Has this every happened to you? You're walking down the street, eating a muffin—which, like all muffins, is really a cupcake with added bran—while simultaneously talking on the cellphone:
You: I'll meet you [chew, chew] at six at the restaurant.
Your husband: Honey, I told you before [wind blows, the muffin paper crinkles in your hand] the dinner is at [boom-boom of woofers from a passing car] eight o' [dog barks, somebody else's cell phone rings playing "Last Friday Night" by Katy Perry) clock.
You: Right! [fire engine wails by] Got it!
Your husband: Great.
You: Six o'clock! [Child cries over skinned knee, disturbed man screams at the corner about the radio signals in his back molars] See you there! Don't be late!
Your husband: Honey, I told you before [wind blows, the muffin paper crinkles in your hand] the dinner is at [boom-boom of woofers from a passing car] eight o' [dog barks, somebody else's cell phone rings playing "Last Friday Night" by Katy Perry) clock.
You: Right! [fire engine wails by] Got it!
Your husband: Great.
You: Six o'clock! [Child cries over skinned knee, disturbed man screams at the corner about the radio signals in his back molars] See you there! Don't be late!
Everybody seems to talk about how fast the world moves now. But rarely has anyone pointed out how loud is it—and how this changes us as listeners. Do we really hear each other anymore? More importantly, do we hear the small subtle noises that create such texture in a day—the clink of ice in a glass, the velvet whirl of the fan?
Last month celebrated sound expert Julian Treasure gave a TED talk on how to become a better listener. One of his exercises is to take a few minutes and savor the "hidden choir" in the everyday—for example a clothes dryer that thumps to rhythm of a waltz worth dancing to. Discover these sound secrets—and four others—that help you tune into the sound of your own life.
Men! What are they thinking? We can't always answer that, but we'll be posting our favorite glimpses into their world in this space every Thursday.
* Earlier this month, an 89-year-old barber named Aaron Biber, found the
shop he'd owned for 41 years destroyed by London's rioters. Last
Wednesday, a group of advertising interns set up a website to help him
repair the shop. Within a week, visitors to the site had contributed nearly $60,000—enough to keep Aaron cutting. The kindness of strangers really never gets old. (Keep Aaron Cutting)
* Put this On, a web fashion series for men, visits the corduroy appreciation club and checks in with Gay Talese, one of the few dandies so dandy he has his own style of lapel. (Put this On)
* Relive the crushes of your youth in this slideshow of '80s athletes with their girlfriends and wives. For every Mike Tyson and Robin Givens, there's a couple that reminds us true love can span several decades—and survive the worst of mullets. (Sports Illustrated)
* Male superheroes get Wonder Woman-ized. (Bleeding Cool)
* "Fear only has as much power as we give it space."—Bright's Passage author Josh Ritter tells us what he knows for sure. (Oprah.com)
| Aaron Biber Photo: Oli Scarff/Getty Images |
* Put this On, a web fashion series for men, visits the corduroy appreciation club and checks in with Gay Talese, one of the few dandies so dandy he has his own style of lapel. (Put this On)
* Relive the crushes of your youth in this slideshow of '80s athletes with their girlfriends and wives. For every Mike Tyson and Robin Givens, there's a couple that reminds us true love can span several decades—and survive the worst of mullets. (Sports Illustrated)
* Male superheroes get Wonder Woman-ized. (Bleeding Cool)
* "Fear only has as much power as we give it space."—Bright's Passage author Josh Ritter tells us what he knows for sure. (Oprah.com)
What would it take to change your life for the better? It may be less than you think—we’ve got mini-makeovers to help you upgrade everything from your workout to your weekend. #8: Three sites that make tracking your finances a breeze.
Create budgets, set savings goals, and monitor where the dough goes, with this money manager that syncs automatically with your bank, credit card, investment, and loan accounts.
Manilla.com
A virtual and secure file cabinet with unlimited storage, Manilla allows you to go paperless while streamlining banking, magazine subscriptions, loyalty reward programs, and utilities.
Pageonce.com
If you want to manage your Netflix queue and pay
your credit card bills on the same screen,
head to this popular mobile app.
Keep Reading
30 days of makeovers
Convert money into happiness
Suze Orman answers your top money questions
 |
| Photo: Thinkstock |
Account for nearly everything with these
digital dashboards
Mint.comdigital dashboards
Create budgets, set savings goals, and monitor where the dough goes, with this money manager that syncs automatically with your bank, credit card, investment, and loan accounts.
Manilla.com
A virtual and secure file cabinet with unlimited storage, Manilla allows you to go paperless while streamlining banking, magazine subscriptions, loyalty reward programs, and utilities.
Pageonce.com
If you want to manage your Netflix queue and pay
your credit card bills on the same screen,
head to this popular mobile app.
Keep Reading
30 days of makeovers
Convert money into happiness
Suze Orman answers your top money questions
| Photo: Thinkstock |
Salt & Straw, Portland, OR
This newcomer, which just opened in the city's hip Alberta district, packs its small-batch creations with 17% butterfat (most ice creams contain about 10%) to ramp up the richness in each bite, and ships a sampler of flavors nationwide. Portlanders can also book the company’s old-timey ice cream cart to enliven birthdays, weddings and other gatherings in need of sweet treats (and which ones aren’t?).
Safe bet: Chocolate with Gooey Brownies
For the adventurous: Three Berry Barbecue (a strawberry, huckleberry, and Oregon marionberry base, ribboned with sweet barbecue sauce)
Our favorite: Honey Balsamic Strawberry with Cracked Pepper
 | The great virtue in life is real courage that knows how to face facts and live beyond them. — D.H. Lawrence |  |
My mother has a saying: It's easy to be nice...(long, potent beat)...when you're feeling nice. The same holds true for forgiveness. It’s to forgive the
easy, inconsequential things—being stood up on a date or cut in front of in line at the grocery store.
But what about the big wrenching losses, those life-changing wrongs that you know you must forgive—not just for the person who let you down,
but for yourself? (Bitterness, by
the way, has been recently proven to reduce lifespan.)
Earlier this month, hearing about Farid
Singh (from India) receiving an email from Qais Hussain (from Pakistan), we were astonished. In the email, as the website Good originally reported, Hussain claimed to have shot
down Singh's father's plane—killing him—back in 1965 during the Indo-Pakistani War. Worse, Singh's father was an innocent civilian. Hussain sent his apologies and condolences, writing that "the unfortunate loss of precious lives, no matter
how it happens, hurts each human and I am no exception. I feel sorry for you, your family, and the other seven families who lost
their dearest ones."
Even more astonishing, was Singh's letter back...
What would it take to change your life for the better? It may be less than you think—we’ve got mini-makeovers to help you upgrade everything from your workout to your weekend. #7: Cheeky stationery provides a fun new way to communicate.
Say it with...elephant dung. Seriously: Green-minded stationer Haathi Chaap collects the stuff from elephant stables, then dries it and boils it with salt water to eliminate odor and bacteria. The remaining fibrous material—digested sugarcane and leafy tree stalks—is beaten into pulp, diluted with water, and pressed into hygienic sheets. The paper's light brown color varies depending on the elephant's diet.
Available at elephantpoopaper.com
Keep Reading
 |
| Photo: Gregor Halenda |
Available at elephantpoopaper.com
Keep Reading
What would it take to change your life for the better? It may be less than you think—we’ve got mini-makeovers to help you upgrade everything from your workout to your weekend. #7: Cheeky stationery provides a fun new way to communicate.
Say it with...elephant dung. Seriously: Green-minded stationer Haathi Chaap collects the stuff from elephant stables, then dries it and boils it with salt water to eliminate odor and bacteria. The remaining fibrous material—digested sugarcane and leafy tree stalks—is beaten into pulp, diluted with water, and pressed into hygienic sheets. The paper's light brown color varies depending on the elephant's diet.
Available at elephantpoopaper.com
Keep Reading:
30 days of makeovers
What "green" means
17 ways to save money—and the planet
|
| Photo: Gregor Halenda |
Say it with...elephant dung. Seriously: Green-minded stationer Haathi Chaap collects the stuff from elephant stables, then dries it and boils it with salt water to eliminate odor and bacteria. The remaining fibrous material—digested sugarcane and leafy tree stalks—is beaten into pulp, diluted with water, and pressed into hygienic sheets. The paper's light brown color varies depending on the elephant's diet.
Available at elephantpoopaper.com
Keep Reading:
30 days of makeovers
What "green" means
17 ways to save money—and the planet
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about Life Lift
The Oprah blog is a place where you can find engaging news coverage, fresh inspiration, and the straight talk you've come to count on. A place that
provides the tools you need to make a change—if not in the world—then at
least in your little corner of it. It's a place that will raise your energy, lower your blood pressure and
occasionally make you laugh—in short, a place of possibility.
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