On November 3rd, I served as an election poll worker.  I hadn’t worked at the polls before then, but ever since I became eligible to vote some decades ago, I’ve voted in every general election and most primaries.  I believe in the democratic election process.  It has always given me hope. In spring I began thinking about serving as a poll worker, when it became apparent that COVID -19 would be with us for a while and the regular poll workers, many of whom are seniors, signaled discomfort about working in a COVID environment.  My husband, Jeff Ferriell, talked through the pros and cons of stepping in.  I’m a few years under 65 and Jeff’s just over 65.  Jeff had double by-pass surgery a couple of years ago, putting him squarely in the at risk club.   We decided to wait at least a couple months before making a decision.  Then

A couple days ago Abbie and I were scrolling our New York Times app and came across THIS interview with Mo Willems.  He’s a children’s book author and illustrator.  Elephant and Piggie, and the stubborn Pigeon were frequent members of our library check out list. Willems says his key insight is that “even a good childhood is difficult: you’re powerless; the furniture is not made to your size.”  He is skeptical of parents who seek his advice on how to talk with kids about the pandemic if it includes any attempt to control the child’s emotions.  He summarizes these inquiries as ‘Hey, you have a relationship with kids.  Help me control them.’  To which Willems gives an expletive and says to the hypothetical parent: “I’m not on your side.”  He offers that the best approach is to show children that you don’t know – you don’t even know how to

There is a new book out called “Black Sheep” by Brant Menswar, a Canadian rock star-turned- motivational speaker. It’s a quick and easy read that helps lay a path out to finding your “Flock of Five”. The “Flock of Five” are the non-negotiable “Black Sheep” values that each person has. There are many more values that are important to each of us, but Menswar postulates that there are only 5 (maximum) that a person can truly claim as their identifiers. Finding them is the challenge. One doesn’t just proclaim “love, charity, honesty, integrity, hard work” and it’s all done. It comes down to examining what is non-negotiable vs. what is just important. In the old days, the wool from a black sheep was of almost no commercial value because it cannot be dyed. Menswar would call it “unchangeable…and completely original.” The only beneficial use for black sheep was before the

There is a new book out called “Black Sheep” by Brant Menswar, a Canadian rock star-turned- motivational speaker. It’s a quick and easy read that helps lay a path out to finding your “Flock of Five”. The “Flock of Five” are the non-negotiable “Black Sheep” values that each person has. There are many more values that are important to each of us, but Menswar postulates that there are only 5 (maximum) that a person can truly claim as their identifiers. Finding them is the challenge. One doesn’t just proclaim “love, charity, honesty, integrity, hard work” and it’s all done. It comes down to examining what is non-negotiable vs. what is just important. In the old days, the wool from a black sheep was of almost no commercial value because it cannot be dyed. Menswar would call it “unchangeable…and completely original.” The only beneficial use for black sheep was before the