Category Archives: Uncategorized

Rule #216: Don’t Use BCC This may seem like an unusual rule to share with my children, but it’s a combination of a pet peeve, an ethical guideline, and a social standard. The way I see it, the use—or abuse—of … Continue reading →

Rule #24: Eat Dinner as a Family My father traveled a great deal when I was young, but when he was in town, we always ate dinner as a family. I don’t recall many of the meals themselves, but I … Continue reading →

Rule #18: Learn to Make Pancakes I know what you’re thinking: Dad’s lost it, putting learning to make pancakes in the top 20 rules. But hear me out. There are only a few foods that are truly social, and pancakes … Continue reading →

Rule #17: Learn to Live Cheap As your father, I think one of the greatest disservices I’ve done for your futures is not teaching you how to live cheap. When I think of “cheap,” I think first of my parents, … Continue reading →

Rule #121: Buy and Read Books Today Borders Books filed for bankruptcy. They may restructure their debt and come out of it, or they may just die like so many other bookstores have. Writing a blog entry to encourage my … Continue reading →

Rule #112: Not Everyone Gets a Trophy In a recent blog and comment exchange with Matthew, I was reminded of an issue you will face as adults: whether to take a stand against the “everyone gets a trophy” culture. The … Continue reading →

RULE #22: Never Bring a Knife to a Gun Fight As everyone in our family knows, this is one of my favorite expressions. It’s actually a variation of a quote from the 1987 movie The Untouchables: “You wanna know how … Continue reading →

RULE # 37: THE TWO CAT RULE If you write a blog eventually, there will come a moment when you offend people. I’m starting with this rule to take the suspense out of waiting for that moment. Contained within this … Continue reading →

The 2 Cat Rule Life Lessons, One Rule at a Time Dedication To my children— This book is for you. Every word, every lesson, every story. It is my way of reminding you, in case you ever forget, that my … Continue reading →