One of the features I like about Mastodon is automated post deletion, where posts you make are removed after a set period of time. You can add exceptions, such as pinned posts or those that reached a certain level of engagement. I don't actually use the feature, but I understand why it exists. We're living in a time where privacy and social media could not be farther apart. Every quip we make on…

At the end of 2022, I decided to stop using Twitter. I hadn't really thought much about how social media had shaped a large part of my 20s and 30s until then. Before Twitter, there was AOL Instant Messenger. We'd post mopey statuses for our friends to see, but otherwise, it was more like texting. The key difference was that, in those early days, we mostly interacted with people we already knew --…

The most radical act anyone can perform in difficult times is to have unwavering faith that things can get better.

The sports team that's far behind in the standings can still believe the postseason is possible. The woman struggling to make ends meet today can envision more prosperous times ahead. The immigrant in a hostile land can believe they can not only survive, but thrive. The civilian in…

It was a year of changes, with a new job and new daily routine as our child started elementary school. We are also inexplicably back to living in unprecedented times as a country, so I spent the year with my jaw clenched quite a bit. Our family experienced a deep loss later in the year. There were a handful of wins, too. When the most pressing daily challenge is convincing our daughter to eat…

Our family had a lot of new experiences in 2023. There was the unexpected job change that turned out for the better. We had the heartbreaking news of an advanced cancer diagnosis for my father in law. I traveled more this year than I had since pre-pandemic for both work and the fraternity. I picked up a new title and responsibilities at work that has brought on its own set of challenges. We tried…

I've lived in Nashville since 1999, so when I submit quips to the _Nashville Scene_ 's "You're So Nashville If" (dubbed YASNI) issue, it comes from a place of love. Or at least, it comes from a place of mild irritation that I work through with biting sarcasm. The publication gets over a thousand submissions a year, so I'm always pleased when a few of mine sneak in.

Someone asked me recently how…

We recently took our daughter to see _A Muppet Christmas Carol_ at The Belcourt. It is a personal favorite, and a lot of folks highlight that it is one of the most faithful adaptations of the Charles Dickens original text. The redemption story of Ebenezer Scrooge from a cold, tight-fisted miser to the most generous host is built into the fabric of the holiday season.

There is a line in the movie…

It's been a rollercoaster of a year. I traveled more than in previous years, earning enough Southwest points to get a discount on flights later this winter. Our former toddler is fully in "pre-school mode" now, hitting personal milestones like riding her bike with training wheels without needing us right there. She's becoming more independent, which brings new challenges—but they're the kind…

I have been in enough Baptist churches to know my way around, particularly small community ones. There's a baptistry at the front. The preacher is always going to be in a suit and going to great lengths to learn every visitor's name. The pews are typically the same, with the hymnals on a square box to the back of the one in front of you, and there will be an wooden envelope holder with a spot for…

Our current political climate often evokes comparisons to Idiocracy, the 2006 satire written by Mike Judge, also of Office Space fame. The movie starts with the premise that smart, successful people are having fewer kids, while ignorant folks are reproducing at a much faster rate. Fast forward over 500 years, and the population is entirely made up of the latter category. Society has descended…