Bag & Paddle Lessons from the court, for life A quick note before we dive in This is kind of a relaunch of my newsletter. From here on out, you’ll see me in your inbox three times a week. Monday Match Lesson – a story from the court that carries a lesson for life, business, or recovery. Wednesday Experiment Log – things I’m testing in real time, from health tools to travel hacks to pickle strategies. Friday Five – one quote, one tool, one behind-the-scenes note, one mindset shift, and one...
2 days ago • 1 min read
I'm sorry it's been a minute. There's been a lot happening, and I'm ready to unpack it with you. I’m sitting in Bangkok airport after my last flight from Tokyo Haneda with two bags. A backpack and a roller bag. The roller is mostly ostomy supplies. Pouches, seals, powders, adhesive remover, gauze. That’s what travel looks like for me now. It feels normal at this point, but sometimes I stop and think about how wild it is. This is my life after three years of fistulas, abscesses, surgeries, and...
4 days ago • 3 min read
Hi there, I'm alive, sorry for the absence. I resumed our daily read this morning about a monk who watched a dragonfly dance restlessly around a pond. The dragonfly never landed. Always in motion, always chasing. Until one day, it finally stopped on a lily pad and found stillness. That’s been me these last couple months. Six or seven weeks of constant travel, events, motion. And then finally landing back in Ponte Vedra. I’d like to say the pause has felt peaceful. It hasn’t. It’s been filled...
15 days ago • 2 min read
Hi there, Last night was rough. I woke up at 1 a.m. with stomach issues, fistula pain in my bottom, and no real way to get comfortable again. Frustrating. I’ve got Mayo Clinic on Monday, so at least the timing lines up. But still, nights like that wear on me. Because I'm also so tired. Being at the United Ostomy Conference has been an interesting contrast. It’s the first time I’ve been around other people with ostomies. In a way, it’s comforting to realize you’re not alone. Everyone here has...
25 days ago • 1 min read
Hi there, Day two at the ostomy conference. Large groups aren’t my thing. I like smaller group settings where it's easier to connect. I came here solo so I’d have no choice but to push myself into conversations. And I haven't been great about it. But, I’ve done it before so I know I can do it! The first time I left the country was at 20, flying to Beijing without knowing a single person. I didn’t speak the language. I wasn’t afraid to talk to anyone, I felt fearless. Somewhere along the way...
26 days ago • 1 min read
Hi there, Yesterday was the last leg into Orlando after a long run of travel. Dumped my bags at the hotel, finally did laundry for the first time since England. Which means some of it dated back to India. Disgusting, I know. Went to the gym. Ordered food. Took a big dose of NyQuil and finally slept hard for the first time in a while. Today kicks off the United Ostomy Association of America national conference. First time since surgery that I’m in a room full of people with bags. Until now,...
27 days ago • 1 min read
Hi there, BOGO special today since I missed yesterday. The past two days’ chapters lined up well. The wave and the shore story was about giving without keeping score. The wave offers shells because that is its nature. In giving, it receives. It is renewed by the act itself. The butterfly and the wind chapter was about resistance being the thing that makes you stronger. The wind was not the butterfly’s enemy. It was its training partner. Remove the wind and you remove the growth. Together,...
30 days ago • 2 min read
Yesterday started fine. We got through the quarterfinals, closer than it should have been, but we closed it out 11-1 in the third. Then in the semis, Aiden Schenk and Clayton Powell just steamrolled us. Credit to them, they played well. But the score isn’t the story. After the first game of the quarters, I could feel my bag filling. And it didn’t stop. All day, constant output. The outer seal had completely lifted, which meant the inner ring was living on borrowed time. Once moisture gets in...
about 1 month ago • 4 min read
Hi friend, This morning's story in The Zen Monkey and the Lotus Flower (last couple chapters, almost on to a new book) was about a young monk named Dawa who was sent into the forest to find the most beautiful plant. He passed countless tall trees and bright orchids, searching for the one that felt right. Eventually, he came across a primrose, small, shaded, and unassuming. No flashy colors. No grand size. But it had its own quiet beauty. His master told him it was a symbol of modesty. It did...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read