Random Thoughts

[Matt J]

no, just rain rain. It has been raining pretty much for 4 days straight. not hard just steady....he he

36 days to go.

 

[InletBchDweller]

36 days to go.

it is sunny skies today... I guess I will have to put up the ark plans for now.

 

[TooFarTampa]

True. Did you hear? Bush got a gate.

Is that to keep him in?

I was thinking about randomness today...and this came in my email from my friend Alan Cohen, the writer and teacher. I thought I would share on the Random Thoughts Thread:



Greatness in Your Midst

As thousands of commuters rushed through a metro station in Washington, D.C. on a cold January morning, a musician stood next to a wall playing his violin, the case at his feet open for tips. He played six Bach pieces for 45 minutes. A few people stopped and listened for a moment, then hurried on their way. A few threw some change or a dollar into the case.

The most attentive listener was a three-year-old boy holding his mother's hand. He wanted to stay and listen, but his mother tugged him along. A few other kids tried to stop, but their parents, too, hustled them.

After 45 minutes, only half a dozen people stopped, and the violinist collected $32. He put his violin away, closed the case, and disappeared into the crowd. No one applauded or thanked him.

Neither did anyone realize the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the world's greatest violin virtuosos. The piece he played was incredibly demanding, and his violin was worth 3.5 million dollars. Days earlier Bell had played to a sold-out crowd in Boston for tickets at $100.

The unlikely concert was sponsored by the Washington Post as a social experiment. Would listeners recognize and appreciate talent and beauty in an unexpected setting? Would they stop from their busyness to feed their spirit? Would their expectations of meager talent override their grasp of greatness?

Blessed are those who have their antennae up for quality and greatness. There is talent, beauty, wonder, and inspiration in your midst right now. To pass it by is to miss the gift. To stop and breathe it in is to be the recipient of a miracle.






Alan

I love that story. It was written by humorist Gene Weingarten and won the Pulitzer Prize last year. What's interesting is that I read a column by Weingarten in which he recounts being notified by a reader about an amazingly similar experiment and article that was done in the early 20th century and was found while someone was reading through microfilm -- maybe from the 1920s or 30s, I can't remember. (it was so random that I don't think there is any way Weingarten could have stolen the idea.) The more things change, the more they stay the same...

Edit: I found Weingarten's column about this.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/24/AR2008062401153.html

Says something about human nature, does it not?

 

[GoodWitch58]

Is that to keep him in?



I love that story. It was written by humorist Gene Weingarten and won the Pulitzer Prize last year. What's interesting is that I read a column by Weingarten in which he recounts being notified by a reader about an amazingly similar experiment and article that was done in the early 20th century and was found while someone was reading through microfilm -- maybe from the 1920s or 30s, I can't remember. (it was so random that I don't think there is any way Weingarten could have stolen the idea.) The more things change, the more they stay the same...

Edit: I found Weingarten's column about this.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/24/AR2008062401153.html

Says something about human nature, does it not?

What a story! Thanks. Alan probably knows about it, but just in case I will send it on to him. Just adds to the "randomness of life" doesn't it?

 

[Beach Runner]

True. Did you hear? Bush got a gate.

You know, one thing I've noticed about the nicer areas in Dallas is that most of the houses have walls and gates. You don't see so much of that in Buckhead (Atlanta).

 

[Miss Kitty]

You know, one thing I've noticed about the nicer areas in Dallas is that most of the houses have walls and gates. You don't see so much of that in Buckhead (Atlanta).

Not true for Dallas proper. Maybe true in the outer suburbs. We don't got no gate.

 

[Matt J]

Not true for Dallas proper. Maybe true in the outer suburbs. We don't got no gate.

Did it come that way or is there a dented vehicle in your past?

 

[NoHall]

36 days to go.

Today Lake Lanier was rising at a rate of 1" an hour. That means we only need another 9 days of flooding for it to get back to full pool!

 

[Matt J]

Today Lake Lanier was rising at a rate of 1" an hour. That means we only need another 9 days of flooding for it to get back to full pool!

Yeah, you'll be happy and my eyeballs will survive your next visit.

 

[NoHall]

Yeah, you'll be happy and my eyeballs will survive your next visit.

You callin' me ugly?