Rainy Sunday Afternoons

Millions long for immortality who don’t know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

— Susan Ertz, Anger in the Sky

I have to admit that I am puzzled by people who claim to be easily bored. I can’t recall ever being bored. Granted, I am an introvert, which may explain why I have not lived an over-active life. I have always had a long queue of interests that manage to keep my mind occupied. When I was young I grew up in the country. The vast countryside was my backyard and my siblings and I always had something to do. As I grew older I discovered books and the world of ideas. Again, no shortage of things to do on a Sunday afternoon.

I have always tried to live the Emerson quote, “This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it.” This is especially true of rainy Sunday afternoons. Strangely, I have also never longed for immortality either. Right here, right now is pretty good.


A Man With a Plan

I ain’t Martin Luther King. I don’t have a dream, I have a plan.

— Spike Lee


Commonplaces of Existence

My life is spent in one long effort to escape the commonplaces of existence.

— Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, spoken by Sherlock Holmes in The Red-Headed League

Ditto.


Gadget Distraction

What’s happening here, now, isn’t as important to me as what could be happening anywhere else.

— Renny Gleeson

I watched Renny Gleeson in a brilliant, short Ted video this morning talk about the sneaky, anti-social behaviors we demonstrate with our smartphones. When I am sitting in a meeting, or at an event, and I can’t resist the urge to pull out my iPhone and check my email or peruse my Twitter updates, I am actually telling those around me that what is happening in the here and now is not as important as literally anything that could come across that tiny screen.

I am fond of the old bumper sticker that says, “I would rather be here, now.” It was designed in reaction to those classics statements of bumper expression such as “I would rather be sailing” or “I would rather be fishing.” The truth is that I really would rather be here, now. I prefer to embrace the moment and milk each experience for all that it is worth. And yet the iPhone becomes a seductive siren call to draw my attention away to somewhere else. Go figure.


Self Confidence

A man can’t ride your back unless it is bent.

— Martin Luther King, Jr.


Seize the Day

This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Choices

Choose your rut carefully, you will be in it for the next 50 miles.

– Highway sign

According to folklore, the above sign was spotted on the Alaskan highway. Or perhaps it was posted along the highways in the 20′s and 30′s, before blacktop became prevalent. Regardless of the source, it has served as an apt metaphor many times in my life.

Each day we are faced with thousands of decisions: what to have for breakfast, what to wear, when to work out, how much time to spend surfing my RSS feeds. Most decisions have very short-term implications and can be corrected if errant.

Occasionally decisions arise that have much longer-term implications: whether or not to take that new job, move to that new city, attend a certain college or purchase a particular car. In these cases, deliberation pays dividends. When I find myself facing such decisions I classify them with the “Choose your rut carefully” label. It may not be the most glamorous metaphor but it helps me take the time I need to make solid decisions.