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.