Gazebo

I would not be surprised to find out.. that the dimensions of buildings affect us in ways we don't guess.

~ Doris Lessing

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There is an online service to connect people in neighborhoods so they can share info. I'm sure there are many of these. I avoid reading them for the most part, but get notifications and occasionally there is something that is both of interest to me AND accurate. Rare, but occasionally.

Anyway, the other day I read something that made me glad I got these notifications. It said, "If you are missing a brown gazebo in Sullivan hills please come and get it out of my yard."

I'm glad they put the color as I imagine a lot of people are missing gazebos and you don't want to be inundated with people looking for green or white or yellow gazebos. I mean, that would be a waste of their time and yours.

Strength

I have used all the manure that has been thrown on me as fertilizer to make me grow stronger.

~ Eartha Kitt

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This is much more motivational than when someone says, "I have used all the manure that has been thrown on me as fertilizer to make me smell stronger."

Kid

Photo by Kirk Boettcher. Editing by Michelle Boettcher

An apple a day keeps the doctor away. 

~ Proverb

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Zak likes to dip his chicken nuggets in applesauce. I think it's because his palate is refined and he knows that poultry and apple go really well together. 

Of course it could also be that you dip nuggets in sauce and applesauce is indeed a sauce.

Visiting

A guest is an incarnation of God.

~ Asma Khan

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I like to remind people of this when I am visiting them.

Family

Without a family, man, alone in the world, trembles in the cold.

~ Andre Maurois

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I think maybe Andre confused the word "family" with the word "blanket."

Water

A drop of water, if it could write out its own history, 

would explain the universe to us.

~ Lucy Larcom

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Part 2

I just want to apologize for yesterday's post. I groaned when I wrote it. It reminds me of a joke my dad would make. I'm just really sorry. 

 

Water

A drop of water, if it could write out its own history, 

would explain the universe to us.

~ Lucy Larcom

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Part 1

Whenever I'm near big water, I always wonder if there are submarines around. I'm not sure where it comes from. I think it's my subconscious.

Branches

There are thousands hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.

~ Henry David Thoreau

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My dad used to pay us a penny for every dandelion we would dig out of the yard. At first I thought this was easy money, but then I realized he wanted the roots, not just the tops. That was more difficult. 

He never once offered to pay us to dig out the root of all evil. I don't think it's because he didn't have the money so much as it was that the root of all evil was in someone else's yard and he didn't want us messing around there because that place was trouble. 

Autumn

 Autumn leaves don't fall, they fly. They take their time and wander on this their only chance to soar. 

~ Delia Owens

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This maybe should be true in life, as well. This is our only time to wander and soar so why not relax and enjoy it? I know that there are times this is easy and times when this is difficult, but it still worth the effort to make the most of this chance to soar. 

Granted, if you are falling and your parachute doesn't open that will make it really, really difficult. In that case it's probably understandable just to panic. Let's not have unreasonable expectations for ourselves, okay?

Mondays

Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one that you know you have for sure.

~ Oprah Winfrey

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I saw a post the other day that said, "This is your Monday morning reminder that you are powerful beyond measure, that you are capable of pretty much anything you are willing to work for, and that you could change your life today." 

Of course I saw it Tuesday afternoon, so thanks for nothing, random quote.

Sitting

The soul becomes prudent by sitting and being quiet.

~ Aristotle

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I really want to be good at meditating. I want to be at peace and Zen-like and calm. I want to just let things be and enjoy the moment that I am in. I try to learn to do that lots of ways. Reading, listening, sitting.

The other day I was trying to learn more about meditation practice. I was watching a video of Jon Kabat-Zinn. I watched it as long as I could. I was amazed by his stillness. His focus. His sense of calm.

Then I realized it wasn't a video. It was a photograph.

Communication

Every act of communication is a miracle of translation.

~ Ken Liu

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Once upon a time I was in a meeting. There were some technical issues ad we were asked to "please bare with us." 

No. No, I am not going to do that.

The oldest, shortest words - "yes" and "no" - are those 

which require the most thought.

~ Pythagoras

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I am fine if you want to deny something, but why do so many people have to VEHEMENTLY deny things? I don't think vehemence helps any of us. 

And you're not fooling anyone by vehemently saying "No, I didn't." We all know you did that thing that people are saying you did.

Sad

It's sad when someone you know becomes someone you knew.

~ Henry Rollins

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I once found a resource about ways to get negative people to stop whining. It included saying the following:

"Wow. You sound really upset. Let's talk about something else so you can cool down."

"That sounds like a tough spot to be in. How are you going to get past it?"

"Sorry that happened. Have you told them how they made you feel?"

"What has worked when you've faced this in the past?"

"Oh, no! Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Sounds rough. What's something going well for you?"

These are all horrible. The headline said they were "clever." They are not. Know why? Because they all encourage the whiner to keep talking to you.

The only response that didn't do that was, "Wow. Sounds like you're handling it really well." 

That doesn't encourage them to continue talking necessarily. It's just you lying to their face.

My advice - move to another city or get a new phone number and new email address. That's one way to get away from that negative energy. Actually, it's three ways. 

Run away. 

Gasoline

There are rare people who will fuel the fire inside of you, who will awaken a dormant passion, who will push you and better you.

~ Krista Ritchie

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There is a saying about people who "pour gasoline on a fire." When you do that you are just making things worse and probably also going to get burned.

A less common idiom is "pouring Vaseline on a fire." The thing is, Vaseline is also pretty flammable and even if it's only a small fire you're going to get burned because you'll be standing there so long trying to pour the Vaseline and that isn't always a quick process.

Or so I've heard.

Tears

Tears come from the heart, not from the brain.

~ Leonardo da Vinci

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Tears come from the EYES.

And everyone says Leonardo da Vinci was so smart. 

Velma

Jinkies!

~ Velma Dinkley

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I figure if there is a little girl with Velma on her crocs, that is a little girl you don't have to worry about. She's going to do just fine in life.

 

Mystery

Looks like we've got another mystery on our hands.

~ Fred Jones

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I bet it would be annoying to be friends with Freddie and Daphne and Velma and Shaggy. Not Scooby Doo because he's a dog. You should always be friends with dogs.

Anyway, I bet if you had plans to go get pizza or whatever that they would always either be really late or not show up at all. And they would say it was because the got caught up solving a mystery. And you'd think - "Why didn't you just take me along on the mystery? I bet I could be helpful. Plus, you have a whole VAN it's not like you don't have room for me to come along."

Also, I would have loved to meet the Harlem Globetrotters, Sonny & Cher (really just Cher), and Phyllis Diller.

Shadow

While illumination is important, darkness is an equally compelling component.

~ Kelly Richman-Abdou

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This tree is by the library. I could name this photo "The Tree of Knowledge." That would be clever, and I would prefer that people hide their nakedness most of the time, but I feel like the Tree of Knowledge wasn't this kind of tree. 

But I don't know for sure what kind it was. 

Games

I just got tired of playing parlor games.

~ Henry Rollins

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You know those ice breaker and team builder games where you stand in a circle and have to do a motion or gesture of some kind and say a descriptor about you that starts with the same letter as your first name? Like Lovely Leslie or Likable Lily or Awesome Michelle. (pause) Wait. That doesn't work for the game.

Anyway, I don't like those games. 

Writing

We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospect.

~ Anais Nin

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Maybe one day I will write a book that begins - "Celebrate as you are reading this because it means that you are alive! If you are not reading this you are DEAD to me."

Might as well put it in a book. It's what I'm thinking when I write most the time anyway. 

Knowledge

Knowledge is of no value unless put into practice.

~ Anton Chekov

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The other day I read that your gangster name is the color of your shirt and the last thing you ate. I had no idea. I never considered myself an expert, but now I realize that I know a lot less about organized crime than I thought I did. 

Greenies

There's no treat quite like GREENIES Dental Treats

~ Greenies web site *

Me: Can you imagine owning a dog and living next to the Greenies factory?

Leslie: (long pause) No.

Me: AND - can you imagine being a DOG and living next to the Greenies factory?

Leslie: Also, no.

* This is not a paid endorsement for Greenies, but Greenies - if you're interested in making that a reality, give me a call.

 

Up

We need only look up if we wish to feel small.

~ Carl Sagan

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I recently watched the movie "Up" for the first time. I was really impressed with the upper body strength of both Mr. Carl Fredricksen and Russell.

Labor

Shut up and work. It's a short and simple motto.

~ Chef Albert Adria

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I sometimes find that the people who complain the most about work are the ones who do the least work. I think about the jobs I had before and the job I have now and it seems like people complain more now than in the other jobs -- the jobs that were actually much more difficult. 

I do that sometimes, too. We all have to vent sometimes. Unless you work as an HVAC person, then you have to vent almost all the time.

Discrepant

Between memory and reality there are awkward discrepancies.

~ Eileen Chang

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"I remember the days when dragons and dinosaurs and unicorns roamed the earth," my mother mused because she is quite old and doesn't understand the concept of fictional animals or time.

House

"Hill house," she thought, "You're as hard to get into as heaven."

~ Shirley Jackson

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Some houses are, in fact, very difficult to get into. I try and try and try. Then I go back again later and try at night when there are fewer people around and I can try more creative ways to get in there.

Pig

Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.

~ Francis Bacon

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Bacon is a good breakfast, but it is also a good supper. 

So is BBQ.
 

Art

Creativity takes courage.

~ Henri Matisse

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You know what else takes courage? Running with scissors to make art in a hurry. Or maybe that takes stupidity. 

Know what takes half as much courage? Running with one scissor.

Messages

 My main point is to be funny. If I can slip a message in there, fine.

~ Flip Wilson

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This is a bracelet Aurora gave to Leslie. I only caught a glimpse of it on her wrist. I swear I thought it said "Behave." Leslie said, "NO! It says 'BE BRAVE'." 

Between you and me, I think it should have said "Behave." I'll write this small so Leslie doesn't see it.