Brick and Block Podcast

Ep 20 A Brilliant App--Google Keep

COACH GARY HERE. THIS EPISODE OF THE ‘BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST’ is a very short but super special marketing podcast – just a few minutes long – because I’ve been testing a phone app that I knew existed, but mostly ignored…until recently. This is Episode 20: Google Keep—Make Sure You Take Note of it! THIS IS ALL PART OF AN ONGOING SERIES WE HAVE ON MARKETING FOR REAL CONTRACTORS, LIKE MASONS, PLUMBERS, ROOFERS, ELECTRICIANS, GARAGE DOOR GUYS. ALL OF YOU WHO ARE OUT THERE HELPING PEOPLE, MAKING THE REAL WORLD WORK…THE BRICK AND BLOCK GUYS Seems like for most of my adult life I’ve been using sticky notes and odd pieces of paper to write messages to myself. You know…important stuff that you need to remember. So I write it down. Question: where do I find it when I need it? Look, maybe most of you don’t have this problem, or maybe you do, I’m not judging! So give me two minutes and hear me out…then TRY this out. Let me know what you think. Go to Google’s Play Store on your smart phone, or your tablet, Android or IOS, even on a Windows desktop. Anyway, type in Google Keep (KEEP),  and the play store will give you an app to download. Here’s the neat thing: you can put this on your phone, but it syncs to your other devices. It’s free, so the price is right.   And for every note you put up, you can put a title on it, even a date, and it is searchable. So…let’s say that you went to a meeting at the Smith residence a month ago, and you made a few notes, in Google Keep, right there in your phone. Instead of looking around for the piece of paper or notebook I used at the meeting, I just go to my phone,    search   “smith residence meeting …date”  Whatever—you’ll find it. And, not only will the app search for the title, but will also search content inside each note. How handy would it be to look there and find some quantities and types of materials, the name of the architect or engineer at the meeting, and so on. That’s it. I find it very useful and suggest you check it out. There are other, similar apps, like Evernote, One Note, and so on. If you’ve already got those on your phone, then use them. Just do it! For the Brick and Block Podcast, this is Coach Gary, thanks for stopping by! www.BrickAndblockPodcast.com BrickAndBlockPodcast@gmail.com

Ep 19 "Looking Forward by Knowing the Past"

Team: COACH GARY HERE. THIS IS EPISODE 19 OF THE ‘BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST’ AND                FEATURES THE AUDIO VERSION OF MY JANUARY 2020 COLUMN written for MASONRY MAGAZINE. YOU PROBABLY KNOW THE COLUMN AS ‘FULL CONTACT PROJECT MANAGER’. THE TITLE OF THE COLUMN YOU ARE ABOUT TO HEAR IS: Looking Forward by Knowing the Past                                                                  …Remembering the Rest of the Story Team— WARNING: THIS PODCAST RUNS COUNTER TO WHAT MANY COLLEGE PROFESSORS BELIEVE. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK! NOTE: This article was originally written, a couple of years ago, to provide some history of December 7, 1941. It is even more important this year, as you should hear much talk about that date, now 80 years ago, this December. It’s critical you get the whole story, as opponents of Western Civilization may be doing their best to tarnish, trample…and torpedo the reality of the 2nd World War. Look, as you can tell, I’m about fed up with the “Egghead” class, changing language, changing history, changing values, changing beliefs…heck, changing genders, making this stuff up as they go along. It’s time for some sanity and perspective, which is what “Coach Gary” is about to deliver. Stand by! All things considered, in some respects, this might be one of the most important podcasts I’ve ever done. But, then again…all of my podcasts are important! So…dig in! We begin immediately,     and by immediately,   I mean once I remind everyone that you can find our podcast website at BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST DOT COM (repeat). As I’ve said before, I’m a big proponent of having websites that support your business, and I’ve got an excellent example of one: Masonry Contractor Special Website. You’ll see it there. That’s what you’re looking for. It’s mobile friendly, modern, fast, bullet proof, BEAUTIFUL, cutting edge, DONE FOR YOU, and practically free! You’ll love this one. Check it out. Of course, if you’re not a masonry contractor, we have very similar websites, but in your specialty. So…check it out. OKAY, TEAM.    HANG ON, BUCKLE UP… LISTEN UP,  AND PREPARE TO MOVE UP. And now, Episode 19 Looking Forward by Knowing the Past                                               …Remembering The Rest of the Story By Coach Gary Micheloni “Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it.” (Winston Churchill, 1948 and George Santayana, 1905) For absolute certainty, there will be no shortage of articles and messages this time of year about “20-20 vision” and that sort of thing! But I ask you to invest a few moments right now and look at my little offering, because it just might be super-significant for you in this uncertain world and industry we find ourselves. Stuff always happens but you need to hang in there because ‘the rest of the story’ might just be right around the corner… to the part where the cavalry arrives and the good guys win. That’s the theme for the New Year because that’s my hope and expectation. Check it out. For the past 20+ years now I have been meeting for breakfast with the same group of guys the first Saturday of each month. It is amazing to me the amount of wisdom coming from them, on all sorts of subjects and ideas, and I hope you have the same kind of people in your life. They are among my most important mentors— my coaches. So, when “Coach Mark” approached me and said that our group of guys would be meeting on December 7th next and wondered if I might want to share something about the significance of that day. I agreed, provided we could go into the lessons learned and the leadership attached to that significant day. What does it all mean--for that time, and for ours, going forward? President Franklin D. Roosevelt summed up things this way: “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan...I regret to tell you that many American lives have been lost. In addition, American ships have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu…” Pretty bad stuff, right? But let’s not miss “the rest of the story.” Is the cavalry on its way? Is there going to be a ‘rest of the story?’ Let’s take a look. Those two sentences from FDR were the facts, and they are terrible. But those facts are only part of the story, which is far more profound, much larger, and more significant. The story does not end there. In fact, it doesn’t even begin there! Because where it actually begins has everything to do with — not where it ends, but where it is heading. You knowing what that heading is, has everything to do with how your business, community, and family grow, We’re talking about the history of our country because it is the driving force of your legacies, be it business, community or family going forward. Do not miss this! In your experience, you know that things often go wrong, “unsolvable” problems present themselves, seemingly impossible issues arise. Things are going along well and then, out of the blue, bad stuff happens. In this case, Pearl Harbor is attacked “out of the blue,” the enemy seeking to destroy the US Pacific Fleet. In fact, on that Sunday morning, 9 US battleships were in port. The enemy thought it had accomplished its mission, but it miscalculated — you’ll learn why in a moment. But the lesson here is that life situations, which might cripple the unwitting, will not take you down— provided you understand your legacy, and how critical it is to pass this along to others and that they might do the same. So, let’s go to the beginning of the story. What i0s this uniquely American legacy that redeems us from the bad and gets us to the good? Let’s start here. America was settled by people seeking freedom of religion, the press, for the right to own property, and a desire to be governed by the rule of law— not ruled according to the dictations and might of kings. In this country, for the first time ever in the history of the world, we solemnly believed and resolved that the king was no longer to be the law. But that law, itself, was to be king. This turned civilization on its head! To make this happen, Americans picked a fight with the mightiest nation on earth at the time, to instill into its people and install into its government, the sanctity that these rights, held by most people, were ‘God-given.’ A formal Declaration of Independence was written and then signed by 57 men each pledging, “Our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.” It would cost many of them exactly that. In 1776 this Revolution, tenuous at first and unlikely to succeed, overcame the impossible and the miraculous came to pass. Tens of thousands of lives were taken, wounded, or captured to make this a reality. Never forget: this is our legacy. In 1861, a great Civil War was fought to decide the issue of slavery. President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, freeing— on paper, at least the slaves in rebelling states. April 9, 1865, the south surrendered. April 14, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated. Over four years, more than 620,000 soldiers from both sides cast ‘the ultimate vote,” as did President Lincoln. The law was settled. At great cost, the nation moved on. Our legacy of freedom was preserved. Fast forward to 1941 and the specter of world war. The US and Japan had ongoing diplomatic negotiations and peace talks up through December 6, in Washington DC. With talks scheduled to continue the following week. Sunday was supposed to be an off day. This now brings us back to the events of December 7th, 1941: 7:55 a.m, the first wave of 183 Japanese fighters, bombers and torpedo bombers attacked Pearl Harbor. 8:10 a.m. a 1,800-pound bomb lands in the USS Arizona’s forward ammunition magazine. The ship explodes and sinks with 1,000+ men trapped inside. Torpedoes hit the USS Oklahoma with about 400 sailors aboard; she loses balance, rolls to her side and sinks. 8:54 a.m. the second wave of 170 planes attacked. The battle was over before 10:00 a.m. In its wake, 2,403 service members were killed, 1,178 wounded, 169 US Army Air Corps and Navy planes destroyed. 19 vessels were damaged, nearly half of which were sunk, fully or partially. Every battleship in Pearl Harbor had sustained significant damage: the USS Arizona, Oklahoma, California, West Virginia, Utah, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Nevada. Pretty bad stuff, right? Do things get better? Know that all but the Arizona, Oklahoma, and Utah were eventually salvaged and repaired so that six battleships were returned to service. The Japanese ambassadors left town on December 8th! December 9, 1941, Americans begin to enlist in record numbers. During the course of the war, over 16 million Americans served, from a US population of 140 million — 11% of all Americans fought in WW2. (By comparison, 1% during the Iraq war.) Every family had a stake in this fight, either in the military or in support of it. (My mom and at least one of my aunts became welders in an aircraft plant!) February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt issues Executive Order 9066, and 110,000 Japanese-Americans are forced to leave their homes and are interred in 10 detention camps until December 1944. April 2, 1942, USS Hornet steams from San Francisco with 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers lashed to her flight deck. The 80 crew members aboard had trained on land-based runways to get airborne within 467 ft (length of the Hornet flight deck). All were volunteers. It was considered to be a suicide mission. April 8, 1942, all 16 bombers, led by Lt. Col. James Doolittle, successfully launched from the Hornet for a surprise air attack on Tokyo by US bombers. All hit targets, doing little damage, but proving to the Japanese that their island was not invulnerable to attack by the U.S. — a huge, needed a psychological boost to the Allies, as the war was going badly. One plane landed in Russia, 15 toward Nationalist China. All ran short on fuel and either crash-landed or crew bailed out. Three crewmen killed, 8 captured, tortured and starved. This bravery is a part of the DNA in our legacy. April 19, 2019, Lt. Richard Cole, last surviving member of this raid, dies at age 103! 77 years plus one day.0 May 1942. War going well for Japan, which wanted to get US into a fight for Midway Island in order to lure US aircraft carriers, defeat them, which would ultimately destroy the US Pacific Fleet. (Carriers were much more important to the Fleet than battleships.) May 28th, largest Japanese fleet ever leaves it bases and heads to sea, commanded by Admiral Yamamoto, who is confident of victory but does not know that the US has cracked their intelligence code and is aware of their plans of possible attack on Midway. June 1942, US Admiral Chester Nimitz puts a task force together. Desperately in need of carriers, has to allow USS Yorktown to go to Pearl Harbor for two+ weeks of emergency repairs. But Nimitz has a plan: 1400 shipyard workers move onto the ship, en masse, work around the clock and complete the repairs in 72 hours. She rejoins the task force! The Battle of Midway rages four days, June 4-June 7, 1942. Japan had 4 carriers, 3 cruisers, 12 destroyers, 248 carrier aircraft, and 16 floatplanes. The US had 3 carriers, 8 cruisers, 15 destroyers, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft, and 16 subs. LOSSES: Japan— 4 carriers sunk; 1 cruiser sunk and 1 damaged; 248 aircraft destroyed, 3,057 KIA, 37 captured US— 1 carrier sunk (Yorktown); 1 destroyer sunk (Hammann), 150 aircraft destroyed; 307 service members KIA. Midway was widely considered the turning point of the war and the largest naval battle in history. Japan was unable to replenish its war materials easily, while the US industrial might could supply our needs. February 1, 1943, 442nd Regimental Combat Team created was composed entirely of Japanese-Americans, some of whom had family members in detention camps. Serving in Italy, France, and Germany, its motto was “Go for Broke.” By April 1943, it had a fighting complement of 4,000 men, with some 14,000 total serving overall. In less than two years, its members were awarded 9,486 purple hearts, 4,000 Bronze Stars, 21 of its members were awarded the Medal of Honor. It is the most decorated unit in US military history. A family friend of mine had a brother KIA while she and the rest of her family remained in a camp. Amazing. Sad. True. Part of our legacy as Americans of all stripes. While all of this is going on in the Pacific, the Allies simultaneously and successfully launch the largest amphibious landing in the history of warfare: Operation Overlor2d, also known as D-Day, the landing at Normandy (June 6-August 30, 1944). A few months later, the Battle of the Bulge (December 16, 1944 to Jan 25, 1945). May 8, 1945, VE Day (Victory in Europe) August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Pres. Truman calls for Japan to surrender, warning of further destruction. Japan rejects. August 9, 1945, the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki. August 15, 1945, Emperor Hirohito announced surrender. September 2, 1945, (VJ Day— Victory over Japan) Japan signs unconditional surrender aboard USS Missouri This is who we are. This is why when you get down you know you’re going to get back up. It’s in our DNA. It is the legacy of our country. More than that: it is your legacy, and that’s ‘the rest of the story!’ YOU CAN REACH OUT TO US BY EMAIL: BrickAndBlockPodcast@gmail.com (SPELL OUT THE WORD “AND”: A. N. D.)  Brick AndBlockPodcast@gmail.com [BlockPodcast@gmail.com] Podcast Website: BrickAndBlockPodcast.com Remember—I’ve got that website example there for you to check As a favor: BE SURE AND SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST. IT’S IMPORTANT. WE WANT YOU TO JOIN US FOR THE NEXT EPISODE. NOW… FOR THE BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST… THIS IS COACH GARY… THANKS FOR STOPPING BY.

Ep 18 The Original 9/11 -- The War that Started the 'War' about "The Star Spangled Banner"

COACH GARY HERE. THIS EPISODE OF THE ‘BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST’ FEATURES THE AUDIO VERSION OF MY September 2021 COLUMN written for MASONRY MAGAZINE. YOU PROBABLY KNOW THE COLUMN AS ‘FULL CONTACT PROJECT MANAGER’. THE TITLE OF THE COLUMN YOU ARE ABOUT TO HEAR IS: The Original 9/11 -- The War that Started the ‘War’ about the “Star Spangled Banner” Team—  WOKE folks, easily triggered by things patriotic, you better not listen to this podcast! Now…a clarification: all you are going to hear is pure history. However, American history can trouble some people. In fact, in their words, they are “triggered” by things with which they disagree, and much prefer revisionist history. You won’t get that here. What you will get is some sobering truth, particularly in this month of September as we recall the horrible events of 9/11/2001. But my contention is that the original 9/11 occurred some 200+ years ago…a huge wakeup call back then which we should remember to this day. All considered, in some respects, this might be one of the most important podcasts I’ve ever done. But, then again…all of my podcasts are important! So…dig in! We begin immediately,     and by immediately,   I mean once I remind everyone that you can find our website at BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST DOT COM (repeat). I’m a big proponent of having  websites that support your business, and I’ve got an excellent example of one: Masonry Contractor Special Website. You’ll see it there. That’s what you’re looking for. It’s bullet proof, BEAUTIFUL, cutting edge, DONE FOR YOU, and practically free! You’ll love this one. Check it out. Of course, if you’re not a masonry contractor, we have very similar websites, but in your specialty. So…check it out. And now, Episode 18, “The Original 9/11 The War that Started the ‘War’ about the “Star Spangled Banner” By Coach Gary Micheloni OKAY, TEAM.    HANG ON, BUCKLE UP… LISTEN UP,  AND PREPARE TO MOVE UP. TRANSCRIPT Title: “The Original 9/11” …the War that Started the ‘War’ about “The Star Spangled Banner” by “Coach Gary” Micheloni Note from ‘Coach Gary’: I’m writing this column about halfway between the 4th of July and September 11th. Patriotic juices are flowing through my veins. But…I am just about boiling mad. Guess I’d better explain. Some people today claim that the national anthem of the USA, “The Star Spangled Banner” is outdated, unacceptable—or worse! They maintain that it has some racist lyrics (verse #3), so the whole thing should be thrown out. Haven’t we heard that in the news lately? Yet, how many of us (actually) know what the troubling words are which seem to be the focus of the malicious, the malcontents, the people espousing those asinine attitudes of today? More importantly, how many of us truly know the story behind the anthem’s creation? Stay tuned, because there’s a huge ‘gotcha’ in the story—one that most certainly will never be mentioned by these troublemakers. This lousy attitude is recent, unreasonable, unacceptable, and threatens our country—not to mention our jobsites--where we have skilled employees of every color, speaking varied languages, from diverse people groups, all with different cultures. Yet, we are still held together by the glue that is the very mortar of the American Dream. The true story behind the story should educate those who may once have been ignorant of it--but can now embrace our great country and its history. On the other hand, the troublemakers will likely remain ignorant, if only because it conflicts with their narrative. This is a safety issue, a morale issue, an educational dilemma, and a grammatical nightmare. In my mind, it’s an unleashed, out-of-control freight train heading for a sleepy town. I see it, but can’t stop it, and all I can do is yell out a warning. Thus begins my 9/11 column, because I fully intend to yell! “Let’s Roll!” Let’s not be ignorant of history. Certainly, we should never allow so-called revisionist history. We should investigate, and so I have. And, as the late broadcaster, Paul Harvey, used to say on the radio...here is the rest of the story! Here it is: the unvarnished truth…the rest of the story. The US and Britain were at war-- the War of 1812, which lasted until early 1815. Britain had been imposing a type of trade embargo against the U.S., which was rejected by America. Negotiations were going nowhere. The U.S. declared war against Britain June 18, 1812. Once again, we took on the mightiest military power on the globe, largely because it was impacting our economic and other freedoms. Unfortunately for the British, they were currently involved in a war with France, so they couldn’t fully commit forces against America. Thus, America got off to a pretty good start. Then, in April 1814 the British defeated Napoleon, and quickly turned their attention fully against the U.S. The British invaded the American homeland. In fact, large numbers of troops began arriving here, and on August 24, 1814, British naval forces raided the Chesapeake Bay, and then landed ground troops which moved in on the U.S. capital, capturing D.C. that same day. QUESTION: Did you know that America had been invaded by Great Britain? They burned government buildings, including the Capitol Building and the White House. Upon entering the White House, they desecrated it, set fire, expecting to burn it to the ground, and would have succeeded if not for the extensive use of stone masonry in Capitol Hill! QUESTION: Did you know that a foreign army had seized control of Washington D.C.? The Original 9/11 The U.S. fought back and on Sept. 11, 1814, at the Battle of Plattsburgh, on Lake Champlain in New York, the American Navy soundly defeated part of the British fleet. This was the first time that 9/11 figured prominently in American history. It was a turning point in the war. Two days later, Sept. 13, 1814, the British fleet landed 4500 soldiers in Baltimore & began shelling Fort McHenry. The shelling lasted 25 hours, throughout a rainy night, bombs literally bursting in air, rockets flying and landing near, on, and in the fort. While this was going on, Francis Scott Key was imprisoned aboard one of the British ships and he witnesses all of this, and knows about the recent history and the burning of D.C. He watches some 1500 rockets and bombs get launched towards Fort McHenry. QUESTION: Do you know what inspired Key to write the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner? During the shelling by the British, Fort McHenry was flying a flag--a smaller, ‘storm flag’--during the battle. But… as dawn broke, the commander of Fort McHenry, Major George Armistead, ordered the storm flag taken down and a garrison flag raised. What Key saw—indeed—what the British saw--was a giant, humongous, 42’ x 30’ flag still flying after taking all that the British fleet could give! The Americans defending the fort were sending a message to the British…and the Brits could not possibly miss the message: “You tried your best, failed to take the fort, and we’re still here!” This was equivalent to the signature of John Hancock on the Declaration of Independence. He wrote it so large that anyone could read his name—even “without spectacles”. And so, when Major Armistead raised that huge flag, it was the signature piece of the American defenders, a signature so large that no one in the British fleet, still anchored in the harbor, needed a telescope to see it Shortly afterward, they withdrew and were beaten again, at the Battle of New Orleans, finally withdrew from there, and then signed a treaty in February 1815, ending the war. “But Coach, but Coach, what about that troubling verse #3?”. I had to look it up! From the manuscript of Francis Scott Key, as collected in the Maryland Historical Society collection, here is the 3rd stanza: And where is that band who so vauntingly swore, That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion A home and a Country should leave us no more? Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave, And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave. QUESTION: Can you handle the truth? Here is the truth: that verse refers to acts of the British! READ THE LYRICS. The Brits were determined that one of their colonies (home and country) should have never left them, but the pollution of their footsteps upon our land was washed out by their own spilled blood. In the end, there was no refuge to save the hireling or the slave from death and the grave. Here’s that truth: the slaves and hierlings referenced by Key were on the side of the British and many would experience terror and enter the grave because of it. This history comes from a poem by Francis Scott Key, titled, “In Defence of Fort McHenry”, later to become “The Star Spangled Banner”. Back to those words. Let’s listen again, but this time knowing their context and how they came to be.But hear me on this: If you have any hope of understanding verse 3, and the reference to slaves and hierlings, first you’d better pay close attention to verse 1, which is the verse most often sung: The Star-Spangled Banner O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light, What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming, Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there, O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave? Imagine it was you--imprisoned there in the place of Key--aboard that British ship, watching all of what happened, having seen the artillery barrage and the rockets launched against the Americans by earth’s most powerful navy, for the past 25 hours, and your story might read like this: The night fades away…into twilight…which itself fades to a brightening dawn. What a horrible night you’ve just witnessed! Certain that the fort and its defenders had been obliterated, you feel for them, their families, and now…your country…which would seem on the verge of being lost. All those rockets and bombs and explosions…who could resist such might? But wait…what’s this? There is a freakishly large flag, Old Glory herself, now showing her face as the sun comes up. Can it be? Yes…I see some stripes…oh…and some stars. It is! Oh my gosh…the flag is still there! We are still here! We are still the land of the free! This is still the home of the brave! And now, for the malcontents still in our midst, those who do not appreciate—at all—their privilege in life, let me remind everyone that national flags have always been important to our citizens. You can’t escape it, even if you close your eyes, cover ears, and yell out ‘blah…blah…blah…!’, exercising your ‘malcontent privilege’ in your attempt to block truth from entering your brain… To this day, Americans still love their flag. Take a moment, and bring to mind these incredibly important, iconic images of flags: World War II, the flag being raised over Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima, by U.S. Marines. You know exactly the picture I’m talking about. Ground Zero, 9/11, in the midst of carnage, the flag being raised by three firemen. Is it seared into your brain? And from the harbor, that September of 1814, the flag of victory still flying over Ft. McHenry. Does it still wave? You bet it does! The turning point in the War of 1812 began on September 11 of 1814, continued into that famous, glorious morning of September 14 and finalized at the Battle of New Orleans. May we always remember our struggles, our battles, our victories, and who we are. On 9/11, 20 hears hence, or 120 years hence, may we Never Forget. And now…you truly know…the rest of the story. God Bless the USA! Coach Gary’s Corner: Gary Micheloni is a construction company marketer, speaker, author, consultant…and a coach…and a Podcaster: https://redcircle.com/brick-and-block-podcast [https://redcircle.com/brick-and-block-podcast] Get Coach Gary to speak for your group. See us at https://BrickAndBlockPodcast.com [https://brickandblockpodcast.com/] Copyright 2021 Gary Micheloni

Ep 17 History Keeps Repeating Itself...But Will We Listen?

Team: COACH GARY HERE. THIS EPISODE OF THE ‘BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST’ FEATURES THE AUDIO VERSION OF MY July 2020 COLUMN IN MASONRY MAGAZINE. YOU PROBABLY KNOW THE COLUMN AS ‘FULL CONTACT PROJECT MANAGER’. THE TITLE OF THE COLUMN YOU ARE ABOUT TO HEAR IS: History Keeps Repeating Itself…But Will We Listen? There’s a reason I wrote this column: some would look at our country and conclude that things are really messed up, right now. It’s hard to argue. However…let’s temper that judgment, realizing that, just about 8 decades ago the world was on the brink of war—a world war—and we came through it. In fact, the infamous “Battle of Britain” began 81 years ago this July, and that was quite a bit bigger mess than we have today, believe it or not! So, it’s important to have some perspective. All considered, in some respects, this might be one of the most important podcasts I’ve ever done. But, then again…all of my podcasts are important! So…dig in! We begin immediately,     and by immediately,   I mean once I remind you that you can find our website at BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST DOT COM (repeat). I’m making a point this episode about websites that support your business, and I’ve got an excellent example of one: Masonry Contractor Special Website. You’ll see it there. That’s what you’re looking for. It’s bullet proof, BEAUTIFUL, cutting edge, DONE FOR YOU, and practically free! You’ll love this one. Check it out. Of course, if you’re not a masonry contractor, we have very similar websites, but in your specialty. So…check it out. And now, Episode 17, “History Keeps Repeating Itself…But Will We Listen?” By Coach Gary Micheloni OKAY, TEAM.    HANG ON, BUCKLE UP… LISTEN UP,  AND PREPARE TO MOVE UP. History Keeps Repeating Itself “But…Will We Listen?” by “Coach Gary” Micheloni Have we lost sight of what’s important…the goal? Have we kept our eyes on the ball? Nope. I’m writing this in June. Do things look bad and messed up right now. Yup. Do people screw up and do horrific acts. Sometimes. Makes me want to cry. I need some balance—how about you? Is the world right now the most horrible it’s ever been, or is there some progress, some promise? Let’s look around. Way back when, before most of us were even born, a career politician met with a head of state, with a mission of achieving, for the first time in human history, world peace. A noble goal, right? The two countries, along with the vast majority of journalists around the planet, celebrated wildly that Sept 30, 1938. And, with Germany having consumed Austria just six months prior, people really wanted this. So, a treaty was signed. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain promised “Peace for our time.” Great—it sounds so good! Could anything possibly go wrong? Well, it did: less than two years later, July 10, 1940, the Battle of Britain began and Germany attacked Britain by air. And just a few months prior to that, 400,000 British troops were almost lost at Dunkirk, France, and would have were it not for the determined citizens of the UK, who sailed across the English Channel and helped the Navy rescue fully 350,000 of them—many saved by British fishermen in their tiny boats, a few at a time. That’s a lot of trips over rough water, but they got it done. There’s a lesson here, isn’t there? So, things were not going well. The British certainly had not achieved ‘peace for their time’. Something had to be done. King George realized he needed, as the Godfather’s ‘Don’ Vito Corleone might have said, a ‘wartime consigliere’. The king knew he needed leadership, and he needed it right now. Have you ever found yourself in that position? You’re working on a project, trying to get it done on time and budget, trying to be a nice guy or gal, and somebody just won’t get out of your way. Harms your company, kills your budget and destroys your time frame. Know what I’m talking about? You reach a point when nice for the sake of nice gets thrown out the window. To survive, you assert your right to lead, especially if you’re under fire, and you begin leading from the front—again! Enter, consigliere (and now, Prime Minister) Winston Churchill. He took over as PM—from Chamberlain—early May, 1940. In a speech before the House of Commons of the UK Parliament, he let them know what was before them, and it wasn’t pretty. No platitudes. No grandiosity. He reminded them that they were in the preliminary stage of one of the greatest battles in history. What did Churchill say? [TEAM, you should literally cut out this speech and paste it over your desk at work. Really!] He said, “…I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. He was not one to mince words. A straight-shooter (now there’s another lesson here for us), Churchill termed the fiasco at Dunkirk “a colossal military disaster…” He continued: “You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory. Victory at all costs — Victory in spite of all terrors — Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survival. “Let that be realized. No survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that theBritish Empire [https://www.thoughtco.com/the-commonwealth-of-nations-1221980]has stood for, no survival for the urge, the impulse of the ages, that mankind shall move forward toward his goal. "…Come then, let us go forward together with our united strength." These last several months for our country have some similarities, don’t they? The battles continue. Strategies change and evolve. Hysterical people along with powerful bureaucrats seem to have their way. That was the case in 1938. They got their way then, but what happened in 1940? It’s another story, completely. Eighty years ago (I’m writing this column in June), Churchill addressed the House of Commons, and shared with his people the reality that he foresaw on the horizon: I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilization. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned on us. Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this Island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands. But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.” That Battle raged for 113 days. (Much longer than the lockdowns many have endured here in the USA). Parents sent their children to live safely in temporary foster homes far from the carnage of London. Britain lost over 1,400 air crew. Additionally, some 43,000 civilians were killed and 139,000 wounded. In the midst of it, August 20, 1940, knowing that his country had to win, at all costs, whatever the cost, no matter the sacrifice…and…would win—somehow, some way…he foresaw victory. In the midst of it, having watched the out-numbered and seriously out-gunned RAF keep at bay the vaunted German Luftwaffe, until both sides either knew—or realized—who would ultimately win this air battle…Churchill inspired his people to the greatness of their destiny which lay before them The air Battle of Britain was then only half over when Churchill shared this vision with his nation. Somehow, he sensed, he foresaw, victory in all of this: the debt of gratitude they all owed to those who waged the battle in the skies. He said, The gratitude of every home in our island, in our Empire, and indeed throughout the world, except in the abodes of the guilty, goes out to the British airmen who, undaunted by odds, unweakened by their constant challenge and mortal danger, are turning the tide of world war by their prowess and their devotion. “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.” All hearts go out to the fighter pilots, whose brilliant actions we see with our own eyes day after day, but we must never forget that all the time, night after night, month after month, our bomber squadrons travel far into Germany, find their targets in the darkness by the highest navigational skill, aim their attacks, often under the heaviest fire, often at serious loss, with deliberate, careful precision, and inflict shattering blows upon the whole of the technical and war-making structure of the Nazi power. October 31, 1940 that air war ended. A huge team effort. ‘Coach Gary’s’ thoughts: “I don’t know about you, but as bad as our 2020 has been for me, I surely wouldn’t trade it for their 1940!” No doubt, 2020 has been a tough year for all of us, and looks like it might continue. We often hear people telling others to ‘hang in there’, ‘we’ll get through this’, things like that. In fact, ‘Coach Gary’ has himself said precisely that on several occasions. But why do we say such things, and respond so positively when we hear them ourselves? It’s because we’ve also witnessed these things. I love history and the lessons it teaches us because, as the old saying goes, if you don’t remember the past you are condemned to repeat it. That reference was regarding the bad elements of history. But it also applies in the other direction: remember the good that you’ve done, the struggles you’ve overcome, the brilliance of your strategies, the fullness of your friendships and the depth of your faith. These things will transport you over the rough patches, down the dark roads, past the sketchy people who would seek to get in your way. Too many people are worried about things they can’t control, yet turn their backs on those they can. Said another way: take the high road or the low road. As for me and my house, we’ll take the road less travelled. May this become our ‘finest hour’. COACH GARY’S TAKEAWAY: Whatever your situation, ready yourself, your community, family and company and get set to take off. Go lead! Because we’ll get through this—all of it. Of course we will! Coach Gary’s Corner: Gary Micheloni is a construction company marketer, speaker, author, consultant…and a coach. Get Coach Gary to speak for your group. FullContactTeam@gmail.com [FullContactTeam@gmail.com]And be sure and tell him about how you are leading! Copyright 20 Gary Micheloni Copyrig OKAY TEAM. THAT’S IT FOR TODAY. YOU CAN REACH OUT TO US BY EMAIL: BrickAndBlockPodcast@gmail.com (SPELL OUT THE WORD “AND”: A.N.D.) Brick And BlockPodcast@gmail.com BE SURE AND SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST. IT’S IMPORTANT. WE WANT YOU TO JOIN US FOR THE NEXT EPISODE. NOW… FOR THE BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST… THIS IS COACH GARY… THANKS FOR STOPPING BY.

Ep 16 - "A Pandemic of Words"

Team: Coach Gary here. This is Episode 16 of the Brick and Block Podcast, “A Pandemic of Words” This is an audio version of my July 2021 Full Contact Project Manager column in Masonry Magazine. There’s a harshness to life and living these days, isn’t there? Part of it might be due to the corona virus, but much of it seems to come from every day living. With that in mind, I offer a perspective that might help explain things, because it is tough out there. There’s some meat here, so dig in! We begin immediately,     and by immediately,   I mean once I remind you that you can find our website at BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST DOT COM (repeat). I’m making a point this episode about websites that support your business, and I’ve got an excellent example of one: Masonry Contractor Special Website. You’ll see it there. That’s what you’re looking for. It’s bullet proof, BEAUTIFUL, cutting edge, DONE FOR YOU, and practically free! You’ll love this one. Check it out. OKAY, TEAM.    HANG ON, BUCKLE UP… LISTEN UP,  AND PREPARE TO MOVE UP. And now…Episode 16,  “A Pandemic of Words" By Coach Gary Micheloni Title: “A Pandemic of Words” …Why Benjamin Franklin was Right" by “Coach Gary” Micheloni Note from ‘Coach Gary’: As we celebrate Independence Day of 2021, we rejoice over many things, yet are saddened by others. Let me begin with the ‘sad’ so that we can end with the joyful, which is where most people of our country choose to live. God bless the USA! There’s a throw-away phrase that many commentators often use when discussing an article written by a reporter: “Talk about burying the lead!” Generally what’s meant is that instead of a writer including as a headline the main idea of a story, he begins with info of secondary importance, bringing it up later so that it just kind of ‘pops up’ unexpectedly and smacks the reader. It would be like a sportswriter fully describing yesterday’s game and then, about the next to last paragraph, finally saying who won and the score. You get the idea. So, I will begin at the beginning and disclose that my title was not created by me. Instead, it inserted itself into a simple conversation I was having. As my wife, Karen, and I were discussing the sordid events, the coarseness of dialogue, the verbal assassinations and over-the-top insults and accusations which seem to predominate public discourse these days, she came to a startling conclusion. She said something like, there is such “a pandemic of words” these days! Her comment staggered me. I asked her to repeat it, to make sure I heard it correctly, so she laid it out again. Perfectly joining the main search term of the past year, ‘pandemic’, with the current effort to hurt and discredit people and ideas—not by discussing them—but by shouting them down with vile words which now seem to have lost or changed their original meaning. ‘A pandemic of words’. Simultaneously both perfect, yet tragic. My mission today is simple: helping all of us regain and retain our sanity as I attempt to explain what is going on. Hang in there! In the media these days we are often reminded of the quote from Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. A woman asked him what kind of a government we were getting. He uttered his famous reply, “A republic, Madam, if you can keep it.” Franklin was prophetic. He foresaw the difficulty of maintaining a republic, that it could break down over time. We have been witnessing just that. People clamoring for democracy, yet secretly working for mob rule. Their mob! If you’ve never read George Orwell’s ‘1984’, this is the time to do so. Written in 1949, a fear of ‘Big Brother’ seemed almost over-the-top. Hard to imagine. In 1945 we were given by him in ‘Animal Farm’ the fictitious political viewpoint that, while all animals are equal, ‘…some animals are more equal than other animals.’ Couldn’t happen, right? Ha! We seem to have stumbled into both of those worlds. You know, in the beginning, Congress was to be a deliberative body—to discuss and consider the issues of the day. Today, it has become a high stakes sporting event. Team D vs Team R, with both teams voting in a bloc, at almost every vote. Our ideal of a republic has been corrupted into a majority rule. Let me help you to see this. Here’s a mental image of Congress that I hope sticks in your mind, much like the way lyrics of a bad song become an earworm you can’t stop hearing:  There are two teams, R’s and D’s, out in a park, playing a game, throwing the frisbee, but instead of the familiar children’s toy, they are using dinner plates. And not just any dinner plates—that would be bad enough. No! They are using your dinner plates—that elegant set of china that your family has owned and handed down for several generations. Intended for the private enjoyment of your family, it was taken by people who came into your home and grabbed it for their own pleasure. Two problems: first, the players were not very skilled at tossing the frisbee, little success but lots of drops, not caring if anything got broken, because they had an unlimited supply of fine dinnerware, thanks to you, and also courtesy of the china cabinets of your neighbors down the street and others elsewhere in your city. They were careless and did not value your treasures. More, they seemed to really love the sound of breaking breaking plates. Second, they complained about the way dinnerware apparently breaks upon impact with the ground, which of course, they believe to be our fault. An investigation was ordered. A new cabinet position (aptly named) created to mandate standards for the way dinnerware frisbees are to be manufactured, then updated the rules of the game along with the types of helmets, masks, pads and other, now-required protection for properly playing the game. Absurd? From where I sit, here in the belly of the beast of California, my neighbors and I are witnessing the actual feeding of the beasts! One example, the so-called ‘Bullet Train’, where billions have already been expended to facilitate the movement of people from one rural city to another, yet billions more are projected because of the need to tunnel through the mountains (what could go wrong there?) My prediction is that sometime soon the excavation will encounter pieces of broken plates! I was at church yesterday (as I write this) where we celebrated Memorial Day to begin the service. Everyone stood, hands over hearts, as the color guard carried and then posted the flags. We sang ‘My Country ‘tis of Thee’. It was touching. For me, it was hard to sing and not be choked up over words like: Sweet land of liberty… Land where my fathers died… Let freedom ring! Land of the noble free… Thy name I love… Our fathers’ God to Thee, Author of Liberty… Protect us by Thy might, Great God our King! These days…even those sacred and precious words are attacked, often by the nameless, the shameless and the anonymous. The cowards! Some of you out there are asking what all of the above has to do with our construction industry. Let me remind again the quote by Edmund Burke, and others, who said ‘the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.’ Now, couple that with the very infamous words of Pastor Martin Niemoller, commenting on WWII, that evil men first came for this group and then for that group and later, other groups, but nobody ever said anything. Realize that, eventually, they’re coming for you: your property rights, the right to run or manage a business and, of course, your right to freedom of speech. We’re witnessing that today. It directly impacts our industry, family, community and country. Some who have never studied history would flippantly discard rights guaranteed to us by our Constitution, simply because they were granted by God—not a government. In fact, they’d like to shred that document and start over. Their pandemic of words is coming squarely at all of us for that purpose. That’s the bad news. But there is good news. Just like the pandemic, itself, the news of its destructive power is overblown. Only a fraction of one percent of our country’s population died from covid, but you’d swear it was more like 30%, based upon the drumbeats in the news. Also overblown is the perceived importance of threats to us and our country coming through social media. Most alarmists tend to be more loud than correct! Count on this: The American people are decent and caring, and that’s a huge majority. This Independence Day, remember what’s important—what’s always been important. Think not about the idiots, jerks and the ill-informed—they are bullies. Instead, stand up against hate of any people, continue to protect, just as we always have and always will. We stand here in the land of the Noble Free, rejoice together in the words of Dr. King, “Let freedom ring!” Amen? Amen! Happy Independence Day, America! Podcast News You’re invited. Join me on the Brick and Block Podcast. The goal of the Podcast is to be an extension and expansion of the Full Contact Project Management column, but all of it coming to you in bite-size chunks of info and wisdom that you can chew on while you’re driving to a jobsite. BrickAndBlockPodcast.com. The easy part of your workday. Coach Gary’s Corner: Gary Micheloni is a construction company marketer, speaker, author, consultant…and a coach…and a Podcaster: https://redcircle.com/brick-and-block-podcast [https://redcircle.com/brick-and-block-podcast] Get Coach Gary to speak for your group. FullContactTeam@gmail.com [FullContactTeam@gmail.com]And be sure and tell him about how your Next Play! (C)Gary Micheloni OKAY TEAM. THAT’S IT FOR TODAY. YOU CAN REACH OUT TO US BY EMAIL: BrickAndBlockPodcast@gmail.com (SPELL OUT THE WORD “AND”: A. N. D.   BrickAndBlockPodcast@gmail.com [BlockPodcast@gmail.com] OUR WEBSITE AGAIN IS  BRICKANDBLOCKPODCAST.COM Go there and check out my – ALMOST FREE – Masonry Contractor Special Website HEY… BE SURE AND SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST. IT’S IMPORTANT. WE WANT YOU TO JOIN US FOR THE NEXT EPISODE. NOW… FOR THE BRICK AND BLOCK PODCAST… THIS IS COACH GARY… THANKS FOR STOPPING BY.