Name Five

Here’s a small quiz- see how many answers you can come up with…

1. Name the last 5 people to get the Nobel Peace Prize or a Pulitzer.
2. Name the last 5 Miss Universe Pageant winners.
3. Name the last 5 Heizman Trophy winners.
4. Name the last 5 people to win an Academy Award for best actor or actress.
5. Name the 5 wealthiest people on the planet.
6. Name the last 5 teams to win the World Series.

Rather tough questions, perhaps?

Sooner or later, none of us will remember the “headliners” of yesterday.

All of the questions above mention people that weren’t slackers by any means- they’re all “top dogs” in their professions… Sadly, with all things, no matter how great- the applause eventually dies, awards begin to tarnish- achievements soon forgotten.

Eventually, accolades and certificates are buried with their owners…

Now, try this small quiz:

1. Name 5 teachers that fostered or encouraged your best potential.
2. Name 3 people who helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name 5 people who taught you something worthwhile.
4. Name 5 people who you felt appreciated and special by.
5. Name at least 5 heroes whose stories have inspired you.

Now it’s not nearly as tough a quiz this time, right?

The people who make a difference in your life wind up being the ones without the most credentials, money or awards…

Though it could be said that your personal inspirations will fade in due time, consider this; it’s usually the ones who had the passion, courage, and drive- basically; the ones who cared, that make the greatest contributions to this world- no matter how grand or small.

There's a saying about the dropping of a pebble begins the ripples in a pool that eventually crash to a distant shore as a mighty wave...

What pebbles have you dropped into the sea of life along the way..?

I continue to be...

Russ

"Do I Make You Proud?"

Taylor Hicks - Do I Make You Proud

If the olde addage "a picture is worth..." holds true:

Here, dear readers, are a billion words expressing the love and admiration for those who have risen to the cause of freedom and those who have fallen for its protection...

To say much more, would only cheapen such a wonderful work.

Enjoy.

So; What Are You Afraid of..?

At some point in time- especially in our youth this question would inevitably come up.

Most often it was a rhetorical postulate by nature, simply testing your resolve to either join the clique or to surmise whether you had grown beyond the reach of your teddy bear outside of the comfort and safety of your home.

Now though, is the time to ask that all too familiar question...

Indeed- what are we afraid of?

Is it terrorism?  Outside of the North-Eastern states; I really doubt it.  The Communist Left of San Fran have left little if any doubt as to the dubious fantasy land they live in- one of their "leadership" professing no need for an American military- I suppose we could do as the Romans and let mercinaries protect us- until the price becomes too high even for them and they turn on the very masters who might once have fed them...

Our own demise?  Seems to me the world is far too busy- collectively as well as individually- to contemplate our navels and the forces of the here-after to really account for anything meaningful.

Hell- at one point I feared having my testicles cut off- by "The Potty Monster" back during the potty training formative years and then some years later in some god-forsaken shithole of a place...

Oddly enough- it only took a vasectomy where the local antistetic wore off 15 minutes into a 20 minute proceedure to make me a believer that you may feel like the world is gonna end- but besides a few month's trauma- you [or I in this case] can endure and live through it.

So.  

"What are you afraid of..?"  

The known?  The unknown?  The pain of 'loss' or is it 'pain' in its most base form?

Think of this as simply a contemplation exercise- something to convince me [or most importantly, yourself] that you're very much alive and a part of this world!

I continue to be

Russ

It's Been A While...

Far be it from me to state that I'm a 'frequent' blogger- obviously I'm not...

In the time since the last jotted post, I've managed to do all manner of "nesting" to make way for a new baby girl and all the accoutrements that go with a new infant.

As a doting parent, there'll be time enough for me to post a picture or two- so yes, those that truly despise such things will have fodder to add to their desparagement of doting parents and their ill sent coos and gaffs of their children.

Let this stand as a simple note that I am indeed still alive and that with the lack of sleep of the truly parentally damned, I may or may not get much writing done in the next month or so- right now I seem to have a problem with my feedburner links, so thus I have something else to add to my list of ebb-n-flow problems that make up life.

Peace be with you, gentle readers- Russ will be back in the saddle before you know it.

I continue to be:

Russ