West Wind by Mary Oliver

You are young. So you know everything. You leap
into the boat and begin rowing. But listen to me.
Without fanfare, without embarrassment, without
any doubt, I talk directly to your soul. Listen to me.
Lift the oars from the water, let your arms rest, and
your heart, and heart’s little intelligence, and listen to
me. There is life without love. It is not worth a bent
penny, or a scuffed shoe. It is not worth the body of a
dead dog nine days unburied. When you hear, a mile
away and still out of sight, the churn of the water
as it begins to swirl and roil, fretting around the
sharp rocks – when you hear that unmistakable
pounding – when you feel the mist on your mouth
and sense ahead the embattlement, the long falls
plunging and steaming – then row, row for your life
toward it.

when standing your ground isn't always a good thing

x: I've got to hand it to you Julie you're a strong woman - you've got balls of steel the way you stand up to me. If I spoke to Rebecca the way I spoke to you last night she'd run away and wouldn't speak to me for weeks and I'd never hear the end of it!
j: yeah well maybe if I reacted more like that you'd stop doing it.....

Ithaka by Constantine Cavafy

When you set out for Ithaka
ask that your way be long,
full of adventure, full of instruction.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclops,
angry Poseidon - do not fear them:
such as these you will never find
as long as your thought is lofty, as long as a rare
emotion touch your spirit and your body.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclops,
angry Poseidon - you will not meet them
unless you carry them in your soul,
unless your soul raise them up before you.

Ask that your way be long.
At many a Summer dawn to enter
with what gratitude, what joy -
ports seen for the first time;
to stop at Phoenician trading centres,
and to buy good merchandise,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
and sensuous perfumes of every kind,
sensuous perfumes as lavishly as you can;
to visit many Egyptian cities,
to gather stores of knowledge from the learned.

Have Ithaka always in your mind.
Your arrival there is what you are destined for.
But don't in the least hurry the journey.
Better it last for years,
so that when you reach the island you are old,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to give you wealth.
Ithaka gave you a splendid journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She hasn't anything else to give you.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka hasn't deceived you.
So wise you have become, of such experience,
that already you'll have understood what these Ithakas mean.

low profile... high hopes

J: hey I've just spotted a dating site called 'One Night Stand Dating.com' - isn't that what all dating sites are?
G: hahaha!I may be removing my profile from all sites soon......
J: really - should I buy a hat? are you entering holy matrimony or are you entering holy orders?
G: haha, good question - may be I should consider the latter....
J: so why are you removing your profile?
G: cos I'm more than just a little bit bored/tired/fed-up with the whole thing, and cos Ive started dating someone I met at a mate's place....
J: ooohhhh exciting
G: yup, very
J: fantastic - well done!
G: thanks, but not going to talk about it, for fear for jinxing it....
J: I'm genuinely pleased for you and hope it works out - don't worry about jinxing it - if it's right you can't jinx it

ask a busy person

J: Zach had two of his friends round for tea tonight, he was supposed to be going to their house after school but their mum said she couldn't have him after all and would have to cancel so I said her kids could come to me instead.
D: yeah I always end up having everyone else's kids too
J: I know you do. When I dropped them off home at nearly 7 o'clock it occurred to me that I'd been working all day 30 miles away and had been on the go constantly whereas their mum Julia doesn't work!
D: that's the same as Karen next door - I always end up feeding her kids when I get home from work even though she's home all day
J: Margie's dad, Norman, explained it to me at the weekend though. He said that if you want to get something done you should ask a busy person!
D: oh great! Why's that?
J: because if you've got a million things to do already, one more thing doesn't seem like much more, but if you've only got one thing to do, one more thing doubles your workload and seems insurmountable!