Good morning. It’s 9:11 in the AM on Christmas Eve. I’m listening to the Campbell Brothers’ Sacred Steel for the Holidays. I’ve woken up, brushed my teeth, pooped, and showered. It’s going to be a busy day. I have to go Christmas shopping, grocery shopping, wrap presents, help mom with pies, go to my brother’s…
China and Japan have been in the news recently for the same reason. They both have shrinking, and aging, populations. The reactions of both countries have been similar, too. They are looking for ways to increase their populations. Since neither country is immigration friendly, they are trying to do it through increased births. China’s population…
A few days ago, I wrote a post about online dating and how I didn’t think it was going to work for me. A couple people have asked me since about meeting people in real life (IRL). I’d be happy to, but I don’t think it’s likely for several reasons. My brother suggested I just…
I wasn’t the first person to arrive at the IOP this morning. I was second. It threw me off. Second. I didn’t win. I got there about the same time I always do. It’s just that someone else was earlier. So disconcerting. My check-in was fine. I was very tired again, which is kind of…
Summer officially started today. While I know I will probably complain a lot during the next three months, I wanted to get as much out of the way as I could at the very beginning. So, let me count the ways in which summer is the worst season by far. Out of four seasons, it…
Whenever I see a car or house that’s flying an American flag, I become wary. To me, displaying the flag is indicative of a type of chauvinism that ignores the bigotry, prejudice and violence of American history- after all, if you’re aware of how America has treated ethnic and religious minorities and women, then how…
Charles Dickens wrote a piece called “A Christmas Tree” as a magazine article. In it, he describes a gathering of people admiring a Christmas tree. Then he goes on to describe all the memories that get triggered by the sight. He remembers childhood toys, food, and ghost stories among other things. Until this year, the…
Philosophy Phridays is a series where each Friday, I go to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, click on “random entry,” and then write about whatever comes up. This week’s random entry is Plotinus. Plotinus is something of an odd figure in the history of philosophy. Any way you look at it, he is one of the…
There’s a long history of characters in books, movies, TV shows, and things like that trying to hide their true identities for one reason or another. Some classic examples include the Lone Ranger, Zorro, Catwoman, Green Arrow, Elastigirl, Dread Pirate Roberts, and Robin. They go about it by putting a mask over their eyes. I…
Before I start, I want to acknowledge Anne Peterson’s piece How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation and Tiana Clark’s piece This is What Black Burnout Feels Like. This essay isn’t exactly a response to those writers, but reading their works helped me to finally focus this essay, which I’ve tried to write many times with…
