So I must begin by saying that I have never studied Latin and my knowledge of the law is limited to what I have garnered from the many years I have watched "Law and Order". Having said that, I felt compelled today to write about a Latin and legal phrase that we have heard quite a bit about in recent weeks - "QUID PRO QUO". The legal dictionary defines the term as "the exchange of valuable consideration", in other words - the exchange of something of value in which both parties agree to adhere to the contract agreed upon between them. Explained in even plainer language - THIS FOR THAT or SOMETHING FOR SOMETHING.   You may notice that nowhere in the definition is the word BRIBE mentioned. That is because while all bribes involve a Quid Pro Quo, not all Quid Pro Quo are bribes. A bribe is asking someone to do something that they shouldn't have or wouldn't have done on their own. Like the many times I promised my kids dessert if they ate all of the vegetables on their dinner plate. There was no way they were going to eat every brussels sprout without an added incentive! Read More

Right about now, you might be saying to yourself, “Hey! She has it all wrong! The correct expression is “the devil is in the details”! You are right. Decades ago that phrase was used to describe situations in which a mysterious and difficult element was hiding amidst the details - something that might have seemed simple at first look, but would actually take more time and effort to complete than expected. Therefore, “the devil” had to be there among the details. While the idiom may have caught on and became part of our vernacular, I refuse to embrace the concept! You see, I am an extremely detail oriented person and I do not think it is the work of the devil at hand when you care enough to focus on getting the details right. I believe that when something matters to you, then you will want to focus on the details and you will put your love and passion into everything that you do. Whether it is a personal project or one for work, attention needs to be given to the details to ensure completion and success. My son recently showed me a very interesting interview of the newly appointed head football coach at Lipscomb Academy, a private high school in Nashville, Tennessee. He was extremely impressed by the coach’s philosophy and principles and wanted to share the video with me. I loved the interview so much, I watched it three times. Coach Trent Dilfer, who was hired this past January, shows us that there is life after the NFL. He is a former quarterback who won the Super Bowl in 2001 with the Baltimore Ravens. Lipscomb Academy had made the decision to build a premier football program after winning only two games the past two seasons (their record was 35-32 during the past six years). They chose Dilfer, who was a top-ten first round draft pick, played 14 seasons in the NFL with Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Seattle, Cleveland and San Francisco, and finished his career with 20,518 passings yards. Dilfer was the perfect pick, because after retiring from the NFL, he helped coach high school quarterbacks in addition to working as a commentator for ESPN. He says that the decision to take the job at Lipscomb was an easy one because he had been searching for something that would tap into his PASSION and give him PURPOSE in his life. Coach Dilfer’s passion and purpose for his new job are not the only things that make him perfect for the job at Lipscomb...it is also his “love is in the details” approach to life. Read More

You are undoubtedly quite familiar with the phrase “there’s no ‘I’ in TEAM”. Over the years, I have heard everyone from coaches to bosses to sportscasters using the term. I am fairly certain that I have uttered the words over the years when trying to get my family to pitch in on projects. Recently, my eldest son began college at a university that has a rich history and is steeped in tradition. At the University of Notre Dame, which is 177 years old, there are notable traditions for Game Days, Football Fridays, music, Masses, cheers, bagpipes, trumpets, candlelight dinners, the Leprechaun, an annual t-shirt (known as “the shirt”) and more. While you may not personally know a Notre Dame alumnus, you are probably familiar with one of the school’s most famous graduates - Daniel Eugene "Rudy" Ruettiger who played college football at the University of Notre Dame. His early life and career at Notre Dame were the inspiration for the 1993 film Rudy staring Sean Astin in the title role. Rudy is well known, not so much for his football highlights, but rather for the backstory of his path to the school. You see, Rudy grew up in a very large lower class family of steel mill workers who were all deeply devoted to the football team of their favorite university, Notre Dame. His whole life, Rudy dreamed of nothing but playing football at the University of Notre Dame. He had many obstacles, however, including not having the money for tuition, the grades to qualify for a scholarship, or the athletic skills to earn him a spot on the team. He got a job at the local steel mill instead, but he never let his dream die and he eventually got admitted to the university in his junior year. Of course, he tried out for the football team, but the only position he could get was as a live tackle-dummy. Read More

If you are as happy as I am that this week marked the return of a certain female morning television anchor (after her five-month maternity leave), then we have something in common! Hoda Kotb returned to the Today Show on Tuesday morning, and judging by the large crowds that were there to welcome her back, I am not her one and only fan. Hoda’s maternity leave (and return to work) made headline news, not only because she is a popular public figure, but also because of her age…she turned 55 last month. I have always said that older Moms make the best ones because of their inherent patience, wisdom and grace. Hoda would be the first to tell you that she is a better mother today than she would have been decades ago when she was extremely career-focused. She has openly talked about how different her life is today than it was just three years ago and that you never know what lies ahead of you.   The Today Show is known for its “Syria to Syrup” approach to the news, meaning in just a few hours every morning, the topics range the gamut from the violence, protests and civil war in Syria to the latest and greatest maple syrup recipe. I tune in every morning to stay informed on the news.Who would have ever thought that the most I learned from that show would come from the five month period that Hoda was not on the air? In the few interviews that she granted while she was on her leave, Hoda described her simple and delightful daily routine with her children. Hoda said that every morning, she did the same thing with her two daughters (a 2 year old toddler and a brand new baby) which included going to the same shop to get their morning muffins and then spending time blowing their "morning bubbles". For the first time ever in her life, she unplugged from the news, social media, and her habit of constantly checking her phone for updates and messages. She said it helped her to get into the “present moment” and to be fully participatory in her daughters’ daily lives. Her two year old daughter Haley taught her the best lesson of all…it’s the simple things that matter. This week she described the delight that her daughter had in discovering that her shirt had pockets (“Look Mom, I have pockets!!!”) and how tickled she was by a trip up an escalator ("Wow! Mom, isn't this amazing?!"). Now that she is back to work, Hoda has made herself a promise to live each day the same way she did when she was off from work…relishing every moment, finding joy in the simple things and turning her devices off for long periods of time.    Read More

I was recently part of a rather large move-in day with 2,000 of my closest friends! Just kidding...it was College Freshmen Move-In Day for my son. It is impossible to watch people hoisting sofas over the heads and carrying couches up four flights of stairs without thinking of a very popular and funny episode of the sitcom “Friends”. Some people purposely volunteer to help their friends move just so they can repeatedly (and loudly) shout out the word “PIVOT!” For those of you who remember the episode, I know you are already chuckling to yourself. If the “Friends” phenomenon passed you over, then allow me to offer a brief synopsis of this fan-favorite scene: Ross enlists the help of two of the ‘friends’ - Chandler and Rachel - to help him move a couch into his apartment. He even provides them with a sketch/drawing in which he has mapped out his moving strategy. What he apparently forget to calculate was exactly how the couch would be able to wrap around each flight of stairs. With Chandler handling the middle of the couch and Ross and Rachel lifting either end, the trio of best friends attempts to make the impossible happen. When they are unable to navigate the turns given the girth of the couch, Ross resorts to shouting out his solution to them and his only bit of advice is: “PIVOT! PIVOT!...”which he repeats very loudly six times. Chandler responds with an equal number of: “SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!” When they are forced to give up their plan, Ross says “I cannot believe that didn’t work” to which Rachel says “Yeah, and you had that sketch too.” This leaves Chandler saying “What did you mean when you said PIVOT?” The word PIVOT has several meanings, one of which is “the person or thing on which something depends; the central or crucial factor”, also “a shaft or pin on which something turns”. We are approaching the changing of the seasons which prompted me to blog last week about making a fresh start during this most wonderful time of the year. I suggested that you take this time to evaluate where you are and come up with a plan for where you would like to be. This may require you to PIVOT in order to accomplish this. Read More

I live in the Northeast and "Back to School" season is fast approaching (it has happened already in the southern states). I love this time of year! For me, it feels like Christmas, New Year’s and Valentine’s Day all rolled into one. It is not because I relish a quiet, empty house while my sons are at school. I am actually quite sad about that part. However, I do enjoy everything that a busy school year has to offer...including the very early morning wake-ups, making big healthy breakfasts and brown bag lunches, and a bulletin board filled with notices, announcements and new syllabuses. What I really look forward to, however, is taking advantage of the back-to-school supplies sales opportunities and abundant inventory. It brings me joy to see notebooks and folders for less than a quarter and featured in every color of the rainbow. I love post-it-notes and sharpies and highlighters and have a use for all of them. It’s a contest each year to see who stocks up on more of the deals....my sons or their stationery supplies-loving Mom!   When was the last time you treated yourself to a beautiful new planner, a Wall Calendar with extra big boxes, or some fancy pens? If it’s been awhile, then you deserve an afternoon of "retail therapy" at a place like Staples or Office Max and now is the perfect time to do it!   Read More

When it comes to condiments, people generally fall into one of two camps...mustard or ketchup. Personally, I would give up both if I could just put Chick-Fil-A’s sauce on everything. If you have ever tried it, you will understand my obsession. However, given the choice between ketchup or mustard, I will choose mustard each and every time. The zesty condiment comes in a variety of flavors and selections and has the added bonus of having the herb with medicinal qualities (turmeric) as one of its ingredients. Did you know that there is even a Mustard of the Month Club? Recently I was faced with a situation involving mustard, but it wasn’t as simple as choosing dijon or classic yellow. For the first time in my life, I heard the phrase: MUSTARD ALGAE. I had never put those two words together before! What appeared to my naked eye to be dirt on the bottom of my backyard pool turned out to be something more difficult to clean up...yes, you guessed correctly...it was mustard algae. I won’t bore you with the details of how one goes about eradicating this yellowish-brownish pesky nuisance. I will just tell you that if I had known that one day I would own a pool, I would have paid much closer attention in my high school chemistry class! Pool owners know that it is all about getting the chemistry “just right”. The water has to be the perfect balance of PH, hardness, calcium, chlorine and phosphates. When one thing is off, everything else is impacted. Read More

A movie was recently released that I have been anxiously waiting to see! It is called “The Art of Racing in the Rain” and it is based upon Garth Stein’s novel of the same name. If you did not read the book and are looking for an inspirational read about the meaning of life, run!-don’t walk to your local library or bookstore! I absolutely loved this book and dog-eared so many pages in order to revisit the beautifully written passages at a later time. It is a sweet story about a dog named Enzo (narrated in the movie by none other than Kevin Costner) and his owner Denny who is played in the movie by Milo Ventimiglia of “This Is Us” fame. The book intertwines the life of Enzo the dog with Denny’s life as a husband, father and Formula One race-car driver. You never know when a book will hand you a powerful and helpful life lesson. This book did that for me. Read More