September 2024

When thinking about Contrast (this month’s theme, meditation HERE), I often recall this great quote from Jazz legend Thelonious Monk: “The piano ain’t got no wrong notes.” It’s all in the playing, of course, meaning it’s about the notes you play afterward that make things sound r...

I love this line from the poet Ellen Bass: “There are minutes, hours, sometimes even whole dayswhen the earth is spinning 1.6 million miles around the sunand nothing tragic happens to you.” I decided to confirm this fact––the distance part not the “nothing tragic” aspect––and it’s true. The earth ...

Although the theme this month is Contrast, I’m hoping (fingers crossed) this goes off without a hitch. You see, this is my first newsletter sent using the new Substack tech platform. As I said last week, none of this needs to affect you in any way. I’m committed to offering Vlad and...

Last week, I shared that Vlad’s best friend––and almost nightly playdate––Malibu moved away. I tried to brace myself for the sadness of his absence. No longer would a nightly “Malibu visit?” text arrive, followed by my leaving the door ajar, and Vlad eagerly waiting by it until Malibu pushed it open ...

Last Chance for New Course HERE It wasn’t quite the same as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, where the super-handsome heroes go out in a blaze of gunfire and a freeze-frame ending. Even so, I cannot think of two more dashing gentlemen facing a more unfortunate parting of ways. I’m referring to ...