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Someone I have worked with for a decade is retiring. He and I have been close- we’ve traveled together, shared meals, talked about our families and our hobbies, spent time. We text. We talk. We’ve know each other for ten years.

I went looking for a gift for his retirement, and found a watch that relates to the specific kind of car that he works on as a hobby. I bought it, and then invited people to chip in if they wanted.

My coworkers are acting like this is miraculous?

“How did you think of that?” I knew he had a hobby and I googled it?

“How did you know he works on those?” I listen to people when they talk.

“How do you always buy such good gifts?” I listen when people talk to me. Most people are dying to talk about their interests. You just have to give them an in. If your memory sucks, start a note in your phone and write down what people express interest in. Look at it every so often before you hang out to refresh your memory.

“I never would have thought of that.” I didn’t, really. I just spent 20 minutes looking at eBay and Etsy and a few subreddits. It’s easy if you try.

works on those?” I listen to

people when they talk.

A baby is never doing something to upset you. They don't act up to piss you off. They act in the only way they know how, and yes, sometimes the behaviour they're drawn to isn't great! That's why you guide them and comfort.

Yes, because the Washington state government activated like a sleeper-cell and ruthlessly, systematically hunted them down and annihilated them.

“Y2K came to nothing amirite?”

Yes because an army of software engineers working around the clock, losing sleep, and busting ass till the last minute prevented it from happening.

“Remember the hole in the ozone layer?”

You mean the one that was fixed through rigorous world wide government action?

One of the root problems of our society is a refusal or inability by media to articulate that all those “it’s gonna be an apocalypse” disasters were not disasters because we collectively did something about them.

The good news is this is actually quite correctable. I maintain my firm belief that we as humans are capable of solving almost all of our problems, when we decide to do so.

And I still think that’s going to happen. I don’t know when or how, but I do know that abandoning hope won’t help bring it about.