BOOKMARKS, TOSS NO MAS, AND MONK

That's me. As I continue my transparency series of blog entries.

I don't like to dog ear books to mark my place. First of all, it takes me awhile to get through a book. I know, most readers devour their subjects, can't put it down style, but I never grew out of the stage where you wanted to keep the book going. Kinda like you hated to part with an old friend. So I would be sure to be kind to my friend and not dog ear pages. I didn't care what kind of bookmark it was, and I'd never buy one though I do keep an ASU Alumni one courtesy of our daughter within arm's reach of the computer and bookshelves. But libraries used to offer them celebrating some kind of week or another and I snatch a few for later use.

After we dropped off our daughter at ASU in the Fall of 1998 and headed back across country, I noticed a sign in New Mexico touting cleaner highways. Their anti-litter program was simply called Toss No Mas. Or Toss No More. No more throwing litter. As the advisor to our school's literary art magazine, I knew we had plenty of funds in our account. So we started a Toss No Mas program rewarding students we saw putting litter in its place. Actually, that's not right, for if litter is put in its proper place, then it's thrown on the ground. Rewarding students who tossed no mas. We even used the school's security cameras to catch people putting their trash in the receptacles provided. We must have given away 5 or 6 hundred dollars over the years. One student told me we had changed her life. At least as far as littering goes. To this day, you will not catch me littering even with a gum wrapper.

Monk is a tv show that I've only heard about. I understand he is a neatness freak. I'm sorta like that. Especially with pictures that are lopsided or tags that stick out of shirts or blouses. I wish I could be more like Monk. After last night's Small Group Bible Study at our house we had snacks as usual. I dropped some veggie dip on the front of my shirt. Friend Bob pointed it out to me, telling me I'd saved some for breakfast. I didn't wait that long to clean it up, but appreciated the suggestion. And the fact that he told me. I'm working my way up to telling people they have food on their face or clothes.

I'm not like Felix Unger yet. But I suppose I'm working on that, too. My last purchase was a hand held mini-vac for the house. I'd write more, but I think I saw some crumbs from last night's chocolate cheese cake. They were just sitting there on the family room floor.