Recently its been coming up more and more, the importance of using your words carefully and intentionally. In my life, I've been pretty careless with words. I was raised in a clever, articulate, SARCASTIC household - mix in a little alcohol (maybe not a little) and you get desensitized to how things feel to others. I admire Fred's ability to love …
Do not stand at my grave and weep. I am not there, I do not sleep.I am a thousand winds that blow,I am the diamond glints on snow. I am the sunlight on ripened grainI am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning's hush,I am that swift uplifting rushOf quiet birds in circled flight.I am the soft star that shines at night. Do not stand a …
On this day in 1929, President Herbert Hoover has a phone installed at his desk in the Oval Office of the White House. It took a while to get the line to Hoover’s desk working correctly and the president complained to aides when his son was unable to get through on the Oval Office phone from an outside line. Previously, Hoover had used a phone loc …
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his …
Here we are. One twelfth of the way through 2017. Is it what you thought it would be? For me, it is very different. I never thought it would be so good. Or so bad. Mostly kind of amazing. I have seen astonishing things come from our government, confused people doing surprising things and the greatest unification of people since the 60s. Yes, I wa …
If you've never heard of Score, let me introduce you, they provide free and low cost business mentoring, local low cost workshops and online business resources. SCORE here. A great asset in your biz toolbox. One of their workshops, which I and 2 other Gothamites attended last Friday was called "The Science and Art of Breakthrough Networking." The …
Today, January 18, marks the 24th anniversary of ALL 50 states celebrating Martin Luther King Day. He was born Michael King on January 15, 1929. He would have been 88 last Sunday. He is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent civil disobedience based on his Christian beliefs. This week there is a lot of op …
A very moving experience at the movies on Monday. One of the previews showed a woman hiding Jews from the Nazis (The Zookeeper's Wife, true story). It is still astonishing and upsetting to me that humans could have let this happen. My hope and belief is that we will not let this happen again. We are certainly better equipped today than we were then …
As Fred often says, Down is Up and Up is Down. In 1810, on this day, Oliver Winchester was born, known for manufacturing and marketing the Winchester Repeating Rifle, with thousands of rifles in the hands of the average pioneer, the rifles gained a reputation as "the gun that won the West." In 1993, on this day, the Brady bill was signed, making a …
Uganda is a country where you can be killed for being homosexual. The law doesn’t protect you. I’ve just arrived and there is an American religious group staying in the same guest house as us. The setup is similar to a motel in that the rooms are side by side and open to the outside, but instead of bordering a parking lot, they border a huge gras …
I'm certainly no expert, as anyone who has spent more than 20 minutes with me can attest, but I do know that it is the single most important thing in our world today. Especially in the week ahead, with the Presidential election happening, I am encouraging kindness to all. Don't tell me why someone is awful, tell me why you love someone. Wikipe …
From the HuffPost: The giant panda, long a symbol of the conservation movement, is no longer listed as endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The bamboo-loving bears have seen a 17 percent surge in population numbers in the decade ending in 2014, largely due to conservation efforts in their native China. The mo …
...especially if you love women. Who knew that September 14 was such a powerful day for human rights and creativity? In 1879, Margaret Sanger was born, founder of Planned Parenthood and one of the very first outspoken advocates of choice. For all you lawyers out there, in 1921 Constance Baker Motley was born, first African-American woman to be appo …
It always amazes me how far people will go to be against something or someone. Its a habit, a well established neural pathway and, of course, I am guilty of it myself. What a different world we would have if we could just concentrate on what we are for, what we support, rather than what we don't want. What we resist, persists. Here's HuffPost's Wei …
