Catalina Island Man's 63rd Birthday Gallapalooza!

Well, today I am 63 and here are more things I've learded about aging and growing.

Number 63 is: DON'T EVER GET
TO BE 63...IT HURTS!

40. Accept "constructive" criticism, with the same enthusiasm as you accept praise. Both are necessary for growth.

41. Most growth comes through struggle and defeats and not from easy successes. "Failure" is only a "failure" if you don’t learn from it.

42. Strive to continually to be on a better basis with God. If you don’t believe in God, watch three episodes of "Touched By An Angel". Eternity is a long time and you had better be sure of your beliefs, because you are going to have all of this time to either celebrate or regret your decision!

46. "Impossible" is just an opinion.

47. The Bible gives us two forms of learning stories. Examples and Warnings. If you can’t be a "good" example, you’ll just have to be a "horrible" warning!

48. Being considered "different" is not always a bad thing.

49. Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by
the moments that take our breath away.

50. "If you’re going through hell, keep going!" (Winston Churchill)

51. The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the
person doing it.

52. "Enthusiasm" is contagious! Find something to be passionate
about.

53. As we get older, those little aches and pains are a good
sign…it means those parts haven’t fallen off yet!

54. THINK FIRST! The toes you step on today may be connected to
the fanny you have to kiss tomorrow. Don't burn your bridges!
You may need them to get back to that earlier fanny!

More to come in my next blog about being 63...weee!

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

43. Watch what you say to others, even in "jest". Who ever came up with the saying, "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me!" certainly didn’t live on my planet! Bones can heal, but words can often leave wounds that never do.


44. Don’t put all of your faith in people. They will always disappoint you. Only God is always faithful and dependable.


45. Don't be afraid to go out on a limb with your life. That is where the fruit is. "Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go!" (T. S. Eliot)

Catalina Island Man

See the Smack Down Timer at the Right_________>
Where is Chuck Liddell the
ULTIMATE FIGHTER???

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

37. If you suddenly think of someone strongly, act on it! I believe that there is a reason why we suddenly get these urges. We simply need to call, write, visit, etc., these people, when this happens.

38. Get rid of the "dead wood" in your life. If there is a person, job, or situation that is keeping you "down", don’t be afraid to let it go! Don’t be afraid of change. People often prefer misery to having to make a change. Misery is only an option and not a very good one at that.

39. If there is something that you "REALLY WANT TO DO", then stop talking about it and do it!

There is no guarantee how much time that we have on earth and "doing that thing" could have a major affect on you and others.

Catalina Island Man

See the Smack Down Timer at the Right_________>
Where is the ULTIMATE FIGHTER???
See my post about Chuck Liddell Vs Chuck Liddell

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

34. Don’t "throw in the towel" on anyone’s life. NO ONE IS BEYOND HELP OR CHANGE!!!







35. Miracles happen daily. Try to be open to them and recognize them for what they are… MIRACLES!











36. Try to find as many excuses as you can each day to let people know that they are "LOVED". Along with a hug, these words can actually determine, in many cases, whether a person decides to live or die.

Catalina Island Man

See the Smack Down Timer at the Right_________>
Where is the ULTIMATE FIGHTER??? See the last post about
Chuck Liddell Vs Chuck Liddell


WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS



31. "Good guys don’t ALWAYS finish last, they just have to run harder!"






32. As often as possible, invite people to your home for dinner; especially those who can’t reciprocate and/or you don’t know that well. You would be surprised how special an evening of

good food and good company in a home environment can do to lift your spirits and help you to get to know people so much better.



33. Divide the day into three 8 hour segments: 8 hours to work, 8 hours to sleep, 8 hours for recreation and relaxation.

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

28. Thank those who do "day to day services", for you, i.e. drives you from the airport to your car, cleans up your table at a "buffet", opens the door for you, etc. This is also a good way to judge one's character by how they treat "service help".

29. Don’t look back over past mistakes with, "If only I had….!

"Trust me it will "eat your alive"! Simply learn from past mistakes, but don’t try to relive or keep hoping for a do-over?



30. Sometimes it is better to be guided by your heart and not your head. You be the judge of whether one is more appropriate than the other.

I hope that the heart wins out in most cases.

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

25. Learn to listen to people, without having to give "advice". Most of us simply need to "talk" to someone and be heard, not judged, directed or have problems solved.













26. Don’t be afraid to talk to strangers. If someone looks like they need someone at that moment, be that "someone".








Don’t be surprised if you become good friends. After all, how do you think that you made the friends that you have now?









27. Always show appreciation for what others do for you, with a "Please" and "Thank You". It has a dual affect. It makes the person you are speaking to feel that you are acknowledging what they are doing and this gives them a feeling of "worth" and thus they will want to repeat the experience.







It also reinforces in you, by saying these words, how much we do depend on others and how much others do for us!

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

22. Don’t envy others! You don’t know where most people have come from in their lives and, let’s face it,




most of us try to put our best foot forward, which makes it difficult to know if what we really have or





who they really are is really worth envying.












23. Try to be more "real" and honest about yourself so that you don’t give others cause to envy or feel inferior to you.





Share more of our "commonality" and less of our "elitism".




24. March to the beat of your own "drummer", even if it means sometimes being in your own one-person parade.



Don’t follow the crowd simply for protection.
















Lead the crowd!

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

19. Compliment people whenever possible.

Especially compliment people you don’t know and for doing things that most people take for granted:

sidewalk sweeping, weeding their garden, washing their car, having a nice smile, etc.

20. When you feel down, concentrate on others’ needs rather than your own.

You would be surprised how soon you forget about your own problems when you think about helping others.

21. No matter how bad things may seem we are still better off than the majority of the rest of the world. This may seem trite or difficult to internalize being as spoiled as we are.

We seem to think that we shouldn’t compare our situation with others, but it does show that humans can and do survive under much worse conditions than we will likely ever have to face.

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS

16. Don’t take your family and friends for granted. We know that they are always there for us when "push comes to shove", and we are there for them. But special people in our lives don’t last forever. Cherish the time you have together.

17. Don’t take YOURSELF for granted. "God didn’t make any junk!" We touch more people in a positive way than we will ever know. And don’t forget we won’t be around forever, either. Be good to yourself and cherish your alone time.

18. Try to find the "good" in everyone, because there is good in everyone. Sometimes you just have to search a little harder. Some people, for whatever reason, have a hard time letting their good show.

Catalina Island Man

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS



13. Return Good for Evil.
Don’t lower yourself to a dirty fight. Besides, it bugs the heck out of others when you take the "high road"







after they have taken the low one.


Don’t seek revenge, it makes you no better than your opposition.





14. Don’t overindulge in anything. Even the "harmless" things can become addictive!




15. Don’t be afraid to fail. Studies have shown that at the end of our lives, it won’t be the things we tried, with no success, that we mourn, but the things we never even tried.

Catalina Island Man

"WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS"

10. Try to make someone laugh every day.

It has been proven to be both psychologically and physically beneficial. Besides, it just feels good to laugh and see others laugh.

We don’t do enough of it!

11. Hug someone each day.

There’s always someone out there who could use a hug and

YOU can be the giver.

12. Give to those who can’t give back, especially during the holidays. In the past Christmases, I have given gifts to three people I didn’t know well (a mentally challenged boy, a homeless man, and an emotionally unstable woman) and they are still thanking ME!

They never gave me any gift in return, but seeing the looks of complete surprise and happiness was greater than ANY gift they could have given me.

I only wish that I could have given it to them without them ever finding out it had come from me!

Catalina Island Man

"WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS"

8. Accept the "good" and "bad" of life equally! Time has a way to showing us that EVERYTHING that happens has a reason and we should accept that...






everything as part of a "wonderful tapestry",

that is slowly being woven. Time also has a way of showing us that both, "good" and "bad" are a necessary part of life.

9. Don't take yourself, especially your mistakes, too seriously!

In 100 years from now, WHO CARES!?! Be easy on yourself.


No one is perfect and no one is really keeping score.

Everyone else is too wrapped up in themselves to worry about the failures you experience.


More to follow, soon!

Catalina Island Man

"WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS"

7. Don't always have to be "right". It is more important to resolve problems and misunderstandings than it is to have to make the other person/persons feel that THEY WERE WRONG! Be quick to admit when you are wrong and apologize. You would be surprised how quickly this simple act can break a disputed "log jam".

Catalina Island Man

"WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN 62 YEARS"

Yes, at 3:55 AM, May 24, 2009, on Catalina Island, it has finally happened! I turned 62, but I wish that I knew what that meant!

For example, I don't know what it is to "feel" 62, as I have never been 62 before! I do know that I am now definitely considered a "Senior Citizen" and could retire, if I knew what I was retiring from!

Any thoughts that I am still "Middle Aged" can be thrown out the window as that would mean that I could possible live to be 124 (what a horrible thought!). I am now 434 dog years old (boy, I have felt that more than once)!

By the way, Queen Victoria and Bob Dylan share my birthday. Let the astrologers try to make sense out of that!

There is an expression that states that we should learn at least one new thing a day. I agree, however, acknowledging 22,630 bits of wisdom is a bit much, so I have modified it slightly. I have decided to rack my brain for only one for every year I have been alive. If you have some additional suggestions, email them to me: liddell@catalinas.net

From time to time, I will post some of my 62 jewels of wisdom, here are the first six.

1. Learn to forgive your enemies. This is for you, not them. As long as they are in your thoughts as "enemies", then they still have hold on you and then, THEY HAVE WON!

2. There was a "chick flick", "Beaches", which came out some years ago that had a song called "Wind Beneath My Wings"! I confess I LOVE THAT SONG, because I would love to become a "bit player" in someone else's life, when they can be the "STAR". Everyone should be a "Star" sometimes, which means that the rest of us are only there for support and backup. My ego can handle this!

3. Children are vulnerable and deserve a "good start" in life. Find a child who needs your guidance to get that "push" in the right direction.

4. Elderly people are also vulnerable and deserve respect and protection. Find an older person who needs a little extra help to prepare them for their final "curtain call".

5. Do one "dumb" thing a month. Force yourself to make life a little less predictable and "push your envelope" a bit!

6. Live your life so that when, on your deathbed, someone will be able to come up to you and say, "Because of you, my life is better than it would have been without you!" (Like the Jimmy Stewart character in, "It's A Wonderful Life")(even Mr. Potter?). I hope that no one tells me this for quite a while, as I don't think I am ready to go quite yet!

More to follow soon.