I asked Merril what I should write on this morning.  She said “victory.”  I was happy to go with that as it had me thinking about the Olympics.
There is no doubt in my mind that Australia seems to punch above its weight in sports.  I only need look at the medal table to see how good we are at a number of things.  I was reading about another country who wrote about their excitement at getting 7 medals.  That was a record for them.  Their previous record was 4 medals.
Yet here we are rejoicing that we are sitting forth on the medal table.  Forth in the world.  Though much has to do with how where someone sits depends on how medals are counted.  In 18 disciplines we are the best and forth in the world.  If I were to use medal counts as the guide, we would be lower but not a lot.
In many ways that ties in with my definition of victory.  To me victory is a matter of personal best.  In the book “Atomic Habits” the author talks about small changes that add up.  I must admit that makes sense to me.  For me life is not about being better than another, it is about being better than I was.
There comes a time when many issues in life have been dealt with (admittedly for me that is more about being willing to be willing than trying harder which so often leads to disappointment).  At that point it is little things that make the difference. 

Sometimes to me what can loom large is not the main issue.  Other, seemingly smaller things are dealt with and what was a big thing, no longer seems so big.  Also often dealing with smaller things takes out the foundations of bigger things so they can come down easier.  That is the way I have found it anyway.
I am really pleased to get gold medals.  I am also really pleased to get silver and bronze where they represent personal bests.  Not getting gold it seems to me is often an indication of what needs to be applied.
Any performance by any one in any worthwhile field that is a personal best, is to me cause for celebration.  

It comes around so quickly.  I never know what I will be presented with on Dictionary Day.  Todays’ word is “bob.” (I don’t reckon I could make that up if I tried.)
My first thought for bob was what something does floating on water. “Bob up and down.”  But no.  That is one type of bob but that was not it.  Nor was it bob as in a shilling or as in “Bob’s your uncle.” (just as well really as I don’t know of any uncle Bob I have.)  Nor was it the bob as in a jerky movement.  Like “they are bobbing about.”
No the bob my finger fell on was “a weight on a pendulum.  Plumbline.  For some reason unknown to me it also included the likes of a Bob Cat and “American short tailed lynx.”  And the bob in the hair (I have no experience with that one)
I did look up bob on the web and it listed Bob Jane T Mart so now I have that song in my head.  It also listed the likes of Bob Maley and Bob Dylan.  And of course Bob the builder.  It also listed a place I have never visited and still have not, called “Bobs official website.”
One thing I did see there that had not occurred to me is the bob on a clock.  They vary in weight depending on the unit being measured.  In a grandfather clock keeping one second intervals the bob on the pendulum is often about 2 kilo’s (who knew.  And really who cares but a select few and I am glad they care because they get it right for people like me)
I have used a weight on a pendulum before in determining a straight line.  I find that really good for getting something straight particularly when I have no other source of reference.  I do imagine I will be using one when I fix a garden bed we have.  The bricks that are the edge do seem to obviously meander up and down.
For me, here endeth the lesson.  It need not be the end.  I could explore the subject matter in greater detail.  But really, I am happy to have learned things I did not know, and move on.

I said yesterday that what I write is likely to be a smorgasbord of thoughts from the email from James Clear.
It turned out that I really only wrote on one subject in the email.  A quote from C.S.Lewis.
I am referring to another quote this time as I spent a good bit of yesterday reading a book that was talking about this very subject.  "Communication is about what is received, not what is intended. If there is a gap between what you are saying and what they are hearing, you have to find a new way to say it."
The author was giving approximate percentages on conversation.  For example, when someone is giving a talk from the podium it is mostly like 90% talking and 10% listening.  The 10% is really born of question time at the end.  On the other hand, when talking with a random stranger mostly while in transit (like on a plane or bus) the conversation is more 50/50.
It is when sharing with friends and family that I really need to listen rather than speak.  The best percentage is 90% listening and 10% talking.  It amazes me how often people think I am a great person when I do not say a word (maybe there is a hint there for me somewhere).  All I do is listen.
I will never forget a mate coming over.  He was obviously distressed.  He really wanted someone to talk to.  So I spent just about the whole time listening.  Here I was thinking maybe I should be some great guru who had a perfect answer for a complex dilemma.  But no.  The guy in relief said a particular thing had never occurred to him before and went away feeling better than he came.
And I had done nothing but listen.
The power of listening is incredible.  Not listening to speak but listening to hear.  Often problems are solved by simply allowing the one with the problem the opportunity to be heard.