How to go bald gracefully without the fear and anxiety of losing your hair When I was in the fifth grade, one of my best friends was this kid who wore two hearing aids. His name was Stephen Lesko. Why I remember that little piece of trivia is beyond me.…
Crossing The Rubicon
In which I attempt to chart a strategy for making the most of things as the ship sinks into the icy waters and the band plays on Originally published March 2023 In 49 B.C., Julius Caesar led his army to the banks of a small river that marked the boundary…
A Great Social Rewilding Is Coming
As the enshittification of the internet hits its apex and begins to collapse under the weight of a tsunami of AI slop, humanity may very well find itself back where it started, rediscovering the genuine world of books, art, music, travel, entertainment, food, and nature. Authentic experiences that have the…
Teaching Kids To Fish
Teaching children is not about memorization; it’s teaching them to be curious about the world Originally published in July 2021 You’ve seen the memes on social media, extolling the virtues of teaching life skills to kids in public schools. Stuff like how to balance a checkbook, file your taxes, or…
The Return Of The Local Newspaper
The path to reclaiming power over information and securing democracy When I was a kid, there were these extraordinary chronicles of daily life called newspapers, sold on nearly every street corner, delivered to homes and businesses, read on trains, and shared among strangers in coffee shops. They were magical to…
The Magic And Mystery Of Pommes Frites
Originally published May 2023 The incalculable charm of a fried stick of potato garnished with salt and served piping hot I think about French fries a lot. Pommes frites, as they are called in France, even though they were invented in Belgium, are one of those popular foods that seem…
Then They Came For Me
America’s Dual State We’re all familiar with the boiling frog analogy, and its application to a society that is oblivious to the crisis that is threatening to devour them. Yet somehow, we find ourselves at a loss to explain why some of us seem to be living in a state…
Kindness Is Not A Weakness
No one has ever become poor by giving. — Anne Frank Originally published in June, 2021 In American culture, we have a tradition of equating power with heartlessness. We expect our leaders to have a no-nonsense, logical approach to solving problems without allowing their emotions or personal histories to influence…
Stand Your Ground
Where there is injustice, I always believe in fighting. Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948) In the fight against fascism, we must face our fears and stand firm in our beliefs It’s only a matter of time before a licensed gun owner shoots and kills a federal agent, doing so in clear…
The Second American Civil War Has Begun
The Trump administration has crossed the Rubicon of authoritarianism and turned true patriots into enemies of the state America is deeply divided. This is the phrase we’ve been using for years now. We’re deeply divided as a people and as a nation. The culture war that began as an unsubstantiated…