David Altshuler, M.S.
(305) 978-8917 | [email protected]

Author: David

“No” surprise

Forty-something years ago I was attracted to a college classmate. After our literature seminar, we chatted about the novels we wanted to write as adults. “We liked the same music, we liked the same bands, we liked the same clothes.” It seemed like we had a lot in common. But

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Magic

Isn’t insanity also defined as the differential between what you think you are able to do and what you actually are able to accomplish? People make fun of adolescences in this regard. Magical thinking is the phrase used for teenagers who think they are smarter, stronger, faster that the stopwatch

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Hope

There’s always hope. Nah. Not really. Not always. At a recent meeting of pre-meds at a university whose name you would recognize, the panel of actual medical students and genuine doctors gave advice to the aspiring (“slathering” has such unfortunate connotations) physicians. Phrases were bandied about like Frisbees at a

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No-Stalgia

Late and lost in small town New Hampshire on a recent trip and perhaps contrary to the stereotype for my gender, I asked for directions. The whole town was the size of a postage stamp, how hard could it be to find a boarding school with dozens of buildings? But

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Help Wanted

Not that it matters to most students, or most universities for that matter, but several hundred test-takers score a 1600 on the SAT each year. Some of these kiddos with “perfect” scores are admitted to highly competitive colleges (HSCs), some not. As one HSC admissions counselor pointed out, “we could

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G-I-R-A-F-F-E

All things being equal, I suppose I would rather have a child who is able to look up words in the dictionary on his own than a child who wakes me up in the middle of the night asking me how to spell giraffe. On the other hand, I would

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Don’t Panic!

My neighbor to the north is concerned that her adolescent son is always out riding his bike, that he does not devote any time to reading. My neighbor to the south is concerned that her adolescent son always has his face buried in a book, that he seldom gets any

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Recommendation

Colleges are businesses. Colleges are businesses with some nice folks trying to good things, but colleges are businesses nonetheless. Colleges aren’t creepy dishonest businesses like Enron, but somebody at the college is aware that income should exceed expenses. Just as a chicken is in egg’s way of making another egg,

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Equivalent Statements

  The author assumes full responsibility for this newsletter containing explicit language which may be inappropriate for some readers, offensive to others.  . Where do all the “f+ck you mom, it’s all your fault, you f+cking bitch, I hope you die” kids come from? There certainly are a lot of

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Safe at Home

After 300 college visits over the past several decades, perhaps I can be forgiven for skipping out on the information session and taking a personal tour. I have heard “take the most academically rigorous courses your high school has to offer” enough times to believe that it’s true. I have

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Copyright © David Altshuler 1980 – 2024    |    Miami, FL • Charlotte, NC     |    (305) 978-8917    |    [email protected]