The suicide rate of active duty military members is up to about one a day. When we add this to the 18 veteran suicides a day that have been documented over the past few years we should be horrified. One a day in active service is an unacceptable loss, 19 a day between active military and veterans is an unspeakable horror. [...]
The gratitude diet…
Gratitude - the state of being grateful. I believe in being grateful for the beauty, joy, happiness, and people in my life. I am blessed, this I know. Unfortunately, in the hurriedness of day-to-day life I sometimes lose track of my gratitude, but when I take a moment to pause and look around at the [...]
Word association…
Let's play a word association game. I'll give you a word and you tell me the first word or image that pops into your mind. Remember, the first word or image that pops into your mind - don't ponder, don't reflect. Okay...are you ready? Here's the word: Nana. What was the first word or image [...]
Trouble #1 & Trouble #2
Some of the buildings on the EMI campus have card access. There is an official looking panel on the wall when you enter in the lobby of these controlled-access buildings where a light turns green when you swipe your card. When returning to the building that my room is in this afternoon the green light [...]
Picture it…
I am out in Emmitsburg, Maryland this week at FEMA's annual Emergency Management Higher Education Conference. I have come to this conference every year since 2004 - nine years straight now. Every year when I first arrive on the campus (at the Emergency Management Institute-EMI) I take a deep breath. It is like breathing in the rarest air [...]
Take a lesson from Zsa Zsa…
I have been married before...a few times. I am certainly not a Zsa Zsa Gabor (married 9 times), but I am likewise no poster child for marriages that you keep longer than a good car. Not that I am not a fan of marriage. I believe in the whole institution - clearly, as I have [...]
Penciled-in…
On Friday, the birth of my grandson, Lennon Daniel, was "penciled-in" for June 15, 2012. I say "penciled-in" because Lennon Daniel did not do the penciling and he seems to be the one who has been pushing the envelope all along to get out of his womb early. Shocking. A member of my clan that wants [...]
THE NEW FORTY 