Chekhov, Twain, and Amman

"Any idiot can face a crisis; it's this day-to-day living that wears you out."  Anton Chekhov

We were on a cruise ship for part of our last vacation.  One day we got off the boat for a hike in a remote part of Greenland and the mosquitoes were pestilential.  Biblically so.  Actually, they were more of a flying gnat that didn't bite but just swarmed around your face, flying into your eyes and nose and ears.  I'm not sure what their end game was.  I can't imagine that flying into my ear hole was a satisfying end for this bug but their motivation remains opaque to me.  Anyway, back on the ship we chatted for a while with a couple who were also on the hike and the woman complained that none of the staff had warned us about these insects.  I was aware of the scourge of summer insects in Greenland - it's written in every travel book - and had bug spray and kind of a beekeeper's insect net that covered my head and face.  Her husband shushed her gently, reminding her that we really need to blame ourselves when things don't go the way we want.  I secretly enjoyed this.

On a similar note LSD Tom was at the meeting today.  His right leg was noticeably swollen and he was clearly limping.  I cornered him in the kitchen.  His leg is infected.  How does your thigh get infected?  From a testosterone shot.  I rolled my eyes internally.  Why this healthy, single 50 year old man needs to get a testosterone shot is beyond me but then so is a woman doubling the size of her breasts.  If that wasn't funny/sad/weird enough he told me that this was the second time he's had problems with one of those shots.  Talk about causing your own problems . . . 

"He who leads a humble life has wisdom in his heart."  Jordanian proverb

 When I'm feeling off it's usually because I'm uncomfortable with something I'm doing or with something I should be doing that I'm not doing.  Usually, I'm doing something I shouldn't be doing.  That's usually the problem with me.

I tend to think that the best people are given the gravest challenges.  The best people can handle them.  God doesn't test us with anything we aren't capable of handling.  I believe I get what I need and not necessarily what I want so I'm damned careful to be thankful when - as so often happens - I do get what I want.  It's embarrassing how often I get what I want.  I'm like a spoiled rich kid looking at my Christmas list, realizing I got everything on it plus some more stuff I wasn't greedy enough to also ask for.

"I never argue with idiots.  They drag you down to their own level and then beat you with experience."  Mark Twain

Love people for who they are and not who you want them to be.