Who’s in Charge?

Sometimes in a relationship there’s an issue about who is in charge, about one person telling the other what to do, how to look, even how to act. It can be a struggle for control, if the personalities don’t mix right. It can also look to outsiders as if one person is strong and in charge and the other is weak.

In a related statement, which will make sense further down: I have always felt that I could love and marry almost any girl I’ve ever met…which is probably why I’m an inveterate flirt. I just love them all.

The common thread here is that people draw the line for themselves as far as what things to stand up for, and what things matter so little that they let their partner have the decision. If there’s something not right about what I’m wearing, I’ll change it; couldn’t care less one way or the other. Want to go to this restaurant, and never that one? OK. Doesn’t matter. I let anything peripheral like that just unfold any old way. What does matter is what kind of person you’re with, and the people I’ve known pretty much have it right. We don’t differ where it matters. I don’t tolerate lying, or selfishness, or being inconsiderate, or arrogance…it’s the core stuff, what’s inside that counts, and if that’s all good then the rest is just window dressing. If I want to spend a night out with the girl I love, and if I happen to be doing that, then it doesn’t matter where, how, what…The details can fall where they may, I figure if we’re together then the important part has been taken care of. Everything I care about has been taken care of.

I’m sure there have been bystanders through the years who thought I was being bossed around, but they didn’t know what they were seeing. They naturally interpret interaction based on their own experiences, and most people would be at a loss to interpret the way we played around. Upon overhearing a conversation, you can only imagine your own motives as the reasoning behind what you hear; you aren’t likely to guess the actual thoughts. 

So, in establishing the dynamics of the relationship it’s just a matter of choosing your battles, drawing the line where your comfortable, and applying your personal perspective on what’s important to you. It’s a very individual choice, and it's just between the two of you. Don’t waste time worrying about what anyone else thinks.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

Peace

It’s not global warming… (and also) 100%

I don’t know who gets the credit (or the blame) for the term - global warming - but it sure hasn’t helped the discussion any, because it’s not accurate. There is global warming, on average; what it means in day-to-day life is record lows and record highs, stronger storms, and unusual events such as snow in places we’ve never seen it before.

Call it global climate change.

The weather is an oscillating sytem, as evidenced by the rhythmic changing of the seasons. With an increase in temperature there is more energy in the system, and the swings become more exaggerated. When it gets cold, it gets really cold. When it gets hot, it gets really hot. Big thunderstorms become “100 year storms,” meaning they should normally (statistically) occur just once every 100 years. They will, and do already, occur more frequently.

Don’t think that record cold is a contradiction of the coming weather catastrophe. It’s part of the global climate change, to a new pattern of more extreme weather.

Recommended:

Weather article in Discover magazine

____________________________________________________

You’re undoubtedly familiar with the obliteration of “100%” as a measure of effort or achievement…it’s never good enough to “give 100%” anymore, you have to “give 110%” to sound like you mean it. And no, there’s no such thing as greater than 100%, but whatever, that’s the way it is. Well, I recently heard someone get a little too excited and, in trying to reach for an impressive superlative, came up with “a hundred and ten…thousand…percent,” like he couldn’t stop himself.

Well, now what? What’s next? It’s out of control.

How about if we reel it in for a while? Let’s think about the implications of 100%, being all there is, and how you can’t have or do more than that.  If you “give 100%,” that’s impressive right there.

You can’t do more.

A new regime(n)(t)

The new regime required the elite regiment to adopt a regimen of long marches.

Regiment

It could happen.

And if it did, it would likely be reported incorrectly. These three near-homonyms are used interchangeably all too often, whether big-time media, learned treatise, or blog/comments entry. Make’a me crazy.

Regime: A ruling or prevailing system. A government in power.

Regimen: A regulated system, as of diet, therapy, or exercise. A course of intense physical training.

Regiment: Noun: A unit of ground forces, consisting of two or more battalions, a headquarters unit, and certain supporting units. A large number in regular or organized groups.

Verb: To manage or treat in a rigid, uniform manner; subject to strict discipline. To form into a regiment or into organized groups.

The basic concept for regime is that it is a controlling entity, directing its attention downwards. A change in government signals the start of a new regime.

The basic concept for regimen is that it refers to prescribed action. A regime may impose rules…which may be structured as a regimen to be followed; a course of action, or a set of rules. A diet is a regimen.

The basic concept for regiment is that it refers to an organized group.  

The new government took control of the military and put the elite unit on a program of long marches for fitness and readiness.

It could happen.