Parenting and Panic
I made this meme to express what the first year of parenting is like: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;youtu.be&#x2F;-br6dC69vdk" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;youtu.be&#x2F;-br6dC69vdk</a><p>I can only say this so emphatically over the internet, but if you have not yet had kids, and you even <i>remotely</i> enjoy your life, DO NOT HAVE KIDS.  Source: I am a dad.<p>They are in incredible burden that you cannot imagine or conceptualize prior.  The company you founded, the marathons you ran, your PhD thesis, etc., these are all peanuts.  Having a kid is like running a marathon every day for a year.  If that sounds like fun to you, then go right ahead.<p>There are 8 billion people on the planet.  You don&#x27;t need them to run the farm, if you want to mentor someone there are lots of opportunities already.  It&#x27;s also a shit job.  Kiss your weekends and evenings and any other free time goodbye.  Like exercising?  Good luck squeezing that in.  Where this idea came from that having kids should be the default in life I have no idea, but it has got to stop.<p>The test I give my childless friends is to ask them what percent certain they are that they want kids.  If it&#x27;s less than 100% (and it usually is) I tell them not to have kids.<p>GET A DOG!