There is an always present realm of experience beyond the mind which is analog, infinite,  absolute, silent, still, and incategorizable. None of these words can even name it, for all words are relative, digital, auditory, linguistic, and partial.

This absolute experience is easier to access than you might think--get a great massage, practice Vipassana, do cranial sacral or other energy work, or just listen without commentary to great music or view great art with your whole being. Perhaps only a few seconds is possible for you, but it is there, always.

Hang out in this realm long enough (a 10-day retreat, a weekend energy work course, a week in the mountains) and the mind seems insane, completely limiting, confining. From this place, categories seem harsh and cold, cutting up the infinite into tiny boxes, ignoring anything that doesn't fit.

But yet the verbal, the mental, the inner pictures we create are still there, stored in our body-minds and nervous systems and physical surroundings and culture. They create our inner and outer, individual and collective worlds whether we attend to them or not. They bind and constrain us; they hypnotize us into buying things, and buying belief systems (and buying spiritual practices too!); they create skyscrapers and retreat centers; they send us to the heights of joy and fun and excitement and relaxation, and into the depths of depression and war and violence and guilt.

Words do indeed cut up reality into less-than-infinite chunks, as do mental movies, still camera shots (both real and imagined), memories, concepts, art, film, advertising, philosophy, music theory, dharma talks, blog posts, and what we pay attention to in our environment.

But since words (and images and sounds and attention) create our relative realities, they have tremendous power to get us and others out of pain and into pleasure, out of limiting prisons of our minds and into liberating rich worlds to explore and create. Why does cognitive therapy work so well with depression? It enriches the limited map of reality of the depressed client. Now there is more territory in view--more of the analog has been digitized, more of the absolute made relative, leading to less pain and more pleasure.

A thousand symphonies in the palm of my hand. What power! What joy!

Yes, the pleasure is unreal, as is the digitized symphony. But all else being equal, pleasure is better, isn't it?

All fiction is false, by definition. But is not therefore enjoyable, useful, meaningful, even deeply powerful and transformative? Are we to throw out Shakespeare and just sit on our cushions?

Our digital, created worlds are indeed limiting, but sometimes limiting one's scope down from the infinite analog absolute is useful, fun, meaningful, playful, creative, powerful, and loving.

I cannot give my love the real moon, for it is too big anyhow. But a moonlight walk, or a painting of the moon, a reduction of the 7.3477×10²² kg into a bite-sized package, fit for romance.

And in any case, since we are all hypnotized constantly anyhow, why not learn how to hypnotize ourselves and others in empowering, mind-expanding, joy-bringing ways, while simultaneously pointing people towards the door to de-hypnosis and ultimate reality?

To attempt to escape the relative is to kill what is human in us. Not thinking is no solution. Immersing one's self in the absolute can be--if we're not careful--a form of violence against the mind, against the relative, against the world itself...and this violence takes place in the relative world whether you want it to or not. There is no escape. The illusion is real and important--not ultimately important, but important nonetheless.

Embrace the absolute in the relative, the analog in the digital, the emptiness and the pleasure, and skillfully navigate in the world but not of it.

Thinking positively is important. Reminding one's self of the things one has to be grateful for, what one loves, asking "what's great about this?" or "how can I use this?" are all wonderful things.

Thinking negatively is also important, and has gotten a bad name. In this post, I will make the distinction between two kinds of negative thinking: contingency planning and destructive (or non-constructive) thinking. Destructive thinking is exactly what it sounds like--thinking in ways or about things that cause harm to one's self and others.  An example would be to think of all the ways in which one absolutely cannot reach a desired goal, using harsh and self-abusive language and frames. Non-constructive thinking is just useless, like daydreaming endlessly about what one wishes they had without ever moving to planning and action phases.

There are also two kinds of positive thinking I could talk about (pollyannish and melioristic), but for now I'll focus on the positive power of negative thinking.

Some positive thinkers of the pollyannish variety (unrealistically optimistic), have thrown the baby out with the bathwater in villifying negative thinking. But like the negative white space on a canvas, or the spaces between notes in a song, the negative sets an important frame for the positive and affects the gestalt.

In particular, there is a simple tool called a SWOT Analysis that helps to balance both positive and negative thinking in an intelligent way, utilizing contingency planning or strategic planning. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. SWOT Analyses are generally used to evaluate business ventures, but why not use it to think about your relationship, your fitness goals,  your health, and your spiritual practice?

So many people get excited about new goals but don't think them through and end up dissappointed due to poor planning. Doing a SWOT Analysis at the beginning of working on a new goal can help evaluate whether the goal is even feasible, and if so, how to proceed intelligently.


How to SWOT your problems like a fly

To do a SWOT analysis, first decide on a goal or area of life that you'd like to do some thinking about.

Next, take a piece of paper and draw a horizontal and vertical line through  the center to create four quadrants (Wilber fans, please note these quadrants are unrelated to AQAL). In the upper left, at the top of the quadrant, write "Strengths." Similarly, in the upper right, write "Weaknesses," in the lower left, write "Opportunities," and in the lower right, write "Threats."

Strengths and Weaknesses in this context are attributes of the individual or organization that are helpful and harmful to achieving the stated goal. Opportunities and Threats refer to external conditions that are helpful and harmful to achieving the stated goal.

Write down as many items in each category as you'd like. Be honest with yourself. Ideally, get your mentors, peer group, and other specialists to look over your SWOT with you. Otherwise it's just a subjective exercise, and is limited by your knowledge and experience.

Next, ask the following questions:
1. How can I use each Strength to its fullest?
2. How can I account for or overcome each Weakness?
3. How can I take advantage of each Opportunity?
4. How can I defend against each Threat?

Once you have completed the analysis, create a project plan or Next Actions, or throw out the goal if it no longer seems feasible!


Other resources on SWOT Analyses:

• Wikipedia
• Marketingteacher.com
• NetMBA
• Nice image of SWOT quadrants
• BPlans.com
  

Most of us think small most of the time. This is useful when we want to feel comfortable and secure with our current situation.

We think "I'll eat a salad tonight" or "I'd really like a $1/hour raise" or "perhaps I'll splurge and go the movies tonight." Thinking small is fine for day-to-day satisfied living, but it can lead to boredom, feeling unfulfilled, and an anxious inner knowing that we are not actualizing our immense potential to do truly great things in the world.

If we want to be the best in the world at something, if we want to create a compelling future for ourselves and the world that lights us up and calls upon our full potential, thinking BIG can be a wonderful thing.

One technique for thinking big is thinking in terms of 2000% improvement.

Take an area of life, or a specific goal, and ask yourself "What would it be like for this to get 2000% better?"

An obvious area of life is your financial life. What would it be like for your income to increase by 2000%? Maybe you don't want this, but it can be interesting to take the thought experiment seriously, just to see. What would your tax situation be like? What would you do with all that money that would help the world? How could you avoid becoming greedy, materialistic, or having spoiled brat children?

Take your health. What would it be like to be 20 times more healthy, strong, fit, vibrant, radiantly beautiful, and full of energy? If you can only run 1 mile now, it might mean being able to run 20 miles. If you struggle with a beginning yoga class now, it might mean teaching yoga at your own studio, or being a top student of a world-class yoga teacher.

Take your relationships. What would it be like for your social life to be 2000% better? This doesn't necessarily mean knowing 20 times more people! Quality counts at least as much if not more than quantity. What would it be like for your intimate relationship to be 2000% better? Perhaps that would include mastering neo-tantric energy practices, being more deeply in love than you could ever imagine, teaching classes on relationships as a spiritual path, starting a successful business together, or seeing the divine in your partner daily!

What would it be like if you were 2000% more generous? 2000% friendlier? 2000% more fun? 2000% happier? 2000% more in love?

Think broadly, but also specifically about things you could improve 2000%. What would it be like to improve your personal productivity by 2000%? What would it be like to manage your finances 2000% better? What if you could be 2000% better at Surya Namaskar?

Thinking in terms of 2000% improvement is a useful exercise in creativity, in really expanding your mind into the far reaches of possibility. Most of the time when we "dream big" we don't dream bigger than 500% improvement at most. And if we truly only use 10% of our brains or our potential, perhaps thinking in terms of 2000% improvement can help us to get to 200% of our brainpower! (Hmmm, maybe we should ask, "How can I improve my brainpower by 2000%?" :)

You should also consider whether you want to improve something 2000%. Perhaps you truly are fulfilled with where you are right now. If so, that's ok!

But it's also ok to allow yourself to dream and ask "what if...?" As adults, we often fear dreaming big because we fear our own light, our own greatness. We fear the great responsibility that comes with great power. Not all of us use our tremendous inner courage and choose to become great anyway, and nobody can blame them. But when we relax deeply and look inside now, we do know that we are hugely powerful already, and we suspect that practicing courage is really exciting, a hero's journey, and the ultimate fulfillment of our destiny on earth.



p.s. One great way to get in the habit of thinking big is to get your own coach! Coaches facilitate big thinking, creating a space for you to really let your dreams fly.

For a limited time, I will be giving away 2 free 45-minute telephone coaching sessions to 3 special Zaadzsters who email me right away. This is a $100 value, for FREE! I only have 3 slots available in my schedule, so when they're gone, their gone! Contact me through Zaadz to get this deal!

(Sorry I have to limit it to 3--I'd really like to coach everyone on Zaadz! But I learned the hard way in the past that opening things up to too many people can be too much given my busy schedule. Sometimes thinking big can lead to trouble if not in balance with thinking smart! ;)

The only catch is that in order to qualify, you'll have to fill out a simple survey after we're done. No hard sell, no obligation to continue after your 2 sessions. Of course if you do want to continue working with me, and if I have time available, we can go from there.

Post-modern-techno-art-social-commentary-comedy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjdWHZ3a29M
http://highclearing.com/index.php/archives/2006/04/19/4991

Does the internet kill intelligent discussion? How do we promote higher dialogue on the web?

This is news to me, but apparently meditation is uncommon among eastern Buddhists!  Even eastern Buddhist monks!

This includes Zen, Tibetan, and other schools of Buddhism often thought in the west to be primarily meditation-based traditions:

...people who think meditation is a necessary practice of Buddhism are in the extreme minority.

from http://www.tricycle.com/blog/jeff_wilson/3723-1.html

Apparently meditation is bad marketing in the east (doesn't lead to the spread of Buddhist ideas), while in the west it is good marketing (exotic do-it-yourself personal growth):

Meditation, indeed, is, in the eyes of the laity, regarded as something for religious specialists, while the priesthood and the leading lights within the sect recognize that the sect's growth has historically been a result not of its meditational practices but of the rites it has conducted for the ancestors.

Fascinating! I don't know what to make of this yet.

Fast Company calls them "social capitalists":

http://www.fastcompany.com/socap/

This is the best use of Zaadz I've seen so far:
http://mscaprikell.zaadz.com/blog/2007/3/staying_focused_on_fundraising

I just gave $10...and I'm unemployed!

Skip a latte and give something. For the kids.

"Clarity is Power," says Anthony Robbins. And so it is, as I've discovered in my own experience and in the experience of my coaching clients.

But how do we attain the power of clarity? By precise, disciplined work in discovering what we want and how to get it. Identifying and mastering the nitty-gritty details that nobody wants to be bothered with is the secret key to success in many endeavors.

The Power of Precision in Relationships

Back when I was single, I found out the power of clarity in attracting the kind of women I was interested in dating. I sat down to do what I initlally thought was a stupid exercise that was recommended in all sorts of relationship books--writing down very specifically what I wanted in an ideal partner.

After I had written a big list of things--some embarrassingly superficial and some terrifyingly deep--I put these things into three categories: musts (non-negotiable must-haves and must-not boundaries), wants (I want these, but not dealbreakers), and would-kinda-be-nices (also called wishes--icing on the cake, but also kinda silly).

For example, I decided that it was a must that my ideal partner never smoke cigarrettes. I am a health nut, so it was inconceivable for me to be in any sort of long-term relationship with someone who valued their health so little.

I made sure that these things were actually in the correct category by testing against experience and my gut feelings so that they weren't just dissociated, purely intellectual thoughts.

I then went out looking for potential partners who fit these criteria and I was nearly ATTACKED by all the perfect women who wanted me. Me! The total geek who hadn't ever really dated and had only been in one relationship prior!

Of course I had also asked several other powerful questions, for instance "what kind of person would I have to be in order to be very attractive to my ideal partner?" And "where is my ideal partner desperately looking to meet me?!?" etc.

I thought that by gaining precision I would narrow my field of potential options, thus cutting out any real possibilities. The exact opposite was true. I was careful though to have only as many musts as is necessary, for too many musts can in fact lead to completely cutting out all options. On the other hand, "if you aren't picky, you get last pick!"

As I obtained more experience in the world of relationships, I found that while I often got what I wanted originally, what I wanted changed as my standards got higher and I gained more clarity about what I wanted.

For example, I successfully found partners that fit my stated criteria, but I never imagined it possible that my partner could actually enjoy my presence! When I realized this, I made it a MUST that my ideal lover would be absolutely thrilled to be with me, even though I was totally scared to want this. I've noticed in my coaching work that a great many other people also don't have this qualification, or don't make it a must. So I joke that "maybe you should add to your list of criteria 'any potential partner must actually want to be with me" It's amazing how few people have that as a criteria for an ideal partner, let alone someone to simply date!

By the way, when you write down that something is a must, this means that you end a relationship if it isn't present--period. The other option is to change your must into a want--some of us have completely unrealistically high standards, or unhealthy ones. A good sign of this is that you find absolutely no one anywhere lives up to your standards...including you!

And now, my current partner has suprised me in many ways as being better than I could have possibly asked for. Of course, you could always make "my ideal partner constantly suprises me with how amazing he/she is" a must and see what happens...worked for me! ;)


The Power of Precision in Careers

I've also found that defining exactly what you want in an ideal career or job has similar power. Once again, the process feels tedious if you don't yet understand the power it brings.

If you could have any job you wanted, what would it be? Well, the truth is that you can have any job you want...if you are willing to do what it actually takes to get that job! This includes meeting the right people, developing the appropriate habits and skillsets, getting the proper education when necessary, etc. But defining very specifically what you want is a powerful way to speed along the process.

The power lies again in the process of painstakingly discoving with precision, the kind of job or career you ideally want. There are many good books that can help with this process. My favorites are Zen and the Art of Making a Living and Not Just Another Job.


Currently I'm going through an extensive process of defining exactly what it is that I offer in my coaching practice, and what it is that I want. I'm finding that as with relationships, I'm not for everyone! :) But I have certain ideal clients that love working with me and I with them, and I'm already feeling my passion light up the clearer I get about what I have to offer and to whom. For instance, I don't want to work with clients who don't like me! Sounds dumb, but since I was never very clear about this in the past, I worked with people who weren't the proper fit and could have been served better somewhere else. I also didn't fully trust that if I was clear in this that I would have any clients--but precision is power, and I've seen it work so many times that I trust the process...if you are flexible enough with your musts to not overly narrow your scope.


The power of precision shows up in all domains of life. In yoga, precision in asana leads to much greater depth and mastery. Precision in Vipassana is one of the main keys to success. Precision in business knowledge is the difference between a many-times-failed businessman and a consistent success.


Where could you use the power of precision? I'm guessing it's in that area of your life in which things aren't currently the way you want them.

Spend the time TODAY to gain some precise clarity in this area of life and empower yourself to succeed greater than you ever imagined possible.

A great way to learn the power of precision is to work with a Life Coach, like me for example. :) And right now I'm offering 3 select and speedy people who contact me through Zaadz 2 free 45-minute telephone coaching sessions, the only catch being that you'll have to fill out a short survey after the second session.

Why am I giving away free sessions? 3 reasons: the survey gives me feedback on my coaching which is really useful for me (precision!), some people who take the sessions will recognize the value of my work and hire me (but no obligation and no hard sales pitch), and those who take the survey--if they like my work--will hopefully provide me with nice testimonials I can use for my marketing materials. Plus I LOVE coaching! It's so much fun! But there's only so many free sessions I can give away, as I'm a busy man.

So if you are interested, get while the gettin's good and send me an email through Zaadz right away for your 2 free sessions (a $100 value!).

Let's let these guys decide!

You might not realize it yet, but there is in fact something that you are uniquely suited for, something that you can be the world's best at! And once you discover this, don't do anything else.

What you can be the world's best at is probably something you are already doing. But the problem is that you won't completely fulfill your purpose, your potential, and your passion unless you find it and focus on it...and unless you cut out all the other crap that's wasting your time and talent.

You are a born genius! Your genius might be in areas not culturally recognized as genius, but so what! I know a woman who has genius level-skill in appreciating beauty and empathizing with others. This an important thing the world needs more of, and something she can be the world's best at. Just because it isn't taught in school, or your parents don't see it, or you don't know how to get paid for it (yet), doesn't mean it isn't the most important thing you can bring to the world and the thing you are the world's best at!

Being the world's best at something does NOT mean being the world's best at what others or our culture considers important!

Many of us get lost in getting good at the wrong things, things we can't be the world's best at, and things that aren't best for the world. We decide to take up yoga, but not seriously enough to really get a benefit that would support us, or too seriously because we can't really be the world's best yogi. Or we decide to be the world's best at subdivision real estate development, when what the world needs is affordable inner-city housing, not more ugly, earth-killing suburbs.

Don't waste your time--and your life--on crap that doesn't serve you or the world.

If you choose to do something--anything--make sure it supports your purpose, potential, and passion, i.e. make sure it supports you in being the world's best at what you've chosen to do and be.

When I say "don't do anything else" I don't mean cut out important integrated parts of your purpose, like family and friends and compensating hobbies that help you relax. No no no! I mean don't waste time on purposeless crap that dulls your mind and shuts off your heart, and don't go down a path that your parents want you to go down because they live vicariously through you, and don't avoid doing something that lights up your heart in favor of "what's practical" if it kills you inside and atrophies your true gifts.

We must be extremely clear with our passions, and extremely honest about our abilities in order to be the world's best at something. And the fate of the world literally depends on our being our best! With environmental devastation, oil shortages, and overpopulation, we are seriously screwed as a species unless we develop an entire generation of heroes NOW.

Luckily, we are also living in a time with the greatest access to information about how to achieve greatness! The information age has come with an information glut to be sure, but also with it we have access to tools and technologies that can help us get great fast.

The economy also depends on us doing what we can be the world's best at. Think of the waste in terms of dollars of people doing jobs they hate, mulling about like robots in boring-ass corporate cubicle jobs as compared to the efficiency of passionate, motivated, happy people who love what they do and love serving their customers and the planet?

Do it! Cut the crap, and do what you can be the world's best at--what you love to do, what makes your heart sing, what you would pay to do if you had the money (but will find a way to get paid to do it instead).

"The only thing that stands between you and your dream is the bullshit story you tell yourself about why you can't have it."
 -- Anthony Robbins

I've heard far too many people in Buddhist communities say that there's no way they are getting enlightened this lifetime. That to me indicates either one of two things: 1) you are lazy, 2) your technique doesn't work.

I don't see any good evidence for reincarnation, so all we got is one chance at liberation. So give it your all! I'm confident any serious student of a legitimate spiritual path can reach the equivalent of enlightenment given the right fit of student to path, and enough dedicated and intelligent practice for long enough.

People like Daniel Ingram give me that confidence. Check out Daniel's interview on Buddhist Geeks that just came out today for some inspiration.

Or read his book--it's hardcore, like the subtitle implies.

A couple other authors that have been giving me confidence lately are Georg Feurstein and B.K.S. Iyengar in their books The Deeper Dimension of Yoga and Light on Yoga. It's refreshing when authors lay out the path clearly but also don't try to make it sound like you can achieve greatness without great effort.

"Extra effort is the key to success" as my high school cross country coach used to say.

"Change leads to disappointment if it is not sustained. Transformation is sustained change, and it is achieved through practice." -- Light on Yoga

Often it's not the world that's limited, but our map or understanding of the world that limits us. When we feel stuck, are there really no options available, or do we just not see them?

From the outside, our stuck places often seem silly to others. "Just walk up the freakin' escalator! What's the problem?" But yet our fear is real, our experience of stuckness is real, and the mocking of our fear makes us embarrassed on top of afraid. But it's also not real, in the sense that the world has more choices available than we currently recognize.

One of the great things about coaching people to be their best is that often I can really help people to get unstuck as easily as helping these folks on this escalator. But one of the keys to helping people is to honor their fear and their experience as subjectively real. From this empathy comes rapport, and unstuckness follows swiftly.

How are you using Zaadz? Are you using it to actually change the world?

Or like most people with most things, are you using Zaadz as yet another way to avoid living your true purpose, yet another way to escape the responsibility of becoming the best in the world at that unique and important thing you were born to do, because you fear you'd have to take action?

Dangers and diversions on the hero's journey are everywhere. Even good things can go bad (and Zaadz is obviously a very good thing!) when your noble intentions get lost in mindless activity.

Specifically, are you finding yourself using Zaadz as...

• * a place to browse pretty pictures of conscious people and fantasize about dating them, without actually taking the action of making real contact and risking your heart?
  
• * a place to narcissistically talk about yourself and chant your "WHAT ABOUT ME?" mantra even louder without asking "what about you? How can I help you?"?
  
• * a place to read inspiring and interesting things, but without taking any real action and actually applying them in your life?
• * a place to endlessly discuss online so that you can avoid the fear that arises from taking courageous action IRL?
  
• * a place to blog your dreams without creating action plans and working them?
• * a place to acquiring large numbers of online "friends" to feel a shallow sense of connection instead of building real relationships with real depth and real emotional risk?
• * a place to publicly display your goals, but which are really half-hearted wishes you aren't committed to because you don't change your actions or have a plan?
• * a place to list all the books you'd kinda-sorta like to read, but you spend more time listing the books than actually reading them?
  

I'm not pointing fingers here--I'm guilty of many of the above myself. Moment-to-moment, it is extremely challenging to know what's most important, and to keep your highest purpose in mind. But we must try!

Here are some actual and possible uses of Zaadz that appear to me to be noble and world-changing:

• * raising money for your 15-year-old nephew's dream
• * meeting people IRL that share your passions, and working on projects together that make a measurable difference in human happiness
  
• * getting some daily inspiration that you apply TODAY and consistently over time by taking courageous action in the world
• * engaging in intelligent debate you can't find anywhere else in the world, and that informs your deep understanding and action
  
• * finding support for your meditation or spiritual practice, and calling for real accountibility for yourself and others with their commitments to practice
• * boldly flirting with that local conscious hottie (do a people search for your town) in respectful and joy-bringing ways that benefit all with the goal of finding your soul mate and working hard on that committed relationship
  
• * honing your writing style and finding your voice by blogging daily in a disciplined way that serves your target audience and prepares you for that book you will write
  

So what is it? Are you using Zaadz to change the world or avoid the world? Where are you doing each? How could you better use Zaadz to kick more @ss and serve more people? How could your profile not be about you but about what you care about bring more of into the world? How could you get people to take more action, live with more integrity, be more consistent in their love, actually meet up and do something powerful together, and learn more than they could otherwise?

So I've created an internet sensation with my GTD Mastery 100 checklist!

I blogged about it here, and emailed it to 10 friends on January 30th. That's it! Then the magical internet took over. I guess people can smell quality and love to spread the word, eh? :)

I've been LifeHacked, I've been Dugg, I've been del.icio.us'ed like crazy (over 700 bookmarks), I'm high on Google, pumping GTD through my veins.

I set up a mirror site for my checklist because the original document was just a Google Doc, and has started to not respond as quickly with all the traffic. I can barely edit the thing, it's so slow.

Hopefully this little burst of fame will allow me to connect with enough amazing people who want to be the world's best at something important that I can help people to achieve more than they ever dreamed possible!

For those conscious people not lucky enough to have conscious community IRL, here's one way to connect more deeply with Zaadz.

1. Click Zaadzsters.

2. Search for something you are passionate about.

3. Click on somebody's face.

4. Send a message/friend invite, commenting on your shared passion.

5. Download Skype (allows you to make free phone calls over the net).

6. Buy a microphone headset and/or web cam.

7. Ask your friend to do steps 6 and 7.

8. Schedule time to chat with new friend.

9. Chat with friend about your passions, dreams, hopes, and plans for changing the world. Support each other in being the world's best.

10. Use new inspiration and information to implement world-changing plans!

Did anyone else notice that Flickr is now in "gamma"? WTF? Come on people, just put your website up and be happy, ok? We all know that websites are constantly "under construction."

This article on MSN has tips on how to eat an organic, mostly vegetarian diet based on veggies and grains for $7 a day by shopping at Whole Paycheck Foods:
http://health.msn.com/dietfitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100153740


Interesting quotes:

“Fruit is expensive—even apples—so fruit is a luxury”

“On this diet, you don’t need to worry about overeating carbs because you are not going to be able to afford to”

...suggest[s] adding seaweed to your meals a couple of times a week to improve your mineral intake. She likes dulse and kelp...

...the bulk aisle, the backbone of affordable food shopping...

Moderation is the key to eating nuts affordably, she says. “You have to find them for a good price and use them discriminately. Don’t just eat the bag and snack away unconsciously. Say, ‘This meal I need two tablespoons of nuts to help round it out.’”

How cool that this is on MSN! Perhaps the world is changing, eh?

I got this error message today on MySpace when I tried logging in.

Now, I understand that sometimes servers get too busy, and MySpace is the most popular site on the internet (that's for another rant), but is it too hard to spend some of your MySpace millions on customizing your error message a tad?

This is a great opportunity for Zaadz to show how lame MySpace really is. Down with MySpace! Up with Zaadz!