Bill Brenner

From the Mouths of Pre-Teens

by Bill Brenner March 13, 2014 Uncategorized

Both kids have reached double digits since I last did a post like this, which means they’ve gone from cute to witty. Like their old man, that wit is delivered with a sharp tongue. Here’s what they’ve been saying and doing in recent weeks. Like a lot of kids their age, Sean and Duncan are very much into Minecraft and Wii LEGO games. They take the activities very seriously and will frequently yell at the…  [Read More]

From Stress and Fear to Passion

by Bill Brenner March 12, 2014 Gratitude

A friend shared one of those inspirational memes with me yesterday, and it got me thinking about my approach to work — and how far I’ve come in general. Mood music: The meme says, simply: Man, is that ever true. I know, because I’ve been on both sides of the equation. Sometimes the job was intolerable. Mostly, my own demons were intolerable. During my days as a newspaper reporter and editor, all I knew was…  [Read More]

When Your Child Grows Up to Be a Monster

by Bill Brenner March 11, 2014 Grief management

Like most people, the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre cut me to the core. I blogged about it, trying to find a lesson for humanity. Having lost a sibling myself, I wrote an open letter to kids who lost a brother or sister, hoping to offer them something useful, if not comforting. Mood music: But I’ll be honest: I didn’t spend much time dwelling on the question of whether my children could ever grow…  [Read More]

Lego Movie Revelation: I Was Evil Lord Business

by Bill Brenner March 10, 2014 OCD

We went as a family to see The Lego Movie a couple weeks ago and loved it. I was particularly fond of the goth-metal Batman. But I also saw a lot of my old self in Lord Business, the film’s evil villain. Mood music: Editor’s Note: If you don’t like spoilers, stop reading now. Lord Business wants to glue everything solid so no one can mess with his carefully constructed universe. To do this, he…  [Read More]

Big Dumb Sex, Dumber Men

by Bill Brenner March 6, 2014 Uncategorized

I’ve seen a lot of dumb things on the Return of Kings website. There was the “Five Reasons to Date a Girl with an Eating Disorder” and another rant about how women who don’t reproduce hurt society. Now there’s an article about how society owes men sex. Mood music: Now, it wouldn’t be fair to criticize without looking at the background of the site. Return of Kings is described as “a blog for heterosexual, masculine…  [Read More]

25 Things That Won’t Really Piss Off Friends With OCD

by Bill Brenner March 5, 2014 Lighthearted

The Dorm Stormer website has a photo spread of about 25 things it claims will piss off friends with OCD. As someone who does have OCD, let me offer my two cents. Mood music: Straightaway, the photo spread strikes me as dumb: I don’t feel irritated or insulted. It lacks cleverness and real humor. OCD humor done well is something I enjoy. If you can make me laugh about the condition I live with every…  [Read More]

So You Wanna Blog About Your Demons

by Bill Brenner March 3, 2014 Adventures in writing

Quite a few people are starting to share stories about their mental health challenges and other demons. Some ponder if they should start blogging about it. Having written such a blog for almost five years now, here’s my take. Mood music: If you feel you have reached the right point in your journey to start sharing, then do it. If nothing else, it will help you keep things in perspective. I always feel better after…  [Read More]

An OCD Diaries Vacation

by Bill Brenner February 22, 2014 Uncategorized

Just a quick note that there will be no fresh posts here for the next week. Don’t worry, nothing’s wrong. I’ll simply be at a big security event and will be plenty busy there. Until then, peace be with you all. 🙂

Cancer: Faces of Bravery, Faces of Fear

by Bill Brenner February 21, 2014 Courage

The photos tell the tale clearly. Beth Whaanga, mother of four, has been through hell. She has the scars to prove it. And when she decided to show the world, people on Facebook unfriended her. Mood music: Whaanga has been in a long and brutal battle against cancer. Multiple surgeries have left her body mangled, though when fully clothed, the scars are hidden. She chose to reveal those scars in a photo series called “Under the…  [Read More]

The Courage of Brian Krebs

by Bill Brenner February 20, 2014 Courage

Brian Krebs has been kind enough to compliment me on this blog a few times, telling me I have courage for writing about the demons. Today I celebrate Krebs’ courage, which is far more formidable than anything I could ever hope to possess. Mood music: For years at The Washington Post (which foolishly cut him loose) and more recently through Krebs on Security, the man has relentlessly investigated online crime and written scores of groundbreaking…  [Read More]

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