On the Road in Portugal (Part One)

It’s interesting that people enjoy travel stories.  For one thing, why would you want to hear how someone else was having a great time while you were laying patio bricks during your week off.  And travel stories always come off a bit uppity, as in – “Garth and I had such a grand time sailing the Aegean with Lars Prendergast -- the world famous author and financier – that we felt we simply must share the experience.”  Even if it’s only an extended weekend at Earl’s Snake Ranch in Iowa there’s always the overtone of “nah nah nah nah nah nah” coming through in that ... [Read More]

The Fallen

I flew home from my week in Charleston, SC through Atlanta. I had been upgraded to first class, so I was reasonably comfortable for the five hour transcontinental odyssey I had taken so many times before. As we taxied into the south terminal gate #8 in Seattle, the lead flight attendant requested that we all keep our seats to allow the soldier seated in the bulkhead exit row of the Boeing 757 to exit the plane first. The attendant went on to explain that he was escorting a fallen soldier back home to his family.   On the right side of the plane, police and fire vehicles ... [Read More]

ESCAPE TO THE OC – DAY 3 – THE COVE and SUNSET

Early Monday morning, I was awakened once again to the declaration that Eli was coming…I really need to rethink this choice as a wake-up call when I am on the road! I dressed quickly and was out the door by 6:10am to meet the van I had arranged the previous night through the hotel desk to take me down to the well regarded Pelican Hills north golf course for my 7:05am tee time. Much to my chagrin and not wanting to go back in the room and wake Sue, I had to call the desk at 6:20am at which time it became very clear that ... [Read More]

ESCAPE TO THE OC – DAY 2 – THE HIKE

  There is nothing like a slow, dare I say, “monotonous”, wakeup experience on the first morning of a quick vacation getaway to put you in the full relaxed mode. And the fact that this day is a Sunday makes the concept of a decadent late awakening even more alluring!!! If you have had a chance to read “DAY 1”, you recall that we finished our first evening at Pelican Hills with a savory, candle and moonlit dinner and a spectacular bottle of wine by the pool and retired to our lovely suite with a view to cuddle by the fire. With no scheduled appointments or ... [Read More]

Mormons, Beer, Sundance and Snow

Many know Utah only as the mountainous area you cross to get to California. Others know it merely as “that place with all the Mormons.” In the days after my Utah trip a half-dozen otherwise sophisticated friends asked me if “the Mormons” (gasp!) had managed to convert me. Their eyebrows crawled heaven-ward when I said the subject never even came up. So prevalent are the misconceptions of this place that when I mentioned I was attending the Sundance Film Festival, few could believe it was actually held in Utah, convinced that the world’s top indie film showcase must surely be held someplace more hip, like Colorado or New Mexico, right? ... [Read More]

ESCAPE TO THE OC – DAY 1 – THE ARRIVAL

Sue and I had had enough of the gray, damp days of Western Washington. Even the most ardent supporters of the great Pacific Northwest need to find some vitamin B at some point during the winter months. I wanted to venture off to help Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman sand that boat on the secluded beach in Zihuatanejo, Mexico, but Sue could not spare a whole week, so we opted for three days of sun, rest and relaxation in SoCal. Hopefully that boat will still be there when we have a little more time. Now if you have read any of my previous blogs, we really ... [Read More]

Pensacola: Where New Energy is More Than Rhetoric

Spend enough time doing community tours for an economic development publication, and you will have a tendency to become a bit jaded. You will hear every marketing slogan under the sun. You will see every form of “brand building,” logo designing and advertising jargon imaginable. Every state claims, for example, that it offers “the perfect climate for business.” Every city boasts that it provides “the best quality of life.” And every rural area brags that it has “the best work ethic you’ll find anywhere in America." Of course not all of this is true. In fact, most of it isn’t. It’s just sloganeering, and after a while every ... [Read More]

Temporary Setbacks in the Maghreb

Calm before the storm. A chilly Monday at a site in Tunis overlooking the Mediterranean. Unrest would grip the city two days later.

My third day of meetings in Tunisia marked the mid-way point in my visit to this country of 10 million nestled between Algeria and Libya on the north coast of Africa. By now, I was used to being in a part of the world that gave my loved ones back home more than a little cause for concern. They, like most, may not be geopolitical experts. But one doesn’t need to be to recall that it was Tunisia that sparked the Arab Spring two years ago, with the overthrow of a corrupt, decades-old regime and protests that led to formation of a provisional government and ... [Read More]

Into the Realm of the Arctic Bear (Part Two)

Polar bears are among the world’s most feared hunters, and that’s saying something when you consider that their competition includes Duane “Dog” Chapman, Navy Seals, and Dick “You should duck next time, Harry” Cheney. If you happen to see a polar bear with a scarf around its neck, as in the Coke commercials, you’re likely to see some bloody bones and a broken gun nearby.  Rough characters, those bears! Did you know that polar bears aren’t really white?  Their skin is actually black, and their seemingly white fur is comprised of transparent hollow tubes.  (My scalp seems to be growing those tubes nowadays.) These amazing facts ... [Read More]

Our Own Devices

MLK1

Late 2012 trips to New Orleans, D.C. and Pittsburgh brought reminders to look up from the  opiate screen and read our actual surroundings. The signs and stories are everywhere, as are the plants, animals and human beings. Make history this year: Walk up to them in real space and engage. [Read More]