Leaning To The Last…

If today were the last day of your life, would you want to do what you are about to do today?
—     Steve Jobs
What we need to do is always lean into the future;  when the world changes around you and when it changes against you – what used to be a tail wind is now a head wind – you have to lean into that and figure out what to do because complaining isn’t a strategy.
—     Jeff Bezos
Don’t Let Yesterday Take Up Too Much Of Today.
—     Will Rogers
[Happy Birthday to me!    —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2023	Sometimes Once Can Be Enough
2022	The Air Is Thinner, But It’s A Killer View
2021	Staying Young While Getting Old
	Mid-Afternoon (Hopefully) (Fill The World With Love)
2020	Still Measuring (My Next Thirty Years)
2019	Living On The Couch
	Who Am I – One Interpretation
2018	A Gardening Goal: Feed The Flowers
2017	Freakishly Happy Cowboy (The Cowboy In Me)
2016	One More, Please (Life In One Day)
2015	Infinite Adventure
2014	Unpaved
2013	Headstones
2012	Keeping Young
2011	Lessons Well Learned

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Pitter-Patter

Way back when I was dating my wife, she would occasionally hum a little tune.  I asked her what the tune was and she said it was just a little song she learned as a child / teen.  She gave me a book about Liverpool (where she’s from) and it had the lyrics of the song in it.  This morning, I was sitting in bed listening to a cloudburst hit the roof of our house and it brought back memories of living in Liverpool during the 1990s…
In My Liverpool Home
In my Liverpool home,
in my Liverpool home,
We speak with an accent
exceedingly rare,
Meet under a statue
exceedingly bare,
And if you want a cathedral
we’ve got one to spare,
In my Liverpool home.
I was born in Liverpool,
down by the docks
Me religion was Catholic,
occupation – hard knocks,
at stealing from lorries
I was adept
and under old overcoats
each night we slept
In my Liverpool home,
in my Liverpool home,
We speak with an accent
exceedingly rare,
Meet under a statue
exceedingly bare,
And if you want a cathedral
we’ve got one to spare,
In my Liverpool home.
When I grew up
I met Bridget McCann
She said you’re not much,
but I’m needing a man
for I want fifteen kids
and a house out in Speke
Me spirit was willing,
but me flesh it was weak
In my Liverpool home,
in my Liverpool home,
We speak with an accent
exceedingly rare,
Meet under a statue
exceedingly bare,
And if you want a cathedral
we’ve got one to spare,
In my Liverpool home.
Way back in the forties
the whole world went mad
Mr. Hitler threw at us
everything that he had
When the dust and the smoke had
all cleared from the air
“Thank God” said the Old Man,
“The Pier Head’s still there.”
In my Liverpool home,
in my Liverpool home,
We speak with an accent
exceedingly rare,
Meet under a statue
exceedingly bare,
And if you want a cathedral
we’ve got one to spare,
In my Liverpool home.
Loose Translation:
“Accent”:  Folks from Liverpool / Merseyside are “famous” for speaking an English dialect (LoL) known as “Scouse” and the people are “affectionately” known as “Scousers”.  From my limited experience, there’s Scouse, Scottish, and “proper” (BBC News) English.
“Bare Statue”:  Lewis’s Department Store is a locally famous store in downtown Liverpool (aka: City Centre).  The store was bombed out during World War II and was rebuilt after the war.  The rebuild was completed in 1956 and a (naked) statue was commissioned to stand over the front main entrance.  Because the location is well known in City Centre, folks would meet there before going to the pub (or wherever).
“Spare Cathedral”:  In olden days, you couldn’t be considered a “proper” (ie. “chartered”) European “city” until you had a cathedral.  Liverpool has two cathedrals:  one Anglican (“Church of England”) and one Catholic.  The Anglican Cathedral is a traditional cross-shape.  The Catholic Cathedral is circular-shaped and referred to (not always affectionately) as: “Paddy’s Wigwam”.
“Lorry”:  The British word for a truck.
“Speke”:  A suburb of Liverpool about 8miles southeast of the City Centre.
“Pier Head”:  The Liverpool docks were historically famous as the jump off point to Ireland and most of the British colonies (mainly the Americas and the West Indies) as it was the largest pier on the west facing coast of England.  The piers were extensively bombed by the Germans during World War II.  The “Pier Head” is famous for being the location of the “Three Graces”:  the Port of Liverpool Building (docking site of the “Ferry ‘Cross the Mersey”;  the Cunard Building (former headquarters of Cunard Line (shipping and passenger cruises);  and, the Royal Liver Building (originally life “assurance / insurance”).  The “Royal” is the site of the two Liver Bird copper statues which adorn the top of the building.
Note:  There are many other verses, but I believe the above are among the most commonly known / sung.
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On This Day In:
2023	Ditto For A Good Spouse And Their Love
2022	Putin’s Objective In Ukraine?
2021	It’s 12 O’clock Somewhere
	The Way It Is (Get On Up / Sex Machine)
2020	And #IncompetentDonald Weakens It
2019	Morning Mirror
2018	Wondering About #45
2017	A Prayer For London
2016	Don’t Default
2015	Her Pilgrim Soul
2014	Three Observations
2013	Robbed Again
2012	Good Hearts
2011	Interesting Reading
	What Are You Lookin’ At?

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Ba-Wah!!

My mother loved children – she would have given anything if I had been one.
—     Groucho Marx
There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep.
—     Ralph Waldo Emerson
[Particularly before two years of age!    —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2023	Prior Reflection (I Hope)
2022	Be Someone For Somebody
2021	Genius (And Other Details)
	I Don’t Know Why (I’m In A Hurry)
	Going Into The Deep End
2020	Repercussions For Health
2019	Chained To #45
2018	Some Men Make Their Office As Small As Themselves
2017	Too Many
2016	Not Yet, Anyway
2015	On Pornography
2014	Nudge, Nudge
2013	The Journey Will Be Joy
2012	Hopeful Flights
2011	Irrationally Predictable
	Lawful Restraint

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One Kind Thing

The following conversation has been “borrowed” from the comic strip “Pearls Before Swine” written by Stephan Pastis:
Rat, Goat and Pig are standing at the brick wall…
Goat (speaking to Rat and Pig):  “It’s so hard to decide on one philosophical school of thought to your life by…  You’ve got your stoicism, hedonism, rationalism, nihilism, existentialism…“
Pig:  “Do one kind thing a day for someone else.“
Pig then walks away…
Goat (turning to speak to Rat):  “Ever feel like you wasted four years in grad school?“
[The comic appeared on 18 Jan. 2024.
Disclaimer:  The text / conversation from the comic appears without prior permission.  I make no claim of ownership to the text.  If Mr Pastis objects to my post, I will remove this post or modify the post to Mr. Pastis’ approval.
Please visit / view “Pearls Before Swine” in its original format at:  Pearls Before Swine 18 Jan 2024
Please support art (and humor) in all its various formats.    —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2023	Discomfort
2022	A Clear View Of #45
2021	Not Here, Not Again
	Will The Senate Convict An Insurrectionist? (One In A Row)
2020	Senate Perfidy
2019	Contributing To Congress
	Yellow Signs Of Spring
2018	But Take Heart
	Poetic Marker
2017	The Few, The Many, The Most
2016	To My Brother
2015	For Junior
	A Roman Rome
2014	Hmmm
2013	What’s A Motto With You?
2012	Worthy Companions
2011	Bourne Again
	Which Ten Are You In?

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And… A Morning Without Coffee?

You can tell a lot about a person by the way they handle three things:  a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
—    Maya Angelou
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On This Day In:
2023	Restructuring Persistent Futility
2022	By Any Other Name (Or Description)
2021	Democracy, Pandemic, Economy And Climate Change
	Heaven Is… (Wand’rin’ Star)
2020	Hoping For #46 In January 2021
2019	Interesting, But Not Fascinating
	But Try To Eat The Low-Hanging First
2018	Me, Too
2017	Apt Enough?
2016	Now Or Ever
	21, Pause, Restart
2015	I Am Shocked, Sir, Shocked…
	Lucy & FSND-2
2014	Less Difficult
2013	The Spirit Of Liberty
2012	The Essential Freedom Of Aloneness
2011	A Problem Of Scale
	Fred Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
2010	Another Book, Another Jog…

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But I Digress

DMV Conspiracy
I just had 24 hours’ worth of creativity sucked out of me through my nose.  The jokes my parents and grandparents told were true.  I spent two and a half hours at the DMV getting my driver’s license renewed.
This has to be a government conspiracy designed to make you feel old, tired and beaten.  Probably so you don’t notice the extra property taxes you’re paying so the high school can have a parking garage.  No other building in town has a parking garage.  But I digress.
I had been in line for about an hour when I had to say, “The line moved much faster before we had computers and the internet.  That was when I first got in line.  I think they switched over since I got here.”
—     Deidra Alexander
From her blog:  https://deidraalexander.com/
The specific post is at:  https://deidraalexander.com/2016/06/02/dmv-conspiracy/
[It’s been over five years since this post.  I wonder if Deidra’s had a chance to revisit her DMV.     —     kmab]
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On This Day In:
2023	Share Love
2022	Biden Starts His Second Year
2021	DIY: Outdoor Gym Modifications (2)
	Inauguration Day 2021 (The Boys Are Back In Town)
	(Hopefully) Good-Bye To The Trump Dark Ages
2020	Posting As A Continual Exercise
2019	Border Security – Yes, Border Wall – No
2018	Supporting Survival Values
2017	Inauguration Day 2017  [Sometimes, I hate it when I’m right!   —   kmab]
2016	Or A Pot Of Gold After The Storm
2015	One, Two, Three…
2014	Lend Your Hand
2013	Amnesty, n.
2012	Best Resolv’d
	The Clock Is Running
2011	Magic

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Is It Really A Choke When You Get Crushed?

[No.  I don’t own a golf cart.  Heck, I don’t even golf.  But, this made me smile.  Go Niners beat the Packers!!
Disclaimer:  I did not make and do not claim ownership of this image.  A friend posted it on Facebook.  I just wish I could find a decent meme / image of the Detroit Lions beating the LA Rams…     —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2023	A Little Advice On Blogging…
	Two Thoughts For The Holiday
2022	What Do You See?
2021	Lite It Up
	Some Day (O-o-child)
2020	No Answers Yet
	120 Day Health / Weight Update (Jan 2020)
2019	Stationary Target
2018	And Firmly
2017	Nearer My Goal To Thee
2016	Relatively Simple Actions
2015	And Yet, You Did
2014	Difficult Learning
2013	Four Things To do
2012	When I Was Young…
	Emergence

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I Yam What I Yam*

We do not know what we want and yet we are responsible for what we are — that is the fact.
—     Jean-Paul Sartre
[*Says “Popeye the Sailor Man”, whom I believe wants more spinach.     —     kmab]
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On This Day In:
2022	Do Streaming Recommendations Steal Your Soul
2021	Too Bad Politics And Greed Get In The Way
	Little Prayers (I Say A Little Prayer)
2020	Precarious Fools
	A Shining City Upon A Hill (Camelot)
2019	How #45’s Father Raised Him For Incompetence
2018	Describing #45 – “The Loser” – As A Successful Businessman
	Raking – #PresidentIdiot Proposes Full Employment For California
2017	Federal Deficit, National Debt And Tax Cuts For The 1%
2016	Picky, Picky, Picky
2015	Another Limitation On Religion
2014	Enduring
2013	Tell Me More…
2012	Passing…
2011	Fake It ‘Til You Make It

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Still Adding Friends*

Why do I read?
I just can’t help myself.
I read to learn and to grow, to laugh
and to be motivated.
I read to understand things I’ve never
been exposed to.
I read when I’m crabby, when I’ve just
said monumentally dumb things to the
people I love.
I read for strength to help me when I
feel broken, discouraged, and afraid.
I read when I’m angry at the whole
world.
I read when everything is going right.
I read to find hope.
I read because I’m made up not just of
skin and bones, of sights, feelings,
and a deep need for chocolate, but I’m
also made up of words.
Words describe my thoughts and what’s
hidden in my heart.
Words are alive — when I’ve found a
story that I love, I read it again and
again, like playing a favorite song
over and over.
Reading isn’t passive — I enter the
story with the characters, breathe
their air, feel their frustrations,
scream at them to stop when they’re
about to do something stupid, cry with
them, laugh with them.
Reading for me, is spending time with a
friend.
A book is a friend.
You can never have too many.
—    Gary Paulsen
[AKA:  Why I should never be allowed in a used bookstore (unsupervised by my spouse).
This quote was found on Facebook.    —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2022	A Way Of Thinking, An Essential Tool
2021	Experience A Simple Whatever
	A Thousand Kisses (Never Too Much)
2020	Talking Politics With Trump Republicans
	In Another Lifetime (Shelter From The Storm)
2019	People Will Come
	Change Is Here…
2018	Be My Hero – Vote Tomorrow! (Hero)
	He Was All Of Us…
2017	Black And White
	Advice For #DumbDonald
2016	Mirror, Mirror
2015	Speaking With Forked Tongue
2014	The Code
2013	Eventually Formed
2012	Remember To Vote Tomorrow
2011	It Sounds Like Chaos Theory To Me

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Artificial Intelligence – We’re Still Working On It

The computer is a moron.
—     Peter F. Drucker
[The breakthrough probably won’t come until after we’ve fixed natural (“human”) stupidity.  So I’m not holding my breath…    —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2022	Mangia, Mangia
2021	Why We Have So Few Personal Favorites
	I Would Have Liked You Anyway (You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice)
2020	Why We Must Vote #45 Out
	If You Believe (Do You Believe In Magic)
2019	Sometimes I Still Have Trouble Sleeping
	Public Ridicule For Office Holder
2018	And Flights Of Fancy
	Dodgers Lose 2nd Consecutive World Series!!
2017	By Their Acts Thy Shall Know Them
2016	Remembering
2015	One
2014	Sure Experiments And Demonstrated Arguments
2013	Irrational Complacency
2012	Why Criticize?
	Giants Sweep 2012 World Series With Game 4 Win (4 To 3)!!!
2011	Saying Just Enough
2010	Giants Win Game 2 Shutout of Rangers – 9 to 0!!!

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Six Down, 1-1/2 To Go: I Can Almost Smell The Gravy

It normally takes seven to seven and a half years of retirement for the average American to “recover” all of the funds paid into their Social Security retirement funds during their forty odd years of work.  After that, every payment SSA provides you is gravy (mostly interest earned on the funds you withheld in trust / savings with SSA).
One to one-and-a-half years to go!    —    kmab
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On This Day In:
2022	Five Down, Two To Go
2021	Four Down, Three To Go
	It Still Ain’t (Fortunate Son)
	Boosted
2020	Three Down, Four To Go
	Twenty-Four ‘Til You (Roundabout)
2019	Two Down, Five To Go
2018	Year One, Done!
2017	First Day Of Retirement!
2016	Revere And Criticize
2015	Global Climate Change May Test This Statement
2014	Adaptability Won
2013	Disappeared
2012	Fuller
	Life On The Range
	More Classics
2011	Stoned Again?
2010	Insubordination… And That’s Why I Love Her!
	Losing – Week One

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New York City Or Los Angeles

Brain:  “We’re going to a place where the sun never sets, the size of your wallet matters, and actors and actresses slave all day.”
Pinky:  “We’re going to Denny’s?”
[From the animated cartoon show:  “Pinky And The Brain“
One of the cartoons I used to watch with my kids during the 1990s.    —    kmab
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On This Day In:
2022	A Little Of What’s Been Lost
2021	I Think They Mean It
	An Endless Stream (Homeward Bound)
2020	ITF (365) – Update
	Word Up! (Sussudio)
	My Fear: A Second More Tyrannous Term
2019	Reality And Imperfection
	Day 8: One Stone
2018	Pity The Nation (Part 1)
	Day 41: Hiccup Or End Of Days?
2017	Sharp-Edged Beauty
2016	Start, Keep, Finish
2015	Lifetime Friends
2014	Acknowledgement
2013	Longevity, Tenacity and Diversity
2012	What Reagan Really Cared About
2011	Seeming Sane (Or Not)

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Remembering Saturday Morning TV Commercials And Drive-In Movie Concession Stands

In general my children refuse to eat anything that hasn’t danced in television.
—    Erma Bombeck
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On This Day In:
2022	Supporters Of #45 – The Big Liar
2021	Incomplete And Probably Inaccurate
	I’ve Made A Few Mistakes (Ooh Baby Baby)
2020	One Of Your Responsibilities
	God Is Watching Us (From A Distance)
2019	Just Asking…
2018	Or Attacks On A Free Press
	Day 26: Life
2017	Still Looking For The Key
2016	Not So Much Anymore, Boss
2015	Green Binge
2014	Overdone
2013	The Courage To Remake The World
2012	Minor Gifts
2011	I Love It When A Plan Comes Together…
2010	Eloquence
	Cleaning the Chalk Board

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Head Shaking

There’s something wrong with a mother who washes out a measuring cup with soap and water after she’s only measured water in it.
—    Erma Bombeck
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On This Day In:
2022	Back To First Principles
2021	Full Value Division
	EWF On Ice (I Like The Way You Move)
	Strung Along
2020	The Responsibility Side Is On The Right
	Where Clear Winds Blow (Up Where We Belong)
2019	Define Your Life…
2018	It Is No Secret
	Day 25: When 4 or 5 equals 2
2017	Cowardly Defamation
2016	With No Allowance For Chance?
2015	Details
2014	Here’s One…
2013	Non-Fungible Commodities
2012	Hope And Tears
2011	Just Long Enough
	Meaningful Thoughts

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Why #TrumpTheRINO Is Painful & Difficult For America

When you are dead, you do not know you are dead.  It’s only painful & difficult for others.  The same applies when you are stupid.
—     Ricky Gervais
[I would reverse the order of this quote for #DonTheDummy and his MAGA-RINO followers:  “When you are stupid, you do not know you are stupid.  It’s only painful & difficult for others.  The same applies when you are dead.”   But either way, it seems to me to be applicable.   —    kmab]
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On This Day In:
2022	Silent Preferences
2021	In Between
	Summertime Memories  (Feels So Good)
2020	A Poverty Of Attention In An Attention Economy
	Don’t Forget
2019	Boxes
2018	Hoping For Better Come November
	An Honest Binge
2017	Give And Keep
2016	No Change Here
2015	Campbell’s Law
2014	Dignified Values
2013	Unappreciated Skill
2012	Living Courage
2011	What’s Happening To Us?
2010	Toothbrush, Carbon and Monoxide
	Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!

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