Making Sense of Modern Life
What happens when programmers explore their feelings with a weekly check-in.
In the fall of 2015, I joined a batch at the Recurse Center (RC) in New York City. For those unfamiliar, it’s a bit like an artist’s residency or writer’s workshop, only for programmers. In each batch, you’ll find some combination of: experienced members of the software industry, recent grads…
Making Sense of Modern Life
Thoughts from coping with trauma, C-PTSD, and Corona
We’ve got a lot of stuff going off right now. Never before have this many people faced a global catastrophe together. During the Spanish flu in 1918, the global population was a quarter what we have now. COVID-19 is a global pandemic with states ordering their citizens to shelter in…
Making Sense of Modern Life
Leveraging social media engagement algorithms to improve my quality of life.
There’s no shortage of evidence these days regarding the power of a daily gratitude practice. Medical studies demonstrate that it’s good for your heart. Psychologists recommend it for improving relationships, and combating depression. Employees even work better when they feel appreciated. It’s hard to find a domain of social life…
Making Sense of Modern Life
Not all men
Not all white
Not all straight
Not all cis
Not all able
Not all parents
Not all coaches
Not all teachers
Not all preachers
Not all cops
Not all agents
Not all bosses
Not all owners
Not all politicians
Not all celebrities
Not all parties
Not all…
Battling a stigma of shame with celebration
June specifically is the month most typically associated with celebrating Pride, although you can find Pride events all over the world, every month of the year. Certainly it coincides with World Pride events and the anniversary of the Stonewall riots.
Making Sense of Modern Life
The unequivocal statement of a confederate flag
As far as legal rights go, the first amendment fully protects being able to display the confederate, or any other flag, on your property. Full stop. It’s allowed. Five states; Florida, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina and Louisiana go further and legally protect against desecrating the confederate flag. …
I took a break from my work to go hiking on my old friend the A-T. As I walked, I realized how much of my daily practices have been influenced by a lifetime of travel, camping, and exploration. These lessons fit with the mundane daily needs of a hike, but…
Not long ago, I ended up in a social media argument (I know, the best...) with someone regarding moderate attitudes in the political sphere. They took exception to the idea that I no longer believe in compromise attitudes surrounding issues like climate change and civil rights. Over the nearly forty…
The best description I’ve heard of Malört is that that it tastes of pencil shavings and gasoline, with a strong aftertaste of regret. Though invented and now brewed in Chicago (production took an extended trip to Florida), it’s considered a member of the Swedish bäsk brännvins liquor family. This collection…
I grew up with a sort of composite personal faith heavily influenced by the teachings of Meher Baba and his remaining living disciples, who came from every major religion. As a result, from a very early age I experienced all faiths as sort of aspects of the same worship. When…
