Through the magic of the Internet I was introduced to another new band – Puracane. This band falls into the Trip Hop/Electronic genre. I love the haunting vocals of the lead singer, the off beat drum patterns and the variety in their music. While working out the other day, I was listening to a long…
Author: Steve Ainslie
Not Fitting In
From 3rd grade on, I never felt like I really fit in. My parents had divorced. We left the hometown where I grew up and we moved to Pittsburgh. Other than my mother’s best friend and her kids, I didn’t know anyone in Pittsburgh. And I never really fit in with this woman nor her…
Bite Me
For the past week, I’ve been battling mosquitos nonstop. When I workout in the morning, they swarm my legs. Even though I now have lightning quick reflexes from my diet, I’ve been fighting a losing battle. Sometimes I don’t see of feel them biting me until it’s too late. Then when I’m unleashing the dogs…
Illusion Of Choice
In The Paradox of Choice, the author Barry Schwartz writes that having too many choices can make us less happy and less satisfied. His argument holds true for me personally. While I like having a few choices, I find that having too many choices is overwhelming. It’s obvious to any regular reader of this blog…
Kinda Ugly
The #1 suggestion for being more successful using dating apps is to use good pictures. Any dating app site, any dating advice podcast and any person familiar with online dating will parrot this. I fell for this trope when I was using Bumble and Hinge. First I used the pics I had on my phone….
Pretending Not To Care
My mother often says, “It’s no big deal” to dismiss whatever feelings she has about a situation and end a conversation about something that might trigger an emotional response. No wonder I did the same thing for so many years of my life! I used to stuff down my fear, excitement, wonder and joy to…
Retirement Fantasy Vs Reality
When I was in my 30s, I would fantasize about someday being able to retire. At the time, I was working for tech startups. I enjoyed the work, my colleagues and the challenges. I liked that my income was going up rapidly. I liked having a reputation as a “go to” guy who made things…
No More Craigslist
When I first became aware of Craigslist in my city, I thought it was fantastic for buying and selling used goods. Before Craiglist, selling something meant placing an ad in the local paper and paying $20 for 4 lines of text running only 2-7 days. Then you had to hope a potential buyer saw the…
Chop Wood, Carry Water
A Zen Koan says, “Before enlightenment chop wood, carry water…After enlightenment chop wood, carry water.” I first read this when I was learning yoga from Doug Swenson’s Ashtanga book in 2009. It has stuck with me ever since. Another phrase that has stuck with me for years is, “If your job is to sweep floors,…
Money Unmotivated
It is so strange to care so little about money anymore after sending most of my life yearning and striving to become wealthy. I’m never got there. I am early retired. I live off of investments and savings until social security kicks in. My life is relatively comfortable, but it involves compromises I wouldn’t make…