The View from a Drawbridge

Tag: impact

  • The Source of Ripples

    Ripples emanate from the stones we cast into the pond of life.

  • Clicking Your Way to a Better World

    I must admit that I spend entirely too much time on the internet. You do, too. Don’t believe me? What are you doing right now? Tiptoeing through the tulips? I think not. (Not that I’m not happy to see you. I’d miss you if you weren’t here. I really would.) Sometimes I think I really…

  • On Having an Impact

    It’s validation. It’s uplifting.

  • Oh, Happy Day!

    One of my favorite sayings is that a fish doesn’t realize it’s in water until it jumps out of it. I can totally relate to that. I just jumped out of something myself. Epic revelation! I just got some really, really, really good news, which unfortunately I can’t share with you, dear readers. Just think…

  • Vicarious Trauma

    You know shit is getting real when your doctor actually prescribes that you don’t watch the news for a week. Between North Korea and Puerto Rico, my blood pressure is higher than it ought to be. So let the news blackout begin. For those of you in the helping professions in particular, vicarious trauma is…

  • Why College is Still Worth It

    I have three degrees, and not one of them has helped me get a job. I’ve never worked in any of my fields of study. Never. If that’s your only yardstick for measuring a college education, then yeah, for me it was a monumental waste of time and money. But I still maintain that college…

  • Okay, Now I Can Die Happy.

    I just had the most gratifying conversation with an old friend from college. He told me I had a huge impact on him, and that I made him socially conscious. Wow. Just… wow. I had no idea. And I’m all the more honored because I know him to be a very socially conscious person. I…

  • You Matter

    I was talking to a dear friend recently, and at the age of 67, he feels he’s pretty much done everything he planned to do in his life, and now he’s just “hanging around, waiting.” This brought tears to my eyes. To think of this wonderful man having absolutely no clue, no clue how much…

  • The Importance of Including Stakeholders

    I had the opportunity to attend a meeting with hundreds of other City of Seattle employees in which one of the many goals was coming up with ways to get the community involved in the decision-making process for city projects. Anyone who has been to Seattle knows that it’s a beehive of activity. Something is…

  • Time Capsules

    Just before I moved to Seattle, I drove over to the house I used to own in Florida to say goodbye to it. I almost drove past it without recognizing it, such were the number of improvements the current owner had made. That was kind of disconcerting. One of the things that he changed was…