Awa the smugness …

I am amazed at the sense of self superiority that comes from finding a spelling mistake in others work.

I have never been a good speller and I have always been turned off by the arbitrary and inflexible nature of the rules that under lie the rules of modern English.

If the only meaningful criticism that you can offer is a misspelling. Recognize that you are announcing to the author and perhaps the larger world. I myself am lacking in creativity and do not have the ability or desire to produce anything meaningful on my one. What is more I do not have the intellect or insight necessary to understands or criticize your work as a whole or its component parts. I am going to claim what glory I can by demonstrating my knowledge of and adherence to an arbitrary set of rules. This arbitrary set of rules was originally established as a concise of monks. None of whom had more than four years of what we would call formal education.

see Spelling Bee Champs: Where Are They Now?

A digital regret.

It is a shame. When I went to school I made a decision that I did not want to be a computer guy. I did not realize that all on the interesting problems in genetics, biology, chemistry, medicine, physics, and geology are all being approached by computer models. The interesting problems in history, economics, psychology and sociology are all dependent on analysis of mammoth quantities of information. Now we are all computer guys and I do not have the skills to back it up.

How can you tell when someone is lying to you?

I have a list of 10 conversation starters from http://www.gettoknowu.com/


How can you tell when someone is lying to you? I would like to say it is a gut reaction but I am terrible at telling when I am being lied to. It is usually a cognitive process where I notice what the person is saying is contradicting something else they have said.
Not counting your religion, which religions do you find interesting? Why? The thing I find interesting is these prosaliting atheist. There is a who group of atheists that are militant about converting anyone to their why of thinking. They are more aggressive than even the most hardened evangelical.
What makes you jealous? As I get older I need to jealously guard my time.
Do you feel you have a purpose or calling in life? I am still trying to find it.
Who taught you to cook? My mother and television.
Who do you admire as a leader? Churchill
What story from history inspires you? The Mormon Pioneers
Do you believe in God? Very much so.
When was the last you where caught in a lie? “let me call you back”
If you could repeal one law what would it be? Tax Laws, need I say more.

How We Spend Our Money

Over the last two years we have all taken another look at how we spend money. Being thrifty has become trendy. The thing I have noticed is anyone who is more frugal that I am is “insane” while anyone who is less frugal than I am is wasteful.

Why is abbreviation such a long word?

So Why Am I At My Best When I Am Reacting? (part two)

Viktor Frankl was a Jewish psychiatrist who survived the death camps of Nazi Germany. While in the death camps, Frankl realized that he alone had the power to determine his response to the horror of the situation. He exercised the only freedom he had in that environment by envisioning himself teaching students after his release. He became an inspiration for others around him. He realized that in the middle of the stimulus-response model, humans have the freedom to choose.

Animals do not have this independent will. They respond to a stimulus like a computer responds to its program. They are not aware of their programming and do not have the ability to change it. The model of determinism was developed based on experiments with animals and neurotic people. Such a model neglects our ability to choose how we will respond to stimuli.

Balance In A Conversation

It is all too easy for me to plough through and dominate a conversation. Likewise it is just as easy for me to sit back and be dominated in a conversation. Neither option results in an enlighten or edifying conversation. I find myself relying on the question to balance out a conversation. Asking the right question gives me the opportunity to steer the conversation in areas I am interested in while giving the other member of the conversation the opportunity to express themselves. I like question like “What smell reminds you of home?”, “Is there a sport you love to play but hate to watch?”, “When was the last time you really laughed?”, “Who is there in your life that you would take a bullet for?” and “What do you feel strongly enough about to protest?”