This year has felt like one long plot twist. I was laid off, picked up side jobs, and somehow wrote books through the chaos. And because my bold ideas seem to arrive at the least practical moments, I also told my wife to leave her stable job and finally chase her dream of becoming an elementary school teacher. Yes, while I was unemployed. I knew how wild that sounded, but it was still the right call. She earned her master’s degree with a 4.0 GPA and pushed through student teaching with steady patience. That has been one of the bright spots in a difficult season. Every year her best friend and I go on a holiday shopping trip. It is our tradition. We visit a few stores, hunt for the right gifts, and finish with Blanco Tacos for dinner. It is an odd little ritual, but it works. This year my definition of extravagant stretched farther than usual, and the gift ended up firmly in the expensive category. Her best friend did nothing to protect my budget. We visited Dior, Louis Vuitton, and Nordstrom. I drifted toward the loud pieces my wife usually likes, the ones that practically call attention to themselves. Her best friend kept pulling me away. Then she pointed at the sweater I was wearing, a very nice Armani with no visible branding, and said to the salesperson, “See. He does not need to shout. Why would she.” After that she delivered the line that stuck with me. “You already proved you can afford it. Now I want her to enjoy it.” Moments later she realized I own cashmere and alpaca while my wife owns neither. She turned to me with a look that said only one word, and she said it out loud. “Robert.” No affection. No softness. Just pure judgment aimed directly at my soul. At Louis Vuitton we found the right piece. A soft, understated cashmere sweater with a small tag at the back of the neck. Nothing loud. Nothing trying to show off. Just quiet quality. The salesperson added, “Pieces like this never get counterfeited. There is nothing loud to copy. The value is in how it is made.”

With a brief stop to sort out the pre op paperwork, T minus two days until i can’t write for roughly a month, and now to Baton Rouge. It’s chilly here on the bayou and a wet cold that hits your bones specifically the ailing joints, muscles, and other prior injuries, meaning we’d all feel it in some way. The shirt, Nike polo with company logo The pullover, Peter Millar with company logo The jeans, Daniel Cremieux The boots, Florsheim Chelsea Boots The scent, Sedley Parfums de Marley The watch, Citizen 8700 Calbire The hair, by me Make it a good day.

It's another cold day here in the NE. So I spent a bit of time in my closet this morning thinking about what to wear and not be the "same thing" OOTD: Allen Edmonds - Navy Cashmere 1/4 zip David Donahue - Light blue micro dot dress shirt 34 Heritage - Charcoal Grey Flannel Trousers Mazarin - Dark Navy/medium Blue ribbed OTC wool dress socks Allen Edmonds - Dark Brown Suede Chelsea boots Anson - chocolate brown suede dress belt WOTD: Omega Speedmaster Professional with a brown strap SOTD Hermès Oud Alezan Hope you all are staying warm and have a fantastic day!!

I have 6 back to back meetings today including a boyscout board meeting. This time of year I deliver gifts along with account reviews to almost all my families I help . They have come to expect my deceased father in laws pastries (owned a bakery that was an OKC staple from 1946 until his retirement in 2010). His mother had a recipe for an Almond pound cake that my wife makes that seems to be a favorite. OOTD Blue Robert Talbot window pane sport coat Ct pink twill French cuff with Guinness links Silk cream brown and blue pocket square Trionna Irish waist coat brown herringbone w blue over lay Deep brown wide wale cords Pendleton brown socks Alden Indy boots Ernest Borell 1940’s automatic watch

Losers love to talk about "work-life balance" as a way to avoid doing the work required to reach their long-term goals. They think they can have it all. Chase big goals... Maintain a comfortable pace... Clock out at 5 every day... Never miss a night out... ...and still somehow end up winning. That isn't how this works. Nobody who's ever built anything real lived a balanced life while they were doing it. They spent every possible minute they could working toward a vision nobody else believed in. They were obsessed. ...and that's the truth nobody wants to hear because it means surrendering all the crap you want in the present for everything you want far more in the future. Real balance comes after the work. Not before. Not during. After. Start thinking of balance differently. It can't be measured on a daily... Weekly... Monthly... Or even yearly basis. It must be measured over the course of your life. Success isn't supposed to be easy or balanced. It comes at a cost. That cost is living an "unbalanced" life by giving it your all for 10-15 years. Oftentimes longer. Only then can you experience the freedom and "balance" you're looking for. How badly do you want it? Ask yourself that question instead of how you can make the time for every little thing you like right now. Work-life balance now equals broke-life balance for the rest of your life. Is that what you want? I didn't think so. ~ Andy Frisella