I’ve meant to post one of my favorite posts, Introversion is not the opposite of extroversion, part 1, to my column at Psychology Today. At last I did. I love the post and what it brings people. I posted it here in 2013, the better part of a decade ago. If you haven’t read it, I recommend it at Psychology Today or on this blog. I’ll post part 2 there[…] Keep reading →

For years I had to wear orthotics when running in regular running shoes and still felt back pain to where I gave up running. Switching to minimal running shoes returned me to pain-free running. Interviewing podcast guest Nir Eyal, he talked about barefoot running. Most people mean ‘minimal shoe’ when they say ‘barefoot,’ but Nir meant barefoot. I decided to experiment running barefoot. Switching to minimal shoe running, where I[…] Keep reading →

If you haven’t seen the pictures recently published by Charles Custer, who drove America’s route 66 with his wife in 1950-51, you’re in for a treat—and, for some of you, a challenge to preconceived notions about progress. They show in wonderful detail, composition, and style, an America now gone, replaced by uniformity, efficiency, and overpopulation. I’ll take the liberty of posting one, but there are 148 of them here, and[…] Keep reading →

I found this bookmark at my mom’s house. She and my stepfather don’t remember buying it so my mom figures someone gave it to them. Here’s the front. Don’t the flowers look pretty? When I was a kid we’d sometimes pick flowers or leaves and press them between pages of books, so making a bookmark of them makes sense. They aren’t flowers, though. They’re pictures of flowers, printed onto paper,[…] Keep reading →

A little over a month ago, I wrote in How long can I keep my fridge unplugged? how learning about fermentation and uses of electric power led me to see how long I could last in the winter with my refrigerator unplugged. Deciding to start First, I want to reiterate my process to decide to start the challenge. First the idea to try it came. Then I wondered if it[…] Keep reading →

People call for diversity and equality but where is the call for more men on the covers of Vogue or Elle? I don’t see one. Am I missing the call for equality? I hear it for representation on corporate boards, university departments, and STEM fields, but with these covers the ratio is 100:0. Vanity Fair looks egalitarian with a few token men. Are we not worth picturing? You could say[…] Keep reading →

When you avoid packaged food long enough, all the garbage and missing flavor becomes the food and doof‘s main identity. There’s more packaging, advertising, and other non-food stuff that will fester in landfills for centuries or at best cost money and resources to decompose. These pictures are what Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s look like when you avoid packaged food. In fact, these stores contribute to places like in these[…] Keep reading →

I prefer blackboards to whiteboards, which are plastic and chintzy, their markers plastic and chemically. Blackboards, on the other hand, are made of rock. Chalk is made of chalk. They’re from the Earth. But my big issue is that markers are nearly always out of ink, which I find out too late, by using them. With chalk, you can tell by looking, as this bar chart I made shows: Try[…] Keep reading →

Heroes and role models Acting on one’s environmental values is a leadership issue we are shirking. However challenging, stewardship, responsibility, and action improve our lives, families, and communities. We are missing out on richer, more fulfilling lives. Want evidence? I made images of heroes and role models of mine responding as most people today do to acting on their environmental values. Not heroes I also made images of people who[…] Keep reading →