My Wife Warned Me Not to Kiss the Blarney Stone

Star Date 08.12.2025

Before I got in line to kiss the Blarney Stone in Ireland, my wife gave me one caution: “You’ve already got enough blarney.”

Legend says those who kiss the stone are blessed with the gift of eloquence. My wife seemed concerned that adding to my “gift of gab” might push things over the top. I’m not sure what happened, but afterward I felt like I’d been given a shot in the arm. Maybe it was the real thing, or maybe it was just the placebo effect.

Either way, when I later asked Alberta—my artificial intelligence assistant—how I could perform my day job better, she suggested refining my storytelling skills. That’s when I realized: sometimes, being “over the top” makes all the difference.

We live in a time when the line between reality and fiction is often blurred. The world is shifting so fast that many are losing their bearings. Does kissing the Blarney Stone really make you more articulate? Do placebos truly work? We could explore the human brain for a lifetime and still never uncover all its secrets.

So I’m taking this journey one day at a time—sharing personal stories, building rapport, and embracing vulnerability. My confidence is growing. In some ways, I feel like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz—trying to find my way home, eyes fixed on Heaven. Maybe these stories will help others find what I’m seeking.

Stay tuned. I’m getting ready for a deep dive.
Have a great day.

"Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." — Colossians 4:6

Captain’s Log Addendum

Star Date 08.12.2025 — Supplemental

Bones: “For heaven’s sake, Michael, you went all the way to Ireland just to hang upside down and kiss a rock? That’s not medicine—that’s lunacy.”

Spock: “On the contrary, Doctor. The act appears to be a primitive ritual designed to increase verbal persuasion. While scientifically unproven, the placebo effect cannot be discounted.”

Bones: “Placebo effect, my foot. He’s already got more chatter than the ship’s intercom. If that stone gave him any more blarney, we’re doomed.”

Spock: raises eyebrow “Logic suggests that articulation, when seasoned with grace, may in fact strengthen leadership and morale. It is not the quantity of words that matters, Doctor, but their purpose.”

Bones: “Well, let’s just hope his ‘purpose’ doesn’t talk us into a black hole. Lord help us.”

Captain’s Reflection: Maybe Bones is right—I don’t need more words. But Spock reminds me that when they’re seasoned with grace, words can point people home. And that’s the real gift.