Rainy Days and Mondays

"That best portion of a good man's life; his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love."

William Wordsworth

Rainy days and Mondays..........today happens to be both.

The great thing about this is that neither one is bringing me down.

As a matter of fact,I find that I am in an unbelievably good place today.

I feel fairly well rested. My daily aches and pains are minimal today.My schedule has stabilized after a hectic holiday week last week.All things considered , it's a pretty good day in Davidvillle.

I may be the exception to the norm today. Every person I have encountered so far this morning has complained about the weather. Trust me,it's cold wet grey and stormy outside. I have already changed my sweatshirt 3 times.The winds are significant and having a real effect on my bus.

None of this has anything to do with my mood.

In act, when I think about the words of the Carpenters song I am a bit concerned.If the weather or the day of the week has the ability to "bring me down", I would really be in trouble. If waking up to rain started my day off in a bad mood, what chance do I have of having an awesome day?

If the fact that it's a Monday brings me down, I might just as well stay in bed!

No,rain sleet or snow has no bearing on my attitude.

Neither does the day of the week.

Rainy days are an atmospheric phenomenon.

The day of the week is just that,a day on the calendar.

My attitude is mine to choose and today that just happens to be a great one!

Never Tap Out

“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.”

Dalai Lama

Here's the deal.

I know that I am not always the most talented person in the room. I may not be the smartest in the group either.I may not be the strongest or the most gifted or the most athletic or the most insightful.The one thing I can be sure of is that I will never quit. I will never give up and I will never give in.It mat be a bit foolish on my part, however,it's just part of who I am.

Stick with the job until it's done.

Go the extra mile.

Never accept good enough.

Be the last man standing.

I have always been the guy who unlocks the door at the start of the day as well as the guy who turns the lights out at day's end.

It's part of my DNA.

Unfortunately,at 65 ,there are times when my body and my mind are not always on the same page of the playbook.

Being true to myself,and not always making the wisest choice, my spirit has stayed committed forcing my body to never tap out.

Ignoring the aches pain and fatigue I somehow manage to keep pushing on, choosing to say yes instead of no. Choosing to opt for why not instead of why.Making the choice to step up instead of step away from a challenge or opportunity.

At this point in my life, I have to wonder if this is an attribute or a liability?

I have to tell you, at this point I am not 100% sure.

I just know that it goes against every instinct I have to quit.

At least not until the job is done.

Happy ST. Stephen's Day!

"You can have, do or be anything you want."

Joe Vitale

Today, December 26th, is St. Stephen's Day. Who knew?

I kind of feel bad for the guy. The day after Christmas? No wonder he gets overlooked. Although not in Alsace-Moselle,Austria,The Balearic Islands,Bosnia, Herzegovina,Catalonia,Croatia,the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Montenegro, Norway, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Ukraine, and Switzerland.Some countries such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and the United Kingdom,celebrate Boxing Day today.Since I was never a fan of Boxing Day, I am choosing to recognize today as St. Stephen's with the Baltic States .

I think we can start some new traditions if we can get enough people involved!

Who knows, maybe someday it will be recognized right up there with Festivus and Groundhogs Day!

I don't know about you, but I can certainly use a day off after Christmas.Of course next year that day will happen to fall on Shabbat so there you go,the extra day off!

In case you haven't picked up on it, I can really use another day off. We are down a driver this week, so my Friday will once again be spent working.I'm a little beat up and an off day with nothing planned and no responsibilities will be a welcome gift. Marking my calendar....Friday January 3rd!

Anyone taking bets as to whether or not that actually happens?

We'll just have to wait and see.

Keep Telling the Stories!

"We're so busy watching out for what's just ahead of us that we don't take time to enjoy where we are."

Calvin & Hobbes

I have thought long and hard before choosing my message for the year.

As was the case for the last two years, there was an aha! moment that sealed the deal for me.

I have always believed in the importance of the Hebrew word

Zachor-to remember.

It has been a cornerstone in the foundation of my beliefs.

Remember who I am,where I came from and how I came to be where I am.

Recently, with the passing of a dear friend, I was reminded that while our memories are important, it is equally if not more important, to share those memories.

We share them by telling and retelling the stories.

Our memories will last only as long as we do.

The stories told when sharing those tales will last for generations..

Keep telling the stories.,over and over again.

They will get passed along.

L'dor vador!

From generation to generation.

Keep telling the stories.

Like any good story, the more you tell it, the larger the fish that got away gets.

That's more than okay. It's the stuff legends are made of.

And who doesn't want to be legendary!

Don't let those cornerstones that are the foundations of our lives become gravestones when we are no longer here.

Keep Telling the Stories!

Let them be a light for generations to follow.

Let them be the cornerstones and building blocks for everyone whose lives we touch.

Keep Telling the Stories!

A short story

"The only people with whom you should try to get even are those who have helped you."

John E. Southard

45 years ago today,Friday,December 20th,1974.

There was this party.

In walked this girl.

She had these great legs.......................

Am I one of "those" people?

“All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;”

(From JRR Tolkien’s “The Fellowship of the Ring”)

Since graduating from college and entering the workforce,I have rarely been in the position I found myself this week. Being the"boss", scheduling how and when I worked was alwayson me.If I had to make a doctor's appointment, I would clear an appropriate time and that would be that.If I needed to be somewhere, I could always rework my schedule and make those arrangements. My time,as well as my schedule was mine to make and keep.

This week, I found myself at odds with that which had never been an issue for me in the past.A dear friend's dad passed away. Of course I wanted to attend the funeral. This had never been a problem for me before. I would simply adjust my schedule, make sure everything was covered and go.

Unfortunately, that's not what happened for me this time.By the time I knew when the funeral would be,I had less than 24 hours to find someone to cover for me at work. When I became a full time employee and now had a paid vacation, I knew that a situation like this would arise. We don't have anyone to do my job.Given enough lead time, I believe we can and will be able to piece together a contingency plan. However in this particular instance, I found myself having to make some tough choices.

Option 1 was to say"the heck with this, I'm going and let the chips fall where they may and go".

Option 2 was to skip the funeral, knowing full well that I would be able to visit during the shiva.

My colleagues at work all stepped up and asked "what can we do?.How can we help?"

In the end, it boiled down to where did I feel I was most needed at that moment.

I knew deep in my heart that my friend would be more than just understanding.

I also knew that with short notice , getting coverage at work would be just about impossible.

It became obvious fairly quickly that for the first time that I can remember, I felt like I couldn't break away and I would have to miss attending the funeral. This has never happened to me before. I was never in the position of other people, people who have real jobs and others counting on them to be there.While the decision was still mine, I felt a bit trapped. I almost felt like I had no choice.That's when I realized that I absolutely did have a choice. I also have responsibilities.That is what made my decision easier.I wasn't one of "those" people who needed to check with someone, a superior or with the personnel department or with my foreman or boss. The choice was mine and mine alone .

In the end, I was able to find true comfort in my choice and that's what truly matters.

What ever happened to the book?

"Time is our most valuable asset, yet we tend to waste it, kill it, and spend it rather than invest it."

Jim Rohn

So what ever happened to the book? I haven't brought this up over the last few months and I thought it might be a good idea to address it.The best I can report at this point is that it is on hold. I am reticent to make any definitive declarative statements pinning me down to anything specific regarding writing a book.It may happen.It may never happen. I really can't say at this point. If you recall, I never set out to write a book. When I started writing ,I had no idea how important it would become to me and how much I enjoy doing it.On the days when I don't make time to write,I certainly feel it.When I do write,my day feels more complete.On the days when someone responds to me,my joy level reaches all sorts of high levels.

When I watch talk shows,or listen to talk radio, it seems that every Tom,Dick and harry has written a book lately. I have no idea who is reading or buying these. It seems to me that as anonymous as I am, the only ones who would benefit from me undertaking a book would be the publishing house that would ultimately make money from me.

So for now I will continue to tell my story using the format that I started with,writing to you as often as I can.

While my calendar doesn't have a someday on it,I am comfortable saying that their may or may not be a book...........someday.