Unfortunately, I use (or at least know of) almost everything he mentioned. Why do I say ‘unfortunately’? Because while those tools all help – and in some cases tremendously – they’re not panaceas (love that word!). The real solution? Get obnoxiously rich and hire minions to do your bidding.

It’s about an hour long, but worth the listen if you feel like you’re drowning in ‘to dos’ and ‘thrashing’.

Then I have a simple request for you. Allow people to enter a ‘+’ (the plus symbol) as part of their e-mail address. Why? Because this is an extremely useful (if not well-known) feature of Gmail, plus other e-mail systems.

Yes, I understand that you’re attemptting to filter out spammy/hackerish or poorly inputted addresses, and I commend you, but this is a legitimate symbol.

Remember my post about e-mail minimization and sanity? The plus symbol is one such tool in the arsenal to auto-filter and label/tag. Help us help ourselves!

The first time I read about minimizing e-mail checking, it hit me like a ton of bricks. Why didn’t I think of this before? And, this makes so much sense. But reading about a thing sometimes doesn’t have as much impact as hearing about it, which is why I was happy to run across Merlin Mann’s tech talk at Google on something he’s calling Inbox Zero.  Merlin (of 43 folders fame) is advocating getting your inbox to zero to the point where he’s writing a book on the subject! It’s based on GTD (Getting Things Done). Get the book if you haven’t.

My experience with processing e-mail in this manner and checking it less frequently has probably mirrored other GTDers. It made an immediate impact on my productivity (and sanity), and while I still struggle to stay on top of my e-mail, I think that’s more so because I get too much and need to cut that down. Keep in mind that getting too much e-mail may just be a symptom of a bigger problem you have, like you’re overbooked.

My other experience with it has been trying to convince my employers that not checking e-mail is a good thing. So many companies have come to rely on e-mail to the point where I think it makes most of them less productive, not more. It will probably be many more years before it becomes more commonly acceptable to be an e-mail minimalist, and/or to wear getting 100s of e-mails a day as a badge of honor. Until then, hopefully more Merlins come along to help us mend our ways.

Anyway, watch the talk. It’s only 30 minutes long, it goes by quickly, and you can stick around for the next 30 minutes to hear the Q&A with Googlers.

This shouldn’t surprise anyone really, but in a measure, we’ve created technology that over taxes the abilities of our primitive brains. This article at the NYTimes uses a particularly ‘plugged-in’ family to demonstrate how many of us now live as well as how it affects us.

I can’t help but fixate on the multitasking issue (previous blog entry):

While many people say multitasking makes them more productive, research shows otherwise. Heavy multitaskers actually have more trouble focusing and shutting out irrelevant information, scientists say, and they experience more stress.

And scientists are discovering that even after the multitasking ends, fractured thinking and lack of focus persist. In other words, this is also your brain off computers.

Bottom line: try focusing on a single thing, multitask less and unplug from time to time.

• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt (I probably could have left this out)

I don’t even have a bbq grill. I’ve got a Calphalon Grilling Pan which worked amazingly well on top of my electric burner.

Since I’m more cautious about whether my chicken is cooked properly, I decided against the ‘experienced’ way, and just cut it into, especially since I was planning to cut it up anyway. Michael’s 6 minutes + 10 minutes timing was perfect.

So go check out the recipe at Cooking for Engineers.

Cinnamon is a recent discovery of mine, and although some of the science isn’t yet conclusive, a sprinkling in your coffee or yogurt doesn’t hurt. So don’t think that means that a Cinnabon is now a health food! By the way, as amazing as it tastes, a full Cinnabon roll is a potentially delicious killer. Good thing they’ve got Minibons now!

Potential health benefits:

• Anti-infammatory and anti-clotting properties.
• Antifungal and antibacterial properties. Effective in fighting stomach ulcers and yeast infections.
• Controlling blood sugar. May help people with diabetes
• Good source of manganese, fiber, iron and calcium
• Improved brain function.

References for more detailed information:

• Whole Foods
• Healthy Snack Blog
• About.com
• Google

I just re-discovered this absolute classic video of Beaker, Animal and the Swedish Chef ‘singing’ Danny Boy.

As if that wasn’t enough, how about Beaker taking on Kansas’ Dust in the Wind?!

This was surprisingly civil and we can only hope that they really listened. I’m under no illusions that the GOP alone is to blame for the lack of movement on important legislation, and I’d like to see President Obama continue to take both sides to task for their childishness.

In particular, these foods are supposed to promote healthy brain function. Of course, you should do your own reading and research, but this isn’t a terrible jumping off point. I really should have included all the sources that I referenced, but what’s interesting and reassuring is that they all overlapped greatly.

I condensed this list into a page so it’s just 1 sheet to slap up on your fridge or take with you to the store. I’ve included a PDF version as well as the original doc which I created using OpenOffice so you can edit it yourself.

• Foods for a Healthy Brain (PDF)
• Foods for a Healthy Brain (original ODT)