Sunday Sermon

Old Man Talking

What Shutdown? 10 Things You Can Still Do

January 21, 2018 Sunday Sermon

While avoiding the politics of a partial government shutdown, the day-to-day for the majority of us is unaffected. Here we are, the United States government is in partial shutdown mode. Not a full and complete shutdown, mind you. Social Security checks still go out. Medicaid still gets paid. FBI, Secret Service, and Border Patrol agents are still working. Air traffic controllers still keep the sky safe and there are still plenty of security people to make the task of gettingRead More

Surviving Holidays

Surviving The Holidays Without Hurting Anyone

November 26, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Just as a puppy can be more of a challenge than a gift, so too can the holidays. —John Clayton I strongly dislike Black Friday and holiday sales in general. I find the greed sickening and the false notion that one is helping the economy is grossly ignorant. The economy does better when one spends a fairly even amount each month rather than discount-fueled spikes [source and source]. I have long held a general disdain for those foolish enough toRead More

How to be single without starving

How To Survive Being Single Without Starving

November 19, 2017 Entertainment, Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Americans will eat garbage provided you sprinkle it liberally with ketchup. -Henry James My mother started early teaching me how to cook. She was convinced, even when I was a child, that I would likely grow up to be single and alone. Fortunately, at least for the larger portion of my adult life, she was wrong. However, her lessons have been valuable as frequently I have been the one responsible for the family’s meals. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to passRead More

Blurred Lives

Finding Focus In A Blurred World

November 12, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon, Video

How strongly are we influenced by what we hear, what we see, and what we experience without ever actually giving the matter direct thought? Is there such a thing as an original thought any more or is everything merely a re-interpretation of what someone else created? [ed. note:  The Old Man has been a bit under the weather the past few days and hasn’t been able to write. Rest assured, he’s getting the care he needs and will be backRead More

5 Films Someone Needs To Make Right Now

5 Films Someone Needs To Make Right Now

November 5, 2017 Entertainment, Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Everyone loves a good movie. In fact, the whole concept of Dudeism centers around The Big Lebowski and the character of The Dude. There’s just one problem with all these movies we’ve been watching our entire lives: they’re male-dominated. Not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with the guys, there are just way too many of them compared to the number of films featuring strong, intelligent female characters. We think there need to be more films created for and produced byRead More

AI can make all our lives more chll

AI Could Be What Makes All Lives More Chill — Or Not

October 29, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Tesla CEO Elon Musk explained on Twitter that his self-driving cars will be able to predict your destination without you having to say a word, thanks to AI. Source: Elon Musk: Tesla’s Cars Will be Able to Predict Your Destination Everyone I know, at least the ones that still talk to me, would love for their life to have less stress, less worry, and more relaxation. Accumulatively, we’ve tried yoga, psychotherapy, breathing techniques, tapping, meditation, exercise, and various substances thatRead More

Raising children to be successful

Raising Children With Skills To Succeed

October 22, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

There may not be anything more important to ensure future success than to adopt world-class habits and perfect them daily. Source: 4 Habits the Highly Successful Have Mastered hildren. Raise your hand if you have some. Yes, the one with the drink in it is fine. I probably have mentioned a few thousand times that I have three boys. They’re all pretty much grown with ages ranging from 19 to 25. I’m proud of them but realistic in recognizing thatRead More

Pizza Toppings, Neanderthals, And The Ability To Chill

Pizza Toppings, Neanderthals, And The Ability To Chill

October 15, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Gravity is the root of lightness; stillness, the ruler of movement. Tao te Ching, 26 eanderthals would probably have not liked pineapple on their pizza and that’s why they’re extinct. Sort of. Not exactly, mind you. Although Neanderthals did presumptively occupy parts of what is now Italy so I guess it’s always possible they had something that was remotely like pizza, it wouldn’t have had a crust and they certainly didn’t have access to pineapples.  This is where middle-of-the-night extrapolationRead More

Solving the problems we create

Finding Solutions To The Problems We Create

October 8, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

If we want to cut down on disease and achieve meaningful health care reform, we should make it a top nonpartisan priority to address our nation’s nutrition crisis. –Dariush Mozaffarian, Professor of Nutrition, Tufts University There are so many hot-button issues on which I want to voice my opinion that I find myself in a quandary this morning over which to choose. Gun control obviously has had people all up in arms this week (pardon the pun). LGBTQ rights are an issueRead More

Is All This Suffering Really Necessary?

September 10, 2017 Long Read, Sunday Sermon

Hey, dudes! We’re glad you could join us again. I’ve been worried about some of you down in Florida and want to make sure those of you in Georgia and Alabama stay safe as well. Let’s get things started with an appropriately named playlist while you read. Let it get through the first couple of songs before you start. Maybe light a fat one if you have it. Take a deep breath before continuing. “Without pain, how could we knowRead More