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COLLEGE DANCE IN HIGH SCHOOL, 1972

November 28, 2022 by

A college dance had a special allure to high school kids. We were high school homers in 1972; the college was Southwestern Oregon Community College, or: SWOCC. The campus was in Coos Bay, Oregon, a city of mystery and sawdust. I’d never been to a college dance, but I was a high school junior and […]

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AMATEUR CRIME LIFE WITH PEER PRESSURE

November 22, 2022 by

My life in amateur crime began in 5th grade. If you were going to hang with the cool kids, you had to show you belonged. One test was shoplifting at the local Payless. It was an anchor store at Pony Village, the biggest shopping mall on the west coast between Seattle and San Francisco right […]

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TAKE STRENGTH FROM YOUR COGNITION POWER

November 12, 2022 by

Take strength from knowing who you are. If you don’t know, or feel unsure, spend some time to think about it. But don’t be disappointed if you’re wrong. Things change, you change, we all change. Besides, if you don’t already know who you really and truly are, who does?

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LOVE DEFICIT AND HOW TO OVERCOME IT

July 24, 2022 by

A love deficit is like any other: noun. the amount by which a sum of money falls short of the required amount. the amount by which expenditures or liabilities exceed income or assets. a lack or shortage; deficiency. a disadvantage, impairment, or handicap: The team’s major deficit is its poor pitching. A lack, shortage, or deficiency […]

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SHOW OFF PARENTS RAISE FUNKY KIDS? WILL THEY KNOW THE DIFFERENCE

July 8, 2022 by

Show off parents are not who you think they are. They are not the helicopter moms and dads everyone makes room for. Not the Tiger Moms, either. Parents that dress their kids as miniature versions of themselves don’t make the cut.

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LAST CONVERSATION UNTIL NEXT YEAR

June 20, 2022 by

One last conversation before Father’s Day, 2023. If you have adult kids, it helps to talk to them. Based on the inspiration from one of my favorite twitter follows, it’s important. Do your kids know you better than you know your own parents?

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CLOUDY DAYS TAKE A SHORT BREAK

May 20, 2022 by

Cloudy days in Oregon? How can that be? Where I grew up no one complained about the rain. If they did that would have been all they talked about. There’s more going on than cloudy days, but what do you do when all you see are clouds?

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MY MOM THE MOTHER IN LAW

April 29, 2022 by

After a recent mother in law conversation I ended up disappointing myself. Why? Because I took the easy way out with the customary role, traditional values, and ducked the whole thing. Not that I don’t have plenty to say about mothers in law. My dates introduced me to the moms and dads more than a […]

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PERSONAL GOLIATHS AND HOW TO SLAY THEM

April 24, 2022 by

My first personal Goliaths, like most everyone growing up with parents, were my parents. I knew they were unslayable from the start. One because they were giants most of my early life, and two, they were my parents. What are you thinking? Besides, my dad had been a Marine Drill Instructor and my mom was […]

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LIFE SAVING FOR THE GIVERS AND TAKERS

April 9, 2022 by

Life saving is more than a job at the swimming pool. It’s an everyday deal of doing small things that go unnoticed, until it matters. Then it’s everything. Where are the life savers when you need them, the people who take the time even when they’re running late? Who are these people? I think you […]

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