“Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”
— Vincent Van Gogh
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, brain broke, Mondays, must.keep.moving, Thoughts on February 10, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”
— Vincent Van Gogh
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Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, #TimelessTypos, birding, football, sports, Super Bowl, Thoughts on February 9, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I’m one of those extremely intermittent football fans who really only tunes in for the Super Bowl and sometimes forgets even then (much to the chagrin of some family members).
That said, hey, today is the Super Bowl!
Maybe you have been counting down the days and are currently settling in for a day of sports and snacks. You certainly aren’t the only one. Here’s a sample menu from a family member:
“Chili with all the toppings, house made wings, chips, salsa, mozzarella sticks, wontons and a veg tray; all the major food groups…meat, cheese, spicy, fried and a vegetable garnish.”
(Fortunately, he doesn’t eat like this all the time, because I’d like him to stick around.)
Or maybe you don’t care about American football at all. Fair enough!
If that’s the case, this is for you:
Don’t give a hoot about sports? The Superb Owl might be for you
The anagrammatic play on Super Bowl began as an accidental misspelling, or an internet meme, or who knows what. But it has since become a soaring cultural phenomenon, producing countless online posts and spawning a resurgence of interest in the nocturnal, wide-eyed raptors.
So that’s fun. And in case you’re wondering:
Why Does the Super Bowl Use Roman Numerals?
It’s not likely Hunt was thinking of avoiding confusion. Instead, Hunt believed the style lent the Super Bowl a kind of gravitas and signaled it was a major event.
And that’s how we arrived at Super Bowl LIX. (And yes, I considered trying to tie this all together with a joke about how many LIXs does it take an owl to get to the center of a lollipop, but it wasn’t coming together and I’ve got Sunday things to do.)
Whether you’re cheering on the Chiefs, the Eagles, or Team Owl, have a great day!
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Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, bright side, haiku, nature, Thoughts, writing on February 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Of all Nature’s gifts
Bright sun, warm rain, skies above…
You bring naught but joy.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, art, change, creativity, power, Thoughts, Writers, writing on February 6, 2025| 1 Comment »
“Any form of art is a form of power; it has impact, it can affect change. It can not only move us, it makes us move.”
— Ossie Davis
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, artists, creativity, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on February 4, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“If l’d waited to know who I was or what I was about before I started ‘being creative,’ well, I’d still be sitting around trying to figure myself out instead of making things. In my experience, it’s in the act of making things and doing our work that we figure out who we are. You’re ready. Start making stuff.”
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, hope, Thoughts on February 3, 2025| Leave a Comment »
The forces of chaos are strong this week, especially with our neighbours to the south. Look for what’s good!
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Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, silly fun, Thoughts on February 2, 2025| Leave a Comment »
In defense of Groundhog Day — America’s silliest holiday
As a kid growing up in Pennsylvania, there are a few state treasures you come to revere, like Tastykake’s Butterscotch Krimpets, a 64-pack of Crayola crayons with a sharpener on the back of the box, soft pretzels and Hershey’s chocolate. But no locally-produced treat could touch the majesty of the state’s ultimate icon: Punxsutawney Phil.
Happy Groundhog Day! This wacky holiday is good fun, but even our friendly neighborhood rodent doesn’t always know what the future will bring.
Whatever comes, let’s try to face it with a warm heart, constructive goals, and a sense of fun.
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Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Holidays, Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, future of civilization, history, memory, Thoughts on January 27, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Today is Holocaust Memorial Day. I do try to emphasize the brighter side of life in this blog and this is not that, but it’s important. Fewer children are taught this history and too many adults act like it never happened (and could never happen again).
As survivors pass on those of us who remain must remember what and how and why. Not only for those who died, but for ourselves and our futures. This is the power of stories.
It is right that those who committed atrocities be held responsible, but remembrance days like this aren’t primarily about blame for past guilt. They are about the political tides that make these events possible. They are about the ordinary people swept up in such times.
Most of all, they are about avoiding future repetition.
International Holocaust Remembrance Day – United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United Nations General Assembly designated January 27—the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau—as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a time to remember the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and the millions of other victims of Nazi persecution.
‘New way of bearing witness’: one of biggest Holocaust archives goes online
Announced on Holocaust Memorial Day, the Wiener Holocaust Library’s new online platform includes more than 150,000 items collected over nine decades. Users can view letters, pamphlets and photographs that record the rise of fascism in Britain and Europe.
My grandpa chose not to speak about his Holocaust experiences – but he asked me to tell the world
I’ve been asked why I believe Holocaust education is so important, and I find it hard to verbalise. It seems so obvious to me, as the grandchild of survivors, that these stories must continue to be told – it sounds cliche to quote “those who forget history are doomed to repeat it”, but with every passing year, it’s clear we are continuing to forget the horrors humanity is capable of. Gyuri’s final message was clear: tell the world, so they can learn from it.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, brain science, brunch, science, society, Thoughts, truth on January 26, 2025| Leave a Comment »
We had brunch today with good friends. They are smart and fun and interesting and love our cat (which, let’s face it, is about the best thing you can say about a person).
We don’t all share the same politics. Why do I mention this? To point out that it doesn’t matter.
We may not be on the same page in terms of voting and algorithms, but we like a lot of the same real-life things, we share a lot of the same fundamental values, and are always curious about the others’ experience and perspectives.
It doesn’t hurt that they like my cooking;)
How to step out of your inner monologue and understand the world better – Big Think
The interesting thing about being a human is that we’re stuck inside our internal model—it’s all we ever see. But with the endeavors of science, literature, and philosophy, we’re able to step outside of ourselves and understand, “Hey, the way I see the world isn’t the only way to see the world. It’s not the only truth.” The more we get good at that, the more we can try to build a better society.
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