Yesterday, Sage took to Facebook and mentioned that the charity was now grabbing some of our personal savings to stay afloat. I am a very private person, so this felt like he’d hung our underwear on the outside laundry line. And no, he didn’t check in with me before that post went out. Ehem. I… Continue reading Family First Values | AKA: Why Giving To Homeless Feels Wrong
Category: Personal
So What If You’re Not Special
I’m 44 and have many unrealized ambitions. I am not alone. Those of us who grew up in the era of “be all you can be,” believed we had unique things to offer to the world through our lives and work. Eventually, if you’ve not realized hoped-for ambitions, you must come to terms with Chuck… Continue reading So What If You’re Not Special
A Year of Death and Uncertainty
While it seems wrong to paint a whole year with a such a broad and gloomy brushstroke, hindsight can sort of do that. This year, my 43rd, will undoubtedly go down as one of the most tumultuous years of my life, and yet, it was amazing. Like a year of training for some kind of… Continue reading A Year of Death and Uncertainty
The Things We Save
My Mother in Law saved her her dog’s tags. I can look at the year and know which dog likely wore each shiny medallion. I am saving them as treasures. I am not saving her over-50-piece set of Liberty Falls tiny houses. Which begs the question: why do we save the things we do? Turn… Continue reading The Things We Save
Dying of Dementia & Other Horrible Realities
My Mother-in-law and I always had a special relationship. We got each other, respected each other and had a policy to never take offense, or at least, get over that nonsense quickly. As a single mother, she decided to work in the school system as an aide, giving up more lucrative career opportunities to… Continue reading Dying of Dementia & Other Horrible Realities
Honoring Children in Social Media
Our lives have become incredibly transparent. And as parents, we often stay in touch with family through social media. No longer does the distant Grandma have to exclaim: “Look how big you’ve gotten, Oh My!” She’s watched you grow, daily or weekly in Facebook. She’s seen the videos in YouTube. That moment you went in… Continue reading Honoring Children in Social Media
Means to an Ends
There’s irony afoot in my life. I’m having an issue with a person who cares more for the ends than the means in their work. To get my point across and force the issue to a head, I engaged in some less than ideal conduct. See what I did there? We justify this sort of… Continue reading Means to an Ends
Pay Your Kids for Chores
It’s a common debate now-a-days. Do kids get cash for chores or are they unpaid family responsibilities? Ron Lieber, the New York Times’ “Your Money” columnist and author of the new book The Opposite Of Spoiled, says don’t pay your kids for chores. One reason? “According to Lieber’s philosophy, kids should look at chores just like… Continue reading Pay Your Kids for Chores
Learning to Tolerate Anxiety
I have long tapped into what this Business article says is, “the benefit of anxiety.” I do as they recommend and “use it as motivation to get prepared and push yourself to perform well.” To this I say, Yuck. We’d all be better off shunning this productivity validates your existence paradigm. I take meds for anxiety,… Continue reading Learning to Tolerate Anxiety
What Should I Be When I Grow Up?
Yeah, so my first world problems include this incredible fear of missing out of all my different potential selves and lives. Explained beautifully here at one of my all-time favorite blogs, Brain Pickings. “Our lived lives might become a protracted mourning for, or an endless tantrum about, the lives we were unable to live. But the exemptions… Continue reading What Should I Be When I Grow Up?