Weekly Journal

In this space I share my journey towards creating what I call my Clever Living: a generous livelihood based on my ideas and creativity. It's where every week, I share what steps I took towards that goal, and hold myself accountable to putting in the hours.

Points of failure: Adult costumes

Last month my niece snapped back at me for the first time. I was devastated. She’s five years old and just starting first grade. While on a video call, I may have lost some cool-uncle points by suggesting that she eat healthy snacks at school instead of Oreos. “You’re not my dad,” she pushed back. I recognized her defensiveness. As she grows, some of the baby innocence is lost and turns into personhood — with all its pros and cons. After that happened, I realized how I'd rece

Estaremos Bien: 24 hours with Yasser Tejeda

Ever since he was a teenager I have seen Yasser Tejeda open doors. I mean this literally. We grew up only blocks apart in Santo Domingo. I have memories of running into him with a flimsy guitar case hanging from his back as he hailed down a carro público — dilapidated vehicles from decades past which serve as one of the city’s main forms of public transportation. Even back then, his name circulated the local music scene. He was one of the guys often referred to as un berdug

Week #28: Bravo

A trip to New York on a whim, a friend on two different stages, and closing the gap between what I say and what I do.

Week #27: Hijacking

September 7th - 12th. Getting called out by a 2000-year-old philosopher.

Week #26: Conversing

August 30th - September 6th

Week #25: Alignment

August 16th - 22nd

Week #24: Moving slow

August 2nd - August 8th

Week #23: Grace, again

August 2nd - August 8th

Week #22: Grace

July 19h - July 25th 2026

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Paúl Rivera Melo

Paul Rivera Melo. Dominican-born, Chicago-based writer and touring musician

Paúl Rivera Melo is a Dominican-born, Chicago-based touring musician and writer of essays and short fiction. With roots in the Caribbean, his work draws from the melodies and vocabulary of the region, while using the unique scope of his diaspora experience to craft stories of striving and survival.