I’ve found it interesting, and yet so true, what smiling can do for your life. In fact, I have found it so amusing that when I stop and think about it long enough it actually makes me chuckle. This mongoose is here because he’s funny. I’ll never forget, many years ago, thumbing through books at a local copy shop while waiting (patiently, of course) for my copies to be ready. I came across a book entitled Convince them in 90 seconds by Nicholas Boothman. As I was flipping through the pages I saw the word “Smile.” The book went on to explain the importance of smiling when trying to convincing so ..read more

On our blog for Valentine’s Day we suggested to “Stop and Smell the Roses.” Here’s an absolutely wonderful story and some photographs captured in June 2019. [Article published on DIYPhotography.Net. Original link below] PHOTOGRAPHER CAPTURES THE CUTEST SQUIRREL EMBRACING AND SMELLING A FLOWER February 12, 2020 by Ole Henrik Skjelstad You know that humans enjoy smelling flowers, its not a big surprise. A squirrel enjoying an intimate moment with a flower is way rarer. In June, Dutch photographer Dick van Duijn had a close encounter with a squirrel smelling a flower. He was both prepared ..read more

I always imagined that Easy Street was this place… where faucets never dripped, lawns never got weeds, the houses never required painting, all the neighbors got along and frequently had BBQ’s, and pets never defecated. Well, it just so happens that one time I did actually find myself on Easy Street. It was a hot and steamy July day in a small town in South Carolina. This was many, many years ago (15?20?) and I was inventorying trees* on the city’s rights of way. As a consulting Arborist/Forester, it is something I have spent a lot of time doing over the last 30 years. Now, as the case,  ..read more

It has always been amazing to me … … how easy it is to pick up words and phrases that are tossed around in society. It’s funny because I have noticed that often when I first hear one of these words or phrases I don’t even like it; I start using it in a mocking way. Then the next thing I know without even being conscious of it, I’m using the word with regularity. To make it even worse, most of these words carry negative connotations with them especially in the context in which they are used. That isn’t a way to be happier. Many, many years ago when our oldest offspring (“Thing 1”) was 3 or 4, w ..read more

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Yes, that’s right … Thanksgiving is here. It seems that this year I’ve heard more than the normal amount of people shocked that it is already upon us, and this year, it is actually late. I can’t help but to think how Thanksgiving has changed here in the 21st century. If for no other reason, I can point to how Black Friday now begins on Thursday (yet we still call it Black Friday- I digress). No, I’m not going to go on about commercialism, there are enough others who focus on that. Instead I thought I would share my Thanksgiving perception. More than just a day. To me Thanksgiving has always be ..read more

Share A Smile Today! Has Society Become Less Friendly? And have you ever witnessed the Power of a Smile and a Friendly Gesture? Today, people spend so much time connected to their electronic devices that they rarely see the world around them. Not only do we have laws forbidding people to use their phones while driving, in many metropolitan areas there are signs on the sidewalks telling pedestrians to put their phones away and pay attention. Has this led to a society that walks through life with its head down? Have we become scared to make eye contact with other humans without feeling awkward ..read more