Things of Interest

MyNoise.net is a very interesting site, featuring many customizable noise environments you can use for studying, sleeping, or just relaxing (I suggest the introduction to get you up to speed on how it’s meant to work). The person who provides it is an interesting person who is always thinking of and doing interesting things, and his newest project is a fun one: creating a soundscape of people saying “I love you”. Learn more at https://mynoise.net/loveYou.php, and I urge you to contribute your voice to the mix!

American Psychosis

https://vimeo.com/293802639

Pulitzer-prize winning Journalist, Author and Activist Chris Hedges, discusses modern day consumerism, totalitarian corporate power and living in a culture dominated by pervasive illusion.

"Spot the robot dog dancing to Uptown Funk is simultaneously both terrifying and hilarious.… "

https://twitter.com/gavinsblog/status/1052140235033862144

The knowledge that nothing matters, while accurate, gets you nowhere.

"The knowledge that nothing matters, while accurate, gets you nowhere. The planet is dying. The sun is exploding. The universe is cooling. Nothing's going to matter. The further back you pull, the more that truth will endure. But, when you zoom in on earth, when you zoom in to a family, when you zoom into a human brain and a childhood and experience, you see all these things that matter.

We have this fleeting chance to participate in an illusion called: I love my girlfriend, I love my dog. How is that not better?

Knowing the truth that nothing matters can actually save you in those moments. Once you get through that terrifying threshold of accepting that, then every place is the center of the universe. And every moment is the most important moment. And everything is the meaning of life." – Dan Harmon

10 Reasons Why Assuming A Kid Is At Risk Is Actually Hurtful, Not Helpful

https://www.romper.com/p/10-reasons-why-assuming-a-kid-is-at-risk-is-actually-hurtful-not-helpful-17519

These human horse blinders will keep open office workers from being distracted

https://boingboing.net/2018/10/17/these-human-horse-blinders-wil.html

The 'Swiss Army knife' legs of a house centipede

https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/house-centipede-legs

A cool bug that helps get rid if not-so-cool bugs in your house.

6 Scientific Explanations for Ghosts

http://mentalfloss.com/article/70293/6-scientific-explanations-ghosts

Science Says You Should Embrace Hugging

http://time.com/5413957/hugs-are-good-for-you/

Are Things Getting Better or Worse?

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/07/23/are-things-getting-better-or-worse

How to freeze your credit for free

https://www.techsupportalert.com/content/how-freeze-your-credit-free.htm

We need a phone app or web service that lets you do this for all sources from one interface. Get to it, internets.

Before you can be with others, first learn to be alone

https://aeon.co/ideas/before-you-can-be-with-others-first-learn-to-be-alone

What Is The Best Cleaning Solution For Cat's Hair On The Sofa?

https://cheezburger.com/93511169/what-is-the-best-cleaning-solution-for-cats-hair-on-the-sofa

Here's How You Help a Friend With Depression

https://health.howstuffworks.com/mental-health/depression/questions/help-friend-with-depression.htm

Here’s Why You Should Never Kill a House Centipede

https://www.familyhandyman.com/pest-control/heres-why-you-should-never-kill-a-house-centipede

An Entire Senior Class Aces Picture Day By Hilariously Dressing Up For Their IDs

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/senior-class-dressed-up-senior-ids-hilarious_us_5b9bb4c9e4b046313fba5417

Are Science Communicators Chasing Public Attention at the Expense of Trust in Science?

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/are-science-communicators-chasing-public-attention-at-the-expense-of-trust-in-science/

The Lesser-Known Symptoms of Depression - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLLGwXFh5uw

CTRL Z - Award Winning Short Film (2018) on Vimeo

https://vimeo.com/266473858

Dinner For A Few

https://vimeo.com/288759859

““Dinner For Few” is a ten minute CG-animated film depicting a sociopolitical allegory of our society. During dinner, "the system" works like a well-oiled machine. It solely feeds the select few who eventually, foolishly consume all the resources while the rest survive on scraps from the table. Inevitably, when the supply is depleted, the struggle for what remains leads to catastrophic change. Sadly, the offspring of this profound transition turn out not to be a sign of hope, but the spitting image of the parents.”

The private prison industry, explained

http://theweek.com/articles/788226/private-prison-industry-explained

How to File a Chargeback on a Credit Card Purchase (to Get Your Money Back)

https://www.howtogeek.com/362660/how-to-file-a-chargeback-on-a-credit-card-purchase-to-get-your-money-back/

TV Episode Calendar

https://episodecalendar.com/en/pages/features

Create an account on this site and be notified of upcoming new episodes of the shows you watch.

In case you were wondering...

Wondering if it's acceptable to go to hotel breakfast wearing nothing but a swimsuit and dress suspenders, and barefoot? This guy says it's okay:

He did have that big stick and I wasn't sure if he was a wizard, so I didn't say anything to him.

Travel made easy

This is about how to make the travel and hotels suck less, and if you are currently working remotely, or planning to, reducing travel anxiety and hassle should be something you actively address.

https://naildrivin5.com/blog/2018/01/25/how-to-travel-to-san-francisco-every-other-month-for-five-years.html

Texas Church Offers 'Free Mom Hugs' At Pride Parade

This is what churches should be doing. Good on them! [link]

How to Negotiate a Medical Bill

https://health.howstuffworks.com/health-insurance/how-to-negotiate-medical-bill.htm

Here’s proof that some open office layouts don’t work, and how to fix them

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/heres-proof-that-open-office-layouts-dont-work-and-how-to-fix-them

Another article among thousands that talks about open plan layouts and how the cause a decrease in the very collaboration they claim to foster, and some changes that may help.

I bought a home, now what? Top to-do list advice for homebuyers

https://offbeathome.com/advice-for-homebuyers/

America's fall into fascism clearly explained [video]

https://boingboing.net/2018/07/30/americas-fall-into-fascism-c.html

How Simply Acknowledging Another Person’s Pain Can Help Them More Than Telling Them to Cheer Up

https://laughingsquid.com/how-to-help-a-grieving-friend/

Conductor James Gaffigan Explains Exactly What He Does During an Orchestra Performance

https://laughingsquid.com/what-a-conductor-does-during-an-orchestra-performance/

This Simple Trick Will Make You Happier and Better at Your Job | Time

http://time.com/5339600/how-to-be-happier-at-work/

Resisting the Depersonalization of the Workspace

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/anthropology-in-practice/resisting-the-depersonalization-of-the-workspace/

“No one likes a bare desk, least of all the people who have to sit there.”

Important Manners for Driving - Courteous Driving Is Safe Driving

http://emilypost.com/advice/important-manners-for-driving/

Mike's Hammock Modern Home in Nokomis, Florida

https://www.dwell.com/home/mikes-hammock-ac5c62f9

“I built this on my property for my aging father who has some health issues. Handicap accessibility was a factor in design. His dream has always been to try retire to a cabin in the woods. This is what he got.”

More Recycling Won't Solve Plastic Pollution

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/more-recycling-wont-solve-plastic-pollution/

“It’s a lie that wasteful consumers cause the problem and that changing our individual habits can fix it”

Stories: what's the most creepily intelligent thing your pet has ever done?

https://www.metafilter.com/175103/Whats-the-most-creepily-intelligent-thing-your-pet-has-ever-done

Things To Do When You Can't Sleep Because Of Racing Thoughts

http://www.kuriositas.com/2018/07/things-to-do-when-you-cant-sleep.html

How the Proper Use of Colons and Semicolons Will Make Your Written Intention More Easily Understood

https://laughingsquid.com/proper-use-of-colons-and-semicolons/

The psychology of post-traumatic stress disorder

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_n9qegR7C4

“Many of us will experience some kind of trauma during our lifetime. Sometimes, we escape with no long-term effects. But for millions of people, those experiences linger, causing symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, and negative thoughts that interfere with everyday life.”

The Earth Is Farthest From the Sun Today, So Why Is It So Hot?

https://gizmodo.com/the-earth-is-farthest-from-the-sun-today-so-why-is-it-1827387729

The Wood Wide Web: How trees secretly talk to and share with each other

http://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/the-wood-wide-web-how-trees-secretly-talk-to-and-share-with-each-other

How to get affordable legal help

http://theweek.com/articles/781938/how-affordable-legal-help

What the Heck Happened to My Body During Reiki?

https://www.thecut.com/2017/09/what-the-heck-happened-to-my-body-during-reiki.html

“Most commonly, reiki is used to ease pain, anxiety, fatigue, and depression, but since at its core is the conviction that the body in its natural state can heal any ailment, the applications, theoretically, are endless. However, the few, small studies on the practice have yet to yield much evidence of its efficacy (though the research has also found that it doesn’t appear to be harmful).”

Why We Should Practice Forest Bathing and How to Get the Benefits of ‘Forest Medicine’

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/why-we-should-practice-forest-bathing-and-how-to-get-the-benefits-of-forest-medicine/

"There is something very therapeutic about walking through a quiet forest during the day. In fact, there's a whole medical practice that boasts about the positive mental and physical benefits of spending time in nature."

Which is Worse For You: Sugar or Fat? [video]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJUiQU8-w8E

Why Children Aren't Behaving, And What You Can Do About It

https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/06/02/611082566/why-children-arent-behaving-and-what-you-can-do-about-it

“First: Where, how and how much kids are allowed to play has changed. Second, their access to technology and social media has exploded. Finally, Lewis suggests, children today are too "unemployed." She doesn't simply mean the occasional summer job for a high school teen. The term is a big tent, and she uses it to include household jobs that can help even toddlers build confidence and a sense of community.”

Pulling Off the Perfect Power Nap

Veterinarian Demonstrates How To Pick Up a Cat Like a Pro

To the Busybodies Who Say, "Never Leave Your Child in the Car for Even a Minute!"

HumanKinda [video]

"Do we need more of doing less? Is busyness robbing us of our humanity? Are you so busy that you're actually kind of surprised you read this far? In this short film, host Sam Richardson explores our need to stay busy and how it affects our happiness by following the lives of two crazy-busy people in an attempt to find out if humankind is becoming humankinda"

Loft Living: An Energy-Efficient Oasis in Portland, Oregon

The Dumpster, by Meredith Sabini

"One day, I noticed a full-size dumpster in front of her bungalow. I assumed it was for yard debris or trash from some renovation project. But soon strangers appeared. On my daily walk, I could see them scurrying around the property. A boy about twelve sat on the porch, looking morose. His expression evoked a twinge of anxiety in me that perhaps Mrs. Cy had died.

I called over haltingly, “Is she gone?”
“Yeah, she passed.” It was hard to tell whether he was upset at losing kin or just sulky at having to help with an unpleasant task."

Pros And Cons Of Standing Desks

From The Onion. You've been warned. ;-)

Big news

I Recommend Abandoning The Show

If a TV show doesn't really grab you, or stops being worth it after episode/season x, stop watching.

Exactly What 7 Sleep Experts Do When They Can’t Fall Asleep

"OK Google" not being heard in Google Assistant/Voice Match

I was having a frustrating time setting up Google Assistant on my Android phone, because at the part where I'm supposed to set up Voice Match by saying "OK Google" it just acted like it didn't hear me. Yet I could use voice for other Google and non-Google things.

I tried many things, then I found this in a user forum somewhere:

Uninstall updates for the Google app from Settings -> Apps -> Google -> ... (tap the three dots on top right) -> Uninstall updates. Now setup Google voice. Once successful, you can update Google app back to the latest version.

Every successful relationship is successful for the same exact reasons

Sleep on it

"When it comes to creativity, innovation and problem solving, you can’t beat sleep."

Why can't we all admit that violent video games are sick?

"Why is it the default position of every commentator that spending hundreds, even thousands of hours acting out scenes like the one I described above has no ramifications for the way young people — the majority of them male — feel and behave? "

How 401(k)s created a class of suckers to be fleeced by the investor class

The best beds & mattresses you can buy online (since that's how we're all doing it these days!)

11 Secrets of Bodyguards

Interactive tool showing how sound waves work

11 Tricks to Help Master Your Job Interview

The Real Causes Of Depression Have Been Discovered, And They're Not What You Think

"When people are behaving in apparently self-destructive ways, “it’s time to stop asking what’s wrong with them,” he said, “and time to start asking what happened to them.”"

9 Ways to Get to Sleep When Your Mind Is Racing

The difference between causation and correlation [video]

Easiest Weight Loss Plan Ever

"How dieting less can add up to more weight loss"

Why Facts Don’t Change Our Minds

What Do You Call a World That Can’t Learn From Itself?

What Do You Call a World That Can’t Learn From Itself?: "Why Don’t Americans Understand How Poor Their Lives Are?"

How to Give Your Kids Freedom in a Dangerous World

How to Give Your Kids Freedom in a Dangerous World

Also Five Myths About Missing Children

100+ Must-Listen-To Podcasts

A Simple Guide: How To Use Your Instant Pot, and a Cheat Sheet

Sunk costs and discontinuing things you're doing

“Continuing down a path that isn’t taking you where you want to go for no other reason than you’ve already walked a long way … is crazy.”

Tomorrow's News [video]

"Tomorrow's News, a public service announcement by Sandy Hook Promise, highlights the importance of recognizing and speaking out about warning signs."

How the Storytelling Style of Adventure Time Makes the Animated TV Series So Special

Portugal’s radical drugs policy is working. Why hasn’t the world copied it?

is'

The compelling case for working a lot less

"Whether it’s walking away from your desk for 15 minutes or logging out of your inbox for the night, part of our struggle is control – the fear that if we relax a grip for a moment, everything will come crashing down."

Happiness (video) - The story of a rodent's unrelenting quest for happiness and fulfillment.

Happiness from Steve Cutts on Vimeo.

US gun violence spawns a new epidemic: conspiracy theorists harassing victims

"After mass shootings, survivors and victims’ families face a second round of attacks online – and fighting back is ‘like trying to kill roaches with a fly swatter’"

Recipe for Christmas tree water

"Fire safety for real trees depends heavily upon properly maintaining the moisture content of the tree as high as possible". See a recipe for what Christmas trees like to drink to stay fully-hydrated:
http://burninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/ChristmasTrees-factsheet.pdf