A Close Call?
Arya, Finn, and I are playing in the waves when conditions shift from fun to frightening...
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This is a space for reflective medicine. This means accounts of adventures, insights, and epic blunders. It means confessions, contentions, and compassion. It means shared humanity and laughter. Thank you for reading!
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Apr 16, 2023
- 2 min
Appropriate to Appropriate
I've taken to wearing Pakastani outfits (shalwar kameez) to work as they are considered acceptable work attire at this multicultural...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Apr 16, 2023
- 4 min
The Gift of the Unexpected
Some days are on script. Predictable. Not this one: In between classes, I dashed to the bathroom and, much to my consternation, found...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Feb 27, 2023
- 2 min
A Moment in the Fog
When I was 19 and commercial fishing in Alaska, I fell in love with a girl. For 15-seconds. It was 3am and within the brief window of...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Feb 27, 2023
- 2 min
The Anger Parasite (an experiment)
Sometimes anger is a gem. Driving us to needed reactions. Setting boundaries. Shouting no! Demanding yes! A valuable power source. Often,...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Feb 27, 2023
- 3 min
Used Car Shopping: Middle East Edition
We were being driven out past rubble heaps and old trailers that looked like they belonged in a nuclear test site. The guy driving us,...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Feb 27, 2023
- 2 min
International Barbers
I like barber shops because they tend to be old school with groups of dudes lounging around listening to music and bullshitting about...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Nov 1, 2022
- 2 min
A Bird to Remember
I'm biking to work when I pass a little dead bird on the polished granite tiles surrounding the front of the American University's...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Nov 1, 2022
- 1 min
Having Both
As I prepare a last-minute Halloween costume for a party in Dubai—I’m going as a guru, which feels beautifully absurd—I think about my...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Nov 1, 2022
- 3 min
Treasure Hunting!
I'm a treasure hunter. Which means--as I imagine is the case for 99.9% of treasure hunters--failure more often than feeling the shovel...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Sep 28, 2022
- 1 min
A Minute
Mind racing after work today. Getting from point A to point B on my bike as quickly as possible. Emails still to send. Kids to be fed....
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Sep 28, 2022
- 3 min
The Nesto HyperMart
I'm a fan of deals. I hunt them and take great pride in telling the tales of my bargain related exploits. Therefore, you should know...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Sep 18, 2022
- 1 min
Child's Pose
The call to prayer begins at 5am—not loud but definitely audible enough to nudge me out of my incredibly light sleep (an unfortunate...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Sep 18, 2022
- 2 min
Remains
The man's teaching contract was not renewed when he turned 70. A general rule here. He was angry about it. Wouldn't vacate his office,...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 3 min
The Screamer
I'm in the middle of playing "The wheels on the bus" on my ukulele for two Argentinian toddlers while their grandmother helps me with the...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 1 min
The Unexpected Celebration
After a day packed with work and adulting beginning at 7am, I'm feeling a touch resentful as I make the 20 minute drive out to the local...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 3 min
Moment of Defeat
A crowd of gangly pre-teens and tired looking parents watch as a boy—maybe 11 or 12—tries to coax himself onto a platform containing a...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 4 min
Resiliency & Uncertainty
In my twenties, I worked a sketchy job with an old leathery man called Hollywood. No one would tell me how he earned this nickname, but...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 2 min
Step Aside
One night when I was living in Dubai, a buddy and I were walking back to his car after an event in the heart of the city. The sidewalk...
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Mateo Zytkoskee
- Aug 2, 2022
- 3 min
Extras
I’ve developed an odd habit lately—though, who knows, maybe you do it too. I watch the extras in shows and movies. As in, the actor whose...
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