I am really ticked!  I just heard from someone that I hadn’t heard from in ages.  No, I’m not ticked because I had heard from them.  I’m ticked because the only reason they contacted me was because they wanted something from me.  The nerve of them!

I was so upset!  In fact, just talking about it is upsetting me to the point of hyperventilation.  You’ll need to excuse me while I go to my inner quiet place and try to get in touch with my inner Ladmo.

Getting better . . . better . . . better . . .

Thank you.  Now, where was I.  Oh yeah:  Users.

After that phone call, I’ve come to realizedsomething that knocked the Ladmo right out of me.  I had an inner Marshall Good.  For the uninformed that are reading this and have no idea who I’m referring to, let me explain.

Marshall Good was yet another regular character on the Wallace and Ladmo Show that was played by the legendary Pat McMahon.  The good marshal wore a cheesy ten gallon hat, a cheap dime store badge and only showed up on the show to beg for food, a place to stay or to borrow money (but never a J-O-B).  He never showed up to repay or return anything that he borrowed.  He was basically nothing but a mooch! 

Most of us know a Marshall Good or two.  However, as I said a moment ago, I discovered that I had my own inner Marshall Good that inhibited my inner Ladmo from coming forth.  That realization really frosted by badge.

Upon much introspection (and after more than just a little bit of denial), I realized what fed my inner MG and I didn’t like it one bit.

You see, I had also been guilty of mooching.  No, I didn’t bum money or food from my friends.  Nor did I ask if could be a perpetual guest in their home.  My inner “MG” was a little more insidious than that.

I’m afraid that I was guilty of contacting certain people only when I needed something from them, much like the “friend” in my story.  I can think of more than one occasion when I contacted a long lost friend when I was in search of a job or if I had something to sell.  Prior to that, the person didn’t even cross my mind.

However, my inner Marshall Good has been even more conniving.  In times past, I’ve contacted people for news or gossip in hopes of getting the inside scoop on something seemingly important to me or to get the first word as to their situation or predicament. 

In other words, my friendship with them was no more real than Marshall Good’s badge.  Ouch!

In order to quash my inner MG so that my inner Ladmo can percolate to the surface, I had to throw away the fake badge of concern and wear a real one.  To carry that analogy just a bit further, I sometimes stuck myself while attempting to put on that badge.  I endeavored to become a truer friend by being sincerely concerned for them.  That meant I contacted them to see how they were doing and not for the purposes of finding fodder for the gossip mill.  I wanted to be aware if they had a need so that I could help them instead of being concerned if they could help me. 

In other words, I’ve had to give my own “Ladmo Bags” of sincerity and concern instead of using people for what they can do for me.  In doing so I found that, somehow or other, my needs were met and I was much less concerned about getting the inside scoop on things. 

If you find that your inner Mr. Grudgemeyer is tough to suppress, it might help to let your inner Mr. Grudgemeyer loose just long enough to stomp on his ten gallon hat and bend the cheap badge and then send Mr. G back out into the cold!

Next, sending our inner Aunt Maude to the outer home and Boffo The Clown away from our circus of life.