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;