want to be more..........always try

"Thinking" about how much difference a person can make in your life.
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Many people influence us in very positive ways. I have a couple of cousins (I have a lot of good cousins but I am thinking of two from two different families in particular right now) that from a very young age left me with the impression that they just were good sincere people who wanted to do their best, and did indeed to well at a lot of things, and many many years later they still impress me. Impress may be the wrong word. Inspire, motivate, admire, appreciate all work. I was better to have known them. I have always wanted to be more than I was because of that type of influence. I have had many friends that made a positive difference. Again the common thread was what kind of people they were. One friend, JP, was an advisor of sorts for a lot of years, even now if needed, and I knew that his standards for doing anything was going to take me in the "right" direction.
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We do make each other better. That said I think we ought to "seek out the best of friends and associates". If we are what we think, and that is pretty obvious, then we think about what and who we associate with. Perhaps some friends are not so positive and perhaps we can say that it is us that becomes the positive influence and great if that is the case but it takes twice the effort on our part to overcome the negative influence trying to put out some positive and a lot of years tells me we fool ourself thinking we are that strong. I have noticed that the two KJ's have had some very very good friends in their lives. That is a strong example for me to want to do the same. We can be better tomorrow no matter what our yesterdays were. We can.

mid week thoughts

Craving a really good fresh peach. Cold. Juicy. Ripe. Don't see many peaches. Then too peaches bring back a lot of memories. Late summer was a time when peaches were "canned" when I was growing up. "Canned Peaches", of course, really was the term for "bottled in quart jars", under pressure. The peaches would be sliced, peeled and put in a steam kettle with a lot of sugar and then cooked under pressure. I am not sure why all the sugar was necessary. I remember seeing the pressure cooker all locked down with water almost boiling inside and always wondered what would happen if it blew up?My dad had a bowl of peaches "every" morning for as long as I could remember. They were for many years the bottled peaches but for a lot of those years they were canned peaches and in this sense canned was in cans, store bought, not bottles. If one was to buy canned peaches then California Yellow Cling was the best. On the other hand for Fresh Peaches, "Brigham City Utah Peaches" were the best.

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I of course read a couple of blogs every day. They often have "lists". Things that were done the last month. Things that are favorite's. Lists of books and all kinds of favorites. I have not often put those kinds of lists on my blog but then maybe today? A list of favorite foods over the years....................................

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Peaches (fresh), Raspberries (fresh), Snicker Bars, KJ's Special Chocolate Cookies, French Toast, Waffles with fresh raspberries, berries and whipped cream, Jello with fruit, KJ's special Banana Split Desert, KJ's Lasagna, creme brulee, Lobster, halibut, KJ's special yams, Strawberries (fresh), grapes, carrot raisin salad, Lion House rolls and so on. I suppose I ought to put a warning on this blog not to read if your on a diet but then what are the odds that my favorites would be much of a temptation anyway? Probably less than 47.5%. Then again I read just today that most statitics are made up on the spot. I would figure that there is a 91% odds that the last sentence is accurate.

The moon never beams without bringing me dreams, I suppose

ok I took the picture from KJ's stuff. Great picture of course. The point is pretty obvious, being "cat and mouse". Today is a mouse day. New computer for KJ but the mouse won't work so we can't set it up. Probably another dell issue since the mouse is still dell. I just looked down and noticed that my mouse is hp. Suppose that opens the door to a test. Need to go out and run first. Suppose this is face book chatter not blog stuff but then I need to go out to run. Was thinking about the St G Marathons done over many years as I read another favorite blog today. I am glad I did them. On the other hand I am glad I made it through a few of them and that I am still here to type about it.

All that I can do

Earlier tonight we were looking through a daily journal where I have written thoughts over the years. Looking back I see lots pages where the daily happenings of our family are recorded. Family stood out. All other activities faded. I read a story in the Ensign again tonight. Teaching about prayer was illustrated by a father and son who meet in a far away city and as they left each other they knew that they would never again in this life live with each other. They would see each other of course but it represented one leaving the other. Then I thought of the last time I had seen my own father. He was walking away to get on a bus. I saw him leave for the last time in this life. The stories tell of feelings, of hoping, that he would be prepared for what was to come. Of hoping that all that could have been done to help him had been done. A prayer had always been the practice. Fathers watching over sons and hoping for the 'Fathers" help. The most a Father can do for a son or a daughter is to love their mother. Then too, to hope that they will seek the help of "our" Father as they go on by themselves. One doesn't have to come to New Mexico to find their "soul standing still" with hope and expectation and faith and love.
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"I think that New Mexico was the greatest experience from the outside world that I ever had. It certainly changed me forever..................The moment I saw the brilliant proud morning (sun) shine high up over the deserts of Santa Fe, something stood still in my soul" D.H. Lawerence

Whistling for 27 days, shoes shined, employed, and just a happy guy so "that's how, Mr Brown Cow"

Looking through a notebook where I log my running miles I have a section that I paste in stuff under the title of "funny". Examples of "funny".................... "for the next 27 days I'll be conducting a non-stop sales meeting on why we're not making enough sales calls. (this was funnier years ago when I was actually conducting sales meetings). ...............Another entry shows a cow laying on a couch and a guy in a chair with a notebook in his hands with the caption, "NO, I wouldn't call you a mad cow exactly- I'd say you're a cow with issues">........................................ Next is the Wizard of ID, first caption, Two men are standing facing each other and a sign on the wall behind one says "Wanted Stable Boy". One of the men says to the other, "I'd like to apply for the job in the stables. Next caption, The man who is obviously able to hire a stable boy stands with his hand out with a small can open. He says to the applicant "Okay what's this". The man looking for the job promptly answers saying"Shinola *". The last caption, The man who is hiring says "Your Hired".................................................. Liked that one. ...............................................The next page has a fellow hauling coal or something in a wheel barrel and "whistling". Looks like a happy guy. The rest of the folks in the picture are not happy. There is a big fire and the guys and all are working to keep it "hot'. The supervisors are two guys with horns wearing robes with high collars and holding pitch forks and of course this leads you to believe this is somewhere in "Heck" and one guy with horns is telling the other one, apparently speaking about the "whistler", "You know, we're just not reaching that guy".

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Keeping a good attitude sort of has a lot to do with figuring out what to blog today.

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way back in "olden" times folks said about folks having thinkin problems that they may not know S........ from Shinola.

Creating our "self"

I recall a comment this week about creative people. The interesting thing about the comment was not the comment but the suggestion that creative people are different. Of course they are but on the other hand the real question might just be what it is that is being created. We all create ourselves. Guess we get a lot of help and sometimes we have others to blame and sometimes we may seem to have less to work with but one way or another we get to put our mark on our final outcome. I have posted this picture before. I like it because it implies that we maybe just discover ourself. Someone discovered the person inside the marble. Some good quotes along this line.............

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The world works from the outside in, the Lord works from the inside out. Ezra Taft Benson

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Love truth, but pardon error Voltaire

Just my Father and me

Since this is the 4th of July I thought I would write something "original". Ok, it was a good thought and managed to get me through a couple of sentences but it is much more challenging that it sounds. Lot's of thoughts, once they make it to paper, are anything but original. Having said this I guess the need to be original really has little to do with the 4th, or does it? Maybe we on the 4th are thankful. Being thankful perhaps points us towards what we could not have really done for our self? Maybe recognizing what others do for us frees us a little. Instead of reaching out for a "phrase" or "picture" that is anything but original to capture our point of view we find our own originality in our thankfulness........................... This poem is an original from a long time back, it seems. It makes me thankful.

Ships

by kjn

We walked to the Sea

Just my Father & me

And the days played around on the sand

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Winter cut the air

With the memories hanging there

And he said to me

"Take my hand"

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He said love's easier when

You're far away

It makes us realize what we have

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Although we're just ships that pass

in the night

We smile and we say

"Its alright"

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We're still here it's just

that were out of sight

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Like the ships that pass in the night.

Time for a picture

It was a year or so ago that we took this picture along the banks of the Rio Grande.

A lot has happened over that time.

Reminds me of a quote.......................

Albert Einstein once said, "Time was only invented to stop everything happening at once.”