"The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts while the stupid ones are full of confidence." - Charles Bukowski Anyone with children knows they are famous for taking the words of their friends as gospel. "Susie says that the school janitor's body is still buried under the playground and [...]

“Die Religion … ist das Opium des Volkes.” – Karl Marx Karl Marx’s famous dictum that “religion is the opiate of the masses” is based on the idea that we humans, haunted by fears of our own mortality and apparent insignificance, need some kind of drug to get us through life and so we invented [...]

“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” – Jesus At the age of 13 something unimaginably humiliating happened to me in front of my entire military school cadet class. Racing back that night to my empty barrack’s room, certain my life [...]

“There is no such thing as peace of mind.” – David Carse, ‘Perfect, Brilliant, Stillness’ The impetus behind this blog has always been to share, as honestly as possible, my search to understand and overcome this thing called suffering – a subject that can take on a particular poignancy at this time of year. I [...]

I spend a lot of time on this site talking about the meaning of life (or its non-meaning), why we're here, who am I, etc. Of late, however, there's been a shift to dive into life rather than reflect so much on it. Lots of new recipes being explored in the kitchen, showing my 10-year-old [...]

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived" - Henry David Thoreau When I was 14 or so, my [...]

When my daughter was 18 months old a never-ending series of ear infections prompted her pediatrician to recommend temporarily implanting tubes in her ears. As the date of the procedure neared I grew increasingly frustrated with that prescription, particularly after hearing of so many other parents battling the same problem with their own children. What [...]

Over the past few years I have somewhat regularly been asked for help or guidance from someone struggling through divorce, depression, or loss of some kind. This is an uncomfortable proposition for anyone but especially for someone like me who, quite candidly, is wholly unqualified for the role. What I can offer is the following [...]

Suffering. Google says it’s the number one search term people use to find this blog. Next up are ayahuasca and vision quest, suggesting – appropriately enough – that this website is a destination for people seeking a way out of their pain. If you’re one of them let me save you some time. Looking back [...]

For those not in the know the world is supposed to end – or at least start the process of ending – on May 21. This is the belief promulgated by a number of Christian groups, who claim the Rapture is to begin with the fiery destruction of the world and the ascendance of a [...]