In my mind, a cross-country road trip always sounded glamorous and exciting. Sites to visit, canyons to peer across, large bodies of sparkling water to ponder. Deserts, roadside diners, singing at the top of your lungs to a road trip playlist. This is the way road trips are portrayed not only in movies, but also in many travel blogs and travel magazines. Memories made, new perspectives discovered, glimpses into the interior of the great United States.
Spring is in the air! Well, maybe, not really. But it sure beats the brutal cold and snow that hung around here for the last few months. Just the promise of warmer weather has helped me beat the Winter Blues. And, there is so much to look forward to: like Daylight Saving Time, which begins on March 11, giving us a little more “daytime” to enjoy.
What’s the worst motion picture of all time? Well, as I have acquired the ability to walk into my backyard – right now – and aim my smartphone wherever I’d like, the distinction is fluid and the possibilities are endless.
Ah, the words of William Shakespeare. In the play, “Julius Caesar,” a soothsayer (person who can see the future) issued that warning to Caesar just before the embattled leader was stabbed to death at a meeting of the senate.
Superstition says it’s bad luck to open an umbrella indoors – that doing so will cause misfortune to rain down upon you from above. Well, March 13 is the day to test your fate: bust open your umbrella and hope for the best! But, if we all take part in National Open an Umbrella Indoors Day, won’t we all get poked by umbrellas? Never mind. Best practice: make sure you’re not too close to other people (or table lamps) before you begin testing this age-old notion.
February 14 is a day that some people choose to honor the ones they love. It’s a time to find ways to let the people who make us strong and make this life worth living know that they are special. On Saint Valentine’s Day, a large portion of our world turns pink and red with hearts and doves and teddy bears, chocolates, greeting cards and dinners for two. A Happy St. Valentine’s Day is within your grasp and is even closer … with a plan.
It seems to me that Paris is a kind of reminder; a place that always brings memories to the surface, even if it is your first visit. Memories of movies set in Paris, or long-lost quotes about the city that you’ve heard, somewhere, sometime.
So many people I run into lately seem to be in a complete state of confusion regarding our current economy and the overall stock market. They can’t understand why the markets “feel okay” about such a politically incorrect, volatile and sometimes downright vile person in the Oval Office. My response to this sentiment lies in something that I’ve never done before; I’m going to quote myself from my November 2017 My City article: “The possibility of pro-economic growth policies could inspire animal spirits in the markets for hope of a brighter economic future.”
Although the national economy was strong in 2017, this prosperity was not evenly distributed. According to the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis, average personal income was approximately $50,000. However, in 86 percent of American counties, average personal income is less than this. There is just a small percentage of counties with above average personal income, which pulls the national average up. Average personal income is between $50,000 and $65,000 in ten percent of counties while an ultra-prosperous three percent have average personal income between $65,000 and $195,000. These ultra-prosperous counties are concentrated in urban areas such as New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, D.C. and places with oil, such as the Texas panhandle and North Dakota.
Have you ever had trouble forgiving someone? I mean, some things are just unforgivable. Right? I just finished reading a recently published book about forgiveness which I found to be very inspirational: Taming the Tokolash – Through Fear into Healing: A Trauma Survivor’s True Story, written by Mandy Bass. This is a story about a woman who was brutally attacked by a young man and how she forgave him – an act that changed his life, and hers – forever.
I would like to write something about loving others, or being in love, or some Valentine’s-themed column. It is February, after all …
