A couple of weeks ago, while waiting for a meeting to start, a few co-workers and I discussed whether or not we could start a fire from scratch.

The most common method discussed was the tinder and rapid stick rolling method.Case, of Case's ladder fame, claims to have produced fire using this method. Since he lives in an area so remote that fire needs to be rediscovered every evening, I tend believe him.

For the civilized man (or woman), however, there is a better, more practical method. I don't know of many people who have good dry tinder and a wooden stick handy, BUT, I definitely know people who have a can of diet coke and a piece of chocolate lying around, which brings me to my latest and greatest find on the web:

How to Start a Fire with a Coke Can and a Bar of Chocolate

Apparently chocolate is a fine albeit SLOOOOOOW aluminum polish. The bottom of the can becomes a parabolic mirror that focuses and transforms toasty warm rays of sunshine into lethal rays of fire making goodness (ok maybe not so lethal unless you're an ant).

I'm going to have to give this urban survival technique a try, even though I know it's going to break my heart to waste a good piece of chocolate. I can't believe they use a tasty toblerone in the example! Must be rich. What about using a hershey's kiss instead?

Remember, only you can prevent forest fires!

Funny story, worth reading for the last couple of paragraphs alone.

Penguins in your living room

Would you ever...

bungee jump? yes
surf? yes
run a marathon? yes, if I could finish it!
eat squid? yes
eat cow brain? no
eat a living insect? I ate a tiny ant once, does that count? If so, yes.
walk on hot coals? no
go on a reality show? no
scuba dive? yes
... with sharks? yes

For those Grabbers that don't know yet, today is Lex's birthday. So please flood his inbox with birthday wishes 

http://www.grab.com/profiles/index.php?uid=11

I think it would depend on if I were alone or not and if not who I was stuck in the elevator with.

If it was someone I liked, I would rather be stuck in an elevator so I could just sit and chat. If it was someone I didn't like, well maybe I could get to know them better and then learn that I really don't like them.

Living in LA, I hate sitting in traffic that isn't moving. I get road rage. Plus you still have to pay attention in case everyone inches forward  forward a foot (or 12 inches)

 M..a..k..e..s....m..e....s..o....a..n..g..r..y!

 
I like to imagine if I were stuck in a elevator, I would do what they do in the movies and climb out the top.

Aileen and I just finished watching our favorite show on TV, Everwood.

I don't know how many people actually watch this show. I've tried to share this gem of a show with Lex and other people around the office, but the usual response is, "Oh, isn't that show like Dawson's Creek?"

It's not.

If my wife and I were to answer the blog idea of the day that asked when the last time we cried was,  we'd probably have to say "last thursday" every week. IF we were to answer that blog idea of the day. I admit nothing.

Why do I enjoy the show so much? At it's core, it's about people in a small town. Like many shows, it's about people and their problems, their loves, their mistakes, their joys, their life.  It's not pretentious. It's not about shock value. People don't always die or break up or sleep around. You never say "ooh" I can't believe that happened! It's takes a small group of people and it makes them real. And you watch them, and you keep watching them, because you start caring about them.

The writing is phenomenal. I mean, the writers managed to take Scott Wolfe of Party of Five fame, add him to the show last season, and make him, with his trying to be too charming smile,  into a real person. Amazing.

When I watch the show, even though the characters are going through things that I have never gone through myself, it reminds me of times in my own life. There are wonderful things that happen, and there are difficulties. People make mistakes, people struggle, they fall in love, they deal with illness, with old age, with issues between parents and children and friends. There are so many things that happen in the course of a lifetime. But what I really see on the show is the beauty of humanity. Sometimes the most insensitive people can surpise you, the strongest people can falter, those who love you can still shock you with just how deep that love can be. Not everything gets solved in a couple of episodes, people suffer, they learn, they grow, and they change.

There is a truth to it, and it's hopeful.

And that's why I watch the show. I'll admit that I've said on MANY occasions, that there are a lot of stupid people in the world. Everwood reminds me that every one of those stupid people can do surprisingly wonderful and amazing things if you believe in them. It also reminds me that when things are bad, they get better, and not to forget that while I try to achieve all those financial and career goals, it's still the people that matter.  It gives me hope and keeps me grounded.

Does your favorite show do that?

Ok, so if you haven't noticed, I'm not much of a blogger, but today I ran across a link that I just had to write a post about.

Now, I like to try and overcome my fears (I was even talked into bungie jumping at my bachelor party weekend, but that's another story). I'm not really afraid of bugs, in fact, I think they are kinda neat. Although, I squish the Black Widows I find around the yard for safety reasons.

But, the one bug I can't stand, the bane of my existence, is the cockroach (ugh...shudder). I think I have traced the root of my fear, why I always freeze up for a split second when I see any reasonable sized roach, to a childhood memory involving a science museum display of a typical household kitchen, covered wall to wall with roaches! I mean they were just glued on EVERY AVAILABLE INCH! I don't know what they were trying to demonstrate, but if the experiment involved traumatizing little kids, then that's some powerfully effective science.

So, today, I stumble across this link on my favorite hot deals board.

WORST THING EVER. 

I suppose I should buy one and sleep with it next to my pillow. That could either cure my fear, or cause me to die from exhaustion.

Deuce, if you're lookin for more of your twisted halloween fun...

I'm not exactly sure if these are in order of which I liked best or just when they popped into my head, but these are the things I've eaten in my life that for some reason or other made an impression on me. I enjoy good food but don't really consider myself an "eater", so for me to actually remember something I ate, I really needed to think it was GRRR-EAT!
 

1. Mussel Souffle from Aqua in SF

2. Filet Mignon from Tiramisu SF

3. Surpise Lasagna that my wife made for me for my 30th birthday (which she doens't like at all because of the different cheeses, but made it with love anyways)

4. Baked clams, from a camping/clam digging & baking trip in Maine

5. Fried Clam strips from a seaside stand in Maine (hmm, I have quite a few fond memories from Maine)

6. Tito's Tacos in LA

7. Black Pepper Oven Baked Meat Pie Thing from a street vendor in Taiwan (sorry, I have no idea how to properly translate the name, but it's good stuff, trust me!)

8. Slush Puppies on the way home from 2nd and 3rd grade

9. Arinell's Pizza (NY thin) in Berkeley, tied with  Zachary's Pizza  (Gourmet deep dish) in Berkeley (In fact, Berkeley seems to be pizza heaven, as there are 3 other places I could also really go for right about now, GO BEARS!)

10. Honey nut Cheerios (The first time I had these as a kid, I finished half the box in one sitting)