By Dom Cioffi Once the presents were opened, the wrapping paper was discarded, the food was served, the dishes were cleaned, the relatives had exited, and the decorations were taken down, my wife and I sat in our living room and discussed the holiday. We both agreed that it was an exceptional year, but also…

  Well, it’s that time of year again. Another 12 months have passed, and we are now faced with that year-end tradition of reflecting on what’s transpired. Are you a better person on Dec. 31 than you were on Jan. 1 of this past year? Did you improve your health? Did you break a bad…

By Dom Cioffi  Frank Loesser was thrown out of high school and college — both times for the same reason: he failed almost every subject. Oddly, the one class he excelled in was English, which would prove prophetic as his career trajectory unfolded. Given this track record of failing, Loesser had to be resourceful, especially…

  For reasons likely buried deep in my DNA, I have always had an acute sense of smell. While my other senses have been ravaged by time, my olfactory awareness has maintained a high-level status. My mother also had a great sniffer, which posed considerable problems for me and my two brothers as she was…

Growing up, I used to love watching cartoons on Saturday mornings. My mom was pretty good about letting me hang out in my pajamas, eat cereal, and take in the colorful programming, but by late morning, she was usually pushing me out the door to play.  And I was usually ready to join my friends…

    By Dom Cioffi  I know it’s not the most traditional way to celebrate Thanksgiving, but this year, my family traveled to the beach to commemorate the holiday. Going to the beach during the off-season can be rewarding. Generally, the crowds are at a minimum, so it’s easy to go out to dinner and…

    If you look close enough and deep enough, sometimes you’ll find that great things can emerge from horrible events. Take Allison Parliament’s situation, for example.  During the recent pandemic, Allison was traveling alone from the United States to Canada to visit family. At the time, the number of Covid cases in the States…

  In 1934, a radio show entitled “The Major Bowes Amateur Hour” was launched across the United States, making it one of the first known talent shows with a national audience.  The weekly show was hosted by Edward Bowes (a well-known radio personality of the time), who was convinced audiences would be intrigued by regular…

  If you’ve ever wondered about the most tumultuous relationships in history and then decided to scour the history books for information, you’ll likely land on the romance between Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Their passionate and dramatic love affair played out against the backdrop of political intrigue, power struggles, and intense warfare in the 1st…

   On several occasions when I was a teenager, my parents gave me the option of either going on a summer trip to a foreign country or attending a weeklong basketball camp. I always chose the basketball camp. Looking back, I may have been shortsighted with those decisions since my parents took fantastic trips to…

  By Dom Cioffi Quite often (especially in sports), situations arise where the odds are heavily stacked against a particular outcome. These ‘long-shot’ scenarios and wonderful to hype up in the hope that something unexpected will happen, but generally the majority of them fizzle out against the weight of the imbalance.  However, some long-shots do…

    When I was a kid, my mother stored all our holiday decorations in an attic room just off her bedroom. It was a small, cramped spot that was difficult to move around in due to the slanted ceiling, but perfect for storing items that weren’t accessed regularly.  I never liked this room. There…

My nephew came over this past weekend to visit. He’s a great kid with a solid head on his shoulders who’s trying to figure out his next steps in life. With football playing on my TV in the background, the two of us had an engaging hour-long talk that touched on a variety of subjects.   …

I worked for a global company for many years where I met a lot of interesting and diverse people. It was a melting pot of cultures, beliefs, and attitudes that, more often than not, made the work exciting and engaging.  During the interview process for this company, I met with several people, including HR reps,…

  We’re all born with gifts. Some folks are natural athletes, while others are adept at music. I’ve met people who could rattle off a stream of mathematical equations, and I’ve met others who could lift up the back end of a Chevy. No matter who you are or what your place is in life,…