A very heartfelt (albeit belated) Happy Mother’s Day to all of the Moms out there and to those who are regarded as a Mom to someone. I especially extend this to my Aunt/Godmother and to my own Mother-in-Law, the latter with whom we spent some nice time with this past weekend.

It is also yet another day that I remember my own Mom, whom I lost 6 years ago. She was an amazing woman, and I could fill pages of posts about how truly wonderful she was. Not only was she the one who taught me about sports, but she did all she could to make sure both of her kids went to college, and encouraged me all the way with computers from when I got my first one in junior high. Though it may be cliché, I would not be here today if it wasn’t for her love and sacrifices.

This picture is my favorite of me and my Mom, taken at the old Foxboro Stadium during a Patriots game in 1999. Some say it is ironic that the Patriots won the Super Bowl and I got married, both within a year of her passing – but I know better that there were some special "forces" involved!

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As time slides through the hourglass and I did not schedule time to write more this week, I thought I would share this story from The Onion on blogging.

I don't consider this a biopic at all, but we can all use a few extra bucks!

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Today Delta Air Lines came out of bankruptcy. At an "event" to announce this, they unveiled a new logo and announced they will be repainting their aircraft with it. This is 19th logo for Delta in 78 years, and you can see all the past logos courtesy of the Delta History Museum. The following was from their press release announcing the new logo:

"Delta’s brand, which includes the customer experience and our financial stability, has been changing for the last 19 months thanks to the tireless efforts of Delta people worldwide," said Tim Mapes, Delta’s vice president of Marketing. "Now, it's time to refresh our visible brand identity to mark the progress we've made. It represents the very core of Delta people who are more passionate than ever to provide our customers with the very best experience possible."

From this statement, the logo changes everything, correct? All Delta employees, those remaining after layoffs who have taken pay cuts themselves, will be much happier, right? Aircraft will be much cleaner and in and out of gates on time, no?

I see no need for this. The physical airplane is the last step of the customer experience with the airlines. And my only close-up view of the airplane is very limited, when I am at the gate just about to board the plane. Sure, I may see other planes out the window of the plane I am currently on, but do I look out and say, "oh, I want to fly that airline, they have cooler colors?" By the time I am on the plane, I have made my decision who to fly, paid for my ticket and am ready to get to my destination.

I see the airline industry in line with the retail banking industry, where they change names, rebrand, throw big parties, but what really changes? Is service improved, both in quality and cost of delivery? Can I get personalized service and have a personal relationship with either? How will a new logo on a sign in an airport and a new coat of paint on a plane make a difference to me, the consumer?

Delta isn't the only one guilty of this. When US Airways merged with America West, the combined airline decaled planes with the "throwback" logos of the airlines that merged to make US Airways. Even frugal Southwest repainted the majority of their planes from desert colors to blue. Once again, the painter and signmaker are the ones who truly benefit from these changes, just as in banking.

Now I am waiting for Hugo Chavez and his Citgo to challenge Delta on the similarities of their new logo to his longstanding one!

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This past week, former New England Patriots star Darryl Stingley passed away too early at the age of 55. The Chicago native’s remarkable career was cut way too short when a cheap hit from behind in a preseason game in 1978 left him confined to a wheelchair. He returned to Chicago and helped start a non-profit foundation to help inner-city youth.

I just read an article on the Patriots’ official Web site talking about Stingley and two other famous teammates drafted together by the team in 1973. At the end of the story is a poem that Stingley had taped in his locker during his rookie season titled "Don’t Quit" and the first stanza reads:

"When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And when you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest, if you must – but don’t quit."

I am fortunate to be surrounded by positive people in my life, but when things get somewhat crappy for me during the day, I will now think of this poem.

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Forget snakes on a plane, there are coyotes on the loose in downtown Chicago! The capture of a coyote in a Quizno’s sub shop the other day apparently is not an uncommon occurrence, as several are usually sighted here every year.

After living in the suburbs and in the mountains, it’s when I live in the city that a coyote is in my midst!

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