A More Precise Definition Of Passion

crispydocUncategorized

During a long family car ride, we collectively listened to an excellent interview with the Swiss-German, three Michelin star chef and owner of Eleven Madison Park, Daniel Humm. He is not the typical role model one might hold up as an example for children. He dropped out of high school at age 14 to cycle competitively. He was living with …

The Trapdoor Roth

crispydocUncategorized

Almost a decade and a half ago, we had our first child. Around the same time my parents adopted a grandparenting style that echoed the ethos of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. [For the record, it was not Facebook’s popular guiding principle of Move fast and break things. Between arthritis, artificial joints and gait instability on downsloping surfaces, they only ever developed …

A Ritual Spanning Generations

crispydocUncategorized

It’s a relaxed summer evening. I’m enjoying a swim with my daughter during a visit to the grandparents. Tonight there is a creamsicle colored dusk that seems to stretch implausibly late in a manner analogous my my daughter’s implausibly long legs extending above the water’s surface as she performs underwater handstands. I remember when the whole of her body fit …

Love Hertz

crispydocUncategorized

The stock market is a no-called-strike game. You don’t have to swing at everything – you can wait for your pitch. -Warren Buffett I don’t day trade. I don’t own cryptocurrencies. I don’t directly own rental real estate. I have friends who have done incredibly well in each and every one of those areas of investment, and I enjoy learning …

Pilfered Ideas From The Opposite Of Spoiled

crispydocUncategorized

This summer, we decided each kid is getting $20 a month to spend on whatever they choose. One kid went to a favorite chain restaurant and ordered a sandwich online in advance using an e-coupon. Another went to a meal with a friend, did not order online, was unable to use the coupon (it was only available for online orders) …

Financial Milestones I Want My Kids To Experience

crispydocUncategorized

This morning, I opened the refrigerator to find a paucity of blueberries. This is all the more surprising because we buy 2-3 enormous boxes of blueberries at Costco every 2-3 weeks. What used to be arrive in a single delicate box presented like a Rolex when I was a kid now comes in economy size buckets. I’ve developed certain morning …

Has Medicine Helped You Become Comfortably Numb?

crispydocUncategorized

We’ve entered that stage of life: begun to lose parents, seen peers stricken with cancer as the youthful patina of invincibility fades, and started to give up pastimes we thought we’d never stop enjoying. As a result, the typical conversation with a non-medical friend my age tends to follow a template. Dissatisfaction is expressed regarding a new boss, the latest …