Archive for December 2014
Resolution update: 2014 in review
In an effort to hold myself accountable, I post the progress of my yearly goals at the end of each month on this blog. The following are the results through December and through the end of 2014. In 2014, I managed to completed 15 out of the 25 goals that I set for myself back…
Read MoreMy highly improbable weekend
On Saturday, I played golf. In December. In New England. The course was closed, and there were sticks and pine boughs in place of the pins, but that didn’t matter. I played. I didn’t even care that I lost. On Sunday I attended the Patriots game at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots lost to the Buffalo…
Read MoreI want to be overpaid.
For the second year in the row, Forbes has declared that Adam Sandler is the most overpaid actor in Hollywood for 2014. This fact is often stated with derision. Just for the record, my life goal is to be overpaid for my work. In a country where CEOs earn 33 times as much as the…
Read MoreBest Christmas gift ever. Someone strongly hint about this to my kids when they are old enough to understand.
Christmas is over, but how about a one last bit of Christmas cheer? And maybe even a tear or two? You’re going to love this. Unless it makes you feel like a terribly inadequate son or daughter, which is possible. Risk it. It’s worth it.
Read MoreUseless skills: Speaking and listening simultaneously
It occurs to me that we all have things that we can do surprisingly well that are fairly useless in life. Surprising but purposeless skills. Sort of meaningless super powers. I’m creating a list of my own. Maybe you’d like to share yours as well? Here’s one for me: I can both speak and listen…
Read MoreHow did television meteorologists become household names, and why can’t I name a single one of these guys?
Everyone in my life seems to know the names of the television meteorologists. They say things like, “Brad Somebody is hosting this charity event next weekend” or “Bruce Gobbledygook says it’s going to rain tomorrow.” Even my student’s know these names. I can’t help but wonder: These people can’t actually be watching the local news.…
Read MoreNew Year’s resolutions work. Goal setting can change your life. Maybe not for losers, but you are not a loser. Don’t let the pundits tell you otherwise.
As the New Year approaches, you will undoubted see and read many articles on why New Year’s resolutions never work and are best avoided. It’s a trope that media outlets love to roll out at the end of December. It’s nonsense. New Year’s resolutions (and goal setting in general) work for those who are actually…
Read MoreMy 2014 Christmas haul
Another Christmas and another outstanding haul of gifts from my amazing wife, who understands me so well. Some people wish for cashmere sweaters, brand new video game systems, stylish watches, and jewelry. My hope is often for the least pretentious, most unexpected, quirkiest little gift possible, and she never fails to deliver. For the past…
Read MoreThe cat peed and pooped and vomited on our Christmas preparations, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
My wife and I left about 80% of our preparations for Christmas until December 24. At the beginning of the day, we had only one gift for each child. We needed more presents and plenty of stocking stuffers. We also had yet to purchase gifts for each other, and nothing was wrapped. We had not…
Read MoreMy daughter’s grandmother is sadly more Susan than grandmother
We were trimming the tree. Decorating the house for Christmas. My daughter and son had found the nativity scene music boxes in the box of Christmas decorations and were staring at them. Studying them. Obsessed with them, really. Both music boxes were given to me by my mother on Christmases past. They mean a lot…
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