Category Archives: Oscar Wilde

Mar 04 1 comments
Compliments & Complications, Oscar Wilde

Complimenting Cleavage – Compliments and Their Complications #1

 

It’s not complicated – today is day #1 of Compliments Week at the NDD.

compliments 1

Complimenting Cleavage – An Embarrassing Story

This past weekend I went to an art gallery opening.  My wife Linda was out of town so I was solo.  The gallery was filled with well dressed, glamourous people.  I saw a friend and we were talking about my napkins, which she said she loved getting every day.  She is well known and so she was constantly seeing and greeting new people as they came by.  I waited patiently for a respite to continue the conversation when I noticed a woman next to me also waiting to speak to this woman.  She had on a very intricate lace top with little colored things woven in. Under it was a plain black camisole. She also had on an elegant necklace that went to mid-chest.  Her hair framed the necklace and the lace top very nicely.  

I noticed all this in a split second, turned to her and said, with a hand gesture, “I love your top!”  Just as I said it realized, along with all those other things I just mentioned, that she had a very pronounced cleavage. Large breasts, low top.  My choice of words suddenly didn’t seem the best.  She looked at me like I had just said the most awkward thing I could have possibly said, and I had.  I did my best to recover, doing another circle of my hand and saying, “It all works great; the lace, necklace, hair, very nice”. I then introduced myself, and we both turned our attention back to our mutual friend.  I saw her on and off the rest of the night at that opening and a number of other ones on the same street. I had the distinct impression she was hopeful I would not come up and talk to her again.

The Complimenter

I am a complimenter.  It can be interpreted as a come on, an insincere flattery, an over the top rambling, or any number of other things.  But I don’t care because I know this truth; If I don’t say it, pretty soon I won’t think it. And if I don’t think it, I won’t notice it and if I don’t notice it the world will be incredibly dull, boring, grey, relentlessly serious, depressing, futile and ugly for me.  I don’t want that and so I notice what I love in the world. I think about what I love in the world and I say what I love in the world.  Sometimes it backfires and I am embarrassed but I would rather suffer that then live in a world where I can’t speak of the beauty I see.

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Drawing and commentary by Marty Coleman, who does indeed love beautiful eyebrows.

Quote by Oscar Wilde, who loved beauty

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Historical question of the day

Oscar Wilde was put on trial, convicted and sent to prison for what crime?

Come back tomorrow to find the answer

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Jan 08 4 comments
Oscar Wilde, Time

Punctuality Pie

Punctuality Pie

I don’t believe this, but have known a lot of people in my life, even been married to a few, who are chronically late and they would concur with this opinion!  I tend to be on the punctual side.

What about you, are you chronically late or perhaps chronically punctual? Tell us about it, ok?

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Drawing by Marty Coleman

Quote by Oscar Wilde

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Answer to  the Trivia Question from 1/4/13
Who has the largest brain, humans or elephants? 

While the elephant brain is physically bigger than a human’s, the human brain takes up a larger percentage of the mass and weight of the human body than the elephant brain does in an elephant.  The human thus actually does have the biggest brain of all animals.

Feb 09 0 comments
judgment, Naked vs Nude, Oscar Wilde

Naked as the Day You Were. – Naked vs Nude #4

I was born to tell you – Today is day #4 of Naked vs Nude week at the NDD

Naked as the Day You Were...

I have a serious question, give your thoughts on it. Where and when did the emotion of shame come into the picture for humans and nudity? Why was it shame that Adam and Eve were said to have felt and not anger or fear or happiness or guilt or any of a million other feelings. Why was it shame?

Drawing and question by Marty Coleman, who is only ashamed of his flabby pot belly. (why is that?)

Quote by Oscar Wilde.

Jan 12 3 comments
opportunity, Optimism/Pessimism, Oscar Wilde

The Pessimist Annoyed

I am positive it’s day #5 of Optimism/Pessimism Week at the NDD.

The Pessimist Annoyed

My friend Marcy (who I met via Blog World, read the story below to see the irony), wrote a recent blog post titled, ‘Asking the Universe to Dance’.  In it she told the story of a young fellow who introduced himself to her at a conference but never asked her the important question of  ’Are you looking to hire?’  He had the opportunity but he didn’t take it.  Her point was that you have to ASK if you want something. The Universe (and the person you are talking to) does not have ESP.

I wrote the following in response to her story and then found the napkin quote a few minutes later. Because this is Optimism/Pessimism week it all seemed to fit together.

Just in case people need more reasons to ‘just ask’…In 2010 I just happen to see a tweet scroll by from someone I followed but didn’t really know from Eve. She simply said something like ‘So, what do you want?’ I was about to respond with something witty and silly but instead I decided to investigate who she was. I went to her twitter page, then to her website and found out she was a life and career coach focusing on helping creative people. So, I responded on twitter with, ‘I want two hours of your time.’

She called me that afternoon and we spent 1/2 an hour talking about how she couldn’t give 2, but would give 1 hour in a phone consultation the next day after she had time to review my work, my blog and my website.

The next day we spent 1 1/2 hours on the phone going over where I was, what steps I could take to move forward. What was essential to be fixed immediately, what could put off. How to focus on what would return good results, how to let go of distracting elements, and more.
Her request when I asked what I could do to return the favor was that I donate time to help the homeless. She didn’t want a follow up, didn’t want me to feel obligated to her. She just wanted me to help the homeless somehow.

As a result of that conversation I submitted a proposal to Social Media Tulsa to be a speaker. At that session I was heard by two women, one hired me to be a speaker at an organization’s state conference and another, Becky McCray, has become my champion and encouraged me to submit a proposal to Blog World.

As a result of my speaking at the state conference I was hired to be the keynote at their regional conference this year. As a result of speaking at Blog World I have been invited to speak at the Blog World New York event which is co-located with BookExpo NY, where you can be sure I will be asking all about getting my book published!

Are you listening for the door or complaining of the noise?

Drawing by Marty Coleman, who took typing in High School

Quote by Oscar Wilde, who did not.

Aug 30 0 comments
Great Quotists, Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde – The Great Quotists #1

This week I am going to highlight some of my favorite quotists; the authors, aphorists, journalists and commentators who have contributed the most over the years to The Napkin Dad Daily.

First up, Oscar Wilde

An irish wit if ever there was one, Oscar Wilde lived in the 1800s and ruled the literary world for some time with writings such as ‘The Picture of Dorian Grey’ and ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’.

Unfortunately, the Victorian laws ruled over the land and when it was discovered he had committed ‘the sin that isn’t mentioned’ he was thrown in jail.  When he got out he departed for France, never to return.

Nonetheless, he did not lose his wit.  The story goes that on his death bed he still had enough left in him to give what has to be the wittiest final words in history, “Either those curtains go, or I do.”  The curtains stayed and he went.  A variation on the final words is sometimes quoted as, “My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death.  One or the other of us has got to go.”


Oscar Wilde holds a dear place in my heart solely because my eldest daughter, Rebekah, loved reading him when she was a teenager. She would always be telling us various quotes and when I was drawing the napkins and putting them in their lunches (read that story here) my most frequent quotist was Mr. Wilde.


Drawing and commentary by Marty Coleman of The Napkin Dad Daily

Quote by Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900, Irish writer and wit

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