A fridge magnet changed my life. It said, “Show me your five closest friends and I’ll show you your future.” It’s the kind of saying that means little when you’re a kid, but I wasn’t a kid. I was sitting in the principal’s office with my son who had gotten himself in trouble on theContinue reading Your 5 Favorite Authors
While it’s euphoric to read in silence, you must learn to read your books in noisy places. Otherwise, you’ll never get any reading done. The world is full of people shouting, cars honking, circular saws buzzing, feet stomping, woodpeckers pecking, and houseflies hovering. This damned planet is set to distract me. I thought I wouldContinue reading Learn to Read in Loud Places
Reading a book is like borrowing a brain from a genius – assuming the author is brilliant. Many aren’t, and that’s why it’s important to pick the best books, but I digress. Want to become a writing genius? Borrow William Zinsser’s brain and read “On Writing Well.” Want to become a decision-making genius? Borrow DanielContinue reading How to Borrow the Brain of a Genius
It took us 6 hours and 27 minutes to get from my driveway to Las Vegas with no pit stops or bathroom breaks. My friend Paul and I were headed to the International Magician’s Convention where the world’s best con artists came together for several days of close-up magic. Think of it as a meetupContinue reading 3 Reading Mistakes That Embarrassed Me in Front of a Great Magician
In 2008, Philosopher and Yale Professor Tamar Szabó Gendler published a paper in The Journal of Philosophy showing why it’s rational to eat food that looks like poop. The piece is about “Aliefs,” a concept new to me that’s mind-boggling. Let’s explore. Gendler’s argument goes like this: If I present you with a piece ofContinue reading Would You Eat Poop Food?
I love the line, “One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” It comes from Virginia Woolf’s essay titled A Room of One’s Own and is a powerful reminder that when we’re starving for basic needs like food and shelter, it’s hard to produce great work, have healthy relationships,Continue reading Hey, Lady – Prostitution is not the only option
Do you know anyone with a mental illness? I do. I know several people battling ADHD, anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. It hurts me when they suffer, and yet I’ve noticed something that seems to be helping them. They’re reading. For the person wrestling with ADHD, a Stephen King novel (he loves The Shining) hasContinue reading Will Reading Fix Your Mental Illness?
There’s a different quality about Sunday. Compared to the other days of the week, it’s softer and less hurried. I hear the rhythmic tick of the clock and the occasional sounds of my home settling in for a quiet, winter day. My kids are still asleep as I scoop Earl Grey tea into an infuserContinue reading Reading on Sunday
Gilligan’s Island comes on at 6:00 a.m. If I get out the door by 7:15, I can bike the two miles to school and still make Mrs. Freeman’s fifth-grade class. She’s the kind of teacher who wanders the room with a wooden yardstick slapping desks and grinding her teeth. I’m convinced she’s the twin sisterContinue reading Quiet, Gilligan’s Island is On
Mom never made me eat broccoli – she wanted me to be happy. And so I was. She fed me well, always nutritious food, but if I didn’t like it, why have a fight about it? That’s my mother, wise and kind in the same package. She’s irreplaceable and she taught me a lesson. IContinue reading Stop Eating Broccoli Books