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AUDIENCE RECOGNITION: KNOW THE ROOM

June 17, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Albert Einstein had audience recognition with his letter in 1939. His audience? Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States. He knew the room. It was one person.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: audience, audience recognition, baby boomer, Baby Boomer blogger, blogger, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, history, illegal orders, orders, Social media, speaker, speaking, story, travel, writer, writers, writing

BETTER LISTENING SKILLS FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING

June 16, 2026 by David Gillaspie

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. […]

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NBA CHAMPION CROWNED, AGAIN

June 14, 2026 by David Gillaspie

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 […]

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I READ THE NEWS TODAY OH BOY

June 12, 2026 by David Gillaspie

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. […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: boomer blogger, boomerpdx, boyfriends, education, family, family reunion, girlfriends, good life, grandkids, high school, kids, learning, life, lifelong guide, married, memory, news, news today, sassy, smart, stories, story, women

GIVING GOOD ADVICE, OR . . . ?

June 9, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Who reads blogs for good advice? If you do, is there any follow through? Asking what to do means there might be a problem. The biggest problem is when you’re the only one who sees the problem. Then what?

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: advice, English word, evil, following orders, good advice, insurrection, red flag, Social media, sports, story, travel, writer, writers, writing, WWII

OFF THE HOOK IN GOLDEN YEARS?

June 8, 2026 by David Gillaspie

As the golden years of retirement stretch out before you there are a few things to keep in mind. Probably more than ten line items, but this is a start. You don’t have to agree with any of them, but pick and choose in any order. I’ll start:

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: Baby Boomer blogger, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, boomers, cooking, education, family, fitness, food, GOLDEN YEARS, history, kids, kitchen, learning, married, mental stimulation, millennials, music, Oregon, PORTLAND BABY BOOMERS, Portland Oregon, recipe, relax, social interaction, Social media, sports, story, twitter, volunteer, wife, workout, writer, writers, writing

END PRODUCT IS WHAT PEOPLE CARE ABOUT, NOT PRACTICE

June 7, 2026 by David Gillaspie

‘End Product’ is another way of saying, “What have you done lately?” We pay to go to concerts, games, and races. We don’t pay to go to practice rooms, weight rooms, or interval track training, the stuff done before the end product. Buy a ticket for an event and you expect a competent performance? Sounds […]

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HISTORICAL ACCURACY? IMPORTANT, OR NOT

June 6, 2026 by David Gillaspie

I’m a fan of historical accuracy, of a story that stands up to scrutiny not opinion, My feeling is that the people involved in historical events deserve the decency of applied history. How to apply history? It’s all about the sources.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: accuracy, applied history, Baby Boomer blogger, Baby Boomers, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, casual killing, D-Day, decisive leaders, dismissive death, education, family, historical, historical accuracy, history, history sources, Internet, leaders, learning, married, opinion, PORTLAND BABY BOOMERS, respect, scrutiny, settled history, Social media, story, travel, wife, writer, writers, writing, WWII

MAKING THE CANCER CALL 2026

June 5, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Ten years ago I got the cancer call. Me: Hello. Doc: Are you sitting down? Me: Yes. (I was in the bathroom.) Doc: The tests came back. You have cancer. Me: That’s not good.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: baby boomer, Baby Boomer blogger, boomer blogger, cancer, cancer call, cancer patients, cancer terror, clinic, doctor, education, learning, medicaid, medical, medicare, medicine, mental health, miracles, modern medicine, physical health, story, stunned disbelief, travel, wife, writer, writers, writing

OPENING NIGHT AT THE ROSE GARDEN

June 4, 2026 by David Gillaspie

I watched the Rose Garden, home to your Portland Trail Blazers, rise up on the Northeast bank of the mighty Willamette River. From opening night until now it’s been . . . thirty-one years? As long as the Memorial Coliseum stands, the Rose Garden will always be the new kid on the block. And now […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: Baby Boomer blogger, BLAZERS, history, Michael Jordan, Moda Center, NBA, Oregon, PORTLAND BABY BOOMERS, Portland Rose Garden, Portland Trail Blazers, Rose Garden, shonz, story, Trail Blazers, travel, twitter, wife, winner, winning, writer, writers, writing