I remember my first cocktail party as an adult. I was home from college at Duke. My grandparents had been invited to a cocktail party, and I was invited to come. Wow! I must be a real adult now.

So I went. I didn’t know these people. They were friends of my grandparents. But they were interesting people. I liked listening to them talk, and once in a great while, I would have something to contribute to the conversation. Every so often, I would be introduced to someone I hadn’t met, and around the room I went.

The blogosphere reminds me alot of that cocktail party.

You’re here! Great! Welcome to the party! I’m so glad you could come. Let me introduce you to some very interesting people. They’re on my blogroll, over on the right. If you go to their blogs, their “About” page will tell you all about them, but from over here, by the cheese and crackers, I’ll just point them out.

A Guy in the Pew, he’s a lawyer. Lives in Arizona. Doesn’t say much these days, ’cause he’s been appointed to be part of the Obama administration. He used to write about all kinds of interesting things. He’d find things and share them with the rest of us. Remember the Les Mis Obama thing on youtube? I found out about it first from him.

Bishop Alan, he’s a real bishop over in England. Writes almost daily, mostly about stuff going on in the press and the Anglican church. You should hear what he thinks about the role of the pastor!

Brazen Careerist, she’s a writer and an entrepreneur. She has a refreshing perspective on work and life. I think every career woman out there should hear her perspective on abortion.

The Third Motion, he’s a musician and a teacher. Lives in New York City. He’s not writing much these days — getting married — but he worked on the Obama campaign, and tells some great “only in New York” stories.

More folks will be arriving later. Just watch the blogroll. And by all means, check the blogrolls of the other folks out there. It’s just like a cocktail party. The most interesting person in the room might be introduced to you by someone you don’t know.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to bring out some more crab dip. Talk to you later!

“Hair on fire” was a new term to me, but I have a colleague who uses it regularly, so I’ve adopted it. It’s gives you a pretty vivid image – someone who is a little wild in the eyes, all systems on overdrive and overload. “No way I’m bothering her right now! Her hair’s on fire.”

My hair’s definitely been on fire this year. Good things like my sister’s wedding at Disney World. Two new kittens. A well-matched acquisition. But some challenges, too. Layoffs at work. Getting braces on my teeth. My mother-in-law’s stroke. A rocky vacation reentry. Overdrive and overload has become the norm.

But reading the Bible a few weeks ago, I realized that “hair on fire” has an entirely different heritage. At Pentecost, the apostles had flames on their heads, and were full of the Holy Spirit. In that “hair on fire” state, they went out into the streets of Jerusalem, which were full of tourists from all over, and found everyone was hearing their own language. The apostles’ mission to communicate the gospel was launched. (What an event! A product marketeer from today would be envious.)

For me, Pentecost was back on Saturday June 13th. Now my hair’s on fire a new way. Or rather, the New Testament way. Full of ideas, full of mental energy, full of excitement, full of hope. Hair on fire, indeed.

Taxation without representation was a big deal in the 1760’s and 1770’s. American colonists didn’t have a voice in Parliament. So they fought a war for independence, and created a government they liked better.

Having a voice is still important. Not just in government — in regular life, too. But having a voice is more than having a seat at the table. How often have I been in a meeting where someone was cut off or interrupted? Or allowed to speak, but then dismissed because of their accent or attitude? Or never allowed to speak, because someone else was talking too long or too often, taking much more verbal real estate than they really needed?

In my 20+ years of professional life, I’ve been victim, witness, and guilty of all those listening transgressions. I know how hard it is, when you’re feeling that what you have to say isn’t acknowledged or valued. If you’re feeling strong, you’ll engage, say what you feel needs to be said. But if you’re tired, or have been shut down time and time again, or feel that you’re the only one who has that point of view, you stop talking. At some point, you may not even show up to be seen, much less try to be heard.

Yet if 20+ years of problem-solving meetings have left me with anything, it’s a strong belief that a diversity of voices, a diversity of opinion, will yield the best solution to any problem.

Each of us needs to listen to the message of God to the prophet Ezekiel: “And you, O mortal, do not be afraid of them, … do not be afraid of their words, and do not be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. You shall speak my words to them, whether they hear or refuse to hear; for they are a rebellious house.”

So Speak up! You may be Ezekiel. And Listen! You may be the rebellious house. And since at any time, you may be one or the other, make sure that when you speak, you leave room for others to speak. And when you listen, listen to all that is being said.

I learned how to turn off the gas at the meter shortly after I bought my first house in California. It’s an earthquake safety thing. My husband already knew how to turn off the gas when I met him – a souvenir from a long ago remodelling project. So when we were told that our gas would have to be turned off while the house was tented for termites, it was no big deal. We would just turn it back on when we returned from vacation. We were wrong. So wrong.

PG&E didn’t just turn the gas off. They took the extra precaution of capping the pipe as well. Home on Sunday night from our weeklong vacation in Disney World, the discovery was a big “Ooops!” And PG&E couldn’t come out to turn the gas on until Wednesday. We laughed at our mistaken assumption that night, despite our dread of the next morning’s cold showers. But the laughter didn’t stop there.

Monday morning. Time for breakfast. Put a pot of water on to boil for grits. Oh. Right. Gas stove. Doh!

Monday afternoon. Time to do the post-vacation laundry. Sort. Load the washer. Transfer to dryer. Second load in the wash. Bing! Ah, the clothes in the dryer are done. Nope, not dry yet. Give ‘em a little more time. Walk away……hmm. Those clothes weren’t very warm. I wonder if something’s wrong with the dryer? Walk back….oh. No hot air. Oh. Right. Gas dryer. Doh!

The gas is back on now. And I’m glad for that. I prefer hot showers, stovetop grits, and warm, fluffy laundry. But I have to admit, it was fun to laugh at ourselves and our assumptions.

I remember taking two assembly language classes in college with a professor from India. Dr. Gupta had a great sense of humor, but most of my classmates didn’t realize it at first. They were too busy trying to decipher his thick Indian accent. Since I had his classes twice a day, three days a week, I quickly got past “What did he say?” and on to “I can’t believe he just said that!”

These days, encountering an Indian accent is alot more common for everybody, especially when something’s not working. I work with a bunch of folks originally from India, so I hear their accents all the time, and like Dr. Gupta, I don’t have problems understanding them. But, when I have a computer problem at work, it can be a challenge. If the accent of the helpdesk technician on the phone is too strong, or I am too tired, I have to ask them to repeat everything a couple of times. It’s frustrating.

But, ya know what? I don’t pick up the phone anymore. I still have computer problems, but I use instant messaging to get them solved. I log into the instant messaging application, and enter a chatroom full of helpful technicians. “I have a problem,” I type. Someone there types back, “I will help you.” We go into sidechat, a normal person-to-person IM chat with that technician, and they help me to solve my problem! No Alpha Bravo Romeo spelling. No “let me repeat that back to you”. And best of all, no “can you repeat that, please?” Just a brief exchange of questions and answers, the solution to my problem, and we’re done! As long as my problem isn’t “I can’t connect to the network”, or “IM isn’t working”, it’s a breeze!

So, next time you have a service problem, check the company’s website and see if they offer a chat as a service option. You won’t hear a friendly, reassuring voice, but you won’t have to ask them to repeat the question, either.