Life 2.0

WTF FRIDAY

Had to bypass The Wednesday Rant and Throwback Thursday this week, which means I had to stuff everything into a WTF Friday episode of The Life 2.0 Podcast. Spanning the globe attempting to make sense of the senseless (how is it possible that four Chicago area restaurants sell shark fin soup?) Why would a former shark attack victim go into a shark cage and have buckets of chum dumped on them? Cause its "Shark Week!" Why do I have to turn the sound off on baseball games? Football games? What about all the broken left turn signals in America? And have people REALLY passed Drivers Ed? It's a full house for sure...jump in...the waters...fine...except for..."BRIDE OF JAWS!" 

TBT -DARYN KAGAN

If you were one of the many subscribers, listeners or followers of the Life 2.0 Podcast, and voted for who you wanted to hear on the TBT episode this week, and cast your vote for former CNN Anchor and best-selling author Daryn Kagan...then your voice has been heard. From 1994 to 2006, Daryn served as a CNN main anchor and correspondent based in CNN's world headquarters in Atlanta. Her untimely departure from CNN turned out to be a "blessing in disguise" as her work now is about filling the world with uplifting stories, that offsets the negative news that grabs headlines.  But first, its a rollback to the year 1967, and a short walk through what was going on in the world 52 years ago, because perspective...is power. 

THE WEDNESDAY RANT 7.17.19

So what does an alligator in Chicago, Newton's 3rd Law, three congressmen, a senator, a meteorologist, a 116 year old book, a deceased cicada bug and July 20th 1969 all have him common? At first glance, nothing...but upon further inspection they are the whole kit & caboodle when it comes to The Wednesday Rant. Another foray into my never ending search to find the obvious buried in the absurd and make sense of the senseless. Don't know what a caboodle is? You're gonna find out.

#TBT REMEMBERING JIM BOUTON

While digging for an archived cassette tape last week after hearing about the passing of Lee Iaccoca to create a #TBT episode on the Life 2.0 podcast, I came across a Rubbermaid vault filled with names from the past, among them Jim Bouton, a 21-game winner for the New York Yankees in 1963 and author of the best-selling Major League tell-all book “Ball Four." I put it aside along with a few other tapes for future consideration. Little did I know, that one week later, Jim Bouton would pass away at the age of 80. So this week its an audio jaunt back to the year 2000, with hanging chads and Y2K, and my conversation with one of the all time greats. You don't have to be a baseball fan to appreciate Jim's take on pro sports, and overcoming loss. Godspeed my friend.

PATRIOT ACTS

I had to dig into the blog archives to find the 1648 words I wrote back 2015 regarding my thoughts about Independence Day. After posting the text on Facebook, I had a few people ask if I would please read it and make it available via the Life 2.0 Podcast.

Honored to be asked and to do so.

Just to be clear, the first to take a bullet for the cause of freedom was a black man, Crispus Attucks, whose name doesn't appear on the Declaration of Independence, but is a pivotal figure in our short history, as are the lesser known men who signed their own death warrants with the stroke of a quill pen.

Its the ultimate TBT- 243 years later.

HEADLINES & LIFELINES

Been busy with wrapping up my latest book "Phenomenon: Sacred Moments, Messages, Memories & Other Sh*t I Can't Explain" but of course there is always time for foray into the Life 2.0 Podcast! It wouldn't be politics without name calling, (just like on the school yard in 1975)...HEY... that was the same year JAWS came out! So what do shark attacks and climate change have in common? Is Marianne Williamson heading to the White House? Is Joe Biden a wimp? As always, the headlines are no match for the lifelines...and I am reminded again this week that in the end, just in the beginning...we are all estate sales in the making or in the case of the guy next door, a garage sale.

SUBSCRIBER SATURDAY EXCLUSIVE

Question: What do Babe "The Sultan of Swat" Ruth, Jon "I'M SICK AND TIRED AND NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE" Stewart, Mitch "The Buck Stops Here" McConnell, Alex "Psycho" Jones, Sea Monkeys and a serious case of PTSD along with spending $40 a month at Starbucks all have in common? Answer: They are all part of this weeks Subscriber Saturday Exclusive. I hold back no punches, cut no corners, go up the down staircase, in the out door in my ceaseless quest to make sense of the senseless and find the obvious truth buried in the absurdity of human behavior. To listen click "Subscribe To Premium Content Now" and follow the prompts-and welcome aboard the USS UNCOMMON SENSE.

THE SATURDAY MORNING MEMO

1977- Jimmy Carter was elected president, a gallon of gas and carton of eggs cost the same, a new stereo system would set you back $250 bucks, the New York black-out lasted 25 hours (the population of NYC increased significantly nine months later) and it was the year Elvis died. 42 years ago, I graduated from Schurz High School in Chicago, and this past week, I was back there with a cadre of other alumni, celebrating with the 2019 graduates, and awarding scholarships to some of them. I learned a lot hanging out with these kids, not an easy thing to do sometimes, I have shoes older than they are. Another reminder that the world isn't the toilet we are told that it is, and once again, lifelines are far more important than headlines. Toss in an "aha" moment during an episode of The Partridge Family and "Earth Matters with Bill Kurtis" and we are good to go. 

The Hero Within- Capt. Jerry Coffee

 

"Who is the most impressive, impactful and important person you have ever interviewed in all the broadcasts and podcasts over twenty plus years?" the young man asked me at dinner a few days ago. I have been asked this question many times over the past two decades plus, about my conversations with movers, shakers, ground-breakers, news makers and risk takers, and while they all brought great things to the table, there is an easy answer to the question.

 

Capt. Jerry Coffee USN (Ret.)

 

During the Vietnam War, Jerry was flying a combat mission off the USS Kittyhawk when he was shot down by North Vietnamese anti-aircraft guns in 1966. Immediately captured, he was held prisoner for over 7 years in the infamous ‘Hanoi Hilton’ communist prison where torture and solitary confinement were routine. He has endured the very worst of human behavior, and has transformed that experience into making the world a far better place, through the power of forgiveness and faith.

 

His book "Beyond Survival" is required reading for every American.

The Business of Hope.

When Neli Vazquez Rowland was growing up on the gang and drug infested streets of "Little Village" in Chicago, she could never have imagined that one day, she would create the most effective and highly regarded foundation for ending homelessness in America...and help people like Bianca..."I abused heroin for 36 years. I’ve been arrested 120 times in my life and have been to prison 7. Of course I wanted to change. But I didn’t know how. Without A Safe Haven teaching me how to change, I wouldn’t be standing here right now. For the first time in my life I have a full-time job and I’m living in an apartment by the lake."

 

A Safe Haven, located in one of the toughest neighborhoods in Chicago, houses 400 people who would otherwise be forgotten shadows in the city. Their work with veterans is unparalleled and while Neli and her husband Brian have made a serious impact in creating lifelines out of headlines, there is more work to be done.

 

If you have ever doubted that one person can make a world of difference...Neli will change your mind.