one

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/garden/the-freedom-and-perils-of-living-alone.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=all

article about people who live alone...i've lived alone for a long time, but i don't do the things mentioned in the article...i close the bathroom door, don't drink from the carton, usually prepare meals but sometimes i might just eat some fruit or whatever is around instead, i do all my dishes immediately after using them...i clean the apartment regularly but never seems to be clean...the only quirk that might be a quirk is that i freeze a lot of food...i would make 2 to 3 cups of rice and freeze them in single serving portions...marinate 5lbs of beef and freeze them in single size portions...even stews, soups, and certain fruits, i would freeze sometimes...i don't think it is a real quirk but a way to get around trying to cook for just one...i have trouble sleeping at normal hours, but that is because of insomnia and not because i live alone...there is definitely more freedom when living alone though...i can have firefly on all day long

this is my home

interesting short film about a man's home...am i going to end up like this guy?

http://departurearrivalfilms.com/

time

as the years pass by, i think about where i was, where i am, and where i might be, but sometimes i just wonder when i will stop thinking like this...

emergency food

i need a plan b for food when the world ends this year...i might have to buy a box of twinkies

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9S5NU900.htm


Hostess Brands Inc., the maker of Wonder Bread and Twinkies, is preparing to refile for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection just two years after emerging, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
A spokesman for the privately held Irving, Texas, bakery company declined to comment on the report.
The Wall Street Journal said people familiar with the matter said the company is facing a cash crunch with more than $860 million in debt, high labor expenses and rising ingredient costs.
When the company, then called Interstate Bakeries and based in Kansas City, Mo., filed for bankruptcy protection in 2004, it blamed low sales and high fixed costs. It emerged in February 2009.
Hostess Brands employs about 19,000 workers and operates in 49 states. Annual sales are about $2 billion, according to the company's website.

gen x

http://gizmodo.com/5851062/generation-x-is-sick-of-your-bullshit


Earlier generations have weathered recessions, of course; this stall we're in has the look of something nastier. Social Security and Medicare are going to be diminished, at best. Hours worked are up even as hiring staggers along: Blood from a stone looks to be the normal order of things "going forward," to borrow the business-speak. Economists are warning that even when the economy recuperates, full employment will be lower and growth will be slower-a sad little rhyme that adds up to something decidedly ­unpoetic. A majority of Americans say, for the first time ever, that this generation will not be better off than its parents. —New York Magazine

Generation X is sick of your bullshit.

The first generation to do worse than its parents? Please. Been there. Generation X was told that so many times that it can't even read those words without hearing Winona Ryder's voice in its heads. Or maybe it's Ethan Hawke's. Possibly Bridget Fonda's. Generation X is getting older, and can't remember those movies so well anymore. In retrospect, maybe they weren't very good to begin with.

But Generation X is tired of your sense of entitlement. Generation X also graduated during a recession. It had even shittier jobs, and actually had to pay for its own music. (At least, when music mattered most to it.) Generation X is used to being fucked over. It lost its meager savings in the dot-com bust. Then came George Bush, and 9/11, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Generation X bore the brunt of all that. And then came the housing crisis.

Generation X wasn't surprised. Generation X kind of expected it.

Generation X is a journeyman. It didn't invent hip hop, or punk rock, or even electronica (it's pretty sure those dudes in Kraftwerk are boomers) but it perfected all of them, and made them its own. It didn't invent the Web, but it largely built the damn thing. Generation X gave you Google and Twitter and blogging; Run DMC and Radiohead and Nirvana and Notorious B.I.G. Not that it gets any credit.

But that's okay. Generation X is used to being ignored, stuffed between two much larger, much more vocal, demographics. But whatever! Generation X is self-sufficient. It was a latchkey child. Its parents were too busy fulfilling their own personal ambitions to notice any of its trophies-which were admittedly few and far between because they were only awarded for victories, not participation.

In fairness, Generation X could use a better spokesperson. Barack Obama is just a little too senior to count among its own, and it has debts older than Mark Zuckerberg. Generation X hasn't had a real voice since Kurt Cobain blew his brains out, Tupac was murdered, Jeff Mangum went crazy, David Foster Wallace hung himself, Jeff Buckley drowned, River Phoenix overdosed, Elliott Smith stabbed himself (twice) in the heart, Axl got fat.

Generation X is beyond all that bullshit now. It quit smoking and doing coke a long time ago. It has blood pressure issues and is heavier than it would like to be. It might still take some ecstasy, if it knew where to get some. But probably not. Generation X has to be up really early tomorrow morning.

Generation X is tired.

It's a parent now, and there's always so damn much to do. Generation X wishes it had better health insurance and a deeper savings account. It wonders where its 30s went. It wonders if it still has time to catch up.

Right now, Generation X just wants a beer and to be left alone. It just wants to sit here quietly and think for a minute. Can you just do that, okay? It knows that you are so very special and so very numerous, but can you just leave it alone? Just for a little bit? Just long enough to sneak one last fucking cigarette? No?

Whatever. It's cool.

Generation X is used to disappointments. Generation X knows you didn't even read the whole thing. It doesn't want or expect your reblogs; it picked the wrong platform.

Generation X should have posted this to LiveJournal.

1956

http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2011/10/gun-safety-class-at-an-indiana-school-1956/

pictures from a gun safety class...times sure have changed...also, retronaut is a pretty cool site

shoes

one thing that i never understood...why do many american households wear shoes inside the home...i can't think of any reason to do this other than being too lazy to take off your shoes...dirties up your home and it's uncomfortable to keep your shoes on...i think it's also the same in british and australian homes too...maybe canada too, but probably not in the winter months since that would track in tons of mud and snow

the stache

from last night's preseason game packers vs colts...i think he secretly wishes to be hulk hogan....roll on you bears!

a-team fans would remember the episode where hulk hogan guest starred as himself...he used his strength to lob grenades extra long distances

tumbler

for some reason the tumblr page i made is not showing up anymore...short-lived experiment in changing blogs

tumblr

imported to tumblr...http://sebs-stuff.tumblr.com/

i can't seem to do as much customization, but that might be the appeal of tumblr...real simple and straightforward...

switching blogs?

thinking of moving this blog to tumblr...http://www.tumblr.com/

jules day at kulak's woodshed

got an email about a small performance by jules day at kulak's woodshed...email below:

Hi everybody!

I wanted to let you know about an upcoming gig of mine that you can watch live on your computer!

I'm performing my own songs at a very special and interesting singer/songwriter venue in North Hollywood calledKulak's Woodshed.  
Here is a fun 3 minute video about the legendary Kulak's Woodshed.  

 
The live broadcast on the web will be this coming Saturday night (Aug. 13) at 8 PM (Pacific Standard Time).  
There are 2 simple steps to view this performance on your computer:
1.  Go to www.KulaksWoodshed.com

2.  On the home page, click on the guitar pick labeled "webcast."  It's as simple as that.  

You'll see a black screen right up until the show starts.  If we start a few minutes late, hang in there, it will happen.


For all my L.A. area friends: 
I really need you to be there and be part of this unique broadcast.  
Relax on old sofas and chairs in a very intimate, informal, and crazy setting!  Dress casually.
A $10 donation is all you'll spend.  There is no food or drink served, so $10 is it.  Such a deal!
The address is:
Kulak's Woodshed
5230-1/2 Laurel Canyon Blvd
North Hollywood, CA 91607
(818) 766-9913

Come see my new band:
Piano -- Shawn Hanlon
Guitars -- Will Brahm
Bass -- Paul Jones
Drums/percussion -- Mark Gusek

Jules

http://www.julesday.com/

what she sounds like...jazz vocals...gotta make sure to listen in or maybe even make the drive up to hollywood...10 bucks to listen to her live seems like a great deal

free points or miles

i wish i learned of this sooner...the us mint is selling 1 dollar coins to try to get people to use them (shipped for free)...what people have been doing is buying these coins with credit cards that offer points or miles and then just paying off the credit card with the same coins...these people have racked up thousands of miles for free trips...the mint is now limiting the amount of coins you can buy in a certain time period, but it is still a decent way to rack up points or miles

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2011/07/13/137795995/how-frequent-fliers-exploit-a-government-program-to-get-free-trips

http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=16428&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=27238

16k home

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/14/nyregion/the-appraisal-holding-on-has-its-benefits-and-then-some.html?_r=1

89yr old grandma is planning to sell her home for $1.895 million...just a little higher than the original price of $16k that she paid in 1967.

cooling your brain

http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-sleep-insomnia-cool-brain-20110613,0,2083339.story?track=rss

looks like i'll have to look for a brain cooling cap


According to research presented Monday at Sleep 2011, the annual meeting of the Associated Profession Sleep Societies, cooling the brain and can reduce the amount of time it takes people with insomnia to fall asleep -- and increase the length of time they stay that way.

To achieve "frontal cerebral thermal transfer," as the cooling is called, researchers Dr. Eric Nofzinger and Dr. Daniel Buysse of the Sleep Neuroimaging Research Program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine outfitted 24 people --  12 with insomnia, and 12 without -- with soft plastic caps.  The caps had tubes for circulating water at neutral, moderate or maximum "cooling intensity."  

countries with best balance of work and life

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/04/overworked-no-way-10-countries-with-the-best-work-life-balance/

Not surprisingly, Northern European countries fared better when it came to leaving the office on time. For instance, the Netherlands and Sweden both only have 0.001% of their respective populations regularly working over 50 hours a week.

As for working mothers, the best country to live is Denmark, where 78% of mothers jump back into the workforce after their kids head to school. Turkey is at the other end of the spectrum, with only 24% of women with children also holding down a paying job.

If you're looking for the most personal time, relocating to Belgium might be a good idea. Belgians have an average of 16.61 hours a day of time off, compared to the combined OECD average of 15.46 hours.

But how did the U.S. do in comparison? It's good news for America's working moms, with employment above 73%. To put that into perspective, that's 7% higher than the OECD average. As for personal care and leisure, Americans devote 63% of their day, or 15.1 hours, to hobbies and taking care of themselves. But when it comes to hours spent at work, the figures show Americans are putting in 1768 hours a year. That's well over the OECD average by almost 20 hours.

Here are the Top 10 countries with the best work balance.

1. Denmark
2. Norway
3. Netherlands
4. Finland
5. Belgium
6. Switzerland
7. Sweden
8. Germany
9. Portugal
10. France

starting over

pretty incredible story about a woman who lost her memory and had to start over...strange that the article is on gizmodo though...imagine having to learn everything over but at a pace of a normal adult instead of a child...how frustrating that must be...at least she was married and had a family to help her out...i also like her taste in music...led zeppelin and pink floyd

http://gizmodo.com/5804641/the-inspiring-story-of-the-woman-who-had-a-complete-brain-reboot-age-22

The Inspiring Story of the 45-y-o Woman Who Had Her Brain Completely Erased at Age 22

 Jesus Diaz — When Su Meck got hit with a ceiling fan and woke up one week later with a total memory loss, her husband Jim thought "she was Su 2.0. She had rebooted."

Back then, she was 22. The Washington Postreports that the accident erased all her memory, reverting her brain to that of a 4-year-old child. She couldn't read. She couldn't do anything by herself. Nothing. Except a few phrases, her brain was a tabula rasa. She had to restart her life—a life with two baby sons—learning everything from the start.

Now she's 45. Two decades later, the woman whose brain was full of cracks "like shaken Jell-O"—as doctors described it—has earned a music degree from Montgomery College with a 3.9 GPA.

Imagine that, waking up one day being a complete different person with no recollection whatsoever of who you were just one week ago, with a husband you couldn't recognize and two kids who weren't really yours, even if biologically they were. It sounds like the setting for a Julia Roberts film, but back then it felt like total confusion for Su:

I always wondered: What am I supposed to do now? What is the plan? What is the goal? Am I supposed to be this other person who I was, or am I supposed to be this new person?

In addition to those philosophical and emotional implications—how can you fall in love again with a husband you don't know? How can you love the children that you don't recognize as yours?—Su had to deal with the day to day, learning everything from the start.

There was nothing to build on, but she slowly got back on track. She learned to eat by herself again. To dress up, to make phone calls—she couldn't bear to talk on the phone for the first few years after the accident—to ride a bicycle, to read and write. Everything was hard for her, including the writing, as one of her emails to her mom shows:

The boys play good with Legos now so givs me a chance to rite. I hav to go to mor doctors be case fall lots to hitig head bad head ackes.

But she finally did it. She even learned to drive, even while her kids had to remember where she parked for her. And finally, she got her music degree after four years of studying hard, reading things again and again to keep them in her memory. Now, Su drums to songs of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, and she is planning to get a bachelor's degree at Smith College in Massachusetts.

Well, Su Meck 2.0, kudos to you. You have our deepest admiration, rocker girl. Here's some favorite Floyd to honor your amazing spirit and fantastic voyage. [For a lot more of Su's fascinating story, check out the original reporting at the Washington Post]

storage

this might be a good solution if you have stuff you want to store, but don't want to be tied down to a storage location

http://storagebymail.com/Default.aspx

pack up what you want to have stored...have usps pick up, and they'll store it for you...when you want your stuff again, they'll ship it back...

cheapest plan is 5 boxes with free shipping (round trip) for 30 bucks a month for one year...they have 6 month and pay as you go plans too but are more expensive

interview questions

since i need a new job

http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2011/04/05/the-most-ridiculous-job-interview-questions/

"Given the numbers 1 to 1,000, what is the minimum number of guesses needed to find a specific number, if you are given the hint 'higher' or 'lower' for each guess you make?" -- Facebook

"Using a scale of 1 to 10, rate yourself on how weird you are." -- Capital One (COF)

"Explain quantum electrodynamics in two minutes, starting now." -- Intel (INTC)

"How many balloons would fit in this room?" -- PricewaterhouseCoopers

"If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?" -- Goldman Sachs (GS)

"You have a bouquet of flowers. All but two are roses, all but two are daisies, and all but two are tulips. How many flowers do you have?" -- Epic Systems

"What is the philosophy of martial arts?" -- Aflac (AFL)

"Explain to me what has happened in this country during the last 10 years." -- Boston Consulting

"If you could be any superhero, which one would you be?" -- AT&T (T)

"How do you weigh an elephant without using a scale?" -- IBM (IBM)

"If you had 5,623 participants in a tournament, how many games would need to be played to determine the winner?" -- Amazon (AMZN)

"How many bricks are there in Shanghai? Consider only residential buildings." --Deloitte Consulting

"You have five bottles of pills. One bottle has 9 gram pills, the others have 10 gram pills. You have a scale that can be used only once. How can you find out which bottle contains the 9 gram pills?" --eBay (EBAY)

"What is your fastball?" -- Ernst & Young

"How would you market ping pong balls if ping pong itself became obsolete? List many ways, then pick one and go into detail." -- Microsoft (MSFT)

"How many smartphones are there in New York City?" -- Google (GOOG)

"You are in charge of 20 people. Organize them to figure out how many bicycles were sold in your area last year." -- Schlumberger (SLB)

"Why do you think only a small percentage of the population makes over $125,000 a year?" -- New York Life

"You have three boxes. One contains only apples, one contains only oranges, and one contains both apples and oranges. The boxes have been incorrectly labeled so that no label accurately identifies the contents of any of the boxes. Opening just one box, and without looking inside, you take out one piece of fruit. By looking at the fruit, how can you immediately label all of the boxes correctly?" -- Apple (AAPL)

"How many ball bearings, each one inch in diameter, can fit inside a 747 aircraft?" -- SAIC (SAI)

sleep

article about short sleepers

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703712504576242701752957910.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_News_BlogsModule#articleTabs%3Darticle

i fall in the chronically sleep deprived group...i have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep, but i think it is because of the rat race...we weren't meant to wake up every morning to sit in an office all day long...sometimes i feel like getting rid of everything i own and live like an acsetic in the mountains like into the wild (i would keep my guns of course for catching food...and toilet paper...i would have to stock up on a lot of toilet paper...leaves suck)

it's based on a true story about christopher mccandless' trek to alaska after graduating college...in the movie version, he is so disgusted by his materialistic surroundings and the importance placed on financial success that he decides to give everything away and move to alaska to live in the wild on his own...not sure how accurate the movie is to the actual events or whether he went to alaska for the same reasons, but the movie is very good regardless...i haven't read the book, so i can't recommend it...the soundtrack for the movie is good too...songs written and performed by eddie vedder (pearl jam)

the movie is about the people he meets and what he realizes at the end of his journey with a little side commentary about our materialistic society and conspicuous consumerism...good cast, good acting, and good story...you'll also see slab city in the movie and "off the grid" living, but that is for another post

rest of the grid girls from the post below...they probably like consumerism