Life 2.0

Earth Matters Monday

On this edition of "Earth Matters Monday" I am joined by my gal-pal, the Emmy Award-winning journalist and best-selling author Jenniffer Weigel. We're gearing up for a tag-team public event at the Climate Action Museum in Chicago on September 11th and in preparation for the program, we are talking about some of the basics of earth science, how important it is to keep the water supply chain as healthy as possible and what the challenges might be in taking too much, and not giving enough back in terms of environmental stewardship.

At The Hop

As I prepared for this episode, the 1957 hit "At The Hop" by Danny and The Juniors kept popping up on my social media feed. I then remembered the back story of how Danny Rapp eventually took his own life.

Once again, I was reminded about the importance of not confusing who you are, with what you do and that finding purpose in life whether you're onstage or off is of utmost importance. 

The Almighty Dollar

In April, I signed up for both presidential candidates' email lists, to see what the chatter might be. Six months later, I've had enough of them asking for cash to "Save The Republic" or "Battle for the Soul of America" and decided to unsubscribe to save my sanity. But before I did, I saved the good, the bad, and the ugly from both camps and thought I would share them with you, for better or for worse.  The big takeaway? Apparently, just $1 can win The White House.

Real Strength

Resistance training has so many benefits that it takes an expert to explain them so that people who do not have a regular exercise program can understand the positive impact it can make in their lives. So, I reached out to Liz Kinnart, the best trainer/coach/motivator I know. Liz is an elite athlete, a mom, and owner of Bloom Holistic Health and Fitness, and all this while she battled Lyme disease for years. She takes a common sense approach to fitness and her clients are thrilled with their results. Listen to this episode to see how you can win a free personal one-on-one personal training session with Liz, or a three month membership to her Longevity Program! We're going for the gold and beyond as the Olympics have just opened in Paris!

THE EASTLAND

109 years ago today, on July 24th, 1915, The Eastland sat docked on the Chicago River as hundreds of employees of the Western Electric Company crammed on board what was to be a day excursion to Michigan. As the ship filled up with passengers, it tipped to the waterside and quickly rolled over, throwing 2,500 people into the murky river water. In less than 8 minutes, 844 men, women, and children drowned making it the worst maritime disaster in Chicago history. Decades later, my radio team at Harpo was recording a show about the Eastland, and we had an unexpected encounter with EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) that is at once both unbelievable and incredible. 

Let The Light In

It's an oft-repeated theme that needs to be constantly reinforced. The lens you see the world with is determined by the beliefs you hold to be true even though they might not be. In optics, the aperture of an optical system is a hole or an opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. So the more light you let in, the clearer things become. It is easy with a camera, not so much for human beings, and while it's difficult, it's also worth the effort. As old friend Wayne Dyer insisted, "When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change."

The Journey

At lunch this past week, I was asked "How did this all start for you?" Answering that question has been an ongoing exercise for nearly 30 years about the great game of connect-a-dots and the absolute knowing that whatever you seek...is seeking you. Whether or not you take the journey is a choice, but as Louis Pasteur insisted, "Chance favors the prepared mind."

THE WEDNESDAY RANT

So here we go again. Another tug of war for the White House between Biden and Trump. It's an ongoing reality show for the masses, and like most reality shows, illusion is what creates how we see the show. But, what if, we could use Artificial Intelligence (AI seems to be better than real human intelligence) and build the "Perfect POTUS" and skip all the BS? Imagine creating a hologram (like Michael Jackson who still performs after his death) with elements and characters from the top 10 presidents of all time. Hmmm, what then? 

SHARK WEEK

Since 1988, Shark Week has captivated audiences around the world, which is a good thing. The sharks have no idea how popular they have become, and usually only make the headlines when they take a bite out of someone, often with deadly results. But the few human fatalities are nothing compared to the fact that humans take 100 million sharks out of the world's oceans every year, seriously putting the water world out of balance. Another episode of Earth Matters Monday.

Mission Possible

It's been said that the two most important days of your life are the day you were born, and the day you figure out why. Most people never take the road less traveled, where their mission is waiting for them. Life is set up like a game of connect-a-dots but you don't get to see the mosaic until you reach a point of clarity. If you go within, you'll never go without but taking a deep dive is an arduous task and it's not until you clear out the septic tank of experiences, can you begin to understand that whatever you are seeking, is seeking you.