Friday Food For Thought

We are once again in “award” season and as usual, there is controversy and drama. Let’s set aside conversations about slapping, outrageous outfits, egos and right from wrong. I’ll let smarter people than me sort that out. I like to focus on the moments when truly amazing talent is discovered and awarded.

Earlier this week, I toured the Barnes Museum. If you live in Philadelphia or plan to visit, it’s a tour worth taking. I am not an art aficionado. In fact, I often look at pieces and do not understand them. I do like history, though, so the story of how Dr. Barnes amassed such a large private collection and then left it in his Merion, PA home for the public to enjoy is fascinating. For 90 years (1922-2012), his former neighbors protested the traffic this attraction drew to an otherwise quiet neighborhood until the Barnes Foundation relented and a new home for the collection was built in Philadelphia’s museum district. Imagine leaving such a gift to the public and posthumously annoying your neighbors at the same time—now that is masterful multi-tasking!

One of the members of my cigar club is an expert on everything. No matter the topic, he knows everything and is happy to tell you that you are wrong. He will tell you how wrong you are in your own area of expertise, even if it’s what you’ve done all day, every day, for years. You are wrong; he is right. A casual observer might think he is very smart and well experienced. But in reality, he has never done most of the things he talks “expertly” about. He has never been in the “arena”. 

A friend of mine recently needed an ear to bend and I was happy to lend him mine. He was grappling with a problem but as he shared his story, I realized the solution was simple and I wondered why it hadn’t occurred to him already. Simple solutions to complicated problems are my superpower, after all.

Years ago, when I worked at The Franklin Mint, one of the perks was access to their sand volleyball courts. Aside from the leagues we played in competitively, a few of us also played for fun. During one of the “fun” games, the opposing team did everything they could to throw us off. It worked. They really got in our heads, which caused us to make careless mistakes. We weren’t communicating well and started losing, which in turn made us angry.

I am one lucky guy! For the last two Friday Food for Thoughts, I talked about a health issue and the resulting procedure I underwent. Modern medicine and technology are amazing; I was home in less than 36 hours and was even able to attend a friend’s 50th surprise birthday party the next day. I almost blew the surprise by telling the friend I could not make the event, remembering just in time that it was a surprise. Whew!