Blog – Tuesdays with Mary

Tuesday, October 27, 2025 The other morning, after the first full freeze of the season, I was out with Shelby and Grace. Shelby, a cattle dog, often locks her gaze on things “out there,” studying, measuring, trying to figure out what’s real and what’s just a shadow. Fall can play tricks on her with its shifting colors, but today she stood utterly still, only her eyes moved as they slowly scanned the plowed field and the thicket of trees behind the house. As Grace and I matched her stillness, I realized what had captured her attention. I heard it: a [...]

Tuesday, October 21, 2025 I didn’t need the books in the ’80s and ‘90s about “if you’re not early, you’re late” or “skate to where the puck is going to be”.  No, that was money I could save because instead I grew up with George Gird.  My father would make somewhat of a show of getting behind the wheel of the car about 15 minutes before our scheduled departure. If you weren’t early, you were left behind. “On time” was actually late. That was the rule — no reminders, no courtesy honks, no second chances. It turned out to be [...]

Tuesday, October 14, 2025 Did you see that 60 Minutes story about the tequila heist? It caught my attention partly because, well, tequila. But mostly because of how the thieves pulled it off. They didn’t break into a warehouse or hijack a truck on the highway. They used fake digital “paperwork”. Fake carrier profiles. Forged tracking data. The trucks looked like they were on their way. The GPS showed them moving down the highway. Only they weren’t. They were going somewhere else entirely. I couldn’t stop thinking about that — because it’s exactly the kind of deceit we deal with [...]

Tuesday, October 7, 2025 I’ve always admired women who build something of their own from the ground up. Bobbi Brown is one of those women. She started as a makeup artist in New York City in the 1980s, long before the natural look was trendy. From her house in Montclair, New Jersey, she sold her own line of lipsticks, and eventually built a global brand that reshaped the beauty industry. If for some reason you aren't familiar, Bobbi sold her original cosmetics company, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, to Estée Lauder in 1995 for a reported $74.5 million. What strikes me most [...]

Tuesday, September 30, 2025 This past weekend, diving across the plains on my way to visit my mom, I passed mile after mile of fields heavy with harvest. Combines cut neat paths, dust hung in the air, and trucks rumbled toward silos. It struck me that harvest isn’t just about gathering crops — it’s about gathering what has grown quietly, almost unnoticed, over time. Reunions feel a little like that too. They aren’t built in a single afternoon. They’re the result of all the small, steady moments that add up: the inside jokes, the phrases repeated so often they become [...]

September 23, 2025 Years ago, I worked with a company whose executive sponsor told me his measure of success for a software conversion was simple: his phone wouldn’t ring with employee complaints. You can guess what happened next. His phone rang…a lot. The project kicked off strong, slowly unraveled, then stalled.  Eventually they backed out of the conversion entirely, retreating back to their old system. It was painful to watch, not because either software wasn’t capable, but because the change wasn’t managed with the right mindset. That experience reinforced something I’ve seen again and again in large and important projects: [...]

Tuesday, Sept 9, 2025 Last week, our industry lost a true leader with the unexpected passing of Mary O’Donnell of Westcor. Mary was more than a successful executive—she was a woman of vision, integrity, and heart. She led with clarity and conviction, always keeping the future of our industry in view while never losing sight of the people who make it run. I remember her grace and grit, her laugh, and her sparkly eyes that held more than a bit of orneriness, too. Those who worked with her speak not only of her business acumen but also of her generosity, [...]

Tuesday, August 26, 2025 The housing and mortgage markets have always been central to the American economy, but right now they’re shifting in ways that demand close attention. Affordability, inventory, interest rates, negative equity, tappable equity, and borrower behavior are all moving pieces in a puzzle that affects lenders, real estate professionals, and consumers alike. In moments like this, data isn’t just helpful — it’s essential. The difference between reacting late and preparing early often comes down to who’s watching the market most closely, and how well they understand the signals behind the numbers. That’s why I’m especially excited about [...]

Tuesday, August 19, 2025 There’s a strange thing about community — it works best when you don’t agree on everything. I’ve been thinking lately about what keeps a group of very different people from turning into opponents. It’s not the sameness of opinion; it’s the sameness of agreement about the rules that let us live together. Think about the rules of the road. Some people like to drive fast, some slow. Some love big trucks, some drive little hybrids. None of that really matters so long as we all agree to stop at red lights and stay on our side [...]