Advice for the young, from "The Young Man's Guide" by William A. Alcott, 1838.

"The old live in the past, as truly as the young do in the future. Nothing more delights them 
than to relate stories of 'olden time,' especially when themselves were the heroes. But they 
will not relate them, unless there is somebody to hear. Let the young avail themselves of 
this propensity, and make the most of it. Some may have been heroes in war; some in 
travelling the country; others in hunting, fishing, agriculture or the mechanic arts; and it 
may be that here and there one will boast of his skill, and relate stories of his success in 
that noblest of arts and employmentsthe making of his fellow creatures wise, and good, and 
happy. "


"But, my young friends, there is one method besides conversation, in which you may come at 
the wisdom of the aged; and that is through the medium of books. Many old persons have 
written well, and you cannot do better than to avail yourselves of their instructions. This 
method has even one advantage over conversation. In the perusal of a book, you are not so 
often prejudiced or disgusted by the repulsive and perhaps chilling manner of him who wrote 
it, as you might have been from his conversation and company. "


So check out some of the older phlogs and Gopher holes.  Maybe you'll find a little buried 
treasure to make you a wiser person!