You’re the girl I’ve always loved, that’s all I know.
Him: Was mommy sad? Me: (long pause, sigh) She was sad she had to leave me, but heartbroken that she had to leave you. She cried for an entire day. Him: How did… Me: (interrupting) I’m sorry, kiddo. I…I can’t talk about it for so long just yet. Is that OK? Him: (nodding) That’s ok, papa. It’s ok. (gives me a hug)
Hi, Pretty Lady!
You would be 44 this year. That blows my mind.
Instead, you’re forever young.
I’m getting older – with a LOT more grey in my hair.
Only you would have noticed, though. I’ve been shaving a lot more because that salt-and-pepper beard of mine you used to love is essentially mostly salt these days.
I’m ever so vain. You’d probably say, “That’s my old man!”
And I would pretend to be offended but secretly amused because I knew you loved me.
The boy’s just amazing. He’s everything we ever dreamed of and so much more.
Can’t tell you how many times a day I wish you were here to hear him say something hilarious or sing something beautifully. Or see his perfect handwriting (obviously, he got that from you and not me).
He’s been asking questions about you. I’m always at a loss as to what to say. For years, I’ve told him I’d tell him about you, “someday.”
But, that’s not fair. So, I suck it up and try my best to tell him about you for as long as I can bear.
I’m able to last a bit longer each year.
Each year, it gets a little better. Not because I love you any less, but because I accept this bullshit that is my life and our situation all that much more.
For now, I often just tell him that, She’s the girl I’ve always loved, that’s all I know.
It’s Mother’s Day on Sunday.
The boy made you a gift but says he’ll give it to your mom instead because you loved her so much. He does too.
But it a special kinda painful that your birthday, Mother’s Day, and the day you died are all within two weeks of each other.
It’s a special kinda fucked-up but, then again, this whole situation is a special kinda fucked-up, which is on-brand for us.
I was going to write so much more but, like when I talk about you to the boy, I just don’t have the stamina for it yet.
I’m so grateful for the gift you gave me of the boy, honey. He’s just perfect and I am humbled every day to have your treasure to love.
The Firecracker explained she grew up in places that looked very similar, although every home was on an acre of land.
Boy: How big is an acre? Me: 43,560 square feet. Him: Is that like 10 miles? Me: Do you know how many feet are in a mile, kid? 5 Tomatoes. Him: 5 Tomatoes? Me: Yeah. 5, 2, 8, 0. A mile has five-thousand, two-hundred, eighty feet. “Five Tomatoes.” Firecracker: I’ve never heard that before! Me: And…now you have.
Once we got back home, I introduced the Firecracker to my sister and her kids.
Everyone seemed to get along pretty well as my sister and she chatted for a bit, while my mom cooked.
My sister got a bouncy house as a gift and asked we could help set it up for the kiddos.
I figured out how to inflate the thing and set it up while the Firecracker hammered the stakes into the ground.
Afterward, we borrowed my mom’s car for a drive but we only made it two houses when the Firecracker noticed an open house just a few doors down.
Her: Let’s check it out! Me: Sure, I’ve always wanted to know what other houses looked like inside.
We stepped in and checked it out. Since she’s from the south, she’s much more about big houses with yards than tiny apartments in the concrete jungle.
It was a pretty house but I’m still hoping to stay in my apartment, somehow, despite the massive increase I pay every month.
We got back into the car and we took a drive out in Long Island because the weather was just perfect.
Ended up at a Barnes and Noble that I used to go to every single day to study for the LSATs.
I think that was one area where Alison and I differed on what a perfect day was. She always liked to keep busy while I liked to sit and read in cafe.
Used to spend entire days there reading and having coffee but haven’t done that in over a decade.
Me: Are you ok with sitting here, having a cuppa coffee and reading for a bit? Her: That’s my love language!
Afterward, we took a slow drive back. My mom had made a bunch more Taiwanese and Chinese dishes, which the Firecracker also loved.
Mom: Do you want to take some home? Her: Yes! If that’s ok.
We stayed for a little while longer, just lounging around the house, while the kid continued to play with his cousins until it was time to go.
The Firecracker found the note above the aquarium ridic funny.
Before we knew it, it was time to head to the station to catch the train back to the city.
The trains are rarely late but this time, they were delayed some 30-40 mins, so it was pretty late once we got back.
The Firecracker got out at our station but immediately walked home because she had work the next day and a lot to do at home.
So, the kid and I went home.
Me: Did you have a good day? Him: Yes! What are we doing next weekend? Me: Not sure yet, I’m sure we’ll think of something.
Location: Koreatown, with some of my oldest friends and a crapton of food – alla which I ate
Mood: stuffed
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Firecracker: Wait, you didn’t mention that I was the one who thought you might have left your phone at Dark Bullet, called them, and found your phone for you? Me: …no?
Mentioned to her that I’d not eaten Taiwanese food in a while so she ended up making me a dish I absolutely love called lu rou fan.
Her: I’ve never had it before so I didn’t know what it should taste like. Me: (shaking head) It’s still good though. And these endives are killer – how did you cook them? Her: I blanched the shit outta them.
What she made was good, but it didn’t really taste like lu rou fan – I think the recipe she chose wasn’t the best so I wanted to take her out to try the genuine article.
Now, I’d been meaning to see my mom and sis for a while now but my sister’s the most peripatetic person I know; trying to see her and her kids is a lesson in scheduling.
Mom: You know your sister – she’s like a horse, always running around. Me: Isn’t that the truth!
But I figured that it was time they met The Firecracker and my sister just happened to be in town last weekend, so I grabbed the kid, met up with the Firecracker, and headed out to the wilds of Queens.
Usually, I can take the train straight to see them but, because of construction, we had to transfer in Woodside.
Her: I think we should be on another track. Me: Nah, it’s gonna be this one.
It was not.
So, because I didn’t listen to her, we missed the transfer and waited half-an-hour for the next one.
Me: Oh man, I’m so sorry. I was wrong and you were right. Her: God, I love how that sounds! Me: (grumble)
Because I screwed up so badly, and because I’ve been dreaming of Taiwanese food non-stop since the Firecracker made me the lu rou fan, I brought them to a Taiwanese restaurant literally right across the street from the Korean joint that Pac brought me to, years ago.
Neither of them ever had Taiwanese food before so I did all the ordering.
I got the classic pork chop on rice with lu rou fan, some pork stuffed crepes, soup dumplings, an egg scallion pancake and a soy milk.
The boy didn’t like the soy milk but loved everything else.
Me: How is it? Him: Sooooooo good! Her: Everything is delicious – you’re five-for-five, Lo!
Afterward, my mom came by to pick us up and bring us over to her place for dinner but that’s a story for tomorrow.
Me: Hi, mom! This is [The Firecracker]. Firecracker: Hi! Thank thanks for picking us up! Mom: Of course, get in!
Location: earlier today, a schoolyard, introducing myself to a parent and asking them what they thought about a school I was thinking about for the kid
Mood: plants are trying to kill me and I don’t like it
Music: I know I always come and go but it’s out of my control (Spotify) Subscribe! Like this post? Tell someone about it by clicking a button below.
…and I wanted to return the favour so, later on that week, I took her out for some drinks and food around the way at a place called Dark Bullet.
I told you about the place few times, like when I went with the mothers I met early on when the kid had just started going to school, and also when I went with my cousin.
It was like I was seeing it for the first time, though.
The first time I’d been there, I was a basket case. The second time, was over COVID and it was a ghost town and, thus, very different.
This time, I was closer to normal – whatever that means – than I’d been in years, and the place was normal again too.
Of course, normal for me means that I’m ever forgetful and clumsy.
You see, after The Dark Bullet, we went to another bar that she liked, called The Dead Poet where she had a stout and I had a light beer.
While there, I realized that I left my phone at Dark Bullet – she called them and they said they found it and I could go back any time to get it.
So, we just slowly enjoyed our drinks, I walked her home, and then headed back to Dark Bullet to claim my phone.
Bartender: What can I…oh, you were here earlier. Me: Yup, I left my phone here? Him: Ah, yes, hold on, lemme get it for you.
Honestly, New York City is such a great little town sometimes.
I need to ring up the ladies from the mother’s group to see how they’re doing.
Location: hanging out with the ABFF and her fam, plus the Firecracker and the kid, to wish Alison had the best birthday somewhere in the multiverse
Mood: tipsy
Music: I know I always come and go but it’s out of my control (Spotify) Subscribe! Like this post? Tell someone about it by clicking a button below.
Me: The hardest thing about being an adult is relationships, because we all have our quirks. Her: (laughing) *snort*… yeah, especially with you. Me: Wait, what?
The weather was really nice the other day so the Firecracker met me outside the gym for a walk up Broadway.
We spent most of our time checking out stores.
We barely got three blocks from the gym when we stepped into a home goods store.
I’d mentioned that I wanted a new carpet for my room and we spent some time checking them out…
…although, I gotta admit, the ones we were looking at were a little outta my price range.
I mean, even the cooking utensils were outta my price range…
…for real.
It felt really domestic, though, to be checking things like home furnishings out.
It’s almost like we’re playing house or something like that, except we’re both adult parents that have seen way too much of life as it is.
Which is not to say, she wasn’t down to check out some less-than-adult things like the local Harry Potter store.
Her: Do you want a Butterbeer? Me: I have no idea what that is but I like butter and I like beer.
We ended up at a Chik-Fil-A and having some sandwiches before we went to a few other places and called it a day.
There’s more but that’s really all I wanted to tell you.
It’s May again.
I’ve hated May with a passion ever since Alison died. I still don’t like May but it feels better this year.
It’s not just that so much time has passed since she died, it’s also that I’ve cut out so much negativity and toxicity around me, which – coupled with the Firecracker and my therapist – has been really good for my overall mental health.
And I’ve got a super busy month ahead of me, most of which is my friends, family, and the Firecracker trying to keep me busy and sane.
Location: earlier tonight, going to yet another open house, but this time, two doors from my family’s home.
Mood: pretty good, all things considered
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New Guy: (torques my arm) Me: (yelps) Dude! Relax, I’m 50. I’m all about tapping. Him: (laughs, answers in thick southern accent) Hey now, I’m not at fault here. You can’t come onto the mats looking younger than me and expect me to know you’re 50! Me: (laughing) Fair. My go-to joke is that Asians don’t have height, but we have eternal youth.
Had a few people reach out to me to wish me a Happy Birthday and two of them commented on my blog entry about it.
Him: You know what woulda been a better entry? Five tips on staying young. Me: Oh, I can give you two right now: (1) Stay outta the sun, and (2) Be born Asian. You’re kinda screwed on one of those… Him: Dude, I’m kinda screwed on botha those!
I’m only semi-kidding about the first two. I stay outta the sun for the most part, and always have. It’s one of the benefits of never being invited to anything as a kid; I literally just stayed in my basement for years at a time.
As for being Chinese, genetics only account for 25% of your age/health, at least according to the April 2023 issue of Men’s Health:
Now, you can read them yourself, but I’ve actually been doing his four steps for years now. They are:
1. Run three times per week
What he really means is just exercise. It’s literally the fountain of youth. I’ve been going to the gym 6-10 hours a week for the last 30 years.
And that’s why it was the second tip I gave in my birthday entry.
2. Intermittent fasting
I’ve been doing this since Alison got sick, mainly because it’s highly anti-cancer, since fasting can trigger a biological state called autophagy, where the body seeks out low-performing/weird cells when there isn’t enough food present.
While the body can’t tell a cell is cancerous, it can tell if it’s low-performing/weird and will kill it to save nutrients for the higher-performing/normal cells.
That’s why I do it. BUT, it’s also linked to youth.
And the reason why can best be summed up in a question: What if your body tells the passage of time by the amount of calories it consumes?
It’s an interesting hypothesis but really, the exact mechanism probably isn’t all that important. What is actually important is that limiting when and how much you eat will probably mean that (a) you’ll live longer and (b) you’ll look younger.
Instead of spending thousands of dollars on face lifts and creams, skip brekkie.
Her: You like feeling hungry? Me: I like feeling hungry. It reminds me that I’m alive and makes eating all that more fun. Her: I don’t like being uncomfortable. Me: The highest-performing people, I think, are the ones that are comfortable being uncomfortable.
3. Drink green matcha tea twice a day
I’ve been drinking a lot more than two cups of green tea a day since Alison got sick, again, because it’s highly anti-cancer.
Green tea, unlike other kinds of tea, has a compound called ECGC which has been linked in double-blind Japanese studies where they found that drinking five-cups of green tea a day, not only resulted in a statistically significant reduction in cancer across the board, it led to a statistically significant reduction in … death.
In other words, if you drink five cups of green tea a day, you’re less likely to die, period. That’s wild.
Why every person on the planet isn’t drinking green tea like it was going outta style is beyond me.
BUT, just last year, a study came out that found that people that had too much green tea had liver failure. Still, it seems that the people that had liver issues took supplements along with green tea, moreover, it doesn’t say if they had underlying health issues to begin with.
As for me, green tea (it doesn’t need to be matcha) makes up most of my liquid sustenance, with coffee and water making up the rest.
Early this year, I cut out about three people from my life, one person literally went outta her way to make me feel like shit about everything, including how I was raising my son.
And one of my closest friends was a fella named Johnny who I cut out just after Alison died along with my old coach for the same reasons – I outgrew them and their petty grievances, against me and the world.
I’ve got 8,250 days left on the planet and I plan to spend alla them with people that want to make themselves and people around them better, not worse.
Lemme add two of my own tips for looking and staying young:
5. Squat every day
Asians tend to live long and better when they’re in Asia and less so when they’re not. Why is that?
Well, there’s a large group of people that feel this is because many Asians in Asia still use squat toilets. This means, at least once a day, a huge amount of the population does these very deep squats which have massive health benefits, least of which are good knees and a strong core.
I squat daily – both with and without weights. You should try it.
6. Learn something. Anything. But learn it deeply
A good friend of mine, who is Caucasian, just decided one day to learn Chinese and I’ve been chatting with her about it. She said that she feels her brain working in ways that she hasn’t felt since she was a kid.
A sharp mind is a hallmark of youth. Older people are slower in every regard, including how they think.
Constantly learning new things – ideas, facts, languages, etc – is stretching out your mind as much as your body.
Me: I have a personal indicator that will tell me when I’m old. Her: What is it? Me: Ever since I was a little kid, I would bound – not walk, *bound* – up the stairs two at a time. I still do that and I can’t help myself. I think that the day I can’t easily do that is the day that I will truly be old.
A young girl: [Your son] says you’re a fighter. Me: Heavens! Now, do I look like a fighter, little miss? Her: (laughs) Noooo! Me: Well, there you go. I’m just a lawyer. And his dad. Son: (afterward, annoyed) Why didn’t you say you’re a fighter?! Me: Because I’m not, I’m someone that can fight but I’m not a fighter. There’s a difference. Him: Papa! Me: (shrugging) Besides, no one needs to know what we do in our private lives, kid. I want you to learn something here: People don’t look like they really are inside. Our insides don’t often match our outsides, for better for worse. The less people know about what you can do, the better. Him: Then why do you spend so much time [learning how to fight]? Me: Because…sometimes you have to show people what you can do.
This girl named Betty was running to catch a train about a 100 years ago when her science teacher saw her.
The science teacher was also the running coach of the school and never saw anyone run that fast – and he was the coach!
So, he convinced her to run for him and soon, she found herself in the 1928 Olympics at just 16 years old, breaking a whole buncha records.
Almost 100 years later, she remains the youngest athlete to win an Olympic 100-meter gold.
That’s not the most remarkable thing about her, though.
Just three years later, in 1931, she was in a plane crash where she was so messed up that they were sure she was dead. They didn’t send her to the hospital, they sent her to the morgue.
Luckily the undertaker realized she was alive and she, somehow, survived.
Unfortunately, the doctors said she’d never walk again, let alone race again. She spent six months in a wheelchair and didn’t walk normally for two whole years.
But she somehow did walk again and then run again – and she actually ran in the 1946 summer Olympics against the heavily-favoured Germans in the relay race.
The kicker is that she beat them.
Not my pic, obvs. Click here for more info. Man, look how happy this kid is.
The thing is, if you pull up a picture of Betty Robinson, she just looks like any other chick from that time.
You’d never know she was a beast in her lane.
I’ve met so many people in my half-century here. But the ones I always value the most, are the ones with their secret lives that no one would ever suspect.
I’ve met beasts that you wouldn’t believe.
Suppose I hope this for my son, for him to have secrets that keep him safe and happy until and unless he has to show the world what he can do.
Son: So, you do fight, right, papa? Me: Not if I can help it, kid. Remember that, too.
Speaking of meeting up with people, I met up with the Firecracker for drinks the other day at a place that a buddy from my gym told me he loves that’s all decked out as if it were still the Victorian age.
Super cool and ornate, plus it’s right around the gym.
I’d been walking past it for months without realizing what was inside.
Just like with people, the City has alla these hidden secrets that I like finding out about.
Then again, I usually tell you about them when I find about them, so we can share the secret, yeah?
One thing that I’m learning as a parent is that summer stuff needs to be planned super early.
I’ve already got a surprise trip planned for the kid as well as a few weeks of things here and there but trying to fill up an entire summer is daunting, lemme tell ya.
Hopefully, we’ll have some stories to tell you after the summer’s over.
Boy: Will you come to Germany with me? Me: Sure! I love Germany. That sounds like fun.
Met up with the Firecracker and her sister the other day for an early dinner.
Conveniently, her sister also lives in the Upper Best Side, so that made things easy and we just met up at a local bar around us.
I’ve been really into fish and chips lately, plus this place had sweet potato fries, so that made things even better.
She just had a burger, which I always approve of.
Her: Look, they branded the burger with their initials! Me: Ooooh, fancy!
Her sister speaks Japanese, which was pretty cool.
I’d just bought a new camera (I’ll tell you about that later) and she was actually looking at the one I was seriously considering before I ended up choosing something else entirely.
In any case, my brother, sister, and I, plus my cousins were all talking about a summer 2024 trip back to Taiwan and I asked them if they would be interested in coming along as well.
Firecracker: That sounds like fun! Sister: I’ve never been but it’s on my list of places to visit. Me: Sweet, we’ll plan something out.
It feels weird planning things for the future with the kid. Weirder with the Firecracker.
There’s something inherently hopeful about planning for the future.
The last decade has seriously fucked with my head when it comes to being hopeful.
Even before everything went to shit, I was always cautious about being too hopeful about anything.
After all, the more you hope for things, the harder you crash if they fall apart.
Then again, what is life if not somewhat hopeful?
Her: The kids are away that week, do you want to go somewhere? Me: (long pause) Sure. That sounds like fun.
Holy cow, one of my videos has 10 MILLON views on it.
It’s yet another thing that’s kinda hard for me to wrap my head around.
Me: Do you wanna go on a small adventure? Her: With you? Yes!
After celebrating my birthday numerous times over the past few weeks, the Firecracker had a slow week so I asked if she wanted to have a really long lunch one weekday.
She’d been wanting to head over to Los Tacos #1 at the Chelsea Market for some time and it was a gorgeous day so I suggested that we both hop onto my electric bike, which is actually a two-seater.
Unfortunately, we only made it a couple of blocks before the tire came off of the rim.
Her: Do we have to head back? Me: (shaking head) Nah, I think I can fix it. I inflated the bike on its tires but I shoulda flipped it over. I can fix this.
While she watched the bike, I ran back to my pad, got what I needed and came back to fix the bike.
After a few minutes, we were back on track.
Me: How you doing back there? Her: OK…I think.
The weather could, honestly, not have been nicer. We actually went down to the tip of Manhattan to the Financial District and took a walk around.
After a bit, we both got hungry and headed up to Los Tacos #1 at the Chelsea Market.
I found a seat…
…while she went to grab food.
Of course, it wasn’t enough food for me but there was ANOTHER taco joint right next door – owned by the same people – called Los Mariscos, which was their fish taco place so I ordered more food there.
Me: Do you want anything else? Her: No, I’m stuffed. Me: More for me, then.
So, she sat and people watched while I continued to eat.
Afterward, we hopped back on the bike and went up to the Winter Garden, which I’ve always loved.
She’d never been.
We got her a coffee there and looked at the crowds of business people there, out for happy hours drinks.
She managed to ring her mom to tell her all about it too. I thought that was cute.
I told her that I was there when it first opened…
Her: I was like one or two then, Logan!
…and I was there again after they repaired it after 9/11.
It was one of the more fun mid-day trips I’ve had in my life.
Although, there were some unexpected things that put a slight damper on things.
Me: That was so much fun! It woulda been perfect except, man, my butt is sore. Her: Me too! Me: Worth it though. Her: (nodding) Totally worth it.
Location: picking up the boy from the Lincoln Center movie theater. He kept wanting to toss popcorn into things.
Mood: exhausted
Music: baby…time’s passing by (Spotify) Subscribe! Like this post? Tell someone about it by clicking a button below.
2023 - This is me on Saturday during our shoot, two days before I'm 50.
Just the particulars
Me: What if one day you get new glasses and realize how old I am? Firecracker: I don’t think so. Maybe I’m just more into antiques than I thought I was.
1973 – 0 Years old
4. You can reinvent yourself again and again
F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote Alison’s favorite book, The Great Gatsby; I loved that girl as much as I hated that book.
When I was in college, I spoke four languages and was certain that I’d end up working for the Foreign Service.
Then I changed my mind and wanted to be a writer – ended up writing for several national publications including one of the first major articles on Windows NT versus Novell for Computer Shopper, and some travel articles for the New York Sun.
While doing this, I worked in the club industry and made a name for myself, which a few people still recognize me for.
1983 – 10 Years Old (and starting to get fat, hoo-boy, did I get even bigger)
Then I decided I wanted to build networks and ended up building a 100-seat computer network for a Fortune 600 company on Madison Avenue.
Then I went to law school to become a lawyer. Then I went to CNET and became their first International Sale Manager. Then I went back to being a lawyer.
Then I bought my building with some friends and became a building manager.
Then I got another degree and became one of only 350 people in the New York State with that degree while still working on my legal career. Somehow found myself lecturing on the law all over including Europe and New York. Even won an award.
I also started teaching kali on the sly just a block from my pad and started up a private jet company.
After Alison got sick, I gave up everything and became a cancer researcher, a caretaker, and then a father.
Somehow, in my late 40s, I also became a YouTuber and a gym owner.
Look, my point is that Fitzgerald was fulla shit.
You can be anything you want to be. You get to decide and no one else does.
I decided at 14 that I didn’t wanna be fat so I stopped being fat. It was as simple and as difficult as that.
Few things in life are actually difficult; the most difficult thing you’ll ever do is to decide to do something.
Everything else after that decision are just the particulars.
1993 – 20 Years old – My brother edited out the people next to me in this pic – in fact, he did all these pics. He’s crazy talented, that boy.
This is dangerous – I speak from both personal experience and as a new father.
My greatest fear is that kid’ll meet some knuckleheads that get him into trouble.
Look, you choose your friends because they mirror some quality you have or desire. I don’t have any close friends that are, say, massive gamblers, because I’m not a massive gambler.
You don’t get to chose your family but you do get to choose your tribe. So, if the people that you hang out with are a buncha people that cheat on their partners alla time, you’re gonna become someone that chats on your partner.
If you’re the most successful person in your group, this is probably a bad thing, too. You need a better group.
This is one major reason why I didn’t want to continue some romantic relationships I was involved in; because, while they were usually fine, their friends weren’t the type of friends I wanted in my life.
Or my kid’s life.
Him: (a long time ago) I heard you two broke up, I’m sorry. Me: It’s fine. There’s no tragedy that doesn’t have some positive bonus and the bonus here is that I literally never have to pretend to enjoy hanging out with her lame friends again.
This is why I’ve cut so many people outta my life – because I want to be around people that point me in the direction I want to go.
Speaking of bonuses, here’s a bonus tip.
2003 – 30 years old
Bonus: Sometimes, Logan, you gotta say, “Fuck it, I’m out.”
If you are the average of the five people you hang out with the most, then I’m grateful that Bryson’s one of my oldest and dearest friends – for a whole host of reasons.
He’s dangerous; he boxed with Dolph Lundgren, is a brown belt in BJJ under Fabio Clemete, is a black belt in shorin ryu karate, and is also a skilled Japanese fencer.
But, he’s also a great father and cook, married to a beautiful doctor, and helped build a buncha businesses that you’ve probably visited.
Most importantly, though, he’s a great human being. He’s the kinda guy I wanna be, so I try to hang out with him whenever I can.
Years ago, I visited him and his then girlfriend (now wife) out in San Francisco and I was probably depressed when I met them.
I was struggling with whether or not to quit my job and also leave the girl I was seeing.
For the former, it was a great job but I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue being involved with it. The latter? Well, kinda the same thing.
I had all the mixed feelings of duty, loyalty, guilt, etc.
Him, his wife, their roomie, and I, somehow ended up on a boat in the middle of a lake where we got into a water gun fight with some group of people on another boat.
I got onto that boat confused and depressed and left it feeling..pretty good.
And it was because I started telling him alla these issues I had with the girl and that job and he listened, politely, and then simply said, Sometimes, Logan, you gotta say, “Fuck it.”
I added on the “I’m out” over the years.
The number of times I’ve said, Fuck it, I’m out, since that day has gotta be at least in the hundreds, if not thousands.
It’s an incredibly powerful statement and one that you can whip out at any time, in any situation.
Bad job? Bad relationship? Bad habits?
Fuck it, I’m out, is a perfect answer that leads directly to Tip 4, which is reinventing yourself.
But be careful, because it is so powerful. Use it with caution.
2013 – 40 years old
Once told you about this snippet of a Batman cartoon I watched when I was younger.
In it, a villain was trying to convince Bruce Wayne that Bruce was mad but Bruce/Batman fought back and won.
When his friend asked Bruce why he was so sure that he (Bruce) wasn’t crazy, he answered simply that the voices called him “Bruce.”
But that’s not what he called himself.
I’ve been many things I’ve been proud of. I think that, by the time you read this, Scenic Fights will either be at exactly 400,000 subscribers or close to it.
And I’ve got some big things happening in my life that I may or may not tell you about in the future.
But none of that matters, really. In my head, I’m the kid’s father. Full-stop.
If that ends up being the only thing that I’m known for, I’m ok with that.
Substitute teacher: And you are? Me: (pointing at the kid) His father. Her: (brightly) Oh! He’s a wonderful child! When I said that I was a substitute, he came up to me afterward and said that if I forgot anyone’s name, to ask him because he would tell me. He was my helper all day. Me: (laughing) That’s awesome. Her: He’s awesome! Me: You’re not wrong, lady. You’re not wrong. (sighing) He takes after his mom. Her: You two are lucky. Me: (nodding) Yeah. Lucky us.
I’ve been alive for exactly 18,250 days.
I’ve only got 8,250 days left, if I’m…lucky.
Hopefully, I’ll keep writing and you’ll keep reading, yeah?
2023 – This is me on Saturday during our shoot, two days before I’m 50.
