Occasionally I need an attitude adjustment. OK, I will be honest…I need an attitude adjustment quite often. There are several strategies I employ to get my attitude back in line where it should be. A round of golf never hurts anything. Sometimes I enjoy playing alone, so I can just take in the beauty of nature as I chase the little white ball. A phone conversation with a close friend moves me in the right direction as well. When I…
I watched this academy award winning movie from 1951, A Streetcar Named Desire for the first time the other night. I was reminded once again that Vivien Leigh, who of course starred in Gone with the Wind, was a brilliant actress. In this acclaimed movie, Leigh plays the character of Blanche DuBois. In the plot, Blanche unexpectedly moves in with her sister and her brother-in-law. A very young and strapping Marlon Brando plays the character of the brother-in-law, Stanley Kawalski….
I am a little squeamish about checking my golf clubs on commercial airline flights. I have this image of my clubs ending up in Hong Kong, and it takes the airline six months to find out what happened to them. It just gives me the shivers. Several years ago I had the opportunity to play in a tournament during a conference in the Detroit area, so I broke down and checked my clubs, which were neatly packed in their canvas…
Why pay $2.00 for a haircut at the barber shop in the Shorecrest Shopping Center, when you can do it in the garage for next to nothing? That was dad’s philosophy of hairstyling when I was a little boy. He found some electric barber clippers in the Sears Catalog and our garage was transformed into a barbershop overnight. Never mind that I have very noticeable and obtrusive cowlicks that resemble horns after a fresh haircut. But what is a 6…
I wonder if kids still “get sent to the office” in elementary school these days, or if there is some new and innovative way of enforcing basic discipline? In elementary school, Mr. Ginther was our principal. I thought he was at least 100 years old. Actually someone told recently me that a retired Mr. Ginther recently turned 80. He was nearly 10 years younger than I am now during the time period that I had him pegged at 100. That…
I don’t particularly like the acronym DOS, but nevertheless that is the vernacular used in the world of law enforcement to describe someone who is deceased in a location other than the hospital. (Dead on Scene) When I am called to assist on a DOS call, I generally use the phrase “unattended death” when I communicate with a family member or friend of the deceased person.One night this week I was called to assist the officers on a DOS call….
“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.” -Arnold Bennett I hate to admit it, but I don’t like change. I like some semblance of consistency. That principle is not true of every dimension of my life. I enjoy hearing new music. I must admit that classic rock is still the best. I like going to new places to eat. I always return to my favorite mom and pop establishments where everybody knows…
She is cannot stand conflict. In fact, we call her the “peacemaker” in our family. How many of us have conflict avoiders in our family? How often do we refer to them as the peacemakers? I have members in my extended family that would travel from New York to San Diego via London if they thought it would help them to avert conflict. But are they really peacemakers? I am preaching on the topic of peacemaking Sunday. In my research…
Don’t give up now. I am speaking directly to my mid-life peers in particular. Don’t give up now. I don’t like to admit it, but I am rapidly approaching the five “0” mark. In many ways, I still feel like I am 18. Jan would tell you that I still act like I am 18. But that is another story for another day. Last July I had the remarkable honor of reuniting with old friends from Monterey High School in…
How often do we reduce people to a label? She is an alcoholic. He is a drug addict. He is homeless. She is a special needs child. She lives in the _______neighborhood. The list of labels seems to have no end. Those are actually some of the “softer” labels that we use to describe people. There are others that are purposely demeaning. When I was growing up, immigrants from Mexico were called “wetbacks.” Kids with certain kinds of special needs…