a greater tolerance for chaos

“Every time I have the opportunity to sin, I have the opportunity to bear fruit of the spirit as well. In a momentary flash; I can choose self-control or allow my eyes to wander. I can choose kindness or let a bit of vindictiveness leak out. What determines which one wins? In my life it’s largely the level of incubation.” 

                       —Ron Martoia , morph! ,  2003

Hmmmm…

I read this paragraph in Ron’s book a few years ago and again, a few days ago. Then I did my favorite thing I do when I come across something I want to absorb for a while; I went for a run. A “business as usual” run except I turn down my headphones to a faint mumble (for background filler only), and allow my kooky brain to grind up what I have learned and make it relevant enough to apply to something that I am going through at the moment.

how big are your knockers

“Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.”     —Alexander Graham Bell

I wrote a blog, about a week ago, that started out with a proposition. I stated that anyone who performed a certain act, could be rewarded by me becoming their best friend for 2 weeks. Not just a regular friend, but a BEST FRIEND.

So, it appears that a few hundred people clicked on whatever led them to my article. I will assume that half started to read and decided not to finish, and the other half were successful in achieving the goal.  Of that, half probably didn’t need any extra friends, and a few more just didn’t want ME as one of them. That leaves me with an apparent 25 to 40 new BEST FRIENDS.

But here is the part that I don’t understand…

None of them took advantage of the opportunity.  I was not asked to babysit, cut their grass, pet their cat, or paint their house. Not one person asked me for a lift to the store, a shoulder to cry on, or a pot to tinkle in. No one asked me for help, advice, prayer, money, time, love, understanding, or my opinion.

i spit in your general direction

I will be your best friend for two weeks if you make it through these next two paragraphs without falling into a hypnotic trance of boredom….

On your mark, get set, go…

A “Brain Trust” was the name given to a diverse group of economists, professors, and others who served as advisors to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the early period of his tenure. These men played a key role in shaping the policies of the First New Deal. Although they never met together as a group, they each had Roosevelt’s ear.

The term “Brain Trust” was first coined in 1901 and used in a sarcastic sense in reference to the first American general staff of the U.S. President. In 1932, New York Times writer James M. Kiernan revived the term when he applied it to the close group of experts that surrounded presidential candidate Franklin Roosevelt. The term has since been applied in general sense to any close group of advisors.

I wonder where he got that idea… (click insert, hmmmm)

being a husband is not a “big deal”

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her.   —Ephesians 5:25

I have mentioned this verse in a few different blogs, but I regret (’regret’ is a whole other blog) that I misunderstood its meaning early in my relationship with my wife. I think that I missed opportunities to practice this with regularity because I always waited for some extraordinary situation to apply my “man powers” to, so that I could save the day in true “Super-Husband” fashion. After all, Christ DIED for the church; so I was prepared to do the same for my wife. As a result, I always kept my ears open for signs of a natural disaster, terrorist attacks, or global thermo nuclear war. I was ready for the worst, and I knew I would protect my wife, at any cost. I was looking to make a “big deal” out of my efforts, and I was WAITING for it.

my wife likes to see me tied up

I have a job that requires that I wear a tie.

I have a few secrets that I use to insure that I get a good knot, the right length, and a perfect dimple. I am pretty good at it, but that was not always the case. Back in the day, I used to struggle a bit with the tie thing. I would do the best I could and just deal with the results. I wore them so infrequently, that I paid very little mind to the finished product.

Now that it is a daily ritual, I have learned a few things.

If I tie it too short, it looks sloppy. It draws attention away from the rest of my “get up” because it looks like I should be popping out of a Volkswagen with 20 more “face painted” friends at a Ringling Brothers event. If I tie it to long, it looks like I am trying to hide a coffee stain from a poorly placed coffee cup during my drive to work. Additionally, it gets caught on stuff and it seems to get in the way all day.

When I pull it too tight, it restricts my breathing and my movement. When I wear it too loose, it looks unprofessional. The point is that, more so than learning how to make it match, I had to learn how to tie it properly according to my shirt style, collar type, and pants positioning. I had to learn what it took to get the right results and then try to repeat those steps daily.