The great-great-niece
of former American President Woodrow Wilson sent me this today. With it she wrote,
I've been spending a lot of time exploring other
weblogs in recent days. It is a fascinating phenomenon. There are many interesting
and creative people in the community. There is something that disturbs me though;
resorting to profanity to make a point. The most original of the blogs appear to be done
by folks of exceptional intellectual and imaginative caliber. Yet they're generally
sprinkled or even splattered with words that describe various bodily functions.
Expletives are usually a sign of laziness. Perhaps more of these bright bloggers will
consider searching their vocabularies for more thoughtful word metaphors. Especially those that also maintain business
sites. Sure the writing gives clients a sense of the person behind the work, but
remember to consider your professionalism. Speaking slang in personal conversation
or private email is one thing, but the Web is public domain. You never know
what venture capitalist might be exploring your legacy. It really isn't difficult to think just a
moment for a suitable phrase. A truly apt usage of one word in particular
is frequently heard on airline cockpit voice recorders as the last before a crash.
Usually it is preceded by the word "Oh." That is understandable. Listen, I may be wrong here, but I reserve that
right. If you think I'm all wet, just
tell me
to go fish, or something to that effect. My car got hit in the tail-end while I was waiting
at a railroad crossing. No real damage done — just enough to be a nuisance. I've
been fortunate through my 30 years of driving to avoid these fender-benders, and
thank God I've never been involved in a major wreck. Problem is, when it never
happens, you tend to forget everything you're supposed to do. After a double-take "What was that?", I took a deep
breath and quickly began pulling up the driver's ed course from the deep recesses of
grey matter. Names and numbers, at least the trooper who happened along said it was
minor enough to not require a police report. Guess I get to visit an insurance
adjuster next. When I drank I made some sorry decisions.
Mostly, I didn't make decisions at all.
Fear can be a disabling state of mind. Since learning to live life as a sober person,
I am always able to put my best foot forward, and I can feel comfortable with my
decisions. Sure, I'm as likely as the next guy to make sorry decisions still, but
they're now my best sorry decisions. It's a new freedom. Freedom from guilt and shame,
and freedom to trust my own
judgments. Giving one's best is all anyone can ask. It's a reward in itself. I
decided to be happy, joyous and free today. Try it. The hard drive on my PC at work bit the dust
while I was out to lunch.
I knew something was amiss when the "blue screen of death" greeted my return.
Ctrl+Alt+Delete attempts were futile. Upon hearing that ominous sound of clunking
parts during reboot, the disk controller failure error didn't surprise me. What
did surprise me was my reaction — oxide dust happens. I lost my best jokes,
but whatcha gonna do? Tomorrow's a clean substrate. Speaking of attitude, a
friend is hurting
today. If you have a moment or two, why not stop by her site and drop an
encouraging note, better yet, send one of those fancy
electronic pick-me-up
cards. Thanks.
You
Divas
are
really
somethin'
else. Wow! My brother captured a
beautiful scene this
weekend. A cinch to be successful at whatever is next, one
of the web's icons has decided to move on.
Glenn Davis left Project Cool Friday following many years of innovation,
inspiration, and community development. Don't fret — his next adventure is
bound to be exciting and entertaining — there is, after all, a proven track
record. I think of Bill Cosby. He may go away for a bit, but look for him
to come back with a bang. Glenn, you don't know me, but thanks for everything. 30apr00—06may00
13th of May 2000
"The Wilson plaque recognizes those individuals who give of themselves to people
they don't know and will never meet. Most of the recipients of their kindness don't
know the real name of the person who has touched their life, and most of them will
never directly contact the person who has helped them. But, because that person gave
of themselves, of their time, of their expertise; hundreds, maybe even thousands of
people's lives have been touched. If you come across a site bearing this plaque, take
an extra moment to look around and see how much they give in their pages — and
how little they ask in return."
Obviously, I'm touched. I won't forget.12th of May 2000
11th of May 2000
10th of May 2000
9th of May 2000
8th of May 2000
7th of May 2000
01jan00—29apr00 (old format)
as featured on
On Deck Circle
Swallowing Tacks
ctrl-alt-ego
Harrumph!
Over 30
jenett's webstream
smokers anonymous
Random Notes
As the evening sky faded from a salmon color to a sort of flint gray, I thought back to the salmon I caught that morning, and how gray he was, and how I named him Flint.
It's sad that a family can be torn apart by something as simple as a pack of wild dogs.
As we were driving, we saw a sign that said "Watch for Rocks." Lynn said it should read "Watch for Pretty Rocks." I told her she should write in her suggestion to the highway department, but she started saying it was a joke — just to get out of writing a simple letter. And I thought I was lazy.
This fellow gets pulled over by the police for speeding. The officer notices
there are two penguins in the back seat and says, "Sir, you can't have penguins
around here. I want you to take them to the zoo right now!"
So the guy says, "Yes officer, I will do that immediately."
The very next day the same policeman notices the same car speeding by again, so
he turns on the flashers and pulls him over. There still in the back seat are the
two penguins. This really makes the officer mad and he yells, "Sir, I told you to
take those penguins to the zoo!"
"Well, officer I did. They liked it so much, today we're going to the circus."