When I was in college, my uncle (a priest who was also my godfather), asked me the hardest (but most important) question anyone’s ever asked: “Do you want to be 50 years old and living with your mother? Because I can see that happening, the way you live now.”
I was always too much of a lazy homebody and couch potato. That was a scary question, but he wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t advice, but it FELT like advice. Specifically, it sounded like, “Grow up, starting acting like an adult, and develop some independence.” All of which I definitely needed to hear.
The Notebooks of Lazarus Long is filled with them, one of my favorites being “Courage is the compliment of fear. A man who is fearless cannot be courageous. (He is also a fool.)”
“Dope can get you through times of no money better than money can get you through times of no dope.” – Freewheelin’ Franklin
“Never put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the day after.” – Mark Twain
“True love is for assholes.” – My brother
“No”
The context comes from an article I once read about success. The author argued the people who achieve a lot of success don’t do so because they never make mistakes. To the contrary, the author argued that successful people make lots of mistakes, probably more than most people, because they are not afraid to push their comfort zone and try new things. Instead, people achieve success because they are quick to identify their mistakes and unafraid to adapt and change by trying new things. They don’t dwell on their errors or get mired in continuing with failing efforts. Instead, they fail fast and move on.
I used that when I quit a job that wasn’t working out after 9 months. Then, when my new business wasn’t panning out like I hoped after a year and a half, I closed up and moved. Now, 2 years later, I’m happier than I could have ever hoped.
The three most useless things in the world during an emergency are gas in the bowser, altitude above you and runway behind you. (Told to me as a 16 yo pilot wannabe in Air Cadets).
The only real regrets you’ll have at the end of your life are the things you didn’t do.
Eagles may soar but weasels don’t get sucked into jet engines. Also, the second mouse gets the cheese.
From an old Dear Abby column in response to someone wondering if they should go back to school because they would be 50-something in 4 years when they would graduate.
How old will you be in 4 years if you don’t go?
ETA: This thread reminds me of the pre-internet days of BBS taglines.
Yeah, I saw that one in Ann Landers many years ago, but the age was more realistic - late 30s, I think.
If someone was going to go back to school full-time for 4 years, getting a degree in their early 50s, that line becomes a really stupid answer to a complicated question.
Say you’re 49, you’ll be 53 when you graduate, you’re hoping to retire at 65. If you had a free ride, including room and board, you’d still need to make 33% more after graduation, just to break even. If 4 years of college costs you $120K, then that’s 33% more + 10K/year. And you’d have to contend with a very real age bias in hiring for entry-level positions; you might have the devil of a time getting that first job in your new career at that age.
I saw a poster in high school that has stuck with me for over 20 years. It read “Time will pass. The question is, will you?”
Although it’s just a snarky question about getting a sufficient grade, I think of it often when considering some daunting task or goal that will take a while to perform. Ultimately, the time required to do the thing will transpire whether I put in the effort or not. So, the question becomes, at the end of the time period, will I have done whatever it is I wanted to do or not. The length of time required becomes irrelevant, since the passage of time is a constant.
It takes several years of effort and toil to become accomplished at an instrument, learn a language, get in great shape? Is it worth it? Well, time will pass. The question is: will you?
I’ve been re-watching “That 70s Show” on Netflix, and was just reminded of a great bit of advice from Red Forman: “If you’re not mad enough to bare knuckle box, you’re not mad!”