Speaking of running into music stars in Tennessee, I almost ran into one – literally – at lunch today. After church, we went to Panera Bread. I went to refill my raspberry ice tea and almost bumped into a woman wearing a white and tan striped sear sucker suit. She had a large to-go bag and was trying to get drinks for her family, when she was interrupted by a Chatty Cathy type. It happened so fast that I had to side step to avoid spilling my tea all over her, and thought at first that she was actress Debra Messing from Will and Grace. Then I overheard the conversation with the chatty fan, and realized she was Amy Grant. The fan apparently did not know the unwritten rule in Nashville that you don’t bother stars when they’re trying to feed their family. Amy was truly graceful about it (she and her husband are the real deal in case you ever wondered), even though the fan followed her out the door and half way to her car. My beautiful bride turned to me and said, “I sure hope Vince isn’t too hungry”.
Archive for August, 2008
No R.E.S.P.E.C.T. for Amy Grant
Sunday, August 31st, 2008Saturday in Lynchburg, Tennessee
Saturday, August 30th, 2008
I spent last week speaking in Wisconsin, where I am always amazed at how beautiful the state is. When you travel as much as I do for business, it’s easy to forget about how much there is right in your own back yard. So my beautiful bride and I decided to take a drive through the Tennessee hills today, and ended up in Lynchburg. Of course, you can’t go to Lynchburg without touring their largest employer, Jack Daniels. Even if you’re a tea totaller, it is an amazing thing to see. They have 400 employees, and pay Uncle Sam $9,000,000 a month in taxes – quite a difference from the image of moonshiners in the Tennessee backwooods.
In order to buy a barrel of JD, you have to buy the whiskey bottled, and they give you the empty barrel. The sample that’s shrink-wrapped on the pallet costs about $10,000, and private customers who’ve bought one (called members of the Single Barrel Club) include George Strait.
But the best part of the trip was lunch at the Barbeque Caboose Café on the town square. After pigging out (pun intended) on pulled BBQ park that even beats the world famous BBQ down in Memphis, their homemade pecan pie was UNBELEIVEABLE. But what made it even more special was the entertainment. The young man with the guitar is 19-year-old Ben Hall, who is as talented as anyone I’ve ever seen on the Grand Ole Opry. But he was in good company, because the gentleman who was singing with Ben (standing on Ben’s right in the photo) is none other than Grand Ole Opry star and Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie Louvin.
If you ever visit Nashville, it’s worth taking an extra day to drive down to Lynchburg (about 80 miles) for the JD tour. But whatever you do, be SURE to eat at the Barbeque Caboose Café, and tell owners Ken & Samantha Fly that Glenn Shepard sent you.
Dateline Marshfield, Wisconsin: “Can I Sleep in A Little Later?”
Friday, August 29th, 2008A manager of a retail business who attended yesterday’s seminar told me they cut back the hours of several employees, and one took a part time job working at UPS at night (smart move on his part). But now that he’s working until 8:00 at night, he wants to come in to her store a half hour later in the morning. No way Jack. I worked a heck of a lot later than 8:00 every night when I was under contract to finish three books with my New York publisher in 2004 and 2005, and continued to get up and go to my office at 4:00 am every morning, including Saturdays and Sundays. That dude doesn’t know what long hours are, and needs to learn that Work is Not for Sissies.
Dateline Sheboygan, Wisconsin: “Girl Scouts”
Thursday, August 28th, 2008How ironic that after the angry emails from women who were “offended” that my article on Eagle Scouts did not include women, two managers from the Girl Scouts of America (GSA) attended yesterday’s seminar. Since I was a Boy Scout and not a Girl Scout, I know little about GSA. So I shared the story about all the famous Eagle Scouts with these two managers, and asked if GSA had a list of famous Girl Scout alumni who (a) achieved their highest rank, and (b) went on to achieve great success in their careers. They were not aware of any such list.
Dateline Waukesha, Wisconsin: ‘Who’s Andy Griffith?”
Wednesday, August 27th, 2008Yesterday when I told my story about having to fire the employee who looked like Aunt Bea, a 24-year-old administrative assistant from a law firm didn’t know who Aunt Bea was. Not uncommon for Gen Y. But when I explained that she was on The Andy Griffith Show and Mayberry RFD, the young woman asked, “Who’s Andy Griffith?” Yikes. I didn’t even bother to ask if she know who Marcia Brady was…
Feedback on 8/26/08 Issue of Work Is Not for Sissies
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Dateline Chicago
Monday, August 25th, 2008Although I hear about the wide variances in the price of gas, it didn’t sink in until today. I filled up back home in Nashville for $3.17 a gallon yesterday, and the cheapest I found here in the windy city today was still near $4 a gallon. Yet another reason it’s good to be a Southerner 
How to Send Your Kid to the Nation’s #1 Public College for Free
Sunday, August 24th, 2008What if you send your kid to the nation’s #1 ranked public university for FREE? In fact, you can send your kids to 4 of the top 10 public universities for free. Schools ranked even higher than UCLA that costs $25,000 a year, or William and Mary, which cost $37,000 a year. It’s not for everyone, but it is possible. Click here to see how: http://www.forbes.com/2008/08/13/best-public-colleges-oped-college08-cx_mn_de_0813public_slide.html?thisSpeed=15000
Wounded Warriors
Saturday, August 23rd, 2008I found this website from, of all people, Gene Simmons of KISS. The website speaks for itself. Click here: http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org
“Tell Them I’m the Greatest”
Friday, August 22nd, 2008While waiting on a plane at Cleveland Hopkins Airport yesterday, I overheard a reasonably dressed and professional looking man tell someone on his cellphone, “I listed you as a reference. Hope you don’t mind. Just tell them I’m the greatest. If you can’t, refer to someone who can.” Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh. I remember back in “the old days” when people had enough sense to actually ask people for permission to list them as references. The only thing dumber than a job applicant doing what he just did is a manager actually believing what the reference says.