Failing Up

Before I reached the ripe old age of 30yrs, I was bald, had major knee surgery, a nice case of hemorrhoid's, (which is ok to talk about when you are older) and looked at least 60!  My mid-life crisis occurred prior to 30yrs of age.   Now here I am finally looking my age, only really concerned with the prep for a coloscopy, and yes, getting all the perks of being a senior citizen!  Free large...

Road rage is old news, it is even expected and accepted as just another common occurrence while driving.     The new rage is shopping cart rage!  Inside the grocery store it is everyone for themselves!  People speeding through aisle intersections without looking, parking in the middle of the aisle blocking traffic, and driving stoned in the produce section.  Looks are exchange, words muttered and...

Football and television came of age together. Some may say the 1950's were the golden age of television, but in fact it was the 1960's.  It was the  televised 1958 NFL championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the NY Giants, where the marriage was consummated.   The growth of both industries have run parallel  through the years, thus incorporating all forms entertainment and crea...

Not mighty armies, or dictators will rule the world.  The power and control goes to the few who pull the strings of (AI).  We in the so called developed countries have been conditioned for years to be dependent on and accepting of technology.  The lines between reality and what is not real have all but evaporated.  We have become dependent on what we can type.  Now there is an app to create you pe...

We Humans are so smart, just look at all the advancements we make each year with technology, and energy to improve many aspects of our daily lives.  Yet, we Homo Sapiens, Latin for w ise human  are not so wise. We are the only species that kills for sport, pollutes for profits, invented war for the sake of power, invented chemicals to fight those wars, and yes, made it possible to blow up the plan...

The F  word is one of the few words in the English language that is identified by just the letter.  This word at one time was considered so vulgar that it was not uttered in public. Yet, now it is a part of our regular vernacular, in some circles the second most viable word after, "the".  It is used as an adjective, verb, and noun.  It is an exclamation point that places the ultimate val...

As summer comes to a close I am always reminded of Wilbur the pig in the E.B White classic Charlotte's Web .  Wilber who is save by Charlotte at the county fair. Every year throughout the summer most states celebrate all they have to offer with a State Fair .  There are also County Fairs to show off all a specific region has to offer.  I can only speak to the New York State Fair, that showcas...

Television commercials are a creative endeavor, and a times a great form of entertainment . Hell, some people just watch the Superbowl for the commercials.  They have made many for their characters house hold names, who can forget Mr. Whipple and "please don't squeeze the Charmin."  But now there is nothing left to the imagination and in some cases food is used to demonstrate the  s...

In the 1960's the message was that if you trusted institutions and leaders without question, you would get hurt, or killed.  Well, that lesson has been proved to be true and also forgotten.  In 1974 a President resigned because of a cover up, in 2023 we have a candidate running with multiple indictments, and that is his platform.  "The Church "( and if you are Catholic like me that ...

If we have a temperature that reaches over 105 f , well we are considered sick.  This summer Mother Earth has a fever well over 100 f, and  yes she is sick, and we are the cause.  The dinosaurs had an excuse for going extinct the meteor did it.  They perished the planted did not.  We are taking the entire place down.  Soon there will be reverse migration from the south to the north so that individ...

No where is the behavior of the human's more on display then when they are locked in a tube 30,000 feet above the ground.  From the jockeying  at the gate where adults forget how to wait in line, to the need to shove a mobile home into carry on luggage and make it fit no matter what, it is clear how this species roles.  One for one and none for all.  You know that the person in the emergency...

Every Year there is a the summer ritual of watering the grass so it grows and does not burn, even fertilize it so it grows quicker.  This along with the late spring ritual of telling the world how many bags of mulch you have to spread.  Then people complain because they have to mow the lawn.  Every cycle people support the same candidates then complain that democracy is broke.  You make the grass...

The cover girl on Sport Illustrated is 81 year old Martha Stewart, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards are 79, Bruce Springsteen is 73, and the incumbent President and the most likely  challenger are 80 and 76 years respectively.  When I was a kid it was said by rockers and rebels, "don't trust anyone over 30," now they are all over 70 and rocking.  The revolution of the younger generation,...

Mediation and relaxation exercises cause me stress.  It is not natural for me to slow my breathing and focus on it. Breathing is supposed to be natural and the only time I imagine it slows down and I will focus on it, is when I'm on my deathbed.  Now there is some stress.! If the news makes you feel uncomfortable than take positive action to change it and improve the world, don't hide fr...

The cause of road rage is not really a mystical secret.  It is simply that people do not want to share!  Share their toys, or share the road.  It then carries over into many other areas, shopping cart rage, parking lot rage, fast food rage political rage.   timothymahar.org

As we approach this election cycle and candidates have declared they are running, age has become an issue. The two most likely nominees for each party are four years apart in age. Late 70's and early 80's,  Some people like Nikki Haley are even predicting President Biden will not make it to 86?  How the hell do they know this?  Most people thought Keith Richards would not make it to 30! ...

Back in the 1970's when I was in my impressionable teens, the pickup truck was used by those as part of their profession.  They had tool boxes, dirty beds, a cab for two and sometimes people riding in the open back.  Today they have evolved into these huge monster vehicles speeding down the highways with lights glaring into our rearview mirror.  They are clean polished, sporty wheels taking o...

With the one day purging of two prominent cable television personalities  from networks that are on the opposite side of the news spectrum; I feel a small glimmer of hope that news will become the story and not those reporting it.  In one case with Tucker Carlson lies, and hate for money, ego, and influence, and in other corner, with Don Lemon, he wanted to be the story and the news was just a mea...

Instead of looking to "leaders" with self serving agendas, where the boundaries of lies and truth have been torn down, where certain media promote lies for profit, it is the voices of our youth that  will promote the  change we so dearly need.  Just like in the 1960's it was the youth that opened eyes, supported and fueled by music and art.  The answers are in the young hungry creat...

CNN continues to struggle with their morning Diva, Don Lemon.  No matter the story Don makes the news about him.  His charm barley masks his frustration with the fact that he must share the spotlight with two outstanding  journalist who are clearly heads and shoulders above him in preparation and subject knowledge.  Like a child seeking attention his need to take focus is fueled by emotion and ego...

The phase "All Politics is Local" is attributed to the former Speaker of the House, the late Tip O'Neill.  To go along with that concept, all change is local.  Looking for others to invoke change is like waiting for someone else to change the dirty diaper.  Small voices, become loud voices.  No matter status, or location; one voice full of courage and passion  starts the ripple of c...

On an early June evening in 1977, at a small high school in a small town named Marcellus, in Upstate, New York a sports banquette was being held in the cafeteria.  The menu consisted of spaghetti  with canned sauce, with white bread, and pint containers of chocolate and white milk, dessert a small square of some type of cake.  The speaker in the cafeteria that evening was the new head coach of Syr...

I miss the days when the news was the story and not the drama and need for attention those delivering it crave.  Last week,  the morning "news" host on CNN, Don Lemon wore an outfit that craved attention.  Attention, he received in jest by Stephen Colbert.  Lemon took offense and then showed the outfits he has worn over two weeks, and describing the outfit he was wearing that day!  In a...

I am really interested in the "Foodie" phenomenon.  So many people these days identify themselves as, "Foodies".  I guess that means they like to eat food, or should I say special dishes.  Which is all good.  Then I realized I am a "Foodie', but I fall into the category of "Blue Collar Foodie".   This time of year my pallet craves the  cuisine of comfort,  g...

 It's ironic we "drop the ball" on the New Year right from the start!  New Year's Eve a time to say goodbye to a year that  most are happy to see end.  Yet, 364 days ago we were eager to welcome.  It seems the old year gets a cold send off and the New Year is always full of hope and peace and weight loss.  And Yet.. well?  New Year's Eve is everyday when we go to sleep and...