You & Improved

- - - | written by Jason on 6/20/2021 | - - -

The Most Important Step to Achieving a Dream…

...is the next one. How do you eat an elephant?I’m not sure what elephants taste like, or why you’d ever want to eat one, but the answer, of course, is one bite at a time. (Mustard is optional, but a little enthusiasm never hurts.)The same instructions apply when it comes to accomplishing a big dream: One bite at a time.Tinkering embodies this spirit perfectly. Tinkering implies baby steps, not grand gestures: a little of this, a little of that.I've accomplished some of my biggest dreams in the past few years. They were all accomplished with a healthy dose of tinkering, taking one baby step …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/13/2021 | - - -

Why We Fall Prey to Adultitis

If you wear dress socks to a Zoom meeting.If you think the dictionary should be made into a movie.If you were disappointed to learn that Fifty Shades of Gray was NOT a home decor manual.These are signs that you might have Adultitis. We like to have fun with it, but Adultitis is no joke. No one would willingly drink poison guaranteed to destroy their health, strain their relationships, and sap the joy from their life. But that's exactly what Adultitis does, and yet, most adults are infected with some form of it. Why? How do we get stuck in its vile clutches when it's obviously preferred to …

- - - | written by Jason on 5/30/2021 | - - -

Now for the Fun Part: An Open Letter to Grads

Hello, graduate. Congratulations on your accomplishments and a job well done!Now for the fun part.You’ve made it this far by following directions, filling in little circles, asking for permission, standing in line, and raising your hand before speaking up. The instructions have been clear: do this (take these classes, write this paper, complete this assignment) and get this (pass the course, earn a recommendation, receive a degree.) You got to this point by following the rules. Now that you’ve graduated, it’s time to start breaking some. Make no mistake, the work is …

- - - | written by Jason on 5/23/2021 | - - -

I Got a Rock

In the immortal words of a trick-or-treating Charlie Brown...I got a rock.It wasn't just any rock, mind you; it was a kindness rock. If you are unfamiliar with the concept, people hand-paint ordinary rocks with inspirational or encouraging messages and leave them in a public place for someone to find. This particular one was shaped a bit like a heart, painted red, and included the words, "Love you." I found it on a walk, near the lakeside bench where I like to sit. I immediately recognized what it was, but completely resisted the idea that it could actually be intended for me. After all, …

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- - - | written by Jason on 5/16/2021 | - - -

The Fears and Aspirations of a Paint Tube

This is not a medieval torture device. But it is one of my favorite new studio tools. It has one job, and that's to squeeze all the paint from the tube. And it does it very well. After using it a few times, I can finally rest assured that from this day forth, I will get my money's worth out of every tube of paint I buy.A flattened, used-up paint tube is quite a contrast to a fresh one.There is something about brand new tubes of paint that makes artists giddy. Fresh and unspoiled, they are loaded with potential and brimming with exhilarating possibilities.On the other hand, the used-up tube …

- - - | written by Jason on 5/2/2021 | - - -

How to Be More Playful

I am friends with clowns.I don't mean in the proverbial sense. I mean people who paint their faces, wear red noses, and ride in Volkswagon Beetles with thirty-seven of their closest friends.I guess that's an occupational hazard when you decide to fight Adultitis for a living.I know some folks have a thing against clowns, but the ones I know – the real ones – are true Adultitis Fighters. They are compassionate souls who are all about bringing more light and empathy into the world. I can get behind a mission like that.Although our missions are in lock-step, clowns go about accomplishing it …

- - - | written by Jason on 4/25/2021 | - - -

How to Avoid Becoming a Slave to Your To-Do List

Hello, my name is Jason, and I'm a crossoffaholic.Have you ever done something that wasn’t on your to-do list, and after you completed it, wrote it down just so you could immediately cross it off?Me too. All the time. It's not weird at all.The truth is, we experience a dopamine hit – a happy little chemical reaction – any time we accomplish something, which is the reason crossing things off our to-do list makes us feel good. (Also, I may or may not believe I won't get credit if I don't write it down.)In general, I am a fan of to-do lists. They help keep me organized. And writing things down …

- - - | written by Jason on 4/18/2021 | - - -

Insert the Coin

My Grandpa and uncle used to own a tavern. Once in a while, they'd close it to host family parties. I remember the dimly lit atmosphere and the ghosts of spent cigarettes that hung in the air, but my favorite feature was the row of arcade games lined up against the wall. They were blinking, bright doorways to amazing worlds and grand adventures. I don't remember ever being given any money from my parents to play them. But no matter. Each game had a preview segment, showing a minute or so of the gameplay to entice you to feed it some coins. I just delighted in going from machine to machine, …

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- - - | written by Jason on 3/21/2021 | - - -

A Lot Can Happen in a Year

My wife celebrated a birthday last weekend. This year's edition wasn't nearly as monumental as last year's, which was the day after President Trump declared the COVID-19 pandemic a national emergency.Good times.The day before that day, I had the whole family in tow for a speech I gave at a fundraiser for a children's museum in Indiana. There were all kinds of whispers about this "coronavirus thing." I was still trying to figure out if it had anything to do with that beer you drink with a lime. We were told to wash our hands more often, and a local college was rumored to temporarily close for …

- - - | written by Jason on 3/14/2021 | - - -

Cornerstone Faith

This is a picture of Kim and me at the Cornerstone music festival, very early on in our dating years. Together with friends, we camped out with thousands of other Christian music fans in the middle of a field during a sweltering stretch of Illinois summer.Here we are showing off our "hardcore" faith represented by sun-kissed cross "tattoos" made with two Band-aids.Nine years of Catholic school provided a decent foundation for my faith, but it didn't really come alive until the year after I graduated high school, about the time this photo was taken. I was on fire for God, excited to learn all I …

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