Sincere Compliments & Idle Flattery September 28, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Humor, Mindfulness, People, Spirit & Ego.comments closed
Wikipedia ~ Balloons (in Public Domain)
Some time ago, Rik Scott posted a thought-provoking piece:
The Art-the Gift-of Acceptance.
I agree with him . . . to a point.
I am happy to accept sincere compliments with an equally sincere “Thank you.”
However, if I suspect a compliment is NOT heart-felt, and is instead an insincere platitude ~ the politically correct utterance of what “they” think I want to hear, rather than what they sincerely think ~ I’m not inclined to thank them for the subtle deception.
Instead, I tend to shrug and say, “I have my moments.”
Sincere appreciation from others for our efforts deserves our equally sincere appreciation in response.
Idle flattery, on the other hand, is best left sitting idle on the runway, rather than being internalized by our greedy egos.
The issue then becomes . . . how does one tell the difference between a sincere compliment and idle flattery?
Good Question.
Quote: Just trust yourself and you will know how to live. ~ Goethe
Aah . . . that’s better!
Those alluring lures . . . do you ever take the bait? What tips you off to the ulterior motives behind idle flattery?
What’s that? What do I MEAN when I tell you that your post is AWESOME?
Well, it depends . . . either I liked the writing, or the subject matter, or the thought provoking nature of the post, or the poetic cadence, or the pictures and graphics, or the memories and images it evoked, or I agreed with the opinions you expressed, or I felt you needed a dose of encouragement, or I saw real improvement, or . . . G . . . your guess is as good as mine.
Related posts: Let Go, EGO! * WTF: Watch That Feedback * Pop Goes The Ego * Tell Me Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies * The 2011 Sexiest Blog Award * I Am Truly Humbled * Taking the Bait . . . Hook, Line, and Sinker * The Lift Doesn’t Last * How (or not) to Accept a Compliment (Chittle Chattle)
Rocky & Randy Raccoon September 28, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Humor, People, Word Play.comments closed
When our niece Emily visited, she loved playing with our informal collection of stuffed animals ~ teddy bears, monkeys, zebras, and raccoons.
Her favorites, Rocky and Randy Raccoon, generally had their arms wrapped around each other in a perpetual hug, clasped shut with Velcro fasteners.
Over time, the Velcro gave way and Rocky and Randy could no longer hug one another. Instead of a tight embrace, their long arms flapped about comically.
Unperturbed by this turn of events, three-year-old Emily grinned at Randy’s flapping arms and announced, “Look . . . Randy is a loose woman!”
We roared.
Flap . . . Flap . . . Flap . . . they called her the Flapper.
Related post: “I’m Not Listening, Uncle BFF!”
Spirit Lights The Way 