As A Man Thinketh

"A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put inot it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.

Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all of the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful, and pure thoughts. By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, the director of his life. He also reveals, whithin himself, the laws of thought, and understands, with ever-increasing accuracy, how the thought forces and mind elements operate in the shaping of his character, circumstances, and destiny."

-from As a Man Thinketh, James Allen

Whoa!!! I have been talking about the power of thought recently - and then this little tome enters my hands. It's funny how things like that work out. James Allen penned this little book back around the beginning of the 20th century...it's hard to tell exactly when. My copy doesn't have dates in it. If you try to order a copy off of Amazon or anywhere, it says 2002 or 2004.....a more recent published date.

Perhaps you will want to stay away from this book - it's short but it's some concentrated power!!! You are either going to feel pretty good once done reading this....or know that you need to step up your thought process.

Where did I land on this? - I'm not even done with the 72 pages and I have already been convicted of lazy thinking....and I AM A THINKER!!!

Yes, you may want to lay off this one - this book is not for the weak or squeamish!!! "You want the truth...you can't handle the truth!!!" comes to mind when I think about describing this book.

However...if you want change.....NEEEEEED change - you could go to a lot worse source than this for advice.

The Grime

It's October - it's way too early in the year to get "the Grime."


Germ Theory Nutstser style - says that germs have a fairly short life span. They also have unlimited choice as to where they want to live out their limited days here on earth. With that being the case...

Why would they want to live in my swamp - when they can live like a king in your palace. Really...if I had my choice of bodies to live in as a germ, I certainly wouldn't pick mine.

This is why, by and large, the Nutster stays relatively healthy - I'll go a year without a cold or, if I do get one, it usually is of the short variety. And....if I get one cold for the season...

It's one cold for the season - that's it!!! No more are allowed.

This is why it was a little concerning as I sat in an all day meeting yesterday - and started to feel "the grime" come in. You know how it happens...it is kind of like fog. First, you feel the sinuses start to swell.....then a little pressure on the head...then, soreness which you think is in the throat when you swallow but really is more like where the sinuses are.......it's the beginning of that cold.

Nutster has learned not to be Rambo when this hits - I'll cancel appointments and head home on day one of the grime. Yes, it makes me a bit of a wuss but I don't hang on to germs for weeks on end like some people. When germs are up, I go down......in a hurry.

So....today....at 2 pm....still in the bathrobe - I feel a little guilty for laying on the couch all day watching public television. It's gorgeous outside. There is so much that I could be doing......

....but I have chosen to Nurse the Grime - I'm not counting this as a cold until I feel like crud tomorrow. I don't want to get a cold this early in the season.....to easy to get a second cold in the season. I don't do colds....or second colds.

Conversations in My Head...part 1

Welcome to part 1 of what is surely to be a regular feature hear at Nutter's Notes - as it comes on the heels of my previous post.

Let's look at this morning's conversation - but first, I have to set it up. I have a long standing tradition of about 5.5 years of checking my weight on Sunday. Now, to be scientifically correct, I would take it at the same moment every Sunday. I always take some creative license and, over time, it is all going to balance out anyway. For example, if there is an optimal low point this Sunday, this becomes the thing I have to measure against next Sunday so there is no getting away with anything.

This week - began the countdown to the first Sunday of the final quarter of the year. I have been faithfully hitting the gym this year. YOU don't know but, trust me, I have been there more than ever. At last count, I had over 4000 minutes logged on the machines.....that doesn't count drive time or talking or getting a drink or resting. Those are actual workout minutes at the gym.

As I entered the 4th quarter of the year - my weight was the exact same as when I began. Now, here is my thoughts on that little scenario:

Evil Voice - "what is the use. This isn't working. Why do I bother?"

Voice of Reason - "hey, dude, think what your weight would be at if you didn't workout. You are only 5 pounds heavier than you were 10 years ago and 15 pounds lighter than 3 years ago. You still have a quarter to post a net loss for the year. You are in great position to get back down to that 10 years ago weight spot."

.....and that is where I ended it a week ago - with the VoR winning out.

So, as I head to the scale first thing this morning - what do I see? 172....a two pound gain!!!

Evil Voice - "yeah, right. Like you are going to finish the year at 165. You ate like a pig the last few days. You know what Friday and Saturday was like. Who are you kidding? You can't even stay on track for one week. What is going to happen when you have to face.....the holidays? You're toast...stick a fork in you cuz you are done!"

VoR - "hey, dude, remember last Sunday. You were 173....you went down to the gym and put in a good workout and were at 170 before noon. You know that you shouldn't count 'first thing when you get up' as your real weight. Let's get down to that gym and see what we can do for you today."

....and off to the gym I went - 90 minutes of aerobics later, I came back to the house for the official weigh in.

VoR observed - "dude, 169!!!.....you dropped a pound over the week. That is 20% of what you are looking to do for the quarter in the very first week....and you didn't even watch the diet. You are the man. I don't know why you even listen to that Evil Voice guy. I can't wait to get you back to that gym tomorrow."

....and, the Evil Voice - was handed a nice can of Shut the Hell Up to choke on the rest of the day.

I was on my way home from Organic Home Church - on Wednesday night. I hadn't had my sugar fix for the day. I had to drive right past a Baskin Robbins......the voices...the voices....the voices.....

"We are stopping in and grabbing a couple of scoops....how much chocolate do I want in each scoop" - proclaimed the Evil One

"No, there is no need for that" - replied the VoR.

"To hell there is not. We are stopping" - and, with that, the truck began to slow down and head into that left turn lane. The Evil One was being a bit relentless tonight.

"Hey...it's late. You won't even remember that cone tomorrow but you may remember the residue" - chimed in the VoR.

With that - the truck sped up and continued home for a non-sugar induced slumber. Most importantly, I gave myself a nice pat on the back for winning another battle with the Evil Voice.

Does the VoR always win? - what do you think? But, it does win.....and, in my case, it wins more often than not. How about for you? Do you celebrate the victories? If you don't, START IMMEDIATELY. This is so critical. Feed that voice of reason. There is no one in this world that is going to hand you gold medals for making the right decisions every day. If you need a happy sticker, go down to the teacher's supply store and by them for yourself.

Why is that celebration so important? - because, on the days that the Evil Voice wins (yes....E.V. will have his victories), you have to remember your other triumphs. You take today's loss as just that...today's loss. It was just a bad day. It wasn't who you really are....remember all those winning times? (this is where the self pat on the back comes in....it gives you something to draw from after a tough, or not so tough, loss. ).

You get right back up - and have at that Evil Voice again. "E.V. snuck one in this time. I wasn't looking. Next time I am in that situation, I am going to hit him with everything I got. I left myself open, too. I know why I left the door open to him and tomorrow, that door is going to close. I don't think he wants to come back and get a real piece of me."

The Evil Voice will beat you up enough - no need to do a video replay and watch his latest victory. You pop back into the game.....ready to win the next round. You can look back for a second to see your mistake....and then looking forward so you can use the skill that you just learned to win the next round.

Moleskine has a pen holder.....NOW!

Someone asked me - "Nutster, where and when do you come up with all of the stuff that you come up with?"

"Anywhere and all the time," is my reply.

"How do you remember it?"

"Well, I really can't....no, never have been. It's not an age thing! I write it down. Mark Twain said, 'the faintest ink is better than the best memory' or something to that effect."

I keep my thoughts in a Moleskine journal these days - for those of you who like to journal, pick up one of these. Yes, they cost a little more but, for some reason, they make you want to write in them.

Well...first....you have to get over - not wanting to write in them. The Moleskines are that nice. Trust me, once you break through, you will want to record all kinds of things in them. You'll even learn to conserve space and not just write scattered notes. I mean, it's OK to waste pages but you won't want to. These babies just reek of efficiency!

....but they don't have a pen loop - and a lot of users complain about this lack of a feature. Why don't people do something about it???

And I did - as you can see, I used some of that cool blue painters tape. If I was more of the stylish sort, I would have used black electricians tape. Maybe I will upgrade someday but I come from the form follows function school of thought...

...and blue painters tape is what I had on hand that day.




All you need to do is:

Open your Moleskine to the inside of the back cover

1. Cut yourself a piece of tape that is long enough to go from the middle of the journal to the outside edge to your right and back.

2. Cut yourself another piece of tape that is long enough to be the inside lining of the pen loop. If you make it longer than that, you will be fine....this isn't brain surgery.

3. Cut yourself two more pieces of tape about 2 inches long.

4. Take the long tape that you made in step 1 and lay it just about an inch toward the outside of the journal inside the back cover. I say an inch but you can do less. By moving the tape toward the outside from the center of the journal, you are creating enough slack to make the pen loop. Lay it all out WITH THE STICKY SIDE OF THE TAPE FACING YOU.

5. Take the piece of tape that you made in step 2 and lay it STICKY SIDE DOWN in the tape that you just laid out so it will form an inside lining of the part that will be the pen loop. (This is the part that begins at the outside edge of your journal. You can start this inside liner a little to the inside of the outside edge...you don't want sticky tape residue on your pen, right?)

6. Take one of the shorter pieces that you made in step 3 and lay it across your long piece of tape to secure that long piece to the journal.

7. Take your favorite pen. Place it outside the edge of your journal. Wrap the long piece around the pen and bring the long piece back toward the center of the journal. You may want to make the loop a little smaller than you need to so you have to force the pen is later. Doing so will mold the tape to your pen.

8. Take the other short piece of tape that you made in step 3 and lay it across the long piece in the same place that you laid the last cross piece. Keep enough slack on that outside edge for that pen loop you just made!


If you want to add more tape....go right ahead. You can do it with 4 pieces.



Voila!!! - in less than 5 minutes, your pen loop problem is solved!

For more about Moleskine journals and the creative way they are used, visit Moleskinerie.

"Hey, Me! Quiet....I can't hear myself"

It's 4 a.m. in the morning - the alarm clock goes off.

"I don't want to go to the gym"

...and the reality at that moment is - I am not getting up and going to the gym.

My mind kicks in again - "you will get up and go to the gym. That other voice was lying. After you are done at the gym, you will feel great just like all of the other mornings that you didn't want to go and then you went."

...and a new reality is created - as I go to the gym.

Isn't it amazing - something as intangible and nebulous as a thought can create an entire new reality in just one second.

Why did I go to the gym? - is it self discipline? Maybe. Is it accountability because I know my gym buddy will be at the gym? Maybe. We aren't quite there yet though.

There is a school of thought that says - sometimes we Act (A) our way into Feeling (F) when we do things that we don't feel like doing but do them anyway.

There is another school of thought that says - we Feel (F) our way into Acting (A). This often applies to when we do things that we feel like doing but that we really shouldn't (Hello.....HappyHour and that one too many cocktail).

So is it:

A leads to F
or
F leads to A

To which I answer - "yes."

But there is something missing from both equations - and that is T.....Thought.

Let's go back to my gym example - my initial thought was that I wasn't going to the gym. The next thought was that I was going...though I still didn't feel like it. At this point, we would be at:

T leads to A which leads to F
(with F being the good Feeling after going to the gym)

I had an additional thought as I got my sweat clothes on- and this made me actually start looking forward to the post workout feeling I would get. I was actually now Feeling like going to the gym. So our equation has now shifted:

T led to F which led to A

Action is the desired outcome - and it doesn't really matter whether it comes before or after the Feeling...as long as it comes.

But what is the constant? - it's Thought (T) which controls everything. It is the quiet conversation that goes on in your brain. Do you see how important the thought process is...

....it is everything!

But stop right now - and answer this: do you ever mentally step back and eavesdrop on yourself? Do you listen to the conversation? Is there one going on? Do you even know if there is?

Here would be a great example of one to listen to - you wake up in the morning, "gotta have my coffee. I am no good without my coffee." Does it end right there?

Now, I am not going to question that you have a caffience addiction - which, for some odd reason, we seem to find socially acceptable and that the tremendously smart people at Starbucks figured out long ago and capitalize on the lack of conversation going on upstairs in your head. Addictions are another subject but, prior to leaving, I will leave you with the thought: what if caffience addiction was socially viewed the same as cocaine, pot, porn, or tobacco addiction? Would you still be "no good without your coffee" long term?

So, there you sit - "I'm no good without my coffee?" Does another voice come in and say, "who told you that? There are a lot of people that never drink a drop of caffiene in the morning. Do you really think that you were born with this physiological need that makes you deficient without caffiene?"

I'm guessing that conversation isn't happening......or isn't being heard - and I would ask, "why?"

Hey, if you like coffee and don't want to end your addiction - it's your life and Starbucks will gladly exploit you until the day you die. All I am asking is that you ask the question.......and then step back and watch your mind go back and forth. Eavesdrop on yourself....on some of your beliefs......the self limiting beliefs.....the ones that keep you from getting from where you are to where you know you should be.

But this isn't just about the gym or caffiene - it's about you getting to wherever you want to get. If you want to do something different...be something more....you will end up changing. The question is how fast do you want to get there?

Yes....change requires pain - I didn't like going to the gym. You don't like skipping your coffee. Neither of us wants to take the time to take that class that may make the difference to prepare (a.k.a. Change) us for the opportunity that waits ahead. Maybe you don't even know what the change ahead is....

...but one thing is for certain - if you can change your thoughts quickly, you will be able to change more quickly. To change your thoughts, you have to know what they are. You have to listen to what is going on upstairs. It governs everything that you do.

Part 2 tomorrow

Skin

(A Special Post for SundayScribblings)


Skin on Skin - ah, the first encounter and then the first date. The innocent first brush of the hand against the other's...

"Excuse me.

"Nothing to be excused for," she replies

The signals all lead to another innocent contact. And then the embrace which includes a cheek upon a cheek...more skin to skin. How much longer until the first shedding of a garment and having it fall to the floor...............

But I'm not here to talk about any of that funny stuff!!! - let's talk about the real thing. Your epidermis!

Or, more importantly, MY epidermis - did you know that your skin is the largest organ that your body has? You never thought about your skin as an organ...but it is. So, if you are ever caught in a trivia question that asks, "what is the largest organ of your body?", you will now be equipped to be all too intelligent.

But, I have a problem - as we age, our skin becomes a bit less efficient in the shedding of itself. In my case, after a lifetime of relatively good skin, I go through these times of year when it seems to dry out in spots. No, it's not just winter when we go inside to dryer environments. It's not the summer when it's the hottest. It seems to happen more when the season's begin to change. I don't know...I don't track the occurrences. I just want the face flakes gone!!!

Sure, I have gone to the occasional moisturizer - but I now need to add skin care to my daily routine and make it a ritual. Exfoliation is becoming a regular part of my vocabulary. Of I go into special stores to find that one wonder product, Dermotologica, which "is just the best" for my situation.

...or, at least, so I am told - until someone tells me about something else and there goes another $20 spent on one of the smallest tubes of stuff that one can imagine.

Oh well, I guess I have now joined the ranks of the female crowd - until a man comes out with "EXFOLIATOR...tell dry skin, 'Ahhhl be baaahk.' "

My skin? - it's been a good one. I have always loved it on the outside and I try to keep the peace with what's inside. It deserves to have a few dollars spent on it.

Instructions

(A Special Post for SundayScribblings)

Advice is like the time - it should only be given when asked for

Oh how difficult it is - to be a Virgo in this world. You watch people struggle. You watch the mistakes. You know that it would only take a little tweek here and a little tuck over there...

And it would make all the difference - yet, it has to be welcome or the person is likely to not only continue doing what they are doing but to put extra emphasis on it and send them busting even faster down the ill chosen path.

Then, you have your own reputation - "the old man just likes to sit over there and pontificate."

In a way, that is how I have felt over the last few months - advice, instruction, guidance....they are all the same thing. You offer it up...it goes ignored....and the people that you tried to assist end up in the exact problem that you saw coming. Yet, most people are just plain stubborn. Perhaps they just flat out enjoy the extra drama and stress that their actions bring.

"Nutster, what is it about you where you have to be right all the time?" - is a question that I have received. It's a fair question....but not a good one. It's more of an accusation. A better query would be...

"Nutster, why do you have a burning desire not to be wrong?" - is more on point. Do you think the difference between the two is merely semantics? If so, you may want to consider a redirection of your thinking.

The need to be right - is a very ego driven need. There insinuates a desire to hold this self- righteousness over others so one can be above them. Not my gig. Heck, just about everyone that I compare myself is better than me in any field of endeavor I have ever chosen.

The need to not be wrong - is an effort to help. There is a humbleness to it. To not contribute to what is off-line. You are either part of the problem or part of the solution.

"But Nutster, people don't know....they screw up. You screw up yourself" - yes, you are right. When I mess up, I try to figure out why....so it doesn't happen again. If I see someone else messing up, I just figure that they don't know why. They need....

INSTRUCTION

But the truth of the matter is - that a lot of people don't want to help themselves so they don't want to be helped. For a Virgo like me, that's a hard pill to swallow.....and a difficult tongue to bite.

So, if you need some help - give me a shout. I won't come looking until I hear your call.

The Answer, My Friend, is Blowing In The Wind

(A Special Post for SundayScribblings)

What is the one thing that everyone acknowledges exists but can not be seen? Atheists, agnostics, Christians, Muslims, and peoples of all over the world will agree on one thing that has the most mystical and mythical of qualities. Evidence of it's hand surrounds us. We see trees near the ocean growing strangely at 45 degree angles. We see tens of thousands of cars left abandoned by the roadsides in Louisiana. Trailer parks from around the world beckon it's arrival.

Of course, it is the wind.

One of the wisest of men of all time, King Solomon, wrote an entire book of the Bible on the wind. Even if you are not of Christian bent, you could spend your time reading few pieces of literature more enriching than Ecclesiastes. It to be one shortest and one of the most accessible books of the Bible to read. Like any good piece of philosophy, it leaves you with as many questions as it does answers upon reading through it. "Everything under the sun is meaningless, like chasing the wind" Eccl 1:14. Solomon continually makes reference to the meaningless of the things that we do in life and uses "chasing the wind" as his simile at least five times in this brief but powerful work. Look around today and, in these times, realize that those who are dying senselessly in this world are in a better place. Also, in the true wisdom of Solomon, he draws a solid curtain of pessimism that invites the reader to push through to find the ultimate optimism.

Solomon allows the wind to blow us to his conclusion in Eccleasiastes 12:12, "But my child, be warned: there is no end of opinions ready to be expressed. Studying them can go on forever and become very exhausting! Here is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is the duty of every person. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad."

As for the wind itself, here in the Sacramento Valley, we are blessed by a natural wind that floats up from San Francisco Bay and fights against the current of the Sacramento River and the Delta System that takes our water to the ocean. It is called the Delta Breeze. It is a blessing. It cools many of our hot summer nights and brings us respite from what would be many days of consistent oppressive heat.

The Hawaiian Islands are legendary and so pleasant because of the Tradewinds. The temperature of the surface of the ocean rarely changes. The constant breeze that blows across the ocean provides a natural evaporative cooling system that makes all of us yearn for the tropics. Sacramento and Hawaii are not the only places that pay homage to invisible. I deemed that a cut and paste from Wikipedia would be interesting to my readers around the world. Do you experience any of the below on a regular basis? Do you have your own that is not listed? I'd love to hear about it. Perhaps your own story about your relationship with the wind will be a future topic for SundayScribblings.
In ancient Greek mythology, the four winds were personified as gods, called the Anemoi. These included Boreas, Notos, Euros, and Zephyros. The Ancient Greeks also observed the seasonal change of the winds, as evidenced by the Tower of the Winds in Athens.
In modern usage, many local wind systems have their own names. For example:

• Alizé (northeasterly across central Africa and the Caribbean)
• Alizé Maritime (a wet, fresh northerly wind across west central Africa)
• Amihan (northeasterly wind across the Philippines)
• Bayamo (a violent wind on Cuba's southern coast)
• Bora (northeasterly from eastern Europe to Italy)
• Chinook (warm dry westerly off the Rocky Mountains)
• Etesian (Greek name) or Meltemi (Turkish name) (northerly across Greece and Turkey)
• Föhn (warm dry southerly off the northern side of the Alps and the North Italy)
• Fremantle Doctor (afternoon sea breeze from the Indian Ocean which cools Perth, Western Australia during summer)
• Gilavar (south wind in the Absheron Peninsula)
• Gregale (northeasterly from Greece)
• Habagat (southwesterly wind across the Philippines)
• Harmattan (dry northerly wind across central Africa)
• Halny (in northern Carpathians)
• Khamsin (southeasterly from north Africa to the eastern Mediterranean)
• Khazri (cold north wind in the Absheron Peninsula)
• Kosava (strong and cold southeasterly season wind in Serbia)
• Levanter (easterly through Strait of Gibraltar)
• Libeccio (southwesterly towards Italy)
• Marin (south-easterly from Mediterranean to France)
• Mistral (cold northerly from central France and the Alps to Mediterranean)
• Nor'easter (eastern United States)
• Nor'wester (A wind that brings rain to the West Coast of New Zealand, and warm dry winds (and bad tempers for some) to the East Coast of New Zealand.)
• Santa Ana winds (southern California)
• Simoom (strong, dry, desert wind that blows in the Sahara, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, and the desert of Arabia)
• Sirocco (southerly from north Africa to southern Europe)
• Southerly Buster (rapidly arriving low pressure cell that dramatically cools Sydney, Australia during summer)
• Tramontane (cold northwesterly from the Pyrenees or northeasterly from the Alps to the Mediterranean, similar to Mistral)
• Vendavel (westerly through Strait of Gibraltar)
• Zonda wind (on the eastern slope of the Andes in Argentina)

The Things I Would Never Write...

(A special post for SundayScribblings)

I have a challenge sometimes with literal-ness - For example, I was tasked with writing about the things that you would never write about.

Right off the bat - you can see the problem. Once you write about it, you wrote about it...and the word "never" was just negated.

I also have a problem with the word - NEVER

It actually goes deeper - I hold trust and truth very deeply in my core values set. Can I honestly say that I have never told a lie? Of course not. I don't believe any of us can. We start to get into that area of debate of what constitutes a lie. "It was a little white lie, so it wasn't a lie." "I lied to spare their feelings, so it wasn't a lie."

Hey...a lie is a lie - and I have told some lies and I will probably lie again.

But, I try not to - because it is a violation of my core value of trust. If someone lies, how can you trust them?

"But, Nutster, everyone lies. You just said so. Does that mean that you don't trust anyone?" - boy, what a way to live that would be. We all must trust. Without trust, intimate relationships are not possible. Yet, I do have a tendency to be extremely careful with my trust. Trust is not freely given in Nutsterville. It is earned.

Now, let's get back to the root of the problem of this writing assignment - it really is the word "never". What if I was to say that I would never write about something. Let's pick a topic. Child abuse.

"I would never write about child abuse" - if I make that claim, I feel like I have just put a limit on myself. I have put it out there for the world to see......and go back and look at and hold it against me should I violate my statement. As I sit here today, I could easily say that I wouldn't write about child abuse. What happens next week when I encounter a situation of child abuse that is so horrific that I have to get it out into my mass readership? Doing so might save a child's life somewhere...it could happen. But...I had the commitment...

....I really dislike breaking commitments - so, my solution? I make fewer of them.

Which is better? - to make 10 commitments and keep 8? or to make 5 and keep all 5? Which side of that coin do you want to stand on? You do know that you stand on one of the sides whether you actually have ever said that you do or not. Player A got more done....but he broke trust twice. Player B was very trustworthy....but paled in comparison on the accomplishment scale.

Oh, how easy it is to twist our minds in knots - isn't it?

Too Many Words!!!

If it wasn't on a stick - it wouldn't be a corn dog!!!


(Verbosity aside.......it was still delicious)

Steroids? Who needs steroids?

Well, season one of Arena Baseball came to an end last night - I believe that our troop made it through the campaign with a 1-5 record. Most of our losses were lopsided affairs so I feel particularly concerned about the one team that we beat.

As mighty Casey came to bat - (this would be me) for his last at bat of the season, he looked around and saw the bases loaded. His previous 5 or 6 at bats were mostly little dribblers. While not a tremendously able batsman, this particular night was even below his low standards.

The pitch is delivered! - it arcs in over the plate.............BAM!!! The ball flies off the bat toward the right field banner and strikes it with a thunderous thwap.

IT'S A GRAND SLAM!!!!

The crowd goes wild - as they realize that mighty Casey's team will only lose by about 20 points rather than 24.

But, more importantly, after the game - the mighty Casey proudly says, "47 years old and still hitting grand slams against all of these kids. Hey, at what point do I get to be proclaimed as a medical marvel?"

....and the little 6 yr old boy says - "I don't know but you sure have a sense of humor!"

Maybe you had to be there - but it was a pretty funny line.

"Fortune" Cookies? Part 1

(A Special Rant for SundayScribblings)

Yes....that's right...I said - RANT!

I was given this topic yesterday - and could have cranked out this post right then in a couple of seconds. I decided to delay because I thought that I should take the time to put up a picture of a fortune cookie.

I even had the chance - as I met a business associate for lunch yesterday at a Chinese restaraunt. I was going to save my cookie and bring it home and snap an interesting picture. But, I changed my mind.....

....and ate the cookie then and there! - not because I wanted to taste that deliciousness (because, let's face it, fortune cookies aren't that delicious. The cookie is just something to keep your mouth busy so you can ponder what you are about to read). No, I decided....

"I'm going to give the fortune cookie industry one more chance" - you see, for some time now, I have actually raised the point that fortune cookies aren't really fortune cookies anymore. At some point, that entire industry got together and decided to change.

The industry failed again yesterday - they failed to the point that I don't even remember what the insipid cookie spit out as a "fortune." I didn't even bother saving it for the purpose of this post that I knew I was going to do.

Furthermore - I went to a clipart site....saw some choices for fortune cookies....and said, "this industry is a mess. They don't deserve a picture." Now, if one should appear with this posting, it will have been because I somehow came across an interesting situation and did a "back-edit" and added it later. I can guarantee you that the picture would not be flattering to the FC industry.

Fortune Cookies aren't Fortune Cookies anymore!!!! - and mislabeling is lying in my book. I demand honesty! If I end up needing to be the whistleblower on this industry, so be it!

Wisdom Cookies - would be a possible new name

Advice Cookies - is sometimes accurate.

Observation Cookies - is yet one more alternative to what today's blandless U-shaped wafer should actually be called.

"You are charming and your good looks will take you far" - OK....now that is a fortune that I get all the time. And it is on point. But, come on. It's an observation that I and everyone around me already makes!!! Plus, if you are good looking and charming, odds are you can go far. Yes, there is a touch of "fortune" in that message but, by and large, it would be an observation cookie....an accurate observation but an observation nonetheless.

The other two categories, wisdom and advice, speak for themselves - and you will have to watch for them the next time you do Chinese takeout. I don't have examples to share with you. I wish I did. It seems like there have been times when I actually have saved the paper remains of a wisdom/advice cookie because it was something that I might want to use in a presentation. Eventually, I end up tossing them when I am doing a massive cleanup (like the space that a "fortune" takes up really makes any difference in the overall tidiness of my abode). I can't find a single "fortune" around my entire house.....testimony to how pathetic the fortune cookie writers have gotten.

Who are the fortune cookie writers anyway? - have you ever met one? Do you know of anyone that has ever claimed to do that job.....even in their spare time? I haven't. I have been walking around this orb for close to half a century. I have talked to a lot of people. I have heard interesting stories about various jobs that people have held......not one person has ever said, "yeah, back between '73 and '74, I spent time writing fortunes for cookies." Never have I come across that.

What are the job qualifications? - now that I am on to this, I am thinking that maybe I should apply for the job. Hey, if you just complain, you are part of the problem. I want solutions. I am an action man. Can anyone out there give me some vocational guidance? I would like to do some research into this possible career path change. Hey, I'm in midlife. It would be a radical shift but that's what happens around this time.

What would the pay structure be like? - paid by the hour or by the fortune?

What is the productivity expectation? - 1 per hour? 10 per day? 1 a minute??? This is important if I am going to make this shift. What about copyrights and royalties? If I write one, how many times does it get copied and stuffed into that cookie? While this may come as a shock and seem impersonal, the truth is, dear reader, that somewhere on this planet, several other people are getting the same "fortune" as you. Sorry to break that to you.....don't ask me about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny either.

Perks? - unlimited soy sauce and crispy pan fried noodles? Can I negotiate for added Mongolian beef and GOOOOD, GREASY chicken chow mein? If so, we may be able to put a deal together.

What would I write? - well, I guess it depends on what the employer's view was. If it truly was about predicting fortune, I would need to bring my seer's hat to the table. If I was working for an advice/observation cookie maker, it might go something like this:

"You've put on a few pounds....read the fortune...don't eat the cookie"

Summary - I think we are entering a pivotal time for the Fortune Cookie industry. They have either got to go back to taking some chances and start predicting the future again or they need to come clean, reinvent themselves, and go through a PR campaign to more appropriately name their endeavor. With more people becoming aware of this scandal combined with speed of spreading this news on the internet, they are going to need to act fast.

Yeah......right! Like this is gonna happen anytime soon

Signs sure can be helpful - can't they? Let's look at our friend over to your left. It seems like fairly solid advice, doesn't it?

...and if you happen to be a bit unstable yourself - and lack a degree of common sense, heeding it's warnings is probably a good idea.

You'll see what everybody else sees that has ever embarked on the trail - which, if you never have seen anything like what is on the trail, is better than nothing.

But, what is the tradeoff? - what happens when you take this sign, remove it from this very specific and strategic place that it has been assigned to and transform it from being a sign into a banner that hangs over your life's highway?

You will have travelled the same highway - every single day. You know the scenery so well that you can't even describe it anymore. You started by not knowing the path, you learned it, you memorized it, and then you forgot about it to the point that you can't even recall it.

I noodle around on the guitar - many times, I will think of one of the simplest songs that I used to play and, for the life of me, I can't even figure it out. It's well below my skill level. I had it down pat. Now, I can't even remember it.

On a broader scale, do we do the same thing with our journey? - trails are safe. They are well worn. They lead in a direction toward a destination......the same destination that everyone travels to. If someone doesn't wander a little on occasion, we all end up with similar stories to tell at the end of the day.

Now, do you wander off the trail - just for the sake of wandering off the trail? Perhaps you do if you are an adrenaline junkie. The danger in that routine is a tendency to ignore the Fragile Areas and actually see them as stable enough to support your need for a rush.

How do you progressively wander off the trail? - first, stop looking at the dang trail!!! Your head has a swiveling mechanism. It is called your neck. It moves from side to side. It doesn't always need to be looking down at the trail or straight ahead at the horizon.

You also have the ability to STOP when you are on the trail - don't worry. No major pileups will occur.

What interests you that is not on your trail? - it may be crazy. According to "popular thought," there really is no reason that a guy like me should have the remotest interest in buttons. I am not talking about the kind that hold a garment together......though there are certain buttons on certain people's clothing that may catch my momentary attention more than others (SLAP!!! There, ladies, I did it for you.....besides, I did say "momentary attention"...hey, last I checked, I am still a guy).

I am talking about the buttons that one pins on - you know, the ones that "only a nerd would wear." Yet, I actually not only wear buttons, I sometimes make them. When I do either, I actually enjoy it.

I know...I know - they're goofy, stupid, silly, gaudy, unfashionable, etc.........."they" say.

Well, "they" aren't me - how did I find this silly little hobby? Afterall, I probably was in the "they" camp as it goes to my outlook toward buttons.

I inherited a button maker - from my eccentric late brother. It was the only thing of value worth inheriting (unless I ever decide to go through that box of baseball cards that he left behind.......having a little trouble adding that to my "happy things to do list"...though some people do get into it.)

I stopped on the trail - of busy business executive. Rather than saying, "what use has an important person like me have for such a thing," I literally stopped and looked over at the side of the road and said, "hey, what's this? How does it work? What could I do with this that would be fun?"

Look at that last sentence - curiosity......creativity....fun. All over a seemingly stupid little item like a button making machine.

But first.....I had to stop, turn my head, and look - are you stopping, looking, wandering off the trail into those fragile areas on occasion? It may be as simple as driving a new way at work. It may mean putting together your "to do" list for today............and then leaving it behind to waste an entire day.....or a week....
but let's take babysteps and start with a moment. Just a few minutes.

The still, small voice is still speaking to you - it has never shut up. You are focusing on something else with such laser precision that you can't even hear it. You have your son's travelling soccer squad...you could never miss a game, could you? The stories are legendary about the dad that missed every one of his boy's little league games and the damage caused. You don't want to be that so you make sure that you attend every single one. You would never want the dreaded "absent parent" label tagged on you. Maybe you focus on how unfocused you are. Religion does this to some under the justification that there is nothing more important than God. Maybe you are honed in on the "career is everything" trail....

The trail is fine - it will take you somewhere different than where you are right now. Moving along does prevent atrophy.....but a couple of steps off this trail may lead you to thee trail...the one that you want to travel on and that God wants you to find.......until you see something else that is hiding to most just off of that trail that you switched too.

Yes....it is the journey - not the destination that is important. May my carcass be found off on a trail that may not have been totally of my creation but one that also has not been worn down, paved over, patched, and repaved due to too much traffic.

Hey, I can get the story of what happened on that safe trail from just about anyone.

Our Hero vs The Monster (or when the Nut-ster meets aNut-eater)

(A Special Post for Sunday Scribblings)




Our story begins with Our Hero out to inspect His kingdom with all of it's average views.






Just one average view.....











.....after another.....












Little did he know his average day with his average views would turn into an assault by a demon who would assail him from out of nowhere.

"Get back," he said, "Away!!!"





But the creature was relentless in it's mission to overtake Our Hero. The struggle ensues...










Having physically subdued Our Hero, the satanic monster now mentally casts it's spell using it's mysterious Evil Eye. "You are getting sleepy....very sleepy."







And the creature shows it's merciless nature and turns around and applies the coup de grace....a blast from the Evil Butt









It comes back to inspect it's helpless prey. "Yes, he is dead. My work here is done," it hearkens with satisfaction








It goes into a strange post-sacrifice ritual and it prays to it's gods of the netherworld. All the while gloating over it's conquest over that which was good.


But wait!!....is our story over?




"Must drink....must get drink," he hoarsely groans


Dazed, mesmerized, and gassed, Our Hero gathers all of his strength and courageously crawls to the pristine pools that only he knows of. They flow with the magical elixirs to break the spell that has been cast upon him.







"Where is it?!?," Our Hero exclaims after amazingly recovering all of his supernatural strength














"Drats!!&*$#@...Foiled again," the now spineless intruder mutters as it scurries away. It knows full well that it had better run or the full wrath of Our Hero will bear down upon it.




It runs off to hide in it's Sinister Cave where it will live out the rest of it's days.....forever fearful of coming out and encountering Our Hero again!!!




And Our Hero's average world with it's average views are once again returned to peace and freedom from such unwanted predators as The Monster.


The End


Credits

Our Hero - played by the Nutster himself
The Monster - played by an intrepid little chipmunk that popped out of nowhere and made my day


All photos taken this day, August 25, 2006 in the setting of Emerald Bay State Park, Lake Tahoe, California. This tale is dedicated to the wonder and marvel of God's creations and the blessings that He has bestowed upon us.

August 24 ....The Most Important Day of the Year

I am officially rescuing August - poor August.

When the holidays were doled out - it got left behind. August did get the benefit of being given the coolest name. It's one of only three months that has a name that is used in everyday language...."Nutter's Notes is one of the more august blogs in the blogosphere"....and, let's face it, "march" and "may" don't compare when you think of word quality.

Yet - no holiday.

Sure, the people at Hallmark probably have created one - let's see, what would a possible one be? "National Water Your Plant Day" would be a possibility of something that the huge card company churned out to create more sales. .....Wait!...No!...who would buy a card for their plant to honor NWYPD?

Anyway - there is nothing official for August.

Well....there wasn't - until today.

Haven't I as much right as anyone to declare a holiday? - all it takes is enough people to save up their Paid Time Off (PTO) days from work and take the day off. It's not about a government sanction. It's about people taking action to be inactive and observe something for a common reason...

Oooooooh - there is the key! We do have to have something to observe. Hang on, dear reader. Let me step away from the keyboard and ponder upon what a good reason would be....

(Insert Final Jeopardy music here)

I've got it!!!!! - I knew that I would come up with something. I always do. While it is going to cause quite a bit of inconvenience to myself, I have decided to make the sacrifice in the name of giving all of you a global holiday.

August 24....Nutster Day - let's all put August 24 in our calenders and celebrate it as the official holiday for August. You take the day off and do any crazy thing that you want to do (please keep the thoughts of legal and moral and not hurting others in mind, however).

It's not too late - dial up the office and call in well. Tell your boss that you have an eye problem, "Hey boss, I won't be there today. I have an eye problem. I woke up this morning and I can't see. That's right....I can't see coming into work today."

........and, while you are having all the fun and crazy times of Nutster Day - remember to shoot cards, gifts, money, sacrifices (please NO burnt animals), alms, tithings, etc over my way for being the one to put this on the calender and for being so unselfish as to have shared my birthday with all of you. Hey, being famous isn't all it's cracked up to be. Just think of all of the paparazzi that I am now going to have to deal with once a year!

HappyUP!!! It's August 24....Nutster Day! - make it the most memorable one ever!!!

Ouch!!!

Knee Burns - flippin knee burns!!! I thought, at my advanced age I was done with knee burns.

To be more precise - they're rug burns!!!

Here's your helpful hint of the day - Don't ever put Liquid Bandage on a fresh rug burn!!! Bactine...tolerable. Liquid Bandage....only if you also like the idea of your dentist giving you a root canal sans anasthetic!!!

Unless, of course, you like to scream!!! - which had nothing to do with how I got the rug burn so get those thoughts out of your mind!!!!

I am officially too old to be out playing with those youngsters - my Arena Baseball career is almost over.

Who Else Might I Be?......SugarFree...Part 2

OK....so here we are - just like I said.

Last Saturday - it was 10 a.m. and I said, "in about 7 days, it's going to be Saturday at 10 a.m. again. Guess what? I was right....it happened!!! It's like I am some kind of sage or seer.

The point was -What will have been different when next Saturday rolls around?

And I made a DE-cision - I decided that I would not give in to my intense sugar cravings for 7 full days. Now, to some of you, that would be no big deal. To others, you are saying, "there ain't no way that would happen."

I would be closer - to the "ain't no way crowd." I live about 5 minutes from the local Dairy Queen. Sometimes, there is nothing better than an 8 or 9 pm run through the drive through for a quick Blizzard. To those of you not familiar with the DQ Blizzard, let's call it a ice cream frostie in a cup in various different flavors. It's so thick that a spoon is required to digest it. You can even turn the cup upside down and it won't fall out (well, don't try it after it has melted a bit). Cookie dough, Heath Bar, Oreo Cookie, Strawberry Cheesecake, etc.....you get the idea.

Then - we have the vending machine at work. Hey, there is nothing like chocolate to take the edge of the stress when you are trying to "herd the cats" at work.

I had all of my managers in for a meeting - and, as usual, we have snacky little chocolate bars to keep that blood sugar running.

The list goes on and on and on - the mindfields were plentiful and the potholes steep that I could have fallen into.

How did I do? - I screwed up....once. It wasn't temptation. It was pure mindlessness. At the above stated meeting, we had brought in Chinese food for lunch. Now, remember, I said, "no sugar," not "no salt" for a week...that would be an entirely different program! What is the natural thing to reach for after you have pounded down the egg roll, the crispy pan fried noodles, and the sweet and sour vegetables???......yes, a Fortune Cookie!

You aren't even that interested in the cookie - you need to see what the future is going to bring. In my case, I wanted three fortunes!!!

As I was about ready to share a fortune with my group - I looked down at the remains of the cookies....some plastic wrappers, crumbs, and the little slips that held my future upon them...and I said, "Dang! Fortune cookies are a COOKIE. Cookie=sugar!!!"

Well...I still declare it a sugar free week - if I had been thinking, I wouldn't have had the fortune cookies at all. It was pure oversight.

The point of the story - what do you need to cut out for a week, a month, a year, or for your life that would make a difference? What do you need to get under control? Is there something that would scare you to go without for a week (yes, it could be THE INTERNET)? Bingo....the one that you think you can't do is the one that you MUST do. I'm not saying stop forever. Just to make sure that you are in control of it and it's not in control of you.

Feel free to leave me your item that you need to take a break from - and if you want to commit to doing it....and when you will start. I'll be right here in your corner....cheering you on.

Trust me - if I can go without sugar for a week......and without drinking for over 3 years....you can do anything once you DECIDE (cut off all other options) to do it.

The week went by easily and quickly - (a bit too quickly) but, when the opportunity to sugarize came up, it was no opportunity at all as the decision had already been made. Look forward to hearing from you.

The Inner Life of Pets

(A Special Post for SundayScribblings)

"What? You are waking me up to do what? To put me in your stupid blog?"









"Well, Mr Photojournalist, I have a better
idea!"




"In case I don't have your full attention, I believe this is your toe that I am macking into!!!"

Photojournalist: "OUCH!!! Knock that sh-- off!!!"







"OK, here is how it works. I get what I want. Once that happens, I will consider giving you what you want....capeche?"











"...And what I want right now is some lovin!!!! Bring it on, big boy!!! You've been holding out on me all week. 'I'm tired. I had a tough day at work.' Blah.. blah..blah.. blah..blah! Well, you weren't too tired to go to the driving range....or play softball....or stop and have a drink with your friends!!! It's makeup time and I want it.......NOW!!!!"






"OK...that was nice! Thank you. If you don't mind, I think that I need to go clean up now."










"There's nothing like a warm bath after a good rolling around with my friend"










"Gotta make sure that I get my back......'singin in the rain..I'm just singin in the rain..'"








"Gotta get this part too.....hey! Hey!!! Put that camera down!!! What are you some kind of weirdo!! You better not be taking a picture of this! A girl needs her privacy!!! I swear, if you put this on the internet, the next time you put me on your lap, I'll be doing a little extra KNEADING and you'll be Pleading and Bleeding, you pervert!!!"









"How does my makeup look? How many times have I told you? We have to change the light in this bathroom. It's just not flattering."









"OK...I'm done with you. I have to get to work. Make sure there is food in the dish when I get home........now, where's that bluejay?"






Editors note: we would like to thank the queen for making herself available so that we could bring you a day in the life of a royal.

Hope Amidst Tragedy

You have all been getting a good dose - of my gardening stories as I wind my way through my first year of tending to a full patch of vegetables, herbs, and fruit.

The watermelon vine - has been one of the most fascinating things. It's like an octopus. There were times when I know that it was growing a foot a day. It was spreading out in all different directions....

...but it only produced two melons! - yet, two is better than none.

You can imagine my shock - a couple of weeks ago during our heat wave when I came home to see both of them in thecondition depicted here. They looked like those big yellow balls we used to play kickball with on the playground.....after someone had taken a knife and punctured them.

They had literally exploded!!! - they were even black on the bottom. There was so much water and sugar in these babes that the heat combusted them and POOF...they were gone.

I went out this morning - to dig up the vine. Sure, it was still growing but I didn't want to look at the sad reminder of the two infant melons that didn't make it to the picnic this year. As I was about ready to pull the the plant up, for some reason.......

I followed one of the vines over to the corner of the garden - behind the wheelbarrow and under the shade of the neighbor's evergreen tree. Look what I found.........





I think there is a picnic in my future after all!!!....and my little garden keeps teaching me things every single day.

HappyUP!!!...Gush it UP!!!

The women know this - and it is time for you guys to learn this to.

You are looking at this in the privacy of your own place - no need to hold back.

Isn't this the cutest lil guy - that you ever did see!!!!

Gushing - is a pure form of HappyUP!!!

Who Else Might I Be?......SugarFree

(A Special Post for SundayScribblings)

OK Gang - I have to come clean with you. This is hard. This is painful. I would say that it is shameful but there are enough of you out there that share this situation with me that I know I am not alone.

I have an addiction - it's to the white powder. I get it from any dealer that will sell it to me....even this notorious character in the picture. I take it in it's pure form. I take it baked into brownies. If I thought snorting it would be satisfying, I would do that too.

No, I don't think that I would inject it - while I don't have any morbid fear of needles, I just don't have enough affinity for them to indulge my excess in this manner.

When I don't have any of my drug available - I will get in my car at night and go to the nearest pusher so I can get my fix. Baskin Robbins.....Dairy Queen....grocery store....it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that I get my jones taken care of.....now.

Even the office has it's methods of distribution - I have actually borrowed the 75 cents from a coworker when I didn't have the quarters to feed the machine so I could get my hands on that Twix bar that is luciously stored behind that glass. I don't think I would go so far as to shatter the window that seperates me from the luscious treat that can take me to the momentary nirvana that only my drug of choice can provide......but I have always been able to put my hands on those quarters so you never know.

Some peope choose crank and crystal meth as their white powder - the tell tale sign for them is that they eventually get gaunt and skinny. My drug works just the opposite.

I try to hide my addiction and the signs - I go to the gym most mornings so that I can work off the aftereffects before anyone can detect my abuse.

Where, oh where, is the local SA meeting - "I am Nutster. I am a Sugaraholic."

What else might I be? - Sugar Free.

It's 10 a.m. on this Saturday morning - I just got back from the gas station. I couldn't leave it at just filling my tank. I had to go inside while the car was fueling. I chose this gas station for a specific reason. Ah.........a coffee machine that really isn't a coffee machine. It dispenses my favorite liquid drug. I mix it with the same care that a crack addict heats the spoon that cradles his lethal concotion. I carefully fill the 20 oz cup 5/8th's full of English Toffee....I then fill to the brim with the Nestle Double Mocha. The heat....the sugar....the liquid....it floats across my lips and frees me of the shakes that I have acquired since the last ingestion of the processed powder.

No, my addiction doesn't come from exotic locales - like the poppy fields of Afghanistan or other third world country. The cane fields of Hawaii is where my drug of choice is grown.

It's 10 a.m. on Saturday morning - in 7 days, it will be 10 a.m. next Saturday morning. Will I be able to say that I have been "clean" for a week as I sit down in front of this keyboard? Sure, my willpower is high right now.....as am I. The Toffee Mocha elixir has it's hold on me. I can feel the power of the toxins coarsing through my veins.

What will happen an hour from now.....this afternoon.....this evening - oh, how I will be looking for a little desert after my evening repast. All I can say is that I shall do my best....

And, failure or not, I will report back to you on my progress - it will be one day at a time. No, I am not going to throw out my ketchup.....unless I find myself sucking on a bottle of Heinz so I can huff the particles of sugar from the processed tomato mixture. If my salad dressing has some of "the cane" in it, so be it. I only vow to make every attempt to stay clear of the dreaded confectionary and superfulous items that feed my habit.

One day at a time.......One day at a time.....One day at a time.......One day at a time.

The GO TO HE- - FUND

(possibly the most important post of all time on the Internet)

I think that I would qualify as having a fairly high stress job - some think that doctors, police, and fireman and the like are at the top of the list because they are dealing with lives being on the line. While I appreciate them all for putting themselves in that position, it really comes with the territory. For many, it's why they do what they do. This is a key to enduring stress in any position. If there isn't an intrinsic "why" to what you do, the stress will bear down on you like nobody's business.

Not everyone can derive that deep sense of meaning - even if I met with them and said, "do you know what you are doing for this city by picking up this garbage everyday. You are keeping rats away. You are making this the place it is to live for the residents here. It's all on you," there are some that just couldn't internalize that.

So, the job becomes a thing that pays the bills - and....oh my.....THE BILLS!!! I have been in the credit industry for 20 years. Honestly, I don't know how people can live with the pressure that I see from the credit reports compared to what is coming in on the cash flow side. If it were me, I'd go fetal......complete with thumb firmly inserted in mouth as I mumbled, "maaahma."

Enter "The Go To He- - Fund" - back when I was scraping by just to feed myself and building my business, I found that I had fell slightly into debt. I hated it. As the tide began to turn and I found that there were rather unsavory aspects to my job, I came up with a plan.

I would start putting 10% of what I made aside - heck, I had been living on less than what I was making. As I made more, why did I have to live on more? There really isn't a rule that says just because you make more, you HAVE to immediately spend more. There's not! Really!!! I looked it up in the rulebook.

I realized that - I had an actual employment agreement at work that I had signed. It was written by my employer. It had all of these conditions and things that I could and couldn't do and my employer had the permission to change the rules when desired.

I needed an employment agreement that was written from my side of the desk - so I wrote one. Now, I know the employer would never sign it so mine had to take on a different form. It went something like this:

"You need someone to do the job that I do but it doesn't necessarily have to be me. I need someone to employ me but it doesn't necessarily have to be you. As long as we live by these conditions, we'll get along fine. If either of us becomes dependent on each other, I think we are going to have a problem. "

Trust me - after 19 years with the same place of employment, the great company that I work for has lived up to their side. They'll let you know that you are replaceable (most of the time in a nice way, of course).

How have I made my end of the agreement stick? - the caveat of knowing that if my employer ever crosses the line and totally violates my principles, I tell them to "Go To He- -" and I leave. Hence, the importance of that little "Go To He- -" fund that started so many years ago.

Word of Caution - it's not easy living with a "Go To He- -" fund. You want that kind of freedom.....I don't know if you could handle that kind of freedom. If you "push the button" too quickly, you are going to deplete the GTH fund and then be beholden to the next job to replete the GTH fund. It takes discernment over what a violation to your real principles are......the real principles. Remember, your employer is like a different person than you are...and how many people are there that you know that have your exact same princiles? Not many. Hence, you are going to have some clashes.......unless, of course, you are a laydown panzie all of the time.

My GTH fund has been in place for a lot of years - there were times that I had to borrow from it...but I always paid it back. The company has tested me in ways that I didn't want to be tested. I have been pushed to the brink where I wanted to push the GTH button....

....but I never have - and I have changed due to the pressures in ways that I never thought that I would. Has it made me better? That would be a judgement call. I can tell you that I have learned a different perspective than the one that I walked in the door with years ago. Being able to see multiple perspectives is nice. It puts you in the "Seek first to understand and then to be understood" camp of life.

You can live on less - as to the current status of the GTH fund? It's probably about due for a new name. Let's call it the.....

Thanks For Providing Me the Ability to Retire Fund - while the GTH served it's purpose and I highly recommend establishing one today, I think the new name is a bit more in line with the nature of gratitude......even toward a company that still does "stuff" that, at times, makes me want to tell them......uh.....well....you know.

HappyUP....SmileItUP!!!

So, I pull into the Sacramento International Airport - (I think it has one flight to Canada to earn that "international" status). I am there the required two hours early. As I stand in the first line to check my bags, the guy next to me is radiating bad juju. It appears that he is some kind of coach. From the way that he is looking around, he may be in charge of getting a bunch of the females from the team that he is coaching on different flights early in the morning.....

First....that sounds like a bad job - rousting a bunch of young gals early in the morning to get on flights. To make matters worse, it's a Monday morning so he is battling the commuters as well. The airport is jammed.

I'm feeling pretty good - which I always should because I am me (though I forget that once in awhile). In this case, I had the added benefit of being darn glad that I wasn't him. Even if the team took first place, it is a distant memory as I visibly saw this guy adding miles to his tires right there in the airport.

I proceed to through the line - and I get to the counter. There appears to be more counters open than counter people because, though open, no one is at my counter. All of the counters that were open had prospective passengers standing in front of them. Have you got the picture?

Now, because I just arrived at the counter - I have to think that all of the people that were in front of their counters were there before me. I thought that this would be a good time to do a little experiment. I think that experiencing the bad juju guy put me on to this. I decided to actually be a HappyUP Traveller. As one of the counter people was walking by, I looked at her and I smiled.

That's it! That's all I did!!! - and guess what? She stopped and waited on me first. For about half a second, I felt a little guilty for taking cuts but, somehow, I recovered immediately and got over that. I don't like guilt much so I try to get rid of it in those very rare times when I do something regrettable.

Hmmmmm.....a smile.....in the midst of chaos - is that all it takes? I think I'll start trying it more often.

HappyUP!!!.....RespectYourselfUP!!!

Today is Saturday. There is work looming that I really need to pop over to the office and catch up on......I'll get there....I'll get there. In the meantime, I have diverted myself by pondering a few quotes that have come across my eyeballs today. Here is another:

"Never allow someone to be your priority while allowing yourself to be their option"

Whoa!!! That's a good one to chew on - note, I didn't say accept or make a part of your doctrine. I'm not going to tell you how to live. I suggested that you put your bicuspids to it and move it around a little bit and decide where you ring in.

As a previous quote that I explored - this one sounds pretty palatable, albeit a touch harsh, when you look at it at face value. It's edgy. There's a hint of "I am woman, hear me roar" embedded though a jilted guy could gravitate to it as well.

It seems like if you throw too tight a noose on this thought - it would be mighty difficult for love to squeeze into your life. There seems like a bit too much negotiating involved. Me thinks that there is a bit too much negotiating around love and relational issues already: "what? You want to engage in hanky panky with me......when you didn't take out the trash?" (NOTE: I've never understood what hanky panky has to do with a non-event like taking out the trash that occurred hours ago but I have heard that this kind of bartering goes on. Then again, I'm a guy so it is almost my job NOT to understand the concept even if I want to...pardon me...I just cracked myself up).

I'll be brief in summation - watch yourself whenever you see or hear absolutes like "never." It's why such pithy cliches like "never say never" NEVER go out of style. (Wow...that last sentence was a triple entendre or something like that. Did you see it...."never say never never goes out of style. If you know the right description when something like that happens......other than a confused mind.....let me know).

Where do I ring in? - we shouldn't be doormats..........but there is little value in being a doorpost either.