Unconventional Decisions Archives » The Middle Finger Project

On Not Thinking With Your Cultural Crotch

I fantasize about pugs. Not the way other people fantasize about pugs, mind you—nuzzling them and squeezing them and squealing “oooohhhhhhh!!!!” before scooping them up in their arms for a welcoming, wet kiss (what is wrong with people). Rather, I want to put their tiny little gargoyle heads straight into a vise. (I thought about writing “meat grinder,” but that seems a bit much.) So far in life, I have had not one, but two pug sworn enemies, and I

May 27, 2021

You Can’t Be One Thing Forever, My Darling

Things I’ve learned to be wary of in life: Oklahoma. Normal people. People who say, “you like fish, you just haven’t tried it cooked THIS WAY!” (Oh yeah, Satan? Did you want to cut up my chicken for me, too?) Self-important narcissists who just like to hear themselves talk, and talk, and talk. (One time, in Dublin, I literally got up and took my drink into the bathroom—FOR AN HOUR.) People you can’t get off the phone (see number 4).

May 4, 2021

Decide What Really Fucking Matters to You

Good ideas require a courageous host. Oh god, did I just introduce a virus analogy? Please forgive me, but it’s true. There are so many ideas floating around out there, half of which are definitely in your shower at 7 o’clock in the morning (they’re always in the fucking shower, aren’t they?), and the other half happen just as you’re falling asleep at night—but you don’t want to wake yourself up, because you know if you grab your phone you’re

Oct 13, 2020

Your Job is Not to Change the World Overnight, But to Be a Tiny, Torturous Drip on the Forehead

There’s a new Karen in town, and I’ve dubbed her The Karen K-3000. (Even though the “K” is redundant, it’s a head nod to the villain in the Terminator movies—clearly how all of my columns shall start now.) If you still have no idea who Karen is, let me be the first to tell you: it’s an official Wikipedia entry. And since we all know “Wikipedia-entry official” is the nerd’s version of a blue check on Instagram, then rest assured:

Jul 2, 2020

I Unpublished My Business Facebook Page—And I’ve Never Felt So Liberated

I have a strict rule about inviting people over to my house: only invite people with kids. This might seem contrary to my identity as a childless 35-year-old who offers toddlers hot sauce and who very much enjoys addressing visitors as “burning piles of rotting mucus” when they beat me in Scrabble, but rest assured I’ve thought this through: Parents with children are the only ones who eventually have to leave. Ah, the strategy! The scholarship of this plan! You

Jun 18, 2020

“I Wish I Could Travel the World Like You”

“I wish I could travel the world like you.” It was a comment left on a recent Facebook post, and admittedly, a comment I get often—but not one I like to receive. It depresses me, more than anything, how powerless most Westerners feel over their own lives. Anything is possible, in modern Western society, and yet, there’s a widespread perception that nothing is. I know you’ve got kids. And I know you’ve got a job. And I know you’ve got

Jul 31, 2017

Category: Unconventional Decisions

On Not Thinking With Your Cultural Crotch

You Can’t Be One Thing Forever, My Darling

Decide What Really Fucking Matters to You

Your Job is Not to Change the World Overnight, But to Be a Tiny, Torturous Drip on the Forehead

I Unpublished My Business Facebook Page—And I’ve Never Felt So Liberated

“I Wish I Could Travel the World Like You”