Clueless Wives: The Interview

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

My wife says she’s about to leave to go to work. She waits by the kitchen entrance, while I’m in my office. I say, “Okay have a great day.” She waits some more until I finally get it and lift myself up from my comfortable chair, where I was working on my computer (she doesn’t consider that “work”) and I give her a kiss goodbye.

While I’m already up and totally disturbed, I go around and turn off ALL the lights she left on in our bedroom and bathroom. When I ask why she leaves them on, I get back, “I’m not done yet.” Hmmm, is the idea that they’re on 10 hours later when she gets back home? I know, I’m just a guy, so obviously I’m just lame.

The Day I Went Crazy At the Bank!

Posted on August 5, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

I went nuts at the bank. Yup, it’s true. I was overwhelmed and I just over-reacted.

I go to the same branch of Wells Fargo. There’s ALWAYS a line. ALWAYS. Every person at the teller takes FOREVER to do their business. Sometimes, a very nice bank person comes out and asks, “If you have a straight deposit, no cash back, I can help you.” I want to kill that person! We ALL want cash back or something beyond a simple deposit! Why doesn’t she come out and say, “We’ve got ten tellers on break right now, but I’ll ask one of them to come out early and maybe help get this line moving”? How about that instead?

So, I headed into the bank with my expectations sure that the line would be long, slow, and I’d be looking at my watch every few seconds as if THAT WOULD MAKE IT MOVE ANY FASTER!

The State of Gender Affairs

Posted on July 21, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

There’s no question that technology changes faster than most of us yuppies and boomers can handle. I don’t know what the current number of years for technology “generations” is, but I do know that if you have children five or more years apart in age, they will each use technology differently. I’ve observed my own two boys, just three years apart, using social media/smart phones each in his own distinct way. My younger son relies almost exclusively on texting, while my older son actually occasionally talks on his cell-phone. Things may not move quite this fast with our state of gender affairs but I assert that we are now experiencing changes in our gender roles much faster than at any other time in human history. While I’m part of the sixties generation where we believed we re-invented everything, from sex to politics, established that anyone over 30 didn’t know anything, changed college life forever, was the first generation to have the pill, and the first to topple a presidency and end a war by withdrawal, we still have our own adjustments to these gender changes.

Dogs in Bed?

Posted on June 19, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

I love my wife, I love my boys, and I love my dogs. In that order. As I re-married after a contentious divorce, the blending of my family—my two boys, my two dogs, and me with her and her one dog, was a challenge. She had to deal with more adaptation, without a doubt, but we had to deal with a woman in our midst and one that, surprise surprise, actually cared about cleanliness and order.

For me, the biggest challenge in dealing with the mostly positive changes in our all male household, was giving up the warmth and companionship of my dogs, in bed with me. They were there, for me, in the darkest hours of my separation and divorce, when my boys were with their mom, when our then large home felt cavernous and terribly quiet and empty, and I literally think they saved my sanity.

Expectations — A Lose-Lose

Posted on June 18, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

Expectations. Having them just hurts and disappoints. Maybe have them for yourself, but I’d rather re-phrase them as “goals” rather than expectations.

I’ve had expectations my whole life and they’ve only caused heartache, disappointment, and bad behavior when I lashed out at those that didn’t fulfill MY expectations. Bad behavior that hurt me more than them.

Right now, I’m facing some failed expectations and doing my darndest to not let them phase me or hurt the relationships involved. As you probably know, I have a new Radio Show – “The Bruce Sallan Show – A Dad’s Point-of-View” on Thursdays, at 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., PST on KZSB AM1290 in Santa Barbara. More info on the show can be found on my “Radio Show” tab on my web-site. The radio business has changed and it’s often the second job of the host of a show to help secure sponsors to support and pay for the show. So, I reached out initially to people I’ve done business with over the years and felt were either my honest-to-goodness friends or certainly close acquaintances. One, in particular, I’ve known for 15 years and we’d grown quite close. He’s come through as my first sponsor. However, the other two I contacted have not come through, one way or another.

Memorial Day — One Year Later: My Story

Posted on May 31, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

Memorial Day–One Year Later, by Bruce Sallan

For me, this Memorial Day, I have an anniversary. One for which I shudder a bit in memory and also feel extremely grateful. That is what Memorial Day is actually all about –gratitude for the men and women that have served our country in the armed forces, sacrificed their lives or their physical well-being, in support of making the world safer.

In recognition of those men and women, I first share with you this short video of VJ Day in Honolulu, Hawaii on August 14, 1945, less than 6 years after Pearl Harbor, the day that “will live in infamy,” according to our then President, FDR.

My Son’s Rock ‘N’ Roll Dream Came True

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

On May 3, 2010, my son’s dream came true! He went to see his idol Chris Cornell at a benefit acoustic concert at The Roxy, on Sunset Blvd., in Hollywood, California. With his girlfriend Logan, they pushed their way to the front of the crowd. Cornell was playing acoustic guitar with only a cello as back-up.

Arnie and Chris Cornell at The Roxy, May 2010

At a pause between songs, Arnie shouts out, “Hey, Chris, I have a question for you” and gets his attention, to which Chris asks, “Yes, what is it?” Arnie then shouts, “It’s been my lifelong dream to jam on one song with you.” Cornell says, “Well, what do you play and do you have a song in mind?” Arnie replies, “I’ve been playing guitar for 6 years and I want to play “Fell On Black Days” at which point the crowd is shouting to Chris, “Let him, Let him!”

There’s NO heart in texting!

Posted on April 25, 2010 by Bruce Sallan

While walking with a friend, we were talking about how our kids use modern communication and social media in their lives He friend relayed the story of his 18-year-old high school senior asking a girl to be his prom date, via a text message! Fortunately for his son, she liked him a lot, and texted back “Yes.” In my opinion, there was no heart in this.

Later, when his son and date were making their plans, they discussed a good friend of his that was nervous about asking a particular girl as his date to the prom. He asked should he text her? The response was an immediate and emphatic, “NO!” Because there is NO heart in texting!