I had a strange but wonderful day today. My daughter and I went to a city about two hours away, where she wanted to spend the day with a friend. I was left on my own for about 6 hours – no social connections and (as a little experiment, no phone. I took a couple […]
leisure
Drugs – are we missing the point?
There have been a lot of brilliant pieces written on the failing of most countries in managing drugs. Criminalization has lead to massive, dangerous underground economies that don’t reduce drug use; and, for the most part, make it more dangerous. This piece is different. Far simpler. I’ve been doing work lately on how to reinvent […]
Sex in the Time of Cholera
A few months ago, people were predicting a COVID baby boom that would result from all the sex everyone was having as they were in isolation during COVID. It made sense. What would people do during those long evening necessarily spent at home? It turns out they would watch a lot of Netflix. And drink […]
Slowing Down
My friend just finished reading Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, the 4,200 page novel Proust wrote over 13 years as an allegory of his life. This friend, he set a goal a little over a year ago to read all of the top 50 classical novels of all time. This was his last. […]
Drinking Our Way Through the Pandemic
Are we ever drinking a lot these days. Sales at liquor stores up all over the country. Anecdotally, virtually everyone I speak with is drinking more. A friend who was a careful weekend drinker has started having a drink a few weeknights a week. For many, the occasional evening drink with dinner has switched to […]
Finding Your Mojo in these COVID Times
We’ve all noticed it. As we’re trapped in our homes, denied socializing and outings, time doesn’t seem to pass as it used to. One day blends into the next and weekends and weekdays don’t seem as distinct as they used to. Psychologists call it subjective time, and it happens because our days and weekend now […]
What Your Emojis Say About You
I did an informal survey recently… over the course of a couple days, I asked about a dozen friends and colleagues if I could see their phone and look at what their most frequently used emojis were. My theory – the emojis you frequently use will give an insight into your personality and mood predisposition. So, […]
A Book Of First 4: Wake Surfing
I started a short series recently on the importance of still being open to new experiences as we get older. Some of my themes are sexual – and I will come back to that – but today I want to go more physical. Wake surfing – surfing (on a surf board) in the waves created […]
Why We Need Sexual Play Zones at Spas
I’m only human. So when my wife and I, last night, spent the evening at a gorgeous outdoor spa with hot tubs, saunas, steam rooms, massage areas.. we couldn’t help but get pretty aroused. The environment is made for two things – relaxation and sexual arousal. Visualize it – a 5 acre resort cut into […]
A Book Of Firsts, Part 3: Learning an Instrument (not that one)
Saying I am unmusical is like saying Donald Trump is un-classy… it kind of goes without saying. I was the kid in music class who was hidden in the back row and told to ‘just mouth the words’. In the it came time to pass out instruments … triangle. So, when I signed my kids […]