Tuesdays with Muerte

James Clear by pxfuel My mom emailed me this great list of talks to read. I am currently reading them and would love for you to join me. Click the links below to jump to a specific speech. On each page, you'll find a full transcript of the speech as well as some additional background information, most of which was put together by  James Clear , author of Atomic Habits . Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie,  “The Danger of a Single Story” Jeff Bezos,  “Statement by Jeff Bezos to the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary” Jeff Bezos,  “What Matters More Than Your Talents” John C. Bogle,  “Enough” Brené Brown, “ The Anatomy of Trust “ John Cleese,  “Creativity in Management” William Deresiewicz,  “Solitude and Leadership” Richard Feynman,  “Seeking New Laws” Neil Gaiman,  “Make Good Art” John W. Gardner,  “Personal Renewal” Elizabeth Gilbert,  “Your Elusive Creative Genius” Albert E. N. Gray,  “The Common Denominator of Success” Bill Gurley,...

Before We Can Love Others, We Must First Love Ourselves​ "I don’t think anyone can grow unless he’s loved exactly as he is now, appreciated for what he is rather than what he will be. Knowing that we can be loved exactly as we are gives us all the best opportunity for growing into the healthiest of people."  “When we love a person, we accept him or her exactly as is: the lovely with the unlovely, the strong with the fearful, the true mixed in with the façade, and of course, the only way we can do it is by accepting ourselves that way.”  “We need to help people to discover the true meaning of love. Love is generally confused with dependence. Those of us who have grown in true love know that we can love only in proportion to our capacity for independence.” Loving Others Is an Effortful Acceptance of Who They Are Presently “Love isn't a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way...

Favorites: Learn Klingon via Rosetta Stone - http://youtu.be/nn1VjbJtx-4 Google hiring Pokémon Master; Prereqs: "Gotta Catch 'em all" - http://youtu.be/4YMD6xELI_k AirBrB let's you rent desk space - http://www.airbrb.com/fools.html BitBand tracking for Developers - https://www.atlassian.com/bitband Dominos Edibox - http://www.dominos.co.uk/blog/edibox-revolutionises-pizza-delivery/ Google AutoAwesome Celebrity Photobombing #Hoffsome - http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2014/03/introducing-auto-awesome-photobombs.html Choir of King's College Cambridge castrato solution -  http://youtu.be/ukDAfF0-8q8 Others:  Honda First DIY Honda Car -  http://youtu.be/Z8GLIJ_HQJ8 American Beagle Outfitters; "Look good.  Feel good." -  http://youtu.be/rdItDKWm59Q BMW ZZZ Series: The Ultimate Sleeping Machine (for infants) - http://youtu.be/bWWITF5fTMs #SelfieBot by Orbotix -  http://youtu.be/ZaR4X2iJo6M  (A little too close to home. #NSA #Powerof3) ...

I have always wondered why Missouri is called the Show Me state. After a tiny bit of digging, I unearthed a marvelous story behind Missouri's mysterious sobriquet. Note: The slogan is not official, but is common throughout the state and is used on Missouri license plates. The most widely known legend attributes the phrase to Missouri's U.S. Congressman Willard Duncan Vandiver, who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1897 to 1903. While a member of the U.S. House Committee on Naval Affairs, Vandiver attended an 1899 naval banquet in Philadelphia. In a speech there, he declared, I come from a state that raises corn and cotton and cockleburs and Democrats, and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I am from Missouri. You have got to show me. Regardless of whether Congressman Vandiver coined the phrase, it is certain that his speech helped to popularize the saying. The use of Vandiver's phrase, "show me," during his sti...

My roommate Dan Randall and me at the 2013 AECT Convention in CA. Why Do I Always Wake Up 5 Minutes Before My Alarm Goes Off?   At the center of your brain, a clump of nerves—called the suprachiasmatic nucleus—oversees your body’s clock: the circadian rhythm. It determines when you feel sleepy and when you feel bright-eyed. It controls your blood pressure, your body temperature, and your sense of time. It turns your body into a finely tuned machine. That machine happens to love predictability. Your body is most efficient when there’s a routine to follow. So if you hit the hay the same time each night and awake the same time each morning, your body locks that behavior in. And that’s where things get sciency. Read the full text here: http://mentalfloss.com/article/53710/why-do-i-always-wake-5-minutes-my-alarm-goes#ixzz2l9AFPrZl What is Oxford Dictionary's 2013 Word of the Year?  Every year, Oxford Dictionary names a Word of the Year, the word “that is jud...

I do not breath, yet I run. I do not eat, yet I sleep. I do not drink, yet I swim. I do not think, yet I grow. I cannot see you, but you see me every day. What am I? Think you know what it is? Cryptic Hint Easy Hint This is a photo of me relaxing on the side of Cascade mountain after scrambling up a draw filled with snow and ice. All I had to support my ascent was a pair of boots, walking poles, my muscular legs, and my incredible sense of balance; I only fell twice! You can't really see them from this angle, but try to look for all the scrapes I acquired! Answer Your Leg

This is one person's response to the title question. I felt like his story (linked below) reflects a work experience of mine. I was excited to be part of an organization, but my role wasn't clear. This was torture for the instructional designer in me. I wish I would have had this man's insight and experience when I was in his position. Read Quote of Gil Yehuda's answer to Job Interviews: What's the craziest thing you ever said at a job interview and still got the job? on Quora Image Source

Being a writer, he is quite naturally curious about  Heaven and Hell. So upon meeting Saint Peter at the  pearly gates, he asks if it would be possible to visit Hell  briefly before ascending to Heaven. Saint Peter, obliging  as ever, is happy to grant the writer’s request. In a  flash, they arrive in writer’s Hell where they feast their  eyes upon thousands of writers planted in front of  thousands of typewriters, arranged in rows as far as the  eye could see, a damp, dark, foul place, full of the  overpowering stench of decomposition and putrefaction.  "Just as I expected," says the writer to Saint Peter. "I’m  ready to see Heaven now."  In a flash, they arrive in writer’s Heaven where they feast their  eyes upon thousands of writers planted in front of thousands  of typewriters, arranged in rows as far as the eye could see, a  damp, dark, foul place, full of the overpowering stench of  decomposition a...

Here's a quick guide for the baffled: Harlem Shake videos all follow the script of one person, often in a helmet, dancing alone in a room full of bored-looking people. Then, as the beat kicks in on  Baauer's "Harlem Shake,"  we smash cut to the entire room going nuts in the most ridiculous ways possible. In a post titled "The Harlem Shake is Exploding," YouTube trends manager Kevin Allocca reveals that more than 12,000 Harlem Shake videos had been uploaded by close of business Monday. Collectively, they have been watched more than 44 million times in a week. Clearly, part of the success of the videos can be attributed to the anticipation of that breakout moment. Another reason: The videos are so short, you can easily consume a dozen of them in a ten-minute lunch break. I did a quick search on Google Trends, and the stats say the meme is still exploding (especially in Canada) as of February 13th. This chart will update to show you the last 90 days. ...

I gave my good friend, Jason Hills, earwax candles for his birthday.  He was kind enough to demonstrate how to use them on camera.  Like a Boss. (Spoiler: He had to learn to use them the hard way...)

Too much Haagen Dazs too fast will freeze the brains of lesser men. As for you, press your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth, covering as much as you can. "Since the nerves in the roof of your mouth get extremely cold, your body thinks your brain is freezing, too," says Abo. "In compensating, it overheats, causing an ice-cream headache." The more pressure you apply to the roof of your mouth, the faster your headache will subside. 20 more remedies for brain freezes

Scarey commercial [long cut] ... don't worry--happy ending!

I'm  halitophobic . I'm not so much afraid of me having bad breath.  I am afraid of other people having bad breath. Way to check for bad breath (halitosis) Scrape a spoon along your tongue, from back to front. Let the spoon dry. Smell the spoon. If it smells bad, your tongue bacteria are out of control. Problem 90% of bad breath is caused by a dirty tongue. -- The School of Dental Medicine It's not easy to kill tongue bacteria.  Tongues are like sponges that soak up bacteria. Non-Solutions Some people brush their tongues.  Silly.  Brushes are designed to clean the flat surfaces of your teeth. Tongue scrapers?  Remember the sponge analogy?  Scrapers only take off the top layer of grime. Mouthwash?  It's like trying to clean your carpet with a hose--it's only watering down the problem. Solution

Three ways tires affect your car's Miles Per Gallon (MPG): Tire inflation Weight of your tires/rim Tire tread Let's review how to increase your MPG: Inflate your tires to the recommended pressure.  If your tires are at 25 ppi ² (which happens) instead of 35 ppi ², that's a 20% decrease in mpg, equating to over $9 each time you fill* your tank ! Lighter tires/rim are better. Every 50lbs. decrease mpg by 1% ∴ No heavy rims . Less friction with the ground requires less engine energy to move your car. Strive for minimal rolling resistance ∴  no low-profile, rain or mud tires . Engine uses 20% of its energy overcoming this rolling resistance. *My fill-up calculations were based on a single purchase of 15 gal. @ $3.01/gal. Additional references: Video source: How Do Tires Effect Gas Mileage  (sic) Click here to see more ways to squeeze a couple more mpg out of your car. Do you drive a stick-shift? Learn three techniques to in...

Image  Source Last night, while I was watching the Rose Bowl the commentators were discussing how cold it was outside there in Pasadena, CA. Just then, Alabama football players drenched their coach, Nick Saban, with a cooler full of Gatorade. CRUEL! Who started that nasty tradition?  They never did anything like that in Rudy!  Winning players and coaches were hoisted up on players' shoulders and paraded off the field. MentalFloss has provided THE ANSWERS to many burning questions surrounding this relatively new tradition.

...or could this be the cruel effects of second-hand smoke?

Image  Source Freshly baked bread Clean sheets (The feel of them effects on this choice.) Freshly mown grass Fresh flowers, especially roses High-Octane Gasoline (I know, I'm weird.) Fresh air after rain fall Vanilla Extract Wassail Frankly, any hot food after being outdoors in the cold for a long time Bacon frying A Cedar fire Babies Lemon zest The scent of the seaside after living in the desert Bath & Body Works Liplicious Caramel Latte Lip Gloss Apple and blackberry crumble in the oven The phosphorus of a freshly lit match People I love, even if they sometimes smell bad. Party poppers; mmmmm...phosphorous. Rubber tires peeling out

Cute? OR Annoying? Cast your vote. (Mine is annoying.)

“ This is soul diva Alicia Keys before she was famous bouncing on Bill Cosby’s knee . The Empire State Of Mind singer was just four-years-old when she appeared on the Cosby Show with the comic legend who played family man Cliff Huxtable. Keys had just a brief appearance on screen as she took part in a sleepover with pals of the Huxtables’ daughter Rudy. Speaking of her appearance on the U.S. show, Keys said: ‘It was a really, really good memory for me. The whole cast was so cool. We would sit on that big, huge couch and stuff and we all had to sit on Cosby’s knee. He always tried to knock us off of his knee with the bucking horse thing. Of course, my favorite part was winning the game, because I was the winner.” ( 2 minute 41 seconds .) Slumber Party , Season 1 Ep. 22

The 30-year-old was whisked to LA where he was offered a $1 million directors fee and up to £30 million to make the film, by Mandate Pictures. The plans for the movie are said to have a "compelling original story" beyond big robots blowing stuff up. Alvarez has also been put up in a new apartment, given a new car and will work with "Spider-Man" director Sam Raimi on developing the film. LINKS Mandate Pictures Source: Newslite.com Reddit Commentary