Archive for July 2023

Since Anheuser-Busch ran a social media campaign in April with 26-year-old transgender actress, comedian, and TikTok personality Dylan Mulvaney, Bud Light’s sales and overall market share have dropped considerably. All of this resulted from a right-wing boycott of the product for using a transgender person as a spokesperson. Bud Light’s share of retail sales has…

I taught Charlie how to play chess about three years ago. Since then, we’ve played quite a bit. He likes the game. I offered to teach Clara, too, but she rejected my repeated offers. Not interested. Last week, I found my kids on the giant chess board at Winding Trail, the lake and recreation club…

For the 16 years that we have been married and the 19 years that we have been together, I have heard Elysha talk about The Red Rooster, a restaurant in Brewster, NY, where she and her family often stopped on their way to and from the Berkshires every weekend. Coming home from a Broadway show…

In April, I wrote about an outstanding pilot announcement on an Air Canada flight to Victoria, Canada. Before takeoff, the pilot emerged from the cockpit to introduce himself and his copilot and review the details of the flight with remarkable clarity. He was specific, direct, detailed, amusing, and even a little vulnerable. Best pre-flight announcement…

I returned to Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night after being away for over a dozen years. Elysha gave me tickets to the game for Father’s Day, which made it Clara and Charlie’s first visit to a Major League baseball game, too. Actually, I didn’t really return to Yankee Stadium as much as I visited the…

Back on July 28, 2009, I wrote this on my blog and on social media: “I have no intention of becoming political on this blog, but just in terms of writing, did you see or hear Sarah Palin’s farewell speech from yesterday? In terms of the writing, which is what I typically deal with here,…

Actor Michael Imperioli’s response to the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of a Christian web designer who refuses to create websites to celebrate same-sex weddings: “I’ve decided to forbid bigots and homophobes from watching The Sopranos, The White Lotus, Goodfellas, or any movie or tv show I’ve been in. Thank you, Supreme Court, for allowing…

Last week, I wrote a post celebrating the sacrifices made by Jennifer Garner in order to make her dreams come true. In another post, I wrote about McDonald’s failure to offer alternating messaging on its drive-thru menu boards. Both posts received quite a bit of attention on a variety of platforms, including thousands and thousands…

Elysha surprised me on Father’s Day with Yankees tickets We’ll be heading to Yankee Stadium later this week to watch them play the Baltimore Orioles. For me, it will be my first time attending a game in the new Yankee Stadium. I’ve seen dozens of Yankees games in my life, but none since 2008, when…

Storytelling can take you to some crazy places. It’s taken me as far as Sao Paulo, Brazil, to work with high school students and engineering companies. I’ve traveled to Canada to teach members of the Mohawk Nation of Canada to tell stories. I’ve worked as a substitute minister at churches, leading Sunday services. I’ve consulted…