Find a doctor and ask him to tell you about medical school. Find a marine and ask her to tell you about boot camp. Find somebody who has done anything of some significance and see how complete a picture you get.

The same holds true for study abroad. Students will sing its praises in an almost cult-like fashion. They omit a few things from their stories.

As someone who has just recently finished …

It’s hard not to pity those who squander each day waiting for their big break to fall from heaven. They often hate their jobs, have difficulty living within their means, and possess a great deal of regret. They can’t understand why they aren’t one of the lucky ones. In rare circumstances, people have literally done their best. But for the most part, it is because some people always close every window of opportunity.

It …

At the moment Schoolishard.com is averaging about 5500 unique visitors per month.

At the risk of spam, I have henceforth made it possible to comment without registering. I appreciate those who sign up for an account, but if you are in a hurry or simply guard your information like your firstborn, you now have this option. I hope discussion is encouraged by this.

I’m not entirely sure how many RSS subscribers I have, but if you are into that, great.

So far nobody has sent me a single article idea. Mine can’t be THAT great, can they?

I also invite you to …

One of my major flaws is accepting differences in others.

The closer somebody gets to me, the more scrutinizing I become. The primary reason that I have difficulty with this is that I have set certain personal truths in stone that may or may not be held by others.

Let me give you a few examples; don’t take any of this politically.

• Be productive and desire only the best.
• Hard work merits leisure and not the other way around.
• Religion is horrible but in most cases spirituality is not.
• Intolerance should be used with discretion, such as for institutions like the Westboro Baptist Church.
• Racism is

…

Sometimes I feel guilty. I would describe the feeling as similar to the way many people felt in the days following the attacks of September 11, 2001. Things just didn’t seem as funny anymore, but we all came together. If asked, “Want to super-size?” we replied, “Only if you don’t mind.” For those few months, lending a helping hand wasn’t just courteous; it was compulsory. Selflessness was the status quo.

Gradually, these feelings abated. People promised themselves …