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HOW “DON’T TELL ME WHAT TO DO” PEOPLE FOLLOW DIRECTIONS

October 19, 2020 by

Hard headed people know what to do, so don’t bother telling them anything and expect them to follow directions. “Don’t walk on the edge of a bridge over the Tualatin River,” someone had to have said. Who listened before hopping up and taking big steps? They were easy directions to follow. Not a life changer. […]

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AMERICAN PRACTICE: VOTE LIKE IT MATTERS

October 19, 2020 by

An American practice is like a medical practice: sometimes we get it wrong. Sometimes we get it right and it’s still wrong. If you’re old enough to vote, do it. Vote like it matters and encourage others to do the same. Voting is part of an American practice, like minding our own business and staying […]

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ELLEN URBANI MAKES GOOD TROUBLE

October 18, 2020 by

Ellen Urbani wrote an essay published in Time Magazine. “Our president wants you to believe I am a terrorist, a professional agitator stalking the Pacific Northwest.“ The title of the essay was, “I’m a Mom Who Came Out to Protest for Black Lives in Portland. I Was Shot by Federal Agents.” That’s where the wheelchair […]

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LEAVING PLACES BETTER THAN YOU FOUND THEM IS NOT ASKING TOO MUCH

October 17, 2020 by

Experienced campers know all about leaving places better than they found them. Pick up the trash, pack your gear, and move along. It’s that easy, and that hard with campers. After the camping trip is done and they get home, the clean up continues for the next time. Will Mr. Trump be a good camper? […]

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EMOTIONAL RESISTANCE TRAINING RESCUE

October 16, 2020 by

Emotional resistance training is more than ignoring bad news and waiting for clouds to lift. It takes a little work, a little effort. The definition of resistance training is clear and plain: improve muscles by making them work against a weight or force. The same definition applies to emotions: When we get challenged in a […]

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BROKEN STAIRWAY? HOW TO REPLACE IT

October 15, 2020 by

My mother in law walked down a broken stairway for sixteen years. I’d replaced treads and firmed up the handrails, but we still joked about it. “An independent observer might think my son in law is trying to kill me by falling through these steps,” she laughed. “If the fall doesn’t kill you, my snake […]

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BREAKING THINGS IS EASIER THAN FIXING THINGS

October 14, 2020 by

Breaking costly things is part of adult life. We find something useful, and use it. And it breaks. Sometimes they break themselves. If it breaks, we fix it, or throw it away and buy an updated version. The proud and the brave say, “Not me, man. If something breaks, I try to fix it before […]

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TWITTER TALK DONE RIGHT

October 13, 2020 by

Twitter talk quoted: replying to @DavidGillaspie Museums are shit places to gain an understanding of history because colonizers build and fund them. T. Roosevelt is famous for that “Only good Indian is a dead Indian” quote, but apparently not famous enough. You are an old white man with a colonizer perspective. Some nerve. Me: Hey […]

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HISTORY LESSONS? WHO SKIPPED THAT CLASS

October 13, 2020 by

History lessons come the hard way. All the dates and names pile up. We give up on history, and stop paying attention when history reads like a phone book. But once the connections hit and we start linking names, dates, and places, we seek out history lessons. I walked between the Portland Art Museum and […]

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VIRTUAL VOLUNTEER MAKES AN OFFER TO REFUSE

October 12, 2020 by

What is a virtual volunteer? My wife and I were making quiche together. She seemed a little down. Earlier she’d asked me to bring the Halloween decorations tote downstairs. It struck me as an irony to decorate for a hands on holiday in the coronavirus era. I shared the feeling. No wonder she seemed a […]

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