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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (March 17, 2011)
Page 22 The INDEPENDENT, March 17, 2011 Here are some life lessons learned from the writer’s house cat by Robert Evans Wilson, Jr., www.jumpstartyourmeeting.co m Once upon a time, I met a beautiful, charming and witty woman and fell deeply in love. Over the months we dated I was the consummate romantic. I brought her flowers; wrote heartfelt love letters; and on oc- casion even sang to her. At one point she remarked that no one had ever treated her better. Then suddenly and unexpect- edly she left me. I was devas- tated. When I asked her why, she replied, “You never listened to me.” I had no clue what she was talking about. Of course I listened to her. WEATHER REPORT FEBRUARY 2011 DATE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 TEMPERATURE HI LO 43 47 48 47 47 53 45 47 47 49 50 54 47 51 43 41 44 40 45 43 43 41 38 38 32 30 40 39 26 22 28 30 42 39 38 29 27 23 31 32 32 37 34 29 29 27 26 24 31 30 28 27 14 8 27 32 PRECIP. AMT. -- -- -- .20 .12 .33 .25 -- -- -- -- .33 .13 .85 .66 .13 .05 .19 -- .03 .22 .27 .63 .24 -- T 1.35 1.23 Didn’t I know her favorite foods, music and vacation spots? Ab- solutely! I also knew of her past struggles, her frustrations at work, and even her dreams for the future. Apparently it was not enough. In retrospect, I finally figured out the problem was that I had been too busy follow- ing the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Remarkably it wasn’t my ex- girlfriend who taught me this lesson, it was my cat. One morning while I was enjoying my coffee on the back porch, Roxy came up to my chair and meowed for attention. I picked her up, held her and started rubbing her soft fur. I knew from past experience that she didn’t like that, and she immediately began to squirm and try to jump out of my arms. Nevertheless - in the spirit of Albert Einstein’s observation that insanity is do- ing the same thing over and over again and expecting differ- ent results – I hoped that she would start liking it. Finally, I turned her loose on my lap and petted her. She be- came very affectionate and gave me lots of nudges with her head and purred loudly. I used to think that my other cat, Spike, was the more loving cat because he likes to be held and cuddled, which is of course, what “I” want to do with a cat. Roxy does not like to be cud- dled, and when I attempt it all she does is try to escape. I’ve learned that she still wants lov- ing and wants to give it back, but it has to be her way. I real- ized it is that behavior which causes many people to see cats as aloof and unrespon- sive. As Roxy worked her way around my lap, rubbing her face against my arms, legs, chest and face, I thought, “Everyone comes into our lives for a reason – usually to teach us something.” I looked at Roxy and said, “What are you here to teach me?” Then it dawned on me that she was there to teach me the Platinum Rule: “Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.” In contrast to the Golden Rule which is all about “Me,” the Platinum Rule is all about “You.” The Golden Rule is about “Controlling.” The Plat- inum Rule is about “Giving.” In other words, to motivate someone, give them what they want. I should have known this intuitively from the years I spent in the advertising business. I have taught hundreds of semi- nars where I advised my stu- dents, “When you create an ad, always put the prospect first; because when they see or hear it, all they are thinking is: What’s In It For Me!” I’m reminded again of the wisdom of Dale Carnegie who noted, “You can make more friends in two months by be- coming interested in other peo- ple than you can in two years ing with people, let us remem- ber we are not dealing with creatures of logic. We are deal- ing with creatures of emotion, creatures bustling with preju- dices and motivated by pride and vanity.” Now wait a minute…surely, he’s talking about cats! Institute works to save turtles The Oregon Wildlife Institute is working to conserve and en- hance local populations of na- tive western painted and west- ern pond turtles in the Portland metro region. Fueled by a cap- stone grant from the Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation along with funding and support from the Oregon Zoo, City of Portland, Metro, Port of Port- land and the Oregon Depart- ment of Fish and Wildlife, the Institute will begin developing a conservation plan for the pro- tection and enhancement of Portland area native turtles. In its final form, the plan will in- clude management guidance for public and private landown- ers and specific voluntary ac- tions that people can take to help stabilize native turtle pop- ulations. Both the western painted and western pond turtle are considered priority conserva- tion species in the Oregon Conservation Strategy. Fresh- water turtles have declined pre- cipitously worldwide and in- clude many species at risk of extinction. Partners in this ini- tiative are working to ensure that Oregon’s native turtles are here to stay. The Oregon Wildlife Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of wildlife re- sources in both native and hu- man-altered environments through research, education, and conservation planning. Vis- it www.oregonwildlife.org for more information. The Oregon Wildlife Her- itage Foundation champions projects that benefit fish, wildlife and habitat for access, education and enjoyment by all. Since its founding, OWHF has directed millions of dollars to fish, wildlife and habitat proj- ects. OWHF and ODFW work together to implement the Ore- gon Conservation Strategy, a blueprint and action plan for the long-term conservation of Ore- gon’s native fish and wildlife and their habitats. For more in- formation about the Foundation visit www.owhf.org. From the Sheriff’s Desk… From page 19 mitted to keeping the current percentage of general fund dollars going to the sheriff after the Levy passes, guaranteeing that every dime of new taxes goes to new resources within the Sheriff’s Of- fice. This will provide approximately $250,000 per year in the area of the Vernonia School District to pay for a full-time deputy, a mul- Temperature and precipitation ti-purpose patrol vehicle and its fuel, and the cost of additional amounts are from the official U.S. deputies to respond to the area as needed. It will also pitch in to weather station at the Vernonia wa- the county-wide investigational team that will be created to fill the ter plant. Measurable precipitation in hole we have in investigational personnel. February totalled 7.21 inches. Those investigators will mean that the Nehalem Valley State Farm ® deputy will not be pulled off of Providing Insurance and Financial Services community policing activities as frequently, as major crimes Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710 will be investigated by detec- Bunny Girt, Agent tives, leaving patrol deputies to do patrols. 1229 N. Adair Providing a regular patrol in PO Box 543 the Nehalem Valley has always Cornelius, OR 97113-0543 been an important goal of my Bus 503-357-3131 Fax 503-357-9667 office. We have lacked the re- bunny.girt.b71g@statefarm.com by trying to get other people in- terested in you.” To do that he advises: “Be a good listener; encourage others to talk about themselves; talk in terms of the other person’s interests; make them feel important – and do it sincerely.” He then adds, “When deal- sources to be able to provide that patrol in recent years, but this levy will mean a new day for the Sheriff’s Office on our western front. This patrol deputy position will be tasked with building con- nections within the greater Nehalem Valley community and solv- ing problems at the local level. Should reinforcements be re- quired, we will have more resources for that as well, but for the most part, I expect this position to work closely with your local Ver- nonia Police and the Vernonia and Mist-Birkenfeld fire depart- ments to more fully complete the public safety portrait in this area. As I’ve said many times before, public safety – particularly in rural areas – is a joint endeavor between the elected sheriff and his constituency. I have worked hard to build the confidence of cit- izens county-wide in the efficiencies we have been building into the public safety system in our county, including branching out with Sheriff’s Office civil services in the outer reaches of our coun- ty, including Vernonia. We have gone as far and as long as possi- ble with the limited staff we have. I now have to look to you to sup- port this effort if we are to do any more. We will continue to do the best we can with the resources we have. I hope you will see that commitment worth committing a few more tax dollars to help us complete the canvas we are painting in the Nehalem Valley.