Sally Herman

cabinporn:

Waldhaus by atelier st

nevver:

No Standing

noraleah:

Via spinnellii:

Icaro Doria, a Brazilian man, working for a magazine in Portugal started this campaign using real data from the UN and flag images, he’s created whats known as Meet the World. The colors within the flags from its respective country are used to represent current, geographical relevant issues. Take a look.

United States

Angola

Somalia

China

Colombia

Burkina

The perfect way to end the day.

Seth gave me a Keel’s Simple Diary™ and I love it! It’s a simple, fun way to journal.

Against my better judgment, this is what I ate for lunch today.

Goldman Sachs is investing $450 million of its own money in Facebook, at a valuation that implies the social networking company is now worth $50 billion.  Goldman is also apparently launching a fund that will bring its own high net worth clients in as investors for Facebook.

On the face of it, this might just seem like the financial sector doing what it is supposed to – channeling funds into productive enterprise.  The SEC is apparently looking at the way private investors will be involved, but there are some more deeply unsettling factors at work here.

Remember that Goldman Sachs is now a bank holding company – a status it received in September 2008, at the height of the financial crisis, in order to avoid collapse (for the details, see Andrew Ross Sorkin’s blow-by-blow account in Too Big To Fail.)  This means that it has essentially unfettered access to the Federal Reserve’s discount window, i.e., it can borrow against all kinds of assets in its portfolio, effective ensuring it has government-provided liquidity at any time.

Any financial institution with such access to such government support is likely to take on excessive risk – this is the heart of what is commonly referred to as the problem of “moral hazard.”  If you are fully insured against adverse events, you will be less careful.

A friend gave me this useful formula : Subtract your age from the number 100, and the answer is the number of pages you have to read before giving up on a book you’re not enjoying.* Her advice came to mind the other day as I was preparing to return yet another partially read book to the library. Oops, I thought : am I dangerously deficient in perseverance?

No, I said to myself. Life is short - why spend it with books I don’t really want to read?

This is what I’m reading to feed my craving for useless knowledge.  The inventions range from the board games of Monopoly and Scrabble (both invented during the Great Depression) to the invention of the window pane (only in 1959 was the process refined to make the windows we use today) to the pressure cooker (which showed that steam could be a power source paving the way for the invention of the steam locomotive). It also features the light bulb and other inventions that we consider life changing. However, I’m most fascinated by the inventions that I’ve never though about, such as the pressure cooker or the ball bearing.

Interesting piece in the WSJ recently about the amazing effects of music. Here are some of the findings:

• Listening to Bach, Corelli, and Mozart is more effective in treating mild depression than is talking to a psychiatrist. per a study published in The Arts in Psychotherapy (more)
• …

jayparkinsonmd:

Paintings by Victor Rodriguez (via)

I assumed Garance Doré went to art school because she draws the most beautiful illustrations. Today I learned she did not. If you need some inspiration to follow your passion, read her post about her first real job.

Seth Godin hit the nail on the head in this post about sabotage.

is one of the most fascinating books I’ve ever read. It walks the reader through studies of patients suffering from neurological disorders to explain how our brains are constantly adapting. For a long time, neuroscience believed the brain was immutable – fixed - one part of the brain for each…

I love those Orange Julius drinks, but I hate how much they cost. So when I’m in the mood for an Orange Julius, or whenever I’m making BELT’s (Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, Tomato sandwiches, Spanglish-style), I whip up a batch.

Here’s the recipe:

• 6 oz. can frozen orange juice
• 1 1/4 cup milk
• 1 1/4 cup cold water
• 1/2 cup sugar (I use 1/4 cup instead)
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla
• 10-12 Ice cubes

Blend it in a blender and drink. It makes about 4 servings or more, depending on your serving size. I freeze any leftovers and eat it later like an Italian ice. Mmmmm!

“Can We Eat To Starve Cancer?”

A friend of mine is battling a brain tumor using alternative treatment: diet, enzyme supplements and detoxification. He posted this TED talk on his website and I thought it was fascinating. Could it really be that the best things for fighting/preventing cancer can all be picked up at your local grocery store?

I might give this a try.

dihard:

Without a normal desk job, I’ve lately been finding it difficult to stay on track with the various projects I’m trying to involve myself with. I started using jakelodwick’s WeHaveStandards to practice some self-discipline. So far I really like it. 

dalasverdugo:

jstn:

Bibio - Lovers’ Carvings

I’ve posted this before, I just love it so much.

I probably reblogged it back then, too. Buy this one on vinyl, trust me!