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Gravity
Websters defines status as “the relative position or standing” of something or someone. We pay a lot of attention to status in our society. If you’ve ever flown on an airplane, you’ve had to wait while people with “higher status” board the plane. The same thing applies almost everywhere we travel. Hotels have separate check-in…
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Funerals
I go to funerals. I think it shows respect for the deceased, and for their family and friends. So if I know someone who dies, I try to go to their funeral, whenever I can. I try to find some meaning in the act of attending funerals. Years ago, I read a quote (I think…
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When I Was Your Age
When I Was Your Age My grandmother Nettie was born in 1906. She used to look at the sky sometimes, and was amazed at the number of airplanes flying overhead. When she was born, cars and planes were not commonplace. The Wright brothers first flight was in 1903, and Henry Ford’s Model T didn’t start…
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Role Models
I have four role models. These are people I have known and watched forever. One of my friends calls them “angels”. I won’t name them by name here, but they know who they are. A few years ago, there was a TV commercial about role models. In that commercial, a famous athlete came on…
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Advertising
I remember the first time I learned that a sports arena sold its naming rights to a company. The arena was the old L.A. Forum, and they changed their name to the “Sponsor” Forum. I was shocked. How could they do this?! Now, every arena and stadium sells naming rights. In fact, some companies sponsor…
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Civility
I have the opportunity to travel to a faraway place for work. I go there a lot. When I land there, I arrive in a city of 25 million people. It is a big city. I have been there 10 times so far. I have spent about 2-3 months of my life in this city.…
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The Cathedral of Rouen
I had a 12th grade English teacher, who loved Shakespeare. He tried to introduce us to all things Shakespeare. At the time, all that I could handle was the Cliff Notes version. So I didn’t absorb very much. But one thing that I do remember, is that he highlighted the role of Shakespeare’s Fool. (This…
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Mother Nature
When I was in school, I remember learning about Weather. We did experiments on condensation, precipitation, and evaporation. None of it made an impact. Today, I am looking out my window, and the snow is starting. This is supposed to be a big one. Some forecasters are even capitalizing it: a Big One. There are…
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Is this thing on?
Where do I start? How about with my life list. Several years ago, a colleague suggested that I create a life list (now known as a “bucket list”, thanks to a movie of the same name). My colleague suggested that if I created a life list, I would put goals onto paper, and make them…
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Essayists
When I was young, I read a collection of essays by Robert Benchley. He was an essayist popular in the 1940s-1950s, and my father had a copy of some of his essays. It was the first time I read something in that format, and I was struck by the idea that someone could write a…