Servant of Humanity

n our fast-paced society, the quick fix is often desired as a solution to illness. But elevated health-care costs and the harmful side effects of medications have many people considering alternative treatments.

A quick fix can make symptoms go away, but true healing integrates physical, spiritual, mental and emotional well-being, according to Sha, author of "Power Healing: The Four Keys to Energizing Your Body, Mind & Spirit" (HarperSanFrancisco, 2003, $32).

Sha has been featured in the PBS documentary "Power Healing with Master Sha" and last month released another book, "Soul Mind Body Medicine" (New World Library, paperback, $15.95). He resides in Canada with his wife and children.

replacing your vital documents

Collection of links for help in replacing documents lost or damaged as a result of a natural disaster, such as bank records, driver's licenses and vehicle registration, immigration documents, passports, medical records, savings bonds, damaged currency, Social Security cards, tax returns, and birth, marriage, and death certificates. [frwr-news]

HouseKeepingChannel

HousekeepingChannel.com (HC) is a comprehensive resource for "Better, Faster, Healthier" cleaning and housekeeping. HC exists to help you clean, protect and enhance your home environment using proven processes and practices from cleaning experts, professional cleaning services, environmental service professionals, and organizational and time-management consultants. [frwr-news]

Medline Plus

The tutorials listed on this U. S. National Library of Medicine site are interactive health education resources from the Patient Education Institute. Using animated graphics each tutorial explains a procedure or condition in easy-to-read language. [frwr-news]

state sponsored child abuse

Of course you have heard of the Nazi Angel of Death, Dr. Josef Mengele, who became infamous for conducting grueling medical experiments on concentration camp inmates during WWII. Some of his victims were children. He tested unsafe drugs on them, injected them with lethal germs, removed their organs and limbs and performed sex change operations on them. His primary interest were identical twins.

Thank goodness something like that could never happen here. Or could it?

While the U.S. mainstream media eagerly report on every new case of child molestation, abuse, kidnapping, or murder, they're strangely silent about the many historical and not-so-historical cases of child abuse for scientific purposes, condoned and/or sponsored by modern, "civilized" governments.

* * *

Reader feedback

Historical Sounds

Historical sounds in MP3 format from the Free Informations Society

-- via Cool Tricks and Trinkets

Extend Your Life

There's evidence life spans in America may actually shrink if we keep our couch-potato ways. But some surprisingly simple steps (more sleep, anyone?) may put us on the right path. Our guide to extending your golden years.

KEITH HAYES was willing to try almost anything to lower his blood pressure. He sat quietly, breathing deeply, in his car. In empty conference rooms. Even in his own cubicle, with his eyes closed. But the best oasis he found for destressing during the day was a tiny 4-by-8-foot room — otherwise known as the office utility closet.

Everyday Mysteries

Did you ever wonder why a camel has a hump? If you can really tell the weather by listening to the chirp of a cricket? Or why our joints make popping sounds? These questions deal with everyday phenomena that we often take for granted, but each can be explained scientifically.

Everyday Mysteries will help you get the answers to these and many other of life's most interesting questions through scientific inquiry. In addition, we will introduce you to the Library of Congress' rich collections in science and technology.

All of the questions presented on this Web site were asked by researchers and answered by librarians from the Library's Science Reference Services.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #403

The Happiness Formula

A new six-part BBC series, starting this week, looks at the newest research from around the world to find out what could it be that makes us happy.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #403

The Creation of American Idol

Network television programmers face a challenging job, though not a complicated one: they need to find hits. That's why they spend millions to find and hire talented writers, actors and producers. In many cases they would be wiser to invest in a catcher's mitt, because really big hits, ones that can transform the fates of networks — and of network executives — tend to fall from the sky. Here is the story of how "American Idol," the biggest hit on television, hovered over every network in 2001, waiting for one of them to grab it. This article is adapted from "Desperate Networks" by Bill Carter, a reporter for The New York Times. Doubleday will publish the book on Tuesday.

Religious Tolerance

[5/26/06] Religioustolerance.org promotes religious tolerance. That is, we encourage people to respect the freedom of other individuals to follow freely their own religious and spiritual paths, without discrimination and oppression. This is a human right guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights.. Ultimately, it leads to peace in a land of religious diversity, and to religious freedom for all.

Unfortunately (in my view) not all are tolerant with this site's views.

-- found from a link from the BBC site on religion which was featured in Cool Tricks and Trinkets #404

daily health

5/16/06 - Stress Busters
The idea behind living a stress-free life is to remove the obstructions in your life that are causing you to be stressed. Of course this is easier said than done, but it is truly the only way to not have stress. Here I list some things that can be done on a daily basis, or as needed, to reduce the symptoms of stress.

• Walk outside for at least 20 continuous minutes every day
• Take the stairs whenever possible
• Take 10 deep belly breaths every hour, if possible
• Drink plenty of pure water — at least 10 glasses a day
• Avoid sugar and caffeine in all forms
• Regulate sleep and wake cycle to a consistent daily routine
• Engage in Mindfulness Meditation for at least 15 minutes per day
• Prioritize your life, work, family and personal time and activities
• Do six shoulder shrugs whenever you are tense
• Realize that when people criticize and judge, they are labeling an "image" of you and not you personally
• Realize that you are worth so much more than the sum of your titles, money and belongings


5/11/06 - Excercise Your Breath
There are innumerable ways in which one can benefit from the practice of the deep breathing exercises of qigong. The practice of qigong improves blood circulation and enriches the blood with more red blood cells. This increases the supply of oxygen to the tissues and promotes healthier tissues and organs. The greater supply of oxygen enables the heart to pump slower, while still providing enough oxygen to the body.

gas saving tips

With the statewide average price of regular gasoline passing $3.40 last week, drivers are looking for ways to cut their gas consumption. "There's lots of things you can do," said George Nitta, host of a local radio show about cars. If you really want to save gasoline, get a bicycle, Nitta said.

[6/15/08] Here's Edmunds' article on what really saves gas (article dated 11/22/05, from frwr-news of 6/3/06)

David Blaine

Performance Artist, Illusionist, Magician and newbie diver David Blaine has ended his 177-hour stay in a water-filled acrylic sphere, failing in his attempt to free himself from chains and shackles while holding his breath beyond the 9-minute mark.

Taylor Hicks? GoFish

Taylor Hicks videos on gofish. I don't know how long they'll last but enjoy them while you can. Also some Elliott Yamin. But not much of the others.

Audition (Taylor)

Taking It To The Streets (Taylor)

Levon (Taylor)

Knocks Me Off My Feet (Elliott)

Teach Me Tonight (Elliott)

Happiness grows on trees

American cities are short on trees, and the overload of concrete and asphalt landscapes has become a drain on people's well-being, experts say.

Aside from taking in carbon dioxide and generating life-giving oxygen, trees and greenery also clean the air and water, help sick people get well, encourage children to pay attention and give hope to those living in despair, researchers say.

Health Daily

Dr. Mark Wiley writes, "In the Spring of 2004, a group of wellness and lifestyle conscience writers, editors and researchers approached me about building an on-line community where like-minded seekers of optimal health could feel at home, read the latest and share ideas and stories about their health and wellness trials and successes."

The result of that effort is Health Daily.

Damn Interesting

Created by a group of writers, this cool site lives up to its name by
providing a daily dose of interesting facts and ideas to the Internet
public. A wonderful website to bookmark, there is always something
fascinating to read that will no doubt have you saying to yourself,
"Wow, that is Damn Interesting!!"

Scroll the various sections of the site, which include interesting
facts from the subjects of "History", "Space Exploration", "Gray
Matter", "The World of Tomorrow", "Medical Science", "Wonders of
Nature" and much more.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets

10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America

10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America is a television series presented by the History Channel. The series is comprised of 10 films, each created by a different award-winning documentary filmmaker or filmmaking team, spotlighting 10 historic events that triggered seismic shifts in America's political, cultural or social landscape. Using a range of storytelling techniques including re-creations, animation, interviews, archival footage, and historical articles, the series offers viewers a fresh perspective on well-known historical incidents while also shining a light on the tremendous impact of less frequently cited events.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets

garlic the wonder drug

There's an invincible weapon against disease and infection--a cure-it-all remedy that kills any virus it comes in contact with. That includes the most feared biological agents like anthrax, ebola, and H5N1 (the infamous bird flu virus). No known germ has ever managed to develop a resistance to it. It is proven to wipe out cancer cells without harming healthy cells, and it clears plaque-clogged arteries like a charm.

Why haven't you heard about this wonder drug?

Because it's not a drug. It's a food, and its name is garlic.

* * *

Maybe. Maybe not.

there's good fat and bad fat

There's good fat, there's bad fat and there's truly horrible, heinous, reprehensible fat -- the Voldemort of the fat world, a fat so hideous and evil that it's despised by nutritionists and cardiologists the world over.

Trans fat -- shudder! -- is beyond bad. It's so bad, in fact, that it earned the label "metabolic poison" from Harvard School of Public Health professor Walter Willett.

Not satisfied with merely increasing your bad cholesterol, trans fat (short for "trans fatty acids") manages to lower your good cholesterol, too. It occurs naturally in low levels in milk and beef, but most of the trans fat in the American diet comes from 45,000 food products, everything from cookies to fries to Twinkies.

-- Star Bulletin, 4/2/06

The New Medicine

The New Medicine – a two-hour documentary that premiered March 29 on PBS (check local listings for future broadcasts) – explores a burgeoning movement taking place in hospitals and clinics across the country: integrating the best of high-tech medicine with a new attitude that recognizes it is essential to the healing process to treat the patient as a whole person, and not a cog in an assembly line.

The New Medicine suggests that medical practice in America may be on the brink of a transformation. As scientific findings reveal that the mind plays a critical role in the body’s capacity to heal, the medical community has begun to integrate this new understanding into effective treatment strategies that take Western medicine to the next level.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #397

why eat breakfast?

Heed this mantra because your breakfast is THE most important meal of the day. It literally breaks your overnight fast, which can last from 12 to 16 hours depending on what time you had dinner the previous night.

It helps you recharge your energy levels in the morning, which if not boosted will make you feel tired and hungry; you could end up snacking on high calorie snacks or overeat at lunch. Eating breakfast also stimulates the metabolism, which may slow down overnight.

Why breakfast is a MUST

Having trouble concentrating at work or studies? Feeling grouchy or lethargic? Here's why.

~ Memory is the worst affected by hunger as the brain requires a minute-to-minute supply of glucose for its normal functioning. Breakfast helps replenish the blood glucose levels, which in turn is the brain's fuel.

~ Research conducted across the world has shown that children who eat breakfast think faster and clearly, solve problems more easily and are less likely to be fidgety and irritable early in the day.

While those who go hungry to school are poor learners as skipping breakfast has a direct effect on a child's scholastic performance. They are not as adept at selecting the information they need to solve problems. Their ability to recall and use new information, verbal fluency and attentiveness are all affected by hunger.

~ People who skip breakfast have less energy and slower reactions. They are unable to concentrate and think fast and may suffer stomach aches, headaches and feel grouchy.

~ Skipping breakfast makes you so hungry by lunch time that you become a victim of the 'gobble syndrome,' which is bad for the stomach as the secretion of the digestive juices does not match with the rapid food intake. Also by eating fast, one tends to overeat.

~ Research studies have also shown that the human body tends to accumulate more fat when a person eats fewer, larger meals than when the same number of calories was consumed in smaller, more frequent meals.

kung fu healing

In China, birthplace of martial arts, if you announce yourself as a kung-fu fighter, sick people will approach you as if "wushu" were a Mandarin word for "healer."

In other words, it is assumed in the East that a master of fighting is also a wellness expert.

a good nazi

NANJING, China — From the outside it does not look like much: the shell of a two-story brick building with scaffolding running up its sides and, on a drizzly winter day, a pair of construction workers kicking around in a courtyard littered with building materials.

But 69 years ago the courtyard was filled with hundreds of Chinese seeking refuge from Japanese troops who were rampaging through the city, then China’s capital. The invaders subjected Nanjing to a six-week reign of terror, killing large numbers of Chinese soldiers who had thrown down their weapons and murdering and raping thousands of civilians.

The property was the home of John Rabe, a Nazi Party member and employee of Siemens. In addition to sheltering people in his own compound, Mr. Rabe led a score of other foreigners in the city to form an international safety zone that shielded more than 200,000 Chinese from the Japanese.

April 5th

On Wednesday, April 5th, 2006: at two minutes and three seconds after 1:00 in the morning, the time and date will be 01:02:03 04/05/06.

This will not ever happen again in your lifetime.

Cool, huh!

The 8 Virtues

President Hu Jintao has a message for Chinese who are greedy, lazy or unpatriotic: Be ashamed, be very ashamed. Mr Hu's list of eight do's and don'ts was unveiled during the meeting of parliament that ended this week.

"Love, do not harm the motherland.

"Uphold science; don't be ignorant and unenlightened.

"Serve, don't disserve the people.

"Work hard; don't be lazy and hate work.

"Be united and help each other; don't gain benefits at the expense of others.

"Be honest and trustworthy, not profit-mongering at the expense of your values.

"Be disciplined and law-abiding instead of chaotic and lawless.

"Know plain living and hard struggle, do not wallow in luxuries and pleasures."

-- starbulletin, 3/16/06 --

household solutions

Use vertical strokes when washing windows outside and horizontal for inside windows. This way you can tell which side has the streaks. Straight vinegar will get outside windows really clean. Don't wash windows on a sunny day. They will dry too quickly and will probably streak

and more (and some of them may even be true)

The Official Ramen Homepage

The Official Ramen Homepage is dedicated entirely to the art of cooking this inexpensive, instant dish. You'll find a range of recipes including Sinful Breakfast Ramen, Hamburger Ramen Stroganoff, and other creative versions of this fast food.

- from Cool Trinks and Trinkets #395

Zillow.com

See why your property taxes are so high.

Tom Cruise vs. South Park

Actor Tom Cruise threatened to boycott promotion of his upcoming Paramount Pictures film unless a sister cable TV network pulled a "South Park" rerun lampooning the Church of Scientology, industry sources said on Friday.

Representatives for Paramount and Cruise, a prominent Scientologist, denied he made any such threats or had anything to do with the Comedy Central network canceling plans to air a repeat of the "South Park" episode titled "Trapped in the Closet," on Wednesday.

The controversy caused Isaac Hayes (the voice of Chef) to quit the show. And Comedy Central caved in by cancelling the planned repeat.

But Stone and Parker threw together a new show featuring The Return of Chef (with edited snippets of Chef's voice from past show) featuring the Super Adventurer Club. (And, true to form, even more slanderous than the original.)

Manakai O Malama

A Honolulu clinic that offers different forms of health care sets up a fund to help needy patients

Don Knotts

Don Knotts, the saucer-eyed, scarecrow-thin comic actor best known for his roles as the high-strung small-town deputy Barney Fife on the 1960s CBS series "The Andy Griffith Show" and the leisure-suit-clad landlord Ralph Furley on ABC's '70s sitcom "Three's Company," has died. He was 81.

* * *

Who could forget Barney and Gomer in the haunted house, in search of Opie's baseball.

In the cobwebbed darkness, the pair hears a ghostly moan.

The exchange is short, but unforgettable.

Barney (with jumpy excitement): "What was that?

Gomer: "I don't know, but it don't sound like no baseball."

ethanol a scam?

[3/5/06] A recent careful study by Cornell University's David Pimentel and the University of California at Berkeley's Tad Patzek added up all the energy consumption that goes into ethanol production. They took account of the energy it takes to build and run tractors. They added in the energy embodied in the other inputs and irrigation. They parsed out how much is used at the ethanol plant.

Putting it all together, they found that it takes 29 percent more energy to make ethanol from corn than is contained in the ethanol itself.

[4/19/06] Making 4 gallons of ethanol requires the energy in 3 gallons of ethanol (4/3 = 1.33). So you must make 4 gallons of ethanol to save 1 gallon of gas. But ethanol has less energy per gallon, so to save 1 gallon of gas, you must make 6 gallons (4 x 1.5) of ethanol.

To become energy independent, we would have to grow corn on every square inch of the U.S., including Alaska, and then half that much again. To meet President Bush's goal of ethanol providing 30 percent of energy, corn would cover 50 percent of the United States.

[6/20/06] DuPont and BP, riding the global wave of enthusiasm for bio-based fuels, announced today that the two companies have developed a new biofuel called biobutanol that they say has 30% more energy density than ethanol.

DuPont and BP (nyse: BP - news - people ) have been working on the new fuel since 2003. The two companies plan to introduce the first generation of biobutanol in the U.K. by the end of 2007. And they hope to roll out an improved second-generation biobutanol by 2010. DuPont and BP aim to make the fuel competitive with gasoline, even when oil is priced as low as $30 to $40 a barrel. In the U.K., the partnership will produce the new fuel by extracting fermentable sugar from sugar beets and converting that into a fuel, similar to the way ethanol is produced.

Save The World

The wizened sage sits alone upstairs in his secluded wooden house, massaging his temples in fatigue as he speaks to the camera. Sleeping only two or three hours a day, he is grappling with weightier problems - translating the theory of meditative power into a blueprint for feeding the hungry and bringing peace to the world.

A few hundred meditators on either side of a conflict is all that's needed to create an aura of peace. "We create world consciousness and coherence. Therefore, fighting will stop all over," he says.

"Don't fight darkness. Bring the light, and darkness will disappear."

* * *

A bad movie on the SciFi Channel? Actually that's what Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is doing these days.

70%?

Your junk food joint could be junkier than you've ever thought: Aside from record amounts of trans fats and sugar in your burger, fries, and soda, even the ice in your drinks may be a health hazard. This is the finding of a 12-year-old student's science project, which has by now received international media attention.

Jasmine Roberts from Benito Middle School in New Tampa, FL, randomly selected five fast food restaurants near the University of South Florida, where she collected ice samples from soda fountains and at drive-thru windows, as well as toilet water from the restrooms of the same restaurants. Roberts tested the samples in a lab at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center where she volunteers, mentored by a USF professor.

In 70% of the cases, the toilet water was cleaner than the ice.

how many bullets?

In September of 2005, Paul Craig Roberts, former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under President Reagan, produced a set of calculations trying to establish how many American bullets it takes to kill one insurgent.

The official estimated number of insurgents in Iraq has been 20,000. According to reports of the Government Accounting Office (GAO), by September the U.S. military had used up 1.8 billion rounds of small caliber ammunition in Iraq.

That means “U.S. troops have fired 90,000 rounds at each insurgent,” states Roberts matter-of-factly. “Very few have been hit. . . If 2,000 insurgents have been killed, each death required 900,000 rounds of ammunition.”

In this Wild West-style shootout, U.S. government-owned and domestic commercial ammunition plants combined haven’t been able to keep up with production. A shortage of ammunition forced the Bush administration last year to buy ammo from foreign producers, such as Israeli Military Industries, no doubt for premium prices.

cancer detecting dogs

In the small world of people who train dogs to sniff cancer, a littleknown northern California clinic has made a big claim: that it has trained five dogs — three Labrador retrievers and two Portuguese water dogs — to detect lung cancer in the breath of cancer sufferers with 99 percent accuracy.

-- starbulletin, January 22, 2006, F3

graduation rates

I was surprised to see how low graduation rates are. Out of 100 ninth graders, only 65% graduated from high school and 12% graduated from college on time.

End of the Spear

Far from home, five American missionaries died in brutal fashion: speared and hacked to death by tribesman in the dense jungles of Ecuador. That nightmare moment 50 years ago this month evolved into a remarkable example of reconciliation, and one of the most influential incidents in 20th century Protestant mission lore.

The saga is even being retold in "End of the Spear," a moving independent feature film about redemption in the jungle with a bigger budget ($17 million) and broader release (in 1,200 commercial cinemas in the United States this weekend) than many films of this genre.

Dog Parks

Oahu has more than 40 dog-friendly parks and 121 beaches where dogs on leashes are allowed. For a guide, visit www.hawaiianhumane.org and touch the link Dog Parks & Beaches.

Off-leash fun can be found at four dog parks:

» McInerny Dog Park: Next to the Hawaiian Humane Society in Moiliili; open during shelter hours, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekends and holidays.

» Bark Park: At Diamond Head Road and 18th Avenue, open during daylight hours daily. Visit www.barkpark-honolulu.org.

» Moanalua Dog Park: At Moanalua Community Park off Puuloa Road; open during daylight hours daily (except Tuesday mornings when it is closed for maintenance). Visit www.moanaluadogpark.org.

» Mililani Dog Park: at Mililani Mauka District Park at the Park & Ride, 95-1069 Ukuwai St.; open during daylight hours daily (except Wednesday mornings when it is closed for maintenance).

Ethiopian Idols

"Ethiopian Idols" has its own answer to Simon Cowell, the acerbic judge on the American and British versions. Feleke Hailu disses contestants by telling them they "sing like donkeys." The show has fast won the highest ratings on otherwise dull state-run TV.

Shinran

Until Shinran's time in medieval Japan, Buddhism had been the preserve of monastic adepts who sought enlightenment through rigorous and demanding mental and physical practices that were available to only the most capable individuals. Ordinary people could only look forward to numerous future rebirths in transmigration until they acquired sufficient spiritual potential to break through the bondage of infinitude and attain final nirvana or Buddhahood.

WB + UPN = CW

The two networks were launched in 1995 with great fanfare. Both aimed at the youthful viewers who were lucrative and yet increasingly elusive for their bigger broadcast rivals. Each has since lost its owners close to $1 billion.

Now, in a surprise move that's a sign of the struggles in network television, Warner Bros. Entertainment and CBS are shutting down their also-ran networks, WB and UPN, this September. Instead, they are jointly forming a new network, dubbed CW, to replace both. CW will inherit the assets — and most of the top shows — from WB and UPN.

What Women Should Do, Too

As promised, it's the women's turn. Last week's Young View detailed five things men should do, but don't.

If you missed it, they included getting regular checkups, watching less TV, learning how to listen without interrupting, stepping up the intimacy and throwing away old belongings.

Now, let's turn the tables on the ladies.

Five things women should do, but don't:

1) Do minor repairs on your own car. The other day I got an e-mail from a friend. It joked about a woman who went into a repair shop and was asking for a replacement "710."

The repair guys had no idea what she was talking about so they asked her to show them if another car in their garage had a "710." When they opened the hood of the car, the woman pointed to the "710," which was in clear view.

"That's not a '710,'" said the guy. "It's the OIL cap."

Most women - not all, but most - have never changed a flat tire. They may be better than the above-mentioned woman and know where the oil cap is, but whether or not they've ever attempted to change the oil is another matter.

When I was in college, my dad sent me a book for women on fixing cars. It had big pictures and easy diagrams. I don't think I ever used it.

Instead, I called on boyfriends, neighbors or friends anytime a stray nail found its way into my tire. Now, I call on the mechanical services of Sebastian anytime my oil needs changing.

Why should we learn to do what men have been taking care of for the better part of a century? Because we argue for equality and independence. And just because a car has mechanical parts and requires lifting and getting dirty, it doesn't mean it should be a job for guys only.

At the very minimum, we should know how to fix a flat, change the oil and pay attention for any strange sounds emanating from the hood area.

(This item also applies to learning to do your own taxes and, according to Sebastian, learning how to "spackle," a.k.a. do some house repairs.)

2) Less talking. Or, as my friend Alan put it, "Don't take a gosh darn hour to tell me about your day!"

You know how you ask your boyfriend or husband to tell you about his day and he answers, "It was OK."

Men would love it if women could respond the same way. Instead, we women wait anxiously to be asked the question (it makes us feel like the man is interested) and then proceed with an hour-long monologue/diatribe about everything that happened from the time we walked into the office to when we made dinner at night.

Men just can't understand why we need to talk so much. They aren't going to remember all those details so they'd rather we just get to the point and let them get back to watching SportsCenter.

When the gab goes overboard, men tune us out. It's not that they don't care, it's just that they don't need as much verbal contact as we do to feel connected.

No matter how hard we argue it, the bottom line is men by genetics have a listening limit. There's no way to change that and we shouldn't force them.

So let his ears have a break every once in a while. Tell your man about your day in a more selective way. Think Cliff Notes.

3) Be more easygoing. One of the primary complaints I hear from men about their women as that we over-analyze everything. Take Lani, for instance. She and Jay were celebrating their one-year anniversary by having dinner. Lani expressed enthusiasm during the meal by saying, "Can you believe it has been a year already?"

Jay was silent. He nodded and then dug into his plate of chicken saltimboca.

Immediately, Lani began to analyze. "Why didn't he respond? Did he feed his face to cover the fact that he really doesn't care? I guess I don't mean anything to him."

What Jay was really thinking was "Hmm ... one year. That's March, August, November... hey, that's when I got my new truck! Cool."

Women think out loud, men don't. This is why we women freak out when our man doesn't respond to our commentary. Most men don't have hidden agendas like we think they do; they take everything at face value.

So instead of analyzing everything that he says and doesn't say, ladies, take a breath and stop the maddening "what ifs" from taking over.

4) Say what you mean, mean what you say.

This one is easy. Stop making your man guess what you're feeling. It drives them nuts. They are no more capable of reading your subtle signs than they are able to buy you a pretty dress in the right size.

If you're angry at him, just tell him why. If you want him to help more around the house, you have to say so.

Leaving a man to guess at what it is you want or feel is as risky a game as playing roulette in Las Vegas. More often than not, you'll end up feeling angry and dissatisfied.

5) Stop asking his opinion on everything. Even though we women would love to be included on every decision our man makes, from his daily lunch choice to what shirt he wears to dinner, men don't want the same from us. Unless you want his help on something major like buying a new car, your man doesn't feel he needs to have a hand in everything you do. Unless he's a control freak, he probably doesn't care what you're making for dinner, as long as he gets to eat. He also won't be able to give you an opinion on which decanter you should buy for your Aunt Flo who lives in Rhode Island. Though women like that extra assurance in all of life's matters, men would rather we make those little decisions on our own.

Comments?

-- KATIE YOUNG, The Young View, MidWeek March 16, 2005

Dahn Hak

Mixing elements from martial arts and yoga, the Korean practice of Dahn Hak is finding new students in Hawaii because, they say, it is both relaxing and energizing.

Some sources say the organization is not so innocent.

Best and Worst from Ebert & Roeper (& Siskel)

Ebert & Roeper's Best Movies of 2005

But more fun is their list of Worst Movies of 2005

Ebert & Roeper Special Shows

Past Best and Worst Lists from Ebert & Roeper (& Siskel) from 1986-2000

Siskel & Ebert & Roeper's Ten Best from 1967-2004

* * *

[1/16/06] Much more importantly, what are my favorite movies of the year? Looking at my DVD collection at dvdspot, here they are.

2005 - Kung Fu Hustle (2004 movie, but 2005 release in U.S.)
2004 - Something The Lord Made / National Treasure / Blade: Trinity
2003 - Finding Nemo / School of Rock
2002 - My Big Fat Greek Wedding / Two Week's Notice / Hero
2001 - Rush Hour 2
2000 - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon / Shanghai Noon / Space Cowboys
1999 - The Matrix
1998 - Rush Hour
1997 - Batman and Robin
1996 - Eraser / Independence Day
1995 - Mortal Kombat
1994 - Fist of Legend / Wing Chun
1993 - Demolition Man / Jurassic Park / Army of Darkness / Iron Monkey
1992 - Sneakers / Aladdin / Honeymoon In Vegas
1991 - Once Upon A Time In China
1990 - none
1989 - When Harry Met Sally
1988 - Midnight Run / Rain Man (don't have Midnight Run yet)
1987 - The Princess Bride
1986 - Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
1985 - Yes Madam!
1984 - Beverly Hills Cop
1983 - WarGames / Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
1982 - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan / Rocky III
1981 - Raiders of the Lost Ark
1980 - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
1979 - The Magnificent Butcher
1978 - Heaven Can Wait / Drunken Master
1977 - Oh God! / Star Wars
1976 - The Bad News Bears
1975 - none
1974 - none
1973 - Enter The Dragon
1967 - The Dirty Dozen
1966 - Batman the Movie
1964 - Goldfinger

The 48 Laws of Power

Law 1 - Never Outshine the Master

Always make those above you feel comfortably superior. In your desire to please or impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite – inspire fear and insecurity. Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power.

And 47 more. (This site is actually more or less the table of contents from the book.)

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #383

New Year's Traditions

Why do the Spanish stuff twelve grapes in their mouths at the stroke of midnight? Why won't Scots allow a short, blonde physician to cross the threshold first? And why do Norwegians hide one almond in their rice pudding?

Useless Information

The site is called Useless Information, but it reads sort of like Ripley's Believe or Not.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #385

The Devil's Candy

High-fructose corn syrup is making America fat. How? By shutting off the switches that control appetite. It's more easily turned into fat than any other carbohydrate. And it's everywhere, from the obvious places like Coke and Mountain Dew to barbecue sauce and canned soup. [from chucks_angels]

Brain Calisthenics

[1/11/07] Is there hope for your hippocampus, a new lease for your temporal lobe? Science is not sure yet, but across the country, brain health programs are springing up, offering the possibility of a cognitive fountain of youth.

[7/6/05] Steps you can take to avoid losing your brain

Yoga For You

01/08/06 - Warrior Pose 3

01/01/06 - Uttanasana (intense stretch pose)

12/25/05 - Bridge Pose

12/17/05 - Standing Eagle Pose

12/11/05 - Half Moon Pose

12/4/05 - Chair Hamstring Stretch

11/27/05 - Virabhadrasana (warrior pose)

11/20/05 - Utkatasana (fierce pose)

11/13/05 - L-shaped pose

11/6/05 - Eagle Pose

10/30/05 - Chair Shoulder Stretch

10/23/05 - Sitting Chair Twist

10/16/05 - Downward-Facing Dog Pose

10/9/05 - Tree Pose

10/2/05 - Cow Faced Pose

9/25/05 - Bound finger pose

* * *

For Ray Madigan, an Iyengar yoga practitioner for 13 years, "The great thing is yoga has become popular, and the bad thing is yoga has become popular."

The Five Things Men Should Do

Some things are easier said than done. For instance, it's easier to say you're going to eat better, but then opt for the drive-through burger when the day gets too hectic.

We all do it, men and women alike. We know we should do certain things, we even say it out loud, "I really should do this or that," but then we never get around to making a life change.

Sometimes there is a logical explanation for our behavior, other times there is not.

But in the name of making the world a better place, there's never a limit on self-improvement.

Five things men should do, but don't:

1) Get regular check-ups. I have a friend who hasn't been to see a dentist in six years. The only way he'll go to any doctor - be it dentist, optometrist or physician - is if his girlfriend makes the appointment for him.

Most men I know avoid regular checkups like they avoid shopping with their wives. Both experiences leave them sitting in uncomfortable chairs waiting for someone to come tell them it's time to go, and the former sometimes also requires turning your head and coughing. Not fun.

The average man firmly believes he can cure himself of whatever ails him by walking it off. If there's nothing ailing him, well, then, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

My co-working attributes this phenomenon to a little bit of "male machismo."

He says that while he sends his wife to the doctor anytime she has the sniffles, he could have an arrow sticking out of his forehead and rationalize, "It's not that bad, I'm sure it will fall out tomorrow."

While logic might point said male in the direction of the doctor's office, when it comes down to it, I think men are scared to go get checked because they're afraid of what the doctor might find.

But maybe the answer to this is less profound than that. After all, male machismo is a strong and baffling force.

2) Watch less TV. Yes, that's right. Watch less TV! Or at least don't be so consumed by what you see on-screen. It's very irritating to us women when we feel like the TV runs your life. We could parade naked in front of you, but if CSI is on (which now runs Monday, Wednesday and Thursday) we can forget about getting any kind of attention. There's more to life than the tube, boys, so turn it off every once in a while to see what else is out there.

3) Learn to listen without interrupting. There's nothing worse than when we ladies wait all day to talk to you and in the middle of our in-depth story about something that went wrong at work, you interrupt us mid-sentence to yell, "Whoa, did you see that gecko hiss at the cockroach on the floor? Cool." We feel your lack of ability to just listen to the end of the story means you're not interested in what we have to say. Plus, you're always interrupting us with some insignificant factoid.

Talking is the way we women make a connection to you, the man. Is it that hard to just let us finish?

"But if I didn't tell you about the gecko right then and there I'd forget, or you'd miss it," the man maintains.

That's fine with us, let the gecko go about his business. If you love us, then pay attention to what matters the most in our world: that we get to share our day with someone who really cares to hear what we're feeling.

4) Intimacy before and after. I have lots of girlfriends who complain that the intimacy in their long-term relationships is close to non-existent.

Gone are the early honeymoon-stage days of staring deep into each other's eyes, of shoulder rubs, making out and cuddling.

As time goes on, men seem more obsessed with just getting the job done and getting on with life than with slowing down to enjoy the view.

Women are left feeling a bit neglected and unsatisfied. For us the cuddling and kissing is part of an all-inclusive experience.

We know you're tired, but we'd appreciate a little extra effort every once in a while. Trust me, the more work you put in at the start, the sweeter your lady's experience will be.

5) Throw away old belongings. You know that old shirt with the hole in the armpit? Or that pair of underwear you have from high school that resembles Swiss cheese? How about that pair of used-to-be white socks that are so smelly they've scared away all the other dirty laundry in the basket?

Men should learn to throw their old things out! Sure, save the items that have true sentimental value, but don't tell me that the Swiss cheese underwear "still has some life left in it."

Unless it's a baseball card you've saved from childhood and plan to sell to buy a new house, if it's falling apart, time to let it go. You can buy new socks at Wal-Mart.

Next week: Five things women should do, but don't. Stay tuned.

-- Katie Young, MidWeek, March 9, 2005

The Tokusatsu Cycle

Tokusatsu, can fall into a predictable cycle. Joe Schmoe, usually a character with a tragic past, encounters lackeys of an evil organization with aims to take over the world; hero goes through an elaborate sequence of poses to transform into the mega-powerful costumed Superhero X; giant rubber-suited monster gets pummeled into oblivion; catchy closing theme plays as footage of the hero riding off to meet his next challenge rolls under the credits.

* * *

What can I say? That never stopped me as a kid as from watching.

It's About Time (by Ruth Wong)

recent articles

7/26/10 - 7 Ruinous Habits

6/28/10 - One Month to Live, Part 3

6/14/10 - One Month to Live, Part 2. The book "One Month to Live," by Kerry and Chris Shook, founders of the Fellowship of the Woodlands church near Houston, is a 30-day challenge to do just that - to live as if we were dying. They said that countless people in every stage of life say things such as: "Someday I'm going to go for all that life has to offer." "When I retire, then I'm going to enjoy life." "When I make enough money, then I'm really going to spend more time with my kids."

We all have things we want to do and experience, things that we'll do when we have the time, when conditions are better or when we get caught up. But in reality, how often does that "someday" come?

All too often, I've noticed that "someday" is "ne'er-to-come" day. "Someday. One day. When. If. Then it's over. When are we going to wake up and realize this is your life, right here, right now? Someday is right now."

5/24/10 - If you knew you had only one month to live, how would you live it? Would you continue on as always, or would you make changes to make the most of the time you have left?

This is just one of the questions authors Kerry and Chris Shook, founders of a megachurch outside Houston, present in their New York Times best-seller book "One Month to Live: Thirty Days to a No-Regrets Life."

1/25/10 - Don't delay in doing things you've put off

10/26/09 - Puttering around yields better mental health
8/24/09 - Successful Don'ts
5/11/09 - More reasons clutter accumulates
4/27/09 - Just how did that clutter accumulate?
2/27/09 - Purging the dross of triviality [added 12/26/15]
2/13/09 - The 5S Clean Desk Cop
Bring order to your home office

11/14/08 - How much stuff does a man need?
6/27/08 - Organization is not about looking good

11/9/07 - Contentment helps simplify life
09/28/07 - Living nobly and freely
05/25/07 - Make your life count while you can
05/14/07 - Pare down possessions and gain peace

02/10/06 - Use routines to stay on top of daily chores
02/10/06 - Downsizing frees up space for meaningful possessions

12/23/05 - Organizing Express gets final check
12/09/05 - List guages improvement
11/25/05 - Reality check on progress
11/11/05 - Shovel out from under all your stuff
10/28/05 - Mini-tasks more likely to get done
10/14/05 - Don't put off today's tasks
09/23/05 - More on the 80/20 Rule
09/09/05 - The 80/20 Rule
08/26/05 - What does your home say about you?
08/12/05 - Appreciate life while still living it
07/22/05 - Simplifying life brings freedom
07/08/05 - Overcome roadblocks one at a time
06/24/05 - Neglecting problems now can hurt later
06/10/05 - Arise and face the day, beautifully
05/27/05 - How to slow down
05/15/05 - Why rush through life?
04/22/05 - Is your home constipated?
04/08/05 - Discard clutter, not the memories
03/25/05 - Small acts are better than big ideas
03/11/05 - The problem of procrastination
02/25/05 - Organize your bill paying
02/11/05 - Avoid mail pile-up
01/28/05 - Getting organized
01/14/05 - What will you pay to get organized?

12/24/04 - Final recap of this year's columns
12/10/04 - More action steps from this year's columns
11/26/04 - Recapping the first quarter
11/12/04 - Be thankful for small joys
10/22/04 - What do you wish you were doing (and why aren't you?)
10/08/04 - What does organization mean to you?
09/24/04 - Hurricane Preparedness
09/10/04 - Being Ready for a Hurricane
08/27/04 - Delay work, delay enjoyment
08/13/04 - Thoughts on simplicity and elegance
07/23/04 - Make today and every day the best day of your life
07/09/04 - Works smarter not harder with checklists
05/28/04 - It's never to early to right-size
03/26/04 - Spring clean your closet
01/09/04 - Theme for the Year

11/28/03 - Happiness doesn't depend on things
05/23/03 - Unload your brain

10/25/02 - To grow is to outgrow and let go

03/24/01 - Ruth Wong delves into people's brains

12/27/96 - Make most out of space

Hawaiian-Style Ring Tones

Hawaiian Telcom, in partnership with Mountain Apple music company, is offering Hawaiian music ring tones.

Watering Your Nose

Yogis have known about its beneficial effects for centuries, and contemporary Western medicine is slowly catching on: Nasal irrigation with an isotonic solution (meaning, a saline solution similar in salt content to the body’s fluids) is becoming increasingly popular.

Richard Pryor

Richard Pryor, the groundbreaking comedian whose profanely personal insights into race relations and modern life made him one of Hollywood's biggest stars, died of a heart attack Saturday. He was 65.

Don Ho undergoes experimental heart surgery

Don Ho, Hawai'i's most famous entertainer, has undergone an experimental heart procedure in a hospital in Bangkok, Thailand — a last-resort effort to maintain a regular heartbeat and extend his life.

Ho, 75, had the surgery Monday night. The procedure, called VesCell Adult Stem Cell therapy, involves an injection of the patient's stem cells from his blood directly into his heart muscle to treat heart disease.

Jet Li gives up kung fu movies?

Jet Li says his next movie, Fearless will be the last kung fu movie he'll make.

Atter this, he'll try to decide between playing baseball or running for governor of California.

Bruce Lee in Bosnia

A bronze statue of martial arts legend Bruce Lee has been erected in the Bosnian city of Mostar - a day before a second statue of him is unveiled in Hong Kong.

"We will always be Muslims, Serbs or Croats," said Veselin Gatalo of the youth group Urban Movement Mostar. "But one thing we all have in common is Bruce Lee."

Mr. Miyagi

Actor Pat Morita, best known for helping teach a boy martial-arts mastery through household chores as the wise Mr. Miyagi in "The Karate Kid," has died. He was 73.

13 Uses for Bounce

What Granny knew... just like baking soda and lemon juice, dryer sheets seem to have more possible applications than you'd think. Although we haven't tried all of them, the few we tested did indeed work. (For the record: even though we mention Bounce, you don't have to use a brand name product--any dryer sheet will do.)

Repel mosquitoes. Tie a dryer sheet through a belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season.

Dissolve soap scum from shower doors. Clean with a used dryer sheet.

Freshen the air in your home. Place a dryer sheet in a drawer or hang one in the closet.

Prevent thread from tangling. Run a threaded needle through a used dryer sheet to eliminate the static cling on the thread before sewing.

Prevent musty suitcases. Place an individual dryer sheet inside empty luggage before storing.

Keep the shock away. Place a sheet in your coat pocket to avoid the shock you get getting in and out of the car in the winter.

Clean baked-on food from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in the pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The anti-static agents apparently weaken the bond between the food and the pan, while the fabric softening agents soften the baked-on food.

Eliminate odors in wastebaskets. Place a sheet of Bounce at the bottom of the wastebasket.

Collect cat hair. Rubbing the area with a sheet of Bounce will magnetically attract all the loose hairs.

Eliminate static electricity from Venetian blinds. Wipe the blinds with a used dryer sheet to prevent dust from resettling.

Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sand papering. A used sheet of Bounce will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.

Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a sheet of Bounce in your shoes or sneakers overnight so they smell great in the morning.

Keep flies away. Hang some sheets outside your doors to keep the flies from congregating and getting in your house every time the kids open the door. Place them in a work shed that has no air-conditioning and is wide open and you will never have a fly.

- WWNK 11/22/05

Here's snope's results (which were mixed)

Dragon Gate (the kung fu movie store)

Emily Ng, manager of Dragon Gate Bookstore, started noticing a drop-off in Chinese-language book sales about eight years ago. Rather than wait for obsolescence, she started bringing in videos and DVDs, starting with kung fu films not carried by rental operations such as Blockbuster. Since then she's managed to create a niche for fans of Chinese and Asian cinema in her small, unassuming storefront at the Chinatown Cultural Plaza.

Dragon Gate Top 20

"Initial D the Movie"
"House of Fury"
"Tai Chi Master"
"Hero"
"House of Flying Daggers"
"Shaolin Soccer"
"Sword in the Moon"
"Shaolin vs. Evil Dead"
"Kung Fu Mahjong"
"Stairway to Heaven"
"Butterfly Sword"
"Dragon Inn"

Top Shaw Brothers DVDs
"Avenging Eagle"
"36th Chamber"
"Shaolin Temple"
"Five Shaolin Master"
"The Brave Archer (1, 2, 3, 4)"

Hmm. Kung Fu Mahjong? Sounds interesting.

why you sleep so late?

A new study suggests that, as children mature, the chemically driven pressure to sleep builds up more slowly. As a result, teens just don't get sleepy until later in the evening.

- starbulletin, 11/6/05

A Complete Handbook of Natural Cures

John Kapili added A Complete Handbook of Natural Cures for your reading enjoyment in PDF format for free. I added this after reading Kevin Trudeau Natural Cures Book. John Kapili also was given a book on cd: Lose 30 Pounds in 30 Days . In my opinion I wouldn't buy either. Read the Complete Handbook of Natural Cures you will get just as much if not more for free. A great deal of Kevin Trudeau cures he wants you to pay for at his website by becoming a member at $ 9.95 a month or $ 499.00 for a lifetime membership. John Kapili will be asking for his money back guarantee, as soon as he digs out the garbage a gets the packing slip that is needed for returns.

-- from frwr-news 11/16/05

Apparently (from the url embedded in the file) this file originated from Health Library.com, though I wasn't able to find it there now.

odd blogs

The J-Walk Blog

- from ravi, 3/11/05

Squashed Philosophers

While the writings of great philosophers such as Aristotle, Machiavelli, Locke, Nietzsche, Pascal and Kant are ingenious and insightful, they are also often long-winded, verbose, and difficult to interpret. Thanks to Squashed Philosophers, the average guy can quickly read a nicely condensed and easily digestible bit of Western Philosophy.

-- Cool Tricks and Trinkets #340

getting rid of stuff

[9/20/07] Getting Good Stuff Cheap (or Free)!

[11/11/05] freecycle was featured in the starbulletin a couple of weeks ago. It had 1416 members back then. It's now up to 1498. That's a fairly disappointing increase.

[12/25/05] Here's an earlier article that appeared last year. (In the print edition, that article was accompanied by this story.)

[1/14/05] WinXPNews has some suggestions on how to get rid of your unwanted computer (and other) stuff. Two in particular look intriguing: freecycle and craigslist.

fashion statement

My idea of fashion

Success.org

At this website, not only can you learn how to invest in real estate, you can learn self-defense too!

- from Roy

The Yogis of Tibet

I see that this film was playing at Spaulding Auditorium a couple of weeks ago.

I don't see it on imdb, but I see they have a website, a favorable review, and some interesting background information.

Can You See Clearly Now?

[10/28/05] I received a spam for the product called The See Clearly Method which claims to be able to improve your eyesight.

Does it work? It is unclear, but the fact that it was spam may be a clue.

***

Q. I am 51 and have recently noticed that newspaper print is getting harder to read. To forestall the need for reading glasses, should I give my eyes a daily workout by reading the paper without glasses, or will reading small print make the problem worse?

A. Neither course of action will make a difference in the long run, and in the short run, “an unnecessary workout by reading the paper without glasses will only lead to blurriness, headaches and frustration,” said Dr. Christopher E. Starr, assistant professor of ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Your difficulty is almost certainly presbyopia, a condition that appears at middle age and is caused by a progressive loss of flexibility in the lens, making it harder and harder for the lens to change shape to focus clearly on objects at different distances.

The difficulty is most noticeable when trying to view small targets like printed text.

“Presbyopia is purely related to increasing age and there are no exercises that can prevent it or slow it down,” Dr. Starr said in an e-mail message.

“Wearing the correct eyeglass prescription will allow you to read comfortably at a normal distance and will not weaken the eye or cause the presbyopia to progress further.”

keywords: vision, eyesight, eyeglasses

***

[11/1/10] Kind of reminds me of the Bates method and the book Better Eyesight Without Glasses (which I bought years and years ago) which gets four stars at Amazon.

Even more interesting is the book Relearning to See. What makes it interesting is the author's name: Thomas Quackenbush.

***

[11/1/10] And now, Eye Yoga.

*** [7/22/12 via frwr_news]

Eyes Relaxing and Focusing – is designed to protect computer users' eyesight, especially that of those who spend in front of the monitor more than one hour a day. While occupied with various programs, games, designing or programming, users often lose the sense of time, especially if the process is absorbing. After some period, you must make a pause to let your eyes rest. This product will allow you to train your eyesight during the break by means of particularly designed images that will appear on the screen. All you have to do is watch these images..

[I tried it and it doesn't seem to make my eyes relax.  But maybe that's not the point..]

[9/6/16] According to this, "thousands of people have improved their vision using this unique method."  I'm skeptical, but you never know..  Interesting eye exercises anyway.

Come Drink With Me

I'm still waiting for this classic kung fu movie to come out on DVD. This movie is commonly called the predecessor to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

The Dog Whisperer

[5/5/07] Cesar has a myspace page

Cesar on youtube

Cesar on NPR

Nightline story

Boston Globe story

American Humane says Cesar's methods are inhumane.

Cesar responds to critics

[10/13/06] The Dog Whisperer comes to Hawaii

[1/30/07] Ian Dunbar vs. Cesar Millan

[6/6/06] Not everyone agrees with Cesar's methods

[1/26/09] Another page of criticism of the Dog Whisperer

[1/30/07] Malcolm Gladwell's article

[10/24/05] Generations of children are familiar with "Lassie," but Cesar Millan, who grew up in Mexico, was particularly affected by reruns of the beloved TV series about the heroic collie and her human sidekick, Jeff. [Wasn't the boy named Timmy?]

Fat Chance

Just when we thought we couldn’t get any fatter, a new study that followed Americans for three decades suggests that over the long haul, 9 out of 10 men and 7 out of 10 women will become overweight.

Satchel Paige health nut?

Some sluggers succumbed to his famed "hesitation pitch." Others expired in the vapors of his fastball. Most amazing was his endurance -- it seemed Satchel Paige could pitch forever. But what was the old man's secret? Was his tireless, slingshot arm a quirk of genetics? Or was Paige a health nut before his time?

-- Star Bulletin, Sunday October 2, 2005

Andrew Weil

In an exclusive TIME book excerpt, Dr. Andrew Weil shares his secrets for maximizing health and happiness -- no matter how old you are

The Placebo Effect

A new University of Michigan study reveals that people exhibiting the placebo effect don’t just think they’re getting better. They really are getting better.

*** [3/17/10]

LONDON (AP) — When it comes to the placebo effect, it really may be mind over matter, a new analysis suggests.

In a review of recent research, international experts say there is increasing evidence that fake treatments, or placebos, have an actual biological effect in the body.

The doctor-patient relationship, plus the expectation of recovery, may sometimes be enough to change a patient's brain, body and behavior, experts write. The review of previous research on placebos was published online Friday in Lancet, the British medical journal.

"It's not that placebos or inert substances help," said Linda Blair, a Bath-based psychologist and spokeswoman for the British Psychological Society. Blair was not linked to the research. "It's that people's belief in inert substances help."

While doctors have long recognized that placebos can help patients feel better, they weren't sure if the treatments sparked any physical changes.

What We Must Learn From Iran

[9/29/06] Suspecting the American media aren't portraying an accurate picture of life inside Iran, a retired Honolulu journalist set out to get a first-hand look at life in the so-called "Axis of Evil" nation.

[9/27/05] Born around 590 B.C.E, Cyrus forged an empire from India to Greece. While earlier leaders banned their enemies’ religions, Cyrus respected the religions of other people. He bowed down to his subjects’ gods and rebuilt their temples. He issued what is called the first declaration of human rights. “I respect the traditions, customs and religions of the nations of my empire,” he declared, “and never let any of my governors and subordinates look down on or insult them.” His empire lasted 200 years.

Get Smart!

[4/11/13] Donna gave the the Season 1 DVD set as a gift (a year or two ago, still haven't finished watching it).  But I saw the HBO set at BookOff for $10 yesterday.  This is the one that has the fifth special features DVD.  I wasn't 100% if that was the one, so I bought it just in case and sure it enough it is.

I guess I'll unload the four DVD one at swapadvd or eBay.

Anyway they had this neat episode from the Bill Dana Show featuring Don Adams and Bill Dana as Jose Jiminez.  And in stepped Hans Conried!  But actually listening to the Bill Dana commentary, it wasn't Hans Conried but Jonathan Smith who is best known for his role on Lost In Space.  [1/8/21 - Actually his name is Jonathan Harris who played the role of Dr. Zachary Harris.] I guess I have always confused the two (or thought they were the same person).

Looking it up, they actually appeared on an episode together of Lost In Space, called the Questing Beast (on hulu).

Here's a review of the Complete Series (including the special features fifth DVD from each season). If you're looking for the special features, make sure to look for the five-disc set instead of the retail four-disc sets. And another review.

[9/5/06] The Get Smart! DVD Collection is now available for ordering directly from Time Life.

[6/5/06] Apparently the DVD set will be sold via direct response, which is sort of surprising since I would think it would be a popular item.

[6/3/06] TVShowsOnDVD has received word from an anonymous source (we'll call him "Agent 86") about the upcoming Get Smart DVD releases. We had previously reported that HBO would be releasing the series, but they've licensed the show to Time-Life instead of doing it themselves. We can expect the first season to be released sometime in Fall 2006, but Agent 86 didn't have the exact date for us. However, he's working on getting that top secret info. The set will feature all 29 color episodes, PLUS the rare B&W pilot episode where Maxwell Smart (Don Adams) is teamed up with 99 (Barbara Feldon) for the first time. All the episodes have been digitally remastered and restored, and they're the original full length episodes, not the bastardized syndicated versions.

The first DVD set will include commentary tracks and interviews with Barbara Feldon, creators Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, as well as unearthed materials featuring some of Don and Barabara's television appearances.

[9/26/05] Don Adams passes away at 82

[8/11/05] Mark Evanier, who is well-known among comic book afficianados for his time spent as an assistant/apprentice to the legendary Jack Kirby, has also spent quite a bit of time in the world of Television writing as well.

Today he's reported at his NewsFromMe.com website that "a company" (he says that he believes it to be Time-Life...more on that in a moment) is preparing an announcement for "any day now", which will see the DVD release of every episode of Get Smart.

40 years?! Wow that's a long time ago.

- from tvshowsondvd.com

---

Who will be providing the Get Smart DVD? HBO.

Kung Fu Science

Meet Chris, kung fu expert and general, all-round crazy person. Sometimes he breaks concrete blocks just for the hell of it.

Meet Michelle. She's a physicist working at the Institute of Physics, but recently she's been learning kung fu. In particular she wants to learn how to break wood with her bare hands, and find out the physics behind the feat.

-- from Cool Tricks and Trinkets #367

wheel covers

Missing a wheel cover? Try Parts Pacific Depot in Salt Lake, 833-2626. "For just $25 per wheel cover, or $65 a set, our quality hubcaps are dealer-manufactured, but priced at a huge savings to our customers."

- from Talk Story Magazine, Fall 2005

Kevin Trudeau (and his kind)

[10/30/05] Dr. Richard DeAndrea has an informercial for a product called Colon Flow. It looks like he was also the founder of another program called 21-Day Detox which has had its critics and was featured on CBS' 48 Hours.

[10/14/05] Here's another infomercial that I watched on 7/31/05. Dr. Lorraine Day was pushing her product BarleyGreen. QuackWatch responds.

[9/16/05] Kevin Trudeau's Natural Cures has been outsold only by Harry Potter. Trudeau, well-known for his infomercials, is not a doctor or scientist, and has had some run-ins with the law.

[8/29/05] With Trudeau banned from doing infomercials (except for his book), what's to become of Robert Barefoots of the world. Well, I've seen the future as I was scanning the ALIFE channel late at night. There was a guy that looked sort of like a young Tom Snyder interviewing a guy who sort of looked like a young Ken Patera. It turned out that the Tom Snyder guy was Donald Barrett interviewing Scott Kennedy pushing a product called Sea Vegg, a seaweed product. Kennedy made it sound almost as good as Barefoot's coral calcium. Like Trudeau, Barrett is under fire from the FTC. Nothing on Sea Vegg at quackwatch yet. Waddayaknow? Here's an article on Barrett that apparently came out today.

Joseph Rotblat's legacy of peace

Rotblat had worked as a scientist toward the creation of an atomic weapon, first in the United Kingdom at the University of Liverpool and then at Los Alamos, N.M. When he learned in late 1944 that Germany would not succeed in developing an atomic bomb, he believed there was no longer reason to continue work on creating a U.S. bomb. Rotblat was the only scientist to leave the Manhattan Project on moral grounds.

Gilligan gets off the island

Bob Denver passes away at the age of 70.

Sherwood Schwartz, the man who created "Gilligan's Island," said Bob Denver was a complex man and "not a guy who just slipped on banana peels."

Wacky Taxes

History is littered with odd tax schemes. William Pitt the Younger introduced a tax on windows in Britain. Peter the Great taxed souls, and Nero, urine.

Let no man say that we here in America cannot compete for oddity of tax laws. We have some really weird assessments on the books.

Collections Online

[3/24/14] I guess DVDCrate is OK, but one major limitation is that it just orders your collection in date acquired order.  No way to sort by title, or by rating, or by category, or by anything.  So doing a search, there was an alternate site suggested by a member.  It's itrackmine.com (which does books and music too).  So let's try this one.

Without even looking, it already looks pretty decents as it got reviewed by lifehacker and mashable.

[3/22/14] For some reason, I did a search for DVDSpot (I think I was looking for DVD Reviews, but I forgot the name of dvdtalk).  Anyway, I came up with this alternative for DVDSpot.  DVDCrate.  Looks like there's potential.  But then I've already created a google docs spreadsheet for my DVD Collection.

Looks like the collections (they call it a "crate") are sorted by date acquired.  Don't see anyway to sort by title or by genre or by rating.  Or by anything.  So that's a definite minus.

[11/16/08] As I went to add Bruce and Lloyd to my collection, I see the DVDSpot is gone. Sob. I don't know if I want to go back to dvdaficionado.

I've been using guzzlefish for keeping my collections of DVDs, CDs, and video games online. But guzzlefish has problems updating its data base and more importantly it's chronically down (and has been down for weeks).

I'm switching over to DVDSpot for my DVDs and I still have my dvdaficonado account.

For video games, I've fiddled with sonicswap.

For books, there's bibliophil.org.

[4/29/10 - also for books, I've been on shelfari and lately paperback swap (which has the added bonus of trading books with others). And now I have just seen and am going to try goodreads (on a search on the author of Value Investing for Dummies. Hey, after a couple of minutes with goodreads, I kind of like it. Pretty friendly interface. And now on a search for "goodreads for movies" I see flixster. I'm liking both. Trying to create a list and it's not showing up as one of my lists. It's there though as I can find it by other searches... OK, apparently it takes a while.]

[6/23/10 - Hey why not just use the google books library for my book collection? I'm going to try it now, but it looks quite promising.]

[6/23/10 - OK I tried google books library. It's OK. But I think I like using paperbackswap the best so far.]

I think there's another site for CDs, but I can't seem to find it now. I'll post it here when/if I find it. Here's one that looks promising: discogs.com. It seems to be primarily a database of recording artists and albums, but it allows you to keep a collection there too. It's a user-built database and looks fairly new. So there's still a lot of holes, but it seems to be growing fast.

[9/2/05] discog is full of holes and they seem to very picky about accepting submissions for their missing entries. I've started to put some my CDs in sonicswap instead, but it seems to be sluggish at times.

[9/2/05] I forgot about this one. I had put some of my video game/computer game collection at ign.com

[9/19/05] I ventured over to gamespot (I don't think it's affiliated with dvdspot) which allows you to catalog your video game collection. A relate site there is mp3.com which says you can put in your music collection. So I'm trying it out. The gamespot collection looks pretty good. On the hand, mp3.com is undergoing problems. Though it does seem to have a nice database of albums, I'm unable to add them to my collection. I'll try again later.

[9/21/05] I see mp3.com has a major bug. When adding albums that are by various artists, it doesn't work. And when you add them to the wish list, it shows up as a blank entry that can't be deleted. It does seem to have a fairly complete database though, so if this problem can be fixed it would be my recommended site.

Michael Buble (and other old music)

[8/23/05 early a.m.] When I was at Circuit City on Saturday, I was surprised to hear big band-type music being played over the sound system. I asked the girl stocking the shelves and she said it was Michael Buble.

It's now on my short list of music to buy (along with the Johnny Cash tribute albums -- while I wait for TNT to one day replay or otherwise make available their All-Star Tribute).

[8/27/05 early a.m.] More music I'm looking at. Steve mentioned Johnny Crawford (the kid from the Rifleman) has a band (looking at Amazon I don't see any new albums, but evidently he was a popular singer when he was younger). And that Paul Anka has an album where he puts an old beat on newer songs (Rock Swings). Linking on, I see Pat Boone has an odd album where he sings metal (No More Mr. Nice Guy). I'll pass. I might as well go get William Shatner's Has Been or even better Spaced Out.

A comment on Anka, took me to Peter Cincotti which also linked to Jane Monheit (a Tom Richards favorite -- and I hate to say it but I agree)

Instrumental music: Chris Botti, Clifford Brown (with strings).

I still like Sax by Moonlight (Greg Vail) that I bought at Costco.

Last but not least I see John Stevens has an album (Red). OK, this one goes on my want list.

Maybe I'll dig out Linda Ronstadt's 'Round Midnight and listen to that for free.

Hey I now see that Harry Connick Jr. caved and put out an album of the old songs (seems kind of slow). Now I see the Rod Stewart's Great American Songbook (series). Maybe this is the one that started it all (again). Sounds a little incongruent at first though. I see Johnny Mathis got into the act too (Isn't It Romantic)

How about Robbie Williams? (Swing When You're Winning) - linked from Buble. The last song here is Beyond the Sea, which also happens to be same as the last song from Finding Nemo.

[9/7/05] As a follow-up to the Michael Buble post, I found somebody auctioning a VHS tape of the All-Star Tribute to Johnny Cash. I also won the bid to Dressed In Black: a tribute to Johnny Cash. But I got outbid for Kindred Spirits. (Don't worry, I won't mention Miracle: Happy Summer.)

Then I started looking for tribute albums to Elvis. There's a bunch of them. But I think I may already have the best one: Honeymoon In Vegas. There's several interesting ones out there including ones by Ronnie McDowell (who voiced over Elvis in the movies), Conway Twitty, and others.

[9/9/05 - degrees of separation. Or Connections. I couldn't figure what my third DVD to buy (3 for 25 at Blockbusters on 8/29 - I bought Star Wars I and the Mummy Returns). I wound up buying Beyond The Sea which was the movie about Bobby Darin. Actually Bobby Darin might be another one to buy. Or the Beyond The Sea soundtrack. And now I hear Beyond The Sea on a Carnival Cruises commercial being played during the Agassi-Ginepri match at the U.S. Open.]

Or Tony Bennett singing Sinatra? (too mellow). Or just stick with Frank. Or the Rat Pack.

Or just listen to all the Amazon samplers 8)

[later that morning] No wait I found the album. William Hung's third album! (Happy Summer). Somehow some of the stuff I've been looking at is on this list

[12/14/05] Jamie Cullum is a jazz vocalist who was featured by the Costco Connection

[12/15/05] I was listening to Buble's Summer Wind and decided to compare it to Sinatra's version. The first version was a duet with Julio Iglesias. Then I found the song on a Reprise release, so apparently it wasn't done in the Capitol years. Then I see it was done by Steve Lawrence a couple of years ago in a Sinatra tribute (who still sounds pretty darn good considering his age) and also by Lou Rawls (the album was a little rough, but Lou likewise sounds great for his age.) Hey, now I see Barry Manilow did one in 1998 (yep, sounds like Manilow all right). $2.52 used. Hmm. Here's one by Keely Smith. Who's Keely Smith. (Hint: Keely is a woman.) Lemme see what else. Michael Andrew and Swingerhead (sounds sort of like Dean Martin). Craig Raymond & The Next Generation Big Band (sort of close, but not quite). Here's a jazz band tribute called Frankly A Tribute To Sinatra. Jimmy Amadie (no samples). Blue Dahlia (nightclub music). David Osborne (no samples, but he's a pianist based on his other albums). Roger Williams (I think he's a famous pianist). The Wright Touch Big Band (more nightclub music -- kind of reminds me of Larry on that Three's Company episode when he sang in the restaurant). Joe Martino (accompanied by accordian). The last one I see for now on Amazon is Rob Zappulla (this guy performed with Tommy Dorsey! but the album was actually released in January). Wait maybe he performed with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and not with Tommy himself. And actually there's only one song on this album.

I wonder if that Sinatra sound-a-like who used to go on Letterman, or that guy who sang in Waikiki, have albums? They probably sound better than some of these guys. Even John Stevens sounds better. Listening to him now singing It Had To Be You, he actually sounds like Harry Connick.

[2/28/06] I downloaded a bunch of Ring of Fire covers a month or two ago and started listening to them again (along with some American Idol downloads). One of them was sung by Joe Whiting whose albums are being sold at CDBaby.com which distributes independent music. They have a feature that lets you type in famous singer and they bring up artists that sounds like the original. A Frank Sinatra search brought up several including Charles Power, Gary Willner, and Ken Nelson. They come up disappointingly short but have a nice selection of songs that I might choose to compile from the Sinatra originals. Searching further, I like Frank Stallone (Sylvester's brother) the best so far. Steve Lippia is OK too (the band probably makes him sound better than he is).

Linking on, Bob Valentine is not too bad. Michael Civisca is somewhat reminiscent of Steve Lawrence. Tamer is a bit like Connick. For some reason, when I heard Gerard Carelli, I thought of Regis Philbin. I like TonyB's energy. And his voice is quite good too. OK I'll take him over Stallone, except his album is has several unfamiliar songs.

A search for Willie Nelson turned up Bill Cosner and Joe Whitehead.

I wonder if anybody sounds like Slim Whitman? The search turned up Blackstone Valley Singers. Ronnie Mason has a pleasant country voice, but can hit the high notes and sings Indian Love Song. Kind of a sedated Slim Whitman.

A search for Elvis brings Terry Buchwald (quite good), Doug Church, Jason Knight. Orange is not really a soundalike, but slightly modern interpretation.

I wasn't searching for him, but Rusty Evans sounds and even kind of looks like Johnny Cash. In fact full circle I come with his album with Ring of Fire. He's an oldtimer who recorded at the same time as Buddy Holly. Tom Lang is linked on Rusty's page, but he sound a little reminiscent of Willie. OK that's it for now.

(But wait, there's more...) I can't stop. I see some $5 specials at CDBaby.

Leon Cargil sounds good in traditional country.

Hey, Tamer is here in the Jazz Vocals category. As well as the Chris Klich Jazz Quintet

In the Easy Listening: Crooners/Vocals category, Denise Montana sounds like a Nora Ephron soundtrack. Mary Bentley has talent. Libbie Jo has potential. Frank Tarantino's instrumentals are better than his vocals. Kay Martin sounds Linda Ronstadt in Round Midnight then kind of switches to Sergio Mendez, but has only 5 songs on her CD. James Lee Stanley reminds me a bit of Kenny Rankin, but sleepier (if that's possible). Guest musician: Peter Tork! Wait, I heard a bit of CSN in there. Wow there's a lot of nice sounding stuff here. Jennifer Robin. Marilyn and George are two elderly people doing Sinatra and Bennett standards backed by MIDI arrangements, not too badly -- they'd probably be popular at retirement homes.

Locksley, a early-Beatles-esque band is in the Beatles-pop category. But I don't know if they sound any better than the Rutles.

In the 50s pop category is TopFlite, a doo wop a capella group who's claim to fame is singing the national anthem at Spokane Indians baseball games. Roger "Bass Man" Kurt "The Lowest Singing Voice in the Hawaiian Islands, possibly the World!"

I did a search for Josh Groban and came up with Moses. But his first song was more like Weird Al. Baritone Tom Baust sings show tunes very seriously. Ben Jordan is supposed to sound like a cross between Josh Groban and a Gregorian chanter. But he sounds like a very flat Josh Groban to me. I don't think Simon would pass him to the next round. Peter Arce is a piano soloist from the Phillipines who does dinner music. Darin Southam is more like it. Bradford Newquist does Cole Porter slowly. Rose Marie Rudolph sings songs to put babies to sleep. Dale North would pass to the next round. Marty Angiulli is described as Josh Groban on steroids. Sorry. Krassimir is one of Bulgaria's most popular celebrities. Szylvia is a classical stylist from Luxembourg. She sounds great until she hits The Way We Were with her accent. Mark Price does Bobby Darin stiffly. Here's a hint: Jarrod McNaughton's album is titled "You Raise Me Up". And does quite well. This Josh Young guy can sing too. John Trones, who tours with Jim Brickman, sings torch songs accompanied by piano. David Feygin reminds me of Johnny Mathis with romantic covers (probably Mathis did A Time For Us on a LP I have). The boy can sing too. Previn is often compared to Josh Groban, but unlike Josh, Previn writes all his own music and performs it as well, both vocals and instrumental parts. Eric Raftery sings jazzed up Christmas songs. Somehow I'm reminded of Home Alone. Broadway performer Craig Rubano does the hit parade. (What? No Copa Cabana.) Caroyn Sykes plays Christmas tunes on harp. Her credentials? She won Ms. Sykes the presitigious HARPO MARX SCHOLARSHIP! Beat Kaestli (is that his real name?) does big band standards with only a slight trace of his Swiss accent.

OK, that's it (again).

But wait, there's more... I decided to take a listen to Michael Feinstein on amazon.com. Rather plodding. Looking up Feinstein on wikipedia brought me to the American Songbook which brought me to John Pizzarelli. He has a high voice but now I'm getting used it. His interpretations are definitely more lively than Feinstein.

Pizzarelli's albums looks pretty cheap used. Now I see a link to Steve Tyrell singing Sinatra. I suppose he's about as good as the guys on cdbaby.

[5/18/08] I was listening to Sinatra via Windows Media Player and went to the Jazz radio link. Searching for Sinatra brought me to the Fabulous Strip station which mentioned Matt Dusk. Going to Matt Dusk brought me to a few more singers one of which of Steve Tyrell. He's not really a Sinatra sound-a-like but I like what I'm hearing from his albums. Evidently he gained some notoriety by appearing in the Father of the Bride movies.

Renee Olstead is another one that sounds quite good. And she was only 14 when she made the album in 2004.

[9/3/08] I got the new ESPN1420 magazine with a feature story on Leon Wright-Jackson. Leon Jackson was a youtube sensation in high school. I looked it up and came across another Leon Jackson who featured in XFactor (which is a clone of American Idol) who patterns himself on Michael Buble. He was good enough that Michael Buble invited him on stage to sing at one of his shows. I also see that Johnny Cash's performance on the TNT Special was on there too (see post above).