Life 2.0

Remembering John

Singer/songwriter/humanitarian/environmentalist John Denver would have turned 81 today. He was the guy who kick-started my entire career back in 1994, and as I always do on New Year's Eve, I remember the man and his music, with the help of a few of John's family and friends. 

"Though the singer is silent, there still is the truth of the songs..."

 

Keep Showing Up

After just over a week of enduring some fairly serious audio issues (no mic, no sound, no fun) my IT guy installed some new drivers, and voila' good to go. Not being able to get behind the mic and deliver the mail as it were, felt like I missed my train to Podcastville USA. The quiet zone reminded me that while I cannot control (as much as I'd like to) things that happen to me, I can sure adjust and have total control of how I respond-or not-to the events in my life, including how many days on average I have left to answer the call. 

Merry Christmas!

For the past three days, microphone issues have had me tied up a bit, and while the sound is not to my past professional standards, I decided a little backup from some of my favorite Christmas voices over the years, takes the edge off the tech stuff. 

Thanks to Percy, Dean, Seymour, JB, and JD for their backup.

Wishing you all the joy of the season and more.

The Business of Humanity

It's the one thing I look forward to the most during the holiday season. No, not a nice bottle of bourbon, new socks, or even a subscription to Scary Monsters Magazine (which is pretty cool) but rather the 1951 version of "A Christmas Carol" starring the late, great Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge.  It's a guttural and uplifting take on the Charles Dickens classic, written 180 years ago, and makes the case that back in 1843 ignorance and want were just as prevalent then as they are today. So, for all our technological advances, the concept that humanity is our main business often gets pushed to the back of the line, when it should be front and center.

Lest We Forget

It's been a week of lunches, laughter and friends. Every time I have the opportunity to get in the same space as the guys I grew up with, played high school and college football with, and some of the men who coached me, the memories become more vivid and the absolute preciousness of that time is self-evident. Also, today is the 83rd anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and I wanted to share my thoughts on another friend, George Reinwand, who survived that horrible day. Lest we forget.

Righteous Anger

For the most part, I am a mild-mannered, Zen-like fellow, bent on making the world a better place. However, cross a certain line with me, and it's like watching Dr. David Banner turn into the Incredible Hulk. So, this morning, when I came across a human sphincter using the N-word at the deli counter, it was time to unleash the inner beast and let the games begin. Don't make me angry, you won't like me when I'm angry...

Follow The Yellow Brick Road

After barely surviving Da Bears (see what I did there) loss to the Lions on Thanksgiving, I was looking forward to heading to the Chicago Symphony for "Music and The Movies" featuring "The Wizard of Oz" conducted by my friend and internationally known conductor Richard Kaufman. It was an incredible experience on many levels, and reminded me of a talk I used to give when I was a platform speaker called "Follow The Yellow Brick Road." I can relate to all of the characters in L. Frank Baum's classic, because at some point in my life, I've been them and so have you.

Count Your Blessings

I intended to create some sort of Thanksgiving message that was a reminder of the importance of counting our blessings. As it turned out, I already wrote the script for this episode way back in 2019 and posted it in the landfill of Facebook, after a phone call with Jerry Kramer, the HOF Green Bay Packer's guard who always has a story to tell and a lesson to share. This one isn't about football, but rather the game we all play every day-the game of life-and the importance of perspective.

A little help from Mr. Denver on this one as well. Safe travels.

The Risks of Artificial Intelligence.

In a time that often calls human intelligence into question, we are also on the brink of an artificial intelligence tsunami of sorts. Everything from Alexa to GPS to spell check already has a place in the world, but what about the more challenging aspects and risks AI brings with it? Best-selling author and CEO of The Cyber Dawn and world-respected AI risk expert Dawn Kristy joins me to explore the world of AI and how we can best protect ourselves. What is our collective moral responsibility as it pertains to the technology that we have created, which in turn might be a serious threat to humanity? 

Higher Ground

Tomorrow is Bears vs. Packers and with that in mind, this show is like a football game. The first half is a review of the incoming fan mail regarding the Line in The Sand episode and one listener in particular decided to let me know how much of an &#($&@#@ I am. The 2nd half of the show is a total shifting of gears as I grabbed some audio from one of the many conversations I've had with longtime friend and Green Bay Packer HOF Guard, Jerry Kramer about his insistence that we can all find higher ground in our lives, it we are willing to pay the price.