25Jul 2016 by CJ

Material possessions will never define WHO you are

Life & Living
“How good something is should never be determined by its cost, designer, origin, or its perceived value by others.” – Ashly Lorenzana The other day while perusing Motortrend’s website as I do on a daily basis, I came across a startling statistic. First of all, for those who don’t know, Motortrend is a popular automotive magazine, which first appeared in September 1949 and has been a favorite of mine for decades. But I digress. The post was about material possessions – more accurately the average transaction price of a new car or truck sold in American in April 2016. Are you sitting down? It was $33,560 – 2.6% higher than just a month earlier according to automotive researcher Kelly Blue Book. What is a car really? While fully aware of new…
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14Jul 2016 by CJ

Going home can be rewarding for the soul

Life & Living
“Coming back is the thing that enables you to see how all the dots in your life are connected, how one decision leads you to another, how one twist of fate, good or bad, brings you to a door that later takes you to another door, which aided by several detours--long hallways and unforeseen stairwells--eventually puts you in the place you are now.” – Ann Patchett In life there are no do-overs. Each day we must live with the consequences of our decisions – good or bad – and finds ways to accept that they’ve led us to where we are today. And while there are no do-overs in life, you can go back – home that is. Going Home... I spent the last week doing just that. I used to…
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22Jun 2016 by CJ

Choices come with responsibilities

Life & Living
“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Some people long for the meaning of life – a complex question I’m unsure any human being can answer with great accuracy. But what I can answer for you is what life is often comprised of – a series of choices. Each and every day we’re bombarded with a series of circumstances, from varying environments, and it’s solely up to us to decide how best to respond. After 41 years of experience, I can tell you with great honesty that I haven’t always made the best choices. I believe some people possess the skill to logically look at a situation, extract the emotion, and…
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08Jun 2016 by CJ

The news is forcing me to turn away from the world

Life & Living
“In order to understand the world, one has to turn away from it on occasion.” – Albert Camus Every day I turn to a handful of trusted news outlets, to find out what’s going on in the world. It’s something I started many years ago, after the realization that I needed to stay more informed and educated on society (economically and socially). But the more mature I become, the more jaded I grow – questioning the very motives of this daily practice. In Arthur C. Clarke’s 1968 science fiction novel, 2001: A Space Odyssey, he writes, “The more wonderful the means of communication, the more trivial, tawdry, or depressing its contents seemed to be.” I’m probably consuming more news than ever before, mainly because of its accessibility on the internet,…
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17May 2016 by CJ

Complain if you must, but it won’t change anything

Life & Living
“What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.” – Maya Angelou The definition of complain is to “express dissatisfaction or annoyance about a state of affairs or an event”. In my 41 years here on this planet, I don’t think I’ve yet met a person who didn’t know what it means to “complain” or how to do it. I truly believe it’s human nature to rant and rave about something which displeases us, and admittedly at times it shows how passionate we are towards the inequities of the world. But if all we do is complain, without ever trying to change anything, where’s the benefit to humanity or to ourselves? Eckhart…
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