Saturday, August 30, 2008

Football Is Here Again

Yes folks, the State Fair is winding down on Labor Day, NFL preseason games are about done, and once again many of us will be watching football games on one or more levels. Whether it's the little kids in the park and rec leagues, middle school and junior varsity during the week, high school on Friday nights, college on Saturdays, or the NFL on Sundays and Monday nights, it's time to crank it up again.

I love watching football on all levels; although
over the past several years, I have seen a decline in good sportsmanship and an increase in showboating, dancing in the end zones and just a general decline in decent behavior by players on all levels.

The younger children see their idols making all kinds of efforts to show off and put themselves above team. I think they forget they wouldn't have scored that touchdown or made that sack or interception without the assistance of their teammates. They are role models for the youth who are watching — whether or not they want that responsibility. I think it's very sad to see this trend.

Anyway, a friend sent me this video the other day, and, although it's not a football video, I think it's a great tribute as to why you shouldn't show off when you are an athlete. I believe you should let your actions on the field do your talking. Then after the game, win or lose, line up and shake the hands of your opponents. See if you agree with me about showing off after you watch this video:



What an idiot!

I don't condone fighting, and I despise this type of macho activity, but I think it makes my point about letting your actions do your talking for you.

As always, I look forward to your comments.

Later,

Mike

Friday, August 22, 2008

For You Boomers!

I came across this video the other day of Tom Rush. If you Boomers out there occasionally have one of those "senior moments," or as I learned recently, they are also known as "intellectual interruptions," I believe you will appreciate it. Enjoy!

For my younger readers, don't worry, life is short. Your time will come soon enough. :-)

He has several more videos on YouTube.
Check him out. We all need to laugh at ourselves every once in a while.



I have watched it a few times and laugh out loud each time.

Later,

Mike

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Riane Eisler's View

I heard an interview last week with the eminent social scientist, Riane Eisler, and was very impressed with her ideas and way of thinking. She was promoting her latest book, The Real Wealth of Nations and she struck a cord with me. I just spent an hour reading several of her articles learning about her philosophy of education and changes she feels are necessary in our ever-changing world. You can go to her website by clicking here.

As I have stated in previous posts, I like listening to other speakers. As I listened to Dr. Eisler, I realized I was listening to an
extraordinary woman. I read one article that goes into detail on what she calls the Six Keys To Partnership Education. You can read the whole article by clicking here.

Here are her six keys:

Tools
Values
Structures
Science
Integration
Inspiration

I encourage you to check
out this article, and others you can find on this page, just click here. I found all of her articles very informative.

In her sister website, The Partnership Education Institute, Dr. Eisler states,
"If we prepare today's children to meet the unprecedented challenges they face, if we help them begin to lay the foundations for a partnership world, then tomorrow's children will have the potential to create a new era of evolution."

I couldn't agree more. Change is one thing we must all address. How we handle it will be the key. Funny, that sounds like another familiar quote, "The problem isn't the issue, the issue if how we deal with the issue." I knew there was a reason why I liked what she was saying.

Later,

Mike



Monday, August 4, 2008

Three Things

I just learned of a wonderful resource for the Traumatic Brain and Spinal Cord Injury community. It is called Brain and Spinal Cord Injury.org. You can go to their site by clicking here. It is full of good information.


Their August first blog post has some great advise for someone who has just had a TBI or SCI. Their three points are:

Step 1: Educate Yourself

Step 2: Focus on the Present

Step 3: Prepare for the Future

To learn more about these steps, click here.

I'm curious to see what you think about their recommendations.

Later,

Mike