I owe inspiration for a good bit of this post to Jordan Peterson and Friedrich Hayek. I wrote last night about the games which we all play on the individual level, from Make-The-Best-Grades to Impress-The-Boss. There are also games which…
We are all playing games right now. I’m playing Write-The-Best-Blog-Post-Possible-Before-Midnight. You may be playing Get-That-Girl-To-Like-Me, Impress-The-Boss, or Make-More-Money-Than-My-Friends. Odds are, you are playing multiple games at once. That’s fine. Your whole childhood prepared you for this. Whatever you’re doing, you’re…
I helped launch a product today. My company BitPay released our Visa prepaid debit card for bitcoin users in 131 countries around the world, including bitcoin hotspots We’ve had solid reception for the card in the US, where bitcoin users…
This is Tencia. I received an email about her today. Being in an email is probably the best thing that has ever happened to her. Here’s a picture of what her day looks like. That’s right, she would spend half…
MASSIVE DISCLAIMER: I have zero experience with being married or proposing marriage to a person, so this is just an educated guess. I’ve thought a fair bit about marriage recently. Among other things, maybe it’s the prevalence of weddings this…
“Five simple psychological tricks to improve productivity.” “One simple trick that will win over the opposite sex.” “Trick yourself into being creative.” We’ve all seen the headlines. Well, actually, we’ve clicked on them. There’s something we find addictive about “simple…
You expected words here didn’t you? Well, you know that feeling when you’re really sick and can’t reach a trash can in time? That’s how inspiration has been working for me lately. And yes, I’m sorry for putting that image in your…
II like it when people explain big concepts to me with fun little drawings. I like it better when those explanations are narrated by deep British voices. Make it an explanation by an author like C.S. Lewis, and I’m sold. I came across…
Failure, courage, last ditch efforts, determination, wild success, honesty, lies, bullshit, naked truth, arrogance, power-hunger, humility, generosity, cupidity, stupidity, wisdom – startup life has all of these. Startup life is a weird microcosm of human life. More things happen in much…
Kennesaw Mountain is one of Georgia’s strange places of past and present. It was the site of 4,000 casualties in the Civil War and now – as a state park – it sees as many tourists in a weekend. As…
There’s something you should know about me. I love Celtic things. And while I love all Celtic cultures, I have a Ron Swanson-esque sentimentality for Scottish culture. If there is a Highland Games happening in Georgia this summer, I’ll likely…
“What time did the man go to the dentist? Tooth hurt-y.” Cringe. As far as I can tell, the Dad joke (the near cousin of the pun – for more examples, try this Buzzfeed article) has existed since time immemorial.…
“Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.” There are thoughts I have when I go to the grocery store at 10 PM to buy chocolate. Bear with me here. I think…
I’ve worked in the Bitcoin world for nearly three years, and these days I have fewer opinions (and far weaker ones) about the technology now than I did when I began. This is not an accident. When you move from theorizing…
I make no secret of the fact that I’m a podcast junkie. Whether I’m working at my desk or working outside, going for a walk or making breakfast, I’m probably tuned into a podcast teaching me something about tech, business,…
“I’ve come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies: 1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.…
If you’ve ever tried picking up a sport after a decade of not doing it, you’ll know that it’s bloody hard. When I decided to try rollerblading again this weekend, I decided to try it in Piedmont Park, one of…
In this month’s second installment of Praxis philosophy nights, the gang and I discussed a peculiar epistemological (how do you know?) problem with certain metaphysical (what is the nature of things?) views. Can a view be self-defeating – and therefore unbelievable…
When you are about two or three, you gain the power of language. Shortly after that, an adult will use the gift of language to convince you that a jolly old fat man in a suit doles out goodies every…
Political ideology is a powerful motivator. Touting our political action and allegiance publicly is our way of identifying who we are, who we align ourselves with, and how much we value our belief systems. We’ve all been there. Even many politically-unengaged…
In every discussion of government agencies, militarism, privacy, surveillance, torture, or transportation restrictions, we hear an oft-repeated phrase from American founder and generally overrated person Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety,…
Last weekend I drank from the bluegrass firehose. Wilkesboro, NC’s Merlefest is one of the US’s largest bluegrass and Americana music festivals, started back in 1987 by folk guitarist Doc Watson to honor his son Merle Watson. All of the greats…
Critics Stalk the movement Pounce on shadows unformed They have not known their enemy Pity What is a cinquain?
Ego, n. “A person’s sense of self-esteem or self-importance” Want to do something big with your life? Think you can write a novel, start a successful company, travel the world, retire early, bring down a totalitarian regime, cure a disease, end…
Most people think that focus requires the elimination of distractions. They’re usually right, but they’re missing out on some of what distractions can do for us. Case in point: quite a few different forms of centering meditation – which…
I just got back from the Midnight Jam at Merlefest, America’s top roots music festival started by legendary blind folk guitarist Doc Watson. Ever since then, the festival has featured and fostered some of the world’s best bluegrass talent, from Jerry…
“Courage is not simply one of the virtues but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means at the point of highest reality.” – C.S. Lewis “Good can be radical; evil can never be radical, it can…
“It is impossible for the same thing to belong and not to belong at the same time to the same thing and in the same respect.” – Aristotle “A is not non-A” – Classical Logic’s Formulation of the Above Is…
It is 5 at dawn But still I write yesterday No excuses yet Alarms have failed you Sleep comes as a trickster god Will your pen spite him? Do not look to night Your muse will come with the sun…
I have a massive wolf-head banner with the words “winter is coming” hanging next to my desk at work. For people who don’t know its source in book series and television show Game of Thrones, this banner means that I am…