I Don't Know What The F@ck I'm Doing

Greetings wonderful readers,

I hope that your Fourth of July weekend was safe, happy, and full of fun. Apologies for the missed week, I was celebrating America with beer and family. As it should be.

We made the thirteen-hour trek from Raleigh, where I currently reside, to my grandparent’s lake house in Nowhere, Arkansas. I know what you’re thinking, “this asshole probably couldn’t wait to subtle-flex his lake house to us.” Well relax, first off, this blog goes out to an entirely too small crowd for me to be flexing anything. Second, you are probably thinking gated community and private security, while I really mean gravel road and no cell service. That isn’t meant to be a dig on the place, just a statement of fact. The first time my family went there (Just had a moment of nostalgia thinking about how long it’s been. Had to be circa 2008 - that’s 15 years, not the 5 years it feels like.) we were trying to find the place and called my grandmother to say we were lost - she responded with “then you’re in the right place.” There is probably a life lesson in there, but that can wait for another episode. I’ve learned a lot at that little lake house. I learned to drive, shoot (gun and bow), and to tie flies to fish. I learned to jet ski, forge a knife from a rail tie, and walk in the woods. I learned to cook apple pie, appreciate vinyl (Dirty Dancing soundtrack was my childhood), and to plant potatoes, tomatoes, and corn. Over all of these things, the most important thing I learned is to never stop learning.

My upbringing involved a typical 12 years of highly structured education in elementary through high school, followed by four years of much less structured university. Since then, I have realized that there are no more required learning opportunities in life! No required minimum GPA for scholarships or student debt hanging over my head as motivation to make grades. I could end every single day for the rest of my life with the exact same level of knowledge that I started with and have lived a perfectly acceptable life in the eyes of society. I just don’t see this working for the life I want for myself. Seems very stagnant and unexciting. I want to pursue a life of learning and enrichment - I dearly hope that I make it to my deathbed having forgotten more than most ever have the opportunity to know.

My own shining example of this concept is my grandfather, Daddy Pa. Yes, the same man who taught me all the things mentioned above. I’ve been telling him to write an autobiography recently, as I am convinced it would be a bestseller. It seems like every time I see him, he has a new skill to teach or experience to share with me. Our motto and adventuring mantra as my sister and I grew up was “we can do anything”, and he helped us to truly believe it. He has also retained an obvious childlike enthusiasm for life that is infectious to witness. Here’s to you, Daddy Pa. Thanks for being such an inspiration.

In my past I’ve worked in restaurants, insurance sales (briefly), and stocking a warehouse in Louisiana summer, (also brief cause DAMN it was hot). I currently work for an incredible Miami startup and a booming construction company that treats its employees like family. So far, I am not exactly specializing in any one area - but I don’t really see that as a bad thing. I am in my mid-twenties and collecting a diverse skillset that will be the foundation for what is (fingers crossed here) a successful career. My goal at this point is to just keep gaining skills and experience until I am an unstoppable Terminator-esque machine. (Sidenote: let me know if anyone has a surgeon who specializes in cybernetic enhancements. Looking at you, Tom Brady.)

I guess this is just a really long-winded way to say that I believe learning is the key to a happy life. Honestly, you should try and learn something every day. Even if it’s just from reading a twitter thread about a famous battle from one of those Chat-GPT powered accounts. Preferably it’s something with a little more substance than a twitter thread, but who am I to talk? I write a blog. Now get out there and gain some experience!

That’s all I’ve got for this week - reply to this with your favorite fun fact and help me learn something today!

Much Love.