Category Archives: Random Thoughts

“I will die in the midst of doing what I love to do…”

Posted on April 2, 2012 by russtowne

“I will die in the midst of doing what I love to do and that is using my voice and using my life to try to inspire other people to live the best of theirs.” –Oprah Winfrey As an investment … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, Creativity, Inspiring, LIfe Lessons, Optimism, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts | Tagged 101, 101 mistakes, a recipe for success, admired, admit, analyses, business, businesses, die, doing what I love to do, full and rewading life, full and rewarding, generosity of spirit, gutsy, Inspiration, inspire, investment manager, Life, live, Love, mistakes, Oprah, Oprah Show, Oprah Winfrey, OWN, OWN Network, perserverent, rewarding, Success, successful, willing to admit mistakes, words and actions are in alignment, works hard | 3 Comments

Hunger Games

Posted on April 1, 2012 by russtowne

I saw the Hunger Games movie last night. I liked it a lot and felt it captured the tone of the first book well. It showcases the best and worst of humankind. The power of hope, of trust, of love. … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, Creativity, Friendship, Healing, LIfe Lessons, Optimism, Random Thoughts, Relationship Lessons Learned, Vids & Stories That Touched Me | Tagged beneath the surface, book, divide, dividers, eveil, Friendship, heal, heal a wound, hug, humankind, Hunger Games, kindness, Life, Love, Loyalty, misery of slavery, movie, poverty, power, power of speaking simple truths, rage, rage of injustice, reassure, reassuring, ripples, simmering, slavery, smile, strangers, thin veneer, thin veneer of civilization, Trust, truth, truths, unite, uniters, vanity | 5 Comments

When a Good Idea Goes Very Badly Wrong (Part 2 of 2 of Courage Comes In All Sizes)

Posted on March 25, 2012 by russtowne

I was surprised and disappointed that considering all that Mary had risked and done for the armored car company they just gave her two dozen roses. The more I thought about it, the more I became determined to fix what … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, Forgiveness, Humor, Random Thoughts | Tagged armored truck, bonus, bravery, children, dinner, Hero, Mary, newspaper, newspaper article, reward | Leave a comment

Speak Softly and Carry a Big Heart

Posted on March 23, 2012 by russtowne

(Below is a re-post of one of my earliest postings to this blog from back in mid-2010. I’ll occassionally re-post something to give newer followers an opportunity to see it without having to wade through many old posts to find … Continue reading →

Posted in Friendship, LIfe Lessons, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts | Tagged death, Friend, heart, impish grin, legacy of love, Life, live, lived large, living large, Love, Mel, mustache, passed away, speak, speak softly and carry a big heart, students, surf, surfer, tutored | Leave a comment

Follow Your Own Heart

Posted on March 22, 2012 by russtowne

“Follow your own heart, regardless of what others tell you to do. When all is said and done, it’s you who has to live with your decisions and how your heart feels about it.” I don’t know who originated that … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, LIfe Lessons, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts | Tagged Anger, decisions, Feel, feels, follow, follow your heart, follow your own heart, heart, Life, regret, resentment, reward, rewarding, sadness, wisdom | 3 Comments

PAIN!

Posted on March 22, 2012 by russtowne

I’ve been blessed that most of my weeks are relatively good ones, but this hasn’t been one of them. This week could be described by a single four-letter word: PAIN! Over the last couple of days I’ve had a fairly … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Thoughts | Tagged bad week, blog, chronic, chronic pain, condolences, confess, crowding, dentist, endodontist, feeling, feeling positive, fulfilling, goo week, good life, grateful, happier, jaw, Life, listen, listening, localize, major piain, normal, optomism, optomistic, pain, pain pills, pain-free, pain-free life, positiv, read, reading, rewarding, sleep, teeth, tonight, tooth, treat, up-beat, upbeat, wide-spread, wide-spread pain, X-rays | 2 Comments

The Barefoot College

Posted on March 19, 2012 by russtowne

I just heard a “45 year love story” about the Barefoot College. It is a fascinating, enlightening, and inspiring TED talk presented by Bunker Roy. The school is only for the poor and reflects only what the poor think is … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, Grandparenting & Grandkids, LIfe Lessons, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts, Vids & Stories That Touched Me | Tagged Barefoot College, belief, Bunker Roy, collected rain water, competence, confidence, cook, cooking, cooks, crazy, crazy ideas, drought, encouraged, enlightening, fascinating, First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win.", Gandhi, grandmother, grandmothers, ideas, illiterate, India, inspiring, look for solutions within, Mahatma Gandhi, parabolic, parabolic oven, phenomenal, phenomenal success, poor, rain, rain water, School, solar, solar power. solar-powered, Success, TED Talk, village, village elder, water | Leave a comment

Much More Than A Pile Of Rocks

Posted on March 18, 2012 by russtowne

“A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.” Antoine de Saint-Exupery MaggieMaeIJustSayThis shared ths quote. I like it and thought you would too. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor, LIfe Lessons, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts | Tagged ., cathedral, contemplated, equally, incredibly, incredibly transformational, MaggieMaeIJustSayThis, married men, power, power of thought, rock pile, single man, thought, transformational, true, women | Leave a comment

Finding Our Way Back To Each Other

Posted on March 18, 2012 by russtowne

I just heard a powerful and inspiring TED talk by Dr. Brene’ Brown about Vulnerability and Shame. I highly recommend that you invest the time to listen to it. Some of my favorite parts: Vulnerability is NOT weakness. Vulnerability is … Continue reading →

Posted in Courage, Friendship, Healing, LIfe Lessons, Quotes I Love, Random Thoughts, Relationship Lessons Learned, Vids & Stories That Touched Me | Tagged antidote, bad, birthplace of innovation, Brene Brown, change, courage, creativeity, dare gretly, Dr. Brene' Brown, empathy, empathy is the antidote to shame, find our way back to each other, guilt, I am bad, I did something bad, inspiring, judgement, judgment, me too, path, powerful, secrecy, Shame, silence, strength, struggle, vulnerability, weakness | Leave a comment

Finding the Light Within Yourself in Moments of Darkness

Posted on March 17, 2012 by russtowne

We all go through tough times. Sometimes even excruciating ones. If you are going through such a painful situation right now, this post is dedicated to you. I don’t know who wrote the paragraph below, but I believe it captures … Continue reading →