GRIN & BARE IT
Read (and subscribe to) Grin and Bare It, my daily blog on storytelling, productivity, current events, teaching, my family, and other musings.
I have been posting to this blog every day since 2005.
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Three thoughts from the first night of “Shovel”
Last night I performed my new solo show, Shovel, at TheaterWorks in Hartford. My second solo show after performing “You’re a Monster, Matthew Dicks” two Read More
Not a story
When it comes to storytelling, I work with people and companies in many ways. Sometimes, oddly and unexpectedly, I work with clients on images, digital Read More
The power of math
Car seats are not required on planes because doing so would reduce the number of available seats, which would raise fares and cause more families Read More
Resolution update: April 2025
Every month, I record my progress on my yearly goals to hold myself accountable and occasionally seek help and advice from readers willing to offer Read More
Walking speed
Walking speed on the streets of New York, Boston, and Philadelphia has increased 15% since 1979. This makes me very happy. I believe in stopping Read More
Religious switcheroo
A new global survey from the Pew Research Center aimed to determine the percentage of respondents in a given country who said they had switched Read More
Just a failure
Many things boggle my mind when it comes to Americans who voted for and support Donald Trump, but I’m sure many Americans (though far fewer, Read More
First man in space. Sort of.
What I learned this week: The first human object launched into space wasn’t Sputnik 1. Sputnik 1 was the first human-made object intentionally launched into Read More
Puppets punched me in the face
While visiting the Museum of Moving Inages in Queens, New York last week, we spent time in an exhibit on Jim Henson, which included lots Read More
ChatGPT knows me
While speaking to entrepreneurs in Toronto last week, I met someone who told me that to explore his strengths and weaknesses for the goal of Read More
One thing is certain about the next Pope
The Pope, as you probably know, passed away on Monday. I was born into the Catholic religion but left the church after my first CCD Read More
Awful and evil but also liars and cowards
The rights of transgender people, and in some cases, their physical safety, have eroded over the past few years, and today, legislators across America are Read More
Kids rule the cereal roost
A new study examined all breakfast cereals purchased by 77,000 U.S. households over a nine-year period and tracked them against Nielsen ratings data for all Read More
Fidget spinners hurt learning
This will come as a shock: Fidget spinners and their fidgety brethren don’t work. Actually, it’s worse than that. Research indicates that they are detrimental Read More
The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest no more
Tragedy strikes. The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest has come to an end after more than 40 years. Founded in 1982 at San Jose State University in Read More
Good news that could’ve been so much better
More than 40% of the world’s electrical demand in 2024 was met via clean sources — solar and wind. A report by the energy think Read More
The Moth again
I was honored to have another story on The Moth Radio Hour and podcast last week — aired all over the country on NPR. It’s Read More
Delighting customers is not difficult. 110 Grill would seem to disagree.
Elysha, Clara, and I had lunch at 110 Grill in Canton, Connecticut, this week. I experienced a moment of frustration with this restaurant last year. Read More
A silver lining but mostly disappointment
Nine years ago, I attended a Guns N’ Roses concert with my friend, Heather, at Gillette Stadium. At the time, I had pneumonia. Elysha and Read More
