About me…

I’m just a guy who lives in rural Wisconsin, loves blogging and social media, and is using Celebrate Recovery as a means of restoring some sanity to my life. If you’re looking for my perspective on content management and marketing for thought leadership, please go to my business blog…

When I originally started blogging on this site, I thought I could make a difference in the world by posting about politics. I no longer have any such delusions. Now the things I post are more for me than for my readers, but if anyone benefits from the snippets I curate from The Daily Love, Positively Positive, Gemma Stone and other sites I follow along with the occasional original thought, that’s just an extra blessing. I pray “O Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood“!

The title come’s from Brene Brown’s book “The Gifts of Imperfection”

Practicing courage, compassion, and connection in our daily lives is how we cultivate worthiness. The key word is practice. Mary Daly, a theologian, writes, “Courage is like—it’s a habitus, a habit, a virtue: You get it by courageous acts. It’s like you learn to swim by swimming. You learn courage by couraging.” The same is true for compassion and connection. We invite compassion into our lives when we act compassionately toward ourselves and others, and we feel connected in our lives when we reach out and connect. Before I define these concepts and talk about how they work, I want to show you how they work together in real life—as practices. This is a personal story about the courage to reach out, the compassion that comes from saying, “I’ve been there,” and the connections that fuel our worthiness.

Brown, Brene (2010-09-20). The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Suppose to Be and Embrace Who You Are (p. 7). BookMobile. Kindle Edition.

I used to spew political venom on a blog called “The Right Side of Wisconsin” but now I take a different approach I cover in the post “Why I Blog“. As Mastin Kipp of The Daily Love would say “take what you like and leave the rest”. If you think I have the means to help you with anything, use the ‘Let’s Connect’ tab…

Here’s a video with a little insight as to how I actually do this site in case you’re interested;

A boatload of WordPress.com tools, tactics and tips…

121 thoughts on “About me…”

  2. I have nominated you for the One Lovely Blog Award. It’s okay if you choose not to accept the nomination, just know that I think your blog is inspiring. If you choose to accept the award, here are the guidelines: Thank the person who nominated you and link back to them in your post ; Share 7 things about yourself ; Nominate 15 or so bloggers you admire ; Contact your chosen bloggers to let them know. Blessings, Genie (http://geniespeaks.wordpress.com/2012/05/22/one-lovely-blog-award)

  13. I went on Google Maps for a particular reason and a pinpoint came up with your name on it. Since we live within walking distance of each other, out of curiosity I looked up your name and came across your blog.
    Very nice. I will spend some time looking at it. At first glance it seems very inspiring.

    • Imagine meeting someone from my neighborhood on WordPress! I usually meet people from foreign countries…

      The way things work on the blog is that I just share good thoughts and images I find in my travels around the internet — kind of like an online scrapbook. If anyone else gets inspired, that’s icing on top of the cake!

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  21. Hey Todd! I followed your blog on my old account before switching over due to the unruly mob of Melanie Haters. I’m back to you on my new account and following again :)
    I just want you to know that I appreciate your kindness and your posts are really uplifting.
    Thanks for everything buddy. Keep doing what you’re doing cause it does make a difference, to me at least.

  23. Hi Todd! You never cease to amazing me with your brilliant content! So happy to be following you here! I’m learning more about curating of content via your video, which has been insightful and refreshing. Great advice for new bloggers. I am constantly learning how to share while being inspired here on WP, and the take away message here is how to collect, organized and share. Thanks for posting this educational inspiration! Have an amazing day! :D

  29. Hello Todd,
    Thank you for following my Barefoot Baroness blog! I came by to give thanks and to reciprocate. Your blog sounds delightful,a positive place to visit. This is who I choose to surround myself with, people who are moving forward in a positive light. i can see yours is shining bright.~

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  31. Such an impressive blog! I have much to learn from here, and Thank You so much for laying it all out there. I’ve done some (critical??) work on the 12 steps. But I, like you, have discovered that anger and criticism (in the negative sense) are not, in the end, useful approaches. So I’ll look forward to learning and enjoying the process.
    Best wishes for 2013.

  33. Hello Todd,

    I hope it is not too late to wish you a wonderful New Year. May 2013 bring you more happiness, love, and success. I would like to thank you because you continue following my blog. I hope my blog posts do not disappoint and that your visits in there have been a joyful ride. Thank you again, many blessings and much love to you. :-)

    Subhan Zein

  36. Hi Todd,
    Thanks for visiting my blog and following it, very kind of you.
    Your blog is inspirational, full of interesting material. I paused at the
    ‘used’ to blog about politics – it made me think about a few things I have been considering
    lately.
    Bex :)

      • Yes, that is interesting – no dictating, arguing or convincing – just sharing!! Going almost with the flow of things! I like that, as politics tends to bring forth the despots. It doesn’t matter how much a person tries to avoid them, they seem to pop up everywhere!!!

      • Exactly. I follow the best sites I find with Google Reader and share the things that resonate with me in hopes that one other person in the world needs that message as much as I did. My blog is more a public scrapbook than anything else…

      • Ah yes, I do something similar on my Facebook page. I don’t regurgitate my posts; I add quotes, messages, links to sites, and what news grabs me. I actually like that way of doing things. I have been wondering if my blog is becoming more an opinion ‘forum’, which is good, but I don’t think many people actually read my posts fully and ‘jump’ the gun. Perhaps I shall try to blend some of this ‘public scrapbook’ into my blog occasionally; it might lift the mood :)

      • Regurgitate? I prefer the word ‘re-express’. :-D I do rebroadcast my posts to my Facebook page, Twitter and my Google+ page via HootSuite and then add additional content…

  37. I discovered Brene brown a couple of months ago when I came across her TED talk. I love reading your posts each day. I wish I had been taught Radical Self Acceptance as a teenager. I’ve been to Celebrate Recovery on occasion and always leave feeling filled up.

  44. I’m glad you’re doing what you’re doing and feel I’ve found a kindred spirit. I too have been interested in politics. Like you, I’ve grown weary of the slug-fest that it has become. Today’s political discussion (if you can call it that) seems to be so much about beating the other side by any means necessary that any memory of why the fight began is dim and getting dimmer. Fortunately, as you know, there are better ways to make a real difference.

    • Thank you, Joel. I’d much rather spend my time reflecting on the words of Tara Brach than Newt Gingrich these days; she observes that for some reason, all mindfulness disappears when the topic is politics. I’d much rather be right with my Self than right on political issues at this moment in my life…

  45. Thank you for following me – I’m looking forward to exploring your intriguing blog…
    I so agree with what you have said above about politics..and mindfulness… have politicians even heard of the word? It seems that power and being right is what their minds are on !!!!

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