Matt Refghi

I’ve been really enjoying my new habit of biking to work – there’s something refreshing about being out first thing in the morning when the air is cool and the traffic is minimal. Plus, it crosses exercise off the list of daily tasks without me having to go out of my way. As a result of doing this commute so frequently, I became more familiar with the various intersections that I encounter. And there’s one particular road with vehicle traffic in both directions, while also featuring a bike and pedestrian crossing. For anyone that wants to cross, it’s very simple – each side has a dedicated button that can be pressed. Those are some powerful buttons, I tell you. If … Read more

I always enjoyed watching Mythbusters when growing up – it was satisfying to see the scientific method applied to test myths, especially with the natural straight man / funny man dynamic that Jaime Hyneman and Adam Savage had going. I always found myself gravitating more towards Adam given his enthusiasm and positivity. So when the show stopped airing, I would inevitably find myself watching his content on YouTube. It was really interesting to hear stories behind the show, but I also quickly discovered exactly how passionate he was about his craft, as a maker. He would get so much enjoyment out of creating props from movies, TV shows, and seemed to be a living encyclopedia for his craft. To the … Read more

As I mentioned in previous posts, delivering for Uber Eats on a bicycle isn’t something I’d recommend if the primary purpose is earning additional income. The revenue generated per hour isn’t high enough to make this worthwhile. However, if you’re doing it for exercise first and foremost, then, and only then, is the income acceptable – because anything over 0$ is obviously a welcome addition. That is – until we factor in promotions. The Uber Driver app has a section where time-limited promotions appear. As you can imagine, they utilize this to provide incentives for their drivers to return. The first time I did Shop & Deliver trips – where you grocery shop for someone and then deliver it to … Read more

Oddly enough, one of my favorite scenes in any TV show, ever, involves the main character failing to reach his goal. You’d think that might be a bit of a downer, but it’s really a matter of perspective. The scene’s potency – and my appreciation for it – is hugely impacted by my unique progression through life, which I just described in a trilogy of posts titled: Wear It Like Armor, Polarity, and Social Assassin.

What I’m referring to, in particular, is a specific story arc in season 3 of Louie, a TV series by comedian Louis C.K. – so if you’re at all interested in watching the series yourself and avoiding spoilers, I would stop reading here and get on that.

They want me to lure him to a microbrewery? I’ve been sober for over 100 days – that’ll be a tough one to sell. My colleagues were trying to organize a surprise birthday party for their boss – my former boss – and since I was friends with him, they figured I’d be a great one to get him to the venue.

I spent so much of my early life isolated, bullied and suppressed that I had to develop self-dependency, and a strong sense of humor just to get by. By the time I moved out and discovered true peace at age 19, the experience had helped me forge a type of psychological armor – one that had been thoroughly field tested. Ultimately, whatever happened, I knew I would make it out just fine.

“Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you.” – Tyrion Lannister, Game of Thrones.

There I was, watching an innocent Oasis juice carton fly across the kitchen in slow motion, only to explode on impact as it hit the wall on the opposite side of the room. Growing up, you could say that my parents had a bit of a dysfunctional relationship – the atmosphere at home was a pretty stressful one. Arguments between my parents were common – throwing things, not so much, but it would be inaccurate to leave those details out.

When I was off seeing a movie recently in a theater, I happened to catch a trailer for Backrooms, a horror movie based on a fictional location popularized on 4chan. Put simply:

“The Backrooms are usually portrayed as an impossibly large extradimensional complex of empty rooms, accessed by exiting reality.”

Watching the trailer itself will give you a better sense of what I’m referring to:

In 2022, I made the decision to apply for an Information Technology (IT) Team Lead position at the educational institution where I worked – if I got it, it meant I would work as part of the IT department, rather than Continuing Education. This was a difficult choice to make as someone with a strong sense of loyalty – I’d been with Continuing Education for more than a decade – I was used to the team and was quite comfortable. By even considering joining IT, I was revealing a significant change in mindset. You see, while in Continuing Education, though I had worked on IT-related matters, the role also had me spending a good chunk of my time working on social media, marketing, and advertising.