Archive for May 2012
I threw cases of French fries against walls to relieve stress.
I found this new business idea rather intriguing: Donna Alexander is the founder of the aptly-named Anger Room, probably the only business in the world that begs you to break everything in inside it. Located in a Dallas strip mall, the Anger Room is just as you’d hope it would be: filled with old furniture…
Read MoreDesperate times call for desperate measures
I texted my wife yesterday, telling her that I was beginning to feel ill. I cannot afford to be sick at this particular moment in time. Elysha has been ordered on 24-hour bed rest until she delivers our second child in about two weeks. This has left me changing every diaper, preparing every meal, washing…
Read MoreI am not a loser, little one, and I will have the shirt to prove it.
CHICAGO—A study published this week in the journal Pediatrics found that, within seconds of their birth, babies have the ability to sense whether their parents are losers. “From the moment they open their eyes, newborns can tell if their mother had no other options and was forced to settle for their father, or if their…
Read MoreYou have been replaced by an app, sir.
A TV weatherman is visiting my daughter’s preschool tomorrow as part of their week-long study of occupations. He may be an actual meteorologist and not simply a failed actor who reads the weather, but I cannot confirm this. Either way, hasn’t this job already been replaced by an app on my phone? Does anyone under…
Read MoreRecent press for Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend, which published in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa back in March, continues to receive positive press overseas and even some here in the US (it publishes in the US on August 21 of this year). Here’s a roundup of a few of the most recent reviews: A…
Read MoreYes. I’m an author. Yes, with real books and everything. Why doesn’t anyone want to believe me?
Author Allison Winn Scott wrote a piece for Psychology Today that made me realize that I am not alone. In imagining a future in which she is no longer an author, she writes: I could no longer say that “I’m a writer,” and then when they inquired further (because often times, no one really believes…
Read MoreIs one book a year enough?
Julie Bosman of The New York Times published a piece over the weekend discussing how writing one book a year might no longer be enough in this age of the digital book and instant media gratification. The push for more material comes as publishers and booksellers are desperately looking for ways to hold onto readers…
Read MoreA whole new breed of middle school student
I admire this kid on so many levels: His product His company’s website His entrepreneurship The origin of his idea (spite) His choice of scents (bacon, baseball mitt, fresh cut grass, campfire) The way he has cleverly tied in charitable giving into his business model And at the same time, I kind of hate the…
Read MoreThat moment…
… in the midst of a back and forth texting session when a comment is so clever, so amusing, so succinct and so timely that it could serve as the line of dialogue that ends a scene in a book or on a television show. I have always appreciated and admired the people who know…
Read MoreFather’s Day
Since your Mother’s Day shopping is probably complete, I thought I’d remind you of what I would like for Father’s Day, in case any of you are so inclined to give me a gift. I asked for this last year, and I still want it:
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