circumspectly

 Disclaimer: Some folks talk a lot but say little and some talk little but say a lot. BUT when reading this “It’s Saturday” if you get tired of it, you can delete it. It’s unlike when you get cornered by your brother-in-law and the only way you can get rid of him is being rude (i.e. it’s a good thing he doesn’t catch on very easily)!  But don't worry, the next time you see him he’ll start right in again where he left off! CadillacJack says—Soooo I suggest you position yourself circumspectly at the next family get-to-gather! And how do we do that—According to my bother-in-law--Very carefully!

I asked a friend if he talks to his brother much. He said—I’m not the kind to call him as I don’t like talking on the phone, but my brother calls me. When he does, he talks for an hour; sometimes I just put the phone down and let him talk while I clean the bathroom! He said--I think maybe he doesn't have friends soooo he calls me. He calls our sister every morning and they talk for an hour! Flip the Pancake--Many folks would like to have their family or friends call them but they don't.  ThePersonOnTheOtherSideOfTheMountains says—Some folks seem to like to talk more than others! Such is life.

I knew an IA State legislator years ago and he told me how he would manipulate his fellow legislators—He said when I wanted something spread, I would tell a fellow legislator who was at the next urinal whatever I wanted spread and told him he wasn’t to tell anyone; I’m just telling you. He said, within an hour everyone got the message! Last Sunday the pastor told the story of Jesus healing the deaf man and used this verse—“Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.” Go figure. Why does that work that way anyway? You got me! I have no idea! You tell me!

A friend from IA called me and we had a good talk (i.e. I tried not to talk tooooo long). I told him that it seems like when I left I just cut myself off as I have pretty much no idea what’s going on anymore in A-town.  He said—erv, I have had folks ask about you; I don’t think they care about you but just are nosey! hahaha  He then said--Maybe it’s like death, after 7 days not many remember you anymore. And that is a friend talking; I have no idea what the general public is saying!  Soooo I said to myself—erv, be circumspect in what you think of yourself! Maybe it’s like all the junk I got rid of in our house; obviously we thought it was very important as we kept it for years, but a lot went in the dumpster or given away!

CoachB says--If we hang around (e.g. talk) with folks who are happy, joyful and have peace in their lives, it will rub off on us and our spirit will change. Bingo! We hiked The Silver Falls Trail on White Pass last Saturday. The 500--year old Douglas Firs and all the ferns were magnificent and the falls was neat. BUT another event was also very enjoyable to us. We connected with a group of maybe 10 developmentally disabled guys who were in their 20s led by two guys maybe in their 50s. We stopped and talked with them for some time as they were eating their lunch. It was pure enjoyment and very humbling (i.e. especially maybe even more for Jeanne who taught some special education). The leaders do this annually for a weekend. Wow! One of the leaders told us--I went to seminary to be a Catholic Priest but dropped out after my first year--what happened--I liked girls tooooo much--I married a Baptist and now we attend a non-denominational church!  Oh, one of the young men had the ability to tell us what day of the week we were born on when we gave him our birthdates. They say he is never wrong! What! Another young man who was eating chicken wings told Jeanne that he lost 40 pounds. One of the leaders asked him to tell Jeanne how he did that--I only eat two pieces of pizza instead of six!

Proverbs 1–9 says--The path through life is filled with traps and snares of all kinds. Dr.J says--The person who strolls through life unaware of these life’s traps and snares will be easily caught by them. Thus, we need to walk “circumspectly” (carefully), making the most of the limited time and opportunities we have. Saturday question—Do you think that over time and our skill in discerning God’s direction will grow as we benefit from His guidance? Or do we just get luckier? Or do we get more prudent? Or maybe we just never change. BUT it seems to me that some folks make better decisions than others. The WA Greater Sage-Grouse says--Just look around, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out! Maybe some circumspect the situations better; I wonder but I don’t know!

WorldClassLarry says--Test it against the worst possible scenario (i.e. be very circumspect). If it passes that test, it might be a good thing! But it could still go bad ‘cause our culture might change the landscape. The Yakima Valley produces about 75% of the world’s hops. I was told that Germany is a very large buyer plus all the major beer companies in the world. But now there are many microbreweries starting up which use different kinds of special hops which has affected the hop business in the Valley I have been told (i.e. the culture has changed). Mr.Hops says—I didn’t see that coming down the pipe let me tell ya! I tell you what folks, if ervie needs help in making a decision, ervie just listens to my brother-in-law Larry!

In business as in life, many folks try to maximize the opportunities that they are given. Here in the Yakima Valley, apple growers use reflective ground cover (i.e. particularly in growing the Honeycrisp apple I was told). It reflects the sun light up to the underside of the apples to get a uniform color. Crazy huh! But it has been proven and it’s used to produce a better product to make more money. It’s all about the money. Sooooo maybe we should use the reflective product to get the most out of our lives (i.e. maximize our lives) OR we can just sit on the couch and eat chips. MissPerfect says--Pick your flavor folks!

Be careful in making decisions! I remember working with a business person and he wanted my opinion as to what all the downsides were of an opportunity. He wanted an unbiased opinion, not about all the upsides but the downsides (i.e. what could go bad). Some of you might say—that is being negative! But maybe that is being circumspect about reality (i.e. trying to prevent a catastrophe). We try to take the emotions out of decisions when we have others look at them from their perspective (i.e. they don’t have a dog in the fight) who can give a more objective view. AverageJoe says—Many folks don’t like to hear the downsides! Such is life.

My Mom, Anna, never had a pedicure besides a manicure while living on the farm a mile and quarter south of Roseland, MN. Whose idea was that to start this niche! Jeanne just had a pedicure and loved it. She thinks I should have one—I said WHAT! She says men love it! And some folks just come to get their toenails cut as they can’t reach their toes anymore. Very few folks could afford or would spend money on that a few years ago and now everyone seems to do it except me! I’m always a little slow to catch on to the hip stuff (i.e. we live in an affluent society). I might try it, you never know! I don’t know if many of my buddies in Butler County IA do it but hey, now I’m in Yakima County WA!  hahaha

I was in a group and a person asked another about how his brother is doing—ok, but he is soooo negative about everything and it’s not much fun to be around him, he really has a problem. Ouchy ouchy! I really think that we need to try to circumspect our talk and not speak negatively; if we magnify everything negatively, everything will just get worse but if we magnify everything positively, well…! I really think for me anyway, that my positive pair of glasses seem to make my life much more enjoyable. As my friend says—It’s not a problem but an opportunity!  SusieQ says—BUT erv, negative folks don’t much care for positive folks (i.e. they drive them crazy)! FlipThePancake—Positive folks don’t much care for negative folks (i.e. they drive them crazy)!

CoachB says—"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them. Ya just can’t fool kids; they see right through us.” Jeanne told me a story of her years past; they parked their car as they left for some time in a questionable parking spot and when they came back, it was gone. They asked a local lady who was a property owner if she knew what happened to their car—she said she had no idea. When she left, a little neighbor boy said to them—she’s lying, she called the police!

VelvetElvis says--First, no amount of success can heal a person’s soul. And for Jesus to heal my soul, I had to stare my junk right in the face

Have a FUN day my friends unless you have other plans. (-:

erv

MyFriendJean said—We should consider every day lost in which we have not danced at least once.