What I’ve learned since moving to D.C. (some of which should be obvious): 0045

2201.  Depression rates today are ten times higher than they were in 1960;

2202.  Every year the age threshold of unhappiness sinks lower, not just at universities but across the nation.  Fifty years ago, the mean onset age of depression was 29.5 years old.  Today, it is almost exactly half that: 14.5 years old;

2203.  Frank Ruta, the executive chef at Palena in D.C., used to be a chef at the White House during the Reagan and (first) Bush administrations;

2204.  You really can fry anything; some of the entrées at Palena in D.C. have fried lemons in them;

2205.  If we study merely what is average, we will remain merely average;

2206.  If all you strive for is diminishing the bad, you’ll only attain the average and you’ll miss out entirely on the opportunity to exceed the average;

2207.  Turn on the news, and the majority of airtime is spent on accidents, corruption, murders, abuse.  This focus on the negative tricks our brains into believing that this sorry ratio is reality, that most of life is negative;

2208.  What we spend our time and mental energy focusing on can indeed become our reality;

2209.  Countless studies have found that social relationships are the best guarantee of heightened well-being and lowered stress, both an antidote for depression and a prescription for high performance;

2210.  We become more successful when we are happier and more positive;

2211.  Doctors put in a positive mood before making a diagnosis show almost three times more intelligence and creativity than doctors in a neutral state, and they make accurate diagnoses 19 percent faster;

2212.  Optimistic salespeople outsell their pessimistic counterparts by 56 percent;

2213.  Students primed to feel happy before taking math achievement tests far outperform their neutral peers;

2214.  It turns out that our brains are literally hardwired to perform at their best not when they are negative or even neutral, but when they are positive;

2215.  Celebrate Fairfax (CelebrateFairfax.com) is in June.  Tickets are cheaper if you get them in advance;

2216.  David Hasselhoff is from Baltimore, Maryland;

2217.  I thought (French) macarons were soft and spongy.  They’re not.  They’re hard and crisp;

2218.  A juniper macaron (with juniper ganache) reminds me of a gin and tonic;

2219.  Once we understand who we are at our core, we can then decide if we like that person or if we want to aspire to be something more;

2220.  Jenna knows how to lick an ear;

2221.  Jenna has a squeezable butt;

2222.  In a perfect relationship, each partner gives 100% to the other person.  That way, everyone is giving 100%, and everyone is also getting 100%.  If your girlfriend/boyfriend is all take and no give, then you’re closer to being her/his hired help than behaving like a good boyfriend/girlfriend.  Keep an eye on the back-and-forth ratio to make sure s/he’s doing things for you as often as you do favors for her/him;

2223.  Keep an eye out for decisions based solely on the fear of letting her/him down versus a true desire to please.  If you become afraid of disappointing your girlfriend/boyfriend in every action you take, you’ve already lost your sense of self in the relationship.  You’re supposed to love and cherish your girlfriend/boyfriend, not live in fear of her/him;

2224.  The Tutsis weren’t just killed by the Hutus during the Rwandan Genocide (of 1994); they were (sadistically) tortured and raped as well;

2225.  People can be really cruel and sadistic;

2226.  There isn’t a country in Africa where Twitter isn’t used;

2227.  Copying and emulating our heroes is one of the best ways we learn;

2228.  Never give equity to a person whose services you can buy in the marketplace.  If a friend wants a part of your asset by exchanging services for it (i.e., being your property manager, doing your accounting, offering consulting services, etc.), make sure you are not losing out on the deal.  If your friend is providing services you can get elsewhere or just needs money, look elsewhere for a partner;

2229.  Arrogance diminishes wisdom;

2230.  What you know makes me money.  What you don’t know loses you money;

2231.  When you’re arrogant, you truly believe that what you don’t know isn’t important;

2232.  Most people use arrogance to hide their ignorance;

2233.  Fear often gets in the way of moving forward;

2234.  With almost everything in life, there is a learning curve.  Know that you will make mistakes along the way, so start with small steps;

2235.  Risk is not knowing what you are doing;

2236.  In order to be rich, you must have the self-discipline to pay yourself first.  Use your income to invest in cash-flowing assets before you pay your bills or buy anything fun.  This in turn will create more income that you can use to invest in more, cash-flowing assets;

2237.  June 21^st (i.e., summer solstice) is the longest day of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere);

2238.  (Washington) Redskins cheerleaders (specifically Megan) fly out of BWI (i.e., Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport) in Baltimore, Maryland;

2239.  Adolescence is when you’re totally concerned about what other people think about you;

2240.  When we stop caring about what other people think of us, we’re free to live in the moment;

2241.  There’s a blast of heat and humidity as soon as you get off the plane in New Orleans, Louisiana;

2242.  There are a lot of high rises in New Orleans . . . more than I had imagined;

2243.  It’s a flat rate to take a taxi from the (Louis Armstrong) New Orleans (International) Airport to the French Quarter.  It’s $33.00 for 1-2 passengers and $14.00 per person for 3 or more passengers;

2244.  When you walk down Bourbon Street in New Orleans, your nose is assaulted with the stench of sour (river) water, horse manure, sweat, cigars, marijuana and cigarettes . . . with one smell following another;

2245.  A “hurricane” is like alcoholic, red Kool-Aid;

2246.  In New Orleans, you can drink in public and bring your beer/cocktail from bar to bar as long as it’s in a plastic cup;

2247.  The most beautiful woman physically (i.e., tall, slim, tanned, platinum blonde) that I’ve ever seen in person was at Rita’s Tequila House (RitasTequilaHouse.com) in New Orleans on the night of June 21, 2013;

2248.  A “hand grenade” tastes like a (really sweet) pineapple Life Saver;

2249.  Beignets are crisp and chewy, not soft and doughy;

2250.  Gerald McRaney (i.e., the actor) graduated from Ole Miss.  His first wife is a descendant of Adolphus Busch (i.e., the co-founder of Anheuser-Busch).  His college roommate is an administrator at the University of South Alabama in Mobile;

What I’ve learned since moving to D.C. (some of which should be obvious): 0044

2151.  Karl Alzner (of the Washington Capitals) has a sweet tooth;

2152.  The (Washington) Capitals’ families and friends sit in section 103;

2153.  If you (ever) need a hockey net strung, you can ask Rachel Fehr (i.e., Eric Fehr’s wife);

2154.  Courtney Parrie (i.e., Mike Green’s girlfriend) is rather attractive;

2155.  Brooks Laich (of the Washington Capitals) seems like a good guy;

2156.  Joel Ward (of the Washington Capitals) has (really) skinny legs;

2157.  It seems (to me) that all relationships end with someone getting hurt.  When one person doesn’t feel the same way as the other, (the relationship ends and) someone gets hurt.  When a marriage ends (in divorce), the divorced spouse gets hurt.  When one spouse passes away before the other, the surviving spouse gets hurt.  Should both spouses pass away together, it’s usually tragically and the surviving family members are hurt;

2158.  It goes without saying that banks (right now) aren’t loaning out money, when in a month, you can find more change on the ground than what you can earn in interest on your checking and/or savings account(s);

2159.  The peanut butter topping at Dairy Queen (DairyQueen.com) is a disappointment;

2160.  You’re not supposed to keep your RV’s generator on at night to run the heater.  Apparently, you can get carbon monoxide poisoning;

2161.  I’d imagine a post-apocalyptic world would look a lot like an RV lot at a NASCAR race;

2162.  You need your (grandstand) ticket and your (pre-race) pit pass to get into the race pits;

2163.  You can bring in your own alcohol to NASCAR races.  Each person (i.e., child and adult) is allowed (to bring in) one, soft-sided cooler, no larger than 14” by 14” by 14.”  Hard-sided coolers and coolers with telescoping handles or wheels aren’t allowed;

2164.  NASCAR races are really loud. . . . You might want to get some earplugs;

2165.  I think people (partly) like to go to NASCAR races because it gives them an excuse to tailgate and get sloshed for a couple of days;

2166.  I want to share my life with someone, but I don’t need to;

2167.  Using duck confit (wings) is a nice little twist on wings;

2168.  When you enrich people’s lives with your friendship they tend to do the same for you;

2169.  Most people lead lives of quiet desperation, thinking: “One day I’ll be the person I’ve always wanted to be, on day.”  But this day never comes because they never decide to actually start being this person.  They simply hope it will happen, in vain.  You need to make a conscious choice to start becoming the person you’ve always wanted to be, the person inside.  Who is this person?  What would s/he say or do in any given situation?  The only way to become her/him is to start living like her/him;

2170.  Telling a woman (you just met) that you want her to have your kids is just an indirect way of saying, “I want to fuck you;”

2171.  Akil Mitchell (of the University of Virginia’s men’s basketball team) is very poised, mature and affable . . . way more than I was at his age (i.e., twenty years old);

2172.  A cheap(er) way to go out, is to order a non-alcoholic drink (i.e., iced tea, soda, etc.) in a regular-sized/tall glass and ask the bartender to put a shot of rail/well liquor in it.  At most places, a shot of rail/well liquor is around $5.00, so it can end up being cheaper than drinking beer;

2173.  Single ply toilet paper sucks, especially after you’ve gotten used to multi-ply toilet paper;

2174.  The enchilada roja (i.e., chicken, cascabel chili and Mexican chocolate) at Bandolero in D.C. is kind of pricey (i.e., $10.00 for one enchilada), but it’s really tasty;

2175.  Chocolate in enchiladas! . . . Who knew?

2176.  The hushpuppies at Tackle Box in D.C. are awful;

2177.  You would think that a racetrack would let you use credit cards to pay for drinks and other concessions, so you’d have more money to bet on the (horse) races . . . not at Pimlico (Race Course) in Baltimore, Maryland;

2178.  You can bring in your own food and (non-alcoholic) drinks to the Preakness (Stakes).  You’re allowed to bring in a clear see-through plastic container no larger than 18” by 18.”  Glass of any kind and thermoses aren’t allowed;

2179.  If you want to film a movie set in the ‘50s, go to Pimlico (Race Course).  It’s like you’ve been transported back in time;

2180.  A ‘70s looking pimp would fit right in at the Preakness Stakes. . . . It’s a great event for people watching;

2181.  It’s kind of weird that Pimlico (Race Course) is located in the heart of a residential neighborhood.  It’s surrounded by houses and apartment buildings;

2182.  What’s in a “Black-Eyed Susan” (i.e., the official drink of the Preakness Stakes)?  The answer is: 1 ¼ ounces of Finlandia vodka, ¼ ounce of St. Germain liqueur, 2 ounces of lemon juice, 3 ounces of lemongrass and blackberry simple syrup and 6 drops of Angostura bitters . . . garnished with a sage leaf;

2183.  The duck confit burritos (with spicy ginger lime relish and avocado) at Willow (WillowBaltimore.com) in Baltimore, Maryland, are pretty tasty;

2184.  A great place to watch the game at Oriole Park (at Camden Yards) in Baltimore, Maryland, is the roof deck overlooking centerfield.  Just buy a cheap ticket, walk over and enjoy the game with a drink from the bar;

2185.  Whatever you believe will eventually become your reality;

2186.  Success breeds success and failure breeds learning;

2187.  The 138^th running of the Preakness Stakes had the 4^th largest on-track attendance ever at 117,203 people;

2188.  A black-eyed Susan is the name of a flower.  It has nothing to do with domestic violence;

2189.  Wolfgang Puck knows how to cook lamb chops.  His Chinois lamb chop lollipops (with cilantro mint vinaigrette) are so tender.  They might be the best lamb chops I’ve ever had.  I could eat a (whole) tray of them as an entrée;

2190.  Filet mignon can be two inches thick and the size of a doughnut;

2191.  Wolfgang Puck weddings are (really) nice;

2192.  What’s a sign of a nice hotel?  The answer is: When there’s a complementary toothbrush and toothpaste already in the room;

2193.  It was recently discovered that Saturn’s rings aren’t circular, but a spiral.  They’ll eventually disappear as they’re slowly pulled down into the planet;

2194.  When Persians go out, they (really) dress up;

2195.  Thanks to cutting-edge science, we now know that happiness is the precursor to success, not merely the result.  And that happiness and optimism actually fuel performance and achievement;

2196.  Waiting to be happy limits our brain’s potential for success, whereas cultivating positive brains makes us more motivated, efficient, resilient, creative, and productive, which drives performance upward;

2197.  The Mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven;

2198.  Our interpretation of reality changes our experience of that reality;

2199.  In 2004, a Harvard Crimson poll found that as many as 4 in 5 Harvard students suffer from depression at least once during the school year, and nearly half of all students suffer from depression so debilitating they can’t function;

2200.  A Conference Board survey released in January of 2010 found that only 45 percent of workers surveyed were happy at their jobs, the lowest in 22 years of polling;