Author: Team southmag

Living A Dog's Life

Inspiration can be an incredible driving force, creating enthusiasm and facilitating growth. Here's how you can cultivate your existence to find inspiration — and inspire others.

Monday 5 Things….. Stop….. I was looking at picture I took a few years ago that had a stop sign behind a beautiful Ferrari. For whatever reason, I fixated on that sign and got thinking about things that we should…

Monday 5 Things…..To Boldly Go….. Unless you have been living under a rock, on a deserted island, or possibly on Pluto, you could not have missed that this past Saturday marked the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. We…

Monday 5 Things…..Give….. So much of life seems to be built on the idiom of “give and take.” Last week, M5T discussed things to “take” in life. It seemed to be appropriate this week to consider things we all have the propensity…

Monday 5 Things…..Take….. A leisurely, lazy Sunday brunch. The kind of brunch that leaves one properly caffeinated, appropriately mimosa-ed (if there is such a word) and well fed. The kind of brunch that frames a day of taking time to just…

Monday 5 Things…..Two Birthdays….. The two countries who share the largest unprotected border in the world celebrate their birthdays this week. Today Canada turns 152 and on Thursday this week the U.S. turns 243. Once again on this birthday week,…

Monday 5 Things…..Life’s Mysteries….. I found myself thinking about life’s mysteries this past week and came across a quote from distinguished professor and theologian, Henri Nouwen: “The mystery of one man is too immense and too profound to be explained…

Monday 5 Things…..Can’t Coexist….. On a conference call this week with a CEO and investors, we discussed a few things that can’t coexist.  This morning’s M5T takes a closer look at emotions and states of our lives that can be…

Monday 5 Things…..What If Today….. Today’s missive is a result of a man, a moment, a movie, a memory and a meme. As we start another week heading into the latter half of this year, M5T deliberates, very simply with…

Monday 5 Things…..No Time….. Not a cloud was in the sky on Friday as I drove down to the “Land of the Big Rat,” which some call Orlando or Disney, for meetings and a conference this week. An overabundance of troopers…

Monday 5 Things…..Not to Morn but to Praise….. Driving by Hunter Airfield Base earlier this week, I slowed along the road to watch a hulking C-17 landing on the airfield. I recalled a funeral I attended in 2012 for fallen…

Monday 5 Things…..Kimya….. Kimya is an interesting word. I first learned the expression while working in East Africa. In Swahili it translates to silence. Kimya is also a Persian female’s name that means precious, unique or hard to find. Kimya came to…

Monday 5 Things…..Unspoken….. All week I had this nagging voice in my head asking, ‘Why didn’t you just say it? Why didn’t you just ask her?’ Things I wish I had said to my mom while she was still here…

Monday 5 Things…..“I’ll Take W’s for $200 Alex”….. Today’s M5T was inspired while driving at undisclosed speeds, on undisclosed red clay Georgia back-roads singing along with Daltrey at an undisclosed volume, all while attempting to keep up the syncopation on…

Monday 5 Things….. Success….. The M5T that was scheduled for today has been interrupted, and rudely at that, because of a Facebook memory sent to me this Saturday. Let me digress a moment… My heart has been broken, over and…

Monday 5 Things…. Risen….. A spur of the moment decision to get out of the city for the weekend afforded time to not only wind down and decompress, but also the opportunity to sit around a fire pit until the…

Monday 5 Things…..Everything….. Having dinner in a quaint Italian restaurant in Vidalia, Georgia a few weeks ago, my table was across from a couple that seemed more interested in their cell phones than in each other. Putting down his phone…

Monday 5 Things…..Blind Spots….. Twice, while driving a rental car to a client meeting a few weeks ago, I almost caused an accident by not checking my blind spot. The SUV that I drive daily has a great option that…

Monday 5 Things…..Changed Perspective….. I recently acquired a drone. Well two actually. The first is somewhere off shore in the depths of the intercoastal water way near Tybee Island, but that’s a different story. The drone and its camera have…

Monday 5 Things…..Of Listing….. Lists. They can help us remember and can create calm and peace by bringing order to chaos. Interestingly, they can bring form and function to help avoid procrastination or give you the opportunity for you to…

Monday 5 Things.....It's Easy Being Green..... I spent the weekend strolling the lush green fairways of the Ritz Carlton in Amelia, cameras in hand, photographing some of the world’s rarest and most beautiful designs on four wheels. The sun was…

Monday 5 Things…..I Don’t Know….. The Pudden’s, who were likely in their 70’s at the time, lived next door when I was a precocious and curious 8-year-old. Mr. Pudden had an inordinate amount of forbearance for the then-sun- bleached white-haired,…

Monday 5 Things….. Persistence and Belief….. I could see the pain in his eyes and hear in his voice the strain of the difficulties he continues to face. By all means of logic, his company should have been bankrupt two…

Monday 5 Things….Know and No….. Two simple words; two profound words of significance and definition in our lives. What do we know about ourselves and then purposefully, consciously choose to build into our lives? To what, and to whom, should…

Monday 5 Things.....Just Pause..... I once again found myself interloping whilst trying to enjoy an overpriced caffeinated cup of morning goodness. The couple was arguing – albeit relatively quietly – I’m sure, as not to upset the harried baristas. Between…

Monday 5 Things…..On Fire….. It was the moment of peace that I have been needing; craving. The sun had set, the birds had gone silent. The tide unhurriedly, yet deliberately, worked its way up the river, overflowing back into the…

Monday 5 Things…..Rebuilding Walls….. On a recent drive back from meetings in Atlanta, I was listening to a radio program about the vision and leadership of Nehemiah as he rebuilt the walls in Israel. I realized that almost 3 years…

Monday 5 Things…..Shaped….. We are full-on into a new chapter of yet another year. My melancholic mindset that happens each year around this time gets mixed with the joy and anticipation of a blank canvas for a new year. I…

Monday 5 Things…..The Dreaded “R” Word…. How good is your crystal ball as to when the next recession will hit? Mine’s quite murky. Ask ten economists when the next recession will hit. You’ll likely get twelve different answers. The media…

Monday 5 Things…..Verba MMXIX….. Well, here we are in a New Year. How many resolutions have failed so far? Yeah. My thoughts exactly, which is why I don’t make resolutions. For the past few years however, I pick five words…

Monday 5 Things…..Joy To The World….. Creatures aren’t stirring. Children are nestled. Dancing visions of sugarplums. Hoofs prancing on the roof. A strange plump man bearing gifts. Travel. Traffic jams. Flight delays. Arguments in stores. Stress. Yup. Today’s M5T realizes…

Monday 5 Things….. If You Only Had….. A contemplative week this past one was. Life changes, stress, busyness, joy, laughter and tears. Challenges both uncommon and uncomfortable. Experiences equally exhilarating and exhausting. Interloping on a coffee shop conversation, I tried…

Monday 5 Things…..Disconnect, Connect or Reconnect….. Sipping a cup of coffee pondering life early on a cold rainy morning, I glanced across the room and saw an old off-white colored telephone – a touch button land line, circa 1980’s that…

Monday 5 Things…..Two Words….. A few weeks ago, I overheard a couple arguing downtown. They were intense, aggressive, and neither listening to what the other was saying. Then it happened. He pointed his finger at her and screamed two words.…

Monday 5 Things…..Avoidance….. Sitting in a local basement watering-hole on Broughton street sipping bottomless mimosas, I engaged in one of my most favorite activities – watching and listening to the people around me. There were definite highlights – three brothers…

Monday 5 Things…..Only Time….. Whilst reading another book this weekend, it dawned on your humble scribe that books and school can’t teach us everything in life. Don’t get me wrong; I have been truly blessed, thankful, honored and privileged to…