What I've learned since moving to D.C. (some of which should be obvious): 0079

3901.  You can blame the turkey (i.e., tryptophan) all you want, but the real reason for a food coma is the plate of mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls and pie – and all the sugar they contain.  With so much sugar hitting your system all at once, your body has to (pretty much) shut everything down to digest it all;

3902.  Apparently, your tongue can sweat.  Just eat a raw jalapeño and you’ll find out;

3903.  Luisa likes Scotch/whiskey/bourbon;

3904.  Justin Williams (of the Washington Capitals) is really good at protecting the puck;

3905.  Advice doesn’t make you smarter;

3906.  As time passes (by), we’re constantly evolving.  The (real) question is: Are we better or are we worse?

3907.  You don’t need a reason to be happy.  Your desire to be so is sufficient.  Embrace who you are and give no apology for it;

3908.  There are no wrong roads to anywhere.  There are no accidents.  As we go along, there are course corrections that we can make if we choose to reroute ourselves.  Every experience we have in life is there to teach us something;

3909.  What seems like coincidence is truly the tapestry of our life woven together by the many choices we make;

3910.  To think negatively is draining and weakens both the mind and the body;

3911.  You, yourself, can work to improve yourself further in order to reach a higher self;

3912.  Luke Spiller (the lead singer of “The Struts”) is like a mix of Freddie Mercury (i.e., his voice), Mick Jagger (i.e., his moves) and (a young) Tim Curry (i.e., his looks);

3913.  David Boyd (the lead singer of “New Politics”) is ripped . . . and he (sure) likes to show it off;

3914.  Aaron Bruno (the lead singer of “AWOLNation”) reminds me of Zack de la Rocha (the former lead vocalist for “Rage Against the Machine”);

3915.  Apparently, you should (also) brush your cheeks;

3916.  Bonchon (Bonchon.com) is good, but (a little) overrated;

3917.  The “Neon Trees” put on a (really) good show (and I’m not even a fan);

3918.  Justin Anderson’s (of the Dallas Mavericks) most memorable moment of playing basketball at the University of Virginia is beating (then No. 4 ranked) Syracuse (75-56) to win the (outright,) regular season, A(tlantic )C(oast )C(onference) title;

3919.  Cortisol, responsible for stress, is often found in lower concentrations within high achieving and powerful people.  Conversely, testosterone usually exists in high concentrations in these same individuals;

3920.  Testosterone is not only the key driver for male sexual maturation, but it also underlies confidence and the propensity to take on risk;

3921.  Adopting high power poses increases explicit and implicit feelings of power and dominance, risk-taking behavior, action orientation, pain tolerance and testosterone (i.e., the dominance hormone), while reducing stress, anxiety and cortisol;

3922.  Status and dominance are both inextricably linked to testosterone.  Both internal and external stimuli can bolster testosterone levels, which resultantly increase the frequency of subsequent dominant behaviors;

3923.  Testosterone levels typically spike after experiencing victory in a competition, and conversely drop after enduring defeat;

3924.  It is important to note that cortisol levels typically jump in response to challenging situations for all individuals, but what is consistently observed in powerful people is a lower average concentration of cortisol when faced with difficulty;

3925.  Accordingly, a neuroendocrine profile of high testosterone coupled with low cortisol appears to be optimally adaptive for success and leadership;

3926.  Individuals, who take on high power poses, experience elevation of the dominance hormone testosterone, reduction of the stress hormone cortisol and increases in behaviorally demonstrated risk tolerance and feelings of power.  Conversely, people, who strike a low power pose, had inverted results, experiencing a rise in cortisol levels and a concurrent drop in testosterone;

3927.  Taking on powerful poses lead to an average rise in testosterone of 20% and a simultaneous drop in cortisol by approximately 25%;

3928.  Brownies can have a ridiculous amount of butter;

3929.  Don’t shrink because it’s easier, don’t shrink because you’re scared and don’t not go after your dream job because it’s hard;

3930.  What screws us up most in life is the picture in our head of how it’s supposed to be;

3931.  Pho is Luisa’s chicken soup;

3932.  Daily power poses: Find a time during the day when you are at home and alone.  Go into the bathroom, turn on your favorite song and do the following: 1.  Plaster a relaxed and confident smile on your face – smiling will instantly boost your endorphin levels and make you feel happy.  This will also provide an additional opportunity to work on developing a natural and contagious smile; 2.  Turn on your favorite song – play music that will make you feel good.  It is important to set the mood correctly, especially if this is something you are doing first thing in the morning; and 3.  Strike a power pose – perhaps the “victory stance.”  Hold this position for the duration of the song while smiling;

3933.  Using your body to bolster your mood during the day: Whether you’re out at a bar, in the middle of an interview or seated at a dinner table with your girlfriend’s family, you might suddenly notice your state drop.  It could be triggered by an unfriendly comment or simply from a lull in the conversation.  Whatever might set you off; you can pull yourself out of the gutter by fixing your posture.  There are a few key areas that you should immediately check when attempting to reinvigorate your emotional state.  When looking to perk yourself up via body language, follow the steps outlined below: 1.  Straighten your back – whether you are sitting or standing, make sure that your back is straight.  A curved back is the central tenet of a low power pose.  Accordingly, keeping your spine compressed will inevitably have your body firing off a bad cocktail of hormones replete with high doses of cortisol.  Sit or stand tall and nudge your mental state in the right direction; 2.  Pull back your shoulders and push out your chest – relaxed shoulders go hand in hand with a straight back.  Again, the overarching message you want to send is openness and dominance.  Pulled back shoulders not only increase your size, but they make your body appear less defensive and closed off; 3.  Try to smile – Actively seek an opportunity to flash those pearly whites.  Once that happens, try to make an active effort to keep some remnant of a smile on your face throughout the rest of the conversation.  Not only will this make you feel better, but it will lighten the mood and encourage others to smile as well; and 4.  Keep your arms relaxed and at your side – 9 times out of 10, if you’re feeling anxious, your arms are crossed or your hands are buried in your pockets.  Make sure that this is not the case.  At the very least, position your hands behind your back so that you appear more open and relaxed;

3934.  Heart Rate Variability (“H.R.V.”) is simply the notion that your heart rate fluctuates in response to your breathing pattern.  The degree to which your heart rate can change in accordance with your breath is linked to health and flexibility.  This means that if your heart rate generally stays constant without much change throughout the normal course of a day, it is a sign of aging and poor health.  Conversely, regular fluctuations and changes in H.R.V. are usually positive indications of good health;

3935.  H.R.V. measurements have become a cornerstone of standard health assessments by physicians because of their excellent ability to predict stress level and age.  Low H.R.V. is directly correlated with coronary heart disease and a variety of other ailments;

3936.  Heart rate variability is a key indicator of the overall integrity and well-being of the human organism;

3937.  Breathing patterns have a direct impact on the heart rate of a reasonably healthy individual;

3938.  A slower heart rate translates to a greater level of calmness and hence breathing is a key pathway to slowing down the mind and reducing stress levels;

3939.  Another way that breathing can affect your state and positively impact your emotions is by switching off the worry centers in your brain.  Slow and deliberate breathing stimulates the vagus nerves, which sends communications to the cerebral cortex to quiet thinking activity.  Additionally, other branches of the pathway enter the centers of emotion regulation in the prefrontal cortex and in the limbic system, including the amygdala and hippocampus, where they help reduce anxiety and negative thoughts and emotions;

3940.  Focused breathing does not only calm worry centers and reduce anxiety, but it simultaneously enhances physical, mental and social abilities;

3941.  Coherent breathing, if done correctly and regularly, will enable you to synchronize your heart rate variability and breathing cycle;

3942.  If you don’t want unsolicited advice (on something), don’t bring up the subject.  Don’t plant the seed of conversation;

3943.  I think(, for the most part,) people talk about their problems to complain and/or vent and they’re not (really) looking for (any) advice;

3944.  I think (most) people don’t like being told what to do even if they know what they’re being told (to do) is right;

3945.  We use our pain to justify our lack of success; as long as we’re in pain we have something or someone to blame;

3946.  Victimhood can become comfortable and habitual;

3947.  In his book Authentic Happiness, “positive psychologist,” Martin Seligman, reports finding three levels of happiness from his research: pleasure, engagement (the depth of involvement with one’s family, work, romance and hobbies) and meaning (using personal strengths to serve some larger end).  He insists that of these three paths to a happy life, pleasure is the least consequential.  This is newsworthy because so many Americans build their lives around pursuing pleasure.  It turns out that engagement and meaning are much more important;

3948.  Confidence is knowledge;

3949.  By gaining experience in the things that give you social anxiety, you’ll learn what the likely outcomes are and how others might behave.  The only way to be confident in social situations is to experience them;

3950.  Scientists and medical specialists alike have found that by rhythmically tapping on your meridian points, you send a decisive message that deactivates the amygdala’s alarm and emits a calming response to the body;