Dear Mr. Dad: My wife and I are in the midst of what’s turning out to be a rather unpleasant divorce. We can’t stand to be anywhere near each other and conversations are pretty much impossible. The only thing we agree on (besides that we shouldn’t be married anymore) is that our kids need both...Continue reading
It is natural to dismiss dangers that are rarely seen. That has become our present circumstance with respect to many devastating infectious diseases. Since medicine has made significant progress against its former greatest adversaries, complacent beliefs have flourished. Surprisingly, a new malady has arisen and we are now suffering from a growing amnesia regarding the...Continue reading
As I was recently arranging care for my ailing father-in-law, a friend texted me that I was in the “sandwich generation.” I texted back “No, that doesn’t quite capture it. A sandwich can be light and fluffy – it is more like a panini – hot pressure squeezing on both sides.” She replied: “Ha! You...Continue reading
If we had the ability to make ourselves live forever without losing our youthfulness, would we? According to Jonathan Weiner in his thought provoking book Long for this World we may be moving in that direction more than we speculated–whether we like it or not. The health and beauty industry has taken full advantage of...Continue reading
As a father, there is nothing more difficult than watching your child suffer. In 2001, my son was just 15 months old and very, very sick. He would spike 106-degree fevers twice a day. He literally couldn’t move a muscle because of the pain. He spent a month in an intensive care unit before they...Continue reading
As a father, you want to protect your children and do everything you can to ensure that they lead a happy, healthy life. And the best way to do that is to be happy and healthy yourself. Summer vacation may have started, but June is about more than summer camps and backyard BBQs. It’s Men’s...Continue reading
How do you solve tough problems? Maybe you pick at them until they’re gone. Maybe you dance around them until they’re contained. One thing I like to do is to step away and examine them as an outsider, from a completely different perspective. In other words, get out of the trees and look at the whole...Continue reading
Unless you’re on a desert island, chances are there’s a laser within just a few feet of you. In fact, there’s a pretty good case to be made that our lives wouldn’t be the same without them. If you’ve got a cat or a dog, you’ve probably used a laser pointer to entertain yourself by...Continue reading
Thomas Wolfe says, “You can never go home again.” However, to go forward, I have to go backward from time to time. I return to the places where the dreams began: my hometown and the small college where I did my undergraduate work. That’s where I’m sitting right now, writing these pages. Through the windows I see the amphitheater...Continue reading