The JackB

"When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun'." — Groucho Marx

Archives for July 2008

Blogavoidance

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Do you ever engage in blogging to avoid work? Do you find yourself racking your brain or scouring the web for that one perfect topic to blog about? Do you find yourself cursing out loud because you discoved that the topic you wish to discuss has already been covered by 6,354 other bloggers, and at least six of them did a better job than you.

If you answered yes to these questions you are clearly engaged in blogavoidance, also known as suffering from blogavoiditis. There is no cure, no hope and like this post, no point.

But I do have an answer for you. For little to no money down I will serve as a guest blogger for you. I will write a piece that you can place on your little slab of the net. I do not promise or guarantee that it will be educational, informational, witty or interesting, just that you will receive it.

Remember that all donations go to rebuilding Jack’s Shack and are not tax deductible. They will make you feel, just what it is that you will feel I cannot say. It could be a thigh or it could be a wing. You might even feel swindled, foolish and or silly.

If nothing else you can rest assured that I am not going to use the money on anyone but myself. I am my own favorite charity. So go ahead and consider how you can make Jack have a better day. I’ll be thinking of you. 😀

A Few Places I Want to Visit

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Here are a couple of places that I think that I’d like to see:

Worlds First Sandcastle Hotel

The next place sounds even cooler.

“A bar inside the trunk of a Baobab tree has tourists flocking from far and wide just to drink a cold brew in the amazing tavern. It was fashioned inside a massive 72 foot (22 meters) high tree in a garden in Limpopo, South Africa, for thirsty locals.

Grown in the grounds of Sunland Farm, the tree trunk is so wide it takes 40 adults with outstretched arms to encircle its 155 foot (48 meters) circumference. The trunk is hollow, but its walls are still up to 6.5 feet (2 meters) thick.

The tree has its own cellar, with natural ventilation to keep the beer cold.

Carbon-dating has determined the ancient tree to be about 6,000 years old. “This tree is likely to be older than the Giza Pyramids of Egypt.” said Heather van Heerden, owner of Sunland Farm.”

For more information please use the following link: Worlds Only Bar INSIDE a Tree

Painful News Or News About Pain

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Live Science is one of my regular reads. They usually have several articles that I find to be of interest. Here is an excerpt from an article about pain.

3. Migraines and sex go together

It may not eliminate the phrase “Not tonight, honey …” but a 2006 study found that migraine sufferers had levels of sexual desire 20 percent higher than those suffering from tension headaches. The finding suggests sexual desire and migraines might be influenced by the same brain chemical, and getting a better handle on the link could lead to better treatments, at least for the pain portion of the equation.

4. Women feel more pain

Any man who has watched a woman having a baby without using drugs would swear that women can tolerate anything. But the truth is, guys, it hurts more than you can imagine. Women have more nerve receptors than men. As an example, women have 34 nerve fibers per square centimeter of facial skin, while men average just 17. And in a 2005 study, women were found to report more pain throughout their lifetimes and, compared to men, they feel pain in more areas of their body and for longer durations.

5. Some animals don’t feel our pain

Animal research could offer clues to eventually relieve human suffering. Take the naked mole rat, a hairless and nearly blind subterranean creature. A study this year found it feels neither the pain of acid nor the sting of chili peppers. If researchers can figure out why, they might be on the road to new sorts of painkilling therapies for humans. In 2006, scientists found a pathway for the transmission of chronic pain in rats that they hope will translate into better understanding of human chronic pain. Lobsters feel no pain, even when boiled, scientists said in a 2005 report that is just one more salvo in a long-running debate.

The Great Interview Experiment

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I decided to participated in the Citizen of The Month interview experiment. I had the privilege of interviewing a new blogger, Marinka from Motherhood in NY.

1) Why did you start blogging and what do you hope to do with it?

I started blogging because I realized that I would never have the time, energy and patience to write a book. Oh, and the talent. I don’t have specific goals in mind, I’m just enjoying the process right now.

2) What is the most rewarding part of blogging? What is the most disappointing part of blogging. Are there any topics that are off limits?

It’s rewarding and amazing that anyone actually gives a shit about what I have to say, and when they respond, I do a little dance. A very little dance, because I am incredibly lazy and uncoordinated.

The most disappointing part has been that my husband has yet to say, “Hey, why don’t you quit your job and devote yourself to blogging full time?”

As for off-limits, my husband hates it when I blog about him, so I suppose he’s off limits. Good thing that I have another husband who doesn’t mind when I blog about him.

3) What don’t people know about you that you wish they did?

That I often confuse the words “yesterday” and “tomorrow” in English, Spanish and Russian.

4) Do you ever regret having moved to the U.S.?

Not for one second.

5) How did you learn how to speak English? Do you have an accent?

I’ve been thinking about writing a post about that soon. Oh my god, you can’t read my mind, can you?

We lived in Italy for 5 months and I attended school that was supposed to teach us English. The teachers didn’t speak Russian, so it was a total waste of time and none of us knew what the hell was going on.

When I arrived in NY, I went to an Yeshiva, and I literally just “picked up” English. Hebrew, not so much.

Most people say that I don’t have an accent, but my husband thinks that I have an untraceable accent.

6) When you’re not blogging, working, or playing mom/wife what do you do for fun? What would your perfect day be like?

I read a lot and I watch tons of TV. I think my perfect day would consist of being left the hell alone. With a beer.

7) If you had three wishes what would they be?

I’m assuming health, wealth, world peace, kids’ happiness are all taken care of, right? So I don’t have to waste my time on that.

8) Can I tell you about my last three dreams. 😉

Your timing could not be better! I just ran out of Ambien!

9) People seem to love or hate N.Y.C. What category do you fall into? Is it a place to live for a short time or the city you want to live in forever?

I love New York and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. I have many friends who’ve lived in NYC for shorter periods of time and it makes me sad when they move, but the good thing about NYC is that almost everyone comes back to visit eventually.

I hope that I can live here forever, but it’s expensive and sometimes very draining. So please send cash. Thanks!

10) Name your three favorite blogs?

It’s hard to narrow it down to three. But the three that I love this week is Anymommy, The Bloggess and Wendi Aarons.

11) If you were stuck on a desert island and could only take five books and five albums what would they be?

Moby Dick, The Fountainhead, James Joyce’s Ulysses, War & Peace and that book that it’s all the Starbucks stores that’s narrated by a dog. Because the only way that I’d ever read those is if I were on a desert island.

12) Disneyland or Disneyworld?

I’ve been to the one in Florida, before I had kids. Yes, my kids are completely Disney-deprived.

13) Coke or Pepsi?

Both and neither. I don’t drink soda regularly. And I’m not sure that I could pass a blind taste test.

14) Thick or Thin crust?

Both! Slight preference for thick!

15) What do you hope to accomplish with this interview? Do you have any concerns about my post giving the wrong impression of you?

My goal is to accomplish something that I do best–blather on about myself. And until you mentioned it, I had no concerns about your giving the wrong impression of me. Of course now that’s all that I can think about.