I just picked up Carol Dweck’s Mindset and I’m already—just 70 pages in!—grappling with its implications on my life. While I was already familiar with the basic distinction between “fixed mindset” and “growth mindset,” it became apparent that I’d never actually thought about them. I knew the concepts but I didn’t understand them. I see … Continue reading On diverging mindsets
Tag: parenting
On an introduction to alcohol
My introduction to alcohol was one of prohibition: Thou shalt not drink. My parents, more than a little Protestant in them, decried the temptation of alcohol in stern terms even as they—wait for it!—imbibed themselves. The nerve! But this is less about their imposed teetotaling attitude—which was really not the worst mindset to have in … Continue reading On an introduction to alcohol
On the last days of my job and the peak-end rule
Look, endings are important. I didn’t need to learn about the peak-end rule to get that. It’s one of those things that school teaches you indirectly—we all remember the frenzy of the final week before summer. Mostly, there is joy to these endings: everyone amped for the start of summer. But then you reach the … Continue reading On the last days of my job and the peak-end rule
On 7 things from last week (10/23/23)
Photo shoot. It’s been a while since I’ve attended an architectural photo shoot. There is a strange satisfaction in locating angles and fixing furniture… Traverse Academy. The project subject of the the aforementioned photo shoot is Traverse Academy. The firm I work for does a lot of schools—but this is the one I’m most proud … Continue reading On 7 things from last week (10/23/23)
On forgiving myself
I reflected not long ago where I mentioned the patience you gain as a parent. I framed it as perhaps the only benefit in the hard slog that is early childhood of one’s kids. But there’s another: Self-forgiveness. It took me a while to see the distinction between self-forgiveness and its close cousin—making excuses. Both … Continue reading On forgiving myself
On 7 things from last week
Block party. It’s nice to live in a neighborhood where your neighbors throw an honest-to-God block party. (Bouncy castle included!) Jane. This documentary about Jane Goodall blew my mind—because I realized I knew nothing about her. No academic background? Had a baby living in camps in Africa? An incredible screen presence. No idea. Wings Over … Continue reading On 7 things from last week
On 7 things from last week (9/11/23)
Solo parenting. IS HARD. As if it weren’t obvious from a distance, I learned firsthand this weekend just how frayed at the edges it can make you feel. Kudos to all single parents. Narratives. It’s amazing when the word flips out understanding of something upside down. Dinner with a big family. At its worst, controlled … Continue reading On 7 things from last week (9/11/23)
On toddlers and Nirvana T-shirts
I've been seeing this a lot: A toddler, or little kid, wearing a t-shirt with the iconic Nirvana smiley face. It's bewildering on a few fronts to me, the first one of which is merely temporal. For, assuming that the parents of young kids (younger than, say, five) are not much older than 40, then … Continue reading On toddlers and Nirvana T-shirts
On being a normal dad and getting compliments from strangers
“Super dad here!” The male cashier’s comment threw me. Super dad? I was in the local King Soopers on a Friday afternoon with my five-month-old son and a stroller-ful of groceries. Three weeks earlier, I was pushing the stroller listlessly around the aisles of a Byzantine antique store when a passing older woman commented: “What … Continue reading On being a normal dad and getting compliments from strangers
On joy in your child’s joy
We were to hibachi last night for the second-ever time with our toddler. I don't think he was as impressed on the second go-round, but he was still transfixed by the showmanship of the "onion volcano" and the spinning egg (brought to within inches of his face by the cook). And I was transfixed by … Continue reading On joy in your child’s joy
Taylor Coe 