Category: happiness

Some Gifts Are More Than Just a Gift – the 2018 John Lewis Christmas Commercial Is Here!

It's one of the annual traditions I've looked forward to for the past few years, the release of the John Lewis (a British retailer) Christmas commercial. This year feels a little bit extra special after spending last winter in London and getting to visit the John Lewis flagship store on Oxford Street. This year is the first … Continue reading Some Gifts Are More Than Just a Gift – the 2018 John Lewis Christmas Commercial Is Here! →

Will I Make It into the Toy Hall of Fame? You May Rely On It.

That was the answer for three toys this year - the Magic 8 Ball, the popular card game Uno, and pinball. The honorees were chosen from a field of 12 finalists that also included American Girl Dolls, chalk, Chutes and Ladders, Fisher-Price Corn Popper, Masters of the Universe, sled, tic-tac-toe, Tickle Me Elmo, and Tudor Electric Football. I … Continue reading Will I Make It into the Toy Hall of Fame? You May Rely On It. →

Have I Been Using the Wrong Smartphone?

Slickdeals just released the results of a survey it took that highlighted the difference between iPhone and Android users. The survey, which included 1,000 Android users and 1,000 iPhone users, looked at the differences between the two groups in terms of their spending habits, lifestyle choices, and social behaviors. The results suggest the following: iPhone owners generally make … Continue reading Have I Been Using the Wrong Smartphone? →

Sometimes Life Works Just Like You Hope It Should

I was driving down one of our local roads (Route 30) yesterday with my son and a neighbor. The road is a four-lane "highway", with a speed limit of 25 miles per hour for significant portions of the road. As I've written about before, I'm kind of anal about speed limits, and always use a … Continue reading Sometimes Life Works Just Like You Hope It Should →

Books – the Great Equalizer

Thanks to Mary, my wife, we did at least one thing right while our kids were growing up (notice how I snuck in there to grab some of the glory...). We had books, lots and lots of books, for our kids. I can remember many nights reading to our three boys and starting to talk … Continue reading Books – the Great Equalizer →

Most Americans Can’t Pass the Civics Test Required of immigrants. Could You?

A survey released today by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation found that only one in three Americans (36 percent) can actually pass a multiple choice test consisting of items taken from the U.S. Citizenship Test, which has a passing score of 60. Here are some of the highlights (lowlights?) from the survey: Only 13 percent of … Continue reading Most Americans Can’t Pass the Civics Test Required of immigrants. Could You? →

A Peaceful, Easy Anniversary

Today was our 37th wedding anniversary, and I knew it was going to be tough to top what I wrote last year, 36 F***ing Great Years, so I'm not even going to try. It was a pretty typical day; we both taught, got some takeout for dinner, and watched World News Tonight and the season premiere … Continue reading A Peaceful, Easy Anniversary →

What If???

We were driving to a family reunion yesterday, and along the way we passed the building (shown above) where I used to work 37 years ago, Prudential Insurance. It was my first "real" job, working as a dividend analyst in the group insurance division. I was part of a management development program that would have … Continue reading What If??? →

Why Is There Even a Debate about Trying to Help the Poor?

The New York Times Magazine had a wonderful, but at the same time depressing, story about what it's like to be poor in the United States today. Written by Pulitzer Prize winning writer Matthew Desmond, the article offers insight into world of poverty, and provides evidence and sound reasoning as what is the best way … Continue reading Why Is There Even a Debate about Trying to Help the Poor? →

Hopelessness Is the Enemy of Justice

A couple of years ago I offered my thoughts on the great book Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson. In that post I focused on one of the more memorable lines from the book, "each of is more than the worst thing we've ever done." This afternoon I had a chance to attend a presentation by … Continue reading Hopelessness Is the Enemy of Justice →