Category: Five Minute Read
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Born to be a Free Spirit
Freedom is what you do with what’s been done to you. -Jean Claude Sartre I cannot think of anyone who has attained your degree of freedom—my long-time friend Ray commented on a recent post, Ever curious, I began to ponder that statement. People have called me a “free-spirit” all my life. I’ve found that it…
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Songs That Shaped My Life
Note: Jeff Tweedy, frontman for Wilco, one of my favorite bands, recently published a memoir by the post title’s name, inspiring me to write this post. 1963—“Dear Jesus, Abide With Me,” as a five-year-old local celebrity child singer, this song was my standard. I sang it solo at my kindergarten graduation and many other churches,…
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Randy Elrod: Same Interview, Six Decades
15-year-old Randy (1973) What is most important to you now? High school marching band. Your biggest fear? Hell. Your favorite artist? Chicago Your favorite book? Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Your favorite movie? I’m not allowed to go to the movies. What makes you happy in a relationship? Being together. Describe yourself in four words….
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Kitchen Appliances & Utensils I Could Not Live Without
(In No Particular Order) 1. Samsung Induction Oven—I was induction before induction was cool. Now that the gas oven hoopla has surfaced, everyone is talking about induction. I first discovered the technology by accident at the farm in 2015. Our Samsung Chef Collection oven malfunctioned, and because we were so remote—they asked if they could…
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I Took A Trip Yesterday
Often I wonder why some of us are allowed to live a charmed life. Yesterday was one of the most significant days of my six decades on earth. I never cease to be amazed that we live in a world where I can wake up in Dunedin, Florida, hop on a plane, and in just…
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A New Adventure
Gina loves to travel and has been all over the world. Last year, she formed “Crewsin’ & More”—a travel advisory company with a clever take on her maiden name (Crews). The company has grown steadily (particularly now that Covid restrictions have been lifted and people are catching up on all their travel), and she has…
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The Day I Encountered Joe Rogan
Last week while relaxing in the jacuzzi at the exclusive Richard’s Rooftop aboard Virgin Voyages “The Scarlet Lady,” a young couple joined us. As we chatted, we learned they had just become engaged. He looked in his mid-forties, and she was in her late twenties. It did not take him long to let us know…
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Thoughts About My Aging (Nude) Body After 64 Years
Today, I snapped an impromptu photo of the person I saw in the mirror upon waking. He startled me. It is my 64th birthday. Even though I seem reasonably fit at first glance after a lifetime of avid running and weight lifting, there are telltale signs of six-plus decades of life. Upon closer inspection, my…
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Why Christians Betrayed Jesus For Trump
In researching my latest book, The Quest: A Way To Enjoy Life, I came across a book by Dr. James Hollis called Why Good People Do Bad Things. It was written twelve years ago, but a passage I read this morning could have been written today. He asks, “What happens when ‘the good people’ are themselves…
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Activism & Allyship Guide
If we are to advance the cause of racial justice, it has to be done both in the moments when we are outraged and in the quiet moments when there isn’t a new hashtag borne out of a specific moment of injustice. It is about changing attitudes and beliefs that ultimately lead to actions. It…
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Why We No Longer Think For Ourselves
The problem arises when we need to process and understand complex and chaotic situations. The ability to think for ourselves has been short-circuited by the rise of social networks, television propaganda, and easy solutions presented by charismatic pundits and political and religious leaders. With so much information to process, it is easier to drift into…
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What Will The Future Bring?
A question as old as time. In moments of peace and well-being, this query occupies less of our thinking. But historically, in times of political, emotional, and spiritual chaos our eyes turn with anxious hope to the future, particularly when apocalyptic fears multiply. This question was asked by the people of Israel when subjected to…
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FOMO
Now that Gina and I have returned to civilization and downtown living after almost five years in the isolated wilderness of the Appalachian foothills, we have coined a new phrase. FOMO. It’s an acrostic for the Fear of Missing Out. To adequately place this in a proper perspective, you must know that our country home…
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Ten Crucial Steps To Keep Trump and Zuckerburg Away From Your Privates
1) Stop Using Google Now—If you use Gmail and use Google to search the web, Google knows more about you than any other institution. And that goes double if you use other Google services like Google Maps, Waze, Google Docs, etc.” Tips: I use DuckDuckGo for search because it’s advertised not to track…