What is it about vacation that draws me into a state of melancholy? Is it knowing that the best part is the anticipation – when we talk about the things we’re going to do around the breakfast table months in advance? Is it keeping one eye on the calendar the whole time no matter how long we are gone? Is it understanding that nothing lasts forever? Is it the fear of facing personal shortcomings that keep me from spending time…
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that there are no coincidences. Yes, it’s cliche. And I know you probably believe in randomness and chaos. I don’t blame you. It’s not easy walking around thinking that every moment and each encounter is significant. But for me, it is. That is, when I’m paying attention it is. When I get wrapped up in the world of others, I tend to think like others – and don’t see the wood for the…
The only thing wrong with this spot is that men don’t eat mint. Otherwise, perfect. *** Jim Mitchem
Vacation. In America, most of us get a couple of weeks a year to unwind, see new sights and recharge. We’re an industrious lot. Two weeks is all we need to be highly productive workers for the other fifty. Europeans, however, get something like six months off a year. They’re not American though, and so they don’t get it. To make a mark in this world means keeping your nose to the grindstone. Ben Franklin said so. Recharging is for…
I grew up in the future back in the late 60’s and early 70’s. We lived along the east coast of Florida from Cocoa Beach to Jacksonville. With NASA firing rockets into space and Disney being erected down in the middle of orange groves, it was a magical time. As a boy, I remember watching grainy images of the Apollo missions lifting off from Cape Canaveral on television, and then rushing outside to actually see them rise into the sky…
I have a favorite saying that you are what you consume. Back in the day, we watched a lot of TV. We were limited to only a few channels, so media outlets had a field day with pricing advertising. Still, just about every night, families across America sat in front of glowing glass tubes built into big wooden boxes and watched Mike and Carol raise kids, or Carrie, Mary and Laura frolic in meadows. Lucky families even had TVs with…
