Category Archives: Jack Fisher’s Insights

May 3, 2024 · 5:27 am

Why Time Seems To Go Faster As You Get Older

When I was a kid, the school year always seemed to go on forever. I know it was nine months out of the year and that was a sizable chunk of any given year. But looking back on it, I swear every day felt longer, every week felt like a month, and every month felt like a year. Even as I got older, time seemed to drag and at times, it was agonizing.

These days, the flow of time feels different and not just because of the events of the COVID-19 pandemic. Granted, that did mess up everyone’s sense of time. But even before that, I noticed how the days, months, and years seem to go by differently. And the older I get, the more I feel it. I’m also not the only one.

A lot of friends and relatives I talk to will say the same thing. They swear that 2023 just started a few weeks ago. They remember the ball dropping on New Years Eve. They remember making New Years resolutions, capping off the holidays, and making plans for the new year.

The next thing they know, Halloween is over and the holidays are just around the corner. You start to wonder where the hell the rest of the year went. You wonder why and how it went by so quickly. I’ve certainly wondered that from time to time. But since the end of the pandemic, I feel like my perspectives on how the years go by has struck a unique balance.

And I count that as an accomplishment because for a good chunk of my youth, that balance was lacking and not just because of how much I struggled in high school. College was eventful, but it felt like it ended too quickly for me because I was often anxious about what I would do when I got out. Even when I started working and exploring new creative outlets, I didn’t have much certainty with respect to how I would build a life for myself.

That took a while to figure out. I also made a few mistakes along the way, as most people do when they’re young and uncertain. But once I created a more stable life for myself, finding some decent jobs and moving into my own place, that’s when I really noticed my perceptions of time change.

Unlike being in school, my life was a lot less structured and regimented. There was less obsession over navigating classes, classmates, and assignments and more focus on just getting better at whatever job I happened to have. For someone like me, I tend to thrive more when things are streamlined and I know what I need to do over the course of a given day, week, or month. That allows me to plan accordingly and get things down to a system.

Once I found that, life in general just seemed to run smoother. It also helped that I wasn’t an awkward teenager trying to handle acne, puberty, and poor social skills anymore. Life experience and maturity helped me better navigate my life on a day-to-day basis.

Plus, making my own money, being able to spend it however I wanted, and living on my own schedule was a lot more fulfilling. I was no longer constantly checking the clock, agonizing over when my next assignment or obligation was.

Yes, I had that with my job, but that always felt less stressful than school because it was more limited. There was less emphasis on following strict schedules and getting grades. What mattered more was the end results and once I knew how to do that, there was less stress and anxiety.

Now, it was more a matter of how to enjoy my personal time when I wasn’t working. Having more of that, as well as enough money to make the most of it, really benefited me in terms of mental health. But it also made that time feel more fleeting and precious. When you’re doing your own thing and enjoying it every step of the way, it seems to end sooner. That’s often how I feel every time my trip to New York Comic Con ends.

I suspect that feeling will continue to evolve as I get older. There is some real science behind why time seems to move faster as you get older. Much of it has to do with how getting older makes each experience a smaller and smaller chunk of your lived experience. I think there is some merit to that and my older friends can often attest to it.

But beyond the science, I think this feeling is best summed up by a friend of mine who retired recently. He once told me that “The days are long, but the years feel short.” And I think that holds true, regardless of how old you are.

Every day is going to go by at its own pace, regardless of whether you’re working, going to school, or just enjoying a lazy Saturday afternoon. But as you make it through each day, they add up fast. Eventually, they’ll all feel like a blur as you make it through another year. At times, it feels like those days were wasted. But I would encourage others to avoid that feeling.

Because I believe that no day is truly wasted unless you go out of your way to do so. If you’re just lounging about, but enjoying it every step of the way, then that’s not a wasted day. But if you’re just lounging about and ignoring things you know you have to do, then that is a waste and it will impact the days that follow.

In the end, it’s a balancing act. If you find yourself in a situation that works for you, then it will feel like the years will start to fly by. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It means that you’re not in a situation agonizing over what the next day will bring or what you’ll have to do in the weeks to come.

Perception or not, the world will keep spinning and time will keep passing us by. But if you’ve built a good life for yourself and those around you, you’ll find that the days and years were well-spent, regardless of how brief they seemed.

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January 9, 2024 · 5:40 am

My (Terrible) Experience With COVID-19 (And A Reminder To Get Vaccinated)

Being sick sucks. I think we can all agree on that.

It doesn’t matter what you’re sick with. That doesn’t make the experience any less debilitating. Even something as simple as a headache can hinder your ability to do anything, major or minor. But when you’re sick with something serious, that compounds every aspect of why being sick sucks.

I know this because over the holidays, I got very sick. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say the 2023 holiday season was the sickest I’ve been in over five years. Being someone who works out regularly and makes a concerted effort to stay healthy, it was more than a little jarring. To make everything so much worse, I found out early on that I was sick with COVID-19.

While many believe the COVID-19 pandemic to be over, there’s no question that the disease is still raging. Granted, the strains going around today aren’t nearly as severe as the ones we saw at the start of the pandemic in 2020. On top of that, we have better treatments and multiple vaccines with which to combat it. But it is still a serious disease and one you do not want to deal with.

I can say that definitively, having dealt with it. And I freely admit, I was among those who thought I no longer had to worry about COVID-19. Since it began in 2020, I felt very fortunate to have never contracted it. I did test myself regularly and even on days when I didn’t feel 100 percent, they came back negative.

At times, that was surprising because a lot of people within my family and friends did contract the disease at some point. My parents got it. My siblings dealt with it. I even had multiple cousins and their friends deal with it. By 2023, I worked under the assumption that I had probably been exposed, but didn’t show any symptoms. And since I had also been vaccinated, I thought I didn’t have anything to worry about.

I was wrong.

I was painfully, frustratingly wrong.

I actually started feeling sick shortly after Christmas dinner. At the time, I thought it was just me having eaten too much or a general product of a stressful holiday season. But then, the symptoms compounded. My throat got sore. I started coughing a lot. And my face became hot, even in the middle of winter. At times, my face felt like I had just stuck my head in the oven. That’s when I started to get worried, but I thought it was something I could sleep off.

Again, I was wrong.

The day after Christmas was the day I felt really sick. I had plans to visit my uncle and siblings. I even had plans to go out to breakfast that day. I thought I could push through it. Then, one of my siblings demanded I take a COVID test before I drove over. I ended up taking two. And when both came back positive, pretty much all my holiday plans from that point forward were cancelled.

It was very upsetting. I vividly remember cursing more in that morning than I had at any point in 2023. But it gave me painful confirmation that I was very sick and this was not something I could tough out. It was also not something I could risk spreading to family members. My relatives include young children and cancer survivors. And there was no way I was ever going to put them at risk.

So, from December 26th until several days after New Year, I isolated in my home. And no, it was not a relaxing staycation. I didn’t just missed out on multiple holiday activities with friends and loved ones. I ended up experiencing a wide range of horrible symptoms that felt like my body was torturing me from the inside.

My sinuses were stuffed and clogged in ways I had not experienced, despite a long history of allergies.

My throat was sore and my voice was weak in a way that exceeded the worst cases of strep throat I ever had.

My lung capacity was severely diminished, so much so that just talking on the phone or walking up a flight of stairs would leave me winded. As someone who regularly runs three miles a day, this genuinely scared me.

But the fever was still probably the worst symptom and not just because of my temperature. My head kept getting physically hot as my fever fluctuated constantly, despite the cold weather outside. At one point, I had to go out on my deck at 2:00 a.m. in 24-degree weather to cool down because my head was so hot.

But the weirdest and most disturbing symptom I experienced during my entire bout with COVID-19 was the insomnia. That was probably the most frustrating and the most disturbing. Usually, when you get sick, you just want to sleep it off or sleep until it runs its course. But with this strain of COVID-19, I physically could not get tired.

For three solid nights, I would just lay in bed trying to sleep. But no matter what I did, I remained painfully alert, even when the rest of my symptoms were tempered with medications. I tried cutting out coffee. I tried avoiding sugar. But nothing seemed to work. I couldn’t make myself tired. I couldn’t even make myself drowsy. And I almost always get drowsy in the afternoon, so that was a strange experience.

By the fourth day, I took some over-the-counter sleeping pills that finally allowed me to sleep through the night. I still felt like crap the next day, but just getting some sleep did help. And after that night, the worst of my symptoms started to lesson.

By New Years Eve, I was able to sleep on my own and manage most of the symptoms. I was still coughing a lot and my sinuses were still stuffed up. But my fever had gone down, my appetite was normal, and I didn’t feel quite as weak. I still kept losing my breath when I went up a flight of stairs and people could tell I was sick whenever I talked to them on the phone. But I was on the road to recovery.

As I write this, I feel fine. My lung capacity is almost back to what it once was, my sinuses are normal, and my sleep schedule is back to normal. But make no mistake, this disease left an impression on me and, having gone through it, I have a few important messages to those who think COVID-19 is over.

For one, get vaccinated! Seriously people, stop making excuses and stop giving any attention to anti-vaxxers.

In this regard, I failed to take my own advice. This past fall, I did get my usual flu shot. The flu had surged in my area and I thought that was more pressing. But I did not get a COVID-19 booster because I foolishly thought it was no longer an issue. I had opportunities. I could’ve gotten one at pharmacy that’s less than three blocks from my home.

But I didn’t and, as a result, my holiday was ruined and I experienced the worst sickness I’ve had in years.

Even so, I still consider myself lucky. As bad as I felt, I never felt sick enough to go to a hospital. I also didn’t go to an ER or visit my doctor, although I probably should have after the shortness of breath got very bad. But I did manage to heal. I did manage to get through without any noticeable damage. That might be more a product of me being relatively healthy and having a rigorous gym routine. I understand not everyone else can make that claim.

But even if you are as health conscious as me, I still highly recommend that you get a COVID-19 vaccine or a booster as soon as possible. Do not leave something like this to chance. Do not assume that the worst is behind you and if you get exposed, you’ll be able to manage it.

Trust me, you do not want to experience what I did over the holidays. You’ll be doing yourself and your loved ones a favor by being proactive. My 2023 holiday plans might have been ruined by COVID-19, but it could’ve been so much worse. And I hope everyone will take this experience I’ve shared to heart.

The pandemic might be over, but COVID-19 is still a concern. Take it seriously. Otherwise, it might cost you more than your holiday plans.

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August 20, 2023 · 9:20 am

Sharing My Newfound Fondness (And Method) For Cooking Burgers

When I first graduated college, I continued eating like I was still in college for much of my 20s. That means for weeks on end, many of my meals would consist primarily of sandwiches, cereal, hot pockets, frozen microwave meals, and maybe some fast food if I wanted to reward myself.

It’s every bit as unhealthy as it sounds. And keep in mind, I did not regularly go to the gym during this time either.

I’ve changed and grown since then. Ever since I moved out on my own, I’ve steadily expanded my cooking skills. In many regards, I had more incentive than most. Both my father and grandmother are exceptional cooks. They’ve been demonstrating amazing abilities in the kitchen since I was a kid. I just took way too long to make use of those opportunities.

Now that I live on my own and have no roommates, I basically have an entire kitchen to myself. And that has given me a chance to explore cooking in my own unique way.

For years now, I’ve gone through some trends of sorts. There was a time when I got really into baking desserts for family and friends. I would make fudge, brownies, cookies, and pretty much anything that would tickle your sweet tooth. In that regard, I have to thank my late grandmother for that. Her desserts are still the stuff of legend in our family.

I also went through a period when I went a little crazy with omelets. Every time I got back from the gym, I would break out this big frying pan, throw at least four eggs into a bowl, and use that as a foundation for these big, overstuffed omelets.

I might have gotten a bit too creative with those at times. For a while, my preferred omlette involved throwing a bunch of crab meat, cheddar cheese, chopped onions, and jalapeño peppers into this burrito sized monstrosity.

Yes, it was delicious.

Yes, I would eat the whole thing.

No, I don’t regret it.

But now that I have to be mindful of cholesterol, I’ve tried to limit my fondness for overstuffed omelets. This leads me to my current obsession in the kitchen, which revolves around cooking my own burgers.

I know it sounds mundane. Burgers have a reputation for being a simple, non-fancy meal that you only cook of you’re not in the mood for something fancy. I respectfully disagree with that sentiment. In fact, I think those who downplay the joys of a simple burger just aren’t using enough imagination.

I only began my imaginative efforts over this past 4th of July. It started when I got some new cookware, which was badly in need of replacing. And since this was the heart of grilling season, I decided to make burgers my main primary focus. It helped that every grocery store had these displays of traditional grilling dishes. It also helped that I hadn’t eaten a lot of burgers lately, mostly because much of those burgers were either overpriced meals at restaurants or cheap fast food burgers.

But once I made my first round of burgers, I realized something. Not only did making burgers on your own terms make them taste better, you actually got a lot more value out of them. Seriously, just look at what an average burger costs and look at how much meat and buns you can buy with that same money. Even if you suck at math, the savings aren’t trivial.

I also realized that there’s something to be said about putting a little care into your burgers. You’re the one doing the grilling. You’re the one who gets to decide how rare, how thick, or how juicy your burgers are. You get to decide what you mix into the meat, how spicy you want it to be, and how to arrange your topics.

That may not make the burger taste too differently on a basic level. But trust me, it still makes a difference.

Since those realizations, I’ve made numerous burgers and refined to making them in my own unique way. And in the spirit of sharing delicious tidbits, I’d like to share my approach. I’m not saying this will make the perfect burgers for everyone. This is just how I, Jack Fisher, make the burgers I truly savor.

First, I craft two patties of 80/20 lean beef. Sometimes, I get the pre-made patties from a butcher. If that’s not an option, I mix in some salt, oregano, and a pinch of paprika while forming the patties.

Second, I heat up two pans on my oven. One is a simple grill pan, which I turn up to medium-high. The other is a cast-iron skillet, which I turn up to medium. I put a little unsalted butter in each and let it melt.

Third, I use two brioche style buns, which are much better than traditional white bread buns. I apply a little butter on both and then put them in the cast iron skillet to toast them. Trust me, toasted buns make a big difference in any burger.

Fourth, I put the patties on the other grill pan and let them cook for two-and-a-half to three minutes. While they’re cooking, I do some light mashing with a spatula. I emphasize light because I’ve found that mashing too hard dries them out. But if you don’t mash at all, the burger just scrunches up and becomes a bit too unevenly cooked.

Fifth, after the first side is grilled, I flip them over. By then, the buns are toasted so I take those off. And shortly after flipping, I apply two slices of cheese on each patty. One is fine, but I’ve found that two creates a much better foundation for the toppings.

Sixth, I do continue to lightly mash the burgers as they cook. As I’m doing so, I prepare the toppings. That usually includes some chopped lettuce, a spritz of mustard and ketchup, and some chopped peppers. If I’m in the mood for something spicy, I’ll use jalapeño peppers.

Finally, once the burgers are done, I put them both on their respective buns followed by the toppings. I then apply a little pressure to both burgers. I’ve found this helps mash a little flavor from both the burger and the toppings, which makes them that bit more savory.

Again, his is just my approach. This is what works for me and I’ll likely continue refining the process, at least until I settle on my next cooking endeavor. But with summer winding down and plenty of opportunities to grill, I wanted to share this newfound fondness of burgers.

Because I don’t care who you are, where you come from, or what your politics might be. Everyone can appreciate a nice, juicy burger.

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July 28, 2023 · 5:39 am

Why Seeing Back To School Sales Still Upsets Me

When I was a kid, summer was a wonderful time by almost every measure.

School was out, the weather was warm, and I actually got to sleep in every morning. Even during the years when I had a summer job, it was great. I loved it and it was generally a happy time for me.

But then, at a certain point during the summer, I would tag along with my parents and siblings to the store. And eventually, we’d enter a store that had these displays advertising a “back to school” sale. Sometimes, it was as early as mid-July. There would still be a full month of summer vacation to look forward to.

But to me, it was still deeply distressing, especially when I was in middle school and high school. That was usually the point in my summer when I started looking at the calendar with dread with increasing dread. I knew that with each passing day, I was that much closer to another year of school. And for someone who hated school as much as I did, that was very upsetting.

I know it sounds melodramatic.

I know it comes off as the overblown whining of a kid who just didn’t like going to school.

Even today, kids lamenting going back to school are likely to be met with dismissive eye-rolls. We hear them complaining about going back to school and we just think they’re being weak.

They think school is so hard. They have no idea how hard the real world is. School was supposed to prepare them for that and if they struggled to deal with it, then they were in for a rude awakening when they made it to the adult world.

I get that sentiment on some levels. I’m guilty of feeling it myself whenever I hear a kid complaining about a new school year. But whenever I experience that feeling, I find myself remembering back to what it was like for me when I experienced such dread. Even now, as a full-fledged adult who has been out of school for over a decade, it still upsets me on some levels. And I really wish it didn’t.

I’m sharing this because very recently, I came across one of those big back to school sales in a store. Those displays did go away to some extent during the COVID-19 pandemic. But this year, they’re back in full force.

There are entire sections of a store dedicated to school supplies, clothes, and any accessory a kid or teenager might need. There are also these images of happy and excited kids, getting ready to go back to school. I know for a fact most kids don’t feel that way about going back to school, especially in the middle of summer vacation. I also know that for some kids, those reminders are downright triggering.

Now, I know I’ve bemoaned how much I hated high school before. I’ve also made abundantly clear that I was a uniquely miserable teenager, largely because of crap I did to myself. It may come off as melodramatic. And I don’t deny that, with the benefit of hindsight, it probably wasn’t as awful as I made it out to be.

That still doesn’t change the fact that dreading going back to school was a deeply distressing experience for me. There were times when I would just lay in bed, anxiously watch my clock radio, and endlessly lament going back to school.

I knew it was going to be miserable.

I knew I was going to needlessly stress myself out over every little thing, from getting my homework done to making new friends to dealing with how ugly I felt due to poor self-image.

My parents and siblings, to their credit, did everything they possibly could to help me. None of what I experienced is their fault in the slightest. I just had this incredibly toxic mentality about school.

On the last day of school, I was elated to just let it go and celebrate having made it through another year. But when those first back to school sales showed up, I could feel that mentality returning like a wound being re-opened. And when that first day of school finally came, I was often the most insufferably miserable person to be around.

But as bad an attitude I had, I did eventually get through it. I made it through middle school, high school, and college without that toxic mentality completely consuming me. I won’t say doing so made me stronger. If anything, it set me back for years and I still haven’t fully recovered from it. It kept me from making new friends, improving my social skills, and developing new passions.

The fact that I still experience it today, even if it’s just in bad memories, further shows how much it affected me. It may not be as bad as it was when I was younger, but just recounting how upset I got when I saw back to school sales in the middle of summer still affects me. I really wish it didn’t.

Maybe at some point in my life, I’ll be able to walk by a back to school sale display and experience those feelings. But for now, it’s something I have to deal with.

And to all those who experience similar dread whenever they’re reminded that a new school year is coming, I can only offer my empathy and understanding. But I can also offer my perspective and hope. Because if I can navigate these feelings and all the bad memories associated with them, then you can too.

Be strong.

Be resliant.

Better times will come.

But for now, just take a deep breath and enjoy the rest of your summer vacation.

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June 23, 2023 · 5:44 am

Why I Love Being An Uncle

Not to long ago, I honestly wondered if me and my siblings would ever get around to having kids. Even after we all moved out of our parents’ house and built our own lives, I wasn’t sure if that was ever a consideration.

For me, personally, I was way behind the curve. Every one of my siblings is objectively better than me when it comes to social skills. They’ve always had an easier time making friends and finding romantic partners. I’m pretty sure if you asked them, my parents, or my friends, they would agree that I would probably be the last one to have kids.

It still hasn’t happened for me. Maybe that’ll change in the future. But for my siblings, the change came sooner rather than later. In the mid-2010s, one of my sisters was the first announce that she was pregnant. It was a hell of a moment. I’m pretty sure that, of everyone present when she made that announcement, I made the goofiest face.

I don’t know if my sister or her husband reads my website, but I suspect she would agree. I may never look that goofy again.

And when that fateful day came and her first child was born, it was an incredibly joyous moment for the whole family. It also made it official. I was an uncle now! And I quickly came to embrace that role.

I knew the day when I first held my sister’s baby boy that I would strive to be the best uncle I could be. I wouldn’t just be the cool uncle or the fun uncle. I would be the kind of uncle that they would be excited to see at every visit. That’s what I started working towards that fateful day.

It’s been challenging.

It’s been a never-ending process, at times.

But I can say without reservation that it’s totally worth it.

Since then, my sister has had another child. My younger brother and his wife also welcomed a couple kids of their own. They’re all still very young, rowdy, and energetic. But they’re old enough to recognize when Uncle Jack comes to visit. They know me by name. They know me by my voice, my facial hair, and the various shirts I wear depicting comic book characters and sports teams. And I never hesitate to give them a big hug.

I also don’t hesitate to spoil them. That’s something my siblings knew I was going to do. They would’ve been shocked if I hadn’t.

I do it every Christmas. I will usually be the one who gets my nieces and nephews the most elaborate gifts. One year, I got my nephew a miniature ball pit. I cannot overstate how much value that gift has had over the years. Another, I got him and my niece a miniature trampoline. Given how energetic they are, I don’t doubt that has gotten quite a bit of use.

There are times when it’s painfully clear I don’t know much about parenting. Like I said, I’m behind the curve in that regard. And I don’t know if or when I’ll catch up. But I like to think I’ve learned how to be an awesome uncle in my own right.

If there was one moment, in particular, that solidified my love of being an uncle, it happened during this warm summer day in my parents’ backyard. We were having a family get-together, which happens often with a family like mine. We don’t need much incentive to get together and have fun. My nephew was around two at the time. He was walking and running around, albeit with the coordination you would expect of a two-year-old. But that didn’t stop us from having fun.

So, while his parents were getting some food, I took this soccer ball they’d brought and started bouncing it off my head. I don’t know what prompted me to do that. I just know that when my nephew saw it, he thought it was the greatest thing. He laughed and smiled while running around to get the ball. And I kept trying to bounce it off my head towards him. He tried to catch it, but had limited success. That didn’t matter though. We had fun and I like to think I made a good impression that day.

Since then, I’ve built on that impression. I love reading comics to my niece and nephew. I love watching sports with them, teaching them how to cheer for our favorite team. I love chasing them around, pretending I’m a T-Rex. And I love hearing them laugh every step of the way.

I know being an uncle has its limits. I honestly don’t know if I could match the energy my siblings have to keep up with their kids, especially at their current age. But that just makes me respect and love them even more. It also motivates me to be the best uncle I can be for them.

When those kids get older, they’re going to grow into a strange, uncertain world that’s constantly changing. But one thing that won’t change is the fact that they have an awesome uncle.

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June 18, 2023 · 8:08 am

Happy Father’s Day (Especially To My Awesome Dad)!

Today is Father’s Day.

And when you’re lucky enough to have an awesome dad like mine, it’s definitely worth celebrating.

Now, I know I’ve gone out of my way to brag about how awesome my dad in the past. And I’ve no intention to stop bragging. Why should I? My dad is just that great. And I will never hesitate to celebrate, honor, and thank him for being the best dad a guy like me could ask for. So many of my best traits come directly from my dad and how he raised me.

Today, I just happen to have a better excuse than usual to celebrate how great he is. And I’m happy to take advantage of it.

I know he occasionally reads this site. So, I like to make sure I properly articulate how much I love him and how grateful I am for all that he’s done for me. There’s so much I could talk about for my dad. There are the times he helped me while I was struggling in school, when I was a moody teenager, and when I had a bad attitude problem during my less-than-successful little league baseball career.

I could probably write entire books on certain phases of my life and how my dad was so instrumental. But in the interest of keeping this from running too long, I’ll highlight just one that I still remember fondly to this day. I’m not sure if he remembers this. But if he does, I hope it brings him the same joy it still brings me.

This particular incident happened when I was around four years old. My dad was working a construction job at the time. And my mother happened to have the day off. So, she took me to McDonald’s, which was always a treat for me. I remember getting a happy meal and a toy, which was enough to make any kid’s day back then. However, the toy wasn’t what stands out the most.

What made that trip to McDonald’s so memorable was that the burger had a pickle in it. My parents know I hate pickles and I always ask that they be removed from my burger. This time, they forgot. But I didn’t realize that until my mother drove by the construction site my dad was working at to say hi. This was not unusual. And he often dropped by to greet us and take a break.

But this time, when we drove by, I started crying because I found a pickle in my burger. Now, this is one of those moments that could either ruin a day or make it great. My parents, being the awesome people they are, found a way to make it great for all the right reasons.

Just as we drove up and started chatting, my dad saw the pickle in the burger. He saw me crying and complaining, as most four-year-olds do over minor things. So, without missing a beat, he just took the burger, took out the pickle, and threw the pickle across the construction site as hard as he could. He then turned back to me, smiled, and gave me back the burger.

To this day, I still remember how much I laughed and smiled at that. My mom started laughing too. It was simple, playful gesture from a man who was working an arduous job. But he still had the energy and the heart to make me smile.

As a result, that particular McDonald’s burger was extra tasty. And I have my dad to thank for that.

In the years that followed, we drove by that site frequently. It ultimately became a shopping center that still stands to this day. And whenever we passed by, my mom and I would point out the exact spot where my dad threw the pickle. And I would always smile at that memory.

That’s just one of many memories of my dad that I cherish. Today, I hope others can recount and celebrate similar memories. I know not everyone is lucky enough to have an awesome dad like mine. But that just makes me appreciate him even more.

So, to my wonderful father and all the other amazing father’s out there, I wish you a very Happy Father’s Day!

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June 4, 2023 · 9:39 am

Celebrating Summer (With A Personal Story About Sunburn And Sunscreen)

Summer is here!

If you’re a kid who has endured the past eight months of school or an adult who hates dressing in layers just to get the mail, it’s a wonderful time of year. I always looked forward to it as a kid, largely because I was so miserable at school. But even after I started working, I still looked forward to summer. No matter what job I had, it just felt less strenuous with the knowledge that pools were open and beach vacations were possible.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve only come to appreciate summer even more. I wasn’t able to do much traveling for a couple years. Now, my summer travel plans are largely back to normal. That usually means I’ll be taking multiple trips to the beach and I’ll be spending a good chunk of that time lounging about, reading comics under the sun, and hanging out with friends and family. Just thinking about it makes me feel more relaxed.

And I encourage everyone to take time this summer to enjoy themselves. It doesn’t matter if that involves a trip to the beach, a walk in the park, or eating ice cream on a hot day. We all should get out and enjoy this time of year. It’s good for us on so many levels.

But, like with any activity, seasonal or otherwise, there are risks and precautions. Most are minor. If you have a lick of common sense, you already know what to do and you’ll be fine. But in the spirit of celebrating this time of year, I’d like to share a personal story that I hope reminds everyone why these precautions are worth taking. And it involves sunburns and sunscreen.

I know it’s a common concern. Go to any beach, pool, or summer hot spot and chances are someone will urge you to put on sunscreen. For some, it’s more important than others. And that definitely applies to me.

Since I was a kid, I’ve always burned easily. Whereas my sisters always seem to get a nice tan by spending time in the sun, my brother and I always burn and burn badly. Even when we use sunscreen, we can get burned. Granted, that’s often a result of us not applying enough of it. But that doesn’t make the burn hurt any less. I could recount plenty of stories about times when I got nasty sunburns that took weeks to heal.

But one story in particular will always stand out and I hope that by sharing it, others will take applying sunscreen more seriously.

This is a pretty recent story as well, taking place only about six years ago. That’s important because it happened while I was a capable, functioning adult. It’s one thing for kids to get sunburned. They’re stubborn and short-sighted. I know I certainly was and I ended up with plenty of burns that left lasting impressions. So, by this point in my life, I had no excuses.

It happened during a memorable 4th of July trip to the beach. I took an extended vacation so that I could travel to the beach to meet up with some friends and family. We were going to spend some time at the shore, enjoy some fireworks, and have a cookout. It was a perfect setup for the 4th of July holiday and I was so ready to enjoy it.

On the first day I was there, I met up with my dad and we spent almost the entire day lounging at the beach. It was a perfect summer day. It was hot, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. You really couldn’t have asked for better weather for a holiday weekend.

Knowing this, I did make it a point to apply plenty of sunscreen. I tried to cover every part of my body that usually burned quickly. I promised myself that this trip wasn’t going to result in some painful burn that would obscure an otherwise perfect summer trip. Sadly, I couldn’t keep that promise.

While I did use over half a bottle of sunscreen to smother most of my body, there was one particular part I missed. It was a small patch just around the tops of my feet. That’s not normally a part of my body on which I apply sunscreen, mostly because I wear sneakers all the time, even in hot weather. So, in my rush to get down to the beach, I missed that part. And the summer sun punished me for it.

The day at the beach was still great. It was the first time in weeks that I could just sit down, relax, and not worry about all the other stuff that was going on my life. It also gave me some quality time with my dad, which I always enjoy. That was all great and totally worth it. But it wasn’t until later that evening I realized something.

The tops of my feet hurt like hell.

When I tried putting my shoes on to go out for dinner, the pain was really bad. And that’s when I found out what had happened. The tops of my feet were badly sunburned. The rest of my body was fine. The parts that usually got burned easily were unaffected. I even had a slight tan in some areas. But the patch of burns on my feet were bright red with burns.

I know it’s not fun to have any part of your body sunburned. But trust me, burning the tops of your feet is especially painful. It’s not just that it makes wearing shoes and socks a test in pain tolerance. The mere act of taking a shower becomes difficult. I found that out the hard way the next morning. For the rest of the trip, I had to be careful with what I wore on my feet and what I did. The burns were just that bad.

As painful as it was, I still had fun during that trip. It didn’t keep me from enjoying my time at the beach or the various 4th of July festivities that came with it. But it did help reinforce the importance of sunscreen for me. Since then, I’ve become much more thorough when it comes to applying it for a trip to the beach or pool. And you can rightly assume that I’ll always put a little extra on my feet.

Again, I encourage everyone to get out there and enjoy this summer. Go to the beach. Go to the pool. Go to a cookout with friends and family. Enjoy the sun and the warmth. Just be safe and responsible. You don’t want to deal with sunburns more than you have to. And you especially don’t want to deal with burns on your feet.

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May 21, 2023 · 9:32 am

Why High School Exams Were Harder Than Most Jobs I’ve Had

As I’m writing this, a great many school-age kids in middle school and high school are anxious for summer to begin. For many school districts in the United State, the end of the school year is in sight. It no longer seems so far away and so out of reach. I imagine many are already counting down the days until that magical moment when the final bell rings and school is out for the summer.

I know that wait can be agonizing, at times.

I have not forgotten the elation I often felt on the last day of school

But before any students get to that wondrous moment, they have one last obstacle to face. It involves the last round of standardized tests and exam. It may vary from district to district, but this is usually the time of year when most students take the SATs, AP and IP exams, or a general final exam for each class. They are often among the most difficult and stressful tests of the entire year. I haven’t forgotten how hard they were, either. And while I’ve already made my opinions on standardized testing clear, I’d like to use this moment to share another insight.

Back in high school, I took a number of AP exams during this time of year. And towards my junior and senior year, I also took final exams that often required much more studying than your standard quiz. I took many similar exams in college, but most of those varied in that they didn’t rely entirely on scantron sheets and multiple-choice tests. To date, it was those major exams towards the end of high school that ended up being the hardest test I ever took.

I vividly remember staying up late at night during the days leading up to the test, often going over page after page of notes that weren’t always well-organized. I also remember reading over textbooks again and again, but still struggling to remember key points. It resulted in many restless nights. On the nights before tests, I often laid awake in my bed, going over notes and concepts that I knew I had to remember for the exam the next day.

It was not healthy. I can’t overstate how stressful this was for me.

Even though I ended up passing and even acing some of these exams, the work I had to put in just didn’t feel worth it. And in the grand scheme of things, I don’t feel like all that studying helped me actually learn the concept. Even if I passed or aced the exam, I genuinely can’t remember any helpful knowledge coming from it.

However, this harrowing experience did have one important impact. But I wouldn’t feel it until I graduated college and started working in the real world.

Looking back on all the jobs I’ve had since college, including the ones I found really terrible, I don’t think I’ve ever been as stressed or as anxious as I was when studying or taking those tests. That’s not to say all the jobs I’ve had were easy, by comparison. They certainly weren’t. I’ve had a number of jobs over the years in which I’ve come home feeling sore, drained, and miserable. But even on my busiest days at those jobs, I still didn’t feel nearly as stressed.

And I think that’s an important perspective to share because I imagine there are a lot of young people right now worrying about what the adult world has in store for them. Their only real experience with hard work and stress comes from school. They’re constantly told by teachers, counselors, and administrators that the work their doing now is critical. And it’s meant to prepare them for the much harder work they’ll face in college or the adult world.

If someone out there has been telling you that, I’ve got an important message for you.

Unless you plan on being a doctor or lawyer or a sweatshop laborer, that’s not accurate. That’s just administrators trying to get you to work harder so that you’ll get better grades, which consequently makes them look better. The truth is never that simplistic. And you often don’t find that out until much later in life and after some significant life experience.

But even if you don’t have that experience, you can still maintain a better perspective than I ever did when I was young. I made the mistake of treating every major exam like a defining moment in my life. I genuinely believed that if I didn’t ace every test, my life would fall apart and I would fail at everything moving forward. I also believed that each passing year would get harder and harder. Eventually, I’d have to spend every waking hour studying or working, never having time to enjoy my life. Again, it was not healthy. I did real harm to my mental health by thinking that.

I eventually had to learn that both college and the adult world don’t have to be this never-ending toil of joyless rigor. Once you have some agency and guidance, you can chart your own path. Yes, you’ll still have to work. And yes, you’ll still have to struggle at times. But it’s not nearly as arduous as these exams and the teachers who give them make them out to be. In time, they will be a small sliver of a much richer life.

To date, I don’t think I’ve ever worked as hard or been as stressed out as I was when taking my high school exams from this time of year. Every job I’ve had came with challenges. But rising to those challenges never felt so tedious and arduous. On top of that, I actually got paid for that effort. That definitely took some of the stress out of it. And even in the worst jobs I’ve had, there was a general structure and logic to it all. I knew what I had to do and why. Whereas with school, it was just a matter of doing what the teachers said and getting the grades they said you needed to get.

Time, life experiences, and the benefit of hindsight has helped me see those exams for what they were. As agonizing as they were, a part of me is grateful that they hardened me to the rigors of hard work and stressful nights. Compared to my last few years of high school, every job I’ve had has been less stressful and more manageable. That helped make navigating the adult world easier in the long run.

Even so, I wouldn’t wish that kind of stress on anyone. And I sincerely hope anyone reading this who’s still in school can gain some insight from what I’ve shared.

I know it’s still so overwhelming, having the end of the school year be so close, yet having to navigate final exams.

I know it seems like your entire life revolves around school and these tests, at the moment.

I only ask that you take a step back and appreciate that these challenges will help make you stronger in the long run. You need not fear what comes next. Because if you can survive high school even slightly better than I did, then I promise you’re already strong enough to build a brighter future for yourself in the years to come.

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May 13, 2023 · 8:25 am

Mother’s Day Memories (Featuring The Terminator)

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day.

It’s a special day, in and of itself. And it’s a day we should totally recognize. I don’t care what the anti-Hallmark people say. It’s not a bullshit holiday. It’s a great day to recognize and appreciate the wonderful mothers who make us who we are, literally and figuratively.

And when you have an awesome mom like I do, it’s extra special. I’ve gone out of my way to give my mom extra love and praise on this website. I don’t intend to stop anytime soon. I know she reads this site, so I have every reason to continue.

As I’ve done before, I like to use this day to share a brief story to help illustrate why my mom is so wonderful. Picking a story is not easy because there are just so many. My mom does plenty to craft great memories for me and my siblings. From the time I was a kid to just a few weeks ago, she never hesitates to create lasting memories that are worth celebrating.

So, for Mother’s Day 2023, I’m going to single out one particular story from my youth. And as it just so happens, this story involves the Terminator.

Yes, I’m referring to that Terminator.

I promise I’m going somewhere with this. My mother probably already knows the story I’m about to tell and I imagine she understands why I’m telling it.

To appreciate this story, it’s also important to appreciate how my parents went about setting boundaries for me and my siblings. Like all responsible parents, my mother and father set clear rules. There were some things we weren’t allowed to do. There were also certain shows, movies, and video games that we weren’t allowed to play. The list wasn’t long, strict, or petty. And if I or any of my siblings asked, they would offer simple, understandable explanations.

It wasn’t always just a matter of “Because I said so.” My parents did try to be more reasonable than that. And as a result, it was easier to respect those rules.

It wouldn’t be accurate to call my parents overly strict. It also wouldn’t be accurate to call them overly lenient. They always found a way to strike just the right balance in terms of setting clear rules and letting their kids explore the world. It’s the kind of parenting that might as well be a superpower these days.

This leads me to their approach to R-rated movies, such as Terminator movies. My parents weren’t one to take their underage kids to R-rated movies, nor were they the kind to let us stay up late and watch R-rated movies on cable. However, they did make some rare exceptions, provided that they watch the movie with us. And one of the earliest exception was “Terminator 2: Judgement Day.”

That movie is considered one of the greatest movies ever made and for good reason. If any parent is going to make an exception, it’s a movie like this. And that’s what my mother did.

When I was around eight years old, my mother rented the movie. She and my dad actually loved the first one. I don’t know if they had ever seen it in the theaters, but I know they knew the franchise. And even though this movie was rated R, she let me and my younger brother stay up and watch it with her one night. This wasn’t something we had to beg her to do. She just let us do it because she’s just that awesome.

Now, being a kid, I didn’t appreciate all the complexities and nuances surrounding “Terminator 2: Judgement Day.” To my young mind, I just saw a movie full of great action scenes and intense moments. I didn’t really care about the content. The violence and action was just so thrilling to me. My young mind thought it was like a roller coaster ride. The trill of just being part of it was so incredible.

Along the way, my mother did take some time to explain what was going on. At the time, I hadn’t seen the first Terminator movie in full. She also made it a point to note when the violence was excessive. She didn’t try to shield me and my brother from it, but she did make sure we were aware. Even though we were kids, we still appreciated it.

Then, we got to the emotional ending of the movie when the Terminator sacrifices himself. To this day, it’s still one of the greatest moments in cinematic history. And even though I was young, I still felt the impact of that moment when John hugged the Terminator. Then, as he was being lowered into the steel and Sarah embraced her son, my mom embraced me. And that just made the moment all the more powerful.

To this day, “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” still holds a special place in my heart. In addition to being a great movie, it’s also a movie I will always associate with my wonderful mother.

Watching it with her that fateful night is a memory that has stuck with me over the years. It’s just one of the many I cherish between me and my mother. They come in so many forms and in unexpected ways. Whether it’s on Mother’s Day or while watching an R-rated movie as a kid, these moments are special. And for that, I will always be grateful.

So, to all the wonderful mothers out there, especially my wonderful mother, Happy Mother’s Day!

Hasta La Vista, Baby!

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March 26, 2023 · 7:29 am

Why I Stopped Believing In UFOs

This video is a personal story mixed with a larger message. Because for a time in my life, I was an avid believer in UFOs and UFO conspiracies. I bought into so much of the narrative surrounding aliens, government cover-ups, and everything in between. But over time, I came to realize how flawed those beliefs were. I also realized how unhealthy they were.

In this video, I share the story of how I fell into these beliefs and how I ended up outgrowing them. Enjoy!

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