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June 8, 2009
 Annoyance Sure it’s Monday, but I had a good weekend and plenty of sleep. The shower was hot. My hair isn’t any more sticky-uppy than usual. And after 30 minutes of yoga, and a couple of buttermilk pancakes I’m feeling pretty mellow. But since this is Day 1 of my Annoyance Challenge I’m going to have to get with the program… fast! Not a problem. Even though I like to think of myself as someone who doesn’t get annoyed all that often. (How annoying is that?) I can always recycle some not-yet-expired annoyance or concoct a fresh batch out of nothing. And maybe that’s the point. All of us have the capacity to build on a present time or cherished inconvenience (frustration, rudeness, snub, etc.) and buff it to a brilliant gloss until we’re totally pissed at the whole freakin’ world.
Annoyance is like hunger… except backwards. When I’m really hungry I snag some Trader Joe’s dark chocolate. (Don’t tell David. He thinks we have mice.) That takes the edge off. Hunger + food = less hunger. But even when I’m mildly irritated, I can instantly rev up my grumpiness tenfold by mentally, verbally and/or physically attacking the cause of my annoyance. That squirrel on the bird feeder. My split thumbnail. The client whose check is still not in my mailbox!? Annoyance + mental garbage = more annoyance.
I’m nothing special. We can all work this little miracle of insanity. The question is why would anyone choose to feel more annoyed when it’s sooo annoying? Not sure about that yet, but I’m on a 30 day quest to discover as much as I can about my love-hate relationship with annoyance. And in the process, I’m also hoping I can locate the fine tuning dial at Annoyance HQ. Then I’ll be The Decider when it comes to dialing it up or down.
It’s all about self-control and my personal mission to help teens get along better with their friends and families. The Annoyance Challenge is also about world peace. Seriously! Obama goes to Cairo and tells a zillion people that those “others” who have always annoyed the crap out of you may actually share some of your core values. So instead of jumping down their throats or slitting them, how about working together and maybe we can all get some of what we want… peace, security, respect, and justice for us and our families?
Sounds like a plan to me.
See you tomorrow. When I’ll begin taking an unbiased look at the stuff that usually drives me nuts. If you want to share your own annoyance triggers, that’s what the comment button’s for.
April 19, 2009
 I’m very excited to announce the launch of Family Confidential: Secrets of Successful Parenting, my new regular podcast series. Hosted by me and produced by Electric Eggplant, Family Confidential brings you practical parenting advice through recorded in-depth conversations with authors, educators and therapists. If you’re a parent of a tween or teen, this series is for you. It’s also for you if you work with middle or high school students. In fact, you can become a part of the series by sending in your parenting questions. I’ll address them on the show. These dynamic and personal discussions help strengthen family connections by providing tips, insights and practical tools for guiding your kids through middle school and beyond. FamilyConfidential.com
This week’s show, “The Gift of Confidence.” As parents, we all want our kids to succeed, and we want them to grow up up to be self-confident. But sometimes what we say we want is at odds with some of our parenting choices. Especially when it comes to doing what’s really necessary to help our children grow toward independence and self-reliance. In this podcast I talk with Joe Bruzzese M.A., author of “A Parents’ Guide to the Middle School Years.” Joe’s book and his ongoing work as a parent coach offer practical advice for building confidence in your child.
Listen here (QuickTime required):
[QUICKTIME http://www.anniefox.com/podcast/FC001.m4a 300 300 false true]
If you have iTunes, you can subscribe to this podcast in the iTunes Store.
Or, you can download an MP3 version here.
Upcoming guest authors include:
Subscribe to Family Confidential and tune in each time!
*What’s a podcast? “A podcast is a series of digital media files, usually either digital audio or video, that is made available for download via web syndication.” — Wikipedia… So, in this case, there’s an audio file for you to listen to (in addition to reading the above).
January 18, 2009
 We Are One Concert The We Are One inaugural celebration kicks off today at 2:30 PM ET in front of the Lincoln Memorial (site of Martin Luther King Jr.’s, “I Have a Dream” speech). (I definitely see a theme shaping up here.) It’s free and open to the public (thermal underwear not included) and this concert’s got an unbelievable line-up of all-star… stars! We’re heading over there in a bit and I’ll be blogging about it tomorrow. But here’s a tip… you can watch the concert live at 2:30 PM ET/11:30 AM PT on HBO or later tonight on HBO at 7 PM ET/PT and 11:30 PM ET/PT (I know that’s late but there’s no school tomorrow!). Which reminds me, if you’re looking to do something of value on Monday’s National Day of Service… check this out.
January 6, 2009
 President-elect Barack Obama For the rest of January, I’ll be writing a special Inauguration blog for middle and high school students. This is the first entry.
On Thursday January 15th I’m heading to Washington, D.C. for the Inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. I know DC is way chillier than what I’m used to, but I’m too excited to worry about cold hands and feet. This will be an amazing adventure that will take me back into America’s historic past and forward into our nation’s future.
Want to come along? No, I don’t have an extra plane ticket (sorry about that) but I do have a virtual seat for you in the front row. Through this blog you can be right beside me from the moment I arrive at Baltimore-Washington International Airport on Jan. 15th until my return to the San Francisco Bay Area. I’ll only be gone for 7 days, but I’ve got tons of stuff planned for my time in Washington. Come along and be part of the experience at:
- The Library of Congress the largest library in the world with over 20 million books. And that’s not counting all the discs, tapes, movies, maps, photographs, posters and drawings! Teachers: check this out.
And that’s just a fraction of what I’ll be blogging about through text, video clips, as well as audio and pix.
Want to be a part of America’s history and our next chapter? You can start right now by thinking about these questions…
- Why should you or any middle school student care about what happens in Washington?
- What does the election of the first African-American president say about us, as Americans?
- If you were going to be inaugurated President of the United States on January 20th, what would be the first thing you’d do to make our country better?
- What could you do to make your school a better place?
What do you think… about any of it? Got something else you want to say about President-elect Obama, the election, the Inauguration, America, democracy, freedom, etc.? Post your comments here. Got a whole lot to say? Be a guest blogger! I’ll publish a few of the best student blogs I receive. Just . Your ideas and opinions matter! Go ahead. Feel free.
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