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

Popular posts from this blog

Ashes to Ashes

  Friends, I don’t know about you, but my household tends to use things a tad beyond their reasonably useful life. Cars, razors, pillows... heck, we squeezed the last BTU out of our home’s 25 year old thermostat —15 years is for rookies. This week we bid our fire pit farewell. Structurally unstable and rusted to the core, this contrivance was well on its way to returning to the soil. Memories of s’mores, cigars and shared spirits come rushing back, as does the six foot tall cardboard peach burned atop it, which caused the first stress fractures in the waning days of 2019. Good times! I suppose nothing lasts forever, but memories can add a sense of permanence to the fleeting. So go, grab a donut and make some new memories!! Happy Friday!

To an end to Covid Games

  Friends, As 2021 comes to an end, it’s time to remember and be grateful for another year of life – there’s much for which to be grateful. Sure, some things could have gone better (they always can), but on balance things were good. At the González household, the cathartic process of capturing this year’s essence to burn at midnight is wrapping-up. This year’s theme, “Covid Games from home” uses Squid games (Netflix’s unlikely breakaway hit) as a way to mock the two main Covid variants of concern (Delta and Omicron) and commiserate about working from home with all the weirdness it carries along. Comfy slippers combined with dressing-up from the waist up for zoom meetings (not to mention the quarantine fifteen). As I hope for lots of snow and no wind (lest we need to call an audible on the midnight burn) my thoughts turn to my friends in Boulder county and hopes for a quick recovery. May 2022 bring an end to confinement and lots of opportunities to share donuts. Happy Friday!

BIrds of a Feather

Friends, The early bird catches the worm, however, as the sun rises I’d much rather have a Denver omelet than a diet of worms . Ready to fly the coop, my ducks all in a row, I ponder one more time whether a bird in hand is truly worth two in the bush. Egged-on by my quest to tuck away a nest egg, I’ve decided to change industries and hope that, like the phoenix, my career will also rise from the ashes of change. After all, I’m no spring chicken –my crow’s feet and gray bely my age – however, I have to trust my judgment and believe you can’t catch this old bird with chaff (whether or not folks think me an odd bird for my actions). And so I shall attempt to soar like an eagle, aware that counting my chickens before they hatch would be ill-advised. As I learn to talk turkey in the language of cybersecurity, I will endeavor not to hide my head in the sand, choosing instead to be like a duck – calm on the surface and paddle like hell underneath! And while my excessive use of bird-inspired