On Well-Roundedness

Changing diapers, planning invasions, butchering hogs, and wood-fired(ish) pizza.

Robert Heinlein wrote of the things a human — any human — should be able to do¹:

[Change] a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly.

He concluded that “specialization is for insects.”

The first time I read that quote, probably just after college, the sheer breadth of knowledge required to accomplish those things likely seemed daunting. Two decades and change into life, one feels like he hasn’t had the time to learn how to pitch manure — or change a diaper! — let alone cooperate in any reasonable sense of the world. Young men — and women, too — at the onset of adulthood are overconfident and uncouth at best, full-on Vandals at worst.

Another decade and a half later, looking at the list, I have to laugh. Of the twenty-one skills Heinlein describes, I’d rate myself competent-to-mastered of fourteen. Another six are ones at which I could take a decent pass; the last one, I’d like to imagine I could do —but that’s one you can only really find out in the heat of the moment.

Nat Eliason

wrote earlier this week about how as he’s gotten a little older, habits have started to form themselves. After years of “aggressive attempts” to ingrain new practices into his life, he’s started letting them emerge slowly. These habits feel “more durable,” have a “certain strength” which ones that were forced might not otherwise have. I would agree. Habits formed like this, I think, become more authentic.

The skills Heinlein prioritizes work the same way. You’re not meant to emerge fully-formed, like Athena, ready to simultaneously sack Rome², write in iambic pentameter, and flambé Bananas Foster. These skills accumulate slowly and then all at once³, the culmination of your lived experiences. And the ones you need to develop will develop when you’re ready for them⁴.

Really, becoming a well-rounded human means playing the long game.

One skill I have absolute confidence that anyone can learn in is the ability to cook a tasty meal. It’s half the reason I write this newsletter — to impart that knowledge. This week, we’ll add an easy recipe to your repertoire, tasty enough for when you’re hosting a summer a cookout, but easy enough for a weeknight: stecca-style pizzas on the grill⁵. Use whatever dough you’d like — it’s all deadly.

Pre-heat your grill to as hot as it gets, along with a pizza stone, if you have one⁶. Using either homemade or store-bought pizza dough, roll it out into a long strip and then divide into four to six “sticks.” Slightly flatten, top as you’d like, and then place on the hot grill and cover, baking for 5-10 minutes until the cheese (if you’re using it) is bubbly and the crust begins to char.

So there you go, folks — that’s the recipe. I’d recommend using the best cheese, the best sauce⁷, and best meats you can get your hands on… but what do I know?

With that, I’ll let you off to the rest of your Fridays. The Family CWD is hosting Auntie CWD, eMD. Tomorrow, we’ll be setting off to Cape Ann to enjoy a beach day. Wish Uncle Steady and I better luck in our aquatic adventures — if all else fails, I’m just going to collect spider crabs and then make this from

Hank Shaw

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Whether you are frantically practicing new habits or slowly letting them absorb into your life, spend your time thoughtfully. As a true Renaissance man once said, “life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

We’ll see you back here next week.

1. Heinlein was a science fiction writer, among other things; a naval officer, aeronautical engineer, and a generally well-rounded fella.

2. Or, more aptly for this metaphor and allusion, Sparta.

3. Like bankruptcy.

4. This is particularly true for diaper changing

5. I saw this recipe on the Substack app somewhere, didn’t save it, and then searched for ages to no avail. So I just winged the recipe for my dough based on this, but added cornmeal because I remember that being part of it.

6. Just make sure if you do use a stone, it can stand the direct heat of a grill.

7. Maybe homemade with those tomatoes that are ripening now.