Work In Progress Newsletter
Edition Two | May 30, 2022

WRITE THIS WAY…
Hello All and welcome to the Memorial Day edition of my weekly newsletter. Today is a day we remember the fallen. This video from the History Channel speaks volumes. 

“Some people live an entire lifetime and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world. A veteran does not have that problem.”
– Ronald Reagan 

THREE DOTS… GOOD NEWS ONLY
Now this news requires a filter… Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel paid off all student loans for the 284-member graduating class at Otis College of Art & Design…  Finally a reason to swipe right… Tinder has teamed with the Munich Animal Welfare Association to pair users with a dog or cat… Collisions between airplanes and birds have long been a problem, but the Dutch used a unique approach to combat the 150 strikes at Schiphol Airport employing 20 pigs to reduce vegetation favored by geese… As my 18-year old niece would say, this kid is a whole mood…

OTD
On this date in 1911 the first Indianapolis 500 was held. Ray Harroun won it in a time of 6:42.8 with an average speed of 74.6 mph… May 30 is also the birthday of Chicago Bears legend Gale Sayers… If you haven’t watched the movie “Brian’s Song” add it to the list right away. Pro Tip:  You will need Kleenex. 

MEET GEORGE DYER
On this Memorial Day I am reflecting once again on one of my earliest heroes, my Grandpa, George Dyer. Grandpa would tell the story of how he enlisted in the Navy – at the age of 34 (!) – while experiencing a rush of patriotism after the Pearl Harbor attack. He went through basic training in the Navy and later was inducted into the Marine Corps and did basic training again. He served in the South Pacific working in the legendary Seabees (construction battalion), tasked with building airfields and infrastructure. Rising to the rank of Chief, Grandpa served on Guam, Guadalcanal and Bouganville.

BEST THING I WATCHED
I rewatched “Darkest Hour” chronicling Winston Churchill’s first months as Prime Minister as World War II ravaged Europe. Highly recommended. Darkest Hour is streaming now on Netflix. TRAILER 

WHAT I LINKEDIN LEARNED
Took Personal Productivity for Project Managers from Shyvee Shi. I am not a project manager, but there were many lessons and takeaways in this short course. You must understand the processes in order to accomplish goals.

WHAT I’M READING NOW
For Improvement: The High 5 Habit by Mel Robbins

For an Escape: Bad Luck and Trouble – Lee Child

Embracing my inner history nerd: Band of Brothers – Stephen Ambrose 

ESCAPE POD
One of my favorite weekly listens is Remarkable People by Guy Kawasaki. One of my favorite recent episodes was his conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson. Give it a listen!  

All episodes are available for free on Spotify.

CLIP OF THE WEEK
A selection from my spirit animal Jim Gaffigan…

MY GIF TO YOU
A live look-in at my last carpool…

QUOTABLE
“One day my grandson said to me, ‘Grandpa were you a hero in the war?’ And I said to him, “No, I’m not a hero, but I have served in a company full of them.”
― Dick Winters, Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters

THIS WAY OUT
Thanks for reading this Memorial Day edition of my Work In Progress newsletter. I will be tinkering with it along the way. My goal is to release these on Mondays. Thanks to Kim Kaupe and Terry Rice for encouraging me to launch this into the universe. Comments welcome!