Earlier on this blog, I shared “a friend’s blessing.” I will see that friend tomorrow, so she is on my mind. Here’s another one from her: In the fray of everyday life, may you embody your true nature. I catch myself repeating this instruction, like a song lyric stuck on repeat in my brain. With […]
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Who Said That?
Son #2 was home for a few days from NYC. I asked him what the strangest or funniest or scariest (which I added reluctantly because who wants to know that? not this mama) thing he has seen in the subway. I follow Subway Creatures on instagram; I know there is strange stuff to be seen: […]
Are you waiting / for time to show you some better thoughts?
Happy 2022. I haven’t been feeling inspired to write blog posts. Perhaps I have developed an instinct to watch what I say. I hope not. I don’t like to leave the blog fallow for too long. In the past, when I haven’t had much to say, I have shared someone else’s words. Here’s a beautiful […]
A Sandwich
These two people have something important in common. Aha! you say, the Yankees caps. Nope. The grandson couldn’t give a fig about the Yankees. Grandpa lent him the cap for for a day of fun at the ballpark. Grandson could give a fig about Grandpa’s Rule for such outings: Eat Whatever You Want. And it […]
Was He Hitting On You?
In case you don’t have time to read the whole post, the answer is no. Most of the readers of this blog are people I know personally. So if you are reading this, you are probably already aware that I started a new job in May. I am still at Leeds, the business school at […]
The “Wilderness Beauty” in Low Standards
One of my former MBA students put this request out to the (Facebook) universe: Just once I’d like to read a time management book by someone who seems to have caregiver requirements. This statement attracted a lot of comments. Including this one: I think it’s high time you write a book. To which the OP […]
The Luckiest Men Alive
When I introduce him to one of my friends, DH has been known to exclaim, “I am the luckiest man alive!” Apparently this form of introduction makes quite an impression on people. The new acquaintance finds it charming and such a sweet thing to say. Me? How do I find it? Laden with subtext. Here’s […]
There Is Now
It’s almost prohibitively embarrassing to cite the source of this story. Almost, but not quite. It’s from Robert Fulghum’s book Uh-Oh. Robert Fulghum, the minister who wrote Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. There, I said it. The story is about schoolboy Norman. Norman’s class was putting on a performance of Cinderella. […]
Bad Bad Beef
This phrase was the wifi password at a friend’s house. A nerdy friend. Why is this nerdy, and not, say, vegetarian? Bad bad beef uses only the first six letters of the alphabet. In hexadecimal, badbadbeef is 802549513967. Fascinating. The last few days, the phrase is on repeat in my head. Tuesday night I cooked […]
MLK Jr. Day Greetings
It’s MLK Jr. Day. What’s the appropriate greeting, “Happy MLK Day”? That doesn’t seem right to me. I was raised in a family that observed the major Jewish holidays. I was taught the majors were the “high holidays” (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) and Passover. I have a vague and possibly incorrect memory of being […]