What I Discovered This Week I am listening to: John Lennon podcast on Song Exploder. This is an amazing podcast about the making of a song. This particular episode explores John Lennon making the song “God”, from his first album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. I remember the song and have listened to it a few times, but it was never one of my favorites. However, this podcast, made up of explosive interviews from the archives of John Lennon‘s estate, …
I Am Addicted to My Smartphone My name is Rob and I am addicted to my smartphone. How do I know? Let me count the ways. I feel powerless in my ability to free myself from my phone. I check my cell phone numerous times every day. First thing in the morning, last thing at night, and often several times per hour. Every time I go to check my phone, I get a hit of dopamine which makes me feel pleasure. …
25 years Leaders Connect and a Free Gift This week, in celebration of 25 years of Leaders Connect, I present to you a gift: The 100 video archive of the Leaders Connect breakfasts. Consistently over the 25 years, the goals of Leaders Connect have been simple: 1. To provide a comfortable setting for leaders in the community to get to know each other, i.e to connect. 2. Through interactive presentations by leaders from throughout Southeast Michigan, to provide educational …
Remembering Dan Gilliland Last Saturday night, at Saint Joe’s Hospital, I sat with my friend, Dan Gilliland, watching the Michigan Washington football game. Dan was going to be heading into surgery the next morning. A week earlier, he had been admitted to the hospital for treatment of diverticulitis. Usually this is a painful condition which is easily treated, but for Dan, the condition worsened over several days, until he was facing surgery to repair an abscess in his colon. Dan …
What I Will Never Forget About My Time in New York City After 9/11 I will never forget: Pat and I staring at our phones as we desperately tried to get through to our son, Adam, who was living in New York and whose job as a financial news reporter frequently took him to the World Trade Center…and how we cried tears of relief when we learned at 2 pm that day that he was safe. I will never forget: Receiving a …
How I Maintain My Emotional Health How many times lately have you heard people say, “We live in terrible times”? Indeed, between the challenges of Covid, global warming, and the divisions within our country, sustaining our mental health is a real challenge. Personally, I have been struggling with some long-term health challenges. I’ve had problems with my gait, probably related to an early childhood injury. I also have glaucoma. As I age, both conditions have increasingly restricted my activities. Emotionally, …