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 →

I’ve rowed enough on my erg to get decent times on the standard measure for rowing—the 2k. My best time is 7:43, which I consider good for lightweight 48-year-old guy. I’m considering competing the U.S. indoor rowing competition—not to win, but for the experience, figuring I might do okay. I looked up how lightweight men’s performances last year. My category: lightweight men 40-49 years In my category, I would have[…] Keep reading →

I write a lot about cold showers. They may sound crazy, but bear with me and you may find them more helpful than you could have imagined. After taking a few in Shanghai because the water took five minutes to warm up that I couldn’t stand wasting, in December of 2013, I took thirty days of cold showers. I can’t tell you how much the discipline, dedication, and so on[…] Keep reading →

An article stating that “taking one flight emits as much as many people do in a year” led me to post the following on the site that linked to it. I thought it captured my feelings on flying since then. Learning information like this finally led me to take responsibility for my actions that affected others. I challenged myself to go one year without flying. Like everyone, I have family[…] Keep reading →

The challenge for habits isn’t starting them. It’s not stopping them. I’ve started many. Actually, I’ve probably started fewer than most. I’ve stopped fewer. Mistakes: focusing on starting, wondering the value of it to you, they’re mostly valuable, the problem isn’t that they aren’t valuable, it’s that they are and that there are too many, asking how to start. To start is simple. Floss your teeth. The problem is that[…] Keep reading →

I started collecting adventures and life discoveries I made without leaving home to try to show how available the best parts of life can be, or how accessible greatness is. My big example is swimming across the Hudson–a rite of passage I created for myself at no cost in cash nor much in time. I contrast it with, say, parachuting from an airplane, in which you follow what others curate[…] Keep reading →

Anna is down to earth for anyone, let alone a gold medalist and CrossFit champion. Watch her videos to see the contrast between what she does her abilities and how she doesn’t have to be humble. We start talking burpees early which for anyone who knows me knows why I would love. She talks about the value of coaching, the intimacy and vulnerability in it. I hear that she wants[…] Keep reading →