I am very interested in why it is people think the way they do. This is the cognitivist in me. I know that the supposed breakdown is that this, like so many other things, is 50 percent genetic, and 50 environmental.

Today was a day in which the examples of differing thinking styles made themselves apparent to me. The example that I’ll use to talk about this is the Bright Lights Book Project. Everything is in a state of flux, still, but a plan has emerged, one that is the result of those involved contributing their cognitive expertise to the problem at hand.

The problem is this – The local recycling center was given a donation of $25,000, which the board president turned down. The contributor then gave the intended money to another organization. This meant, no building project.

Ryder herds the goats

Me, I went into a funk and began wringing my hands. This is what I, the emotional gal, usually does. Why this is usually my response is a mystery to me, but so be it. Pete and I came up with what I am calling Plan B.

Pete made the suggestion that The Bright Lights Book Project file for its own nonprofit status, referred to as a 501(c)(3). Milena thought this was a good idea since then and only then would the funder consider again donating funding.

So Pete, the inveterate technical writer/researcher, looked up the requirements for filing a 501(c)(3) and began working on the bylaws. This did not take him long at all. What interests me about this is that he chose to take on a task that he knew he could do well. The fact that he’s a technical writer also lent itself to this project. The question is, what is it in his mental make-up that made him feel so assured about the fact he could do this? That he has training as a technical writer was a partial answer – why he gravitated to this particular task will always remain a mystery to me.

I, on the other hand, balked at the prospect of getting nonprofit status for the project because I had no idea as to how to go about this. What then, is it in my mental make-up that made me so fearful about taking on this task?

A friend then came up with a possible plan for site acquisition. She suggested that we talk a person she knows and see if she might have land available in which we might put the portable building. Pete and I both agreed that this is a good idea. The question is, how was it that she thought this? The answer has to be that she both has nonprofit connections and enjoys establishing partnerships with those in other organizations.

Next: 292. 10/22/21: Rise and Shine, Shine, and Rise