I’ve answered my last callout as a firefighter — Sometime around 2018, I ran my last call on the big red trucks. I didn’t realize it at the time, but it was the last time I’d ever put on my bunker gear, climb into the truck and head down the road with lights and sirens going. I’d always hoped…

Medium’s latest changes have given me hope for the platform — I’ll admit that I haven’t been around here as much as I would have liked in the past few months. I’ll cut myself some slack and admit that I’ve had a lot going on, but that’s not the only reason. I’ve been a little discouraged with my results lately. It’s…

A Second Look isn’t dead…it’s just been resting — For all seven of you who follow this publication, you’ll likely have seen that there has been almost no activity since October of 2022. That’s a long time to go without publishing anything, and it’s mostly because I haven’t had the time to devote to this. You see, this past…

“Fake it until you make it” is founded upon privilege — I am fortunate enough to have some incredibly powerful, intelligent, and wise women in my life. Even when they don’t set out to be any of those things, they absolutely are each of those things. As a mediocre (at best) white man, there are important times when these women speak…

It’s better when things just work — For my entire life, I have been loath to use anything except Windows computers. As an “Elder Millennial” (a term that imparts intense feelings of both loathing and pride), I can remember a time before computers were everywhere, but have spent my entire life learning and adapting to new programs…

A lesson on how not to run a business — I find it absolutely fascinating just how far some employers will go to drive away good employees. At a time when there is an ever-growing need for good employees, they seem to do everything they can to drive away some of their best employees. We all know that hiring a…

Emergency, Disaster, and Crisis Management is on the verge of losing an important tool — Like many people, I’ve been watching the self-immolation of what used to be called Twitter, and which may be known as either Titter or “X” — nobody is really clear about its status at the moment. What does seems certain is the inevitable demise of what used to be an…

And not just for those who work in it… — Let’s be honest — the delivery gig economy truly is a hellhole for the people who work in it. No minimum wage, no regulations, no safety net at all — the fact that we’ve even considered this (much less adopted it) shows just how far we’ve sunk as a society…

Medical coverage at events should no longer be optional — January 2, 2023 was a catastrophic day for NFL player Damar Hamlin and his family, one that very quickly went from being about football to simply being about life. After making a tackle on the field, Hamlin went into Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) and required both CPR and Defibrillation to…