This blog is written with my wife Joanne’s permission because, at times, she is forgetful and relies on me to remind her of things.

I’m not sure how many times I’ve seen the statue of Teddy Roosevelt in the front of the Museum of Natural History in New York City. The statue that is now being taken down.I first saw it as a child on one of the many trips I was taken on to the Museum.

Here we go! My one and only, amazing son and I are taking a 12 hour road trip to visit family in Illinois. Just he and I, the open road, snacks and lots of conversation. Many years ago, 19 or so, I placed my son in the backseat of my car at 9pm and drove through the night, peaking into the Chicago skyline at about 5am the next day. We arrived at Mom’s by 7am and Patrick was ready to play. The drive feels much more daunting than I remember. Jumping into the car, driving across the country felt liberating and adventurous. Now, it feels like a very, long drive.

I think about my father all the time. He was one special guy. Fiercely loyal to his family, smart, honest, and hard working. I think about how our lives, and in particular my mom’s, would be different if he were still with us.

  During this quarantine, it always lifted my spirits to have a Zoom or Skype conference call and “see” people. Even if those calls were necessitated through work, seeing other people always added a smile to my day. Now with the nicer weather and things opening up a bit it has been nice to see people-- other than those in my quarantine group-- in person.  

Once again I get to take advantage of a Sunday blog gig falling on a day where we give thanks; this time to our dads (I even qualify for this one.).

My office has been back up and running for over a week now. It's feels somewhat normal because we are all there...of course with appropriate physical distancing, masks, wipes, sanitizer and a cool looking sign on our front door stating you must wear a mask when entering.   I missed the interaction, impromptu meetings between staff to discuss marketing issues The colloboration is priceless. Although, it is wierd to to have a company meeting on Zoom while we are all in the office.  

One the easiest, yet most positive things a person can do is just say Thank You!Not “no problem”,  just a heart felt expression of appreciation and gratitude. Say it.