RJA Blog

This time of year always reminds me of being spellbound by the stories read to us during the holidays.Not a creature stirred until the end. Even now, kids enjoy those classics because they take us out of our world and into another. So why not tap into another vast resource of memorable stories?  read more >

Not everyone will spend this Thanksgiving with family huddled around a fat roasted turkey. There are just some years when you end up alone on the fourth Thursday of November.  read more >

Back during my youthful struggle to stay afloat, decisions were so easy. Should I buy the blue jacket or the pink one? Should I go to this movie or that one? The answer was always ‘none of the above.’ It was very simple. My boundaries were clearly defined by reality. I never had to waste time shopping or ordering food because new cars, clothes and restaurants were not in the budget. So, I stopped asking myself to choose.  read more >

Other than one weird kid on our block, my friends and I grew up hating spiders. We screamed when they crawled on the furniture or hung from the basement ceiling until someone came running to kill the little beasts for us. Then when we got older, we did our own spider disposal. Arachnophobia marched on. (Thanks, Jeff Daniels.)
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Yesterday I got into it with someone about genius. Should brilliant innovators be excused from civil communication with coworkers and family because of their intelligence? Are rude geniuses entitled to their rudeness? He says yes.   read more >

First, I feel for everyone who has suffered at the hands of Mother Nature like the storms that blew through the northern Midwest this week.Hopefully your power, pumps, and peace of mind have been restored to normal.  read more >

Perspective comes calling when it’s least expected. No matter how we reach it, whether it’s from a break in routine or an unexpected mile in someone else’s shoes, the trip is usually a step in the right direction.  read more >

Oscar Wilde described one of his characters as a man ‘who knows the price of everything, and the value of nothing.’ Even at the turn of the 20^th century it was clear that ‘value’ was becoming synonymous with lower cost. By mid-century we made sure we got the most bang for our buck. A good value was getting a great deal on what you wanted. Nothing against smart shopping, but we all know the best price isn’t always the best value.   read more >

I‘ve had enough stress for a while. Life is relentlessly demand-driven. Where did the joy go? I’ve even lost the happiness I get from singing with the radio on the way to work, because I use my commute to mentally process my nagging to-dos instead. Yesterday I nearly hit a turkey that was playing in the road.  read more >

There are tons of comparisons between money management and dieting. Yes, I get it. I’ve tried enough diets to know that they look a lot easier than they are. And I also know how it feels to try to keep bulges off my body while trying to add bulges to my net worth. It’s hard to say no to things and people I love.  read more >