Archive for August 2017
A restroom sign need not indicate the activity that takes place therein.
I’m a huge fan of clever restroom signage (and clever signs in general), but this one (found in Bethesda, Maryland) is not clever and is too explicit for me. It’s stupid, and I hate stupid.
Read MoreTeachers: Writers never write one thing at a time. Stop ruining children.
When asked how to combat writer’s block, my answer is always the same: If you have writer’s block, you don’t have enough writing projects. My list of writing projects currently includes: A novel under contract A nonfiction book under contract A middle grade novel under contract A piece for Parents magazine A piece for Seasons…
Read MoreA note on meetings
September approaches. Teachers return to work. College students leave home. Perhaps your starting a new project at your firm. For many, meetings and classes will commence shortly. One reminder: “Gosh, I really hope we open this meeting with an ice breaker,” said no human being ever.
Read MoreGenital usage restrictions must be adhered to at all times
It’s kind of crazy that huge swaths of Americans study an ancient, religious tome, ignore an enormous number of its rules, but obsess over the ones about how and where to use penises and vaginas. Right?
Read MoreSo many jokes. Such little ears.
Elysha and I brought the kids to Action Safari this weekend. Stretching the meaning of the words “action” and “safari,” this attraction features a taxidermy museum that made me sad. Even worse than the enormous number of stuffed animals was the moment Clara called out, “Daddy, what’s a dik dik?” You can imagine my confusion. …
Read MoreDisconnect the easy way.
I played golf yesterday morning my two friends, Andrew and Plato. The sky was blue. The sun was low in the sky. The greens were still sparkling with dew. We walked and swung and talked about our kids and the way we had spent our week apart. We told stories. Ribbed one another. Laughed a…
Read MoreJust listen to this. Please.
I can’t recommend this episode of StoryCorps enough. Entitled “No Barrier for Love,” it features immigrants talking about what’s important to them — from falling in love to feeling like they do or don’t belong, memories of how they made their way to this country, and what they found when they arrived here. It’s really…
Read MoreNot unisex. Omnisex.
Like me, my friend, Charles, agrees with the implementation of unisex restrooms but makes an excellent point about the naming of these spaces. Shouldn’t they be called omni-sex restrooms? “Uni” is a prefix meaning “one, or having or consisting of one. “Omni” is a prefix meaning “all, of all things.” He’s right. A unisex restroom…
Read MoreCommitment, persistence, and practice can look a lot like talent. Don’t be fooled.
I love this video so much. I love this guy so much. If I owned a company – any company – and was hiring, this is the person who I would hire. So much of life comes down to grit. Persistence. Commitment. Tenaciousness. Practice. Yet so few often seem to be willing to put in…
Read MoreCall it a lie when it’s a lie.
In a Wall Street Journal interview this week, Trump claimed that the head of the Boy Scouts called him to heap praise on the politically aggressive speech Trump delivered at the Scouts’ national jamboree last week. “I got a call from the head of the Boy Scouts saying it was the greatest speech that was ever…
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