environmental influences

In the 1970’s Bronfenbrenner wrote about the influence our environment has on our social behaviors. Lately my social environment has started feeling more hostile. The homeless person was inconsiderate, until I talked with him and set a rule that he had to keep the place looking nice. One of my neighbors came over my fence to get into an argument with the homeless person, but both were gone before I could get out the door. One of my neighbors was going around killing the stray cats, until finally someone saw him and threatened to report him if it continued. The landscape crew scooped up the tiny bit of lawn I had growing and hauled away the grass - roots and all - along with my topsoil. Then, last night, someone threw a firecracker over the fence and nearly hit me. My ears were ringing and I saw spots in front of my eyes for about an hour. Fortunately I had just gotten off my motorcycle and was still wearing my helmet.

It would be easy to get discouraged.

Instead I went out today and bought some mandevilla shrubs. I might not have a lawn, but I am not going to just stare at this rocky patch of ground. I am going to improve my environment, which will help improve my disposition, and might influence my neighbors.

These shrubs will brighten my space, give the cats someplace to hide, and discourage people from trying to sleep on my lawn. Now I just need patience for them to take root and grow. I will give it some time. Then, if these two do not fill in the empty space I will buy a couple more.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie;1977;Toward an Experimental Ecology of Human Development;American Psychologist;pages 513-531.Bronfenbrenner, Urie;1979;The Ecology of Human Development;Harvard University Press;0-674-22457-4.Bronfenbrenner, Urie;1986;Ecology of the Family as a Context for Human Development: Research Perspectives;Developmental Psychology;Vol. 22, No. 6, pages 723-742.

journaling via ebook

I am working on a section in my latest book regarding consensus. I am trying to ensure this book is useful in helping people learn how to use consensus. Toward that goal, I am incorporating a bunch of stories about how I have seen consensus used, misused, or misunderstood. I have the educational goals already defined, now I am trying to remember stories that fit each goal.

This is in many ways like a step four or step eight exercise. While searching my memories for interesting stories, I continual encounter buried resentments. I have resentments about people not doing what I expected. I have resentments about my own part in situations that did not work out as well as I wished.

In years past I would probably have regretted encountering these resentments. Now, I look at each memory as an opportunity to explore my part in the situation. I have the opportunity to examine each situation and forgive those I thought wronged me. I have the opportunity to accept ownership of my part in each situation.

I hope I run out of resentments, buried resentments, and unrecognized resentments before I run out of places to use each.

This is good step four and step eight work. It also helps me realize I have not been using step ten as thoroughly as I thought I was. Well, that gives me room for improvement. Even realizing I have under utilized step ten is just another step ten issue that I can work.

landscaping setback

When I first moved into this apartment, the property manager sent someone around every couple months to trim the lawn. It sort of looked like someone might have tried to cover the space with gravel sometime back. On the other hand, during the rainy season there was a good amount of grass growing in my little three foot by twenty foot lawn.

A few months later the property owner changed property management companies. The replacement property managers did not think it was their responsibility to care for the lawn. When my neighbor went to move out they got notice that their deposit was going to be withheld unless they trimmed the grass in their lawn area. They were surprised. I decided I should trim my lawn as well.

One year later, and the owner changed property managers again. This property manager sent people around to trim the lawn - occasionally. But that did not last. I went back to trimming my lawn when I got tall enough to annoy me. My new neighbor did not until one day he got a letter telling him the property manager was going to send him a bill if he didn’t trim his lawn.

I decided I was tired of scraggly looking grass growing out of this gravelly looking space, so I planted three shrubs. I then spent time, money, and effort over the next two years trying to turn this mix of sand and gravel into soil. I was pretty happy with how it was looking. My shrubs were getting tall, and the ground looked a lot more like soil.

Eventually the neighbor in front moved out and we got a new neighbor. Once again, the property manager started sending someone over to trim the lawn. By now, I was not happy about that. For the first time since I was a child, I have a lawn area I can enjoy. I can enjoy standing on the grass. The stray cats and occasional homeless person love the shade under my shrubs. My cats and I enjoy looking out the door and seeing the hummingbirds, butterflies, and such that come to enjoy the shrubs.

Well today the landscape guys took all my topsoil. I do not know why. I just know that those few inches of topsoil that took me two years of effort to develop got loaded into a the back of a truck today and hauled away.

There is no need for resentments. I just rent. The landscape guys do what the owner tells them. I am grieving however. My topsoil is gone. My lawn is gone. Instead, I now have three foot by twenty foot of gravel mixed with sand. At least they left my shrubs. I think I’ll plant more shrubs.

How many are required for a meeting

By a cavalcade of coincidences, nearly everyone that attends my Friday night group was unable to attend last night. I got there early, and one friend showed up. We talked for a while in the parking lot. We had a meeting - though it was an hour early and in the parking lot. Some of my most powerful meeting experiences have been in meetings with just two or three.

But, she could not stay for the scheduled time. I went in, did what setup I could, and waited. Then my phone rang and I had a phone meeting with a friend who could not attend the in-person meeting. We had a good meeting.

Still, I waited. I waited alone. At thirty minutes after the scheduled meeting time, I left.

This is one of those glass half-empty, glass half-full situations. I had two great meetings last night. I did not have a group, sitting in a circle, sharing. I had two friends who shared a mutual need for connection and reached out in the only way they could.

I don’t think the glass was half-full. I think the glass overflowed with joy.

squatter - continued

My next door neighbor spotted the homeless person in my yard, crossed my fence, and came into my yard to tell the homeless person to leave. I heard them shouting at each other, but they were both gone by the time I got out the door.

Have you ever gone for a long walk or a long bicycle ride in the summer and realized you needed to take a break in the shade? I’ve run into situations where a bit of shade was a matter of life or death.

I’ve blacked out before and crashed my bicycle in the middle of a busy street. I laid there with traffic going around me for probably fifteen minutes before someone stopped and helped me get into the shade.

One time I ran out of water on a long bicycle ride and was incoherent by the time I found a place to get some fluids.

I was bicycling once and got run off the road. The paramedics got to me before I was able to get back on the bike. They said my body temperature was dangerously high.

Summer heat can be fatal. I will not deny anyone a bit of shade and some cool water.

My outdoor hose bib is one of the most popular watering places around here for the homeless. It is the only one around this neighborhood that is just a few feet from the roadway, and is not surrounded by fence.

I must admit, however, that I am glad the homeless person is no longer hanging out in my yard.

squatter

I have been dealing with a homeless person who camps in my yard. This has been going on for a couple months. I had not seen him until a few days ago. I knew he was here because I kept finding bags of stuff in my yard. Sometimes the bags were filled with wrapping papers, left over food, old newspapers, and stuff that looked to me like trash. A couple times there were odds and ends like sunglasses, old jeans, old shirts, and lots of old socks. My tiny little yard is only three feet by twenty feet. I do not like being the trash pickup person for someone who is inconsiderate.

About a week ago I came out of my apartment and there he was. He asked if he could sit in the shade for a bit and I said yes. I am still not sure if that was the right thing to do, but it seemed like the humane thing to do. It is summer here and the temperature is up to about 100F most days. I seek shade myself when I go for a long walk or a bicycle ride. I did ask, however, that he pickup all of his trash.

I left to go run some errands. When I came back, he was gone and so was the trash. This seemed like progress. However, I then noticed that he had walked past my neighbors trash can and piled his trash up under her car. Why do that? Why not just put the old food wrappers, drink cup, etc. into the trash can?

Today he was laying on my sidewalk in the shade. I went around him, did some errands, and came back about three hours later. He was still there so I asked him to leave.

I have compassion, but I do not want this person thinking he has a right to live in my yard. I have not asked him for his name because I do not want to tell him my name. I do not want him telling people that I gave him permission to live in my yard.

Compassion is good. Being take advantage of is bad.

ebb and flow

Attendance in my local groups ebbs and flows. Occasionally attendance drops to a minimal sustainable level. Then it gradually rises again. Occasionally a newcomer shows up. Occasionally multiple newcomers all arrive at the same time. Personally, I would like to have peak attendance coincide with peak newcomers. I think this will show the newcomers how strong and active our group is. Typically, though, it seems like the peak influx of newcomers coincides with the days when there is minimal attendance from the long time members.

Perhaps that is best. A twelve-step program offers help for the individual. Each newcomer will decide for themself if this is where they want to be. Perhaps a few members are better at clearly presenting the program to the newcomers. Perhaps a great mass of opinions would simply create confusion.

I do not know. I simply trust that those who want the program will recognize it for what it is.

selling books

I watched a knowledgeable expert on the news talking about the solution to our economic problems. He outlined the history of how we got here. He described the symptoms. He gave his opinion on the underlying issues. Then he allowed the audience to ask questions. The first question was simple - “What do you recommend we do about this.” His answer was equally simple - “I’m not going to tell you that because then you won’t buy my book.”

There is a clinic that says they have found the cure for addiction. An acquaintance of mine solicits responses from trained professionals and then files complaints against the clinic. His point is simple - either the claim is fraudulent, or the knowledge is too valuable to keep secret.

Patent laws and copyright laws are designed to help inventors and authors profit from their work. However, in order to claim protection under those laws, the designs and documents must be put into the public record so that others can review them, file counterclaims, and reproduce them once the time limit expires. The point of those laws was to find a balance between private gain and public benefit.

While I still admire what I hear said by that economists and appreciate what little I know about the alleged cure, I believe both are trying to shift the balance too far toward private gain. They do not seem to be striving for the public good.

how we store knowledge - part 3

The benefit of collaborative efforts is that we pool our perspectives. No two people know exactly the same thing. No two people have the same interpretive filters. We benefit from committees and teams because we increase our diversity - our ability to see different perspectives.

Where then, is the knowledge of a team stored? We can try to turn it into repeatable procedures. We can try to train artificial intelligence to reproduce optimal results. But there is something more.

People support a cloud of knowledge. The knowledge is external to each of us. However, when we come together, we each access that cloud. I know not only what I learned, I also have the ability to take the perspective of my companions.

Humanity is the repository for a vast collection of data, information, knowledge, and even wisdom. None of us possess all of it. Each of us possess only a tiny volume. Yet, collectively, we support this vast web of wisdom.

how we store knowledge - part 2

With the internet, it is as if every person has all the knowledge of the world within reach. Of course, knowledge is just a building block in the data - information - knowledge - wisdom hierarchy. I have helped several companies work through the process to document all of their processes. We would generate binders full of paper so we could show auditors, customers, and potential investors how well we understood our business. Yet, none of those efforts collected the spirit of the company.

I watched companies buy our software and all the accompanying documentation, yet never achieve the results they desired.

One time we tried to convert all the missing wisdom into an artificial intelligence application. That effort failed. However, I think success is possible.

But what do you replicate? I have watched people work accounts payable, insurance claims, and several other systems devised to ensure the right people get paid. A few of those employees were utterly amazing in their ability to quickly detect patterns, ensure the priorities were set appropriately, and process vast quantities of data. Some employees were less efficient. Some employees were more efficient, but made more mistakes.

The challenge for me, when I coordinated documentation efforts around those systems was to identify who actually knew how to do the job.

how we store knowledge

In ancient times, knowledge was carried in a person’s head. Simple knowledge, like which berries are good to eat and which are toxic was passed from generation to generation orally. Slowly more complex knowledge accumulated until in the time of Homer, Moses, and others, the collected wisdom of a people was carried through the long memorization of an oral history. The apocalyptic movie “Book of Eli” illustrated what was a common practice just a few thousand years ago.

This began to change with the advent of writing. First there were religious books, later the great libraries, like the Library of Alexandria. Scholars concentrated around universities both to share knowledge with their peers but also because the universities held the greatest collection of books.

A couple hundred years ago scholars in France set out to summarize the entire span of human knowledge into an encyclopedia. Great encyclopedias were still being created and distributed into the 20th century.

There are still people who memorize and can recite entire texts. There are still great libraries with thousands of books and journals not available anywhere else. There are still encyclopedias. Yet all have been eclipsed by the internet. Oral legends, ancient texts, books, journals, and encyclopedias are all available online.

The availability of knowledge, however, is only part of the struggle. It is like opening your cupboard and realizing you have all the ingredients required to bake a cake. The internet is a cupboard full of knowledge. But having the ingredients does not magically produce a cake. Having instantaneous access to more knowledge than was ever housed in the greatest library does not produce wisdom.

friends

It is nice to have a web of friendships. Every once in a while someone shows up that I had not heard from in a while. It is nice to know my friends remember I am there for them when they need. In doing so, they also remind me they will be there when I need.

Squarespace flaws

While I love most of the features in Squarespace, I have two complaints.

1) They discontinued the Blog App from Android with no replacement. I do a lot of my blogs while traveling. Without the app, I cannot blog on the road.

2) Their two-factor authentication is garbage. I wait sometimes for fifteen minutes for the text message to show up. Occasionally the authentication code has already expired by the time it does show up.

stay in my own lane

A committee I belong to struggled with a work request assigned to us. We could not find a way to solve the underlying problem using the resources available to us. Finally, after 5 years of effort we realized that the task was assigned to the wrong committee. We have now passed our research over to the other committee and we are going to close this task.

Were we trying to do something that someone else should have done?

Were we so intent on finding a solution to a problem that we forgot to ask whether or not this was our problem?

wouldn't it be nice

Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone who took a service position did so in order to serve? Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone strived for unity? Well, they don’t.

I can still choose how I respond. I can choose to serve. I can choose to strive for unity. I can choose how I act and how I react.

I do not get to choose how others think, act, or react.

all the way through

A saying in some twelve-step programs is to think it all the way through. Supposed you do this action that you are contemplating. Will there be immediate gratification? Will there be repercussions later? WIll there be damage in the long run? Then think about the long term damage before taking the action.

The AA Big Book has the analogy of a jay walker. Perhaps there will be a momentary thrill. Perhaps an experienced jay walker can get away with it for a few years. But, in the long run, running in front of oncoming traffic will eventually result in consequences.

A group I belonged to made a decision in January that I predicted would bandaid a short term problem but cause long term damage. No one believed me, and when the damage started to appear, one member attacked me for bringing it to the group’s attention. I left the group.

Six months later the damage is getting worse. When I get a phone call, I try hard to not say “I told you so.” Instead I try to lovingly help them consider the possibilities. Do they actually see any possibility that this can continue without further damage? Then I try to persuade them to make a change now, while they still can.

They assure me things will get better. I assure them things will get worse. They discuss adding more bandaids on top of the bandaid they already applied. I recommend yanking the bandaid off, cleaning the wound, and exposing it to fresh air.

I cannot live their lives for them. I guess they will need to experience the consequences for themselves.

without trust

A couple months after I moved to this apartment, my next door neighbor moved away. They took their cat with them, but it kept returning. Eventually they asked me to put some food out to feed their cat, and thus it began.

You cannot put food out without attracting many other cats, birds, and an occasional dog. Eventually the system reaches a point of stability. In my neighborhood, stability seems to be 4.5 cats. Sometimes there are more, but not for long. Sometimes there are fewer, but new ones quickly appear.

This is the situation. If I put food outside, then there will be either four or five cats contending for their turn at the bowl. Sometimes they pair up. Sometimes they work out a sequence. Sometimes they squabble.

They lack faith. They naturally believe that food is scarce and must be protected. I wish I could help them understand that the bowl will always be refilled. They can share and not go hungry.

boots

I switch between walking, running, and bicycling. Some years I focus on just one activity and ignore the others. To do any well, you need appropriate footwear. The bicycle works best with cleated shoes. That type of shoe is of little use for any other purpose. Running is most efficient with running shoes, although I can run with boots, or even with casual shoes. Walking and hiking require stable footwear.

I typically have a couple pair of walking boots. Typically a pair last ten years or longer because I re-heel and re-sole periodically. My last great pair of hiking boots finally collapsed a couple months ago. After ten years, the leather started falling apart. My alternate hiking boots were winter weight - waterproof and insulated. They were a bit warm for spring and would have been uncomfortable in summer.

I decided it was time to buy a new pair of hiking boots. I trust some of the brands I have had great experience with in the past. I walked to one of the local boot stores and found a great looking pair made by one of the brands I love. I bought them, tossed the old pair in the trash and walked home with the new pair.

Along the way, my left leg started cramping. I rested for a bit, and things went well the rest of the way home. I tried the winter boots on my next walk, but they were just too hot. I then tried the new boots, and again, my left leg started tensing up and became irritated. I accepted that I had injured something. It happens.

I know that injuries typically take six weeks or so to heal, so I walked more slowly and tried to avoid stressing that leg. It felt better, but it was not well after six weeks. As I was cleaning my boots that night I noticed that the soles had worn through. I set those boots aside waiting for an opportunity to take them into a repair shop. After a few days it dawned on me that my leg felt much better when I wore the winter boots. I started a close examination of the two sets of boots and discovered that the new boots were not the same. The left boot was nearly one size smaller than the right boot. Both were labeled the same. But they were not made the same.

I was saddened to realize that my trust in this name brand was misplaced. I had toured their factory once when they still made some in the USA. I knew they had moved production overseas many years ago. I knew they had been bought by another company who wanted their brand, their reputation, and their customer loyalty.

But they are not the same. Materials that only last a couple months rather than a decade. Manufacturing that does not product consistency or quality. This is not the same company at all.

I cannot expect them to change. Instead, I will need to change. I will no longer buy based on brand. I will no longer buy expecting that I can repair the boots over and over to keep them going for a decade. It looks like this industry is focused on disposable goods. I guess I will need to find a new set of criteria for my next purchase.

changing direction

I spent nearly the entire month of May reading in an effort to get caught up on various books I had started at one time or another but never finished. I did very little traveling. I did almost no writing. I am not caught up, but I feel like the backlog is much more manageable.

Perhaps I will get back to writing again in June.

another homeless intrusion

I opened my door to go on an errand and found another homeless person blocking my egress. I was able to go around this one. I said hello, but he seemed to be talking on his telephone. I cut my errands short and got back in time to see him departing.

I regret the homeless situation. I have become accustomed to chatting with them when I go for a walk, and encountering them in shops. I expect to see them camped along the river and in vacant lots at night. I understand that many prefer to sleep on the steps of shops after the shop closes because those alcoves provide a bit of protection. However, I have not previously encountered so many taking up residence within an apartment block.

I sympathize. However, I still need to be able to get in and out of my apartment. And I grow tired of cleaning up the trash they leave behind.