When Knighthood was in Flower

OH WAIT! Here's a thought ; these story'd adventures have been passed down from Father to son...but just maybe (the harp music and fade  of  the movie & TVee macine industry)they were passed down  by the Moms!! and girlfriends!! of the "storied individuals" to at least get them to open a damn door- I got 2 bags of groceries  ....   There may be another side to the story.  Villagers, what say you to the fact that these stories, if only told by men, would make common couttesy a Knightly virtue, and if told by Women....("I had to tell Arthur to kill that damn baby eating lizard")and HE wanted a medal for taking out the garbage!   (They didn't have TP rolls to change in those days)....BBQ?  it was how we ate!!!  it was not an 'event'....

Faith, charity, justice, sagacity, prudence, temperance, resolution, truth, liberality, diligence, hope and valor.

The Gentlemen on The Sepia Train have all 12 of these traits

It's kind of sad that the guys I meet for "dates" barely have 1 of them.

would you like some candy little girl?

Saga city? Is that some thinly veiled reference to Peterman's ಠ ?

see? there she goes, running and screaming.....

SAGA city?!?   old people live there?!?!

The unicode character "ಠ" comes from the
letter "ṭha" in Kannada, one of the major Dravidian languages of India
that is influenced by Sanskrit. Despite its origin, the character has
been used as an emoticon primarily outside of India. According to
Lurkmore Wiki, the earliest use of ಠ_ಠ began on the Japanese imageboard ...

Rings90, you are too kind. Furthermore your power of observation is acute...lol

There may be SOME places on the Earth that Chivalry is Dead ....... but certainly not in the South, and sure a Hell not in Texas ....... All of the Attributes that make Chivalry exist are still as important, if not moreso, as they were five hundred years ago ... In my mind, Reason, Respect, and Decorum being chiefest among the Litany .......
 
It is a sore vexing thing that we are plagued with people who are absolutely, Taste Free ...

Morning, RY, STONEY, RINGS ( he's out there, don't give up!), BERT, & IVAN......................
 
RINGS is correct, we gots the best! It's Friday. All day long........all day long..................

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jakkm2IfZPs .... Pauls and Lindas Off the Ground...special song to me. Windark open sea song...Saw Linda and Paul in concert in Columbia South Carolina.1992-93?..great small outdoor show! ;) Great Scott... pass the biscotti...please .....and the black coffee this am...looking and reading the Talent show ....some great poetic/prose lines towel folding......goodwork...;)...my summers in Beaumaris...so enchanting...and and made me dream....mosquitoes..chasers were difficult...in the woods ...when i practice my baton twilling on the golf course...in order for me to get to the field..... i ran like a dickens from the lake house thru the woods being chased and bitten...my mother did not want me to spray insect repellant on me...as soon as i got into the sunlit golf course the mosquitoes...disappeared..and the island forest, my black scottie, were my audience.......

'Morning all! Anybody feeling poetic?
In days of old
When knights were bold
And ........
Chivalry ..... women can do it too- I open doors for ladies with too many bags of shopping. If I see an elderly or disabled person struggling I'll offer help. I have to say, I did like that Ex#2 would always open the car door for me, pass me the end of the seatbelt and make sure I was safe and comfy before getting in the car himself. Very sweet. When we were walking on a pavement (sidewalk) he'd always walk on the outside - the tradition being that you protect your lady from being splashed by passing horses and carriages spraying passers by with foul water from the puddles in the road.
 
 
 

A Knight doesn't just look like a knight. A true knight has the "heart" of the knight. I think Mark Twain didn't like all the bravado sword rattling in the name of self-righteousness. I am also reminded of The Prince and the Pauper when the young King discovers that with the title there comes the responsibility. Walk the walk, Pappy Typical would say. The one thing I have learned from Mr. P is clothes don't make the man or woman but the man or woman makes the clothes, the only exception might be the new invisible threads on the clueless Emperor.

Sagacity? I've been working on my youngest daughter's automobile (if you recall) for two days straight for eight hours a day, and I have learned what Sagacity is. I have got a dose of the Sagging ass right now that just won't wait.

My youngest sweetheart helped me the first day, asking questions about what this was and what does that do and I'm certain I used the term "flux capacitor " at least once, maybe twice. Now I'm on the downhill slide, the job interrupted by rain yesterday at the end run of my sore back and current sagging "john brown hindparts". I'll finish it today by myself, my youngest worked the late shift at her retail yogurt shop dealing with the public, quire possibly the greatest educational incentive in the history of mankind.

Good morning to all.

And Sherlock is back on Masterpiece this Sunday. The game's afoot...again

Umm- As General Dollar said, "Retail is hell!"

My grandfather and family owned Fedan Hardware and Furniture Store...opened 1919 and in the middle of the store sign read "Please Don't Ask for Credit!" and to this day, I do not own a visa card...it's True...I saved alot of money....I am posting the picture on the community page...Still catching up reading the "The Very First Talent Show Ever..." wonderful galloping heartfelt writings and pictures...check my grandfathers picture of the Fedan Store...sold largest sales of  Matags..washers...rugs ,..the whole Shabang!!!

If only our politicians followed even some of that code....justice, truth......

Ummgawa - oh my! Love that "sagging ass" ..... Good luck, maybe today is the day.

Hazel - I was about to say the same thing, women as well can have the virtues of knights I too hold doors open, even checking behind me whenever I exit to see if anyone is there....having enough of them closed in my face.

Perhaps theSepia Train can take us to Saga City tonight...

A woman, having seen me walk past a man in a wheelchair and military fatigues struggling with a door, actually bumped into me: "What is wrong with you?"
"F@&k off b&%tch!" He spat at her.
She came reeling back stunned: "Did he ever say that to you?"
"Nope. He said: 'F#@k off a*#hole?'"
"That," she said, shaken, "is the last time I will try to help anyone."
"Don't be silly. He is not an injured veteran. He is a substance abusing jerk who having been found responsible for the death of his passenger in a drunk-driving crash, has attached himself like a lamprey to the soft belly of individuals and the community. He has been seen tossing that chair into the back of a van and walking to the door and is more an object of contempt than pity. Don't let him effect your instinct to be nice."

SEapansie~Your note on credit reminds me of an old family restaurant hrre in our village that had signs on the wall filled with country wisdom, like: "All who pass our way make us happy...some with their coming and some with their going" and "Our credit manager's name is Helen Waite so if you're looking for credit...go to hel-n-wait."

Tommy, I'm with you on Sherlock. I can't wait!

Today it can be tricky to express routine chivalry. Random acts of kindness are viewed by some as patronizing. I can't quite wrap my nead around the concept that opening the car door for a lady somehow gets parlayed into a political statement. I know full well that the lady is capacitated to undertake the maneuver herself. The gesture is a sign of respect, and a complimentary expression of recognition. Damsels need not be in distress to be perceived as the recipient of a spontaneous heroic gesture. That simple event civilizes the wild beast & dignifies any occasion. Even "garden variety" events can be memorialized into enchanted moments.....

Bert ... I've encountered the same thing with those struggling with a disability. Sometimes, when asked if I may help, they're grateful and accept. At others though, the response is nasty. I find myself weighing what I should do for a little longer than my first impulse dictates. Judging by myself though, I'm very grateful for acts of chivalry and random acts of kindness.

Posted the John Fedan & Company Picture of Store.

Ahh, yes, a 3 flag salute to the knights of the sidewalk! This lady will never berate the man (or person) who opens a door or gives up a seat/chair for me! And I am happy to report that most of the fellows I have met are well-trained gentlemen, including those who take their dinner dishes to the sink, sense when the trash needs to go out and take it, and who will hop out and pump the gas when at the service (non-service?) station......That last question refers to the age that some of us can remember when a gas station WAS actually a service station with attendants who washed the windshield, swept out the floors, and checked the oil, as well as pumped your gas!! Knights of the gas station they were. Where are those guys now? I think I saw one in Oregon where it is against the law to pump your own gas!

Good manners are generally appreciated everywhere, dontcha' think?

Fellows, I hate to  reveal this 'cause we'll all probably be 'cut off' but I've come to believe that holding doors for the ladies presents the pure joy of 'checking her out' without being accused od malicious oglery with intent to gawk'. Hazel~does the next line of "In days of old.when knights were bold"have to do  with rubber and invention? Naughty, funny girl!

Oh my George Hall,......... that is too cute Hel "n" wait!!! See Helen Waite....cute indeed.....xxxxx

I was not brought up in an atmosphere where doors were opened, chairs pulled out, nor capes thrown over puddles for me.  At least, not that I remember.  I was the youngest of 5 and was generally lucky not to be left behind. My dad did teach my brothers to pick up after themselves, mow the lawn, and take out the garbage, but those fine little chivalrous details were not part of the mix. When I now encounter gentlemen who want me to walk ahead of them, or who rush in front of me to open a door, I accept gracefully, but when I was younger, I found the whole process a little awkward and uncomfortable.

I have always found that behaviour rises with expectations, or perhaps with presentation.
I have noted that men respond in a more masculine and gentlemanly manner the more feminine and ladylike that I appear. These traits being first nature to me, delightful results often ensue. This is most gratifying for all participants, as common courtesy and manners are nothing less than social lubrication, and persons of certain experience are well aware of that necessity in all endeavours.
As the pendulum swings, one may reasonably anticipate the return of gentlemen in fedoras (the odd Borsalino is also appreciated) and ladies in gloves and floral sundresses. I do my part, though I have been asked why I am in costume. I reply gently that this is fashion, a dimly remembered practice of past gentlefolk.
Puzzled looks...
Doors are rarely opened (in both the literal and figurative senses) for heavily-tattooed rodeo clowns or those of indeterminate genetic provenance who choose to venture out of doors in their pjs and bunny slippers.
A girl can dream.

O-livia ~
How you been keeping?

George Hall ~
Only once, when standing aside to allow a woman to precede me up a staircase, was I busted: she stopped.
"Were you… checkin' me out?"
"Absolutely," I admitted.
"How am I doing?" she asked.
"Splendidly," I answered and we walked on.

Welcome home, OLIVia
 
 
 
STONEY, WELL SAID...
 
RINGS IS CORRECT: PASSENGERS ON THESEPIA TRAIN POSSESS KNIGHTHOOD'S FAIREST QUALITIES..
 
IT IS CUSTOMARY, STILL, WHERE I LIVE, FOR A MAN TO OPEN A DOOR.  I'M NEVER OFFENDED; RATHER, GRATEFUL.  AND BOTH OF US TAKE DELIGHT IN THE GESTURE.  IT IS HARD FOR ME TO IMAGINE ANYONE'S BEING DISPLEASED BY THAT SITUATION, WWHICH OFTEN LEADS TO AN INTERESTING EXCHANGE. FOR EXAMPLE, RECENTLY WHEN A MAN OPENED A DOOR FOR ME, I LAUGHED, THANKED HIM,AND SAID, "CHIVALRY LIVES."  HE: 
AS LONG AS I BREATHE."  YOU JUST NEVER KNOW, AND I WOULDN'T DENY HIM THAT SMALL PLEASURE.
 
I, TOO, OPEN DOORS FOR OTHERS, BY THE WAY, WITHOUT RESPECT TO GENDER.

Uh, oh, it's been a while since I read my copy of "The Art Of Courtly Love" by Andreas Capellanus.  I gave up on romance and chilvary early on in my marriage. 
 
It's nice but the bills, laundry, shopping, cooking, cleaning, yard work, jobs, etc. always got in the way.  Oh that and the fact that my exhusband frequently declared that he didn't have a single romantic bone in his body, but he secretly always wanted to by the knight in shining armor without doing the work.  *sigh*
 
Olivia, agreed!
 
On the subject of opening doors.  I was once on a blind date with a guy who had removed the knobs off of the locks in his car.  I didn't notice when I got in but when we arrived at the restaurant he jumped out, hit the lock button and then ran around to unlock and open my door.  He said too many women wouldn't let him open the door for him so he was forced to take drastic measures to prove to them how "gentlemanly" he was.  Needless to say that is going to extremes and there was no second date.  If you have to try that hard it comes off as a little creepy.
 
Another male friend constantly complains that women don't let him open doors for them or if he beats them to it they get offended.  He then went on to say his biggest pet peeve is when he is at an entrace that has a double door vetibule he will open the outer door and then the woman feels like she has to open and hold the inner door for him.  He said that he doesn't want anyone to feel like they have to reciprocate the gesture and that women should NOT open the second doors by themselves as it is an insult to the man who opened the first door.  To which I asked "So what are we supposed to do if say you are leaving that building and I am entering...stand in the vestibule, trapped like a zoo animal, until someone else comes along to open it?"  He laughed and admitted that I had a point.

Olivia, your point about behaviour rising with expectation rings true. I think perhaps that I didn't get many doors held for me when I was younger had a lot to do with my dour and surly expression more than anything else. I am a much happier and more pleasant person now.  Not that the gents are falling over themselves to open doors for me, but I can pull off the whole thing now with more ease and grace.

Remember the scene in movie My Fair Lady where Eliza, getting ready to leave for the ball, waits by the door for Prof Higgins to open it. As if it would never occur to a lady to reach for the door by herself. Higgins stops, checks himself, and opens the door. I think I have that right. It was either the door, or she needed help with her wrap or something.  That small scene really punctuated how complete the transformation had gone from guttersnipe to lady.

Myself and my 6 siblings, regardless of our sex were raised to open doors, take off ballcaps inside and during prayers (fine ladies hats were exempt), give up our seats for the pregnant the elderly or the infirm, to stop and help when we a need, to mind our p's & q's, pick up litter whether we were responsible for it or not, to speak up for those that couldn't speak for themselves, how to disagree without arguing, and to respect and learn from those who had more experience than us (ie. our elders).
And then there were the separate guidelines for boys and girls.  Boys always wore a suit and tie to any church function (unless otherwise specified), funeral, wedding, or business function...girls were to wear a nice dress, stockings, formal shoes and have our hair neatly done in the same situations.  Any form of denim was strictly forbidden in any of those situations.  Boys adressed all women as miss or m'am.  Girls addressed all men as sir. Etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc.
 
The boys and girls both learned cooking, cleaning, economy, sewing, wood working, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, and gardening.  Each of us took to different chores which worked out fine in a big family.  But I think the important thing is that my parents both took it upon themselves to not only teach us how to physically take care of ourselves and others, but how to emotionally and socially do the same...all while being examples of the traits they wished to instill in us.
 
Dad never rode a charger, fought a duel, or engaged in physical battle...but he was and is the most chivalrous gentleman I've ever known.  He calmly slew his metaphorical dragons with dignity and without expectation of praise or reward.  He is thoughtful, loving, even tempered, tender, strong, educated, hard working, romantic, funny (in his own dry "dad" sort of way), intelligent, and considerate of all he comes in contact with.  That to me is chivalry.

Andy, your point is well-taken. We're all in this lifeboat called earth together, and some of us are laden with special skills, others with special limitations. Seems reasonable to assume that the golden rule means gently offering to ease someone else's burden. Eventually we all need assistance. Personally I'd rather ambulate with only one good leg than have the fate of trying to order from a menu with no English subtitles to the French text.....but that's just me.

Tommy T: After a couple of Medieval Martinis I might don the J Peterman suit of armor I ordered on the Royal Internet & strap on the monogrammed mace, hop my steed and vie for fame and fortune, boys.

Sir Ector: I remember my first joust. It looks far worse than it feels!

Oh-livia uh Oh! will wonders never..........I am (almost) without words.  But not quite.  ........ Stoney:  is that guy out on bail - the drunk driver?  I'm behind on the story - but he has no sympathy in this quarter.  Drunk driving is just that and shouldn't be no matter the circumstances.

I heard it like this:  courtly love and chivalry existed only in conversation, and in books.  In truth, there was little that was chivalrous about ladies and gentlemen in the court of Sir Arthur...a wedding band meant nothing, and while Arthur made his table round in the name of equality, the royal and knightly beds might too havel been round (and revolving), for all the changing of partners that went on...Chivalrous behavior made for a lofty topic of conversation, but in practice it was a bore - unless one considers making a cuckhold out of a friend with his wife.  Like the Round Table, Arthurian style chivalry would be short-lived, except in the legends...........................................One last thing:  if I were to find out that Camelot and Arthur never existed, I would be crushed.  It would be a thousand times worse than finding out that Peter Pan is a made up character and that he isn't, at this moment, at home in Neverland.

nachista~ Arise, Sir nacista's Dad!

Amazing as it is, to some people good manners are a pretension. I know that sounds ridiculous but its true. Chivalry, on the other hand, can be spontaneous and from the heart. I was lucky enough to be raised by, be married to and give birth to 3 gentlemen but every now and then I am totally charmed by the instincts of a diamond in the rough.

Years ago I flew to North Carolina to work on a Ty-d-bol (the guy in the boat!) commercial and I was astounded and THRILLED by the gentlemanly manners of
almost all the men. I think the South definitely outclasses the North when it comes to civility. Men in NYC and the N.E. can be warm and friendly but most of them will run you over in their zeal to get to wherever.

And yes, I have to say how lucky we are to have all Gentlemen here in the Village.

Somewhere deep inside us all and ‘cos it is etched in bone it cannot be completely hidden or forgotten, at least for more than a lifetime is a "To Do List" of virtues that should be practiced.

It is never changed or altered in any way so there are never any checkmarks, erasures, line outs......it is a mandatory minimum requirement meant to help us all lead as good and worthy life as possible. But being the mere mortals that we are..... no one is on top of their game for most of their lives; but not necessarily from a lack of trying a lot of the time.

Too often, this To-Do list gets sent to the bottom of the stack, put off ‘till the tomorrow that never comes, or just plain forgotten in the heat of a lifetime.

There are many examples of exemplary people with great virtues, but even they have their faults. Real boats rock dontcha know....

I think that if one's behavior reflects the worthy and noble intentions that set them in motion, the world becomes a better place. Even if your heart isn't in it, if your behavior is virtuous.....I think most of us can live with that.

It is the behavior that each generation passes on that shapes the values and behaviors of the next. Now that is what I call a burden worth bearing.

Fortunatley for me today's topic is concerned with being virtuous 'cos a previous post hit me 'neath my usually difficult to penetrate dragon scales and I would have responded with bbbaaadddd intentions.

'tis a lesson for me to head............ at least this time.

peace out....... gotta go row for a while.

p.s.

Northsider - Pan, The Once and Future King, Merlin and Frodo are all alive and well.....somewhere...everywhere

I can't believe I found this.  Check it out around the 4 minute mark.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwVnqZZThIc&feature=relmfu

Andy~ For some reason some folk are uncomfortable accepting help, gifts, compliments. I've learned that when offered the most gracious thing to do is to accept and say 'thank you'.

...as in "That's really a nice suit." "Yes, it is...thanks...it didn't look near this  good on the rack though.""

To all the gallant knights of the EYE, I would be honored if you were willing to wear my colors in the lists.

Rusty~ Done! Hey, ya'll stop pushing...form a line. Could we have a little decorum here?!

MISS OLIVIA:   How Very Pleasant Seeing You !!!!!!!  Sorry I have missed bantering with you this day ... Hope You are back in the Village for a while !!!!!!!
 
 
Now, it is time for me to Wish You All a GREAT WEEKEND !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fun & Sun, Good Friends, Good Food, Good Wine, and Lots of Happy Family !!!
Leave Everything Go Till Monday, and Just Unlax ... Spend a Day at Pismo Beach !!!
(or some reasonable facsimile) Have a Safe & Enjoyable Weekend, and Bet more than two Dollars for a change .......
 
 
To the TRIBE:  GOOD  SHABBOS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I Wish You All a Sabbath of Peace, a Sabbath of Joy, and a Sabbath of Rest .......
 
 
"Happy Are We ... How Good is Our Portion, and How Pleasant Our Lot ...
How Beautiful Our Heritage ..."
 
May Our Rest Be Pleasing Unto Him Who Brought Us Here .......
 
 
Blessings Upon You All !!!
 
 
IVAN

IVAN, I thank thee and send Great Shabbos your way O'Mighty King of the Kingdom of Texas' tribes. Be very wellHudson john

Ivan- Thanks for a beautiful blessing, sir!

Olivia - Hi Ya - Your showing appearance on the Sepia Train has certainly brightened my day.

I think the poor guys of my generation are confused, they were brought up to learn that women's lib & the absence of manners are one in the same.

I fear I was a bit too hard on them in my earlier post.

At one point in my life I was privileged to work with basketball and football coaches at KU.  They could be coarse.  They could be tough and obdurate as only a coach can be.  But to me they were always Gentlemen.....maybe not knights of the realm....but maybe again they were---I know they would have slain dragons for me as well as they opened doors and made sure that everyone around treated me like a Lady!  And I know, as sure as I'm sitting here writing that not every knight had the manners of David Niven nor the wit and adroitness of James Bond.  I'm sure most were scarred and tattered.....not many died of old age probably.   They sort of fit our definition of a hero: they saw their duty and they did it.  Respectfully, honestly, diligently and valorously.        I'm looking for a knight in shining armor that is willing to give up his privacy and personal life for at least four years to lead us as a nation.            And I will definitely wave my colors to all the grand knights of Peterman's village.  Long may you live and prosper and not be hoist on your own petard.  May your armor not rust and may your Lady love smile graciously on you.

Rings, sometimes they know better and just can't be bothered, but sometimes they are genuinely confused about what is appropriate.  I just expect nothing chivalrous and then if someone opens a door or tips their hat or offers me a seat I am pleasantly surprised.

I still remember my high school welding class.  There were 3 girls and 20 boys.  On the first day the teacher laid down the ground rules for safety and the class curiculum and then asked all the girls to step out into the shop, close the classroom door behind us, and wait for him to come and get us.  Of course we all listened in at the door...
 
Teacher "Listen up because I am only going to say this once.  I know all of you and I know your parents and they would probably agree with me.  If there is ANY graba**ing around or general disrespect of those young women in this class you will not only be kicked out of the class and receive a failing grade, I will personal tan your hide.  Understood?"
 
Followed by a chorus of "YES SIR".  Followed by a semester of the utmost respect, patience, and helpfulness.  They were all pretty good kids and knew how to behave but I'm sure that without Dave's warning a few of them might have pulled some practical jokes or made a move on at least one of us girls.  Sometimes even the best teenagersneeds a kick in the pants to remind them of how they should behave.

45 minutes left in the work and 0 work I can do, all I can do is sit by the phone and wait for it to ring.  Time to dust the desk and clean out the drawers I guess.

NACHISTA~Thanks for a good-teacher story and an experience that you  recall with satisfaction and fond memories! Aren't you glad you heard his talk? A la Ivan...good on your teacher!

Now where did my manners runnoft to hide? Hey Olivia, nice to see and read you in the neighborhood again. Hope all has been well your way.

No need to don a heavy, shiny, outward suit of armor.

Summon up the one you have inside, the one you maybe had forgotten was there.

Just a little something called courage.

A gesture as simple as holding a door for the folks behind you was ingrained in me by witnessing my father's behavior. It is so rewarding to receive a pleasant response from someone, who on the surface, would seem to be the least likely to do so.

Holding a door, an elevator...Getting something down from a too high shelf........returning someone's grocerie cart in a parking lot for them, just lending a hand to lighten the load can completely turn around a bad day to a good one for all involved in that little play called life.

As the day winds down, I can't help but wonder what Monty Python would contribute, were he a member of our discussion. Or Wallace & Gromit, they've got lots of doors in that stately castle-like building resurrected for the celebration of The Jubilee via animated cartoon ads.....

"Easy Rider" took me from days of yore to modern day knights riding Harleys in search of Excalibur, i.e. idealized America. The low budget statement films have since captured me and the Renaissance Man who jousts with his mind and battles the dragons in his own soul. “Genius is no more than childhood recaptured at will, childhood equipped now with man's physical means to express itself, and with the analytical mind that enables it to bring order into the sum of experience involuntarily amassed.” Baudelaire intrigued my inner knight & Jung as did Denzel in The Mighty Quinn. Come all without, come all within. You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn

Peter Lake ~ I'm with you.  I will hold a door for the folks behind me,
male,female, young or old.  I will step aside and hold the door for someone exiting. It's just plain common courtesy.  As for knighthood, I'm one of the woeful countenance, tilting at windmills.                                                                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                      It's been a long, tough week. I will be the one turning in early.  G'Knight, all.

One morning our mom lined us up two by two (my three brother and I) on the steps in the back hall and sat down on a bench at the bottom to address us.
A first, this kind of thing was usually left to the long winded member of the family but he was out of town.
"Decent is how you want to be, minimum: comb your hair, wash your face and hands, brush your teeth, tuck your shirt in, don't have your belt hanging and zip up.
More important, watch what comes out of your mouth because as you all know, there is a price to pay for saying things you know you shouldn't."
Three of our heads turned in shock towards our older brother, the golden boy, amazed that anything unseemly had ever passed his lips.
"Civil" she said, "is greeting everyone you meet with a smile and some sort of kind word and thought but do more."
I should point out here that if there had been a land of Dumor, the golden boy would have been a member of its Royal House. He did good on the way to and from everything and was never late… a heavy load for the rest of us if you know what I mean.
There were a lot of practical examples: carrying groceries, running to the post office or store, cutting grass, helping with gardens and on and on.
Then, with a sigh, she came to fighting: "There are four of you and you are expected to look out for each other and I know that every now and again some mother is going to drag a crying kid over here with a shiner or a bloody nose but two shiners, a bloody nose, a split lip, two loose teeth… and a limp is too much."
At which point Jack mumbled that the only reason the kid was still able to limp is that he had been interrupted before the job was done.
"You are," she said, "my boys and I love you and I will defend you but if you can't  each be a nice boy, there's no reason to be a boy at all."
She went out to the garden and we sat there asking: "What the heck was that all about?"
The GB figured that it had been preemptive but we never knew for sure about what.
Maybe everything.

BERT the Nights of Python say NI!

conspicuously missing: traffic situations. A simple "oops" rather than a one finger salite,a glare,a horn, etc......and letting someone "butt"in to traffic that would rather speed on by, only getting to the next stop light first-er....courtesy in traffic;learned it from my Dad....