It's not enough to care about people or to understand them. They have to feel understood and cared for. If they don't, you're not doing it right.

"A child who does not play is not a child, but the man who doesn't play has lost forever the child who lived in him and who he will miss terribly." -- Pablo Neruda

Apparently, being sappy has made me a sap. But that's a tale for a different time.

You know that guy who always parks at the far end of the parking lot for no reason? That's me. I've been doing it for nearly 20 years. I get a few extra steps, a little extra fresh air and sunshine, and never have to hunt for a parking spot. I never thought twice about it when I drove a bleached out Camry with 300,000 miles or even my somewhat nicer Altima. But now that I drive an Audi (for which I paid about the same as the Altima, btw) I worry that people think I'm a self-important d-bag.

"Love is so short, forgetting is so long." -- Pablo Neruda (Can you tell I've been reading a lot of Neruda lately?)

Um. Not only "no", but "Oh, HELL no!!" https://www.theverge.com/2017/7/24/16019530/three-sqaure-market-implant-office-keycard-biohacking-wisconsin

One of the worst after effects of my new oral physiology is that I can't express my sense of humor the way I used to. Weird accents and strange noises and general oddball humor is rather difficult to pull off when you can't even pronounce things correctly. I feel like I've lost a chunk of who I am. It's all still there inside of me but gets lost in the execution.

The next worst is that I'll never be able to perform again. I still sing at church, in my car (at the top of my lungs, mind you), and at home alone but never for other people anymore. It's sometimes hard enough to be understood when I speak. Singing is even worse. (…sigh…) On the good side, I have a built-in excuse not to give presentations at tech conferences.

"For in Christ, neither our most conscientious religion nor disregard of religion amounts to anything. What matters is something far more interior: faith expressed in love." Galatians 5:4-6 (MSG)
Change what you care about, people.

I go to church with a guy I knew in college and used to work with. He recently told me that he would never have wanted to hang out with me back in those days -- that I was much more tense and a little mean at times -- but that I am a whole different person now. I've thought a lot about that and he's right. I used to live in a very black and white world but, over the past few years, I've come to know that most things fall in the vast swaths of grey in between.

You all know that magic three-word phrase that is the cornerstone of a healthy, caring relationship, right? "I lov---" No, not that one. It's "Maybe you're right."

And finally, I need more of this song in my life. You do too. The world would be a better place if everybody took a two-minute break once a week and held a simultaneous dance party to this song.