Day 1501

Feels good to be back in the BANG’EM, a.k.a. DUVALLLLLLLLLL. Loud noises aside, there really is nothing like sleeping in your own bed. Traveling is fun. Conferences are cool. But getting home, taking a shower, and sleeping in your own bed is hard to beat. It’s one of those simple luxuries that doesn’t seem like a luxury until you spend a few nights away from it.

After work, we got dinner with my grandparents, which was great. Nothing crazy. Just family, food, and being back home. But on the way out there, I had one of those little moments that sticks with you. Sloan and Ryder were sitting there in the backseat smiling at each other, and then Sloan started yelling random loud noises. Ryder thought this was the funniest thing in the world and started laughing. Did it hurt my ears a bit? Yes a lot actually.

Was it worth it? You betcha. It’s hard to describe the joy that comes from watching your kids interact with each other. Not in some grand dramatic way. Just the basic, everyday miracle of it. One kid making the other kid laugh. A little inside joke forming between two tiny people who barely know what the world is yet. The kind of thing that makes you pause for half a second and think, yeah, this is it. This is the whole thing.

There are a lot of cool things in life. Bitcoin conferences. Building apps. Writing. Traveling. Meeting interesting people. Eating a good steak. Sleeping in your own bed after being gone for a few days. All of that is great.

But watching your kids laugh together? Different category. It’s a thing of beauty. Just go ahead and do it, anon. Go have some kids.

https://x.com/ConorChepenik/status/2050392957954527443?s=20

5/1/26

Conor Jay Chepenik