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What's Going On Here?

A message from Just Thinking

Submitted by Roanman on Thu, 12/29/2011 - 08:38

 

While we've gone through this before, this seems a good time to revisit our past and offer an explanation by way of a short history of how Just Thinking came to be.

Just Thinking enjoys two distinct constituencies.  This thing began as a chain letter between a small group of friends that met and started out in life at the University of Michigan ..... or more accurately in bars near the University of Michigan.   This group has grown over many years with the addition of new friends, and the subsequent partners, secretaries, associates, customers, clients, competitors, vendors, attorneys, financial professionals, bankers up the wazoo, the occasional judge, at least one ex wife (It wasn't me) and the many others that have come into our lives, during the course of our lives.

Some years ago I was sitting in my office reading one Saturday morning (as usual) while simultaneously debating something via email with Terry D. when I said,  "We ought to get us a blog” Terry agreed enthusiastically saying, "Yeah.  You need to get right on that."

So I did.

We already had the logo as many years ago I had decided that it probably wasn't smart to be putting some of my thinking down on the company stationary.  So I spent a little money and had an associate of one of our vendors whip us up a logo.  That logo will never be changed as the young man who created it died tragically right after he delivered it.  There is reason to think it's the last creative work he ever completed.

I thought/think it's perfect.

The second group is made up of facebook types, of which I am one.  As one would expect, this group is far more diverse in every way than the originals.  In addition to Americans and Canadians of every size, shape and political affiliation, we now have close to seven hundred people who come around and visit our site in India and about that many throughout the nations of South America, along with a healthy scatterring from all over Europe and Asia.  As you would expect, interests, tastes and opinions are wildly diverse, which was kind of the point. 

We are probably going to open up the comments here so you no longer have to register to comment, which nobody does anyway as it seems much more fun to harangue me personally.  I'll post a notice when it happens.

While I continue to whine about it I do appreciate and read all the emailed commentary and ideas.  I am pleased to say that I have yet to fail to read a single message although I'm starting to bump up against thresholds.

 

Have a Safe and Happy New Year.

 

And please remember the immortal words of Sargeant Phillip Esterhaus.

 

 

That's still good advice.

 

Shelly

Submitted by Roanman on Wed, 07/21/2010 - 08:18

 

When someone signs up as a user at this site, I send out an email to thank them and explain that there is absolutely no benefit at all associated with signing in here excepting that you can now post a comment (which nobody does anyway).

Well, it seems that there is a second feature that I had not thought of in that new users get to capture my email address.

Evidently, one of you forwarded my thank you through to your mom.

And your mom (Shelly) loves it here.

So yesterday, I'm at the tail end of clearing up the debris that had piled up during a two week vacation (almost three weeks actually if you count the week spent accomplishing damn near nothing while staring blankly at my screen thinking about being gone), when I decided to cruise through my junk email box to see if something worthy might be sitting there.

"Hmmmm." I say, "What's a Shelly?"

I'm not going to take up your time going into all the nice things Shelly had to say about the site ... the wit, the obvious intelligence, the great writing, etc.

Although I could, having memorized the entire note.

Shelly ended her note by asking, "Why are you doing this?"

"Hmmmm." I say yet again. "Why indeed?"

Well?

 

Just Thinking is where I decide what I think and what I believe.

 

I used to keep notebooks.

I save ideas, research, random crap that I think could amount to something someday, lists, quotes, etc.

Then, as computers became more useful, folders (I have folders holding folders of folders holding folders).

Then, as the internet bloomed, links.

I'm sure you believe me when I tell you, "I got the links".

Just Thinking is where I try it all out.

I grind around out there until something shows up.

When something I think has a chance finally pops up, I test it.

I grind around some more and honestly try to blow it up.

The more it fits into my world view, the harder I try to blow it up.

I'm not asking anybody to believe me on that one.

I write it down in my own hand (so to speak), stare at it a good long while ..... until I decide if I think it's true.

If I hit the publish button, you can be certain, I'm certain.

Now, the fact of my certainty does not necessarily mean that I think I'm always right, it just means that I'm certain.

One of my very favorite features when it comes to me, has to do with the fact that if I think I'm wrong, I just change my mind, and in so doing, become right.

While all the while, remaining certain.

To quote George Bernard Shaw one more time.

 


And thank you Shelly for your kind words.

 

What's Going On Here?

Submitted by Roanman on Fri, 10/17/2008 - 09:20

 

Well, pretty much .... Just Thinking.

The truth is, I've got some time on my hands, so I started wandering around the net in an effort to figure out who is doing what, to whom.

We have all talked about, and marveled at the sheer volume of stuff available "out there".

It goes beyond imagination.

It is however, my strongly held opinion, that much of what's available goes unaccessed, and the small part of that which is accessed, mostly goes unread.

 People are busy.

Probably busier than people have ever been in the history of mankind.

Not many of us have the time to go wandering around out there trying to figure out what to think about stuff.

That's issue #1.

Issue #2 is more insidious.

We all feel the way we feel.

Damn few of us care to think about what we think.

 Feeling is easier, and a lot less time consuming.

Feeling is however, a lot harder on the nervous system.

At least I think it is.

I'm feeling a lot of stress out there. And strain.

Anger and fear are prevalent.

Constructive approaches are in retreat.

As for the blogosphere.

You know as well as I do that much of what's out there amounts to little more than a petulant rant.

So, what's going on here?

Just some stuff to think about.

If I were you, knowing what I know,

I'd start with the quotes.

But it really doesn't matter.

The gears might link to anything, sometimes it'll make sense, sometimes it won't, at least to you.

Occasionally, it doesn't even make sense to me.

I'm Just Thinking.

Try it. You might like it.

Might make you feel better.

 

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