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The Observe and Rapport Newsletter
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A weekly guide of my favorite books, articles, products, and lifestyle habits.
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March 10th, 2023 | by Kyle Brennan
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1) Men and Women Argue For Different Reasons
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Men argue for the right to be free
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Women argue for the right to be upset
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Men do not understand how women think, and vice versa; each tries to make the other act more like a member of their own sex.
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2) Accept the Unfairness of Life
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When you understand that life is unfair, you will enjoy life a lot more.
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Not everyone gets a happy ending. Suffering does not automatically mean it will get better in the future. Sometimes it will just get worse until you die. You can very well be that unlucky person.
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h/t Chris Distefano on JRE
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3/ The Cost of Affording a Home
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2002 Median Salary: $42,409
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2022 Median Salary: $54,132
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2002 Median Home Price: $182,700
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2022 Median Home Price: $454900
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You now need to make triple the median salary ($144,000/year) to afford the median home.
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What I'm Reading
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It’s never a bad idea to brush up on ways to save money and build wealth. This particular book kept popping up on my Twitter feed as a great resource for thoughtful and actionable steps to act smarter and live richer.
Nick Maggiulli is a finance blogger for the site OfDollarsAndData.com where he crunches the numbers to answer the biggest questions in personal finance and investing.
In this book, you’ll learn why you need to save less than you think; why saving up cash to buy market dips isn’t a good idea; how to survive (and thrive) during a market crash; and much more.
Rating: 3.9 / 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
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The title of this book does not disappoint. There likely aren't many contenders to the claim of the greatest beer run ever that can compete with the story of Chick Donahue. In 1968, in the midst of the Vietnam War, many Americans lost respect for US soldiers and veterans returning home. Chickie and his friends from Inwood, New York wanted to change that. They wanted to go over there to their friends from the neighborhood, show them how much they appreciated them, and give them a hard-earned ice-cold beer to cheer over.
So Chickie said, "Why not?" As a former marine, he had his seamen card and could travel the world on virtually any US government boat. So like any rational person in his situation, he grabbed a milk carton full of New York's finest ale and hitched a 56-day boat ride to the Vietnam War.
The story has since been made into a film starring @zacefron , which makes sense as it's almost too crazy of a story to believe by just reading it. As a professional bullshit artist, Chickie was able to charm his way through dense jungles, busy airfields, artillery attack, and a bureaucratic embassy - all while finding four of his close friends from home to hand them a beer.
It's a story of friendship and comradery, but it's also a great glimpse into the world of American and global perception in the late 1960s with the recent death of JFK and the summer of love in full swing. I learned a ton about the nuances of the Vietnam War and just how little has really changed over the last few decades.
Rating: 3.5 / 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Popular IG Post
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Message That Inspired Me
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Retired US Navy Lieutenant Jason Redman was one week away from returning home from another tour in Iraq when his SEAL team received their next mission to capture an Al-Qaeda leader. Unfortunately, their night mission led them into an abandoned field and an ambush. Separated and pinned down by severe machine-gun fire, Jason was eventually struck in the head; his team thought he was dead. Thankfully, the bullet had missed his brain, and they urgently planned a medical evacuation. After what felt like a decade, Jason and two others were loaded on a helicopter and safely flown to the hospital. Jason credits his team for saving his life.
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After appearing to drift off to sleep mid-conversation, he heard a visitor focus on a victim mindset and how overwhelming the pain and suffering was. It spurred Jason into action with an epiphany.
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“Nobody’s going to come into this room and feel sorry for me. I [realized] this is bigger than me. Around me in the hospital were other wounded guys. … I thought to myself, ‘This sucks, but you’ve been through worse. I recognized this is what leading from any position, even a hospital bed, means — [it’s] choosing positivity in the face of negativity.” – Jason Redman
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Jason refused to allow anyone into his room unless they had a positive mindset and wrote the following sign to hang on his hospital room door:
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‘ATTENTION, To all who enter here. If you are coming into this room with sorrow or to feel sorry for my wounds, go elsewhere. The wounds that I received I got in a job I love, doing it for people I love, supporting the freedom of a country that I deeply love. I am incredibly tough and will make a full recovery. What is full? That is the absolute utmost physically my body has the ability to recover. Then I will push that about 20% further through sheer mental tenacity. This room you are about to enter is a room of fun, optimism, and intense rapid regrow. If you are not prepared for that: go elsewhere! FROM: The Management.’
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Jason had no idea what impact that sign would have, not just for him but other wounded warriors. The sign became Jason’s mission statement guiding him like a light in the dark times.
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The sign became a symbol of courage in the face of extreme adversity, reaching as far as the White House, where President George W. Bush invited him and signed his declaration. True to his character, instead of keeping it, the framed sign now hangs in Walter Reed’s wounded ward. Even first lady Michelle Obama was moved by his sign that she featured it twice in her book Becoming.
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Jason’s recovery is nothing short of a miracle, but with the advantage of hindsight, he shared how the severe nature of SEAL training helped his recovery and made him stronger than ever.
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New Podcast Episode Out Now!
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Keith and Kyle sit down to discuss the novel A Little Life, LIV Golf, Kyle's experience joining the local Fire Department, and how Genghis Khan shaped the world we live in today.
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Books mentioned in this episode:
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Quote of the Week
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No one will ever know the violence it took to be this gentle.
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What's on My Reading List?
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Kyle's Published Work
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33 Life Lessons on My 33rd Birthday
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Thirty-three was a big one. Mostly because I became a dad. Our daughter was born on New Year’s Eve — a fitting arrival for a kid destined to reset everything. It’s been a beautiful, if slightly sleep-deprived blur ever since. I’ve only been “Dad” for less than ten months, but if I’m being honest, I’ve been preparing for the role for over …
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Depth Over Downloads: Why Spending Time with Books Still Matters
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Everyone wants faster information. But no one asks if faster information leads to better understanding — or a better life. In the age of AI and tweet-sized wisdom, we’ve confused information with transformation. But there’s a massive difference between knowing what a book says and being changed by it. The Delusion of Instant Learning In a recent interview, political journalist Ezra Klein admitted he once believed …
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The Jack Reacher Approach to Never Being Caught Off Guard
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There’s no difference between a pessimist who says, ‘Oh, it’s hopeless, so don’t bother doing anything,’ and an optimist who says, ‘Don’t bother doing anything, it’s going to turn out fine anyway.’ Either way, nothing happens.” —Yvon Chouinard, Founder of Patagonia I don’t read much fiction, but I’ve always been hooked on Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. He’s not your typical …
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