Jack Frost, the Poet

Mark and I ventured downtown Redmond on this snowy day to run some errands. As we drove into town, Mark commented: "You know that poet, Jack Frost, who wrote 'two roads diverged in a yellow wood. I'm sorry I could not take both of them, but I took the road less traveled, and that has made all the difference?' Well, Mom, we took the road more traveled. Do you how I know that? It's because the ice is melted."

Excellent Persuasion

As Mark sat at the kitchen table this afternoon trying to decide between doing his homework or dismantling an old telephone, I told him that I was going outside to do some yardwork and wanted him to do his homework. I said, "If your homework isn't done by the time I come back inside, I will take away the phone and all of the stuff you're playing with that's here on the table." He nodded and replied, "Excellent persuasion!" His work was finished when I came back indoors.

Political Persuasions

My 3 youngest children and I had a political discussion today as we were out shopping and filling the van with gas (ONLY $2.99/gallon!). I explained to Mark the differences between liberals and conservatives. "Liberals believe in a big government. They think that the government is responsible to solve people's problems, and that, in turn, raises everyone's taxes. Conservatives believe in a smaller government. They feel that inviduals and private enterprises should be shouldered with many of the responsibilities that the government usually bears. They tend to not raise taxes as much as the liberals do." After I finished my explanation Mark asked, "And what does the Mafia think?"

My Least Favorite Things

I watched one of my favorite movies during the holidays--"The Sound of Music." Most everyone is familiar with the song, "My Favorite Things." Raindrops on roses . . . Well, I decided to make a list of my least favorite things. Here are a few. (Please feel free to contribute some of your own.)

LEAST favorite:

Color: Any color popular during the 70s (harvest gold, avocado green, burnt orange)

Chore: Dusting, removing dog vomit from the carpet

Book: "Pilgrims Progress," "The Scarlet Letter"

Movie: "Cats and Dogs"

Food: Fried eggs, sauerkraut, marzipan

Spectator sport: Golf

Pizza: Pepperoni

Vacation spot: Las Vegas

Vegetable: Parsnip

Song: "Sunshine On My Shoulders" by John Denver

Fashion trend: Boys wearing pants below their hips and showing their underwear (or lack of it)

Genre of music: Heavy metal (most country music is a close second)

Dog breed: Chihuaua

The Easy Way vs. The Hard Way

Watching Mark do his homework is usually a very frustrating experience for me. It takes him about 5 long, drawn-out hours to do about 30 minutes of work. And this happens time and time again. I wish he would listen to his mother's advice and just "buckle down" and get it done!

I recently read a story about a man who shoveled coal for a living. He explained that emptying a coal truck was a long, arduous process until a little crippled man said he would empty a truckload in record time. The crippled man was given the opportunity and was true to his word of finishing in record time. When asked how he was able to accomplish this great feat in such a short time he replied, "I just stay hunched over and shovel and shovel until all of the coal has been moved out of the truck. I never look to see how much coal is left because that just wastes time."

There is a great lesson here for me (and Mark). Work hard and stay focused until the job is done, and don't keep looking to see how much work is left to do. I think I'll give it a try!