Giving Thanks 2006

  So, Turkey Day is upon us again, and while we’re scurrying around to prepare next week’s leftovers, let’s not forget the spirit of the holiday.  Thanksgiving is more than the bird and the beer, the football and the family.  Take a moment while the rolls are in the oven, or while Mariah or Sheryl Crow are performing at halftime, to reflect on the things for which you are thankful.

  Each Thanksgiving, as the turkey thaws and the relatives arrive, it has become a tradition for me to prepare a list of these things.  I encourage you to do the same.

  ·  I am thankful that CBS is standing up for themselves against the FCC, and challenging the $550,000 fine levied against them for Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl performance.  The commission, which once believed that images that were “fleeting, isolated or unintended” should not automatically be considered indecent, has since abandoned that reasonable stance, and CBS is fighting them in the 3^rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.  The heretofore unchecked, unbalanced Commission is now being taken to task, and for that I’m thankful.

  ·  I am grateful that I didn’t buy stock in Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. after learning that the company would run the O.J. Simpson special, “If I Did It.”  In the special, which was scheduled to November 27^th and 29^th, Simpson discusses, “hypothetically,” how he would have killed his estranged wife and Ron Goldman, if he had done it.  News Corp’s publishing arm, HarperCollins/ReganBooks, planned to release an accompanying book (just in time for the holiday shopping season.)  Both projects have been shelved after an uprising of contempt, led partly by a site, DontPayOJ.com, launched by Goldman’s family.

  ·  I am thankful that the hip-hop world has Jay-Z again.  The music mogul cut his retirement-as-an-artist short, and released his new CD, “Kingdom Come,” on Tuesday.  Jay-Z raises the bar for other rappers, and the music world is richer because of the king’s return.

  ·  I’m glad that Paris and Nicole seem to have settled their differences.  According to E! Online’s Hollywood Party Girl, the two were seen earlier this month arriving at a party together.  Nicole even introduced Paris to someone as quote, “my best friend.”  You know, everyone deserves a best friend, and those two certainly deserve each other. 

  ·  On a more serious note, and again this year, I think we should give thanks to our troops, fighting for our freedom in the Middle East.  They’re putting their lives on the line, spending the season away from their families so that we can be with ours, and for that I’m appreciative.

  I am also thankful for my family, my friends, and a job that I love.  I’m thankful for the opportunities that I have been given, and for my health.  This Thanksgiving weekend, set aside a moment or two to genuinely give thanks for the things that you may take for granted throughout the year.  We really do have a lot the be thankful for.

 -From Pulse
   November 23, 2006

Read more...

Giving Thanks 2005

So, Turkey Day is upon us again, and while we’re scurrying around to prepare next week’s leftovers, let’s not forget the spirit of the holiday. Thanksgiving is more than the bird and the beer, the football and the family. Take a moment while the rolls are in the oven, or while Mariah or Sheryl Crow are performing at halftime, to reflect on the things for which you are thankful.

Each Thanksgiving, as the turkey thaws and the relatives arrive, I like to prepare a list of these things. I encourage you to do the same.

· I am thankful that David Letterman and Oprah Winfrey have squashed their beef, and that they left Dr. Phil out of it. Oprah will appear on The Late Show on December 1st, her first trip to the Ed Sullivan Theater since Letterman took his show to CBS more than 12 years ago. It’s just sad that Oprah’s appearance will come one day too late to help Dave in the November sweeps.

· I am grateful that my brand new computer has yet to meet my brand new Neil Diamond CD. Sony/BMG has recalled nearly five million copy-protected CDs, more than two million of which are already in the hands of consumers, of which I am one. The included XCP software, which limits copying, also leaves the user’s computer susceptible to viruses. My computer may be safe, but the world’s second-largest record group may be bankrupted by the impending lawsuits.

· This week, Lionel Richie attributed his daughter Nicole’s recent weight loss to the stress of her expanding career. No, really. So I suppose I’m thankful that I don’t have Nicole Richie’s expanding career.

· The rumors have taken flight around Simon Cowell’s return for the fifth season of American Idol, and if Cowell sits next season out, I’ll be grateful. I don’t have anything against Simon; in fact, I appreciate his pessimism. But I suspect that a season without Simon would be Idol’s last, and that’s something to be thankful for.

· Then there are the little things. I’m thankful, though I’m not sure why, that Martha Stewart is out of prison in time for Thanksgiving. I’m grateful that Jessica Simpson temporarily put down the microphone long enough to play Daisy Duke. I haven’t had a chance to see the new Dukes of Hazzard movie, and for that I’m also thankful.

· On a more serious note, I think we should give thanks to our troops, fighting for our freedom in the Middle East. They’re putting their lives on the line, spending the season away from their families so that we can be with ours, and for that I’m appreciative.

I am also thankful for my family, my friends, and a job that I love. I’m thankful for the opportunities that I have been given, and for my health. This Thanksgiving weekend, set aside a moment or two to genuinely give thanks for the things that you may take for granted the year through. We really do have a lot the be thankful for.

-From Pulse
November 24, 2005

Read more...

A Time for Thanks (2004)

  Thanksgiving is a good-spirited holiday.  It’s more than a day off in the middle of the week when embittered carb-counters sit around and scowl at stuffing, gravy, yams, and that weird green marshmallow pudding—everything but the bird, in fact.  It’s a day of reverence. It’s a day to reflect on those things for which we are thankful. 

  Different families celebrate Turkey Day in different ways.  However, lately it has become more about the football, the parades, the beer and tryptophan-induced naps.  We need to get back to the true spirit of Thanksgiving, and take a little time to show our gratitude for those little things that make us smile the rest of the year.

  This Thanksgiving, I have come up with a short list of things for which I am thankful.  I encourage you to do the same.

  •  I am thankful that Janet Jackson was asked to perform at the halftime show at this year’s Super Bowl—and that Aretha Franklin wasn’t.  As far as “wardrobe malfunctions” go, it could have been worse.

  •  I am thankful for the invitations I have declined.  Invitations to the Neverland Ranch, the Vibe awards, last Friday’s Pacers game, and Nicky Hilton’s wedding. 

  •  If I could, I would personally thank the Hilton and Simpson sisters for not saying anything during the Presidential campaigns.  Ashlee Simpson, however, may have taken it a little far.  (Unfortunately, it would’ve been unfair to ask the same of the Bush twins.)

  •  I am grateful that I don’t live under the insane laws of Singapore, where—until this past May—it was illegal to chew gum. 

  •  I’m thankful that I don’t live in New York City, where citizens must rely on David Lee Roth to save their lives.  (Roth has given up the spotlight and the stage for the life of an EMT.)  Although, given the choice, I’d rather my life be in the hands of David Lee Roth than Sammy Hagar.  For a lot of reasons.

  •  I’m glad I’m not Bill Gates. (Did I just say that?)  Yes, when I’m cleaning out my e-mail inbox every morning, I’m happy that I’m not Bill.  Last week, a representative for Microsoft said that Gates receives more than four million junk e-mails every day.  Maybe that’s why his mortgage rates are so low.

  •  I’m thankful for the cast of “The Surreal Life.”  And Tara Reid, P. Diddy, Michael Moore, Anna Nicole Smith, R. Kelly and Jay-Z, Ruben Studdard, Madonna and Michael Jackson.  Oh, and the Coors Light twins.  Without them, things would get a little dull.

  We have a lot to be thankful for. 

  This Thanksgiving, let’s come to terms with our own mundane lives.  Seize the remote, do a little channel surfing, and count your blessings.  You have it better than they do.  Trust me. 

 -From Pulse
  November 25, 2004

Read more...