“If you lie out flat on the stones – it seems odd to try, I know – you will feel – here, that’s it – the warmth of the sunlight emanating from the stones. Turn your head to the side, ear to rock, and you will hear the earth revolving on its axis and an […]

When the Queen of England pulled out of the climate change summit due to ongoing health concerns, The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall (Charles and Camilla) stepped in for the Queen. But rubbing shoulders with the most powerful people in the world wasn’t a pleasant experience for one member of the royal family. When President Biden […]

Who’s peekin’ out from under a stairwayCalling a name that’s lighter than air?Who’s bending down to give me a rainbow?Everyone knows it’s Windy. Who’s tripping down the streets of the citySmilin’ at everybody she sees?Who’s reachin’ out to capture a moment?Everyone knows it’s Windy. And Windy has stormy eyesThat flash at the sound of liesAnd […]

Why don’t we take a little piece of summer sky,Hang it on a tree…For that’s the way to start to make a pretty worldFor you and for me. And for the sun we’ll find a lemon bright balloon.You can hold the string.Oh, can’t you see that little world of ours will be the prettiest thing? […]

Astrud wasn’t supposed to sing this song. It was her husband, saxophonist Stan Getz who discovered she could sing. Great discovery. Lovely woman. Thanks Stan!  

No one can eliminate fear of job loss, fear of career stagnation, or fear of humiliation in the workplace, but Gaurav Bhatnagar and Mark Minukas, two former McKinsey and Company consultants that have helped more than 1,000 business leaders embrace “Unfear” methods of leadership, make it clear that fear can be channeled and transformed into […]

“The mortality rate for young men in society is six times what it is for young women, from violence and from accidents, just the stupid stuff that young men do; jumping off of things they shouldn’t jump off of, lighting things on fire they shouldn’t light on fire, I mean, you know what I’m talking […]

Celebrate good times, come onLet’s celebrateCelebrate good times, come onLet’s celebrateThere’s a party going on right hereA celebration to last throughout the yearsSo bring your good times and your laughter tooWe gonna celebrate your party with you, come onCelebrationLet’s all celebrate and have a good timeCelebrationWe gonna celebrate and have a good timeIt’s time to […]

While he was reading those pages (449-450) of The Plantagenets, the wizard said to me, “Indy, the craziness that began in 1481 sounds like the kind of craziness that precedes the zenith of a ‘WE’ cycle. The government (1.) escalated the collection of taxes during (2.) a tragic pandemic and (3.) labor – once abundant – was in […]

When Pennie and I were preparing to move away from the town of our childhood, I told my friend Phil that I felt like I was suspended in limbo. I have never forgotten what he said. “This is your time in the elevator. You are between two worlds. You are leaving behind the way it […]

“True happiness is to enjoy the present without anxious dependence on the future.”– Lucius Annaeus Seneca, 5BC-65AD, a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and in one work, satirist, from the post-Augustan age of Latin literature. This was my friend Phil Johnson 37 years ago, looking over a small section of his private library…

“Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.” – Marcus Aurelius, a Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good Emperors, and […]

“At first the taxes provoked disgruntlement, [1381] but this swiftly turned to outright fury as commissioners appointed to investigate widespread evasion were accused of heavy-handed tactics. The poll taxes tapped a deeper root of resentment that had been building in England’s towns and villages since the middle of the century. The Black Death had returned […]

If you are passionate about a topic and are looking for a way to stand tall in the eyes of the nation, just write an Op-Ed that gets published in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, or USA Today. Bob Brody has spent the past 40 years as an Op-Ed […]

You already know that Capt. James T. Kirk, aka William Shatner, flew into space as the guest of Jeff Bezos aboard the Blue Origin spacecraft on October 13th. Why would Billionaire Bezos give Shatner a seat when he could have sold it for tens of millions of dollars?  Listen in as Wizard of Ads partner Jeff “the […]

This delightful and insightful video was sentto us by alert rabbit-holer George Ghesquire.

After my volunteer shift to safeguard the Tower during the Bastards Ball, I wandered down to Tuscan Hall to see what whiskies that have not touched my palate. Of the familiar faces that greeted my gaze was a young man with a long beard. Kind of like the one that decorated my face a year ago. […]

Soulful Christmas I ain’t talkin’ just to tease.People like you, they don’t grow on trees.Look at you, that’s what it’s gonna be. I have everything I needAround my soulful Christmas tree. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year!I love you, have good cheer.I love you, good God. Got my baby, my precious love.Happiness – good God – I […]

Wizard of Ads partner Charlie Moger made this extra-cool video that explains what Jeff and Trish Sylvestre do in Canada. If you’ve taken more than just one or two classes at Wizard Academy, you’ve probably met them. – Indy

If you own a business, you need to know Ryan Patrick.

Hi Indy,  The famous poet Naomi Shahib Nye wrote this wonderful story in a brief, tight economy of words, exactly the way Roy teaches in Magical Worlds. He told us the secret of concise writing was to read poetry, and Naomi Shahib Nye is a perfect example. Aroo. – Steve Rae    Wandering around the […]

“A metaphysician is one who, when you remark that twice two is four, demands to know what you mean by twice, what by two, what by makes, and what by four. For asking such questions metaphysicians are supported in oriental luxury in the universities, and respected as educated and intelligent men.” – H. L. Mencken […]

Wizard of Ads Partner Stephen Semple was invited to the U.K. to unveil the power of Storytelling at Oxford! Oxford! Did you hear me? Oxford! And then the London Stock Exchange! And then the Royal Society of Medicine! And then all the TV stations wanted interviews! Does the wizard have cool partners, or what? – […]

The Favorite Con of the Plantagenet Kings King Edward of England inherited control of Gascony in France from his mother, Eleanor of Provence. But when the 27-year-old King of France decided in 1295 not to let the King of England control part of his country, Edward asked his English nobles to raise an army so […]

David Cowan changed careers, and instead of making more money, he made none at all. In his early fifties, David found himself without a car, walking to a nearby McDonald’s where he worked at the drive-through window overnight. Rallying from misfortune — be it financial, health, a relationship gone bad, a natural disaster, or any other […]

It was long after we moved away from Tulsa that people began telling us about the breakout movie, The Outsiders, in which a number of major stars made their acting debut. (It’s sort of like The Breakfast Club, but with more violence.) When Pennie and I finally got around to renting the movie, we were […]

This photo was taken 5 seconds after the photo you saw on the previous page of Loren reclining on a white, black-and-red spotted chaise lounge, overlaid onto a 1960 Ford Station Wagon. Look in the upper left corner of this photo and you will see a reflection of Loren in the mirror, still sitting there, […]