THROUGH ROUGH SEAS AND CALM (Blogophilia 2.5)

Blogophilia 2.5 Topic: "...on the rocks"

Bonus Points:
(Hard, 2pts): incorporate the 80/20 principle
(Easy, 1pt): mention an Olympic sport which uses heavy metal

Final date to post BLOG: March 10th, 2012 - Saturday, midnight Pacific Time
Final date to post ALL GUESSES: March 9th, 2012 - Friday, midnight Pacific Time

Please highlight or otherwise point out your bonus points attempts.
Guess correctly who submitted the topic... and a correct guess at who submitted the picture earns you additional points!!

Guess correctly the secret "word or phrase" earns a chance at more points. Including the secret word or phrase within your blog content earns an additional point!!

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THROUGH ROUGH SEAS AND CALM

In so many directions
toward hither and yon,
my little ship sets sail
to places far and wide,
Through rough seas and calm,
And it doesn't matter much
that my ship's rather small,
for I'm glad to be sailing
upon these seas at all.

I know that I'll get there
one of these days,
to wherever I'm going,
to those places beyond
and destinations unknown,
setting sail every day
with the best of intentions
of getting it just right,
and making it safely
back to home port
each night.

But not everything
goes exactly the way
I want and know it should
Sometimes they go awry
and I'm left in the lurch
and not knowing quite
which way to turn.
But I must say though,
considering everything
that actually could go wrong,
the 80-20 principle
does seem to apply.
And I'm relieved that
though 80 percent of
the good things that occur
come from only 20 percent
of what could cause them;
Those odds still seem
quite good.

And at those times
when things might appear
to be so very wrong,
the rudder broken,
the compass askew,
rough waters ahead,
I look for that beacon
of light to guide my way.
And once again
our tiny ship sets sail
as we try to avoid avoid
whatever obstacles
that threaten our trip,
navigating choppy seas
and making sure not
to sail off course
and end up on the rocks.

And when things get
just a bit too much,
I imagine how
the Olympics must feel
as I imagine I'm competing
in the hammer throwas I heave the anchor
over the rail.

And I look forward
to calmer waters
as the storm subsides
and my little ship sails
toward the horizon ,
sails billowing in the wind,
my head resting on her bow
and my imagination
embracing the dream
once again.

(c) barbara kausteklis 3-6-12

Written for Blogophilia 2.5/
". . . on the rocks."

http://www.myspace.com/blogophilia/blog/545397254

GUESSES
Topic submitted by: David II

Picture submitted by :David II




Phrases: Follow the leader, leading the pack, the thrill of the hunt, leader of the pack, on his trail, close behind, red riders, red rover-red rover, hound dog, leading the way, my favorite martian, little red riding hood, riders of the purple sage, shock and awe, fearless leader, nose to nose, following the scent, shoulder to shoulder, in hot pursuit, nosy, outfoxed, foxy, fox hunt, fox and hound, thrill of the chase, hounded, beagling, eager beagles, red coats, pack of dogs, neck-and-neck, closing in, hill and dale, wide-eyed, wide-eyed and bushy tailed, hunting season, catching up, tally ho, leading the field, following your nose, ain't nothing but a hound dog, uphill and down, in hot pursuit, riding the range

The Hammer Throw is an Olympic Sport using heavy metal.
"The hammer is a metal ball that is connected to a strong chain. The hammer thrower swings the hammer around him a few times and then lets go."
(From http://www.english-online.at/sports/athletics/track-and-field.htm)

And the 80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle)

The Pareto principle (also known as the 80–20 rule, the law of the vital few, and the principle of factor sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.
(From Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle)
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Thanks always for your visits and comments

~barb~