preston

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Posts posted by preston


  1. This was one of the best episodes of Tone Control. The part when Bennett talks about "the moment" is very interesting (* this sentence makes no sense out of context, just trust me). I've never heard someone explain it like that. I'm sure 5 years from now we will have developed the language to describe more succinctly that feeling, but until then we have this. 


  2. Today I'm going to endorse some productivity software called Cold Turkey. I'm not sure how many of you are like me, but I have have absolutely no fucking self-control and 5 minutes into a project will proceed to black out into twitter or reddit for 5 hours. 

     

    Yes, I know I could just edit my host host file with the DNS/IP entries that cause me the most grief, but with Cold Turkey you can curate block lists with the websites and/or executables you don't need access to. Then you can create schedules with break periods if desired.  It also tracks how many times you try to access the sites you blacklisted and gives you an approximation of how much time it's saving you (for me, it's definitely a low-ball number).  

     

    Anyways, there's a free version here if you want to try it. I've been using the paid version for years on and off and have come to rely on it during certain times of the year when the seduction of the web is strongest (e3/elections/etc.). I can say without exaggeration that its saved me over a thousand hours of productivity.  

     

    EDIT: It appears I didn't do my due diligence and search the forum before posting. It seems this was mentioned before by Marek. Don't mean to be redundant.

     

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    I used stayfocusd for some time and liked it a lot, though I'm now using Cold Turkey which is multiplatform and also supports scheduling. It's a paid app but I've found it to be worth it. (I'm currently trying to avoid news and social media at least until noon, and in the hours before going to sleep.)

     

     


  3. I’ve been enjoying the endorsements at the end of Important if True episodes. The kind of sincere advice informed by recent personal discoveries. They never come off as charlatan wizards dispensing misinformation on cooking implements.

     

    I believe everyone here has something in their life that assists in their journey. Something unique--at least to the rest of us. Be it #content, tools, or lifestyle suggestions. To be clear, I’m not trying to cheapen the endorsements section of the podcast. I just think everyone here has something worth passing along. It would be wrong to use affiliate links or try to benefit personally from this thread, so please don’t do that(unless it’s benefiting Idle Thumbs).

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    My endorsement today is the reel lawn mower. I got one after seeing a neighbor peacefully mowing his grass with something I’d only seen before in cartoon strips or 1950’s sitcoms. It was so quiet. Only a faint “click” of the reel completing a rotation was audible. I’d never seen someone so happy cutting the grass. He looked like a smiling Buddhist monk walking across his lawn. After I ordered mine and put it together (10 minute assembly) I took it for a test run.

    I don’t meditate, but mowing grass with this device has been the most mindful experience outside I’ve had. Ever. I enjoyed it so much I ended up cutting the neighbor's yard as well. I’ve cut grass before, but never like this. I know many of you live in apartments/condos, but if you have a yard I can’t recommend it enough.


  4. After watching my dog throw up green bile for 2 hours, I took him to the Emergency Vet. They took some x-rays and found 3 corn cobs in his intestines. Exploratory surgery was required. He's been better.

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  5. Greetings! 

     

    I'm here after being consistently blown away by the reader mail on Idle Thumbs. I consider it an honor and a privilege to be a part of any community that produces such insightful stories and questions. I also hope to bring more weird to the Wizard Jam. 

     

    Cheers