Fun and/or Interesting
755 articles filed under Fun and/or Interesting.
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Fun and/or Interesting
Rancho Santana Named Top Spring Break Destination By Forbes
Rancho Santana was recently recommended by Forbes as one of eight great places to go to for Spring Break. Read about it here.
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Fun and/or Interesting
What Is the Multiverse?
And Why Does It Matter? I’ve heard the term. Many times. But from different sources, in different contexts, and with what seemed like different definitions. One definition, for example, is “a collection of…
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Talking About Time
I’ve written one book and dozens of essays on time management. That’s partly because I’ve always been bad at it and wanted to learn how to improve. After hundreds of hours of research and years of trial and…
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Global Superlatives: The World’s Most Extreme Countries
Though it’s always more rewarding to read essays that go deeply into a subject rather than widely and superficially, I can’t resist reading listicles. And sometimes, I run into one that has some very…
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Cops Monitoring Cops
I’ve been following this guy lately. He’s a cop. His YouTube bailiwick is police misconduct, and his thing is to call out the bad behavior of cops, whether it is verbal intimidation, bullying, or breaking the…
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Speaking of Oscar-Nominated Movies…
After praising Cate Blanchett for her acting in Tár, I happened to see this essay by Calum Russell in Far Out: “The 10 Worst Oscar-bait Performances of All Time.” I’m not sure I agree with all of Russell’s…
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COVID Update: England Reduces Vaccine Mandate
As I’ve been reporting since the beginning of the COVID shutdown, it’s clear that the virus was a serious (i.e., lethal) threat to people older than 65 that are also overweight and diabetic. For everyone else…
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Fun and/or Interesting
The Difference Between Values and Morals
I found this in a recent issue of Classical Wisdom. It’s a reader’s response to an article about “conscience.” Although values and morals have their own individual meanings, I thought he did a good job of…
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The Argument Over Otters
From National Geographic: They are graceful, playful. They hug each other and give each other shoulder rides. At one time, they were almost extinct. Now they are coming back, and most people are happy about it…
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How Motown Changed America
Berry Gordy’s Motown music was a breakthrough not only in the music industry but for society at large, as it was the first strain of African American music embraced by nearly the entire Baby Boom generation…
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I Fell in Love with This Tune
I Thought It Was New – I Was Mistaken I’m accustomed to the digital media sites that I frequent feeding me news that appeals to my social interests and political prejudices. Likewise, with book recommendations…
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Test Your Knowledge of America’s First Ladies
I did poorly on this online history test (16 out of 25). But I learned a lot. And some of the facts are surprising. Click here to try it.
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Fun and/or Interesting
Alone
I’ve mentioned before that Edgar Allan Poe is one of my favorite poets. This is one of my favorite poems of his: Alone By Edgar Allan Poe From childhood’s hour I have not been As others were – I have not seen…
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Fun and/or Interesting
What the Heck Is Time?
The Ezra Klein Show is a podcast that I’ve been hearing a lot about, so I listened to it the other day. Klein has a smart, confident voice. He speaks with the intonation of a PBS host. I’ve never heard Malcolm…
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A Surprise Discovery!
Paleontologists Paul Sereno and Dan Vidal were walking between dig sites in the Sahara when they stumbled upon something in the sand. After a closer look, they realized it was a fossil: a femur from a dinosaur…
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Finding Happiness – Even if You Are a Rich American
In his podcast this week, Peter Attia interviewed Bill Perkins, who explained what he learned about happiness and fulfillment when writing his bestseller Die With Zero. Much of Perkins’ thinking is compatible…
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Speaking of Inflation…
Last month, Argentina reported year-over-year inflation of 92.4%. As the value of its peso has been decreasing, Sergio Guillermo Diaz, an artist in the city of Salta, has been painting on the banknotes…
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Vespers for a New Dark Age
Vespers for a New Dark Age K had this on Sonos this morning when I came into the kitchen. I didn’t notice it at first, but then I did. I think it is hauntingly beautiful. It was composed by Missy Mazzoli for…
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Seven Links to Make Your Life a Little Richer
Throughout the year, I collect a treasure trove of little stories I want to share with you. For various reasons, it doesn’t always happen. But the trove continues to grow. So, before I forget about them, here…
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Listen to understand, not to respond…
Click here to learn about this very good technique for communicating well and deescalating conflict. I’ve heard versions of it many times over the years, and I always have the same reaction: I should do that!…
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The Invention of the Zipper
At some time, someone, matched up small pieces of metal, aligned them horizontally, attached a lever, and made the first zipper. Click here to read the whole story.
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Yet Another Finding That “Short Bursts of Activity Lower Your Risk of Early Death
Just after I finished writing the above essay, a friend sent me the results of a new study – another one showing that exercising the way I do produces better results than longer sessions of low-to-moderate…
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Grandkids Can't Get Enough Of Fauci On A Couchi
Fauci Is Still on the Couchi Children, like their taller counterparts, enjoy bright and funny stories. And when they like something – any form of entertainment – they want to experience it over and over again…
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Good news, bad news
Good news, bad news: Package delivery time has improved by 47% year-over-year. Unfortunately, package theft is up 87% this month compared to last year. Click here for details.
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Spotify’s “Billions Club
Spotify was launched 14 years ago and came into the US in 2011. Since then, the Stockholm-based company has become the world’s most popular audio-streaming service, with 456 million users across 183 markets…
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Holiday Costs Soar Across Decorations And Traditions
Everything is more expensive this Christmas – even a partridge in a pear tree! Click here for the alarming details. And click here for the extra cost of putting up holiday lights this year, state by state.
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The "Magic 8 Ball” – the top-selling Christmas stocking stuffer in 1950, the year I was born…
The original Magic 8 Ball was created by Albert Carter, the son of a professional psychic. Along with his brother-in-law, Abe Bookman, Carter unsuccessfully marketed several incarnations of the “Syco-Seer”…
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The Future Looks… Connected
According to Peter Diamandis, by 2032, “every person on earth will have access to the web with speeds and capabilities far beyond what heads of nations and Fortune 500 CEOs had just a few decades ago. This…
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How To Cook Kale Without Ruining It
In the Nov. 4 issue, I told you what I think of kale… the latest trend in Hollywood style eating. BJ, a golf buddy, agrees. He sent this handy tip for the next time you have kale for dinner.
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About Medical Tourism…
Some say that the US has the best health care system in the world. And there’s no doubt that in terms of medical technology, we are among the most sophisticated. But most of our needs are not the kind that…
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Anna Delvey Under House Arrest: “I’m Still Living Better Than All of You!
Did you see the Shonda Rhimes-produced Netflix series Becoming Anna? It tells the story of Anna Sorokin, a 31-year-old Russian woman going by the alias of Anna Delvey, who scammed her way through New York…
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Kid Inventor's Airport Tech Raises Privacy Concerns
This video was sent to me by a high school friend… Under the link, he wrote: “Very cool! And the inventor is a kid.” It’s a new technology that will make finding your gate at the airport, and getting to it…
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Something I’d Like to See – I Think!
I had no idea this was a thing. It happens every year in Chile. Millions and millions of red crabs leave their homes in the wild to march, en masse, to the sea. My neocortex would love to see this up close. My…
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Who Was Nastassja Kinski?
Apropos of nothing, here’s a video tribute to one of the most beautiful faces in cinema history…
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Pop Quiz: Which Country Is This?
Here’s something I got from Joel Bowman, writing for Bonner Private Research. It’s enlightening. Can you name this country? Its government runs a state-funded, universal healthcare system, which provides free…
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On Our Way to 10 Billion?
The world population hit the 8 billion mark this year. Some pundits are saying it will hit 10 billion by 2050. I wrote about how the current population trends are drastically changing the world’s ethnic and…
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A Clock That Tells Time Through Literary Quotes
Warning: This is very nerdy. Literary nerdy. It’s called the Literature Clock, and it works like this. Rather than glancing at your watch or phone, go to this website – https://literature-clock.jenevoldsen.com…
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Wildlife Photo of the Year
Karine Aigner won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award for this photo of a buzzing ball of cactus bees spinning over the hot sand in Texas. According to the awards committee, this “beautifully composed…
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Have you heard about the million-dollar public toilet?
Last month, San Francisco unveiled plans to build a 150-square-foot public toilet for $1.7m! Here’s a breakdown of the cost: * Base construction contract: $750k * Planning and design: $450k * Architecture and…
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Contemporary African Weddings Blend Tradition With Modern Celebration
Here are a few examples of contemporary African weddings that include traditional African music and dancing: And here is a clip of traditional African weddings:
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Philadelphia Sports Success And Economic Collapse
From BJ: “I have appreciated your incisive analysis of our current economic situation. I wanted to add a timely tidbit of historical fact: Over the past 100 years, the surest sign of an oncoming financial…
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The Costs of the COVID Shutdowns Are Coming In
It’s becoming increasingly clear that the COVID shutdowns were a bad idea. They did not curb the spread of the virus. If anything, they accelerated it. And there were negative consequences. Substantial ones…
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Just in Time for Halloween: “The 50 Scariest Books of All Time
I saw the headline on the Book Riot website, and wondered if The Haunting of Hill House – which I reviewed last week – was included. It was. Fifth on the list. The list also included a sprinkling of the usual…
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Looking for a different way to spend the holidays?
Consider Rancho Santana, ranked one of the 100 best resorts in the world! This year, we will be celebrating our 25th anniversary. Lots of fun things planned. Check it out here!
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Why Do Accents Vary So Dramatically Across Regions
Did you ever wonder how accents come about? It happens in every culture with every language. In some places, the variations are relatively minor, but, nevertheless, significant. In the city of London, for…
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Take a Cleansing Breath. Now Take Another
Click here to read a short essay from Scott Young on dealing with anxieties. These techniques won’t work for severe bouts of anxiety, but I’ve found that they do work for the moderate levels that most people…
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Are Ladies Lightweights?
The average woman weighs about 15% less than the average man. So why is it that all the rules on safe drinking suggest that the average man can safely drink twice as much alcohol as the average woman? Is this…
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For Your Edification: The Best and Worst Airlines
I’ve done a fair amount of plane travel in my life. Not millions of miles. But probably close to a million. I’ve traveled domestically at least 1,000 times and internationally at least 100. There are many…
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This may surprise you…
In Delray Beach, bike lanes are ubiquitous. The new ones are painted green and have a slightly different surface coating than does the road on which they are painted. They say it’s for safety. And that seems…
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Are You Making This Mistake?
At the end of the day, I often watch a movie or episode of a series on my iPad as a sort of reward for my day’s work. I’m not alone in this. About 90% of Americans spend time on their phones or iPads just…
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