Who am I?
Just a dude with a kid, a foul mouth, and lots of conflicting feelings trying to figure some shit out. I’m the ambivalent dad.
Who is Squirt?
Squirt’s my adolescent son. His mouth is less foul, he’s quite a bit more certain, but he’s interested in figuring shit out too.
Why AMBIVALENT?
The modern definition of “ambivalent” has drifted from its older meaning. Many folks think it implies not caring. But I prefer the original meaning:
having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone
That’s me. Mixed feelings. Contradictory ideas. A lack of certainty. Quite a bit of caring about understanding the world but trying to be willing to realize that things are more complicated than most of us want to admit.
Why DAD?
Because that’s me too! I’ve written a bit about the complexity of being a dad. But, really, everything I write is with an eye towards explaining complexity and growing understanding with my son. I’m trying to teach my kid to view the world through fuzzy shades of color rather than feed him answers or ideology and that requires thinking through my own thoughts in writing.
What is this?
Just a place for me to collect my thoughts, discuss them with Squirt and think about how I’ll teach him about this big beautiful terrifying world. And maybe share some thoughts with others. I’ve just always enjoyed writing, and this seems like a good home for now.
When will I post?
Whenever I write, I guess. I rarely go very long without writing, and there are almost always weekly posts of some stripe.
Should you subscribe?
Please do! If you’re okay with probably not getting too many concrete answers, and a dash of profanity along with some interesting insights from Squirt then sign up for the ride.
Should you pay?
Almost everything I post is free. I activated payments so that I can lock chat and commenting behind a pay wall to avoid the trolls. I may occasionally lock older posts as well or lock more political posts. But overall I’m cognizant of the truism that the quickest way to kill a hobby is make it a career and I’m mostly using payments as a control mechanism rather than an income generator. But if you want to send me money I’ve promised Squirt a portion of all earnings and my kid will tell you he is always broke and scheming to make some cheddar.
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