Book Corner Bookmark

I made a book corner bookmark (with those very nice instructions) with my boys this weekend. I like this origami method because it uses a small square, no fancy shapes or templates. The fun part for me was selecting an interesting bit of "paper" - I like how the Hershey's Special Dark cocoa label looks as a bookmark. The fun part for them was using a white envelope corner, and coloring it to suit themselves. In fact, coloring was so much fun, we never got around to the monster inspiration!

Antibiotic Overuse

This article, Antibiotic overuse: Stop the killing of beneficial bacteria, by Martin Blaser [doi:10.1038/476393a] kicked up opinions on antibiotic overuse. That article is a collection of observations, not a scientific study, but it is compelling. The CDC is also worried about antibiotic resistance, and this concern runs beyond the US with the Transatlantic Taskforce on Antimicrobial Resistance formed in 2009.

One problem is that antibiotics could be killing off beneficial bacteria for good, not temporarily as used to be believed. Furthermore, the reduction in H. pylori matches a rise in reflux and cancer. Ouch!

Some bacteria are good, and antibiotics are not selective. I've said it before ...

Compost Bin

I was inspired by this post to build your own compost bin from a trash can. I got a trash can with wheels already attached because the cost of the cheapest large trash can plus the heavy-duty wheels with nuts and bolts to attach to it was about the same price, in which case I'll save my time.

So far, I remember that I prefer composting to throwing everything in the garbage. I just feel uncomfortable throwing all waste in the garbage when I know some of it biodegrades nicely.

I've learned that my yard has far too many lawn clippings after a single mowing! for this 32 gallon compost bin. I probably need to build or designate a containment area for lawn clippings and leaves.

And I recently learned that the 40+ holes I drilled with my boys (who loved watching, and pulling off the plastic curlicues) was probably far too few based on this other post (echoed by MAKE as well).

A nice start, and lots more composting to go!

Quick and Easy Sausage Posole

I had forgotten just how much I like this posole (Southwestern stew) recipe until I made it for dinner tonight!

I started with this Sausage Posole recipe from Hillshire Farm, but following a recipe is not my forté.

All fresh ingredients were preheated to softness in the microwave before throwing in the pan to stew for an hour.

• 2 cups chicken broth (I used what I had, chicken stock from the last time I boiled chicken)
• 1/2 cup diced onion, pre-cooked in some of that chicken broth
• 1 medium potato, grated, and pre-cooked in some of that chicken broth
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 2 cups pinto beans (I used what I had, about half "refried" and half still beans)
• 1/2 cup white wine, optional
• 1 can hominy, rinsed and drained (this is my only hominy recipe, and I always keep a can on the shelf)
• 1 can Rotel Mexican (with lime and cilantro) or Rotel Milder, including juice
• 1/2 package of Hillshire Farms Li'l Smokies
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder (or ground cumin)
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• water as needed

So, like I said, make sure the fresh ingredients have been cooked until soft in the microwave, and then throw it in the pan before doing something else for a while. In my case, I was fixing dinner for the boys. Stir occasionally, adding more water as needed. And it's so tasty!

Lists To Do ...

I've had enough problems with Wunderlist to need to jump ship. The Android app is very large (OK, my phone's space is limited) and it loads slowly if at all. I started with a list of free Wunderlist alternatives (what I want may not be free, but I'll start here). I selected for Android AND (Online OR (Mac AND Linux)) clients AND NOT Freemium. (In some cases, like Google Tasks, I know there are many clients for Android, so I let it slide even though technically it's Online only. I want an Android client so I have offline access to my tasks when my phone doesn't have an uplink, and yes I know synchronization is hard.) So the list started as:

• Google Tasks: Free by Google - Online
• Simplenote: Free by Automattic - iPhone, iPad, Online
• Producteev: Free* - Mac, iPhone, Windows, Android, Online, Blackberry
• Todo.txt: Open Source by Gina Trapani - Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android, Linux
• Any.DO: Free by Any.DO - iPhone, Android
• Org-mode: Open Source by Carsten Dominik - Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android, Linux
• Cloud Checklist: Free by Skybuffer - Online
• allthings: Free* by welovelists - Online
• Coolendar: Free by Fabiano Franz - iPhone, Android, Online
• Yodiz: Free by Yodiz - Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android + Tablet, Linux, Online
• Smthngs: Free by Valentin Shergin - Online, Android
• TickTick: Free by Appest Limited - Mac, iPhone, Windows, Android, Linux, Chrome OS
• One Line Todo: Free by eveningsun - Android
• do.com: Free - iPhone, Android, Online
• ToDo Pro: Free by Appigo, Inc. - iPhone, iPad, Android, Online

I want:

• multiple lists (or filtered views aka smart folders),
• tags (bonus if the application can know which are GTD contexts; not a feature in Wunderlist either),
• easy way to re-order tasks,
• optional due dates (or I'll keep the ones with due dates in Google Tasks, assuming Google doesn't kill it off like Reader)

So far:

• Google Tasks: Adding dates far in the future is painful from the web interface, so I need a good client.
• Simplenote: I already use JadeNote on my phone, but it's not to-do-specific. (last)
• Producteev: Wait, I can't re-order tasks? Bah.
• Todo.txt isn't going to be very different from Simplenote that I already use.
• Any.DO: The interface wasn't compelling enough to make up for its Android footprint.
• Org-mode: I'm worried about offline access now that I look at it again.
• Cloud Checklist: No tags or filters, but the rest is there. The web interface doesn't seem to have a mobile view, although it's fairly responsive on my Android phone, but that does mean no offline access.
• allthings: Worried about offline access when my phone doesn't have a data link.
• Coolendar: I'll check it out. (middle)
• Yodiz: It sounds like much more than I need for myself.
• Smthngs: Whoa. Wait. This one merits serious consideration. (#1) UPDATE: It's available online and on Android, it works in offline mode, it has all the ways I like to slice and dice, except for ONE BIG ONE. I always need import and export before I put my data in a bucket, and I don't see that. I'm sad, because it's lovely and responsive, but I'd like to save myself a headache in the long run. *sigh* Strike another one from the list.
• TickTick: The Android app is a bit large, and I'd rather see screenshots or a test mode.
• One Line Todo: This one has Google Tasks support for the Online access I want (I hope). However, the bar is set at the Google Tasks interface, and I'd rather do better than that.
• do.com: I don't really need deals, thanks.
• ToDo Pro: Just for me, thanks.
• Taskos (Task List): Thanks to Rob, I'm adding this to the list as a Google Tasks Android client. (#2)

Intent and Impact

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.

I call Baloney on that childhood rhyme.

I want to use a simplified model of communication in this post: two people talking to each other. When Alice speaks, she has intent. When Bob listens to her, her words have an impact on him. Good communication happens when [good] intent has a matching impact. When the two don't align (as can be a problem for relationships, religious beliefs, and more), those words can get offensive. (Seriously, read It's not about The Onion.)

If the intent is good, but the impact is bad (sorry, I'm still simplifying), I need more information. Does Alice know her impact is bad? Has Alice actually been told this? Has Alice apologized, sympathized, or empathized? Has Alice thought about how to do better in the future? If the pattern of behavior is all bad impact with no visible effort to improve, it's just toxic waste [see #6].

Intent and impact are two sides of the same coin of communication.

I think intent does matter, but it's not the only thing. In a conversation with two equal participants, Alice's intent should have an equal weight compared to the impact on Bob. If Alice exhibits a pattern of undesirable impact that she hasn't improved (even if bungled), I personally care a whole lot less about her intent.

Impact matters.

UPDATE: Scientific American has a thoughtful blog post on intent versus impact titled "But I didn’t mean it!" Why it’s so hard to prioritize impacts over intents.

Cognitive Bias, continued

Another interesting case of cognitive bias (I encounter bias blind spot and introspection illusion often; this thought continued from earlier post) is mind projection fallacy. Oh, to see the world as it really is (link just for the synopsis of Heart of Darkness) ... or not!