(This is part of a series showing Synchronicity in my life)
I never thought that a teenage friend that I sang with would eventually follow the same path when choosing the profession that we would practice the rest of our life.
Continue readingCategory Archives: understanding
Coincidence or Synchronicity? You Call (2)
(This is part of a series showing Synchronicity in my life)
First Wife Introduced by Singing Buddy in Louisiana
Continue readingHow Synchronicity Helps Guide my Life (1)
(You may be reading this because something occurred in your life that drew your atttention to this post. It may not be a coincidence, but a synchronistic “pull” guiding you to know more of this psychological topic)
Continue readingKeep an Eye and Ear Out for Synchronicity
Singing ‘Yankee Doodle” with Grandkids
I was thrilled and felt so patriotic when I ushered my two young grandchildren into my room and had them listen to the song “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” It was playing on the TCM channel with James Cagney dancing up a storm!
Continue readingPreparing for the Final Act That’s Coming
I just completed a list of sources for my son to use once I casually die.
Continue readingDon’t Know What You Got ‘Til It’s Gone
I did not know I had so much in common with Folk Singer Joni Mitchell until I reviewed an article about Earth Day and once again fell in love with one of her songs.
Continue readingMail-in Voter Ballot Helps All Voters
Why is there a sustained effort to get rid of a state’s right to allow mail-in ballots for elections held for Primary as well as General Elections?
Continue readingHospital Visit Calling Out for a Little Fun
I will be admitting myself to the Veteran Administration Hospital in Philadelphia to undergo a procedure in order to avoid the excruciating pain I suffered before from similar undertakings.
Continue readingNominated for an Award is Rewarding
Never know what you’re going to find when you begin to re-read some of the messages you received on your WordPress Blog Posts.
I was nominated for the “Liebster Award” which is recognition of blog post writers by other bloggers. The author used the name of “Lillies Loves” at her site, and had offered the award in a message I had overlooked until I saw it in response to a post I wrote several years ago about the Jewish mysticism called Kabbalah.
Continue readingPhiladelphia Celebrations for 4th of July
The United States will celebrate its “Semiquincentennial” on the 4th of July and plans are already made to kick off this historic event with dozens of activities in the birthplace of the nation – Philadelphia.
Continue readingGrandkids Add Fun & Lotsa Joy to All
What a joy grandkids provide us, particularly when they share their daily lives with you as a family. I’m talking about my 6-year-old grandchild, Denalia, and my rambunctious 8-year-old grandson, Jameson Contos.
Continue readingA Bird Greets me for Another Glorious Day
For the first time in my life, a bird greeted me outside my bedroom window as I contemplated whether to get out of bed earlier today.
It was 6 a.m. in the morning! A little too early for my taste, so I just rolled over and rested my head against the two pillows I had piled up on one side of the bed. (They help prop me up when I watch television many hours later.)
Continue readingHonor Flight to War Memorials Scheduled
I will be off to Washington DC next month on an excursion strictly for veterans to participate in what has been designated as an “Honor Flight” for those who served in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
Continue readingVA – Uber is now free for disabled veterans
I was escorted from my home by a Uber driver for the first time in my life when I learned the Veterans Administration provides the service free for disabled veterans.
Continue readingPneumonia beat back after hospital stay
I believe that I am finally cured of pneumonia, rhino virus bacterial pneumonia that is, which I believe I got after Covid struck me for the second time in October and stayed with me through what I thought was nothing more than a persistent cough and excess phlegm problem.
Continue readingHank Williams singer & song-writer honor
The month of January will always bring a sad feeling when I recall what happened on the first day of the year in 1953 to one of the greatest Country and Western singers of all time.
Continue readingAging process is now slowing me down
SLOW DOWN!
I believe that is what the Universe is telling me as I have gotten older and time has caught up with this aging body that – for the life of me – can’t physically handle everyday chores and activities I routinely completed some six months ago.
Continue readingInvestigate the 2024 election for fraud?
Was the 2024 presidential election rigged somehow by some unsavory characters with a history of such actions from the last presidential election?
Continue readingVoting for the future of the USA today
I cast my ballot today for the 2024 election in the United States in the hopes and joyful expectations that Kamala Harris will win and be declared president.
Continue readingNeed for America’s Global Unity is now
I will be participating this Sunday in a gathering sponsored by a group presenting a woman I have followed for more than 10 years on a spiritual journey. Lorna Byrne is a woman from Ireland who has been seeing and speaking with angels since she was two years old and written several books on how we can open ourselves to the angelic realm that exists for our benefit.
Continue readingSeniors are Opening to Meditation Now!
I never thought that words I wrote on a slip of paper and dropped into a suggestion box would somehow enlighten me!
Continue readingPottstown Mercury Newspaper reunion
The Pottstown Mercury Newspaper – where I served as cub reporter during the Bicentennial Year – will have a reunion as one of my mentors and great news reporters has scheduled a meeting this weekend.
Continue readingCharlie Chaplin gets Laughs from All Kids
I got a kick out of introducing my grandson to one of the most enduring and well-liked comedians of all time.
Continue readingDemocracy Wins in this Historic Jury Trial
Relieved.
Grateful.
Joyful.
Those are the words that sprung from my heart and soul as I took in what the jury provided the entire world with their unanimous decision to convict a former USA president.
Continue readingGood things happen when you open to ’em
They say that “bad things happen in threes.” But I’m here to tell you that good things can happen in threes if you but open yourself to ’em.
Continue readingDefender Assn. of Phila. honored today
The Defender Association of Philadelphia, of which I worked for 20 years as a public defender, is celebrating its 90th year of representing poor defendants today!
Continue readingWhat to do when hearing you’re deceased
“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
That is what Mark Twain wrote in a cablegram he sent from Europe to a newspaper publisher in the United States that had published an obituary with false details of his death in a widely circulated newspaper one day more than a hundred years ago.
I am saying the same thing right now in the year 2024!
Continue readingSongs with numbers in them awaken me!
A Trivia game I played with senior citizens recently at the Upper Merion Senior Service Center focused on musical songs that contained numbers in their titles.
Continue reading‘My Social Security’ & all of your earnings
While getting together all taxable income documents for 2023 to file with the IRS, I came across something that is quite amazing. The Social Security System keeps a list of all earnings you ever made starting with the first time you ever worked.
Continue readingTerms befuddling my sexual understanding
There are certain words and phrases in the English Language that I just can’t relate to or understand and bug me whenever I am asked to respond to them.
Continue readingExcellent Treatment at Philly VA Hospital
I am about to get one of those RSV shots at the VA Hospital of Philadelphia to prevent any lung infection, and I wanted to share my enthusiasm for all the work the Veterans Administration has provided me with most of my adult life.
Continue readingGetting Credit for my Time Served in Philly
Courtroom Opponents Meeting Up Years Later
You never know when an action from your past may catch up to you and remind you of what you once did in your previous life.
Continue readingBirthday coincidence or just a cosmic joke?
Does Fate have anything to do with the day that a person is born? Can one person born on the same date years earlier have some sort of influence on someone born years and perhaps even centuries later?
Continue readingHas a “huge angel” been influencing me?
While attending the 10th anniversary of the Center for Contemporary Mysticism, a mystical experience opened my eyes to so many spiritual possibilities.
Continue readingHeartline & Intuition studies completed
It has taken me three years to complete one study and a mere two years to finish the other, but I believe I have contributed to the scientific understanding of researchers for possible heart ailments and changes in thinking and memory for adults.
Continue readingMy writing device driven home in a flash
‘Don’t mess around with Synchronicity’
I was thinking about a story I once wrote for a newspaper about the Philadelphia-born singer Jim Croce, and I discovered so many steppingstones that guided me from one career choice to another with an almost mystical maneuvering.
Continue readingSo grateful for feeling fewer body pains
While just starting to meditate, I could not get rid of thinking about the pains I was feeling in my body.
Continue readingSupreme Court Guts a More Perfect Union
Today’s Supreme Court is the worst judicial tribunal since the United States’ highest judiciary ruled in 1856 that blacks were not and could not be citizens.
Continue readingConfederate names changed at Army bases
The name change has finally occurred, and I am happy to report that every US Army base where I was stationed has had its Confederate Army soldier’s name removed and replaced with more admirable names.
Continue readingBobby Darin tribute for his birthday today
Today (May 13th) is the birthday of my favorite singer of all time.
If he lived, Bobby Darin would have turned 87, but a rheumatic heart condition caused a premature death at age 37.
That was exactly 50 years ago this year on Dec. 20, 1973.
Continue reading‘Stand Back’ Proud Boys Guilty of Treason
Traitors.
That’s the word that everyone in the United States can call four of the Proud Boys who were found guilty by a jury of their peers for taking part in the insurrection conducted in the Capital on Jan. 6, 2021. They reached the verdict on 31 of 46 counts following seven days of deliberation in Washington DC and nearly 15 weeks of courtroom proceedings.
Continue readingGabriel’s Messages – available to all souls!
“Gabriel’s Messages” opened my heart to so many truths not only about life but of the transition of death, and I hope that others can read this wonderful book by my friend, Cyndi Smith, a fellow member of the Center for Contemporary Mysticism of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia.
Continue readingBan Fox News lies from our military bases
Fox News should be curtailed on all military bases and facilities to prevent men and women in uniform to be lied to about stories and events shaping our nation, particularly the political world around us.
Continue readingAcupuncture Offered to Help Veterans
I’m getting Therapy once again for my Well-Being!
Physical therapy, that is. Although I could probably use a little for my mental well-being. (Just kidding.)
Continue readingVietnam War Peace Accord 50 years old!
This month marks the 50th anniversary of when the Vietnam War finally ended. A Peace Accord was reached on January 27, 1973, making way for the complete removal of all troops by March 29th of the same year.
Continue reading‘So It Goes’ for Kurt Vonnegut Jr, Anti-War Veteran Author, and also a Former POW
One of my all-time favorite authors – a veteran who was a POW and a staunch anti-war advocate – would have celebrated his 100th birthday this month.
Continue readingHere’s my Pledge to Vote in Pennsylvania!
Voting has been made easier for many of us in Pennsylvania and the state provides links for checking on your voting status as well as any request seeking a mail-in ballot. I took part in a Zoom connection entitled “MontCoVotes” and learned how to maneuver through the government channels and wanted to share them here.
Continue readingSt. Francis of Assisi is truly honored today
The world is celebrating the feast day of Saint Francis of Assisi today!
Continue readingCommunity College creates career choices
(See Part I “My Delaware County Community College!”)
Before I ever went to a Community College, I had to make up several deficits in my learning. I had to take Remedial Math as well as Remedial English. I passed both and was then permitted to take regular classes which include journalism studies and just as important, the school’s extra-curricular activity of working on the college newspaper.
Dance recall ain’t all that easy nowadays
For the life of me, I cannot remember the first time I ever danced.
You know, get out on the floor of somebody’s home, a schoolroom, or even a dance floor and move around to music or some make-believe dance sound. My mind simply can’t dig up that moment that should be among my most precious memories. Continue readingFramed for my Service in the Vietnam War
I’ve Been “Framed.”
And the person who framed me was none other than my son, Nicholas.
He framed all my medals from my enlistment in the US Army more than 50 years ago, including my service in the Vietnam War.
Continue readingAwakening to sounds of the outdoors again
Got a new pair of Hearing Aids, and a new world of sounds has opened!
Continue readingA photo gift for a GI & a swimsuit recovery!
What do a missing swimsuit and a 50-year-old photo of a newly-minted lieutenant have in common?
Continue readingGabriel’s Message Enlightens the moment
The following is Gabriel’s Message as channeled by my good friend Cyndi Smith:
Your soul does not completely fit inside your body. Some of your soul Remains in Heaven in what you call your Higher Self. Much of it is here inside of you but the part that overflows your body is called your aura.
Continue readingA Brewerytown Kid Grows Up – Reviewed!
First Public Defender on Supreme Court!
For the first time in our nation’s history, an attorney who once practiced law as a public defender will serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed by the Senate and will take her seat this summer when Justice Stephen Breyer steps down. She will be the first former criminal defense lawyer since Justice Thurgood Marshall, who served on the bench more than 30 years ago.
Continue readingPlease stop all your cell phone spamming
“Potential Spam” is the innocuous term that Verizon classifies as one of several phone calls I get each day on my cell phone.
Continue readingPlease Disregard My “Last” Transmission!
“The Reports of My Death are Greatly Exaggerated . . .”
This quote from Mark Twain touched my very soul yesterday when I got a message from one of my old colleagues who said that he had read something “disturbing.” The exact quote via Messenger was: “Michael, are you okay? I saw something disturbing for your name.”
Continue readingGuided Meditation calms Covid concerns
Mindfulness Meditation has Awakened Within Me.
I am once again being guided by my good friend and co-founder of the Center for Contemporary Mysticism, Joe Irwin, a former church pastor.
Continue readingKids who ‘shared a kiss’ reunite years later
Sixty years to the day of the most memorable kiss of my life, the girl who bestowed that kiss had contacted me for the first time since way back then.
Continue readingVeterans Day Tribute from Conshohocken!
I have been honored this Veterans Day through a recorded interview about my book on the Vietnam War for a program called “Good Morning Conshy,” where I share the broadcast with two companion pet managers for what is known as PACT. Many of the animals had assisted veterans who could no longer care for their pets and needed help for animals they viewed as their children.
Continue readingHighlights of a Philly public defender intern
One of my favorite jobs was serving as an intern for the Defender Association of Philadelphia. I went to the jails, the Courtrooms, and the training rooms to learn how to properly defend persons charged with various crimes.
Continue readingVietnam War Book Review a 4-Stars Rate!
Please Read and Enjoy This Review of My Book
authored by Michael J Contos
at Contoveros.wordpress.com
Continue readingConshohocken may hold remains of a saint
I knelt at the gravesite while bowing my head and closing my eyes to pray yesterday morning. I was visiting Calvary Cemetery of West Conshohocken, the burial site for Father William E Atkinson, an Augustinian priest who passed away in 2006 and is now being considered for canonization by the Catholic Church to be named a saint.
Continue readingMy Vietnam War Book is finally Published!
It took me more than 50 years, but I finally published my Vietnam War story and the toll it took on me after leading a combat infantry platoon when I was just a 21-year-old first lieutenant in the US Army.
Continue readingEnlarged stupidity leaks on my prostate
Schmuck.
Dumb Schmuck to be Exact
I got a call from my doctor at the VA Hospital of Philadelphia after having blood drawn earlier in the day. He was concerned about an increase in some bad things involving my prostate.
Continue readingVFW opens me to a local veterans retreat
Well, I Joined the VFW.
That is, the Veterans of Foreign Wars. I could’ve joined it right out of the Vietnam War, but at that time of my life, I didn’t want to help support the war that I had just left.
Continue reading‘Forget the Alamo’ Devastates Childhood
My reality took a major hit when I learned of a book that reveals the famous battle at the Alamo in Texas was not what Walt Disney had broadcast on TV but was a nefarious cover-up of an expansion of slavery in the Lone Star State.
Continue readingUSAA: Stop Tucker Carlson Ads to Vets
I complained to USAA, the American Veterans Car Insurance Company, when I learned that it was advertising on the Tucker Carlson show. As a subscriber of USAA for more than 50 years, I threatened to seek insurance elsewhere after the Fox News host called the Joint Chiefs of Staff general “stupid” and followed that up by describing him as a “pig.”
Continue readingSychronicity Hits my Home and my Heart!
Synchronicity is a term I have come to cherish since being introduced to it by my favorite psychologist, Carl G Jung. It refers to deeply meaningful coincidences that mysteriously occur in one’s life. Jung proved by the law of probability that they were not mere coincidences but insights into our rich and worthwhile lives.
Continue readingTreasures Discovered on my Daily Jaunt
I have found so many little treasures on my daily walk as I strive each day to achieve my goal of 10,000 steps.
Continue readingPublic Defender Advocate Still Lives On!
Walter Mondale, the Minnesota resident and former candidate for president of the United States, was a staunch advocate for providing legal services to poor people charged with crimes, and I firmly believe that his legacy will live on.
Continue readingLet’s boycott Georgia firms to save the vote
Condemn Veterans who Attacked Capitol
Any veteran who took part in the January 6th Insurrection at the US Capitol should be stripped of his or her VA benefits and labeled a “traitor.”
Continue readingJustice demands a guilty verdict for Trump
I look forward to eventually reading the news of an indictment against the former president and/or an update on all of the civil lawsuits against him.
Continue readingUniverse says: ‘All roads lead to Georgia’
Today, I am a Georgia Boy once again. And if we try hard enough, all of us could be Georgians!
Continue readingSome creep hacked into my ‘Internet ID’!
I Got Hacked.
Again!
Some sombitch broke into my Internet connection and must have sent dozens of messages to who knows how many people I have gotten to know through Facebook and possibly Messenger.
Continue readingSoldiers I knew were no ‘Losers’ Mr. Trump
First Lieutenant Victor Lee Ellinger was no ‘loser’, Mister Trump.
He was shot and killed by an enemy sniper during the Vietnam War, and I forced marched my platoon to come to his aid, only to find out we got to him too late to help.
Continue readingDating today just ain’t what it used to be!
What’s it like being young and going on a date today?
I mean, there just ain’t a good place to go, no good place to meet someone, no good activity that will allow two mostly young people to get together and see if they can make some sparks to fly.  Continue reading
Highlights of Declaration of Independence
The Fourth of July is upon us, and I wanted to share some independent facts that many Americans may not have learned in history books or inside their classrooms.
Change Confederate generals’ names now
- As a veteran of several military bases, I would vote to change the names of all the facilities named for generals who fought for the Confederate army during our nation’s Civil War. I offer such action with a heavy heart because of the link I still have with the facilities that helped to create the soldier I had become, and the lessons learned in the US Army.  Continue reading
Highlights of an Early Life Recalled Now
While I am still able to recall in some detail highlights of my early life before true adulthood, I decided to write them down for future generations and others who may want to commiserate with my adventures and misadventures.  Continue reading
Making History with my own Mail-in Vote
I voted at home today, and I can’t wait to put the written ballot in the slot opening at my local Post Office.  Continue reading
Silence greets me with a rewarding note!
I meditated this morning and realized there were few, if any, sounds coming from the street outside my home. Traffic usually provides noise from cars and trucks as motorists make their way along the suburban road in Conshohocken, PA, some 14 miles outside of Philadelphia.  Continue reading
D-Day Paratrooper falls prey to Covid-19
An American hero has fallen to the Coronavirus, and the world may never see the likes of him ever again.
Continue reading
Exercise Routine by Accident & Incentive
I exercise daily and try to get enough steps each day to add up to two miles. That’s around 6,250 steps if anyone is counting.
Well, my iPhone is counting ‘em. The steps, that is. And the miles.
Tales from my ‘State Capital Adventures’
I once worked in the Pennsylvania State Government, meeting and writing a speech for the governor, and broadcasting a news story about a new group of buses being introduced to the Keystone State. 
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Client Didn’t Die Quick Enough Contempt
(Second of two posts — See first Contempt here)
I was kicked out of a Courtroom when I raised my voice to a judge who seemed to be favoring an assistant district attorney who wanted my client removed from hospice because he hadn’t died soon enough after I got him out of jail.  Continue reading
Contempt of Court Trials & Tribulations
I was held in contempt by two different judges during my illustrious career as a Defense Attorney.  Continue reading
Grandkids can Open You to New Worlds!
“It’s snowing!” is what Phoenyx happily announced to the household as the nine-year-old made her way up to the third floor at 6:58 am this morning.  Continue reading
Contoveros Blog turns 10 years old today!
- It’s been 10 years since I wrote my first post for this “Contoveros Blogsite,” and looking back, I feel a little like Ken Burns, the producer of PBS specials on such things as war, music, and other all-American things. 
An Officer and a Gentleman Recalled
I was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant 50 years ago, and looking back, I see it as one of the greatest achievements of my life. Also, one of the luckiest ones, and I’m so glad to still be around to talk about it.
Famous People Met: Tale of our History
Who’s the most famous person you’ve ever met?
I mean directly or indirectly. And I don’t mean being in an audience with hundreds or thousands of others at a concert or rally. Continue reading
Seeing a Divine Hand in the Worst of Times
God Works in Mysterious Ways.
Put another way, the Universe will conspire to bring about what you really want and need in life, even though you may not know it when the Divine Intervention takes place.
Or even like it. The intervention that is. And on first blush, it may even seem bad, but you realize on reflection that it had to have happened for you to progress in life.  Continue reading
Reporter jailed for criticizing an election
The headline above could be something we’ll see in the not-too-distant future but actually occurred more than 200 years ago in the United States of America.
———————– Continue reading
Karma enlightens Groundhog Day movie
“Groundhog Day” is the movie starring Bill Murray, who visits Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where he is destined to live each day over and over for what seems like eternity. Its message is one of Karma and reincarnation, particularly when one realizes that the director and co-screenwriter was a practicing Buddhist by the name of Harold Remis. Continue reading
GI Bill to celebrate its 75th anniversary!
I would not have gone to college had it not been for the GI Bill, which is marking its 75th anniversary on June 22, 2019.
Court antics from young Abe Lincoln & me
I never realized I had anything in common with Abraham Lincoln until I re-watched a movie about the president’s early life as a trial attorney. Yes, Honest Abe served as a lawyer who once worked for the railroads as well as those charged with criminal offenses.
Henry Fondaplayed a young Abe Lincoln in a classic movie on Turner Classic Movies in which the Springfield, Illinois,former rail-splitter pulled a stunt in a courtroom convince a jury that his client not guilty of murder. A young man for whom Lincoln represented pro bono was charged with killing a man at night in a wooded area.
Continue reading
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