Ideas for a Better Life
Tourist in My Own Town
My sons have tired of summer vacations consisting of long road trips. We’ve seen most of the interesting sights within a day’s drive over the last ten years. And having taken a true vacation to paradise in February, a more extravagant summer vacation didn’t seem called for. Instead we’ve decided to create "Family Friday," days…
Read MoreEncore
I’m just finishing reading the book, Encore by Marc Freedman. In addition to being a writer on the role of aging baby boomers in society, Freedman is a social entrepreneur. The subtitle of his book is "Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Your Life." It’s a well-written treatise on why the traditional…
Read MoreTalent Well-Used
Three cases of talent being well-used: My niece, Taylor, is in high school. She’s wired to think logically, do in-depth research, and articulate well-formed arguments. (Comes from my brother–who has a keen memory and at times, a sharp tongue.) This past year, she took an AP class on Constitutional Law. As part of the class,…
Read MoreI Owe My Sanity to Fairy Cards or How Taking a Vacation is Easier Than You Think
Lately, I’ve been feeling like there’s always one more thing on my list that needs to get done. Friday evening comes and I look forward to getting caught up on the weekend—the emails that I’ve neglected, the blog postings that have been ruminating since reading a newspaper article or having an insight while jogging or…
Read MoreImprov Wisdom
I’ve fallen in love with a gem of a book, Patricia Ryan Madson’s Improv Wisdom. Madson is a retired professor of drama at Stanford University, with lots of credits in the areas of improv and creativity. Less than 150 pages, the book is a quick read. It is organized by principles of improvisation that, when…
Read More