stephenschrum

A What?

Describe a man who has positively impacted your life. Every morning, as I get my first cup of coffee, I take a look at the daily prompt so my mind can ponder it while I prepare to do the actual writing. Often my mind responds like a Fourth of July sparkler, with many useful ideasContinue reading “A What?”

This Year…And the Next…

Is your life today what you pictured a year ago? A year ago I thought I would be starting a new theatre company (I did, on May 1), and then there would be this magical sweep into projects and performances. It didn’t happen. Taking the time to build the structure has been useful, and now,Continue reading “This Year…And the Next…”

Trust Your Instincts!

What skills or lessons have you learned recently? Didn’t I just write about instincts recently? Did I learn to trust them? I guess I did this week! A person says, “I’ve met someone,” and shows you her picture—and alarm bells go off. You see a flashing red light. Someone yells, “Captain to the bridge!” inContinue reading “Trust Your Instincts!”

The Scammer’s Handbook

Wouldn’t you like to get a glimpse of The Scammer’s Handbook? Well, now you can! All you need to do is look at any scam/spam email and you see a part of what they must circulate (I imagine a 3” 3-ring binder) in order to try to entrap their victims. The amazing part for meContinue reading “The Scammer’s Handbook”

Why Still These?

The world has been taken over by the Computer Age and the Information Age. Except for those barred from participating by technological or financial barriers, almost everyone has some access to technology. And certainly those who work in university settings use technology constantly. So why are we still seeing these? Pet Peeve Alert! #1: There’sContinue reading “Why Still These?”

Bye Bye, Scammers, Bye Bye!

Well, some of them anyway. Frequent readers of this blog have seen my mentions of the scammers who start with an innocent text, such as, “Hello, Lisa, it’s Grace, we met at the conference, would you like to meet for lunch?” The recipient is supposed to reply denying being the intended recipient, so the senderContinue reading “Bye Bye, Scammers, Bye Bye!”

Cats That Look Like Hitler

Back in the early, fun, and exploratory days of the Internet, there was a site that collected photos of “cats that looked like Hitler.” Also known as Kitlers, there were cute and kind of ironic. I just thought of this as I was washing dishes, since someone gave me a mug with cats on it,Continue reading “Cats That Look Like Hitler”

Trustworthy, Loyal, Brave, and True?

Tell us one thing you hope people say about you. Isn’t that the motto of the Boy Scouts? Of course, I mean the scouts themselves and not those predators who, under the guise of guiding young boys, led them astray. My, it sounds too much like members of the Catholic clergy! If people were toContinue reading “Trustworthy, Loyal, Brave, and True?”

On the First Day of…Oh, God, It’s a Cult

Tell us about your first day at something — school, work, as a parent, etc. I worked as a faculty member for three university campuses. I only recall my first day at one of them because it included something quite bizarre. There were the usual welcome speeches from lower level administrators and upper level staff,Continue reading “On the First Day of…Oh, God, It’s a Cult”

Swimming Fish, Catholic Popes

Have you ever performed on stage or given a speech? Recently, StoryZ, my new theatre/performance group, gave a Free Improv Workshop. For the 8 people registered, we scheduled 1.5 hours of a little bit of talking and a lot of doing. At one point, someone said, as if she was drowning, “Is this an advancedContinue reading “Swimming Fish, Catholic Popes”