No more fogged mirrors

Here's my little Lifehacker-lite tip of the day... :-)

I set my furnace to kick on right as I'm getting up each morning so that as I take my shower, releasing all that moisture into the air, the hot air comes streaming into the bathroom to suck it up. As I get out of the shower, the mirrors are clear and ready to use.

Make it fun! Change the world

The people over at Volkswagen are known for automobiles, but they also have a little side project going on to change the world. They are the creator and sponsor of a project and website called The Fun Theory. According to their site, they are "dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better."

The premise is that people are more likely to do something -- cleanup up dirty streets, exercise, talk to each other, recycle, be polite -- if it's fun for them. Humans are complex creatures. We are driven by a number of multi-dimensional needs including the need to fit in, the need to acquire stuff, the need to be loved, the need to feel safe, the need to feel in control. Even the most altruistic among us is still in it for themselves (even if it's just to leave the world a better place than it was when they got here). Engage all of that selfishness and still make something that's fun... that's ambitious. Get people to do something good for their neighbor, the neighborhood, the area, the world at the same time? That takes true talent. Glückwünsche Volkswagen! Glückwünsche.

You're invited to participate as well. Be part of the movement. Get inspired by others' submissions, vote on your favorite, then submit your own ideas.

The Elves! They Attack!

The Muppets: Bohemian Rhapsody

My life...

In the absence of clearly-defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia until ultimately we become enslaved by it. -- Robert Heinlein

Echo

It's amazing what the human body can accomplish.

FIRECRACKERS!

And it's not even July! These girls are amazing! 4th -8th grade!

Give 'em a shot!

Can you imagine if he'd been able to play the whole season?!

Different does not mean can't. Handicapped does not mean won't. Slow does not mean loser. Disabled does not mean unable. This country, this world, would be a very boring place if we were all excellent at everything we tried.

It's true that there can be only one best, but there can be billions of really greats. A little heart, determination, and opportunity, will enable those really greats to know their worth and value. How can you be really great? How can you help somone else realizae their greatness?

Saturn

The folks over at Boston.com have another awesome collection of pictures in their Big Picture collection. This one is of the planet Saturn. At least I think it's still a planet :-)

Truly spectacular!

This explains it all

Another "read it on the Internet" post...

Thank goodness there's a name for this disorder. Somehow I feel better, even though I have it!!

Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D. - Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.

This is how it manifests:

I decide to water my garden. As I turn on the hose in the driveway, I look over at my car and decide it needs washing.

As I start toward the garage, I notice mail on the porch table that I brought up from the mail box earlier. I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.

I lay my car keys on the table, put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table, and notice that the can is full.

So, I decide to put the bills back on the table and take out the garbage first.

But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the garbage anyway,
I may as well pay the bills first.

I take my check book off the table, and see that there is only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk in the study, so I go inside the house to my desk where I find the can of Pepsi I'd been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks, but first I need to push the Pepsi aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over.

The Pepsi is getting warm, and I decide to put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold.

As I head toward the kitchen with the Pepsi, a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye--they need water.

I put the Pepsi on the counter and discover my reading glasses that I've been searching for all morning. I decide I better put them back on my desk, but first I'm going to water the flowers.

I set the glasses back down on the counter, fill a container with water and suddenly spot the TV remote. Someone left it on the kitchen table.

I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, I'll be looking for the remote, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first I'll water the flowers.

I pour some water in the flowers, but quite a bit of it spills on the floor..

So, I set the remote back on the table, get some towels and wipe up the spill.

Then, I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day:
The car isn't washed
The bills aren't paid
There is a warm can of Pepsi sitting on the counter
The flowers don't have enough water,
There is still only 1 check in my check book,
I can't find the remote,
I can't find my glasses,
And I don't remember what I did with the car keys.
Then, when I try to figure out why nothing got done today,
I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all damn day,
And I'm really tired.

I realize this is a serious problem, and I'll try to get some help for it, but first I'll check my e-mail...

1+1 = Alpha

Admit it. When you were in math class, you turned your calculator over (or slide rule for some of you :-) and tried to see how many words you could spell. Well, like a lot of things nowadays, someone (with too much time on their hands) has already done the work and posted it on the Internet. There are apparently quite a few more than my vocabulary would support when I did it...

Join me for lunch?

Two quick lunch-time sites for reference today. The first is to help you find a fast food restaurant. I know, I know. Not many people need help with this. Seems like you can't spit into the wind without a little spittle landing in a fast food joint's parking lot (don't ask me where that visual came from). They're everywhere. Well, now they're on the web too -- at Fast Food Maps.

If you can't talk someone into joining you across town for your favorite fast food, how about meeting them halfway using the Mezzoman site. Enter a starting point for you and one for your friend (city will do) and then where you want to meet (Italian, golf course, pizza, a mall, etc) and the site will map (and list) out suggestions for you -- halfway between you and your friend. It'll even give you a link to see the weather at that meeting spot. Pretty cool.

And of course, both of these sites use Google Maps for their interface :-)