No, Don't Mess With Mister In-Between

I'm fairly sure that, at precisely this moment, Penelope is posting a new blog about her Big Art Show and how it went. It's taken her a couple days to fully formulate her thoughts on the subject, but judging by the intent expression in her eyes she got it all figured out.

I'll just add an observation of my own: The art center was packed, and nearly everyone we spoke to was eagerly raving about the wondrousness of her work. "Oh, I absolutely love this one, and this one, oh - and that one over there... I just think they're all so bold / gentle / dreamlike / vivid / painterly / splendiferous / etc." One painting sold before the show even started, to some lady in England who had somehow seen it and Had To Have It. And the woman who hung the show did a fantastic job, in my estimation. Penny's art has never looked better than it did Friday night, expertly arranged on the walls of this elegant old house, softly glowing under the display lights.

There were, as I judge it, two comments that could be interpreted as anything less than glowing praise: One guy said he thought what was actually her older work was her newer work, and another said he thought three of the paintings looked like her.

Care to wager a guess which two comments Penelope fixated on for the rest of the night and the whole way home?

She even realized it, pointing out how funny it is that it's always the criticism that sticks, while we let the nice things people say just glance right off us. I didn't disagree with her at all. Although I generally wouldn't let her dwell on the miniscule downside of what has to be agreed was a great event and evening, I figure there's no harm in dwelling on the dwelling itself.

All I did instead, there in the car cruising south, was sing her a funny little song:

You always acc-cent...uate the negative,
and ee-lim...inate the positive,
and latch on to stuff that's critical,
and stay away from Mr. In-Between...

It probably would have been funnier if she had heard the real song ever in her life, but I still thought it was appropriate. So I'll close now with the original, which, rather than my tone-deaf observation, offers actual helpful advice, and does so in a charmingly tuneful fashion. Sing it jauntily, if only in your head:

You've gotta accentuate the positive;
Eliminate the negative...
Latch on to the affirmative...
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy (up to the maximum)
Bring gloom (down) down to the minimum
Otherwise (otherwise) pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate (well illustrate)
my last remark (you got the floor)
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they say (what did they say)
Say when everything looked so dark?

Man, they said we better...

Accentuate the positive;
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

No! Don't mess with Mister In-Between