The Lush Life

The Musings of a Woman Behind Bars.....

I have no idea what I'm doing half the time. Just want to be clear on that. But there are a few indisputable things I've learned that I'd like to share.

The power of toast is greatly underrated.
Your bed is the most accurate psychologist you'll ever have.
And finally... well let's leave that for another time.

I've actually spent way too much time developing an entire "theory of life" around those, one that explains everything except how one fabric softener sheet can sashay around inside the dryer and get every little inch of laundry soft. Just one. WTF? But those deep thoughts are explained elsewhere on the web in random musings I scatter about on other blogs like a cheap, shameless cyber-lawn sprinkler.

"Impossible," you say. "Those indisputable things explain nothing."

Whatever. I bet you're the person who likes to party with the fifth dentist who was overthinking the whole Trident recommendation. So let me assure you, the mysterious third Great Thought explains a lot. Really pulls the whole thing together.

For now, here are some links and 'net finds that I hope will entertain you as they have me. The purpose of this particular blog of mine is simply to serve as an online trough for links people are always asking me to give them. Again. And "once more, please. "

So here you go people. I hope you are able to waste as much time with these as I have.

Graph Jam Charts

Download the software and make some yourself (it's free) or just laugh at what other people post. GraphJam

Oh. My. God. I LOVE THIS!

This is just about the coolest damn thing I've seen in awhile. Basically, it's a flickr photo search via tags. You start out by entering your first key word. "Ireland" for example. Then more sub-choices pop up. Keep clicking on your sub-tags until you've narrowed your choice to what you are looking for. Then click the globe in the center and the app gathers the applicable photos from flickr and plants them on the spinning globe. LOVE THIS! Warning: ADDICTIVE!

Click Tag Galaxy to access the site.

Happily Ever After in Therapy...

8 Fairy Tales And Their Not-So-Happy Endings on Mental Floss Blogs

The original endings to many historical fairy tales are quite a bit less sanitized than their Disney versions....

For example: "Sleeping Beauty"

In the original version of the tale, it’s not the kiss of a handsome prince that wakes Sleeping Beauty, but the nudging of her newborn twins. That’s right. While unconscious, the princess is impregnated by a monarch and wakes up to find out she’s a mom twice over. Then, in true Ricki Lake form, Sleeping Beauty’s “baby’s daddy” triumphantly returns and promises to send for her and the kids later, conveniently forgetting to mention that he’s married. When the trio is eventually brought to the palace, his wife tries to kill them all, but is thwarted by the king. In the end, Sleeping Beauty gets to marry the guy who violated her, and they all live happily ever after."

For more: Mental Floss Blogs

"Do you want to be friends in six months, or have me kill you in 10 years?"

Prisoners Dilemma Contest: Whats the One Question You'd Ask If.......
By Stephen J. Dubner

Pretend for a minute that you have done something to put yourself in jeopardy and are facing a real-life Prisoner’s Dilemma. Now pretend additionally that you get to choose your partner in the dilemma. There are three people to choose from. You cannot see or talk directly to the three people, but you are allowed to ask one question of each of the three people to help make your decision.

What is the one question you’d ask?

Read the entire post and submit your contest answer at: Freakonomics - New York Times Blog :

Law of Attraction Used for Your Parenting Success - by Kelly Nault M.A.

Law of Attraction and Effective Parenting

"Struggle is not part of the natural order of life. One never sees a cherry tree struggle to produce blossoms when given the right environment. Why? Because the tree is simply following its purpose—its basic nature. Fortunately, struggle does not have to be part of the parenting equation either. This is good news for many parents because if we choose to use the law of attraction we can experience a happier, more peaceful and respectful home. Yes, this can even mean eliminating award-winning temper tantrums for good. Sound too good to be true?" Read on.

Rebecca J. Burns

The revenge of e.e. cummings

A new study warns that writing text messages could hurt a writer's command of standardized English. lol.

The revenge of e.e. cummings - International Herald Tribune

Be A Kid Again

1. Do a cartwheel.
2. Sing into your hairbrush.
3. Walk barefoot in wet grass.
4. Play a song you like really loud, over and over.
5. Dot all your “i”’s with smiley faces.
6. Read the funnies. Throw the rest of the paper away.
7. Dunk your cookies.
8. Play a game where you make up the rules as you go along.
9. Step carefully over sidewalk cracks.
10. Change into some play clothes.
11. Try to get someone to trade you a better sandwich.
12. Eat ice cream for breakfast.
13. Kiss a frog, just in case.
14. Blow the wrapper off a straw.
15. Have someone read you a story.
16. Find some pretty stones and save them.
17. Wear your favorite shirt with you favorite pants even if they don’t match.
18. Take a running jump over a big puddle.
19. Get someone to buy you something you really don’t need.
20. Hide your vegetables under your napkin.
21. Stay up past your bedtime.
22. Eat dessert first.
23. Fuss a little, then take a nap.
24. Wear red gym shoes.
25. Put way too much sugar on your cereal.
26. Make cool screeching noises every time you turn a corner.
27. Giggle a lot for no reason.
28. Give yourself a gol"

10 Simple Ways to Do Only 3 Things Today

"I have to admit, I'm as lazy as the next guy. I have my moments of productivity, where I'm cranking out the tasks and checking things off my to-do list like my life depended on it.

But for the most part, I just want to do a few things each day, and then take a nap.

And as it turns out, that's all that's needed. Doing just a few things each day has worked wonders for my productivity -- I do less, but those few things I do have a higher impact."

Link to Full Lazy Productivity article on LifeRemix Blog

What’s for Dinner? Pork?

The Pollster Wants to Know - New York Times:
"IF there’s butter and white wine in your refrigerator and Fig Newtons in the cookie jar, you’re likely to vote for Hillary Clinton. Prefer olive oil, Bear Naked granola and a latte to go? You probably like Barack Obama, too. And if you’re leaning toward John McCain, it’s all about kicking back with a bourbon and a stuffed crust pizza while you watch the Democrats fight it out next week in Pennsylvania.

If what we eat says a lot about who we are, it also says something about how we might vote."

Full article

Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.
Not all who wander are lost.
Save The Whales. Collect The Whole Set!
Talk only if you can improve on the silence.
Women fly when men aren’t watching.
Little piece of advice. Your honker's cute in person. Peephole? Not your friend.
I'm sorry, did I interupt you eating your baby?
I'm allergic to felt.
While you're at it, why don't you become a superhero? Captain Neck Fat.
Take a SWAG at it- Scientific Wild-Ass Guess.....
I didn't see anything but the Tweetie Bird on his ass.....
Oh my God. It's finally happened. The Botox has seeped into your brain.
Follow the bread crumbs, Gretel.
First I was victimized by a grizzly. And now you.
This is even more disturbing than your bag full of Mommy.
Always be sure they have their meds before you do anything else.
It takes a dark night to bring out the stars.
"If you press me to say why I loved him, I can say no more than it was because he was he and I was I." Michel Montaigne
I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way-- things I had no words for". -Georgia O'Keeffe
The mind is like a parachute -it works best when it is open.
"None. None more black...."
If we only used things for their intended purpose, we would not be where we are today.
I knew it was too bad to be true....
"--Love doesn't end because we no longer see each other. People go on all their lives loving God, don't they, without ever seeing Him.
--That's not my kind of love.
--Maybe there's no other kind."
--I'm jealous of everything that moves. I'm jealous of the rain. "The End of the Affair"
A hero ain't nothing but a sandwich.

Where are they from? God only knows. Randomly overheard, uttered by clever (and often inebriated) friends, my own lacking-7 second-delay mouth, Scrubs, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Monty Python.... pretty much a hodgepodge.