Russ "winehiker" B.'s Profile

I've now had George and his crew out to my home on two occasions, and I'll be calling on him again. He does great work, his prices are reasonable, he is personable, communicative and very honestly human, and he and his crew do a thorough job that doesn't take very much of my time.

Furthermore, George doesn't attempt to upsell me like every other carpet cleaner does. (I freakin' hate that type of business model, and anybody who tries it on me doesn't get my business a second time, regardless of the quality of their work.)

I had called George about 5 p.m. on a Saturday evening, expecting to leave a voicemail. I was pleasantly surprised when George answered the phone, and he scheduled me for 10 a.m. that coming Monday.  Having experienced less-than-stellar professionalism when attempting to schedule and be home to receive other carpet cleaning companies in the area, it was a delight to have my expectations quickly exceeded.

I had mentioned my dirty carpet on the phone, but in the interim had decided to have 4 pieces of furniture cleaned as well. I told him as much when he arrived that Monday, but George didn't bat an eye, offering me an on-the-spot quote which I found immediately acceptable.

Plus, the http://talbotssteamcle... website actually has useful content! It is very informative about how to remove many types of stains, and therefore makes a great reference for maintaining a clean carpet when those occasional spills happen.

On top of all that, Talbot's Steam Cleaning is bonded, so I know that next time my carpets or upholstery need cleaning, I can feel comfortable leaving a key for him if I must be away at work.

Thank you, George!

Do your friends, family and coworkers enjoy participating in the same activities you do? Chances are that, beyond getting together for an occasional family outing or after-work cocktail, you're wishing you could do things that the people common to your everyday life may not be as willing as you to do. What's fun for you simply may not be as fun for them! So what do you do? You begin looking around for a community of like-minded souls with whom you can enjoy shared experiences.

For some, it is merely checking out the local dining or theater scene, holding book discussions, learning something new or getting together for a winery junket. For me, it was initially about venturing out for some challenging hiking and mountaineering - activities that have always been more fun to do when I've got a small group along to share the trail with. Because I found it difficult to interest my usual social network in scaling a peak or hiking ten miles, I turned to a handful of online communities that you're likely familiar with. With each, however, I quickly found a common problem: people who had signed up simply weren't showing up.

This result, as with my prior experience, suggested that people didn't want to gather for a hike. And yet I knew differently: simply hiking the trails, almost anywhere I would go, I saw groups of enthusiasts enjoying big moments, seemingly committed to having fun together. I knew other hikers were out there, ready for group adventure on the trails. Yet I questioned membership in a community in which I would experience the same niggling issues. Factor money into the equation and the return on your investment in hosting an event - emotional or otherwise - is money poorly spent.

As an example, I can think of occasions when restaurant managers and their staff had reserved large tables only to be disappointed when only 3 people showed up; the lack of guest commitment had a deleterious effect on the business. Extrapolate that scenario across multiple businesses in many locales and suddenly the social organization you belong to is earning a bad reputation for its members and especially you, the host.

Occasionally, I did meet people who enjoyed doing the things I like to do. As we walked together, we spoke of our concerns. We realized we wished there could be a social community in which we could have confidence that all of the people who signed up for an event would actually attend.

Because one of the more important choices you face in Life is how you choose your friends - and therefore ensure the experiences you will have - the choices you make must be made carefully. What can you say about the people you currently surround yourself with? What kind of people do you really want in your life? Do you want to have friends you (and others) can rely on? Or are you happy to surround yourself with people who flake out on you, without regard for accountability?

Hey, we say we want responsibility and accountability in government and business. Why wouldn't we hold ourselves to the same standard?

If you're like me, you realize that the bulk of life's choices depend on self-reliance. Of course, many of life's choices involve relying on others. The remainder involve one important choice: just showing up. It follows that if you want people to show up to events that you make a concerted effort to research, plan and host, you're going to want them to be able to rely on you to do the same when they make those same efforts. It goes both ways.

And, it's only fair. Frankly, it's all we can really hope for in this Life: people who treat us fairly and, in turn, can expect the same from us. If we choose not to adopt this Golden Rule approach, well, hey - we all learned about consequences well before grade school, didn't we? We don't unlearn it as adults.

I'm certain of one thing: after I discovered Bay Area Linkup in the Fall of 2003 and experienced a few events, both as guest and host, I knew I had found a community with which I could have more than just a grudging tolerance, but actually grow with. In that time, I've enjoyed some of the most supreme moments of my life. That's not meant to be a trite statement, for I've made many fine friends whom I know I can count on, my confidence has grown immeasurably, and I simply don't need to return to Flakeville.

All that for only $4.95 per month! Most of us who believe in the intrinsic good that has come from our experiences on Linkup also feel that these experiences far outweigh this small fee.

It's nearly seven years later and I still happily host events on Bay Area Linkup.

If I was to combine the best of the European sense of community with Silicon Valley sensibilities, I would present healthy, well-prepared foods and fine locally-made wines in an atmosphere that promotes easy relaxation and stimulation of the senses, and have it all be very affordable. And to top that off, I'd want passion and education to be a part of the mix.

Thank goodness I don't have to do that now, because it's just what Randy Robinson has done with Vino Locale of Palo Alto, California.

On the surface, Vino Locale is what its Italian name implies - a purveyor of local wine. But it's so much more than just a cozy little nook off a major Palo Alto thoroughfare. What it's not is a typical wine bar, restaurant, or bottle shop. With artisanal cheeses, breads and meats, a fine selection of wines lining the shelves - all produced within a 100-mile radius - plus local artists' crafts on the walls and a Victorian house to show it all off in, Randy's got something worth waxing passionate about.