Columns
Opinion: Wisdom Workout
I invite you to life...
Today, we are looking for a lost part of you that is holding back from fully participating in your life. This part is hidden in the dark and is waiting for permission to step out into the light of today.
Imagine that you are spiraling back...
Opinion: Musings on the Coast
The George Weiss Waste Award
Councilmember George Weiss just cost Laguna Beach $500,000, and Village Laguna is celebrating.
Why? I posit that Village Laguna disliked our city manager, Shohreh Dupuis, because they opposed her policies and wanted her to quit or be fired, and councilmember Weiss was their hitman. To get...
Opinion: The George Problem
Every politician has a mentor, a sounding board, a guiding presence. Nelson Mandela had Walter Sisulu, Winston Churchill had Bourke Cockran, and John F. Kennedy had Ted Sorensen. When wondering about councilman George Weiss, only one name comes to mind: Yosemite Sam. Yes, the proud cartoon cowboy, the mean-spirited...
Opinion: Happiness as a Hypothesis
By Melissa Harris
If this were the first day of the college semester and you had registered for my Positive Psychology class, I would ask you to pair up with the person next to you and agree on a definition of happiness.
This might sound simple, but it isn’t easy....
Opinion: Green Light
Laguna’s French Connection is Hot, Très Chaude!
The late August temperature in the coastal city of Menton, Laguna’s French sister city, is 91 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s cooler than the blistering 95 degrees I’m writing from in the French village of Sallanches. My wife, Ginger, and I are visiting our younger...
Opinion: Finding Meaning
An Inconvenient Truth
I have a childhood memory of my father reading Uncle Remus's stories from the old South. They were didactic fables, meaning they taught a lesson. Father would vary his voice to portray characters like Br’er Rabbit in his contests with the tricky Br’er Fox. Br’er Fox, you...
Opinion: I Invite You to Life…
Today, we are looking for a lost part of you that is holding back from fully participating in your life. This part is hidden in the dark and is waiting for permission to step out into the light of today.
Imagine that you are spiraling back into your childhood to...
Hollywood South: Ocean Rescue, Beach Visits, Movie Sets
The ocean and the beach were constants in the lives of the Alley Kids and introduced them to new people, even those from Hollywood.
One day, cries for help were heard from Oak Street Beach. A man was struggling in the surf. Mert was indoors eating breakfast in front of...
Opinion: Finding Meaning
Swiss Days in Midway
“Are you going to clean up those horse droppings?” You have to be on your toes when the Beautiful Wife asks such questions—it’s not her style to give orders, she’s subtler, but I knew my good standing was at risk. The BW meant the offerings of...
Opinion: Dear Susi Q
Dear Susi Q:
My 90-year-old mother is demanding a lot from me in terms of time commitments. I love her and want to be there for her, but the stress is overwhelming with my work and other family pressures. How can I balance these different demands?
Susi Q’s Director of Care...