031723 — Blog — Rulerless

Room for dessert

It’s 1:30 PM Eastern. I’ve already been awake for more than ten hours.

Yep, 3:20 AM is when the ol’ alarm went off. Early flight. I miss living in Atlanta where it seems like there are several direct flights daily to just about anywhere you might want to go.

But now, long-distance travel often requires an overnight stay away from home before we even get on the plane, and slim pickins as to the actual itinerary.

Casey von NeumannFebruary 21, 2023031723, 032223 Comments

A blob of sugar dough

There’s a part of my hometown that’s like a teeny-tiny Atlantic City boardwalk, right down to the amusement park, the arcade, and the saltwater taffy.

The place that has the saltwater taffy is called The Goldenrod. Open only in the summer, it s a York Beach institution. The restaurant, which has a soda fountain, a stone fireplace, and lacquered wooden tables, used to sell penny candy by the piece at a counter always staffed by a very patient young college student. Founded in 1896, The Goldenrod was already full of nostalgia when I was a kid.

Casey von NeumannFebruary 15, 2023030623, 031423, 031723Comment

How not to set a goal

“2023 goals...stop procrastinating...” she wrote, on Christmas Day.

It’s only a few words, but I have so much to say about them.

First, I’ll comment on the obvious irony. Why not stop procrastinating today? Procrastinating on our procrastination cessation, are we?

Casey von NeumannJanuary 6, 2023012323, 021523, 031723, 032823 Comments

The pot of gold or the ATM?

When it comes to goals, there’s a paradox. I’m pretty sure it was Ariana who pointed it out.

How do we plug away toward a desired outcome without being attached to the outcome?

Are we to accept that the outcome is something that will be perpetually out of reach, meaning that the best we can do is enjoy the journey and see how close we get?

Casey von NeumannJanuary 3, 2023031723, 032923, 041923 Comments

The invisible upside

It turns out that the nine-year-old piano students, the thirteen-year-old awkward middle schoolers, and the adult professionals I’ve worked with over the years have a lot in common.

One recurring theme is their (our) tendency to eliminate potential choices based on the whisper of a possible negative outcome.

We refuse to do something that we want to do because we’ll have to do something we don’t want to do along the way.

Casey von NeumannAugust 26, 2022122622, balancing risk and reward, 031723Comment