Welcome! The Time Capsule is a weekly public journal by a 40-something American with the hope that I will look back at these entries in twenty years to remember what it was like to live through the 2020s. Most newsletters fall into four broad categories:

  1. Predictions about our future:

    1. The world in 2050

    2. How Apple's Vision Pro & AI Will Forever Change Friendship

    3. Will aging, shrinking, rich countries welcome young, skilled African workers?

  2. Revisiting the past:

    1. What if Hernán Cortés never conquered Mexico City?

    2. We’ve entered a new era of international relations

    3. We're a generation of men raised by women

  3. Living through the 2020s:

    1. When diversity and fairness are at odds

    2. In the age of infinite browsing: A counter-culture of commitment, curiosity, and contentment

    3. Is it possible to travel without Google Maps?

  4. Self-awareness. Things I wish someone had told me when I was younger:

    1. The Millennial Midlife Transition, Parts I, II, III, and IV

    2. Ecstasy on the John Muir Trail

    3. The personal finance regrets of a 40-something

I write for fun, community, and conversation. Often, I write to figure out what I think. Please subscribe if the topics interest you, and please be in touch — either through comments or by responding directly to the emails.

A little about me: I was born in Seattle, grew up in Ohio and Southern California, lived out of a suitcase in my 20s, and spent my 30s between Mexico City, Seattle, and the Bay Area. My wife, Iris, and I now live in Oaxaca, Mexico with our dog, Coco.

Iris, Coco, and I during our final days in Berkeley before moving to Oaxaca. I’m not really a Patagonia Bro, but damn, so comfy.

In college, I studied philosophy, then cognitive science, and ended up with a degree in global studies. 🤷‍♂️ Professionally, I spent six years in coffee shops, five years in digital media at Global Voices, and 14 years in philanthropy. Now, I’m on a one-year sabbatical as I figure out the next chapter. I love cycling, literature, music, and the mountains.

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Living through the 2020s, for readers in the 2040s

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“The ominous silence that still answers us whenever we dare to ask, not ‘What are we fighting against’ but ‘What are we fighting for?’”