To Yell at a Guru?

 Posted by at 11:03  rants
Feb 232015
 
Coots on a tire

Image via Wikipedia

Well for better or for worse, I have been looking at some nuts and bolts around here at the Coots site.  I have discovered in the course of events that Ralph has been writing much more than anyone else here.  Maybe he is just more dedicated or maybe he just has nothing better to do than to be an instigator.

Instigator in the dictionary of the coots should read: 1.  Ralph Carlson, see ralphcarlson.com 2.  The guy who has nothing better to do than come up with ideas for others to implement, see #1.  3.  A guy with too much time on his hands, see #1.  4.  Retired and needing to do something to stay away from his murderous-minded wife, see #1.

You have all read the origin story of the coots, from humble comment to site, comment made by, you guessed it, Ralph.  And as we grow and go forward he keeps coming up with stuff for us to do.  Maybe he has all the time he wants to sit and write for 2 blogs, his kids are grown and he doesn’t have medical issues that need major narcotics to deal with.  Or maybe he is just the Coots Guru that we need.  (see picture: Coots on a tire! which one is Ralph?)

I used to be able to keep up with him pretty good on postings and our numbers were fairly even.  Bob is so far behind that he is never going to catch up.  But now, I find myself 33 posts behind Ralph!  I know I was off for a while but good freaking grief in a kettle.  I know that numbers like that shouldn’t mean anything, my posts are far superior, well some of them at least, but just by sheer numbers I have to dub Ralph the Coots Guru.

And now, I have to decide to yell at him or not.  He is the patron saint of Cantankerousness here.  I think I will not yell today.  But I always have that option.  And now here is a real life question for you.  Is it permissible to yell at your Guru’s?  By that I certainly mean yell, but also disagree.  If you pick up a new program (much like my new stay at home dad program that will be launching soon) and you don’t agree with something in there, I would like the feedback for someone to leave me a profanity laden email cursing out generations of my family and telling me what I did wrong.

I will probably make fun of that person on Twitter but I am not opposed to the criticism.  We have the right to our own thoughts and the speech that comes from us protected under the Constitution and the First Amendment.  We also have the right, no the obligation to disagree with someone who we truly feel is wrong, see Declaration of Independence.  These are not new concepts.  These are not wild ideas that I have created.

We need to strive for the fortitude and the Cantankerousness to put out there what our minds conjure.  We need to read and understand others, to look at their ideas and programs, and then decide if they are for us or not.  And you don’t have to be mean about it, but sarcasm helps.

Have a great Thursday.

-Justin

Justin

Justin is the young Coot with a Cantankerous Soul who continues to be educated by older, more cootish Ralph and Bob. His Cantankerosity is his own.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook

Enough is enough! Down with “Guru’s”

 Posted by at 07:36  Down with, rants
Jan 072014
 

** editors note, I don’t know what is with wordpress sometimes….this post is now 24 hours into trying to be published.  I hope it is this time**

When is it time to say enough is just e-freaking-nough?? (Sure the language is not as cantankerous as possible but we have to have some family decorum.  Like it or don’t.)

So I am on today about people who push themselves to be “Guru’s” in their field.  Now I know that this is the idea behind muchof the business we are in with blogging and product creation.  We have to make people respect us and want to pay for our opinions on things.  That is fine, go forth and create.  Just don’t fill us with bull crap along the way.

Now, this will make my wife mad but here is what has been bugging me.  Jillian Freaking Michaels.  Now it doesn’tmatter what her real qualifications are, she has set herself up to be the know-all, be-all of fitness and training.  Now I am not saying that this necessarily a bad thing.  That is what we are trying to do.  But there are extremes.

Ms. Michaels is just about EVERYWHERE now.  She is on 2 TV shows, has food supplements, a web site, a ton of fitness equipment and video games.  All geared toward making you feel bad about yourself.  I mean getting a person to lose weight because in her world, if you are not like her, you are a fat pig.

I guess what has really gotten me going about her is the smug, airbrushed, windblown poses that grace every product she puts her grimy name on.  I was listening to one of her radio show podcasts at the insistence of my wife and there was a caller who was on saying how she worshipped Jillian Michaels and how she was the best ever and how the sun rose and set in her pants, blah blah blah.

This is the problem I have with “guru’s”.  People get so star struck with the “big” names that they forget to be their own person.  That is a future Coots lesson by the way.

My biggest issue, just sticking your name on anything associated with your niche is not necessarily a good thing and tends to dilute credibility.  True cantankerosity comes when you can say, “Screw it, I am doing what I want and you can take all of this superfluous crap and shove it.”

Take hold of your stuff.  Make something great and quit trying to prove how great you are by branding everything you can think of.  The first Jillian Michaels jock strap that I see….somebody dies.

Now, go do something useful.

-Justin

Justin

Justin is the young Coot with a Cantankerous Soul who continues to be educated by older, more cootish Ralph and Bob. His Cantankerosity is his own.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook