There comes a time in everyone’s life when a person feels comfortable believing what they believe, knowing that others around them may not necessarily share the identical view.

Part of this comfort can take the form of a kind of wisdom; a wisdom that freely admits there are things one doesn’t know about a particular subject, or the world in general, but  still happily allows one to cling to what they wish to believe anyway. With me? Sort of?  It’s a feeling that might be bumper stickered to – “I’m the one behind the wheel. I don’t need to know how a car engine is built to drive this thing.”

In case you missed it, that was the philosophically scented portion of the post. I’ll admit it went dangerously close to getting all serious for a moment there, which, if that actually happened, would have spelt big trouble for me. See, I’ve instructed some trusted minders to drop me from a great height the day this blog ever gets to sound too serious (mind, the protest-post about loud music speakers at ParkRun a while back went dangerously close), full of its own importance, or, banish the thought, ‘preachy’.

Anyway, here’s a list of my core beliefs, arranged in no particular order, that came to me the other day when I was thinking on this subject for a reason I no longer remember. In fact, best scrub the term ‘core beliefs’, since that could be mistaken for some kind of fake-as-a-$3-note corporate-speak term you might hear from one of those annoyingly upbeat life-coach types, and replace it with the far more low-key ‘things I’ve come to believe’.

Watchout. Possible lifehacks incoming…

  ♠    Having dreams is what makes life tolerable.

  ♣    Some days ‘people skills’ means not resorting to beating anyone with a stick.

♥      Never seriously tick off the person who cooks your dinner.

  ♦     There are two reasons to distrust people –

         (1) You don’t know them.

         (2) You know them.

 ♠     On success:  At first they’ll ask why you’re doing it. Later they’ll ask you how you did it.                                                                                                                          

 ♣     Kindness when no one’s looking is as good as it gets.

 ♥     Sometimes you need to dig in the dirt to find the places you got hurt.

 ♦     Drive carefully ’cause 60% of people are caused by accidents.

  ♠    Speaking about core values is a little like watching footy on the couch – a person very possibly won’t truly know what some of their deeply held beliefs are until they’re handed the ball and have to run with it.

♣     And lastly, if you want to stay on speaking terms with your liver, avoid the Mumbai Scotch.                  

That’s it. And now you know.

Ps. Thanks to singer Peter Gabriel for the one in red.

Pss. THIS SEND-UP VIDEO  brilliantly satirizes people and corporations fond of overly- seriously espousing ‘core values’.

Psss. For all those who’ve ever gone the spray tan, this bonus read is for you.

CLICK HERE  (This story is supposed to be titled AFTERGLOW btw not OVERGLOW)

Pssss.  Meanwhile this past week in Birmingham UK…

A filmgoer has passed away due to a freak accident inside a Gold Class cinema.

The man’s head became wedged in the footrest of his luxury seat. Paramedics had to be called after the customer dropped his mobile phone between the new Vue Cinema Gold Class seats at the end of the film and became stuck when the electronic folding footrest clamped down on his head as he bent down to pick it up. The man suffered a cardiac arrest while staff at the cinema tried to free him.

I say this without the slightest hint of flippancy – I have never experienced Gold Class cinema and have no immediate plans to do so. Dying from boredom induced by watching certain movies (not trying to be the critic – it just comes out!) is likely a far higher health risk for me.

Psssss. Returning lastly again to the subject of core values (eye-roll ok), SCENIC WRITER’S SHACK pledges it will recognise and celebrate excellence no matter what the field – publishing, cinema, theatre, fine art…. or horseracing. Congratulations go to the equine Queen of Australian horseracing WINX for recording her 17th consecutive Group 1 win (a world record) and 24th consecutive race win at the Golden Slipper Stakes in Sydney last weekend.

BONUS FACT: Unlike many elite racehorses, WINX does not have a particularly long stride – her stride has been measured at 6.76 metres (22.2 ft) compared to nearly 8.5 metres (28 ft) for Black Caviar and Phar Lap. Instead, her success has been attributed to a “freakish” stride rate that allows her to take 14 strides every 5 seconds, compared to 12 for her rivals. Once again, now you know.