One of the memorable quotes I like is “If you are doing something for the right reason, you will probably be doing the right thing.”
That might not be an exact quote, but I think I got the concept right. The context of the quote was an experienced engineer (Lyle D. Feisel, in Lyle’s Laws) advising a younger engineer on how to know if he was doing the right thing. The setting was engineering, of course, but I think it applies to much of life.
For example: if one child is wondering whether he should tattle on another child, ask him to apply this reasoning. Why does he want to tell on him – to get him in trouble or to keep him safe? This might not work, depending on the age of the child, since kids can be devious. But if someone can be honest with himself when answering the question, it works well.
There are some people who may not be satisfied with that rule of thumb, because there is not an objective standard for “the right reason”. And in some areas that may be true. In my line of engineering, I can ask myself “Would I be able to answer the customer if they questioned this decision?” or “Would I be able to defend this action if the federal regulatory agency inquired about it?”
In my case, I have years of working with the same customer, so I can reasonably ask that question to myself. Not everyone might have that same luxury, so their role-playing questions might not be able to provide guidance.
Even outside of engineering, this rule of thumb should work well. Not everything is going to be cut and dried, of course. But if you’re wondering how to decide on what the right thing is to do, then chances are good that you’re on the right path. If you’re asking yourself how to get out of doing something, then this line of reasoning probably is not for you.
You shall do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, that it may be well with you and that you may go in and possess the good land which the Lord swore to give your fathers
Deuteronomy 6:18
Posted in Life | No Comments »
I decided to have winter/snow tires for the minivan this year. They’re like insurance – you probably won’t need them, but if you do need them you must already have them installed.
To make life easier, I wanted dedicated rims for the tires. I have no problem keeping a spare set of tires in the barn when they are not being used, and I didn’t want to pay twice a year to have winter tires swapped and unswapped off the one set of rims for the vehicle. I’d rather pay a little extra up front for another set of rims and then it’s all set.
Then I started looking at purchasing rims.
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Posted in Driving, Mishaps | 2 Comments »
Based on the popularity existence of last year’s article predicting bowl games in haiku form, I present to you this year’s all-haiku bowl game predictions. Still America’s only all-haiku college football bowl game predictions.
These are listed in order of date (earliest first). Some picks are whom I think will win, and some picks are whom I want to win. I’ll leave it to you, the reader, to decide which is which.
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At first, people just coughed into the air.
Then someone realized that was spreading disease to people in the area, so it became polite to cough into one’s hand.
Then someone realized that was spreading disease to people who touched things that hand touched, so it was taught to children to cough into their elbows.
Now I’ve realized that’s fine for children but bad for adults. So now when this generation of kids grows up and instinctively coughs into the elbows, it’ll still cause problems.
Why it’s a problem is that adults use their elbows more than kids. Have you ever seen an adult go very long without crossing his arms? And where are that adult’s hands when his arms are crossed? Fully in contact with his elbow, that’s where.
Picture it – someone sneezes or coughs into his own elbow. Then, just seconds later – before any germs have a chance to die – that someone puts his hand right into the thick of the most germ-intense place around. Are we as a society saying that’s an improvement?
Okay, maybe it is a little better, but it doesn’t quite solve the problem. There are two ways to solve the problem. One is to train people not to cross their arms. The other is to pick a better spot into which one may cough or sneeze.
I’d like to go with the second option. Some possibilities: the inside of one’s shirt (as my brother is wont to do – just pull your collar up and lean your head down slightly and all the germs are contained. This is not a possibility if you are wearing a necktie.), higher up on one’s arm (gives the germs a landing place but doesn’t contain them well), or a handkerchief (that no one carries anymore, but I suppose a hat would work).
Any better ideas?
He will bring back on you all the diseases of Egypt of which you were afraid, and they will cling to you.
Deuteronomy 28:60
Posted in Ponder | 2 Comments »
This is Alpha, the first-born, when he was 2YO.
This is Beta, the second-born, when he was about 2YO.
This is Gamma, the third-born, when he was about 18MO.
