The Last Story each week tends to be what I call a “feelgood” type to leave readers on an up note after sometimes fairly heavy stories.
Giving Back
Humbled by the H.U.?
This is True’s Honorary Unsubscribe has long been a reader favorite. Sometimes it’s hard to not compare yourself to them.
The Best Thing All Week
This isn’t a story about me, but rather something awesome that I witnessed while working at a big fire on Saturday. It was an interaction that made my night, even my week, but first I have to set the scene, and allow for a side trip to tell you the Moose Story at the end. You’ll see why it relates….
Authors for Libraries
The non-profit “Fight for the Future” — formed in 2012 to lead the successful fight against the “Stop Online Piracy Act” (SOPA) and the “PROTECT IP Act” (PIPA) — has turned to protecting libraries from giant publishers who are trying to take away the right to loan books, particularly now that most books are published as ebooks.
We Just Need a Little More
What do you need to break out of your rut? You might have a business idea, or something you want to do with your life.
Father Tom Carten, CSC
A Special Honorary Unsubscribe
Over the years I’ve been accused of being “anti-Christian” so much that what gets lost is what I really am: anti-hypocrite.
090: Rescuing Uncommon Sense
In This Episode: A story in This is True struck me as an astonishing example of Uncommon Sense, so I thought I’d tell you about it to see some really out-of-the-box thinking, and provide some practical advice that could save your life. Here’s a hint: no one thinks they’re going to get lost and need rescue. Yet there are tens of thousands of rescues every year in the U.S. alone. What will increase your odds of being safe? Uncommon Sense.
077: 7 Things to Stop Doing
(& What to Do Instead)
In This Episode: Want a happier, more-fulfilled, and less-stressed life? Here are seven things to stop doing immediately — and what to do instead — that are pretty easy to do right away.
060: Uncommon Sense in Kids
(How to Help Your Kids be Millionaires …when you aren’t rich.)
In This Episode: Can children have Uncommon Sense? Let me tell you the story of Colin Flynn, and then see what you think.
052: Uncommon Sense the Easy Way
In This Episode: Can you quit a bad habit with willpower? Allen Carr thought that was the hard way, but he had insight into what he called the “Easy Way” that would work better, and saved perhaps millions of lives by quitting his day job to help teach others how. It’s a great story of Uncommon Sense at work.
Why Are You Here?
Why Are You Here? Reading This is True, I mean. I’m going to take a stab at answering that question.
048: A Competitive Advantage
In This Episode: We’ve been hearing about “diversity” in the workplace for years now, but many companies are doing something so radically different on the diversity front, it’s very surprising for a lot of people. Yet what it really comes down to is Uncommon Sense.
The Usual Culprit
Monday was just the beginning of a crazy week (see the previous entry, Come to Me, for that story). Things went decidedly downhill Wednesday, when I was called out before dawn to a wildfire.
Come To Me
I was the “Landing Officer” (aka Ground Contact) for a medical helicopter from Colorado’s Careflight of the Rockies yesterday — I’m a volunteer medic for Ouray County EMS.
022: The Little Things
In This Episode: The “little things” matter — a lot. Right down to making the world a better place for generations to come, and they’re easy to do. And really: if a 5-year-old is obviously starting to develop Uncommon Sense, anyone who puts their mind to it can develop it too.
015: Keeping Your Eyes on the Prize
In This Episode: Do you have a big, overriding goal in life? Most really haven’t thought about it. Those who did often gave up after awhile, and maybe led a fine life, but never reached their big goal, their dream, their aspiration. But every few months, I hear of some humble person who kept their focus on their goal, and succeeded so well, their story goes viral. Don’t make the mistake of thinking this episode is about charity: I already covered that. No, this is the story of achieving a big goal — and how Uncommon Sense played a role.
010: “I Just Don’t Have Time”
In This Episode: “I just don’t have time” is the modern mantra. And I’m here to tell you why that’s total B.S. Because if you apply Uncommon Sense to the time problem, that turns out to not be the problem you think it is.
008: The Man with the Golden Arm
In This Episode: I had heard about the man I’m going to tell you about several times over the past several years, but I didn’t know the whole story of “The Man with the Golden Arm”. It’s a bit of a medical mystery and, as I researched all of this to understand what the heck it was that he did, I discovered he started displaying Uncommon Sense even as a child.
The Cherry Rumtini
A local ice cream parlor puts cherries on its sundaes. But not some crappy maraschino cherry *. They have their cherries flown in from Italy, and they’re so fantastic I bought some, and had to find other uses for them so I don’t have to eat so much ice cream! What I came up with a buddy says I should call “The Amazing Martini”! The recipe is below.
A Quarter Century of Increasing Optimism
“Why Aren’t You Cynical by Now?” It’s a common question: I’ve been writing True for nearly 25 years now, chronicling the sometimes staggering obliviocy of our species, but I still have an optimistic view of humanity. In fact, my optimism has increased over time — probably because I’m such an avid people-watcher.