Some of the podcasts I listen to discuss politics and current events – along with more intellectual discussions so I am unfortunately exposed to the “news” on a regular basis. I put up with hearing some news because I enjoy listening to podcasts when driving, mowing the lawn and vacuuming. When podcasters start quoting headlines,…
No Kidding
A few days ago,I was out walking Wiggles and watched a husband and wife loading their two kids into the car. One kid was a toddler. They strapped him into his baby seat and handed him something to keep him occupied. The other kid looked to be around 8 years old. He was screaming at…
Even Steven
For most of the past 15 years or so, I’ve kept in touch with a few close friends from my hometown of Pittsburgh via phone calls and an occasional email. Usually, we’d hear from each other around holidays, anniversaries and big life events. For everyday conversations about the big and little things that happen all…
Halloween Halloween Halloween
When I was a little kid in Tamaqua, we went out for Halloween candy 3 days in a row! I don’t know how this became a tradition in my little town, but it was a great one. We would go out for candy 2 nights before Halloween, then 1 night before Halloween and finally on…
One Phone Call A Week
When I was working in sales management, I would receive hundreds of emails a week and was on the phone for 4-8 hours a day. When I wasn’t on the phone, I was in meetings or talking to someone. It was both invigorating and exhausting. I needed the weekends to unwind. I’d workout, take long…
A Little Less Intensity
For the past week I’ve been dealing with my chronically injured right shoulder and bursitis in my left elbow. About a week ago I decided to stop doing any exercise that causes me pain. Remarkably, just by stopping all push-up type movements resulted in my shoulder improving within days! I can’t believe it. I’ve had…
App Light
I am very selective about loading apps onto my phone. My reasons include: Functionality – Many apps are poorly designed and offer less functionality than websites. Tracking and Permissions – I’ve often begun to install an app, but after realizing that installing it would require giving the app my location, contacts, personal data etc, I…
Unrealistic Expectations
Ainslie’s rule to guarantee disappointment – Hold others in your life to your own high expectations. They are guaranteed to disappoint you. The older I get, the less I do this – probably because I’ve failed to meet my own expectations so often that I have more empathy for others who don’t meet them. I…
Some Days The Shit Just Keeps Piling On
So my chronic right shoulder injury is finally getting better now that I’ve stopped doing exercises that reinjure it. I can’t believe how good it feels after just a few days of mindful exercising. What an idiot I’ve been. So of course, today my left elbow that’s been acting up lately swelled up. F**k me….
Hi, How’s The Weather?
When I was in high school, I often realized that people I was talking to really had no interest in a meaningful conversation. I called these “Hi, How’s the weather?” conversations. After some meaningless small talk, the person would look over my shoulder, see someone they were interested in, make excuses and leave. Since I…