I just posted my first video on YouTube. Shhh...nobody tell my wife. P.S. You can add the video to your website or e-mail it on to friends. …
Get Curious
One Time, At Grown-Up Camp…
Did you ever go to summer camp? I had my only summer camp experience when I was in high school. Other opportunities presented themselves before that, but I was too shy and frankly, chicken, to give them a try. But in high school I went to a week long art camp held at Northern Illinois University, which turned out to be my alma mater. The worst part about it was that it was held during the NBA Finals in which the Chicago Bulls were aiming for their third championship. While they clinched, I was in a hallway making drawings with chalk. But the best part were the friends I met, the things I …
Coca-Cola and Liquified Gummi Bears
Today I had an excellent opportunity to exercise some old fashioned childlike curiosity. Kim and I are in Atlanta this weekend for a speaking engagement tomorrow. We arrived this morning and after checking in to the hotel, rode the train into the city. We ended up at the World of Coca-Cola, for an interesting immersion into the storied history of the first truly global brand. With my interest in art and marketing, I enjoyed seeing the timeline of advertisements, but the highlight of the tour is Club Coca-Cola. The "Taste of the States" area offers servings of many of the different soft …
Nice Paper
Vickie Milazzo wrote an interesting article on learning. She outlines 8 ways to learn in a more childlike manner. All of her points are pretty sound, but my favorite snippet is #4: "Be willing to learn from anyone and everyone." Grown-ups seem to have a love affair with paper. Specifically, the fancy paper printed with initials like MBA, PhD, JD, and the like. The kind of paper signed by bigwigs at universities -- the more prestigious, the better. These pieces of paper -- also called certificates and diplomas -- are a great sign of accomplishment, but they can also lead to two …
A Lesson From Curious George
I saw the movie Curious George recently. I really liked it. The animation was simple, with it's own unique style; different from the hi-tech, hyper-realistic animation that is so common these days. The super great soundtrack by Jack Johnson added a pleasant and whimsical unity to the whole thing. The story, of course, was about the little monkey created by Margret and H.A. Ray. It was fairly formulaic, as many movies of this kind are, but still a fun way to spend an hour and a half. When watching it, I found that there was an uncredited character that appeared quite often throughout the …
I Knew It
I am Superman. The "What Superhero Are You" quiz said that I was "mild-mannered, good, strong, and I love to help others."It didn't mention anything about being faster than a speeding bullet, but that goes without saying.Since we're on the subject of Superman, I warmly invite you to check out an old post I wrote about a ridiculously accurate sculpture of Christopher Reeve. And if you didn't already hear, Superman is returning to theaters this summer. Here's a cool early trailer that got me so excited I...I...watched it about 20 times. You tell me: is it a coincidence that …
Like a Fine Wine
Now that I'm back from the East coast speaking jaunt (next up: Fort Worth, Texas) here are a few curious facts and thoughts: Most of our time was spent in (or should I say on) Rhode Island. Fr. Gray informed us that the actual name of the state is Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, which simultaneously makes it the smallest state with the longest name. Newport, the southernmost town on the original Rhode Island, was beautiful. …
What’s So Great About The Great Outdoors?
When I was a kid, I remember heading out back to the ravine behind our house. It was only a few steps from the front door, but it might as well been a million miles away, in some godforsaken, unexplored jungle. I'd pretend to be Han Solo, exploring a far off planet, or an archaeologist, digging for clues about ancient years -- like the early seventies. My friend Jenna often tells stories about sitting in a tree in her yard, enveloped by branches, equipped with books and sandwiches. In fact, many people I know, when asked to name their favorite place to play as a child, would mention somewhere …
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Scrapbook Away Adultitis
Attention scrapbooking aficionados! Michelle Thompson at Scrapability has taken the 8 Secrets from Childhood from my ChangeThis manifesto (free download) and applied them to the art of scrapbooking. She correctly (and wittily) states, "The link into any seri-arse scrapper’s identity -- the ability, just for a bit, to escape adulthood, remember your childhood and simply 'to play'." I think scrapbooking is indeed a great way to tap into that childlike creative spirit in a "grown-up" way. Definitely more productive than sitting in front of the boob tube. Here's Michelle's scrapbooking slant …
Suprise Your Brain
Maybe you're a businessperson trying to figure out how to appeal to a younger demographic. Maybe you're a teacher wondering how to connect more with students. Maybe you wish you could be more like those people you know who always seem to be enjoying life enthusiastically. Or maybe you woke up this morning and just felt, well...older. In her blog Creating Passionate Users, Kathy Sierra poses the question: "Is there something you loved to do when you were younger but that you stopped doing? Did you stop doing it because you truly outgrew it... or because you got older?" …