On the proper way to be depressed.....

On smiling...............

"People smile when they are happy, but they also feel happier because they are smiling.  The effect even works when people are not aware they are smiling.  In the 1980s, Fritz Strack and his colleagues asked two groups of people to judge how funny they found Gary Larson's The Far Side cartoons and then rate how happy they felt, in one of two rather bizarre circumstances.  One group was asked to hold a pencil between their teeth, but to ensure that it did not touch their lips.  The other group supported the end of the pencil with just their lips.  Without realizing it, those in the 'teeth only' condition had forced their lower part of their faces into a smile, while those in the 'lips only' condition had made themselves frown.  The results revealed that the participants tended to experience the emotion associated with their expressions.  Those who had their faces forced into a smile felt happier and found The Far Side cartoons much funnier than those who were forced to frown."

-Richard Wiseman, 59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot

In case you missed it the first time......................

Believing in the importance of full disclosure blogging: please be
advised that this blogger never even came close to taking a
statistics course.  Thank you.

Decisions....................

".......the power of decision is the power of change.  Again, it's true that we can't always control the events of our lives, but we can control what we decide to think, believe, feel, and do about those events.  We must remember that every moment we are alive, whether we admit it to ourselves or not, a new set of choices, a new set of actions, and a new set of results are merely a decision or two away.  Ultimately, it's our decisions, not the conditions of our lives, that determine our destiny."

-Tony Robbins,  Notes from a Friend

Opening paragraphs......

     "The first thing they always did was run you.  When big league scouts road-tested a group of elite amateur prospects, foot speed was the first item they checked off their lists.  The scouts actually carried around checklists.  'Tools' is what they called the talents they were checking for in a kid.  There were five tools: the ability to run, throw, field, hit, and hit with power.  A guy who could run had 'wheels', a guy with a strong arm had 'a hose.'  Scouts spoke the language of auto mechanics.  You could be forgiven, if you listened to them, for thinking they were discussing sports cars and not young men."

-Michael Lewis, Moneyball

oeillade.............

This word for the day is brought to us by Mr. Webster and the
Third Edition of his New World College Dictionary:

oeillade       n.     an amorous or flirting glance; ogle

as in:

He gave his sweetie an oeillade as she walked into the room.

A Call for Help.........................

Ray Visotski, the not-so-simple-village undertaker, is looking for
some support.  Please check out his post about the NYC
fire fighting veterans of 9/11.  Support them if you can.

I'm a happy boy............

Michael Lewis is one of my favorite writers.  Blind Side, Coach,
The Big Short, Next, and The New New Thing have all graced
my bookshelves.   His latest effort, Boomerang, arrived today. 
My guess is that excerpts will be posted over the next few
weeks.  Stay tuned.

The tunnel seems to be getting lighter....

thanks Bill

Top workplace trends for 2012..............

The SecondAct blog checks in with ten workplace trends for the new year.  "The old saying that the only constant is change aptly describes the American workplace in 2012."   While most of the ten trends could be a re-run from 2006-2010, number seven below caught my eye.  Truth be told, I could use some help.  Full post is here.

7. Reverse mentoring:  Along with traditional mentoring programs, some businesses are establishing reverse mentoring arrangements where younger workers do the teaching, helping older workers master software, social media and other modern workplace skills.

Lessons learned along the way............

"Lesson learned…never underestimate the power and
memory of the written word."

Jeff re-visits a treasure trove of old e-mails and prints them
out.....because "sometimes you really do appreciate more
what’s in front by looking back.."  Full post is here.

On change...............................

Had an idle moment this weekend and so re-read the adventures
of Sniff and Scurry and Hem and Haw in Spencer Johnson's
cautionary tale about change,  Who Moved My Cheese?
Here are the Cliff Notes:

Yep............................

rodomontade................

This word for the day is brought to us by Mr. Webster and the
Third Edition of his New World College Dictionary:

rodomontade       n.     arrogant boasting or blustering;
                                        ranting talk.

as in:

He quickly changed channels to watch a re-run of NCIS
rather than be subjected to the rodomontade that passed for
insight and punditry on the Sunday morning news talk shows.

Hamilton v. Jefferson..............

Another interesting excerpt from Edward J. Larson's
A Magnificent Catastrophe: The Tumultuous Election of 1800,
America's First Presidential Campaign:

"Ever since they has served together in Washington's cabinet, Hamilton had viewed Jefferson as a dreamy idealist who could neither effectively lead a government nor restrain the radical egalitarian and potentially violent elements within the Republican Party.  Further, Hamilton despaired of Jefferson's ideals.  Hamilton wanted a strong central government to foster commercial development; Jefferson idealized individual freedom, states' rights, and the family farm.  Hamilton also feared that Jefferson's ardent anticlericalism, if made national policy, could destabilize the social order by dissolving the glue of civil religion that helped to hold the country together."

Sunday's verse..........

"It is hard to understand what 'The Kingdom of Heaven is within you' really means.  This is because it is not understandable to the ego, which interprets it as if something outside is inside, and this does not mean anything.  The word 'within' is unnecessary.  The Kingdom of Heaven is you.  What else but you did the Creator create, and what else but you is His Kingdom?  This is the whole message of the Atonement; a message which in its totality transcends the sum of its parts.  You, too, have a Kingdom that your spirit created.  It has not ceased to create because of the ego's illusions.  Your creations are no more fatherless than you are.  Your ego and your spirit will never be co-creators, but your spirit and your Creator will always be.  Be confident that your creations are as safe as you are.

     The Kingdom is perfectly united and perfectly protected,
     and the ego will not prevail against it.   Amen."

A Course in Miracles
Chapter 4: III Love without Conflict:1

On spiritual makeup...

     "The Lord hears the cry of the poor.  When the armistice with self-hatred is signed and we embrace what we really are, the process of liberation begins.  But so often we are afraid to do so because of the fear of rejection.  Like Quasimodo, the hunchback of Notre Dame who thought he was hideous, we daub cosmetics and spiritual makeup on our misery and supposed ugliness to make ourselves appear presentable to God.  This is not our true self.  Authentic prayer calls us to rigorous honesty, to come out of hiding, to quit trying to seem impressive, to acknowledge our total dependence on God and the reality of our sinful situation.  It is a moment of truth when defenses fall and the masks drop in an instinctive act of humility."
-Brennan Manning, Reflections for Ragamuffins

Good for borrowers.......not so good for savers

We didn't seriously start our real estate investing career until
1983, so we personally didn't enjoy the thrill of paying 18%
interest rates.  The only good news about that era was that it was
mercifully brief.  Since 1983 we have slowly and steadily acquired
investment real estate, always with borrowed money.  As the
linkage between interest rates for adjustable rate commercial
mortgages and T-Bills is fairly direct, you can imagine the relief
that this trend line provides.

thanks Mark

But, it is a nice T-shirt.................

hebdomadal............

This word for the day is brought to you by Mr. Webster
and the third edition of his New College Dictionary:

hebdomadal      adj.       Once every seven days, weekly

as in:

At 8:50 this morning, he set off for his hebdomadal visit to
St. Luke's Church.