Friday Donuts

Friends, This week, my wife scared me half to death. I was so absorbed reading Plato, I had not noticed her sitting behind me. So, imagine my surprise when I turned to find a masked Greek theater performer (or, as it turns-out, my wife wearing her beauty treatment). While my pulse slowly returned to normal, I started wondering why Greek names haven’t caught on. After all, Greece is the cradle of civilization. Then again, perhaps the foreign-sounding appellatives add gravitas to the great philosophers of old. Would Socrates come down a notch if the folks in his dialogues had ordinary names like Bob, Joe or Mike; instead of Euthyphro, Crito or Simmias? Let’s take the phone booth time machine* out for a spin, babble fish** in ear, to the 5th century B.C., where we can be a fly on the wall for a random philosophical discourse: SOCRATES: So, Joe, we agree our senses trick us and don’t let us see the true essence of things. You good with that? JOE: Sure thing, bro! SOCRATES: And Bob, don

Friends, Every achievement begins with action, a catalyst that precipitates events to follow. Granted, not all achievements are planned — nor are they all of the same caliber. Still, comfort, complacency and routine are often at odds with excitement, discovery and growth. The siren call of the mundane often wins over the small voice calling us to do great things. The couch, snacks and Netflix may have won the battle, but you, my friend, you’re gonna win the war on blah... tomorrow. Mañana, mañana!! And so it goes. Well… not today! (hmmm… that was ambiguous… did JP just say he won’t procrastinate today or does he mean he won’t do it today – i.e. he WILL procrastinate?). What chronic to-do item will you check-off the list today? Or perhaps a good deed is in the cards… if nothing comes to mind, I’m   raising money for ALS   in honor of a good friend who lost his battle to the disease a year ago this week. Whatever you do, take the first step. As for me, before I do, I need to get some don

Friends, When my alarm went off at 4 this morning I had a choice: Morpheus or Perseus. On one hand, my soft, warm bed made driving out for a chance to witness a few grains of sand burn-up in our atmosphere seem silly. Besides, the wildfire smoke would surely obstruct my view, and I need my beauty rest. Morpheus has a point! On the other hand, my desire to watch these fleeting, magical lights streak through the sky pushes me forward. A half-hour later, Perseus had won. I’m on a dirt road, feeling silly as I stare at a patch of unclouded sky. As my eyes grow accustomed to the dark, stars grow brighter. Minutes pass. A satellite crosses the sky. No meteors. This is foolish! Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, a shooting star –darn, just missed it! Another satellite. Then, finally an unmistakable bright flash smack dab in the center of my field of vision. Wow! Minutes later, the sunrise begins, but that one Perseid makes the whole experience seem worthwhile. Granted, the deer sighting,

Friends, As SARS-CoV-2 mutates, the resulting variants appear to be joining the fraternities and sororities featured in the classic 1980s film series: Revenge of the Nerds . While the Alpha Betas (UK and South Africa variants) have fallen-out of favor, the Delta Pi’s (India variant) are leading the resurgence in hospitalizations amongst the uneducated… I mean, unvaccinated. Meanwhile, the tri-Lambda variant appears to have been around for a while and is quietly making the rounds in South America. I suppose that means Omega Mu will be making their theatrical debut soon. I also suppose that if you never watched the movie you’ve tuned-out, or are very confused. In any event, this nerd is going out to grab a donut before the day gets too crazy. Cookie monster donut, or unidentified strain  at the Greek Games ? Happy Friday!