Some of you may have been fans of the TV sitcom, Last Man Standing, starring Tim Allen and Nancy Travis, along with a very talented supporting cast that accompanied them on the small screen.

As has happened some times in my television viewing history, I don’t always catch on to a show in its first few years, but am able to catch it here and there, and really make up my mind if it’s something I want to watch. It doesn’t matter if I miss some episodes, because the show is rerun on numerous networks, some re-runs being all day affairs, so it’s easy to catch up with what I may have missed the first time around. Where it took me a while before this show caught on for me, I, actually we, enjoy watching it as many times as it’s on, especially if there are none of my favorite sports on, nor the regular current programs we enjoy.

In a couple programs we watch, Last Man Standing being one of them, and Blue Bloods being another, there is a constant of each episode included every week. In Blue Bloods, it is the family dinner scene, which I enjoy because it brings back memories of my growing up where our family ate 90-plus percent of our meals at the same table, engaging in conversation between bites (but never with food in our mouths).

On Last Man Standing, the inclusive element of every program was Allen’s character, Mike Baxter’s, weekly vlog, created in the office of his fictitious business, Outdoor Man. I enjoy the vlogs because they usually carry good life lessons, some that maybe look at different perspectives of a debate, or discussion, but that every one of us can use to make us better people.

As stated many times in this forum, during my years as an educator, and coach, I attended workshops, clinics, and seminars which almost always included, sayings, adages, thought provoking statements that we could take with us and use with those young people in our charge (and ourselves), as we tried to help them (us) become better people. It was very effective in both arenas. Often, in penning this column, I might use some saying, adage, quote, or song lyric to make a point, or share, as words to live by in our daily lives. Most often, if not in every Last Man Standing episode, one or two of those sayings, quotes, or adages can be found in one of Mike’s vlogs.

One statement that stuck out to me in an episode was, “This is what America’s come to. Real accomplishment plays second fiddle to just feeling good about ourselves… feeling good whether we earned it or not. U.S.A.! U.S.A.! We love to say America’s number one. But are we? Our students rank 30th in math, 23rd in science, and 20th in reading. Well, what are we number one in? I’ll tell you. Self-esteem. Yeah. We’re a nation of confident idiots. It’s our fault as parents. Our little darlings scribble on a piece of paper, and we praise it. “Oh, that’s beautiful art.” Really? Green dog with eight legs? That shouldn’t bump the domino’s coupon off the fridge. We demand our eggs be grade “A” while we give our kids a free pass. We expect less from our children than we do from our poultry. Let’s stop babying this generation, people, and sharpen them up!”

I don’t think he was trying to get people to make fun of anyone’s, at any age, attempt at art work, or attempt to create something special for someone. My interpretation of his vlog was not to lower the bar of excellence, as that can cause an easier acceptance of mediocrity, and can diminish our strive to reach perfection. None of us will ever reach perfection, as we’re human beings and human beings will always make mistakes, but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying to reach that pinnacle.

Another statement Baxter spoke to his middle daughter, that wasn’t in a vlog, but could very well have been, was, “…I think you should worry less about who you might offend, and care more about who you might inspire.” Sometimes, we maybe should look at which avenue might be the better way to go, with regard to what situation we are in at a particular time.

In one episode he said, “Let’s be honest, if nobody’s talking, then nobody’s listening. If nobody’s listening, nobody’s learning.” This one speaks for itself.

Showing his expanse of study and reading, he offered these two quotes from centuries ago in the same vlog, the first spoken by the Roman Statesman and Philosopher, Seneca, which was, “Admire those who attempt great things even though they fail.” And the second came from the Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, which was, “If it’s not right, don’t do it. If it’s not true, don’t say it.” Both of them speak volumes by themselves, too.

These are just some of the bits of wisdom that were real quotes sited, or lines written, and came from the mouth of TV’s Mike Baxter, via history books, or the pens of the writers of that popular long running sitcom of the 2010s. They’d surely be great additions to everyone’s Food for Thought Recipe Books.