Category: Part 1

Make, model, year of your first car?

Car
Saying goodbye to an old car is not always easy.

If you ask someone about their first car, they’ll probably tell you a story. Cars can tell a family history, teach us to deal with adversity and embed themselves into our fondest memories. If we were to make a bingo game out of this we’d find the words tank, yellow, fast, fun and crash on our bingo cards among other themes.

What was your first car?

Whenever I mentioned working on this episode, people often couldn’t resist telling me what their first car was. That’s when I know I have a decent question. I’m always looking for questions where an answer naturally comes to mind, as opposed to something that stumps people. And of course I’m looking for questions that spark stories and even tangents. Tangents are good. If you’re having the same response and want to tell me a story, please do!

Bringing people together to tell stories, as we did to gather some tape for this episode, is also useful. Because when you hear someone tell a story, it often triggers your own stories.

I was surprised that taxis came up as often as they did (you can also put that on your bingo card!). So this made me curious and I went down the Internet rabbit hole and found a gem of a story about a guy in Vermont who was on a quest to get his hands on an old New York Taxi. I was thrilled he said I could use it in this episode.

Thank You!

What have you learned from watching a YouTube video?

This produced some interesting responses from 50 people or so. Most could answer the question. But there were definitely a few who were “readers” and wanted nothing to do with a video on how to boil eggs. Themes come through. Home and car repair and cooking are some examples. I was charmed by the way people often laughed as they responded. Continue reading “What have you learned from watching a YouTube video?”

How did that painting end up in my living room?

We make up a story about how a painting of a fireplace ended up in our living room.

Who painted this picture of a fireplace that inspired our story?
Who painted this picture of a fireplace that inspired our story?

Searching for a mystery artist

We are looking for the real artist who made the painting that inspired our story. You can help us find this person by sharing this picture on social media.

Continue reading “How did that painting end up in my living room?”

What’s going on here in Chicago?

Can we recognize a city by its sound, sort of like recognizing the sound of a mother’s voice?

Sometimes Chicago sounded like a casino. Other times a war zone with its relentless wailing of sirens and the whirring of helicopters that hovered almost within reach of the crowds at Millennium Park. Black Lives Matter is trying to get our attention.

Continue reading “What’s going on here in Chicago?”

What does it mean to be grounded?

What are the barriers to being grounded in a culture filled with distractions and how can we separate the signal from the noise to get grounded?

Being grounded means that you’re self-aware, don’t put on personas, are down-to-earth and solid but open and probably kind. You have confidence (but you’re not cocky), which means that you’re not prone to taking things personally. You’re comfortable with making meaningful decisions because you have figured out how to separate the signal from the noise; being grounded means that you focus on the important stuff. Continue reading “What does it mean to be grounded?”