teapot

[overheard yesterday]
guy: you're wearing noisy shoes
girl: I am not wearing noisy shoes, I'm wearing authoritative shoes
guy: you're wearing noisy shoes

I used to agree with the guy - now I agree with the girl. I don't have much to say, except maybe - isn't it funny how things change as you get older - like the grades you think are acceptable, or the people you think are acceptable. Or the plans you make - like recently I realised that my plans, my thought-plans, my unformed daydreams of my future have taken an unexpected, unannounced turn - it's not a bad turn -it's just that it happened without my even knowing. and now I know I'm trying to create thought-plans for myself that acknowledge alternatives without blindly plowing ahead in one direction... I'm trying to reshift my paradigm.
'Paradigm' is a wonderful word that I first encountered in the book called The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (by Stephen R. Covey)- I think I was reading the one for teens written by his son (Sean Covey). I don't claim to have followed any of the advise of the book (I am often in no way 'highly effective' - infact, it seems that I am more often the opposite of it) nor do I even think I finished reading the book. but anyways - it's a good one and if you were thinking of reading it ever - I'd say - go for it. The author introduced some very key ideas to my thinking (like "be proactive" vs reactive and "think win/win"). So, back to paradigm (pronounced "para - dime") - the instance in which I am using it is defined in the online dictionary (www.dictionary.com) as follows

A set of assumptions, concepts, values, and practices that constitutes a way of viewing reality for the community that shares them, especially in an intellectual discipline.

and it was a very useful concept for me - before I heard about it - I didn't even know that I had a paradigm (a way of seeing the world) - let alone that it was different from other peoples or what it was influenced by and based on. Now I try to think of it constantly when trying to understand things from other people's points of view (very difficult most days). So, what I'm saying is, I've had an unconscious paradigm shift which I'm working on. just thought I'd share that tidbit with you.
Oh - and just for a bit more insight into the inner workings of Tulip - the shift was along the lines of "hmm... maybe T.O is not such a bad city after all, maybe I could stay - longer..."


I was going to label this blog "change", then I thought I should label it "coins", then I thought of "No, coins please" (eh, K?:)), and then I thought - I should do a word association and label it the first thing that comes to mind when I think of the word "change" - and "teapot" was it. so, what's the first thing that comes to your mind when I say the word "rake"?