WORDS TO LIVE BY

In the September 29 "Time" magazine, Kristin Van Ogtrop had some good, if a little unusual, advice for kids who may be struggling with Common Core standards and their dream of college.

She first addresses the parents:"These will not help your kids get into college, but they will make them better people."

She followed with a message to the kids. "You need to be able to do the following in order to get your high school diploma."

1. Write a letter. An actual letter that does not begin with
    "Hey" and is written, in handwriting, on real paper.

2. Learn to cook a good meal that can feed the entire
    family - - -  One nice chicken roasted on a bed of
    vegetables might even provide leftovers.

3. Hold down an unpleasant job that makes you hate
    your parents a little bit because they won't let you quit.

4. Go somewhere for the weekend without your phone,
    just so you know what it feels like to be in solitary
    confinement, or dying.

5. Every time you get a new toy or gadget, give an old
    toy or gadget away to someone who doesn't get new
    things as often as you do.

6. Take care of someone or something other than
    yourself. A pet does nicely here. And if it's a dog,
    learn to brush your dog far enough from the back
    door that the hair does not all come  whooshing
    (love that word) back in when you are finished..

    (She admits she did that.)

7. Write a heartfelt thank you note to someone
    over the age of 70. Even if this person hasn't
    given you a holiday or birthday present, find
    something to thank them for.

8. Read a book for pleasure. If you start one and
    hate it on page 50,find another one. Repeat it as
    needed until you find a book you really love.

9. Do something nice for a neighbor without
    expecting any credit for it.Rake the leaves,
    shovel the walk, put the newspaper on the
    front step if it landed in the middle of the
    driveway. Keep your identiy here secret.

10. Don't race to the top. Never race to the top.
      If you want to aim for the top, good for you.
      But try to get there slowly, deliberately,
     without knocking everyone else out of the
      way. or missing the beautiful view.

Words to live by.

Good for adults as well.

WITH AUTHORITY - COMES RESPONSIBILITY

The title of my blog is meant only to repeat a simple rule of Managment that was drilled into my thick skull over 50 years ago. Unfortunately, it is a rule that seems to have been either overlooked or discarded by today's business leaders and politicians.

That's a shame.

Most of us understand there are 4 to 6 "stages" of grief". Not coincidentally, there are an equal number of "rules" for problem resolution.

As we currently deal with the long overdue outrage over subjects like athlete's concussions, child and spousal abuse, and immigration - many of us, particularly those who have witnessed these problems first hand - are experiencing various stages of grief.

So, perhaps this is a good time to review the problem solving model that is so tied in with that experience of grief.

My favorites are fairly basic:

1. Define the Problem.
2. Determine the Root Causes.
3. Develop Alternative Solutions
4. Select a Solution.
5. Implement the Solution
6. Evaluate the Outcome.

Of the six - I have always felt the last was the most important.

Too often - similar to laws we have passed (red light cameras comes quickly to mind), without  #6  the previous 5 steps can often be an exercise in futility that dashes and disappoints the hopes of those crying out for resolution.

If problem solvers fail to monitor the results of the proposed "solution" (and there may be several facets contained within), all the well intentioned thinking that led the deciders right up to that final stage may be all for naught.

Too many times their failure causes us to lose faith in those we discharged, either via the ballot box or our acceptance of their oft stated promises to "do the right thing".

It appears that's where we are today.

I also believe you can put together a thoughtful, intelligent, goal oriented team to follow the problem resolution exercise and it doesn't take until after the Super Bowl next February or the 2016 elections to come up with a game plan that can be monitored.

                      " With Authority - Comes Responsibility"

STRICTLY AN OPINION

A friend told me recently that the voters in his town recently elected a very liberal professor as their new Mayor. According to my friend, the mayor's first act in office was to have all of the town's stop signs changed so they now read  "STOP - ( IF YOU'D LIKE TO)".

You gotta love those liberals!*
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If our I-phones are so smart - WHY DO WE HAVE TO KEEP RECHARGING THEM - EVERY OTHER DAY?.
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I know our President is a sports fan. We've read and heard so much about it in the media. But, perhaps it's best he didn't choose team scouting as opposed to politics.

Regardless of your political persuasion one might think  to ask: "How does a group of athletic guys in Syria go from "JV" status in January - to full blown travelling squad members on the " first team" varsity in August - or/ to paraphrase Britains Prime Minister  - to become "our worst terrorist threat yet?"
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I saw the Prez defending his alleged comment in a recent Meet The Press inteview but still wondered to myself, "You always thought 'G.W' had the worst intel?"
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I truly do love this country - despite what some of my blogs might suggest.

Perhaps it simply boils down to a theory I had back when they hung the title "management" on me - and I subsequently became a self-appointed preacher: "If everybody just did their job - you know that thing they're being paid to do - we'd have a lot fewer problems to deal with."

I fielded most of the complaint calls and would go to the employee to confirm or deny what I had patiently listened to. When I inquired why they had failed to follow up with the customer on the status of their claim, they would usually reply "I had nothing new to report."

"Then Tell Them That!" - I said....

Common sense just ain't that common for so many of us.
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I will never be  bored as long as the Pittsburgh Post Gazette continues to include comments to the sports page from the readers. Similar to humorist Will Rogers -  thought:(paraphrased here) "I will never run out of material  - as long as there is a Congress" .

My panacea for occasional mild depression is reading the comments from the Steeler's so-called experts, advising Steeler management as to what they REALLY need to do in order to be competetive this year.

There is nothing wrong with having an opinion  - as long as one understands, usually - that's ALL it is. Opinions aren't necessarily truisms.
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Is it just me, or are we fans of the old show "West Wing" and now "The Veep", possibly getting the inside scoop as to what actually does go on in the White House - regardless of party affiliation?

If even 50% of what the writers include in "The Veep" scripts is accurate, we can understand how difficult it is for people in power to reach a decision.

 I once thought business management required some "squirrely thinking" in order to succeed. But in todays world of politics the battle cry seems to be:"YOU AIN'T SEEN NUTTIN YET!"
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I enjoy NBC's Meet The Press. In referencing my viewing of their  8/31/14 show I couldn't help but wonder about the criticism I was hearing: "What if we find out that despite his off the cuff comment, our President really did have a workable plan regarding Syria, Iraq, Iran, and the Ukraine?''

If so, how many politicians and commentators will be bailing ship now in an rush to obtain air time so they can tells us :"I knew it all the time!"

Of course, even if true, the Republicans still will find something to disagree with, ie, "too late, too little, too sketchy, etc.". We'll know more tomorrow night.
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In all my years of following politics - I cannot recall a Congressional body who simply appear to have nothing on their mind but advancing their own interests.

Just out of curiosity, I looked up the term "traitor" in my Merriam Webster's Collegiate dictionary  (Hey, old habits die hard)  and found the leading  definition was: "One who betray's another's trust or is false to an obligation or duty".

You've all read the polls as to the current Congress's ratings. You decide.
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Yeah, I've lived through the Harry Truman vs "Do Nothing Congress" years but  the 80th passed a total of 906  bills - including 'The Truman Doctrine", "The Taft-Hartley Act," "The National Security Act" - "The Foreign Assistance Act" (Marshall Plan) - "Presidential Succession Act" - "Federal Water Protection Act", amongst other significant legislation.

Despite their argument to the contrary - about the only think noticeable this vainglorious group appears to have passed is - "gas."
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But remember, all of the above is strictly an opinion.

* OK, I made that up.

SPAM - I AM?

So-called "Experts" tell you to avoid viruses via opening e-mail from people you don't know. I assume that applies particularly to spam mail - the source of most of what I'm receiving lately.

 The problem, as I see it, is that if you don't open them you have no idea who sent them to you and why.

Articles I've read suggest it has something to do with "cookies"' I've stored. If that's true, I'm definitely giving up sweets.

 Some of my spam mail is scary, like. "YOUR FREE LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP IS ABOUT TO EXPIRE" (There goes my goal of living longer than my parents.)

Thank God for Publishers Clearing House" - which soon after - offered me a cure: "AVOID CANCELLATION BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE, MR. SULLIVAN"

(OK, I'll buy one of your damned eggbeaters in four easy installments. But, I gotta tell you - my wife and I are getting awfully tired of leaving non-consumed milk and cookies on the dining room table at night for The Prize Patrol.)

"YOU HAVE SIX NEW FLIRTS" ( Now that scares me too. I can't even remember what I did with my car keys - let alone try to track down my "old" flirts.)

"FLIRT LIVE WITH SEXY GIRLS ON RUSSIAN BRIDES". ( Whatever happened with everyone just heading up to Niagara Falls for a week-end honeymoon - alone with their honey?  Assuming this is not a typo, I still want to make it clear that I have no interest in lesbians. Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.)

 "MEET ME TONIGHT. I'M LONELY - SEXUALLY EXPLICIT" (Sorry, gotta pass. My BW isn't even that crazy about me driving in the daylight by myself.)

 "MEET FEMALE SWINGERS AND HOOK UP". (Count me out. My " hook" is simply not what it was at one time. Besides, with my current coordination challenges, I'd probably  fall off the trapeze and break my neck.)

"BEAUTIFUL CHINESE WOMEN ARE LOOKING FOR SEX. (Yeah, sure. And, in an hour I'd be hungry again! Due to my dietary restrictions I can't even take that sort of risk with Fritos - let alone women.)

"LIFETIME EASY SEX - VIEW MY (8) PRIVATE PHOTOS". That one caught me off-guard as the next spam - the first of two received from Facebook - referenced a good lady friend of ours: "WINDI SANDERS ADDED A NEW PHOTO"

What made matters worse was when they immediately followed that one up with: "A WOMAN ON THE FACEBOOK OF CHEATERS WANTS YOU." (Windi, say it 'taint' so.)

"JENNY 26 WANTS A BOOTY CALL" (Sorry Jenny, we got rid of all our booties years ago.)

 And, my favorite?

 "GOT BIG BOOBS AND KNOW HOW TO USE THEM"

(Some parental advice here. "Relax lady. It's just a phase all teenage boys go through. Their brains develop slower than girls. However,  the idea of getting them jobs is right on target. But, quickly! Make your local Amscot office off-limits and insist your kids immediately turn over their paychecks to you.

Otherwise, they'll continue to eat you out of house and home - even after treating all their new BFF's to all that junk food they purchased with their newly discovered wealth.)

Sorry, Dr. Seuss.

Porn spam?  Honest, that's just not me!

HEAVEN?

It wasn't just in my aging years that I've been curious about the workings of and the existance of Heaven.

Of the many sources I've sought out about the subject - partially due to being well churched in my later years - I found I enjoyed the New Testament Church vision the most. They tell us God forgives our sins and offers hope via what they claim is a fool- proof method of making Heaven become my final resting place.

Unfortunately, despite their assurances and good intentions, after reviewing both real or imagined transgressions of my life to date, I have my doubts.

There have been days when I came away with the conclusion I'd have a better chance of passing the Bar exam on the first try.

The Bible has given us several stories of folks who "discovered the light" after living a disparate lifestyle. Assuredly, Paul, who was first introduced to us as Saul, a truly mean dude - through his transformation and his lengthy communications thereafter - has provided many of us with hope and guidance.

C.S. Lewis - a similarly reformed author - also gave us considerable insight via his delightful "Screwtape Letters".

Even admitted atheist-comedian W.C. Fields suggested it's never too late to think about the possibility of finding a path to Heaven when his biographer Gene Fowler observed him on his death bed reading the Bible.

Fields, when questioned by Fowler , copped out in that expected manner of his - and simply stated,  "I'm looking for loopholes."

Don't know about you, but I have to admit that through the years I've asked myself, "What is Heaven really?  What does it look like? "What are my chances of getting there?"

I admit to having unholy suspicions when realizing that, despite so much space exploration, nobody has come back with any snapshots of Heaven. I can only assume the reason is that NASA is really hellbent on controlling astronaut voyeurism.

Evangelist Tony Evans - who I met in Hershey of all places - has in several of his sermons provided a description of Heaven that suggests it is the most glorious and by far biggest shopping mall like gloriosity you could imagine - and, I suppose, with no shopping carts carelessly disposed of  randomly throughout the the parking lot.

More recently, authors Mitch Albom and Todd Burpo - among others - have provided a glimpse of Heaven to any us possibly less devout and on the cusp.

But my search for real meaning has led me again to that master author - Mark Twain - allegedly known as "Sammy" only to his close friends.

Per Twain:

(Man) "For instance, take this sample: he has imagined a heaven, and has left entirely out of it the supremest of all his delights, the one ecstasy that stands first and foremost in the heart of every individual of his race - and of ours - sexual intercourse!

It's as if a lost and perishing person in a roasting desert should be told by a rescuer he might choose and have all longed-for things but one, and he should elect to leave out water."

And, from the same source ("Letters from the Earth: Uncensored Writings") :

"Now then, in the earth these people cannot stand much church - - an hour and a quarter is the limit - and they draw a line at once a week. That is to say, Sunday. One day in seven; and even then they do not look forward to it with longing. And so - - consider what their heaven provides for them: "church" that lasts forever, and a Sabbath that has no end!

They quickly weary of this brief  hebdomadal Sabbath here, yet they long for the eternal one; they dream of it, they talk about it, they think they think they are going to enjoy -- with all their simple hearts they think they think they are going to be happy in it."

Hey, you got to admit - it's definitely something to "they think" about - particularly if you're wondering if it may be too late in life for any hope of inclusion.

NOBODY ASKED ME, BUT - - -

Nobody asked me, but - - -

Is it just my imagination that various uninvited charity mailings containing name and address labels arrive as a perverted interpretation of the Maltusian theory on food production and population? In my case, the less snail mail I produce - the more free name and address stickers I receive.
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Is there any memory more satisfying that that of pulling into your driveway after a tough work day and spying your young child sitting in the living room window anxiously awaiting your arrival?
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Many quotes are attributed to Albert Einstein. "Two of my favorites are: "The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has it's limits."

The second quote, and one which I experienced first hand recently, is "Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
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Is there anything more beautiful than the glow on the face of a newly pregnant woman? Okay, there is the other one - but this is a family blog.
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Making a decision on cremation and then paying for it is part of a life cycle. We start out as kids being required to practice the three "R's" - "Reading , Riting, and Rithmatic" and,when we get old we, of our own volition, practice two entirely different "R's": "Resolution and Resignation."
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Isn't it amazing that you can sit on your back porch as Seniors looking up at those "huffy puffy clouds and still enjoy making cloud pictures like you did back when you were a kid or a young lover?
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In referring to a recent comment I made about the electoral process, I believe most voters go to the polls appearing to have watched too much TV.

By repeatedly voting for incumbents for whom they profess little love, they appear to be like characters in a Frito-Lay ad. They can't seem to eat just one.

Conversely,  Every two or four years we seem to enjoy playing a political form of TV dramas' Russian Roulette by expecting there will be no bullet in the electoral chamber this time.(see Einstein above)
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Can you experience any more satisfaction than that of this unemcumbered retiree who - while seated in his favorite lounge chair in front of the TV - feels the soft tiny stuffed animal which our 2.7 lb Chihuahua has just placed on the top of one of my bare feet?
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Are some people just plain cruel and insensitive - or is it our fault that their actions and words simply reflect our terribly misplaced expectations?
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Do you still feel the sensation that your hearing isn't as bad as you suspected when you take the time to sit in the dark late at night  - with your libation of choice - and listen to that favorite quiet soothing music you still enjoy?
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When you watch the latest edition of "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire"' - and still have some semblance of a memory left - do you also sub-consciously think of the movie "Quiz Show" back in 1994 - or the quiz show "21" participant Charles Van Doren?.

I can still recall those days when my entire family sat around our first TV, totally enraptured by answers provided by the contestants, while sitting in those "isolation booths".

If you're old enough, chances are your ability to forget the negative side of those "old days" is about as successful as when you are listening to the William Tell Overture and trying not to think about "The Lone Ranger."

No accusations here. Just reflecting on the workings of the human mind.
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Did God give us our sense of smell solely so we could hold a new baby up to our cheeks and enjoy both the softness and the smell of their skin?
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Should you as an adult - a seasoned movie and entertainment fan - cancel your People magazine subscription when you come to the conclusion you seldom  recognize any of the celebrities featured between it's covers - or anybody elses?
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Is there anything more reassuring than knowing and shouting out the correct answer to the "Final Jeopardy" Question when none of the three bright contestants on the panel seem able to recall it?

Hey, just thinking. But, nobody really asked me.

THE MEMO

It's true the world has become much more complicated for guys like me who are still plodding along with old school ethics. Honesty and accuracy were a big thing back in the day; but perhaps a little less so now.

(and no, thank you, I don't care to address the cigarette industry's explanation about "the T zone")

Political ads like the ones running between the two camps for Florida governor Rick Scott and his opponent, former governor and new wannaby Charlie Crist
have me in a constant state of confusion - which is only slightly smaller than the State of Rhode Island.

The problem is each campaign team is attacking the records of the other and incredulously  are using the same alleged examples to try to make their point.

Therefore, if you're listening with only one ear it's difficult to determine which candidate the political ad is attempting to support - as well as what they did or did not do while in office.

But, that's politics and apparently we don't pay much attention to political ads anyway.

I reach that conclusion because pre-election we continue to be polled and tell those doing the polling we overwhelmingly don't like the incumbent and then go out and vote most of them back into office.

But, confusing views are not restricted to politics.

There's a lot of "Eaching" going on due to the constant repetition of TV ads beating us over the head with their alleged "truisms".

 "Each' day we are deluged with advertisements from a drug company's representatives. "Each" ad - which appears to be a little more aggressive with "each" showing "each" day -is dunning the quality of their competitors product. "Each" one also is claiming their medication is the one proven to give us the best results.

In the Sullivan household we (okay, ME)  sometimes swear to ourself that  one grizzled old guy out there in an TV ad  - shooting hoops with an obviously coordination challenged youth - is the same one we saw a few months ago in a advertisement for a competing product.

Repetition  - when combined with old age - will do that to your memory sometimes.

Fortunately, by the time each commercial finishes telling you all of the bad things that may happen to you from ingesting or injecting their product - you tend to reach for the old reliable Bayer aspirin bottle, instead - and forget about their claims.

The end result of these advertising deluges - costing the drug companies millions (probably billions) of dollars is that many of us walk away not knowing who to believe - if anyone - and, because of advertising expense, we will never see the price of their products come down to a point it will fit our family pocketbook.

And, fortunately for you, I won't even attempt to tackle the attorney ads in an attempt to support my point.

I mean, if we want the straight scoop on something - we go to the sports pages anyway. Right?

That's what I thought too, until this morning when reading about the election of the new MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. Two of USA Today's columnists or contributors covered this occurrence as well as the current state of professional baseball.

One guy, Bob Nightingale - a regular contributor wrote: "The biggest obstacles facing Manfred will be to help modernize the game, with attendance stagnant for the past decade and with declining national TV ratings."

The other guy, Paul White, reported: "Baseball revenue has steadily increased to record levels - projected to be in the $9 billion range this year. Teams are lining up record TV contracts."

My question is: Which guy didn't get the "memo"?