Roberto Grippi This week is “Ferragosto” in Italy, a holiday that revolves around the 15th of August. Ferragosto, originally called “Feriae Augusti,” is named after the Roman Emperor Augustus (63 B.C. – 14 A.D.). The ancient Ferragosto was established to connect the main August festivities, providing a well-deserved period of rest, also known as the “Augustali,” after … Read more
Whoever said, “The morning shows how the day will be,” must have had gin for breakfast; there is no other way to explain it.
Whenever we contemplate the advancements achieved by humanity, we envision grand-scale undertakings such as towering skyscrapers piercing the clouds, the International Space Station, the atomic bomb, automated factories, self-driving vehicles, and the colossal Three Gorges Dam. In essence, our minds gravitate towards tangible, visible, and immense objects. I invite you to ponder the underlying foundations … Read more
In English, there is a specific term for a type of external window protection against light and weather: “shutters.” In Italy, these go by many names, even though the mechanism is always the same! The mechanism originated outside of Italy, probably in Persia (modern-day Iran), but due to Italian mercantile dominance in the Mediterranean, it … Read more
Roberto Vecchioni is an Italian singer-songwriter, lyricist, writer, poet, and teacher. His lyrics are true poetry.He was a philosophy professor at a classical high school in Italy for 30 years; since teachers in Italy are generally paid less than other public employees, many pursue secondary interests to supplement their income. He became a great singer-songwriter … Read more
Sometimes I do repeat myself, also in my daily thoughts; today it is worth doing because I needed a laugh. You must know that due to my job (ceo of a small-medium size organisation), I receive a lot of mails each day, and I cannot just dismiss them.Most are in a foreign language, other that … Read more
Sometime ago, one of my daily posts deeply saddened and offended someone. May I remind all of you once more that there is nothing personal in these posts, meaning that they are not addressed to anyone and only reflect my own mood and thoughts. Yesterday evening I was watching Ricky Gervais on tv, and I … Read more
These are common-sense management rules.Would you consider them appropriate also in your private life? 1) Do not expect to be undestood, expect to be misunderstood. 2) Work on the things no one else can do and delegate the rest (… and let your friends, family help you with the rest). 3) Clarify roles on your … Read more
Quote reinterpretated in Modern English:“The less talent they have, the more pride, vanity and arrogance they have.All these fools, however, find other fools who applaud them.” Original Latin text:“Quo quisque stultior, hoc pluris sibi videtur, et quemadmodum plurimis placet, ita plurimos probat.” Literal translation:“The more foolish a man is, the more he will think of … Read more
“To be happy, three things are needed: to be an imbecile, to be selfish, and to have good health. But if you lack the first, everything is lost.” (Gustave Flaubert)
Everything flows – Pánta rheî In Parmenides’ philosophy, Being is a perfect sphere, finite and unchanging in space and time. Heraclitus twists this conception by introducing the concept of becoming, which can be summed up in a phrase that has become famous: Panta Rhei, everything flows, everything is subject to the laws of inexorable change. … Read more
Many of you have expressed pleasure to hilarious quotes.This REALLY means we need laughter. So, here are the next ones, I promise I go back to serious thoughts from tomorrow. 1 – I’d kill for a Nobel Peace Prize.2 – Borrow money from pessimists — they don’t expect it back.3 – Half the people you … Read more
Teacher: How old is your father?Kid: He is 6 years.Teacher: What? How is this possible?Kid: He became father only when I was born.(Logic!! Children are quick and always speak their minds.) TEACHER: Maria, go to the map and find North America.MARIA: Here it is.TEACHER: Correct. Now, Class, who discovered America?CLASS: Maria. TEACHER: Glenn, how do … Read more
“If everything seems under control, you are not going fast enough.” (Mario Andretti)
The Eiffel Tower is just an electric pylon that had faith in its own possibilities. Or, otherwise stated: Believe in yourself.
Years ago, a student asked anthropologist Margaret Mead what she thought was the first sign of civilization in a Culture. The student expected Mead to talk about hooks, earthenware pots, or millstones. But she did not, Mead said instead that “the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a broken and then healed … Read more
“We are relying on 19th-century institutions using 20th-century tools to address 21st-century problems.” (Ann Mei Chang, “Lean Impact: How to Innovate for Radically Greater Social Good”)
“Be not inhospitable to strangers lest they be angels in disguise.” (Motto of ‘Shakespeare and Company’, a book store located in the heart of Paris, on the banks of the Seine) “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.” Hebrews … Read more
“A cardinal rule of diplomacy, is to never make either a promise or a threat that you are not both capable and willing to see through.” (John Peter Pham)
“Aut viam inveniam, aut faciam” “I will either find a way, or make one” The phrase is attributed to Hannibal, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War, crossing the Alps with elephants; about 218 BC.