Pete's Opinion

What’s the best way to insulate yourself from ridicule, being unfairly judged, and being gossiped about? Ok, let me rephrase that because there’s no way to stop ridicule, judgment, and gossip in the world. So, what’s the best way to insulate yourself from caring about being ridiculed, being unfairly judged, and being gossiped about?

If what we think about expands, then we want to focus on thinking about good, positive stuff right? That’s what we want to see growing in our lives. If we think about negative things, then that is what we will see happening around us. Not good. Now if our own negative thoughts can have that kind of effect on us, what happens if we spread it around to others?

I was diagnosed with stage-3 colon cancer eleven years ago. Like most everyone else who is dealt the same hand; I experienced surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Good days and bad days. Ups and downs. Life is one big roller coaster ride, and everyone’s track has a different layout. That was part of mine.

Congratulations to the Baltimore Ravens. (As a Vikings fan, saying those words does not come easy.) The NFL season is long, difficult, and trying. Training camp starts in July, but make no mistake, there aren’t any weeks off for a player (not one that wants to be great). Ending the run as Super Bowl Champions really says something about the team and the individuals.

Seems like more and more people are on street corners in town with cardboard signs asking for help and money. My first thought is that business must be good. My next (and likely correct) thought is that more people must need help and money. I know there are lots of reasons that a person ends up on a corner holding cardboard, and those reasons don’t really matter to me.

Victims want more luck. Victors want more hours in a day. Victims show up late because the roads were bad. Victors leave early to give themselves plenty of time to get there. Victims hope, want, and wish. Victors set goals, plan, and achieve.

Last Saturday, a friend of mine called and asked if I would like to go skydiving with him next summer. I have never jumped out a perfectly good airplane before (or any airplane for that matter). I have always thought it would be fun to do a tandem jump; strapping on to somebody that knows what the heck they’re doing, but of course that’s not what he had in mind.

The NFL has cracked down on celebrations in the end zone after touchdowns. If you ask me, we don’t celebrate enough. (At least in the non-football world.) We are very good at beating ourselves up when things go wrong. We need to make sure we are spiking the ball (or popping the cork) when things go great.

On any given day there are about a million things that make their way up and down our to-do lists. Busy, busy, busy. We are forced to find a balance between what needs to be done, and what’s important but can wait. We prioritize because we have to. The danger lies in leaving the wrong things on the to-do list for too long.

Why would anyone be satisfied with doing a job to anything less than the best of their ability? Why do some people consistently over achieve, while others consistently fall short? I think a large part of it is where they’re aiming their guns. If someone’s goal is to do 'what’s expected,' then I think they’ll frequently come up short.

Sure I have been lucky, we all have at one time or another. We have probably been the victims of some really bad luck too. There are lucky ducks, good luck charms, and the luck of the Irish. I just wonder how to know when it’s really luck, and when it’s something else entirely. Have you ever noticed that the harder we work, the ‘luckier’ we are?

Sure a big juicy burger is important, but for me it’s all about slathering on lots of ketchup, mustard, and Miracle Whip. As much as I enjoy a summertime hot dog at Target Field, it would be nothing without chopped onions and ketchup spilling on to my shirt. And I love shrimp, but it’s most important role is that of a delivery device for the cocktail sauce.