The community fridge where I volunteer by bringing food (and doof, sadly) stores would otherwise through away for anyone to take recently coordinated a deal with the Union Square farmers market to pick up what vendors don’t sell. Half a dozen of us picked up and delivered our first load. Several of us made two trips. It was the most volume and I’d say highest quality of any load I[…] Keep reading →

The other day I was picking up litter in Washington Square Park, not making a big deal about it. I just do it as a matter of course. Something happened that often does: people got annoyed at me. The details aren’t important, but they rudely approached and got angry at me. The interaction with me isn’t the point. Something they said, that many people say, is. They said, “there are[…] Keep reading →

I don’t usually just talk about what I did, but sometimes things work out enough and I feel great about how major life choices I’ve made work out. Last Saturday, Sunday, and Monday were great times. I’ll share Monday first since it’s not visual so might get lost following the other two. Monday: Einstein and Nobel Prize winners Monday I met with a physics professor who mentored me in college[…] Keep reading →

I’ve written about how the construction my building is doing means no roof access for likely over six months: I’ve been trying to find other rooftops I can use so I don’t have to carry the equipment so far, risking bumps or drops. I can’t leave the panels unwatched to go to the bathroom or work elsewhere when it gets hot. So far I’ve asked the following, politely, offering to[…] Keep reading →

A friend who runs a business found the book Profit First by the guest of my podcast Mike Michalowicz. He shared in a private forum how much it helped him. Mike and I email, so I shared with him my friend’s post on how much his book was helping him, taking out the personal details. Mike loved learning he helped an entrepreneur, so I’m glad I emailed him. Recently I[…] Keep reading →

On May 24, 2022, I opened the main circuit to the electric grid, disconnecting my apartment from it. Two days before I had unplugged my appliances but noticed the outlets next to sinks have LEDs to show they’re safe. Despite what part-time vegetarians say, I don’t believe that not zero is zero, so to consume zero power, including those LEDs, I disconnected the whole apartment. My goal was not using[…] Keep reading →

I don’t have to tell you that front page headlines are reporting how students across the country are protesting. Universities are struggling with how to respond. The university I got my (five) diplomas from, Columbia University, seems to be making some of the biggest headlines. A few days ago it decided to cancel its commencement. I started college in 1988. Many students then opposed Apartheid. I boycotted businesses that did[…] Keep reading →

I think I mentioned that cleaning out my dad’s basement led to discovering a few boxes in which he stored some of my stuff without telling me, so I found a bunch of things I hadn’t seen in some cases since the 1980s. It may be tempting for some people just to throw things away. Some of the things I found included tennis balls from when I took tennis lessons,[…] Keep reading →

About twenty-four hours after giving blood, while chopping collard greens, I chopped a bit off my finger. Sorry if it’s gross for you, but it reminds me of something I learned when I dated a woman who was a chef: if you cook enough, you cut and burn yourself. I don’t know if this picture captures it. I took it today, about twenty-four hours after cutting it. I should have[…] Keep reading →