Moonlighting—also known as working a second job, having a “side hustle”—is a pretty standard theme these days. Thanks to Pinterest and Instagram, everyone’s got a home renovation project, a knack for macramé, and a small business opportunity. But in truth it’s been around forever. Loads of famous people “made it” by moonlighting. The American poet […]
When We Are Distracted, God Is Mindful
Grateful to share the following reflection, from Amanda McMillen. I’ve been practicing yoga for 8 years or so, on and off, which led me to meditation and the wonderful buzzword “mindfulness”. The idea of mindfulness is truly a beautiful one. It’s the concept of pausing long enough to bring us out of the minutiae of […]
Cathedral of the Perpetual Hustle
Over the weekend a conversation with friends veered toward work-life balance and the ever-hungry email monster. We wondered whether it was normal to check our emails after work. Almost all of us confessed that we do. We discussed whether our employers should be contacting us after hours (a teacher was expected to answer texts from […]
Why You Should Spend Whatever You Like Buying Friends and Loved Ones Gifts They Don’t Expect (and Don’t Deserve)
This one comes to us from our friend Jason Micheli. I’ve grown wary of the Christmas “tradition” of bemoaning the commercialization of Christmas in our culture. Too often, we begin Advent not with Isaiah’s laments or John the Baptist’s words of judgment but our own words of lament and judgment, criticizing others for being so […]
You Don’t Have To Be Grateful
We have reached halftime in the holiday season sprint from Halloween to Christmas: Thanksgiving. The least commercialized of all American holidays, Thanksgiving stands apart as a holiday focused not on gift-giving or material consumption, but on gratitude. Problematic history aside, Thanksgiving presents an opportunity to gather with family and friends and reflect on all the […]
Eleanor Oliphant Is (Not) Completely Fine
I’ve just finished the novel Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman. Based on the stamp of approval from Reese Witherspoon on the front cover, I expected it to be a fluffy airplane read. My adorable-celebrity-as-book-recommender stereotype is misdirected, apparently, because this was not a story of a suburban mom “addicted” to shopping and eyelash […]
Johnny Cash and Our Culture of Mercilessness
There I was, standing in front of a class of undergrads discussing Johnny Cash’s legendary “Live at Folsom Prison” and getting absolutely zero response from the students. Cash has long been dead by now and I wondered aloud whether he was too far afield for this group 18-22 year olds. As I continued to pick […]
The Easy Judgment of Being Right
To this day I remain haunted by a story about a woman who lost her eyesight to a microscopic organism that proliferated beneath her contact lenses. This cautionary tale went public nearly five years ago, and I still remember scouring the reports to find out what happened. Luckily for me, a responsible contact-lens wearer, the […]
Not Very Good at This: On Hobbying for Hobbying’s Sake
This year my pumpkins died. Not a farmer by any stretch, I aspired wide-eyed to yield a massive patch for the Hallow-season, envisioning hearty fruit sprawling across my backyard, ripe for picking, carving, and smashing. For several July weeks, hopes were high. Curling tendrils crossed the ground, leaves pluming of prehistoric size. Then, August. A […]
Judgment and Relief at the End of Summer
In my neighborhood, the evidence of leaves already falling from the trees sounds a clear indictment and an unmistakable verdict: Summer is virtually gone…and I didn’t do enough to justify my existence. We didn’t do a good enough bona-fide family vacation—as in, we didn’t go anyplace exotic like Hawaii or Mexico or travel across country […]
Saturday Night Law: How Humor Convicts the Sinner – Sam Bush
Another breakout from our NYC Conference, from the one and only Sam Bush.
Saturday Night Law: How Humor Convicts the Sinner – Sam Bush from Mockingbird on Vimeo.
The Law, My Apple Watch, and Booze Cruise Breakthroughs
This one comes to us from Scott Dalton. Scott, you can still close all 3 [fitness] rings today. Go for a brisk, 40-minute walk, and be sure to stand and move a bit each hour.” “All three of your [fitness] rings are usually farther along by now. You’ve got time to get back on track.” […]
