The Lost Symbol

I just finished reading Dan Brown's new book, The Lost Symbol. The main character of this book is again Robert Langdon and the setting is Washington DC. The story really held my attention like The da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. Some of the plot of this story was more predictable than the previous two books.

I would give the book high marks overall. It weaves mystery, suspense, history and symbology seamlessly and there is a very surprising twist near the end that I could not even imagine would happen up to that point. The plot twist just comes out of nowhere, but it is a very important part of the story.

This was a good book, but my favorite of the three was Angels and Demons. This book does make me want to go back to Washington DC and visit all of the locations that are mentioned. I didn't really get that urge after reading the other two books.

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What to Write About?

I am finding that it is very difficult to find a subject to write about every single day. The easy thing to do is just write a reaction piece to what is happening that day in politics. That would be easy, except for the fact that all of the politicians including Obama are now on vacation. So what am I left to write about?

It has been a difficult summer for me. I have found it hard to get motivated to do much of anything. I like to blame the heat, but is there something else to be blamed? I seem to just be floating through life at the moment, which can be very scary once you realize that fact. How can I change this attitude?

I have stopped reading my latest book choice and have thought about it many times. It seems that I am looking for a reason not to read it to the point that I have thought I should start reading a different book. Maybe I just need to force myself to get back to reading.

The girls are back in school and The Queen is back at work so there is an adjustment period for me. I have to remember to look at the lunch calendar and make Cheeseball lunch if she doesn't like the school lunch. I need to remember to leave lunch money for Chachi. I have to pick Cheeseball up from ASA when I get off work and help her with her homework. I need to remember what days Chachi has volleyball games and wear a blue shirt that day. I have to remember what days Cheeseball has soccer practice and what time her game is on Saturday. I have to juggle all of these things while trying to keep up with my own interests as well. This is a big change from my carefree summer.

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Self-Assessment

From the Dimostrazione chapter in How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci. I am supposed to review this list and reflect on them honestly...so here goes. Dimostrazione is a commitment to test knowledge through experience, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes.

1. I am willing to acknowledge my mistakes. This is something that is very difficult for me to do. I hold myself to a very high standard and really hate to be wrong. I think it really depends on the situation and who is around me that influences if I admit my mistakes.

2. My closest friends would agree that I am willing to acknowledge my mistakes. I really don't think they would.

3. I learn from my mistakes and rarely make the same one twice. I really do try to learn from my mistakes. I dwell on them for a long, long time and really do think about them. I think I can say that I rarely make the same mistake twice.

4. I question "conventional wisdom" and authority. I believe I do this on a daily basis. I think my previous blog posts illustrate this.

5. When a celebrity I admire endorses a product, I am more likely to buy it. I believe this is true, however I think my definition of celebrity is different than most people. I really look up to people who are not just celebrities, but great people who are doing great things.

6. I can articulate my most fundamental beliefs and the reasons I hold them. I don't think I can at this point. I would love to get to the point where I can.

7. I have changed a deeply held belief because of practical experience. This is a difficult one to answer. My initial thought is that I have not. I was thinking that the change had to be almost overnight, but after more thought I believe I have changed several deeply held beliefs over time...which would be based on experience.

8. I persevere in the face of obstacles. I want to believe that I do, however I have not really had many obstacles in my life.

9. I view adversity as an opportunity for growth. I truly believe this. I look for every opportunity to grow and really don't understand why everyone does not.

10. I am sometimes susceptible to superstition. I think that I am.

11. In considering new ideas my friends and associates would say that I am
a) gullible and "New Agey,"
b) a closed-minded cynic, or
c) an open-minded skeptic.
I would hope people view me as an open-minded skeptic, but I think I sometimes come off as a closed-minded cynic. This is something I need to work on.

I believe that my answers to these questions are pretty honest. I think this assessment shows me that I have a lot of growth that still needs to happen. I need to invest time in these areas in order to become the person I want to be.

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Dream Hobby

I need to find my dream hobby and not put off starting it immediately! I don't really know what my dream hobby is though. I have always wanted to get a helicopter pilot's license, but that is very expensive. I have always thought that I could be a good painter, but have always put off trying. Tennis is a sport that my entire family could play together, but I wouldn't exactly call it a dream hobby. I want to move to the mountains and live by a lake so I can kayak in the mornings, but this is not a very achievable dream at this point. I think that sailing would be fun to master, but again this is not very realistic at this point.

I guess I really need to think some more about this. I just can't think very long as I need to get started on this.

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10 Questions About My Career

The last exercise that required me to write 10 questions about reflected light was a real challenge for me. It was really difficult to force myself to think about reflected light. For this exercise, I need to compose 10 questions about my life, my career or my health. I chose my career.

1. Am I doing what makes me happy?
2. What do I like about marketing?
3. What do I like about management?
4. What could I be doing to be better at my job?
5. What do I want to be doing in 10 years?
6. Why did I choose marketing in the first place?
7. What is my ideal career?
8. What do I define as success?
9. What do I hate about my job?
10. What do I hate about my company?

This was much easier than the reflected light exercise. I don't consider these questions ground breaking, but this exercise did make me think.

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Blog Name Revisited

I took the name of this blog from a quote I found by Leonardo da Vinci. "Blinding ignorance does mislead us. O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!" In examining this quote, I think da Vinci is speaking to the ignorance and blind faith that existed in pre-renaissance Europe. I have not done a lot of research as to the timeframe that this quote was recorded, but seems to be an observation of the times. I think he could be calling on the people of the world to open their eyes to new ideas, new art techniques and new breakthroughs in science. To reduce the hold of the "church" on knowledge and culture so as to move forward as a society.

I think this quote fits the American society today. We complain about what politicians are doing and about the decisions that affect us, but very few people actually do anything. We need to open our eyes and take action against what we believe is wrong. We need to open our eyes and find answers on our own.

Should we trust what we are being told about issues such as global climate change or should we do our own research? I believe we should never stop learning and never hold on to what we are being told as being the truth.

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10 Questions About Reflected Light

This is going to be a tough exercise for me. I don't know how good the questions are going to be, but here goes.

1. Why does light reflect?
2. Does reflected light have the same wavelengths as direct light, or are they altered?
3. Is the brightness of light diminished when it reflects?
4. What types of surfaces are able to reflect light?
5. Is the color of light affected by the surface that is reflecting it?
6. Does reflected light make an object look different than direct light?
7. Is reflected light more or less pleasing to the eye than direct light?
8. How does light reflect?
9. At what angle does light reflect off of an object?
10. What are the properties of light that make if reflect?

For my next exercise I need to write ten questions about some part of my own life.

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Ten Power Questions

How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci suggests that I copy down the following ten power questions into my journal for contemplation. Here they are:

1. When am I most naturally myself? What people, places, and activities allow me to feel most fully myself?

2. What is one thing I could stop doing, or start doing, or do differently, starting today that would most improve the quality of my life?

3. What is my greatest talent?

4. How can I get paid for doing what I love?

5. Who are my most inspiring role models?

6. How can I best be of service to others?

7. What is my heart's deepest desire?

8. How am I perceived by: my closest friend, my worst enemy, my boss, my children, my co-workers, etc.?

9. What are the blessings of my life?

10. What legacy would I like to leave?

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Top Ten Questions

Here are my top ten questions:

1. Does God exist?
2. What is the meaning of life?
3. What is the secret to a long, happy life?
4. Why don't people believe that we are changing the climate on earth?
5. When did wants become needs?
6. How was the universe really created?
7. Why do we continue to fail the youth of the United States?
8. In this day and age, is war really a necessity?
9. What changes can we make to American government for the better?
10. Why don't we learn from history?

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Themes from my 100 Questions

The themes that emerged from my 100 questions are:

Politics
Success
Happiness
Religion
The Environment

Politics makes sense with all that is happening today; the economy, the Sotomayor confirmation, etc. Success and happiness are personal and themes I think we all contemplate. Religion is an ongoing theme in my life. I guess you could say I love to discuss...argue...about religion. The environment is something that really bothers me. I know that we are having a negative impact on our planet and with all the facts that exist I find it hard to believe that some people don't believe it. I am very concerned that our government is not doing everything in its power to make us change our habits. Another concern of mine is that it is so expensive to be "green." If people are going to make a change, that change needs to be affordable.

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100 Questions (76-100)

76. Why don't we refer to global warming as global climate change?
77. Why don't people believe that we are changing the climate on earth?
78. Why is it so easy for people to dismiss facts?
79. Why do people continue to dismiss the effects of man on our planet?
80. Why don't more people embrace green practices?
81. Why aren't all cars in the world hybrid?
82. Why doesn't every government building have solar panels on their roof?
83. Why is solar technology so expensive?
84. Why don't we use something like hemp for paper instead of wood pulp?
85. Why do people resist change?
86. Why don't people respect other people?
87. Why don't people feel the need to always learn?
88. Why would people rather be dumb and popular rather than educated and not so popular?
89. What is the key to happiness?
90. Will there be a medical discovery in my lifetime that helps us live much longer?
91. Will a cure to cancer be found in my lifetime?
92. Will an aids vaccine be found in my lifetime?
93. When will we run out of land for burial plots?
94. Why do we continue the practice of burial rather than cremation?
95. When will I die?
96. How will I die?
97. Why is adoption so expensive?
98. If there is a God, why are there so many different religions?
99. Why don't we see miracles today?
100. Why do people continue to smoke even though they know it is killing them?

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100 Questions (26-75)

26. Why do people lie?
27. Why do people cheat on their spouse?
28. If you know you shouldn't do something, why do you do it?
29. When will we start commuting by flight?
30. What does the future hold?
31. Why do we not institute a maximum age for politicians?
32. Why do we let politics continue as is in this country?
33. Why can't the republican politicians learn from their mistakes?
34. Why do politicians continue to attack rather than figure out a way to work together?
35. Why can't we all just get along?
36. How long will I live?
37. What will my kids end up becoming?
38. Will I always be happy with my life?
39. Will I totally change my career in the not so distant future?
40. Will I start my own successful business in the future?
41. Will I live well when I retire?
42. When will I travel to Europe for the first time?
53. How did Einstein become Einstein?
54. Was Abraham Lincoln the greatest President?
55. In this day and age, is war really a necessity?
56. Why does the US want to be the police for the world?
57. Why can't taxes be fixed and the government figure out how to stay within budget?
58. Why does education spending get cut so easily when we project a budget deficit?
59. Why do we continue to fail the youth of the United States?
60. Why do we allow large companies that received bail out money to pay large bonuses, any bonuses, to employees?
61. Why do we spend so much money on incarceration?
62. Why do people without educations have opportunities to make a great salary?
63. Do we need the number of police officers we have?
64. Can we fight crime in other ways?
65. Why can't we remove fossil fuels from our economy?
66. Why is it so hard for some people to believe in evolution when we have so many facts?
67. Can you be educated and religious?
68. Why are we on this planet?
69. Why can't people control their emotions?
70. Can you really control your moods?
71. Why does everyone feel like they need to have kids?
72. Why do parents continue to spoil their kids?
73. When did wants become needs?
74. Why is marijuana illegal and cigarettes and alcohol legal?
75. Is this the best time to be alive?

75 down, the last 25 to come.

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100 Questions (1-25)

One of the exercises in "How to think like Leonardo da Vinci" is to write down 100 questions. After that I need to look for themes. Here I go...

1. What is the meaning of life?
2. What is the secret of success?
3. Is there an afterlife?
4. If so, what will it be?
5. Why are we able to think and reason?
6. Do we keep thinking after we die?
7. Does God exist?
8. Why does man continue to make the same mistakes over and over?
9. Why don't we learn from history?
10. How can we learn from history?
11. Why are politicians bad?
12. What changes can we make to American government for the better?
13. Will Obama make a difference?
14. Who is the best President in the history of the US?
15. What makes them the best?
16. Was Leonardo da Vinci the smartest man to ever live?
17. Why must the good die young?
18. What is the secret to a long, happy life?
19. What would be the trip of a lifetime?
20. How did the Egyptians gain the knowledge and skills to build the pyramids?
21. Why are there pyramids in Latin America, but none in the United States?
22. Where the continents really 1 land mass before?
23. Why doesn't survival of the fittest apply to man?
24. How was the universe really created?
25. Why can't man live on beer alone?

25 down, more to come.

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Blog Names

I am currently reading the book, "How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci" again, so I thought it fitting that I should choose one of his quote for my blog title. Here are some others I considered:

The noblest pleasure
Learning how to live
Life well spent
Wasted Hours
The common sense

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