RESOLVE PROBLEMS BEFORE ADDING MORE

Resolve problems before they get out of hand?

If that sounds right, take it easy.

If it’s not out of hand, does it need any resolution?

Or are you overreacting?

Before continuing, let’s all calm down. Better?

What’s been the biggest problem you’ve faced so far in your life?

More important, once you identified it what have you done about it?

Aging has been on the forefront ever since some ad-jerk invented the Pepsi Generation.

You’ve got a lot to live
And Pepsi’s got a lot to give.

What sort of effort do you make to slow the aging process?

Whether it’s gray hair, wrinkled skin, or a general feeling of weakness, it all takes a little extra.

Nothing says youth and vitality like solid black hair, a stretched face, and big muscles on a seventy year old man.

My first thought was linking to Sylvester Stallone, but decided Steven Seagal a better presentative.

Besides, I like Sly.

I exclude women here because I’m not a misogynist.

And I like Jane Fonda. Fight me.

Who is better talking about women aging than aging women? No one.

Take The High Ground

I’m not talking about aging today. It’s about baggage, personal baggage.

Instead of your outward appearance, let’s take a look under the hood.

I’ll start with a quick story:

I worked at a place that hired it’s own janitors, not a janitorial service.

Since it was a smart place full of smart people, and me, they hired smart janitors.

They were the most unlikely of janitors; they liked their work.

Jan1: This place is funny. They thank us like we just saved their mother’s life when they see us cleaning the toilet.

Jan2: One thing we’ve learned at our Mensa meetings is how to appreciate the simple things.

Jan1: This is simple and leaves room for other things.

Jan2: Yes, and we love it. Tonight we discuss the Riemann hypothesis, P versus NP problem, Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture, Hodge conjecture, Navier-Stokes equation, Yang-Mills theory, and Poincaré conjecture.

Jan1: Lightweight.

They explained how they felt like zoo specimens in the real world as I observed them from different angles.

Do Problems Resolve Themselves

Ask yourself this: Will your ‘help’ make a problem better or worse?

In my early twenties I knew a woman who liked shit talking her husband’s side of the family.

Lady: If I visited them alone his dad loved letting his dog out the side door and run at me like a vicious wolf until he called it off at the last second.

Me: Doesn’t sound fun.

Lady: It was worse when I took my young kids.

Me: He did the same thing?

Lady: We wouldn’t get out of the car until he called the dog off.

Me: And you kept going?

Lady: They were my in-laws. What do you think?

I didn’t think anything of it. She had a problem. Or not.

What would make it a problem? Dog bite.

What could I do about it?

Since it was a twenty year old memory for her, not much.

But she carried her baggage proudly, her face flashing anger she’d felt towards the dog, her father in-law, her husband, and men just like them.

I listened and wondered if I was just like them too, if I was on the list, on the other side of the line.

She looked pissed and I was the only one around.

How Baby Boomers Resolve Problems

Other generations either hate or love baby boomers.

Since we are the canaries in the coal mine why not show some respect?

It’s a generation with answers to questions like:

What are the long term effects of botox addiction?

Will I be able to drink from a cup if I don’t keep my lips puffy?

Does a lifetime of hair treatment seep into your liver like tattoo ink?

Did I kill the planet with poor recycling habits?

Do I have good role models to follow and learn from?

In a world obsessed with outrage and victimhood with support groups for adversaries and opponents, it’s hard seeing through the smoke and mirrors.

If you have a woman in your life, a girlfriend who introduced you to her parents, a fiancée with an open date, or a wife for the long run, look at the image at the top.

Look at the steps they go through to communicate with you.

That’s the process for outgoing and incoming information.

Do you both a favor and keep your part short and simple.

Answer questions with a “Yes” or a “No.”

Do I over-analyze?

Am I paralysis by analysis?

Has my life been a waste?

What have I got to show for myself.

Remember, only yes or no answers.