The Small Rebellion is a playful group of escape artists who share a joyful, indomitable childlike spirit and are not afraid to let that spirit come out to play! They’re united by a common goal of fighting Adultitis and the doo-doo heads who embrace its ideals. Quite frankly, they’re pretty much the coolest people on the planet. Here's one right now... • My name is...Julie B. (folks at work have called me Julie-pedia, Encyclopedia Brown, J-Drive, and Joda –instead of Yoda) – suffice to say, I’m a good source of knowledge for most colleagues. Mom and I went on a YOLO (you only live once) …
Archives for April 2015
Thou Shalt Not Jump In Puddles (or Dance in the Rain)
[ This is an excerpt from Penguins Can’t Fly +39 Other Rules That Don’t Exist, a beautiful and inspiring book that will help you uncover and break the so-called rules that could be holding you back from a life of awesome. Get it here! ] Several years ago, Kim and I were hanging out at the Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison. Overlooking Lake Mendota, it’s the perfect place to sit in one of the trademark yellow, orange, or green chairs and people watch. On this day, my eyes were drawn to a small family—Mom, Dad, and a little girl with pigtails—walking along the …
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Thou Shalt Celebrate Christmas on December 25th
Chris Clarke-Epstein is an amazing writer and speaker, as well as a beloved friend, mentor, and "Ahma Chris" to our kids. She was also an integral part of our most recent Escape Adulthood Summit. A while back, she told us about a special penguin-themed family tradition, and we're thrilled she was willing to write this guest post. And since today is World Penguin Day, what better time to share it? All my growing up years, our family – the whole family gathered on Christmas Eve for Swedish food, amazing story telling, and glorious present opening. We wound down the festivities in time for …
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Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Real Life Kermit the Frog Edition
• Scientists just discovered a new frog that looks amazingly like Kermit the Frog. Located in Costa Rica, the frog, named Diane’s Bare-hearted Glassfrog, was named by senior scientist Brian Kubicki to honor his mother, Janet Diana Kubicki. Life imitating art? • Saying "no" is a very useful skill for maintaining some semblance of life balance. Not always easy, though. Love the killer tip shared on 99u.com for avoiding the automatic guilty yes when someone asks you something in person: “Let me check on something and get back to you.” Brilliant! • McKenzie Rabenn is creating Wisconsin’s …
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This Week in Rule Breaking
Rules that don't exist are all around us, and they can keep us from living a life of awesome. In honor of the upcoming release of Penguins Can't Fly, we are posting a different rule every day on our various social media accounts, using the hashtag #notarule. Some are rules we've uncovered, others have been shared with us from people like you. Follow along on Instagram, Tumblr, or Facebook or share your own rule here! #notarule but for anyone who's married, this one sure feels like it... Desperate times call for desperate measures. (Hat tip to Justin Connelly via …
It’s Fun Breaking a Rule Every Now and Again
It sat there taunting me for over a month. It was a copy of Jack Staples and The Ring of Time, sent to me to review. I don’t normally review things, but I said yes, mostly because I am a fan of the authors. I read Circle Maker by Mark Batterson and Awake by Joel N. Clark and enjoyed them very much. However, both of those books are non-fiction, which is what I normally read. But fiction? Not so much, unless you count Dragons Love Tacos or The Day The Crayons Quit. It’s been a long time since I’ve read any fiction with infinitely more words than pictures. I blame my three kids. But I …
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Rattling Cages: Behind the Scenes of Our Latest Battle Against Adultitis
Writing, designing, and illustrating Penguins Can’t Fly was easy and fun, at least compared to the marketing, promoting, and selling part of the process. Since the beginning, I knew that the bulk of the latter was on us, not the publisher. This is something that few authors grasp. You see, with all the books that they publish, there are only so many resources a publisher can put behind a first-time author. (Technically, I am not a first-time author, with four books and several thousands of copies sold, but I AM a rookie when it comes to the traditional publishing game.) St. Martin’s has …
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Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Lego Laptop Edition
• We've got a lot of Legos sprinkled around our house, so I could definitely use this sweet laptop case. You know I backed this Kickstarter. (Hat Tip to DeMilked) • Parents are way too overprotective these days, and it's not helping our kids one bit. The truth is that there are many dangerous things we do all the time, but it's mastery that minimizes the risk. That's ultimately what 50 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Child Do is all about. Good stuff. (Hat tip to Kimberly Tice) • I thought this photo project using paint chips was pretty neat. • Want to to start the day putting …
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This Week in Rule Breaking
Rules that don't exist are all around us, and they can keep us from living a life of awesome. In honor of the upcoming release of Penguins Can't Fly, we are posting a different rule every day on our various social media accounts, using the hashtag #notarule. Some are rules we've uncovered, others have been shared with us from people like you. Follow along on Instagram, Tumblr, or Facebook or share your own rule here! This 7-superhero mural was made with 9,000 post-it notes. And there are probably 9,000 ways to make your office more fun if you're willing to break a few …
Why You’ll Want to Order Extra Copies of Penguins Can’t Fly
First of all, anyone who orders at least one book from anywhere can email their receipt to penguins@escapeadulthood.com and get a special e-Book containing five bonus rules that didn't make the original cut, a Permission to Break The Rules Coupon book, access to the video of one of my 70-minute speaking programs, and a cache of digital wallpaper. (Details here.) Wondering what you could possibly do with all those books? You could just give them out to strangers on a random street corner or build a little fort for your Lego minifigs, but here are some more practical suggestions: …
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