To say my wife, Suzanne, is a potato fan is a bit of an understatement. She tells me that when she was in grade school and into Junior High, she would come home after school and make her favorite snack, a bowl of instant potatoes. So, one summer when our family was driving near Blackfoot, Idaho and we passed a sign that read, Idaho Potato Museum Next Exit, we had to take this unscheduled stop to...
The Golden Rule was spoken by Jesus long ago, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” In recent years the Platinum Rule has been added: “Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.” A nice twist, but a twist that can make us pause. And it may even run the risk of losing the intended message. For communicating in teams, I like the simplicity of the Golden Rule because...
Recently I was invited to be a keynote speaker at an event hosted in the War World II Museum - US Freedom Pavilion – Boeing Center in New Orleans. This venue is impressive. It has WWII planes hanging from the ceiling, a pageantry of flags on the stage and important historic memorabilia on display. I hope you will visit soon. The small, landscaped area outside was clean and sidewalks were well maintained. Inside, the floors were...
Something happened to our electric skillet this past week. It did not stop working, but it did start smoking at the heat control knob. Years before, I had noticed unusual hot spots and uneven cooking surfaces on it. Then I kept seeing food sticking to the surface and causing additional clean-up work. The quality of the cooking surface seemed very tarnished, effecting the quality of the food. After each use I would spend additional time soaking the...
Every time I see “No Regrets” written I think of the guy who got “No Regerts” tattooed on his body. Of course, it is implied that when he learns of the misspelled tattoo, he will indeed regret it. In high school, my coaches would tell us players, don’t leave anything on the field, give it your all, have no regrets at the end of the game when you come back into the locker room. This usually...
In 1995 my wife, Suzanne and I experienced something for the first time: our first child birth. First in a long list of “firsts” in our first year of marriage. We were admitted into the hospital early that evening where the doctors said, “You’ve started, but you’re not ready.” The long night that followed consisted of periods of calm interrupted by incredible pain for my wife. ...
When I was sixteen years old my parents and I drove, in their 1979 Toyota Corolla Station Wagon, from our home in Georgia to Yellowstone National Park. My older sister was working around the Old Faithful Inn area. She booked us a week-long stay there. As a teenager it was my first experience witnessing the Old Faithful Geyser. It was right outside our lodge. It was an experience I never forgot. An Old Faithful eruption can last...
Steven Spielberg dropped out of high school in his sophomore year. He was persuaded to come back and placed in a class for the learning disabled. He lasted a month and dropped out of school forever. When Thomas Edison was a boy his teacher told him he was too stupid to learn anything. Albert Einstein was four years old before he could speak. A newspaper editor fired Walt Disney because he had “no good ideas.” Winston Churchill failed the 6th...
The Atlanta Fulton County stadium, originally built in 1965, costing $18 million, took just under a year to build. And it took 27 seconds to bring it down with close to 1,250 pounds of dynamite and 350 pounds of charge. The explosives sent an estimated 140 million pounds of concrete and steel plummeting to the field the Atlanta Braves and Falcons once called home. The stadium was mighty in size and reputation, seating 60,000 people and...
The Sequoia tree is the largest tree grown in the world. The Redwoods may be taller, but in over-all size, the Sequoia is king. I am anticipating the day I see these magnificent wonders in California. Recently I was reading about the unusual black burn marks on the base of each tree. Fire helps the tree grow. With a 21” thick bark, the tree can withstand extremely hot temperatures, and it not only survives, but it...
