It was 20 years ago: My September 11, 2001, began and ended in a hotel, so the hospitality industry became a regular refuge in every great 21st-century storm.

I was supposed to fly home that afternoon, but my flight was never flown. After the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C, federal officials halted every commercial airline flight. That nIght, I wound up in another luxury hotel, where a note under the door said we could escape the news with free movies made available to each guest.

Every day, we thought regular air travel might resume, but soon…

Water and vehicles sit still, or move. A minor scene in one of the greatest films illustrates precisely how a good editor gets words moving (with hardly anyone noticing).

The 1970 film Patton shows General George Patton becoming one of history’s greatest generals, focusing on moving more men and material faster than ever before. He personally untangles roadblocks, fights for more gasoline, and demands snow and rain get out of his way in his boldest move.

“All right, now, look. Let’s pay attention,” Patton commands. “We’re gonna clean this mess up right now. Let’s move this vehicle out this way…

Discovering the Bible’s Book of Judith reminded me of my Great-Grandma Vickie, a fantastic role model for our daughters.

Judith is the story of a beautiful widow who harnesses her beauty (and bright mind and faith) to outsmart, overwhelm, and kill a great enemy.

Judith teaches us, “it was my face that tricked him to his destruction, and yet he committed no act of sin with me… All the people were greatly astonished” (Judith 13:16–17, RSV2CE).

Then I remembered the classic 1962 episode of “The Andy Griffith Show” episode where Barbara Eden (three years before her “I Dream of Jeannie”…

Beauty shocks. Judith overwhelms her enemy, “saves the world,” and makes a greater love possible. More than 2,500 years ago?

“The Persians trembled at her boldness, the Medes were daunted at her daring. Then my oppressed people shouted for joy; my weak people shouted and the enemy trembled,” (Judith 16:10–11, RSV2CE).

Father Mike Schmitz stresses: “This is one of those incredible stories we get to highlight, the story of the incredible courage of a woman of God.”

When Father Mike’s Bible in a Year podcast featured the Book of Judith, most wondered why so few people know her “superhero spy-behind-enemy…

With 10 percent of “long-lasting relationships,” now starting online, Michigan State University psychology researchers found a way to “quantify” how quickly we choose.

Pew Research found a growing number of relationships start with dating apps like Tinder, Match.com, or OK Cupid, so MSU researchers decided to measure how quickly we decide we feel “love” or move on.

Relationships that “start online” grew more numerous during the pandemic. Exactly how long does it take the average person to decide whether to “swipe right” or “swipe left?”

Less than one second.

The spark is instant — but we spend slightly more time on hiring, recruitment decisions

So there’s definitely “a spark,” you think might turn into love…

Flashback to 2006: Millennial teens are cooing about Johnny Depp being “hot,” so our daughter decimates their case.

“Oh, please,” she says. “Johnny Depp is older than my father!”

Fast forward to now: I’m at the gym, seeking 15 peaceful minutes in the hot tub, wondering if I can fit in. Three others: (two men in the tub and a woman on edge) talk about tattoos.

“Show me a man with a tattoo, and I’ll show you a man with an interesting past,” novelist Jack London once wrote, so I silently sat in the tub soaking in their ink-stained stories.

…

Busy hands are happy hands, our father insisted. The longest and most active days often seem to be remembered as the best — especially when a storm is involved.

My longest workday was September 21–22, 1989. Thirty-six straight hours of work and fun. Seven key life lessons:

1. Work matters: Go to where the action is

We started work that Thursday, September 21, around 8:30 a.m. All the weather forecasts said Hurricane Hugo (category five as it was coming our way) was heading straight for us: the people of Myrtle Beach.

The governor ordered the coast evacuated, which seemed like the perfect excuse to say, “I need to work.”…

CBS Sunday Morning and Ted Koppel spotlighted the booming “destination stop” of Mount Airy, N.C., so they smiled. But then, they got a little nervous.

They know Ted Koppel asks the fun questions — and the not-so-fun ones.

“It captured a reality that never was,” Koppel told viewers. “The town isn’t doing a whole lot to undermine the illusion. Stop by at Wally’s filling station, and you can get a ride around town in a vintage Ford Galaxy squad car. These days there’s a whole fleet of them carting tourists around town.”

Now 81, Koppel was the original anchor of…