Meals? - Vronika Just Texted Me

[Ashok Chelian]

Kindly sign up... 
http://mealbaby.com/registry/

Just got a text from Vronika today at 3:40 PM.  She wrote that she hadn't received a meal from us in 3 weeks.  (I checked and it should have been actually 2 weeks but still...)

Simply put, I'm frustrated and I regard this as a failure on my part as well as yours.  Not a "total failure, unmitigated disaster"  But pretty lame and it riles me up. 

It's comforting to know Vronika finds our service with food useful.  I'm so grateful we have this avenue to demonstrate that we care.  Going forward, let's get better on this meal baby stuff. 

Let me know what I can do to help the team realize this service more effectively.   Alternatively we can try a more martinet's approach and start assigning weeks to people at random.  We can "discuss" at the team meeting. 

Peace,
Ashok

[James Xu]

Seriously people, are u telling me

I was the only person who brought Vronika a meal in the month of January?

You all know I have a temper... So instead of berating you all here, I am going to try to take the high road.

Please sign up for meal baby; there are 4 weeks in February ; i'll take the 1st week; so we need 3 volunteers.

James

Sent from my iPhone

[Lauren Christopher]

Hi guys. Just wanted to chime in quickly that we were unable to coordinate with Vronika for the meal we were listed for. She let us know the same day that we were planning to drop off her meal that she would not be in Berkeley. We were unable to take food to Richmond that evening in time for the kids to eat at a decent hour. Also we asked for volunteers to help get food to Vronika and no one was available. 

We coordinated with V. to provide a meal for her the following Saturday at an arranged time. (She was going to be in Berkeley/Oakland that day.) 

V. did not show up to pick up the meal. I'm happy to sign up again, and try again, but this is kinda frustrating all around.

Lauren

Sent from my iPhone

On Jan 31, 2014, at 4:33 PM, Ashok Chelian <ache...@hotmail.com> wrote:

[Carolyn B Chen]

James, I stole your slot since all the others except 2/27 were taken (and I'll be out of town on 2/27). 

Sorry I didn't help this month. I'm taking a bit of a break on all fronts (from church stuff, socializing, service) this month and Feb, to recharge from last year which was great but kinda intense for me. Thanks for understanding and I ask that you please do not be angry at me and others of us who didn't help and may have trouble verbalizing that stuff is going on. :o{

I don't want to be scared of coming to the Monday meeting! 

/ weak sauce introverted Red Bean Bun

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[Carolyn B Chen]

Lauren (and team),

Thanks for sharing. Just as an aside and info for the future, I think Vronika is open to getting food after dinner time and she uses it for another day. Both James and I have previously dropped off food after 9pm to accommodate my work schedule. 

Hope that helps in the future!

- carolyn

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[Ashok Chelian]

Lauren, I apologize for my tone.  Vronika didn't mention your efforts in her text messages.  Nor did she mention that she failed to show up at your meeting.  Simple miscommunication or a little disingenuousness on Vronika's part?  Perhaps I shouldn't rush to judge. 

Still, that hardly absolves the rest of us (including myself) from...
1. Not signing up
2. Not providing you and Kevin support (or fostering a culture where you could ask for support).  I recall Kevin asking for help with the food delivery but I'm uncertain who all made themselves available. 

I do think this also highlights how our team's operations can be improved when we communicate. 

I'm sorry, Lauren and Kevin.   Can we chalk my poor judgment up to obamacare too?

Peace,
Ashok

--- Original Message ---

From: "Lauren Christopher" <mrslaurenc...@gmail.com>
Sent: January 31, 2014 5:19 PM
To: "Ashok Chelian" <ache...@hotmail.com>
Cc: f2feme...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [F2F] Meals? - Vronika Just Texted Me

[James Xu]

Hi Lauren,

I'm sorry to hear Vronica changed plans on you two times in a row. You and Kevin went o all that trouble to cook a meal and try to get it to her...

Can you remind me which Saturday it was she left you hanging? You had signed up for Jan 16th. The Saturday following that would have bee the 18th. Does that sound right? I plan to meet with Vronica this Wednesday, and when I do, I plan to bring up the topic of mealbaby. I will show her a schedule of meals and the people who signed up. I will also gently bring up the fact that she left you hanging.

James

Date: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 17:32:34 -0800 From: carolyn...@gmail.com To: mrslaurenc...@gmail.com CC: ache...@hotmail.com; f2feme...@googlegroups.com

Lauren (and team),

Thanks for sharing. Just as an aside and info for the future, I think Vronika is open to getting food after dinner time and she uses it for another day. Both James and I have previously dropped off food after 9pm to accommodate my work schedule. 

Hope that helps in the future!

- carolyn

On Friday, January 31, 2014, Lauren Christopher <mrslaurenc...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi guys. Just wanted to chime in quickly that we were unable to coordinate with Vronika for the meal we were listed for. She let us know the same day that we were planning to drop off her meal that she would not be in Berkeley. We were unable to take food to Richmond that evening in time for the kids to eat at a decent hour. Also we asked for volunteers to help get food to Vronika and no one was available. 

We coordinated with V. to provide a meal for her the following Saturday at an arranged time. (She was going to be in Berkeley/Oakland that day.) 

V. did not show up to pick up the meal. I'm happy to sign up again, and try again, but this is kinda frustrating all around.

Lauren

On Jan 31, 2014, at 4:33 PM, Ashok Chelian <ache...@hotmail.com> wrote:

[Lauren Christopher]

Hi James, 

Just to be clear, technically we were purchasing a meal, so it really wasn't that big of a deal. But I did feel like we were getting mixed messages, a) that she originally really wanted folks to bring food and then b) that she was kind of indifferent after all. Maybe some of that is just me being overly sensitive and V's personality being the less expressive type... 

I don't think you need to make her feel bad about it. If you want to bring up the calendar and just ask her to make sure & let us know ahead if time if she will not be in Berkekey to pick up a meal, I think that would be sufficient.

I am not sure on the dates, Kevin was actually handling it, but he's so busy right now, I'm not sure he's current on the email thread. I will ask him. 

Thank you,

Lauren

Sent from my iPhone

[Lauren Christopher]

Ashok. Thanks for your apology but I think it was just a team fail here, us included. We could've gone in and taken food out to Richmond but my attitude was not great about it, and I thought, well, if she can't be bothered to show up, or even contact us to let us know what's going on, just forget it. I'll admit, that attitude was *not* showing her the heart of God that sharing a meal with her family intends. 

I say we chalk this one up to a group fail... Kev & I messed up, nobody offered support, V messed up... We're all human and all a little frustrated with the circumstances... But maybe we can repair & move on.

Sent from my iPhone

[Carolyn B Chen]

Sorry, you felt we let you down.

As far as moving forward, can we think of a better system for communication?  Does V see the Mealbaby sign-ups?  I think she or the meal coordinator/Ashok (whatever is agreed upon between her and us at the next face-to-face meeting) should be the one to check the Mealbaby sign-ups, remind V and the meal preparers with each others' contact info, and for V to set up the date and time for the pick-up.  Maybe she can do it at least 3 days in advance.  Finding out a change the day of is not helpful to anyone -- her, the meal preparers, or the team if we get a frantic e-mail less than 24 hours before the meal is to be delivered.

I know V is a busy lady, but I'm leaning towards her being the one for doing the monitoring and contacting.  If she wants the food, we'd appreciate it if she could pave the way for us getting it to her smoothly.

 

-c

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[Lauren Christopher]

Carolyn, Ashok & all,

It was really not my intention to place blame on the team as a whole or feed any guilt trips there. I just think we need to reorganize in the MealBaby idea, which we are now doing, so it's all good! I want to clarify, I think it has been a challenging year for all if us in this F2F endeavor. Everyone is doing their best. If you just read that and you feel like you're not doing your best, then get on it! ;-)

I am happy to serve with all of you!

Lauren

Sent from my iPhone

[James Xu]

Hi Lauren, it's all good. We all have our weaknesses. For some it's logistics. For others, it's giving up personal free time. And for myself, it's keeping a lid on my temper, and channeling my feelings into positive and compassionate ideas.

Hi Carolyn, for real sister. I really like the way your mind works. Your idea is nothing short of brilliant! We should flesh it out and get team agreement on Monday when we meet. Seriously, it's a great idea. I mean if you think about it, V is kind of treating the meal thing a little bit like a hand out. Like once a week, a meal just miraculously shows up at her front door, literally. And she says a quick thank you and disappears into her apartment. No, how are things going. What's happening with you. This and this happen this week, etc etc etc.

I want her to taking some more freaking ownership. Just like the Wednesday meetings. I say we put the onus on V for the meals. I will personally see to it that she has the link to the meal baby web site via all possible channels. I'll text it to her. I'll email it to her. I'll write it down on a piece of paper and hand it to her.

Furthermore, I say, it is her job to contact us 24-hours in advance to confirm the time and location of the meal pick up. If she does not call us, then there will be no meal. Simple as that!

James
Cell 314-761-6360


CC: ache...@hotmail.com; f2feme...@googlegroups.com From: mrslaurenc...@gmail.com Date: Sat, 1 Feb 2014 11:49:04 -0800 To: carolyn...@gmail.com

Carolyn, Ashok & all, It was really not my intention to place blame on the team as a whole or feed any guilt trips there. I just think we need to reorganize in the MealBaby idea, which we are now doing, so it's all good! I want to clarify, I think it has been a challenging year for all if us in this F2F endeavor. Everyone is doing their best. If you just read that and you feel like you're not doing your best, then get on it! ;-)

I am happy to serve with all of you! Lauren

On Feb 1, 2014, at 11:11 AM, Carolyn B Chen <carolyn...@gmail.com> wrote:
Sorry, you felt we let you down. As far as moving forward, can we think of a better system for communication?  Does V see the Mealbaby sign-ups?  I think she or the meal coordinator/Ashok (whatever is agreed upon between her and us at the next face-to-face meeting) should be the one to check the Mealbaby sign-ups, remind V and the meal preparers with each others' contact info, and for V to set up the date and time for the pick-up.  Maybe she can do it at least 3 days in advance.  Finding out a change the day of is not helpful to anyone -- her, the meal preparers, or the team if we get a frantic e-mail less than 24 hours before the meal is to be delivered. I know V is a busy lady, but I'm leaning towards her being the one for doing the monitoring and contacting.  If she wants the food, we'd appreciate it if she could pave the way for us getting it to her smoothly.     -c

On Sat, Feb 1, 2014 at 9:50 AM, Lauren Christopher <mrslaurenc...@gmail.com> wrote:

Ashok. Thanks for your apology but I think it was just a team fail here, us included. We could've gone in and taken food out to Richmond but my attitude was not great about it, and I thought, well, if she can't be bothered to show up, or even contact us to let us know what's going on, just forget it. I'll admit, that attitude was *not* showing her the heart of God that sharing a meal with her family intends. 

I say we chalk this one up to a group fail... Kev & I messed up, nobody offered support, V messed up... We're all human and all a little frustrated with the circumstances... But maybe we can repair & move on.

On Feb 1, 2014, at 12:36 AM, Ashok Chelian <ache...@hotmail.com> wrote:

Lauren, I apologize for my tone.  Vronika didn't mention your efforts in her text messages.  Nor did she mention that she failed to show up at your meeting.  Simple miscommunication or a little disingenuousness on Vronika's part?  Perhaps I shouldn't rush to judge.
Still, that hardly absolves the rest of us (including myself) from...
1. Not signing up
2. Not providing you and Kevin support (or fostering a culture where you could ask for support).  I recall Kevin asking for help with the food delivery but I'm uncertain who all made themselves available.
I do think this also highlights how our team's operations can be improved when we communicate.
I'm sorry, Lauren and Kevin.   Can we chalk my poor judgment up to obamacare too?
Peace, Ashok

From: "Lauren Christopher" <mrslaurenc...@gmail.com>
Sent: January 31, 2014 5:19 PM
To: "Ashok Chelian" <ache...@hotmail.com>
Cc: f2feme...@googlegroups.com

Hi guys. Just wanted to chime in quickly that we were unable to coordinate with Vronika for the meal we were listed for. She let us know the same day that we were planning to drop off her meal that she would not be in Berkeley. We were unable to take food to Richmond that evening in time for the kids to eat at a decent hour. Also we asked for volunteers to help get food to Vronika and no one was available. 

We coordinated with V. to provide a meal for her the following Saturday at an arranged time. (She was going to be in Berkeley/Oakland that day.) 

V. did not show up to pick up the meal. I'm happy to sign up again, and try again, but this is kinda frustrating all around.

Lauren

On Jan 31, 2014, at 4:33 PM, Ashok Chelian <ache...@hotmail.com> wrote: