It’s neat to see what is being uploaded to Flickr at any given second from around the world.

Categories: Fun
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For several months, any time I enter a Best Buy or Wal-Mart I always start my shopping by looking for a Wii fit. I never become disappointed when they aren’t in stock because they have become as rare as the Wii console (if not more so). Jenny and I ran into Wal-Mart to pick up a prescription and I immediately headed to the electronics area. Two employees were placing about a half dozen into the Wii display case from a discrete cardboard box; one worked while the other guarded the box.

Today my Wii Fit age was 27 (I’m 28), but my BMI is obese. I set a goal to lose 10 pounds in 2 weeks. It said I was too optimistic, but I ignored the warning because if I can lose 10 pounds my BMI will lower to the “overweight” range.

It said the optimum BMI is 22, which means I need to lose 60 pounds! Not gonna happen…

Categories: Entertainment, Games
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I just stumbled across this album, “XOXO, Panda And The New Kid Revival” by Her Space Holiday and love it.

You can listen to all tracks free here, and Amazon has a free MP3 of their single.

Categories: Music
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I went to The Donut Whole for the first time today. They just opened after the first of the year and I think I found a new (and more affordable) location for donuts, coffee, and studying for homework. It’s a creative and innovative alternative to traditional donut & coffee shops; the store is arranged to accommodate both art and music performances while their delicious donuts easily out perform some of the other local shops. Their hours are 6am to midnight, but their drive-thru is 24 hours.

I especially dig the art on the walls, the nostalgic and creatively recycled decor, and the friendly staff. Their chocolate/peanut-butter donut was amazing along with their reasonably-priced mocha espresso. I really liked their selection of hard-to-find beverages, such as micro-brewed root beer.

From their myspace page:

Wichita stalwart Michael Carmody and longtime Old Town dynamo Angela Etter have partnered to bring you hot, fresh, tender cake donuts made from scratch and rich, delicious, top-quality coffee drinks.

At The Donut Whole, we believe that the Big Three donut conglomerates produce donuts with holes — but no soul. Our donuts are made with tried-and-true traditional craftsmanship, given a fun modern twist with novel flavor varieties and creative toppings. (We even offer a vegan variety!) Wherever possible, our ingredients are all-natural and sourced locally to reduce our “carbon footprint” — so when you eat a Donut Whole donut, you’re eating the end result of KANSAS labor. Munch ‘em with pride!

Our store will be open all day and night, and will offer convenient drive-up service, free wireless internet, live acoustic music, art shows, donut eating contests and more — much more than your traditional donut shop.

Categories: Biz, Kansas
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Small Business Struggle to Provide Insurance Click to view the video segment.

Meanwhile, Cessna adds another 2,000 jobs to be laid off. They already laid off almost 700 about two months ago. Less airplanes means less demand on materials; Alcoa says the weakened demand for aluminum has hit “historic” lows.

Kind of depressing.

Categories: Biz, Kansas
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The start of a new year at work brings new commitments to creative problem solving. I have heard metaphors such as “If I gave you $500 to spend on our department, what would you do?” and my personal favorite “If you can wave a magic wand and change any one thing about our department, what would it be?” (from The Leadership Challenge) As I ask this question recently, most people seemed unable to immediately respond. This lack of immediate response is explained in a recent Center for Creative Leadership blog post:

From CCL’s Leading Effectively Blog:

Most of us use our so-called left brains very effectively. (Linear, rational, verbal, logical, symbolic, and so on.) It’s our right side of the brain that needs a bit of work. (Aesthetic, emotional, musical, imaginative, visual, and so on.) And them [sic] some work on integrating the two. The very best in science, art, business and leadership always integrates the two.

We typically apply a linear map in our structured, left-brain approach to problem-solving. For example, if a piece of equipment is bad then we use an establish troubleshooting approach to identify and exchange it for a working replacement. But using the “magic wand” approach forces people to use both sides of the brain. Thus, we’re able to define challenges that we typically assume are as concrete and unmovable as the foundation of our building.

My favorite answer to the magic wand question so far has been “I would change how difficult it is to create change.” This demonstrates that structured, linear boundries have been removed from the problem-solving process. It’s an annoying cliché, but it is nonetheless the start of thinking outside of the box.

When we draw, we learn to look at the boundaries. What part of this is my hand and what part of it is a shadow? Sometimes we can see more effectively if we change the light, or look at the empty spaces. Drawing forces us too look at the edges of the “problem,” because we are drawing with a line. There are no “lines,” in nature, just as nature does not always create actual “boundaries” between countries. They are artificial boundaries, just like pencil lines. Knowing the difference between what’s “real” and what’s contrived can make the difference between strong and weak leadership.

Categories: Leadership, Work
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Until midnight on Thursday, 1/15, you can download a complete .pdf of Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan: Keeping Your Money Safe and Sound for free.

Categories: Books, Finances
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One of the funniest interviews yet.

Categories: Miscellaneous
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I’m narrowing down on my Master’s degree and my next class, Practical Problem-Solving, has a very cool (i.e. non-traditional) text book. I’ve only delved into the first chapter but so far it looks enlightening.

We also had to choose a biography or autobiography of a leader to read and critically examine. I spent an hour at Barnes and Nobles and was disheartened by the lack of non-white male leadership biographies. I saw others I really liked from Maya Angelou and Cupcake Brown, but their stories aren’t based around developing as leaders. I looked for Benazir Bhutto’s autobiography but they didn’t have it. Finally, I found one that meets my prerequisites while being interesting to boot: Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi’s Iran Awakening.

When in a bookstore I find I can’t leave for another 3 hours – even though none of the displays, bargain books, and featured titles have changed since my last visit. I ended up also getting Garrison Keillor’s Good Poems for Hard Times; a clever mix of Keillor’s favorite poets as often heard on NPR.

Categories: Books
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Christmas was great, and we’re already one week into the new year. I’m off today so I’m using the time to clean around the house, get started in my new class (before I have a chance to get behind), and getting caught up on other chores such as grocery shopping and fixing my dad’s PC.

New Years resolutions include limiting fast food, maintaining a routine schedule towards house improvements, and even updating my blog on a regular basis (gasp!).

Categories: Family, Friends
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