Flipping Pencils

January 20, 2009 in the USA

 

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Source: Photograph of illustration by Bill Watterson, The Essential Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury, 1998.

Obama Inspires Impromptu Flag Day

I can't be in Denver tonight to hoot and holler, but I need to show my pride and excitement somehow. So, I put out the flag here at my home in Athens, Ga.

Quick, do the same at your home.

What a great day to be an American!

In Praise of Ibuprofen

Mind Hacks, a blog about neuroscience and psychology, spotted this clever and true tribute to the painkiller Ibuprofen:

I Prefer Ibuprofen
By Matt Harvey

Life is so much easier with effective analgesia

The purpose of pain is to say to the brain:
Ow! Houston we’ve got a problem…
But once we’ve got the message we don’t need it again and again…

What do we want? Symptom Relief!
When do we want it? Now!

When you’ve had enough of it there’s just no need to suffer it
Just pop a little caplet and Ibuprofen will buffer it

I've had a go with Aspirin, Codeine and Paracetamol
With Solpadeine, Co-codamol, with Anadin and Ultramol
I love them all, I really do, but I prefer Ibuprofen

There are other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs around
Your NSAID’s these days are quite thick on the ground
There’s Naproxen, there's Nabumetone
and, of course, there's Indomethacin
Each with much to offer us. But I prefer Ibuprofen

I love the way the compound sticks its cheeky little hand in
The way it blocks the enzyme that creates the prostaglandin

Reducing fever, inflammation, and mild to moderate pain

Yes I know it isn’t curative, in anyway preventative
But to dwell on what it doesn’t do is anally retentative
I know it doesn’t treat the cause, the cause will still be there
But it lends a hand, it puts the ‘pal’ back into palliative care.

It does exactly what you’d expect it to say it would do if it came in a tin

Haidt's Happiness Formula

For an explanation, go here.

Zen Habits

Zen Habits upsets expectations, which is a good thing in this case.

Zen Habits is a blog that offers tips on how to be more productive, but also gives concrete advice about how to do nothing. It offers lots of advice about doing things that will make you happier, but does so without promising permanent bliss.

The posts are written simply and clearly, and are usually in the form of lists. You'll find posts such as top 20 motivation hacks, 75 simple pleasures to brighten your day and 10 things you can do today to simplify your life.

Among my favorite posts are a guide to creating a minimalist home and 50 tips for frugal living. A post about the 10 benefits of rising early and how to do it is well done, but not something I'll be trying. This is a very popular site, and it's clear why.