Finneran: In Praise of Many Things
Tom Finneran, GoLocalProv MINDSETTER™
Finneran: In Praise of Many Things
The back-to-back timing of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays puts many folks into a state of extended good cheer. May it long continue.
Americans have much to cheer about. The plain fact of being an American citizen means that you’ve already won one of life’s most important lotteries. First, and most importantly, you are free. Second, you live in a land of economic opportunity. Don’t take it for granted.........there are about seven billion people who live elsewhere who would trade places with you in a nanosecond. We now lead lives that are superior to the lives lead by the royal families of old. They had rotten food, rotten health care, rotten transportation, and largely rotten societies. Our troubles are minuscule in comparison.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTI’m grateful for PBS. I can edit and discount the politics. It’s something that all Americans must do these days, no matter what their source of political news might be. Rather I cheer and appreciate PBS for Masterpiece Theater, for Nature, for fabulous cooking shows, for travel programs, for musical performances, for American Experience, for This Old House, for American Masters, and for the always amazing Nova. Call it impressive, entertaining, and instructive. It is television done well.
I’m grateful for good schools and good teachers. Is there any better feeling for a parent or grandparent to experience than that of sending a child to a good school, a school filled by good teachers? Certainly we’d all like to see more good and great schools and more good and great teachers. And the nation should not rest until such schools and such teachers are available to all families............
The abundance of good teachers and schools in Massachusetts is a significant economic advantage to every resident. It is also a particular though often blissfully unappreciated blessing to the students themselves.
I’m often amazed at the criticism of teachers---that they work a limited number of hours, that they have summers off, that they have frequent vacations, that they are overpaid, etc. etc. Give me a break.
Try stepping into a classroom of twenty or more students of varying backgrounds and perhaps of limited English language skills. In addition, you would quickly encounter wide differences in the natural abilities of the students. How do you creatively engage the bright students who learn quickly and easily while spending crucial time with the students who have to grind away at basic concepts? One group can become very weary and frustrated while the other group can become quite bored. Good teachers are like symphonic conductors, engaging the entire classroom in a daily performance. And such performance takes preparation, creativity, and lots of time spent on evenings and weekends.
I’m grateful for the brave 1% who wear the nation’s uniform and who serve and protect us from enemies abroad. Their work is crucial, criticized, demeaned, and misunderstood. They belong in our thoughts and in our prayers. As do their “cousins”, the police and firefighters and EMTs who serve and protect us here at home.
I’m grateful for the blessings of modern health care. Whether it’s for the care of a sick child or a failing elder, consider the stark reality of existence in many other countries. Life in such places is a grim lottery, a game played without doctors, nurses, hospitals, and medicines. The lucky and the strong can survive, if only for a while, but the weak and the sick suffer and die in sad and short order.
The churches, the philanthropists, the companies, and the communities involved in founding hospitals and funding research are saints in our midst. So too are the doctors and nurses whose broad knowledge and special skills soothe and heal. The research scientists involved in painstaking and elusive discovery work on the frontiers of medicine. Their breakthroughs are rare but invaluable gifts of life. May their work, God’s work, prosper.
I’m grateful for all of it.
Thank you. Thank you God. Thank you America.
25 Ways to Get Into the Holiday Spirit - 2016
Buy an Ugly Christmas Sweater
You are bound to be invited to an ugly Christmas sweater party at some point during the holiday season.
So be prepared for it and go buy yourself the ugliest Christmas sweater that you can find and wear it to the party.
Maybe you will win.
Dress Up Your Pet, Send it Around
Reindeer ears and a Santa outfits are always good, but this holiday season, step your game up.
Become a Facebook legend.
A Festivus for the Rest of Us
You must watch the Festivus episode of Seinfeld, it is one of the most famous episodes of the entire series.
Laughter is the best medicine, after all.
When you finish the episode, be sure to celebrate Festivus on December 23.
Happy Festivus!
PHOTO: Matt Keef/Flickr
Get Those Decorations up
Get those decorations up early this year and go all out, go to the extreme with the decorating.
Why not be the talk of the neighborhood?
Add to the holiday cheer.
PHOTO: Romeo Banias/Flickr
Sing Christmas Carols in Neighborhood
Get a group of friends or family members and go caroling in the neighborhood.
Or if that is not your thing, have a sing-along at someone's house, like a karaoke party.
Or just sing along to the radio in the car. Fine.
PHOTO: cindybrown33/Flickr
See a Christmas Carol at Trinity Rep
A Christmas Carol is arguably the most famous Christmas play there is and Trinity Rep puts on a great performance year in and year out.
Get into the holiday spirit by seeing this classic play.
Don't make us send the three ghosts to your home.
Try a New Holiday Cocktail
Branch out your holiday cocktails -- eggnog is fine, but have you tried a Blue Xmas Margarita or a Chocolate Martini?
For some cool new holiday cocktail ideas, click here.
PHOTO: Corner Perk Cafe/Flickr
Go to a Holiday Service
Don't wait until Christmas, get in the spirit of things ahead of the holidays.
The sights, the sounds, the music -- if it doesn't make you think about the true meaning of things, try again the following weekend!
PHOTO: Brook Ward/Flickr
You Must Watch Home Alone
While it may not be your traditional Christmas movie, it certainly brings home the holiday spirit.
Home Alone is an all-time classic that simply must be watched.
Enjoy!
Watch Holiday Classics on TV
Tis the time of year when some of the best movies are back on television, holiday movies.
Be sure to check our local listings for movies such as Miracle on 34th Street, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Rudolph and other timeless classics.
Then grab a big bowl of popcorn or any other favorite snack and enjoy.
Dress up as Santa
Grab an authentic looking Santa costume and dress up as jolly old Saint Nick for an entire day.
During that day, visit friends and relatives with young kids or even a local mall to find out what is on everyone's Christmas list.
PHOTO: Kelly Sue DeConnick/Flickr
Take a Day Off to Relieve the Stress
Don't wait until the weekend when the lines -- and traffic -- are long and tiring.
Take a personal day during the week if you can. Get some shopping and wrapping done.
And then relax.
PHOTo: Matilda Diamant/Flickr
Design Your Own Gifts, Don't Buy Them
Don't go to the crowded stores and buy gifts that are available any time of year, design your own gifts for friends and family members.
Maybe a cool photo collage or tickets for a service among other things.
Think of the stress you will save.
Find New Cookie Recipes
Cookies are big part of the holidays, whether you are leaving them for Santa or eating them yourself.
While it's perfectly fine to use your favorite cookie recipes, be sure to try some new recipes as well.
Need some ideas? Check out the links below
100 Best Holiday Cookie Recipes
PHOTO: Troy Tolley/Flickr
Go Ice Skating at the Newport Skating Center
The Newport Skating Center is open for another season and what's better than skating and seeing Newport at the time?
If that is not enough, go old fashioned and skate on a frozen pond.
Host a Gift Wrapping Competition With Friends
One of the most painful parts of the holidays is wrapping gifts, especially if there are a lot of them.
Invite some friends over and have a gift wrapping competition. Be sure to make some cookies and beverages while you are at it.
PHOTO: intellichick/Flickr
Visit Borrelli's Christmas Tree Farm
The Christmas season can't begin without a Christmas tree and Borrelli's has just the trees for you.
Start your Christmas tree shopping now and get into the holiday spirit.
PHOTO: Flickr
Call Long Lost Friends or Family Members
On the phone -- not a Facebook post, not a text. Let them hear your voice. Find a way to reconnect on a personal basis.
Find out how they're doing. Make plans to catch up in person. But whatever you do, remember, texting doesn't count!
Give Money to Salvation Army
Throw some money in the Salvation Army kettle. Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings. The person who stands outside ringing the bell is often there for long hours.
Even if it's just some change, smile at them and wish them a happy holiday.
PHOTO: j_lai/ Flickr
Shop Local at AC Jewelers
Stay away from those big national chains and go to the local stores like AC Jewelers and get what you need for the holidays.
Shop local this holiday season.
Secretly Pay it Forward
Standing in line at a local coffee shop waiting to order can be a long wait at times.
Make the day of the person behind you by paying for their coffee. It will put a huge smile on their face, and on your face as well.
But shhh don't tell them.
Give to Those in Need
From giving trees at churches to Big Brothers Big Sisters as well as many other great organizations, there are plenty of families in the community that could use your help to put a present or two under the tree for a child who might not otherwise get one.
See 50 Ways to Give This Holiday Season Here
Spend Time With an Elderly Relative
The actual day when the family is around can be hectic. Before then, go have a cup of tea, bring some cookies, and find out what holiday traditions they enjoyed.
Give the gift of time.
New Holiday Recipes
Try new holiday recipes for the meal.Traditional turkey, ham, stuffing, and sides are good, but why not try something fun?
Click here for some cool holiday recipes.
Or for an even more extensive list of ideas, click here.
Start Thinking About Your New Year's Resolutions
Don't wait until December 31 to promise you'll drink less and work out more.
Take stock of your life, figure out what's important to you, and what you want to accomplish in the New Year and start jotting stuff down.
