Outside the Box, Inside the Cubicle There are certain kinds of creative, off beat ideas that are simply obvious when you hear them. Tarak Shah and Sabina Nieto came up with one. With the economic downturn, every office building in the country probably has unrecognized resources: vacant cubicles. No doubt many are utilized as storage spaces for disabled copy machines, extra office supplies and the like, but here's an inspired possibility: how about the vacant cubicle as art gallery? Now after you read that last sentence, didn't you immediately smile?... posted on Sep 02 2010, 0 cmts
1962 reads
A Transformative Moment When we look back on our lives, sometimes the smallest gesture can have enormous effects. For George Hill, one man's act has made all the difference. Today, Hill works with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and studies computer information systems at Cal State University. But things weren't always so smooth. After leaving the Marines, Hill found himself homeless and addicted to drugs and alcohol. One day, Hill was sitting on a bag of his belongings when a homeless man approached him. He recalls, "His hands were black... he had rags tied to his feet. And his hair was matted in two big, nasty dreads." The stranger reached into his pocket and offered Hill all that he had: one dollar, in coins. "Here, man. I feel sorry for you." That was all it took. ... posted on Sep 01 2010, 1 cmts
3317 reads
But Will It Make You Happy? She had so much. A two-bedroom apartment. Two cars. Enough wedding china to serve two dozen people. Yet Tammy Strobel wasn't happy. Working as a project manager with an investment management firm in Davis, California, and making about 40K a year, she was, as she put it, caught in the "work-spend treadmill." So one day she stepped off. Inspired by books and blogs about living simply, Strobel and her husband began downsizing and donating their things. Clothing, a television, and even cars disappeared. Now, three years later, the two live happily, modestly, and debt-free on Strobel's 24K annual salary. Working less, she has time to be outdoors and volunteer.... posted on Aug 31 2010, 3 cmts
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Six Keys to Excellence Until recently, Tony Schwartz accepted the myth that the potential to excel is predetermined by our genes- that some people are born with special talents while others aren't. Lately though, his work with dozens of executives reveals that it's possible to build any given skill or capacity in the same systematic way we build a muscle: push past your comfort zone, and then rest. Talent, then, may actually be a simple reflection of how hard we're willing to work. Encouraging us to take ownership of our desired talents, he explains, "If you want to be really good at something, it's going to involve relentlessly pushing past your comfort zone, along with frustration, struggle, setbacks and failures." To help us, Schwartz offers six keys to achieving excellence: Pursuing what you love, practicing intensely, taking regular breaks, and doing the hardest work first.... posted on Aug 30 2010, 4 cmts
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Beauty in Scraps of Metal Five years after Hurricane Katrina, the sun continues to rise over evacuated homes and empty lots. New Orleans is still cleaning up debris. Yet one local artisan is building up beauty out of the destruction. Stefano Velaska is a survivor of both Katrina and the 1968 invasion of his native Czechoslovakia. At 18, he fled his country and ended up in Louisiana, where he discovered a passion for jewelry-making. After the hurricane hit, he found himself searching for "some way to somehow promote New Orleans." He stumbled upon the answer in the scraps of metal strewn across the city. Today, you can find him in the covered French Market of the New Orleans French Quarter, crafting the city's endurance into an art form: jewelry from the storm. "It is a small piece of New Orleans, a small piece of history," Velaska remarks.... posted on Aug 29 2010, 0 cmts
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The Miracle Birth After giving birth to premature twins, Kate Ogg was informed that one of them didn't make it. Devastated, she held her limp 2-pound infant against her bare chest. For two hours, the mother and her husband said their goodbyes, cradling and hugging their son as if he were alive. Two hours later, the newborn began moving and gasping. Ogg instinctively fed her son a few drops of breast milk and soon his gasps turned into real breaths. "A short time later he opened his eyes. It was a miracle," the mother recounts. Now five months later, the radiant parents are highlighting the virtues of skin-on-skin care for sick babies, a technique known as 'Kangaroo Care' for the way Kangaroos hold their young in the pouch. ... posted on Aug 28 2010, 1 cmts
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Rappin' to Be the Change How do you tell the story of one powerful man who moved a nation to independence, marched 241 miles (388 km) in a symbolic act of freedom, and brought violent conflicts to a screeching halt through fasting? How do you express the complexity of this shy and timid young man who grew into a fiercely gentle leader and pioneer of nonviolence? If you're MC Yogi, you rap about it. With smooth rhythm and lucid lyrics, he explains Gandhi's message to "be the change you wish to see in the world" and spins a tale that would warm anyone's heart.... posted on Aug 27 2010, 1 cmts
2246 reads
Tenzin Palmo: Cave in the Snow At the age of 20, Venerable Master Tenzin Palmo left her home in London to pursue her spiritual path. She eventually became one of the first Westerners to be ordained as a Tibetan Buddhist nun. In 1976, seeking more seclusion and better conditions for practice, she found a cave in the Himalayan Valley of Lahaul, where she lived for 12 years, the last three in strict retreat. Now the founder of Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery, she is a soft, lucid and powerful voice offering females greater opportunities for spiritual growth. "She's important because she's absorbed the great teachings of Tibetan Buddhism and communicates them through a Western mind," remarks Christopher Sohnly. ... posted on Aug 26 2010, 1 cmts
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Bridges to Cross: Interview with Michael Grbich As I was nearing my 75th birthday I was wondering, what can I do to celebrate this? I heard about this woman who tap-danced across a bridge, and I thought, this is what I'll do! So I pursued getting a permit. That was a very complicated process. You wouldn't think you'd have to have a permit to dance across the Golden Gate Bridge. There was a lot of bureaucracy involved, an insurance policy, a permit, [laughs] but that didn't prevent me from doing it. Not to make a big thing about the physicality of it. It's only a little over a mile. It's not that big a deal. Well, it might be for some seventy-five-year-olds. But with the Brooklyn Bridge I said, forget about the permits. I'm just doing it. If I get arrested, I'll just get a lot more publicity. But basically, there are bridges to cross, bridges to burn, bridges to build, bridges over troubled waters, bridges to nowhere-our whole life is based on kinds of bridges isn't it?... posted on Aug 25 2010, 5 cmts
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8 Ways to Keep Cool in Summer The torrid summer of 2010 will cap off the hottest decade ever recorded on our planet. In efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions, people across the globe are stepping up and cooling down, AC-free. "The key is to focus on people-cooling, not building-cooling," states author Steven Cox. "Your body is constantly converting chemical energy from food into heat... But filling a home with chilled, still, dry air around the clock is only one of the many ways by which we can help our bodies maintain their thermal balance." With this in mind, he offers eight tips to stay cool while keeping the planet healthy. They include: keeping air circulating, getting wet, staying near plants, bringing in night air, and reserving sedentary activities for the hottest part of the day.... posted on Aug 24 2010, 1 cmts
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The Power of Trust Many of us have conflicted responses when we are approached by a homeless person asking for change. Sometimes, we feel compelled to give. Other times, we are skeptical, or in a hurry. But for one woman in New York City, the power of trust in a fellow human being trumps all uncertainty. When recently approached by homeless Jay Valentine outside a restaurant one evening, Merrie Harris found herself with no spare change and a big heart. "Can I trust you?" she asked. "I'm honest, yes," he replied. And true to his word, Valentine went to a nearby store, bought about 25 dollars worth of basic food and toiletries, and returned the credit card to Harris. "I wasn't tempted at all," says Brooklyn native. "She trusted me, and I didn't want to violate that trust. I would never do that."... posted on Aug 23 2010, 5 cmts
1026 reads
11-Year-Old Feeds Thousands It all began in third grade, when Katie Stagliano didn't know what to do with her 40-pound cabbage. She ended up taking it to a local soup kitchen, where her first encounter with homelessness inspired her current journey. Now, in sixth grade, Katie's six gardens have produced over 4,000 pounds of vegetables to feed the needy. "It makes you feel so good to see someone that young with that amount of compassion, step in there and really make a difference," said Bob Baker, who gave some of his 41-acre farmland to Katie to grow more food. And it all started with one little cabbage plant that just kept on growing....
... posted on Aug 22 2010, 5 cmts
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In Pursuit of Silence When all is silent, what do you hear? The first widely observed national moment of silence occurred in Britain in 1919. For two minutes, switchboard operators declined to connect telephone calls, subway cars and factory wheels ground to a halt, and ordinary citizens held their tongues. Within 10 years, the somber annual tradition had grown so popular that the BBC began to air the sound of the silence. Authors George Prochnik and Garrett Keizer unravel surprisingly poignant perspectives on silence, from the red-eyed tree frog's ability to discern vibrations to theories on why iPods are so ubiquitous. In a world of noise, silence easily slips through the cracks. Prochnik and Keizer remind us of its unassuming yet powerful presence. "When we ourselves are in silence, we are speaking the language of the soul," Prochnik remarks.... posted on Aug 21 2010, 1 cmts
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A Forgotten Young Man When one woman runs into a childhood neighbor, she falls to tears after learning the hardships that have cast a shadow over his life. After his parents died, he lost two older siblings. He had become a husband and a father, but found himself lost for meaning. "Fighting back tears, I asked him if he needed some help getting back on his feet. He said he wanted to start a small business of his own. And so, I then gave him some money which I must say, he has wisely used. Last week he came to see me... He said from the amount that I had given him, he had made a significant profit which he has reinvested in his business. The young man is now happy, able to take his son to school and pay for his rent." And the happiness came full circle as the woman beamed at the opportunity to serve, and the possibilities of transformation.... posted on Aug 20 2010, 0 cmts
3448 reads
Live Life as an Experiment It was an experiment. Peter Bregman was returning an item to a store. The item was well within the return period, but there would be a 20 percent restocking fee. Having recently decided to live life as an experiment, Bregman decided to see if he could tap into the store manager's compassion to waive the fee. In the grand scheme of things, it was a small act. Yet in the process of experimenting, the most powerful lessons emerged. "What I learned is the power of framing... Because when we live life as an experiment, we are far more willing to take risks, to acknowledge failure, to learn and develop," he sums up. "If it's an experiment, then taking a risk is the win - whether it pans out or not."... posted on Aug 19 2010, 5 cmts
1587 reads
Box of Chocolates Marathon For a serious distance runner, 7 hours, 48 minutes is not a great marathon time. But for Brian Fugere, it's a miracle. He'd been diagnosed with synovial sarcoma -- a rare soft-tissue cancer -- in his lung. Yet during his fourth cycle of chemotherapy, he still managed to drag an IV pole for all 26.2 miles. Oh, and this marathon took place in a hospital hallway. Inspired by Lance Armstrong's book that stresses how important it is to "keep moving," Fugere started doing laps around the cancer ward. Realizing it would take 144 laps to do a marathon, he wanted "to show other chemo patients that you don't have to accept the notion of lying in bed all day getting liquid Drano pumped into you." Those 144 laps raised $42,000 for the Sarcoma Foundation of America. And since then, Fugere has kept moving.... posted on Aug 18 2010, 4 cmts
2085 reads
The Two-Rupee Miracle On the dusty streets of Pushkar, India, a few men stop for a smoke. When an old woman asks for a rupee to buy lunch, they promptly refuse and walk away. Eyes on their backs, the woman observes, "These young men will burn more than a rupee for their bad habit, but will never give a rupee to a hungry person." With her words echoing in his ears, one man returns to offer her two rupees. An hour later, he finds the same beggar under a tree feeding a young girl in torn dress. "Amma, who is that girl?" he asks. "She couldn't arrange a rupee today, so I have brought lunch for her out of the money you gave for dinner. Don't worry, God will arrange for my dinner." Astonished at her generosity, he reflects, "I got the strength to quit the [smoking] habit in that moment. No 'statuary warning' on the packet could teach me the lesson that the beggar woman did that day," he remarks.... posted on Aug 17 2010, 9 cmts
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Scientists Discover by Sharing A wealth of recent scientific papers on the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is announcing groundbreaking discoveries, thanks to an unprecedented initiative by key players in public, private and academic sectors: a collaborative effort to find the biological markers that show the progression of Alzheimer's disease in the human brain. The key to this Alzheimer's project was an agreement as ambitious as its goal: not just to raise money and do research on a vast scale, but also to share all the data, making every single finding public, immediately available to anyone with a computer anywhere in the world. No one would own the data. No one could submit patent applications, though private companies would ultimately profit from any drugs or imaging tests developed as a result of the effort. The collaboration is already serving as a model for similar efforts against Parkinson's disease, such as a $40 million project to look for biomarkers for Parkinson's.... posted on Aug 16 2010, 4 cmts
2049 reads
How to Live and Die Death is rarely spoken about in our homes. "I wonder why," remarks Khushwant Singh. At 95, Singh thinks of death very often. But he does not lose sleep over it. A self-described agnostic, Singh states that ultimately, he does "not know what happens to us after we die but one should help a person go in peace--at peace with himself and with the world." From his 95 years of experience, Singh offers eight insights into a life of peace and happiness. They include: good health, understanding companionship, fulfilling hobbies, time for introspection, and patience.... posted on Aug 15 2010, 7 cmts
1083 reads
The Little Red Wagon "Some boys like to play baseball, some boys like to play football. He likes to do charity work," explains Zach Bonner's mom, chuckling. In 2004, six-year-old Zach went door to door with his little red wagon to collect water for the victims of Hurricane Charlie. Inspired by helping others, he started his own charity, aptly named, The Little Red Wagon Foundation. Since then, Bonner has raised thousands of dollars to purchase school supplies, food, and support services for homeless children in Florida and Louisiana. Today, the twelve-year-old is walking across the country to raise even more funds for the homeless. "It takes a lot of hard work, but it's a lot of fun," he remarks. Wise beyond his years.... posted on Aug 14 2010, 1 cmts
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