Make Fun Of Life!

Are You Married Yet?

10/26/2020

Are you married yet? We have a page on that topic. Simply click on Marriage.

If you came here looking for fun, you are in the right place. Just travel down this page, skipping the articles that might not interest you, until you come to the ones that appeal to you. When you have a moment, be sure to explore some of the other pages shown on the menu bar at the top of the sky above, such as the Life Page, which includes Childhood and Friendship.

We are MFOL! . . . we now pronounce you . . . a step ahead on the journey called life . . .

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Efforts and Benefits

10/25/2020

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“You can accomplish virtually anything if you want it badly enough and if you are willing to work long enough and hard enough.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Much effort, much prosperity.” -Euripides (480 B.C.E. - 406 B.C.E.)

“Dig where the gold is unless you just need some exercise.” -John M. Capozzi: “Why Climb the Corporate Ladder When You Can Take the Elevator” (1994)

“When we do more than we are paid to do, eventually we will be paid more for what we do.” -Zig Ziglar (Hilary Hinton ‘Zig’ Ziglar (1926 - 2012))

“Be willing to give that extra effort that separates the winner from the one in second place.” -H. Jackson Brown, Junior (Harriett Jackson Brown, Junior (born 1940))

“I’ve got a theory that if you give one-hundred percent all of the time, somehow things will work out in the end.” -Larry Bird (Larry Joe Bird (born 1956))

“Working hard becomes a habit, a serious kind of fun. You get self-satisfaction from pushing yourself to the limit, knowing that all the effort is going to pay off.” -Mary Lou Retton (Mary Lou ‘Lou’ Retton (born 1968))

“Always take a job that is too big for you.” -Harry Emerson Fosdick (1878 - 1969)

“Work joyfully and peacefully, knowing that right thoughts and right efforts will inevitably bring about right results.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912)

“It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things.” -Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore ‘Teddy’ Roosevelt (1858 - 1919))

“The more we do the more we can do.” -William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830)

“Who knows whether one happy moment of love or the joy of breathing or walking on a bright morning and smelling the fresh air, is not worth all the suffering and effort which life implies.” -Erich Fromm (Erich Seligmann Fromm (1900 - 1980))

“Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds.” -Gordon B. Hinckley (Gordon Bitner Hinckley (1910 - 2008))

“Labor was the first price, the original purchase-money that was paid for all things. It was not by gold or by silver, but by labor, that all wealth of the world was originally purchased.” -Adam Smith (1723 - 1790): “The Wealth of Nations” (1776)

“All great success and achievement is preceded and accompanied by hard, hard, work. When in doubt, ‘try harder.’ And if that doesn’t work, try harder still!” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Energy, even like the Biblical grain of mustard-seed, will move mountains.” -Hosea Ballou (1771 - 1852)

“The more I want to get something done, the less I call it work.” -Richard Bach (Richard David Bach (born 1936))

“The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” -William Faulkner (William Cuthbert ‘Will’ Faulkner (1897 - 1962))

“The results you achieve will be in direct proportion to the effort you apply.” -Denis Waitley (born 1933)

“It’s true that the willing horse gets the heaviest load. It is also true that he develops the strongest muscles and gets the most oats.” -Author Unknown

“We work to become, not to acquire.” -Elbert Hubbard (Elbert Green Hubbard (1856 - 1915)): “A Thousand and One Epigrams” (1911)

“You get what you work for, not what you wish for.” -Author Unknown

“Without work there will not be any bread in your mouth.” [translation to English]
“Sine labore non erit panis in ore.” [original Latin]
-Author Unknown

“There is no royal road to anything. One thing at a time, all things in succession. That which grows fast, withers as rapidly. That which grows slowly, endures.” -Josiah Gilbert Holland (1819 - 1881)

“The mode by which the inevitable comes to pass is effort.” -Oliver Wendell Holmes, Junior (1841 - 1935)

“Winners embrace hard work. They love the discipline of it, the tradeoff they’re making to win. Losers, on the other hand, see it as punishment. And that’s the difference.” -Lou Holtz (Louis Leo ‘Lou’ Holtz (born 1937))

Without Pains,
No Gains.
-Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): “Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 6360

“The fruit derived from labor is the sweetest of all pleasures.” -Luc de Clapiers (1715 - 1747)

“In all human affairs there are efforts, and there are results, and the strength of the effort is the measure of the result. Chance is not. Gifts, powers, material, intellectual, and spiritual possessions are the fruits of effort; they are thoughts completed, objects accomplished, visions realized.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912): “As a Man Thinketh” (1902), ‘Visions and Ideals’

“The highest reward for man’s toil is not what he gets for it, but what he becomes by it.” -John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)

“For every disciplined effort there is a multiple reward.” -Jim Rohn (Emanuel James ‘Jim’ Rohn (1930 - 2009))

“Whatever you give to life will return to you - multiplied! This applies to our daily thoughts, feelings, and actions, be they positive or negative, uplifting or depressing.” -Frederick W. Babbel (Frederick William Babbel (1915 - 2001))

“Work is the grand cure for all maladies and miseries that ever beset mankind - honest work, which you intend getting done.” -Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881)

“The man who rolls up his sleeves seldom loses his shirt.” -Thomas Cowan (Thomas ‘Tom’ Cowan (born 1969))

“If there is no dull and determined effort, there will be no brilliant achievement.” - Xun Kuang (also known as Hsun Tzu, Xun Zi, and Xunzi (about 310 B.C.E. - about 235 B.C.E.))

“Getting the most out of life is giving life your most.” -Janice Markowitz

“There is no excellence anywhere without labor. We would think a man foolish indeed who would say I am willing that my business should prosper or that my farm should yield plentifully but I’ll not stir a peg. But he is no more foolish than the man who says I am willing that God should bless me abundantly but I shall not do anything toward that end myself. We must consistently rely upon the help of the Lord but we will not make any progress or meet with any success unless we put forth an earnest effort.” -Charles W. Nibley (Charles Wilson Nibley (1849 - 1931))

“If you put forth the effort, good things will be bestowed upon you.” -Michael Jordan (born 1963)

“It’s the constant and determined effort that breaks down all resistance and sweeps away all obstacles.” -Claude M. Bristol (Claude Myron Bristol (1891 - 1951))

“For anything worth having one must pay the price; and the price is always work, patience, love, self-sacrifice.” -John Burroughs (1837 - 1921)

“Nobody gets to run the mill by doing run-of-the-mill work.” -Thomas J. Frey

“The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win.” -Roger Bannister (Roger Gilbert Bannister (1929 - 2018))

“There’s no substitute for hard work.” -John Wooden (John Robert Wooden (1910 - 2010))

“The difficulties and struggles of today are but the price we must pay for the accomplishments and victories of tomorrow.” -William J. H. Boetcker (William John Henry Boetcker (1873 - 1962))

“Nothing ever comes to one that is worth having except as a result of hard work.” -Booker T. Washington (Booker Taliaferro Washington (1856 - 1915)

“Genius begins great works; labor alone finishes them.” -Joseph Joubert (1754 - 1824)

“Nobody ever found a buried treasure without digging for it. Most success is beneath the surface. Dig every day.” -George W. Cummings, Senior: as quoted in Paul D. Cummings: “Lessons at the Fence Post” (November 1996)

“If you’re not willing to put in the effort, don’t expect anything in return.” -Author Unknown

“Labor is the great producer of wealth; it moves all other causes.” -Daniel Webster (1782 - 1852)

“Continuous effort - not strength or intelligence - is the key to unlocking our potential.” -Winston Churchill: as quoted in Liane Cordes: “The Reflecting Pond: Meditations for Self-Discovery” (1981), page 89

“Men will get no more out of life than they put into it.” -William J. H. Boetcker (William John Henry Boetcker (1873 - 1962))

“Nothing will work unless you do.” - Maya Angelou (Marguerite Ann Johnson (1928 - 2014))

“Much good work is lost for the lack of a little more.” -Edward H. Harriman (Edward Henry Harriman)

“It is better to wear out than to rust out.” -Frances E. Willard (Frances Elizabeth Caroline Willard (1839 - 1898))

“Do a little more each day than you think you possibly can.” -Lowell Thomas (Lowell Jackson Thomas (1892 - 1981))

“Men do less than they ought, unless they do all that they can.” -Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881): as quoted in Horace Smith: “The Tin Trumpet” (1859)

“The reward for work well done is the opportunity to do more.” -Jonas Salk (1914 - 1995)

“No one ever attains very eminent success by simply doing what is required of him; it is the amount and excellence of what is over and above the required, that determines the greatness of ultimate distinction.” -Charles Kendall Adams (1835 - 1902)

“I realized that with hard work, the world was your oyster. You could do anything you wanted to do. I learned that at a young age.” -Christine Marie ‘Chris’ Evert (born 1954)

“Four little words sum up what has lifted most successful individuals above the crowd: A little bit more. They did all that was expected of them and a little bit more.” -A. Lou Vickery

“Do more than you’re supposed to do and you can have or be or do anything you want.” -Bill Sands (born 1953)

This is MFOL! . . . life can be fun . . . if we make the effort . . .

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Witchcraft and Witches

10/20/2020

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Is this a coven of witches . . . or just a group of women who enjoy playing dress-up for teatime?

Emma: What bounces and cackles?
Emmit: A witch on a trampoline!

Witches Brew

Dash of bat whiskers
Three purple tadpoles
Dollop of goobly goop
One teaspoon frozen rainbow
Two pinches of ghost dust
Sprinkle with troll teeth
Mix thoroughly and simmer
Over low heat for 4 hours
Serve ice cold.

by Author Unknown

Laura: What did the little witch hope to get for her birthday?
Laurel: A haunted dollhouse!

The word ‘witch’ is derived from the Old English words ‘wicca’ meaning ‘wise man’ and ‘wicce’ meaning ‘wise woman.’

Bill: Have you heard about the good weather witch?
Penny: Yes, and she’s forecasting sunny spells!

In 2013, the country of Swaziland passed a law prohibiting witches from flying above an altitude of 150 meters (492 feet). Is this law unfair?

Bonnie: Why does everyone at witches’ conventions wear a nametag?
Lonnie: So they can tell which witch is which witch.

Apparently, even witches get lonely for the company of their own kind. Thus, they gather into ‘covens,’ of between two and thirteen witches. The word ‘coven’ was mostly unused in the English language until 1921, when Margaret Murray advanced the idea that witches across Europe met in groups of 13, which they call covens. When covens gather, they engage in communication with the spirit world, rituals, chants, sharing of news and gossip and recipes for potions and spells, and possibly whatever else your imagination is suggesting to you right now.

Ace: Why do witches carry black cats on their brooms?
Tex: Because elephants weigh too much.

A warlock, or a man-witch, went to the doctor one day complaining of headaches. “It’s because I live in a room with two of my brothers,” he said. “One of them has six goats and the other has four pigs and they all live in the room with us. The smell is terrible.” “Well, couldn’t you just open the windows?” asked the doctor. “Certainly not,” he replied. “My bats would fly out!”

Ruben: What do witches say when they cast the wrong spell?
Benjamin: “Hexcuse me!”

Sign: Witch Parking Only - All Others Will Be Toad.

Sal: What kind of pets do witches have?
Les: Scaredy cats!

The cat, frog, pig, raven, goat, wolf, bat, and mouse were believed to be a witch’s ‘familiar,’ or a spirit in animal form that was used by a witch to perform evil deeds and cast malevolent spells.

Lily: What do you get if you cross a witch with Wintertime?
Lilith: A cold spell.

Simon: What do you call two witches on one broom?
Cinnamon: Broommates.

“Laugh, and the world laughs with you. Cackle maniacally, and people back away from you slowly.” -Author Unknown

Wanda: How does a witch make scrambled eggs?
Wendy: She cracks eggs into a pan and gets two other witches to make the stove shake with fright. Then she cackles just like a chicken!

We would not want to attract the ire of any witches, but here is a little secret about the ways of harmless good witches: The ingredients they use in their potions and other concoctions are extraordinarily ordinary, but they give the ingredients fantastic names to keep their recipes secret. So for example, bat wings might really be leaves of cloves, and eye of newt might actually be pearl onions. Some folks just find having secrets makes their lives more interesting - that plus ‘secret recipes’ fetch a higher price in the marketplace than regular ones. On the other hand, malevolent or bad witches might actually use real scales of snakes and warts of toads and hairs of hares in their recipes.

Corey: What is evil and goes around and around?
Courtney: A witch on a merry-go-round.

Shelia: Where does a witch park her broom after she is done flying?
Ophelia: In a broom closet.

Rachel: What do witches put on their bagels?
Michael: Scream cheese!

Sandy: What does a witch call for when she checks into a hotel?
Sandra: Broom service.

Wiccaphobia is a persistent fear of witches and witchcraft. Wow, there’s a word for nearly everything, isn’t there?

Donny: How does a witch tell time?
Donald: By looking at her witch-watch.

Josie: What has six legs and flies?
Joey: A witch and a cat on a broom!

“‘A witch ought never be frightened in the darkest forest,’ Granny Weatherwax had once told her, because she should be sure in her soul that the most terrifying thing in the forest was her.” -Terry Pratchett: “Wintersmith” (2006)

Wilma: How can you imagine yourself flying on a broom?
Wilfred: Just engage in witchful thinking!

Angie: Why do witches wear pointy hats?
Angelica: To cover their pointy heads.

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l i v e ☆ l a u g h ツ  www.MakeFunOfLife.net ♥ l o v e ☼ g r o w
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All:
Double, double toil and trouble;
     Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.

Second Witch:
Fillet of a fenny snake,
     In the cauldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt and toe of frog,
     Wool of bat and tongue of dog,
Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting,
     Lizard’s leg and owlet’s wing,
For a charm of powerful trouble,
     Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

All:
Double, double toil and trouble;
     Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616): “Macbeth” (1606), Act IV, scene 1 [A cavern. In the middle, a boiling cauldron], lines 1557 through 1568

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l i v e  ☆  l a u g h  ツ  www.MakeFunOfLife.net  ♥  l o v e  ☼  g r o w
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Cora: What is a witch’s favorite subject in school?
Corey: Spelling.

“Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger.” -J.R.R. Tolkien (John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892 - 1973)): “The Fellowship of the Ring” (1954), book I, chapter 3

Marcy: What has four wheels and flies?
Marcella: A witch on a vacuum cleaner!

Overheard: The local witch once threatened to turn me into a toad, but she changed her mind after thinking it over. She said it would be a waste of a perfectly good spell because no one would notice any change in my appearance!

Darcy: How does a witch lose the weight gained from eating Halloween candy?
Darla: She hex-ercises.

Helen Duncan, a medium, or a person who purports to communicate with the spirit world, was arrested in 1944 in Portsmouth, England. She had been arrested originally for the catch-all charge of vagrancy, but when she came up for trial at the Old Bailey, the police promptly added the charge of witchcraft, and she was tried under the Witchcraft Act of 1735. Her case is the last known instance of a person in England being tried by law as a witch.

Hilda: Why don’t witches ride their brooms when they are upset?
Mathilda: They are afraid of flying off the handle!

Would you be willing to entertain the possibility that witches, along with warlocks, wizards, sorcerers, and sorceresses are not real, but are creations wholly of human imagination? This would mean that some people might like to pretend that they are these things, and some people might accuse other people of being these things, and though they might be either good people or bad people, they are not really witches, warlocks, wizards, sorcerers, or sorceresses.

Felicia: What do little witches eat?
Felicity: Alpha-bat soup!

According to some people, if you wear your clothes inside out and walk backwards on Halloween, you will see a witch at midnight. We strongly advise against doing this, because it could result in tripping, falling, and serious injury. Instead, anyone wanting to see a witch should watch the movie “Hocus Pocus” (1993). It is rated ‘PG’ for ‘Parental Guidance’ advised; however, like all entertainment, it should be reviewed and approved by parents or other grownups for suitability before their children are allowed to see it.

At MFOL! we do all of our own stunts, but we must remind folks that flying through the air on a broom involves significant risk, and should be done only after lengthy training, and unlike the man shown in the image above, should be done only with protective equipment including a helmet, goggles, and a parachute.

Cecil: How do witches keep their hair in place while flying?
Celeste: With scare-spray.

“The riches of witches are flying brooms, black cats, cookery with cauldrons, loud clear cackles, the camaraderie of covens - and spells that cause itches!” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

Ted: How do you make a witch itch?
Todd: Just take away the ‘w.’

What should you do if a geometric witch puts a hexagon you?

Irwin: How many witches does it take to change a light bulb?
Irving: Just one, but she changes it into a toad!

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l i v e  ☆  l a u g h  ツ  www.MakeFunOfLife.net  ♥  l o v e  ☼  g r o w
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Witches’ Menu

Live lizard, dead lizard
     Marinated, fried.
Poached lizard, pickled lizard
     Salty lizard hide.

Hot lizard, cold lizard
     Lizard over ice.
Baked lizard, boiled lizard
     Lizard served with spice.

Sweet lizard, sour lizard
     Smoked lizard heart.
Leg of lizard, loin of lizard
     Lizard a la carte.

by Sonja Nikolay (born 1936)

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l i v e  ☆  l a u g h  ツ  www.MakeFunOfLife.net  ♥  l o v e  ☼  g r o w
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Lynne: Which cartoon do witches like to watch on television?
Linda: “The Scare Bears.”

What is the Witching Hour? The hour after midnight, when witches and other supernatural beings are thought to be active, and to which bad luck is ascribed, is called ‘the witching hour’ in folkloric tradition. All honest mortals are to be found at home fast asleep in bed at this time of night, and not wandering about in the dark.

Rutherford: How can you tell twin witches apart?
Ruth: You can never really tell which witch is which.

Wilfred: What would you expect to find on a beach at Halloween?
Mildred: A sand-witch.

“Mortified: A witch’s reaction to being mortalized, or being changed into a mere mortal.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

Mandy: Why do witches fly on brooms?
Manetta: Because vacuum cleaners are too heavy.

Tongue twister: If two witches watched two watches, which witch would watch which watch?

Ollie: What do witches like to do on the computer?
Oliver: Use the ‘spell’ checker.

Judy: What did one witch say to the other witch when she asked for a lift?
Trudy: “There’s always plenty of broom for one more.”

We cover a wide variety of topics . . . because one size does not fit all . . . more fun follows . . . on MFOL!

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Bumper Stickers and License Plates

10/13/2020

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Bumper sticker: If You Lived In Your Car, You Would Be Home By Now.

Bumper sticker: When In Danger Or In Doubt, Run In Circles, Scream, And Shout!

License plate on a brown Land Rover: ARF ARF.

Bumper sticker: If You Can Read This, Thank A Teacher.

Bumper sticker: Relish Today . . . Ketchup Tomorrow!

Bumper sticker: Be Alert - The World Needs More Lerts.

Bumper sticker: To Err Is Human, To Moo Bovine.

Bumper sticker: Don’t Wish For It - Work For It.

Bumper sticker: Buckle Up - It Makes It Harder For The Aliens To Suck You Out Of Your Car.

Bumper sticker: The Truth Is Out There. It’s Just Not Very Well Indexed.

Bumper sticker: I Souport Publik Edekasi8n.

Bumper sticker: If You Think I’m A Lousy Driver, Wait Until You See Me Putt.

Bumper sticker: Save The Earth - It’s The Only Planet With Chocolate!

Bumper sticker: There Is No Shortcut To Anyplace Worth Going.

Bumper sticker: Warning - This Vehicle Protected By Anti-Theft Sticker.

Bumper sticker: I Drive Way Too Fast To Worry About Cholesterol.

Bumper sticker: Power To The People (seen on an electrician’s truck).

Bumper sticker: Help Stamp Out And Eradicate Superfluous Redundancy.

Bumper sticker: If You Can Read This Bumper Sticker You Are Driving Too Close.

Bumper sticker: So You’re A Feminist - Isn’t That Cute?

Bumper sticker: How Many Roads Must A Man Travel Down Before He Admits He Is Lost?

Bumper sticker: You Have Enemies? Good - That Means You Stood Up For Something.

Bumper sticker: Be The Kind Of Friend You’d Want to Have.

Bumper sticker: Turn Signals Are Not Just For Smart People Anymore.

Bumper sticker: I’d Rather Be Fishing!

Bumper sticker: My Other Vehicle Is A Romulan Warbird.

Bumper sticker: Follow Your Dreams Except The One Where You Are Showing A Squirrel How To Climb A Tree.

Bumper sticker: I Owe, I Owe, So It’s Off To Work I Go!

License plate: YRU FAT (seen on weight-loss guru Richard Simmons’ vehicle).

Bumper sticker on a Lamborghini: My Other Car Is A Lamborghini, Too!

Bumper sticker: Honk If You Are A Bad Driver.

Bumper sticker: Eagles Don’t Flock.

Bumper sticker: Honk If You Like Peace And Quiet.

Bumper sticker: Caution - I Drive Like You Do!

Bumper sticker: Caution - Blind Person Driving! (seen on a venetian blind installer’s vehicle).

Bumper sticker: I Do Whatever My Breakfast Cereal Tells Me To Do.

Bumper sticker: Just Say No To Negativity.

Bumper sticker: If Your Ship Hasn’t Come In . . . Swim Out To It!

Bumper sticker: Be Nice To Americans, Or We’ll Bring Our Style Of Democracy To Your Country!

Bumper sticker: I Don’t Repeat Gossip.

Bumper sticker: I Have Animal Magnetism. Every Time I Go Outside, Squirrels Stick To My Clothes.

Bumper sticker: Just Because You Are Paranoid Does Not Mean They Are Not Out To Get You.

Bumper sticker: What If There Were No Hypothetical Questions?

Bumper sticker: The Internet Is An Information Source Not A Lifestyle Choice.

Bumper sticker: I Am Speeding Because I Have To Get Someplace Before I Forget Where I Was Going!

Bumper sticker: People Who Anger You Control You.

Have you read the bumper sticker that reads, “Ban All Bumper Stickers!”?

Bumper sticker: It Is Bad Luck To Be Superstitious.

Bumper sticker: Honk If You Have No Control Over Your Impulses.

Bumper sticker: Quantum Mechanics Is The Dreams Stuff Is Made Of.

Bumper sticker: Humans Aren’t The Only Species On Earth, We Just Act Like It.

License plate on the vehicle of a sewing machine dealership: SEWBIZ.

Bumper sticker: Don’t Follow Me - I’m Lost, Too!

Bumper sticker: It’s Lonely At The Top, But You Eat Better!

Bumper sticker: Mistakes Are Proof That You Are Trying.

Bumper sticker: Save The Whales! Trade Them For Valuable Prizes.

Bumper sticker: What If The Hokey Pokey Really Is What It’s All About?

Bumper sticker: Men Are From Earth. Women Are From Earth. Deal With It.

Bumper sticker: Cole’s Law: Thinly Sliced Cabbage.

Bumper sticker: Lottery - A Tax On People Who Are Bad At Math.

Bumper sticker: I Is A College Student.

License plates in the Canadian Northwest Territories are shaped like polar bears.

License plate: HMMMM (seen on a choir director’s vehicle).

Bumper sticker: Forget World Peace And Visualize Using Your Turn Signal.

Bumper sticker: As Long As There Are Tests, There Will Be Prayer In Public Schools.

Bumper sticker: Driver Carries No Cash - He’s Married!

Bumper sticker: If Your Job Pays You Peanuts, Make Peanut Butter.

Coming soon to a future near you: Teflon-coated bumpers, because nothing, not even bumper stickers, will stick to non-stick coatings. What, you say that’s not real and it’s not happening . . . ever? You may be right.

Bumper sticker: Warning - Driver brakes suddenly for no apparent reason.

Bumper sticker: I May Be Slow, But I’m Ahead Of You.

Bumper sticker: Honk If Anything Falls Off.

Bumper sticker: By The Time You Read This, You Will Have Already Read It.

Bumper sticker: Question Everything.

Bumper sticker: Taxation With Representation Isn’t So Wonderful, Either!

Bumper sticker: This Truck Has Been In Fifteen Accidents, And Hasn’t Lost One Yet!

Bumper sticker: I Love Animals - They Are Delicious!

Bumper sticker: All Generalizations Are False - Including This One.

Bumper sticker: My Other Car is a Broom.

Bumper sticker: Drive carefully, your government needs every taxpayer it can get.

Bumper sticker: The shortest distance between two points is under construction.

Bumper sticker: Yes, this is my truck, and no, I won’t help you move.

Bumper sticker: I Chose The Road Less Traveled - Now Where In The World Am I?

Bumper sticker: This Bumper Sticker Holds My Car Together.

Bumper sticker: In The Absence Of Light, Darkness Prevails.

Bumper sticker: My Other Car Has A Funny Bumper Sticker On It.

MFOL! . . . It all started one morning when we woke up and said, “Let’s do something different today.”

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Anger and Rage

10/9/2020

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“We can’t let the anger overshadow the good things in life.” -Author Unknown

“Every time you give someone a piece of your mind, you make your head a little emptier.” -Author Unknown

“Where there is anger, there is always pain underneath.” -Eckhart Tolle

Riddle: What is round and has a bad temper?
Solution: A vicious circle.

“The world needs anger. The world often continues to allow evil because it isn’t angry enough.” -Bede Jarrett

“The best remedy for anger is delay.” -Seneca (Lucius Annaeus Seneca, also known as Seneca the Younger (3 B.C.E. - C.E. 65): “De ira” (“On Anger”)

“There is no angry way to say ‘bubbles.’” -Author Unknown

“Don’t let the Sun go down upon your anger; forgive each other, help each other, and begin again tomorrow.” -Louisa May Alcott (1832 - 1888)

“Letting off steam always produces more heat than light.” -Neal A. Maxwell (Neal Ash Maxwell (1926 - 2004)): “Murmur Not” in “Ensign” (November 1989) magazine, page 84

“Don’t ever slam a door; you might want to go back.” -Author Unknown

“Anger makes you smaller, while forgiveness forces you to grow beyond what you were.” -Chérie Carter-Scott (born 1939) at www.drcherie.com

“People who fly into a rage always make a bad landing.” -Will Rogers (William Penn Adair ‘Will’ Rogers (1879 - 1935))

Angrophobia is a persistent fear of anger or of becoming angry. Many folks look ridiculous and do regrettable actions or speak in haste when angry, so perhaps the phobia stems in part from a fear of doing permanent damage to their personal reputations and relationships.

Anger makes us strong,
Blind and impatient
And it leads us wrong;
The strength is quickly lost;
We feel the error long.
-George Crabbe

“The broad general rule is that a person is no bigger than the things that make him or her angry.” -Author Unknown

Hangry (han-gree), adjective: A state of anger caused by lack of food; hunger causing a negative change in emotional state.

“The line between hunger and anger is a thin line.” -John E. Steinbeck (John Ernst Steinbeck (1902 - 1968)): “The Grapes of Wrath” (14 April 1939)

“Sometimes when I’m angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn’t give me the right to be cruel.” -Author Unknown

“You can’t stay mad at someone who makes you laugh.” -Jay Leno (born 1950)

“If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.” -Author Unknown: Chinese proverb

“Temper tantrums, however fun they may be to throw, rarely solve whatever problem is causing them.” -Lemony Snicket (pseudonym of Daniel Handler (born 1970))

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A Bag of Nails

Once upon a time, there lived a little boy, and he had a very bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the wooden fence that surrounded their home.

The first day, the boy hammered an entire handful of nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails he hammered into the fence each day became fewer in number. He had discovered that it was easier for him to hold his temper than it was to drive nails into the fence.

Finally, the day came when the boy did not lose his temper at all. He told his father about this, and his father suggested that the boy then pull out one nail for each day that he had been able to control his temper.

The days passed, and at last, the young boy could finally tell his father that all the nails he had hammered into the fence had been removed.

The father led his son to the fence. He said, “You have done well, my son, but look at all the holes in the fence. The nails are gone, but the fence itself will never be the same.”

The little boy then understood how powerful his words were. He looked up at his father and said, “I hope I can be forgiven for all the damage my anger has done to people.”

by Author Unknown

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“When you are angry say nothing and do nothing until you have recited the alphabet.” -Athenodorus Cananites

“Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances.” -Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826)

“Just try to be angry with someone who fed you something delicious.” -Carmen Cook

“Anger is a wind which blows out the lamp of the mind.” -Robert G. Ingersoll (Robert Green ‘Bob’ Ingersoll (1833 - 1899))

“Most people usually do not assume responsibility for their anger. Instead, what we typically hear is, “You made me angry.” “They made me upset,” etc. I trust it is evident that these types of statements are not true. No one else can ‘make’ you angry. We have to make ourselves angry. What others say and do is, yes, a part of the equation, but without our contribution to the equation, anger cannot arise nor exist. This can be a very threatening conception of anger, and yet it is also very freeing, for as long as we do determine our own emotional responses, we are free to change and to control them. If other people or events were, in fact, responsible for our emotional responses, then we would not have the freedom nor ability to change them - unless we could control other people and events, which is much more challenging and usually impossible. Thus, principle one in the case against anger is, we are ultimately responsible for our own anger.” -Burton C. Kelly: “Let All . . . Anger . . . Be Put Away from You . . . or the Case Against Anger” as published in the “AMCAP Journal” (February 1979), pages 6 through 13

“Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” -Henry Ward Beecher (1813 - 1887)

“A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough.” -Bruce Lee (1940 - 1973)

“Anger is a bad adviser.” -Author Unknown: French proverb

“Anger and worry are caused by phantoms that we create within ourselves and whose only strength is that with which we endow them.” -Horace Fletcher: “Menticulture” (1895)

“When angry, count ten before you speak; if very angry, a hundred.” -Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826)

Anger is a strong feeling of displeasure, often resulting from a perceived injustice or unfairness. While anger is often momentary, rage is usually thought of as being a period of sustained anger.

“Never forget what a man says to you when he is angry.” -Henry Ward Beecher (1813 - 1887)

“Anger helps straighten out a problem like a fan helps straighten out a pile of papers.” -Susan Mancotte

“No man can think clearly when his fists are clenched.” -George Jean Nathan (1882 - 1958)

“Anger is a feeling that makes your mouth work faster than your mind.” -Evan Esar (1899 - 1995)

“I understand the fury in your words, but not the words.” -William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616): “Othello” (about 1603)

“There was never an angry man that thought his anger unjust.” -Francis de Sales (1567 - 1622): “Introduction to the Devout Life” (1609)

“He who can suppress a moment’s anger may prevent a day of sorrow.” -Tryon Edwards (1809 - 1894)

“Before you give someone a piece of your mind, make sure you can get by with what is left.” -Author Unknown

“Anger begins with folly, and ends with repentance.” -Pythagoras (about 570 B.C.E. - about 495 B.C.E.): as quoted in “The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction” (6 January 1844), volume V, number 1

“An angry man is again angry with himself when he returns to reason.” -Publilius Syrus (85 B.C.E. - 43 B.C.E.)

“Anger makes dull men witty, but it keeps them poor.” -Elizabeth I (1533 - 1603): as quoted in Francis Bacon: “Certain Apophthegms of Lord Bacon” (1625), number IV

“When anger rises, think of the consequences.” -Confucius (551 B.C.E. - 479 B.C.E.)

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Temper

When I have lost my temper, I have lost my reason, too.
     I’m never proud of anything which angrily I do.
When I have talked in anger and my cheeks were flaming red,
     I have always uttered something which I wish I hadn’t said.

In anger I have never done a kindly deed or wise,
     But many things for which I felt I should apologize.
In looking back across my life, and all I’ve lost or made,
     I can’t recall a single time when fury ever paid.

So I struggle to be patient, for I’ve reached a wiser age;
     I do not want to do a thing or speak a word in rage.
I have learned by sad experience that when my temper flies,
     I never do a worthy thing, a decent deed or wise.

by Author Unknown

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“If a small thing has the power to make you angry, does that not indicate something about your size?” -Sydney J. Harris (Sydney Justin Harris (1917 - 1986))

“I always tumble into trouble when I lose my temper.” -Jane Louise Curry: “Robin Hood and His Merry Men” (1994)

“Anger is never without an argument, but seldom with a good one.” -George Savile (also known as Lord Halifax (1633 - 1695)): “Political, Moral, and Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections” (1750), ‘Of Anger’

“When a wise man is angry, he is no longer wise.” -Author Unknown: “The Talmud”

“We are all crazy when we are angry.” -Philemon (about 300 B.C.E.)

“Whatever is begun in anger, ends in shame.” -Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)

“There are some people who always seem angry and continuously look for conflict. Walk away; the battle they are fighting isn’t with you, it’s with themselves.” -Author Unknown

“Anger is momentary madness, so control your passion or it will control you.” [translation to English]
“Ira furor brevis est: animum rege: qui nisi paret imperat.” [original Latin]
-Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65 B.C.E. - 8 B.C.E.)): “Epistles,” I, 2, 62

“He who angers you, controls you.” -Author Unknown

“Two things a man should never be angry at: what he can help, and what he cannot help.” -Author Unknown

“The best remedy for a short temper is a long walk.” -Joseph Joubert (1754 - 1824)

“Anger is the only thing to put off till tomorrow.” -Author Unknown: Slovakian proverb

“Do not teach your children never to be angry; teach them how to be angry.” -Lyman Abbott

“A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.” Author Unknown: “The Bible,” ‘Proverbs,’ chapter 15, verse 18

“Angry people are not always wise.” -Jane Austen (1775 - 1817)

“You can tell the size of a man by the size of the thing that makes him mad.” -Adlai Stevenson (Adlai E. Stevenson (1900 - 1965))

“We boil at different degrees.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

“Anger and jealousy can no more bear to lose sight of their objects than love.” -George Eliot (pseudonym of Marian Evans Cross, also known as Mary Ann Evans (1819 - 1880))

“Men are like steel. When they lose their temper, they lose their worth.” -Chuck Norris (Carlos Ray ‘Chuck’ Norris (born 1940))

“For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.” -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 - 1910))

“Explain your anger instead of expressing it, and you will find solutions instead of arguments.” -Author Unknown

“Anger manages everything badly.” -Statius

“Never respond to an angry person with a fiery comeback, even if he deserves it . . . don’t allow his anger to become your anger.” -Author Unknown

“Temper, if ungoverned, governs the whole man.” -Anthony Shaftesbury

“How much more grievous are the consequences of anger than the causes of it.” -Marcus Aurelius (also known as Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (C.E. 121 - C.E. 180))

“Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.” -Aristotle (384 B.C.E. - 322 B.C.E.)

“The prudent man does not let his temper boil over lest he get into hot water.” -Author Unknown

“Anger is one letter away from danger.” -Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor ‘Eleanor’ Roosevelt (1884 - 1962))

“Never do anything when you are in a temper, for you will do everything wrong.” -Baltasar Gracián (1601 - 1658)

“Nobody ‘makes’ you angry. You ‘decide’ to use anger as a response.” -Author Unknown

“I’m sorry for the unkind words I spoke out of anger.” -Author Unknown

“My recipe for dealing with anger and frustration: set the kitchen timer for twenty minutes, cry, rant, and rave, and at the sound of the bell, simmer down, and go about business as usual.” -Phyllis Diller (1917 - 2012)

We are MFOL! . . . promoting better living through humor and inspiration and learning . . .

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Changing and Adjusting

10/7/2020

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“If you would like to change things in your life that seem too big to change all at once, could you be happy changing them a little at a time?” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Any day we wish, we can start the process of life change.” -Jim Rohn (Emanuel James ‘Jim’ Rohn (1930 - 2009))

“It is always safe to assume, not that the old way is wrong, but that there may be a better way.” -Henry F. Harrower

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” -Steve Jobs (Steven Paul ‘Steve’ Jobs (1955 - 2011))

“Never assume that you’re stuck with the way things are. Life changes, and so can you.” -Ralph Marston (Ralph S. Marston, Junior (born 1955)), website www.GreatDay.com.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” -Margaret Mead (1901 - 1978): as quoted in the “Christian Science Monitor” (1 June 1989)

“It’s never too late to change your life.” -Author Unknown

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” -R. Buckminster Fuller (Richard Buckminster ‘Bucky’ Fuller (1895 - 1983))

“Change and growth take place when a person has risked himself and dares to become involved with experimenting with his own life.” -Herbert Ottl

“The greatest discovery of my age is that men can change their circumstances by changing the attitude of their mind.” -William James (1842 - 1910)

“The only thing certain is nothing is certain.” -Michel de Montaigne (1533 - 1592)

“Times will change for the better when you change.” -Maxwell Maltz (1899 - 1975)

“Know what’s weird? Day by day, nothing seems to change, but pretty soon . . . everything’s different.” -Bill Watterson (Bill Watterson II (born 1958)): “Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes”; type of work: cartoon

“If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change.” -Giuseppe Tomasi de Lampedusa (1896 -1957)

“People can change until they take their last breath.” -Alton R. Jorgenson

“Change is the only thing that will make things different.” -Author Unknown

“Much as we may wish to make a new beginning, some part of us resists doing so as though we were making the first step toward disaster.” -William Bridges (born 1934)

“If you want things to change, you have to change. If you want things to be better, you have to be better.” -Jim Rohn (Emanuel James ‘Jim’ Rohn (1930 - 2009))

“There is nothing permanent except change.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus (544 B.C.E. - 483 B.C.E.) (513 B.C.E.)

“Change is not made without inconvenience, even from worse to better.” -Richard Hooker (1554 - 1600)

“To live is to change, and to be perfect is to have changed often.” -John Henry Newman (1801 - 1890): “The Development of Christian Doctrine” (1834)

“The only thing constant in life is change.” -Francois de La Rochefoucauld (François Duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680))

“Never be afraid to try something new - remember, it was amateurs who built the Ark and professionals who built the Titanic.” -Author Unknown

“Changes happen, and life gets worse and better, and life somehow goes on.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” -Jim Rohn (Emanuel James ‘Jim’ Rohn (1930 - 2009))

“Change before you have to.” -Jack Welch (John Francis ‘Jack’ Welch, Junior (born 1935))

“Our wretched species is so made that those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those opening a new road.” -Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet (1694 - 1778)): as quoted in Ben Ray Redman, editor: “The Portable Voltaire” (1949)

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” -Mahatma Gandhi (Mohandas Karamchand ‘Mahatma’ Gandhi (1869 - 1948))

“Change is not merely necessary to life - it is life.” -Alvin Toffler (1928 - 2016)

“Only you can change your life. No one can do it for you.” -Author Unknown

“I wanted to change the world. But I have found that the only thing one can be sure of changing is oneself.” -Aldous Huxley (Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894 - 1963))

“Change is the only evidence of life.” -Evelyn Waugh (Arthur Evelyn Saint John Waugh (1903 - 1966))

Affirmation: I want to change my life.

To change one’s life:
Start immediately.
Do it flamboyantly.
No exceptions.
-William James (1842 - 1910)

“Change is not difficult, it is the resistance to change that is difficult.” -Author Unknown

“The nature o’* things doesn’t change, though it seems as if one’s own life was nothing but change. The square o’ four is sixteen, and you must lengthen your lever in proportion to your weight, is as true when a man’s miserable as when he’s happy; and the best o’ working is, it gives you a grip hold o’ things outside your own lot.” -George Eliot (pseudonym of Mary Anne Evans (1819 - 1880)): “Adam Bede” (1859)
*o’: of

“The more things change, the more they are the same.” -Alphonse Karr (1808 - 1890)

“Resolve to be a master of change rather than a victim of change.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“It is the greatest mistake to think that man is always one and the same. A man is never the same for long. He is continually changing. He seldom remains the same even for half an hour.” -Gurdjieff (1873 - 1949)

“In times of change, learners inherit the Earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” -Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

“I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones.” -John Cage (John Milton Cage, Junior (1912 - 1992))

“All change is not growth; as all movement is not forward!” -Author Unknown

“Everyone alters and is altered by everyone else. We are all the time taking in portions of one another or else reacting against them, and by those involuntary acquisitions and repulsions modifying our natures.” -Gerald Brenan (1894 - 1987)

“We must all obey the great law of change. It is the most powerful law of nature, and the means perhaps of its conservation.” -Edmund Burke (1729 - 1797)

“The art of life lies in a constant readjustment to our surroundings.” -Okakura Kakuzō (Okakura Tenshin (1862 - 1913)): “The Book of Tea” (1906)

“If you want to make enemies, try to change something.” -Woodrow Wilson (Thomas Woodrow ‘Woodrow’ Wilson (1856 - 1924))

“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.” -Henri Bergson (Henri-Louis ‘Henri’ Bergson (1859 - 1941))

“Growth is painful. Change is painful. But nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong.” -Mandy Hale (born 1978)

“Sometimes we must make a choice, to take a chance, or our lives will never change.” -Author Unknown

“We may dig in our heels and dare life never to change, but, all the same, it changes under our feet like sand under the feet of a sea gazer as the tide runs out. Life is forever undermining us. Life is forever washing away our castles, reminding us that they were, after all, only sand and sea water.” -Erica Jong (born 1942): “Parachutes and Kisses”

“Our only security is our ability to change.” -John Lyly (1554 - 1606)

“The main dangers in this life are the people who want to change everything or nothing.” -Nancy Astor (1879 - 1964)

“Change is possible for everyone; consider the wolf, which preys upon sheep, and then examine the domestic dog derived from it, which protects sheep.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Everything is in motion. Everything flows. Everything is vibrating.” -William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830)

“Change almost always represents improvement of the human condition. Constancy almost always represents stagnation. In any event, change is certain. There’s no point in complaining about it. Natural history teaches that survival in a changing world does not depend on physical strength or on high intelligence. Survival depends on the ability to change.” -Alex Sanders

Lucy: Do you think anybody ever really changes?
Linus: I’ve changed a lot in the last year.
Lucy: I mean for the better.
-Charles M. Schulz (Charles Monroe ‘Sparky’ Schulz (1922 - 2000)): “Peanuts” comic strip

“Things of this world are in so constant a flux, that nothing remains long in the same state.” -John Locke (1632 - 1704)

“All things are only transitory.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnagey (1888 - 1955)))

“The world hates change yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.” -Charles F. Kettering (Charles Franklin Kettering (1876 - 1958))

“Once you make the decision to change, all kinds of things happen.” -Charles S. Dutton

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” -Leo Tolstoy (Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828 - 1910))

“To change your circumstances, first start thinking differently. Do not passively accept unsatisfactory circumstances, but form a picture in your mind of circumstances as they should be. Believe and succeed.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

“In all change, well looked into, the germinal good out-vails the apparent ill.” -Francis Thompson (1859 - 1907)

“Be okay with where you are, even if you know you want to change.” -Author Unknown

“Change is inevitable. Because it is driven by expanding knowledge and technology, it is accelerating at a speed never seen before.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Change is inevitable . . . except from vending machines.” -Author Unknown

“Nothing in the world is permanent, and we’re foolish when we ask anything to last, but surely we’re still more foolish not to take delight in it while we have it.” -W. Somerset Maugham (William Somerset Maugham (1874 - 1965)): “The Razor’s Edge” (1943)

“All is change; all yields its place and goes.” -Euripides (484 B.C.E. - 406 B.C.E.)

“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” -Ed Foreman (born 1933)

“Turn over a new leaf.” -Thomas Dekker

“If you’re searching for that one person that will change your life, take a look in the mirror.” -Author Unknown

“To the fearful, change is threatening because they worry that things may get worse. To the hopeful, change is encouraging because they feel things may get better.” -Buck Rogers

“Welcome change.” -Author Unknown

“Change is hard at first, messy in the middle, and gorgeous at the end.” -Robin Sharma (born 1965)

“There is yet time enough for you to take a different path.” -Author Unknown

“Too much consistency is as bad for the mind as for the body.” -Aldous Huxley (Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894 - 1963))

“Life is like an ever-changing kaleidoscope - a slight change, and all patterns alter.” -Sharon Salberg

“Every day of our lives we are on the verge of making those slight changes that would make all the difference.” -Author Unknown

“Someday change will be accepted as life itself.” -Shirley MacLaine (pseudonym of Shirley MacLean Beaty (born 1934))

This is MFOL! . . . for those who strive to be well-adjusted in an ever-changing world . . .

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Conversations and Spoken Communications

10/3/2020

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“Communication - the human connection - is the key to personal and career success.” -Paul J. Meyer (Paul James Meyer (1928 - 2009))

“Whenever I meet people for the first time, I assume that they have a great story to tell and that it’s my job to find it.” -Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson in 1959): “What I Know Now: Simple Lessons Learned the Hard Way” (2003)

In spoken communications, which includes conversations, there are two main parts: 1. Speaking, and 2. Listening. Ideally, each participant spends some time speaking and some time listening.

“A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but, after a while, he knows something.” -Wilson Mizner (1876 - 1933): as quoted in Evan Esar: “The Dictionary of Humorous Quotations” (1949)

Sign seen in a shop: For Your Convenience, Our Staff Is Fluent In Monosyllabic Grunts.

“The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.” -Dorothy Nevill (Dorothy Fanny Nevill (1826 - 1913))

“There is a disease terrible that strikes 10 out of 1 Americans 15 every minutes. Vocal Dyslexia it’s called. An elment I’ve been lifing all my fight. It can warn without striking and has no regard for case, read, or crolor. Symptoms include speechaled garb, backs coming out wordward, and an inability to sent a complete putence together. The victims: innocent people like thou and me. Sadly, Vocal Dyslexia is wilding liek spreadfire and there is no cureful symp, butthere is hope. The dyslexia foundation has recommended these things 3: 3rd: at the first trub of signale phonsult a confition; 2nd: stay in bed and drink flenty of pluids; 1st: read as can as you much. For more information write: 999 Teenfifth Street, Grand Mapids, Ricaghan. Thank you muchy ver.” -Author Unknown

“Conversation may be compared to a lyre with seven chords - philosophy, art, poetry, love, scandal, and the weather.” -Anna Brownell Jameson (1794 - 1860)

Overheard: Say it straight, simple, and with a smile.

“We’ll talk without listening to each other; that is the best way to get along.” -Alfred de Musset (1810 - 1857)

How to Be a Good Conversationalist
- Make eye contact.
- Allow the other person to speak his or her mind.
- Ask questions and allow the other person to answer.
- Do not interrupt a person when he or she is speaking if at all possible.
- Use polite words and do not use offensive language such as cursing and swearing.
- Do not use slang, jargon, abbreviations, or other nonstandard and obscure terms or words.
- Show an interest in what the other person is saying.
- Speak in a calm, civil tone.
- Be agreeable even when you disagree.
- Be polite so that you always leave them liking you.
What can you add to this list?

“It does seem so pleasant to talk with an old acquaintance who knows what you know. I see so many new folks nowadays who seem to have neither past nor future. Conversation has got to have some root in the past, or else you have got to explain every remark you make, and it wears a person out.” -Sarah Orne Jewett (1849 - 1909)

“What most people really need is a good listening to.” -Mary Lou Casey

“When trying to make your way through a crowd of people, and you find that saying, ‘Excuse me,’ or ‘Pardon me,’ isn’t getting you anywhere, just say, ‘Beep, beep!’ because everybody, regardless of language or dialect, speaks and understands car.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Fine words butter no parsnips.” -Walter Scott (1771 - 1832)

“Keep your conversation throughout the day consistent with what you really want to happen.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

Be careful of the words you say,
And keep them soft and sweet.
For you never know from day to day,
Which ones you’ll have to eat.
-Author Unknown

“Talk is cheap, and that’s why barbers give it away for free with haircuts.” -Author Unknown

“After all, when you come right down to it, how many people speak the same language even when they speak the same language?” -Russell Hoban (Russell Conwell Hoban (1925 - 2011))

Overheard: It takes a great man to be a good listener.

“If nobody spoke unless they had something to say, the human race would very soon lose the use of speech.” -W. Somerset Maugham (William Somerset Maugham (1874 - 1965))

“Drawing on my fine command of the English language, I said nothing.” -Robert Benchley

THINK Before You Speak

T: Is it True?
H: Is it Helpful?
I: Is it Inspiring?
N: Is it Necessary?
K: Is it Kind?

by Author Unknown

“When in doubt, mumble.” -Author Unknown

“I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” -Ernest Hemingway (Ernest Miller Hemingway (1899 - 1961))

“Things crazy cat people do: You answer your cat’s random meows with, ‘Yes, yes, I know!’” -Author Unknown

“Before beginning any conversation, ask yourself if this is the proper time, place, and person to have the conversation with. If you use wild hand gestures when you talk, make an effort to keep your hands under control so that you do not appear to be physically menacing or ridiculous to the other person. Understand that you have goals in talking to people, and they also have their goals, and the best conversations are those in which both people move closer to achieving their goals.” -Author Unknown

“Language was given to us that we might say pleasant things to each other.” -Author Unknown

How to Be a Good Listener
- Ask questions and wait for the answers.
- Nod your head in agreement or to acknowledge you hear what has been said.
- Paraphrase, or repeat back, to the speaker what he or she has said.
- Very often in conversations, it is more important to be a good listener than it is to be heard.
What can you add to this list?

“Grunts and squeals were fine in the beginning, but eventually humans needed more precise means of communication . . . and so, words were invented, which were a highly complex combination of grunts and squeals.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Everyone hears only what he understands.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“Speech is a mirror of the soul; as a man speaks, so is he.” -Publilius Syrus (85 B.C.E. - 43 B.C.E.): as attributed in Darius Lyman: “The Moral Sayings of Publius Syrus, a Roman Slave: From the Latin” (1856): “Sententiae,” Maxim 1073

“There are two kinds of people who don’t say much: those who are quiet and those who talk a lot.” -Author Unknown

On average, women say 7,000 words per day. Men on average manage slightly more than 2,000 words in a day. However, this is not either good or bad. Men and women are different, and therefore do things differently based on their plans and goals. Women place priority in connections with other people, which they do primarily through communication. Men place importance in accomplishment, using communication as a means to that end.

“I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.” -Robert McCloskey

And I oft have heard defended -
Little said is soonest mended.
-George Wither (1588 - 1667): “The Shepherd’s Hunting” (1615)

“I felt it shelter to speak to you.” -Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886)

“If you have learned how to disagree without being disagreeable, then you have discovered the secret of getting along - whether it be in business, family relations, or life itself.” -Bernard Meltzer

“Speech is conveniently located midway between thought and action, where it often substitutes for both.” -John Andrew Holmes (1773 - 1843): “Wisdom in Small Doses” (1927)

“Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person they are almost indistinguishable.” -David Augsburger (David W. Augsburger (born 1938))

“For millions of years, mankind lived just like the animals. Then something happened which unleashed the power of our imagination. We learned to talk.” -Stephen Hawking (Stephen William Hawking (born 1942))

“The time to stop talking is when the other person nods his head affirmatively but says nothing.” -Author Unknown

“Before you say something, stop and think how you’d feel if someone said that to you.” -Author Unknown

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in “The Bible,” ‘Book of Proverbs,’ chapter 25, verse 11

“Talk that does not end in any kind of action is better suppressed altogether.” -Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881)

“Don’t take up a man’s time talking about the smartness of your children; he wants to talk to you about the smartness of his children.” -Edgar Watson Howe (1854 - 1937): “Country Town Sayings” (1911)

Riddle: What can you break with just one word?
Answer: Silence.

“He had occasional flashes of silence that made his conversation perfectly delightful.” -Sydney Smith (1771- 1845)

“Nature has given to men one tongue, but two ears, that we might hear from others twice as much as we speak.” -Epictetus (C.E. 55 - C.E. 135)

“Chatter is not quite conversation.” -Charles M. Schulz (Charles Monroe ‘Sparky’ Schulz (1922 - 2000))

“One must listen if one wishes to be listened to.” -François de La Rochefoucauld (also known as François Duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680)): “Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims” (1665 - 1678), Maxim 1

“Talkers are not good doers.” -William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616): “King Richard III” (1592 - 1593), Act I, scene iii

“There is no conversation more boring than the one where everybody agrees.” -Michel de Montaigne (Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533 - 1592))

“A good listener is a silent flatterer.” -Author Unknown

“Speak properly, and in as few words as you can, but always plainly; for the end of speech is not ostentation, but to be understood.” -William Penn (1644 - 1718)

“People should talk less and draw more. Personally, I would like to renounce speech altogether and, like organic nature, communicate everything I have to say visually.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“There are three things in speech that ought to be considered before some things are spoken - the manner, the place, and the time.” -Robert Southey (1774 - 1843): as attributed in S. Austin Allibone: “Prose Quotations from Socrates to Macaulay” (1880)

“When we speak harshly or yell at people, the words can hit their ears so hard that they bounce right off them and are not heard. If you speak softly and calmly, you have a chance of being understood.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Know how to listen, and you will profit even from those who talk badly.” -Plutarch (C.E. 46 - C.E. 120)

“Everyone should be quick to listen. Slow to speak.” -Author Unknown: “The Bible” (NIV) ‘James,’ chapter 1, verse 19

“We have two ears and only one tongue in order that we may hear more and speak less.” -Diogenes Laërtius

Plato: What can you hold without ever touching it?
Aristotle: A conversation.

“To do all the talking and not be willing to listen is a form of greed.” -Democritus of Abdera (460 B.C.E. - 370 B.C.E.)

“Supportive listening: Smile . . . listen . . . agree. Repeat.” -Author Unknown

“The words you speak today should be soft and tender, for tomorrow you may have to eat them.” -Author Unknown

“We’re always talking about talking, but we never seem to get around to actually talking.” -Author Unknown

“To disagree, one does not have to be disagreeable.” -Barry M. Goldwater and Jack Casserly: “Goldwater” (12 October 1988)

“Be a good listener. Your ears will never get you into trouble.” -Frank Tyger (1929 - 2011)

“Contradiction and flattery both make poor conversation.” - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“The true spirit of conversation consists in building on another man’s observation, not overturning it.” -Edward George Earle Bulwer-Lytton (Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton (1803 - 1873))

“Conversation enriches the understanding, but solitude is the school of genius.” -Edward Gibbon (1737 - 1794)

“One way to prevent conversation from being boring is to say the wrong thing.” -Frank Sheed

“If you want to be listened to, you should put in time listening.” -Marge Piercy (born 1936)

“Conversation means being able to disagree and still continue the discussion.” -Dwight MacDonald

“The value of the average conversation could be enormously improved by the constant use of four simple words: I do not know.” -Andre Maurois

“Ultimately the bond of all companionship, whether in marriage or in friendship, is conversation.” -Oscar Wilde

“Some people live in harsh surroundings filled with difficult or impossible people, and so they have lost the ability to engage in conversation and can only do what everyone around them is doing, which is to ‘bark’ at people. Because people do not like to be barked at, they stop listening to each other, and when problems arise, solutions are never found.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“To listen closely and reply well is the highest perfection we are able to attain in the art of conversation.” -François de La Rochefoucauld (also known as François Duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680))

“It was mortifying to find how strong the habit of idle speech may become in one’s self. One need not always be saying something in this noisy world.” -Sarah Orne Jewett (1849 - 1909): “The Country of Pointed Firs and Other Fiction” (1896)

“A gossip is one who talks to you about others; a bore is one who talks to you about himself; and a brilliant conversationalist is one who talks to you about yourself.” -Lisa Kirk (born Elsie Kirk (1925 - 1990))

“There is only one rule for being a good talker: learn to listen.” -Christopher Morley (Christopher Darlington Morley (1890 - 1957))

“God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Some people say that’s because He wanted us to spend twice as much time listening as talking. Others claim it’s because He knew that listening was twice as hard.” -Author Unknown

This is MFOL! . . . and now let us all engage in happy talk, serious talk, silly talk, or just making wild animal noises . . .

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Doctors and Health Practitioners

9/29/2020

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Yes, he says he is a real doctor . . . still, check his credentials . . .

Doctor: Your pulse is as steady as a clock.
Patient: You have your hand on my wristwatch.

One afternoon, a man went to his doctor and told him that he had not been feeling well lately. The doctor examined the man, left the room, and came back with three different bottles of pills. The doctor said, “Take the green pill with a big glass of water when you wake up. Take the blue pill with a big glass of water after you eat lunch. Then, just before going to bed, take the red pill with another big glass of water.” Surprised to be put on so much medicine, the man stammered, “Doc, exactly what is my ailment?” The doctor replied, “You are not drinking enough water.”

Patient: Doctor, you have to help me!
Doctor: What seems to be the problem?
Patient: I have some coins stuck in my ear.
Doctor: How long have they been there?
Patient: A year.
Doctor: Why did you not come in sooner?
Patient: I did not need the money until now.

A doctor told a man that if he ran 5 miles a day for 300 days, he would lose 75 pounds. At the end of 300 days, the man called the doctor to report he had lost the weight, but he had a problem. “What’s the problem?” asked the doctor. The man said, “I’m 1,500 miles from home.”

Tonsillectomy

“Your tonsils, it seems, are too big,”
Said my doctor, and straightened his wig.
“There isn’t a doubt
That they’ll have to come out.”
And he giggled and danced a short jig.

by Author Unknown

A man walked into a doctor’s office and was sent immediately to an exam room. The doctor entered and looked him over. The man had a green bean sticking out of his left ear, a carrot sticking out of his right ear, and a celery stalk sticking out of one nostril. “Doc, it is just terrible, I am in awful shape - what do you think it could be that is the matter with me?” The doctor replied, “Well, for starters, you are not eating properly.”

Doctor: Face the window, please. Now stick out your tongue.
Patient: Why do I have to face the window?
Doctor: Because I do not like the man next door.

A doctor was consulting with his patient. “I checked your symptoms on Google. If you want a second opinion, I’ll check with Yahoo.”

Doctor: I have some good news and some bad news.
Patient: Tell me the bad news first.
Doctor: You have canary disease.
Patient: What is the good news?
Doctor: It is tweetable.

“The education of the doctor which goes on after he has his degree is after all the most important part of his education.” -John Shaw Billings

A man went to see his doctor. He was suffering from acute anxiety and seemed on the verge of a nervous breakdown. After the examination, the doctor went into the consultation room to discuss the case with the patient’s wife. “What your husband needs most of all is rest and quiet,” said the doctor. “These are tranquilizer pills. You should take one every three hours.”

Doctor: You cough sounds much better today.
Patient: It should - I stayed up all night practicing.

A man sat in a doctor’s office and kept up a strange litany: “I hope I am sick . . . I hope I am sick . . .” Another waiting patient asked, “Why do you want to be sick?” The man replied, “I would hate to be well and feel like this!”

Patient: Doctor, Doctor, I feel like a pair of curtains.
Doctor: Pull yourself together, man!

A man went to visit his doctor. “Doc, my arm hurts! Can you check it out?” The doctor rolled up the man’s sleeve and suddenly, the man’s arm started talking. “Hello, doctor,” said the arm. “Could you lend me twenty dollars, please? I’m desperate!” “Aha!” said the doctor. “I see the problem. Your arm is broke!”

Patient: Doctor, I feel like a pony!
Doctor: Do not worry - you are just a little hoarse!

Have you heard about the doctor who made enough money in his medical practice that he could occasionally tell a patient that there was nothing wrong with him?

Stuart: “First I got tonsillitis, followed by appendicitis and pneumonia. After that, I got erysipelas with hemochromatosis. Following that, I got poliomyelitis, and finally, I ended up with neuritis. Then they gave me hypodermics and inoculations.”
Wallace: “Wow, you had a time!”
Stuart: “I’ll say! I thought I would never pull through that spelling test.”

A nurse was giving a young medical intern a tour of the hospital. The intern approached one bedridden patient and asked, “Why are you here?” The patient replied, “O my Luve’s like a red, red rose that’s newly sprung in June.” The intern moved on to the next bed and asked the same question, “Why are you here?” The patient answered, “Man’s inhumanity to man makes countless thousands mourn!” The intern moved on to a third bed and asked again, “Why are you here?” to which the third patient replied, “The best laid plans of mice and men may often gang awry.” At this, the intern turned to the nurse and asked, “What ward is this anyway?” The nurse answered, “It’s the Burns Unit.”

Patient: Doctor, how do I cure my sleepwalking?
Doctor: Put bubble-wrap on your bedroom floor.

“The great secret of medicine, known to doctors but still hidden from the public, is that most things get better by themselves.” -Lewis Thomas

If one doctor doctors another doctor, does the doctor who doctors the doctor doctor the doctor the way the doctor he is doctoring doctors? Or does he doctor the doctor the way a doctor who doctors doctors doctors doctors?

Patient: Doctor, do I have an underactive thyroid?
Doctor: No, just an overactive fork.

A fellow walked into a doctor’s office, and the receptionist asked him what he had. He said, “Shingles.” She took down his name, address, medical insurance number, and then told him to have a seat. Fifteen minutes later a nurse’s aide came out and asked him what he had. He said, “Shingles.” She took down his height, weight, and medical history, and then told him to wait in the waiting room. Half an hour later, a nurse came in and asked him what he had. He said, “Shingles.” So she gave him a blood test, a blood pressure test, an electrocardiogram, and then told him to take off his clothes and wait for the doctor. An hour later, the doctor came in and asked him what he had. He said, “Shingles.” The doctor said, “Where?” The man said, “Outside in the truck. Where do you want them?”

Patient: “When I touch my tongue to aluminum foil wrapped around a balloon while leaning against my washing machine, I feel a peculiar tingling in my toes - what is wrong with me?”
Doctor: “You have too much spare time.”

“No families take so little medicine as those of doctors, except those of apothecaries*.” -Oliver Wendell Holmes, Junior (1841 - 1935): “Medical Essays”
*apothecaries are similar to pharmacists but different somehow

Patient: I think I’m losing my memory.
Doctor: When did it start?
Patient: When did what start?

“I wonder why you can always read a doctor’s bill but you can never read his prescription.” -Finley Peter Dunne (1867 - 1936)

“Doctor’s office: A place where people who are run down wind up.” -Author Unknown

Parent: Doctor, Doctor, my child has swallowed a pen!
Doctor: Do not worry - just use a pencil until I get there.

A young woman went to her doctor complaining of pain. “Where are you hurting?” asked the doctor. “You have to help me, I hurt all over,” said the woman. “What do you mean, all over?” asked the doctor, “be a little more specific.” The woman touched her right knee with her index finger and yelled, “Oh, that hurts!” Then she touched her left cheek and again yelled, “Ouch! That hurts, too.” Then she touched her right earlobe, “Even that hurts,” she cried. The doctor checked her thoughtfully for a moment and then told her his diagnosis: “You have a broken finger.”

“The best six doctors: sunshine, water, rest, air, exercise, diet.” -Wayne Fields

“First, do no harm.” [translation to English]
“Primum non nocere.” [original Latin]
-Author Unknown: “Hippocratic Oath”

A saintly Christian fellow went to the doctor for a medical checkup. He said to the doctor, “I feel terrible. I have excruciating pains in my head. Please tell me what is wrong with me.” “Let’s begin with a few questions,” said the doctor. “Do you drink much?” “Alcohol?” said the man. “I’m a teetotaler. Never touch a drop of that stuff.” “How about smoking?” asked the doctor. “Never,” replied the man. “Tobacco is bad and I have strong principles against it.” “Are you up late nights?” asked the doctor. “Oh, no,” said the man. “Worldliness is a sin. I’m against it. I am always in bed by 9:30 every night - always have been.” “I have seen this before,” said the doctor. “It just may be that your halo is on too tight.”

Doctor: You appear to have a cold.
Patient: Actually, I am just rehearsing for the part of Sneezy in “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.”

“Doctor: The only person who actually enjoys poor health.” -Author Unknown

Mister Lee was terribly overweight, so his doctor put him on a diet. “I want you to eat regularly for two days, then skip a day, and repeat this procedure for two weeks. The next time I see you, you will have lost at least five pounds.” When Mr. Lee returned, he shocked the doctor by having lost nearly sixty pounds. “Why, that is simply amazing!” the doctor said, “Did you follow my instructions?” Mr. Lee nodded. “I will tell you though, I thought I was going to drop dead on the third day.” “From hunger, you mean?” “No, from skipping.”

A Brief History of Medicine: “Doctor, I have an ear ache.”
- “Here, eat this root.” (2000 B.C.E.)
- “That root is heathen; here, say this magic spell.” (1000 B.C.E.)
- “That magic spell is superstition, drink this potion.” (1850)
- “That potion is snake oil, swallow this pill.” (1940)
- “That pill is ineffective, take this antibiotic.” (1985)
- “That antibiotic is artificial. Here, eat this root.” (2000)

Will doctors ever go from ‘practicing medicine’ to ‘conducting medicine’?

Patient, on telephone: Doctor, there’s something very wrong with me. My head feels squashed, my voice sounds strange, I smell something peculiar, and one of my feet is cold. What could be wrong with me?
Doctor: You are probably wearing one of your socks on your head.

A man walked into a doctor’s office and said, “Doctor, Doctor, I have a strawberry growing on my arm!” The doctor replied, “I can give you some cream for that.”

Patient: Doctor, I think my eyesight is getting worse.
Clerk: It certainly is - this is a jewelry store!

“My stomach has been bothering me, Doctor,” complained the patient. “What have you been eating?” asked the doctor. “I only eat jelly beans.” “Jelly beans?!” exclaimed the astonished doctor. “Maybe that is the trouble. What kind do you eat?” “All kinds,” replied the man, “Red ones for breakfast, yellow and orange ones for lunch, blue ones for afternoon snacks, and purple and black for dinner.” “I see the problem,” said the doctor. “You haven’t been getting any greens!”

Patient: Doctor, Doctor, I keep thinking there are two of me.
Doctor: One at a time, please.

“God heales, and the physitian hath the thankes.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in George Herbert (1593 - 1633): “Jacula Prudentum; or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. Selected by Mr. George Herbert” (1651), proverb 169

“A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.” -Author Unknown: Irish proverb

Patient: Doctor, doctor, I keep thinking I’m a yo-yo.
Doctor: Are you stringing me along?

“I cannot do the things I used to do,” a patient said to the doctor. “I wish you had some magic way of making me younger.” “You have it all wrong,” the doctor said. “My job is to see that you get older.”

Doctor: Have you ever had trouble with dyspepsia?
Patience: Only once.
Doctor: When was that?
Patient: When I tried to spell it.

A typical American hospital has three to six times more employees than patients. So, the next time you go to the hospital, perhaps it should be to fill out an employment application.

Patient: Doctor, how long will my arm be in this cast?
Doctor: At least six weeks.
Patient: When you remove it, will I be able to play the violin?
Doctor: Of course.
Patient: That is great, because I could never play one before.

A woman rushed into a doctor’s office and shouted, “Doctor, I think I’m shrinking!” The doctor calmly responded, “Now settle down. You will just have to be a little patient.”

Patient: Doctor, can you give me something for my liver?
Doctor: Certainly - here is an onion!

A doctor had worked out the vacation plans for the people he had working in his office. As they looked at the schedule, the doctor said, “All in favor, stick out your tongues and say, ‘Aaahhh.’”

Farmer: Doctor, I have potatoes in my ears.
Doctor: How did that happen?
Farmer: I do not know - I planted carrots.

Have you heard about the doctor who wrote out a prescription in the usual doctor’s fashion? The patient used it for two years as a railroad pass. Twice it got him into Radio City Music Hall, and once into Yankee Stadium. It came in handy as a letter from his supervisor to the personnel director to increase his salary. And, to top it off, his daughter played it on the piano and won a scholarship to the Curtis Music Conservatory.

“Medical education is not completed at the medical school, it is only begun.” -William H. Welch

A doctor decided to take a week off from the pressures of his busy medical practice, and went skiing. Alas, no sooner did he reach the slopes than he heard an ominous rumbling. Seconds later, a sheet of snow came crashing toward him. Fortunately, the doctor was able to jump into a cave just before the avalanche could overtake him. Just as luckily, he had matches with him and was able to light a fire. Hours later, when everyone but the doctor had returned to the lodge from a day of skiing, a rescue team was sent out to search for him. It was nearly dark when the searchers saw smoke curling from the cave and went to investigate. Poking his head in the cave, one of the rescuers yelled, “Doctor, are you in there? It’s the Red Cross.” Bristling, the harried doctor called back, “I already gave at the office!”

Patient on phone: I cannot sleep, Doctor. Can you do anything for me?
Doctor: Stay on the phone and I will sing you a lullaby.

If these jokes are not making you feel better, it may be time to see your doctor, and if these jokes are making you feel better, it may be time to see your doctor - what do we know, we are not doctors and we do not give medical advice . . . we are MFOL!

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Dance and Dancing

9/25/2020

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“There are short-cuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.” -Vicki Baum

“When you take dancing lessons, you learn steps and you learn steps and you learn steps. It can go on for a long time. And then one day, you just learn to dance, and it is so different.” -Bill Austin

“When dancing, if you get confused, just jump around and wave your arms.” -Author Unknown

“Dancing is the poetry of the foot.” -John Dryden (1631 - 1700)

A Tango dancer once decided to shine his dirty shoes by rubbing them against his trousers while dancing in a competition. Thinking that he was doing a dance move, other people started doing it . . . and that is the story of how the ‘Shine’ dance move began.

The Polka Dance

My cousin Nance came from France
To teach me the Polka dance.
First the heels, then the toes,
Yes, that’s the way the Polka goes.

by Author Unknown

“Put a little fun into your life. Try dancing.” -Kathryn Murray

“Socrates learned to dance when he was seventy because he felt that an essential part of himself had been neglected.” -Author Unknown

Hugh: Why is the new dance named ‘The Elevator’?
Grant: Because it has no steps!

“Learning to walk set you free. Learning to dance gives you the greatest freedom of all: to express your whole self, the person you are.” -Melissa Hayden (pseudonym of Mildred Herman (1923 - 2006))

We are the Dancers

We dance for laughter,
We dance for tears,
We dance for madness,
We dance for fears,
We dance for happiness,
We dance for screams,
We are the dancers . . .
We create the dream!

by Author Unknown

“Every day I count wasted in which there has been no dancing.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844 - 1900))

“We are fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.” -Author Unknown

“I have no desire to prove anything by dancing. I have never used it as an outlet or as a means of expressing myself. I just dance.” -Fred Astaire (pseudonym of Frederick Austerlitz (1899 - 1987))

The Old Woman from France

There came an old woman from France
Who taught grown-up children to dance;
But they were so stiff,
She sent them home in a sniff,
This sprightly old woman from France.

by Author Unknown

“As soon as I hear music, something in me starts to vibrate.” -Suzanne Farrell

“‘On with the dance, let the joy be unconfined!’ is my motto, whether there’s any dance to dance or any joy to unconfine.” -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 - 1910))

“We do not always dance because we are happy, but we dance and cannot help but become happy.” -Author Unknown

“Our classes are our practices. Our dance sneakers are our equipment. Our teacher is our coach. Our dance clothes are our jerseys. Our performances are our matches. Our audiences are our fans. Our concert is our tournament. The rhythm is our rule. Failure is our opponent; we will not lose. This is our game. This is our sport.” -Vala Yankovski

Esther: Why did the tap dancer retire?
Astaire: He kept falling in the sink.

“You don’t grow old and stop dancing; you stop dancing and grow old.” -Jessie M. Newburn

Some Actual Dance Names
- The Construction Worker
- The Fruit Bowl
- The Jay Walker
- The Lame Duck
- The Road Runner
- The Robot
- The Slip and Slide
- The Trampoline Dance
- The Trip and Fall
Can you think of other dances with zany names?

“If you stumble, make it part of the dance.” -Author Unknown

“Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance.” -Dave Barry (David McAlister Barry (born 1947))

“You can dance anywhere, even if only in your heart.” -Author Unknown

Dance and Dancing Facts
- Moderate dancing burns 250 to 300 calories an hour.
- Somewhere someone is dancing even as you read these very words.
- Now it’s your turn - what do you know about dancing?

“We look at the dance to impart the sensation of living in an affirmation of life, to energize the spectator into keener awareness of the vigor, the mystery, the humor, the variety, and the wonder of life.” -Martha Graham

“All that music and only two feet.” -Author Unknown

“I will make an average man into an average dancer, provided he be passably well made. I will teach him how to move his arms and legs, to turn his head. I will give him steadiness, brilliancy, and speed; but I cannot endow him with that fire and intelligence, those graces and that expression of feeling which is the soul of true pantomime.” -Jean Georges Noverre

“Dancing is poetry with arms and legs.” -Charles Baudelaire (1821 - 1867)

“Dancing allows me to explore myself in so many ways, to learn about my limitations and strengths, my ability to cope with adversity and to go farther than I thought I could. You find out what you’re made of.” -Andrew Asnes

You need dance lessons right away - there’s no time to waste! Visit Fred Astaire Dance Studios at https://www.fredastaire.com/.

“Some people seem to think that good dancers are born, but all the good dancers I have known are taught or trained.” -Fred Astaire (pseudonym of Frederick Austerlitz (1899 - 1987))

Fae: Why did the rooster dance across the floor?
Phineas: To ask the hen to dance.

“Happiness is finding the right dance partner.” -Author Unknown

Types of Dances and Dance Styles
- Ballet
- Ballroom
- Couples
- Disco
- Irish Jig
- Line
- Polka
- Solo
- Square
- Tap
Can you think of other types of dances or dance styles?

“Enjoy the process of learning to dance. The process of our profession, and not its final achievement, is the heart and soul of dance.” -Jacques d’Amboise

“Dancing is moving to the music without stepping on anyone’s toes, pretty much the same as life.” -Robert Brault (born 1938)

“It’s not magic! It’s physics. The speed of the turn is what keeps you upright.” -Deborah Bull

“Dance when you hear music.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“I don’t want people who want to dance, I want people who have to dance.” -George Balanchine (Georgy Melitonovich Balanchivadze)

“On dancing on pointe: Why don’t they just get taller girls?” -Henny Youngman (Henry ‘Henny’ Youngman (1906 - 1998))

“There are two ways of being creative. One can sing and dance. Or one can create an environment in which singers and dancers flourish.” -Mary Lou Cook (1918 - 2013)

“Dancing is the art of pulling your feet away faster than your partner can step on them.” -Author Unknown

“No sane man will dance.” -Marcus Tullius Cicero (also known as Tully or simply Cicero (106 B.C.E. - 43 B.C.E.))

“There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good.” -Edwin Denby (Edwin Orr Denby (1903 - 1983))

“You have to love dancing to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no paintings to show on walls and maybe hang in museums, no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that single fleeting moment when you feel alive.” -Merce Cunningham

“Why walk when you can dance?” -Author Unknown

“They who love dancing too much seem to have more brains in their feet than in their head.” -Publius Terentius Afer (also known simply as Terence (185 B.C.E. - 159 B.C.E.))

“Think of the magic of the foot, comparatively small, upon which your whole weight rests. It’s a miracle, and the dance . . . is a celebration of that miracle.” -Martha Graham

Joy: Why did the chicken cross the road?
Bliss: To get to the barn dance, of course!

“To dance is to live.” -John Milton (1608 - 1674): “L’Allegro” (1645)

“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900)

“In life, as in dance, grace glides on blistered feet.” -Alice Abrams

“I set as my goal to be the best dancer I could be. Not the most famous, or the highest paid dancer, just the best I could be. Out of this discipline came great freedom and calm.” -Suzanne Farrell

Chorophobia is a persistent fear dancing. Weddings, proms, and parties may pose problems for those who suffer from a fear of dancing. Try singing instead . . . la, la, la, la! Everybody can do something, right? Okay, maybe whistling? Counting on your fingers and toes?

“Dancers have a very hard job. We must take our ugly, callused, blistered, and bruised feet and present them in a way so that they are mistaken as the most beautiful things on Earth.” -Author Unknown

“Thousands of emotions well up inside me throughout the day. They are released when I dance.” -Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

“. . . those move easiest who have learn’d to dance.” -Alexander Pope (1688 - 1744)

“I found that dance was key to keeping depression out of my life. When you dance, things just go away, things don’t seem so bad. There’s no better way to take care of health than through something as joyous and beautiful as dance.” -Patrick Swayze (Patrick Wayne Swayze (1952 - 2009))

“Dance is the only art in which we ourselves are the stuff of which it is made.” -Ted Shawn

“Dance isn’t just about fancy footwork. It requires grace, discipline, and major muscles.” -Author Unknown

You may have noticed this article does not specifically mention Ballet Dancing, but only hints at it ever so slightly - and that is because the topic will be covered in another article . . . on MFOL!

“When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It’s to enjoy each step along the way.” -Wayne Dyer (Wayne Walter Dyer (born 1940))

“Dancing is silent poetry.” -Simonides

“I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself.” -Mikhail Baryshnikov

“On the dance floor, as in life, you’re only as good as your partner.” -Robin Marantz Henig

“If you think dancers aren’t athletes, think again.” -Author Unknown

Old Lady of France

There was an old lady of France,
Who taught little ducklings to dance;
When she said, “Tick-a-tack!” -
They only said, “Quack!”
Which grieved that old lady of France.

by Edward Lear

“Dancing is like life: it’s good to have a plan, but be prepared to improvise.” -Author Unknown

“When you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance.” -Lee Ann Womack

“Life is a dance, from one stage to the next.” -Author Unknown

“Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair . . .” -Susan Polis Shutz (born 1944 as Susan Polis)

Overheard: Do you hear that? That music means I have to dance!

Now we make our way with fancy footwork to the next article . . . on MFOL!

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Art

9/19/2020

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“The motivation of all artists is, ‘Look at me, Mum’.” -Sebastian Horsley

“Art is creating something beautiful where nothing existed before.” -Author Unknown

Question: They are now worth millions of dollars each, and are much sought after, but how many paintings did Vincent Van Gogh sell in his lifetime?
Answer: Vincent Van Gogh sold exactly one of his paintings during his entire lifetime, titled “Red Vineyard at Arles,” which was bought by his brother.

“I cannot help it that my pictures do not sell. Nevertheless the time will come when people will see that they are worth more than the price of the paint.” -Vincent van Gogh (Vincent Willem van Gogh (1853 - 1890)): in a letter (20 October 1888) to his brother Theo

Alice: What did the painter say to her boyfriend?
Alicia: “I love you with all my art!”

Do you need some art to decorate your castle, palace, one-room apartment, office, mini-mansion, dorm room, cubicle, tent, estate, or cave? Visit www.FreeArt.com. Be sure to tell them you found out about them from www.MakeFunOfLife.net.

“Real art is illumination . . . It adds stature to life.” -Brooks Atkinson (Justin Brooks ‘Brooks’ Atkinson (1894 - 1984))

“A very rich man once commissioned a famous artist to do a painting of a fish. One year later the man returned and asked for his painting. The artist took out a clean sheet of paper and painted a beautiful fish while the man waited. The man then asked why it had taken a year to get the painting of the fish. The artist opened a door to a closet, which was filled with 1,000 paintings of that fish.” -Author Unknown

Claudia: Where can cow art be found?
Clyde: In moo-seums!

During an exhibit at a museum, a modern artist was explaining his work. “This,” he said, pointing to a completely blank canvas, “is a cow grazing.” “Where is the grass?” asked a visitor. “The cow has eaten it,” the artist answered. “Well, then,” the visitor said, “where is the cow?” “Do you think she would stick around,” the artist replied, “after she had eaten all the grass?”

“The fact that no one understands you doesn’t make you an artist.” -Author Unknown

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Drew.
Drew, who?
Drew a picture for you!

“The greatest masterpieces were once only pigments on a palette.” -Henry S. Haskins (Henry Stanley Haskins (1876 - 1957))

“If I didn’t start painting, I would have raised chickens.” -Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson Moses (1860 - 1961))

[Henri] “Matisse’s painting “Le Bateau” hung upside down in the Museum of Modern Art, New York, for forty-seven days before anyone noticed (October 18 to December 4, 1961). In that period 116,000 people had visited the gallery.” -Jean Cocteau (1890 - 1963): “Past Tense: Diaries” (1987), Volume 1

Sculpture: An art that consists of eliminating all superfluous material.

“I choose a block of marble and chop off whatever I don’t need.” -Auguste Rodin (also known as François Auguste René Rodin, Auguste-René Rodin, and François-Auguste Rodin (1840 - 1917)), when asked how he managed to make his statues

“Art is making something out of nothing and selling it.” -Frank Zappa

Bo

An artistic young man called Bo,
To an art class decided to go.
     The teacher said, “Not right -
     Your page is all white!”
Bo said, “It is a polar bear in snow.”

by Author Unknown

Luther: What did the art dealer say when you asked what the abstract picture was supposed to be?
Rutherford: “It is a reflection of the person looking at it.”

Overheard: You are my favorite work of art.

A Still-Life

An artist woke up from his slumbers
To paint a still-life of cucumbers.
     When asked for a hint
     About color or tint
He said, “Wait ’til I mark down the numbers.”

by Author Unknown: a limerick about paint-by-numbers

“Sometimes there is no need to be either clever or original.” -Ivan Chermayeff

“There are only two styles of portrait painting, the serious and the smirk.” -Charles Dickens (Charles John Huffam Dickens (1812 - 1870))

“Art is life seen through a temperament.” -Émile Zola

“Every time I paint a portrait I lose a friend.” -John Singer Sargent (1856 - 1925): as quoted in Evan Esar: “The Dictionary of Humorous Quotations” (1949)

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” -Michelangelo (Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, also known as Buonarroti Michelangelo (1475 - 1564))

“Art is awesome!” -Author Unknown

“I am a poor man and of little worth, who is laboring in that art that God has given me in order to extend my life as long as possible.” -Michelangelo (Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, also known as Buonarroti Michelangelo (1475 - 1564))

“Looking at ‘modern art’ is like trying to follow the plot in a bowl of alphabet soup.” -Author Unknown

“In art the hand can never execute anything higher than the heart can inspire.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

Who is to say that this is not art? We could call it “Birds on a Wall” . . . what do you think?

“It’s clever, but is it art?” -Rudyard Kipling (1865 - 1936)

“I don’t know if it’s art, but I know I like it.” -Walt Disney (Walter Elias ‘Walt’ Disney (1901 - 1966)): as attributed in Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston: “Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life” (1981)

“There’s no correlation between creativity and equipment ownership. None. Zilch. Nada. Actually, as the artist gets more into his thing, and as he gets more successful, his number of tools tends to go down. He knows what works for him. Expending mental energy on stuff wastes time.” -Hugh Macleod

“Sculpture is what you bump into when you back up to see a painting.” -Barnett Newman

“Everyone wants to understand art. Why not try to understand the song of a bird?” -Pablo Picasso (Pablo Diego Jose Francisco do Paula Juan Nepomuceno Cipriano de la Santissima Trinidad (1881 - 1973))

“When one buys some of my artwork I hope it is because they will wish to learn from it and not because they think it will match their drapes!” -Christian Cardell Corbet (1997)

“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” -Thomas Merton (1915 - 1968)

“Abstract art? A product of the untalented, sold by the unprincipled to the utterly bewildered.” -Al Capp (Alfred Gerald Caplin (1909 - 1979)): as quoted in the “National Observer” (1 July 1963)

“Good art does exist, though less and less in the world. It is worth a few dollars, though never any outrageous sum of money. What is now called art is usually color smears on a surface or pieces of material that has been mangled or stacked off-center and called a sculpture, and at this time, much of what is called art is only a way to separate the gullible from their money. Perhaps someday the world will return to good art and to paying just a few dollars for it.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“The history of modern art is also the history of the progressive loss of art’s audience. Art has increasingly become the concern of the artist and the bafflement of the public.” -Paul Gauguin

“Art never expresses anything but itself.” -Oscar Wilde (Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde (1854 - 1900))

“Skill without imagination is craftsmanship and gives us many useful objects such as wickerwork picnic baskets. Imagination without skill gives us modern art.” -Tom Stoppard (born 1937 as Tomás Straussler): “Artist Descending a Staircase” (1972)

“Modern art - isn’t that like music with an irregular beat that nobody ever notices, because it is really only background noise?” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

Annabelle: How does Salvador Dali start his mornings?
Christabel: With a bowl of breakfast ‘surreal.’

“The purpose of art is to stop time.” -Bob Dylan

“A truism regarding Modern Art: Not all artists are playing a joke on the public. Some are genuinely mad.” -Author Unknown

“The more horrifying this world becomes, the more art becomes abstract.” -Paul Klee

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” -Scott Adams (Scott Raymond Adams (born 1957))

“Artists are just children who refuse to put down their crayons.” -Al Hirschfeld

“Painting is easy when you don’t know how but very difficult when you do.” -Edgar Degas

“Art is like a border of flowers along the course of civilization.” -Lincoln Steffens (1846 - 1936)

Knock, knock!
Who’s there?
Monet!
Monet, who?
Monet for art does not grow on trees!

“The arts are an even better barometer of what is happening in our world than the stock market or the debates in congress.” -Hendrik Willem Van Loon: “The Arts”

Kevin: Which artists live on farms?
Nikki: Vincent van Goat and Pablo Pigcaso.

“An artist is someone who produces things that people don’t need to have but that he - for some reason - thinks it would be a good idea to give them.” -Andy Warhol (Andrew Warhola): “Philosophy of Andy Warhol (From A to B and Back Again)” (1975), chapter 10

“No art, however minor, demands less than total dedication if you want to excel in it.” -Alberti (Leon Battista Alberti (1404 - 1472))

Moe: What does an artist draw just before going to bed?
Joe: Is it the blinds or the curtains?

“No masterpiece was ever created by a lazy artist.” -Salvador Dali

A doodle is a tiny sketch of a character or object; a whacky doodle is a whimsical such drawing.

“The artistic temperament is a disease that afflicts amateurs.” -G. K. Chesterton (Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874 - 1936)): “Heretics” (1905), Chapter 16

“A painting is never finished; it simply stops in interesting places.” -Paul Gardner

“Can anyone explain art?” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“It looks like a tortoise-shell cat having a fit in a platter of tomatoes.” -Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 - 1910)), commenting on a modern art painting

“A primitive artist is an amateur whose work sells.” -Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson Moses (1860 - 1961))

“The prudent painter should know how to paint what is appropriate to the individual, the time, and the place . . . Is it not an error to paint St. Jerome with a red hat, like the one cardinals wear today? He was indeed a cardinal, but he did not wear such a costume, since it was Pope Innocent IV, more than 700 years later, who gave cardinals their red hats and red gowns . . . All this proceeds from the ignorance of painters.” -Gilio da Cybele: “Dialogue on the Error of Painters” (1564), as quoted in Daniel J. Boorstin: “The Discoverers” (1983)

“It is not hard to understand modern art. If it hangs on a wall, it’s a painting, and if you can walk around it, it’s a sculpture.” -Author Unknown

“All art is but imitation of nature.” -Lucius Annaeus Seneca (also known as Seneca the Younger or simply Seneca (3 B.C.E. - C.E. 65))

“In his lifetime van Gogh painted 486 paintings. Oddly enough, 8,975 of them are to be found in the United States.” -Werner Lansburgh

Signs That You Might Be an Artist
- The only piece of new furniture in your home is a $2,000 easel.
- You chose your car for its color rather than fuel economy.
- You butter your toast with your fingers just to feel its texture.
- You have nothing to wear on a date because everything has paint smears on it.
- Your date ends up with paint smears on him or her.
- There are Prussian blue fingerprints on your telephone.
- You know what color of green the lichen growing on the tree is.
- You know the names of more than twenty-eight colors.
- You are more than a month behind on your rent.
- When you take a day off to relax at the beach, you take along an easel, paint, brushes, and several blank canvasses.
- The only book you own is a book with large full-color illustrations of renaissance art, with paint smears on the pages.
- You frequently take your work on the road by loading up your vehicle with examples of your best art and make the rounds of the galleries in nearby towns, and you wonder if Monet ever did the same thing with a horse and wagon.

“The ‘Earth’ without ‘art’ is just ‘Eh.’” -Author Unknown

[Of James Whistler] “His most famous painting was titled “Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1” (1871), but it’s more commonly known as “Whistler’s Mother.” It’s a portrait of Anna Matilda McNeill Whistler in a black dress, seated in profile against a gray wall. When Whistler’s scheduled model didn’t show up for a sitting, he decided to paint his mother instead.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in “The Writer’s Almanac” (11 July 2012)

“Art is the unceasing effort to compete with the beauty of flowers - and never succeeding.” -Gian Carlo Menotti (1911 - 2007)

“Some people color inside the lines, others color outside the lines. Me? I eat the crayons.” -Bill Carter

“The highest triumph of art, is the truest presentation of nature.” -Nathaniel Parker Willis (1806 - 1867)

This is MFOL! . . . it’s like fine art that is available to everyone . . .

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Problems and Solutions

9/12/2020

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Oysters have an elegant solution to a problem. When a grain of sand gets inside their shells, they respond by coating the irritant in a layer of the material that lines their shells, commonly referred to as ’mother-of-pearl.’ After repeated coatings, the result is a shiny round object called a pearl. The problem is an irritant such as a grain of sand, and the solution is a pearl. Can oysters teach us how to solve problems?

“I think the next best thing to solving a problem is finding some humor in it.” -Frank A. Clark (Frank Atherton Clark (1911 - 1991))

“A problem well stated is a problem half-solved.” -Charles F. Kettering (Charles Franklin Kettering (1876 - 1958))

“Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.” -Maya Angelou (born Marguerite Ann Johnson (1928 - 2014))

“The best angle to approach a problem is from the try angle.” -Author Unknown

“A problem is a chance for you to do your best.” -Duke Ellington (Edward Kennedy ‘Duke’ Ellington (1899 - 1974))

“What a pity human beings can’t exchange problems. Everyone knows exactly how to solve the other fellow’s.” -Olin Miller (1918 - 2002)

“The problems we face are human problems and therefore are capable of human solutions.” -Frederick Moore Vinson

“People who believe a problem can be solved tend to get busy solving it.” -William Raspberry

“Every big problem was at one time a wee little disturbance.” -Author Unknown

“The easiest way to solve a problem is to pick an easy one.” -Franklin P. Jones (Franklin Pierce Jones (1908 - 1980))

“The world’s biggest problems are the world’s biggest business opportunities.” -Peter Diamandis

Overheard: Everything is figureoutable.

“The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution.” -Bertrand Russell (Bertrand Arthur William Russell (1872 - 1970))

“All life is problem solving.” -Karl Popper (1902 - 1994)

“I’ve yet to see any problem, however complicated, which when you looked at it the right way didn’t become still more complicated.” -Poul Anderson (Poul William Anderson (1926 - 2001)): ‘Call Me Joe’ novelette published in “Astounding Science Fiction” (April 1957) magazine

“A feeling of confidence and personal power comes from facing challenges and overcoming them.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Problems are the price of success.” -Branch Rickey (Wesley ‘Branch’ Rickey (1881 - 1965))

“. . . so it will be forever; that after every storm the Sun will smile, for every problem there is a solution, and that the soul’s indefeasible duty is to be of good cheer . . .” -William R. Alger (William Rounseville Alger (1822 - 1905)): “The School of Life” (1881), ‘Lesson of Faith,’ page 71

“It’s not easy taking my problems one at a time when they refuse to get in line.” -Ashleigh Brilliant (Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant (born 1933)): as quoted in “Reader’s Digest” magazine

“Problems worthy of attack prove their worth by fighting back.” -Paul Erdos (1913 - 1996)

“It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.” -John Steinbeck (John Ernst Steinbeck, Junior (1902 - 1968))

“No problem can be solved until it is reduced to some simple form. The changing of a vague difficulty into a specific, concrete form is a very essential element in thinking.” -J. P. Morgan (John Pierpont ‘J. P.’ Morgan (1837 - 1913))

“There are as many solutions as there are human beings.” -George Tooker (George Clair Tooker, Junior (1920 - 2011))

“It is no good getting furious if you get stuck. What I do is keep thinking about the problem but work on something else. Sometimes it is years before I see the way forward. In the case of information loss and black holes, it was 29 years.” -Stephen Hawking (Stephen William Hawking (1942 - 2018))

“‘We have a problem.’ ‘Congratulations.’ ‘But it’s a tough problem.’ ‘Then double congratulations.’” -W. Clement Stone (William Clement Stone (1902 - 2002))

“The one common challenge of all humanity is the challenge of problems.” -R. Buckminster Fuller (Richard Buckminster ‘Bucky’ Fuller (1895 - 1983))

“After every difficulty, ask yourself two questions: ‘What did I do right?’ and ‘What would I do differently?’” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Talking about our problems is our greatest addiction. Break the habit. Talk about your joys.” -Rita Schiano

“Your problems aren’t going to solve themselves, you know.” -Author Unknown

“Focus on remedies, not faults.” -Jack Nicklaus (Jack William Nicklaus (born 1940))

“Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” -Joshua J. Marine

“All problems become smaller if you don’t dodge them, but confront them.” -William F. Halsey (William Frederick ‘Bull’ Halsey, Junior (1882 - 1959))

“This problem, too, will look simple after it is solved.” -Charles F. Kettering (Charles Franklin Kettering (1876 - 1958))

“We will find the solution . . . together.” -Author Unknown

“You are the only problem you will ever have and you are the only solution.” -Bob Proctor (born 1934)

“A small trouble is like a pebble. Hold it too close to your eye, and it puts everything out of focus. Hold it at proper viewing distance, and it can be examined and classified. Throw it at your feet, and it can be seen in its true setting, just one more tiny bump on the pathway to eternity.” -Celia Luce (Celia Larsen Luce (1914 - 2008))

“The solution of every problem is another problem.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“Don’t wish it were easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for fewer problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom.” -Earl Shoaff (John Earl Shoaff (1916 - 1965))

“I don’t have any solution, but I certainly admire the problem.” -Ashleigh Brilliant (Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant (born 1933))

“Do not be pushed by your problems; be led by your dreams.” -Author Unknown

“The biggest problem in the world could have been solved when it was small.” -Witter Bynner (Harold ‘Witter’ Bynner (1881 - 1968))

“Nobody, as long as he moves among the chaotic currents of life, is without trouble.” -C. G. Jung (Carl Gustav Jung (1875 - 1961))

“An expert problem solver must be endowed with two incompatible qualities - a restless imagination and a patient pertinacity.” -Howard W. Eves (Howard Whitley Eves (1911 - 2004))

“I’ve never seen a problem that was solved by only complaining about it.” -Steve Keating (Stephen F. Keating (1918 - 2001))

“Each problem that I solved became a rule which served afterwards to solve other problems.” -René Descartes (1596 - 1650): “Discours de la Methode” (1637)

“Beset by a difficult problem? Now is your chance to shine. Pick yourself up, get to work, and get triumphantly through it.” -Ralph Marston (Ralph S. Marston, Junior (born 1955))

“There are no problems, just challenges.” -Author Unknown

“The best way to escape from a problem is to solve it.” -Alan Saporta (Alan H. Saporta (born 1943))

“Avoid problems, and you’ll never be the one who overcame them.” -Richard Bach (Richard David Bach (born 1936))

“Don’t tell me that this problem is difficult. If it wasn’t difficult, it wouldn’t be a problem.” [translation to English]
“Ne me dites pas que ce problème est difficile. S’il n’était pas difficile, ce ne serait pas un problème.” [original French]
-Ferdinand Foch (Ferdinand Jean Marie Foch (1851 - 1929))

“The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem.” -Theodore Rubin (Theodore Isaac Rubin (born 1923))

Overheard: All of the easy problems have already been solved.

“Discovery of a solution consists of looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different.” -Albert Szent-Györgyi (1893 - 1986)

“It’s good to remember that the tea kettle, although up to its neck in hot water, continues to sing.” -Author Unknown

“We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as unsolvable problems.” -John W. Gardner (John William Gardner (1912 - 2002))

“Focus on the solution, not the problem.” -Walter Anderson (born 1944)

“Every problem contains within itself the seeds of its own solution.” -Edward Somers

“A lot of problems in the world would disappear if we talked to each other instead of about each other.” -Author Unknown

“When I am working on a problem I never think about beauty. I only think about how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.” -R. Buckminster Fuller (Richard Buckminster ‘Bucky’ Fuller (1895 - 1983))

“It isn’t that they can’t see the solution. It is that they can’t see the problem.” -G. K. Chesterton (Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874 - 1936))

“When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail.” -Abraham Maslow (Abraham Harold Maslow (1908 - 1970)): “The Psychology of Science” (1966)

“Problems are only opportunities in work clothes.” -Henry J. Kaiser (Henry John Kaiser (1882 - 1967))

“Nothing lasts forever - not even your troubles.” -Arnold Glasow (Arnold Henry Glasow (1905 - 1998))

“No problem is so complicated that you cannot make it more complicated.” -Andy Grove (Andrew Stephen ‘Andy’ Grove (1936 - 2016))

“There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. We seek out problems because we need their gifts.” -Richard Bach (Richard David Bach (born 1936))

“Don’t dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer.” -Denis Waitley (born 1933)

“Muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone.” -Alan Watts (Alan Wilson Watts (1915 - 1973))

“There is a remedy for everything, could men find it.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in George Herbert (1593 - 1633): “Jacula Prudentum; or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. Selected by Mr. George Herbert” (1651)

Problems worthy of attack
prove their worth by hitting back.
-Piet Hein (1905 - 1996)

“Whenever we have a really difficult or impossible problem in life, we should take it to a math teacher. As you may remember from school, math teachers are good at giving problems to us, and they are good at showing us how to solve them, as well.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Problems are not stop signs, they are guidelines.” -Robert H. Schuller (Robert Harold Schuller (1926 - 2015))

“The issue is not that our problems are too big but that our imaginations are too small.” -Marianne Williamson (born 1952)

“It often happens that I wake at night and begin to think about a serious problem and decide I must tell the Pope about it. Then I wake up completely and remember that I am the Pope.” -Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881 - 1963))

“Problems are to the mind what exercise is to the muscles, they toughen and make strong.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

“The first requisite for success is the ability to apply your physical and mental energies to one problem incessantly without growing weary.” -Herbert Spencer (1820 - 1903)

“The ‘how’ thinker gets problems solved effectively because he wastes no time with futile ‘ifs.’” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

“Real difficulties can be overcome; it is only the imaginary ones that are unconquerable.” -Theodore N. Vail (Theodore Newton Vail (1845 - 1920))

“I am so grateful for my troubles. As I reflect back on my life, I have come to realize that my greatest triumphs have been born of my greatest troubles.” -Steve Maraboli (born 1975): “Unapologetically You: Reflections on Life and the Human Experience” (2013)

“No problem can withstand the assault of sustained thinking.” -Voltaire (pseudonym of François-Marie Arouet (1694 - 1778))

“To solve a problem, walk around.” -Jerome (also known as Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus (about C.E. 347 - C.E. 420))

“The first step towards the solution of any problem is optimism.” -John Baines

“Never make troubles of trifles.” -Author Unknown

“When I’m working on a problem, I never think about beauty. I think only how to solve the problem. But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.” -R. Buckminster Fuller (Richard Buckminster ‘Bucky’ Fuller (1895 - 1983))

“Trouble is My Business.” -Raymond Chandler (1888 - 1959): title of article in “Dime Detective Magazine” (August 1939), and the credo of his fictional detective Philip Marlowe

“Problems are questions that ask, ‘How can you best handle us?’” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Creativity can solve almost any problem. The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality, overcomes everything.” -George Lois

“The most important thing to do in solving a problem is to begin.” -Frank Tyger (1929 - 2011)

We are MFOL! . . . may all of your problems be funny ones . . . and may all of your solutions be fun . . .

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Environmentalism & Animal Rights Advocacy

9/6/2020

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‘Tree-hugger’ is another name for an environmentalist.

“Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar.” -Bradley Millar

“I think animal testing is a terrible idea; they get all nervous and give the wrong answers.” -Steven Wright (Steven Alexander Wright (born 1955))

“Everybody wants to save the Earth; nobody wants to help Mom with the dishes.” -P. J. O’Rourke

“And all young people are concerned environmentalists, but no one is interested in keeping the schoolyard clean!” -David McKay

“I am I plus my surroundings, and if I do not preserve the latter, I do not preserve myself.” -José Ortega y Gasset (1883 - 1955): “Meditations of Quixote” (1911)

Kindness to Animals

Speak gently to the herring and kindly to the calf,
Be blithesome with the bunny, at barnacles don’t laugh!
Give nuts unto the monkey, and buns unto the bear,
Ne’er hint at currant jelly if you chance to see a hare!
Oh, little girls, pray hide your combs when tortoises draw nigh,
And never in the hearing of a pigeon whisper Pie!
But give the stranded jelly-fish a shove into the sea, -
Be always kind to animals wherever you may be!
Oh, make not game of sparrows, nor faces at the ram,
And ne’er allude to mint sauce when calling on a lamb.
Don’t beard the thoughtful oyster, don’t dare the cod to crimp,
Don’t cheat the pike, or ever try to pot the playful shrimp.
Tread lightly on the turning worm, don’t bruise the butterfly,
Don’t ridicule the wry-neck, nor sneer at salmon-fry;
Oh, ne’er delight to make dogs fight, nor bantams disagree, -
Be always kind to animals wherever you may be!
Be lenient with lobsters, and ever kind to crabs,
And be not disrespectful to cuttle-fish or dabs;
Chase not the Cochin-China, chaff not the ox obese,
And babble not of feather-beds in company with geese.
Be tender with the tadpole, and let the limpet thrive,
Be merciful to mussels, don’t skin your eels alive;
When talking to a turtle don’t mention calipee-
Be always kind to animals wherever you may be.

-J. Ashby-Sterry

“We must fight against the spirit of unconscious cruelty with which we treat the animals. Animals suffer as much as we do. True humanity does not allow us to impose such sufferings on them. It is our duty to make the whole world recognize it. Until we extend our circle of compassion to all living things, humanity will not find peace.” -Albert Schweitzer (1875 - 1965): “The Philosophy of Civilization” (1951)

“If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.” -Jack Handey (born 1949)

“People are more violently opposed to fur than leather because it’s safer to harass rich women than motorcycle gangs.” -Author Unknown

“It is inexcusable for scientists to torture animals; let them make their experiments on journalists and politicians.” -Henrik Ibsen (Henrik Johan ‘Henrik’ Ibsen (1828 - 1906))

“The environment is everything that isn’t me.” -Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

“Over increasingly large areas of the United States, spring now comes unheralded by the return of the birds, and the early mornings are strangely silent where once they were filled with the beauty of bird song.” -Rachel Carson (1907 - 1964): “Silent Spring” (27 September 1962)

“Remember, people, if you were meant to have a fur coat, nature would have given you one. Do not be a thief and steal a fur coat from some animal who is its rightful owner.” -Author Unknown

When is Earth Day? Earth Day is observed by environmental activists on 22 April of each year. If you are a regular person and not an environmental activist, Earth Day is every day.

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” -Doctor Seuss (pseudonym of Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904 - 1991)): “The Lorax” (1971)

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster region has become one of the world’s most unique wildlife sanctuaries, with thriving populations of wolves, deer, beavers, eagles, fish, and other animals.

“Deer hunting would be fine sport, if only the deer had guns.” -William S. Gilbert (William Schwenk Gilbert (1836 - 1911))

“The basis of all animal rights should be the Golden Rule: we should treat them as we would wish them to treat us, were any other species in our dominant position.” -Christine Stevens

“Strip mining prevents forest fires.” -Author Unknown

Ninety-nine percent of all animal species that ever lived on Earth are now extinct - not because of human activity, but because every species has a ‘life cycle.’ Every species appears on the planet, goes through some changes, and then eventually dies out. This is part of the natural ‘cycle of life.’ By some estimates, every species averages about five million years of existence. Everything that begins also ends.

“No one in the world needs a mink coat but a mink.” -Murray Banks

Wrong-Way Alien

A curious creature from Saturn
Came to Earth on some orbital pattern.
     It saw our brown air,
     And cement everywhere,
And screamed, “Why did I take that turn?!”

by Author Unknown

Each year, the United States of America produces enough plastic wrap to shrink-wrap the entire state of Texas. Are you thinking what we’re thinking? Let’s do it!

What should you do if you discover an endangered animal that eats only endangered plants?

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) was formed in 1866. It is a long-standing organization, unlike the here-today-and-gone-tomorrow groups of obnoxious hip young attention seekers who hold noisy protest demonstrations in front of shopping malls and on street corners. Additionally, the ASPCA has fantastic pet toys so that you and your furry friend can play together. The ASPCA website is www.aspca.org.

Thames in Flames

In England, when crossing the Thames,
It sparkles and shimmers, like James
     It’s even reputed
     To be unpolluted
Though in places it bursts into flames!

by Author Unknown

Animal Rights Activist: Ma’am, do you realize some poor dumb beast suffered horribly so that you could wear that mink coat you have on?
Woman: How dare you talk that way about my husband!

“(Henry Bergh) was a notable defender of animals, and was the founder, in 1866, of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. This was the first humane society in the United States, antedating - a strange commentary - the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, founded by another Fifth Avenue resident, Elbridge T. Gerry, in 1874. Bergh was originally outraged by the treatment of horses on New York’s streets, especially the overworked beasts that pulled the omnibuses and stages.” -Jerry E. Patterson: “Fifth Avenue: The Best Address” (1998)

“With everything we read about spray cans and the ozone layer, it’s enough to scareosol to death.” -Author Unknown

Modern technology
Owes ecology
An apology.
-Alan M. Eddison: as quoted in Rosemary McDougall: “Worse Verse” (1969)

“The whale is endangered, while the ant continues to do just fine.” -Burton Hillis (pseudonym of William Edward ‘Bill’ Vaughan (1915 - 1977))

“To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival.” -Wendell Berry (Wendell Erdman Berry (born 1934))

The worst air polluter in the entire state of Washington is a volcano that goes by the name of Mount Saint Helens.

“A zoo is a facility where animals are imprisoned for the crime of being different from us.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Nobody knows the exact age of the human race, but everybody agrees that it is old enough to know better.” -Author Unknown

America the Beautiful

O beautiful for smoggy skies
Insecticided grains
For strip-mined mountains, majesty
Above the asphalt plain.
America, America,
Man sheds his waste on thee
And hides the pines
With billboard signs
From sea to oily sea!

by George Carlin (George Denis Patrick Carlin (1937 - 2008))

“We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” -Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804)

“Each generation takes the Earth as trustees. We ought to bequeath to posterity as many forests and orchards as we have exhausted and consumed.” -J. Sterling Morton

Little Timmy, age five, was looking at a picture book. When he came to a picture of a zebra, his father asked him what animal that was. Timmy thought a moment, and then answered, “It’s a cow that ate bio-engineered corn.”

Pollution: The dirtiest word in the world.

This animal is very bad:
When attacked, it defends itself.
-Theodore P. K.

China produces more than 45 billion pairs of disposable chopsticks every year, using an estimated 25 million trees to do so. Hmmm . . . kinda makes reusable chopsticks seem like a good alternative, perhaps?

“Love thy neighbor, whether thy neighbor is a fuzzy bunny or a chirping chickadee or a grandpa who wears stripes with plaids.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“He that plants trees loves others besides himself.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734)

Judge: Young man, it says here you shot and killed a California Condor. How do you plead? Defendant: Guilty your honor. Judge: Guilty!? Don’t you know how endangered these condors are? There are hardly any left at all. Defendant: Yes sir, I know, but I had to feed my family, we’re so poor. Judge: That’s no excuse. I am sentencing you to thirty days in jail. By the way, what does California Condor taste like? Defendant: It’s real good, kinda like a cross between Bald Eagle and Whooping Crane.

A Robin Redbreast in a Cage
Puts all Heaven in a Rage.
-William Blake (1757 - 1827): ‘Auguries of Innocence’ (1803), lines 5 and 6; type of work: poem

It turns out that everything is actually everything else, just recycled. Matter becomes energy, and energy becomes matter, and so on. Nothing is ever destroyed, it just changes form. The Universe is a giant recycling system.

“Save a tree. Eat a beaver.” -Author Unknown

The Green Thing

In the line at the store, the cashier told an older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags were not good for the environment. The woman apologized to him and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.” The clerk responded, “That’s our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment.” He was right - our generation did not have the green thing in its day. Back then, we returned milk bottles and soda bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But we didn’t have the green thing back in our day. We walked up stairs, because we didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn’t have the green thing in our day. Back then, we washed the baby’s diapers because we didn’t have the throw-away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts - wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right; we didn’t have the green thing back in our day. Back then, we had one television, or radio, in the house - not a TV in every room. And, the television had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn’t have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she’s right; we didn’t have the green thing back then. We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn’t have the green thing back then. Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint. But isn’t it sad that the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn’t have the green thing back then? Please forward this on to another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation from an opinionated young person.

by Author Unknown

Most landfilled trash retains its original weight, volume, and form for 40 years or longer.

“Save the krill. Eat a whale.” -Author Unknown

“Every creature is better alive than dead, men and moose and pine trees, and he who understands it aright will rather preserve its life than destroy it.” -Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862)

“Any fool can destroy trees. They cannot run away; and if they could, they would still be destroyed - chased and hunted down as long as fun or a dollar could be got out of their bark hides, branching horns, or magnificent bole backbones. Few that fell trees plant them; nor would planting avail much towards getting back anything like the noble primeval forests . . . It took more than three thousand years to make some of the trees in these Western woods - trees that are still standing in perfect strength and beauty, waving and singing in the mighty forests of the Sierra. Through all the wonderful, eventful centuries . . . God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand straining, leveling tempests and floods; but he cannot save them from fools - only Uncle Sam can do that.” -John Muir (1838 - 1914): “Our National Parks” (1901), chapter 10

“There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth. We are all crew.” -Marshall McLuhan (Herbert Marshall McLuhan (1911 - 1980)) (1965)

“We are not going to be able to operate our Spaceship Earth successfully nor for much longer unless we see it as a whole spaceship and our fate as common. It has to be everybody or nobody.” -R. Buckminster Fuller (Richard Buckminster ‘Bucky’ Fuller (1895 - 1983))

“The frog does not drink up the pond in which he lives.” -Author Unknown: Indian proverb

“We talk so much about leaving a better planet to our children, that we forget about leaving better children to this planet. Educate your children - say ‘no’ to them every once in a while.” -Author Unknown

“You cannot begin to preserve any species of animal unless you preserve the habitat in which it dwells. Disturb or destroy that habitat and you will exterminate the species as surely as if you had shot it. So conservation means that you have to preserve forest and grassland, river and lake, even the sea itself. This is not only vital for the preservation of animal life generally, but for the future existence of man himself - a point that seems to escape many people.” -Gerald Durrell

“Extinction is Forever.” -Author Unknown: Friends of the Animals

“A true environmentalist isn’t the person who says the river is dirty. A true environmentalist is the one who cleans up the river.” -Author Unknown

Hurt no living thing:
Ladybird, nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing.
-Christina Rossetti (Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830 - 1894))

We are MFOL! . . . saving the environment by recycling old jokes . . .

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Barbers and Hairstylists

9/3/2020

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“Barber: A brilliant conversationalist who occasionally cuts and styles hair.” -Author Unknown

Becca: Are you getting a new hairdo for the party?
Bella: No, I’m having a henna-do.
Becca: What’s a henna-do?
Bella: It runs around and goes, “Cluck, cluck, cluck!”

“You’re only as good as your last haircut.” -Fran Lebowitz (Frances Ann ‘Fran’ Lebowitz (born 1950))

Neil: What is the difference between a bad haircut and a good haircut?
Nellie: About three days.

Sudden Awakening

A clergyman told from his text
How Samson was scissored and vexed.
Then a barber arose
From his sweet Sunday doze,
Got rattled, and shouted, “Who’s next?”

by Author Unknown

A fellow rushed into a barbershop. “Cut everything short,” he said. “Hair, whiskers - and conversation.”

“Hair is vitally personal to children. They weep vigorously when it is cut for the first time; no matter how it grows, bushy, straight or curly, they feel they are being shorn of a part of their personality.” -Charlie Chaplin (Charles Spencer ‘Charlie’ Chaplin (1889 - 1977))

Tonsurephobia is a persistent fear of haircuts. ‘Tonsurephobia’ is derived from the Greek words ‘tonsore’ meaning ‘to cut’ and ‘phobos’ meaning ‘fear.’ It is a common fear in young children and to a lesser extent in adults. Some barbers give free lollipops or free combs to children to try to make the experience less scary for them.

Hair dresser (hare dres•er), noun: A magician who creates a hair style you can never duplicate.

I went to the barbershop the other day. The barber looked at my hair and said, “Sir, this is a comb, not a magic wand.”

Marv: Why did the barber win the race?
Merv: He knew a short cut.

“When you own a pair of haircutting scissors, you cut your own hair constantly.” - Emily Weiss

A woman’s conversation about a haircut: Oh! That is so cute! Do you think so? I wasn’t sure when she was gave me the mirror. I mean, you don’t think it’s too fluffy looking? Oh goodness no! No, it’s perfect. I would love to get my hair cut like that, but I think my face is too wide. I’m pretty much stuck with this stuff I think. Are you serious? I think your face is adorable. And you could easily get one of those layer cuts that would look so cute I think. I was actually going to do that except that I was afraid it would accent my long neck. Oh, that’s funny! I would love to have your neck! Anything to take attention away from this two-by-four I have for a shoulder line. Are you kidding? I know girls that would love to have your shoulders. Everything drapes so well on you. I mean, look at my arms. See how short they are? If I had your shoulders, I could get clothes to fit me so much easier. A man’s conversation about a haircut: Haircut? Yep.

“Brylcreem - a little dab’ll do ya.” -Author Unknown: advertising slogan for Brylcreem hair lotion

A barbershop owner put up a sign in response to the fancy salon down the street. The sign read, “Why pay forty dollars? We give haircuts for eight dollars.” The salon owner responded by putting up a sign that read, “We repair eight-dollar haircuts!”

Helicopter hair - it’s not just for whirlybird pilots anymore . . .

Barbershop

When you visit the barber
     And sit in his chair,
     Don’t squirm
     Like a worm
While he’s cutting your hair.
     Don’t shiver
     And quiver
And bounce up and down.
     Don’t shuffle
     And snuffle
And act like a clown.
     Each wiggle
     Will jiggle
The blades of the shears.
     Clip-clip,
     Clip-clip.
Those scissors can slip
     And snip
     Off a tip
Of one of your tender pink ears!

by Martin Gardner

Barber Shop: A place to go to when things get hairy.

A famous Hollywood actor went to a stylist and asked for a great haircut. The actor would be going to London for a command performance and would be meeting the Queen. The stylist did his best. A few weeks later the actor returned. Back in the stylist chair, he described his trip. The flight over to England was magnificent. In London, he had had three gorgeous days. The command performance had gone splendidly. After the show, he had been granted a private audience with the Queen. The stylist said, “Tell me what happened, tell me!” The actor said, “The Queen leaned over to me and said, ‘Who gave you that horrible haircut?’”

“Hairstylist: A person who is amazing when good, and horrible when bad.” -Author Unknown

Sign seen on a barbershop: During vacation of owner, a competent hairstylist will be here.

And then there was the hippie who finally decided he needed to get a haircut, because he was tired of falling flat on his face every time his hair became tangled up with his toes.

“Even the worst haircut eventually grows out.” -Lisa Kogan

Arnie: What man shaves twenty times a day?
Arnold: A barber.

“You can make a lot of mistakes with hair because it grows back.” -Paul Rudd

“Young man, take a haircut; you look like a chrysanthemum.” -P. G. Wodehouse (Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (1881 - 1975))

A priest walked into a barbershop in Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America. After he got his haircut, he asked how much it would be. The barber said, “No charge. I consider it a service to the Lord.” The next morning, the barber came to work and there were twelve prayer books and a thank you note from the priest in front of the door. Later that day, a police officer came in and got his hair cut. He then asked how much it was. The barber said, “No charge. I consider it a service to the community.” The next morning, he came to work and there were a dozen donuts and a thank you note from the police officer. Then, a Senator came in and got a haircut. When he was done he asked how much it was. The barber said, “No charge. I consider it a service to the country.” The next morning, the barber came to work and there were twelve Senators in front of the door.

Question: Where do sheep go to get sheared?
Answer: The baa-baa shop.

“As you grow older and wiser, the hairs that sprout from your body also grow older and wiser, making them more difficult to cut or trim. They learn to watch for you coming at them with trimmers and scissors, and they deftly move ever-so-slightly, escaping the consequences of those sharply edged cutting tools. If it helps, you can try to pretend that this isn’t so.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

Eclipse, verb: What an English Cockney barber does for a living.

Sally: Why did the rabbit go to the barbershop?
Sammy: To get a ‘harecut.’

“I got my hair highlighted, because I felt some strands were more important than others.” -Mitch Hedberg (Mitchell Lee ‘Mitch’ Hedberg (1968 - 2005))

Phil: Do you think I need a haircut?
Len: Is there ever a time when you don’t need one?

“Don’t ask the barber whether you need a haircut.” -Daniel Greenberg

A ringlet is a type of hairstyle achieved by wrapping a lock of hair around the length of a thin curling iron, and it can also be sported naturally by people with sufficiently tightly curled hair. Ringlets are also known as tube curls. Child actress Shirley Temple was famous for her ringleted hair, which was styled every day by her mother.

The Barber

He cuts our hair
     And shaves our face,
And talks and talks
     With ease and grace.

by Author Unknown

You are in a better place now . . . welcome to MFOL! . . . we have much more humor and inspiration for you on a huge variety of topics on the website, and we add new material regularly, so be sure to visit often.

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Humans and Human Natures

8/30/2020

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“We are simultaneously weird and wonderful . . . welcome to the human species.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other.” -Charles Dickens (Charles John Huffam Dickens (1812 - 1870)): “A Tale of Two Cities” (1859), book I, chapter 3

“No human is perfect until you fall in love with them.” -Author Unknown

Humans are a simple breed,
Yet kindly in their way;
They’ll travel miles at break-neck speed
On a hot and dusty day,
And scramble through the biggest bunch
Of poison ivy plants,
To bring a lovely picnic lunch
To us hungry ants.
-Author Unknown

“Men have learned to travel further and faster, though on errands not conspicuously improved. This, I believe, is called progress.” -Willis Fisher

Quizzical Show

Man puts on a quizzical show,
Going faster each day as we know,
     Like a wheel down a hill,
     We roll faster still;
But nobody knows where we go.

by C. W. Dalton: “Limericks and Rhymes for Critical Times” (1994)

“It is an old and ironic habit of human beings to run faster when we have lost our way.” -Rollo May (Rollo Reece May (1909 - 1994)): “Love and Will” (1969)

“If the human race wishes to have a prolonged and indefinite period of material prosperity they have only got to behave in a peaceful and helpful way toward one another.” -Winston Churchill (Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill (1874 - 1965))

“To get back my youth I would do anything in the world, except exercise, get up early, or be respectable.” -Oscar Wilde (Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde (1854 - 1900))

“If one person stands in a place long enough, a que or line begins to form. Others will come along and form a line, not necessarily wanting to know why there is a line, but thinking that if they find a line, they must place themselves in it.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“When people are free to do as they please, they usually imitate each other.” -Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983): “The Passionate State of Mind” (1955)

What are humans?

“Man is a two-legged animal without feathers.” -Plato (about 427 B.C.E. - about 347 B.C.E.)

“Man is like a banana - when he leaves the bunch, he gets skinned.” -Author Unknown: proverb

“The question is this: Is man an ape or an angel? I am on the side of the angels.” -Benjamin Disraeli: speech (25 November 1864)

Being all fashioned of the self-same dust,
    Let us be merciful as well as just.
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882)

Why do people pay to go up to the top of tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground?

“Human nature is the same all over the world; but its operations are so varied by education and habit that one must see it in all its dresses*.” -G. K. Chesterton (Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874 - 1936))
*dresses: human constructs such as culture, tradition, nationality, and so forth

A surprising number of humans cannot do one or more of the following.
- Blow bubbles with bubble gum.
- Snap their fingers.
- Wink (it somehow always turns into a blink).
- Use their turn signals properly.
- Roll their r’s when speaking.
- Remember what day of the week it is.
- Curl their tongues.
- Digest dairy products.
- Whistle.
- Remember the titles or words of any songs.
- Shuffle cards.
- Touch their toes without bending their knees.
- Parallel park.
- Wiggle their ears.
Despite some of them having the inability to do things listed here, most humans somehow manage to lead fairly normal lives: holding jobs, going to school, driving, walking, and even eating food.

“People’s business seemingly requires haste. The average person eats in a hurry and gets dyspepsia. He walks in a hurry and gets apoplexy. He talks in a hurry and begins to stutter. He does business in a hurry and becomes bankrupt. He votes in a hurry and gets corrupt politicians. He marries in a hurry and gets a divorce. He trains his children in a hurry and creates delinquents. He makes his will in a hurry and leaves a legal contest. He dies in a hurry and goes to the devil. And his tribe steadily increases! Moral: Slow down just a little, for haste makes a waste of the good things in life.” -Author Unknown

“To err is human; to forgive divine.” -Alexander Pope

“The last quarter of a century of my life has been pretty constantly and faithfully devoted to the study of the human race - that is to say, the study of myself, for in my individual person I am the entire human race compacted together. I have found that there is no ingredient of the race which I do not possess in either a small way or a large way.” -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 - 1910))

“You can drop humans anywhere and they’ll thrive - only the rat does as well.” -Jeannette Desor (Jeannette Ann Desor (born 1942))

“Till now man has been up against Nature; from now on he will be up against his own nature.” -Dennis Gabor (Hungarian: Gábor Dénes; born Günszberg Dénes (1900 - 1979))

“After a lifetime of experience, we have finally come to the conclusion that, while people complain about having to wait in lines, they do indeed actually enjoy standing in lines because it gives them a feeling of importance to be part of something and it gives them something to talk about with others in their otherwise uneventful humdrum lives. It sounds more exciting to say, ‘I’ve been waiting in line all day,’” than to say, ‘I’ve been sitting around all day.’” -Author Unknown

“To err is human, but to really foul things up requires a computer.” -Author Unknown

“Man is wolf to man.” [translation to English]
“Homo homini lupus est.” [original Latin]
-Author Unknown

“The human race is faced with a cruel choice: work or daytime television.” -Author Unknown

Humans and Human Natures Facts
- An adult male human is called a man.
- A young male human is called a boy.
- An adult female human is called a woman.
- A young female human is called a girl.
- A very young human, either male or female, is called a baby, infant, toddler, or child.
- A human transitioning from childhood to adulthood is called an adolescent, a teenager, a youth, or a young adult.
- A group of humans is called people, a clan, a crowd, a mob, a riot, a family, a community, a band, a congregation, a nation, a tribe . . .
- The sounds made by humans are called crying, screaming, singing, talking, mumbling, humming, singing, yodeling, whistling, laughing . . .
- Humans are omnivores, or animals that eat both plants and animals.

“A group of birds is called a flock. A group of cattle is called a herd. A group of humans is called a traffic jam.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“It has been said that man is a rational animal. All my life I have been searching for evidence which could support this.” -Bertrand Russell (Bertrand Arthur William Russell (1872 - 1970))

“The majority, compose them how you will, are a herd, and not a very nice one.” -William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830)

“Humans are the tool-making animal.” -Author Unknown

“When you feel dog tired at night, it may be because you’ve growled all day long.” -Author Unknown

Understanding a Person

- If a person laughs in an exaggerated manner, even at things that are only mildly amusing, that person is lonely deep inside.
- If a person sleeps a lot, that person is sad.
- If a person speaks fast but seldom, that person holds deep secrets.
- If a person can’t cry, that person is trying to conceal emotional weakness.
- If a person eats in an odd manner, that person is tense.
- If a person cries about little things, that person is innocent and soft-hearted.
- If a person becomes angry over petty or small things, that person needs love.

by Author Unknown

Curiously, humans are the only primates that do not have pigment in the palms of their hands.

“Man - despite his artistic pretensions, his sophistication, and his many accomplishments - owes his existence to a six-inch layer of topsoil and the fact that it rains.” -Author Unknown

Five Things That Are Humanly Impossible
- Drawing the number six while making clockwise circles with your leg.
- Flying unaided by technology.
- Licking your elbows.
- Sneezing with your eyes open.
- Tickling yourself.

“Man is the only creature that refuses to be what he is.” -Albert Camus (1913 - 1960)

“The Sun, the Moon, and the stars would have disappeared long ago . . . had they happened to be within the reach of predatory human hands.” -Havelock Ellis (Henry Havelock ‘Havelock’ Ellis (1859 - 1939)): “The Dance of Life” (1923)

The average person laughs about 15 times a day.

“It is human nature to think wisely and act foolishly.” -Anatole France (pseudonym of Jacques Anatole François Thibault (1844 - 1924))

“Anyone is capable of anything; we have different modalities built into us, which can be initiated by external or internal events or conditions. The wimpy guy is capable of being a passable battlefield general. The awful woman is capable of being a caring mother. The desperately shy person can stand on a stage before an audience of thousands and entertain them. This is 99.999% true of human beings.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

The average person walks the equivalent of twice around the world in a lifetime.

“I had a linguistics professor who said that it’s man’s ability to use language that makes him the dominant species on the planet. That may be. But I think there’s one other thing that separates us from animals. We aren’t afraid of vacuum cleaners.” - Jeff Stilson

“A man will be imprisoned in a room with a door that’s unlocked and opens inwards; as long as it does not occur to him to pull rather than push it.” -Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889 -1951): “Vermischte Bemerkungen” (1977, Peter Winch, translator), page 42

“The average person thinks he isn’t.” -Author Unknown

“Man is the animal that intends to shoot himself out into interplanetary space, after having given up on the problem of an efficient way to get himself five miles to work and back each day.” -Bill Vaughan (William Edward ‘Bill’ Vaughan (1915 - 1977))

Fifty-five percent of people yawn within five minutes of seeing someone else yawn. Reading about yawning makes most people yawn. You are close to yawning right now.

“When dealing with people, let us remember we are not dealing with creatures of logic. We are dealing with creatures of emotion, creatures bustling with prejudices, and motivated by pride and vanity.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnegey (1888 - 1955)))

“People are inexterminable - like flies and bedbugs. There will always be some that survive in cracks and crevices - that’s us.” -Robert Frost (Robert Lee Frost (1874 - 1963))

“Man is the most intelligent of the animals - and the most silly.” -Diogenes of Sinope (also known as Diogenes the Cynic (about 412 B.C.E. - 323 B.C.E.))

“So great has been the endurance, so incredible the achievement, that as long as the Sun keeps a set course in Heaven, it would be foolish to despair of the human race.” -Ernest L. Woodward (Ernest Llewellyn Woodward (1890 - 1971))

“People are not perfect . . . except when they smile.” -Author Unknown

We are MFOL! . . . learning to be human . . . from bits and fragments of knowledge collected from hither and thither and yon . . .

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Kindness and Good Deeds

8/27/2020

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“Kindness begins with the understanding that we all struggle.” -Charles F. Glassman (born 1959): “Brain Drain: The Breakthrough That Will Change Your Life” (2009); author website https://www.charlesglassmanmd.com/

“From now on, your kindness will lead you to success.” -Author Unknown

“It is difficult to give away kindness. It keeps coming back to you.” -Cort Flint (Cort Ray Flint, Junior (1915 - 1983))

“The whole worth of a kind deed lies in the love that inspires it.” -Author Unknown: “The Talmud”

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l i v e ☆ l a u g h ツ www.MakeFunOfLife.net ♥ l o v e ☼ g r o w
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Kind Hearts

Kind hearts are the gardens,
     Kind thoughts are the roots,
Kind words are the flowers,
     Kind deeds are the fruits.

Love is the bright sunshine
     That warms into life,
For only in darkness
     Grow hate and strife.

Take care of your garden,
     And keep it from weeds,
Fill, fill it with flowers,
     Kind words and kind deeds.

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 - 1882)

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l i v e  ☆  l a u g h  ツ  www.MakeFunOfLife.net  ♥  l o v e ☼  g r o w
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“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” -Teresa of Calcutta (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu (1910 - 1997))

“Kind words are the music of the world.” -Frederick William Faber (1814 - 1863)

“Let us be kinder to one another.” -Aldous Huxley (Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894 - 1963))

“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.” -Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931)

“A gentle word, a kind look, a good natured-smile, can work wonders and accomplish miracles.” -William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830)

“The best way to keep good acts in memory is to refresh them with new.” -Cato the Elder (Marcus Porcius Cato (233 B.C.E. - 148 B.C.E.))

“Never lose a chance of saying a kind word.” -William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 - 1863)

“The first rule of kindness is to be kind to yourself.” -Bryant McGill (born 1969)

“Kindness is more than a thought, it’s an action.” -Author Unknown

How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world.
-William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616): “The Merchant of Venice” (about 1596), Act 5, Scene 1; line spoken by character Portia

“Plant kindness and gather love.” -Author Unknown

“A word of kindness is seldom spoken in vain. It can be and is often treasured by the recipient for life.” -George D. Prentice (George Dennison Prentice (1802 - 1870))

“The fastest way to lift your spirits is to lift someone else’s.” -Author Unknown

“Kindness is wisdom.” -Philip James Bailey (1816 - 1902)

“I wonder why it is that we are not all kinder to each other than we are. How much the world needs it! How easily it is done!” -Henry Drummond (1851 - 1897)

“Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together.” -Johann von Goethe (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832))

“Caring people help others not because they expect a reward but because it is natural to show kindness.” -Author Unknown

“Kindness makes you the most beautiful person in the world no matter what you look like.” -Author Unknown

Be Kind

Be kind in all
     You say and do
That others may
     Be kind to you.

by Author Unknown

“Remember, there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end.” -Scott Adams (Scott Raymond Adams (born 1957))

“One of the most difficult things to give away is kindness - it is so often returned.” -Author Unknown

“Indulge yourself by being generous - help someone out, perform an act of kindness, offer a compliment. The person who will feel most uplifted by you having done so is . . . you.” -Paul Wilson: “The Little Book of Calm” (1996)

“Kind words don’t cost much. Yet they accomplish much.” -Blaise Pascal (1623 - 1662)

“A good deed brightens a dark world.” -Author Unknown

“Whenever you feel that something as simple as a smile or a kind act will go unnoticed, do it anyway. You never know how much it might change someone else’s life.” -Erin Bishop

That day is best wherein we give
A thought to others’ sorrows;
Forgetting self, we learn to live,
And blessings born of kindly deeds
Make golden our to-morrows.
-Rose H. Thorpe (Rose Hartwick Thorpe (born Rose Alnora Hartwick (1850 - 1939)))

“A good deed is never lost: he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.” -Basil (C.E. 330 - C.E. 379): as attributed in Reverend Elon Foster’s “New Cyclopaedia of Prose Illustrations” (1877), ‘Second Series,’ page 395

“Do one good deed for another person every day.” -Author Unknown

“Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the Sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstandings, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.” -Albert Schweitzer (1875 - 1965)

There is in every human heart
     Some not completely barren part,
Where seeds of truth and love might grow,
     And flowers of generous virtue flow;
To plant, to watch, to water there,
     This be our duty, be our care.
-John Bowring (1792 - 1872)

“Anyone who proposes to do good must not expect people to roll stones out of their way, but must accept their lot calmly, even if people roll a few stones upon it.” -Albert Schweitzer (1875 - 1965): “Out of My Life and Thought” (1949)

“Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, believing that one day someone might do the same for you.” -Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer (1961 - 1997))

“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” -Teresa of Calcutta (Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu (1910 - 1997))

Do it this very moment!
     Don’t put it off, don’t wait!
There’s no use in doing a kindness
     If you do it a day too late.
-Charles Kingsley (1819 - 1875)

“Honey catches more flies than vinegar.” -Giovanni Torriano (about 1609 - about 1666): “Italian Proverbs” (1666)

“Shall we make a new rule of life from tonight: always to try to be a little kinder than is necessary?” -J. M. Barrie (James Matthew Barrie (1860 - 1937))

“Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the grateful and appreciating heart.” -Henry Clay (1777 - 1852): “The Great Compromise” (1850)

“It’s a greater accomplishment to be kind than to be brilliant.” -Joseph Telushkin (born 1948): “Words That Hurt” (15 April 1996), page 126

“Flowers leave some of their fragrance in the hand that bestows them.” -Author Unknown

“The smallest good deed is better than the grandest intention.” -Gaspard Dughet (also known as Gaspard Poussin from his association with Nicolas Poussin, his brother-in-law who taught him to paint; surname also spelled as Doughet (1615 - 1675)): as quoted in Alfred Armand Montapert, compiler and editor: “Distilled Wisdom” (1964), ‘Deeds,’ page 95

Do not take lightly small good deeds,
     Believing they can hardly help.
For drops of water, one by one,
     In time, can fill a giant pot.
-Patrul Rinpoche (1808 - 1887)

“Remember that if the opportunities for great deeds should never come, the opportunities for good deeds are renewed day by day. The thing for us to long for is the goodness, not the glory.” -Frederick William Faber (1814 - 1863)

“Being kind is more important than being right.” -Author Unknown

“To cultivate kindness is a valuable part of the business of life.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784)

“Blessings ever wait on virtuous deeds, and though a late, a sure reward succeeds.” -William Congreve (1670 - 1729)

“Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind.” -Henry James (Henry James, Junior (1843 - 1916))

“The greatness of a man can nearly always be measured by his willingness to be kind.” -George W. Young

Have you done your good deed for the day?

“The kindness lavished on dogs, if evenly distributed, would establish peace on Earth.” -William Feather (1889 - 1981): as quoted in Ted Landphair (at VOA News): “Featherisms” (6 October 2008)

“One kind word can change someone’s entire day.” -Author Unknown

“Kindness is in our power, even when fondness is not.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784)

“Be kind. Everyone you meet is carrying a heavy burden.” -Ian MacLaren (pseudonym of John Watson (1850 - 1907)): as quoted in Dale Turner: ‘Quiet Wounds: Be Kind, the Pain is Heavy’ published in “The Seattle Times” (21 July 1984), Page A-8, Column 4; newspaper of Seattle, Washington, United States of America

“The kindest word in all the world is the unkind word, unsaid.” -Author Unknown

“I will take time today to stop and give a gift to someone needy, smile at a stranger, or help a small child. I will take the time to do at least one thing that I usually find myself too busy to do, and I will inwardly smile at myself, taking time the time to experience the feelings of my own kindness.” -Ruth Fishel

“There are three rules of dealing with all those who come to us: 1. Kindness, 2. Kindness, 3. Kindness.” -Fulton J. Sheen (1895 - 1979)

“Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while others lay brown beneath the August Sun.” -Kent Nerburn (Kent Michael Nerburn (born 1946))

“No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted.” -Aesop: “The Lion and the Mouse”

“Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.” -Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca (3 B.C.E. - C.E. 65))

“The greatest pleasure I know is to do a good action by stealth, and to have it found out by accident.” -Charles Lamb (1775 - 1834): as quoted in “The Athenaeum” (4 January 1834), ‘Table Talk by the late Elia’

“No good act performed in the world ever dies. Science tells us that no atom of matter can ever be destroyed, that no force once started ever ends; it merely passes through a multiplicity of ever-changing phases. Every good deed done to others is a great force that starts an unending pulsation through time and eternity. We may not know it, we may never hear a word of gratitude or recognition, but it will all come back to us in some form as naturally, as perfectly, as inevitably, as echo answers to sound.” -William George Jordan (1864 - 1928)

“You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

The good deed you do today
     For a brother or sister in need
Will come back to you some day
     For humanity’s a circle in deed.
- Robert Alan Aurthur (1922 - 1978)

“Small acts of kindness restore hope in times of darkness.” -Jordan Rosenfeld (Jordan E. Rosenfeld), author website: https://jordanrosenfeld.net

“Do one good deed each day . . . and on some days do as many as you possibly can!” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“You never know what someone is going through. A few nice words can help a person a lot more than you think.” -Author Unknown

“Seek to do good, and you will find that happiness will run after you.” -James Freeman Clarke (1810 - 1888)

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” -Leo F. Buscaglia (Felice Leonardo ‘Leo’ Buscaglia (1924 - 1998)): “Born for Love: Reflections on Loving” (1992)

“One good turn deserves another.” -Gaius Petronius Arbiter (C.E. 27 - C.E. 66)

“The good that you do in this world for others will eventually find its way back to you, as echo returns to sender.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

This is MFOL! . . . and we are going out to do our good deed for the day . . .

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Hopes and Dreams

8/24/2020

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“Everything begins as a dream.” -Author Unknown

“Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.” -Author Unknown

“Help others achieve their dreams and you will achieve yours.” -Les Brown (Leslie Calvin ‘Les’ Brown (born 1945))

“To accomplish great things we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe.” -Anatole France (pseudonym of Jacques Anatole François Thibault (1844 - 1924)): as quoted in Sidney Greenberg, editor: “Treasury of the Art of Living” (1964)

“Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.” -Martin Luther (1483 - 1546)

“Do all you can to make your dreams come true.” -Joel Osteen (born 1963)

“HOPE: Hanging Onto Positive Expectations.” -Author Unknown

“If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces, never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again.” -Flavia Weedn (Flavia Marie Weedn (1929 - 2015)): “Flavia and the Dream Maker” (1998)

“Hope costs nothing.” -Colette (Sidonie Gabrielle Colette (1873 - 1954))

“The hopeful man sees success where others see failure; sunshine where others see shadows and storm.” -Orison S. Marden (Orison Swett Marden (1850 - 1924))

“Hope has two beautiful daughters, named Anger and Courage; Anger at the way things are, and Courage to change them.” -Augustine of Hippo (also known as Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis (C.E. 354 - C.E. 430))

“Dreams come a size too big so you can grow into them.” -Author Unknown

“In all things it is better to hope than to despair.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“Hold on to your dreams, for they are, in a sense, the stuff of which reality is made. It is through our dreams that we maintain the possibility of a better, more meaningful life.” -Leo Buscaglia (Felice Leonardo ‘Leo’ Buscaglia, also known as Leo F. Buscaglia (1924 - 1998))

“The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope.” -Barbara Kingsolver (born 1955)

“No dreamer is ever too small; no dream is ever too big.” -Author Unknown

“Don’t lose hope. When the Sun goes down, the stars come out.” -Author Unknown

“What steps could you take right now to begin turning your dreams into realities?” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“Hope works for one reason: Those who believe something is possible will work toward achieving it and encourage others; those who believe something is not possible will give up, never begin, and disparage those who have hope.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born.” -Dale E. Turner (1917 - 2006)

“While there’s life, there’s hope.” -Terence (Publius Terentius Afer (185 B.C.E. - 159 B.C.E.)): “Heuton timoroumenos,” line 981

“Dreams come true; without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them.” -John Updike (John Hoyer Updike (1932 - 2009))

“Hope doesn’t require a massive chain where heavy links of logic hold it together. A thin wire will do . . . just strong enough to get us through the night until the winds die down.” -Charles R. Swindoll (Charles Rozell ‘Chuck’ Swindoll (born 1934))

“Set out each day believing in your dreams. Know without a doubt that you were made for amazing things.” -Josh Hinds (Josh Stephen Hinds (born 1973))

“Hope, like the gleaming taper’s light,
Adorns and cheers our way;
And still, as darker grows the night,
Emits a brighter ray.”
-Oliver Goldsmith (1728 - 1774): “The Captivity” (1764), Act II

“So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” -Christopher Reeve (Christopher D’Olier Reeve (1952 - 2004))

“Hope is necessary in every condition. The miseries of poverty, of sickness, or captivity, would, without this comfort, be insupportable; nor does it appear that the happiest lot of terrestrial existence can set us above the want of this general blessing; or that life, when the gifts of nature and of fortune are accumulated upon it, would not still be wretched, were it not elevated and delighted by the expectation of some new possession, of some enjoyment yet behind, by which the wish shall at last be satisfied, and the heart filled up to its utmost extent.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784): as quoted in “The Rambler” (1750 - 1752), number 67

“Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall at last unveil.” -John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)

“When the world says, ‘Give up,’ Hope whispers, ‘Try one more time.’” -Author Unknown

“We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.” -Jesse Owens (1913 - 1980)

“Let your hopes, not your hurts, shape your future.” -Robert H. Schuller (Robert Harold Schuller (1926 - 2015))

“Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true.” -Leo J. Suenens (Leo Jozef Suenens (1904 - 1996))

“At the darkest moment comes the light.” -Joseph Campbell (1904 - 1987)

“Dreams are necessary to life.” -Anaïs Nin (born Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell (1903 - 1977))

“Hope, like faith, is nothing if it is not courageous; it is nothing if it is not ridiculous.” -Thornton Wilder (Thornton Niven Wilder (1897 - 1975))

“Dreams are the seedlings of realities.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912)

“Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.” -Thich Nhat Hanh (born 1926)

“It may be that those who do most, dream most.” -Stephen Butler Leacock (1869 - 1944)

“Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work; you don’t give up.” -Anne ‘Annie’ Lamott (born 1954)

“Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they’ve got a second. Give your dreams all you’ve got and you’ll marvel at the energy that comes out of you.” -William James (1842 - 1910)

“Hope is a vigorous principle; it is furnished with light and heat to advise and execute; it sets the head and heart to work, and animates a man to do his utmost. And thus, by perpetually pushing and assurance, it puts a difficulty out of countenance, and makes a seeming impossibility give way.” -Jeremy Collier (1650 - 1726)

“I have had dreams and I have had nightmares. I overcame the nightmares because of my dreams.” -Jonas Salk (1914 - 1995)

“The path to a dream is paved with sacrifices and lined with determination. And although it has many stumbling blocks along the way and may go in more than one direction, it is marked with faith. It is traveled by belief in you and others but requires courage, persistence, and hard work. It is conquered with a willingness to face challenges and take chances, to fail and try again and again. Along the way, you may have to confront doubts, setbacks, and unfairness. But when the path comes to an end, you will find that there is no greater joy than making your dream come true.” -Author Unknown

“Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all they have.” -H. Jackson Brown, Junior (born 1940)

“It is good to dream, but it is better to dream and work. Faith is mighty, but action with faith is mightier. Desiring is helpful, but work and desire are invincible.” -Thomas Robert Gaines

“Hope is both the earliest and the most indispensable virtue inherent in the state of being alive. If life is to be sustained hope must remain, even where confidence is wounded, trust impaired.” -Erik Erikson (1902 - 1994)

“The only thing that stands in between you and your dreams is the will to try and the belief that it is actually possible.” -Joel Brown

“There is always hope.” -Author Unknown

“Miracles start to happen when you give as much energy to your dreams as you do to your fears.” -Richard Wilkins

“A pocket full of hope is worthless if spent in all the wrong places on all the wrong people.” -S. L. Heaton

“Don’t let someone who gave up on their dreams talk you out of going after yours.” -Author Unknown

“The hopes of men have been justly called waking dreams.” -Basil (C.E. 330 - C.E. 379): letter to Gregory of Nazianzus: as quoted in S. Baring-Gould (Sabine Baring-Gould (1834 - 1924)): “The Lives of the Saints” (1873)

“The capacity for hope is the most significant fact of life. It provides human beings with a sense of destination and the energy to get started.” -Norman Cousins (1915 - 1990)

“Of all the people I have ever known, those who have pursued their dreams and failed have lived a much more fulfilling life than those who have put their dreams on a shelf for fear of failure.” -Author Unknown

“Hope is like the Sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us.” -Samuel Smiles (1812 - 1904)

“At every crossroad, follow your dream. It is courageous to let your heart lead the way.” -Thomas Leland (1722 - 1785)

“Never stop believing in hope because miracles happen every day.” -Author Unknown

“Dreams don’t work unless you do.” -John C. Maxwell (John Calvin Maxwell (born 1947))

“Hope is as cheap as Despair.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): “Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 2542

“Dreams can come true if you take the time to think about what you want in life.” -Author Unknown

“Practice hope. As hopefulness becomes a habit, you can achieve a permanently happy spirit.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

“When you have a dream, you’ve got to grab it and never let go.” -Carol Burnett (Carol Creighton Burnett (born 1933))

“My hopes are not always realized, but I always hope.” -Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso (43 B.C.E. - C.E. 17 or 18))

“Every moment is another chance to make your dreams come true.” -Author Unknown

“False hope is better than no hope at all.” -Author Unknown

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.” -J. K. Rowling (pseudonym of Joanne ‘Jo’ Rowling (born 1965)): “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” (1997)

“If you do not hope, you will not find what is beyond your hopes.” -Clement of Alexandria (also known as Titus Flavius Clemens (about C.E. 150 - about C.E. 215))

“Nothing is as real as a dream. The world can change around you, but your dream will not. Responsibilities need not erase it. Duties need not obscure it. Because the dream is within you, no one can take it away.” -Tom Clancy (Thomas Leo Clancy, Junior (1947 - 2013))

“Where there is no hope, there can be no endeavor.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784): as quoted in “The Rambler” (6 April 1751) journal

“All men who have achieved great things have been great dreamers.” -Orison S. Marden (Orison Swett Marden (1850 - 1924))

“The real people of genius were resolute workers, not idle dreamers.” -George Henry Lewes (1817 - 1878)

“For hope is but the dream of those that wake.” -Matthew Prior (1664 - 1721): “Solomon on the Vanity of the World,” book iii, line 102

“All men of action are dreamers.” -James G. Huneker (James Gibbons Huneker (1860 - 1921))

“Trust your hopes, not your fears.” -David Mahoney

“Never laugh at anyone’s dreams. People who don’t have dreams don’t have much.” -Author Unknown

“Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.” -Gloria Steinem (born 1934)

“People too weak to follow their own dreams typically tend to find a way to discourage yours.” -Author Unknown

“Hope never abandons you; you abandon it.” -George Weinberg (1929 - 2017)

“Dreams and wishes do not come true by themselves, but without dreams and wishes behind them, actions - and even life itself - can seem undirected and purposeless.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“All our dreams can come true - if we have the courage to pursue them.” -Walt Disney (Walter Elias ‘Walt’ Disney (1901 - 1966)): as quoted in Pat Williams: “How to Be Like Walt: Capturing the Magic Every Day of Your Life” (2004), Chapter 3, ‘Imagination Unlimited,’ page 63

“Always chase your dreams instead of running from your fears.” -Author Unknown

“If it were not for Hopes, the Heart would break.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 2689

“Nothing happens unless first a dream.” -Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967)

“Everything that is done in the world is done by the hopeful. No matter your age. No matter your circumstances. No matter your financial wealth. Without hope, nothing is possible. But with hope . . . well . . . watch out.” -Martin Luther (1483 - 1546)

“Your dreams tell you what to do; your reason tells you how to do it.” -Jonas Salk (1914 - 1995)

“Hope is itself a species of happiness, and, perhaps, the chief happiness which this world affords.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784)

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it!
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832): “Faust,” lines 214 and 215, as translated by John Anster (1835)

“In both children and adults, there can be a hard-to-deny link between a robust sense of hope and either work productivity or academic achievement.” -Jeffrey Kluger

“Great Hopes make great Men.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 1759

“Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen.” -Author Unknown

“There is nothing like a dream to create the future.” -Victor Hugo (Victor Marie Hugo (1802 - 1885))

This is MFOL! . . . where our fondest Hopes and Dreams are that you will visit us often . . . as you make your way toward all the good that life has in store for you . . .

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Self-Concept and Self-Identity

8/19/2020

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Who can that be . . .

“I wish I knew who I am.” -Sarah Zettel (born 1966): “Dust Girl” (2012); author website http://www.sarahzettel.com/

“You are what you believe yourself to be.” -Paulo Coelho (born 1947)

“We have all been placed on this Earth to discover our own path, and we will never be happy if we live someone else’s idea of life.” -James Van Praagh (born 1958)

People travel to wonder at the height of mountains,
at the huge waves of the sea,
at the long courses of rivers,
at the vast compass of the ocean,
at the circular motion of the stars;
and they pass by themselves without wondering.
-Augustine of Hippo (C.E. 354 - C.E. 430)

“Can you remember who you were before the world told you who you should be?” -Danielle LaPorte (born 1969)

“I am a person before I am anything else. I never say I am a writer. I never say I am an artist . . . I am a person who does those things.” -Edward Gorey (Edward St. John Gorey (1925 - 2000))

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

“You were born an original work of art. Stay original.” -Suzy Kassem (born 1975)

“Accept no one’s definition of your life, but define yourself.” -Harvey Fierstein (Harvey Forbes Fierstein (born 1952))

“Know thyself? If I knew myself I would run away.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“You have to be brave to be yourself.” -Author Unknown

“One of the most courageous things you can do is identify yourself, know who you are, what you believe in, and where you want to go.” -Sheila Murray Bethel (born 1965)

“Looking for who I am is who I am.” -Tom Spanbauer (born 1946): “The Man Who Fell in Love with the Moon” (1991)

“The hardest battle you’re ever going to fight is the battle to be just you.” -Leo Buscaglia (1924 - 1998)

“Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.” -Dr. Seuss (pseudonym of Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904 - 1991))

“Are you what others say and think you are? Or are you who you are regardless of what others say and think?” -Richelle E. Goodrich (Richelle Elaine Goodrich (born 1968)): “Smile Anyway: Quotes, Verse, and Grumblings for Every Day of the Year” (23 June 2015)

“You are the stories and incidents that you never tell to anyone. You are the thoughts that you get while standing under the shower. You are those memories that won’t let you sleep at night peacefully. You are those words that you will never say while speaking with someone. You are those scars that you always hide from everyone. You are those little secrets that you will never let the world know. You are everything that you hide under the identity that you call the real you.” -Akshay Vasu

“How shall we learn to know ourselves? By reflections? Never; but only through action. Strive to do thy duty; then shalt thou know what is in thee.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“We don’t know who we are until we see what we can do.” -Martha Grimes (born 1931)

“We must not allow other people’s limited perceptions to define us.” -Virginia Satir (Virginia Pagenkopf Satir (1916 - 1988))

“We know what we are, but not what we may be.” -William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)

“What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates his fate.” -Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862)

“Act as if you are the person you want to be.” -Bernie Siegel

“Don’t let other people tell you who you are.” -Diane Sawyer (Lila Diane Sawyer (born 1945))

“Regard not so much what the World thinks of thee, as what thou thinkest of thyself.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734)

“Look to see what you are doing today. Is this how you choose to define yourself?” -Neale Donald Walsch (born 1943)

“You can’t let other people tell you who you are. You have to decide that for yourself.” -Author Unknown

“Resolve to be thyself; and know that he who finds himself, loses his misery.” -Matthew Arnold (1822 - 1888)

“Never sacrifice who you are just because someone else has a problem with it.” -Author Unknown

“It is the individual who knows how little he knows about himself who stands a reasonable chance of finding out something about himself.” -S. I. Hayakawa (Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa (1906 - 1992))

“Self-image sets the boundaries of individual accomplishment.” -Maxwell Maltz (1899 - 1975)

“The opinion which other people have of you is their problem, not yours.” -Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (1926 - 2004)

“If we have no identity apart from our jobs, we are truly vulnerable.” -Dan Miller: “The Rudder of the Day: Stories & Wisdom to Kick Start Your Workday” (2003); author website https://www.48days.com/

“Focus on what you are, not on what you are not.” -Author Unknown

“We are all apt to believe what the world believes about us.” -George Eliot (pseudonym of Mary Anne Evans (1819 - 1880))

“Until you make peace with who you are, you’ll never be content with what you have.” -Doris Mortman (born 1944)

“How hurtful it can be to deny one’s true self and live a life of lies just to appease others.” -June Ahern

“Men do not attract that which they want, but that which they are.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912)

“What people think about you is not important. What you think about yourself means everything.” -Author Unknown

“Self-respect is the noblest garment with which a man can clothe himself, the most elevating feeling with which the mind can be inspired.” -Samuel Smiles (1812 - 1904)

“What others think of us would be of little moment did it not, when known, so deeply tinge what we think of ourselves.” -Paul Valéry (Ambroise Paul Toussaint Jules ‘Paul’ Valéry (1871 - 1945))

“What we truly and earnestly aspire to be, that in some sense we are. The mere aspiration, by changing the frame of the mind, for the moment realizes itself.” -Anna Jameson (Anna Brownell Jameson (1794 - 1860))

“One of the greatest regrets in life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself.” -Shannon L. Alder at https://www.shannonalder.com/

“Be faithful to that which exists within yourself.” -André Gide (André Paul Guillaume Gide (1869 - 1951))

“Don’t accept that others know you better than yourself.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912)

“Finding oneself was a misnomer; a self is not found but made.” -Jacques Barzun (Jacques Martin Barzun (1907 - 2012)): “From Dawn to Decadence: 500 Years of Western Cultural Life” (2000)

“Defining myself, as opposed to being defined by others, is one of the most difficult challenges I face.” -Carol Mosely-Braun (Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun (born 1947))

“By all resources realize yourself . . . Fetters fall off of themselves when the knowledge of self is gained.” -A. L. Linall, Junior

“When I discover who I am, I’ll be free.” -Ralph Ellison (Ralph Waldo Ellison (1913 - 1994)): “Invisible Man” (14 April 1952), chapter 11

“I am a free human being with an independent will.” -Charlotte Brontë (1816 - 1855): “Jane Eyre”

“Be not another, if you can be yourself.” -Paracelsus (born Phillip von Hohenheim, later adopting the name Philippus Theophrastus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim (1493 - 1541))

“Knowing who you are and who you can become impacts how you view your options for the future.” -Emily Grabatin: “Dare to Decide: Discovering Peace, Clarity and Courage at Life’s Crossroads” (17 July 2020); author website https://www.emilygrabatin.ca/

“You shouldn’t compare yourself to the best others can do.” -Author Unknown

“So who do I want to be tomorrow?” -Paula Hawkins (born 1972): “The Girl on the Train” (6 January 2015)

“So far as other people are concerned, you are your behavior. So far as you are concerned, you are your feelings.” -Peter Honey (born 1937) at https://peterhoney.org/

“Someone else’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality.” -Les Brown (Leslie Calvin ‘Les’ Brown (born 1945))

“Never allow yourself to be defined by someone else’s opinion of you.” -Author Unknown

“Life isn’t always about finding yourself. More often than not, it’s about discovering who God created you to be.” -David A. R. White (David Andrew Roy White (born 1970)): “Between Heaven and Hollywood: Chasing Your God-Given Dream” (25 October 2016)

“The one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and build and play and dance and live as only you can.” -Neil Gaiman (Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (born 1960 as Neil Richard Gaiman)): keynote address (17 May 2012) at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America

“Maybe you are what you can’t not be.” -John Green (John Michael Green (born 1977)): “Turtles All the Way Down” (10 October 2017)

“We would be wise to remember that the world’s definition of us will always diminish God’s design within us.” -Craig D. Lounsbrough (born 1959) at https://www.craiglpc.com/

“Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, ‘This is the real me,’ and when you have found that attitude, follow it.” -William James (1842 - 1910)

“When you stop living your life based on what others think of you, real life begins. At that moment, you will finally see the door of self-acceptance opened.” -Shannon L. Alder at https://www.shannonalder.com/

“Be yourself. Who else is better qualified?” -Frank J. Giblin, II: as quoted in “Reader’s Digest”

This is MFOL! . . . where you decide who you are . . . and then if you like, keep everyone else guessing . . .

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Differences and Individuality

8/13/2020

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Birds of a feather flock together . . . and then there are the birds of a different feather. Shown is a ‘Major Mitchell Pink Cockatoo,’ a native of Australia . . . daring to be different . . .

“You laugh at me because I’m different; I laugh at you because you’re all the same.” -Jonathan Davis

“We do not expect everyone to be exactly alike, and if we feel a cat should be like a dog, we are missing something important.” -Gladys Taber (Gladys Bagg Taber (1899 - 1980))

“Every human being is intended to have a character of his own; to be what no other is, and to do what no other can do.” -William Ellery Channing (1780 - 1842)

“I’m different. Always have been. It took a while but I have accepted that I am a magic not meant for everyone to understand, so they question. That’s okay. I will stay in my lane being all magical and stuff.” -Author Unknown

“There are just two kinds of people in the world: you, and everyone else.” -Author Unknown

“An unlearned carpenter of my acquaintance once said in my hearing: ‘There is very little difference between one man and another; but what little there is, is very important.’” -William James (1842 - 1910): “The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy” (1897), ‘The Importance of Individuals’

Overheard: There are two types of people: those who are forgetful and . . . uh . . .

“My father (Danny Thomas) used to tell me there are two kinds of people, the takers and the givers. ‘The takers sometimes eat better,’ he would say, ‘but the givers always sleep better.’” -Marlo Thomas (born 1937)

“Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to continually be part of unanimity.” -Christopher Morley (Christopher Darlington Morley (1890 - 1957))

“There are three types of people the world does not understand: madmen, geniuses, and people who mumble.” -Author Unknown

“Different men seek after happiness in different ways and by different means, and so make for themselves different modes of life and forms of government.” -Aristotle (384 B.C.E. - 322 B.C.E.)

“People can be divided into three groups. Those who make things happen. Those who watch things happen. And those who wonder what happened.” -Nicholas Murray Butler (1852 - 1947)

“There are three kinds of people: those who can count and those who cannot.” -Author Unknown

“Some people work up steam and some only generate a fog.” -Author Unknown

“There may be said to be two classes of people in the world: those who constantly divide the people of the world into two classes, and those who do not.” -Robert Benchley (Robert Charles Benchley (1889 - 1945))

“In the not-so-long-ago-days, there were only four kinds of people: menfolk, womenfolk, youngfolk, and oldfolk. These days, they’ve divided us up into a near-infinite number of classifications, not to help us or to make the world a better place, but to manipulate us into being and doing what folks may not necessarily want to be and do.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“In life we shall find many men that are great, and some that are good, but very few men that are both great and good.” -C. C. Colton (Charles Caleb Colton (1780 - 1832))

Great minds discuss ideas;
Average minds discuss events;
Small minds discuss people.
-Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor ‘Eleanor’ Roosevelt (1884 - 1962))

“I don’t divide the world into the weak and the strong, or the successes and the failures, those who make it or those who don’t. I divide the world into learners and non-learners.” -Benjamin Barber

“Youth looks ahead, old age looks back, and middle age looks tired.” -Author Unknown

Overheard: As different as two peas in a pod . . .

“There are two kinds of people one can call reasonable: those who serve God with all their heart because they know him, and those who seek him with all their heart because they do not know him.” -Blaise Pascal (1623 - 1662)

“A boss creates fear, a leader confidence. A boss fixes blame, a leader corrects mistakes. A boss knows all, a leader asks questions. A boss makes work drudgery, a leader makes it interesting. A boss is interested in himself or herself, a leader is interested in the group.” -Russell H. Ewing

“I’d rather be a climbing ape than a falling angel.” -Terry Pratchett (1948 - 2015)

There are at least two sorts of people who work in complex organizations like governments, businesses, and schools. There are those who, when a problem reaches them, contribute to its solution; and there are those who, when a problem comes to them, escalate it into something worse. A man of the latter type was called into the chief executive’s office and told, “Mikhail, don’t be an embolus.” “A what?” Mikhail asked. “A kind of blood clot - something that circulates through the system causing trouble.”

“Many are destined to reason wrongly; others, not to reason at all, and others to persecute those who reason.” -Voltaire (pseudonym of François-Marie Arouet (1694 - 1778))

“You be you and I’ll be me.” -Billy Connolly

Somebody once said that there are only two kinds of people in the world. There are those who wake up in the morning and say, “Good morning, Lord,” and there are those who wake up in the morning and say, “Good Lord, it’s morning!”

“Often the people who are different are the ones who make all the difference in this world.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“The world is divided into people who do things and people who get the credit. Try, if you can, to belong to the first class. There’s far less competition.” -Dwight Morrow (Dwight Whitney Morrow (1873 - 1931)): letter to his son, as quoted in Harold Nicolson: “Dwight Morrow” (1935), page 52

“Cherish forever what makes you unique, ’cuz you’re really a yawn if it goes.” -Bette Midler (born 1945)

Unique

Always remember that you’re unique
     Unequalled, uncommon, c’est magnifique
One of a kind, quite special and rare
     Singular, original, not one of a pair
Special, the exceptional you embody
     You’re really unique, just like everybody!

by Author Unknown

“Know that although in the eternal scheme of things you are small, you are also unique and irreplaceable, as are all your fellow humans everywhere in the world.” -Margaret Laurence

“By being yourself, you put something wonderful in the world that was not there before.” -Edwin Elliot

“A fruit salad is delicious precisely because each fruit maintains its own flavor.” -Sean Covey

“People can be divided into two classes: those who go ahead and do something, and those who sit still and inquire, ‘Why wasn’t it done the other way?’” -Oliver Wendell Holmes, Junior (1841 - 1935)

It is possible to be different . . . and yet also, remarkably similar . . .

Variety’s the very spice of life,
That gives it all its flavor.
-William Cowper (1731 - 1800)

“Everybody is unique. Compare not yourself with anybody else lest you spoil God’s curriculum.” -Israel ben Eliezer

“There are three kinds of people in the world, the wills, the won’ts, and the can’ts. The first accomplish everything; the second oppose everything; the third fail in everything.” -Author Unknown: as quoted in “Eclectic Magazine”

“Appreciate your uniqueness. Never in history has there been anyone exactly like you. Being one of a kind, you must be the best you can possibly be; develop your talents to the fullest. You can do anything you wish to do; the only limitation is your will. Make the most of the one and only you.” -Bob Keeshan (Robert James ‘Bob’ Keeshan (1927 - 2004))

“Each of us must dance to his own tune.” -Author Unknown: “M*A*S*H” television series; line spoken by character Charles Emerson Winchester III

“It is the individual’s task to differentiate himself from all the others and stand on his own feet. All collective identities . . . interfere with the fulfillment of this task. Such collective identities are crutches for the lame, shields for the timid, beds for the lazy, nurseries for the irresponsible . . .” -C. G. Jung (Carl Gustav Jung (1875 - 1961))

“Beaten paths are for beaten men.” -Eric Johnston

“The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.” -Rudyard Kipling (1865 - 1936)

“There are two types of people, those who extrapolate from incomplete data sets.” -Author Unknown

“Dare to be yourself.” -André Gide (1869 - 1951)

“Today, there are three kinds of people: the have’s, the have-not’s, and the have-not-paid-for-what-they-have’s.” -Earl Wilson

“In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different.” -Coco Chanel (Gabrielle Bonheur ‘Coco’ Chanel (1883 - 1971))

“There are two kinds of men who never amount to very much: Those who cannot do what they are told, and those who can do nothing else.” -Cyrus H. K. Curtis (Cyrus Hermann Kotzschmar Curtis (1850 - 1933))

“You are unrepeatable. There is a magic about you that is all your own.” -D. M. Dellinger

“Let’s acknowledge our differences and not deny them; appreciate them and value them; and each of us with our own uniqueness can contribute where we are needed. There is no need to go to war with each other upon the insistence that only one way of being or of doing is right.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Why are you trying so hard to fit in, when you’re born to stand out?” -Oliver James

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in square holes . . . the ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules . . . you can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them, because they change things . . . they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” -Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011)

“There is only one you for all time. Fearlessly be yourself.” -Anthony Rapp

“At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this Earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844 - 1900))

“Differences were meant not to divide but to enrich.” -J. H. Oldham

“Whatever else you may be sure of, be sure of this: that you are dreadfully like other people.” -James Russell Lowell (1819 - 1891): “My Study Windows” (1871)

“People are eternally divided into two classes: the believer, builder, and praiser; and the unbeliever, destroyer, and critic.” -John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)

“There are ten kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary math, and those who do not.” -Author Unknown

“Cultivate your own capabilities, your own style. Appreciate the members of your family for who they are, even though their outlook or style may be miles different from yours. Rabbits don’t fly. Eagles don’t swim. Ducks look funny trying to climb. Squirrels don’t have feathers. Stop comparing. There’s plenty of room in the forest.” -Charles R. Swindoll (Charles Rozell ‘Chuck’ Swindoll (born 1934))

“Every man is more than just himself; he also represents the unique, the very special and always significant and remarkable point at which the world’s phenomena intersect, only once in this way, and never again.” -Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962)

“When we lose the right to be different, we lose the privilege to be free.” -Charles Evans Hughes (1862 - 1948): in an address at Faneuil Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America (17 June 1925)

“People are much more alike inside than they are on the surface.” -Verne Burnett

“How glorious it is - and also how painful - to be an exception.” -Alfred de Musset (1810 - 1857): “Histoire d’un merle blanc” (“Story of the White Blackbird”) (1842)

“I’m a ragged individualist.” -Jane Ace (born Jane Epstein (1897 - 1974))

“Don’t be like the rest of them, darling.” -Author Unknown

“There are two types of people - those who come into a room and say, ‘Well, here I am!’ and those who come in and say, ‘Ah, there you are.’” -Frederick L. Collins

“Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone’s task is unique as his specific opportunity to implement it.” -Viktor E. Frankl (1905 - 1997)

“The two types of people are rocks and rockets, and you can choose to just sit there like a rock - or you can take off like a rocket!” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“It takes all kinds of people to make a world.” -Author Unknown

“Nobody can be exactly like me. Even I have trouble doing it.” -Tallulah Bankhead (1903 - 1968)

“You’re an original, an individual, a masterpiece. Celebrate that; don’t let your uniqueness make you shy. Don’t be someone other than the wonder you are. Every star is important to the sky.” -Douglas Pagels (born 1950)

“Allow the world to live as it chooses, and allow yourself to live as you choose.” -Richard Bach (Richard David Bach (born 1936))

“When you’re different, sometimes you don’t see the millions of people who accept you for what you are. All you notice is the person who doesn’t.” -Jodi Picoult (Jodi Lynn Picoult (born 1966))

“Don’t undermine your worth by comparing yourself to others. It is because we are different that each of us is special. Don’t set your goals by what other people deem important, only know what is best for you.” -Ken Lewis

“People have one thing in common: They are all different.” -Robert Zend (1929 - 1985)

“All of us are stars and deserve the right to twinkle.” -Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson (1926 - 1962))

Make Fun Of Life! . . . because we are each a little different . . . and surprisingly similar . . .

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Criticism and Criticizing

8/11/2020

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“Some people find fault like there’s a reward for it.” -Zig Ziglar (Hilary Hinton ‘Zig’ Ziglar (1926 - 2012))

“Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way, you’re a mile away from them - and you have their shoes!” -Henny Youngman (1906 - 1998)

“The most difficult thing in the world is to know how to do a thing and to watch somebody else doing it wrong, without comment.” -Theodore H. White (1915 - 1986)

Critics

What one approves, another scorns,
     And thus his nature each discloses;
You find the rosebush full of thorns,
     I find the thornbush full of roses.

by Arthur Guiterman (1871 - 1943)

“I never criticize anyone. The way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement.” -Charles M. Schwab (Charles Michael Schwab (1862 - 1939))

“A painting in a museum hears more ridiculous opinions than anything else in the world.” -Edmund De Goncourt

“I criticize by creation - not by finding fault.” -Marcus Tullius Cicero (also known as Tully or simply Cicero (106 B.C.E. - 43 B.C.E.))

Riddle: What is easier to give than receive?
Solution: Criticism.

“Never allow anyone to rain on your parade and thus cast a pall of gloom and defeat on the entire day. Remember that no talent, no self-denial, no brains, no character, are required to set up in the fault-finding business. Nothing external can have any power over you unless you permit it. Your time is too precious to be sacrificed in wasted days combating the menial forces of hate, jealously, and envy. Guard your fragile life carefully. Only God can shape a flower, but any foolish child can pull it to pieces.” -Og Mandino (Augustine ‘Og’ Mandino II (1923 - 1996))

“All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.” -Author Unknown

“The reason to not take things personally is to understand that what people say about you is a reflection of them, not you.” -Author Unknown

“Wink at small faults.” -John Clarke (1596 - 1658): “Proverbs: English and Latine” (1639)

“The sad part about life is that we tend to comment only on those who do it wrong and neglect to balance it with praise for those who do it right.” -Keith Ready

“Sandwich every bit of criticism between two thick layers of praise.” -Mary Kay Ash (born Mary Kathlyn Wagner (1918 - 2001))

“Much of what people attempt to pass off as criticism or even constructive criticism is actually condemnation and an effort to slight or wound or destroy another person. You must develop a hard protective shell around your essential self to stop the slings and arrows of the critical and judgmental people you will encounter throughout your lifetime.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one would find fault with what he had done.” -John Henry Newman (also known as Cardinal Newman (1801 - 1890))

The stones that critics hurl with harsh intent
     A man may use to build his monument.
-Arthur Guiterman (1871 - 1943)

“Long experience has taught me that to be criticized is not always to be wrong.” -Anthony Eden: in a speech at the Lord Mayor’s Guildhall banquet during the Suez crisis, as quoted in the “Daily Herald” (10 November 1956) newspaper

“The man who trims himself to suit everybody will soon whittle himself away.” -Charles M. Schwab (Charles Michael Schwab (1862 - 1939))

“Criticism is a destroyer of self-worth and esteem.” -H. Burke Peterson (Harold Burke Peterson (1923 - 2013)): ‘Preparing the Heart,’ in “Ensign” (May 1990) magazine, page 83

“A critic is a gong at a railroad crossing clanging loudly and vainly as the train goes by.” -Christopher Morley (Christopher Darlington Morley (1890 - 1957))

“Criticizing another’s garden does not keep the weeds out of your own.” -Author Unknown

“I am not given to finding fault, for there are innumerable fools.” -Plato (about 427 - about 347 B.C.E.): “Protagoras”

“Instead of condemning people, let’s try to understand them. Let’s try to figure out why they do what they do. That’s a lot more profitable and intriguing than criticism; and it breeds sympathy, tolerance, and kindness.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnagey (1888 - 1955)))

“Allowing an unimportant mistake to pass without comment is a wonderful social grace.” -Judith Martin (born 1938)

“Sometimes people try to expose what’s wrong with you because they can’t handle everything that’s right about you.” -Author Unknown

“Make it your habit not to be critical about small things.” -Edward Everett Hale (1822 - 1909): as quoted in Jessie K. Freeman and Sarah S. B. Yule, editors: “Thoughts Selected from the Writings of Favorite Authors” (1901)

“If you have no will to change it, you have no right to criticize it.” -Author Unknown

“When a man points a finger at someone else, he should remember that four of his fingers are pointing at himself.” -Louis Nizer (1902 - 1994)

Hypercritical: Excessively and unreasonably critical, especially of small faults.

“He who fancies himself very enlightened, because he sees the deficiencies of others, may be very ignorant, because he has not studied his own.” -Edward George Earle Bulwer-Lytton (1803 - 1873)

“Pay no attention to what the critics say. A statue has never been put up in honor of a critic.” -Jean Sibelius (1865 - 1957)

“Wagner’s music is better than it sounds.” -Bill Nye (Edgar Wilson ‘Bill’ Nye (1850 - 1896)), referring to Richard Wagner

“What you dislike in another, take care to correct in yourself.” -Thomas Sprat

“Criticism of others is futile and if you indulge in it often you should be warned that it can be fatal to your career.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnagey (1888 - 1955)))

“Movie Critic: A person who gives the best jeers of his or her life to the theater.” -Author Unknown

“People who judge others are insecure about themselves.” -Author Unknown

“To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” -Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet (1694 - 1788))

“Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain, but it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving.” -Dale Carnegie -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnagey (1888 - 1955)))

“Blowing out someone else’s candle doesn’t make yours burn any brighter.” -Author Unknown

“Do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing, and you’ll never be criticized.” -Elbert Hubbard (Elbert Green Hubbard (1856 -1915)): as quoted in Bert Hubbard, compiler: “Elbert Hubbard’s Selected Writings,” Part 2 (1922): ‘John North Willys,’ page 335

“Judge not, that ye be not judged.” -Matthew: as quoted in “The Bible,” ‘Matthew,’ chapter 7, verse 1

“If we had no faults we should not take so much pleasure in noting those of others.” -Duc de Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680)

“Court not the critic’s smile, nor dread his frown.” -Walter Scott (1771 - 1832)

“The most insignificant people are the most apt to sneer at others. They are safe from reprisals and have no hope of rising in their own self-esteem but by lowering their neighbors.” -William Hazlitt (1778 - 1830)

“People who try to whittle you down are only trying to reduce you to their size.” -Author Unknown

“Criticism comes easier than craftsmanship.” -Zeuxis of Heraclea (464 B.C.E. - 400 B.C.E.)

“Don’t worry about what people say about you; they are busy finding faults in your life instead of fixing the faults in their own lives.” -Author Unknown

“Criticism is a life without risk.” -John Lahr (born 1941): “Light Fantastic: Adventures in Theatre” (1996)

“You can run with the big dogs or sit on the porch and bark.” -Wallace Arnold

“To find fault is easy; to do better may be difficult.” -Plutarch (C.E. 46 - C.E. 120)

“Our worst fault is our preoccupation with the faults of others.” -Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931): as quoted in Robin Waterfield, editor: “The Voice of Kahlil Gibran: An Anthology” (1995)

“Wouldn’t it be nice if we could find other things as easily as we find fault?” -Author Unknown

“It is much easier to be critical than to be correct.” -Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

“The man who is anybody and who does anything is surely going to be criticized, vilified, and misunderstood. This is part of the penalty for greatness, and every man understands, too, that it is no proof of greatness.” -Elbert Hubbard (Elbert Green Hubbard (1856 - 1915))

Overheard: People who have time to point out others’ mistakes have time to do some work.

“Pay more attention to your Creator than your critics.” -Author Unknown

“No matter what you or anyone else does, there will be someone who says that there’s something bad about it. Whenever somebody comes up with a good idea, there’s somebody else who has never had a good idea in his life who stands up and says, ‘Oh, you can’t do that . . .’” -Tom Clancy (born 1947)

“When one dog barks another will join it.” -Author Unknown

“Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others.” -H. Jackson Brown, Junior (born 1940)

“Usually our criticism of others is not because they have faults, but because their faults are different than ours.” -Roger Eastman

Can you list ten things more fun and interesting to do than criticizing others?

“Restrain your tongues in criticism of others. It is so easy to find fault. It is so much nobler to speak constructively.” -Gordon B. Hinckley (Gordon Bitner Hinckley (1910 - 2008))

“Those who can, do. Those who can’t, criticize.” -Robin Sharma (born 1965)

“Be a doer and not a critic.” -Tony Blair

“Criticism does not make you smarter or better than the one you are criticizing. In fact, the stuff you are critical of in others is the same stuff you don’t like about yourself.” -Iyanla Vanzant

“It is easier to pull down than to build up.” -Author Unknown

“He has never learned anything, and he can do nothing in decent style.” -Author Unknown: comment made by Beethoven’s teacher

“It is only imperfection that complains of what is imperfect. The more perfect we are, the more gentle and quiet we become towards the defects of others.” -Joseph Addison (1672 - 1719)

“When we criticize another person, it says nothing about that person; it merely says something about our own need to be critical.” -Richard Carlson (1961 - 2006)

“Don’t be distracted by criticism. Remember - the only taste of success some people have is when they take a bite out of you.” -Zig Ziglar (Hilary Hinton ‘Zig’ Ziglar (1926 - 2012))

“People criticized me. So I changed. But people still criticized me. So I changed more. And still people criticized me. Then finally I realized it’s what they will do, no matter what. And I changed once more, by no longer listening to those people.” -Brian Vaszily

“Criticisms are opinions that people attempt to pass as something more than opinion. But they are nonetheless only opinions, and nothing more, and of no more value.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“I have yet to find the man, however exalted his station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than under a spirit of criticism.” -Charles M. Schwab (Charles Michael Schwab (1862 - 1939))

“Be an encourager. The world has plenty of critics already.” -Dave Willis

“‘Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,’ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages you’ve had.’” -F. Scott Fitzgerald (Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896 - 1940)): “The Great Gatsby,” Chapter 1

“In reality, the world have payed too great a compliment to critics, and have imagined them men of much greater profundity than they really are.” -Henry Fielding (1707 - 1754): “Tom Jones” (1749), book 5, chapter 1

“The higher we soar, the smaller we appear to those who cannot fly.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844 - 1900))

“Has anybody ever seen a dramatic critic in the daytime? Of course not. They come out after dark up to no good.” -P. G. Wodehouse (Pelham Grenville Wodehouse (1881 - 1975))

“It is ridiculous for any man to criticize the works of another if he has not distinguished himself by his own performances.” -Joseph Addison

“Our souls may lose their peace and even disturb other people’s, if we are always criticizing trivial actions - which often are not real defects at all, but we construe them wrongly through our ignorance of their motives.” -Teresa of Ávila (born Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada (1515 - 1582))

“When criticized, consider the source.” -Author Unknown

“Criticism is easy, art is difficult.” -Philippe Destouches

“If you are always finding fault, you will seldom find anything else.” -Author Unknown

“Answer them with silence and indifference. It works better, I assure you, than anger and argument.” -Gioacchino Rossini (Gioacchini Antonio Rossini (1792 - 1868)), commenting on critics

“Let he who is without fault cast the first stone.” -Jesus of Nazareth: as quoted in “The Bible,” ‘John,’ chapter 8, verse 7

“Anybody can point out anybody else’s bad qualities. If you want to distinguish yourself, go around pointing out good qualities.” -Author Unknown

This is MFOL! . . . a website put together by some folks who could have been clowns but who lack costumes . . . and who also have no discernible talent for being clowns . . . how’s that for criticism?

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Encouragement and Praise

8/6/2020

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“Praise works with only three types of people; men, women, and children.” -Author Unknown

“Everybody likes a compliment.” -Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

“I can live for two months on a good compliment.” -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 -1910))

Arnold Bennett, the British novelist, had a publisher who boasted about the extraordinary efficiency of his secretary. One day while visiting the publisher’s office, Bennett asked her: “Your boss claims you’re extremely efficient. What’s your secret?” “It’s not my secret,” said the secretary, “it’s his.” Each time she did something for him, no matter how insignificant, she explained, he never failed to acknowledge and appreciate it. Because of this, she took infinite pains with her work.

“You know, somebody actually complimented me on my driving today. They left a little note on the windshield; it said ‘Parking Fine.’ So that was nice.” -Tim Vine (Timothy Mark ‘Tim’ Vine (born 1967))

“When you feel in need of a compliment, give one to someone else.” -Author Unknown

Flattery

’Tis an old maxim in the schools,
That flattery’s the food of fools;
Yet now and then your men of wit
Will condescend to take a bit.

by Jonathan Swift (1667 - 1745): “Cadenus and Vanessa” (1713)

“Celebrate what you want to see more of.” -Tom Peters (born 1942)

“Be quick to praise people. People like to praise those who praise them.” -Bernard Baruch (1870 - 1965): as attributed in William Safire and Leonard Safir: “Words of Wisdom: More Good Advice” (1989), page 294

“The sweetest of all sounds is praise.” -Xenophon (430 B.C.E. - 352 B.C.E.) (about 380 B.C.E.)

“Any man’s life will be filled with constant and unexpected encouragement if he makes up his mind to do his level best each day.” -Booker T. Washington (Booker Taliaferro Washington (1856 - 1915))

“A person places themselves on a level with the ones they praise.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“What really flatters a man is that you think him worth flattering.” -George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950): “John Bull’s Other Island” (1904), Act 4

“Note how good you feel after you have encouraged someone else. No other argument is necessary to suggest that one never miss the opportunity to give encouragement.” -George Adams (George Matthew Adams (1878 - 1962))

“You can’t eat compliments.” -Charles M. Schulz (Charles Monroe ‘Sparky’ Schulz (1922 - 2000)): “Things I’ve Had to Learn Over and Over Again (Plus a Few Minor Discoveries)” (1984)

“Flattery must be pretty thick before anybody objects to it.” -William Feather (William Arthur Feather (1889 - 1981)): “The Business of Life” (1949)

“When your goal is to build people up, to make them feel better, to share in their joy, you too reap the rewards of their positive feelings. The next time you have the chance to correct someone, even if their facts are a little off, resist the temptation. Instead, ask yourself, “What do I really want out of this interaction?” Chances are, what you want is a peaceful interaction where all parties leave feeling good. Each time you resist ‘being right,’ and instead choose kindness, you’ll notice a peaceful feeling within.” -Richard Carlson (1961 - 2006): “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” (1997), page 37; website: https://dontsweat.com/

“The deepest principle in Human Nature is the craving to be appreciated.” -William James (1842 - 1910): letter (1896) to students who had sent to him a plant for Easter

“High praise indeed . . . comes from mountaintops!” -Author Unknown

“You need to be aware of what others are doing, applaud their efforts, acknowledge their successes, and encourage them in their pursuits. When we all help one another, everybody wins.” -Jim Stovall (born 1958)

“Appreciate good people. They are hard to come by.” -Author Unknown

Now that is indeed a job whale done . . .

“The most effective way to achieve right relations with any living thing is to look for the best in it, and then help that best into the fullest expression.” -J. Allen Boone (John Allen Boone (1882 - 1965))

“Praise, like gold and diamonds, owes its value only to its scarcity.” -Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784): “The Rambler” (6 June 1751)

“If you mean to profit, learn to praise.” -Charles Churchill (1731 - 1764): “Gotham” (1764), book II

“Praise does wonders for our sense of hearing.” -Arnold H. Glasow (Arnold Henry Glasow (1905 - 1998))

“Praise makes good Men better, and bad Men worse.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): “Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 3918

“Be advised that all flatterers live at the expense of those who listen to them.” -Jean de La Fontaine (1621 - 1695)

“The people who are lifting the world onward and upward are those who encourage more than they criticize.” -Elizabeth Harrison (1849 - 1927)

“People are in greater need of your praise when they try and fail, than when they try and succeed.” -Bob Moawad (Robert Abraham Moawad (1941 - 2007))

“Flatterers look like friends, as wolves like dogs.” -George Chapman

“Remember the compliments you have received and forget the rude remarks.” -Author Unknown

“Flattery is like chewing gum. Enjoy it but don’t swallow it.” -Hank Ketcham (Henry King ‘Hank’ Ketcham (1920 - 2001))

“I have always said that if I were a rich man I’d hire a professional praiser.” -Osbert Sitwell (Francis Osbert Sacheverell Sitwell (1892 - 1969))

“One kind word can change someone’s entire day.” -Author Unknown

“. . . envy is a kind of praise.” -John Gay (1685 - 1732)

Flattery: False praise, a form of lying; see also exaggeration, another form of lying.

Compliment: A hug by way of words.

“Correction does much, but encouragement does more.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

Overheard: If you can’t get a compliment any other way, pay yourself one.

“A compliment is something like a kiss through a veil.” -Victor Hugo (Victor Marie Hugo (1802 - 1885))

“Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free and worth a fortune.” -Sam Walton (1918 - 1992)

“Fair words butter no parsnips.” -John Clarke (1596 - 1658): “Paroemiologia” (1639), page 21

“When someone does something well, applaud! You will make two people happy.” -Samuel Goldwyn (also known as Samuel Goldfish, born Szmuel Gelbfisz (1879 - 1974))

“You are every lovely word I could possibly think of.” -Author Unknown

“Never let an opportunity pass to say a kind or encouraging word to another person.” -Author Unknown

“Praise is like sunlight to the human spirit: we cannot flower and grow without it.” -Jess Lair (1927 -2000)

“When a proud Man hears another praised, he thinks himself injured.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734)

“Compliment people; magnify their strengths, not their weaknesses.” -Author Unknown

“Let’s cease thinking of our accomplishments, our wants. Let’s try to figure out the other man’s good points. Then forget flattery. Give honest, sincere appreciation. Be hearty in your approbation and lavish in your praise, and people will cherish your words and treasure them and repeat them over a lifetime - repeat them years after you have forgotten them.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Breckenridge Carnegie (1888 - 1955))

“I would like to compliment you on the fine job you are doing of complimenting me.” -Author Unknown

“Flattery corrupts both the receiver and the giver.” -Edmund Burke (1729 - 1797): “Reflections on the Revolution in France” (1790)

“Compliments are free of cost and obligation; indeed, they are ‘complimentary.’” -Author Unknown

“Encourage one another. Many times a word of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer has kept people on their feet.” -Charles R. Swindoll (Charles Rozell ‘Chuck’ Swindoll (born 1934))

“Compliments are the gift of prosperity. I have learned to accept them graciously.” -Louise Hay (Louise Lynn Hay (1926 - 2017))

Some encouragement consists of praise combined with expectation, as for example, “You are always mommy’s little angel,” or “You are the best thing that has ever happened to this company.” So, there is the praise or compliment, plus the expectation, all melded into one. It is as though someone is being encouraged to do and be good, while his or her previous or present worth is being acknowledged.

“Every day, tell at least one person something you like, admire, or appreciate about them.” -Richard Carlson (1961 - 2006) website: https://dontsweat.com/

“To encourage someone is literally to instill courage in someone.” -Author Unknown

“Most of us, swimming against tides of trouble the world knows nothing about, need only a bit of praise or encouragement and we’ll make the goal. Say, ‘Thank you!’ whenever you think of it. Say, ‘Nice job!’ to that workman who put extra effort into his task. Say, ‘Atta boy!’ to the fellow who is struggling through in the face of odds. You’ll get a whale of a lot of joy out of life that way. And people will love you.” -Jerome P. Fleishman

“It’s always worthwhile to make others aware of their worth.” -Malcolm S. Forbes (Malcolm Stevenson Forbes (1919 - 1990))

“Find the good - and praise it.” -Alex Haley (Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (1921 - 1992))

“A gentle word, a kind look, a good-natured smile can work wonders and accomplish miracles.” -William Hazlitt (similar quotation attributed to Leo Buscaglia)

“The way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement.” -Charles Schwab (Charles Michael Schwab (1862 - 1939))

This is MFOL! . . . a website for exceedingly extraordinarily exceptionally excellent extra-special people like yourself . . .

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Creativity and Innovation

8/3/2020

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Many people find creativity to be their most certain way to happiness . . .

“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.” -Mary Lou Cook (1918 - 2013)

“A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is ultimately to be at peace with himself. What one can be, one must be.” -Abraham H. Maslow (Abraham Harold Maslow (1908 - 1970))

“I was created to create.” -Author Unknown

“To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.” -Joseph Chilton Pearce (1926 - 2016): “Magical Child” (1977)

“One supreme fact which I have discovered is that it is not willpower, but fantasy and imagination, that creates. Imagination is the creative force. Imagination creates reality.” -Richard Wagner (Wilhelm Richard Wagner (1813 - 1883))

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine, and at last, you create what you will.” -George Bernard Shaw (1856 - 1950)

“A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger (1900 - 1944))

Josh: Why are shovels regarded as the most innovative invention of all time?
Joseph: Because they are truly ground-breaking.

“Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us will put more and better ideas if our efforts are appreciated.” -Alex F. Osborn (Alex Faickney Osborn (1888 - 1966))

“A new idea is delicate. It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn; it can be stabbed to death by a quip and worried to death by a frown.” -Charles H. Brower (Charles Hendrickson Brower (1901 - 1984)): as quoted in Harold R. Buhl: “Creative Engineering Design” (1960), page 97

“Great innovators and original thinkers and artists attract the wrath of mediocrities as lightning rods draw the flashes.” -Theodor Reik (1888 - 1969)

“Creativity takes courage.” -Henri Matisse (1869 - 1954)

“To create one’s own world in any of the arts takes courage.” -Georgia O’Keeffe (Georgia Totto O’Keeffe (1887 - 1986))

“It takes courage to be creative. Just as soon as you have a new idea, you are a minority of one.” -E. Paul Torrance (Ellis Paul Torrance (1915 - 2003))

“When you are completely absorbed or caught up in something, you become oblivious to things around you, or to the passage of time. It is this absorption in what you are doing that frees your unconscious and releases your creative imagination.” -Rollo May (1909 - 1994)

“Form follows function.” -Louis Henri Sullivan (1856 - 1924)

“A work is perfectly finished only when nothing can be added to it and nothing taken away.” -Joseph Joubert (1754 - 1824): as quoted in Paul Auster, translator: “The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert” (1883)

“Could Hamlet have been written by a committee, or the Mona Lisa painted by a club? Could the New Testament have been composed as a conference report? Creative ideas do not spring from groups. They spring from individuals. The divine spark leaps from the finger of God to the finger of Adam, whether it takes ultimate shape in a law of physics or a law of the land, a poem or a policy, a sonata or a mechanical computer.” -Alfred Whitney Griswold: address (9 June 1957) at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America

Overheard: I am creative. You can’t expect me to be neat, too!

“Creativity is seeing something that doesn’t exist already.” -Author Unknown

Put Something In

Draw a crazy picture,
     Write a nutty poem,
Sing a mumble-gumble song,
     Whistle through your comb.
Do a looney-gooney dance
     ’Cross the kitchen floor,
Put something silly in the world
     That ain’t been there before.

by Shel Silverstein (Sheldon Allan ‘Shel’ Silverstein (1930 - 1999))

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” -Maya Angelou (born Marguerite Ann Johnson (1928 - 2014))

“If you want to have good ideas you must have many ideas. Most of them will be wrong, and what you have to learn is which ones to throw away.” -Linus Pauling (Linus Carl Pauling (1901 - 1994))

“If you are seeking creative ideas, go out walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk.” -Raymond Inmon (Raymond Leon Inmon (1920 - 1999))

“All things are created twice. There’s a mental or first creation, and a physical or second creation of all things. You have to make sure that the blueprint, the first creation, is really what you want, that you’ve thought everything through. Then you put it into bricks and mortar. Each day you go to the construction shed and pull out the blueprint to get marching orders for the day. You begin with the end in mind.” -Stephen Covey (Stephen Richards Covey (1932 - 2012))

“In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative original thinker unless you can also sell what you create. Management cannot be expected to recognize a good idea unless it is presented to them by a good salesman.” -David M. Ogilvy (David Mackenzie Ogilvy (1911 - 1999))

“Ideas are funny things. They don’t work unless you do.” -Author Unknown

“Make every thought, every fact, that comes into your mind pay you a profit. Make it work and produce for you. Think of things not as they are but as they might be. Don’t merely dream - but create!” -Robert Collier (1885 - 1950)

“Creative thinking is no substitute for hard work.” -Author Unknown

“Creative people exhibit a continuous discontent with uniformity.” -Glenn Van Ekeren

“Only mediocrity can be trusted to be always at its best. Genius must always have lapses proportionate to its triumphs.” -Max Beerbohm (1872 - 1956): as quoted in the obituary of music-hall comic Dan Leno, published in the “Saturday Review” (5 November 1904)

“Listen to everyone, because good ideas can come from everywhere.” -Author Unknown

“There’s no shortage of remarkable ideas, what’s missing is the will to execute them.” -Seth Godin (born 1960)

“The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas.” -Linus Pauling (Linus Carl Pauling (1901 - 1994))

“The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.” -C. G. Jung (Carl Gustav Jung (1875 - 1961))

“Creativity is intelligence having fun.” -attributed to Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

“Creative activity could be described as a type of learning process where teacher and pupil are located in the same individual.” -Arthur Koestler (1905 - 1983)

“The life of the creative man is lead, directed, and controlled by boredom. Avoiding boredom is one of our most important purposes.” -Saul Steinberg (1914 - 1999)

“You will hear people say that poverty is the best spur to the artist. They have never felt the iron of it in their flesh. They do not know how mean it makes you. It exposes you to endless humiliation, it cuts your wings, it eats into your soul like a cancer. It is not wealth one asks for, but just enough to preserve one’s dignity, to work unhampered, to be generous, frank, and independent. I pity with all my heart the artist, whether he writes or paints, who is entirely dependent for subsistence upon his art.” -W. Somerset Maugham (William Somerset Maugham (1874 - 1965))

“No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” -Ansel Adams (1902 - 1984)

Overheard: We’re having creative differences. I’m creative; you’re different.

“Creativity is essentially a lonely art. An even lonelier struggle. To some a blessing. To others a curse. It is in reality the ability to reach inside yourself and drag forth from your very soul an idea.” -Lou Dorfsman (Louis ‘Lou’ Dorfsman (1918 - 2008))

“All men are not creative equally.” -John Solie

“Encouraged, we recognize the importance of living artistically, aesthetically, and creatively, as creative creatures of the creator.” -Edith Schaeffer (Edith Rachel Merritt Schaeffer also known as Mei Fuh (1914 - 2013)): “The Hidden Art of Homemaking: Creative Ideas for Enriching Everyday Life” (1972)

“Whatever creativity is, it is in part a solution to a problem.” -Brian Aldiss (Brian Wilson Aldiss (1925 - 2017))

“An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.” -Edwin Land (Edwin Herbert Land (1909 - 1991)): as quoted in “A Genius and His Magic Camera,” published in “LIFE” magazine (27 October 1972); also in Mark Olshaker: “The Instant Image: Edwin Land and the Polaroid Experience” (1978), page 65

“Man is made to create, from the poet to the potter.” -Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

“There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns.” -Edward de Bono (born 1933)

“Visualize this thing that you want, see it, feel it, believe in it. Make your mental blue print, and begin to build.” -Robert Collier (1885 - 1950)

This is MFOL! . . . keep thinking creatively . . . then build your creation . . .

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Self-Regard and Self-Acceptance

7/31/2020

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Fearlessly accept the one and only you . . .

“If I had one gift that I could give you, my friend, it would be the ability to see yourself as others see you, because only then would you know how extremely special you are.” -B. A. Billingsly

“The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.” -Joseph Campbell (1904 - 1987)

“Accept everything about yourself - I mean everything. You are you and that is the beginning and the end - no apologies, no regrets.” -Clark Moustakas (Clark E. Moustakas (1923 - 2012)): as quoted in Lori Knutson: “Sacred Simplicities: Meeting the Miracles in Our Lives” (2004), page 141

“I’m not perfect, but I’m pretty good.” -Author Unknown

“Accept yourself as you are. Otherwise you will never see opportunity. You will not feel free to move toward it; you will feel you are not deserving.” -Maxwell Maltz (1899 - 1975)

“Live as if you like yourself, and it may happen.” -Marge Piercy (born 1936)

“There might be things about yourself that you do not like . . . until one day you notice those same things in someone else who seems to be doing well enough in life. So go ahead and take a closer look at other people. You will see something of yourself in some of them and you will come to know an important truth, which is that you are a good enough person just as you are.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“It is not worth the while to let our imperfections disturb us always.” -Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862)

“You are wholly complete, and your success in life will be in direct proportion to your ability to accept this truth about you.” -Robert Anthony (Robert Newton Anthony (1916 - 2006))

“The greatest miracle you can hope for is self-acceptance.” -Maxwell Maltz (1899 - 1975)

“Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.” -Lucille Ball (Lucille Désirée Ball (1911 - 1989))

“I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent.” -Ashleigh Brilliant (Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant (born 1933)): title of book (1978)

“Be what you are. This is the first step towards becoming better than you are.” -Julius Charles Hare (1795 - 1855) and Augustus William Hare (1792 - 1834): “Guesses at Truth: By Two Brothers” (1861), page 555

“As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“If you must love your neighbor as yourself, it is at least as fair to love yourself as your neighbor.” -Nicolas Chamfort (also known as Nicolas-Sébastien Roch (1741 - 1794))

“Self-approval and self-acceptance in the now are the main keys to positive changes in every area of our lives.” -Louise L. Hay (Louise Lynn Hay (1926 - 2017))

Affirmation: “I accept myself as I am, all the while knowing I am also capable of becoming so much more.”

“Don’t rely on someone else for your happiness and self-worth. Only you can be responsible for that. If you can’t love and respect yourself - no one else will be able to make that happen. Accept who you are - completely; the good and the bad - and make changes as you see fit - not because you think someone else wants you to be different.” -Stacey Charter

“Whatever you are doing, love yourself for doing it. Whatever you are feeling, love yourself for feeling it.” -Thaddeus Golas (Thaddeus Stanley Golas (1924 - 1997)))

“I care not so much what I am in the opinion of others as what I am in my own; I would be rich of myself and not by borrowing.” -Michel de Montaigne (1533 - 1592): “Essais” (“Essays”) (March 1580), ‘Of Glory’

“The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself.” -Maya Angelou (born Marguerite Ann Johnson (1928 - 2014))

“Every human being is trying to say something to others. Trying to cry out, ‘I am alive, notice me! Speak to me! Listen to me! Confirm for me that I am important. That I matter!’” -Marion D. Hanks (Marion Duff Hanks (1921 - 2011))

“Be a Friend to thyself and others will too.” -Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734): “Gnomologia: Adages and Proverbs” (1732), number 847

“To wish you were someone else is to waste the person you are.” -Author Unknown

“It needs to be said and heard: It’s okay to be who you are.” -Hailee Steinfeld (born 1996)

“The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.” -Carl Rogers (Carl Ransom Rogers (1902 - 1987))

Overheard: Would you like you, if you met you?

“It is the chiefest point of happiness that a man is willing to be what he is.” -Desiderius Erasmus (Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, also known as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus (1466 - 1536))

“No one is perfect. Gently accept your humanness.” -Deborah Day

“We have to learn to be our own best friends because we fall too easily into the trap of being our own worst enemies.” -Roderick Thorp (Roderick Mayne Thorp, Junior (1936 - 1999)): “Rainbow Drive” (1986)

“I now see how owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we will ever do.” -Brené Brown (Casandra Brené Brown (born 1965))

“To know oneself, one should assert oneself.” -Albert Camus (1913 - 1960)

Self-love, my liege*, is not so vile a sin
As self-neglecting.
-William Shakespeare(1564 - 1616): “Henry V” (about 1599), Act 2, scene 4, lines 74 and 75
*liege: a feudal superior to whom allegiance and service are due, within a feudal society in which land use by subjects is exchanged for work.

“I don’t want everyone to like me; I should think less of myself if some people did.” -Henry James (Henry James, Junior (1843 - 1916))

“To accept ourselves as we are means to value our imperfections as much as our perfections.” -Sandra Bierig

“If you can learn to love yourself and all the flaws, you can love other people so much better. And that makes you so happy.” -Kristin Chenoweth (Kristin Dawn Chenoweth (born in 1968 as Kristi Dawn Chenoweth))

“Don’t be-little yourself. Be-big yourself.” -Corita Kent (Mary Corita Kent (1918 - 1986))

“When you acknowledge the less than perfect parts of yourself, something magical begins to happen. Along with the negative, you’ll also begin to notice the positive, the wonderful aspects of yourself that you may not have given yourself credit for, or perhaps even been aware of.” -Richard Carlson (1961 - 2006): “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” (1997)

“Stop hating yourself for everything that you aren’t. Start loving yourself for everything that you are.” -Author Unknown

“Don’t look for approval from anyone other than yourself.” -Jonathan Lockwood Huie (born 1945)

“A truly strong person does not need the approval of others any more than a lion needs the approval of sheep.” -Vernon Howard (Vernon Linwood Howard (1918 - 1992))

“Often, it’s not about becoming a new person, but becoming the person you were meant to be, and already are, but don’t know how to be.” -Heath L. Buckmaster: “Box of Hair: A Fairy Tale” (30 April 2008)

“You were born to be real, not to be perfect.” -Author Unknown

“Be yourself, who else is better qualified?” -Frank J. Giblin

“It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else’s eyes.” -Sally Field (Sally Margaret Field Mahoney (born 1946))

“You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.” -Diane Von Furstenberg (born 1946 as Diane Simone Michelle Halfin)

“Self-acceptance is my refusal to be in an adversarial relationship to myself.” -Nathaniel Branden (born 1930)

“Self-respect is not a function of size, age, or wealth. Breathe deep, sing loud and sweet, ‘I am me, I am unique, I am magnificent.’” -Jonathan Lockwood Huie (born 1945)

“Once you embrace your value, talents, and strengths, it neutralizes when others think less of you.” -Rob Liano

“Too many people overvalue what they are not, and undervalue what they are.” -Malcolm S. Forbes (Malcolm Stevenson Forbes (1919 - 1990))

“Your value doesn’t decrease based on someone’s inability to see your worth.” -Author Unknown

“What self-acceptance does is open up more possibilities of succeeding because you aren’t fighting yourself along the way.” -Shannon Ables

“Option A: Spend your life trying to get others to accept you. Option B: Accept yourself, and spend your life with others who recognize what a beauty you are.” -Scott Stabile

“If you have the ability to love, love yourself first.” -Charles Bukowski (1920 - 1994)

“The greatest success is successful self-acceptance.” -Ben Sweet

“What you think of yourself is much more important than what people think of you.” -Author Unknown

“I think everybody’s weird. We should all celebrate our individuality and not be embarrassed or ashamed of it.” -Johnny Depp (born 1963 as John Christopher Depp II)

“Be faithful to that which exists within yourself.” -André Gide (André Paul Guillaume Gide (1869 - 1951))

“You are imperfect, permanently and inevitably flawed. And you are beautiful.” -Amy Bloom (born 1953)

“It’s not your job to like me . . . it’s mine!” -Byron Katie (Byron Kathleen Mitchell (born 1942))

“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.” -e. e. cummings (Edward Estlin Cummings (1894 - 1962))

“When I loved myself enough, I began leaving whatever wasn’t healthy. This meant people, jobs, my own beliefs and habits - anything that kept me small. My judgement called it disloyal. Now I see it as self-loving.” -Kim McMillen: “When I Loved Myself Enough” (2001)

“Be yourself. Try to be anything else but your genuine self, even if you deceive the entire world, and you will be ten thousand times worse than nothing . . . You have been blessed with special skills that are yours alone. Use them, whatever they may be and forget about wearing another’s hat. A talented chariot driver can win gold and renown with his skills. Let him pick figs and he would starve. No one can take your place! Realize this and be yourself. You have no obligation to succeed. You have only the obligation to be true to yourself. Do the very best that you can, in the things you do best, and you will know, in thy soul, that you are the greatest success in the world.” -Og Mandino (Augustine ‘Og’ Mandino II (1923 - 1996)): “The Greatest Success in the World” (1968), page 94

“Loving yourself isn’t vanity, it’s sanity.” -André Gide (André Paul Guillaume Gide (1869 - 1951))

“Accept yourself, love yourself, and keep moving forward.” -Roy T. Bennett: “The Light in the Heart” (26 February 2016)

“You work so hard to fix yourself, but maybe what you need isn’t another tactic, another book, another expert, another five-step plan. Maybe, you don’t need to be fixed. Maybe, what’s really holding you back is the idea that you need to be fixed.” -Vironika Tugaleva (born 1988)

“I’ve finally stopped running away from myself. Who else is there better to be?” -Goldie Hawn (Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born 1945))

“If only you could sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.” -Fred Rogers (Fred McFeely Rogers (1928 - 2003))

“Change is possible, but it must start with self-acceptance.” -Alexander Lowen (1910 - 2008)

“Believing in our hearts that who we are is enough is the key to a more satisfying and balanced life.” -Ellen Sue Stern

“If you want to be somebody, somebody really special, be yourself.” -Author Unknown

“You have been criticizing yourself for years, and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.” -Louise L. Hay (Louise Lynn Hay (1926 - 2017))

“Acceptance is the key to everything.” -Michael J. Fox (pseudonym of Michael Andrew Fox (born 1961))

“When you stop living your life based on what others think of you, real life begins. At that moment, you will finally see the door of self-acceptance opened.” -Shannon L. Alder

“We are each gifted in a unique and important way. It is our privilege and our adventure to discover our own special light.” -Mary Dunbar (Evelyn Mary Dunbar (1906 - 1960))

The most delightful surprise in life
Is to suddenly recognize your own worth.
-Maxwell Maltz (1899 - 1975)

“Our entire life - consists ultimately in accepting ourselves as we are.” -Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (1910 - 1987)

“What progress, you ask, have I made? I have begun to be a friend to myself.” -Hecato (also known as Hecaton of Rhodes): as quoted in Seneca (Lucius Annaeus Seneca, also known as Seneca the Younger (about 4 B.C.E. - C.E. 65): “Epistulae morales ad Lucilium” (about C.E. 65)

“One must have the adventurous daring to accept oneself as a bundle of possibilities and undertake the most interesting game in the world: Making the most of one’s best.” -Harry Emerson Fosdick

Now there is a website especially for exceptional people like you . . . this is MFOL!

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Appearances and Looks

7/28/2020

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“Some of the most beautiful women I have ever met tell me, ‘I hate myself when I look in the mirror.’ I hear that again and again” -Henry Miller (1891 - 1980)

“A beautiful thing is never perfect.” -Author Unknown

“To all the girls who think they’re fat because they’re not a size zero, you’re the beautiful ones; it’s society who’s ugly.” -Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson (1926 - 1962))

“Beauty is a mystery. You can neither eat it nor make flannel out of it.” -David Herbert Lawrence (1885 - 1930)

“I used to be very self-conscious. I used to wish I was pretty. My cousin Georgia always taught me that if you smile, people will like you. Sometimes people will say something you don’t like, and you get angry a bit, but you just smile. You let it go by, even if you really would like to choke ’em. By smiling, I think I’ve made more friends than if I was the other way.” -Ella Fitzgerald (1918 - 1996)

“Won’t you come into my garden? I would like my roses to see you.” -Richard B. Sheridan (Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751 - 1816))

Keep up appearances; there lies the test;
     The world will give thee credit for the rest.
-Charles Churchill (1731 - 1764): “Night” (1761), lines 311 and 312

“A plain face is often surprisingly beautiful by reason of an inner light.” -Henry E. Walbery

“Real beauty isn’t about symmetry or weight or makeup; it’s about looking life right in the face and seeing all its magnificence reflected in your own.” -Valerie Monroe

“Some of you may feel that you are not as attractive and beautiful and glamorous as you would like to be. Rise above any such feelings, cultivate the light you have within you, and it will shine through as a radiant expression that will be seen by others.” -Gordon B. Hinckley (Gordon Bitner Hinckley (1910 - 2008))

“Do not judge others by appearances; a rich heart may be under a poor coat.” -Author Unknown: Scottish proverb

“Beauty isn’t about having a pretty face. It’s about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart, and a pretty soul.” -Author Unknown

Beauty to no complexion is confined,
     Is of all colors, and by none defined.
-George Granville (1666 - 1735)

“First impressions are the most lasting.” -Jonas Hanway (1712 - 1786): “A Journal of Eight Days Journey” (1756)

“Beauty isn’t something on the outside. It’s your insides that count! You gotta eat green stuff to make sure you’re pretty on the inside.” -Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka, and Toshihiro Kawabata: “Animal Crossing: Wild World” (2005)

Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a body image condition that causes some people to imagine they presently have, or will later develop, physical deformities. Most people with the condition are not all that different from other people in appearance; it is just that their perception of themselves is erroneously distorted by inner or outer influences. BDD is also known by the term ‘dysmorphophobia,’ which is derived from the Greek words ‘dys’ meaning ‘abnormal,’ ‘morphe’ meaning ‘form,’ and ‘phobos’ meaning ‘fear.’ The good news is that the condition can be treated through therapeutic psychological counseling and by other methods.

“There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.” -Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626): “Essays” (1625), ‘Of Beauty’

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole,
     but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
     the passion that she knows.
-Audrey Hepburn (1929 - 1993)

“The beauty does not live out there; the beauty’s in my eyes.” -Jonathan Lockwood Huie (born 1945)

He: My, what lovely eyes you have!
She: I am glad you like them. They were a birthday present.

“Do not judge men by mere appearances; for the light laughter that bubbles on the lip often mantles over the depths of sadness, and the serious look may be the sober veil that covers a divine peace and joy. The bosom can ache beneath diamond brooches; and many a blithe heart dances under coarse wool.” -E. H. Chapin (Edwin Hubbell Chapin (1814 - 1880))

She is not fair to outward view
     As many maidens be;
Her loveliness I never knew
     Until she smiled on me:
Oh! then I saw her eye was bright,
     A well of love, a spring of light.
-Hartley Coleridge (David Hartley ‘Hartley’ Coleridge (1796 - 1849)): “Poems” (1851), ‘She Is Not Fair’

“I am not beautiful like you. I am beautiful like me.” -Author Unknown

“Appearances often deceive.” -Author Unknown: English saying

“It is amazing how complete is the delusion that beauty is goodness.” -Leo Tolstoy (Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828 - 1910)): “The Kreutzer Sonata” (1889)

“The weirder you’re going to behave, the more normal you should look. It works in reverse, too. When I see a kid with three or four rings in his nose, I know there is absolutely nothing extraordinary about that person.” -Oscar Levant (1906 - 1972)

“Physical differences are what make it possible for our friends to find us in a crowd.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Beauty is nothing other than the promise of happiness.” [translation to English]
“La beauté n’est que la promesse du bonheur.” [original French]
-Stendhal (Marie-Henri Beyle (1783 - 1842)): “De L’Amour” (English: “On Love”) (1822), chapter 17, footnote

“Remember, the most beautiful things in the world are the most useless: peacocks and lilies, for instance.” -John Ruskin (1819 - 1900): “The Stones of Venice” (1851)

“A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” -Roald Dahl (1916 - 1990)

“Outer beauty pleases the eye. Inner beauty captivates the heart.” -Mandy Hale (born 1978): “The Single Woman: Life, Love, and a Dash of Sass” (2013)

Who is that pretty lady?

Her very frowns are fairer far
     Than smiles of other maidens are.
-Hartley Coleridge (David Hartley ‘Hartley’ Coleridge (1796 - 1849)): “Poems” (1851), ‘She Is Not Fair’

“You know who’s beautiful? Read this first word.” -Author Unknown

“You were created in God’s image. God makes no mistakes. To put yourself down for the way you are is to insult God’s handiwork. You are beautiful.” -Author Unknown

“Beauty is how you feel inside, and it reflects in your eyes. It is not something physical.” -Sophia Loren (pseudonym of Sophia Sciccoloni (born 1934))

What do you think makes a person good-looking?

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The Ugly Duckling Syndrome

“The Ugly Duckling” is a story about someone who was not really ugly at all; he was just different. The other ducks teased and pecked at him with their beaks until the ugly duckling flew away. He wandered around for a year, and was treated as an outcast everywhere. In the Spring, he saw a group of swans on a lake, and wanted very much to join them. As he swam out toward them, he was astounded to notice his reflection in the water - he was a swan! The other swans welcomed him warmly, and found him to be beautiful.

Like many fairy tales, “The Ugly Duckling” was created with a lesson, or moral, in mind, if we will listen or read with the idea of finding it.

Most of us go through times when we feel different from those around us. These can be painful and lonely times, but it does not mean there is anything wrong with us. Like the ugly duckling, we will come into a time and place when we will be loved. All the pain and loneliness we have felt will one day be a fading memory.

“I never dreamed of so much happiness when I was the ugly duckling.” -Hans Christian Andersen (1805 - 1875): “The Ugly Duckling” (11 November 1843)

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“I used to look in the mirror and feel shame; I look in the mirror now and I absolutely love myself.” -Drew Barrymore (born 1975)

“Trust not too much to an enchanting face.” -Vergil (Publius Vergilius Maro, also known as Virgil (70 B.C.E. - 19 B.C.E.))

“The best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.” -Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626)

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” -Margaret Wolfe Hungerford (1855 - 1897): “Molly Bawn” (1878)

“The beauty seen is partly in him who sees it.” -Christian Bovee (Christian Nestell Bovee (1820 - 1904))

“Common-looking people are the best in the world. That is the reason the Lord made so many of them.” -Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

“Any girl can be glamorous. All you have to do is stand still and look stupid.” -Hedy Lamarr (Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler (1914 - 2000))

“I cannot tell you how many times people have come up to me to compliment me on my lavish figure.” -Miss Piggy, as quoted in Henry Beard: “Miss Piggy’s Guide to Life” (1981)

“No matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and honesty are written across her face, she will be beautiful.” -Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 - 1962))

“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment . . . Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” -Author Unknown: “The Bible,” ‘1st Peter,’ chapter 3, verses 3 and 4

“It is the common wonder of all men, how among so many millions of faces there should be none alike.” -Thomas Browne (1605 - 1682): “Religio Medici” (1643), Part II, Section 2

“Always try to look your best, because you never get a second chance to make a first impression, and first impressions are lasting impressions.” -Author Unknown

“Beauty starts in your head, not in your mirror.” -Joubert Botha

“A woman deserves no credit for her beauty at twenty, but at sixty, her beauty is of her own doing.” -Author Unknown

O wad some Pow’r the giftie gie us
     To see oursels as ithers see us!
-Robert Burns (1759 - 1796): “To a Louse” (1786)

In Standard English, the above lines would be as follows:
And would some Power the small gift give us
     To see ourselves as others see us!

“There are no ugly women, there are women who do not know how to look pretty.” -Jean de La Bruyère (1645 - 1696)

“Nothing makes a woman more beautiful than the belief that she is beautiful.” -Sophia Loren (pseudonym of Sophia Sciccoloni (born 1934))

“Beware so long as you live, of judging people by appearances.” -Jean de La Fontaine (1621 - 1695)

Never judge someone
     By the way he looks
Or a book by the way it’s covered;
     For inside those tattered pages,
There’s a lot to be discovered
-Stephen Cosgrove (born 1945)

“If being beautiful in the eyes of the Creator means being ugly in the eyes of the created, then it’s worth it.” -Author Unknown

“You can only perceive real beauty in a person as they get older.” -Anouk Aimée (pseudonym of Nicole Françoise Florence Dreyfus (born 1932))

“The appearances of things change according to the emotions and thus we see magic and beauty in them, while the magic and beauty are really in ourselves.” -Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931)

Appearances and Looks Quiz
- What is the meaning of the word ‘beauty’?
- What is the meaning of the phrase ‘inner beauty’?
- Why might you not want to answer your door dressed and groomed sloppily?

“I’m beautiful in my own way because God makes no mistakes.” -Author Unknown

Appearances and Looks Quiz Answers
- Beauty is the quality of being pleasing to the mind.
- Inner beauties are virtues such as goodness, politeness, and caring.
- Always answer the door dressed and groomed well, because you never know when you might be greeting the Queen or the President.

“Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.” -Confucius (K’ung Fu-tzu or K’ung Ch’iu (about 551 B.C.E. - about 479 B.C.E.))

“I am, as I am; whether hideous, or handsome, depends upon who is made judge.” -Herman Melville (1819 - 1891)

“Beauty in things exists in the mind which contemplates them.” -David Hume (1711 - 1776)

“People who are ‘animated’ are more attractive.” -Author Unknown

“It’s not the face, but the expressions on it. It’s not the voice, but what you say. It’s not how you look in that body, but the thing you do with it. You are beautiful.” -Stephenie Meyer (born 1973): “The Host” (6 May 2008)

“Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself.” -Coco Chanel (Gabrielle Bonheur ‘Coco’ Chanel (1883 - 1971))

“That’s the thing about inner beauty: Unlike physical beauty, which grabs the spotlight for itself, inner beauty shines on everyone, catching them, holding them in its embrace, making them more beautiful too.” -Author Unknown

“Anyone is automatically a lot more attractive when they’re funny.” -Author Unknown

The folks at Make Fun Of Life! hope you will laugh a little more, learn a little more, and love life a little more . . . each and every day . . . we just want you to be happy.

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Self-Improvement and Self-Help

7/23/2020

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“Anybody can do just about anything with himself that he really wants to and makes up his mind to do. We are capable of greater things than we realize.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

“Change yourself and your fortune will change with you.” -Author Unknown

“How do we become true and good, happy and genuine, joyful and free? Only by getting in touch with good, true, happy, genuine human beings, only by seeking the company of the strong and the free, only by catching spontaneity and freedom from those who are themselves spontaneous and free.” -Charles Malike (1906 - 1988)

“Let’s build a better you . . . we will need some glue, pop-sickle sticks, pipe cleaners, glitter, crayons, yarn, construction paper . . . what, you say you are not made out of any of those things?” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Be the kind of person you want to meet.” -Author Unknown

“A truly wise person will constantly move forward, striving for self-improvement.” -Marvin J. Ashton (Marvin Jeremy Ashton (1915 - 1994))

“Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them - every day begin the task anew.” -Francis de Sales (1567 - 1622)

“If you improve 1 percent a day, then in 100 days, guess what? You’re 100 percent better.” -Coach Carter

“Let us strive to improve ourselves, for we cannot remain stationary; one either progresses or retrogrades.” -Mademoiselle Du Deffand (Marie Anne de Vichy-Chamrond, Marquise du Deffand (1697 - 1780))

“By improving yourself, you make the world better.” -Author Unknown

“You don’t have to be sick to get better! You don’t have to have a bad attitude to get a better one.” -Thomas D. Willhite (Thomas Dale Willhite (1940 - 1983))

“Ignore the ones who say it’s too late to start over. Disregard those who say you’ll never amount to anything. Turn a deaf ear to those who say you aren’t smart enough, fast enough, tall enough, or big enough - ignore them.” -Max Lucado (born 1955)

“In the long term the most important question . . . is not what you are but what you are becoming.” -Gary Hamel

“It only takes one person to change your life - you.” -Ruth Casey

“Everyone planning to make something worthwhile out of himself must be a self-remade man, and should be an intelligent remodeling job going on all the time.” -Sterling W. Sill (Sterling Welling Sill (1903 - 1994))

“Do not think of your faults, still less of others’ faults; look for what is good and strong, and try to imitate it. Your faults will drop off, like dead leaves, when their time comes.” -John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)

“Build upon strengths, and weaknesses will gradually take care of themselves.” -Joyce C. Lock

“There’s only one corner of the Universe you can be certain of improving and that’s your own self . . . You have to begin there, not outside, not on other people. That comes afterwards, when you’ve worked on your own corner.” -Aldous Huxley (Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894 - 1963)): “Time Must Have a Stop” (1944)

“Know thyself? If I knew myself, I’d run away.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

“To become different from what we are, we must have some awareness of what we are.” -Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

“No man is capable of self-improvement if he sees no other model but himself.” -Conrado I. Generoso

“Be yourself. No one can ever tell you you’re doing it wrong.” -James Leo Herlihy (1927 - 1993)

“How can there be self-help ‘groups’?” -Author Unknown

“It doesn’t happen all at once. You become. It takes a long time.” -Margery Williams (Margery Williams Bianco (1881 - 1944)): “The Velveteen Rabbit” (1922)

“What we shall be, we are becoming.” -Author Unknown

“I have had more trouble with myself than with any other man I have ever met.” -Dwight L. Moody (Dwight Lyman Moody (1837 - 1899))

“USA stands for Unconditional Self-Acceptance.” -Author Unknown

“If you are still searching for that one person who will change your life, take a look in the mirror.” -Author Unknown

“People seldom improve when they have no other model but themselves to copy.” -Oliver Goldsmith (1728 - 1774)

“If you want a kinder world, then behave with kindness; if you want a peaceful world, make peace within.” -Dan Millman (born 1946)

“Man is nothing else but what he makes of himself.” -Jean-Paul Sartre (1905 - 1980)

“Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” -Carol Burnett (Carol Creighton Burnett (born 1933))

“Might I give counsel to any man, I would say to him, try to frequent the company of your betters. In books and in life, that is the most wholesome society; learn to admire rightly; the great pleasure of life is that. Note what great men admire.” -William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 - 1863)

“Act the way you’d like to be and soon you’ll be the way you act.” -George W. Crane (George Washington Crane III (1901 - 1995))

“Chiefly the mold of a man’s fortune is in his own hands.” -Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626)

“If we are unduly absorbed in improving our lives we may forget altogether to live them.” -Alan Watts (Alan Wilson Watts (1915 - 1973))

“Improvement begins with I.” -Arnold H. Glasow (Arnold Henry Glasow (1905 - 1998))

“None will improve your lot if you yourself do not.” -Bertolt Brecht (Eugen Berthold Friedrich ‘Bertolt’ Brecht (1898 - 1956)) (1933)

“For a person to build a rich and rewarding life for himself, there are certain qualities and bits of knowledge that he needs to acquire. There are also things, harmful attitudes, superstitions, and emotions that he needs to chip away. A person needs to chip away everything that doesn’t look like the person he or she most wants to become.” -Earl Nightingale (1921 - 1989)

“Help thyself.” -David Hugh Beaumont (born 1966)

“Each person’s task in life is to become an increasingly better person.” -Leo Tolstoy (Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828 - 1910))

“The better person you become, the better people you will attract.” -Author Unknown

“I am still far from being what I want to be, but with God’s help I shall succeed.” -Vincent van Gogh (Vincent Willem van Gogh (1853 - 1890))

“Be yourself, everyone else is taken.” -Author Unknown

“In that worthiest of all struggles, the struggle for self-mastery and goodness, we are far less patient with ourselves than God is with us.” -J. G. Holland (Josiah Gilbert Holland (1819 - 1881))

“Whatever you are, try to be a good one.” -William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 - 1863): as quoted in Laurence Hutton’s memoir, ‘A Boy I Once Knew,’ which was serialized in “St. Nicholas: An Illustrated Magazine for Young Folks” (March 1897), Volume 24, Number 5, page 413, column 2

“The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.” -Carl Rogers (1902 - 1987)

“Identify and develop your unique talents and abilities, the things that make you special.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“The simple part is, every thought we think and every word we speak is creating our future. If you change your thinking, you can change your life.” -Louise L. Hay (Louise Lynn Hay (1926 - 2017))

“Self-help must precede help from others. Even for making certain of help from Heaven one has to help oneself.” -Morarji Ranchhodji Desai (1896 - 1995)

“Be what you are. This is the first step toward becoming better than you are.” -Julius Charles Hare (1795 - 1855)

“It is right to be contented with what we have, but never with what we are.” -James Mackintosh (1765 - 1832): as attributed in “The True Briton” (7 July 1853) magazine

“If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else.” -Dorothy Parker (1893 - 1967)

“It is not always possible to be the best, but it is always possible to improve your own performance.” -Jackie Stewart (John Young ‘Jackie’ Stewart (born 1939))

“Try a little harder to be a little better.” -Gordon B. Hinckley (Gordon Bitner Hinckley (1910 - 2008))

“The better I get, the more I realize how much better I can get.” -Martina Navratilova (born 1956)

“Happiness and self-confidence come naturally when you feel yourself moving and progressing toward becoming the very best person you can possibly be.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

“That’s the risk you take if you change: that people you’ve been involved with won’t like the new you. But other people who do will come along.” -Lisa Alther (born 1944)

“You don’t get better by chance; you get better by change.” -Author Unknown: As quoted in Kit Summers and Robert Schwarz: “Juggling with Finesse” (1987), page 19

September of each year is Self-Improvement Month. Why wait? Let’s get started now.

“The first step to improvement, whether mental, moral, or religious, is to know ourselves - our weaknesses, errors, deficiencies, and sins, that, by divine grace, we may overcome and turn from them all.” -Tryon Edwards (1809 - 1894): as quoted in Tryon Edwards, editor: “A Dictionary of Thoughts: Being a Cyclopedia of Laconic Quotations from the Best Authors of the World, Both Ancient and Modern” (1891), page 517

“Seeing yourself as you want to be is the key to personal growth.” -Author Unknown

“There is no shame in having fallen. Nor any shame in being born into a lowly estate. There is only shame in not struggling to rise. And also shame for not wishing to attain the better. Or not dreaming about it and praying for it.” -Samuel Amalu

“We are either progressing or retrograding all the while; there is no such thing as remaining stationary in this life.” -James Freeman Clarke (1810 - 1888)

“I went to a bookstore today and asked the manager where the self-help section was. She said, ‘If I told you, that would defeat the whole purpose.’” -Brian Kiley (born 1962)

“If you want a quality, act as if you already had it. Try the ‘as if’ technique.” -William James (1842 - 1910)

“People never improve unless they look to some standard or example higher and better than themselves.” -Tryon Edwards (1809 - 1894): as quoted in Tryon Edwards, editor: “A Dictionary of Thoughts: Being a Cyclopedia of Laconic Quotations from the Best Authors of the World, Both Ancient and Modern” (1891), page 156

“You must begin to think of yourself as becoming the person you want to be.” -David Viscott (1938 - 1996)

“The greatest gift you can give to somebody is your own personal development. I used to say, ‘If you will take care of me, I will take care of you.’ Now I say, ‘I will take care of me for you if you will take care of you for me.’” -Jim Rohn (Emanuel James ‘Jim’ Rohn (1930 - 2009))

“Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves; they therefore remain bound.” -James Allen (1864 - 1912)

“Don’t bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself.” -William Faulkner (William Cuthbert ‘Will’ Faulkner (1897 - 1962))

“Everything comes by being! Be the love you seek. Be the friend you seek. Be the honesty you seek. Be the integrity you seek. Be the patience you seek. Be the tolerance you seek. Be the compassion you seek.” -Bryant McGill (born 1969)

“It is necessary to try to surpass oneself always; this occupation ought to last as long as life.” -Queen Christina of Sweden (born Kristina Augusta Wasa, later known as Christina Alexandra (1626 - 1689))

“I am that which must ever surpass itself.” -Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900)

“If you want to attract happy, positive things . . . become a happy, positive person! Work from the inside out!” -Mandy Hale (born 1978)

“You are more likely to be successful at attempting to be better than yourself than to be better than someone else.” -Author Unknown

“To be always intending to live a new life, but never to find time to set about it; this is as if a man should put off eating, and drinking, and sleeping, from one day and night to another, till he is starved and destroyed.” -John Tillotson (1630 - 1694): as attributed in “The Ladies’ Companion; or, Peoples’ Annual” (August 1842)

“Never mind what others do; do better than yourself, beat your own record from day to day, and you are a success.” -William J. H. Boetcker (William John Henry Boetcker (1873 - 1962))

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” -Judy Garland (Frances Gumm (1922 - 1969))

“There are times when a man should be content with what he has, but never with what he is.” -William George Jordan (1864 - 1928): “The Majesty of Calmness: Individual Problems and Possibilities” (1900)

“Your life will never improve unless you start making daily improvements.” -Lewis Howes (Lewis David Howes (born 1983))

“There is nothing noble in being superior to some other man. True nobility comes from being superior to your previous self.” -Author Unknown: Hindustani proverb: as quoted in George Derby, compiler: “A Conspectus of American Biography” (1906), page 726

“When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur. When you improve conditioning a little each day, eventually you have a big improvement in conditioning. Not tomorrow, not the next day, but eventually a big gain is made. Don’t look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement. Seek the small improvement one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens - and when it happens, it lasts.” -John Wooden (1910 - 2010)

“Be the best version of you.” -Author Unknown

We are MFOL! . . . and just like you, we’re always improving . . .

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Fears and Courage

7/19/2020

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“Do you really want to look back on your life and see how wonderful it could have been had you not been afraid to live it?” -Caroline Myss (born 1952)

“If you’re scared, just holler and you’ll find it ain’t so lonesome out there.” -Joe Sugden (Joseph ‘Joe’ Sugden (1870 - 1959))

“I have lived my life according to this principle: If I’m afraid of it, then I must do it.” -Erica Jong (Erica Mann Jong (born 1942))

“Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go; it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow.” -Alice M. Swaim (Alice Mackenzie Swaim)

“Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.” -Les Brown (Leslie Calvin ‘Les’ Brown (born 1945))

“Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live.” -Dorothy Thompson (1894 - 1961)

“Many of our fears are tissue-paper-thin, and a single courageous step would carry us clear through them.” -Brendan Francis (Brendan Francis Aidan Behan (1923 - 1964))

“Action cancels fear.” -Silver Rose

“We learn courageous action by going forward whenever fear urges us back. A little boy was asked how he learned to skate. ‘Oh, by getting up every time I fell down,’ he answered.” -David Seabury (1885 - 1960)

Reality of Fear

You’re not scared of the dark;
     You’re scared of what’s in it.
You’re not afraid of heights;
     You’re afraid of falling.
You’re not afraid of the people around you;
     You’re afraid of rejection or mistreatment.
You’re not afraid of love;
     You’re afraid of not being lovable.

by Author Unknown

“To have courage for whatever comes in life - everything lies in that.” -Teresa of Ávila (Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada (1515 - 1582))

“When you are afraid, do the thing you are afraid of, and soon you will lose your fear of it.” -Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)

Fear is a slinking cat I find
     Beneath the lilacs of my mind.
-Sophie Tunnell (Sophia Letitia Tunnell (1884 - 1936))

“It takes courage to lead a life. Any life.” -Erica Jong (Erica Mann Jong (born 1942))

“Fear is incomplete knowledge.” -Agatha Christie (Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie (1890 - 1976))

“A lot of people are afraid of heights; not me, I’m afraid of widths.” -Steven Wright (Steven Alexander Wright (born 1955)): “Steven Wright Special” (1985)

Heights Made Him Dizzy

There was a young fellow so frail
He could fly on a kite - as the tail.
     That gave him a view
     From Maine to Peru;
But when he looked down he turned pale!

by John Ciardi (John Anthony Ciardi (1916 - 1986))

“You’ll never do a whole lot unless you’re brave enough to try.” -Dolly Parton (Dolly Rebecca Parton (born 1946))

“Fears are educated into us and can, if we wish, be educated out.” -Karl A. Menninger (Karl Augustus Menninger (1893 - 1990))

“We have to start teaching ourselves not to be afraid.” -Will Faulkner (William Cuthbert ‘Will’ Faulkner (1897 - 1962))

“Courage is being scared to death - but saddling up anyway.” -John Wayne (pseudonym of Marion Michael Morrison (1907 - 1979))

“What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” -Author Unknown

“Fear is an emotion indispensable for survival.” -Hannah Arendt (Johanna ‘Hannah’ Arendt (1906 - 1975))

A psychologist, interviewed on the Steve Allen Show, announced that the only two instinctive fears in man are a fear of loud noises and a fear of falling. “I have a great fear,” replied Steve Allen (Stephen Valentine Patrick William ‘Steve’ Allen (1921 - 2000)), without missing a beat, “of making a loud noise while falling.”

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” -Mary Anne Radmacher

“Anything I’ve ever done that ultimately was worthwhile . . . initially scared me to death.” -Betty Bender (born 1948)

“Fear is that little darkroom where negatives are developed.” -Michael Pritchard

“What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?” -Vincent van Gogh (Vincent Willem van Gogh (1853 - 1890))

“If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try.” -Seth Godin (born 1960)

“FEAR is an acronym in the English language for ‘False Evidence Appearing Real.’” -Neale Donald Walsch (born 1943)

“F.E.A.R. has two meanings: ‘Forget Everything And Run’ or ‘Face Everything And Risk.’ You decide.” -Author Unknown

“Do what you fear and fear disappears.” -David J. Schwartz (David Joseph Schwartz, Junior (1927 - 1987))

Overheard: I have discovered that I scream the same way whether I am about to be devoured by a great white shark or a piece of seaweed touches my foot.

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” -Marie Curie (Marie Sklodowska-Curie (1867 - 1934))

“Fear has a large shadow, but he himself is small.” -Ruth Gendler (Janet Ruth Gendler, also known as J. Ruth Gendler (born 1954)) at www.ruthgendler.com

“The thing I fear most is fear.” -Michel de Montaigne (Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533 - 1592)): “Essais” (“Essays”) (1595), Book 1, chapter 18

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” -Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore ‘Teddy’ Roosevelt (1858 - 1919))

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” -Martin Luther (1483 - 1546)

The only thing we have to fear is fear itself . . . and spiders!

“You can conquer almost any fear if you will only make up your mind to do so. For remember, fear doesn’t exist anywhere except in the mind.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnegey (1888 - 1955)))

“If we let things terrify us, life will not be worth living.” -Seneca (Lucius Annaeus Seneca, also known as Seneca the Younger (3 B.C.E. - C.E. 65))

“Some have been thought brave because they were afraid to run away.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

“Happiness is a form of courage.” -Holbrook Jackson (George ‘Holbrook’ Jackson (1874 - 1948))

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” -Anaïs Nin (born Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell (1903 - 1977)): “Diary” (1969)

Luposlipaphobia is a persistent fear of being pursued by timber wolves around a kitchen table while wearing socks on a newly-waxed floor. This is actually a fictional phobia created by Gary Larson (born 1950), found in his “Far Side” comics.

“Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is.” -Author Unknown: German proverb

“I laugh in the face of danger. And then I hide until it goes away.” -Author Unknown: “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1997 - 2003), season 1, episode 3: ‘Witch’ (17 March 1997); line spoken by fictional character Alexander Lavelle ‘Xander’ Harris (portrayed by actor Nicholas Brandon)

“Courage is fear that has said its prayers.” -Dorothy Bernard (Nora Dorothy ‘Dorothy’ Bernard (1890 - 1955))

“Fear makes strangers of people who should be friends.” -Shirley MacLaine (pseudonym of Shirley MacLean Beaty (born 1934))

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” -Ambrose Redmoon (Ambrose Hollingworth Redmoon (pseudonym of James Neil Hollingworth (1933 - 1996)))

“What you are afraid to do is a clear indicator of the next thing you need to do.” -Author Unknown

“To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another.” -Katherine Paterson (Katherine Womeldorf Paterson (born 1932)): “Jacob Have I Loved” (1980)

“Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities because as has been said, it is the quality which guarantees all others.” -Winston Churchill (Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill (1874 - 1965)): “Great Contemporaries” (1937)

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” -Author Unknown: “The Bible,” ‘Book of Psalms,’ Psalm 27, verse 1

“The phrase ‘do not be afraid’ is written in the Bible 365 times. That’s a daily reminder from God to live every day being fearless.” -Author Unknown

“I have not ceased being fearful, but I have ceased to let fear control me.” -Erica Jong (Erica Mann Jong (born 1942))

“Fear is nature’s warning signal to get busy.” -Henry C. Link (Henry Charles Link (1889 - 1952))

“When you do what you fear most, then you can do anything.” -Stephen Richards

“The strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone.” -Henrik Ibsen (1828 - 1906): “An Enemy of the People” (1882), act 5

“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear. Except a creature be part coward, it is not a compliment to say it is brave.” -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 - 1910)): “Pudd’nhead Wilson” (1894), chapter 12

“Most of us have far more courage than we ever dreamed we possessed.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnegey (1888 - 1955)))

“Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.” -Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894)

“Courage grows by daring, fear by holding back.” -Publilius Syrus (85 B.C.E. - 43 B.C.E.)

“You can’t be brave if you’ve only had wonderful things happen to you.” -Mary Tyler Moore (1937 - 2017)

“Courage is doing what you are afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you’re scared.” -John Dewey (1859 - 1952)

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along’ . . . You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” -Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor ‘Eleanor’ Roosevelt (1884 - 1962)): “You Learn by Living” (1960)

“To one who is afraid, everything rustles.” -Sophocles (496 B.C.E. - 406 B.C.E.)

“Courage from hearts, and not from numbers, grows.” -John Dryden (1631 - 1700): “Annus Mirabilis” (1667), stanza 76, line 304; type of work: poem

“Fears are nothing more than states of mind.” -Napoleon Hill (Oliver Napoleon Hill (1883 - 1970))

“We must travel in the direction of our fear.” -John Berryman (1914 - 1972)

“You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.” -Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983): as quoted in W. H. Auden and Louis Kronenberger, editors: “The Faber Book of Aphorisms” (1962)

“Courage is very important. Like a muscle, it’s strengthened by use.” -Ruth Gordon (Ruth Gordon Jones (1896 - 1985))

“Be brave. Even if you’re not, pretend to be. No one can tell the difference.” -H. Jackson Brown (Harriett Jackson Brown, Junior (born 1940)): “Life’s Little Instruction Book” (1991)

“How very little can be done under the spirit of fear.” -Florence Nightingale (1820 - 1910)

“What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do.” -Tim Ferriss (Timothy ‘Tim’ Ferriss (born 1977))

“Give yourself a pat on the back each time you hang in there when you’re scared.” -Marilyn Barrick (Marilyn Cooper Barrick (1932 - 2007))

“Stop letting fear rule your life.” -Author Unknown

14 October of every year is National Face Your Fears Day.

“You do not have to be fearless, just don’t let fear stop you.” -Charles Day (Charles Peckham Day (born 1976)): speech (May 2014) to graduating class of Merrimack College, North Andover, Massachusetts, United States of America

“Do the thing you fear to do and keep on doing it . . . that is the quickest and surest way ever yet discovered to conquer fear.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnegey (1888 - 1955)))

“We fear things in proportion to our ignorance of them.” -Livy (Titus Livius (59 B.C.E. - C.E. 17.))

“If you do not do the thing you fear, the fear controls your life.” -Brian Tracy (born 1944)

Overheard: Don’t let your fears win.

“Physical courage, which despises all danger, will make a man brave in one way; and moral courage, which despises all opinion, will make a man brave in another.” -C. C. Colton (Charles Caleb Colton (1780 - 1832))

“There is no courage without fear.” -Author Unknown

“Courage doesn’t mean you don’t get afraid. Courage means you don’t let fear stop you.” -Bethany Hamilton (Bethany Meilani Hamilton-Dirks (born 1990))

“If you want to conquer fear, don’t sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” -Dale Carnegie (Dale Harbison Carnegie (born Dale Breckenridge Carnegey (1888 - 1955)))

“The only known cure for fear is faith.” -Lena Kellogg Sadler (1875 - 1939)

“Tell a man he is brave, and you help him to become so.” -Thomas Carlyle (1795 - 1881)

“We cannot escape fear. We can only transform it into a companion that accompanies us on all our exciting adventures.” -Susan Jeffers (Susan Jane Jeffers (1938 - 2012)): “Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway” (1987)

“Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom.” -Marilyn Ferguson

Fear not, intrepid soul, for there is no shortage of humor, inspiration, and learning, right here on MFOL! . . . just courageously continue reading . . .

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