On December 27, 2009–one day shy of a month ago–my mother passed away from complications related to a cancerous tumor and the resulting treatment.  She was 69 years old.  And when I saw her semi-conscious for the last time before she died, I barely recognized her. Coping with her death has not been easy–which is […]

As an employee of my alma mater, the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, I, too, will have to take the mandatory four unpaid furlough days–one a month over the next four months. Now, I have no illusions about the catastrophic mess that is the budget of the State of Illinois, and if by me taking four […]

Wipe The Slate Clean For 2010, Commit Web 2.0 Suicide

(Delivered Thursday, December 31, 2009, at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Schaumburg, Illinois) Good morning.  First and foremost, I’d like to thank everyone for being here today.  And I’d also like to thank everyone for the generous outpouring of support my dad and I have received.  I think I speak for both of […]