"Don't confuse fame with success. Madonna is one, Helen Keller is the other." - Erma Bombeck

Snagged from Facebook

Like chickens attacking the hen with a wound the press is going after Brian Williams with a veneance and exposing what they claim are other examples of embellishment. Late today NBC announced they're looking into William's reporting, but I notice he's still hosting Nightly News.
One of the articles I read pointed out politicians do this kind of thing all the time - exaggerating the risks they faced on the battlefield - but we expect honesty out of reporters.

I got a haircut this morning.
How do I graciously communicate that I'm not interested in gratuitous chit-chat? Closing my eyes clearly doesn't work.

A vehicle's window run, aka channel, is the thick rubber piece shaped like an upside-down "U" that the window rides in as it goes up and down (#4 in this image). The legs of the "U" extend to the bottom of the track inside the door. The driver's side channel on the Dodge split some time ago and the previous owner tried to glue it in place. That may have worked for awhile but by the time I got the truck the glue had given way and the outside half flapped in the wind as I drove down the freeway. And that whistling was pretty irritating.

The dealer wanted $150 for the part (seen in cross section it's a pretty complex molding that includes felt on the interior sides of the channel where the glass slides) but I found it online for $58. I spent about two hours this afternoon making the swap. Take out the old channel, clean off the glue, remove the window & door handles, the door panel, the speaker, and the moisture barrier, install the channel, and then reverse the disassembly. It all went pretty smoothly. Aron told me about putting dish soap in the part of the molding - the slot on the outside of the "U" - that goes over the metal ridge in the door and that worked a lot better than the silicone spray I've used in the past.

When I was all done I felt pretty good about myself. For $58 I did a job the dealer probably would have charged me north of $200 to do.

Before tackling that task I drove into Glendale to pick up our tax forms from Tom Smith. Yeah, that's his real name. We don't have any investments, income property, or off-shore accounts, so our returns are pretty straightforward. Being a pastor adds a couple of wrinkles, but nothing too tricky. Doesn't matter; I'd rather attend a Jr. Hi. orchestra concert every night for a year than do my own taxes. Numbers hate me, I hate numbers, and Christ's return is hastened if I stay as far away from digits as possible. Tom's fee is very reasonable, but I'd gladly pay twice his price.

So my smug satisfaction at installing a new window channel was tempered by the humility that comes from needing a guy named Smith to do even our simple taxes.
There's a sermon illustration in there someplace.
We've all got different gifts and abilities, and weaknesses to match. No reason to get cocky, or be too hard on ourselves.  I should be thankful I can save money fixing the truck sans any hubris and give props to the guy who can figure out Schedule A23RE-599SR.62