OCR Text |
Show Thursday, July 24, 2008 SPRINGVILLE HERALD Been There, Done That Why am critic 10 I: SO J Liz Elder Everyone in my family is critical. Well, not my husband, he's a little more judgmental, but I am and all of my kids are critical. Anyone genetically connected con-nected to me is more or less critical. I've finally come to accept ac-cept this fact after going around and around about why exactly they are all so picky with each other. It may be a genetic thing. My mom was critical, criti-cal, and my grandmother and my sister and her kids. We all seem to take great pleasure in picking each other and everyone else apart. Which is not to say we're judgmental! Nos-iree, Nos-iree, if you're bad, drink too much, beat your wife, shoot people, I'm there for you. I'm very sympathetic towards bad people. I'm just not so nice with ordinary people who are living basically good lives and not doing much day to day. Man, I can be criti cal about houses, gardens, matching (you know, like clothes and shoes; I don't think they should match, it's a little too-too much). I can criticize reading habits hab-its and grocery habits and car choices (cars and groceries gro-ceries should be bought with the idea of supporting support-ing the environment-never environment-never mind that I have an SUV, I need it). I really should be brought in on a day to day (day-to-day?) basis to critique cri-tique people's appearance and lifestyles. It would save people so much trouble! trou-ble! And time. No more wondering just what's wrong with themselves. Ten minutes, ten seconds, with me and boom: you're done. You know what should be fixed immediately. immedi-ately. Now, lest you take the easy way out and say it's because I'm insecure and need to bring people down to my own level to make myself feel better, you could be right, although A SmJ WaL Pacific Horizon CRE D I T UNION 96 E. Center Springville 489-3603 586 N. Main Payson 465-0111 www.pacifichorizoncu.com rsa. JT-t'' M rfr mvi . Credit Unions- - J1 ll & enter to win 3 $1000 adventure getaway at the omestead Biking Fly Fishing Horseback Riding Scuba Diving Golf Couples Massage Swimming Breakfast UtAW .Cow . v.' how to enter: Visit UtahAdventurer.com click on the forum and answer the "What would you do?" question. Not only will you be entered to win the Grand Prize of a Homestead Getaway, you will also be entered to win great prizes such as Lagoon day passes, Trafalga datenite passes, movie tickets and more! it is kind of a cliche. I am more critical when I feel threatened. And there are several criticism strategies strate-gies I have devised to work this out. For instance, I'm much more critical of people who are really organized. Man, I can almost make my head spin, picking out stuff so fast. I'll go through medicine cabinets cabi-nets in the bathroom and start feeling above door frames looking for dust. Looking at wall sconces for spider webs. That's something you can almost al-most depend on to make you feel better. One of my favorite things to say about people with really nice houses is that the rooms look like hotel rooms; the implication implica-tion being that they don't have that nice, friendly look my rooms have because be-cause they're filled with every souvenir I've ever seen in any airport, anywhere. any-where. And dust. My rooms are dusty like rooms are supposed to be. After all, I'm a writer; I should be home relaxing andihinking, not working work-ing my muse off in manual man-ual labor. As an aside, if you're tragically disorganized, I'm pretty sympathetic, which you should consider consid-er a bad sign, if you put yourself in the drink-too-much, shoot-people category. cat-egory. Another cliche you might want to consider is that I'm critical of myself. Well, of course I am! And while we're at it, I'm apparently ap-parently very critical of my kids too, although they don't all think I am, which is just tragic because if they're thinking my parenting par-enting style is a good example.' ex-ample.' of unconditional love, what's to become of the next generation? But I must be if they're really critical. The thing is, they all seem okay and well-adjusted, except for the criticism thing; so I can't decide where I went wrong.v They're not particularly particular-ly critical of themselves in that unhealthy, o-my-gosh-I'm-so-awful way that I am. So in their case, I apparently have taught them to criticize others by example. In other words, they DO feel good about themselves and aren't trying try-ing to bring people down to their level just to feel better. In that sense, I've beaten the odds and (I'm) getting better at parenting. They re just happy, satisfied, sat-isfied, normal people who are critical of others . The fatal flaw in criticizing criti-cizing is that it's just personal per-sonal opinion dressed up with a sneer. It's a sense of propriety, which heavens heav-ens knows changes from minute to minute in the real world, depending on advertising and the general gen-eral Zeitgeist. It's propriety propri-ety given the solemnity of real judgment. It's based on matters that have a hundred right possibilities and give the illusion there is only one possibility. For example, there isn't right way to raise kids, or, one of my favorites: there isn't only one right way to eat nutriousy. Anyway, hot to make you feel bad, but I've probably criticized you at some time. You may have criticized me. So we have something in common. We were probably both right at the time. To take a positive attitude towards it, maybe that's how we learn about ourselves. Another popular cliche is that you are most guilty of the things you criticize in others. .Now, if that makes me too organized and too matching, well, so be it. If the shoe matches, then I should wear it. r? i s v V Members of the group Pacific Generation, from the Polynesian dance school Voice of Polynesia, perform during the 2008 Springville World Folkfest. The group was a popular part of this year's Folkfest, performing dances from island nations such as Samoa, Tahiti and New Zealand. Photo by Christi C. Babbitt EM T's nee in MapletoD The Mapleton ambulance workers are in serious need of daytime EMT's. If you would be willing to help or , would like to become an EMT, please contact the Mapleton City Office for an application at (801) 489-" 5655 or visit them at 125 W. 400 North, Mapleton. Being an EMT in Maple-1 ton is satisfying and re warding. Please join them in serving the citizens of Mapleton. . The ambulance workers work-ers are asking citizens to please make sure your house address "numbers" are clearly visible from the road. This will make it easier eas-ier for them to locate your home in case of an emergency. EES M mm trjouts Any young men interested inter-ested in trying out for the Springville High School Golf Team need to submit a nine-hole score of 45 shots or fewer to the Hobble Creek Pro Shop before the date of try outs. Tryouts will be held at Hobble Creek Golf Course on Wednesday, Aug. 6, and Thursday, Aug. 7, at 5:30 a.m. in the morning. If you have any questions ques-tions or concerns please contact Coach Brett Miller, Mill-er, 380-0727, or Assistant Coach Gavin Groneman, 885-3789. Liz i Elder can be reach&d at clelder2001 yahoo.com One machine can do the work of 50 ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extra-ordinary man. - Elbert Hubbard 0 865 Pleasure Dr. Ft. Collins. CO 80524 970-493-564G www.sunflowercolorado.com If You Have Been Thinking About It. Now Is The Time To Act. Only A Few? Choice Lots Remain! Xsl "Si ted 1 w ff Wo help you create your invitations your way Distinctive, one-of-a-kind photo invitations designed to fit your style, your personality and your budget. Contact one of our designers today to schedule your consultation and to see how easy and affordable your wedding invitations can bel Call us today to learn more! CSSCUCCIS 014894218 |