I look so fit and healthy here due to the latest weight-loss craze – tropical fruits, plus protein from dried rainforest bugs. Nah, the headline actually refers to fasting from Amazon.com, the online behemoth. Like most crash diets, I’ve cheated. But I’ve had some success and lost some psychic weight. Amazon’s super-handy “past orders” record shows that […]
My Wife Won Her Office NFL Pool. I Got Addicted.
So, as you might have read last time, Nora got swept up in her office’s NFL gambling pool. She isn’t the only one. According to the American Gaming Association, over 11 million Americans bet on the NFL in 2019 as part of a sports pool, squares contest or paid fantasy contest. About 31% of people […]
My 12 Best Beautiful/Ugly Pics of Baltimore
Switching things up a bit this week, I’m featuring some photos I’ve taken over the past couple years on my Baltimore bike rides. Related: 7 Reasons Why Cycling Is the Best Frugal Exercise There is nothing super significant about the shots. They just strike a cord for me, and together I think they capture the […]
An Old Baltimore Cat Needed a $19,000 Operation – His Owner Didn’t Blink
Did you hear the story of Stanley? The 17-year-old Baltimore cat needed a $19,000 kidney transplant in late 2017. What would you do in that situation? In our family, we’d do a really quick calculation: Super Old Cat + Really Expensive Operation = Mandatory Cat ‘Separation’ from Family Super Old How old is 17 in […]
Before I Look Forward, I’m Appreciating the Rear View
As 2019 starts, many people detail resolutions and goals. Not me – I’m taking a moment for gratitude. Yes, I have an amazing wife and smart, clever kids, but here I want to recount a few smaller things that recently stood out as blessings in my life. Faithful Readers I have the best blog followers. […]
Bird Vs Lime – My Review of Electric Scooters in Baltimore
If you’re like me, you’ve been itching to get your hands on one of those electric scooters that are popping up all around town. But which one to use? Bird or Lime? Well, in the name of ‘research’ and ‘public education,’ Grey and I made the sacrifice (sacrifice??!!) and wasted a few hours on a […]
My Battle of Wits with BWI Airport Security
I related previously how my dad was caught red handed by security at Radio City Music Hall with a prized pocket knife, and how he was able to hide it in a flower planter for pickup later. Happy ending. Emboldened by that memory, I tried the same thing recently. It happened at BWI airport for […]
My Jury Experience Opened My Eyes to a Broken Baltimore
For background, read last week’s post. At first I thought it was a terrible mistake. I thought my outfit or education or skin color would surely disqualify me in the eyes of the defense, as it had before. But incredibly, I was empaneled with 13 other jurors (12+2 alternates) for a sting case. Over the […]
How My Attempt to Avoid Jury Duty Led to Loss
Jury duty. The two words that strike fear and loathing in my heart. I received my dreaded Baltimore City jury summons in the mail recently. It comes every year, regular as rain. There is so much crime in Baltimore, and not a few people who can’t serve on a jury due to their own prior […]
6 Reasons to See Crazy Rich Asians
Add me to the list of fans of Crazy Rich Asians. I didn’t read the book, but we saw the movie this week and I was impressed with a few things. 1. It Has Universal Themes Thus the mainstream success, I suppose. Once you peel back the Rich and Asian, you discover the film is […]