Blog

Musings on personal finance and more. Not written with AI since 2012.

How your mode of travel affects your experience

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  I recently attended Dan Savage’s Valentine’s Day live event. I’ve actually spent the past three V-Days with Dan, but this is the first year he came to my town instead of me going to his. The event was in … Read More … Read More

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How placemaking can influence personal transformation

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  I’ve written a lot about issues of urban planning and placemaking. Mostly this is because this is an area of obsession fascination with me and I find myself having lots to say on the topic. But still, as this … Read More … Read More

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Why defunding a mismanaged system is wrong

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  So whether or not you believe that transit is too expensive or should be free, the story of the group in Stockholm using collective fare dodging as a way to save money and inspire change is an interesting one. … Read More … Read More

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Should transit be free?

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  It’s a drag to have to pay for public transit, right? I know the feeling. As a teenager, I could certainly have put that money to different uses. When I first went to Europe and discovered transit systems that … Read More … Read More

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Lessons learned from World Domination Summit 2014 (months later)

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  It’s been a little over six months since the 2014 World Domination Summit and I thought it would be good to talk about the event from the vantage point of a little bit of distance. Why bother? Why talk … Read More … Read More

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Challenge: Travel to one new country every year

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Got any travel plans for this year? Still think that travel isn’t in the cards for you, despite your wish to the contrary? I have a challenge for you. And I think you can achieve it, both this year and … Read More … Read More

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A letter to myself in 7th grade gym class

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  Dear Mike, Gym class sucks, doesn’t it? I know. But I’ve got some knowledge that you don’t, and you might be interested to hear it. … Read More

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Track or you will fail

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  I’ve been reading Tim Ferriss’s “The 4-Hour Body” recently. Perhaps I’ve been caught up in the New Year’s wave of health resolutions (though it may just be a coincidence, as I’m a year-round gym-goer) but I’ve recently thought that … Read More … Read More

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Electric cars and other answers to the wrong questions

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  So it turns out there are lots of reasons why people would take public transit if they didn’t have to. You may have noticed that I omitted a discussion of the environmental benefits for public transit. There were a few reasons … Read More … Read More

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Why would anyone want to take public transportation if they didn’t have to?

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  A reader commented over on the discussion of the changes on Division St. in my neighborhood of Portland, OR: “Why would anyone want to take public transportation if they didn’t have to?” Now, it’s not possible to tell if this was just … Read More … Read More

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