Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 407

"It’s not unapproachability. It’s focus."

"It’s not unapproachability. It’s focus."

"The wisdom that I wasn’t meant to be a teacher only came...

"The wisdom that I wasn’t meant to be a teacher only came through sheer exhaustion."

"I wish I hadn’t focused on my career so much when my kids...

"I wish I hadn’t focused on my career so much when my kids were young. I missed out on some key moments."
"What was your thought process at the time?"
"I told myself that I was spending time away from them in order to improve their circumstances."

"I worked at the same cafe for 28 years, but it just went out of...

"I worked at the same cafe for 28 years, but it just went out of business, so I had to find new work. Before it was like I had a family. I saw the same people every day. But now I just have a job. One day you lose something, and you say: ‘Oh my God. I was happy. And I didn’t even know it.’"

"When my daughter was born, my grandfather was dying of cancer...

"When my daughter was born, my grandfather was dying of cancer in the same hospital. They told me they showed him a picture of her on a phone, and he started crying. They were going to wrap her up and bring her to him the next morning, but he died that afternoon."

"It’s difficult to not grow too attached when you’re...

"It’s difficult to not grow too attached when you’re a nanny. Not only are you bonding with the children, but you’re doing it in a home environment. It’s hard to not feel like family. But after crying so hard when I left my first family, I told myself I’d never grow that attached again."
"How do you do accomplish that?"
"You just have to constantly remind yourself that you’re an employee."

"I have too much energy. I’m learning to channel it...

"I have too much energy. I’m learning to channel it instead of letting it burn me."
"How does it burn you?"
"It can keep me from focusing. It causes me to think about a million things at once."
"Are you manic?"
"Yes."
"Do you take medicine?"
"No. I just wear a weight vest under my clothes while I’m working, then after work I run until the batteries are done."

"I’m a pathologist, which means that I run the lab, and...

"I’m a pathologist, which means that I run the lab, and I’m continually shocked by all the unnecessary lab work that comes my way. Doctors have to find something wrong with you, because preventative measures aren’t sexy. They know that you’re more likely to appreciate them if they tell you something’s wrong, than if they tell you to stop drinking 40 oz sodas."

"I want to design rocket engines.""What’s one way that you...

"I want to design rocket engines."
"What’s one way that you think rockets will change the world that people don’t currently anticipate?"
"Space mining. Sunlight in particular. Most people think of space as being very cold, but if you step out of your spacesuit into direct sunlight, your blood will boil. On earth, the energy of the sun is largely absorbed by the atmosphere. So in space, solar panels could be much more effective."

"Our first date was at TGI Fridays. We went there again on our...

"Our first date was at TGI Fridays. We went there again on our 8th anniversary, but it wasn’t as glamorous as we remembered."