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BETTER LISTENING SKILLS FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING

If practicing better listening skills isn’t a life goal, it should be.
How hard is it to pay attention?
You did it in the classroom with the encouragement of a teacher.
I still remember Mr. Kraus singing ‘Toot toot tootsie goodbye’ when he tossed little tootsie rolls to students with the right answer in algebra.
Maybe we need more of that? Instead we get more of this:

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RETURNING REVERENCE TO IT’S RIGHTFUL PLACE

There’s a scent of reverence in the air, of returning reverence after a long pause.
It started in my doctor’s office where I’d been called to sit on a panel with others.
One of the others was Roy Pittman, one of my personal heroes.
The next time I saw the doctor he told me he was surprised at the way I acted, that I showed reverence to Coach Pittman.
If I did, I didn’t know it. What I remember is feeling awe-struck. Maybe it’s the same thing?
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NBA CHAMPION CROWNED, AGAIN

Becoming an NBA champion is a lifelong goal for every basketball player in the world.
The best want to play the best, beat the best, to tell themselves they’re good enough.
It’s that along with contracts and money and fame.
All of that goes along the wayside when you stop playing in ninth grade like me, or in high school.
Do I blame the coaches that I didn’t become a star, a substitute, or even a benchwarmer?
Noooooo, but . . .
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CLEAN LIVING FOR A QUIET LIFE

Clean living is an art form, and like all art it takes practice.
Yes, we’re talking about practice.
It takes practice to talk without a particular tone, without too much edge.
Do that and you may have a productive conversation.
Go ahead and save the tone and edge for people you don’t know, who don’t know you.
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I READ THE NEWS TODAY OH BOY

The news today is all about world events.
News organizations deliver it every day with the same hype and urgency.
News hounds consume every detail and load it onto the pile they carry in case someone asks them ‘what’s up?’
That’s when you brace yourself for the headlines as if they’re coming from an anchorman. Or woman.
That’s the big news story you NEED to know.
The small news, the stories that make us step back, come out another way.
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toughen up

TREATING CANCER WITH A POLYFACE FARMS MODALITY

Treating cancer like Polyface Farms. The best results save the land and the person. Machiavelli said the end justifies the means. But only if the end shares a happy ending? A happy ending in cancer is a cured patient. I’m not looking for a ‘successful surgery but lost the patient’ deal.

PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS, PT3: MILLENNIAL ILLNESS

This graph shows the age of BoomerPDX readers. From a boomer blogger to millennials, I’m glad you read this blog. Not all news is good, but good ideas help open the right doors. I’m as surprised as anyone to see who shows up here, and millennials lead the pack according to Google Analytics. And they […]

Neck Cancer And Alcohol Consumption: U.S. vs Belarus

  Neck cancer? In Belarus? Bela-where? Either check a map or be satisfied that Belarus is an eastern european country that used to be part of the Soviet Union.   And they drink. A lot. Belarus scores #1 on Market Watch’s survey of ten drunkest nations on earth. #2 is Republic of Moldova, #3 Lithuania, […]

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boomer years

How Teamwork Is Supposed To Work In Real Life

    A team is a temporary group with the same goals. Whether it’s sports, school, work, or family, it’s important to know how teamwork is supposed to work.   The biggest element of teamwork is cooperation, which is in shorter supply than most expect.   For example, in the armed forces all entities compete […]

BABY BOOMER ZEN FOR THE SELFISH

    Baby Boomer Zen: You’re quiet time is more important than anything? Yes, it is.   An English cousin came to visit one summer in the early 90’s. Cousin Andrew. We lived on SE 11th and Lincoln, tagged the Industrial Eastside, in an upstairs flat with a crow’s nest front bedroom overlooking the street. […]

YOUR NAME, YOUR TRUTH

In a time not so long ago your name wasn’t good enough. Hard to believe in the land of straight shooters and honor, but John Wayne didn’t start out as John Wayne. Neither did Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis. It was a different time. Benedict Cumberbatch says those days are long gone. Still, there’s something […]

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buckle up

KITCHEN TABLE BEER TRAVEL: OREGON TO GERMANY

  Beer travel starts at John’s Market in Multnomah. Culturally aware types emphasize art and architecture for reasons to travel. They love the history, the land, the people. And they can’t stop talking about all the new stuff they learn. If it’s someone you know, you listen like you’re not hearing an endless variation of […]

HOW TO WIN THE STARLIGHT PARADE

Answer 5 Questions To Win The Starlight Parade From The Suburbs. 1. You traveled to the Starlight Parade by: A. Bus, of course. I live my life by Tri-met. My vacations are all Tri-met vacations. Nothing beats a Tri-met schedule. We all feel the same here. B. Drove to the train. I enjoy public transportation […]

Hitchhiking Idaho With Stewart Abbe

    Forty five years is a long time. Just ask forty five year old men or women who are just getting used to what ‘middle aged’ means.   Right around forty five people either start feeling old, or fighting old. Both are a path to futility and failure, but that’s what feelings and fighting […]

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