18Jan 2016 by CJ

Bullying is rough – but you have a right to be here

Youth
“Be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the tress and the stars; you have a right to be here.” – Max Ehrmann When I started high school, it was the year 1989. Back then the average price of a new house was $120,000… One gallon of gas was 97 cents… A BMW 325 would set you back $21,400… And mailing a letter only cost you a quarter. One thing you heard very little about in 1989 was a term now widely used amongst teens and young adults – bullying. Bullying is nothing more than using superior strength or influence in order to intimidate someone. And while such behavior has gone on for generations, it’s only recently been given a name and the attention…
Read More
08Sep 2014 by CJ

What example are YOU setting for today’s children?

Information & Education, Youth
By now I’m sure you’re all familiar with the popular ALS ice bucket challenge, which for the most part has had nothing but positive results for the cause. I say “for the most part” because with every act of kindness people do for the greater good of humanity, there are always those insensitive, self-gratifying individuals who find a way to disgrace the efforts of many. It seems a group of teenagers from Bay Village High School near Cleveland, Ohio used the “challenge” to pull a horrific prank on a very unsuspecting 14-year-old autistic student. If you’re not outraged by what you’re about to read, then I’m sorry to say you’re no better than the teenagers who instigated this prank. Instead of filling the bucket with the customary water and ice…
Read More
03Oct 2013 by CJ

Bullies are nothing more than cowards

Life & Living, Youth
You’d be naïve to think that bullies only exist on the playground. That the adult world we all inhabit is void of individuals who need to show their dominance over others in order to feel superior and strengthen their own insecurities. Sadly they’re all around us – on the front pages of our newspapers, in our government agencies and in the places we live and work. Here’s something important to remember though: bullies are nothing more than cowards whose only way to cope with their lack of self-esteem is to verbally and many times abusively attack others. You would think as adults we would learn the harmful effects such behaviors can have on others, but then again most bullies simply don’t know any other way to live – or should…
Read More
16Jan 2013 by CJ

Regardless of your age, no one likes to be called fat

Life & Living
When I was a prepubescent, I was pretty chubby – though the clothing manufacturers of the time called the larger size “husky”. Did they really believe such a term would make a little fat kid feel better? I assure you, it didn’t. For me sweets were the enemy – and the fact that I’d rather be sitting inside watching game shows on television, than outside exercising. When I finally hit puberty though, and battled a case of Mononucleosis, I had lost a considerable amount of weight. I vowed right then and there to never fight the battle of the bulge again. So much for that. My wife and I are still on diets, which seem to stretch the length of our marriage. Why does food have to taste so damn…
Read More