Talk less, smile more

If you were at anyway up on the Hamilton craze, you'll probably recognize "Talk less, smile more" as the lyrics from one of the songs. It's a line Burr says when introduced to Hamilton, and I think in the musical, the line gets a bad rap. 

In reality, this is some of the best advice out there. A solid majority (by a landslide) of my goofs in life are the result of me talking more, and usually smiling less while I do it. Many of my real regrets stem from not talking less and smiling more. And the times when I've handled things right, it's because I have talked less and smiled more. And by initially talking less, I've given myself time to learn more, so that when I did talk I was able to have more of an impact. 

I have a friend that I worked who is really good at this talking less.  When things were really stressful at work, and there was very low morale, she held back. And when she did raise a concern--even in private conversations--you paid attention. Her expressions of concern were never personal or about personalities, and even though the situation was still rough, and her input wasn't shying away from that, it somehow made me feel less crazy. My mentor was the same way, as are many of the people that I deeply respect and admire and want to be like. And when I have managed to talk less and smile more--be more agreeable and personable--I have almost always learned something that helped me to have greater compassion and to become more tolerant and patient. I have almost always had my mind opened.

So, even though in Hamilton, Burr came across as double-crossing and devious, there is great value in talking less and smiling more. There are definitely times when you should firmly hold your ground, but you can do that even when talking less and smiling more. And I hope I get better and better at it. 

The Future, the Past, and the stuff in between

Yesterday was a rough day. Work basically sucked from start to finish, and I just want to say it seems a little unfair that people can cause so many problems for me when no one is even in the office.

After work I was checking the news on BBC, because I love the BBC, and they had a link to one of their reels that was titled "Physics suggests that the future has already happened". The clip was all about the theory of relativity, which was far less compelling than the title of the clip, because not gonna lie: at the end of the yesterday, I was super ready to be in the future if it had already happened. Or at least more in the future than I was yesterday. Even a sneak peek would be nice. Or maybe just depressing, because if it has already happened, that would imply it's too late to change things and depending on the future, that might just make me want to never get out of bed again. 

Fortunately, I don't believe the future has already happened (and that's not really what the video is saying anyway, because it's all about relativity, which is basically saying it's a matter of perspective). But I have had many times in my life when I wished I could just fast forward a bit. Like, job interviews or presentations or starting new jobs--I always wish that I could just be on the "done" side of it, where they are something well in the past. And I suspect that I'm like most people in that I wish the good things could linger a little longer. Then there are the times when I look at the calendar and think, "Wait! No! Rewind! I need more time for life!" 

All of which goes to show that time is really pretty ridiculous and, yeah, like Einstein says, probably pretty relative.  

Wacky Ball and other newly invented games

It's been another peak season for new games coming from the kid crowd, including this weekend's new release, Wacky Ball. It's easy to learn and while the regulation equipment may incur some cost, it's pretty easy to find substitutes.

Equipment needed:

1. Plastic bowling set (with 10 inch pins)

2. Pool noodles

3. 4 walls and a decently smooth floor. 

Recommended equipment:

Winter gloves

Knee pads

How to play:

Basically, you sit on the floor and try to hit the bowling ball past your opponent's pool noodle using a bowling pin. They try to block it and get it through yours. As the creator says, 'It's like bowling and hockey and ping-pong mixed together." 

Variations: You can use the extra pins as obstacles on the court. If you knock them down, you get a point and your opponent loses one. Or, vice versa. Whichever way you want to play. 

Other rules to know about: 

1. No touching the ball with your hands on purpose. Except for when you are getting it out of the goal area.

2. If the ball rolls back into the court after you hit it past the pool noodle, there is no point.

3. If the ball hits a wall, it's still in play. On some courts, there may be what is called a "dead zone"--a spot where the ball just can't be hit unless you bring it back onto the court (you can use your hands for this). Bring it back onto the court and put it in the middle and have a hit-off. 

4. If you accidentally hit the ball into your own goal, it is called an "incident" and doesn't count as a score.

5. If the ball goes into your goal, you get to hit the ball first on the next play.

And another note, if the ball jumps over the pool noodle, it is called a pop-shot. 

Another game that is trending can also use the plastic bowling balls from the bowling set. Basically, each player has a bowling ball (or other kinds of ball) and you are rolling them at each other and trying not to let them get past you. You can have as many players as you want, and you just keep the balls moving. No points, and I wasn't told whether a player gets out, but I doubt it. Mostly, the goal is to have maximum ball chaos.

Finally, a new sport is emerging: Olympic sliding. This takes playground slides to a whole new level. There are a variety of slide techniques, and it is crucial to stick the landing. There are also pairs and team events. While it's not yet an official Olympic sport, it's still early days, and don't be surprised if you hear your pre-schooler voice his dream of being an Olympic slider. 

Good news, bad news

Good news: The sore throat I've been having on and off for a month is almost certainly just sinus-related, and appears to be gone for good now.

Bad news: Now it's all draining out my nose, making it hard to breathe and really, who wants to wake up in the middle of the night because of a runny nose? Boy, I am tired.

*****

Bad news: The first leg of my return flight was canceled and the earliest they could reschedule me was for Thursday.

Good news: I found a flight with a different airline that would get me back yesterday.

Bad news: I'm decidedly behind at work, and not even kidding, my team totally changed while I was gone. It was 3 days!!!

Good news: No lives will be harmed because of this. Seriously. The probability that anyone's life will ever hang in the balance because of my job is really really slim.

*****

Good news: I got a new laptop at work. Which is mainly good news because now I don't have to worry about the old one overheating and exploding. (I've had to hard reboot it twice--with the little emergency reboot function hidden on the bottom of the laptop that I never knew existed.)

Bad news: I spent most of my day trying to set up the computer and still have the most essential program for my work that is not downloaded. Not great when I'm already inundated with work, but what can you do.

Good news: It should be up and running tomorrow, so no worries. Other than being behind on work. Which I blame on a tornado warning in Texas. What can you do. 

Bad news: 

And suddenly it's fall

Does anyone know how we got this far in the year? I know there's a one day at a time method and all, but has anyone checked to make sure that we're really getting all 24 hours? I feel like the universe's clockwork is just wonky. One day feels like it's 5 years long, and other days (usually on weekends, haha) seem to last 10 minutes. Or maybe I'm just getting old.

None of this is helped by the bizareness of the seasons these days. How am I supposed to gauge where we are at in the year when we have August temperatures in June, and June weather in September? 

I would also like to pin some blame on the greeting card and candy industries. I kind you not, I saw Thanksgiving cards and Halloween cards in the store at the end of August. Which, those are things? Are you kidding me? I am supposed to be sending people happy Halloween cards? Just, no. Although, it would boost post office business...

At any rate, here we are, with October starting tomorrow. And lovely fall weather, which I always enjoy. The mountains are turning red-orange-brown, which is always lovely. And at some point, I will close my windows and officially make my bed with blankets. Also, I have two trips coming up, one of which will involve hot air balloons and possibly a trip to the zoo, and the other a temple open house with family, huzzah!

And if the year seems like a blur, well, I think that's just the nature of mortality. So we're all good.