I had a dog, his name was Marleau. He was a Boston Terrier, and he just wasn’t that smart. His nickname was “Derpity Doo” because he was was that derpy. We all loved him a lot. One day, we visited my parents, and we brought the Derp along. We got in the house, let him… More

I started this piece in late November. It’s a piece I usually write Christmas as a kick-off to the new year. The precise process by which this yearly piece arrives is a mystery. Probably the mental reset that comes with the New Year. So, what’s with the first draft showing up before Thanksgiving? As I… More

I’m in the midst of a media cleanse. This started before the election when I canceled my Washington Post subscription. Jeff Bezos can do whatever he wants with the Washington Post, and he’s 100% correct that I don’t trust large media organizations. After the election, I removed all news sources from Feedly except the Atlantic… More

Hi. I’m stressed, too. Here are random thoughts on this from the beginning of November 5th, 2024 — election day: Today, a convicted felon and failed businessman (six bankruptcies!) slash narcissist slash twice impeached politician who does not believe in democracy, who called for and achieved an armed insurrection, and who lies compulsively is the… More

Good, me too. Over on the Rands Leaders Slack, we are almost thirty-four thousand. Fun fact: in the 2020 Presidential Election, three battleground states, Arizona, Georgia, and Wisconsin, the margin of victory was less than 30,000. In Georgia, President Biden won by just over 12,000 votes. It makes you think. It’s an, uh, interesting time… More

Back in December of 2015, I was in a meeting with HR, and we were arguing about retention, stock grants, or something similar. I was making no progress in explaining my nuanced point. Long pauses and blank states usually mean my spoken words have nothing to do with the valuable idea in my head. Ok,… More

This was the second time we’d heard Audrey play her cello in Soho Square. She found a bench and just started playing. We learned about the first session days after it happened and begged her to give us a warning next time, but her small smile silently said no. We mobilized. Her roommate, Bruce, was… More

AirPods Pro. First, I told myself I’d only include one Apple product on this list, and this is it. Here’s how to sell this product to your friends. First, show them how to properly insert them in their ears (many folks do this incorrectly) and then have them turn on noise cancellation. Boom. Rapha Merino… More

The almost immediate challenge with the introduction of the Internet presented was, “How do I find X?” Now, the actual first challenge was, “I wonder if X exists in this new world,” but that’s still “How do I find X?” This quest made search services the killer app of the Internet. AltaVista was a thing… More

The Rands “R” started many years ago as this: I’ve been toying with branding, design, color, and other marketing elements for the site for years. I remember spending a couple of weekends trying to get a good picture of the weave of my favorite beanie as background for the site. That’d didn’t go well. I… More