thomas craig blog: Blood Runs in the Sand as the World Sleeps
- 11/05/14 02:33 AM
Blood Runs in the Sand as the World Sleeps Each day brings news of another atrocity at the hands of ISIL…or ISIS…or whatever acronym you wish to call them. Just the other day, it was reported that these murderers killed 15 Syrian Kurds on the Turkish border-7 of these victims were children. According to our own State Department, 1,700 Iraqi military cadets were recently executed in Tikrit. The United Nations estimates that over 5,000 Yazidis have been shot in cold blood, and over 7,000 women have been forced into mass sexual slavery. The world has watched in horror as this growing … (2 comments)
thomas craig blog: There Is No God
- 11/04/14 03:40 AM
There Is No God At least, that is what Stephen Hawking recently declared. The renowned astrophysicist gave an interview a few months ago in which he stated that there is no God. He continued that miracles stemming from religious beliefs are “not compatible with science.” "In my opinion, there is no aspect of reality beyond the reach of the human mind." Hawking added. He went on to state that he has a firm belief that the universe was the work of scientifically explainable phenomena, and not that of a supreme being. What is interesting is that, while Mr. Hawking seems to … (10 comments)
thomas craig blog: So…What Do We Do With the Nurse Who Won’t Stay in Quarantine?
- 10/31/14 12:37 AM
So…What Do We Do With the Nurse Who Won’t Stay in Quarantine? By now, all of you have heard about nurse Kaci Hickox’s refusal to abide by a state imposed 21-day quarantine upon her return from West Africa after helping to fight Ebola. Hickox was quoted as saying, “I am not going to sit around and be bullied by politicians and forced to stay in my home when I am not a risk to the American public.” She further added, “I will go to court to fight for my freedom.” I must confess, I have mixed feelings on this one. I … (7 comments)
thomas craig blog: Are You Planning on Shopping on Thanksgiving Day?
- 10/20/14 10:39 PM
Are You Planning on Shopping on Thanksgiving Day? We are working our way towards Thanksgiving and Christmas, and you know what that means? The American pastime of SHOPPING will be in full force. I am starting to hear various retailers advertise that they will open on Thanksgiving. As a society, we are no longer content to kick off the holiday shopping season on Black Friday (day AFTER Thanksgiving)…no it has to be on Thanksgiving. I can assure you that neither my wife, nor I will be out shopping on Thanksgiving Day, or Black Friday. There is absolutely nothing I need or … (8 comments)
thomas craig blog: Middleclass Fear
- 10/17/14 06:03 AM
Middleclass Fear I don’t know about you, but I am nervous about the future. Most of all, I am nervous for my children and my grandchildren. I never thought about it too much twenty years ago. Back in the prime of my life, I always thought tomorrow would automatically be better than today. Now that it actually is tomorrow…I am not feeling that confidence I once had. I bet a great many of you feel the same way I do. This week, the stock market has been on a roller coaster ride. Those of us who placed the fruits of our … (5 comments)
thomas craig blog: We Should Call Adoption Something Else
- 10/07/14 04:26 AM
We Should Call Adoption Something Else I was on a listing appointment last night and the topic of adoption came up. The couple whose home I was listing picked me as their agent because of my online profile. In my profile, I mention that that my wife and I are adoptive parents, and that I have served as a board member of an adoptive agency in Brazil for quite a few years. These kind, and wonderful people selected me because they too, are adoptive parents. There have been quite a few agent friends, whose opinion I value, who have told me … (10 comments)
thomas craig blog: What Do You Say? What Do You Do?
- 10/02/14 11:32 PM
What Do You Say? What Do You Do? God gave me a gentle reminder last night that being a real estate agent isn’t all about buying and selling homes…the number bedrooms or bathrooms a place has…the list price versus selling price. We are all in and out of so many houses throughout our careers that we sometimes forget that people live in these houses. These are people’s homes. These things we sell are vessels which contain people’s sadness and joy. It is where children were raised. It is where people mourned the loss of a loved one. It is where tears … (54 comments)
thomas craig blog: God Isn't Finished With Me Yet
- 09/26/14 05:08 AM
God Isn’t Finished With Me Yet How many times throughout any given day do we get frustrated with a loved one, a co-worker…even a passerby on the street? They say, or do something which is not up to our standards; and we get upset with them. Sometimes that frustration becomes so severe; we may even want to write that person off…muttering to ourselves, “They just don’t get it, worse yet…THEY ARE NEVER GOING TO GET IT!!!!” Comically, that judgment we impose on others-we somehow never seem to reflect on the fact that the very people we are judging may be thinking … (2 comments)
April Love It is an absolutely gorgeous day here in Northeastern Ohio. The sky is a radiant blue with just a few puffy clouds; which is a rare occurrence since being here on the southern shore of Lake Erie tends to produce an abundance of cloud cover. The temperature is a wonderful 66 degrees, and the trees are just starting to turn their beautiful autumn colors. Having worked 10-12 hours days for about 15 days in a row now, I grabbed a sub at one of my favorite lunchtime pizza joints, and headed for the park. We are blessed … (2 comments)
thomas craig blog: Teaching Our Children Empathy
- 09/11/14 01:36 AM
Teaching Our Children Empathy The following is certainly a big story here in Northeastern Ohio. Based on various celebrities becoming involved in the story after the fact, I am pretty sure the country is very much aware of this very troubling story as well. Here is a recap of what happened… It seems 4-5 young men thought they would play a “trick” on an autistic neighbor boy. They told the victim that he was going to participate in popular ALS icewater bucket challenge sweeping the country. They had him strip down to his underwear in his driveway and prepare to be … (4 comments)
thomas craig blog: Confronting Evil
- 09/09/14 11:50 PM
Confronting Evil Dare I write the word “evil”? The word “evil” is so politically incorrect these days. George W. Bush used the term “evil-doers” in the days following September 11th. At first the media was OK with the term in describing the terrorists who leveled the World Trade Center…taking with them 3,000 innocent lives. After all, in those dark days we were briefly joined with one another to simply be Americans. We drove around with flags attached to our cars, and hanging from our front porches. It didn’t take too long for us to divide ourselves back into our political … (7 comments)
thomas craig blog: We Have Some Hard Choices Facing Us
- 09/03/14 12:11 AM
We Have Some Hard Choices Facing Us I wish the world wasn’t so troubled. I wish everyone could find a way to peacefully coexist. Sadly, as we watch one horrible thing on television after another, we know that it takes both sides involved in a conflict working to craft a peaceful solution. Both sides have to want peace equally. What is particularly horrifying is watching the death and destruction heaped upon the war-weary average citizen in Iraq. President Obama saying the US was leaving didn’t make the killing stop. In fact, our leaving has only made it worse. The vacuum we … (4 comments)
thomas craig blog: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World
- 08/18/14 01:54 AM
The world seems like such a crazy place right now. I saw a Yahoo headline yesterday morning saying the group of terrorists raping and pillaging Syria and Iraq had just been found to have murdered another 700 people...beheading many of them. This is on top of crucifixions, stonings, whippings, and who knows what else against innocent people caught in their path. What I find interesting is that it has been 45 years since man has walked upon the moon…and in 2014, Jesus’ admonishment about he who is without sin cast the first stone has to be taken literally, and not figuratively. It is so sad … (2 comments)
thomas craig blog: Can You Handle One More Story on Robin Williams?
- 08/14/14 01:57 AM
Can You Handle One More Story on Robin Williams? Perhaps you are like me, and have just about reached your limit about the amount of information you think you need to absorb regarding the death of Robin Williams. If ever there was a lesson to be learned about the high cost of celebrity…this is it. The media, the vultures they are, is printing everything they can get their hands on to satisfy the unquenchable blood thirst they think we must have. So, we have been bombarded with every minuscule detail of Mr. William’s life. Sadly, we even know the final, tragic … (8 comments)
thomas craig blog: We Can Put a Man on the Moon...
- 07/18/14 02:32 AM
I heard on the radio this morning that Sunday will be the 45th anniversary since the United States landed on the moon. I remember watching it on television with my then girlfriend, and now wife of 44 years. We sat in her living room with her mother and father and watched the grainy images of Neil Armstrong climb down a ladder and take mankind’s first steps on something other than Earth. I remember feeling so proud of my country. For those of you too young to remember, we were in a race to the moon with the Russians…and we won! The … (0 comments)
thomas craig blog: Our Country Needs a Hero
- 07/15/14 01:45 AM
Our Country Needs a Hero Dr. Phil, when trying to arbitrate between two angry parties on his television show; always says the above. Every problem needs a hero. This usually comes about half way through a program, as both sides drone on continuously about how the other side is wrong, doesn’t understand, won’t listen to reason…and the list of complaints against the other side goes on and on. A frustrated Dr. Phil, usually stops the conversation and says, “Are you interested in solving your problems, or do you just want to prove that you are right?” Then comes his famous tag … (2 comments)
thomas craig blog: And I Love Her So
- 06/20/14 12:58 AM
It is my wife, Stephanie’s, birthday today! As my friends and family know, I enjoy writing and have done a great deal of it the last few years. Of all the things I have written, I think what I wrote to my wife on our 40th anniversary was my best work. I guess that is only fitting; since she is, without a doubt, the best thing that has ever happened to me. Without her I am nothing. So in honor of her birthday, I would like to share my best work about the best thing in my life. Steph, … (4 comments)
thomas craig blog: My Dad, Now Here Was a Man
- 06/13/14 05:57 AM
In honor of my father, I would like to repost this blog from last year. You are gone...but not forgotten! My Dad, Now Here Was a Man As many of you older folk will recall, I borrowed the title of this post from a song sung by Paul Peterson back in 1962, on the Donna Reed Show. It was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Even to this day, I get a little teary-eyed when I hear it. The first couple of verses are below… He isn't much in the eyes of the world He'll never make history No, he … (6 comments)
thomas craig blog: Has Reason Gone Right Out the Window?
- 05/30/14 04:29 AM
I am a prisoner of current events. I find myself constantly reading about things happening all around us. On one hand I find it fascinating…but there is a part of me that knows that “knowing” what is going on around me is not good for my mental health. I blame my high school teacher, Mr. Bailey. It’s all his fault. I took two years of an elective class called Current Events. There was no textbook…you just had to read sections of the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times Monday through Friday; plus the weekly editions of Time Magazine and … (7 comments)
thomas craig blog: We Are All on a Reality Show
- 05/22/14 02:04 AM
Love them , or hate them…reality television shows are everywhere. You can’t help but turn the TV on to some show about cooking, or real estate, or remodeling, or decorating, or baking a cake, or a half a dozen shows about the housewives of this place or that. The vast majority of us watch, or refuse to watch them; but we never think that we would ever be a participant in one. I would like to suggest this to you; perhaps we are all a part of a reality show each and every day. Remember the show Candid Camera, produced by … (9 comments)
Blood Runs in the Sand as the World Sleeps
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