Life 2.0

It's another busy day on this end of the microphone. This afternoon is the last public event with Chicago Cubs legendary catcher Randy Hundley, for the IRONMAN book, which I so looking forward to. But as always, there's more going on, like the cracks that needed to be repaired in the house foundation, which of course reminds me how important is that we address the fractures in our foundations by filling them with kindness whenever possible, as prescribed by the late, great Dr. Chuck Wall.

Every Full Moon, hundreds of people around the world go out to gaze at the night sky and look up at our lunar neighbor to remember and pay respect to an incredible woman, Molly Creely, who passed away on September 10th, 2019 at the age of 44.

For the past five years, "Molly’s Moon" has become a rite of passage once a month, a holy mass of sorts, and a prayer of thanks for those of us who knew her. If you look up the definition of “formidable” it is “inspiring awe, admiration, or wonder." Those few words describe Molly’s impact on the world, one that continues through her family, friends, and former students to this day.

On this episode of the Life 2.0 podcast, a short recap of my talk this past week at the Climate Action Museum in Chicago, and how one man changed the Chicago River's course and saved thousands of lives in the process. In other news, the last POTUS debate had some wild claims by former President Trump about Haitian immigrants chowing down on cats in the bustling metropolis of Springfield, Ohio which of course set unsocial media on fire and brought back memories of the 80's sitcom ALF (Alien Life Form) who often feasted on felines. As it turns out, the CATastrophic story was false, and the woman who started it all was surprised that it made the national media, as well as causing bomb threats. Surprised? Really? Welcome to the 21st century where facts always take a backseat to fiction. 

In this edition of Earth Matters Monday, taking time for a last shout-out for the upcoming Earth Matters event at the Climate Action Museum on 9.11.24 with my tag-team partner Jen Weigel. At some point, we're not going to use the term Planet Earth anymore but rather Planet Plastic, as there is more plastic in tonnage than all the living things in the world combined and it's our collective fault. But, there are signs of hope amidst the floating water bottles, and I've included a few Earth Matters with Bill Kurtis spots for effect and a little help from John Denver to close the show. 

It's been another interesting week for me. I ended up at Wrigley Field and witnessed the Chicago Cubs' no-hitter, which got me thinking about that iconic shrine and how much it's played in my life over the years. Then, a reminder popped up on Facebook about an early episode of "The Bridge" from 2020 with my friend the late, great Hillary Raimo. I grabbed some audio from 2019 when HR was a guest on this podcast; hearing her voice again is a real gift. Finally, it's the birthday of a dear friend who just happened to have a song written for her in 1974 by her then-husband John Denver and his version of "Annie's Song" in Russian is stratospheric. As always, more life lines than headlines as we dig for common sense in uncommon times.

Last night, I happened to catch one of my top ten fav films of all time "Cinderella Man" starring Russell Crowe and Rene Zellweger. It's Ron Howard's excellent movie about the true life and times of boxer James J. Braddock aka "The Bulldog of Bergen" and how he went from a contender to a washed-up pugilist and then incredibly found himself as the heavyweight champion of the world after defeating Max Baer in 1935. The movie is set against the background of The Great Depression and is filled with reminders of how good we have it today, despite what both political parties are selling these days.

Labor Day was born out of difficult (to say the least) working conditions in America back in the 1800s. It's the end of summer and the beginning of fall, but it also has me thinking of a few of the early jobs I had, like stacking bags of flour and fixing tires, as well as pouring concrete. It's about the value of work, putting in long hours, grinding it out, and deep satisfaction on a job well done...and then kicking back one day a year and having a cold one or three in honor of your efforts.

Frank Cale was just 19 years old when he came to the United States in 1967 in search of The American Dream. He found it, on the corner of Elston and Lawrence Ave. in Chicago, and for the past half-century, he cranked out untold pizzas and memories for those of us fortunate enough to call Sano's home. Last night, the doors closed for good, signaling the end of an era.

The landfill of the internet is filled with all sorts of #$%*!($!! and on the heels of celebrating my 27th year in radio and still attempting to find common sense during uncommon times, it was time for another edition of The Wednesday Rant. Is it true that in November of 2020, gas was $1.80 per gallon and mortgage rates were at a low of 2.75%? Yes...but why was that? A) Due to the former president in office OR B) Because there was a global pandemic and the world was shutting down? Let's find out! Higher Ground still exists, but the climb while slow at times, is worth it.

After watching "It-Chapter Two" last night for the third time from the master of horror Stephen King, the underlying theme of how fear can distort our view of the world and create lifelong challenges was crystal clear. The "fear factor" is a very real thing...or is it? Pennywise the Dancing Clown only existed by feeding off fear, not unlike humans who are nose-deep in the news that brings us every bit of low-level human behavior that does little to improve the human condition, but adds greatly to their anxiety levels. Add in my take on AI and a little help from Colin Hay, and it's another dose of common sense for uncommon times.