Milt Reynolds: Thinking Out Loud

Quitter: The First Chapter I'm reading a book called Quitter , by Jon Acuff. It's good. Very good. So far, the book describes the difference between a day job and a dream job and how the two are related. Lots of what he's saying hits at the core of my heart, illuminating things I've seen only dimly before. Because I'm a writer, and a teacher , I have now an undeniable urge to pass on some of the good stuff I've found in his book. Chapter One: Don't Quit Your Day Job "The trick to removing your clothes in a bathroom stall is to start with your shirt." That's the first sentence in Jon's book. Really. It's his way of grabbing the reader's attention, drawing him into the essence of this first chapter: Jon hated his day job and loved his dream job . You'll have to read the book to see how bathroom-stall clothes-removal ties into the conflict between day and dream jobs. But I wanted you to quickly understand Jon

Break-Away Lanyard Knot It's easy to buy hardware to attach to a lanyard that will break away if snagged accidentally. My work requires that I wear an ID badge around my neck, and my employer supplies simple neck lanyards with plastic break-away clasps. That's OK...I guess. I'd much prefer a solution that is cord only, using a break-away knot . A search of the internet didn't yield exactly what I was searching for, so I tried my own design. Here's how I did it. Step One: Start with about 60 inches of cord. I used 1/8-inch diameter cord, similar to paracord, but a bit more stiff. Paracord would probably work even better. Step Two: Make a bight 24 inches from one end. The length of the bight is not critical. After experimenting, 24 inches seemed a good way to start, but the knots will need dressing, and exact lengths will be adjusted later. Also, the diameter, and the stiffness, of the cord you choose to use will affect cord length. Be prepare