ComputerHunter.org

 

Does Size Matter?


Bigger is better. Isn't that the American dream?

Why buy a road-hogging, critter-squishing, bumper-defying, wall-of-metal SUV when you have the delicious option of buying a BIGGER road-hogging, critter-squishing, bumper-defying, wall-of-metal SUV?

Why settle for a puny three-bedroom, two-bathroom bungalow of our parents' generation nestled comfortably on a green plot of land with a few nice shade trees? In new "developments" these days, you can choose a two-storey home bulging beyond the property line of today's incredible shrinking lots, complete with a bedroom that can sleep 34 PLUS a walk-in closet that sleeps another 20 AND an ensuite bathroom big enough to store your SUV when your 300-cubit-long garage is full of toys or tools. (That's one arc-full, in case you didn't know.)

I remember early in primary school how the teachers made us line up according to height before we could go into the school. I suppose it was a measure of our universally exemplary behavior that I had plenty of time to daydream in line while some of the more spirited children were rounded up by the sheep dogs.

My line-up thoughts often turned to dissecting school rules in hopes of finding intelligent life in them. Although my futile quest never succeeded, all was not lost. As one of the shorter kids in my class, I developed a theoretic framework for the "lining up by height" rule. That framework took the form of three questions:

  • If size does not matter, why were we being sorted by height?

  • If size does matter, what do the teachers have against us shorter kids, making a daily display of the height we lacked?

  • If big is better, why were the shorter kids given the front seats with the better view?

    Although the answers to those questions remain a mystery to this day, I am convinced that size does not matter (except when someone offers me a slice of cheesecake ? yum!).

    My wife and I witnessed an awesome display of aviation the other day. Two hawks were flying around across the street, swooping right over us at times. They were trying to establish a new nest.

    Usually, hawks fly somewhere "up there", distant silhouettes against the blinding brightness of the sky. But on this occasion, they were flying low enough for us to make out the colors beneath their wings: the deep, dark brown and the sandy tan feathers.

    And low enough to see the colors of the little birds (sparrows, perhaps?) giving chase. It was an even match, or so it seemed. Two sparrows versus two hawks. OK, perhaps not completely even. Each hawk looked big enough to gulp down a sparrow in a single chomp, like a person might swallow a grape. Come to think of it, this match did not look any more even than if I had been placed in a ring with a well-fed sumo wrestler.

    Yet there they were, two big hawks, graceful and majestic, the scourge of field mice everywhere, managing impossible maneuvers to evade the slightest touch of the tiny sparrows.

    Why? Because sparrows are more agile than hawks, and can more easily position themselves for attack. Because sparrows are less fragile than hawks, and do not fear feather damage to the same degree. Because sparrows are quicker than hawks, so they can more easily retreat if they have to.

    Sadly for the hawks, their size was of little comfort against the superior skills of the sparrows. And sadly for us, it appears we will NOT be watching the comings and goings of hawks nesting across the street.

    Does size matter? No. But if you want to make that slice of cheesecake just a bit bigger, I would be much obliged.

    About The Author

    David Leonhardt is The Happy Guy. Read more articles like this at: http://TheHappyGuy.com/self-actualization-articles.html. Or sign up for the free online Happy Class at: http://TheHappyGuy.com/self-actualization-happy-class.html

    info@thehappyguy.com







    Google News - Top Stories

    Washington Post

    McCain Accepts GOP Nomination
    Washington Post - 44 minutes ago
    Sen. John McCain rallied supporters by emphasizing his experience and declaring that "it's time for us to show the world again how Americans lead" during his presidential nomination acceptance speech Thursday night.
    Dems say McCain admonished "do-nothing" group that he is a part of CNN
    Obama says GOP ignores pocketbook issues Los Angeles Times
    Chicago Sun-Times - Houston Chronicle - San Jose Mercury News - Bloomberg
    all 1,068 news articles


    BBC News

    Meteoric rise ends in dramatic crash for Kilpatrick
    DetNews.com - 1 hour ago
    DETROIT -- His reputation in tatters, Kwame Kilpatrick leaves the mayor's office with an uncertain future and an inescapable legacy.
    Video: Detroit Mayor Gets Jail Time, Must Resign AssociatedPress
    Detroit’s Mayor Will Leave Office and Go to Jail New York Times
    Macomb Daily - Wall Street Journal - CNN International - Washington Post
    all 5,803 news articles


    ABC News

    Tropical Storm Hanna aiming for Massachusetts
    Boston Globe - 2 hours ago
    By Andrew Ryan and Martin Finucane, Globe Staff Tropical Storm Hanna is expected to churn up the Atlantic coast and lash Massachusetts this weekend with winds gusting up to 50 mph near the coast and up to four inches of rain.
    Video: Hanna Nears US, but Stronger Ike Looms AssociatedPress
    Hanna's rains start falling in Franklin County tonight Chambersburg Public Opinion
    Lancaster Newspapers - The Associated Press - WLNE-TV (ABC6)
    all 5,161 news articles


    Washington Post

    Abramoff Sentenced To Four More Years
    CBS News - 27 minutes ago
    By John Bresnahan (The Politico) Former GOP super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff was sentenced Thursday to an additional 48 months in prison for conspiring to corrupt public officials and tax evasion.
    Abramoff gets reduced sentence San Jose Mercury News
    Abramoff Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison for Corruption Washington Post
    KTEN - New York Times - BBC News - NewsOK.com
    all 750 news articles


    WNCT

    Soldiers' Suicide Rate On Pace to Set Record
    Washington Post - 2 hours ago
    By Ann Scott Tyson Suicides among active-duty soldiers this year are on pace to exceed both last year's all-time record and, for the first time since the Vietnam War, the rate among the general US population, Army officials said yesterday.
    Soldier Suicides Could Surpass Record New York Times
    Army: soldier suicide rate may set record again The Associated Press
    Voice of America - AFP - Stars and Stripes - Army Public Affairs
    all 298 news articles

  • Google
     

    Copyright © 2006 Computer Hunter - A Division of Arthur´s Job Base