Thirteen Side Steps

 

He’s been in office a month, and he’s been busy. I haven’t approved of his executive orders so far. None, as far as I can see, bear any resemblance to his campaign promises. Most seem to be about punishing people he doesn’t like, or people he thinks don’t like him. But last week I read about an executive order I can stand behind: an order to stop minting new pennies. There’s not a single thing you can buy for a penny, and there hasn’t been for a long, long time. Fewer people use cash to purchase items. Even if that weren’t the case, retailers could easily set their prices so they’d never need to make change in pennies. Moreover, it cost 3.69 cents for each penny we minted and distributed last year, making each coin a loss of 2.69 cents. If only he hadn’t written, “I’ve instructed MY Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”

Around the Corner

 

A group of guys, all turning forty, discussed where they should go to celebrate. They decided on Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the waitresses there were well-endowed and wore very short skirts. A decade later, when their fiftieth birthdays approached, they went to lunch at Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the food and service there were excellent, and it was a good value for their money. Ten years later, as they were turning sixty, the friends decided to meet at Weatherby’s in Uxbridge, because there was plenty of parking, and they could dine in peace and quiet, with no loud music. In another ten years, the friends chose to celebrate their seventieth birthdays at Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because the restaurant was wheelchair accessible and had a nice disabled toilet. Ten years later, at age eighty, they considered where they should go for lunch. They settled on Weatherspoon’s in Uxbridge, because they’d never been there before.

Little Fish

Our local aquarium is too small for ocean sunfish, but I’ve seen these remarkable creatures up close. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has sunfish in their Open Sea Exhibit. At 4,400 pounds, they’re the world’s largest bony fish, and they’re like enormous fish heads, floating aloof and disinterested in their watery world. At least, that’s how they look. When Japan’s Kaikyokan Aquarium temporarily closed for renovations, their solitary sunfish began to show signs of distress. It stopped eating, became lethargic, and started bumping into the tank walls. The caretakers worried it might be missing the aquarium visitors, so they came up with a creative solution. They placed life-size human cutouts outside the tank to simulate adoring crowds. Gradually, the sunfish began to improve. Its appetite returned, it became more active, and it stopped colliding with the walls of the tank. Evidently, even fish may experience certain sensory input patterns which are anticipated and even missed when absent.

Red, White and True Banner

 

“I testify that our sincere gospel questions can provide Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ with opportunities to help us grow. My personal effort to seek answers from the Lord to my own spiritual questions—past and present—has allowed me to use the space between the lines of my understanding and God’s to practice obedience to Him and fidelity to the spiritual knowledge that I currently possess. I testify that placing your trust in Heavenly Father and in His prophets, whom He has sent, will help you to spiritually elevate and push you forward toward God’s expanded horizon. Your vantage will change because you will change. God knows that the higher you are, the farther you can see. Our Savior invites you to make that climb.” – Tracy Y. Browning

One Dozen Side Steps

 

Words to Live By:

If it costs your peace, it’s too expensive.

You can do anything, but you can’t do everything.

The magic you’re looking for may be in the work you’re avoiding.

If someone could only see your actions and not hear your words, what would they say your priorities are?

People only see the decisions you made, not the choices you had.

It’s okay to live a life most people don’t understand.

You can’t have a new reality with an old mentality.

Those who don’t move won’t notice their chains.

If you want to make the wrong decision, ask everyone.

Ambition without action becomes anxiety.

Fear doesn’t stop death; it stops life.

To live a life most people don’t, you must be willing to do what most people won’t.

Ships are safe in the harbor, but that’s not what they’re built for.

No risk, no story.

Never take criticism from someone whose advice you'd ignore.

Be My Valentine Banner

 

“The best proof of love is trust.” – Joyce Brothers

“At the touch of love everyone becomes a poet.” – Plato

“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.” – Aristotle

“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.” – Audrey Hepburn

“Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

“Love is friendship that has caught fire.” – Ann Landers

“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” – Dr. Seuss

“Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” – William Shakespeare

“The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.” – Victor Hugo

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” – Charles Schulz

Nine Side Steps

 

My piano teacher used to ask, “How does a mouse eat an elephant?” The answer is, “One bite at a time.” He meant sometimes big tasks can feel overwhelming. If you divide them into smaller bits and accomplish one, it can give you momentum to tackle another. And another. Here are a few tasks requiring fifteen minutes or less:

 

Clean out your purse.

Make a shopping list.

Water your houseplants.

Strip and remake a bed.

Vacuum the living room.

Empty waste paper bins.

Clean a bathtub.

Dust light fixtures.

Start sauce for a pasta dinner.

Gather a bag of things to donate.

Scour the kitchen sink.

Scrub a toilet.

Polish the mirrors.

Fold a load of laundry.

Wipe down kitchen countertops.

Walk around the block.

Run an empty dishwasher with a cup of vinegar.

Empty the dishwasher.

Start a load of laundry.

Sweep the kitchen floor.

Purge the toybox of broken toys.

Clean out your car.