unsigned podcast » Deep Thoughts

Fathers Day

podcaster — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:28:42 +0000

Any man can create a baby. It takes a special kind of man to be a father and create a family. My father and mother had their share of problems over the years, but I never felt that either one would leave our home in anger. They stayed together for 36 years. My father died at age 56 of cancer. I miss you, Dad.

FB at Work?

podcaster — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:10:21 +0000

A survey by Liberty Mutual’s Responsibility Project was released todaythat measured the attitudes by Americans toward using Facebook at work.

The responses indicated that 56 percent say “it is irresponsible” to be friends with a boss.

On the other hand, 62 percent said it is wrong to be friends with an employee.

Among workplace peers, 76 percent claimed it is acceptable to be Facebook friends with a coworker.

And with a rising practice in the Human Resources departments, Americans are almost evenly split on whether companies should review a job candidate’s Facebook or MySpace personal profile. From those surveyed, 52 percent said it is appropriate for the HR people and 48 percent said it is unacceptable.

Welcome to Twenty Ten

podcaster — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 17:10:50 +0000

This is the start of a new year and also a new decade. The year Twenty Ten has great promise for us all, as our President gets settled into office and is able to use his influence to create the great changes that he has promised to bring us. There have been some economic stimulus plans, such as “cash for clunkers,” that were a huge success. Now we need to see some serious, lasting jobs created and help for Americans to keep or buy homes, and a new approach to our health care.

Karma

podcaster — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:20:50 +0000

Some days you are a big fat, lazy June bug.

Some days you are the windshield.

Not sure if I want to be the bug today. I have a feeling that windshields are very threatening.

Toys and Movies

podcaster — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:22:22 +0000

Are there any new movies coming out that DON’T have a complete line of toys associated with them? I mean, the Transformers, the G. I Joe, and even the G-Force gerbils have toys filling shelves at the WalMarts, KMarts and Targets of the world. And let’s not forget the “happy meals” at all the fast food joints that come with the movie promoting toys and PR tie-ins.

Happy Holidays

podcaster — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 03:44:31 +0000

This time of year is for holidays and family things, no matter what your religion or lack of. It’s the season to be merry. It’s the time to be generous and grateful. This is when you realize that family means everything and friends are to be treasured.

So Merry Christmas to my friends and family. If you celebrate other holidays during this time of year, I hope that your choice of celebration is wonderful for you, too.

Red and Blue States

podcaster — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 06:31:04 +0000

I live in a red state. Even though I voted blue and both of my kids voted blue, and several of our friends voted blue, our votes weren’t enough to make our state turn blue. That was pretty frustrating – I wish I fit in better with our neighbors. But they are evidently red.

On a good note, blue won overall. So there.

Feeling Good

podcaster — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 16:28:17 +0000

There must be hundreds of thousands of people who get up every morning and smile right away. They are embracing the new day and are looking forward to whatever treats the new day has in store for them.

Then there are the others who wake up dreading what troubles the day will bring. Some of them have good reason – they are facing a day in court or perhaps a job performance review, a dispatch to the front lines of a war, or a difficult medical procedure. But many people are just depressed from their normal quality of life and daily troubles.

I wish I had the solution to the people who drag themselves through the day feeling depressed and sad. That must be awful. I try to start my day with a smile and a good cup of coffee. It doesn’t always work out that way, but I do make the effort.

Going for a Spin

podcaster — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:52:44 +0000

Normally I don’t read Spin Magazine. I’m not into the grunge rock and punk music, and that’s what they seem to focus on. I think it’s great that some of these kids have a shot at a singing or performing career, but since I don’t have college age kids I just can’t get my head into what they are singing about or how they look. The extreme hair and makeup, the tattoos, the piercings – it’s so boring. Really boring. What I’d like to see is kids that are clean and groomed and take music seriously along the lines of lyrics meaningful to more than just 13 and 14 year old spoiled brats.

But I do like reading the ads in this magazine. You can learn a lot about a variety of things in today’s pop culture by reading the ads. Especially if you have an interest in liquor and electronics. You’ll read about things you aren’t exposed to in any other popular medium. That’s the downside of targeting ads to narrow demographics. The slick marketing pros in NYC and LA don’t always get it right.

Sandcastles

podcaster — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:42:11 +0000

Two of my brothers live in a beach town. They are roomies and are very close in age and interests, and I’m glad they have each other around to help out and look after one another. They are too far away for me to visit very often, and there’s not much in this town to attract either one of them to visit here unless it was a business conference or convention that they were required to attend, and that hasn’t happened in over 15 years, so I’m not holding my breath.

On the other hand, it was a business trip that took me to their town a few years ago, so I’m not faulting them. When I knew I would be arriving on a particular date, I sent my brother an email and told him which days I would be there and asked when he would like to get together for dinner and set our plans around that.

After a great seafood dinner in a little place overlooking the Atlantic, we decided to walk for a few blocks on the beach and appreciate the sunset while we chatted about family things and shared memories. That was really nice – quality time.

On the beach, a young man was working pretty hard on something very large, and as we got closer I could figure out that he was making a sand castle of sorts in the sand. This was not child’s sandcastle with plastic pails and gelatin molds. This was a serious sand sculpture and was very well done. Turns out he was doing this project as a way to make money. There was a little bucket and handprinted sign that asked for “donations” and almost everyone who walked by was dropping in a couple bucks to help him out. I suspect at the height of tourist season this venture is very lucrative.

Interesting in that the homeless and the beggars in my town pretend to play guitars on the downtown sidewalks and sing country songs that everyone recognizes, with a hat or guitar case on the ground for donations. Here at the beach, they make sandcastles.