, and I guess I am getting a little tired of the cold and longing for a few nice days of good temperatures where I can take the kids to the park. They are definitely getting cabin-fever over here! One of the problems is more my fault than the weather. I can’t keep my cars clean! It is humanly impossible. For several years, I always thought it was a great idea to have an auto detailing business in Maryland. However, from November through parts of March, it either rains or snows just enough to keep cars clean, and it is just too cold to wash cars! I know because I tried it! I took my filthy company truck over to the car was a couple of weeks ago to get it looking spiffy once again! I did the self-car wash and had a heck of a time cleaning my truck. The soap suds froze to the car before I could rinse them off. Because the soap was frozen and some water, I could not scrub any of the dirt of my truci. I spent the rest of my $5 in change blasting my vehicle with tons of high-pressured water to get all the suds off. I was able to accomplish that but in the mean time…the rinse water froze to my truck! I drove away with all my mirrors frozen and a layer of ice over my still dirty truck. The temperature? 16 degrees! Can we say “stupid.” I forgot to mention that I almost had frostbit’n hands during the wash cycle too!

Today we had a small ice storm. We had 2+ inches of snow followed by a nice bit of frozen rain. I did not even know what frozen rain was until I moved here! Ha! Now I know. I spent about 15 minutes this morning breaking off the 1/4″ think pieces of ice on my trucks windows. It was rock solid! I had to warm up my truck for probably 20 minutes to help warm up the windows and literally crack the ice with lots of force before scraping it off! I then headed to a postal box to drop off a company newsletter. The walkway up to the box was covered in ice. I was extremely careful while approaching the postal box! I was balancing my right side with my letters and the left side with my cell phone (talking to Joli). Have you ever tried to walk on ice with things in both hands while talking on the phone? It can’t happen! I finally had to quickly hang up and try to slide my way over to the mail box! I made it to the mail box after 2-3 falls! It was such an ordeal that I ended up sliding back to my truck and NOT mailing most of my letters.

So, ice and snow days…what an adventure. I prefer the snow without the ice now that I’ve experienced them both.

Nobody ever told me it would be this hard to raise kids. If they did, I was not listening. The books and seminars I remember attending/reading all seemed to give me pointers on being a great parent and having great kids. If they told me it was difficult, that I would struggle, and there was no set system, once again, I must have been to proud or not interested at the time to read all the fine print.

My kids are good kids. They are cheerful and most of the time obedient. However, it does seem like 33% of the time, they test my patience and my parenting skills. This morning I awoke to the sound of little feet racing around the home. It was definitely Chalice, my second born (2). I wondered what she was so excited about and decided to take a peek. I wish I hadn’t! I went into the back bedroom where the portable heater was turned on a high setting blasting our electrical usage. I then turned around to find my file organizer with no files in it. 99% of my files, papers, letters, receipts, etc. were all over the floor. I’ve seen a lot of messes raising kids, but nothing like this in terms of the amount of time it would take to clean up this mess. That afternoon, I spent almost an hour and a half putting papers back into the right folders, and back into the file organizer. This organizer has been sitting in the corner of this back bedroom for almost 4 months, and most of the time, Chalice sleeps in this room. She has seen this organizer for months with NO interest. This morning, she decided it was time to investigate!

After I disciplined her and told her she was naughty, I put her in bed again, and she slept for almost 2 1/2 more hours! Very strange!

Later that morning, Joli was getting ready for the day and me…I fell back asleep! I was awaken again by a little noise in my bedroom. My oldest was digging through my drawer investigating all my things I use regularly, phone, earpiece and chapstick! He had the expensive Burt’s Bees in hand when I jumped out of bed to rescue the stuff. I then went out of the room to find the left over expensive massage oil poured out on our wood floor. He had dumped it on the floor, which is NOT the first time this has happened! Why does he keep doing the same things wrong weekly and sometimes daily! Why this morning on a Saturday.

Later that morning, I began to calm down and think about why I was upset at my kids. I disciplined them as I should but was still extremely angry that they would defy their father. I was then reminded of my Heavenly Father’s love for me and began to see what He was teaching me. How many times do I sin in a day? 10x? 20x? I don’t know! A lot most likely! How many times do I have to come before the Lord and seek his forgiveness? How many times does the Lord, say, “When is David going to get it and hold a grudge against me? NEVER!!! He forgives me with so much grace because of Jesus’ sacrifice for my sins. My Father is grieved when I sin but always has open arms saying, “Come. Repent and be forgiven!” My Lord will discipline me when I sin at times but will never hold my sins against me. He forgives and “remembers my sin no more.”

The example God has shown me is what I need to do for my kids. By God’s grace, I hope to begin to correct my children, hug them and say with much grace in my heart, “Go and sin no more!”

I was talking to my parents on my drive home yesterday (Friday) when I was able to announce to them that I had seen my first bit of snow on the ground as I turned onto my street Liberty Rd. I just love my street name! Anyways, I saw just a few specks of snow flurries while I was at my office and in the D.C. area but nothing like what Joli got to see! Our area (Northeastern part of Frederick County) probably got close to an inch of slow for our first snow fall of the season! Hey! Not bad as it is still a little early. It was so fun to drive up my driveway and see patches of snow covering most of the grassy areas around our property. Today there are still a few patches remaining. It is just beautiful. I wish Joli could describe what it was like. She said is was so peaceful when it came down.

I’m still trying to get use to this new part of America and hope I will get settled in soon. I have had trouble breathing on and off since I left San Diego. It all started when I hit Colorado and has been up and down ever since. I’m not sure if it is stress, the different climates, or what! The weather here has changed so much since I moved so I don’t think it is the weather as I’ve seen really hot, really humid, San Diego like weather and now this cold front. Today the high is around 30. The cool part is that I can deal with 30! My buddy, Ben Laughman, told me yesterday it did not get much colder than 30 in the middle of the day in Maryland (not including the wind), so I thought that was real cool! Don’t get me wrong 30 is VERY cold but not outrageously cold. I’m buying my first pair of long-johns today and already have an umbrella and two pairs of gloves! My job this fall consists of selling Christmas displays, so unfortunately, all my estimates are OUTSIDE! I had an appointment the other day when the temp was 23 degrees! OHHH was I cold. My body finally broke down on Thursday. All day Thursday through today I’ve felt like a whipped puppy. I have been outside quite a bit this week, and this has been the coldest week to date. So, I’m staying inside today getting a good amount of R&R trying to beat this flu bug or whatever it is I have! It is hard for me to stay in bed all day, so I got up to upload a few photos of our kids, family and write this quick blog.

One cool activity I just started was playing basketball with a group of Christian men on Tuesday and Thursdays. The last time I played ball with a group of guys on a weekly basis was in high school 15 years ago at the YMCA in Mission Valley. These guys are just awesome. They will discuss a few prayer items and pray together before we all start. We play from 6am to between 7 and 7:30. It has been great for me to get the exercise and get back in shape, as I don’t do well just being a runner or sitting in front of an exercise video. Just completed my 2nd week playing and am feeling better.

In short, besides my health issues, I am LOVING Maryland. I am so happy here yet must say…I wish I could see my wonderful Chism Family more often. God has not made it possible for man to figure out a way to be in two separate parts of the country at the same time. Sometimes I wish it were that easy. I love and miss my California family and my dear friends so much. Please come and visit whenever you are near DC or Baltimore. We are right in the middle of these cities.

It took about 5-6 weeks but today was a very exciting day for me! I finally received my State of Maryland Salesman’s Licensed! Not every salesman needs a licensed in Maryland. I was required because I was selling home improvement jobs. It is actually a pretty cool system as far as government regulations go. It protects the homeowner to know that a person selling a paint job, a roof or remodeling project must be licensed by the State. It hopefully will set ourselves apart from the competition.

I’ve been working on selling only Christmas lighting projects, which has been cool. I’m really enjoying being Christmas Decorator and helping people light up their homes for Christmas. Now that I have my Home Improvement Lic. in hand, I’m officially licensed to take on residential painting estimates for Ted: and hopefully take a BIG load off his back.

I recently had a conversation with my brother in law, Jesse Beaty, about the Obama-McCain elections. He shared with me a very interesting fact about a group of Obama supporters and their reason for voting for him. Jesse is taking a number of electrical classes twice a week down in Rockville, Maryland to complete his journeyman electrician certification. Most of his classmates are union workers and are voting for Obama, which is very typical for union employees. Jesse began discussing Obama-McCain and causing a reaction as no one liked the fact that he was voting for McCain. The very sad results Jesse shared was that these men thought Obama should be elected so that he can raise takes of the rich and have more money available for people like them. They said that rich people already have too much money and can live with a little less. In other words, they do not see a problem at all with taking from the rich and giving to the “poor.” However, they consider themselves the “poor and needy.” They feel like the victims and cannot speak well of anyone who has money.

After listening to his colleagues defend Obama, Jesse broke the news that his tax increases are not just for the rich. He will tax the working citizens of this country, yes! even union workers. Why do you think you pay such high union dues? Do you think those dues are going just for hard hats and a decent medical insurance policy? No way! That money is being used to get Obama elected so that the union can have what they want: a socialistic way of life!

It got me thinking about the Rich vs. the Poor the other day! Typically a rich person became rich which means at one point in his (or her) life, he was poor. How did he become rich? Because of family inheritance or luck? Maybe the rich person you know or have heard about became rich by having a goal to do something, anything! That person did not just sit around waiting for the government or a rich uncle to bail him out of his financial struggles. He set his mind to do something productive and did it! Most people (not all) who want government handouts will never be goal setters. They will never run a successful business or train their children to be self-starters! They will continue to work the minimum amount of hours and struggle through life knowing that our friendly government is there to help! Can you imagine what America was like if we all were hungry for someone bailing us out of all our daily struggles or giving us financial support?

My wife gave me a simple little book called, “Strang & Fascinating Facts About Famous Brands.” Joli, knowing I love marketing, thought it would be the perfect Father’s Day gift! She was right! I just love this booklet. All this book is about are 1 paragraph to 1 page stories about people who started very successful companies but typically with very little money. Will Kellogg, inventer of breakfast cereal, came up with the idea while working in a sanitarium. His patience loved his little invention so he became a traveling salesman trying to sell his knew little product of “corn flakes.” No the Kellogg family is worth billions. Mr. Subway (Subway Sandwiches) was just a kid looking to go to college. A doctor friend of his encouraged him to earn money for school and said to start making subs and selling them. I’m not sure if the guy ever went back to college as Subway soon began to grow by leaps and bounds! Hersey and Resees Chocolates all started by a family, not a big corporation. The Resee family saw the money that their farm neighbors: The Herseys, started making from chocolate that they put their pennys together and invented the Resees Buttercup in their basement! Dominoes, Pizza Hut, Dr. Pepper, Ivory Soap, they all had meager beginnings. All of their founders were determined to press on with their goals of making it in this world without the help of Uncle Sam. This is pure and good capitalism!

So, if you want a morale booster or a book to help you get motivated to press on in life, get a copy of the facts about famous brands and read a few entries! God made man to be creative, to take dominion of the earth, to subdue it and rule it well! He expects us to be diligent and work for His glory. My hope is that our nation will one day begin to see that they are living each day under the mercies of Christ and will begin to follow our Maker! My hope is that these union workers will realize that the rich are not all evil. Maybe they too can realize their God-given abilities and do something great!

Joli and I went on a date Thursday to see the movie “Fireproof” produced by a Baptist church in Georgia. I was very impressed with this movie! I think it gave a real portrayal of most troubled marriages today. There were theological points I may not have liked completely, but all in all, I do not think it is worth discussing. The Gospel message was proclaimed and I believe God was glorified! I’m grateful for the courage and determination of Sherwood Baptist for making a good movie for the general public to view and hopefully stir the hearts of many to have stronger marriages: both Christians and unbelievers.

I am currently in Ohio receiving extensive training on Christmas light hanging! I started my new job with Hallco Painting last week and have been working on Ted Hall’s second business: Christmas Decor by Hallco LLC. Hanging Christmas lights has been something I wanted to do for Dad’s business in San Diego but did not know there was a really professional Christmas light services company around. I had seen the cheap little signs around town the past few years that advertised light hanging, but had no clue if the companies were professional or did good work. When I interviewd with Hallco, Ted told me all about Christmas Decor and the services he offered for his clients! It sounded perfect! I am actually more excited to sell Christmas Decorations and Installation to Maryland residence than I am in selling paint jobs at the moment. It is a rather cool opportunity. I am receiving thorough training in how to properly design a home for Christmas! What can be more fun than that? I already love colors and interior design. Now I get to add another skill to my job!

Christmas Decor is the franchise company that Hallco owns in select areas of Maryland (Frederick, Howard and parts of Montgomery Counties). At first, I thought maybe a company to hang lights on their own without being involved with a franchise! I can now see why being a part of a larger company is well worth it! Christmas Decor Corporate has all the lights and decorations we need when we need them! Al the products are top quality and unique (you can’t get them all at Home Depot or Walmart). Plus, Christmas Decor provides employee training to make sure that the lights and decorations are hung perfectly. I especially like the way they do their tree and ground lighting. A homeowner or even a handyman just cannot get a tree to look perfect!

Anyways, my first week on the job, I was able to coordinate getting a one page website up and running for Hallco. I wanted to make sure that his company received the proper placement in search engines and looked the best as most companies do not market this service very well. The new web address is: View Here

The only downside to being in Ohio this week is not being at home with my wonderful family! I cannot believe how much I miss them all. It was so hard for me to say goodbye yesterday as I drove away towards northern Ohio.  My wonderful wife is being such a trooper by allowing me to spend all this time training and away at work.

I received a possible job offer from a contractor before I left for Maryland about 4 weeks ago. I told him I would work for him and was excited to actually have work before I arrived! It was such a relief for me! However, the job offer was not in writing nor was there any mention of timing, job description of talks of money. When I got out to Maryland, I began to explore other opportunities and talk to this contractor about my job description. His operation was very professional and probably a great company to work for, but I did not feel like I was going to be a good fit for him. He also mentioned that the job, as a sales person, was a 100% commission. Sometimes that is ok to be on a 100% commission, but I felt I would be completely on my own. It was almost as though he was setting me up in business 1 hour from my home to work for myself. I wanted to work for a company that was a close team: working together. Yesterday, I received a call back from the company I was hoping to work for that is only 20+ minutes from my home. This painting and contracting company, Hallco, seems to be a perfect fit for both of us. He mentioned he was going to get back with me TODAY, and my heart sank! Why? Because that has happened about 2-3 times already. So, in a concerned and business like tone, I accepted it but also asked him if wanted to hire me. I told him I had 2 other contractors interested and needed to know what to tell them. He then got excited and said, “Absolutely! It just takes a long time to hire someone!” So, that was a relief. I just thought, at first, he was stalling for time or did not know what to do. He then reassured me that he thought I would be a good fit for him and that he wanted to take the extra time to make me an offer that was very satisfying to me. I have NO idea what he will offer me for a salary, but I think he’ll be fair. I told him all the benefits and salary I was making in San Diego but assured him I did NOT have to make the same out here. However, I think it gave him a good idea while he began to run the numbers for himself. Hopefully his offer will be acceptable, and I can start ASAP!  Ted, the owner of Hallco, actually has another business he attached to the painting company that hangs Christmas lights. I have been wanting to have that service for my dad’s business but did not know there was a business and system in place to do it. So, once the details are worked out, I will be flying to Ohio for 4 days for a crash course in learning all about Christmas lights and how to sell them! Should be fun and a great business when the weather gets bad out here!I lastly have one final “interview” this morning with a company I like and know very well: Summit Services. The owner of Summit, Brian Nolan, is a business coach/consultant. He has helped my dad’s business along with many other painters to systematize their companies and be more professional: rising to the top in their area. His office is out of Philly, and he would like me to interview with him about a possible job in consulting? I’m really not sure what he has in mind yet…but will look forward to discussing those opportunities with him. He is looking for part time consultants to help him with his clients. He only works with painters and uses his brothers successful company, Nolan Painting, to help be the “model” company. We’ll see where and if that leads to somewhere! If not now, in the future.  

When I moved east, I had to give up my company vehicle, a white Toyota 4- door truck. I’ve been driving a truck for close to 10 years and for the first time in my life, I purchased a sedan as my personal commuter vehicle. I purchased an Accord for Joli 4 years ago, but we also sold that when we moved as I did not want to drive 2 cars out east. Michael Howard directed me to a dealership he trusts that sells and services used Hondas and Acuras. I felt very comfortable that they knew those cars and would not sell junk! They do not sell new cars: only cars that were traded in or they found, made sure they were sound and resold them. So, I found myself a 1999 Acura TL with 100,000 miles and completely tuned up, ready to go. It has more bells and whistles than I have ever had, and I will enjoy it. It drives so smooth and is also a fun car! I wanted to get a reliable commuter car but also one that was comfortable as I would be driving along way each day.

Sometimes I just can’t believe I wake up each morning on the other side of the country. Spending my entire life on the west coast makes living on the east very strange. I keep driving down these little country roads thinking to myself that I am just visiting and will be returning to the west soon. I then remind myself that I am a local now, a resident of Maryland! I even purchased a commuter car the first week of my arrival! I think it will not become reality to me until I start a full time job and move into our new home.

Speaking of our new home, we have not moved in yet! The movers gave me a tentative date of delivery drop off: 9th through 18th! Originally, I thought that was quite the range of dates, so I moved up my  pick up date 3-4 days expecting the drop off to be earlier. It was not! We’ve been camping out at the Howard’s for the past week now with our traveling bags and a week’s worth of summer clothes. The first few days the weather was very hot and sticky leaving behind lots of mosquitoes bites for us foreigners. The last few days have turned into very beautiful and cool days! I just hope I have a long sleeved shirt before Maryland’s fall season hits! Lord willing, we should be moving by Friday the 12th!

Joli and I are in the final stages of negotiating the lease agreement of our new place for the first six months. Everyone says it is a great time to buy a home, but I’m just not ready to buy when my job is still up in the air. I’m a very cautious person so renting seems like the best option until I can get used to the area and have a stable job. I am very pleased with the home we are getting. As a city slicker, it will be a whole new way of life and country living, but I am very excited about the new adventure.  The home boasts about 2700 sq. ft of living space on the main level (excluding the finished basement). It has approximately 3 acres of grass with woods bordering the property. We have a full deck in the back and a white front porch! We were just told that we were responsible for mowing the lawn two days ago, which completely threw me off guard, as it was never mentioned. So we have asked that the landlord maintain the majority of the property and we’ll cover the grass directly around the home. So far, they are agreeable to this arrangement. Now we need it in writing!

Joli is completely excited about our new home. She had a BIG smile on her face the entire time we looked at it together for the first time. That, of course, makes me happy! So, in a few days we should be completely moved in and will be true country folks! I can’t wait.

As for my job, I’m still praying that the Lord would direct me to the right company. I have a job offer for a company in Kensington, MD which is about 50 miles from my place. It seems to be a well established paint company that can offer me a good place to work. For the sales position, it will be 100% commission based, very different than working in my family business. They are very open to me marketing and running another division near where I will be living, but I do not think that is a wise idea for me to start out that way because I do not know the area. I would rather have a more stable income and good results by working in an area that this company is already established and known for the first 6 months or so. To start, I will be able to put some of my business development skills to work but most likely will go back into sales after the first few weeks or month as I can probably earn more money that way. To start, I will help them with their website and create more legible estimates, proposals and possible marketing material. I also have one more interview tomorrow with a painting contractor only about 30 miles away! So, we’ll see how things work out.

Our family is settling into Maryland quite well. The kids have been extra tired, especially Chalice but seem to be doing a lot better this week. I will write another update once we move into our new place and post pictures of our trip, family and our property.

I miss my dear friends and family back in California. It is SO hard to leave my family business but still feel that the Lord has directed me back to Maryland. I wish Dad and I could still work together! Maybe I can convince him to move east someday! I praise God that we were able to work together for over 8 years and get along!!! He was a wonderful boss, and I know I will NOT have it as good working for anyone else. For all my friends, please do keep in touch. Send us emails and notes anytime you think of us.