Blogging is a two way conversation – even though it often doesn't feel like it. I've been getting some very nice comments and feeling like perhaps I'm making headway in developing a style and content that has value to you – my reader. I'm not setting the world afire with my incomparable wisdom and wit. But that's ok, I'm not really trying to do that. Some have asked me how often I update this blog. Honestly, I don't have a routing schedule…I normally try to write something at least once or twice a week….sometimes more, sometimes less. It depends on [Click here to see the rest of the story]
That’s Life
Oct 092011
I'm an avid enthusiast when it comes to self-help and positive thinking. There's a lot to be said for both. But a long time ago I found that there's a lot more to survival in this world than these have to offer. As a freelance writer and an entrepreneur I've had ample opportunity and lots of hard knocks to test my personal theories. While they may not work for you, I suggest you might want to think about the lessons I've learned. Positive Thinking Will Get You Only So Far. That's right. You must be an expert at positive thinking. [Click here to see the rest of the story]
Before enlightenment, Chop wood, Carry water. After enlightenment, Chop wood, Carry water. zen proverb Once upon a time a young man went on a quest seeking wisdom. He came to a town where there were people working diligently on a variety of projects. He was very curious about all the activity. Coming to the first man, he asked, "What are you doing?" The man answered, "I'm stacking up stones so the mason can lay them tomorrow." "Oh, I see," he said, not really understanding. He came to a second man who was working on a [Click here to see the rest of the story]
Aug 202011
The other day I had an interesting conversation with a dear friend. In passing, I mentioned that my daughter got a very beautiful tattoo. And I pulled up a picture of it I'd just taken. She didn't even want to look at it. "All tattoos are bad," she said. "No matter what it looks like, I think anyone who gets a tattoo is stupid and I don't want to have anything to do with them." She went on to tell me how her daughter had gotten a tattoo – and didn't even tell her about it. I was dumbfounded.. The [Click here to see the rest of the story]
While it's true that we think in terms of categories and classifications, there are times when this kind of thinking is an insult to humanity. We learned in school that all the various sciences are based on classifications. In biology we have insects (bees, flies, ants, etc.), mammals (man, cats, dogs, bears, etc.). Math has various classifications, too (arithmetic, algebra, trig, statistics, etc). Writing is also categories (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, etc.) Even in everyday life we think in categories (chairs, houses, cars, etc.) And all those categories have sub-categories. This is good. Using categories helps us to keep our thought [Click here to see the rest of the story]
It's summertime and hot as the dickens. But end of the year is right around the corner and it's time for most condominiums to start planning their 2012 budgets. If there's one thing Condominium Owners and Boards can learn from politics, it's that financial planning needs to be an ongoing activity. You just can't wait until disaster strikes. Condominiums are a structure not unlike the Federal government. They survive and fall based on the intelligent involvement of their members as well as their budgets and financial planning. Once you're in a downward spiral, quick fixes just don't work. Most of [Click here to see the rest of the story]
Jul 142011
We talked about gardens used for landscapes and how some people face opposition to their efforts to plant gardens in their front yards. Here is what's happening in Chicago – the city often called the "Concrete Jungle" in years past. is surprisingly green-minded. Even on densely populated streets of 3-story row houses, we find people planting and enjoying a variety of home-grown vegetables raised right there in their front yards.These are two of three houses on such a street in what is called Ukrainian Village just 2-3 miles from the Chicago Loop. Each one of them has chosen to make [Click here to see the rest of the story]
I've been watching with dismay, the most recent struggles in Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and other states…the struggles of the middle class and of workers everywhere are rising to fever pitch. How does one person like myself do or say anything that can shed light or make sense of the insanity that rages in today's politics? I had no answer…. …until I watched the PBS program on the Triangle Fire. I watched it and wept. Just 100 years ago America saw what happens…. http://video.pbs.org/video/1817898383 …and some today are hell-bent on reliving such catastrophies yet again. What's truly sad, is that in [Click here to see the rest of the story]
