I probably should blame myself more. And I’m honestly not sure how much this is innate or because of my bad parenting but… Vlad has a level of Personal Confidence that easily wanders into Entitlement. To be frank, I find the way that Vlad asks for anything––and you could substitute other verbs for...

Looking back at the life lessons I’ve consistently failed to learn, certain themes dominate. One of them might kindly be called Optimistic Overconfidence, particularly around timing. I did, however, once demonstrate an extremely rare moment of early mastery in this arena. Namely, during college I ...

First, he never actually said it. Second, as metaphorical advice, it’s pretty terrific, yet if taken literally, it’s definitely unwise at best. I’m referring to the adage often incorrectly ascribed to Hemingway: Write Drunk,  Edit Sober. Despite his well-documented problems with alcohol,...

I don’t think he learned it from Bill Gates. (At least not directly). But as I was reading through the next section of Essentialism, I couldn’t help but wonder about yet another quirky, self-taught aspect of Vlad’s behavior. (And it’s one that’s escalated considerably now that the Brooklyn tempera...

Nearly 3,000 years ago, Heraclitus taught us that “Character is destiny.” More and more, life has taught me how true this is. And nowhere do I see it more clearly demonstrated than each morning on the baseball field. Of course, I’m not really talking about the humans. Instead, I’m much more int...

It’s a problem I face only a few times a year. Nonetheless, I find myself resisting solving it, perhaps for reasons beyond how it tests my patience. Namely, the wind chimes that my friend Pam gave me as a sweet memorial gift when Belle went to her heavenly reward desperately require untangling. ...

I found the Academy Awards this year both moving and disorienting. While I was pleased with many of the winners, given that the theme I’ve been exploring this month is Resilience (Meditation HERE), several of the “Never Give Up On Your Dream” Victory Speechesinspired reflection, if not outright skeptici...

I’m beyond envious of Vlad’s new two-part morning ritual. Every day, he and I usually arrive at the baseball field a little before his friend Moon does. The moment Moon is off leash he runs towards us, waiting for the opportunity to steal whatever ball Vlad has in play. Vlad lets him. Onc...

It’s not exactly science and yet… I’ve found it to be a relatively infallible system. Namely, if I want Malibu, Vlad’s best friend, to visit, I don’t need to text his owners. Instead, I just need to vacuum. (Vlad’s relationship with the vacuum is definitely complicated.) You see, V...