By John Y. Brown III, on Fri Jun 13, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET  If you think about it there are a lot more “Thoughts for the day” offered than “Actions for the day.”
Probably because thoughts are easier than actions.
And you probably think I am going to propose an “Action for the day.” But I am not. I am just going to let this observation count as my “Thought for the day” –and not rock the boat.
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When did teenaged kids get so together?
At high school graduation awards ceremony and some of these kids have already accomplished more than most the parents in the audience.
And look like it! All the male award recipients look like they carry business cards and one looked like he had to leave the office this morning to pick up his academic award.
I remember when I was in high school the administration was just hoping we could all sit still long enough to get through the graduation ceremony successfully.
My biggest disappointment today is that I forgot to bring my business cards to give out. Not to parents. But to the students!
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My new theory about aging.
As I close in on my 51st birthday (or 2 score years and 11, as I am calling it), I am theorizing that as humans age into the second half of life, we don’t progess from “young” to “old,” but rather develop from mammals into some form of reptile.
In other words, we don’t get “old,” just “lizardy” and “turtle-like.”
By John Y. Brown III, on Thu Jun 12, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET  How well do I know my wife?
After being together 27 years and married almost 23 years, pretty darned well.
In fact, I can tell 10 times out of 9 when she is upset with me but doesn’t want to say anything. And I gently pester her to finally tell me what is wrong and we work it out.
That’s right, 10 times out of 9.
That means 1 out of 10 times when I think Rebecca is upset with me, she really isn’t. But I keep trying to get her to admit that she really is upset with me–even though she isn’t– until I irritate her to the point that she really is upset with me.
Which means I really know when Rebecca is upset with me but doesn’t want to say anything 10 out of 10 times– including times when Rebecca doesn’t even know she is upset with me but is about to be.
I think that’s pretty impressive.
It just takes time. And an observant and irritating husband.
Conversely, Rebecca realizes I am upset with her only about 5 times out of 10.
When I am upset with Rebecca and she isn’t aware of it, I subtly hint that I am upset with her by telling her outright what it is that is upsetting me. Then we are both upset with each other.
That means 5 out of the 10 times when I am upset with Rebecca, she gets upset with me too. Which means we get to do something together. But frankly, it’s not as fun as it might sound.
And the 5 times out of 10 that Rebecca does realize I am upset with her, she says nothing –which I know is her way of saying, “Don’t. Don’t do it. Because remember….it is better when just one of us is irritated with the other than when both of us are irritated with the other at the same time.”
And I know Rebecca is right.
By John Y. Brown III, on Wed Jun 11, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET
I am at Walmart right now to buy an assortment of toiletries.
But on my way to the “Personal Care” aisle, I passed the “Automotive” section.
And I looked at the rows of sturdy tires and wanted to buy one–just a single tire at 12:41am.
Why? Because I could.
Maybe that is empowering.
But I have a feeling it’s just a really bad idea that sleepy people get when not expecting to see tires for sale when shopping past their bedtime.
By John Y. Brown III, on Tue Jun 10, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET When a small world forgets how to feel small.
In Orlando for conference.
I love Disney but wonder if their profit motive has outgtown their commitment to reasonable customer service.
Disney employees still wish you a “Magical Day” (after getting your name, address, phone number, credit card number and expiration date and thanking you for participating in the short customer service interview after the call), don’t get me wrong.
But I believe I have seen ant farms more logically and efficiently organized and easier to navigate than Disneyworld seems to be these days.
And I don’t want to sound like Grumpy. It’s still a magical place. If you don’t mind feeling like an ant inside an ant farm that was built by people who didn’t spend enough time asking themselves, “Will the ants like it?”
By John Y. Brown III, on Mon Jun 9, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET
This is the new texting symbol I just invented.
I haven’t decided what it means yet. And may not even get that far.
But I do feel like it looks pretty cool and seems like it could mean something. And I think I am even going to use it.
I mean, who cares what it means?
It’s just texting. Right?
LOL ; <> GTG €]>
By John Y. Brown III, on Sat Jun 7, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET Saturday morning prayer
“God, thank you for all you have given me; thank you for all you have taken away; and thank you for what you’ve left behind.
Please give me the strength and guidance to do Your wil always.
And Lord, even though this may seem a little off-topic, if you would help me get a good parking space at the mall this morning, that would be really great. Totally Your call and just mentioning as kind of an afterthought. Just something to think about.
Amen.”
By John Y. Brown III, on Fri Jun 6, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET Kentucky in late springtime is about as beautiful a place on our planet as you can find.
Especially early to mid-morning on a mild but sunny day when the foliage seems to be in 3-D and bubbling over itself.
Kentucky, at this time of year, feels like a sublime combination of an upbeat John Cougar Mellencamp song that is an old favorite coupled with serving as irrefutable proof of God’s existence.
By John Y. Brown III, on Thu Jun 5, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET Right on schedule. (More or less)
I just bought some “big boy” dress pants and a jacket that make me feel like The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit.
True, I am going for more of a “big boy” look than I have in the past.
But the really exciting news is as I am closing in on turning 51 years old, I actually feel like a bona fide grown up man about 49% of the time now.
And that is a personal record.
But the other 51% seems to have the momentum today.
By John Y. Brown III, on Wed Jun 4, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET Warning:
There are cyclists all over the roads today. I am not sure what is going on but think it is like when birds migrate South each year in massive formations–except people are doing it now.
They apparently are travelling South for the summer and are on bicycles instead of flying.
Warning because they aren’t as coordinated or organized as the birds but there are about as many of them.
By John Y. Brown III, on Tue Jun 3, 2014 at 12:00 PM ET Birthday thought for the day (Or reflections on what it is like to be 51 years old.)
Get old!
Seriously.
Not because it beats dying. Although it does. (But not by as overwhelming a margin as most people assume.)
But rather embrace the slogan “Get old” because….and this is where we get our snark on: “New and Improved” will never be better than “Old and Indifferent.” And “Young and Dynamic” is just a nice way of saying “Clueless and Unfocused.”
Just think about it, if you are young anyway.
If you are already old, you may be on medication that affects your short term memory and be unable to think through a complete thought. If that is the case, just smile knowlingly, like we do with other things we don’t understand but don’t want others to know we don’t understand. It’s very important we older folks at least keep up appearances. Trust me on this one.
In fact, if you remember nothing else from this “Thought for the day” post, please remember that part–too keep up appearances. In fact, write it down –especially if you are on medication that affects your short term memory– and leave it in a prominent place so you can see it often.
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I am just overwhelmed with so many nice birthday wishes and kind comments and want to thank each of you for taking the time to say something to me on my birthday.
It means a lot. Thank you.
I have tried my whole life to always be nice to people. I was warned by friends, “Nice guys finish last” and “People confuse niceness for weakness.” Andd before I met my lovely wife Rebecca, I had my own table and a running tab in the proverbial “Friend Zone.”
But it all worked out –in fact, better than I could have ever hoped and despite concerns I would “nice my way” into oblivion.
So if you are like me and worry you will always finish last or be viewed as weak or simply harmless, there is some truth to that–but only a little. And it gets better as you get older and people begin to prize pleasantness over posturing.
So keep being nice anyway. Eventually a good woman will appreciate you and others people, also eventually, prefer working with nice people. And best of all are your birthdays on Facebook. For an entire day it will feel to you like “nice is the new black.” Don’t miss out by giving in to your inner-jerk. Stay nice.
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