Ranting and doing

It sure is fun to get going on a good rant sometimes. There’s plenty of subject matter. Injustice and criminality abound.

That has its place, but ranting without ever doing anything is just a waste of time and personal energy.

My wife has a friend who used to go on and on about how she thought her husband was cheating on her. She had this whole rant down cold. My lovely wife asked her if she wanted to hop in the car and see what he was really up to. The thought of finding out for certain terrified her. She refused to do it.

My lovely wife said, “Did you want me to help or did you want me to make sympathetic noises?”

In the end the husband confessed. They got a divorce. Both their lives got better.

We were staying at a campground. The guy next to me was going on and on about the price of diesel. He was a truck driver and the price of fuel was killing him. I showed him that my vehicle was veggie oil powered. I told him there are truck drivers out there running veggie at least some of the time to reduce their expenses. The guy got mad at me for beating the system. How dare I do something about the high cost of fuel.

Most people complain about their power company. How many do anything about it? A buddy of mine just put in a small 45 watt solar electric system and some LED lights. Sure, it’s a small step, but it’s a step. At least he won’t be sitting in the dark when the power goes out. What really drives me nuts is those people suffering under huge utility bills but refuse to do even simple conservation measures.

The rants go on and on: jobs, politics, economy, personal problems, the environment -the list is never ending. Complaining and ranting about something gives the illusion of doing something. It’s not.

There’s a reason we say actions are louder than words.

-Sixbears