The unexamined life

Question Everything!

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books.
Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders.
Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it."

--Buddha




Remember the Socratic paradoxes?

• No one desires evil.
• No one errs or does wrong willingly or knowingly.
• Virtue - all virtue - is knowledge.
• Virtue is sufficient for happiness.
• The phrase "Socratic paradox" can also refer to a self-referential paradox, originating in Socrates' phrase, "I know that I know nothing". Socrates believed that the first step towards wisdom is knowing that ultimately you are ignorant; if you want to be a philosopher, remember that you know nothing.

The unexamined life is not worth living
Lately,  I've found myself re-examining stuff. In a quest for knowledge and learning I'm reverting to Socrates and his line of understanding the world around him. Gosh, I know so little! It's new roles and new challenges and also wondering about what my accomplishments I've made in life.

On a lighter note, I always laughed at oxymorons...and thought these were interesting:

1. virtual reality
2. original copy
3. old news
4. act naturally
5. pretty ugly
6. living dead
7. jumbo shrimp
8. rolling stop
9. constant variable
10. exact estimate
11. paid volunteers
12. civil war
13. sound of silence
14. clever fool
15. only choice

http://people.howstuffworks.com/15-oxymorons.htm

Older Geniuses

I love this picture of Einstein because it reminds me of my 90+ yr old Grandmother who we used to ask to stick out her tongue too!

Einstein: "A person who has not made his great contribution to science before the age of 30 will never do so." Gosh, when I read this I thought my best days were behind me. Einstein had discovered that matter was transmutable to energy with his famous equation E = mc2 which helped lay the foundations of quantum theory by that age as evidence for his claim.

However, recent researchers have decided that peak age has shifted considerably with 48 being prime time for physicists.

I took physics in high school and first year in college but have never been overtly physics minded. How about creative geniuses?

Here is a test for you to check out your level of creativity:

Do you …

• HAVE THE COURAGE to try new things and risk failure now and then? Every big breakthrough starts as a harebrained idea.

• USE INTUITION as well as logic to make decisions and produce ideas? You can’t always rely on logic. You have to listen to your gut, too. It follows its own logic.

• LIKE TO PLAY, laugh, and have fun? In many ways, these are the ultimate creative acts.

• SHARE YOUR FEELINGS and express your thoughts? People who are in touch with themselves tend to be in touch with others.

• FIND ORDER IN CHAOS and look for hidden meaning? Creative people see patterns in what to others appears to be irrelevant information.

• GET MOTIVATED BY A TASK rather than by external rewards? If you’re just in it for the money, you’re not going to be a fountain of new ideas.

• FIND SOLUTIONS to challenging problems? If you always have a ready answer, you’ve stopped thinking and creating.

• CHALLENGE ASSUMPTIONS and ask hard questions? Creative people are persistent skeptics, taking what others believe with a grain of salt.

• MAKE CONNECTIONS between old ideas to produce new insights? Sometimes the best solutions are simply two old ideas jammed together.

• PUSH THE ENVELOPE in order to expand the boundaries of what is possible? Instead of dividing the world into the possible and impossible, it’s better to merely divide it into the tried and the untried.

• TEST NEW IDEAS and enjoy competing with others? Creative people don’t mind losing, but they love winning and proving themselves.

These are not the only traits creative people share. But they’re some of the most important.
http://www.procopytips.com/creative-genius

Here's an interesting way to do math:

There's still hope for us yet!!

Dragon Tales

Today is the beginning of the lunar new year celebration for billions of Asians around the world and others who harness an Asian spirit!

The Year of the Dragon is roaring in! This is to be a extraordinary auspicious year! (or for some an auspicuous year). The Dragon is said to have the ability to fly in the heavens and swim in the seas. The dragon is the most favourable and revered sign in the 12-year Chinese zodiac — a symbol of royalty, fortune and power that is also used in other cultures that mark the Lunar New Year.

You can read more here:http://www.chinesezodiac.com/dragon.php


Migration of Asians travel home for the holidays is just like the salmon returning home to spawn!  To new beginnings! Kung Hei Fat Choy 恭喜發財 for all! May all of you and your family have good health 身體健康, good wealth 財源廣進, and all your wishes come true 心想事成 for coming New Year!

 May your year be like the Dragon, powerful strong and invincible! 

Another Kernel

Little Corn Revisited

I had a wonderful reunion with family and great friends in the last couple of weeks! My friend's Grandfather used to say 'You need to keep your friends in repair.' It's so important to reconnect, revisit and renew your relationships.

I am reminded of Little Corn Island in Honduras where we visited last year. It truly was a magical place. The best parts of travels have included meeting the locals and the food. Yummers!

We ate at Radcliffe's restaurant was was run by a local fellow. He had left the island for a number of years to work the cruise ships and travel the world, only to return to where he called home and paradise. His restaurant wasn't the most expensive on the island or even the fancy by any means. His grilled lobster with rice and red beans served with deep fried plantains was delish!

He told us the story about the land that was sold for 4000 tens years ago and recently sold for 200,000 it's the place that will be built up as a resort and have a landing pad. It's sad to think that money will change this little island.

I asked Radcliffe about the heart shaped purple seeds and what they were. We found them on the first day of beach combing.The purple color seeds are called from the mainland and get washed ashore sometimes after traveling for miles across the ocean. I blogged about these wonderful pods last March fondly referred to as the 'heart of the jungle,' (corazón de la selva)! Radcliffe said they used to call them hot rocks and rub them on the sidewalks to warm them up and burn each other with them. Ouch!

There are lots of fishes under the pier in the evening the guy from Oregon who fly fishes said he even saw a sting ray and eagle rays. One evening we saw 9 nurse sharks, one was 3.5 feet! Ten barracudas and so many other fish. he hammerhead shark is known to be in these waters too! There are no poisonous snakes on the island but there was a boa that eats chickens and once a goat! So the locals tell us.

Big Corn Island
We spent most of our time on Little Corn but spend a day on Big Corn on the way back. It was the walk around the island that was the best part.

Some places we saw reminded me of the deep south, one room shacks with hammocks in the front yard. Family members and extended family about. Simple wooden one room houses with tin roof tops. Grandmothers sitting in rocking chairs  in the front porches. Through the window I could see a simple kitchen with tub and worn wooden table. The green paint on the house wad weathered and faded in places but you could see that the place was solid and weathered a few hurricanes and storms.

It felt like Jamaica with a Carribean flair...man!

Are you an Outlier?

Future Outlier?

I joke with my friends all the time about our
levels of intelligence or lack of and how smart we are or our undeniable lifetime memberships in Mensa! Yup, that's me, the practicable joker.

In fact, I don't believe that every level of intelligence is measurable nor do I believe that the smartest people in the world will have the most success or happiness.

In the last few weeks, I've discovered the joys of audio books. Wow...where have they been all this time? I can 'read' a book and do things around the house! Bonus!

I first 'read' the "4-Hour Body"by Tim Ferris. http://www.fourhourbody.com/
Interesting information about fitness, science and health. There are some good points in there for those of you looking at the slow carb diet. A lot of the information I knew about before, but it's always good to get a refresher course.

Now I've been 'reading,' 'Outliers: The Story of Success' by Malcolm Gladwell. I've been meaning to get around to this book for a few years now. It's captivating! I like the analogies and historical research intertwined with personal stories.

We may not be outliers, but we could always strive for 'outlier' status and there is no time like the present to start on those 10,000 hours!!

It's a new year a great way to start fresh! Last year, I spent some time down sizing. I will do the same in the new few weeks.

"Out of cluster, find simplicity." -Albert Einstein

A friend of mine used to play classical music on piano. My Mom also plays classical piano. Lately, I've been back listening to classical music which I really enjoyed in university.

I always knew it was good for you but then I found this website that compared other music tastes to SAT scores.

Check out this website:

http://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2009-03/does-your-taste-music-reflect-your-intelligence

Eat Drink and be Merry!

Stainless Steel Dessert Spoons

I was never born with a silver spoon in my mouth or I guess in my case a pair of silver chopsticks. Each year, there are approximately 3.8 million trees that are used to manufacture of about 57 billion disposable pairs of chopsticks in China, according to statistics from that nation’s national forest bureau. Yikes that's a lot of trees!

On my last trip away, I followed the lead of a friend and bought myself a pair of portable stainless steel chopsticks for all the sushi I love to eat!

Many of my friends enjoy food....they are self defined foodies and I myself enjoy delicious food especially in the company of my friends!


Food plus the love of food was the inspiration for these stainless steel dessert spoons that I created over the holidays. Each spoon is hand stamped with the word 'love' in a different languages.

No matter what the language it is in ....or what the dessert will be, it's all to be enjoyed!

Do the earth a favor an in the new year bring your own chopsticks when you go out for Asian cuisine!

Liu Xiaohang, Greenpeace

Students in Beijing assemble a “disposable forest” to highlight the deforestation issue.

It's a Good Life

As we are closing in on another year I'm reflecting on what kind of year it's been. What are some great learnings this year? What made an impression on me? What will I change from this year forward?

It's a meter of measure once a year...but everyday is a great adventure! It feels...almost complete. There is always one more thing...one more adventure one more project to pursue - one more day.


Lessons Learned
http://thinksimplenow.com/motivation/12-powerful-life-lessons/


Sometimes people focus on all the bad, all the horrible things that are happening in the world, the crisis, trauma and pain. Some people will complain about anything and everything.

Don't get me wrong we all get dismayed at times, the world dishes out some terrible things some days.

My memories are about the things that make me laugh and smile. The wonderful people that are in my life. Through it all life is good...