Archive | Life Outside of Work

Tribute to Willy

I am writing this on March 3, 2021, one of the saddest days in the long history of Magnus Research Consultants. Last night, our beloved office dog, Willy, passed away of a brain tumor. Willy was the dog of David’s and my wonderful employee and friend, Megan. For the past 7 years, Willy worked in […]

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As you can tell, this dog, Willy, was truly hu(mans) best friend.  Willy and Megan were tight – she trained him well.  And, he trained her well also.  She communicated with him in his language – she knew what he was trying to tell her.  Usually things like, pay attention to me, feed me, walk […]

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Designated Hug Time

One of our categories for our posts is Work Life, usually said as “work life balance.” Especially when operating a small family run, or mom & pop business, there are additional stresses in the running of that business which would not be present otherwise. Considering that families who work together spend almost 24 hours a […]

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Well, it’s about time David wrote this post!  We keep a list of topics and this topic is David’s #134, meaning it has been on his list of things to write about for a long time.  I have been eager for David to write about our DHTs because this topic is one of the easiest […]

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Carole’s rock collection

The recent passing of David’s dear mother, Carole, has brought to the surface many fond memories of her. In preparing for her memorial service, David’s brother, Dale, asked me to review the beautiful eulogy he wrote. In addition, David asked me to send some of my favorite stories about his mother to the pastor who […]

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I will admit that I was not thrilled about loading and unloading a couple hundred rocks, but it was clear that the rocks were meaningful to Mom and Melissa and I had a great place to put them, so off to U-Haul I went.  When my parents downsized, or rather, each time they downsized, we […]

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Party Hats

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 9, 2021

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Mental Health, Psychology, Work-Life

Party hats! Party hats say “PARTY!” like nothing else does. In fact, party hats are essential for turning a boring celebration into something fun. Recently, my eldest brother, Park, celebrated a milestone birthday and most of our family came together to attend his party. Park’s youngest son, Slade, and I spent many hours on the […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 9, 2021

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Mental Health, Psychology, Work-Life

I’m not particularly fond of conical paper hats, aka party hats, but I certainly don’t want to be a party pooper.  It is interesting to me that such things as party hats are a shared aspect of celebrations across cultures.  There are probably anthropologists or sociologists who study such things.  And, while I haven’t really […]

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Mama’s boy

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 2, 2021

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Growing Old is Not for Sissies, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Mental Health, Work-Life

I am writing this post several days after the passing of David’s mother, Carole. Although David’s brothers are saddened because of their mother’s death (even though, in most respects, it was an expected consequence of her dementia), David has suffered immensely. David is the quintessential “Mama’s boy.” And I say this in every good way. […]

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Being a “mama’s boy” sometimes has a derogatory connotation.  I have known some for whom that was appropriate.  But, I guess my evolution that way came from two realities of childhood.  First, my Dad traveled for his job.  A lot!  I can only imagine that he drove millions of miles across Florida, Georgia and beyond […]

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Be Free

A number of Melissa’s and my prior posts have discussed aging parents, dealing with dementia, being a caregiver, and the like. Because we’re sharing our journey, I’m writing to report the end of a portion of that journey with the recent passing of my Mom. Melissa has written about this from a different perspective; my […]

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I keep hearing Martin Luther King, Jr. saying “Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty we’re free at last” as I reflect upon Carole’s passing.  If one is a spiritual person, one usually believes the soul of good people go to heaven (or a similar place, according to one’s religion) when they pass […]

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Say “Thank you!”

David and I have written about gratitude in previous posts. Some people are quick to say, “Thank you” when someone gives them a gift or does something nice, while other people rarely, if ever, show their appreciation. This post is prompted by a recent experience with someone with whom I have been acquainted for many […]

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I recall a fairly regular cause for a letter to “Dear Abby” or “Ann Landers” was the complaint that grandchildren never wrote thank you notes.  My Mom drilled that into me by buying special stationery to use for just such occasions.  And, doing so timely was expected.  It was always a bit difficult to me […]

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Ed Groot

Way back in 1993, Melissa and I first started contemplating opening our own trial consulting practice. Pretty soon, those discussions included a third individual, Ed Groot. The three of us were working for another trial consultant in what can simply be described as a toxic work environment. The three of us started planning what became […]

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I’m not sure why I was compelled to search for Ed Groot on my computer today, but something kept nagging me to do it.  I immediately came across his obituary and read that he passed away on November 30, 2020.  He would have been 80 years old on January 2, 2021.  When David and I […]

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Chris

Hooray for Chris! Chris is Chris Cochran, my dear friend since 1967. I still remember the day Chris and I met, in my back yard, by my trampoline, in the summer of 1967. Thank you, Roger, for introducing us! Chris was my neighbor for a few, all too short, years. One of our first bonding […]

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I’ve met many of Melissa’s friends over the decades we’ve been together, but I think Chris was one of the first ones I’ve met.  We got off to a good start when we me.  Though he and Melissa had known each other for many years, he seemed very familiar to me.  Lots of shared interests […]

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A crash course on elder care

For Melissa and me, our crash course on elder care started about 20 years ago, so I think we are beyond the crash course part. We’ve been engaged in learning about elder care constantly, starting when Melissa, and her brother Frank, noticed some changes in their mother’s routine behaviors. I know many people who are […]

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Since my mom began showing obvious (at least, to me) signs of dementia almost 20 years ago, I decided to learn everything I could about dementia, in its various forms.  Many people, upon noticing that “something just isn’t right” about their loved one, try their best to ignore the signs of dementia, in a misguided […]

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