I have mixed emotions about October. There is much to love in this first full month of Fall. Autumn’s beauty bursting forth, summer’s heat waves cooled by northerly breezes, Fall Festivals abound, the World Series caps a long baseball season, college football is in full swing, and stores are full of Halloween candy, costumes and the … Continue reading October – A Time to Stop Bungee Jumping
Avoiding the Insanity of Immobility
Here I go again. This past week I had surgery on my right heel to remove a bone spur that was aggravating my Achilles tendon. If that sounds familiar, it is almost the identical surgery I had on my left heel last Christmas. So, once again, I am facing 7-8 weeks of immobility as I … Continue reading Avoiding the Insanity of Immobility
Potty Talk
Over the past year, I have grown weary of hearing politicians, on both sides of the aisle, spew forth mean and vile language that has no place in the public discourse. Their angry rhetoric reminds me of two kids fighting in a mud puddle. Everyone gets dirty. Is anyone else tired of all this potty … Continue reading Potty Talk
Quenching the Flames of Resentment
I believe in absolute truths. When my oldest son was nine years old, he thought he would play Superman and jump off the roof of our garden shed. Halfway way down, he suddenly realized he was about to give a personal, painful demonstration of the law of gravity. Just as there are physical principles that … Continue reading Quenching the Flames of Resentment
Drinking from My Saucer
It was January 1969, and I had started dating the teenage girl who would eventually become my wife. That year found me hanging around the Smith household many evenings, weekends, and just as often as Mom and Pop Smith would allow this lovestruck teenager to linger. My future mother-in-law often enjoyed a cup of coffee … Continue reading Drinking from My Saucer
In Defense of Four-Letter Words
Four-letter words have a bad rap. A synonym for cussing for as long as I can remember, speaking one of these bawdry four-letter words in my youth always resulted in a certain mouth being washed out with a bar of soap. It is only a wicked coincidence that the word “soap” also possesses a mere … Continue reading In Defense of Four-Letter Words
Always Keep Dating
I must be doing something right. My wife complimented me tonight after dinner. Don’t laugh, it happens. This particular evening prompted an unexpected and pleasantly surprising comment. One I thought worth sharing with you romantically challenged guys out there. As I was cleaning up the dishes, Patrice commented that “Dinner with you is always like … Continue reading Always Keep Dating
The Dignity of Work – Part III The Power of Appreciation
“The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.” Max DePree, American Businessman. “The number one factor in job satisfaction is not the amount of pay but whether or not the individual feels appreciated and valued for the work they … Continue reading The Dignity of Work – Part III The Power of Appreciation
The Dignity of Work – Part II Finding Joy in Work or Why My Wife Wanted to Be a Garbage Man
Mark Twain is said to have quipped, “Find a job you enjoy doing and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” Few would argue with the premise of that statement. Most of us would also agree that finding a job you love to do is not always easy. What about those jobs … Continue reading The Dignity of Work – Part II Finding Joy in Work or Why My Wife Wanted to Be a Garbage Man
The Dignity of Work and the Indignity of Job-Shaming
Every time I hear any discussion about the dignity of work, I think of the movie “The Legend of Bagger Vance.” Set in Depression-era Georgia, the story is about a Savannah man named Hardy reflecting on his love of golf, as he flashes back to a game of golf played in his youth between Bobby … Continue reading The Dignity of Work and the Indignity of Job-Shaming
