"Whether you get As or Cs will be irrelevant. No single letter of the alphabet will raise or lower your value to me." Dear Daughter, I'm sorry. I'm sorry you're so stressed out right now. Finals week is always tough. You're a high school sophomore: no longer a child, not yet a college student. I'm sorry you have to care more about grades now than you did when you were younger. Yeah, yeah, yeah -- this is the year grades apparently count, the first year of grades that college admissions counselors will look at when you apply to schools. I'm sorry I can't be more helpful as you study. … [Read more...]
How to Suck at Adulting … and Survive
Does anybody else suck at adulting? You know what I mean. The doing of the stuff. Engaging in basic Life Maintenance. Paying the bills on time. Thinking ahead about what my family will have for dinner will be tomorrow. Signing field trip forms on time. Filing things before a deadline. Keeping track of when the oil was last changed in the car. Reminding other people to do things. Reminding myself to do things. Can I engage in active adulting when I have to? Yes. Yes I can. But it's a struggle. I've never NOT paid a late fee for my car registration (which ultimately ends up being more … [Read more...]
On Spring Training and Lessons in Failure
Failure at something is how we learn. We try, we fail, we adjust, make notes, turn a tweak and try again. We may eventually win or we may find something else along the way that takes us in a whole new direction.
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“I’m not good at it,” he said, as if that were reason enough not to try. “What does 'good' have to do with it?” I asked. “I can’t do it.” “You won’t do it,” I corrected. “There’s a difference.” We were standing outside the batting cage with a handful of quarters and helmets that smelled of sweat and disinfectant. I had planned … [Read more...]Let Children Fail Now So They’ll Succeed Later
Years before websites, blogs and vanity URLs would become actual things, the furnished basement of my parents suburban home was my domain. A Nintendo gaming system with a protruding NHL ’96 cartridge, a big-screen TV console fixated on the then-brand-new ESPN 2 ("The Deuce"), and a well-worn favorite chair in desperate need of reupholstering were my most cherished playthings. I shouldn’t therefore, in good conscience, be all high and mighty-like when it comes to the changing landscape of children’s play. But because of repeated failures throughout my 38-plus years, I have ideas on exactly how … [Read more...]