Author: Steve Ainslie

I have often regretted my college experience. I picked the wrong school. I dove headfirst into an intense curriculum and grueling schedule without truly considering what I wanted to do with my life. After wasting 2 full-time years and 3 part-time years, I left without a degree. Looking back, I think, “I could have become…

This line from Radiohead’s song Creep kept echoing through my head as I walked the dogs this morning. I’ve been thinking this when I visit online forums that are dedicated to my way of life including: I feel the same way in the offline world too, as evidenced by my loner by choice lifestyle. Not…

It all started after I exhausted myself replacing 3 faucets in September. I was worn down mentally, physically and emotionally. On the way home from a late night Home Depot run, I decided to reward myself with an eating binge of feel-good food. I stopped at the grocery store on the way home and went…

I can’t help myself. I’m going to offer prediction about Trump and the Epstein files that are dominating the current news cycle. My prediction is that whatever is released will not affect Trump in the way that any of his opponents are pining for. Anything truly damaging will never get released. Files will be deleted….

I just finished reading this book by Neil Degrass Tyson which is described on his website as “…Tyson invites us to go behind the scenes of his public fame by unveiling his candid correspondence with people across the globe who have sought him out in search of answers. In this hand-picked collection of 101 letters,…

The City of Raleigh launched a new website portal for its water and sewage department this week. They sent out an email blast informing customers that we had to log into the portal to setup a new account. On the first day, I logged in to do this. Or, more accurately, I tried to do…

If you thought for one second that the latest government shutdown actually had anything to do with helping the poor and the middle class with affordability of housing, medical insurance, food, utilities or childcare, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you. I knew from the moment the shutdown began back in September that…

“What do you want people to say about you at your funeral?” is a trope often asked rhetorically by authors, business people, success “coaches”, podcasters, behavioral economists, psychologists and motivational speakers are talking about money, financial success, careers, meaning and purpose. Its overuse has become worse than referencing the marshmallow experiment. I think that people…

On the GenX subreddit yesterday, a woman asked “Do men our age still pursue women?” The context is that she’s a recently divorced GenX woman (mid 50s) who has returned to dating after being married for several decades. Apparently, she hasn’t had much success so far. The feedback, from other GenXers was interesting. The men…

After the election of Zohran Mamdani for Mayor of NYC I listened to a podcast that had a reporter covering the post-election campaign celebration. It sounded like a party – as in drinking, dancing, laughing, socializing and celebrating. People were having fun. I remember thinking the same thing after watching coverage of a Trump rally…