It's All In The Execution, Baby!

I took this photo on the left yesterday (while the one on the right is from a CD music set).

This lady was wearing this gorgeous shirt.

The words: "Hope, Progress, Change, Action. Yes we can Believe."

Aroud it were the tie-dye colors emanating like the sun,

It is very inspiring!

I was reminded of a similar 1960's slogan of "Peace, Love, and Rock & Roll."

Also good stuff and especially with the cool VW brightly painted minivan--who doesn't want that?

We all want great things from life.

The key is getting us from idea to execution.

Maybe not such a little thing, but that's what life is all about! ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

It's All In The Execution, Baby!

Israel-America 2gether 4ever

The other day, I passed the prestigious George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and someone had quite prominently graffitied the wall with "Free Palestine."

But then yesterday again, we saw another terrorist attack strike Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel, and a 3-month old baby from America was murdered after being thrown 30 feet in the air and landing on it's head.

I applaud the GW students who came out today to celebrate the enduring relationship between the United States and Israel.

At the event, a banner hung high with the promise from President Obama, as of those similarly who came before in the Oval Office that "The bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable today, unbreakable tomorrow, and unbreakable forever."

Moreover, last month, the Senate unanimously passed a bill upgrading and declaring Israel a "Major Strategic Partner" of the United States.

The defense of Israel as a secure and sovereign nation is an imperative as freedom and democracy shine forth as a beacon of hope and peace for humanity.

May G-d bless the 2 countries and may their flags fly as one--2gether 4ever. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Israel-America 2gether 4ever

Reflections On Our Journey

As we approach the holy Yom Kippur, the annual day of Judgement following the Jewish New Year, we realize how everything is in G-d's hands...

But we can repent, pray, and do good deeds to influence our journey and Hashem's decree. 

Thank you Bettty Monoker for sharing this wonderful, thought-provoking video at this reverent time of year. 

Reflections On Our Journey

Go Quick And Far

I love this African proverb that I heard recently:

"If you want to go quickly, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together."

When we're alone, we are traveling "light"--we don't have to worry about or help another person...we can go quickly.

However, when we go together with another, we have a companion and support, and can endure more and go much farther.

In life, going it alone...is more of a "flight" response. When you have to run, you get away as quickly as you can.  

In the movie Last of the Mohicans the fleeing male character yells to the woman, "Stay Alive! No matter how long it takes, I will find you."  They disperse, each one moving as speedily as possible to survive.

Similarly, when we have to "fight," there is power in numbers. We are always stronger and more capable as a team.

Already from The Three Musketeers, we acknowledge the familiar refrain of, "All for one, and one for all."

Similarly, when a military force advances it does so in strength with coordination and in unison, but when it is under severe attack and is retreating, often it does so chaotically, running with "every man for himself" trying to save as many as possible.

Overall, while we need the strength of unity and the speed of an agile runner, in the end we have to have faith, hope, and perseverance to survive.

Ernest Hemingway said, "The world breaks everyone, and afterwards some are strong at the broken places." ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Go Quick And Far

From Holocaust To Homeland

From the searing ashes of six million murdered in the Holocaust, 

G-d remembered the Jewish people, 

and restored them to the promised land. 

The fulfillment of hope and yearnings for freedom and independence, 

and never to be slaughtered like sheep again. 

Some say that we are waiting for the Messiah, 

But to me, the miracle of Israel is the beginning of the redemption. 

While it is difficult to see Israel maligned in their continued fight for survival, 

surely there will come a time when we can see clear the wisdom for all to live and let live.

May G-d bless Israel to live in peace and security.

From Holocaust To Homeland

Rise Oceans Rise

The polar ice caps are melting--does anyone believe it or care?  

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Antarctica alone holds 60% of the world's fresh water "locked into millions of cubic miles of polar ice."

NASA glaciologists states: "Ice is going to retreat in this sector for decades and centuries to come and we can't stop it."

In other words, we may have "reached the point of no return."

Sea levels are seen rising 10 to 12 feet--that's almost 1.8 x Magic Johnson across all our oceans.

The New York Times says that just a four foot rise would inundate cities like New York, Boston, Miami, and New Orleans. 

WTOP reports that the impact will not just be in low-lying cities but even Washington, DC along the Chesapeake Bay is at great risk. 

And while over time barriers may be able to be built up around DC to protect it, other areas like New York City is "almost unenclosable."

Global warming has is changing our earth's ecosystems, and like the National Deficit, we can try to prove it false, ignore it, or hope for a technological breakthrough or miracle to save us. 

Yes, there are lot's of doom and gloom scenarios, and it's hard to know when to take catastrophe seriously and when it is Chicken Little.

While I wouldn't go looking for high ground just yet, maybe that Miami oceanfront--as much as I love it--may not be the best long-long term investment around. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Rise Oceans Rise

10 Keys To Influencing And Selling Anything

Brilliant video by Kendra Eash for McSweeney's Internet Tendency.

It is made entirely with stock footage from Dissolve.

What is amazing is how with some great video, nice background music, and a soothing confidant voiceover--we can sell, or be sold on, just about anything.

The 10 Keys to influencing and selling anything, including B.S.:

1. Vague words that show progress (innovation, hope, motherhod, and apple pie--I'll have some of that)

2. Beautiful footage and sound (who wouldn't want to be there type?)

3. High-technology and science (we can solve the world's problems and make money, yippee)

4. Research and development (we're investing in the future and you should invest in us)

5. Global and U.S. (we're beyond borders, but still "made in...", headquartered, or otherwise a U.S. entity)

6. Environmentally conscious (clean water, breathable, air, lush forests, who can argue with that?)

7. High-speed (movers and shakers, we don't stand still, join us or be left behind)

8. Attractive people (this is for real human beings, human kind, we care about you!)

9. Diversity and equality (we love and help everyone--including you and your family)

10. Inspiring (we're thinking big and bringing positive change--buy from us, support our cause)

Throw/superimpose any company, product, country, person, or cause on this video--and poof, you've got an awesome brand--whether you deserve it or not!

This is how we're manipulated one brand at a time, hundreds of brands a day. ;-)

10 Keys To Influencing And Selling Anything

The Great Afterlife

I finished reading the bestseller Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander M.D. -- and it was awesome. 

Alexander, trained in rational, scientific thinking and a practicing neurosurgeon was not a believer of consciousness (i.e. the soul) outside of the functioning of the brain itself until he ended up for 7 days in a coma himself.

His near death experience (NDE) was not only unbelievably vivid, but also, as he reiterates again and again, absolutely real ("more real that the house I sat in, more real than the logs burning in the fireplace")!

The key beautiful messages that I came away with:

What is the relationship between G-d and man? 
- G-d loves us, unconditionally. 

- Our physical bodies and brains, with limited sensory organs, are filters that give us a kind of "amnesia" of the Divine. 

- Our personality, soul, spirit "continue to exist beyond the body"and is a "direct extension of the Divine."

What is the meaning of life (i.e. why are we here)?
- The universe is purposeful, and it "bring[s] beings into existence and allows them to participate in the glory of G-d."

- Evil exists in this world only to provide us the free will for growth to the Divine and ultimately for our ascendance in other dimensions. 

- There is "no need to fear the earthly world" and thus no need to be concerned or build ourselves up with "fame or wealth or conquest."

- To return to the spiritual realm, "we must once again become like that realm" by showing love and compassion for others. 

- "Other family" (i.e. angels) are "watching and looking out for us" and helping us navigate our time here on earth."

- "Our struggles and suffering" are eclipsed by the larger eternal beings we are.

What is the future world like?
- Injustice in this world is eclipsed by the "beauty and brilliance of what awaits us."

- The visible, physical world is but a "speck of dust" compared to the invisible, spiritual world that is "awash" in goodness, hope, and abundance.

- Time doesn't function the same in the spiritual world, "a moment can seem like a lifetime, and one or several lifetimes can seem like a moment."

- Our understanding of space is false; the "vastly grandeur universe isn't far away physically, but simply exists on a different frequency."

- We are not only part of the fabric of the universe, but also are "completely unified"with it, and are "intricately and irremovably connected" with "no real differentiation between 'me' and the world."

Having recently lost my mother, I found great solace in this book and its timeless message of purpose in our worldly lives, hope through a brighter future in the next world, and the immortality of our souls with our loving Father In Heaven. 

Thank you Dr. Alexander for sharing your experiences and these eternal truths with us. ;-)

(Source Photo: here and my first GIF)

The Great Afterlife

Have You Ever Seen A Shark With Cancer?

For a long time people have learned from the animal kingdom. 

We learn how to fly from birds, how to swim from fish, how to fight from lions and tigers, and so on. 

But an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal gave this new and expanded meaning to me. 

Researchers are now looking at animals to learn how to ward off some of the worst diseases known to man. 

For example, apparently Sharks do not get cancer, but more than that even when scientists spent 10 years trying to induce cancer in sharks, they couldn't!

Shark have compounds that actually kill tumors--WOW!--If we could learn how to mimic that in humans, imagine the death and suffering that could be prevented, and the extension and perhaps quality of life that could be gained.

Similarly, grizzly bears, which can weigh 1,000 pounds, and can eat 58,000 calories a day, put on 100 pounds or more in the weeks right before they hibernate for the winter, yet bears don't suffer from routine ailments of obesity, such as diabetes, heart attacks, and strokes. 

Not that any of us want to be 1,000 pounds, but imagine if heavy people did not get all sorts of diseases from clogged arteries and the like.

While heart disease and cancer each accounts for 1 out of every 4 deaths in the U.S. and are the top two leading causes of death--how amazing would it be if we could not only "talk to the animals, walk with the animals..." but also fight disease like the animals? ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Have You Ever Seen A Shark With Cancer?

Remembering the 52 And Hoping For A Real Peace

This week was the 34-year anniversary since the Iran Hostage Crisis (which started on November 4, 1979)

52 Americans were held hostage for a long 444 days.

Now, Iran is negotiating for a relaxation of sanctions imposed due to their hostile nuclear WMD program.

However, there are questions about whether Iran will really give up the nukes that they have pursued for decades or whether this is another stalling tactic.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting concern by Western Allies including Israel, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain, and that "Republican and Democratic supporters of Israel said the agreement in the works was far too easy on Iran."

On the positive side, potentially, this is only the "first stage" in the Iran nuclear disarmament process--let's hope. 

We need to ensure a substantive nuclear non-proliferation deal that safeguards America's and allies' security and interests in the region. 

We can all rest easier when the Iranian nuclear capability is fully dismantled, until then this is not a slam dunk for peace. 

(Source Photos: EVResourceSite and Pere Ubu; Mashup by Andy Blumenthal)

Remembering the 52 And Hoping For A Real Peace

Cancer Takes It Away

This is an amazing video.

It is about the life of Angelo and Jennifer Merendino.

Initially, they a lived a fairy tale life, until she was diagnosed with breast cancer. 

You can see in the video the brutal transformation Jennifer underwent from the disease.

Yet, the love and togetherness this couple maintained is inspiring.

A link with photos of this couple's battle with cancer is here.

Jennifer died on December 22, 2011 at the young age of 40. 

Angelo, a NY photographer compiled their painstaking journey in a book called The Battle We Didn't Choose available at their website My Wife's Fight With Breast Cancer.

It is difficult to look at the pictures of Jennifer's illness and deterioration, especially when marked in contrast to her husband throughout.

The numerous personal pictures makes me feel a little uncomfortable, even as I believe, they are meant to be educational and giving--with 1/2 the proceeds from the book's profits to be going to a non-profit for breast cancer victims. 

The story is very tragic, yet too often repeated throughout society...some may be able to find hope in it, and to appreciate what we have, when we have it.

Cancer Takes It Away

What True Love Means

A Walk To Remember--what an absolutely amazing movie.

This girl with a beautiful soul, Jamie, turns around the life of this lost boy, Landon. 

She warns him not to fall in love with her, but he does. 

She reveals that she has Leukemia and is no longer responding to medicine. 

Landon is head over heels for her and marries her despite the prognosis. 

They enjoy one summer of love before she passes. 

But she has changed his life forever. 

I cried like a baby at this one. 

It was a movie of faith, love, and turnaround--it made me believe again. ;-)

"Love is always patient and kind. It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited. It is never rude of selfish. It does not offense and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people's sins, but delights in the truth. It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes." - Nicholas Sparks

What True Love Means

Letters Of Hope

This was a sign in Starbucks in Gaithersburg, MD that got my attention.

It was different--it wasn't advertising for a local garage sale, real estate, a tutor, or cleaning service. 

Instead, it asks people to "write an anonymous letter to a survivor of abuse, violence, rape, trauma, or bullying."

When I got home, I looked at their website, aletterforyou.org.

I saw some of the letters that had been written on the home page as well as an archive with monthly letters going back to March 2013.

It was inspiring that people write and submit these letters of empathy, love, caring, and unity. 

And that someone would advertise for these, collect and post them for abuse victims to find some solace in. 

While of course, we gain strength through belief in G-d and a higher purpose in life, perhaps the real message of this letter writing project is that one major way for people to heal from the hurt caused by mean, misguided, or evil individuals is through the love and caring of good people. 

While the hurt and abuse of the past can never be undone, the charity and giving of the here and now can provide hope for a better tomorrow. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Letters Of Hope

The Status Quo, No!

Two more articles, this time in Fast Company (Sept 2013) are pointing to the unhappiness of people and the desire to change things.

The first "You Sign, Companies Listen," about Change.org, "the world's petition platform" that now has 40 million users launching as many as 1,000 petitions a day.  Now the site is allowing organizations to respond to petitions publicly and also has a "Decision Maker page," which shows organizations all the petitions against them. 

Change.org focuses on "personal issues with achievable solutions," especially personal stories of injustice. The site is about a carrot and stick approach. Organizations can choose to listen and respond positively to their constituents legitimate issues or "there is a stick" if they don't engage with the hundreds of thousands and millions of petitioners. 

A second article, "Not Kidding Around," about DoSomething.org, which "spearheads national campaigns" for young people interested in social change. Their values are optimism for a sense of hope, rebellion meaning the rules are broken and needs to be rewritten, and empathy to feel others pain so we can change things for the better. 

There is a notion here that the youngsters "have no faith that Washington politicians can solve this problem." These kids feel that "the world is in the shitter" and they want to help create social change. 

It is interesting to me that despite our immense wealth and technological advances or maybe in some cases because of it--creating a materialistic, self-based society--that people are disillusioned and looking to restore meaning, purpose, and social justice.

Things have got to mean more than just getting the latest gadget, blurbing about what you had for lunch on twitter, or accumulating material things (homes, cars, vacations, clothes, shoes, bags, and more). 

People can't live on materialism alone, but are seeking a deeper connection with G-d and the universe--to make peace with our creator and with each other and create a better world where we are elevated for helping others, rather than just taking for ourselves. 

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

The Status Quo, No!

Sweet Sweat, Bitter Blood

General George S. Patton had a saying that "The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war."

And while we shouldn't sweat the small and unimportant stuff in life, we also can't afford to overlook those things that are really important like our health, spiritual well-being, modest prosperity to care for ourselves and loved ones, and of course ensuring freedom and justice for all people. 

It's a balancing act to do everything and it takes hard work to try and be successful on so many fronts of life.  

Some success strategies:

- Be aware of what's going on around you--we live in a dynamic world and things are constantly changing.

- Work hard to always have a positive impact--it's too easy to be negative and cynical, give up trying, and throw in the towel.

- Learn from mistakes--everyone makes them.

- Hope for the best, but also train and prepare for the worst--because you never really know. 

Overall, I think the picture above says it well: It's better to sweat in training, than bleed in battle. 

So listen to the General: sweat now--really work it and don't be afraid to push your limits--you'll be glad you did, when the time comes and it really counts. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Sweet Sweat, Bitter Blood

Going Up To The Clouds

It's been a week since Zach Sobiech, age 18, died from a rare bone cancer, called Osteosarcoma.

Zach was diagnosed at just the tender age of 14 and by 17 he was given less than a year to live.

During his last year on Earth, he wrote this beautiful song, Clouds.

The lyrics are amazing:

"And we'll go up, up, up
But I'll fly a little higher
We'll go up in the clouds because the view is a little nicer
Up here my dear

It won't be long now, it won't be long now
If only I had a little bit more time
It only I had a little bit more time with you."

Anticipating his death, Zach imagines, as a soul, flying up in the clouds--where the "view is a little nicer."

And he knows, time is short--and "it won't be long now"--and although he'll be able to see his family, friends, and loved ones from the clouds, he wishes he "had a little bit more time" with them on Earth. 

Death is hard at any age, but it is especially tragic when it is a child or someone who hasn't been able to fully live--and experience so many things or make all their contributions. 

But at any age, the loss of a good person, a kind person, a loving person--is a loss for all of us, left behind. 

Zach, some day we'll see you in the clouds with the other good people--it should be at the right time, merciful, and when our job here is done. 

It is okay to love life and the special people around us and to miss them terribly when we go, but we all go to the same place...to be with G-d, and each other, in Heaven.

In the after life, we can fly higher, with a nicer view, and reflect on how we did with the precious gifts and time given to us--whether long or short--before being called spiritually home again to our perfect maker. ;-)

Going Up To The Clouds

When The Solution Is Worse Than The Problem

Not to be crude, but we had some clogged plumbing over the weekend.

We tried everything to get it working again--plunger, snake, and even some septic tank treatment.

Nothing seemed to work, so at one point, my wife looked up on the Internet what to do, and it said to unwind a hanger and try that.

Well this turned out to be a huge mistake and I must've gotten too close to the chemical fumes--my eyes were burning. 

I ended up in the ER with my eyes being flushed for close to 2 hours. 

Afterwards, being very supportive and sitting with me in the hospital with my eyeballs hooked to suction cups and saline solution, my wife says to me, "This is a case when the solution (i.e. the results of our trying to fix the plumbing ourselves) is worse then the problem (the clog)."

I thought to myself boy was she right, and while it is good to be self-sufficient and try to fix and improve things ourselves, it is also good to know when to leave it to the experts. 

How many times do we foolishly try to do something where "we are out of our league," and actually can end up doing more harm then good. 

In this case, I could have seriously damaged my eyes--permanently--and am so grateful to G-d that everything turned out okay. 

Knowing our limits and accurately assessing risks can help us to know when to proceed ourselves and when to ask for some expert assistance. 

It's good do things for yourself and to try your best, but also value and know when to leverage other people's strengths.

With my eyes irritated and burning and being flushed out for what seemed like an eternity, I had some serious time to ponder what can happen when things go wrong.

Years ago, I learned to "Hope (and pray) for the best, but prepare for the worst," and I want to continue to work and improve on both these. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

When The Solution Is Worse Than The Problem

From Wheelchair to Walking

Berkeley Bionics (now Ekso Bionics) has done miracles here in helping the disabled to walk again. 

Based on the Human Universal Load Carrier (HULC) from Lockheed Martin that was developed for the warfighter to carry 200 pounds of weight at 10 mph, Berkeley has adapted this technology for medical rehabilitation. 

I first watched this eLEGS technology on a National Geographic special called "Make Me Superhuman."

This woman literally walks for the first time in18 years after a skiing accident, and I was literally crying for her. 

She wobbled and would've fallen if not for the safety harness, but after a few times retraining her muscles to walk again, she was able to take steps and turn using the eLEGS exoskeleton technology.

Over and over again, she says how grateful she is to be able to stand, be normal height, walk again, and get out of her wheelchair.

This technology can really bring hope to the disabled, especially as it gets refined, more compact, and cheaper.

The vision is that paralyzed people will one day get up in the morning, put on the eLEGS, get in the car, and then walk around all day just like you and I.

Oh, what a great day that will be. ;-)

From Wheelchair to Walking

A Falafel A Day

Peace comes in many shapes and sizes--peace talks, peace negotiations, peace treaties, and now even peace trucks.

Reminiscent of the peace marches and brightly painted VW peace vans of the 1970's, The Washington Post (26 January 2013) reports on a 76-year old retired Energy Department staffer with a PhD in mechanical engineering who for his second career is starting a peace food truck in DC.

The food truck will have two windows for selling kosher food from one and for selling halal food from the other. 

The owner-activist who is an Egyptian American hopes that "it will bring people from different backgrounds, who are waiting on line, to talk together."

He says: "I think it will work because, well, everyone likes food," and he hopes to fund additional food trucks in Chicago, New York, Israel, and the West Bank. 

The truck has both the Jewish Star of David and Islamic Crescent painted on it--it is truly a truck for representing diversity of people, but with a common taste in good Mediterranean food.

It's amazing what a falafel can do--perhaps, even help bring peace and security to the Middle East.   ;-)

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Shoshanah)

A Falafel A Day

Children, Our Future

20 children dead today in school shooting. 

Completely unacceptable!

We need better psychiatric screening, more treatment options, and safer schools.

How can we expect children to excel, when they can't even feel safe. 

Safeguard our children, protect our future.

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Massimo Valiani, Source Quote: ABC News article comment by Quinn, and Mashup by Andy Blumenthal)

Children, Our Future