Working In The Garden

Posted on 24/06/2013 by Grumpa Joe
Monet garden in Giverny, Eure, France

Monet garden in Giverny, Eure, France (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Recently, I have used other people’s work on this blog. My time in the garden takes its toll on me and the result is a lack of energy left to write. My Lions Club work suffers also. Here it is the third day of summer, and I am still planting annuals in the 2013 Monet Vision. Hopefully, the plants will have enough daylight to survive and thrive before the first killing frost.

Spring came late for me because I spent most of it in Arizona. When I finally did arrive home, the temperatures in Illinois were much the same as what I had in February. The temperature reached 100 on the day we left. After spending three months in tee shirts and shorts, I suddenly found myself looking for warmth. Another delay occurred because my sister-in-law suffered a stroke shortly after we returned. We spent a good bit of time visiting with her and were at her bedside when she passed. Before I knew it, June had arrived and established itself before I pulled a single weed, bought flowers and even considered getting into the garden.

All of that stuff is over now, and I attack the Monet Vision daily with vigor, which runs out in a few short hours. So when I read a news articles like a Zombie, and it appeals to me, I re-blog or link with a minimum of personal expression. Hopefully, I select topics that appeal to my followers.

Being in the garden gives me time to think and to set goals. My list suddenly becomes almost impossibly long, but I will  take the goals baby step, by baby step and get the important things done. The Monet Vision is at the top of the list, next is blogging, third is work on my novel, and forth is the workshop. Oh, I completely forgot, Peggy fits in there too, and I also have to squeeze in a few moments for physical fitness like walking and bike riding. No, wait, I need to find time to spend with family and friends too. I can’t neglect personal relationships for mundane things like the workshop, blogging, and physical fitness. After all, imbibing Winking Owl with my old fart buddies takes precedence over everything else including Peggy(please don’t rat on me by telling Peggy I said that), and the Monet Vision.

Yesterday, it rained and I watched a Wabbit under the eaves eating bird seed dropped from the feeder. He looked familiar to me, but larger than the last time I saw him. Yes, it is the same Wabbit, it is Aga Bambi, last seen eating Petunias from the 2012 Monet Vision. Not a problem anymore, I’ll call the IRS and ask them to send a FBI drone over to keep the garden under surveillance. If the drones spot any signs of terrorist activity, they can tell me to take positive action.

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Accomplishment!

Posted on 18/11/2008 by Grumpa Joe

Trees Over PacificSorry for the delay in writing new posts. I have been trying to catch up on my “other” projects. My Lions work has suffered through the pre-election days, and now I must put it in gear to give the Lions their due.

I find it useful at this time of the year to reflect and prepare an accomplishment report of my activities. I just completed one for the Lions Club. I will begin preparation of my personal accomplishment list soon. Why is an accomplishment list useful? When I worked for a living, the list served to remind me of what I had completed for the company. I had fresh recollection to remind my boss at “review” time just what I did for the company.

 Usually, at the end of the year, I beat myself up thinking that I have not accomplished any of my goals. It is natural to remain unsatisfied when the new year stares you in the face, and asks “what’s next?”  Disappointment takes over as the predominant emotion, and a feeling of despair follows. I begin to question why I wasted a year without any hard fast results to show off. That is why I began to list my personal accomplishments. It is encouraging to recall, and see all of the “baby steps” I did take, and all of the projects I did complete.

It is easier than you think to do this. Just sit in front of your computer, and start. I use the word processor, and begin by listing the first thing that comes to mind. Such as “I initiated a BLOG. I BLOGGED 85 times. I set up a new website for my club, etc. The list goes on for a couple of pages until I run out of recollections. I number each item on the list to give me an indication of progress. Usually, I don’t run out of ideas until I reach one hundred and fifty.

 If you chose to start a list of your own, I recommend that you include all the important areas of your life. I recommend using your “High Payoff” activities list for this. When you concentrate on how you spent your time in a specific arena, the recall flows, and your accomplishments build. Of course, if the list in a specific High Payoff activity is short, it points to an area for improvement.

By the time I have finished this excercise, I am energized and ready to begin planning another year of goals.

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The Best “You”

Posted on 09/07/2008 by Grumpa Joe

Everyday, I try to do “something” that will make me a better version of myself. Sometimes the “something” is questionable, but it is “something.” It’s kind of like the Nike comercial, “Just Do It.”

One of my favorite people is Benajmin Franklin. He was always making lists of something that he could do to improve his life. He kept logs and journals to record his progress. I can’t refute that his life was not productive, it was, he is responsible for some of the world’s greatest inventions, (Daylight savings time, public libraries, etc.) Another guru in the world of Quality Control by the name of Joe Juran coined the phrase, “if you can measure it, you can improve it.” After forty years in product design, I can attest to his credibility with that one. Measurement is one key to making improvements.

In my own life, I keep logs, lists, and diaries of the goals that are important to me. Many of them have titles like “Dates With Peg, Theaters visited,  People to call, and People to Pray For.”   The lists remind me of my goals to improve in various areas of my life. One of my favorite motivational speakers is Matthew Kelly. He introduced me to the phrase, “Make yourself the best version of yourself that you can be.” I love it. The challenge does not imply that you should become the best in the world but rather the best you are able to become. Is that being too easy on yourself?  Certainly, one can always set the bar a silly millimeter higher. Just think, if a person makes himself a little better today than he was yesterday, how much better would he be in 365 days, or in ten years, or in a lifetime? The object is to make the goals and take the steps, baby steps, toward self improvement.

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Aw Shits and Atta Boys

Posted on 21/06/2008 by Grumpa Joe

Grumpa Joe Looks at FlowerA friend introduced me to a new term as a joke, but it has become a hard fast rule with me. We go along in life doing good work and maybe we get an “atta boy” from our boss or a co-worker. One day something happens and we have an “aw shit” moment. We screw up. Did you ever notice that it takes only one “aw shit” to negate one hundred “atta boys?” Why is that? Why is it that people tend to remember those “aw shit” moments and forget about all the “atta boys” we’ve accumulated along the way?

I like to believe that I get “aw shits” by trying hard. The more work I do the better the chances are that I will occasionally fail.  The failure does not mean that I am a failure, it only means that I tried something that didn’t work. It is human nature to play up the negative. Why? I haven’t a clue. Maybe one of you can fill me in.

 

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The Three D’s of Success: Desire, Determination, Durability

Posted on 17/06/2008 by Grumpa Joe

I once heard George Halas, owner of the Chicago Bears, the world famous football team say “there are three D’s required to reach success.”

The first ‘D’ is for “Desire.” Without desire one will not achieve a goal. A person must have the goal imprinted deep within his mind. How often have we heard that we must record our goals? The simple act of writing the goal on a piece of paper serves to etch it into our subconscious mind. The list allows us to “see” the goal in front of us often. Each time we “see” the goal on the list it becomes more firmly entrenched in our minds. The constant reminder will churn within us a desire to achieve.

“Determination” is the second “D.” This is the quality that keeps us taking the baby-steps toward achievement. Determination keeps us focused and coming back to the goal after being steered off the course toward other pursuits. It is the quality that keeps us getting back up after a failure has knocked us down. It is the trait that will cause us to rethink the situation and create a new path toward success.

Finally, there is “Durability.” For a football player this is an important aspect of success. It means staying physically fit and in condition to take the hits and the falls that occur in the game. Though many of us will never play football, we still need durability to succeed. We need to remain physically fit, and mentally sharp. Physical conditioning is one way to achieve the energy levels and mental acuity that it will take to reach the goal we set. Physical activity increases the oxygen levels in the blood to give us energy, and allows our brain to function. Activity, gives us the thinking power needed to define the steps to take toward achievement of our dreams.

DESIRE, DETERMINATION, DURABILITY,

The three “D’s” of success.

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