Laughable Learning 8/30/09

Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment.

Barry LePatner
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A good Sunday to you.
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Hurry and get your notebook ready because September is coming and that means all the quotes will come from DB, The....
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It's a good thing human babies are so small. They fall down many times learning how to walk but they don't have far to go.

Why is it, I wonder, that life's lessons must so often come wrapped up in scars, in bruised knees and bumped heads? Why do we have to wring our hands and say things like "When will I ever learn?" It is a simple matter after all. It's arithmetic. If you do this, that happens. If you do this again, that will happen again. What could be more obvious.

This afternoon I boiled an egg. When it was boiled I turned the heat off to let it cool and came back to the computer. After a few minutes I went back to the stove to see if the water was cool enough to take the egg out. I reached into the water to see. Simple science and very reasonable. But I scalded my fingers. You see? says the Physics professor. Ah, but, says the neophyte scientist, how else am I going to tell if the water is cool? Why don't you run some cold water into the pot for awhile, says the professor in a patient but patronizing tone. Oh, I didn't think of that, says the humbled student. You will, next time, assures the Nobel winning professor. But does he? Of course not. How many scalding of the fingers does it take to learn the scientific principle of cooling a hard boiled egg?

Then there's the geometry of preparation and expectation. Why am I in debt? asks the startled student. Because you ran up too many purchases on your credit card, responds the sage professor. Yes, but I was paying off the balance just fine. I didn't expect them to raise my interest rate so high, said the resentful young fellow.
And why not? queries the wily master scientist. Surely you realized you were living on credit and the bank was loaning you that credit and could exact a greater interest charge anytime they wanted to? Yes, but.... And you got your credit cards from banks didn't you? Well, yes, but.... And banks like to make money off of interests on loans and mortgages, right? Yes, I suppose so, but.... Well, if you put this angle with that angle you have a perfect circle with you left out. Yes, I see, well I'll know better next time, the kid assures the professor. We'll see, says the world famous Doctor of Physics.

But now we leave simple math and reach into advanced calculus. How well do you know yourself? How many more times will you skin your knees? How many more times will you put your fingers into the scalding pot? How much more money will you lose to greedy banks or some scam you've bought into? Me, I'm counting up the lessons learned. But I'm still bumping my head.

DB
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Walk under the parasol of peace.
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