Another glorious preview for “Captain Marvel” has dropped. Let’s all take a moment to soak in its marvelous glory. She’s destined to fly higher, farther, and faster than any hero before her. Thanos is fucked. Nuff said!
Another glorious preview for “Captain Marvel” has dropped. Let’s all take a moment to soak in its marvelous glory. She’s destined to fly higher, farther, and faster than any hero before her. Thanos is fucked. Nuff said!
Filed under Marvel, superhero comics, superhero movies

Exercise is one of those things that has many benefits, but is so hard to do consistently and effectively. I know this better than most because for a good chunk of my life, I did not care for exercise. Gym was my least favorite class in high school and I looked for any excuse to avoid it.
As I got older, though, I came to appreciate it and not just for the health benefits. It started off as just a way to look better and gain confidence, which I’ve talked about before. Over time, it became something else entirely. Exercise, pushing myself, and gaining greater strength became something more intimate. It took on greater appeal beyond just seeking healthier habits.
That appeal isn’t just purely anecdotal. Research has shown that couples who work out together tend to have stronger emotional bonds. On a purely physical level, that makes sense. Working out involves sweating, grunting, and heavy exertion. It has more than a few similarities to making love and you don’t even have to be naked to enjoy it, although that has benefits too.
I’m not in a relationship yet, but I hope that when I do find that special someone, they’ll be the kind of person I enjoy working out with. It’s an intimacy I’d love to share one day. The following Daily Sexy Musing is a testament to the power of that intimacy. I hope it inspires lovers and single people alike to share in the sweat, among other things.
I lace up my shoes.
I put on the lightest clothes I have.
Everything I have on has one purpose and that’s to absorb sweat.
We’ll be doing plenty of that this morning. I know because I see that special glint in your eyes. You’re going to really push yourself. You want me to keep up, but you don’t want to make it easy for me. I’m up for the challenge. If anything, I welcome it.
Gone are the fancy clothes, the elaborate makeup, and the overpriced aftershave. There’s no spectacle to present or façade to craft. Instead, only sweat, grit, and drive will shape our appearance. We will be at our dirty and most disheveled. At the same time, however, we will also be our most honest.
Energized and impassioned, I follow you into a world of rigor.
It starts with running. Stretching, weights, and various other activities follow. Together, we move through soreness and exhaustion. We push each other, encourage one another, and embrace every bead of sweat that forms. My muscles burn and my body aches, but with the pain comes achievement.
When we run together, we share in the strain.
When we endure the strain, we gain greater strength.
When we channel that strength, we link our bodies and hearts.
Faster and faster, our hearts beat with every step and every rep. The intensity breeds intimacy. Endurance builds trust. You know I’ll keep up with you. I know you’ll keep up with me. It’s like making love atop the limits that hold us back, embracing the hardship to enhance the bliss.
Alone, we can push ourselves and grow stronger.
Alone, we can improve our bodies and our souls with hard work and sweat.
Together, however, we gain more than just health and vitality.
Together, our sweat, strain, and grit unites us.
Filed under Daily Sexy Musings

The holidays are over, but winter is just getting started and it always feels frustratingly long. Unless you’re lucky enough to live in a tropical climate, we’ve got several months of cold temperatures and crappy weather to look forward to. I’m already dreading it. As a romantic and someone who just enjoys being naked, I’ve found that winter cold tends to limit the potential for sexy situations.
If you have a fireplace, though, you have an advantage. There’s a reason why more than one song has referenced making love down by the fire. It doesn’t take much imagination, dirty or otherwise, to see the appeal. It’s both sexy and romantic, cuddling up with your lover under the light and warmth of a roaring fire in the fireplace.
I’ve already written one sexy short story about it. There’s a good chance I’ll write others like it in the future. It also helps that my current place actually has a gas fireplace that I regularly use. If I ever have company of a sexy kind, I certainly hope to use it. During this time of year, you have to use what you can to keep things sexy.
Whether you have a fireplace or not, the inherent sexiness is hard to deny. That’s why I’m dedicating this week’s edition of Sexy Sunday Thoughts to roaring fireplaces and the sex appeal they bring during this most unsexy of seasons. If you have one like I do, I hope you get a chance to use it this winter.
“Whoever invented lubricant has probably brought more joy to the world than they’ll ever realize.”

“The success of any party is predicated on how well it facilitates the process of getting drunk and/or laid.”

“Good things are worth waiting for, but foreplay makes even the wait a lot more enjoyable.”

“In certain circumstances, people who are horny can do just as much property damage as people who are horny.”

“Good sex takes practice, but convincing others to practice with you takes talent.”

“Logistically speaking, many lives are lost in the front seats of cars whereas many lives are created in the back seats.”
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“A gift itself won’t get you laid, but the thought that goes into it might.”
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These next couple months are going to be long and cold. For those who don’t like being cooped up indoors, it’s going to be a challenge. Sometimes, that means finding sexy scenarios wherever and whenever you can. I’m not saying having a fireplace is the best scenario for lovers during these cold winter months. I’m just saying it’s hard to beat.
Filed under Sexy Sunday Thoughts

When it comes to all things sexy, there’s a time and place for the rough stuff. I’ve had musings about it before. I even wrote a sexy short story about it. For reasons that are too convoluted to get into, the rougher side of sexy stuff tends to get more attention and not always for the right reasons. While it certainly has a place in a passionate relationship, there’s also a place for gentler forms of sexiness.
By gentle, I don’t just mean weak. I’m referring to the kind of soft, soothing touch that favors finesse over fervor. It’s more targeted, seeking out the most sensitive parts of your lover’s being and stimulating them with the utmost care. It’s like performing surgery with a feather, emphasizing tenderness over intensity.
I’ve heard more than a few women express fondness for such gentle touching, but I get the sense it’s taboo for men to admit they enjoy that sort of thing. For some, it just seems unmanly to be gentle. I completely disagree with this sentiment. Men can be gentle. They can even enjoy it. I certainly do and I have ex-girlfriends who will attest to that.
With this Daily Sexy Musing, I hope to celebrate the mutual appeal of that gentle sensual touch that can add a special brand of intimacy to a relationship. It doesn’t always have to involve foreplay. It can even involve two people being fully clothed. It’s an underrated, but overwhelming feeling and one I feel is worth cherishing.
You want me.
I want you.
We both sense it.
We both intend to act on it.
However, our desires take us down a unique path. This time, I’m not inclined to just rip your clothes off, find the nearest bed, and entwine our bodies in ravenous passion. Instead, I seek something more intimate and subtle. To enjoy the full splendor of our love, we must take the scenic route.
There’s no outburst or venting. As I stand before you, all is calm and serene. I take you in my arms and you embrace me. Our touch intensifies the want, but it does not take us off that unique path. It only makes that path more appealing.
I touch your face with the utmost care.
You touch mine with the gentlest grasp.
It’s like caressing a precious gem, holding something so precious. We don’t dare grasp too hard, nor do we rush to the destination we seek. For once, we are careful. It’s not due fragility or weakness, though. Even that which is powerful sometimes requires the softest of hands.
I feel more of your magnificent flesh.
You feel more of mine.
Together, we touch and tantalize with targeted passion.
With great care and affection, we find those sensitive places that so few ever seek. Even the slightest graze triggers the strongest reactions. It’s music to my ears, hearing you respond to such gentle touching. It shows that I know your body as well as I know your heart.
You demonstrate your knowledge as well. You find just the right spots, teasing them in just the right ways. My heart soars, my loins arise, and my spirit burns with the fires of shared passion. With minimal expenditure, we guide one another to the peak of desire.
There’s no need to rush.
There’s no need to strain.
Through gentle touch, the true strength of our love is revealed.
Filed under Daily Sexy Musings

As much as I dislike talking about abortion, I don’t deny that I’ve written more about it in the past year than I have since I started this website. I know that sends mixed messages, but I feel there are valid reasons for that.
I watch the news too, although never on a full stomach. I see the same thing everyone else sees with respect to the increasingly tenuous state of abortion rights. With each passing year, more and more restrictions are placed on abortion. As other parts of the world liberalize their laws, the United States is going in the opposite direction.
Now, in wake of shake-ups on the Supreme Court, it’s more likely than ever that Roe v. Wade, the case that legalized abortion nationwide in 1973, will be overturned. While I don’t think it’s guaranteed, I do think it’s possible. If I had to put betting odds on it, I would say that there’s a 50/50 chance that Roe v. Wade could be overturned by 2024.

If that happens, there are many implications. Many people who are more informed on this issue have already articulated as such. Making abortion illegal could lead to more unwanted pregnancy, increases in crime, increases in poverty, and serious health risks for women seeking back-alley abortions.
We’re already seeing some of these impacts play out in states where abortion is severely restricted. Several states have imposed so many restrictions that they’re down to only one abortion clinic. Due to these burdens, the impact on women, especially those who are poor, has been exceedingly harsh.
Those impacts are likely to intensify if Roe v. Wade is overturned, but I don’t want to get into that part of the issue. I also don’t want to focus on the legal issues, since I’m not a lawyer. Instead, I want to focus on unintended consequences.

I know that the anti-abortion crowd has this Utopian vision of a world after Roe v. Wade. They have this dream that the Supreme Court will overrule the 1973 decision and shortly after, every state will outlaw the procedure. They’ll throw a parade. They’ll proclaim to the world that they won.
Suddenly, women can no longer end an unwanted pregnancy. As a result, they have to start carrying their pregnancies to term. This will force the women, the men who impregnated them, and their families to take responsibility for their actions. They can no longer be sexually promiscuous. They now have to temper their behavior and live more restrained lives.
While nobody can predict the future, I can say without reservation that this dream will not come true. Human nature is never that simple, especially when it comes to law. Overturning Roe v. Wade will not end abortion. It will not make women carry more pregnancies to term. It will not lead to a society consistent with Pat Roberston’s values.
That’s because there’s one law that no court can ever overturn and that’s the law of unintended consequences. Make no mistake. There will be unintended consequences for overturning Roe v. Wade, many of which I doubt the anti-abortion movement has contemplated.

What follows are several unintended consequences of overturning Roe v. Wade that will make the anti-abortion crowd cringe. Whether they oppose abortion for religious reasons or for ethical reasons, these are consequences that will do more than taint that abortion-free fever dream of theirs. At the very least, I hope it gives those who oppose abortion a moment of pause.
Consequence #1: Abortion Will Become More Common (And Harder To Protest)

Remember when the United States banned marijuana and shortly after that, it disappeared? Neither do I because not only did that not happen, the exact opposite occurred. Marijuana has been illegal for nearly a century in the United States and it’s more popular now than it was in the days before “Refer Madness.”
Abortion is not like illicit drugs, but it’s subject to similar influences. In the same way making drugs illegal didn’t make them go away, making abortion illegal won’t make it disappear. It’ll only send it into the depths of the underground economy where the red tape that helps regulate the procedure doesn’t exist.
The history of “back alley abortions” is already well-documented. On top of that, these locations are not clinics where people can gather and protest. That’s what happens when you send something into the shadows. It’s harder to see, study, and scrutinize. In that environment, abortion won’t just become more dangerous. It may become more common because the traditional barriers for entry aren’t there.
If you think that seems like a stretch, just consider the choices involving marijuana. Would you rather try to sneak into a liquor store with security cameras or buy it in a dark alley from someone who has just as much incentive to avoid cops?
Consequence #2: Organized Religion’s Decline Will Accelerate

Even though the influence of religion remains strong, the steady decline of religion is well-documented. This is especially true among the younger generations who are more educated and informed than any generation before them. As a result, they will notice when religious groups take credit for banning abortion.
While those same groups often present themselves as saving babies, that’s not how everyone else will see it. We already live in a world where every racist, misogynistic, theocracy-loving sermon is captured on the internet. The same people who are becoming less religious will have even more reason to resent organized religion.
They won’t see the religiously-motivated, anti-abortion crusaders as holy people who saved innocent babies. They’ll see those people the same way we see those who used religion to justify slavery and racial segregation. Unlike previous years, being non-religious isn’t nearly as taboo and for organizations that rely heavily on adherents giving them money, that’s a big problem.
Consequence #3: An Entire Political Party Will Become The Anti-Woman Party

In the same way banning abortion could accelerate organized religion’s decline, a sizable chunk of the political spectrum could take a similar hit. In the United States, it’s primarily conservatives who oppose abortion and frequently side with religious institutions. They too probably see banning abortion as protecting innocent babies.
Again, that’s not how others will see it. Instead, an emerging generation will see conservatives as the party that put a gun to the head of every pregnant woman and demanded that she endure nine months of bodily rigor to have a child she may not be able to afford. Since women vote and make up half the population, it doesn’t bode well for their ability to win support in the future.
Women already disproportionately lean liberal and banning abortion will likely widen that gap. History shows that it’s hard for any party to overcome those gaps and stay in power. As I’ve noted before, this already played out in the 1960s in Romania. Conservatives would be wise to heed that lesson because that did not end well for the communist party and its leader.
Consequence #4: More Advanced Contraceptives Will Emerge Faster (For Women And Men)

One of the most confounding aspects of the anti-abortion movement is how much certain segments of the movement also oppose contraception. It’s downright hypocritical since education and contraceptive use has definitively shown time and again that it’s the most effective way to reduce abortions.
The fact that the anti-abortion crowd so rarely promotes those policies implies that a sizable chunk of that movement is less concerned about babies and more concerned about sex. I’ve tried to distinguish this crowd from the more sincere segments of the movement, but the lines have become more blurred in recent years.
Those lines might become a lot clearer if abortion were banned nationwide because that suddenly makes the contraception market a lot more valuable. At the moment, there isn’t much incentive to improve on the current contraceptives we have. Granted, they’re much more effective than they were before 1973, but there’s still room for improvement.
Without Roe v. Wade, the need for those improvements will be far greater and it won’t just be focused on women. Contraception for men will also get a boost because unlike 1973, there are more laws in place affecting men with issues like child support. For once, men will have to be just as vigilant about avoiding unwanted pregnancy.
This means emerging technology like the male birth control pill and Vasalgel will get a sizable boost in investment. It also means long-term, more-effective birth control like IUDs for women will get a boost as well. When the same anti-abortion crowd starts protesting that, they’ll reveal just how little they cared for babies in the first place.
Consequence #5: Promiscuous Sex Will Increase (For Entirely New Reasons)

This could also be a direct result of the boost contraception research will get from banning abortion. It’s not just because people will have access to more effective contraception, though. This is one of those backlashes that has more to do with social forces than logistical forces.
For those who are sexually active and value their sexual freedom, overturning Roe v. Wade will come off as a direct personal attack. If you’ve been on the internet for more than five minutes, you know people rarely take personal attacks lying down. They’re more likely to fight back and do the exact opposite of what you hope.
In the same way people in a debate double down on their beliefs in a heated argument, those who supported Roe v. Wade will have another reason to engage in the kind of reckless behavior that the anti-abortion crowd hates. To them, it won’t just be a form of protest. It’ll be a form of trolling.
People already have plenty of reasons to have sex just for the fun of it. No government or religious institution has ever been able to stop that and banning abortion certainly won’t do the trick. While it’s true that banning abortion will make promiscuity more dangerous, it’s also true that people are attracted to danger. If it pisses off someone you already despise, then that’s just a bonus.
Consequence #6: Providing Abortion Services Will Become More Lucrative (And Harder To Regulate)

For every unintended consequence, there’s usually a basis in money. Even for issues that are fueled with high emotions and deeply-held beliefs, it often comes back to money. That’s why the drug war can never be won. That’s why Disney will never stop making movies with singing animals. It’s all about the money.
Abortion, in its current form, is not a huge money-making venture. It’s treated like a medical service. However, put it in the same black market as illicit drugs and suddenly, the profit margins go way up. Remove it from the current medical infrastructure and all the regulations that keep it from being profitable go with it.
Instead of skilled, licensed doctors doing this procedure, people with questionable qualifications can get into the mix. On top of that, they can charge as much or as little as they want without the AMA or the FDA condemning them. That’ll make it more dangerous, but if there’s money to be made, it’ll happen.
Remember, making abortion illegal doesn’t make the women seeking abortion disappear. If they’re desperate enough, they’ll brave that danger and they’ll pay that price. Those willing to navigate that danger and exploit those situations will gain the tax-free profit. For the anti-abortion crowd and the government, it’s lose-lose.
Consequence #7: An Entire Generation Will Despise Its Elders (And Their Traditions)

Throughout history, younger generations have rebelled against older generations. You don’t need to single out the hippie generation of the 1960s to see that. Young people and old people have always whined about each other. These days, you can’t go more than five minutes without seeing a story about how Millennials are ruining something we used to love.
With abortion, there is already an established divide. According to Pew, younger generations tend to be more pro-choice than older generations. On top of that, abortion laws are more likely to affect them because they’re still building their lives and they’re going to get horny/lonely along the way.
This same generation is already more accepting of things that older people resent. They’re more accepting of divorce, polyamory, homosexuality, and all sorts of sexual practices that make priests, monks, mullahs, and rabbis gag. It certainly doesn’t help that the people in power deciding these issues are often old men who will never need an abortion. In terms of optics, it’s a pretty ugly sight.
It won’t just stop at young people distancing themselves from organized religion. It won’t stop at distancing themselves from a political party, either. Overall, the emerging generations will see their elders as the ones who stripped them of a right that they got to enjoy all their lives. That doesn’t just paint them in a negative light. It turns their values and traditions into a target.
Young people don’t need many reasons to rebel against their elders, but this is bigger than someone who can’t work a cell phone. This is an issue that affects the ability of an entire generation to make choices about their bodies, their sexuality, and their future. When another generation takes that away from them, it’s going to evoke more than ridicule. It may get pretty damn ugly.
As always, I want to remind everyone that this is just speculation. I can’t predict the future and there’s no telling what other factors may emerge in this exceedingly controversial issue. That said, I still feel comfortable stating that overturning Roe v. Wade will have consequences, many of them unintended. Some will be minor, but some will result in a full-fledged backlash. It’s just a matter of how we’ll deal with them.
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I’m not a fan of bitter cold weather. Any kind of weather that causes genitals to shrivel is not appealing in my book. I prefer weather that renders clothing optional and flip-flops the only necessary footwear. Having lived through one too many blizzards, I have every intention of retiring to a tropical climate after I sell enough novels.
That said, I don’t deny that cold weather can facilitate certain sexy activities. When it gets cold outside, we naturally seek out any source of warmth. Some are left with blankets and extra layers of clothes. Others are lucky enough to have a lover to keep them warm. It’s that kind of warmth that brings out the sexier side of the weather.
With the holidays upon us and plenty of cold days ahead of us, this is as good a time as any to start enjoying those intimate moments that chilly weather makes possible. Get some blankets, pour some hot cocoa, and cuddle up on the couch because it’s going to be a long winter. That doesn’t mean it can’t be sexy and I hope this Daily Sexy Musing can help provide a spark. Enjoy!
The sun is out, but its heat can’t find us. Cold air subsumes the light, spreading harsh cold in every direction. Gone are the days when little thought or clothing was necessary to venture outside. The leaves and flowers have withered, having succumbed to the changing seasons. We remain, but we intend to endure.
We close the windows.
We lock the doors.
We keep plenty of blankets at arm’s reach.
Even with preparation, mere shelter is not enough. To endure the cold is one thing. To prosper within it is quite another. Alone, we can only do so much. Together, we can defeat this seasonal foe.
We’re done longing for the hot summer days when a quiet moment took little effort. The crisp frost has already descended upon us. Snow will soon follow. Short days and long nights await us, but we’re ready. The season will not be our burden. Instead, it will be our strength.
Rather than curse the season, we celebrate.
Rather than lament the past, we forge the future.
Rather than mourn the burden, we embrace the challenge.
I grab some blankets. You grab some cocoa. Together, we make our way to the couch. We slip under the covers and embrace. Our touch provides a spark. Body heat compounds body heat. I warm you up. You warm me. From soothing warmth, a new heat emerges.
Touching becomes caressing.
Soothing becomes seduction.
Cuddling becomes foreplay.
A new energy finds us and a new lust guides us. No longer an obstacle, the cold becomes a catalyst. Rather than hinder our passion, it enhances it. Sharing our love brings great comfort, but making love brings greater satisfaction.
In defiance of the weather, we shed our clothes and merge our flesh. Within our domain, we create our own season. It’s always warm, wet, and soothing. Even under the harshest winds, we work up a sweat of passion. The cold makes us work harder. More work emboldens our love. In the warmth of our shared passion, winter doesn’t stand a chance.
Filed under Daily Sexy Musings

To everyone out there, their families, and their lovers, I wish you a happy and sexy New Year. I’m looking forward to making 2019 the most awesome year it can be.
Filed under Uncategorized

It’s that time of year again. By that, I mean it’s the time when people either bemoan how few of their New Years resolutions they accomplished this past year and try to convince themselves they’ll do better next year. I’m not knocking the concept. I’m as guilty of that as the next person who dares to set goals at the end of every year.
I like to think I’ve accomplished a thing or two, but 2018 was rough for me. It’s not just that I was unable to find a new publisher for my outstanding manuscripts. When 2018 began, “Passion Relapse” and “Rescued Hearts” were my only published novels. I’d hoped to add at least one, but that didn’t pan out. I tried to make up for it by writing over two dozen sexy short stories, but I’m still determined to further publishing efforts.
Beyond my publishing endeavors, though, I underwent some pretty major upheavals. A very close family member of mine passed away, which was incredibly difficult. There were a few other major life events that I’d prefer not to share just yet. While 2018 had plenty of high points, the low points were especially painful.
Be that as it may, I’m more ready than most to close the book on 2018 and work on making 2019 much better. While I have my share of resolutions that I’d like to achieve, I would also like to contemplate resolutions that society, as a whole, can strive to achieve in 2019.
Let’s face it, we had some pretty bad moments in 2018. There’s a lot of room for improvement in 2019. I’m not saying humanity can fix all its problems in one year, but striving to do better is always worth doing. What follows are six New Years resolutions for humanity in 2019. Some are more ambitious than others, but I think these are minor steps we can take to making 2019 the best year it can be.
Resolution #1: Learn To Channel Selective Outrage For More Productive Purposes

This could’ve easily been a resolution for 2018, as well. It’ll likely be a resolution for years to come because, as I’ve noted before, getting exceedingly outraged over trivial matters has become a pastime, of sorts, for people these days. The internet and social media is just the platform. People are the ones who stoke the fires.
Whether it’s controversy over Jennifer Lawrence’s dress or getting all up in arms about old jokes from famous comedians, people seem to get outraged over exceedingly petty things. Now, I’m not saying that people shouldn’t get riled up, but there are some things that just aren’t worth the emotional energy.
Who hosts the Oscars or old tweets from a decade ago do not warrant this kind of attention in the marketplace of ideas. Scandals about big companies illegally harvesting user data or children being forcibly separated from their parents are more deserving of such outrage. There are things worth getting upset about and celebrity attire isn’t one of them.
For 2019, I think we’ll do everyone a favor by channeling our outrage into something that actually warrants it. It can’t just be about what celebrities do or whether certain video game characters are too sexy. There’s plenty of room to channel our outrage into something more productive.
Resolution #2: Stop Taking Certain Celebrities Seriously

This is closely tied to the first resolution, but I thought it deserved a resolution of its own. Let’s face it. Our culture is obsessed with celebrities. We have been since long before the rise of mass media. It’s not going to stop in 2019, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be more diligent with how we obsess over celebrities.
Specifically, we can go out of our way to ignore certain individuals whose rhetoric is barely discernible from typical trolls. I’m talking about the Lena Dunhams and Ted Nugents of the world. These are not serious people with serious ideas. They’re celebrities who pretend to know what they’re talking about and not very well.
There are plenty of respectable celebrities worth following and admiring. While the assholes may make the news, there are celebrities out there who do genuinely good things and they deserve true admiration. We can do both them and the world a favor by not giving so much attention to those who don’t deserve it.
When in doubt, just follow someone like Ryan Reynolds.
Resolution #3: Focus On Future Possibilities Rather Than Past Transgressions

There are a lot of factors that fuel outrage, controversy, and what not. One that often comes up involves past transgressions and for good reason. Historically, people have been committing horrific atrocities on one another due to differences in race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender. These actions are objectively awful. Nobody can deny that.
That said, focusing on them and bemoaning them constantly does nothing to honor the victims or reduce the potential for similar atrocities. We can’t change the past. We can only learn from it. The crimes, be they the horrific treatment of a particular race or the actions of a particular individual, cannot be undone. We can prosecute them and, if possible, we should.
However, there comes a point where focusing so much on past crimes becomes less about learning from them and more about whining. I see it a lot in debates surrounding race and gender. One race or gender bemoans how horrible they had been treated in the past and use that to justify their sentiments in the present. That’s not a productive use of history.
That’s because whining is never productive. It’s true. Things in the past weren’t very pleasant for a lot of people, especially if they were a minority. There’s no way to change that. Many of the victims and perpetrators are long dead and can never be held accountable. While that clashes with our innate sense of injustice, it’s not something we can change.
That’s why it’s important to focus on the future rather than whining about the past. We can’t change the past, but we can shape the future. We can do things that’ll make the world better for everybody, regardless of their minority status. Whining, however, is not one of those things.
Resolution #4: Celebrate Good More Than Emphasizing Bad

You don’t have to look far to see some pretty awful things happening in the world. Those awful things are usually the first thing to make the news. The whole “if it bleeds, it leads” mantra has a lot of distressing truth to it.
Even though 2018 had plenty of horrific news, there were genuine bright spots. Did you know that charitable giving reached record highs this past year? Did you know crime rates are tending downward in almost every major city? Did you know science developed a drought-resistant rice that could potentially feed millions? Did you know that Jean Grey finally came back from the dead in the X-men comics after a 15-year absence?
That last one was for me, as a life-long X-men fan. However, the point is still valid. There was a lot of good news that happened in 2018, in terms of society and civilization. Even in genuinely awful stories, you can find bits of hope here and there. You don’t even have to look too hard. The news is there, if you’re willing to find it.
That’s a resolution I think is worth pursuing, even if horrific news still gets our attention. The good will never shock us as much, but it will evoke all the right emotions. I strongly believe in having faith in humanity. I’ve explained why on a few occasions. I think we would do ourselves and our futures a favor by celebrating that good rather than agonizing over the bad.
Resolution #5: Laugh At Absurdities Instead Of Making Them Controversies
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Beyond the good news and the bad news, 2018 had plenty of weird news as well. Granted, a lot of them came from Florida, but the principle is the same. Regardless of whether you think people are inherently good or bad, most can agree they do weird things. You can either lament for the future of our species or just laugh at it.
As it turns out, laughing is a lot healthier. It helps make difficult or strange situations easier to process. Let’s face it, we’re always going to have plenty of those, even if you don’t live in Florida. The best thing we can do is laugh, even if it’s not that funny. It’s something we should do plenty of in 2019 because 2018 showed a marked decline in peoples’ sense of humor.
There were controversies about jokes in the past and jokes that were in poor taste. Granted, not all of these jokes were funny, but making them into these big controversies about race, gender, and what not didn’t help. All it did was fuel contrived outrage over issues that didn’t need any extra fodder.
People are going to tell bad jokes. We can’t be as funny or as smart as George Carlin or Richard Pryor. People are going to get offended too, but that can’t be the sole basis for a controversy. Being offended is not a serious injury and offending someone is not a crime. If faced with the option of laughing it off or making a big deal out of something comes up in 2019, let’s just err on the side of laughter.
Resolution #6: Focus On What We Can Control Instead Of Agonizing Over What We Can’t Control

This is something that become a major talking point in 2018 and, at times, for the right reason. There was a lot of whining, especially in the world of outrage culture and politics. However, there was a bit more emphasis on what to actually do about it. Specifically, there was a huge push to urge people to vote in the mid-term elections. That effort, as frustrating as it was at times, paid off.
Voter turnout in the 2018 Midterm Elections was the highest it had been since the mid-1960s. The results paid off. People wanted change, there was a process for implementing that change, and they did it. That’s how we progress in a functioning society. It’s not always as extensive as we prefer, but it’s still progress.
This was in stark contrast to those who whine constantly about what one particular gender or race has done in the past. Like I said in the previous resolution, we can’t change the past. Whining about it won’t magically conjure a time machine or rewrite history. It’ll just incur pity, which is even less productive.
There are things we can do to help people. Do you want to help women who have been sexually abused? Contribute to legal funds that help them prosecute their abusers. Do you want to help save the environment? Consider donating to the World Wildlife Fund or invest in green energy. Do you want to help victims of atrocities? Consider donating or volunteering for the Red Cross or Amnesty International.
These actions constitute meaningful change in a world that still needs it. Your money and your time are tangible assets that can do real help. Whining doesn’t help and neither does contrived outrage. We live in a complicated world where a lot of things are out of our control. By focusing on what we can control, we can make 2019 the best year it can possibly be and I’m ready to do my part.