Wednesday, March 30, 2011

841 Safe Haven

841 Safe Haven

It happens all the time. You’re holding a piece of paper on which is written something you know you’re going to need at some point, but probably not soon.

Maybe it’s the serial number and model number from your new GE water heater (Wessay™ 837.) Or it can be the combination for the lock on your suitcase. Or the phone numbers to call for a gas leak or a power outage or what they now call “roadside assistance.” Maybe something you’ll need at tax time. The deed. The rental agreement. Or the endless “product key” from Microsoft. Anything, really.

Have to put this in a safe place and you do.

True or false: squirrels spend all autumn burying acorns, and then in winter forget where they buried them. Opinion is divided.

But not when it comes to Us the Bipeds.

We put that important future paperwork in a safe place and then promptly forget where. How many times have you said to yourself “I know ‘it’s’ in this drawer, somewhere?” It’s in the freezer. It’s under a couch cushion. It’s under a rug. It’s in the cabinet with grandma’s good china.

We never use an obvious place, because it’ll be in the way and “we’ll never need this stuff.” But when we DO need this stuff, we don’t remember where we put it.

Maybe we should have “emergency drills” once a month, like fire drills in grade school. Starting with the first day after the first month we put the paper or papers in a “safe place” we ring a bell, then go to the “safe place,” inspect the document or documents and replace them in their spot. This way, we’ll have a working familiarity so when the lights go out, we’ll know where the phone number is.

Or maybe what we need to do is put everything in a safe place, then put a treasure map to the safe place in another safe place. Now, where’s that map, again?

--Shrapnel (ex-NBC edition):

--New rumors abound that Katie Couric is not going to stay at CBS when her lucrative contract expires in June. The top guy wants to keep her, the top news guy seems not to, but may offer her a daytime show and a permanent spot on “60 Minutes.” Please recall that this space long ago predicted her next job would be host of the 3 am Lee Press-On Nails infomercial, which likely will reunite her with long time friend and ally Jeff Zucker.

----Congratulations to Jim Farley, the brains behind WTOP, Washington, which was America's top billing radio station of 2010, $57 million dollars. Jim started his career as a copy boy and worked his way up. And the geniuses at Bonneville may be wondering why they’re selling that group of stations.


Note to readers: Thanks to Carole Mol for suggesting the safe place idea and helping amplify it.

I’m Wes Richards. My opinions are my own but you’re welcome to them. ®
Please address comments to wesrichards@gmail.com.
© WJR 2011

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