Mountains

Chasing angels or fleeing demons, go to the mountains.

~ Jeffrey Rasley

- - - - -

I leaned my forehead against the glass and stared out at the mountains. Rugged, beautiful, and defining the horizon, they set the stage for everything that had and would happen here. Slowly the fog rolled in, clinging to the ridges and filling the valleys. Well, not the fog. It was my breath steaming up the window. 

Still... mountains are so beautiful.

Daylight

Outside, daylight was bleeding slowly toward dusk.

~ Stephen King

- - - - - 

 Eighteen days in and I'm pretty happy about the amount of daylight I've saved so far.

STAGGERING

Photo by Kirk Boettcher

 Exaggeration is truth that has lost its temper.

~ Khalil Gibran

- - - - -

My brother has a gift for exaggeration. He was born a few decades too late to write movie advertisements. Fortunately, he was born right on time to write the news. 

Wings

No bird soars too high if he soars with his own wings.

~ William Blake

- - - - -

It would take a long time to get to the sun. I think that Icarus story is made up because I don't think a person could actually fly to the sun. If they tried, they would have to go to the bathroom on the trip. It's gross being pooped on by a bird, imagine if it was a person.

Ickarus.

 

Battle

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.

~Sun Tzu

- - - - -

Sometimes all we need to fight the battles of life is a badminton racquet. 

(pause)

Those times are rare.

Lutefisk

Nothing revives the past so completely as a smell that was once associated with it.

~ Vladimir Nabokov

- - - - -

Nothing revives the dead so completely as the smell of lutefisk.
 

Ripples

Even the smallest act of caring for another person is like a drop of water; it will make ripples throughout the entire pond.

~ Bryan Matteo

- - - - -

Don't mistake a Canadian goose for an act of caring. Both will make ripples through an entire pond, but only one will bite you if you aren't careful. 

World

He's got the whole world in his hands.

~ African American Spiritual

- - - - -

I know a mom who has the whole world in her handbag. 
 

Unexpected

Some things are so unexpected that no one is prepared for them.

~ Leo Rosten

- - - - - 

I was looking at some stuff online and I found an item for sale. The listing was for "black friends socks." I was like, "Whoa. What is that about?" It was for some black socks with stuff from the TV show "Friends" on them. 

Conflicting

True genius resides in the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, hazardous, and conflicting information. 

~ Winston Churchill

- - - - -

I know some people who say they enjoy conflict. I used to present on conflict, and I would always say that conflict is good because it means people care about something.

Unfortunately, I know some people who willingly or excitedly engage in conflict in order to call people out instead of inviting people in. They seek to shame rather than seeking to love. I think maybe they see this as strength or are focused on being right rather than doing right.

I don't enjoy conflict. I enjoy "proflict".

(pause)

Wait. That's not right... It's proverbs! I enjoy proverbs. Like, "Don't argue with people who argue for the sake of arguing."

It's not a common proverb, but I like uncommon proverbs. Probably because I'm an uncommon person.

Poetry

Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings; it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility.

~ William Wordsworth

- - - - -

You look up to the ceiling and the roof, 

But that doesn't mean they don't cry.

And instead of trying to help them,

You simply wait for their tears to dry.

Or maybe you do something more

And you go and set out a bucket

But that doesn't cheer the ceiling or roof

And they end up saying, "Just

Just...

Just...

Not sure how to end this poem.

Community

I am often struck by the dangerous narcissism fostered by spiritual rhetoric that pays so much attention to individual self-improvement and so little to the practice of love within the context of community.

~ bell hooks

- - - - -

I think it's called "community" instead of "commonity" because every community is unique and there are none that are common.

Well, I guess "Washington" and "Franklin" are the most common town names. And there are town commons. 

Anyway, my point is that I'd rather live in the country.

Scary

I'm scared but in a productive way.

~ Daniel Harthausen

- - - - -

The clown here reminds me of the old Officer Ug (or is it Ugh?). I guess now it's "Mr. Yuk." Anyway, it was a campaign when I was a kid to discourage from eating poison. I remember one of my brothers was very scared of it. I can't remember which one. 

That's an example of being scared in a productive way. Being too scared to eat poison gives you the chance to be scared again in the future.

Which is like being scared of clowns trying to sell you cotton candy is productive because cotton candy is gross and clowns are terrifying. 

Beer

A man who lies about beer makes enemies.

~ Stephen King

- - - - -

Today is St. Joseph's Day. I associate it with the Czech people because some people I know with Czech heritage are the first ones who told me about it and introduced me to the red beer you drink to celebrate it. When I told Leslie, "St. Joseph's Day is coming up. It's a big Czech holiday," her response was, "Czechoslovakia doesn't exist."

Maybe. But Czechoslovakians do. And some of them like red beer.

Green

Remember, green's your color. You are spring.

~ Gwendolyn Brooks

- - - - -

Today is a day for green. But if you don't like green, that's okay. But in that case, you are not spring.
 

Cooking

Laughter is brightest where food is best.

~ Irish Proverb

- - - - -

One time I saw a guy post a photo with the following caption "Tater tot casserole MADE FROM SCRATCH!" No way. I do not believe for one second he made those tater tots by hand.

The world is full of lies and liars, children. Never forget that.

The end.

Information

The most enduring outcome of a formal education is that it creates rows of coat hooks so that later on, when you come across a new piece of information, you have a hook to hang it on. Without a hook, the new information falls on the floor.

~ Ursula Goodenough

- - - - -

"I have a lot of information, but it is antidotal. It is not based on research, but it IS antidotal." 

(pause)

I'd prefer my antidotes based on research, I think.

Basketballs

You must write for the wastebasket.

~ Johnny Mercer

- - - - -

I once saw someone post: "Only in the NCAA tournament would you see an outcome like St. Peters making The Elite Eight." I agree wholeheartedly. I agree mainly because only the NCAA has a tournament that uses the phrase "The Elite Eight."

Grasshopper

"My dear young fellow," the Old Green Grasshopper said gently, "there are a whole lot of things in this world of ours you haven't started wondering about yet."

~ Roald Dahl

- - - - - 

There are people who like grasshoppers and people who don't. I honestly don't think most grasshoppers care. I also think most people don't like grasshoppers who hop in their mouths. I mean, even if you like to eat grasshoppers, you probably like to be prepared for that.

I do think that grasshoppers care about that hopping-in-the-mouth thing.
 

Barren

Wise sayings often fall on barren ground, but a kind word is never thrown away.

~ Arthur Helps

- - - - -

A black and white photo of a beach like this is sort of like the landscape in a dystopian movie of some kind. The weird thing is, I would like to be in the place where this photo was taken. I would not like to be in a dystopian future. 

(pause)

Though, truth be told, I'd probably be pretty good in a dystopian movie. I would be the villain or the first person to be killed, but I'd be good.

Seasonal

If you're like most people with SAD, your symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you feel moody.

~ The Mayo Clinic

- - - - -

I think many people struggle with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). I just want to congratulate whoever came up with that name for this. The acronym is perfect. Maybe the next time you think of SAD, you can smile just a little because they came up with SAD instead of calling it grumpy, lightless affective disorder.

Helping

I didn't wait for Luck.

I tore after it with a truck.

~ A. A. Bell

- - - - -

Overheard

What do you do? 

Kid: Tzedakah

What is Tzedakah?

Kid: Money

What is the money for?

Kid: To help people

Like when?

Kid: Like when one time we saw a guy who needed help when we were driving home

Yes! And what did we do?

Kid: We didn't really have anything, so we drove home

Lighthouse

Some people are destined to be a lighthouse for a lost comrade.

~ Erin Forbes

- - - - -

Leslie is like this... for a lot of people I think. For her the work is not about guiding people to her or her way of thinking, but helping them get to a safe space of their own. Because she doesn't like a lot of people crowding around her.

Clouds

Revelations are found in the clouds.

~ Serge King

- - - - -

Clouds give blue skies little windows to peek through. Well, some clouds to. Other clouds cover the entire sky not allowing for even a peek at the sun or the blue sky. Those clouds are a-holes. There are people like that, too. You know who you are.

MMMM.

Live and work but do not forget to play, to have fun in life, and really enjoy it.

~ Eileen Caddy

- - - - -

Children know how to enjoy things better than anyone else. Too bad we have so many stupid social conventions that stifle our joy. Like "the proper" way to enjoy hot chocolate. Or "good" manners. Or "not wearing clothes with stains on the front because you got hot chocolate on your shirt while you were enjoying it."

Stupid rules.

Radio

With radio, the listener absorbs everything.

~ Bod Edwards

- - - - -

Sometimes I like radio or podcasts more than TV because you can imagine how things look. Sometimes I like books more than radio because you can imagine how things look and sound. Sometimes I like thinking more than books because you can imagine everything. 

George

George promised to be good. But it is easy for little monkeys to forget.

~ H. A. Rey

- - - - -

It's easy for people too, George. Just take a look around.

 

Puzzle

Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle! 

~ Lewis Carroll

- - - - - 

So, this was a puzzle at a place we stayed recently. We didn't do the puzzle because it was 1000 pieces and there was only one table. However, my point is - why "The Full Fifty States" as a title? It this an update from the previous "The Partial Fifty States"? I hope so. But I hope that the update isn't from when there were only 48 states. I hope there is another puzzle by this company out there called "The Partial Fifty States" that includes Delaware, Idaho, New Mexico, Maine, Oregon, and Ohio. 

I have dreams, but not all of them are big dreams.

Reflex

The reflex is in charge of finding treasure in the dark

~ Duran Duran

- - - - -

I like the idea of using a camera to find treasure. However, for finding treasure in the dark, I recommend a flash or some sort of light. 

Am I an expert photographer? No.

Am I an expert on things in the dark? No.

Am I an expert at finding treasure? No.

(pause)

Well, this post isn't making me feel very good about myself.
 

Reading

Think before you speak.

Read before you think.

~ Fran Lebowitz

- - - - -

You are what you read. Just as much as you are what you eat or what you see or what you hear, you are what you read. So don't read books about zombies.
 

Planted

Gardens and children need the same things - patience, love, and someone who will never give up on them.

~ Nicolette Sowder

- - - - -

The little boy sprouted out of the ground. He was left to grow and grow. Just before he was about to rot, the man decided it was time to harvest him.