Did I mention that this essay is about starting new enterprises? While it is possible to build your unique sales proposition around chicken eggs, what if you were able to hatch something new and different, by changing it up a bit?
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Remember the real estate bubble of 2008, which almost brought the world economy down? That was the one chronicled in the movie The Big Short. Would you be surprised to learn that an even “Bigger Short” is happening, right this moment?
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We live in a time of great change. Solutions always seem to be along the lines of big, bold and dramatic. I admit, crying “Off with their heads!” if only in my own little mind, seems so satisfying. But what if we were to approach our challenges in a more dollop-y kind of way? Suggestions, attitudes, demeanors which were less invasive, more additive?
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It's called the "American Riviera", and not for nothing. After all, like its namesake in the south of France, it’s got the perfect blend of great weather, outstanding ocean views from every angle, palm trees and beaches for miles, great restaurants and bars, unique architecture, and more than a little bit of glamor.
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There’s a famous sign on top of a hangar at ATL (Atlanta Hartsfield Int’l Airport) which reads simply “Fly Delta Jets”. I’m pretty sure no one thinks about it much, but if they did they might ask, “What the hell does that mean? Does any airline NOT fly jets?” The apocryphal nature of that vintage sign got me to asking myself, what is my own equivalent sign or rule? What am I still doing that I started doing 60 years ago, back when it was a brilliant, new idea?
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I am alarmed.
The U.S. Surgeon General has forthrightly stated that drinking causes cancer. Period.
I admit, I like a glass of wine or two. I am being told my lifestyle crashes upon the reef of reality. That lovely pinot noir from the Santa Maria valley could kill me.
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I’m not going to lie to you.
It’s been a long, wild year. Macro, micro, and everything in between. During the sailing ship times, sailors would resort to tying themselves to the mast in heavy weather to avoid being washed overboard. Yet another example of the utility of "strings", at least in theory. My own "strings" with which I tied myself to the mast in 2024 were sixteen essays posted on the blog.
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Your Story Goes (HERE) is an interview series aimed at spotlighting the stories of remarkable people and their impactful work, especially those whose contributions may not have received the recognition they should.
Today we feature Austin Together, whose purpose is to strengthen the nonprofit community in Central Texas by enabling sustained collaborations. Host Ray Brimble interviews the Executive Director of Austin Together, Karen LaShelle, and the Board Chair, Rich Smalling.
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The Oscar award-winning movie introduced many of us to the very strange concept that we are all living ‘everywhere all at once.’ If you haven’t seen it, the movie explores how moments, choices, and their consequences are interconnected across multiple dimensions and timelines. The multiverse serves as a narrative device to present different versions of reality where time behaves differently.
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People occasionally ask me why I am so invested in Native American issues, when I am not actually Native American. My answer is: why not, if I can help to address injustice, correct historical inaccuracies, and bring awareness and appreciation for diverse cultural contributions?
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"I read the news today, oh boy.”
-The Beatles, A Day In The Life
Oh, Boy.
That’s how I felt when I heard the news this past November: One hundred Black servicemen, sentenced to life in prison for their alleged involvement in what was called a riot, in Houston, Texas, nearly 100 years ago, had been ceremoniously reinstated by the US Army with full honors and benefits for their descendants. In short, they had finally been forgiven.
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When I was in my teens, I learned to read tarot cards, admittedly because it seemed to impress the girls.
To my surprise, I got pretty good at it.
It was just a party trick for me, but I couldn’t help but notice powerful insights in these readings.
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La Lucha, Spanish for ‘the struggle’, was a term used by Tejanos to describe the Battle of the Alamo.
Mexican wrestlers, known for their iconic masks, refer to themselves as lucha libres, or luchadores.
The other day, as I was walking along the lane, minding my own business, I stumbled upon a piece of cutlery– a fork to be exact. It was in terrible shape, clearly run over by multiple vehicles, and caked with dirt and grime.
Nasty!
This is the thing about forks in the road– they’re often not at all what you hoped for.
Franz Klammer….a name now mostly forgotten by the passage of time. Yet, as I am about to elaborate, he remains the architect of one of the most remarkable moments in sports history, perhaps even in all of history.
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“Hope is not prognostication. It is an orientation of the spirit, an orientation of the heart."
-Vaclav Havel
This is my mother, Dora, throwing a coin into the Trevi Fountain in Rome in 1963.
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AI– Artificial Intelligence. Most of us have literally seen that movie. The first Terminator movie was shown in 1984 and Ahnald, the Terminator, said, "I'll be back”.
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Perhaps you’ve seen it? While traveling through the east terminal section of Austin Bergstrom International Airport, just beyond the last glorious whiff of Salt Lick BBQ brisket, past the folks drinking expensive cheap wine at Vino Vino, and just before you get to the elevator of the Delta Sky Club…
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Tyranny! We are taught to resist it ... at ANY cost.
Yet, virtually all of us have willingly invited it into our own homes.
Within those walls, it lurks, bosses us around every day, offers us untenable choices, plies us with guilt. No, I am not talking about your tw- year-old grandchild dropped off for the weekend by your unappreciative son.
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