It's the Money

When a fellow says, "It ain't the money but the principle of the thing," it's the money. - Kin Hubbard

It is a rare person indeed who keeps their principles higher than their wallet.

Impartial Jury

Impartiality is a pompous name for indifference, which is an elegant name for ignorance. - G.K. Chesterton

And in a jury trial you are being judged by twelve people not smart enough to get out of jury duty.

Voyage of Discovery

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes. - Marcel Proust

But a change in scenery is often a good way of learning to see things differently or more clearly.

Odious Light

You are not superior just because you see the world in an odious light. - Vicomte de Chateaubriand

Being positive will get more done, besides it's more fun.

The Winning Horse

Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people. - W. C. Fields
Nobody has ever bet enough on a winning horse. - Richard Sasuly

A winning bet is dependant on there being more losers than winners. You can increase your chances by being well prepared, but be prepared to lose.

Getting Out of Town

Next to a circus there ain't nothing that packs up and tears out faster than the Christmas spirit. - Kin Hubbard



I suppose it depends on your perspective if this is a good thing or not.

A Gift From Santa

I found this in an old garage sale trunk. It is a cover to the "Pictorial Gravure Section" of the Sunday Oregonian, December 7, 1930. It was painted by Andrew Loomis with the caption "There IS a Santa Claus." The young lady being presented on a silver platter has a gift tag attached to her ankle which reads "For a Good Boy!"

Now before you go all weird on me with claims of sexism, hear me out.

This was 1930 (even before I was born) but things didn't change very rapidly in those days so I'm sure it was the same as when I was growing up.

This was before women were equal. At that time they weren't - they were special. If the boat was sinking it was "Women and children first." I bet putting "women" before "children" was intentional in this old saying. Women were special - more special than children.

When I was growing up the worst offense you could commit was being disrespectful to your mom or grandmother. If you did it generally got you a whoppin' (1). This punishment was generally carried out in the woodshed (outside the house) because it was not to be seen by the women of the house - they were special - it was a lesson taught to a boy so that he may become an honorable man. The only time I was punished in such a manner was for this very offense and it only took once to see the error of my ways and convince me that women were indeed special. I'm not talking about a simple slap on the wrists nor am I talking about child abuse. It hurt. I knew I had done wrong. I was sent to bed without dinner (2).

"But!" you say "Women didn't originally even have the right to vote!" Look at how our country was formed. It was a Representative Republic. Representatives were elected (Senators, Representatives) and they were originally elected by the men - the head of the households. The men voted as the Representative of their family. They voted for their children, their wives and their country. Times changed and so did the election procedure (or was it the other way around?). The Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution went into effect in 1920 (ten years before this painting) but women were still special. Perhaps women should mourn (a little bit anyway) the day they became truly equal.

(1) You got a "whopping" rather than a "whipping" because a whip was what was used on a horse or cow. A whip used on these critters is not cruel - their hide is much, much thicker than a kids. A whopping generally was done with dad's belt or a shaving strap (a leather strap used to sharpen a razor). Both were a couple of inches wide.

(2) Being sent to bed without dinner was a punishment about equal to getting a whopping. Though we were never short on calories, I'm sure we were deficient in vitamins. Food was not shipped all over the world and fresh fruit and vegetables was not available in the winter-time. You lived on meat and canned goods. It is possible for your belly to be full but still be hungry.

Opposite Imitation

To do just the opposite is also a form of imitation. - Georg Christoph Lichtenberg

And a surefire sign of immaturity.

Basic Research

Basic research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher von Braun

I've done a lot of basic research myself.

Touchiness

People are, if anything, more touchy about being thought silly than they are about being thought unjust. - EB White

This must be why ridicule is often more persuasive than reason, if you've got the stomach for it.

Well Begun

Well begun is half done - but in the undone half lies all the work. - Roy Wilson

My father's saying. If you see this as a negative statement it is probably because you see work as a detriment. I never knew him to feel that way. Work is what you do to accomplish things of value.

All Kinds

It takes all kinds to make up the world - and they are all here. - Gertrude Wilson

Quote from my Grandmother. She was a gentle person with never an unkind word, but that didn't keep her from getting a little jab in at those who she did not approve. We can all learn from her.

Birthday Thanks

Don't forget to thank your mom on your birthday. - Lyle

Spending Time

Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you. - Carl Sandburg

Time is a precious commodity.

Lengthy Projects

Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use. - Earl Nightingale

I have found long term projects to be the most rewarding, both in the doing and the accomplishment.

Might Have Been

For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been." ~ John Greenleaf Whittier

There will always be "Might have beens" - we have only the choice to make them as few as possible.

Never Say Whoa

Never say whoa in the middle of a bog hole. – Cowboy saying

If your gitty-up is about to get stuck it's time to git-up and get going!

Multiple Paths

Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results. - George S. Patton

There is always more than one way to accomplish a task - some better than others. You might learn a better way.

The Best is Best

(Selling) average stuff for average people is no way to make a living. - Seth Godin

If you want to increase your profit margin then sell the best to the best.

The Battle for Profit

Too many people think only of their own profit. But business opportunity seldom knocks on the door of self-centered people. No customer ever goes to a store merely to please the storekeeper. - Kazuo Inamori

The desire for profit should walk hand-in-hand with the desire to do something of value, not lead the charge.

Moral Confusion

It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me, but it can stop him from lynching me, and I think that's pretty important. - Martin Luther King Jr.

It is true you cannot legislate morality. Law is established by people to help preserve basic human rights. The problem arises when the two are confused. Politicians make their living by creating this confusion.

Failed Justice

The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just. - Abraham Lincoln

Failure in a just cause is far superior to success in an unjust one because injustice can rarely be undone but failure does not prevent you from trying again.

Art Defined

There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun. - Pablo Picasso

That's the difference between graphic art and art.

Individual Rights

Individual rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual). - Ayn Rand

The founders of this country knew this - the majority could be wrong. The Constitution (as it was written) limited the majority but the amendments and interpretations soon morphed it into what it is today.

Predudicial Priorities

A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices. - William James

One premise is as important as another, so the order is not important. What is important is whether it is correct or not.

Common Premises

Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen. - Albert Einstein

I think "premises" would be a better word than "prejudices" and, as we know - always check your premises.

In Awe

The first twenty-five years of your life, you're in awe of others. For the next twenty-five, you want others to be in awe of you. After that, you could hardly give a damn. - Arthur Lotti

It's not that you don't give a damn - you just learn who it is important to impress - yourself.

Survival of the Flexible

The key word is flexibility, the ability to adapt constantly. Darwin said it clearly. People thought that he mainly talked about survival of the fittest. What he said was that the species that survive are usually not the smartest or the strongest, but the ones most responsive to change. So being attentive to customers and potential partners is my best advice--after, of course, perseverance and patience. -Philippe Kahn

But be sure that the change your customer seeks is not an evolutionary dead end.

Aligned Rewards

How you define rewards ought to align with your goals and how you define success. - Lisa Haneberg

Money is not the only reward - other rewards may be better. Sometimes a kind word is better aligned with the recipients goal.

Conspiracy Theory

America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy. - John Updike

Now that's my kind of conspiracy theory.

The Right Place

Fortune may find a pot, but your own industry must make it boil. – John Gay

Bill Gates was in the right place at the right time but without his talent and hard work we wouldn't know his name. In fact we, or he, would never know he was once in the right place at the right time.

Doubtful Acts

Necessity may render a doubtful act innocent, but it cannot make it praiseworthy. - Joseph Joubert

Sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do - just don't brag about it once it's done.

Imponderable

“I know nothing about horses,” said the bald man watching two flying forms. “But I’ve just seen that one,” he pointed with his cigarette at the far off bay. “I’ve just seen him run the guts out of the other two. One after the other he has broken their hearts and left them staggering along behind him. We would call him an imponderable, one who cannot be judged by normal standards.” He puffed at his cigarette before going on. “There are men like that also, imponderable.” - Wilbur Smith, Gold

In any endeavor you always must choose to lead, follow or get out of the way.

Planning for Problems

One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency. - Arnold Glasgow

Young folks always assume everything will go as planned. Older folks assume everything will go wrong. Failure, in both cases, is due to not anticipating problems before they happen.

Smooth Seas

Smooth seas do not make for a skillful sailor. - African Proverb



You hone your skills when the going is tough - don't waste your time complaining about tough times.

Tequila Trepidation

A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history - with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila. - Mitch Ratliffe

Just because it came out of a computer be wary - just like you would with a guy tanked up on tequila packing a handgun.

Beautiful Solutions

When I'm working on a problem, I never think about beauty. I think only how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong. - Richard Buckminster Fuller

Seeing the beautiful solution is not the last step. Put the solution out on the market and see if others find it beautiful. If not, perhaps it was only in the eye of the beholder.

The Key to Success

I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody. - Bill Cosby

The concept of the long tail says you can succeed by merely pleasing some of the people some of the time - you just have to find them. It's all in the marketing.

Nothing is Perfect

It isn't that they can't see the solution. It's that they can't see the problem. - G. K. Chesterton

Whenever you hear "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." look to see if the problem is just being ignored.

Sequel Perfection

There's just about always a sequel, so don't worry about making the first one perfect. – Seth Godin



Unfortunately, often the sequel doesn't measure up to the original because the creator misjudges (or ignores) what made the first one great.

Perfect Course

Perfectionism is simply putting a limit on your future. When you have an idea of perfect in your mind, you open the door to constantly comparing what you have now with what you want. That type of self criticism is significantly deterring. - John Eliot

Going with the flow doesn't mean you give up charting your course.

Wallowing in Regret

Make it a rule of life never to regret and never to look back. Regret is an appalling waste of energy; you can't build on it; it's only good for wallowing in. - Katherine Mansfield

You can learn from your mistakes. That knowledge is something you can build on.

Real Character

Industry, thrift and self-control are not sought because they create wealth, but because they create character. - Calvin Coolidge

And sometimes those which practice them are real characters!

Ugly Fashion

Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months. - Oscar Wilde

Is it ugly or do we just constantly seek something new? Or both? Fashionable clothes fall into the "what's new" category and often, sadly, buzzwords do to. However to those who believe words should mean something, buzzwords also fall into the ugly category.

Extraordinary People

One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man. - Elbert Hubbard

....or woman.

Gifts

Nights bring me hindsight, days bring me doing, tomorrows bring me wishes, yesterdays bring me wisdom, the moon vanity, the sky longing, the sun fear, and the earth? It waits for me. - Chief Dan George

Spoken like a true man of the universe.

The Status Quo Police

The status quo police aren't going to go away, and in fact, they are often a big help in that most of your competition is held at bay by them. – Seth Godin

People are going to tell you to do things as they have always been done. If everyone listened to them there would be no progress.

Meeting Halfway

The man who says he is willing to meet you halfway is usually a poor judge of distance. - Laurence J. Peter

I guess all you have to do is convince him you are not that far apart. Then halfway is closer to your side.

Strong Plough Hands

Wonders are many in the world, and the wonder of all is man.
With his bit in the teeth of the storm and his faith in a fragile prow,
Far he sails, where the waves leap white-fanged, wroth at his plan.
And he has his will of the earth by the strength of his hand on the plough. - Sophocles, Antigone

Keep your hand on the plough.

Logical and Musical

Remember this: one can be a strict logician or grammarian and at the same time full of imagination and music. - Herman Hesse, The Glass Bead Game

Beware of those who use one as an excuse to ignore the other.

Study History

I do not doubt that in the course of time this new science will be improved by further observations, and still more by true and conclusive proofs. But this need not diminish the glory of the first observer. My regard for the inventor of the harp is not made less by knowing that his instrument was very crudely constructed and still more crudely played. Rather, I admire him more than I do the hundreds of craftsmen who in ensuing centuries have brought this art to the highest perfection. To apply oneself to great inventions, starting from the smallest beginnings, is no task for ordinary minds; to divine that wonderful arts lie hid behind trivial and childish things is a conception for superhuman talents. - Galileo

If for no other reason than this; study history.

Meaningless Words

When words lose their meaning, people lose their liberty. -Confucius

Not only that; when words have no meaning, people loose their liberty. Try to define: "sustainability"; "rural character"; "common good"; " Tuscon style".

Living and Learning

Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. - Mahatma Gandhi



Live to learn.

Their Battle

Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting their battle too. – Anonymous

Ain't that the truth.

Idea Sharing

It is of the nature of idea to be communicated: written, spoken, done. The idea is like grass. It craves light, likes crowds, thrives on crossbreeding, grows better for being stepped on. - Ursula Le Guin

Share your ideas so they might grow better.

Radical Inconsistency

Are people more violently opposed to fur rather than leather because it's much easier to harass rich women than motorcycle gangs? - Anonymous

Radical groups are never consistent - if they were then we wouldn't see them as radical.

Be a Rodin

You are either the sculptor of circumstances, or the clay. - Robert James Bidinotto

Sculptors choose to create a thing of beauty and inspiration - or not. Be a Rodin.

Labor's Bread

A good government is one “which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned." - Thomas Jefferson

Remember the government does not create wealth - individuals do, through their labor. If the government is to redistribute wealth then they must take "from the mouth of labor." This is not good government. Think of that when you vote.

Finding Giants

If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. - Isaac Newton

First you have to find the giant; the Internet makes this a lot easier.

Dream Car

I couldn't find the sports car of my dreams, so I built it myself. - Dr. Ferdinand Porsche

That's why things get done in this world. People have dreams.

Results of Failure

Skill is successfully walking a tightrope over Niagara Falls. Intelligence is not trying. -Anonymous

Intelligence is knowing the consequences of failure. There is a difference between failing with uncomfortable results and failing with lethal results.

Perfection Flawed

If you don't make mistakes, you're not working on hard enough problems. And that's a big mistake. - Frank Wilczek



What's the fun of doing something simple?

Slave Masters

Aristotle said that some people were only fit to be slaves. I do not contradict him. But I reject slavery because I see no men fit to be masters. – C. S. Lewis



It's not that you should complain about the way you are governed. It is that you should realize that not even a majority has the right to tell you what to do.

Thin Information

Information's pretty thin stuff unless mixed with experience. - Clarence Day



So, seek out those with information but better yet seek out those with information and experience.

Ignorant Criticism

I have never found in a long experience of politics that criticism is ever inhibited by ignorance. - Harold Macmillan



Ignorance is not the single domain of politics; it pervades all criticism.

Planetary Heaven

Maybe this world is another planet's hell. - Aldous Huxley



Sorry Mr. Huxley but I think this world may be another planet's heaven. Why be negative?

Money Roots

Lack of money is the root of all evil. - George Bernard Shaw



So what is the root of lack of money?

Fault Finders

The only people who find what they are looking for in life are the fault finders. - Foster's Law



If you have met all of your goals you're dead - even if your don't get buried for a while.

Eunuch's Criticism

Critics are like eunuchs in a harem. They're there every night, they see it done every night, they see how it should be done every night, but they can't do it themselves.- Brendan Behan



Remembering this may take the sting of criticism and turn it into a reason to chuckle.

Yesterday's Winners

Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday. - Don Marquis

... and yesterday's winners are already half way through today's challenges.

Reverence for Factories

The man who builds a factory builds a temple, that the man who works there worships there, and to each is due, not scorn and blame, but reverence and praise. - Calvin Coolidge



We should honor both the fiddler and the composer for work well done. Too often one is favored over the other. It takes both to make a thing of beauty (factories are beautiful too).

The Price of Progress

Problems are the price of progress. Don't bring me anything but trouble. Good news weakens me. - Charles Kettering



The solution to problems is what makes progress. If you have no problems to solve you are gliding.

Toothpaste Revisited

Be master of your petty annoyances and conserve your energies for the big, worthwhile things. It isn't the mountain ahead that wears you out - it's the grain of sand in your shoe. - Robert Service



In the end it doesn't really matter which end of the toothpaste tube is squeezed.

Food For Success

Success is like food. It's all a function of preparation.- Jeff Ruby

I would add that presentation (plating in the case of food) is also a key ingredient. Think as much about how you are going to say it as you do thinking about what you will say.

The Ladder of Success

The ladder of success is best climbed by stepping on the rungs of opportunity. - Ayn Rand



Look for opportunities then climb on.

Random Testing

The more work feels like high school, the more likely you will be asked to become a hall monitor. - Lisa Haneberg



If you give your people the opportunity to dress and act like decent adults they will. If one of them doesn't then they don't deserve to stay. Tell your people every day is picture day and their photo will be posted to your website. Call it "Random Picture Testing."

People Seldom Think Of You

You probably wouldn't worry about what people think of you if you could know how seldom they do. - Olin Miller



I read this quote as a kid and it helped me more than any other has since.

Fried Chicken Sandwich Evironmentalism

This is Blog Action Day on Environmentalism so I am breaking with the normal post format and expressing my view on environmentalism.


When I was a kid my dad had a portable sawmill and logging operation. Yes, he cut down trees; sawed them into boards; hauled them out of the woods on roads he built himself. When the trees were all cut down he would move the mill and start in a new area.


Saturdays were the days to do maintenance and repair on the machinery and on occasion my brother and I were invited to go along for the day. It was a big deal because we got to get a pop from the little gas station and go to the woods with the men.


On one of these occasions we sat down for lunch with the crew on a stack of rough-sawn lumber and everyone got out their lunch box. I was not real excited about my lunch so when one of the crew (Vern) ask if anyone wanted to trade their sandwich for his fried chicken sandwich I agreed and we made the trade. His sandwich turned out to be a fried egg sandwich. I hated cold fried eggs - still do today. I then saw why he made the trade. He could tell from my tears I was disappointed and offered to trade back but my Dad told me to eat the sandwich like a man and to remember that things are not always what you think they are. I haven't forgotten.


It wasn't that long ago when the consensus was that the turn of the century (Y2K) was going to be a global disaster. People bought generators; put up a stock of food; took money out of their bank; bought gold; prepared for the lights to go out. The doom and gloomers did a good job of convincing the average guy it was going to be bad - and some made a lot of money in the process. I thought about fried chicken sandwiches and tried to convince some of my friends it was just a ruse. I failed because doom and gloom for most is more believable than milk and honey. It was put very well by Susan Jeffers:

We have been taught to believe that negative equals realistic and positive equals unrealistic.

The current gloom is global warming. Think fried chicken sandwiches.

Brain Borrowing

I not only use all the brains I have but all that I can borrow. - Thomas Woodrow Wilson



This is why it is prudent to surround yourself with talented ambitious people. Slackers rarely loan their brains.

Profitable Ideas

Progress depends on people knowing they'll be able to profit from their ideas. - Deborah Neville



If you want your business to progress don't ever fail to reward good ideas. To forget even once can cause your people to doubt whether there will be personal profit from their good work. The same holds true at home.

Impossible Problem Solved

Again and again, the impossible problem is solved when we see that the problem is only a tough decision waiting to be made. - Robert H. Schuller



Some decisions are tough. Some are really tough but the act of deciding which way to go is more important than the path chosen.

Realistic Negativity?

We have been taught to believe that negative equals realistic and positive equals unrealistic. - Susan Jeffers



I believe this is true. The goal then is to unlearn it and help others do the same. Everybody ends up happier.

Deciding Who You Are

Every decision you make - every decision - is not a decision about what to do. It's a decision about Who You Are. When you see this, when you understand it, everything changes. You begin to see life in a new way. All events, occurrences, and situations turn into opportunities to do what you came here to do. - Neale Donald Walsch



Be sure that Who You Are is the same as Who You Would Like To Be.

Evil vs. Freedom

Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil. Our great hope lies in developing what is good. - Calvin Coolidge



Some folks use repressing evil as an excuse for more limits on freedom. Limits on freedom are limits on doing good. Remember that the next time you go to vote.

Death from Negativity

Resentment is like taking poison and hoping the other person dies. - St. Augustine



Negative feelings of all kinds hurt yourself not others.

Wasted Reasoning

It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into. - Jonathan Swift



If someone has a belief taken on faith then don't waste your time reasoning with them.

Thanks for the Tractor

A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving. - Albert Einstein



Every time I finish a task made infinitely easier with my tractor I shut it off and say to myself "Thank you Mr. Massey. Thank you Mr. Ferguson."

Others Opinion

We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done. - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow



You can either change the way you judge yourself or accept the opinion of others.

Charming Question

You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question. - Albert Camus



I guess that is why I've never been charming - I just ask the question.

No Final Defeats

Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat. - F. Scott Fitzgerald



A defeat is just a speed-bump; the sooner you get over it the sooner you can get back up to speed.

Rated Thinking

The third-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the majority. The second-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the minority. The first-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking. - AA Milne

Ignore what others are doing most of the time.

Profitable Failure

View the knowledge from something that failed as the profit from that effort. - John L Herman



We all know about learning from out mistakes but to view that knowledge as "profit" might make you more adventurous.

All Things Questioned

Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blind-folded fear. - Thomas Jefferson



All things must be questioned. Remember those around you will be questioning you and your actions as well. You may have to explain why you do things often; how well you explain will determine if they follow or not.

Ideas Are Like Rabbits

Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen. - John Steinbeck



So if you have an idea, no matter how improbable, play with it - it will lead to more ideas.

Worldly Wisdom

Just because your voice reaches halfway around the world doesn't mean you are wiser than when it reached only to the end of the bar. - Edward R. Murrow





Just because someone speaks with authority from some far away place does not make them wise. It may be that they are only (unfortunately) more influential.

Mountain Climbing

People think that at the top there isn't much room. They tend to think of it as an Everest. My message is that there is tons of room at the top. - Margaret Thatcher



Do not fear people joining you at the top of whatever hill you are on. Just make sure you are already figuring out how you are going to scale the next highest peak.

Dream Visions

Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare. - Japanese Proverb



Having a goal and a plan will more than likely make you dream come true.

Scoreless

100% of the shots you don't take don't go in. - Wayne Gretzky



You've got to make the shot to get the goal. If you don't know where the goal is then you'll be scoreless for sure.

Vicious Circle

People who run around in circles never find the finish line. – John L. Herman





If there is no goal it's a mighty long race. Is this why people get bored with their job? Flipping burgers can get boring after a while but not if your goal is to be the manager some day. Make sure your people have a goal.

Castor Oil Advice

Advice is like castor oil, easy enough to give but dreadful uneasy to take. - Josh Billings





Some folks avoid taking their Castor oil at all costs, even though they would benefit from the taking.

Instinctual Acceptance

If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to his instincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence. The origin of myths is explained in this way. - Bertrand Russell



Understanding this knowledge will help you figure out how to get your people to accept change.

Inconvenient Adventure

An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered. - GK Chesterton



May your life be full of adventures (inconveniences and all).

In or Out of the Box

Thinking outside the box isn't nearly as productive as building a bigger one. – Seth Godin

Thinking outside the box is great for problem solving. Thinking inside the box makes you more successful. Apple didn't invent the MP3 player, they made the iPod a better MP3 player and it brought them back from bankruptcy.

Stupid Learning

I like to think of my behavior in the sixties as a "learning experience." Then again, I like to think of anything stupid I've done as a "learning experience." It makes me feel less stupid. - P. J. O'Rourke



The important thing is to recognize when you've done something stupid.

The Origin of Pleasure

Pleasure is a by-product of doing something that is worth doing. Therefore, do not seek pleasure as such. Pleasure comes of seeking something else, and comes by the way. - A. Lawrence Lowell



Do that which is worth doing. Create that which is worth creating. Don't call it work, call it seeking pleasure.

Being a Needle

When you are a needle, and you want to get the word out, don't start by jumping into haystacks. – Robert May (posts at businesspundit.com)



This one really got me to thinking about selling (a product or even yourself). When we wrote our book on trail riding we sold a lot more books in feed stores than we did in bookstores. In a bookstore we were a needle in a haystack. In a feed store we were a spear. We all start out as needles. You can jump into a haystack if you want but you had better work to make yourself into a pitchfork.

Dirty Mouth

If you push someone’s face in the dirt, don’t be surprised if when they talk to you (or about you) dirt comes out of their mouth. – Anon



No matter how tempting, we all need to remember to speak kindly of others or not say anything.

Chapter 9

This is Chapter 9 of my never ending short story. I post new chapters every couple of weeks.


Previously........Her answer was: “I believe my dog is not God, but I can’t prove it.”

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From time to time I would see her in the student cafeteria and she would invite me to sit and chat. Generally these were brief encounters but occasionally we would sit and talk for hours. I treasured those times. The conversations would meander from topic to topic with an easy flow; sometimes there were whitewater rapids of disagreement interspersed with whirlpools of confusion but never any negativity or reproach. We treated each other as equals though we had different perspectives and schooling. She was amazingly well read on a vast array of topics yet admitted freely about her lack of knowledge when we drifted into some obscure subject. I came to realize she was truly a “student” in the classical sense. She was here to get an education, not merely to prepare for a career.

On one of these extended conversations she unexpectedly asked “Why do you teach?” I had no immediate truthful answer. When I hesitated a bit too long she smiled and said with glee “Three to five pages, double spaced. Cover the topic completely and succinctly. The paper is due next week at this time; don’t be late – no excuses.” We both laughed and I heartily replied “OK.”

I put myself through college pounding nails. I was much fitter then, with a much better tan and sometimes I miss it. I made more money doing that than I am making now. Why did I give that up for teaching? Though it was profitable, it did not provide me with what my insides desired. I guess I wanted to be a composer, not a fiddle player.

Composing is a lot easier said than done. I soon learned how much passion it took; how much knowledge was needed; how big a role imagination played. After I graduated I knew my education was lacking. Not only book knowledge, but life’s experience knowledge. That’s why I became a bum for three months. I didn’t consider myself as “homeless” just without a house. I knew I could re-enter the “real” world any time I chose.

Writing does not pay very well, especially at first and only if you are talented and put the work into it. You have to be self-critical to an extreme which can be tough on your innards. You need to be out in the world to observe but in order to be productive you need to be a recluse. You also need to eat.

Finding a teaching position was a stroke of luck. It came the closest to providing me what I needed – time and interaction with the real world. I didn’t set out to be a teacher but it provided me with what I needed at the time. I grew to like my new career over the years but I really could not express why. This “assignment” she gave me made me face my confusion head on. I knew I would have to solve it. I went for a drive in order to have time to sort it all out. Sometimes solutions fall out of the sky. A Procol Harem song came on the radio and one verse gave me the clear concise summary I sought:

“For the lesson lies in learning
And by teaching I will be taught.”

She gave me an A on the paper.
--------------------- - ------------------------
(Autors note: If you would like to read all of the lyrics of the Procal Harem song visit http://lyricstrue.net/bandsongtext/Harum_Procol/In_Held_Twas_In_I.html)

Talent or Genius

Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see. - Arthur Schopenhauer



Think of this definition before ascribing talent or genius to someone.

Savage Existence

Civilization is the progress toward a society of privacy. The savage's whole existence is public, ruled by the laws of his tribe. Civilization is the process of setting man free from men. - Ayn Rand



I've always been bothered by the gay pride movement. Now I understand why; it makes that which should be private, public. It is a step backwards for civilization.

Weird Dogs

I wonder if other dogs think poodles are members of a weird religious cult. - Rita Rudner



I doubt it. Dogs are smart enough to know it is people who make them look weird; its not the dogs fault. Now when people make themselves look weird, that is another question.

Executive Ability

Executive ability is deciding quickly and getting someone else to do the work. - John G. Pollard



Deciding what needs to be done and getting it done. That's what business is all about.

Silent Gratitude

Silent gratitude isn't very much use to anyone. - Gertrude Stein



Thank you for reading this blog.

Malfunctioning Functions

For every function, there is an equal and opposite malfunction. - Anon



Put that in your business plan and prepare to deal with it.

Airport Prisons

Think of airports as temporary prisons for the wealthy. - Tyler Cowen



Define wealthy; define temporary; define prison. I think you will agree.

Finding Opportunity

A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds. - Sir Francis Bacon



Rarely do you find opportunities; generally you have to make your own.

Avoid Success

I dread success. To have succeeded is to have finished one's business on earth, like the male spider, who is killed by the female the moment he has succeeded in his courtship. I like a state of continual becoming, with a goal in front and not behind. - George Bernard Shaw



As you progress move the target farther away.

Handicap Hurdles

Each handicap is like a hurdle in a steeplechase, and when you ride up to it, if you throw your heart over, the horse will go along, too. - Lawrence Bixby



If you do not "throw your heart over" you risk falling off and causing a wreck of those in the race with you. If you can't muster the will to give it your all then don't join the race.

Embracing Change

People are very open-minded about new things - as long as they're exactly like the old ones. - Charles Kettering



People are always resistant to change. If you have the talent to get your people to embrace change you are worthy of envy.

Working Hard on Labor Day

Seeing as how this is Labor Day I am breaking with the normal format to refer you to Seth Godin's Blog today where he writes about hard work and working hard.

Power of Patience

Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind. - Leonardo da Vinci



Patience is a virtue.

Chapter 8

This is Chapter 8 of my never ending short story. Previous chapters can be found through the links to the right. I post new installment every couple of weeks.



Previously:



..................“Now, if you still have doubts about my ‘Truths’ (Men are goal oriented; Women are process oriented), then think about sex.”





I tried not to.

One of the signs of a good writer is their ability to focus. The other sign is brevity – communicate as fully as possible with as few words as possible. These two traits go hand in hand and to accomplish them simultaneously is the “work” involved in writing. When I was in school my writing teachers chastised me regularly for being too brief, “Not long enough.” they said. I struggled with this until I took a class from Dr. Long, who taught me the value of “communicating” rather than just “writing”. The other teachers had failed to express themselves clearly. I had been brief, but my words failed to impart my point to the reader. He said I failed to “communicate fully” to the reader – that I had assumed too much – that the average reader would fail to get my point; feel my emotion; get my drift if you will, because my choice of words had not been pungent. “If you don’t spend as much time in the dictionary and thesaurus as you do composing, your piece will fail.” he said. “Really good writers get quoted not because what they say is right or correct, but because they communicate a very defined thought in a very few words. The person who uses the quote does so because the author’s few words convey what they themselves cannot express. You will know when you are a great author when you are quoted.”

I want my students to become great authors even though I have not gained that status myself. The chances of them fulfilling my dream are slim, but it is a noble goal. She has the ability; she has the spark which could ignite the readers mind. I turned my attention to teaching her what I could and let the other students go along for the ride. I needed to challenge her. I needed to present tasks which were difficult so she could develop her ability to focus. She had quit giving me writing topics; instead she gave me a blank sneering stare. I assumed she had taken the position it was time for me to become the teacher. I took it as a compliment.

At least that’s the theory I tell everyone. To be more truthful, I gave writing assignments to find out what her response would be.

Every year a group asks a question and seeks responses from notable “Thinkers”. Their responses are sometimes noteworthy so I assigned one of the questions as a writing topic: What do you believe is true but cannot prove?

Her response was exceedingly brief but before I berated her for failing to communicate fully I looked at the topic again. It was only a question. She answered the question. She did not assume I needed an explanation. She had been brief; she had communicated well (by answering the question); her answer gave lots to think about.

Her answer was: “I believe my dog is not God, but I can’t prove it.”

Thinking Different

If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking. - George S. Patton



There is always room for a different perspective. To dismiss thoughts off-hand may trap you in stagnation.

Positive Thinking

We are not retreating - we are advancing in another direction. - Douglas MacArthur



Now that is positive thinking!

Putting up with Rubbish

The price of freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish. - Robert Jackson



The price to pay for lack of freedom is there is nothing but rubbish.

Peasant Reasoning

I prefer the company of peasants because they have not been educated sufficiently to reason incorrectly. - Michel de Montaigne



Be sure your education does not limit your power to reason.

Fiddlers

The opportunities of man are limited only by his imagination. But so few have imagination that there are ten thousand fiddlers to one composer. - Charles Kettering



How to tell if you should be a fiddler or composer? Its like the old mule skinner when asked how to tell if a mule should be ridden or packed. "You ride 'em. If they buck you off, you pack 'em."



Give composing your best shot, if it doesn't work then fiddle. There is no shame in fiddling but there is shame in not composing if you can.

Power Thinking

Whether you think you can or whether you think you can't, you're right. - Henry Ford



The power of thought.

Unreasonable Man

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. - George Bernard Shaw



Be sure you do not burn at the stake he who invented fire.

Head Bashing

Do not think of knocking out another person's brains because he differs in opinion from you. It would be as rational to knock yourself on the head because you differ from yourself ten years ago. - Horace Mann



In fact, if you are thinking the same way as you did ten years ago perhaps you should knock yourself on the head - it might loosen some things up a bit so you can make some progress.

Quintessential Quote

God gave us two ends. One to sit on and one to think with. Success depends on which one you use; heads you win -- tails, you lose. - Anonymous



This is the quintessential quote. What it says has been said thousands of times but I admire whoever wrote this for its brevity, imagery and humor.

Alarming Success

You will find the key to success under the alarm clock. - Benjamin Franklin



(And that doesn't mean setting you alarm clock for noon).

Right and Almost Right

The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. - Mark Twain



I think he got the right words to express his thought.

You Need Light

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. - Elizabeth Kubler Ross



Surround yourself with people who have an inner light - it will keep your light shining as well.

Bombs and Bikes

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials. - Lin Yutang



Just because some things can be done does not mean they should be done. Observe carefully and you will find an amazing amount which falls into this category (e.g. atomic bombs and dirt bikes).

Chapter 7

This is Chapter 7 of my never ending short story. To read previous chapters click on the links to the right. I post new chapters every couple of weeks (generally Saturday mornings).





Previously:

............ Love is the condiment of life.

--------------------- - ------------------------

I fell into the crankiness of winter. The sun, though it was still there, was obscured, drowned out, washed out and flooded into obscurity. The dullness of the sky was reflected into the depths of my soul. I was determined to give her a project which she could not accomplish. For days I racked what little was left of my active brain for a topic.

“The Difference Between Men and Women” is the age old question used primarily by comedians and far less by those more serious. The age of political correctness has only heightened this divide which is why I settled on this for the next assignment. Though she could write humor she was far from a comedian and far too young to have much insight.

When I picked up her paper I was furious. The single sheet contained only the title and two lines:

Men are goal oriented.
Women are process oriented.

I scrawled a big “F” across the vast blank space on the paper and stuffed it into my coat pocket as I headed to the student cafeteria. As usual, she was there surrounded by books. I tossed the crumpled paper in front of her without a word. She looked up and said “Well?”
“Well what?” I replied.
“Well, are you upset?”
“You bet. You failed."
“Would you be as upset if you were a woman?”
I felt like stumbling over backwards. “What do you mean? I’m not a woman – how should I know?”
“Why are you upset?”
“Because you wrote only two thoughts – no supporting evidence – no explanation – nothing!”
“What I wrote were the Truths regarding the topic.”
“How am I to know they are ‘Truths’ as you say, when you give no supporting arguments?
“I didn’t need to. You just proved my statements.”
“I did no such thing!”
“Yes you did, even though you probably are not aware of it. Sit down and I will explain. You gave this assignment because you really wanted to know the answer. I gave you the answer but not in the form you desired. You came here without so much as combing your hair or straightening your collar – because your goal had not been reached. If you were a woman you may have come but ‘she’ would have checked her hair, straightened her clothes, checked the weather outside and walked (not stormed) over here. Men are goal oriented. A man seeks a goal. A woman may seek the same goal but the process of achieving it is important as well. You came over without so much as getting a cup of tea first. A woman would have probably done just that and then sat down to chat for a bit before getting to the point. Women are process oriented.”

“It may very well have come from the time when we humans were hunters and gatherers. Men, because of their strengths, were the hunters. Success was succeeding in the hunt. The ‘process’ (hunting) was not what drove the men; it was the result of the process which put food on the table. Women were the gatherers. Collecting a single berry could hardly be called a goal. The goal was to go out and spend the day collecting a basket full of berries to put on the table. Can’t you imagine the dinner conversation of eons ago? ‘How was your day hunting, dear?’ ‘It was miserable! Not a mammoth in sight.’ ‘Well the berries are about gone but we had a good time looking for that last remaining few down by the river.’”

“How about the stereotype of the husband and wife which go on vacation to Yellowstone? The man drives non-stop with the wife complaining the whole way about stopping here or there to go shopping or sight seeing. The man is going towards his goal –Yellowstone - while the woman is taking a ‘trip’ to Yellowstone. “

“A couple is going to the symphony. The woman may have to go out and buy a gown for the occasion; get her hair and nails done; get fixed up just right. It is all a ‘process’ of going to the event. A man, on the other hand, will pull his one suit out of the closet, dress and then wait impatiently in the car in order to get there on time. Both love the music equally but the man is going to hear the music. The woman is going to the symphony.”

“Which is better? It depends on whether you are a man or a woman.”
“Now, if you still have doubts about my ‘Truths’, then think about sex.”

Ignorance

When did ignorance become a point of view? – Dilbert


I’m sorry to say “All too soon in the history of man.”

Thinking

Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is the probable reason so few engage in it. - Henry Ford





Get to work.

Cynicism

Watch what people are cynical about, and one can often discover what they lack. - George S. Patton



I'd go a step further and say "Watch out for people who are cynical."

Problem Creation

We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them. - Albert Einstein



It takes more imagination to solve problems than to create them.

Watch Your Thoughts

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny. - Frank Outlaw



i.e. Your thoughts are your destiny.

Rumors

A rumor is one thing that gets thicker instead of thinner as it is spread. - Richard Armour



To think logically one must never base your premise on a rumor. Base your premise on facts.

To think emotionally (if that is really thinking), go ahead and have fun with rumors.

Future Puck

I skate where the puck is going to be, not where it has been. - Wayne Gretzky



It's easy to keep track of what is going on; It's tougher, but more rewarding, to tell what will be going on.

High Achievement

Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one’s levels of aspiration and expectation.- Jack Nicklaus





You may not achieve your current goals until you have set your sights higher. Aim high.

Let Others

Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you. - Jim Rohn



One cannot generally change the world. One can change one's personal world.

Repressing Evil

Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil. Our great hope lies in developing what is good. - Calvin Coolidge



Socialist systems assume the natural state of mankind is evil and needs to be repressed. Freedom based societies assume the opposite, and have confidence that good will prevail.

Intended Reputation

You cannot build a reputation on what you intend to do. - Liz Smith



Reputation, marriage, family, dinner. You cannot accomplish anything of value without action. When in doubt, leap!

Chance to Excel

If you think people are being perfectionists and not giving you a chance, ask for one. It's easier to ask for a chance to excel than it is to ask forgiveness if you fail. –Seth Godin



If you are given a chance and you fail, it was only a chance wasn't it? If you fail on your own then it was a plain ol' failure in others' eyes.

Chapter 6

This is Chapter Six of my never ending short story "Index Out Front." To read previous chapters follow the links to the right. I will continue to post additional chapters every couple of weeks.



.........She disappeared.
--------------------- - ------------------------

She did not attend summer term and I threw myself into re-writing my entire novel. Actually I threw out the original and started over. Everything had changed and it was reflected in my writing. The main characters became greater and bolder – more like people I would like to meet – more like her. The “villains” became more contemptible. She had turned me into a romantic and I took on the new role as best as I could. No longer did I feel self-pity for my meager lot in life. I set out to write the best I could, about the best in us, and why the worst in us should not be celebrated. Though I was miserable, my writing took me to that place beside the stream with a picnic lunch. I lived there as much as possible. I too needed light, and through my writing there was a break in the clouds. I soaked up every ray.

--------------------- - ------------------------

Second-year writing class starts with the Fall Term and I mused how a year changes people. The entry into the classroom was much more civilized, much less bumbling around. Then she came in. She hadn’t outwardly changed but her eyes tossed her baton, not so much like a dagger but as a friend would toss an insult knowing full well it won’t be taken seriously.

I looked at the planned writing assignment and then at her knowing full well I wouldn’t use it. I asked for suggestions of a topic and called on her. “Love is Like Salt” she responded. Of course I went with it.

My summer had taught me a lot. I had learned to get the boring, mundane tasks out of the way first and then move on to the pleasurable. So I read her paper last. Most of the would-be authors took the perspective that love is like salt in a wound. I knew she wouldn’t. I delayed as long as possible but with shaking hands I started. It wasn’t really prose; it was a letter to me:

One can’t reflect in a crowd; that is why people always leave a theater when the
movie is done. If there is reflecting to be done it has to wait for a quieter time. I needed a lot of quiet time this summer so I went camping for three months.

It took about a week to get away from all the people and find a place to build a shelter just big enough for me and my books. It didn’t take long to realize I hadn’t packed any salt. Rice, beans, oatmeal and homemade bread are mighty bland without salt! It is edible and it keeps you alive but there is something lacking.

Have you ever noticed that lots of things are sweet; lots are bitter and just as many are sour. There is only one thing which is salty – salt.

I started out thinking salt was a necessity but after a while I realized my faulty logic. Salt made it better by far (I craved it) however it was far from a staple food; it was a condiment. When I got back I savored my first taste of salt – it was fantastic. I hope I never forget how good it is. If my memory lapses I will go without until my memory improves!


Love is the condiment of life.

--------------------- - ------------------------

Overcoming Gravity

We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming. - Wernher von Braun



I assume he said this while working for NASA. Being a government agency, NASA is like all other overgrown organizations - the processes become bogged down under the guise of "control." Some small companies try to mimic the large, falsely thinking this complexity is what made them large. Keep your company lean just like your thinking.

Rusting Out

It is better to wear out than to rust out. – Richard Cumberland



Sometimes wear and tear strengthens rather than weakens (especially when it comes to using your mind). Beware of those rust spots in the corners of your brain.

Miserable Hate

Always remember others may hate you but those who hate you don't win unless you hate them. And then you destroy yourself. – Richard M. Nixon



Only miserable people hate - or is it hateful people are always miserable?

Mental Deconstruction

Complex systems are complex in part because of the way they evolve; that is just the nature of the beast. And so, while it’s important to understand why a particular system evolved as it did — to understand the financial, political, social, scientific, and psychological forces that shaped the way, for instance, that cancer is treated in this country — I find it useful to ask an entirely different question: if we were making this system up from scratch today, what would it look like? - Stephen J. Dubner



Mr. Dubner's process applies to far less complex systems than the treatment of cancer. Try applying it to your life, business, personal relations. I like to think of it as a mental demolition and rebuild. Mentally clear the lot and start all over from the ground up.

Why Not?

You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, "Why not?" - George Bernard Shaw



I refer you to http://www.churchofthecustomer.com/blog/2007/07/products-of-mir.html

Read the whole blog to get the point.

Imagination

I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. - Albert Einstein



Knowledge is based on what has already been done so if you want to do something which has never been done before look to your imagination.

Listening to Lies

Marge, it takes two to lie. One to lie and one to listen. - Homer Simpson



I never thought I would quote Homer Simpson but this was such and interesting thought. If someone lies and nobody hears, is it still a lie? I say yes because a lie effects the liar as well as the listener.

The Marriage Casserole

A good marriage is like a casserole, only those responsible for it really know what goes in it. – Anonymous



Remember this the next time someone tells you what makes a good marriage. You may want to add their advice as an ingredient to your casserole but it won't make the whole dish.

Bad Science

Anyone who conducts an argument by appealing to authority is not using his intelligence he is just using his memory. - Leonardo da Vinci



One of my pet peeves are those who "prove" their argument by saying a scientist said it was so. I've got more than one Bachelor of Science degree and have still been wrong once or twice. Having admitted that I see it was three times!

Capitalism or Socialism

Capitalism is the unequal distribution of wealth. Socialism is the equal distribution of poverty. - Winston Churchill





So what would you rather have: wealth or poverty? I choose the former as long as I am free enough to be able to determine my share, with the conviction that each increase in my share will increase the wealth of all (capitalism is not a zero sum game).

Horseshoe Luck

Somebody once asked Niels Bohr why he had a horseshoe hanging above the front door of his house."Surely you, a world famous physicist, can't really believe that hanging a horseshoe above your door brings you luck?"."Of course not," Bohr replied, "but I have been reliably informed that it will bring me luck whether I believe in it or not." - Neils Bohr



Circular logic?

Build a Door

If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. - Milton Berle



Nothing happens if you do nothing.

Honesty

The trite saying that honesty is the best policy has met with the just criticism that honesty is not policy. The real honest man is honest from conviction of what is right, not from policy. - Robert E. Lee



It follows then that the man who believes there is no absolute right or wrong cannot be truly honest.

Wrinkles

Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. - Douglas MacArthur

I've had this quote hanging around for a while without knowing what to do with it. I went to my 40th High School reunion tonight and now I know. We need to remind each other not to let our souls get wrinkled.

Chapter 5

This is the fifth chapter of my never ending short story "Index Out Front". See the sidebar to the right to read previous chapters. I'll post more of the story every couple of weeks. - Lyle

......I could tell she was thinking. “How about fiction? Sewers and Roses ought to do nicely.”

She smiled.

--------------------- - ------------------------

I never laughed so hard in all my life. It was a romantic comedy about the love affair of two co-workers in a sewage treatment plant. The words bounced along as if on a trampoline. It was cheerful and light. The treatment plant backdrop presented odd situations for the characters and the love affair made you smile inside. It was a wonderful, short, respite from an otherwise dreary winter existence.

There were moments of pure joy that winter. I learned more about writing by teaching than I had learned from years of study. She continued to request writing topics and I continued waiting to read what she wrote. Her punctuation was atrocious but improving. I rarely faulted her perspective and it was always original. Her use of words was extraordinary.

Spring finally came and I was shocked when she asked “Do you have a car?” “Yes.” “I need a ride to visit my father’s grave for Memorial Day. It's about two hours away. I’ll bring lunch.” “O.K.”

I had never seen her wear a skirt before. It was much longer than the current style and she wore bobby socks, a pure white blouse and a white ribbon holding her hair back. She looked like something out of 1950. She was radiantly beautiful. I had never seen anyone look so happy.

We spoke little during the drive. She gave clear, concise directions to the cemetery and other than that I think we just smiled a lot. The sun was brilliant and the breeze coming in the windows was warm. I wished I had a convertible rather than a middle aged plain sedan without so much as a sun-roof.

I asked her if we should stop and get some flowers. “That won’t be necessary.” she said. The cemetery was huge, covering a whole hillside with magnificent views between the trees. Small roads meandered back and forth between areas of old stone monuments and newer open rows of grave markers. We finally found the area she was looking for and started our search for her father’s grave stone. She found it. I joined her not knowing quite what to do or say as we stood there reading the stone.

She squatted down and arranged her skirt about her and I heard the unmistakable sound of urine hitting the ground. I stepped back and gasped “What are you doing?”

She didn’t answer until she was walking back to the car. “Before he died I promised him I would piss on his grave. He knew I would keep that promise.”

“Do you hate him?” “Oh, no. I still hate the things he did during his life, but he’s dead. You can’t hate something that doesn’t exist.”

We took the back roads on the way back to campus and stopped at a wayside near a stream to eat the lunch she had prepared. It was simple but thoughtfully prepared – a welcome relief from the restaurant food to which I was accustomed. Our conversation was equally as simple, but reflective and unhurried. I wanted the day to last forever.

I dropped her off at her apartment before nightfall and drove my pitiful car back to my pitiful room. The joy of the day failed to flow over into the rest of my life. Why was that feeling so addictive I couldn’t survive without it? I wanted to ask her because I knew she would have the answer, but I was far too ashamed of my feelings. I spent most of the night coming up with a writing assignment where she could answer.

She disappeared.
--------------------- - ------------------------

Ruts

…all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. –the Declaration of Independence



In other words; people tend to stay in a rut. Unless you've got some amazing people, assume your employees will keep doing things as usual. Unless you are an amazing person you too will keep doing things as usual. If you are in a rut, jump out of it before it gets too deep.

Direction

I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving. To reach the port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it. – but we must sail, shall not drift, nor lie at anchor. – Oliver Wendell Holmes



I assume that Mr. Holmes, since he did not capitalize “heaven,” was talking about earthly rewards rather than the hereafter, though he may have meant both destinations. To put this in a more common vernacular, “Go for it.”

Remorse

If you suffer from guilt, remorse or regret, you have not lost your humanity – you have reaffirmed it. – adapted from Star Trek Voyager


We have all done things we regret. Mistakes are made because of our lack of wisdom, or knowledge, or lack of attentiveness. If you have been inattentive then it is worse than if you were just ignorant. If your mistake is made because of lack of knowledge then educate yourself. If your mistake is because of lack of wisdom then you can chalk it up to youthfulness. If your excuse is inattentiveness, then you better get it together and pay attention.

Diversity

In each human heart are a tiger, a pig, an ass, and a nightingale; diversity of character is due to their unequal activity. – Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce


Keep your diversity under control.

Moral Education

To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society. - Theodore Roosevelt



Public education (particularly higher education) has moved towards eliminating any education involving morality because of the prevailing belief that one cannot determine what is right or wrong. My view of "wrong" may be different from yours, you know, and who's to say which is correct? Balderdash. This warped thinking is akin to saying we should have multiple Presidents because some like one candidate and others like another, so both should fill the office. One of things which makes a society is its prevailing moral code. It's what we live by - to ignore it is to splinter an already tenuous situation.

Weathering the Storm

No one would have crossed the ocean if he could have gotten off the ship in the storm. - Charles Kettering



Sometime you've got to just hang in there. Before you decide to abandon ship make sure the boat you are going to is seaworthy. There is little sense in avoiding riding out the storm only to find your new boat is sinking.

Programmer

Programmer: An organism which converts caffeine into software. – Anonymous



Sometimes it takes one thing to create another.

Misery

Misery is optional. - Abraham Lincoln



So simple, so true.

Freedom of Speech

People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought which they avoid. - Soren Aabye Kierkegaard



Beware of those with many words. They are generally making up for their lack of thought. Listen carefully to those with few words.

America

America wasn't founded so that we could all be better. America was founded so we could all be anything we damned well pleased. - P.J. O'Rourke



Resist the temptation to think it is government's responsibility to make things better - that is an individual's choice. The responsibility of government is only to punish those who do bad things.

Progress

Sometimes progress is made one funeral at a time. - An Oregon rancher speaking about the change in farming practices.



I would emphasize the word "sometimes." All too often I have seen the absence of the founder of a successful company lead to it's demise. Change of the helm is less important than who is at the helm.

Ford on Faults

Don't find fault, find a remedy. - Henry Ford



I sure see a lot of folks who stop at finding faults. It's the ol' "If they are bad, then I am better." attitude. Push them down so I appear higher. If I prove they are garbage they I must be gold.



One of my hobbies is BBQ so I search for recipes and I always read the reviews. Invariably, if you find a recipe which overwhelmingly receives five stars (out of five) there will be one or two which say it is the worst thing they have ever cooked. Those folks find fault but almost never offer a remedy. They don't say "It was too salty for me so next time I won't use as much." They say "Yuk." They are the ones Henry was speaking to.



The more I learn about Henry Ford the more I like him - I find it hard to find fault with his quotes and I see why he was so successful.

Two Quotes

If you don't say anything, you won't be called on to repeat it. - Calvin Coolidge


Speak in anger and you'll give the greatest speech you'll ever regret. - Anonymous



These two quotes go hand in hand.

Chapter 4

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This is the fourth chapter of my never ending short story "Index Out Front". See the list at top right to read the previous chapters. I'll post additional chapters every couple of weeks. - Lyle

.................“What would interest you?” I called after her. “Sculpture.” she said and continued to walk away.

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“Describe two sculptures - one that you like and one that you don’t. Contrast the two and use their differences to explain your preference. Include photographs of each.” Holy smokes, I thought, this is going to be a tough one for the rest of the class.


She chose Rodin – the well known “The Thinker” and the less familiar “Gates of Hell.” Her interpretation was far from conventional of course, especially since a miniature “Thinker” sits over the “Gates” as if contemplating the gory entrance.

”The Thinker has become synonymous with man’s greatest ability – intellectual contemplation – while “The Gates” depict man’s vilest construct.” “The Thinker is art at its finest – “The Gates” is not art, only mere perverted social comment.” Ouch. Sorry I asked. This was not prose; it was a treatise. I didn’t like it and told her so after class. “People are generally upset not so much by what happens but by not getting what they expected. You were probably expecting ‘art’ and you didn’t get it. It was intended to inform and educate - not make you feel good. Could it be you need “light? ’

Of course she didn’t wait for me to answer, which was fortunate because I was speechless until she was at the door. “What next?” I blurted out stupidly. To my amazement she stopped abruptly and turned towards me slowly. I could tell she was thinking. “How about fiction? Sewers and Roses ought to do nicely.”

She smiled.

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Staying Young

To stay young requires unceasing cultivation of the ability to unlearn old falsehoods. – Lazarus Long in Time Enough for Love by Robert Heinlein



The young should also cultivate this ability.

Impending Trouble

If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you. - Calvin Coolidge



Things always seem to work out and the effort expended worrying is better spent staying on the road yourself.

Middle of the Road

Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides. – Margaret Thatcher



I've said before if you stand up you will get shot at and she's right, if you stand up in the middle of a battle you will get shot at from both sides.

No Women......

No women, no men; no men, no money. (On why he caters to women in his restaurants) – Jeff Ruby



I think this applies to much more than the restaurant business. Come to think about, it may very well apply to all businesses!

Generosity

There is a huge difference between being generous and being altruistic. Generosity is purposeful and discerning, altruism is blind and indiscreet. Recipients act accordingly. Seldom do you see the recipient of altruism express gratitude. – Lyle

Chess

The master chess player has not merely mastered how each piece moves or developed a few opening and closing strategies; the master chess player can think at least 6 moves into the future, understanding how to trap his opponent and win the game. - Charles Koch



The same applies in the business world.

Human Plan

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. - Lazarus Long in Time Enough for Love by Robert Heinlein



This is my second most favorite quote. Think about giving it as a graduation present for it may cause the graduate to realize how much is left to learn.

Target Practice

Ideas pull the trigger, but instinct loads the gun. - Don Marquis



Load the clip; pull the trigger; have another in the chamber in case you miss; keep pulling until you hit the target. Your aim will get better with practice - the target may not get any closer.

Scratching

Business is never so healthy as when, like a chicken, it must do a certain amount of scratching for what it gets. – Henry Ford



Creativity, enthusiasm, innovation come from pressure. You can create your own pressure for only so long but it quickly returns when your market forces you to "scratch." This goes for your employees as well.

Burning Words

If you are to be pungent, be brief; for it is with words as with sunbeams – the more they are condensed, the deeper they burn. – Robert Southey



A fun analogy to help us remember to write, then condense, then condense some more. The work of writing is not the writing but the re-writing.

Blind Beetle

When a blind beetle crawls over the surface of a curved branch, it doesn't notice that the track it has covered is indeed curved. I was lucky enough to notice what the beetle didn't notice. - Albert Einstein



Was he lucky to see or did he have the ability to view better? I think he had the ability to throw out what was intuitively obvious and look at what was really going on. Intuition has it's limitations because it is based on incomplete information.

Goals

If you are not working daily toward your goals, you are helping someone achieve theirs. – Kerry L. Johnson



I doubt the inverse of this is true (working towards your goal prevents others from reaching theirs). The prudent person wants everyone to succeed.

Chapter 3

This is the third chapter of my never ending short story "Index Out Front". See the list at top right to read the previous chapters. I'll post additional chapters every couple of weeks. - Lyle
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She read the draft copy I had printed with a blank expression, eyes darting across each line in rapid succession.

“Crap.” she said, throwing the pages back on my desk.

“What do you mean? What’s wrong with it?”

“Don’t ask that question unless you really want to know. I don’t lie, I give my true opinion and if it offends you then you need to understand that the reason is because you asked – not that I was inconsiderate.”

“I can handle anything you can dish out……kid.” I was starting to regret having invited her to read what I had written.

She paused momentarily as if contemplating what to do next. She started slowly. “Your story lacks substance, fire, drama. Your story is a recounting of every day occurrences for the average person with average ability, intelligence and talent. If I wanted to know more about a person like that I would just walk down the street and start talking to whomever. Your story does not inspire me. Your story is like a painting of a bowl full of flowers. Yea, it’s great you can portray a bowl full of flowers but a real flower in my own bowl on my own table is a far more valuable. If you want to impress me, affect me, cause me to swoon, then write about something which will inspire me, make me want to achieve, make me cry with joy, make me think, make me feel human. Your story tells me what I’ve suspected – people are a miserable lot. Sorry, but I need light to survive.”

She was out of her chair and out the door before I could utter a word.

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I didn’t look as she came into class the next day. I knew she would not be afraid to look at me. Damn it.

I lectured about proper usage, grammar and syntax and sentence structure. I exhorted the value of community service, the need for political reform, the value of serving humanity, the essence of cultural diversity, I love teaching English Composition because you can have your way with all forms of opinions with a moldable audience. I chuckled inwardly as I fed this line of bull-crap to my students, knowing full well they would absorb it all and regurgitate it precisely at the next test as well as the next time the subject came up in a social gathering of family or friends. Everybody except her of course. I watched her out of the corner of my eye and could see she was not impressed.

I had pondered the topic of the next writing assignment but I hadn’t decided until I saw how uninterested she was in my lecture. “Three to five pages on Cultural Diversity. Narrow the topic to a perspective which can be fully covered in a short piece”.

She didn’t turn in a paper. I stopped her and asked her why. “The subject did not interest me.” She said curtly and walked off. I chuckled - It was going to be fun to lower her grade. “What would interest you?” I called after her. “Sculpture.” she said and continued to walk away.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Coming up in later Chapters:
Sculpture
Sewers and Roses
A trip to the cemetery
Love is Like Salt
The Difference Between Men and Women
...and more!

Morality

Indigestion is charged by God with enforcing morality on the stomach. - Victor Hugo



Wouldn't be nice if there were some other affliction which enforced morality in general? It used to be this was handled by the community. If you were immoral you were ostracized at best, hung by the neck at worst. This approach tended to keep folks in line. Today, with political correctness as it is, one is ostracized for stating a view ("What makes you think you are right?").

Solution

If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate. - Henry J. Tillman



Gotcha! I keep telling you that words mean something, though the "something" might be plural.

Thoughts On Paper

In conversation you can get away with all kinds of vagueness and nonsense, often without even realizing it. But there's something about putting your thoughts on paper that forces you to get down to specifics. That way, it's harder to deceive yourself – or anybody else. - Lee Iacocca, on writing, speaking from his experience as manager in business.



I think this is a very good idea. Put your thoughts and directives on paper to avoid vagueness and nonsense.

Freedom of Speech

The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously. - Hubert Humphrey



The old adage "Don't believe everything you read." should be changed to "Don't believe everything you hear or read." By the way, don't be upset because it was said, just don't take them seriously.

Wages

It is not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle the money. It is the customer who pays the wages. - Henry Ford



All employees who talk to the folks really paying their wages should be reminded of this regularly.

Defending Civilization

We are fools when we fail to defend civilization. The ancient Romans might as well have said, "Oh, the Germanic tribes have valid nationalistic and cultural aspirations. Let’s pull the legions off the Rhine, submit our differences to a multilateral peace conference chaired by the Pathan Empire and start a Vandal Studies program at the Academy in Athens.” - P.J. O’Rourke



Though this is a particular timely thought - has there ever been a time when it did not apply?

Thinking Differently

Corruption: The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently. - Nietzsche, Dawn, 297



This is dated. That is what the 60's were all about though the pendulum seems to swung the other way too far. Thinking differently shouldn't be confused with thinking well.

Wax Nose

A truth that is merely acquired from others only clings to us as a limb added to the body, or as a false tooth, or a wax nose. A truth we have acquired by our own mental exertions, is like our natural limbs, which really belong to us. This is exactly the difference between an original thinker and the mere learned man. – Arthur Schopenhauer

This is why "Education alone does not a man make." No matter how many acronyms are piled behind a name does not necessarily reflect on ability. Remember that the next time you hire someone.

Practical Results

Physics is like sex. Sure, it may give some practical results, but that's not why we do it. - Dr. Richard P. Feynman



The same could be said about the study of economics.

Stockholders

An excellent monument might be erected to the Unknown Stockholder. It might take the form of a solid stone ark of faith apparently floating on a pool of water. – Felix Riesenberg



If I ever make enough money in the market I will commission the work!

Pride

One of the best temporary cures for pride and affectation is seasickness; a man who wants to vomit never puts on airs. - Josh Billings



Evil thought moment: If you need a break from such a person why not invite them deep sea fishing? Beware of your own proclivities though, you might be humbled yourself.