Technical Difficulties

I am a person who likes to feel in control. When I sign onto things, I like to think I can count on certain outcomes. Maybe I'm rigid.

Case in point: I am the host of a BlogTalk Radio show called The Couplespeak™ Relationship Forum. I've been doing the show for more than three years, have interviewed lots of fascinating guests, and have prided myself on being well prepared with an understanding of the issues, and questions that don't seem totally moronic. What I don't count on is encouraging callers to use the 877 toll-free line, then having them reach dead air, nada. Or, when I purchase a transcript of one of the shows, I don't expect it to read like hieroglyphics! What drives me crazy at this point in my life is dealing with products and services like this where all the tech support people are lovely, helpful and earnest, but the technical realities seem to come from the Stone Age!

Am I the only one who doesn't understand why suddenly the hugely expensive universal remote in the master bedroom no longer turns on the "PVR"? (whatever that is). Or, why the answering machine has decided not to answer? Is it just me, or have you too wanted to throw your fax machine out the window when it takes hours to connect, then suddenly stops giving you a "transmission report"? Not to mention my office microwave which inexplicably now takes two minutes to heat up a warm cup of coffee. Oh, I forgot - how about my wireless landline phone which now magically flicks off of "speakerphone" mode in the middle of a call? Is it unrealistic to expect that if I don't log off of the Square app on my phone, that I wouldn't have to log back in after the last transaction thirty seconds ago? Is it too much to ask that if I've set my alarm for 8 AM that I could change that to 8:10 if I want to snooze some more?

Am I the only one with such maddening, baffling and pervasive technical difficulties? Am I just too rigid in my expectations, or have I mysteriously landed on the wrong planet?

BlogTalk Radio Show: "What's Your Conflict Style? Take the Test" Wednesday, 5/28/14 8:30 PM EST

In this 45 minutes episode, Susan Lager co-hosts with Meredith Richardson, a collaborative lawyer, mediator and conflict coach on the Southern New England coast. Hosting other events together, such as couples retreats, the two women bring their own spin to the issue of conflict in marriage as well as in friendships and in the workplace. Lager and Richardson explore the different conflict styles, and explore how each of us learns to manage conflict based on earlier experiences and adaptations to those environments.

• Find out what triggers you and why, and how you manage it well or badly.
• Take one of the recommended Conflict Quizes to find out more about your own conflict style
• Get some ideas for avoiding the "same old fight'" with your partner! Get a head's up on getting along better with your spouse, friends, and co-workers!

Call in toll-free 877-497-9046 at 8:30 EST to just listen in, or to join the conversation on the air with questions or comments. Don't miss this one - it should be lively!

Who is "Donotreply"?

Ever get an email from sender "Donotreply"? Well, I do, and whenever I get one, I wonder, WHO IS SHE? Why does she keep sending me messages? Did we ever meet, and maybe I forgot about it? Or maybe she's been spying on me, reading my other email messages, figuring I need a little excitement. Maybe she's a long lost cousin from Russia, a bit shy, wanting to reunite the family. Or maybe she's a neighbor f**ck#ng around with my head, thinking I make her look bad, with all my regular speed walks. I wonder where she lives? Is she a cyber-creature lurking somewhere between the words? Or maybe she hides out next to the crumbs between the couch seat cushions. I go to bed at night wondering if she's lonely and just wants to play. I wake up to find she's sent me more emails: "Do this...... Do that....... Click on this link.......Go to this page............"  (If nothing else, she's very bossy).

I fear going to my grave, failing to answer this question: "Who is Donotreply?!!!!

Don't Miss My BlogTalk Radio Show Wed.5/14 8:30 PM EST: "The 5 Love Languages: Are You Speaking the Right One To Your Partner?

Get home from work tomorrow night, pour a glass of wine, put your feet up and call into my half hour BlogTalk Radio Episode: "The Five Love Languages: Are You Speaking The Right One To Your Partner?" 

Learn about the five basic ways through which most humans feel loved and appreciated, and most importantly identify the two primary "languages" for you and your spouse or partner.

Learn how to get the love you want, and how to give the love you feel in ways which finally translate!

 

Call toll-free 877-497-9046 to join me live on the air with questions or comments. Let's

make it a conversation! If you'd prefer, you can catch the show live streaming by going to:

www.BlogTalkRadio.com/SusanLager

 

Cheers,

Susan Lager

Take The Long View

My husband Thom is going in for a colonoscopy tomorrow afternoon. "Ugh!" is the most apt description for the procedure that we both agreed upon. For me, the event evokes memories of drinking liters (not cups!) of disgusting gel-like fluid all night before the procedure, no food allowed, getting sick to my stomach, and feeling certain I'd have an accident in the car en route to the hospital. Then there's the idea of a team of people probing around your rear end, hopefully to find nothing meaningful, and afterward, inconveniencing an adult to drive you home, then being the butt (no pun intended), of a bunch of ass jokes.

This is the kind of situation where the only sane way to deal with it, in my opinion, is to take the long view - to focus off the immediate discomforts and indignities, and focus instead on the big picture of good self-care, early detection if there's a cancerous mass, and the ultimate benefits of having to shell out the copays for one's expensive health insurance. Period.

There are lots of other events and circumstances in life which fit in this category: divorce, paying taxes, yard work, confronting a loved one about a hurtful exchange, exercise, proper diet, paying bills, getting to bed on time, cleaning the house, etc.......

So, as with the discomforts and horrors of a colonoscopy, trust that you will greatly improve your perspective by being wise enough to take the long view!