Jade Hameister has done more in sixteen years than most of us, whatever our age. She’s the youngest person ever to have completed what she calls the “Polar Hat Trick”–visiting both poles and crossing the Greenland ice sheet. But when she stood up and spoke at the TEDx Conference in Melbourne two years ago, some […]
In early 2014 and 2015, I did a series of posts honoring five people I felt had shown extraordinary courage in the previous year. If you’re interested, you can see those series at the following links: Heroes of 2013 Heroes of 2014 I’m a little late in honoring the heroes of 2015; after spending more […]
Every time ISIS commits a new atrocity, the Internet flares up with racist generalizations that all Muslims are terrorists. This story is about two Muslim boys who came from the overwhelmingly non-terrorist majority of Islam. Goals Status: Marathon: On Track. I’ll be running my first race of the year, the Get Your Rear In Gear […]
First, status toward my goals: Marathon: On Track. Completed week one of the Couch to 5K program on Friday. Week two starts tomorrow. Two Square Yards of Earth: Behind schedule. I might still be able to finish the outline by the end of the month, which will put me back on track. 100 Posts: Behind […]
In two weeks, three courageous men will receive Medals of Honor they earned years ago. On the 15th of September, President Obama will award the Congressional Medal of Honor to three former soldiers: Command Sergeant Major Bennie G. Adkins, Specialist Donald P. Sloat, and First Lieutenant Alonzo H. Cushing. Of the three, SPC Sloat’s action […]
In June, I had the incredible pleasure of going to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico with my son and several other scouts and dads. We spent 11 days in the mountains, starting at 6000 feet elevation and hiking as high as 12,500 feet–most of it with packs weighing anywhere from 40 to 65 pounds, […]
As I write this, protests and occasional riots are still occurring in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. The protests started in response to the killing of a black teen by a white police officer. The teen may have been robbing a convenience store at the time. You can easily find news reports on […]
This woman’s bravery will inspire you. If you admire people who stand up for people who aren’t standing up for themselves. If you admire people who are just crazy enough to step in front of drunk people twice their size and tell them to stop. If you admire people who have the fortitude to take […]
There are more than a million of them, stretching back 239 years. Many, many more if we count those who came home broken and died earlier than they might have otherwise. I know a few of their names. So do you, I would guess. None of us knows all their names. Some are unknown entirely. […]
To be completely honest, I’m a lousy swimmer. I’ve never swam a mile. Not half a mile. Not even a quarter. Diana Nyad swam a hundred miles in September, give or take a few miles. She did it across open ocean from Cuba to Florida, through waters infested with sharks and jellyfish. It wasn’t her […]