{"id":106625,"date":"2025-06-18T06:48:21","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T10:48:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/?p=106625"},"modified":"2025-06-18T06:48:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T10:48:21","slug":"the-old-coot-is-honest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/","title":{"rendered":"The Old Coot is honest"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\">By Merlin Lessler<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">There is an old saying, \u201cHonesty is the best policy.\u201d It\u2019s true, but only to a point. I wouldn\u2019t advise taking it above an 80% level. Save that 20% so you can appear civilized, using those falsehoods we call little white lies. Like when your spouse asks, \u201cDoes this dress make me look fat?\u201d Answer: \u201cYou look wonderful in that dress.\u201d Or, \u201cHoney, would you like to go to the car show with me?\u201d The answer, \u201cI\u2019d love to, but I have a terrible headache.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Normal people set aside \u201cHonesty is the best policy\u201d in those tricky situations. But not us old coots. That\u2019s when we adopt the policy, 100%. There is only a small chance we\u2019ll get our face slapped or a black eye.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cOnly a cad would hit an old man,\u201d is what we count on. Don\u2019t ask us questions, unless you are prepared for the straight truth in all its ugliness. Even if you don\u2019t ask, we still might give you information about yourself you didn\u2019t want to hear.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">We do it to each other all the time; it keeps us razor sharp. If you eavesdrop on our conversation, say in a coffee shop, you\u2019ll get an earful of honesty.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cYour shirt is on backwards, you big dummy. Did Mommy let you dress yourself this morning?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cYour lost glasses are on the top of your head; are you so numb up there that you can\u2019t feel it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cYou need to fix that breath of yours; are you using a garlic clove as a breath mint?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cYou\u2019ve got your wife\u2019s blouse on!\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cYou knucklehead, you have two different shoes on!\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Of course, we never tell each other, \u201cYou forgot to zip up.\u201d We\u2019ll let you wander around in public like that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Same thing when a long string of toilet paper is stuck to your shoe as you prance around without a care in the world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Oh yes! Honesty is the best policy, especially when you are an old coot and are no longer required to tell those little white lies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Complaints? Comments? Leave them at <a href=\"mailto:mlessler7@gmail.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">mlessler7@gmail.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Vintage old coot articles can be viewed at <a href=\"http:\/\/oldcootwisdom.blogspot.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">oldcootwisdom.blogspot.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Merlin Lessler There is an old saying, \u201cHonesty is the best policy.\u201d It\u2019s true, but only to a point. I wouldn\u2019t advise taking it&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":82349,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Merlin Lessler There is an old saying, \u201cHonesty is the best policy.\u201d It\u2019s true, but only to a point. I wouldn\u2019t advise taking it...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Owego Pennysaver Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/The-Owego-Pennysaver-49179420591\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-18T10:48:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"225\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"225\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"psadvert\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"psadvert\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/\",\"name\":\"The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-18T10:48:21+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/e03684194434956dfb61f5ffcbc19492\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg\",\"width\":225,\"height\":225},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Old Coot is honest\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#website\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/\",\"name\":\"Owego Pennysaver Press\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/e03684194434956dfb61f5ffcbc19492\",\"name\":\"psadvert\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f42612cb07a4c4b7f1eb18ddb88bac4f8054cf2755aff2b1ac4f82d9e9ffd01?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f42612cb07a4c4b7f1eb18ddb88bac4f8054cf2755aff2b1ac4f82d9e9ffd01?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"psadvert\"},\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/author\/psadvert\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press","og_description":"By Merlin Lessler There is an old saying, \u201cHonesty is the best policy.\u201d It\u2019s true, but only to a point. I wouldn\u2019t advise taking it...","og_url":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/","og_site_name":"Owego Pennysaver Press","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/The-Owego-Pennysaver-49179420591\/","article_published_time":"2025-06-18T10:48:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":225,"height":225,"url":"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"psadvert","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"psadvert","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/","url":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/","name":"The Old Coot is honest - Owego Pennysaver Press","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-06-18T10:48:21+00:00","author":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/e03684194434956dfb61f5ffcbc19492"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/www.greenstreetdata.com\/PS\/owego\/files\/2020\/11\/Old-Coot.jpeg","width":225,"height":225},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2025\/06\/18\/the-old-coot-is-honest\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Old Coot is honest"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#website","url":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/","name":"Owego Pennysaver Press","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/e03684194434956dfb61f5ffcbc19492","name":"psadvert","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f42612cb07a4c4b7f1eb18ddb88bac4f8054cf2755aff2b1ac4f82d9e9ffd01?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f42612cb07a4c4b7f1eb18ddb88bac4f8054cf2755aff2b1ac4f82d9e9ffd01?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"psadvert"},"url":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/author\/psadvert\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106625"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106626,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106625\/revisions\/106626"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}