12 Questions

I’m a big fan of the magazine Men’s Journal. Yeah, I know…still reading magazines makes me a dinosaur.  I do actually read printed material. And I love the feel of a newspaper. Part of the joy of Sunday morning is getting a real newspaper in the mailbox.

One of the recurring features in Men’s Journal is this question and answer thing on the last page. It really doesn’t matter much who it is. Sometimes it really isn’t someone that you want to emulate.  I guess I just like that format.

So since those magazine folks aren’t knocking down my door to interview me, I figured I would do it myself. I’ve done something like this before. My wife will probably tell me “enough with the self-interviewing.” But I do it anyway. Oh well.  So here goes.

What is the best advice you ever received? A job worth doing is worth doing it right. I didn’t realize it at the time but I got a lot of those kind of tidbits from my dad. I built a tree house one time with him sitting at the base of the tree insisting that I do it right.

Who were your heroes growing up?  That’s easy—high school football players. Butch Crabtree. Raymond Stamey. David Messamore. I wanted to be like them. No doubt that was part of growing up in a small town, but I think it holds true today. These days I watch kids playing on the field after a high school game, arguing about who gets to be Tee Hodge or Spencer Shore. Don’t take that role lightly guys.

What advice would you give your younger self?  Believe in yourself. Believe you are worthy. I was so insecure and a huge underachiever. I was in high school football before anybody other than my parents thought I would be a productive adult.

How should a man handle getting older?  With a sense of humor and a bottle of ibuprofen. And remember that you’re not in your 20’s anymore so don’t act like it and don’t dress like it. But you can dance like it.

What role should vanity play in a man’s life? Nothing beyond basic hygiene.

How should a man handle criticism? The same way he handles praise. Only about half of it is true.

Who has been the biggest influence on your life? I’ve mentioned my high school football coach here many times. He turned me around. I tell him that every chance I get.

What human trait do you most deplore? Not reaching for your potential.

And what human trait do you most admire? Kindness. It’s terribly underrated.

How should a man handle regret? Consider this—the mistakes that you’ve made in your life have helped you become the person that you are today. If you’re OK with that then you will understand that you really shouldn’t have any regrets.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party? My dad. I often want just one more conversation with him, to tell him how things turned out. But I guess he knows. Frederich Nietzsche. He had a lot of things figured out. Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He did too. Claude Monet. I’m fascinated by his work. Amelia Earhart. I want to know where she went to. James Taylor for the music.

What adventure changed your life? Probably a Boundary Waters Canoe Trip with the Boy Scouts. It was the second step in me figuring out that I wasn’t that kid that the guidance counselor told “people like you don’t go to college.”