Dear Diary...

Every once in awhile I like to share a little bit about myself, so here's a few things that have been happening in my life lately...

1. My New Scoby

I was recently inspired to start making my own kombucha. I don’t even know if I like kombucha or not, but the thought of making something weird at home is just too compelling to pass up. The first thing I needed was to get my hands on a scoby (a scoby is basically a blob of bacteria and yeast that aids in fermentation; yes, I know it sounds gross). Ideally I would have liked to have done a Mission Impossible style scoby heist, but instead I found a free scoby on Craigslist (yes, I know that sounds sketchy).

Serious question: would anyone be interested in a children’s book called Toby the Scoby? It’s about a scoby that gets sold on Craigslist, and then sits a jar of tea for two weeks as he slowly ferments and then gives birth to a twin brother, and then repeats the process over and over agin (that’s pretty much how kombucha is made).

2. Five Toed Shoes

I friend of mine recently gave me a pair of slightly used five toed running shoes. For those of you who don't remember, these were all the rage for about two weeks a few years ago. Yes, I know they look ridiculous, but I always wanted to try them, and I don’t really care how I look when I’m running anyway. I took them out for a trail run, and it's like they were made for me. I love being able to feel the shape of the ground beneath me when I run. If you ever see a guy running in the woods with five toed shoes, it's probably me; feel free to say hi.

3. My First Book

I just sent my very first book to a small stack of publishers, and I've already received my first two rejection letters. It's a pretty cool book, so I'm sure it's only a matter of time before it gets published. In the meantime I've already started on my second book.

4. Ireland

My wife and I recently spent a couple of weeks in Dublin without our daughter. The most common question I get is 'how was Ireland?'. The truth is I don't really know - we spent most of our time sitting in pubs drinking Guinness. It was pretty good. 

5. Masha and the Bear

My daughter used to be obsessed with a tv show called Masha and the Bear - we've watched every episode together about three hundred times. I was excited to see that there is finally a new season of Masha and the Bear on Netflix. The problem is that I can't wait to see the new episodes, but Maddy doesn't seem to care about the show anymore. I don't really want to watch them on my own, so I might have to force her watch them with me.

Storybook Sketches

Individually, none of these sketches make much sense. Collectively, they make even less sense. Trust me, there is a rhyme and a reason to it all, even the elephant flying around in a cardboard box while hugging a catfish.

That's Not a Knife

This is a idea I have for a new childrens book, called 'That's Not a Knife'. It's about a leather-clad Australian straight from the outback, who travels the world in search of a knife. Sure, teaching kids about knives might not be the smartest thing, but I can almost guarantee you that this would be the cutest Crocodile Dundee fan fiction ever created.

I'm not going to delude myself into thinking that this will actually get made, but if this happens to be something that you feel strongly about and want to see it happen, please drop me a line.