Skip to main content

Fear of Donut Holes

Dear Members and Constituents,

What do you fear? Is it unemployment, rejection, spiders or the dark? Perhaps you have a fear of heights, death or outhouses… As I look back on my formative years, my biggest fear was that of obscurity or, worse, mediocrity (with vampires a close second – I was an adult before I stopped wrapping my sheets around my neck to prevent midnight bites). Back then, I fancied myself becoming a renaissance man; a Leonardo DaVinci for our times. That dream has drifted over time, going from renaissance man to successful entrepreneur, to corporate executive, to… mmm… (hopefully not an acronym for Mediocre Middle Manager).

To be clear, the mediocrity I feared was synonymous with “ordinary” or “average” –not “inferior” or “poor”. On my report card, I figured “B” stood for “blemish” (which, by extension, meant “C” was for “cringe” and “D” a “disaster”). The problem is, of course, that the odds are stacked against you. Even if you’re one-in-a-million, there are six thousand people like you on this planet. Hardly noteworthy. Disappointment is the likely outcome when you combine high expectations with reliance on external sources for validation. Being passed-up for the “emerging leaders” program or getting a “meets expectations” on your performance review could become serious irritants.

When you stop to think about it, comparisons between people are futile. There are too many dimensions to account for and too many opportunities for bias (which leaves too much room for error). At the risk of sounding like a cliché used as cop-out to justify commonplace shortcomings, I’m coming to believe the only meaningful measure of a man (or woman) is against himself (or herself, as the case may be). Most folks are too preoccupied looking in the mirror to notice you and your unique talents and accomplishments. That’s why I’m determined to be the best JP I can be (whether or not anyone notices or remembers me when I’m dead).

Another fear I’ve developed in recent years is the fear 8:00 AM on Friday morning will arrive without donuts. Fortunately, this fear has not materialized today, thanks to Kim Hipple (donut girl). She delights us with five dozen extraordinary LaMar’s donuts, ready to fuel an exceptional day. Don’t be afraid, grab one and live this day to its fullest potential!

Happy Friday!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bring your own Geiger counter!

Friends, This week’s news were literally radioactive -and I’m not talking about the fallout from the Trump-Putin summit. I’m talking mutate your DNA-exciting news. I’m talking Marie Curie-worthy news. I’m talking Geiger-counter-tilting news. I’m talking… well, you get the (glow in the dark) picture. A study about a lone wolf collared near Chernobyl and tracked on a long trek spawned the headline “ Could Chernobyl Wolves Be Spreading Mutations? ” While one can be forgiven for envisioning a flying wolf with laser eyes and a green aura about it, the disappointing story basically says most mutations are harmful to an animal’s health -and unhealthy animals are unlikely to travel 250 miles and mate with other wolves, contaminating the gene pool. So, much ado about nothing. The desire to open Rocky Flats (a nuclear weapons facility turned wildlife refuge) to the public has triggered some litigation from an environmentalist group. At st...
Post a Comment
Read more

Donut Doodle Dandy

Dear Members and Constituents, In trying to figure-out Wednesday’s cool-looking Google Doodle ( Jorge Luis Borges’ 112 th birthday ), I stumbled across a list of Google Doodles you’ll never see. This, and a Rockies game later that day, were sufficient inspiration to get my head spinning around what other doodles Google might never noodle? I’m sure you’ll probably have a few ideas of your own, but I was able to come-up with a couple. How about a former Colorado Rockies player whose unfortunate encounter with a moth put him in the news this week? The Matt Holliday doodle might look something like this… Another item which, surprisingly enough, has not been made into a doodle are donuts. Although I was slightly taken aback to find this delicious pastry has not been featured, after the initial disappointment, I decided to take matters into my own hands and take a stab at one (perhaps Google can use it next year for national donut day )… or to celebrate Greek police having “ blown a ho...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gilding the Donut

Friends, Despite writing about donuts (sort of) for over 20 years, I don’t believe in sugar coating, after all, honesty is the best policy. Gilding, on the other hand I’m good with. Take the church of the Society of Jesus in Quito, (AKA La Compañía). Built in fits and starts between 1597 and 1765, the volcanic rock baroque facade conceals a spectacular interior. I had the chance to go inside this week and although I had heard about the gold leaf work inside, the descriptions had not done it justice. The details from floor to ceiling transport you to another world, perhaps that’s the point. If you’re ever there, be sure to visit. And while you’re there stop by one of the many panaderías … if you’re lucky they might even have a donut. Happy Friday!
Post a Comment
Read more