Duck, Duck, Goose

On my morning walk, I pass a small lake where several geese families live. Earlier this spring, the goslings started showing up. Ultimately there were three sets of goslings that came every morning to graze in one of the lawns next to the lake. The first family had three goslings the first time I saw…

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Gateway

I’ve been thinking about pain a lot lately. The emotional kind. Where it comes from. Why we have it. What I do with it. There is a lot of pain related to what we are having to do these days. I haven’t always been able to face that. I used to ignore and medicate it…

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Jumping Over The Lines

About nine years ago, a neighbor and I painted a labyrinth in the cul-de-sac in front of my house. Our labyrinth is a 54 foot diameter replica of the eleven circuit labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral in France. During this COVID-19 shelter-in-place we decided to repaint the labyrinth, and over the course of several evenings we were able to get…

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Being Squeezed

I am not ashamed to tell you I watched some weird TV shows this past weekend. I was exhausted from the last few weeks. We are facing so many struggles individually and as a company, and I needed a break, a distraction from the difficulties. I found a series called “Classic Albums” about how different…

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Shiny Things

“Life is about perspective and how you look at something… ultimately, you have to zoom out.”  – Whitney Wolfe Herd I have a friend who finds great enjoyment and some amount of solace in having something to look forward to. It doesn’t really matter what it is, as long as it is in the reasonably…

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Paradise

When she was just a girlShe expected the worldBut it flew away from her reachAnd the bullets catch in her teethSo, lying underneath those stormy skiesShe’d say, “I know the sun must set to rise”This could be paradise. Coldplay, “Paradise” This was the oddest Easter I have ever experienced. For one, this was the first…

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Unpack Your Adjectives

In March of 1974, the Schoolhouse Rock episode “Unpack Your Adjectives” aired for the first time. Schoolhouse Rock originally ran from 1973 to 1984. I saw all the episodes many times, and I can still sing most of the songs. The adjective song helped children understand how to verbally describe what things are like instead…

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Cruel To Be Kind

In 1979, Nick Lowe released “Cruel To Be Kind” which peaked at #12 on the US charts that summer. The video for the song was played on MTV on the first day of broadcasting and was shot during Nick and Carlene Carter’s wedding (shooting the video actually made him late for the wedding.) The refrain…

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Ridin’ The Storm Out

REO Speedwagon is a 70’s rock quintet named after a light motor truck introduced in 1915 by the REO Motor Car Company. The REO Speedwagon (the truck) served as delivery, tow, dump, and fire trucks, as well as hearses and ambulances. REO Speedwagon (the band) was founded by Neal Allan Doughty who, like the founder…

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Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself (And Spiders)

I designed a shirt once that said, “There is nothing to fear but fear itself…and spiders.” You can see the design here. The shirt would be gray with black and red print. The ‘l’ in ‘itself’ extends down as the web and ends in a black widow spider. There is another spider on the back, left…

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