This explains everything
How pro wrestling explains Donald Trump’s presidency.
All posts filed under: Random DJB Thoughts
Observations from the Road (Or The “I’ve Been Everywhere” Edition)
Life on the road can become a blur. I began writing this from the Molly Pitcher Inn’s dining room which overlooks the Navesink River in Red Bank, New Jersey. Candice and I have come here to celebrate the 40th wedding anniversary of her cousin Mary Beth and husband Greg. It is the second time we find ourselves in Red Bank in three weeks, as we were here earlier in the month to celebrate with family and friends the life of Candice’s aunt and godmother, and Mary Beth’s mother, who passed away at age 90. June is perhaps a bit more than typical in terms of travel (16 out of the first 24 days spent on the road), but only at the margins. Good thing that I enjoy it. In June alone I’ve not only visited Red Bank twice, but I’ve also been to Madison, Wisconsin (one of prettiest small college cities in America…in the summer); Athens and Atlanta, Georgia (my God, they never stop building highways); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (a gem of a city with much …
A Family Celebration
After three family funerals in the past eighteen months—two of which came much too early in the lives of those we lost—the Brown family was able to come together this weekend for a family celebration. We gathered at my brother Joe’s beautiful Cripple Creek farm on a sunny and cloudless spring day to celebrate the wedding of our niece, Erin, and Jonathan Belcher. The bride looked beautiful in the wedding gown she had made by hand (over 53 1/2 hours!). The bluegrass music for the reception covered the countryside. The children of our other nieces played games and ran through the fields and around the pond. A good time was had by all. It is nice to remember the cycle of life continues in a year when we’ve said goodbye too many times. So on this Mother’s Day, which falls on the one-year anniversary of my father’s passing, here’s to Erin and Jonathan and to the resiliency of family and love. More to come… DJB
Chowing Down at the Red Rooster
I had two meetings yesterday in Harlem. Fortunately, the second one was over lunch at the Red Rooster. Oh my! Deviled eggs to die for. Homemade lemonade. Cornbread that “came from heaven” according to our wonderful waitress (and her sense of direction was pretty good). My main dish (an appetizer) was described on the menu as: Yep, Chicken & Waffles circa 1930 Smoked maple syrup, salsa poblana, b&b pickles I pretty much licked the plate clean. And I had a side of Spring succotash to boot: asparagus, favas, peas, corn, crispy shallots. Man, nobody does lima beans like people whose culinary traditions come from the South. Not familiar with the Red Rooster? Don’t worry. Neither was I. But my assistant (who gets bonus points for this find), knew of it and also knew it was steps away from where the first meeting took place. So that’s how Howard Zar—the director at Lyndhurst—and I ended up chowing down at the Red Rooster. Just your typical Jewish New Yorker and transplanted southerner hanging out together over great …
No Better Place to Become a Citizen
Sometimes you find yourself in the right place at the right time. Last Wednesday I was in Arizona for work at the Petrified Forest National Park. But first, a colleague and I attended a naturalization ceremony that the park hosted at the National Historic Landmark Painted Desert Inn for nine new citizens and their families and friends. It was Americana at its best. No, it was more than that. It was deeply moving as nine people made a life-changing decision to establish a new home in a new land. A local girl scout troop – with a diversity that “looked like America” – acted as the color guard. The Honorable Deborah M. Fine, other federal officials, and Park Superintendent Brad Traver, made remarks that got to the heart of the privilege and responsibilities of citizenship. Several speakers noted that there was no better place to become a U.S. citizen than a national park – America’s “best idea.” A recording of America the Beautiful took your eyes to the desert and the spacious skies, bringing chills …
35 reasons I’d do it all over again
In honor of our 35th anniversary, here are thirty-five reasons I’d do it all over again.
The “Risk” of Values
At the National Trust, we begin each executive team meeting with an example of our values in action. Discussing how our colleagues have exemplified our values of integrity, collaboration, diversity, and innovation – all focused on making a difference – is often my favorite part of the meeting. National Trust Trustee emeritus Ken Woodcock was a consistent proponent of the importance of organizational values, an approach that came from his years at the energy company AES. At Ken’s urging, I read Joy at Work by the highly unconventional AES co-founder and CEO Dennis Bakke, who spoke eloquently about the importance of values. In one especially telling example, Bakke quoted from the company’s public-offering memo, which read in part: “An important element of AES is its commitment to four major “shared” values: to act with integrity, to be fair, to have fun, and to be socially responsible….AES believes that earning a fair profit is an important result of providing a quality product to its customers. However, if the Company perceives a conflict between these values and …
The Two Year Anniversary of My (In)Famous Encounter with an Ambulance
I was at work today when someone in a meeting reminded me that today was the second anniversary of my (in)famous encounter with a sliding ambulance. What, you haven’t heard that story? Well, go here to be reminded. You don’t want me to tell you about it now, because the story becomes “better” with every retelling. I was reminded again that I was once “famous in cabs!” After it came up today, I mentioned this anniversary to a guest in the meeting and he said, “You can’t say you were hit by an ambulance without telling the story,” so I’ve already had a chance to recount it once today. When I ended he said, “That’s means you’ll be 62 tomorrow on your birthday?” I replied, “If I make it!” After my ambulance encounter at 59 years, 364 days, and 21 hours on March 3, 2015, I don’t take anything for granted. Fingers crossed that this evening is uneventful. At least there is no ice in the forecast. More to come… DJB
Quest for the Best (Picture): The Best-Laid Plans Edition
Well, Candice and I were on a roll to get to all nine Best Picture nominees prior to Sunday night’s Academy Awards show. But then two sold-out theatres (when we tried to see Fences and Lion), trips to Tennessee (both of us) and Florida (Candice), a board meeting, and a very bad head cold (the last two are mine) intervened. So the four I ranked on February 18th are the only ones we’ll see prior to the awards show. I’m sorry we did not see the other five nominees, and especially Fences and Arrival. This was an especially rich year for Best Picture nominees. Of the four that we saw, the odds-on favorite to win the Oscar is La La Land. It is a delightful movie, but compared to the other three we saw, it is a lightweight. What most reviewers note is that the voters love nothing better than to award good films about making films. In reflecting on the other three – Hidden Figures, Manchester by the Sea, and Moonlight – I think …
The spirit of our institutions
When I was young, we did not celebrate the generic “Presidents Day.” Instead, we attached the names of real men — flawed but great, each in his own ways — in celebrating first Lincoln’s Birthday on February 12th, followed shortly by Washington’s Birthday on February 22nd. I am pretty sure — growing up in the South — that we were not given a day-off from school on the 12th, but we did generally receive the 22nd off…even if it was smack in the middle of the week. There is an interesting history to this holiday, beginning with its name and including the story of how it was moved to the third Monday in February. According to the federal government, what we celebrate today is officially Washington’s Birthday. But states actually decide which federal holidays to celebrate, and they can also rename them. So in Maryland, where I live, we celebrate Presidents Day. I’m a bit old-fashioned and like my holidays well defined and not simply an occasion to get an extra-long weekend and a great …
MORE TO COME... 