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HONOR CODE FOR WHEN YOU ‘KNOW BETTER’

February 2, 2026 by David Gillaspie

An ‘honor code’ has always sounded like a ‘pinky promise.’ That’s when someone tells a secret and you hook pinkies to never tell. Ever. Is a pinky promise bigger and more important than an honor code? Hmmmmm?

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PUSHING YOUR BOUNDARIES? NOT TOO FAR

January 31, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Do you know your boundaries, and how far to push? I reviewed some yesterday. Maybe one. As a fitness fan who also likes taking it easy, I sometimes go too far. To far one way with a slack day, or two; too far another day with too much. Here’s how it worked out yesterday:

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STUMBLING STONES OF HARSH HISTORY

January 30, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Last night I learned about Stumbling Stones, or Stolpersteine. They are memorial bricks laid for Holocaust victims at the last place they voluntarily lived before being deported for execution. Our friends told the story of the journey to their family’s former home in Germany, once known as East Prussia. They found the Stolpersteines outside the […]

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NATIONAL PRIDE FROM THE BACK ROW

January 29, 2026 by David Gillaspie

The idea of national pride usually comes from where you were brought up, and who raised you. My sense of things comes from growing up in small town America, raised by parents who came from even smaller towns. The sophisticate in the family was Grandma, who grew up in Dallas, Texas, graduated high school as […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: academic, America, baby boomer, Baby Boomer blogger, Baby Boomers, blogger, boomerpdx, education, facebook, Great Depression, IQ, learning, Love, national, national pride, parents, personal pride, pride, proudest parents, public education, scholarship, sorority, sorority sister, story, teacher, twitter, write, writer, writers, writing, WWII, young adults

CAREFUL PLANNING TAKES TIME

January 26, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Planning, careful planning, is an essential element to all caring relationships. Especially the relationship you have with yourself, your inner-world with your inner-voice on a continuous narrative. ‘Let’s do this, then that, but this before that. And only on the weekend.’ What kind of a plan is that, a beer drinker’s weight loss plan? Nooooooo, […]

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NON-VIOLENT REACTIONS TO VIOLENCE

January 25, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Non-violent reactions are harder to work with once you’ve been on the receiving end of violence. But you must make a decision: Bring violence to violence, or stay true to your goal. If the goal is non-violence, and you get punched in the face, it’s a harder choice. For example:

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BEING DOG WALKED? HOW TO KNOW

January 23, 2026 by David Gillaspie

What’s it mean to be dog walked? “Time to get the leash. The slang dog walk is “to overpower” or “outsmart” someone, as if in utter control of them, as when walking a dog.” When does it happen? There are clues, such as:

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DOG WALKING FOR BEGINNERS

January 22, 2026 by David Gillaspie

This is the dog for dog walking, also known as ‘my dog.’ She gets excited for a walk, but only if you go as far as she wants to go. Go too far, make the wrong turn, and she sits down until you make the right turn. Quite a dog, the best dog I’ve ever […]

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TO MY 715 ‘READERS’ IN CHINA, WITH LOVE

January 21, 2026 by David Gillaspie

A recent tally indicates 715 readers in China. Nothing about the sort of readers, whether bots, or AI, if those are separate elements. Bots means robots, if I’m not mistaken. Taking out the ‘r’ and the ‘o’ , of ro-bot is so much more convenient. Who do I thank? Let’s start with 715 thank-yous to […]

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GOLDEN SILENCE? WHAT’S THAT ALL ABOUT

January 20, 2026 by David Gillaspie

I’ve experienced golden silence? Nooooo. But I’ve come close. Like the time I woke up in a tent while spending the night on a mountain I’d climbed. So quiet, at first, then the sniffing sound. Since it was Alaska, it may have been a bear. I was silent.

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