Articles from 2023
694 articles · browse by month or scroll through the year.
-
Worth Reading
Shipping Out
By David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace in 2006 On Tuesday, I posted David Foster Wallace’s 2005 commencement address at Kenyon College. His reputation by that time – secured primarily by his 1996 magnum…
Read full post -
Worth Watching
This Documentary Made Me Proud
Click here to watch a film that documents the history and journey of the first 25 years of Rancho Santana.
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Quick Bites
(It’s not cars or watches.) Click here. Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour generates $5 billion in consumer spending. Click here. The strange world of how we think and the pros and cons of inner speech. Click here. Have…
Read full post -
Readers Write
I Loved Your Book!
“I’ve read The Reluctant Entrepreneur and I thought it was a gem. The title is fantastic, and I found many valuable lessons inside. Thank you for that!” – CL Editor’s Note: Readers of this blog can order a…
Read full post -
Postscript
I’m a sucker for these human-animal bonding stories
I can’t resist. This one features a pairing that surprised me. Click here.
Read full post -
Worth Reading
He: Understanding Masculine Psychology
He: Understanding Masculine Psychology By Robert A. Johnson 83 pages First published Jan. 1, 1974 It was sitting inconspicuously on the built-in bookcase behind the headboard, along with several hundred other…
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
The August 23 Debate: Two Perspectives
I didn’t get to watch the debate, but I watched several dozen clips and a half-dozen retrospective reviews. This one from The Dispatch highlighted something that so many people on both sides of the aisle don’t…
Read full post -
Worth Listening
David Foster Wallace’s Legendary Commencement Speech
David Foster Wallace’s Legendary Commencement Speech LC sent this in. “Forgive me if this 23-minute recording is repetitive,” he wrote. “Perhaps you’ve posted about it before. I find it poignant.” David Foster…
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Big Cities Bleed Jobs While Tech Booms South
Quick Bites: Big Cities Lose Big, New Booze Guidelines, Recycled Playground Animals, Digital Clones, and a Quiz About the Stock Market Big Blue cities lose trillions as major firms move south. Click here…
Read full post -
Readers Write
Re John Herring’s piece in the Aug. 22 issue
“Thank you for the awesome letter about storage units as rental property. I love learning about investing in real estate from you.” – KF “I agree with your friend about contractor warehousing... Recently, I've…
Read full post -
Postscript
The Astounding Diversity of Ocean Life
I’ve always been amazed by the wide range of brilliant colors that birds were blessed with. I’m equally amazed by the diversity I see in these stunning photos of ocean life. Click here.
Read full post -
Worth Watching
Watching TV vs. Everything Else
I didn’t watch a ton of TV as a child. I’m sure I would have if I could have, but my parents preferred their children to spend their spare hours reading books. When I left home, I was, in theory at least, free…
Read full post -
News & Views
Another Civil War? The Math Is Scary
The battle between Democrats and Republicans is heating up. A recent study published by the University of Chicago’s Project on Security & Threats reports a steep rise in the percentage of each group that is…
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
The Growing Problem of Homelessness in the US
The US experienced an astonishingly large increase in homelessness in 2022. It went up a record-breaking 11%, That’s the highest it’s been since 2019, when the increase was a comparatively modest 2.7%. Some…
Read full post -
Worth Reading
The Geetar Revolution
Oliver Anthony Music You’ve probably heard about this fellow Oliver Anthony Music and his recording of “Rich Men North of Richmond.” It shot to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart when it was released last…
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Five Viral Stories Worth Your Time This Week
Quick Bites: A Map of Market Cap, Justin Trudeau Blasted, Nomophobia, Europe for Art Lovers, and Changing Drinking Habits in the US Visualizing the World’s 50 Most Valuable Companies. Click here. Justin…
Read full post -
Postscript
Mob-Style Smash-and-Grab Robbery Caught on Camera
There was a surge of this sort of crime during the BLM riots. Then it seemed to settle down, presumably as storeowners, local law enforcement, and DAs worked to prosecute those that took part in in-your-face…
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
The Economics of Illegal Immigration
Since Trump first promised to build a wall, immigration into the US via our southern border has become a costly and amazingly stupid political slugfest. First, there were Trump’s “kids in cages.” After Biden…
Read full post -
News & Views
Cover Your Face and Shut Your Mouth
Tuesday, Aug. 15, was two years since the US withdrew from Afghanistan. Not surprisingly, despite initial promises to respect women’s rights under Sharia law, the Taliban has imposed all sorts of new…
Read full post -
The Economy & Investing
JH Gives Me the Inside Scoop of Self-Storage
JH Gives Me the Inside Scoop of Self-Storage After reading my post in the Aug. 15 issue, my friend Jon Herring sent this in. Good, useful information for anyone who, like me, is looking at the potential of…
Read full post -
Worth Reading
Art, History, and Race
If you saw the movie Oppenheimer (reviewed by me in the Aug. 4 issue), you probably noticed that there was just the smallest sprinkling of people of color in the cast. That generated a fair amount of criticism…
Read full post -
Worth Watching
Cops Get Education on Constitutional Law
This is a new genre of video that is popping up here and there on social media. Citizens challenging police officers that are bullying citizens just because they think they can. I like this one in particular…
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Five Viral Stories Worth Your Attention This Week
Quick Bites: New COVID Variant, RFK Jr.’s Latest Conspiracy Theory, Social Experiment, Filthiest US Cities, and Magic Mushrooms What You Should Know About the New Dominant COVID Variant. Click here. If You…
Read full post -
Readers Write
From JF re The Pledge
“Without giving away any personal details, would you be willing to post one of your daily task lists? I’m re-reading The Pledge (which is such an amazing book) and I’m really trying to implement the strategies…
Read full post -
Postscript
A Beautiful Voice In Perfect Acoustics
A beautiful voice in a church with good acoustics. Click here.
Read full post -
News & Views
More on Biden’s Early Resignation
On April 18 and then again on July 28, I speculated that Biden would not be a candidate for the 2024 election. I came up with that conspiracy theory based on two observations: 1.- The obvious fact that he is…
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
Shameless Self-Promotion!
K and I are spending a quiet week at our place in Rancho Santana after a very busy week in Cancun with 40+ members of our extended family. I mentioned on Aug. 11 that we call these biannual events Cousin Camps…
Read full post -
Health & Wellness
Mask-Wearing No Longer a Controversial Issue
Health officials have acknowledged that there is inadequate evidence to support the notion that medical-grade face masks, including N95, KN95, and FFP2 types, provide protection for vulnerable individuals…
Read full post -
Worth Reading
Feed the Kids, Tax the Rich
Massachusetts has passed a new tax designed to provide all public school students with free breakfasts and lunches, regardless of their need. It’s a 4% income tax that is projected to generate $1 billion a…
Read full post -
Worth Watching
Five Amazing Whale-Spotting Moments!
Five Amazing Whale-Spotting Moments! Click here.
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Quick Bites: Small Towns, Big Pharma, Education as a Scam, Sleep Advice, & a History Quiz
The 20 Best Small Towns for Retirement. HGTV recently listed their choices for America’s best small (less than 100,000 people) cities for retirees. They based their evaluation on the average cost and standard…
Read full post -
Postscript
Beatbox Master Blows Away the Judges
Click here.
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
Little but Not Brittle
Someone once told me – and this may be 30 years ago – that the secret to making great ROIs in rental real estate is to “go small.” By that he meant that buying three small houses at $200,000 each will bring…
Read full post -
Worth Reading
A Cold Email Got Me My Job
“Everyone says networking is the route to success,” writes Olivia Reingold in The Free Press. “But I’ve always been a strong believer that any door can open if you score the right invitation. My advice? Don’t…
Read full post -
Worth Considering
The COVID Response: Meet Dr. Fauci’s Replacement
Was She as Wrong About the Facts as He Was? Dr. Anthony Fauci, arguably the most likeable non-elected government official in recent memory, resigned last year from his role as director of NIAID (National…
Read full post -
Worth Quoting
General Patton On The Danger Of Groupthink
“If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.” – Gen. George S. Patton
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Five Quick Bits You Might Enjoy
What’s Your EQ? I scored a 9 out of 10 on this self-test. I wasn’t being honest as much as figuring out what the right answer was. Click here. The McDonald’s Vegan Burger Taste Test. Click here. All your…
Read full post -
Postscript
The shortlisted entries for the 2023 Comedy Pet Photography awards
Click here.
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
Cousin Camp, 2023
I’m writing this at Club Med in Cancun, Mexico, where our extended family of 46 (including spouses) has gathered for our latest once-every-two-years “Cousin Camp.” Here’s a photo of some of us climbing a…
Read full post -
News & Views
Remote Work Is Dead… at Zoom?
Most of the businesses I work with are making efforts to get employees back to work. Zoom meetings are useful and efficient, the CEOs say, but there is something missing when employees work remotely all the…
Read full post -
Worth Reading
Bring Up the Bodies
Bring Up the Bodies By Hilary Mantel 432 pages Published May 8, 2012 For the month of August, the Elder Mules selected Hilary Mantel’s Bring Up the Bodies. Mantel’s name was familiar to me, but I knew nothing…
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Time’s list of the 100 best movies in the last century
Click here. * From Vox: A good, succinct history of why cruise ships have gotten so big. Click here. * Talk about luxury! Take a look at this posh public restroom in China. * Who is the only living president…
Read full post -
Readers Write
Who’s Smarter? Liberals or Conservatives?
From AS, re my August 4 piece on political ideology and intelligence: “Interesting fact: I and other friends of yours, who shall remain nameless, have conversed over the years about your declining intelligence…
Read full post -
Postscript
All are welcome?
This is pretty funny. It’s a set-up, but it’s a good example of the hypocrisy of politically woke people. Click here.
Read full post -
Notes From My Journal
Thinking of Getting Your Book Published? Don’t Ask Me!
At long last, you’ve finished that book you’ve been meaning to write for the last 15 years. Congratulations! You have accomplished something that only one in a hundred do. You have a right to be proud of…
Read full post -
News & Views
How Much Longer Will Joe Be Protected?
President Biden’s story about having nothing whatsoever to do with Hunter’s overseas consulting business keeps getting thinner. Even the corporate media is catching on. On July 28, I talked about some of the…
Read full post -
Worth Quoting
James Madison On Gradual Power Encroachment
“There are more instances of the abridgement of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.” – James Madison
Read full post -
Worth Reading
I Keep Writing the Same Poptimism Piece Because Nothing Ever Changes
An interesting article by Freddie deBoer on the political popularity of Taylor Swift and how it represents another regrettable stage in the morbidity of American culture. Click here.
Read full post -
Fun and/or Interesting
Barbie Breakups, Phone Limits, And Shark Encounters
* From The Huffington Post: A disturbing (and disturbingly superficial) account of how Barbie is inspiring many to end relationships. Click here. * China’s internet regulator announced plans to curb teen phone…
Read full post -
Readers Write
From CN
“I’ve always enjoyed your books and writing. Really enjoy your [blog] too. I just read the following book and thought it would make great fodder for you – The Well-Lived Life: A 102-Year-Old Doctor’s Six…
Read full post