Robertdeveau A foster pet is often praised as straightforward. But spending real time in the system reveals a less-discussed, more complicated reality beneath the uplifting stories. Fostering pets is often seen as a win-win: you enjoy having an animal at home, the animal gets safety, and agencies cover the costs. It sounds simple and rewarding. And … Read more
Do Some Good Fostering pets is genuinely worth doing. But the version you usually hear leaves out the parts that matter most. Here’s the one that doesn’t. The Promise vs. Reality Fostering a pet is usually described as a win/win. You open your home temporarily, the animal gets off a shelter cot, the agency covers … Read more
I’m willing to admit that most of the time, I don’t know exactly what I’m doing. It’s a challenge to figure things out. That’s not modesty; it’s just the truth. Whether it’s starting a new project, chasing a fresh goal, or exploring a new idea, my starting point is always the same: total uncertainty. I … Read more
The internet is a dangerous place for a curious person. How a curious person will survive the internet is not always a straight line, especially when they learn to navigate and make the most out of it. If you’re a curious person, the internet can feel less like a library and more like a firehose. … Read more
The Enduring Impact of Carol Burnett When I was a kid, Carol Burnett would turn to the camera and take questions from the audience. Somehow, even through a screen, she made it feel like she was talking directly to me. It’s amazing how Carol engaged so personally. I wasn’t in the studio. I didn’t … Read more
For the last year or so, I’d been building my life around a single, strange idea — I was going to be a Survivor contestant. I wasn’t just applying for fun, I was ready for the whole drawn-out process — the audition videos, the psychological screening, the video call with Jeff Probst. I’d mapped it … Read more
For some reason, it just seems that I can’t be entertained. Most people watch TV, movies, or sports to relax. They want a laugh, a distraction, a bit of escape. I’ve learned something about myself: I don’t get that luxury. When I sit down to watch a show, a movie, or even a cartoon, … Read more
I was at the gym, doing my thing, minding my own business when it came again, my deep anger at yet another injustice. Not from the weights. Not from the sweat. From the wall-mounted television, casually streaming yet another episode of one of those home improvement shows where a family already living in a … Read more
When my mother-in-law told me, “When I landed in Canada, I could smell the freedom,” I wasn’t prepared for how hard that sentence would hit me. I just remembered the Smell of freedom. It wasn’t part of a long, emotional story. She just said it, almost in passing, like it was a memory she’d never … Read more
From falling anvils to startup gold, the unexpected power of a cartoon cliché. I grew up watching Saturday morning cartoons, and if you did, too, the acme company name probably triggers instant memories: Wile E. Coyote flipping through a mail-order catalogue, ordering rocket skates or a giant slingshot in yet another doomed attempt to catch … Read more