Guest Post: Nyela

Operation Occupy Rupe's Blog

I'm pretty certain I "met" Nyela on-line during season 5 of American Idol along with a slew of other wiseacres who regularly blathered about the goings on of Taylor Hicks, Elliott Yamin, Chris Daughtry and other contestants. She's caused me little relief from consternation and laughter over those years. But I forgive her.

For some reason known only to her, Nyela continues to be an acquaintance of mine and even comments frequently on my CliqueClack posts and at other other social sites.

Ladies and Gentlemen?

May I present Nyela ...

.......................... Ruprecht ( STOP )

“Hey, whatta ya want from me? I did my best.”

Okay, I may be old, and I may be cranky, but this defense [?] of shoddy effort irks me to no end. I’ve heard this too many times from too many deadbeats, and I am looking for the perfect one-line response. Any suggestions? Here are some I have used:

• I’d hate to see your worst. [Old standby.]
• Are you spelling “best” m-e-s-s? [Worked better when people could spell.]
• I’ll do my best not to laugh at that. [Immediately followed by maniacal laughter.]

Usually I just shake my head and walk away. Anyone willing to claim total failure as their best effort should be pitied. Or maybe they have never seen someone truly trying to do something their “best”.

Hattie McDaniel was one of the first black actors to earn a living at it. Condemned on one side for not knowing “her place” and the other for playing “Uncle Tom”, she had a simple response: “I did my best and let God do the rest.” Many a temporary celebrity today could learn from Hattie’s best.

I happen to know a young couple, Marc & Mandy, who are learning a lot right now about doing their best. [Marc tells their story in his own words at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/quinnseymour] As caregivers for their four month old daughter with the rare disease EB, they daily do their very best to change her neck-to-toe bandages without causing more damage to her already devastated skin. Fear that their best will not be good enough is a constant companion.

The next time someone lies to me about doing their best, I’ll think of Hattie, I’ll think of Quinn, and I’ll do my best to not slap that person. If I’m lucky, maybe I’ll fail.

~ Nyela