Every man should know how to landscape – and I don’t just mean mowing grass. Doesn’t the idea of a square, expressionless suburban lawn bore you to tears? Half of what makes the homes of the wealthy (and tastefully wealthy) […]
If you’re like me, you probably think that the world is becoming too small of a place – that things are getting too “same-ish” and average wherever you go. I want the different parts of the world to get weird […]
Today I had the great honor of being the event photographer for someone’s gender reveal party. They counted on me to document one of the most important events of their pregnancy, and I think I delivered. I’m still young, so […]
It used to be that adventure was something you had – not something you could purchase with a credit card. Now there’s an “adventure industry.” A lot of things seem to be going this way. Now you can buy the […]
You think about your diet. You think about your exercise. You think about your friends. How often do you stop to think about the sounds around you? We’re surrounded by sound, from the humming air conditioner to the clacking of […]
Want to learn any serious skill the serious way? You’ll pursue some kind of apprenticeship, or some kind of learning under a master. But wanting to learn a skill is one thing. Getting (and deserving) a good master is another, […]
Like it or not, we now live in an age of surveillance. If the state isn’t actually surveilling you, a corporation or business is gathering data about your location, your browsing history, your interests, your employment, and more. You’re also […]
It takes as much equanimity to accept the past as it does to accept the future. Friedrich Nietzsche (I think) introduced the notion of “amor fati,” or “love of fate” as a way for humans to reconcile themselves to the […]
Going to sleep should be more exciting for us. Who needs a Netflix show before bed when you’ve got dreams to look forward to? I’ve dreamt of fighting Egyptian mummy-sorcerers, skiing to a mountain castle, and helping to keep a […]
“I’m so sorry for the way I acted. I was a fool.” I’ve had some times when I’ve had to admit to other people (or to myself) my foolishness. I’ve looked back on times in my life when I was […]
Staring at a screen. Sitting in a dark room alone. Stuffing your face. This is the experience (for many people) of watching movies and TV alone. Contrast that with gathering together with your family to watch a beloved movie. Your […]
This blog post is for men. I’m learning that “meeting for coffee” should be rare and used only in the last resort as a way to hang out with your bros. Can you really look at the world around you […]
What makes for a good gym? I was checking out a local one online recently and noticed that it had all-new (or else very recent) equipment and that polished, clean, modern, “new” look which seems so common in many chain […]
It’s a truism that rural communities tend to be more tightly-knit. We think of cities as places full of strangers and countrysides as places where “everyone knows everyone.” This is true to a great degree. But it’s a bit more […]
Have you ever seen the chaos of a large meeting in a corporate boardroom? It’s the guy who goes in with the agenda, the notes, and the pre-meeting-prep who typically ends up leading the direction of the room. He (or […]
““Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And weak men create hard times.” I was born a son and a grandson “hard men.” They farmed, led businesses, shaped land, and raised families through good times and bad, and if their stories […]
Suffering alone is one of the worst human experiences. Suffering in fellowship is probably one of the best. Tonight I watched the movie Master and Commander for he first time, amending a serious gap in my movie-watching resume. And I […]
“That’s not good enough.” “You’re unfocused.” “You’re not working hard enough.” “You’re not bold enough.” Like all sorts of people, I struggle with internal voices and internal self-talk like this. It can be limiting at times, keeping me from taking […]
Most of us have the jobs we do and the jobs we romanticize. We romanticize the jobs of cowboy, firefighter, soldier, farmer, and filmmaker – and we do the jobs of tech support, retail associate, lawyer, and corporate executive. We […]
It is better to serve principles rather than people. But in work life, even the most independent and stiff-necked of us have to serve others. Employees (to some degree) serve bosses and managers. And even entrepreneurs are in service to […]
There might be about three main ways to spend your twenties. You can goof around – working easy jobs, partying every chance you can with friends, traveling around, etc. This way is enjoyable in some ways, certainly easier than most […]
“Mayor ____ welcomes you to Atlanta.” This sign greeted me as I left the airport for home. I kind of liked it. Now as an anarchist, I don’t want any city governments, and I don’t give a damn about Mayor […]
It’s funny the words you guess when you’re playing Boggle, or Scrabble, or word-games like that. Some of them you don’t even know the meaning of until you look them up. One my opponent tried was “ween”, which derives from […]
Tradesmen, contractors, and blue collar workers hold the jobs no one seems to want. They get paid less generally than some office desk jockeys, and they may never be rich enough to own yachts or mansions. But they are free […]
I want to share photos from my life with friends. More and more, though, I find it distasteful to share them on social media sites like Instagram and Facebook. Aside from all their other problems, social networks have become much […]
There was the time I made my Mom’s chocolate cake recipe for friends for the first time. There was the time I brought a locally-grown watermelon and sunflowers (from our own farm) to share with coworkers at the office. Then […]
This morning I walked to work instead of driving. Despite working a new job with a new commute, I’ve already tired of driving in each morning. As luck would have it, this morning I remembered I’d left my work truck […]
There’s a term I learned in church world: “cultural distinctive.” It basically means “what makes you different from everybody else,” and it’s a very important thing to understand, for yourself and for any group of which you’re a part. My […]
The days come and go quickly. They are the small things in a human life, full of worry and activity. It doesn’t take much to break through the noise and make a day special for someone. For my mother, it’s […]
Kids – especially young boys – are infinitely willing to play, infinitely willing to try new games, infinitely willing to suspend disbelief if it means they can compete and practice. Seeing this is one of the most charming things in […]