LAFOLOT

Teaser: ‘Speaking up for my rights – I feel empowered! Resolving the issue with kindness, gratitude & forgiveness – Priceless!’ a.k.a. ‘Good Hearted Living’ [Steve Wilson] … in motion

While making use of a Gift Card to dine at my local Applebees, I ended up with twenty-one cents remaining on the card. I said to the ‘highly efficient’ server: Now the problem is, I want to give you a tip, I don’t have cash, so I’d have to use my VISA Check Card. The card was in my right hand near my purse, on the table. The server was off to my left at the end of the booth. WITHIN A SPLIT SECOND – She had TAKEN the card OUT of MY HAND and walked away with it!

I’m shocked, wondering WHAT she is going to do with my card!? I calm down, thinking she was just absentminded and was going to ask the manager for help on how to do it. BUT NO! I look back and she is SWIPING the CARD in their check processing device! I’m wondering WHAT AMOUNT is she entering on my card? I hadn’t even filled out the slip for the tip?!

She comes back with my card and I say strongly: WHAT! DID YOU JUST DO WITH MY CARD?

She responds: ‘I was trying to see if it would take an amount like a penny or …’

I said: ‘Don’t you realize it’s a federal offense to take a person’s card without permission and enter dollar amounts from their account?!’ I continued – ‘I REALIZE you didn’t do this on purpose, and that it is a TRAINING issue.’ I said: “We need to get the manager over here and EXPLAIN that THIS ISN’T PROPER.

Long story short – the manager didn’t seem to get it. I asked the manager for the corporate office address and phone number. Ten minutes later I STILL don’t have the information requested. She has now brought out the Assistant Manager who ALSO won’t give me the information. I tell them I could easily call the police since they don’t seem to get this wasn’t proper procedure with a customer’s card. I finally get the address and phone number and leave.

This morning, I called the number and talked to the local President of Davenports/Applebees, etc. SMART MAN – he admitted immediately that their actions were totally inappropriate. He didn’t understand why the server took the card and ran it through for unapproved amounts and why the management didn’t want to give me the corporate address and phone number.

I told him I wanted NOTHING other than to know that STAFF WOULD BE TRAINED, MANAGEMENT WOULD BE TRAINED and they would realize NOT to TAKE a credit/debit card OUT of a CUSTOMER’S HAND and run it through a system to withdraw funds. I explained I was a business woman myself, I didn’t believe in verbally harming a place but to SEE THE SITUATION from a healthy perspective and suggest training would help.

He offered a gift card. I told him I honestly did not want one, since I was not out any money, having used my gift cards. He thanked me and I just got off the phone with their Area Manager – to whom I told the same thing – I’d just like the staff there to be trained and aware. I told them both, my server was HIGHLY EFFICIENT, and she provided excellent service up until she ran off with my card. I said: “I do not want to see any job loss when it’s just a Training Issue.”

They both thanked me. I had felt VERY FRUSTRATED with myself for having to get verbally strong, threatening with the place. I didn’t like ‘having to go there’ so to speak. It’s an uncomfortable thing for me to do, as well as awkward. While I knew I had the right, I didn’t like it.

‘Speaking up for my rights – I feel empowered! Resolving the issue with kindness, gratitude & forgiveness – Priceless!’

Highlighted Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Living, Learning, Loving with kindness and Gratitude, and learning Forgiveness of myself and others.
www.lafolot.com

Gotta LAUGH! At myself! On a regular basis!
I tell people and write all the time: ‘I teach what I need to learn and share the CREATIVE ways I work through my LAUGHABLE Life Lessons!

Many people that meet me say they can see how ‘Passionate’ I am about what I do. What do I do? My intention is to Motivate and Inspire others through speaking, singing, writing and laughter wellness!

So, when I left my State Government job after 28 1/2 years – on a LEAP OF FAITH – with the strong, passionate intention to:

1) Teach all that I had learned by making use of all the wonderful ‘mental/emotional health support offered by my wonderful medical plan

2) Teach laughter wellness, Good-Hearted Living (Steve Wilson), and how to use Creative HEALTHY Triggers and ways to ‘get through a work day’ to my fellow State Employees – as a Commonwealth Vendor

I, once again, was given the opportunity to FORGIVE myself and others due to the hurt I felt when a negative, non-accurate (due to leaving out information about laughter wellness) article was written about my PASSION, of all things!

In my excitement to help others with a creative, medically endorsed/proven health & wellness tool known as Laughter Wellness, Laughter Therapy or Laughter Yoga – I never dreamed it wouldn’t be embraced by others – especially an investigative reporter trained to DIG for the FACTS.

But, alas, that’s what happened. So the HEALING from the HURT began. I started with instant FORGIVENESS. HA HA! ‘I’ had the last laugh! My hurt turned to anger and frustration as I was marked as a non-favorable Commonwealth Vendor – marked as ‘one to not hire’ for FEAR of our local paper pouncing on ‘the waste of tax dollars on a comedienne.’

Well – that was the Summer of 2009, it is now October 2010 and I am BEING BLESSED with the OPPORTUNITY to MOVE PAST THE HURT, THE ANGER and allowing a “Health Section” reporter from the same paper to ‘come into my home’ to interview me about Laughter Wellness.

Biting nails, holding in anxiety, wanting so badly for the FACTS to be printed –
and ‘alas’ – I know I have VERY LITTLE control over what the reporter will write.

But – what is MOST IMPORTANT to me:

1) FORGIVE MYSELF for my ‘human’ way of dealing with it all
2) FORGIVE the newspaper, editor and investigative reporter that I ALLOWED to take me through feelings of hurt, anger, and frustration.

This is HA HA ‘Living HUMANLY’ Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Living Life! and Laughing Often!
Choosing – for this moment – FORGIVENESS

Part II – how it all started and showed me the POWER of a SMILE!

One story I didn’t include in my blog, yesterday. I had ‘stood up’ to a powerful
management/uniformed/gun toting figure at a meeting where I used to work
(policing agency) I ‘spoke up’ in a sexual harrassment training session when he
made fun of some point. He then ordered me to leave.

Well – things got hairy, even though I had many supporters, but too many were
afraid to speak up, understandably!

A few weeks later, I encountered him exiting an elevator. He saw me, dropped
his head and was ready to walk on -

BUT – a funny thing happened. I decided to just give him one of my closed mouth
smiles – he saw it – his entire body, shoulders and face lifted, brightened,
lightened up!

I had decided we had agreed to disagree and there was no point in allowing it to
drag us both down. I could see the RELIEF on his face – this high
level/uniformed/powerful man who had ‘shrunk himself down and dropped his
head’… THE POWER OF THAT SMILE – what POWER it had to dissipate anger.

That’s why my SMILE CAMPAIGN is so personal and means so much to me.

thank you for allowing me to share … ;o)

Highlighted – Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Spread those SMILES by the MILES and watch how the power of a soft smile can dissipate anger.
www.lafolot.com/smile-campaign/
[this post can also be seen at VIBRANT NATION blog: Helenoflafolot]