page contents Google

GENTLE SUGGESTIONS FOR GOOD TIMES

Who doesn’t make gentle suggestions? Call it good manners if you know the difference between a request and an order. ‘Would you please help me?’ instead of, ‘Get over here and make yourself useful.’ This happened recently:

HOW TO GROW A SENSE OF WONDER IN PORTLAND OREGON

Most of the time a sense of wonder in Portland means a painful memory from the days of old, of Meier and Frank downtown and the Georgian Room for tea. The place had a special aura during the holidays. The painful part? It hasn’t been there for years, Meier and Frank and the Georgian Room, […]

WE THE PEOPLE, NOT PEE-POLE

‘We the People’ are the difference makers others count on. Maybe not you or me, but the folks out there agitating for change, for better outcomes for themselves and their loved ones. Loved ones? You know, the people you think of when you get a warm fuzzy feeling that things are going the right direction […]

GREAT WRITING: WHEN WORDS MATTER MORE

From Google AI on current sentence construction:   Basic Structure: Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) Subject: Who/what the sentence is about (e.g., Matt). Verb: The action or state of being (e.g., eats). Object: Receives the action (e.g., pizza). Example: “Matt eats pizza.”

VINTAGE LEADERSHIP FROM MID-CENTURY MODERN LEADERS

Today would be a good day for vintage leadership from the 50’s and 60’s. The problem is that the reading I’ve done for the post comes across as a Nixon slam. Nixon was Vice President for Eisenhower in the 1950’s when everything was calm and serene, compared to the 1940’s. He was working during the […]

THE HEART OF PORTLAND

Repost from 2012 Urban life grows more imposing the closer you get to Burnside. The pretty lights you see from I-5, the beautiful reflection off the Willamette, disappear once you park your car. Trade wheels on the road for shoes on the sidewalk and the pace slows enough for a good look around. You still […]

MY COUNTRY TIS OF THEE

My participation in the civic life of my country is pretty minimal. I do my part. That’s me and Abe doing our part together. He does his oversight from his seat, me from mine. Only one of us writes about it.

GOOD TEAMMATE? BE ONE FOR THE TEAM

Either you are a good teammate, you’ve been a good teammate, or get out of here. That’s me in the dark Oregon hat in back. We’re on the breach in Seaside after Hood to Coast. It felt more like a deathbed after a short illness. But I’m not complaining, didn’t complain then, don’t complain now, […]

HISTORICAL ADVENTURES: REAL LIFE vs MY LIFE

Last night we reviewed historical adventures at my local five star with friends Some of us had a hand in it, one of us made things up. Guess who is who? Even I got confused, so much so that I have to get things straightened out. How does a baby boomer blogger do that? By […]

HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING WITH WOLVES

There comes a time in high school wrestling when you get thrown to the wolves. Ok, not real wolves, just the first time you knew you were over-matched, going to get rag-dolled, and still went out there. It doesn’t always work out the way it’s expected. I was a second year wrestler slated to face […]