our pasts

CO’sMileHighRider says—Many of us have heard opportunity knocking at our door, but by the time we unhooked the chain, pushed back the bolt, turned two locks and shut off the burglar alarm, it was gone! We were at the Littleton’s farmers market last Saturday morning and I saw this super senior lady wearing Spandex shorts walking with a walker.  She had her hair dyed pitch black, had on long dangling earrings and wore a t-shirt that read—I’m too old for this shit! I wonder what her past was!  I would have liked to talk to that lady. I now can only imagine.

Our pasts are just that our pasts!  We all remember our pasts even if others don’t all know our pasts.  They are what they are.  Some of our pasts are ugly and some are incredibly memorable; some folks know our pasts and other folks don’t or some are maybe part of our pasts.  But probably our pasts have something to do who we are today. Some of us would like to forget our pasts and others can’t get enough of our pasts as they were soooo great.  Some folks have moved away from their pasts soooo folks don’t know their pasts (i.e. it has given many folks a clean slate; a new start; a much better life).

A friend from Roseland MN, who is now a senior recently told me—erv, I can’t believe I can write a check out for a new car; growing up (i.e. his past) I would have never thought that would have been possible.  Yes, maybe our pasts weren’t all in affluent homes and some were.  Another friend told me that she never would have believed she would get a college degree and have the opportunities she has. Another friend told me that he had terrible luck in life and his past is also very terrible (i.e. he said, I had no control over some events). 

Maybe many dreamed of having a perfect family only to not have it.  I was told that now the traditional family is a blended family and not a original father, mother and kids. Holy smokes.  The speaker went on to say, the blended family brings on many more challenges; usually very complicated; when you throw more cobs in the fire it gets hotter for sure.

RickyRick says—"Stress comes from trying to be somebody you’re not—when you fear you’ll accidentally drop your façade and people will discover who you really are.” I just don’t care much for phony folks; I like real folks.  A friend who has passed on use to say—erv, when you need help just act dumb; in your case you don’t even have to act!

At breakfast recently I told a friend/golf buddy that I was not going to complain about my golf game anymore.  He started to laugh and laughed soooo hard that he almost fell out of the booth (i.e. he laughed his head off).  I don’t think he believed me! He has heard a lot of my complaining through the years; he has heard it all! There used to be a guy who played with us that said to me—erv, you complain on every shot! That is not really true; I only complain on shots that I don’t hit perfect which is most shots soooo it pretty much right! And as I get older even my good shots aren’t that good soooo I have a lot to complain about.  Actually, my complaining is the best part of my game; I’m good at it!

CoachB says—“You can not change where you came from; you cannot change what you have been through a.k.a. the past; you can only change the right now which will change your future.” Now that is exciting to me folks.  And guess who gets to make the decision what the future will be! Uno is the answer! Saturday question—Do you like to be in charge of your future? Do you like to be responsible of your future? Or do you like someone else to be in charge of your life? My Mom, Anna, would say to me—erv, just because everyone else jumps off the cliff that doesn’t mean that you have tooooo! 

I stopped for a burger at Fort Morgan on the way to Morrison, CO.  On the street was this pu.  I had to laugh.  I wonder what the owner’s past is.  What do you think?  That is what I thought!

Fellows, this ain’t nuttin new but many folks don’t do it.  CrazyMarvin says--That ain’t nuttin new; many folks don’t seem to want to make their lives better; they talk a lot but don’t really do much about it (i.e. keep hitting their head against the wall even if it hurts all the time). Ouchy ouchy!  Onewiseperson says—You rarely will run into trouble, or you rarely will get into trouble when you take advice from a multitude of wise folks (i.e. listen to them and follow their advice…you gotta do it; that is if you want to get wiser).  You guys are many of my wise folks that I ask questions, listen toooo and try to follow.  And some folks I elect not to be around, listen tooooo or follow.  Why you ask; you figure that out. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out.  Bingo!

This is a motivation! A friend who is a distant related Mellema sent this to me thinking I would like it; she is a wise gal alright. KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMBC) - A Missouri native is reaching new heights by climbing the world’s mountains. She became the first female bilateral amputee to climb Mount Kilimanjaro last month…“Whether you believe you can or think you can or not, you’re probably right,” Horvath said. “I have a lot of people to prove wrong.” Horvath lost her legs in 2014 after getting hit by a train. Her desire to climb came while recovering, seeing others like herself conquer great feats…Horvath plans to rest for a while after her Kilimanjaro climb but will take on more challenges once she’s fully healed. She describes her mindset moving forward: “Take things a little slower… Be a little kinder.”

We were talking about drones on the third tee box the other day.  One of our foursome has one and seems to enjoy playing with it.  He was telling us about it.  Another guy in our foursome said he bought one and was learning how to use it in the back yard. It took off over the neighbor’s house out of control, he got excited and turned the power off and it disappeared.  He ran over there but never did find it.  He thinks it dropped in a pickup that was going by!!!  His drone is history; the past!

Here is a feel-good story that a golf buddy told me going down the fairway in his golf cart.  There was a young man who asked a very large farmer for a job.  He hired him but made him put part of his wages into a savings program.  He helped him invest in the stock market.  The large farmer told him if he worked for him for 40 years, he would give him a $100,000 bonus.  Recently this employee told my friend he things he will retire next year.  His investment fund is now $900,000 and with the $100,000 boons he will have a $1,000,000. He told my friend that he complained about the investing but now he is happy. Da!

When in CO, I had the opportunity to hike one of my favorite hikes which is on Mt. Falcon.  It is a hike of 3.2 miles, part of it is hard and part isn’t sooo hard.  ANYWAY, I met a couple coming down who were going up.  They were about 75 I guess, looked like they enjoyed hiking, and were in good shape (i.e. trim and physically fit).  I said to them—great day—they said in unison, great day, all days are great; the gal then said, but this morning is an exceptional great day (i.e. they seemed to be very happy folks).  Soooooo why did they make those comments to me do you think?  A friend tells me that particularly seniors can not hike if they are overweight; they just can’t (i.e. they are at Wal-Mart buying ice cream in their electric carts). In fact, there aren’t very many hikers who are overweight. There has to be some kind of a lesson here maybe.

CO is one of the top states to have the least number of obese folks.  Why is that do you think? CO folks do a lot outdoors and many folks like that lifestyle it appears.  TheCO-SpandexQueen say—There is no bad weather, just bad gear.  I saw a sticker on an CO SUV--Bad weather is for wimps! They just do it and all the time.  TheIAPerson says--Sooooo then it’s basically an attitude I guess.  They seem to throw those chips away and get their butts off the couch.

Talk about chips!  We had a late lunch (i.e. about 3 at Bud’s Bar in Sedalia, CO on our way back from a family hike up ‘er in ‘em mountains.  What a hoot; an incredible experience all probably because I had on my Iowa t-shirt; maybe. We entered the place, and it was packed. There were two guys sitting at a round table and one of them pointed to my t-shirt and gave me a thumbs up.  He came over and asked if we wanted to sit with them.  He was the owner and his friend were both from IA. Incredible great time we had.  Bud (i.e. not his real name) only serves hamburgers, cheeseburgers (i.e. with pickles and onions on the side) and a bag of chips; nothing else.  It was the best cheeseburger I ever had (i.e. they buy the hamburger in bulk and make their own patties each day).  This place is a hit! They treated us soooooo great; real folks with good hearts; my kind of folks. They created a memory that our family will never forget.  Side story—Bud was a dentist but got in a wreck and lost use of an arm—he said—There isn’t much demand for a one-arm dentist soooo he went to IA Law School and became a lawyer. I have never met a dentist/lawyer selling burgers! haha Hey, if you get to Sedalia, look Bud up. You will enjoy him and his place.  Tell him I sent you. He’s one great guy. Go Hawks!

Sooooo when I went to bed Sunday night in CO, Erin a.k.a. Buggy asked me what time I was going to leave in the morning—up at 4:30 and leave at 5—I will get up and see you off—oh Buggy, that is sooo nice but it isn’t necessary; that is very early—I want toooo and I will go back to bed—don’t feel obligated and if you change your mind, I understand; that is very early for a 13-year old.  The next morning, she was up to see me off. We said our goodbyes, hugged, and told each other how much we loved each other. I told her that she is a very nice girl; it is very special when folks do nice things for others but it very special when folks take special effort and just do things.  You just did that.  You are a special girl.  We hugged and I went out the door.  ~  After we did our family hike, I said to Jimmer and Erin—It is soooo neat that I didn’t hear any complaining from either of you—Jimmer said—Grandpa, I complained one time when I said it was tooooo hot!  I guess honesty is a virtue tooooo!

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

erv

MyFriendJean said—Free will is a gift. Love is a choice. Hate leaves you no choice at all.

The tip of the day is from a Denver Banker. He called himself Kyle but I really don't know for sure if that is his right name! haha. He said it when he was in the back seat of my vehicle as I was transporting him and some of his buddies (i.e. other bankers and on PA) with names that God only knows if they are correct, for RAGBRAI—Temporary assets are not near as important as long term skills. Bankers always worry that I might call them for a loan sooooo they always don't use their right names around me!!!!

atmosphere

I like the atmosphere of CO especially spending time with these characters.  They are something else let me tell ya! CO-OutdoorMtManJimBridger says—"The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive. The great opportunity is where you are.” I bought all our grandchildren a remote helicopter. They seemed to really like them; almost as much as their fathers haha).  ANYWAY, those helicopters seemed to change the atmosphere in their heads. Many gifts are over rated by the giver and some are under rated; ya just never know what the gift receiver will think.  Heather told me that some friends went to the home run derby as part of the all star baseball game in Coors Field here in Denver; they said--Now that wasn't over rated; it was really fun.

Soooo we took the helicopters to the school ground soooo we had a lot of room to learn. Buggy launched hers and the sucker took off and she hollered—it won’t listen to me!  The last we saw of it, the little sucker was going we think over the school building.  We looked and looked and even the principal and janitor went on the roof; no helicopter.  Buggy was upset that it happened and said—I really liked it Grandpa!  I told her that tomorrow we will laugh about it; things like this just happen (i.e. another opportunity for a lesson of life).  James went to get some groceries later in the afternoon and went back there and holy mackerel, it was on the sidewalk sitting perfect in a neighborhood about 100 yards away where buggy launched it; someone must have found it (i.e. we think probably) and put it on the sidewalk in hopes we would come back.  There are nice folks; you would have done the same. James said to the Buggy and Jimmer--Soooo there is a lesson—never give up. James thinks that we were operating both helicopers at the same time and the commands were confusing and conflicting. Could be.

BettyBeep says—I happen to feel that the degree of a person’s intelligence is directly reflected by the number of conflicting attitudes she can bring to bear on the same topic.  BettyBeep is confusing now isn’t she but this “It’s Saturday” is equally confusing let me tell you. Sooooooo there ya go! 

RickyRick says—"Change requires making choices. It’s not enough to dream of changing. It’s not enough to desire change. To change, you need to make a decision. You must choose to change. ‘Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.’ Ephesians 4:22.” Now changes can really change an atmosphere, oh ya (i.e. my opinion). Decisions have consequences and guess who gets to make the decisions! Hint, not your mother! ItchieBitchie says—Maybe it’s time to be in charge (i.e. just one little change); take an inspection of our lives and see what has to be changed.  Maybe an inspection and a resulting change could make our lives soooo much more enjoyable.  Could be! Such is life.

GeorgeTheCrook says--Sometimes there are some strategies that when we sit down and count the costs, we may simply find out that the war just isn’t worth it (i.e. toooo much to lose compared to tooooo little to gain). Actually I am sorta kinda in the middle of a situation like that right now.  GeorgeTheCrook says—I find it very hard to know when to stick to it or when to hang it up (i.e. know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em)! Yikes! GeorgeTheCrook says--That can cause a headache for folks. Maybe you should ask your dog what she thinks; your dog might have more wisdom and common sense than you do (i.e. maybe you are toooo emotional to see the facts)! Could be!

My neighbor girl who is now has grown up works at The Pioneer Woman in OK.  Her mother told me that when they go down there to see her and visit the store (i.e. it's a destination place), all the ladies visiting are soooo happy.  The store is a “feel good place.”  It’s like a Disneyland for adult women. Even the guys standing around are somewhat happy because they like to see their women happy.  The store creates a happy, fun atmosphere.  Da! And then they spend money!!! It’s all about the money folks!!!

BillyBoy was asked if he is the worse golfer in their Friday morning group—no no I’m not but when 95-year old Charlie dies I will be. SusieQ says—We always seem to compare ourselves to the worst and the best.  Huh, interesting. Refocus or reload or recycle.  Time seems to slip away along with circumstances.  If we don’t guard against the effects, we gradually change (e.g. like gaining weight, we gain a little each year and before we know it, we are larger than we would like). I have an acquaintance, John (i.e. anybody can be a John) who weighs himself each day at the same time and if he gains one pound, he’s on it; it gets it off right now (i.e. does not let it get out of hand for sure). LuckieEddie says--To create the atmosphere we want takes discipline; sometimes we need to refocus or reload or recycle our thoughts.  Such is life.

WorldClassLarry, who can over analysis and over agonize, says--What are you waiting for; create the opportunity; don’t just wait for it to come to you. Throw those chips away and get your butt off the couch and let’s get going you lazy dog! Change the atmosphere. One really good way is to be appreciate others.  Ya, they might have some defects that you don’t like but they do have a lot of good stuff that you like also.  Besides, it will make them feel good and oh how it will make us feel good as well.  Myneighbordownthestreet says--Don’t be soooo darn critical about others. If they are critical about us, holy cow, they might not like us as we all surely have defects.  My mentor use to say to me—erv, we all have warts but some folks’ warts just aren’t visible. PrettyBetty says--Let’s just stripe you naked and see you in the buff!  Missperfect says—I prefer to leave my clothes on, thank you!

Oh, the atmosphere of our thoughts!  The old saying is—What you put in is what comes out.  I read this while eating my oatmeal with half a banana on it by Tony Dungy—“Whatever is evil, vengeful, lustful, tempting, or otherwise ungodly tends to stick in our minds or hearts and grows.  We need to be vigilant not to let that happen.”  Does that make sense to you? That is what I thought. Saturday question—What is the current atmosphere of your mind?

I went and saw some old friends (i.e. old in more ways than one) who I haven’t seen since before the pandemic (i.e. they were very careful and eluded the virus successfully).  We had a good conversation.  They are unique; he sleeps 4 hours a night, exercises seriously and reads stuff that a normal person would have not a clue what is going on.  I asked him if he can remember any of it—oh ya, most of it but I take notes, I have books of notes.  I asked his wife what she does—I watch Cubs baseball, we buy the Cubs channel and also the MLB channel, I like baseball.  These folks are like 90 years old. I have many unique friends which you folks are some! haha If you think these friends are unique, if we would know all about you guys, it would be a huge massive laugh for sure!! You would put the funniest home videos to shame! PotentialSpamRalph says—I will just take my uniqueness to my grave without anyone knowing them! Thank you!

A unique opportunity and then another unique opportunity.  What is going one here folks!  Crazy. I pray for opportunities, and that I may recognize them and have the courage to act on them but holy cow, these just feel in my lap.  Happenstance, na I don’t think soooooo folks!  ANYWAY, I was at Jessica father’s funeral.  Before the funeral at the reception, Jessica’s friend, MissM, (i.e. who came from Seattle to be with Jessica; that is the kind of person she is) talked to me. It wasn’t just a talk about how the weather is or how our tomatoes are growing, oh no, it was about life changing stuff that will impact her life for sure.  Such a good conversation that I totally enjoyed.  She and her husband got married in their late 30s, wanted children, but it wasn't working as they wanted.  They got an opportunity to adopt a child of her husband’s sister who was incapable of parenting.  They accepted and then soon after she became pregnant and recently, they were approached to be foster parents with maybe adoption of another of her children who is a 11-year-old boy which they did.  Wow!  And these folks are busy business executives with time consuming and demanding jobs.  We talked about some real important stuff, very life real stuff.  Then all of a sudden, our granddaughter, Charlie, age 11, tugs on my arm and says—Grandpa, are you going to just talk to MissM all the time and not talk to me. Wow! She and I sat down and talked maybe 15 minutes of about more very real-life stuff that pertained to her life.  Then she said she had to go.  Both of these gals are blessed to be a blessing!  No question to me. They blessed me, for sure.

When I arrived in Monmouth, IL, I greeted Chet and Jessica and Jessica said—It’s just not fair.  I said—It is not. About 2 years ago her Mom died (i.e. 61 and now her Daddy 65).  Yes, life isn’t always fair.  I would guess some of you can relate to “unfair life.” Recently I asked MissR, one of our local librarians, for a suggestion of a book to read.  She suggested Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger, a New York best seller book (i.e. many folks must like it).  I wasn’t really excited as I thought it was going to be a girly book; she said it wasn’t.  It pertained to unfair life and grace.  Not necessarily a religious book but about folks relating to unfair life and death in a novel form.  A good read, I think well written; entertaining and thought provoking to me.  Try it maybe.

I was playing golf with a friend on his home course in a scramble; he also lives on the course.  He says to me—this is a great atmosphere—what do you mean—just look how beautiful the course is and all the houses and amenities.  The folks are all happy and excited. It is a very nice place.  Sooooo what makes the atmosphere soooo cheerful—we decided that it has to do somewhat with affluence, intelligence, and attitude. It reminds me a lot of many of the 55+ communities in the south where snowbirds winter. A friend describes them as communities of happiness on steroids! Flip the pancake.  I was golfing in the old goats scramble the day before (i.e. I really enjoyed these guys as well).  A team in our group was two guys in their 50s who told us that the atmosphere in the church they attend is terrible—what’s the deal—there are folks who think they are better than the rest a.k.a. the holy elite huddle that messes the happy atmosphere up.  Ouchy ouchy!

It must have been the atmosphere at Tom’s funeral, the atmosphere created by Tom and Missy’s lives and their extended family as I really had soooo many meaningful conversations with many folks (i.e. some I knew a little and some I had never met before—really crazy).  Their families are really great and their friends are much like them it seems.  Does that make any sense? I think it does.

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

erv

MyFriendJean said—Evil thrives when good people do nothing.

The tip of the day comes from Mr. Consistence who owns the red shed deep in Grundy County—When watering your plants, draw the water the day before and let it sit a day before watering.  The chlorine gas will evaporate, and your plants will do better. I said—I never knew that—erv, where were you all your life—A lot of my life I was a mile and fourth south of Roseland, MN and the only thing we had in our water was rust and we let it settle to the bottom of the pail before we drank the water with a common dipper!

your thoughts

This is “It’s Saturday” is a great deal for how much you paid for it (i.e. an epic deal).  You can’t beat that with a stick!  But just remember, you get what you pay for unless you live on government subsidies in which case someone else has paid for it or will pay for it in the future (i.e. someone has to pay the fiddler; don’t they—ANYWAY, that is what Chester and Anna taught me BUT they were hard working farmers a mile and fourth south of Roseland, MN who paid their own way and were proud of it)!  Such is life.

Do you ever think about what you think about? WorldClassLarry says--What you think is what you’ll be. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I think that is really true. BobbyBob says--Perspective makes a tremendous difference in how we approach life in many ways. If you view life from an optimistic perspective, you can usually find positives in even difficult circumstances. However, if you take on a pessimistic outlook, even good things that happen can be viewed with cynicism and anxiety. It is like the person who woke up one morning and thought, “Well, everything has gone well so far today. But I have not gotten out of bed yet.”

I just thought a lot about a person, and I think I have figured this person out.  It isn’t that this person lied to me but maybe didn’t tell me all the facts about themselves (i.e. maybe doesn't even know all the facts about themself).  I think I figured them out.  This feeling has been in the back of my head for some time, but I am quite sure I have solidified my conclusion.  I’m quite sure my theory is correct.  I will test my theory in a very gentle way.  I could be wrong, could be. But it was my first instinct from the getgo!  A pickleball person told me that his wife died 3 years ago but made a new friend with a gal.  He said--We just broke up; our political views are not compatible at all; it just wasn’t going to work; I knew it from the getgo; what was I thinking; I was just fooling myself; I think I let my emotions take over!  Such is life..

Do you think others think you are an agitator a.k.a. troublemaker?  Progressive folks can come across that way to some folks.  Some folks just don’t like change (i.e. most folks don’t unless they can make money). I recently had a conversation with a friend who was a principal in their company.  He hired folks through his management.  He told me the importance of hiring folks who “could get it done.”  Some had a drive and understanding to do that and were very successful.  He told me of one person who didn’t and it didn’t go well but it was interesting that this person never did understand that; he just complained that he wasn’t treated the same as others but in reality, he just “couldn’t get it done.” I guess we just gotta take the bull by the horns! BlindedPete says--I hate that when folks expect me to perform!

ItchieBitchie, who is an attention getter alright, says—Ya gotta get peace with your inner self first if you want to find peace with others.  Saturday question—Do you have inner demons? Where did those suckers come from? How long have you had them?  Are they ugly? Now those are questions that only you can answer, for sure. How do you plan to get rid of them or don’t you?  How long have you lived with them?  I can only speak for myself or as a friend says—I can only tell you what I would do! Have you ever thought you would do something a certain way if you were in a situation only to find out when you are in that situation you don’t do it that way! Crazy! Really crazy!  Your thoughts were not accurate! Such is life. 

SusieQ asks—Do you ever just don’t say your thoughts out loud, but you just think them.  C’mon SusieQ, we all do that even if we say we don’t, we do; don’t kid yourself.  I was golfing with a friend, and we were riding down the fairway and he told me his thoughts that most folks don’t verbalize.  He told me that he has changed because of events of his life.  He had disappointments as young person, death of a friend, divorce, had a management position in which he was the person to tell many folks that they have been fired because of change in the economy, death of a brother and death of his parents etc.  He is not the same anymore.  He is a good guy who is positive but has changed he said.  Does this relate to any of you?  Life situations both good and bad seem to affect us and then we react, maybe somewhat differently.  And you folks think we just talk about golf when playing golf; no way; well, some folks do but not all.  haha What are your thoughts about this? SweetLemon says—After events that have happened to me, I have never been the same; I’m a different person! Missperfect says--I dunno about that SweetLemon, your appearance looks the same to me except that you have gained 20 pounds!

There is a gal down the street that is probably in her late 30s who runs while pushing their young child and has a large dog on a lease; she does it regularly.  She just makes me smile.  When I get the chance, I want to talk to her and pick her mind; I wonder what her thoughts are.  What do you think?  Do you think she is a positive person or negative person?  Happy or sad? I have a friend who has some health issues and lost about 40-45 pounds.  I asked him how he did it— reduced the carbs in my diet, ate in moderation and ate nothing after my evening meal.  He didn’t exercise at all.  Does that weight loss make you feel different—way different. Well jumping Jehoshaphat! Soooo I was at a party last week and I said to a friend—you sure look like your sister—I do now but didn’t always—why is that—I use to be a bit chubby; I lost 45 pounds—way to go; that is a great accomplishment; it takes great discipline to do that; way to go girl!

RickyRick says—"Change your thoughts, Change your life. God is far more interested in changing your mind than changing your circumstances. You want God to take away all of the problems, pain, sorrow, suffering, sickness, and sadness. But God wants to work on you first—because transformation won’t happen in your life until you renew your mind, until your thoughts begin to change.”  We’re burning daylight here sweetheart. Suck it up cupcake and let’s get going! What are you thinking anyway!!!

What are your thoughts about this?  Do you like to tell folks how to do something (e.g. how to live their lives)?  Do you like it when others tell you how to live your life? Do you like to give suggestions? Do you like to get suggestions?  That is what I thought your thoughts would be about these thoughts. BRIGHT IDEA! Take some time or even a day (i.e. I took pretty much a whole day) and called it an appreciation day.  Yep!  I pretty much thought about what I’m appreciative off.  I thought about some crazy stuff alright; some stuff that I don’t understand; some stuff that is wacko for sure; some stuff that is amazing.  I sorta kinda enjoyed the day.  Suggestion--Get yourself an iced tea and sit and relax and enjoy a lazy crazy day of summer and think about yourself!

Think about two of your friends. One might enjoy a walk around the lake and the other one thinks it’s stupid! One can enjoy just going on a road trip and the other one sees no sense in it. One lets their hair down and the other one is always pretending. One is always competitive and the other one just laughs with you. One always has tooooo spend money to have fun and the other one can have fun doing the simplest thing. You get the idea.  Which friend do you enjoy being around the most? SmartyPantsEmily says--C’mon, erv, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out.  I was invited to a family fireworks where young parents let their young kids get in the pond and get filthy dirty from head to toe playing in the water and mud; they had a blast.  Many parents would not tolerate that.  They had soooo much fun. 

It was only money! Coming home the other night I decided to have a Big Mac meal; haven’t had one in maybe 3 or 4 years. An ordinary guy ordering said to the young gal who waited on him—Here is a tip for being soooo nice to me and doing such a good job.  The young gal didn’t know what to say to this ordinary guy as it was a substantial tip (i.e. she probably never received such a large tip before or maybe never have received any tip before or maybe never had someone show appreciation to her before). The ordinary guy said to her—I hope you are always this nice to everyone; keep it up and he left.  Do you think this was an encouragement to this young gal? What are your thoughts on that?  Hey, it was only money! Oh by the way, the Big Mac meal tasted just like a Big Mac meal! Such is life.

It’s always fun to be around encouragers! 

What are your thoughts as to what Tony Dungy says—"So much of what we do as human beings; so many of the mistakes we make and desires we have; flows from having very little self-esteem.  It often begins to happen when we are young…One of the most important truths I want to impress on you is this: You were created by God…You are designed with a unique combination of abilities, interests, and passions that has never been before and will never be seen in anyone again.” A friend gave me this daily devotional book as I responded to him about him using quotes of Mr. Dungy and how I enjoy and relate to his thinking.  That is a pretty neat friend (i.e. it is a honor to be a friend of his, oh ya).  He is just that neat of a guy. Well beat the drums!!!

I have discovered if I do something even if it is small it gives me the feeling that I accomplished something. It makes me feel oh, soooo much better.  It doesn’t have to be a great big thing but just something small (i.e. like putting everything where it belongs or cleaning the counter or washing the car).  Accomplishment is a great feeling to me. If I do nuttin, I don’t get that feeling.  I was checking out at Hy-Vee the other day and the checkout person was a gal maybe 60 (i.e. it is sooo hard to tell the age of women) that was wiping clean her work area.  She had her face made up perfect with lipstick and the works (i.e. that is not a typical look of a checkout).  I said—do you like to have things clean—I sure do—does your house look the same—it sure does.  We both laughed.  Flip the pancake—When I see the inside of a person’s car and it’s a mess, I wonder what their house looks like. Wouldn’t it be bad to marry a person who you thought was neat only to find out they were a slob?  Surprise! Ouchy ouchy!  Have any of you been fooled? Saturday questions—Is being a neat person or a slob genetic or a learned behavior? Is being a real person or a phony genetic or a learned behavior? Is the attitude that some folks think they are tooooo smart to learn from others (i.e. they think they know everything) genetic or a learned behavior?

Analogy! I was jogging on the golf course early the other morning and found this dirty ball laying in the fairway.  My first thought was what kind of person would play with such a dirty ball! Why didn’t they clean it! I cleaned the ball up which just took very little effort and time and found the ball to be a good ball, very functional and useful.  It looked way different with just a little attention.  A guy who owns a big shed deep in Butler County a.k.a. Champ says--Maybe we are that way sometimes, we just need to clean ourselves up which might just take very little effort and time but will make ourselves much more attractive and useful.  What are your thoughts? That is what I thought. Warning: A friend says--That guy doesn't know what he's talking about! He's all mouth!

MyBigSister, only in age, taught a business class at a business school about preparing yourself for the business world by taking care of your appearance.  She discovered that many students didn't have a clue how they should look or are expected to look (i.e. I guess no one taught them that before which to some of you might seem soooo elementary).  I think she fixed them up and make them new folks maybe with very little effort or time.  I think maybe they even smelt better!  Something sooo simple but soooo important.  I wonder if all of us might be missing some simple things that no one every taught us (e.g. like look folks in the eye when you talk to them).  SusieQ says—Yabut erv, I don’t have much confidence in myself and that isn’t an easy fix let me tell ya! Well great balls of fire!

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

erv

MyFriendJean said—Shame brings you down. But true humility will only lift you higher.

The tip of the day comes from Bub.  Bub asked me how I was doing?  I haven’t seen Bub for a couple of years when he told me he is at retirement age and divorced.  He told me now that he has had two lady friends who he liked a lot but had cut off the relationships—how come—couldn’t afford them—what do you mean—they don’t have any money and they want me to support them; I don’t have that kind of money toooo support myself and them tooooo—soooo erv, just a tip for you if you are looking for a lady friend. Is he saying I need to see their financial statement!!!!

pack of lies

JoeBlow, who lives in Cinderella land, says it’s easy to be a dummy! Oh ya!  I read this in the paper sooo it must be right--Dennis Miller claimed that “being a coroner is the easiest job in the world. He asked, “What is the worst that can happen? You realize that the corpse still has a pulse!” It’s similar at the bridge table, where the easiest job is being the dummy (i.e. all ya have to do is eat the treats; that was my favorite part other than talking).  In French, the dummy is called “le mort”, the dead, but most bridge dummies have a pulse.”  Awisepersonfromwestoftown says—I think I know some folks who appear to be dummies but don’t play bridge (i.e. my mother-in-law is one of them)! Sometimes I even wonder if she really has a real pulse! She lives in a different world! BUT she is a sweetheart who I love dearly!

CrazyMarvin, who wants everything easy, says--What you can do, what you want to do, and what you need to do and what you actually do are many times way different. That is pretty much in everything in life, I think.  Some of what we are told by many folks about almost everything is a pack of lies; don’t kid yourself folks.  Our world seems to be a mess influenced by false information (e.g. everything is free but it ain’t).

Recently, our grandkids, Charlie and Rookie were in the backseat of my vehicle and talking about if they were dead they wouldn’t know pain soooo it doesn’t make any difference (i.e. they were talking about holding their breath).  Sooo Charlie, age 11, said--I don’t believe in afterlife do you Henry, age 8; Rookie said—I do.  Then they went on with the conversation of something else.  Soooooo at this point in their lives, they somehow decided about afterlife.  Where do you think they got their information or who do you think influenced their current thinking? How do they know if what they heard is a pack of lies? What do you think about afterlife? How do you know it isn’t a pack of lies that you heard or think? Well, I believe there is an afterlife.  Maybe you don’t. I have a friend who is smart, but thinks when he dies, he will die pretty much like a pig (i.e. I really don’t think he really believes that).  One of us is wrong for sure and one of us is right for sure! I surely like my hope better than his, for sure.  For sure, we are both going to die!  My Mom, Anna’s favorite Bible verse was—For me to live is Christ and die is gain!  That is what she believed.  She definitely influenced my thinking! She lived what she believed for sure.

An atheist was walking through the woods.  "What majestic trees!"  "What powerful rivers!" "What beautiful animals!" He said to himself. Suddenly, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. He turned to look…and saw a 7-foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran as fast as he could along the path. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the bear was closing on him....He looked over his shoulder again, and the bear was even closer....and then...he tripped and fell. Rolling over to pick himself up, he found the bear was right on top of him...reaching towards him with its left paw...and raising the right paw to strike...At that instant the Atheist cried out, "Oh my God!" Time Stopped ...The bear froze....The forest was silent...A bright light shone upon the man, and a voice came out of the sky..."You deny my existence for all these years, you teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to cosmic accident...Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament?" "Am I to count you as a believer?" The atheist looked directly into the light ..."It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask you to treat me as a Christian now...but perhaps you could make the BEAR a Christian?"... a pause..."Very well," said the voice...The light went out. The sounds of the forest resumed...And the bear dropped his right arm...brought both paws together...bowed his head and spoke..."Lord, bless this food, which I am about to receive."

Wellness tringle of physical, spiritual, and mental. They have to be balanced properly, my opinion (i.e. holistic health is very important many folks think).  If they get out of balance, Houston, we have a problem! Saturday question—How do we spend our time here on this earth?  Do we use our time doing stuff that improves our life or just the opposite.  Are we just killing time getting ready to die or are we trying to help folks which in reality makes our lives better and theirs toooo.  Do you exercise, do something each day spiritually, and also try to do something that improves ourselves mentally (e.g. being around good folks).  Spending time at the casino doesn’t do much for our lives, my opinion.  It sounds like I’m preaching here!  That’s enough of that, for sure.  Go get yourself a 6-pack of Bud Light and sit in front of the TV and watch sitcoms; that will fix you right up!

Viktor Frankl wrote the book, Man’s Search for Meaning, which I have read multiple times (i.e. I think it’s that good, but what do I know, I’m just a little old farm boy from a mile and fourth south of Roseland, MN).  He said once—A man is not idle because he is absorbed in thought. There is a visible labor and there is an invisible labor. Now that is pretty deep.  It’s easier to just think you die like a pig! As the saying goes—He who dies with the most toys wins!

Sooooo I was at the local grocery store and met an old acquaintance (i.e. old more ways than one) who might be about 85 (i.e. women can be very hard to know how old they are sometimes). She was gettin in her Jeep.  She loves her Jeep; My standard statement to her is always the same—let’s take that sucker out in the mud and see what she can do! She always scolds me that “Her Honey” doesn’t get dirty and then we laugh. She has a very unique thinking on life and death that she explained to me one time; she is very convinced. 

Soooo I purchased a car hitch for my vehicle on line.  They took my money and said it would be delivered in about a week.  Then they sent me several emails saying my delivery date would be delated and then after about a month they said that it was out of stock and would return my money.  It was all a bunch of lies from the get go (i.e. my opinion I think).  Why didn’t they just tell me the truth upfront or not advertise it that way?  They did ask me to call them and talk about ordering a different hitch that they had in stock. Sooooo I did as I was wondering how they were going to suggest giving me customer service; they didn’t call me back.  Maybe I am being tooooo harsh in my thinking. You ever get gun shy about some folks or what they say? SusieQ says—After I got burnt, things just aren’t the same anymore! Believe me!

CadillacJack, who is free wheeling, says—You can interpret anything to make it what you want it to make it.  It’s done all the time. Oh, the interpretation.  If you don’t like a certain interpretation, talk to someone else or you can get another and if you don’t like that one, find one that you like.  SlimmySlim says--And some interpretations are a pack of lies and sometimes we don’t even know it (i.e. and sometimes we really don’t care).  AverageJoe says—I guess we believe pretty much what we want to believe! Although we are persuaded and influenced by our environment an awful lot (i.e. we are bombarded with stimuli constantly).  LuckieEddie says--Soooo when someone says they are 100% certain I don’t always buy into that statement. WorldClassLarry says—Many times we are told by supposedly experts on a “need-to-know basis!”  We don’t need to know all the truth but just part of the truth; that way we are always right and easily fooled!  That philosophy was used and maybe still is in the military. It is soooo if a soldier was captured, they couldn’t tell everything about the plan (i.e. if you don’t know, you can’t spill the beans). Think about that folks! 

A pickleball buddy had two different kind/color of shoes on the other day. I asked him what the deal is with that.  He said—It was dark when I dressed this morning. Another person asked him and he said it was a fashion statement and another person said to him—I bet you have another pair just like them at home.  He never did tell us why he did that.  We probably will never know. Sooo I asked another pickleball buddy if he still writes psychology text books (i.e. he has written 4 editions).  He said he quit as it is too much work. Soooo what is the latest trends in psychology I asked him—going back to how important genetics and environment are (i.e. da, I have been saying that for years). Also the big, modern buzz talk now is about racial/cultural issues that cause psychology problems. Sooooo I think my pb buddy with the different shoes was just trying to get in my head but the book writing pb guy knows what is going on in my head! Maybe those two guys have been around each other toooo much!  Could be!

RickyRick says--What would Jesus do? What would Jesus do for that person who’s hurting? What would Jesus do at the office, on the golf course, or in a relationship? When you ask what Jesus would do, your answer will always be a humble one that builds harmony and happiness rather than difficulty, defeat, bitterness, and resentment. So, what does it mean to act like Jesus? 1. Don’t demand what you think you deserve. Philippians 2:6 says, “Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.” 2. Look for ways you can serve. Philippians 2:7 says, “Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.” 3. Do what’s right, even when it’s painful. Philippians 2:8 says, “He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” Jesus is the ultimate model of humility.

Soooo you want to be the king of the hill!  Are you sure? Why do you want to be king of the hill? Why do you want to own the most shoes? Are you ever content? Why do we always want more? What about us shows who we really are? Can folks see us and say—that is just who she or he is? I had an experience recently that did just that; I was invited to a friend’s house as he just had surgery and wanted to talk.  That is just the way that person is (i.e. no pack of lies; no fake persona; it was quite refreshing, that is why I like this guy).  Does it take a lot of confidence to be this way?

LuckieEddie says--The world continues to tell us a pack of lies. When we are considering a decision usually our ego comes into pay it seems (i.e. aren’t we something else).  Here is the question we might want to ask ourselves—Will it matter in five years?  How about five days? Maybe in five minutes? Sooooo that can really take the pressure off and relieve stress.  Like my Mom, Anna, use to say to me—erv, always do what is right! OneSmartPerson, who wows folks, says—I like to ask myself, how will my decision affect my inner self forever? Not my instance gratification! Huh, interesting. PrettyAmanda says—I like instant gratification and that is why I do things that give it to me; I like to be stroked alright; I will pay big money to have that feeling even if it is a pack of lies! I just love it!

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

erv

MyFriendJean said—Patience is a virtue. Virtue is grace. Put them together and they make a happy face.

The tip of the day comes from Helen from Helena, MT (i.e. not related I don’t think but could be).  Helen says—If you are serious about offering an invite to someone don’t say something like, let’s get together some time or give me a call when you want to get together and end the conversation; that’s like saying I really don’t care to get together with you, that is just saying something to be politically correct, but the statement is pretty much a bunch of baloney a.k.a. blowing smoke. If you really want to get together with a person, say something like—May I take you out for breakfast next Monday at Big Wally’s at 8, my treat?  A sincere invite is real and genuine and meaningful to folks.  If you can do the invite in person, it is even better (i.e. one-on-one looking the person right in the eye)!  Helen says—I will bet my crochet hooks that it is the better way to do it, that is if you really want to get together with that person!  If you don’t really what to meet with that person, use the other method; they both are effective!  No question!

A golf buddy told us this story this last week on the #5 tee box that is relevant to the above.  He was working in the Kiwanis’ caramel popcorn stand to raise some money.  4 UNI volleyball gals were helping them as a community project. He said they were workers, polite and probably pretty toooo! ANYWAY, a member of their club is 85 and has been a season ticket holder of UNI volleyball for 20 years.  They told the gals that he probably would really appreciate it to have his picture taken with you gals.  They got excited and went over to him and said—We hear that you have been season ticket holder for 20 years—yes, I have—may we have the honor to have our picture taken with you! Think through that folks!

normal

The trouble with weather forecasting is that it’s right too often for us to ignore it and wrong too often for us to rely on it.  Aunt Audrey says—That is about how I feel when I read “It’s Saturday.” It’s about a 50-50 shot at best. Well bust my butt!

You hear folks say—It’s my new normal. We all have new normals because of many reasons; sometimes we have no choice (e.g. pandemic); sometimes we create new normals because we choose tooooo.  It’s just part of life.  Some new normals we like better than others.  Some new normals we have developed through time and some just happen instantly.  Such is life.

A friend said to me at breakfast recently—It’s their normal but maybe not your normal erv. That is just how folks react to you or to others; that is their normal; soooo erv, don’t get sooo excited if they don’t react the way you would or expect. You might not understand their normal but that is their normal (i.e. you might think they are wacko but they might think you are wacko, soooo there). Their normal might be way different than your normal in how they live their lives or what their family dynamics are or how they treat you and others, or how they spend their money or how they dress, or what they do for fun, or how much TV they watch etc. You get it.  Joesixpack, who is basically a 50-50 chance, says--There is a difference in normal for different folks.  Don’t kid yourself.

Who are you anyway?  I read while eating my oatmeal with a half a banana on it that--Charles Darwin said man is an animal. Sigmund Freud taught that man is a spoiled child. Karl Marx believed man is an economic factor. Saturday question—Soooo who are you do you think; your evaluation of yourself might be skewed, I’m warning you (e.g. some folks might think very highly of themselves but others don’t or vice versa).  Holy smokes! Soooo who is normal anyway? Normal compared to who (i.e. like a radical republican or a radical democrat; a grizzly bear or a pet kiddy cat).

You like sensations?  We all probably have good sensations and bad sensations I would guess.  Think a second of some of your best sensations and some of your worse.  I would guess some sensations we have would be normal to all of us for sure (e.g. eating ice cream).  SusieQ says--Sometimes I can’t recreate a certain sensation quite the same as it was the first time I experienced it.  I was reading an obit in the paper (i.e. I have no idea why I read this lady’s obit but I did).  It said one of her favorite things she liked to do in life (i.e. one of her sensations) was to go to the Riverview Cafe in Shell Rock and have breakfast (i.e. a little rural town deep in Butler County).  Huh, interesting!  Sooooo I contacted a friend and asked if he was interested in going there for breakfast but taking his Corvette (i.e. I never rode in a Corvette).  Soooo we did.  The whole experience was a hoot! On the way back I asked him to stop on the county road and show me how fast his Corvette was.  He did; we took off fish tailing and screaming down the road; my head snapped back and then he let up on the gas; he asked how fast I thought we were going; I said 82; he said a hundred; wow, what a sensation sitting 8-10 inches off the road and going 100 mph! What a great time I had. Using the words of SamrfromMI--I’m going to get myself one of these!!!! haha

I didn’t think a friend was normal (i.e. different from his normal normal it seeeemed).  He seemed different.  I was with a mutual friend and said I noticed him not being his normal—I know exactly what you are going to say—you do—go ahead and tell me what you think—I think he has changed and is more positive than he has ever been in all the years I have known him—exactly!  What is going on here folks.  I read in one of my morning devotions that we can’t change anyone; they need to do that themselves and if they don’t want to change, they won’t and we aren’t going to change them no matter how hard we try.  Yikes! Such is life.

A friend has some chickens for his grandkids; it seems to be a modern, popular trend in our culture.  He admits it is rather crazy and a lot of work.  ANYWAY, he thought he had tooooo many chickens soooo he got rid of a few.  One of the chickens he got rid of was this old, fat hen that was soooo fat that just she waddled when she walked.  And she is a real bossy old hen; she rules the roast. When she wants to lay an egg, she picks at another hen who is in the nest she wants and all the chickens make a lot of noise and she disrupts the whole chicken house.  When she wants to eat, she demands like she is the queen.  After he got rid of her, all the other chickens are much happier and actually the egg production has gone up!  Now there might be a moral to that story!  haha

Many times awards and applause are given for how great folks are; it’s done all the time.  And many times those folks deserve them and all the attention. There are a lot of good folks for sure. BUT there are many unsung folks who don’t get their picture in the paper or get recognition who are really great folks; many of such folks are you guys (i.e. you don’t toot your own horn or even seek attention but are some of the greatest). Many folks like you are appreciated by many (i.e. you are great in many folks’ eyes).  I notice you as well as others.  BUT that is normal; it’s always been that way and always will be.  WorldClassLarry says—Many great folks are ones who are unsung, unpraised, unnoticed, and yet are the most valuable assets in our society (i.e. he’s talking about many of you folks except for one of you and you know who you are). Soooo don’t get discouraged.  Okay?

Last Saturday morning I stopped at Coral Ridge Maul in Iowa City to buy some shoes.  The store wasn’t open yet soooo I made a few laps; I haven’t been in this maul for years.  I yawned and a lady who was also walking said to me—you must be tired—must be. We smiled at each other and walked on.  I bought my shoes now that the store was open and since it was raining outside decided to made a few more laps.  I met the same lady again—are you still walking—yep, I walk two hours every morning except Sundays when I go to church—what time do you get up—this morning it was 3:30 as my dog woke me up but usually about 4 or soooo; mornings are the best part of the day—what time did you get up—oh, this morning I got up a 5 as I had a 2-hour drive to get here—what are you doing here anyway—seeing an old college friend who is in a care facility—you must be a nice guy—I don’t know about that. She told me that her husband died after a 15-year battle with cancer, and I said to her—You must be a nice lady—I try; I try to be nice to everyone—are you going home and taking a nap—no no, I don’t believe in naps—what time to you go to bed—early! Is she a normal person based on your normal?  That is what I thought. Hey Lynn, if you read this, my email address is ervmellema@gmail.com I would like to know more about you.  Yes, I would.

Sometimes we don’t always see reality very well.  We need to magnify the situation to see it clearly.  And sometimes we don’t want to see reality clearly.  I had breakfast with a friend, and he told me that many times we don’t talk about reality; we are just not being real; it’s not politically correct or we don’t want to hurt folks’ feelings soooo we mush over it; it happens all the time; we don’t address reality; we side step it.  I could give you examples that are very pertinent, but I would make most of you irate with me (i.e. tooooo real) soooo why would I want to do that; seeee)! I had to find my iPad’s serial number that was on the back of the device, but it was soooooo small that I couldn’t read it.  I put my prescription bifocals on but still toooo small; I tried taking a pic of it with my iPhone and then zooming it, but it was blurry.  Growing up a mile and fourth south of Roseland, MN we had to be creative as we didn’t have all the best.  Soooo I put my bifocals on again and put a pair of Dollar General’s cheater glasses over the bifocals (i.e. double magnified it) and bingo, I could read it.  Sometimes we need to be creative to see reality.  BUT most of the time we don’t like reality a.k.a. the truth (i.e. we would rather fake it by pretending there is no reality)!  Ouchy ouchy! That seems normal in our society (i.e. we don’t seem to like to call a spade a spade). That’s seems normal! Such is life. Oh by the way, I texted my friend this message--I sure enjoy your perspective of life my friend. You seem to get it; as far as I'm concerned!

This came from a millennial friend (i.e. I like this guy) who is in the minority (i.e. a rare bird for sure—he’s not normal it appears as he is a saver and planner)—60% of millennials earning over $100,000 say they are living from paycheck to paycheck.  These millennials are known as HENRY’S—high earners, not rich yet—prefer a comfy lifestyle, but a new survey shows that things can get tight!

A friend is a real estate developer and builder. One high end client is suing him for the grading at a house.  He doesn’t think there is anything wrong with the grading.  He took pictures along with other evidence to his attorney trying to prove that there is no damage.  His attorney said to him—You are going to lose; there is no way you can win (i.e. reality); my advice is we start working on how you can minimize your loss!  I would guess no matter if he is right or wrong, it doesn’t make any difference, sometimes a person is just going to lose; the odds are against ya (i.e. worse than 50-50); it’s part of doing business or living (i.e. it really doesn’t make any difference what you think—take your medicine and move forward). Suck it up cupcake and let’s get going. We’re burning daylight! MyoldneighborKarl use to say—If it has wheels, you know you are going to have trouble with it! JoeSmart says—I have a tradition of moving forward.

I had breakfast with a MN friend recently.  He just had a hip replaced.  He walks with a limp which is probably normal this soon after a replacement, but he thinks his doctor didn’t put his leg back on straight as he is pigeon toed with his leg that got the replaced hip!  He made my look at it and asked what I thought.  He does look pigeon toed. I told him folks who are pigeon toed can run faster, soooo there ya go even though it doesn’t look normal. He gets all the breaks! At 75, that’s just what he wants to do, run faster.  This guy does move fast though!  He’s a shaker and a maker let me tell ya!

RickyRick says—"A lot of people say, ‘I’ll believe it when I see it!’ God says the exact opposite is true: ‘You’ll see it when you first believe it.’ Many things in life must be believed before they can be seen. It is a universal principle of life: You have to believe it before you see it. When you have faith, you will see the amazing things God is doing in you, through you, and around you.” Do you believe that? That is what I thought; you are normal!

Do you like to be around folks who disagree with you?  I sorta kinda do as I can learn a lot from them; ask them questions.  BUT it seems that most folks can’t “agree to disagree” and would rather not be around folks who think differently than they do. I seem to think some of the greatest folks get along very well with folks who have different ideas than they do but can discuss with them in a compatible way.  Abraham Lincoln was a great example of this.  He would listen to other folks’ opinions in a very genuine way.  Maybe I’m abnormal in thinking like I do but I like and love a lot of folks who I disagree with; we get along just great (i.e. but it helps when I’m only right about 50% of the time).  LuckieEddie says—I like to get along with folks who I always don’t agree with tooooo, erv, except for my brother-in-law who always thinks he’s right; he is difficult to be around; I think his wife is even sick of him; she seems to just ignore him; anyway, she sure excuses herself a lot to go to the bathroom but then again she might have a real bladder problem!

What I say is pretty much a 50-50% at best as to if you will pay any attention toooo it.  I understand (i.e. you are normal).  Here is what Dale Carnegie said (i.e. maybe you might pay attention at a 51-49% at best to Mr. Carnegie). Maybe to make your normal much more enjoyable, more than that % would take a 4^th of July fireworks show; you are normal for sure—"I’ve found that worry and irritation vanish into thin air the moment I open my mind to the many blessings I possess.” 

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

erv

MyFriendJean said—Snobs aren't born, they are created.

The tip of the day comes from just over the western banks of the Muddy Missouri River in Omaha, the home of onesmartguywithagoodheart.