Life 2.0

As we celebrate New Year's Eve, I am reminded that today would have been John Denver's 82nd birthday. I've produced and hosted numerous tribute shows in his memory over the years, and every time I think it's no longer important to do so, I remember John's own words,  "Though the singer is silent, there still is the truth of the songs..." In a world of turmoil, his music and message continue to ring clear and cut through the chaos.

Memories and more from John Berry, Richard Hyman, Roger "The Immortal" Nichols, Ashlee Nichols, Hal Thau, Ronald Deustchendorf, Michael Martin Murphy & Annie Denver. 

I've been a bona fide "Ted Head" since the age of 10 or so, when I read a story about TR as a boy, growing up in New York, and securing the skull of a dead harbor seal as the most impressive artifact for the Roosevelt Natural History Museum (which consisted of a drawerful of animal bones in his bedroom). A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine gifted me a copy of "In The Arena" by David S. Brown, which was just published in early December, and I devoured the book in less than a week. So, I reached out and had a great conversation with David about our 26th president, his high and low points, and if the comparisons between Teddy & Trump hold water.

The bottom line? History matters.

This Saturday Morning Rewind is from Christmas 2022.

It all started back in 1980 when I volunteered to be the Santa at the NAS Glenview Air Base during my first year of enlistment. Then, the CO of CGAS Chicago asked me to do it for the Coast Guard Christmas party. Then, a few of the guys on the crew asked me to do it for their kids. The word spread, and eventually, I donned the red suit and beard, along with a sack of toys, to visit hospitals, homes, and participate in "Breakfast with Santa" for nearly 20 years.

I recounted those Santa moments in my 2nd book, "Every Moment Matters," and how much like Superman putting on his cape, every Christmas Eve when I put on the Kringle gear, I felt a bit supercharged, and watching the faces of young and old alike break into a smile when I was near was like winning the lottery. 

Music used by permission of the John Denver estate. 

This past week, I caught up with country music icon John Berry, who is on his 29th annual Christmas tour. While we were having a great breakfast that included JB, his wife Robin, manager Brian Smith, and a couple of the band guys, I couldn't help but think that there are few, if any, recording artists who have overcome as much as he has. At the age of 21, while riding his motorcycle, Berry was hit by a car, breaking both legs and his left hip. He had just lost his mother earlier that year. Doctors were afraid that he might not walk again, and add to that, a brain tumor in 1994 when his first #1 hit "Your Love Amazes Me" topped the charts, to beating throat cancer. This episode of the SMR is my conversation with JB on his tour bus in 2018, just before he was diagnosed. As always, it's a deep dive into the songs and stories of one of the great voices in music and a man whose faith moves him forward matter what.

This past May, Chicago Cubs legend Randy Hundley and I went to hit a few balls at Top Golf, and a chance encounter with Patti Guzak has become one of the greatest "You're not gonna believe what happened next" moments you'll ever hear. As it turned out, Patti had a book concept on her computer for 16 years, and I am happy and proud to announce that "The Not-So-Exciting Adventures of Tuxedo Man" is now in print, making it the perfect gift for a young reader in your life. But, ya gotta hear the back story on this one!

As I prepare to head out shortly to a book launch for a new author that I am working with, I came across some great audio from Thanksgiving in 2004, and my conversation with the creator of "The Waltons," the late, great Earl Hamner.

There's just something about the Virginia lilt in his voice, his down-home way, and simplistic way of seeing the world, that I needed to be reminded of this morning. 

When Earl passed in 2016, he did so while listening to "Rocky Mountain High" by John Denver.

Music used by permission of the Denver Estate.

 

 

Back in 2021, I was approached by Michele Phillips to support her in creating a book based on her concept that you can actually energize your happiness by learning how to direct your PEA (Personal Energy Alignment) and change your life for the better. I agreed to take on the book; little did I know it would be the longest project I've ever worked on with an author.

Four years later, this incredible piece of work is now available worldwide. I'm thrilled to have this conversation with Michele, a true force of nature, a wide-eyed optimist who wears her heart on her sleeve right where it belongs and is leading people back to life, liberty, and the energizing of their own happiness.

"Farewell Andromeda" used by permission of the John Denver Estate.

I have begun the process of culling the cassette herd of hundreds of tapes from my radio shows over the decades, which I have in storage, looking for the ones that might contain some valuable conversations. 

Everything else is going into the Techno-Trash can.

At the very top of the "keepers list" is my last on-air conversation with the late, great Capt. Jerry Coffee (USN Ret.), who was one of the longest held POWs in Vietnam and the author of "Beyond Survival."

Jerry insisted that the most powerful thing you can do to change your life for the better, is to look for the purpose in everything, including the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Welcome to another edition of The Wednesday Rant! As I was about to fire up the Life 2.0 microphone, a power rodding company took up residence about 100 yards south of my studio, in an effort to unclog the sewer system, and that took me back to my days in the Sewer Dept. It also got me thinking about the two "miracle" strainers I have to send back to QVC, the guy that came in a couple weeks ago to rod out the kitchen pipes (a first since Nixon was POTUS), and finally taking apart the shower head because sediment had clogged up the flow...and life is all about flow. Once you figure out how to clean your strainer, life opens up in amazing ways. A little help from my longtime pal and Packer HOF guard Jerry Kramer on this one with..."Invictus." 

What happens when genuine transformation meets unchecked power?

Before Tony Robbins filled stadiums, before The Secret became a global phenomenon, before transformation became a multi-billion-dollar industry, there was Erhard Seminars Training (est). And behind est was a young woman who would help build one of the most influential personal development organizations in history—while struggling to find her own authentic voice in the process.

In Sex, Power, and Transformation, Marcia Martin takes you inside the explosive rise of the Human Potential Movement, revealing the untold story of how a small San Francisco seminar exploded into a cultural phenomenon that transformed millions of lives.

Mine included.