What do you need for the best nights sleep?

Back support: Our back needs real actual support when you sleep. We all have natural curves and those curves are supported by muscle groups. These muscle groups need rest just like the rest of our body. So support is crucial.

Spinal Alignment: Our body has correct posture position whether we are standing, sitting, or laying down. When it comes to sleeping, we need a surface that allows our shoulders and hips to sink in enough to allow correct alignment of the spine. If those parts of our bodies can’t sink enough then we create whats called a hammock effect with our spine. With our spine in a “U” shape we will throw our back and/or hips out of whack. We need spinal alignment.

Pressure Relief: Last but certainly not least. Pressure relief is where our bodies are allowed to have great circulation while laying down. Whether it be sitting or laying down, we have heavy weight being placed on different parts of our bodies. Those areas that hold the weight need relief. If relief is not provided, then our body will want to find a different position. Obtaining a deep sleep is much easier if we have adequate relief.

In conclusion, to get the best nights sleep, we need ALL 3 of these.

What’s wrong with beds today?

For the past couple thousands years, people have slept on the same of materials, just revamped, recycled, or rearranged. Have those materials improved the quality of sleep? Yes, but not by much. Foam, spring, air, and water materials all have serious flaws that limit the body in getting the best nights sleep. It is impossible to have ALL 3 sleep elements (back support, spinal align, pressure relief) at the same time using just these materials. We will end up compromising one of them. If the bed is to firm, we lose pressure relief. If the bed is to soft, we lose support.

Do we have to compromise?

There is a sleep surface that has been created that allows our bodies to be satisfied. It allows ALL 3 sleep elements to be active. It has a soft and a firm feel at the same time. It creates real support and alignment while keeping the correct amount of relief to allow pressure relief. NexGel makes this product called Orthogel. It’s a gelastic palmer engineered in a honeycomb shape that’s both highly durable and stretchable. It is heat neutral, so it’s cool in the summer weather and warm in the winter months. Orthogel helps create the most comfortable and longest lasting beds I have ever slept on.

I have been sleeping this material for over 3 years. My body feels instant relief as soon as I lay down. When I wake up in the morning, I feel refreshed and shocked that my lower back doesn’t have pain or fatigue. I purchased my bed at Complete Comfort Beds is Idaho Falls, ID. Their website is CompleteComfortBeds.com.

By the reaction of most women towards mustaches, I have gathered the impression that women assume that the man is attempting to win her over with facial hair on the upper lip.  Of course their negative responses toyour stache supports this idea.  The comments usually goes as follows, “You don’t look bad, but you look so much cuter without a mustache.”  So, how does that grab ya?  After asking a few women how it makes the man less cute, the response was that they appear to be less kissable.  Did you hear that?  Less kissable.  I am not saying every girls feels this way, but just some food for thought.

Kissable? I think so.

Power to be held by the mustache.  Each stache is different in character.  Each stache expresses something from within the man.  Ok, I might be blowin on your upper lip with this, but I kid you not, the ability to grow a mustache  and to become socially accepted is truly a modern phenomenon.  My fellow friends of the stache, don’t let the fear of social rejection stop your stache from growing.

1. “Circle of Life” (from “The Lion King”) Performed by Matisyahu
2. “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” (from “The Lion King”) Performed by Cedella Marley
3. “The Bare Necessities” (from “The Jungle Book”) Performed by Steel Pulse
4. “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” (Desmond Dekker’s reggae classic also featured in “The Lion King”) Performed by Morgan Heritage
5. “What a Wonderful World” (Louis Armstrong classic) Performed by Ziggy Marley
6. “True to Your Heart” (from “Mulan”) Performed by The Wailing Souls
7. “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” (from “Toy Story) Performed by Sly & Robbie
8. “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” (from “Song of the South”) Performed by Toots
9. “I Wan’na Be Like You” (from “The Jungle Book”) Performed by UB40
10. “Ev’rybody Wants to Be a Cat” (from “The Aristocats”) Performed by Michael G & the Easy Star All-Stars
11. “Kiss The Girl” (from “The Little Mermaid”) Performed by Burning Spear
12. “Under The Sea” (from “The Little Mermaid”) Performed by Gregory Isaacs
13. “Find Yourself” (from “Cars”) Performed by Yellowman

A short testimonial of getting better at budgeting using Mint.com.  I have been one that struggles with both short  and long term budgeting.  For years I have tried several other budgeting strategies and software that seem to work for me for about a week, but then my motivation to keep up on it would fizzle out or it would just take to much time to fill out.  Mint.com was introduce to me when I was doing my taxes this last spring.  When I first checked it out I was a little hesitant to try it, because it links to all my bank and investment accounts online.  After reading up on it, I learned it was very safe and secure.  So I registered for free at Mint.com and linked all my online banking accounts to it.  Just to clarify, you cannot make transactions using Mint.com, it merely collects the transactions and analyzes them.  Once I had my accounts successfully linked, I browsed the options I had available to me.  I created a monthly budget, putting in my income and also my expenditures.  Mint.com will also reflect all the transactions made in each account.  You are then able to categorize each transaction and see where you are spending your money.  I love using the graphs and charts that reflect my growth of net income and show how much debt I have compared to my assets. 

When I first got going on this, I was pretty obsessed so I was visiting my profile every day or after ever transaction.  After I learned how to utilize the information and change my spending habits, I was really able to see the positive impact of having a detailed budget.  Day after day I would see my car loan and credit card debt and it became very motivating to see how quickly I could get that debt to disappear.  I feel I have a better grip on my finances and am more motivated by my budget rather than being discouraged by it. 

Mint.com may not be for everyone, especially if you pay for everything in cash.  Check it out though if you are still looking for a convenient way to budget or just would like to enhance your banking strategy.  FYI:  The way Mint.com makes their money is through the financial help links at the bottom of your profile.  They will link to help websites and optional banking and investment opportunities that are out there, like better credit cards or checking/savings accounts.

Mint.com

By following those that share a similar passion will help you know how to better pursue or apply your education.  Those that are successful in their life are usually sharing it.  Why not tap into that kind of resource.  An example, I started this class called Social Media.  This class teaches the basics how to use social media in a business setting.  We currently are reading a book by David Meerman Scott, called The New Rules of Marketing & PR. I looked into the author and found a few other things he had written that interested me.  I found him on Twitter and became a follower.  Since then, through his tweets I have been led to many links and articles from other professionals in the field of Marketing and Social Media that I now follow.  It has opened a whole new world of networking and resource for me that I never knew existed.

Of course I am still very new to this, but my point is there is a large well of water and plenty of room for new buckets.  This may not be as resourceful for every college student in every field, but give it a try.  Look for those that are pioneering right now in your future field.  If you need help getting into it, let me know or post a comment for others to share their thoughts. My Twitter user name is sethisgreen

The social expectation of being friendly to everyone or the possibility of exchanging words with a peer may feel to heavy or strange.  Some may feel there is a risk of rejection from peers when making eye contact and not getting the response they expected.  The short and sweet of it is, it causes social stress for many.  The common trend that seems to be rising is wearing headphone to mask this awkwardness.  Ultimately it is to avoid or lessen some of this social stress.

From my experience, observing, and talking with others that wear headphones when walking across campus I’ve learned that headphones attached to the ears very effective in helping eliminate social interaction.  Many times I have passed by a friend with headphones on while yelling their name with no response.  Sometimes the friend will see you and give a short “Hey” or a nod, but feels no commitment to say more or stop to mingle, because they have music to worry about.  Sure, once in a while music can be helpful in improving some of our daily tasks.  In this case of walking to and from classes, it seems like music is used to avoid responsibility.  The responsibility of being a good friend or a positive peer, to interact and enhance our learning experience at this university.

I’m not saying we should say hi to every person and sometimes we have a bad day, but being open to interact with peers around us will open doors to learning and positive influence.  Every person needs positive reinforcement in their lives, why would we intentionally withhold that from others?

Google’s Speed Test

Toyota’s Swagger Wagon

How a suit complements the mustache

My first attempt to grow a full mustache was much more difficult socially than it was physically.  It took a lot of self empowerment and determination to stand strong during the initial growing stages.  Once I convinced myself that by me growing a mustache was to break many stereo types of young men with mustaches nothing would stop me.  I considered the negative and positive impact this would have on people around me and myself I proceeded to grow my first mustache.
When I asked the ladies that I would come across what they think of men with mustaches, I only got negative feedback.  Almost every lady I talked to advised against me growing one.  The men on the other hand almost always encouraged it, as if I would be living one of their life’s dreams.  I, in return, encouraged many other guys to grow a mustache at the same time.  I quickly noticed that others had similar reservations about growing one as well.  So I proceeded to grow a standard cookie duster mustache.  During the first week or 2 the mustache usually looks just plain disgusting.  I will admit that.  After a week of growing it I was able to convince 6-7 others to grow theirs out.  Strength in numbers right?  Matt Montoya was one of them.  His mustache was unmatched.  It came in sleek and dark, real suave like.

Matt Montoya and his Stache

The rest of us somewhat idolized its presence.  Sometimes we would just stand there and stare.  Our diverse types of mustaches became a dominant topic of conversation amongst friends.  We laughed and rejoiced in the obscure responses we began to receive from our peers and family.

I learned that when people meet you while you have a mustache they are hesitant to get to know you, but once the ice is broken they treat you just the same as another friend if not better.  Yes, guys can still pick up on girls when a mustache is attached to your upper lip.  My friend Matt proved this right when he started to date exclusively with a girl he had met before he had the mustache, but made the real moves using the mustache.  The amount of confidence to have a mustache well trimmed and taken care of is a similar confidence women respect in a man that groomed and clean shaven.

After it was all said and done, growing a mustache when it was not socially accepted was a growing experience.  Not only was I able to see the depth or shallowness of peers, but I was able to create stronger character that was not confined by social expectations.  When it came time to shave my first mustache, I realized how attached I was to what it stood for and how bad it hurts when your shave it off without trimming it down first.