Tag: kids

The Best Career Advice I’ve Ever Read

This is the best career advice I’ve ever read, via Josh Brown: Make yourself useful to smart, successful people. That’s how you should spend the first ten years of your career. Surround yourself with smart, successful people and then bet on them. That’s how you should spend the next ten years. And then you’re done, … Continue reading The Best Career Advice I’ve Ever Read →

The Two Factors You Need To Be A Successful Professional

If you want to be a professional musician, it’s not enough to make great music.  You have to learn how to connect with an audience too.  Build skills. Build community. Success follows. You can be the best basement musician on the block. But without an audience, it's a hobby. We spend lots of time focusing … Continue reading The Two Factors You Need To Be A Successful Professional →

Where Valentine’s Day Comes From, Why It Works, And How To Steal Its Formula

3rd-century Roman law was clear: Christians were to be persecuted. And Saint Valentine of Rome did not agree with the law. Here’s his story and how it connects to Valentine’s Day. Saint Valentine was a priest, serving (illegally) the persecuted Christians of Rome. The charges against him would include marrying Christians, a real no-no because … Continue reading Where Valentine’s Day Comes From, Why It Works, And How To Steal Its Formula →

Sunday Music: I Am Gonna Make It Through This Year If It Kills Me

Apparently, a few of you noticed I buried this song after all the Depeche Mode talk last week. You’re right, it deserves some highlighting of its own. John Darnielle is a special songwriter. In 2005, Darnielle wrote one of his more (most?) autobiographical albums. The Sunset Tree is largely about his childhood. He dedicated it … Continue reading Sunday Music: I Am Gonna Make It Through This Year If It Kills Me →

Sunday Music: Beavis, Butthead, And The Beasties

It’s 1993 and I’ve got my walkman loaded with The Beavis and Butthead Experience. I’m about 13, find the skits hysterical, and am already obsessed with music.  I’ve got the tape because every 90s kid of a certain age is endlessly imitating and quoting Beavis and Butthead. I’ve also got the tape because… would you … Continue reading Sunday Music: Beavis, Butthead, And The Beasties →

Change Paths (How Doug E. Fresh Invented Beatboxing)

The path you’re going down doesn’t have to be the path you finish on. Doug E. Fresh invented beatboxing. If it weren’t for his music teacher, it might never have happened. In grade school, he wanted to learn to play the drums. He joined the school band but the teacher brushed off his request and … Continue reading Change Paths (How Doug E. Fresh Invented Beatboxing) →

Sunday Music: Play That Country Tuba, Cowboy

My brother said the song stopped everyone dead when it came on in the kitchen he works. At the mercy of shuffle mode, his Spotify-shuffle picked out “Play That Country Tuba, Cowboy” from the obscure Vandals album, The Vandals Play Really Bad Original Country Tunes. Understandably, nobody else had ever heard it, and the song … Continue reading Sunday Music: Play That Country Tuba, Cowboy →

Podcast Of The Week: It’s A Wonderful Podcast (And Life)

Pop Culture Happy Hour takes a look at the holiday classic, It’s a Wonderful Life. I’ve already watched it once this year and had my cry, so hearing the whole lot of them go back and forth is delightful. Come for Glen Weldon’s sarcastic panning of the entire movie (it’s brilliant, even if you love … Continue reading Podcast Of The Week: It’s A Wonderful Podcast (And Life) →