anyway

The Paradoxical Commandments
by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.

Give the world the best you have anyway.

blimey

<-- I love Harry Potter, but this is indeed an interesting way to see its evolution.

By the way, it's only about the biggest money maker ever, even beating out the Dark Knight, which recently beat Titanic. Even internationally, HP7.2 very well might attain the title of highest grossing film. All because one lady dreamed up a fantastical story. It's an amazing thing really.

I'm sad that it's over. Much of my generation grew up with these kids. We loved them! I mean, when Halloween rolled around, me and a million other little girls definitely donned a black cloak, frizzed our hair, held a twig in one hand and a beanie baby kitty cat in the other, lectured people on how to say "Wingardium Leviosa," and called ourselves Hermione. But hey, to all my friends who are tearing up, it'll be alright:

"Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home" - J.K.R.

that pesky virus

Sweet little animation made by a Mr. Alan Becker.

oh that L’esprit de escalier

English is my native language, but I guess I never thought about how there's not always a word for everything. . . Here's a few words that don't exist in the English language:

L’esprit de escalier: (French) The feeling you get after leaving a conversation, when you think of all the things you should have said. Translated it means “the spirit of the staircase.”
Waldeinsamkeit: (German) The feeling of being alone in the woods.
Meraki: (Greek) Doing something with soul, creativity, or love.
Forelsket: (Norwegian) The euphoria you experience when you are first falling in love.
Gheegle: (Filipino) The urge to pinch or squeeze something that is unbearably cute.
Pochemuchka: (Russian) A person who asks a lot of questions.
Pena ajena: (Mexican Spanish) The embarrassment you feel watching someone else’s humiliation.
Cualacino: (Italian) The mark left on a table by a cold glass.
Ilunga: (Tshiluba, Congo) A person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never a third time.
Pochemuchka (Russian) - A person who asks a lot of questions.
Chantepleurer (French) - Singing and crying at the same time.

In some ways, finding this made me feel quite uncultured and like I should become a linguist or anthropologist or something and actually learn about other people outside my own happy little bubble college town. But finding this made me wonder what other similarities and differences my language has to others around the world and whether there are words unique to English.

Waaait. I can claim a tiny bit of culturedness! I learned some sign language this past year, which was a really fun and interesting experience and showed me that there are so many different ways to communicate similar things. Sign language is particularly captivating because it's so physical. Sometimes, hearing-people talk quite boringly, but ASL users are always telling a story and always so animated. It's often like watching a performance.

Anyway, I just think it's cool that different cultures are creative in different ways. Am I going to adopt at least one of the words in the above list into my everyday vocab? Duh. (Slowly, but surely y'all, I'm gonna triumph over the whole uncultured thing.)

Click to view larger. (Photos from foreignlanguageexchange.com and bab.la)

curiosity never killed no cat

LOVE IT. Old Mr. Fredricksen would be proud of this National Geographic adventure.

Inspired by the small yellow house in the Pixar film, UP, this lifesize version was connected to 300 colorful weather balloons, was 1o stories high altogether, reached an altitude of 10,000 ft, and flew for about an hour. The experiment, conducted by a team of scientists, engineers, and world-class balloon pilots, was conducted last March as part of a National Geographic Channel series called "How Hard Can it Be?"

Why's it so brilliant? It proves curiosity reigns. It demonstrates how you can look at something and merely think its cool OR you can look at something and actually think about it. You can wonder how it works or if it's possible or if the process can be made easier or if there's something more complex going on or if you could do it on your own.....Just keep on asking until you understand or until you're content. Curiosity is what keeps us dreaming and going places in life.

heads or tails

the view from next door

Well you're probably plum tired of me posting about how I love realizing the world is so much bigger than just me, buutttt I couldn't resist. It's the US-Mexican border separating San Diego from Tijuana. Heads up, I'm not posting this to turn it into a political discussion. I just had never even thought about what the border would look like, and I am amazed that it so incredibly separate and distinct. It's like two completely different pieces of land or even two different worlds - well, actually that's probably because it is two different worlds. And only a single wall divides it. I don't know why it fascinates me so much. I guess because it shows how two places, two peoples, two worlds can technically exist side by side and yet be so different and separate. It's just something that made me sit there and stare at it and think for a few good minutes.

broskis

This is the story of how my little (now 6ft tall) brother is simply awesome.











Background: Like true Americans, my family has a rich tradition of loving Star Wars. And we have also all read the Harry Potter books, with the exception of my dad who - last time I checked - thinks Harry Potter might very well be of the devil.

My younger brother especially loves the far, far away galaxy. One day, I was doing homework in my room, and I could hear strange noises coming from the intercom by my door (it connects throughout the house). I went over to it to listen more closely and I recognized my brother's voice making explosion noises - "Pyew pyew! BABOOM!" I also thought I heard him singing...

Amused, curious and unable to concentrate on homework, I walked to my brother's room and found him playing LEGOs with both his Star Wars and Harry Potter sets. The sounds I had heard were the result of an enormous LEGO battle strewn across his floor, of which my brother sat in the middle, holding a triumphant warrior in each hand.

He then explained to me he had discovered something ingenious - that Dobby the house elf and Yoda the jedi master were long lost brethren, and they even had a theme song (which he sang for me and the chorus went something like "Two Bros! Out to clear the danger...")

I thought he was just a typical brother at the time but looking back, he was a creative little sucker. I mean, look at 'em, they have very similar features. Ahhh....I laugh every time I remember this :) My brother makes me happy.

Even better is that he could probably still sing me the theme song if I asked him to.

real floating lights

First off, I don't think I've met one person who didn't like this movie. . .

Tangled (2010)

Now, check this out. And if you're like me, and had no clue that the lanterns in Tangled weren't totally just made up for the movie, you might, like me, think this is way awesome.

Photo by Sanchai Loongroong

Look familiar? It's Thailand's lantern festival, Yi Peng, held on a November full moon each year. Hundreds of floating lanterns are launched to celebrate a time for tham bun, to make merit. The lamps are usually made with thin fabric and a fuel source like a candle so that when it's lit, the hot air gets trapped inside the lantern and lifts it into the air like a hot air balloon.

I came across this pic of the Thailand festival while looking at a website of random, cool photography. At first, I was surprised that it looked just like the ones in Tangled - but then, I realized, of course, Disney must have gotten the idea from Thailanders.

The point of posting about this is:

a) It's just really cool and I wish there were festivals like this in my country.

b) I realized something - that I really don't know much of anything about different cultures around the world. There are so many of us on this planet, and I pretty much have a hard enough time just trying to understand the guys at school (in my defense, they've definitely got their own culture). But there are entire cultures just as complex as my own that I have yet to be able to first even become aware of.

I'm really glad I came across this photo because it made me remember that I am just a small little girl in a small little town in a small little moment in time. There is so much out there to learn and experience and understand, and I really hope that throughout my life, I can keep having similar epiphanies to remind me of how much bigger than me the world really is.


P.S. I think it fitting that I listened to Tangled music while writing this.

perfect people

My little sis lives at home still. After trying to curl her hair for a few hours, she gave up for the day, started up the stairs, and said to my mother,

"I just want you to know. The people who go around looking perfect all the time have had a LOT of practice."

Amen, sister. Sure, it's kind of annoying. But who really has time to practice that much? Hence, why I don't spend more than ten minutes on my hair in the mornings.

But hey, for the record, baby sis, you're adorable and confident and fashionable and healthy and kind and perfectly beautiful already.

broken smiling pig people

Pretty much from the moment my high school stats teachers showed my class a TED talk, I've had a not-so-small obsession for TED. I listen to these clips while getting ready in the morning, cleaning my room, or while doing my homework. I have a million of them downloaded for free onto my iTunes.

If you're unfamiliar with it, TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas. Scientists, researchers, comedians, experts, explorers, photographers, designers, mathmeticians, survivors, and really just anybody from anywhere in the world can be invited to give a TED talk. Speakers are challenged to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes or less. They can be funny, inspiring, informative, persuasive, fascinating, or just entertaining.

I can seriously spend hours watching these videos. Annnd, in fact, I just did. If you're good with multitasking, it's great to have playing in the background.

I'm serious. Right this very minute, go check out TED. Or get a taste for them by watching below.

P.S. Watching the videos below might make the title of this post make sense.

i simply remember my favorite things

Old postcards, Wildflowers (pressed), Stamps, Old sheet music, Old books, Coins, Memorabilia, Old maps, Old black and white photographs, Antique Toys, Card decks, Antique marbles, Fossils, Antique bottles, Seashells, Autographs, Sea glass. . .

I'm not sure what it is that makes collections so interesting. . . maybe it's the fact that someone is so fascinated by something that they would give so much of their time to it.

At home, I have a pretty good sized collection of bookmarks. I was in love with reading as a kid. Many of them are homemade, given to me as birthday presents, or bought from places I would visit. I have ones made from wood, ones that turn colors when you rub them with your hands, and ones that have wildflowers pressed inside them.

The collector in this video is pretty intense, but it's a good reminder that you're never too old to start or stop collecting something. So what will be yours?

what's your tagline?

My school holds a forum every week where the speaker can choose any topic, and every week the speaker has a different and unique background so the forum is always pretty interesting.

Recently, I heard a broadcasting professional speak about how a tagline illustrates how a company wants to be visualized. What is a tagline? A statement or motto that succinctly defines or represents an organization's mission. For instance, here's an obvious one....what do you think of when you see the Nike symbol?

Here's a few more. Got milk? (California Milk Processor Board) You're in good hands (All State). Yo quiero Taco Bell. The Few, the Proud, the Marines. Save Money, Live Better (Wal-Mart). There are some things money can't buy...for everything else, there's MasterCard. With these taglines, these companies have gained instant recognition status while also promoting themselves and their products. When you think about it, it's a pretty remarkable feat that a single company can choose a few words to represent itself and to have the world immediately associate those words with that company.

After talking about the business aspect of taglines, the professor then asked us students what our personal taglines were. I really liked this connection. I have written at the top of this blog one of my personal mottos. What about you? What are you known for? What is the first thing people think of when they think of you? What is it that you live by? What is your personal mission statement, motto, or daily outlook on life? We all have one, whether we consciously realize it or not. If you don't know yours, give it a think for a few minutes and write it down. It should just be a few words. Do you like it? Good. Would you rather it be something else? Change it. Your tagline is your own.

player of the year, y'all

Just had to make a personal tribute to the Jimmer.

brilliance

Chocolate covered cookie dough. . . WHYYY have I not thought of this??

Obviously, not that difficult, but check out how:
http://www.recipegirl.com/2011/03/30/chocolate-chip-cookie-dough-truffles/

thaaat's why

Admittedly cheesy....but I mean come onnn - unicorns, people. It's funny :)

shark bus

Check out this cool website about creative marketing techniques:

http://www.designer-daily.com/cool-and-creative-guerilla-marketing-campaigns-13471

These ads are definitely unique and memorable. My favorite is probably the shark bus...

read between the lines

I think we are a lot smarter than we realize sometimes.
Who knew?

something to think about

Okay to be perfectly honest, I dunno if these are currently true stats. BUT. I'm sure that they are close. And its nice to be reminded that we don't have much to complain about...

take a walk in their shoes

Excerpt from How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

Win people to your way of thinking

1. The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it.
2. Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never say, "You're wrong."
3. If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically.
4. Begin in a friendly way.
5. Get the other person saying "yes, yes" immediately.
6. Let the other person do a great deal of the talking.
7. Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers.
8. Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view.
9. Be sympathetic with the other person's ideas and desires.
10. Appeal to the nobler motives.
11. Dramatize your ideas.
12. Throw down a challenge.

http://www.westegg.com/unmaintained/carnegie/win-friends.html

just take a mental picture

Autistic Savant Stephen Wiltshire Draws Rome From Memory

Genius. Many of us can't even remember what we had for breakfast.
So while not all of us can draw panoramics like so beautifully demonstrated by Mr. Wiltshire, I think we've all wished at one time or another that we could have more efficient memories. But just blaming your memory ("I'm sorry, I've always been bad at names...") isn't fair because we can train our brains to retain information more reliably. One trick that the experts give is to simply memorize something every day. Whether that's a fun fact, someone's birthday, a quote, scripture, or poem, you're memory will become stronger at holding information. Plus, you'll be muy impressive whenever you bust out that quote or remember where that person you met last Sunday is from. Specifically make a conscious effort to remember people's names. Remember that you won't actually get better at memorization unless you consciously try. No pain, no gain.

And if you're interested :
Statistically people remember 10% of what they read, 20% of what they hear, and 30% of what they see. http://www.wikihow.com/Improve-Your-Memory

all-stars and rappers

(Song: "Blueprint" 2 by Jay-z)
So last week, Mike Hansen, who does marketing for Nike, came and spoke to one of my classes. Of course, Nike does an excellent job with marketing, and so there was a lot to show and tell, but one of the most interesting points that he brought up was how Nike decided to integrate pop artists into their marketing mix by using popular pop songs in their commercials. He said, "We found that pop artists just wanna be athletes and athletes just wanna be pop artists." At first glance, I would probably just think, Hey, cool commercial, I like that song. But it really does go deeper than that because a popular pop song will attract the music fans in addition to the dedicated sports followers. By placing their brand at the intersection between all-star athletes and pop artists, Nike successfully made their product image even more popular. The presentation made me wonder why more brands haven't tried this, but I think Nike really got it right with this strategy.

is that weird?

We all have those things about ourselves that we think are totally normal until someone comes along and looks at us funny... But hey, being normal would be b-o-r-i-n-g anyway.
So, here's one of mine (face it, we all have manyy): If I'm freezing cold after waking up or while I'm sitting and doing homework or something, I'll pick up hair dryer and blast myself with warm air until I'm all toasty inside.
Sometimes for twenty minutes. Sometimes longer. (I don't really like being cold)
Is that weird?

reaching for the stars

On my bucket list: watch a space shuttle launch. Come back safe, Discovery.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110224/ap_on_sc/us_space_shuttle

ladies and gentelmen, please fasten your seatbelts

Well, I'm sorry to be negative nancy here, but I really hate planes. I'm really not worried about the crashing factor, it's more that they're too hot or too cold or too stuffy or too loud. And I can never, ever get comfortable enough to sleep. But I found this article about planes a while back that kept me reading. We don't always think about the behind-the-scenes work of the airline industry - we're just happy if they send our luggage to the right place...So this post is purely random, but it's something that you might find uniquely interesting.

The following excerpts come from this article: "35 secrets your pilot won't tell you"
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/35-secrets-your-pilot-wont-tell-you-2399544

“The truth is, we’re exhausted. Our work rules allow us to be on duty 16 hours without a break. That’s many more hours than a truck driver. And unlike a truck driver, who can pull over at the next rest stop, we can’t pull over at the next cloud.” -Captain at a major airline

“Some FAA rules don’t make sense to us either. Like the fact that when we’re at 39,000 feet going 400 miles an hour, in a plane that could hit turbulence at any minute, [flight attendants] can walk around and serve hot coffee and Chateaubriand. But when we’re on the ground on a flat piece of asphalt going five to ten miles an hour, they’ve got to be buckled in like they’re at NASCAR.” -Jack Stephan, US Airways captain based in Annapolis, Maryland, who has been flying since 1984

“Most of the time, how you land is a good indicator of a pilot’s skill. So if you want to say something nice to a pilot as you’re getting off the plane, say ‘Nice landing.’ We do appreciate that.” -Joe D’Eon

“No, it’s not your imagination: Airlines really have adjusted their flight arrival times so they can have a better record of on-time arrivals. So they might say a flight takes two hours when it really takes an hour and 45 minutes.” -AirTran Airways captain, Atlanta

“Pilots find it perplexing that so many people are afraid of turbulence. It’s all but impossible for turbulence to cause a crash. We avoid turbulence not because we’re afraid the wing is going to fall off but because it’s annoying.” -Patrick Smith

“People always ask, ‘What’s the scariest thing that’s ever happened to you?’ I tell them it was a van ride from the Los Angeles airport to the hotel, and I’m not kidding.” -Jack Stephan

“We don’t make you stow your laptop because we’re worried about electronic interference. It’s about having a projectile on your lap. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to get hit in the head by a MacBook going 200 miles per hour.” -Patrick Smith

“We ask you to put up the window shade so the flight attendants can see outside in an emergency, to assess if one side is better for an evacuation. It also lets light into the cabin if it goes dark and helps passengers get oriented if the plane flips or rolls over.” -Patrick Smith

feeling small

My daddy loves the mountains. I do too. They're crazy huge (to the point where they almost feel fake) and beautiful all year round. Time seems to stop when you sit atop a mountain peak. There are no cars speeding by or bread in the oven or work nearby to busy yourself with. Just peace.
And when I have looked out from the deck of a boat in the middle of a sea, I feel terrified, but excited. I imagine myself alone in that vast expanse of nothing but water, and I think of how there's no way I could get help fast enough if I were stranded. My stomach kinda twists up, but I'm still grinning.
Why do I love that feeling? Why does anybody love such massive, majestic places? I think its because their ethereal quality takes us away from our homes and workplaces and yank our minds back into the perspective of the universe as a whole. For a glorious moment, we forget the stress and detail of our everyday lives and remember that that moment we are in is but a blink in our lifetime. And being reminded that we are extremely small is awe-inspiring, humbling, and even relieving. The voice inside you says life is good. There are always bigger things in life to consider and think about and enjoy.

what was your name again?

Well. I don't know much of anything, but I discover a ton everyday. Here's one tip that I've learned. If you want to be more memorable, especially when networking with professionals, trying to get a job, or trying to get a promotion...SERVE.
There's nothing more valuable than your time, especially if the person you want to impress has a limited supply of time themselves. Offer your unpaid assistance (and be enthusiastic about it), and pretty soon you'll be making friends all over the place. Be yourself, but be genuinely interested in other people - introduce yourself first, remember their names, ask for their opinions, listen and relate to them. This, of course, works for other social circles besides business as well. When you want to be someone's friend, stop by for a visit, offer to drive them somewhere, be a good listener, etc. Giving both your time and attention show that you are interested in that individual and his or her life, and the people served feel more secure and cared for. In the business world, the same principles apply. Your boss will remember your name (and your abilities) if you offer to create a new design for the company website. Your co-workers will remember your kindness when you offer to pick up lunch for them while you're out. Taking a few moments to be aware of peoples' needs will take you from being the newbie in a workplace to being an extremely valuable employee.

"I never think of the future. It comes soon enough."

--Albert Einstein.
Story of my liiife, except not completely 100% because, come on, it's not like we never think about the future. We all make long-term goals and such because thinking ahead is muy importante. Still, it seems like I can only focus on a couple weeks at a time, and that's pushing it. And really, why plan longer than that? There's this idea that I firmly subscribe to called the nothing-usually-ever-turns-out-exactly-the-way-you-planned philosophy. Therefore, make plans when you know the steps to make it happen, when you know they have a good chance of going into effect. That being said, make sure you always have an end goal - something that drives you, somewhere you hope to be down the road. Otherwise, you'll lose your way in the craziness of life because...It's a dangerous business, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no telling where you might be swept off to (thank you, bilbo). But like Albert said, the future always comes soon enough, so concentrating on making the day you're in be the fullest it can be can help ease the stress of trying to be the perfect planner all the time. Don't worry about things you can't control, and let yourself relax a little. Learning to plan your ideal future is something that nobody learns to perfect.