Mindfulness

So, I’ve been trying to eat more mindfully lately. This means really stopping and enjoying food rather than gobbling it down like some kind of race. One side effect of this is that I end up being satisfied by my food faster, and eat less of it. I also don’t really put up with food that isn’t really tasty.

I also learned that it’s hard to chew soup.

Bonus picture of a bowl of chili I made a couple years back:

Happy Death Shorties 2U

Hey folks, time to get some tabs closed and share a few ideas.

On AirBnB: Now let’s be clear here. Clark County Nevada (where The Strip is) does not allow short term rentals of private homes. And no, it’s not because the hospitality industry has them by the throat. It’s because the locals don’t want party houses in their neighborhoods. But here’s some actual research on the impact these short term rentals have on the local housing market — where legal.

A few items on health insurance in the United States: It’s in a state of crisis.

And a few words on Abortion: I understand that Vice President Pence wants to End Abortion In Our Time. I hope that also means he wants to end rape and severe birth defects and risks to maternal life too. Here’s a few words about some of the issues.

Measles: As long as we’re on health related topics, here’s an infographic about how fast it can spread.

Green New Deal?: I know this is not a popular position right now, but I think this idea needs some work. No mistake, I want to see more clean energy such as solar and wind. But there’s too much wrong with what’s on the table. Switching to electric cars is not an end all solution. First, it does nothing about the fact that so much sprawl has made cars a necessity — and made it almost ridiculously difficult for anybody without a car to work outside certain large metro areas. Second, it only moves the pollution from the car itself to the dirty coal plant it comes from. And finally, it’s not ready for prime time. The range on a Tesla 3 is estimated at 264 miles. Per Google, it’s 270 miles from Vegas to Los Angeles. Lots of people make that trip regularly, and sometimes traffic gets backed up. Until the day you can do it without a stop to recharge (and I only know of one charge station in between) and a comfortable margin of error, it’s a no-go.

Huh, maybe that’s why the kids are not happy: turns out most people under 40 have been shafted by the economy.

But let’s end on a fun note: Some of the best pens you can buy, at a variety of price points.