Posts by Pat:
The panther, the dog and the squirrel…
As we get older and find ourselves looking for a gate to open rather than climbing over the fence, we can at least say to ourselves, “I may be slower, but at least I am wise.”
With that thought in mind, here’s an oldie but goodie for you!
One day an old German Shepherd starts chasing rabbits and soon discovers that he’s lost.
Wandering about, he notices a panther heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch. The old dog thinks, “Oh, oh! I’m in deep doo-doo now!”
Noticing some bones on the ground close by, he immediately settles down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat.
And just as the panther is about to leap, the old dog exclaims loudly, “Boy, that was one delicious panther! I wonder if there are any more around here?”
Hearing this, the young panther halts his attack in mid-stride, a look of terror on his face and slinks away into the trees. “Whew!” says the panther. “That was close! That old German Shepherd nearly had me!”
Meanwhile, a squirrel who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protections from the panther.
So off he goes, but the old dog sees him heading after the panther with great speed and figures that something must be up. The squirrel soon catches up with the panther, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the panther.
The young panther is furious at being made a fool of and says, “Here, squirrel, hop on my back and see what’s going to happen to that conniving canine!”
Now the old German Shepherd sees the panther coming with the squirrel on his back and thinks, “What am I going to do now?” but instead of running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers, pretending he hasn’t seen them yet. And just when they get close enough to hear, the old German Shepherd says “Where’s that squirrel” I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another panther!”
Moral: Don’t mess with us old dogs…age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill!
Well, WE know that we have at least one thing going for us! Don’t we?
The Two Oreo Principle
Who doesn’t love Oreos? After all, they are chocolate! Once they are in the house, we may just start eating a couple each day. You know, one of those tiny, seemingly inconsequential things that add up over time. So if we crunch the numbers…Two oreos a day for an entire year at 45+/- calories for […]
Be-Do-Have?
Most people believe that they must first have something (money, time, love) Before they can do what they want to do (travel the world, write a book, have a romantic relationship) Which will ultimately allow them to be something (happy, peaceful, motivated). Paradoxically, this have-do-be paradigm must be reversed to experience happiness, success, or anything […]
Here be dragons…
“Here be dragons” (hic sunt dracones in Latin) means dangerous or unexplored territories, in imitation of a medieval practice of putting illustrations of dragons, sea monsters and other mythological creatures on uncharted areas of maps where potential dangers were thought to exist. Though only on one historical map, this famous phrase may well have served […]
Rules for chocolate?!
Before sharing some of my favorite “chocolate rules” I need to acknowledge (as a previous retail owner of a chocolate store) that I really do know that it’s important for us to be somewhat discerning about the chocolate we eat! After all M&M’s are only a last resort and most of those milk chocolate bars […]
When is enuf, enuf?
What is enough? We are intelligent enough to know that we don’t know everything–that most of our experience falls somewhere in between the black and the white, the right and the wrong, the truth and the lies. When will we know enough, though? I sometimes feel like Goldilocks, with the porridge choices being either too […]
the little things…
Have you ever let the “little things” in your life get you down, make you mad or take the joy out of your life? If so, then this little story I found is for you. The Lesson of the Eagle and the Crow “The only bird that dares to peck an eagle is the crow. […]
Why humor?
For those of you who are old enough to remember Red Skelton, I think you’ll enjoy this post. For those of you not old enough, you can see what you missed! Red Skelton had a lot of great one-liners and was known for his clean humor. It wasn’t sophisticated humor. It was the good old […]
What’s Your “Quarantine 15”?
We don’t have to bring everything from last year into this year of 2021. And I’m not just talking about those possible extra 15 pounds! What about the “15” piles of clutter that resulted from all our homebound activity and working from home? What about the “15” projects that we started and never finished? What […]