Howdy, Bubba! Hey, if you're new around these parts, I just want to say how much I appreciate you dropping by! Oh, and you may want to subscribe to my feed. Thanks, and a tip o' the hat to ya!
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
Frameworks (by which I mean frames of reference) can certainly be useful critters, don’t you think? They help us interpret the world, interact with other people, and help eliminate the need for constant reevaluation of situations we’ve experienced before.
But what if you have a situation that doesn’t fit any of your frameworks? And what the heck does it have to do with the somewhat rarified and esoteric subject of lawn care? (Hey! That word-a-day toilet paper really comes in handy, don’t you think?)
Last week, in Scene of the Crime, I mentioned a house we owned in Greenville, South Carolina. I can relate quite a few adventures we had in that house (and probably will, sooner or later), but allow me to share how we met our neighbor across the street.
We had only been in the house a grand total of 5 days, but knew it was time to take care of that steadily lengthening grass. Easier said than done, of course, since we lived in a condo in Houston and hadn’t needed a lawn mower in 15 years. So I resolved to go out that weekend and buy one.
Anyway, I came home from work and noticed the yard had been cut. No biggie; I just figured Mrs. MZM had paid someone’s kid, or a lawn service to do it. Well… close, but no cigar chewing gum (I don’t smoke). What actually happened was our neighbor across the street had come over that afternoon, unannounced, and without saying a word, just mowed it!
Now, to our city-bred sensibilities this seemed a bit… odd. I mean, what kind of whack job had we encountered, and why would he do that? We didn’t know him; in fact we’d only seen him twice since we’d moved in. So we began to brainstorm (sound of lightning and thunder) various reasons why he might have done such a thing. Here’s the top three things from our impromptu list:
So which was it? Actually, it turned out to be none of the above. One thing I will say, though – as a way to meet the new neighbors on your street, this one ranks right up there on the creativity scale!
Anyway, when we walked over that afternoon to thank him, we met two of the nicest people we’d ever want to meet. She was a sweet older lady who loaded us up with several jars of homemade peach preserves before she’d let us leave the house. He was an older retired gentleman, whose hobby (and sole existence in life), it seemed, was (you guessed it) lawns.
He proudly showed me around his humongous garage. I’m tellin’ ya, this guy had practically every lawn tool known to man (although I’m pretty sure he didn’t have this nifty John Deere Chopper!) Oh, there was the usual mower and edger, of course, but we’re barely scratching the surface here.
Let’s see… there were several types of lawn rollers (for making a nice, even surface), an aerator (a spikey thing that pokes holes in the ground to let the ground, you know, breathe), along with various and sundry other devices too numerous to mention.
There was even one powered device that looked like a lawn mower but wasn’t; it thinned out grass roots so the thatch (the mat of roots down there below the grass blades) wouldn’t get too thick (it just wouldn’t do, don’cha know, to have too unruly a thatch).
Naturally, his lawn looked like it had been transplanted from a championship golf course. And when the leaves started falling, he was out there scooping them up with the lawn vacuum. Once that job was done, any further leaves that so dared to fall upon his pristine expanse of green heaven were, within minutes (and I kid you not!), picked up with a broom and dustpan! I’m here to tell ya, this fellow was serious about his lawn!
Finally, we figured it out.
He wasn’t trying to tell us something, make a statement, or hint around – no, he just thought everyone should think the same way he did about their lawns, too! When he offered the use of his lawn equipment, he wasn’t telling me to mow the lawn, he was hoping he’d found a kindred spirit in lawn care.
He was trying to fit me into his framework of the “way things should be”.
Alas, I’m afraid I probably turned out to be a huge disappointment when it came to lawn care. I made no attempts to clear up those bare spots over by the garage, to seed and fertilize it to golf-course readiness, or go for first prize in the neighborhood “Lawn of the Month” competition. Nope, I was happy just to cut and edge as needed. Oh, and uh, rake (that other story).
Now don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying that all frameworks are bad – not at all. As I pointed out earlier, frameworks are important as a way of interpreting the world around us. But when we encounter something new and completely outside our experience (like when a neighbor mows your yard) then the framework may not be all that much help.
See, where we get into trouble is when we start expecting all situations to somehow fit into the frameworks we’re already familiar with. Until they, er, don’t (sound of heartfelt sobbing). So what to do, what to do? The most obvious thing, of course, is build yourself a new framework.
“OK, smart guy,” you’re probably thinking, “so how do I do that?”
Well, first of all, thanks for the “smart guy” moniker; I can use all the affirmation I can get! But to, um, answer your question… well, you want my advice? (Which you surely recognize as a rhetorical question, since I’m, you know, going to tell you anyway!)
OK, here’s the key to forming new frameworks in just one word: Relax.
See, before (and while) you build and integrate a new framework, you’re going to need time. It doesn’t happen overnight, you know, so don’t try to force it to happen fast. (Not that it can’t happen quickly, mind you; I’m just sayin’.)
Ah, time! You know it wounds all heels, don’t you? Anyway, I suggest you take the extra time you now have (right?) to relax a bit and expand your perceptions outward, beyond the new situation. That’s right; like it or not, the old saw about getting “out of the box” applies here.
That’s because frameworks are by definition a method of compartmentalizing (and thus narrowing) your focus down to essentials. It’s a way of excluding the non-pertinent from the pertinent.
But if you’re in a new situation, how do you really know what’s important and what’s not? Might you be excluding something, some bit of information, you wouldn’t normally consider?
All I’m saying is, give yourself the time to consider things from a bigger point of view. Hey, you never know; your new, improved framework could become all that much stronger, more comprehensive, and probably more useful for the effort, don’t you think?
Am I off base here? What do you think? Where would you go from here? And what would your next move be?
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
Kudos to my buddy and multiple WILF participant GL Hoffman over at What Would Dad Say with what may be THE definitive Entrepreneur’s list of all time (well, at least up until now, GL): A Complete List of 100 Attributes of People Who Start Companies: How You Can Be One of America’s Entrepreneurs.
[UPDATE: Thanks to a timely comment from my friend Karin, I should mention that I MEANT to say it was the "definitive list of Entrepreneurial Attributes of all time". - Thanks for keeping me on my toes, my friend!]
Although he admits up front it’s probably not necessarily, as advertised, “complete” – still, ya gotta admire this thing as a true labor of love.
And now, just for the fun of it, he’s tacked on a challenge to anyone and everyone: The Entrepreneur’s Meme!
Here are the details, straight from the post:
The Entrepreneur Meme: Deadline, Friday, December 28, 2007.
Step 1. Write a post “Another characteristic or attribute of an entrepreneur…” You can make it a short burst or comment on one of my characteristics (there are 100 of them, you must agree on at least one!!), write one yourself that I missed (lots of them) or relate a personal story that illustrates how an entrepreneur did something great. For example, when you read through my list did you think about to a specific similar thing that happened to you. Tell us about it.
Step 2. Tell your visitors what you are doing. Please put a link back to this post so they can see what you are doing. Or email me at gl@jobdig.com to let me know you have participated.
Step 3. For every link I get back, I will donate $1 to charity, up to $500. If there are not 500 links, I will round up to the nearest 100 and donate that amount.
Step 4. Tell all your friends too. Put links to them at the bottom of your posting, maybe they will join in this cause to help entrepreneurs and a charity too. Email them this posting and your own so they know what we are doing and that it is for two good causes.
___________________
To make it easier to peruse the list, I copied the entire thing to a Word file. I’m warnin’ ya now, it’s a bit long (16 pages!) so be prepared to spend some time reading through it. But believe me, it’s worth it! Even if you’re not interested in entrepreneurship, these are great skills to have or develop.
I’ve already narrowed my choices down to about three or four, and will choose one and write a *cough*cough* witty and brilliant illustration “real soon now”. But in the meantime, I invite you to join the party – and don’t forget to tell your friends, too!
Pssst; by the way, GL; it sure sounds like the makings of a really terrific e-book (hint, hint).
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
Surely you’ve heard the expression, “leave no stone unturned”, right? Sure you have! (I know, I know – and don’t call you Shirley.) Um, you’ll usually hear or use it while searching for something you know you have, but just can’t quite remember where you left it…
It’s often accompanied by a sense of panic (“… now where did I put those car keys?”), frustration (“Drat! I know this answer!”) or downright anger (Well, don’t ask me – I just handed it to you! – words which are usually followed by “you big doofus” or something, er, similar.)
But turning stones need not always be a negative concept, you know. It could also be related to… curiosity. Even as a kid (come to think of it, especially as a kid!) whenever there was something interesting in my path, I just had a natural inclination to stop and investigate it. You know what I mean.
When I came across a log, I couldn’t just step over it; oh, noooo. I had to get down on my hands and knees and check out what was underneath (ooh, lookit the pretty bugs). And if I encountered a stream, well, I simply had to put my fingers in it (gee, that’s a powerful wet, that is). A stone? Well, it might as well have had the message printed on it: Please turn me over.
It was like, I don’t know, a rule or something.
Over the years, that curiosity has occasionally gotten me into big trouble. You know that expression, “Curiosity killed the cat…”? Well, there was this one time…
On a trip to the beach at Galveston once (I was a tender young lad at the time – perhaps 3 or 4 years old) I was exploring the constantly shifting waterline when I found something really, really interesting (all right; it was shiny, OK?) Naturally, I picked it up; I mean, what kid wouldn’t?
Unfortunately for me, the shiny-looking object turned out to be a Portuguese Man O’War, (a type of jellyfish) washed up on the beach from the night before. (The photo at left is very likely what I saw half-buried in the sand. It’s not much to look at, is it?) Extremely bad news; this little critter’s toxin has been known to kill grown men.
Within moments, my hand, arm, and basically my entire little body went into a spasm of pain unlike anything I’d ever experienced before (or since, for that matter). Fortunately I was able to scream my head off before passing out – at least, enough to get help.
I don’t remember much else except ending up in the hospital. Although… there was the thrilling experience of tearing through downtown Galveston at high speed with a police escort. Now that was entertaining! (Don’t know why I remember that; but I do.)
Ah well; all’s well that end’s well, don’t you think? (After all, I’m still, you know, here.)
Anyway, back to the subject of curiosity…
See, to a child, the need to explore their world is pretty much, well, hardwired. After all, it’s how they first learn about their surroundings. Sadly, I think there’s a tendency to lose some of that curiosity bump as we get older and *ahem* “education” kicks in.
So what’s happening? Are we letting our education neurons displace our curiosity neurons as we get older? Has sophistication set in (a process not unlike the curing of very slow-setting concrete), and we can no longer allow ourselves to be interested in new things?
In other words, have we lost the freshness of life?
All I can say is, without the lure of curiosity, life would be dull indeed! No more challenges, goals, hopes, dreams… heck, there’d be no point in writing – and nothing to write about!
You want to exercise your curiosity? You can, you know – and it’s easy!
The next time you’re just strolling along, minding your own business – well, stop what you’re doing and, do something completely different! That’s right, friends; break out of the mold! Do something, as Monty Python was wont to say, completely different!
C’mon; take a chance you wouldn’t normally take! Heck, just turn the stone over!
[UPDATE:]
Augh! I completely forgot to mention (just washed my brain and can’t do a thing with it - sorry!) this post is my contribution to Joanna Young’s December theme, curiosity. If you’d like to contribute your thoughts, write a post or donate an organ or something to the topic, then why not drop by and see what it’s all about! Aren’t you even a little bit curious?
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
When it comes to doing something you don’t want to do – but know you just have to – which kind of person are you? I mean, do you tend to just get it over with? Or do you put it off until the last possible minute?
Consider, if you would, this question: if the thing gets done in either case, then which method is better?
During the summer of 1973 (after a rather traumatic first year at Texas A&M University - um, can you say “D average?”), I just had to do something to get a jump on the next school year. (The problem, see, wasn’t that it was too hard – it was hard – but that I was having, er, too much fun to actually, you know, study.)
So I went to summer school (sound of wailing and gnashing of teeth).
Now to me, the idea of summer school always had a sortof, I don’t know, stigma to it. I mean, in high school, the poor unfortunates who had to attend summer school were usually (let’s see… how can we put this delicately?) the, er, underachievers. It was more along the lines of a remedial thing; nobody in their right mind ever actually volunteered for it.
But after that first year at University, I realized this summer school was a different sort of animal altogether. See, I had pretty much the same course options, but the main difference is that I could complete an entire semester in only six weeks! Whoa, Nellie; now that was a horse of a different color!
So instead of suffering through some subject that either scared (Analytical Geometry) or bored (History) me to death and suffering through it for 12-14 weeks, I could finish the thing quickly and move on. Now that seemed like the greatest idea since sliced bread!
Ironically (which as you know means made entirely of iron) enough, summer school turned out to be much easier than I expected. You see, in spite of the faster pace and more concentrated course load, there were other factors that helped to offset it.
For instance:
See, I discovered early that the anticipation of an unpleasant task can turn into a tremendous energy drain (sound of water being sucked down the drain). To make matters worse, the longer you dither around getting started, well, that’s even more energy wasted. (My friends the good Doctors Ellen and Robyn can tell you all about the harmful brain chemicals you produce from that kind of thinking. Highly recommended reading!)
No, it’s far better to just go ahead and do it – so you can quit thinking about it. You’ll discover more energy, more freedom, more je ne se qois (a French word that means yee-haw, get along little dogie!) in the long run because then you’ll have more energy to spend on (hopefully) more pleasant things!
As a matter of fact, even today, although the temptation to procrastinate is still there, I can still tell the difference – getting a chore done early so I can have fun later is ‘way more productive than putting it off until later.
How about you?
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
Well done, everyone (sound of crowd cheering)! Congratulations, and many thanks for your terrific entries in this month’s What I Learned From… writing project. ‘Way to go, Y’all!
That’s right; it’s been yet another great turnout for this month’s topic: The World of Sports; a total of 18 [late breaking entry] 19 entries in all! (Alas, we didn’t reach the 30 I was going for *sob*. But what the heck; there’s always next time…)
Once again, I am honored by your participation; particularly by the excellence of your entries (and interesting diversity of writing styles, too). As always, I’d like to express my heartfelt thanks for your quality contributions to the General Body of Knowledge!
So, without further ado (because as you know, further do would make no sense whatsoever!), here’s the entire list of entries (more-or-less in order of receipt discovery).
Do yourself a favor and take the time to check them all out. What the heck; drop by each author’s site and start a conversation, why don’cha! Each and every one finishes the phrase:
What I Learned From…
… (that’s all; just “What I Learned From…”), by Jackie Cameron at Consult Cameron
… Bloggers Who Think Differently, by Robin McMaster at Brain Based Biz
… Failure, by Pickel at My Two Boys
… Umpires: Calling Balls and Strikes, by GL Hoffman at What Would Dad Say
… Challenge, by Bob, at “Bob” Uncensored
… The World of Sports, by Jim Austin at Famous Quotes – Famous Sayings
… Sports, by Denise Kincy at Freelancing Journey
… Cricket, by Trevor Hampel at Trevor’s Writing
… The World of Sports, by Karin H. at Kiss Business Too
… High School Football, by Sterling Camden at Chip’s Quips
… Being a Bad Wrestler, by Brad Shorr at Word Sell, Inc.
… Quitting, by Sam Brougher at Your Scared Seductive System
… Old Man Soccer, by Jon Swanson at Levite Chronicles
… Sending My Akido Partner Through a Plate Glass Window, by Jean Browman at Transforming Stress to Power
… The World of Sports, by Lillie Amman at A Writer’s Words, and Editor’s Eye
… the language of Football, by Joanna Young at Confident Writing
… High School Sports, by Anna Lenardson at Anna’s Attic
… Youth Hockey, by Mike DeWitt at Spooky Action
And of course –
… My First (and Only) Home Run, by Robert Hruzek at Middle Zone Musings
Y’all give yourselves a big hand, my friends; and as always, a big tip o’ the hat to ya!
So… what’s next month’s topic going to be, you ask? Well… that would be telling!
BUT (and that’s a really big “but”), since it’s the opening of a brand new year, January’s writing project is going to have a little different spin to it. Stay tuned… film at 11.
Don’t worry; it’ll be fun (he said, rubbing his hands together and chuckling maniacally to himself).
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen (which I believe should cover pretty much everyone); there’s only a limited time left to contribute your entry to this month’s What I Learned From… writing project!
We have only 2 ½ days left before this round is closed and your chance at immortality (at least for this month) is gone forever!
So if you’re planning to participate (and I sincerely hope you are!), then why not go ahead and do it? You’ll be glad you did!
You know, it would just be absolutely finer than a frogs hair if you would subscribe to my RSS feed!
Middle Zone Musings is a comfortable place to stop, have a cup of coffee, swap a few stories and share practical ideas for the real world. I don't ask for much, just a bit of your brain every now and then. Have a seat, take a load off, and relax...
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