Don Hall 3/3/25 Don Hall 3/3/25

I Believe… [Spring of Deception]

...that the fake Spring (always around the end of February or beginning of March) in Chicago is something special. All of sudden people are out in shirt sleeves and walking the lakefront. A week later, it’ll be like a dream we all had but a really good one.

David Himmel 2/28/25 David Himmel 2/28/25

Notes from the Post-it Wall | Week of February 23, 2025

Is it misogyny that I get nervous speaking to women who are taller than me? Because I feel the same way when that person—of any sex or gender—is younger than me. So, am I an ageist-misogynist? Or am I just self-conscious about my very dull, very average height?

Don Hall 2/27/25 Don Hall 2/27/25

America is Exceptional (Even Though Most Americans Aren’t)

But America itself is exceptional precisely because it does not need the majority of its people to be exceptional. It only needs enough of them—just enough—to keep pushing forward, to keep inventing, to keep driving the story of human progress forward.

Don Hall 2/25/25 Don Hall 2/25/25

MOSTLY LIVE FROM NEW YORK

I was reminded of a quote attributed to Lorne Michaels when he was pitching the show—it should feel like the television studio had shut down for the night and had been taken over by a bunch of kids. As the show unfolded, I started to notice that the ‘bunch of kids’ are as old as dirt.

Don Hall 2/24/25 Don Hall 2/24/25

I Believe… [The Stink of Neighborhoods]

...that one can make a lot of assumptions about the neighborhoods in Chicago but there is no escaping the fact that the Red Line smells like piss and weed and the Brown Line does not.

David Himmel 2/21/25 David Himmel 2/21/25

Notes from the Post-it Wall | Week of February 16, 2025

Hell hath no fury like a bored housemom who experienced a microaggression.

Don Hall 2/17/25 Don Hall 2/17/25

I Believe… [Special Purpose]

...that there must be a purpose of living beyond simply surviving despite the fact that survival is a heavy lift for most people. To find your purpose, look to the things that bring you the most joy and pursue.

David Himmel 2/14/25 David Himmel 2/14/25

Notes from the Post-it Wall | Week of February 9, 2025

We’ve abandoned Freud. Nothing is nurture, it’s strict nature. Who we are is no longer defined by our experiences or our relationships with our parents or friends, but by our neurodiverse ailments. It’s no longer survival of the fittest, it’s survival of who has the most diagnoses. And with all that, so goes accountability out the window.

Don Hall 2/12/25 Don Hall 2/12/25

A Collision of Mirrors and Masks

When Victim Society and Honor Society collide, it’s not a battle of ideologies—it’s a battle of insecurities. Both are desperate for validation, just in different languages. One says, “Look at my pain,” the other says, “Look at my strength,” but underneath, they’re both screaming, “Please, just look at me.”

Contributing Writer 2/11/25 Contributing Writer 2/11/25

2025 Global Peace Tour

I am committed to fostering peace and community, values that define my life. It is easy to retreat into anger and division, to see the world as “us” vs. “them.” But that is not the best use of our time on our planet. There is no “them.” There is only us. Let’s act like it.

Don Hall 2/10/25 Don Hall 2/10/25

I Believe… [Calm DOWN!]

...that telling people to calm down is less effective to actually getting them calm than the act of being calm in the first place. Lead by example.

David Himmel 2/7/25 David Himmel 2/7/25

Notes from the Post-it Wall | Week of February 2, 2025

Go on, live your truth. But recognize that part of that truth is that your actions, in whatever manner, affect people. So, if you’re going to live your truth, you have to live with the accountability that comes with it. Otherwise, the truth is, you’re just an asshole.