Share Your World

Share Your World — Butt Dialing and the Five Second Rule

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Share Your WorldIt’s Monday and that means Melanie is up to her Share Your World questions once again. So let’s get to sharing, shall we?

Have you ever ‘butt dialed” someone?

I do keep my iPhone in my back hip pocket, but I don’t think I’ve ever butt dialed anyone with it…at least not that I know of. There have been occasions, though when I’ve been working on a draft post on my iPhone, and I have to get up and do something in the middle of my drafting, like, perhaps, feed the cat, and I’ll stick the phone in my pants pocket. When I pull the iPhone out of my pocket, I might see some words that I didn’t type show up in the draft. So if you see a typo or a misplaced, random word in one of my posts, it’s probably because I had to feed the cat while writing it.

If you were given 1000 acres of land, what would you do with it?

That would depend upon where it was. If the land was in the middle of nowhere, I might do nothing with it. If it was an idyllic location with a babbling brook in a wooded area on the side of a mountain, I might erect a cabin on the land and go there when I wished to get away from it all. If the land was in an undeveloped suburban area, I might take the 1,000 acres and subdivide it into 200 five acre lots and sell them off to a developer, keeping one five acre lot for me and my wife, and one each for my two kids.

What’s the funniest thing you’ve seen on-line recently?

The cartoon I posted in answer to Melanie’s first question.

Have you ever eaten something off the floor? ‘5 second’ rule applies or not (the ‘5 second rule’ is that if you pick up the dropped food within a set time frame, it’s still ‘clean’ and you can safely eat it)?

It depends upon what it is and where it dropped. But if I determine that eating something solid — like a French fry or a potato chip or a cookie — that fell on the floor is unlikely to cause severe gastrointestinal distress, I would probably eat it. That is, if my dog, when she was alive, didn’t get to it first. She was very quick.

Share Your World — I Have Questions…and Answers

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Share Your WorldMelanie has graced us today with another one of her Share Your World prompts, where she asks us a series of question and wants us to share our answers with her and her readers. So here we go.

Do you feel you ask enough questions or do you settle for what you know?

That depends. If I’m not that familiar with the subject matter at hand, I will ask questions, particularly if the person I’m asking the questions to is very knowledgeable on the topic. But if I’m speaking with someone who I know knows less than I do, or is a bullshit artist, I don’t ask many questions because I know that I know more than that other person.

When did you fail to speak up when you feel you should have?

It’s not that I fail to speak when I know that I should have, as much as it is that I may fail to speak when I know that it won’t make any difference. For example, if I’m engaged in a conversation with a staunch Trump supporter, where logic and facts hold no sway, what is the point of speaking up?

When was the last time you felt lucky?

When we put our house in San Francisco on the market right as the COVID-19 pandemic struck and I was afraid that the housing market was going to collapse and I’d be stuck with two houses — the one we bought and moved into and he one we were trying to sell — for a lengthy period of time. But lo and behold, we got an offer on our San Francisco house within 10 days of putting it on the market, despite the lockdown, and it was significantly above asking price. I really felt lucky.

What is a boulder?

Is this a trick question? A boulder is a large smooth mass of rock detached from its place of origin.It’s also the name of a beautiful city in Colorado, home to the University of Colorado.

Share Your World — All About Love and Romance

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Share Your WorldIt’s Monday and that means Melanie is tossing out another one of her Share Your World series of questions. As this is February and we are quickly approaching that Hallmark Holiday — Valentine’s Day — Melanie’s theme is focused on love. Here we go.

In your opinion, do May/December (older partner with much younger partner) romances ever work?

Well, my first thought was that, depending upon the time of year, I’m either six or seven years older than my lovely wife, but I suppose that’s more like an October/December romance than a May/December romance. So, to answer Melanie’s question about whether or not May/December romances ever work, I’d say that they do…if there’s enough money at stake.

What physical action or gesture do you find romantic?

Walking and holding hands with my wife.

What is your idea of a romantic dinner?

One that involves food and alcohol.

Is ‘love’ a real ‘thing’ or merely a physical chemical response and brain activity pulling our emotional strings?

Yes.

How do you show your loved ones that you love them?

By doing things for them that I know they appreciate, even if they didn’t ask for them.

Share Your World — Taking Stock

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Share Your WorldIt’s Monday and that means Melanie is offering us her Share Your World prompt again. Here are the items Melanie wishes us to share on this first day of the second month of the year.

If the government offered to suspend all laws, and law enforcement for 24 hours, letting you (and everybody else) do whatever you wish, would you be in favor of it, or not?

Hell no. Unlike our former American President, Donald Trump, I am not a proponent of chaos and violence.

What would be the creepiest thing you could say while passing a stranger on the street? (We’re suspending the whole social distancing and COVID involvement in this scenario.)

I generally don’t engage with strangers I pass on the street, so I don’t really have an answer to this question. Besides, I try to limit saying creepy things to the people who are near and dear to me.

As a child, what did you think would be great about being an adult, but isn’t as great as you thought it would be?

Having and being able to spend my own money on anything I wanted and being able to do whatever I wanted to do whenever I wanted to do it. Then I got married.

What, in your opinion, has been blown way out of proportion?

I’m going with the stock market. So many economists use the stock market as an indicator of the nation’s financial health. Well, only about 50% of Americans are investors, either directly or through their retirement funds, in the stock market. And even though the stock market soared to record highs during the Trump administration, I think that most Americans do not feel that their financial situation has gotten any better. And for many, it has gotten far worse. So let’s quit using the Wall Street as a gauge for the financial well-being of Americans on Main Street.

Where is your ‘happy’ place?

Sitting on the couch in front of a fire and reading a book or reading and writing posts for my blog.

Share Your World — Trust, Grudges, Sensibilities, and Tears

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Share Your WorldIt’s Monday and that means that Melanie is back with her Share Your World prompt. This week, Melanie wants us to share our world regarding…

Is it necessary to trust someone you like? (friends, acquaintances, or co-workers with whom you have no familial ties)

Is it necessary? Well, when it comes to co-workers, I think it’s helpful, but not necessary. If you have learned from experience that a particular co-worker cannot be trusted, you can figure out ways to work around that co-worker so that you don’t get betrayed by that person. When it comes to friends and acquaintances, if you can’t trust them, dump them.

Do you hold grudges? What do you do when someone really irritates you?

As to grudges, I try not to, but it’s hard sometimes, especially when someone has betrayed your trust. As to what I do when someone really irritates me, if it’s a minor irritation, I try to let it roll off my back (“don’t sweat the small stuff”). But if it’s serious, I will confront the person, explain why whatever they said or did “really irritated” me, and see if whatever relationship I have with that individual can be, or is worth, salvaging.

What’s the most sensible thing you’ve heard someone say?

I actually answered this question on Saturday in my response to Rory’s Weekend Quickie post. Rory asked, “What’s the best advice you have ever received from a friend?” My response was “Don’t sweat the small stuff.” And that’s my response to Melanie’s question today.

Is crying a sign of weakness or strength in adults?

In adults, I think that crying is the expression of strong emotions, which can be either positive or negative and can denote either pain or joy. I admit that I cried with anguish when I watched the U.S. Capitol building under siege by Trump’s MAGA-maniacs on January 6th. And I cried with joy this past Wednesday when Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were inaugurated as President and Vice President of the United States.