Is It Summer Yet?
Not quite. But soon.
Time marches on—can’t believe it’s been one year since my retirement from church! Here’s the amazing wall clock in my home office, a parting gift from my friend Lorraine.
Well, gang, it’s almost June, which means it’s almost the end of school for Aiden and Peter (and teacher Sheridan) and almost vacation time and almost so blazing hot out that we’ll be wishing for the return of winter, which is dumb, but what we always do, right? Quick reminder: Ice storms. Gray skies. Long dark nights. Shoveling snow. Ready to scurry back to summer? I thought so.
I love to read those corrections to news stories printed in the paper. I applaud any attempts to be completely accurate, because the truth is IMPORTANT. But sometimes these amendments are a bit extreme (did anyone actually fact-check the article before it went to press?) Here’s one egregious example, ripped from our local newspaper! (actually it’s a humor piece I wrote for Jane Austen’s Wastebasket, to be totally correct)…
MUSIC:
“Stepping Stones” back in the day (Rachel second from right, Rose at the mic)
I’ve known Rachel Zatcoff since she was a little girl. While her greatest musical achievement (no doubt!) was her stint singing with “Stepping Stones” at Christ’s Lutheran Church, she’s done a few other minor things, such as starring on Broadway in Phantom of the Opera, etc. Here’s Rachel singing a beautiful Jason Robert Brown song…
PODCAST ROUNDUP:
With the advent of warmer weather, I’m stepping up my outdoor walks (get it?) That means more podcasts to enjoy as I aim for the magic 10,000 on the old Fitbit. Here are some great ones (you don’t have to be exercising to listen)…
Everything Happens: Host Kate Bowler is a writer, professor, and mom of young children. Kate is also living with Stage IV cancer. I highly recommend her book Everything Happens for a Reason: and Other Lies I’ve Loved, and her podcast. Here’s Kate interviewing poet Maggie Smith:
SmartLess: My Patrick told me about this podcast— really fun interviews with a wild variety of famous guests, from Bradley Cooper to Cate Blanchett to LeBron James. Guess you can snag the big names when your hosts are Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes, right? Here’s a cool interview with the very cool Ken Burns:
Intentionally Ever After: Joe Bukartek is a life coach based in Bethany Beach, DE. Joe helps people to live with intention, and create lives of meaning and fulfillment. Here’s my recent interview on his terrific podcast, where I talk about the ways I try to live intentionally:
BLOG PREVIEW: As I write this, the last places mandating masks are lifting that pandemic requirement. Finally, our facial expressions are on display again, but have we forgotten some of them? In Japan, “smile therapy” is really a thing! Check out Working Title tomorrow morning to learn more!
INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
Wishing you a week filled with God sightings, my friends.