A Trip to a Mexican Bathroom or Signs Pt. 2

Hi folks: Lyndy and I decided to get all crazy and do some spur of the moment Black Friday shopping today. We picked up some decent stuff at Wallyworld and K-Mart after the crowds had settled down. No 5 AM wake up call for Lyndy and I. Then we decided to hit a mexican restaurant that shall remain nameless (locals might be able to figure it out, although every time you turn around a new south-of-the-border themed restaurant pops up in Glasgow). I'll give you a hint, the name starts with Los. While at the restaurant I found it necessary to borrow the facilities (don't worry, this is as detailed as I'll get. Promise). When I locked the stall door this is the very cool sign I saw:
Don't worry, I obeyed the sign and left the paper ON the trash can instead of ON the toilet.

After finishing said bathroom stall activities (and taking a picture of this cool sign with my cell phone) my eyes wandered to the light fixture. Lo and behold above the lights I focused on the extremely inventive storage area for the super-large rolls of toilet paper. And now, I share this with you. Perhaps this will give you ideas that will help to decorate your home in a similar spiffy fashion:

Folks, you just couldn't make up stuff this cool if you wanted to.

Happy Thanksgiving - Watch This

I hope that you and yours have a wonderful day of thanks. Here is my Thanksgiving present to you...an amazing sitcom that is essential holiday viewing. Watch it and thank me later:

A Sign

Delicious Gourmet Lunch & Green Christmas

I just finished a delicious, mouth watering lunch. This lunch was so tasty, I found it necessary to share with you (digitally of course, I can't actually *share* the meal with you since I have consumed said culinary delight). Rather than discuss it, I thought I would let you feast your eyeballs upon my lunch:

Spam sandwhich on wheat with Miracle Whip lite, Maruchan Instant Lunch cup o' soup thingie (last seen in this week's Office episode in a stunning product placement coup. Ryan the psycho temp was holding it. Did you see it?), Kaukauna (how *do* you pronounce that?) Port Wine cheese spread (now available at Walmart for the holidays), and Zesta crackers. Isn't that just an incredible lunchtime spread? The perfect hot and cold meal for a chilly November day. Rachel Ray would be proud. Come back and peruse my blog whenever you are hungry!

In other holiday news (since the season is now upon us). One of my favorite things to do this time of year, or anytime of the year for that matter, is check out Christmas blogs full of music, pictures, and holiday merriment. A Christmas Yuleblog just posted some great info on Stan Freberg's Classic "Green Christmas" holiday single. Along with A Charlie Brown Christmas, Freberg's 50 year old masterpiece points to the true meaning of Christmas, without bonking folks in the head. Check out this informative and entertaining Christmas blog HERE. Here is the cover to this scrumptious holiday treat:

The END of the Diet in Living Color

So I'm sorta' kinda' on a diet. That is, I *was* until the Lil' Schweetie purchased the delicious confection you see in the picture below:
Old Fashioned Candy Cane Creme Oreos. Can you imagine such a thing? I can, I ate 1/2 of the bag last night and the other 1/2 today. Now far be it from me to lay blame for my complete lack of willpower and self control, but obviously my Blessed Spouse does not want me thin or she would not purchase me such amazingly wonderful sugar filled, peppermint-flavored concoctions. She must like me a bit "pleasantly plump." Makes you wonder.

In other news of note: behind said tasty holiday concoction you will see one gigantic head o' Santa made of genuine styrofoam. I can't tell you how happy this newly acquired bit of Noel-themed wonderment makes me. I just scored this and another (not one but TWO) gigantic styrofoam Santa heads on eBay for the low, low price of $12.99. Ahh, what childhood happy memory bliss this is. One gigantic Santa head for home (Lyndy does *not* like this idea), and one for my office to share the happy gigantic Santa head holiday delight with my co-workers. Joyeaux Noel!

Finally (if you are still reading, THANK YOU) I just wrote a review for a spectacular holiday-themed CD called Christmas A G0-Go from Wicked Cool records. Check out the review HERE.

Gotta' go. Still a few Oreos left. Your pal, Barry

10,000 Hours - How to Get Good @ What You Do

I read an interview with Malcolm Gladwell in the Wall Street Journal this weekend. Gladwell is one of my favorite writers (he wrote Blink & The Tipping Point & the upcoming Outliers). I heard him speak @ a BlackBerry Symposium back in 2007. Fascinating speaker with great hair. See pic on left for proof on the hair comment.

In the interview Gladwell states that the difference between a professional and a talented amateur is 10,000 hours of practice. Around ten hard years of solid practice. He mentions a chess grandmaster plays for ten years before he achieves that level of excellence, and a classical composer won't be able to create great classical music without this kind of practice. Gladwell states: "it's an empirically-based finding that seems consistent across a number of different fields...an opportunity is a chance to practice."

So you want to get good at something? Practice. A lot.

Most things worth doing require work. Being a great guitarist, or preacher, or artist, or cook, or parent requires discipline and blood, sweat and tears. Prodigies are rare (I do think our Korean son Robin was a prodigy @ Guitar Hero. He could play advance mode quicker than anyone I have ever seen. I suck @ Guitar Hero, but could jump up and down while playing much better than Rob. This might be why I suck).

This got me thinking--have I achieved "professional" status at anything? In what area do I want to excel? I think I have some hard work and practice ahead of me.

How about you...in what area would you like to be a professional? What do you need to practice more? Are you a "professional" at anything now?

Sounds like we need to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

Your pal,

Barry

The Accidental Playist

Welcome to my new blog! Tonight I'll be starting a new recurring feature...The Accidental Playlist

I put the iPod on shuffle lately. A lot. Sometimes you get wacky combinations, sometimes crappy. Tonight's was pretty solid:

• Galactic Cowboys - A Different Way
  
• Baptize My Mind - Jon Foreman
  
• Not a Second Time - The Beatles
  
• Son of Billion Dollar Babies - Alice Cooper
  
• Strange Brew - Bob & Doug McKenzie
  
• Weeping Willow - The Verve
  
• Baby, It's Cold Outside - Pezband
  
• Everybody Wants to go to Heaven - David*Crowder Band
  
• Maktfaktor - Edin Adahl (Swedish Christian band...we used to play the English version of this song on WKCC radio in college. This is the Swedish version of it. Don't understand a word, but I love it)
  
• Five in the Nave - 77s
  
• Turning Thirty - Randy Stonehill
  
• Rock Bottom - UFO
  
• Up and Down - The Serpent Power