Friday Donuts

Friends, As we slither into the new lunar year I’ve decided to tune out the new brood of vipers on Capitol Hill and tune into the little things that make me smile. The magical frost turning ordinary branches into fairy tale forests. The spectacular sunsets painting the cloud canvas shades of gold leaf, blood orange and coral pink. My granddaughter’s joie de vivre, generosity and spontaneous laughter that melt my heart every time. And of course that first bite into a raised chocolate frosted donut. Mmm … that’s what I’m talking about! Happy Friday!

  Friends, From the Premier League and F1 clique to the College Football and NASCAR crowd, we all share the human experience. Whether our mustard is yellow or Dijon, we all feel love, enjoy learning and experience loss in our own way. We have highs and lows, ups and downs. We’d like to feel immortal, yet we are limited, and time is our most precious asset. We are all alone and all of us need to live with ourselves. So be kind, don’t take yourself too seriously and don’t forget to laugh. Laugh at misunderstandings and silly mistakes. Laugh with friends and family. Laugh ‘till it hurts. And remember to have a donut –whether it’s Dunkin’ or Krispy Kreme or anywhere in between. I’m doing my part by heading to We Knead Donut and meeting with my good friend and former colleague Marilyn. What’s yours? Happy Friday!

Friends, There’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just gonna blurt it out: I can’t stand Facebook avatars and stickers. There, I said it! Before you get upset, I understand and respect that folks post these cartoon images as a way to share their good wishes and show they care. I also acknowledge that as we get older, we tend to grumble about silly things. Yes, this is a silly thing to be writing about. Yes, I will grumble under my breath if I see you post one. Yes, I would prefer you write something instead of picking a cheesy image. But no, I won't unfriend you if you do. I realize taste is subjective: take the   donut shop in New Hampshire  fighting for their right to keep their mural depicting a mountain range made of donuts. Is it free speech? Is it a zoning violation? One thing I think we all can agree on is that it's beautiful -- as are the donuts they sell. 

Friends, Letting go of the people, places and passions that have shaped our lives is tough. Each is different and any analogy feels like comparing apples and origins – you read right, oranges felt too similar for such an analogy. People are obviously more important, but some places hold a special tug on our heartstrings. There is comfort in the sense of permanence they bring, shielding us from the passage of time. Which makes the void they leave behind unfillable – no matter how many donuts you eat to try to fill it. Still, life goes on and we find a way to move forward. Change is, after all, the only constant. Happy Friday!

Friends, I’m not much for using arbitrary dates to make life changes – you can do that at any time. I am, however, very much into building and burning effigies to close out the year – an Ecuadorian tradition we call Año Viejo. The theme we chose to represent 2024 was Steamboat Willie, the Disney movie whose copyright protection had been extended through the end of 2023 by the 1998 “Mickey Mouse Protection Act”. Now that he’s in the public domain, Mickey has been rebelling and doing things his parent company would not approve (a nose ring, two earrings, smoking, a public domain tattoo and an Iron Maiden logo on his hat – a nod to Paul Di’Anno’s passing in October). Despite losing his head a few times (literally, it kept falling off) we proceeded to read his last will and testament (a playful roast of the party’s attendees), pouring accelerant and lighting a match at the stroke of midnight (after the obligatory countdown, of course). If you’re curious, you can find this year’s Año Vi...