I want to give you a few examples of this elusive idea of stubborn optimism. Several years ago, I decided to write a play. I had never contemplated doing such a thing until I had a Zoom meeting with the Writer In Residence (WIR) at the local public library. It was on a completely different…

I consciously look for contrasts to help me widen my understanding of my perspectives. Let me give you an example. Child soldiers. My awareness of these youngsters is that they are from far away – usually another continent other than North America. At this distance, I can risk being empathetic, understanding, and caring. I can…

I first want to say the featured image for this Blog is not a Selfie. I can’t avoid hearing about artificial intelligence, shorten to just AI. The modern multifunction cell phone is about 15 years old. It changed the world. AI, the kind that is easily accessible to the masses around the world, has been…

I just about finished reading a book, Dream States, by John Lorinc. He is a new-to-me author who writes about the urban scene.  Being a city fellow, I’m always curious about the current urban scene and how we got here. One tiny portion of the book deals with curbs. Now please calm down. Curb your…

I like to solve problems by looking first at the extremes of a continuum. In this case, I can either resist something I am trying to avoid or adapt to it. Let’s look at some examples. One example I’ve seen often is how we try to prevent snow from drifting onto roads or walkways. So…

I became aware of 5 major celebrations around this time of year. I wanted to share these. Some were new to me. So in alphabetical order, down the rabbit hole, we go. Easter:The springtime celebration of Easter is a Christian tradition marking the day Jesus Christ is said to have come back to life. The…

I had heard this phrase but never fully understood it, nor did I  follow up until recently. There it was in a Ted Talk. Narrowly defined, it is about reaching out to those who are non-verbal such as folks with Alzheimer’s or dementia. The concept gives verbal folks a way of connecting. Here are a…

I was making a reservation for the fanciest meal I would ever attend to celebrate with my wife for her milestone birthday. They called my purchase a ‘ticket’ and not a reservation. Potato, potato. You get my meaning! I read the large print. It was paid 100% in advance. It clearly stated that the ticket…

I have heard this word used in many situations, confusing me with its sometimes contradictory meanings—time to check it out. One of the earliest references using the word ‘woke’ goes back to the 1930s, meaning a broader awareness of social and political issues affecting African Americans. It was a variation of being ‘awake’ about social…

I have used the phrase occasionally. Recently I thought of a variation to explain a recent provincial Heath policy decision. The expression’s brief definition means taking something from someone or place and moving it to another person or place. What is the origin of this expression? Glad you asked. Many attempts to find its origins…