People Watching in Houston

February 1, 2013

With time to kill, I’m sitting at a seafood restaurant in the Houston airport. I’m reading, sitting quietly while trying to get a meal in before my flight takes off. But Dad 2.0 Summit has, as good conferences are known to do, stimulated my brain to the point of not being able to concentrate. So [...]

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Boys Becoming Men, Men Becoming Bloggers

January 30, 2013
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Tomorrow I’m jumping on a plane to Houston to attend the Dad 2.0 Summit, the annual gathering of men who procreated and then wrote about it in public. I can’t stay for long, because I have to get back to Jack (who is already almost four months old, by the way). But I’m looking forward to [...]

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The Worst Winter on Record

January 28, 2013

In the past three months, I can easily count the days when I was in perfect health. Because they were few. I’ve been more sick this winter than I have been in the last five years combined. The formula that has been my downfall has involved sleepless newborn nights, stressful work days, and a three-year-old [...]

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The Original Uptown Poetry Slam

January 22, 2013
Uptown Poetry Slam

Did you know the poetry slam was born right here in Chicago? Every Sunday night at the Green Mill (a fantastic jazz club on any other night), founder Marc Kelly Smith and co-host J.W. Basilo host an interactive show that Smith birthed almost 25 years ago. This video is a great overview of the poetry slam [...]

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“You’ve Got to Sell Your Heart”

January 13, 2013
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Thanks to Maria Popova over at The Atlantic for digging up some letters from F. Scott Fitzgerald on great writing. My favorite part: You’ve got to sell your heart, your strongest reactions, not the little minor things that only touch you lightly, the little experiences that you might tell at dinner. This is especially true when you [...]

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Noon Pacific: Good Music Delivered Weekly

January 7, 2013
Noon Pacific

Have you heard of Noon Pacific yet? Pretty simple idea. Hand-pick some great music from some great music blogs. Put them in an 8tracks playlist. Deliver them to inboxes at (you guessed it) noon pacific time every Monday. Good stuff. I’ve been following Noon Pacific for a few months now, and while some playlists are [...]

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Five Simple Tips for Being a Better Writer

January 2, 2013

Have you checked out Eric Barker’s blog, Barking Up the Wrong Tree yet? Be careful, you will get lost in it. It is a rabbit hole of interestingness. For instance, these five simple tips from experts on being a better writer made my day: “Nobody wants to read your shit.” Before you try to be [...]

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