Tuesday, August 12, 2008
World record inflation
I've got to give some props to Speedo for designing fancy new swimsuits which dominate old world records. It's amazing to see. I will probably never again in my life witness an Olympics with so many records being set. Unless next olympics they come up with salamander suits. But not all excellence in the olympics is easy to measure across time. Take gymnastics, for instance. How are you supposed to maintain a world record in this event especially when judges change, scores change, and Olympics committees revamp scoring systems every once in a while? Or volleyball. I suppose you could evaluate teams or individuals based on how the competition does against them. In other words, maybe a disparity score might help, which measures the gap between the gold medalist and the rest. If you are reading this, and feeling slightly bored bear in mind that I am alone at home right now, in New Hampshire. There is no one to talk to, so I am kind of using this blog as an outlet for communication. Well, Michael Phelps is pretty sick. I will most likely compete in a triathlon someday. And when that time comes around, I want a Speedo bodyskin to my advantage. They are only $340. I can't believe how good America is at swimming. Wow
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Flashback #1: An awkward "date"
Nostalgia was in the air. The spring flowers were in full bloom, bringing back memories, and I had just graduated from BYU. I was leaving Provo in a week and a half for Boston. But that trip east seemed so far away to me. I wanted to instead focus on a couple girls that I was interested in.
First was this girl in my ward, Ashli. We had transcended the hometeaching bounds and started hanging out to become quite good friends. The other girl, Janae, worked as a secretary for the BioAg college. I got to know her as I came in regularly to finalize my impending graduation. What started out as casual Facebook messaging turned into "maybe we should hang out sometime" and "most definitely. you should give me a call sometime."
Two girls I was interested in getting to know better, a limited amount of time to work with. What to do? My plan was to organize a group to see Spiderman 3 on opening night. Lucky for me, I had a couple single guy friends that were willing and able to participate.
There is a law known as Murphy's law that states "Whatever can go wrong will go wrong." Pay special attention to this law as I continue my story.
A series of events disrupted my plans for a casual group activity. Two days before the movie night, I was hanging out with Ashli and her two roommates. I threw out the idea that we should all go see Spiderman that weekend. Ashli was positive, but the vibes from her roommates were unenthusiastic. In fact, if I could read one of the girls' minds, it would have probably said: 'Dude, Ashli is digging on you. You need to stop hanging out with us as a group, and hook up with her.' Needless to say, I didn't press the issue. Ashli was in--even if she was under the impression it was going to be a date.
Next, I called up my facebook friend Janae. The conversation was a little more formal than I anticipated, it was as if I were also asking her out on a date. This I did not want, but at the same time I feared being rude so I told her that my cousin was also coming and that if she wanted to bring a friend that would be cool. My reasoning was that at least in her mind, the setting was going to be more casual than a one-on-one date. After I hung up the phone with her, I was pretty sure that Janae was now under the impression that we were going on a double date. I started thinking about the predicament I was getting myself into. "Oh well," I thought to myself, "it'll sort itself out tomorrow."
The next day, Janae let me know that a friend of hers was indeed coming. I invited my cousin Andrew and another friend of mine Peter. My logic was as follows: even if 3 out of the 3 girls thought it was going to be a date, maybe the 2 guys with me could work some magic and make it more of a casual group setting. A series of unfortunate events proved to make this untrue.
1st unfortunate event – My car cannot hold 6 people. This meant that one of us was going to have to meet us there at the movie theater. I thought it would be fine as Peter was in Orem anyway, and Andrew could ride in my car.
2nd unfortunate event - Andrew, my cousin, got tied up practicing with his brother's band. Because he was running late, he called to tell me that he'd meet me there. I remember getting a sick feeling in my stomach.
3rd unfortunate event - Because Andrew called me on such bad notice, I was unable to get Peter to come down to Provo and to pick the girls up with me because he was in Orem. This meant that I would have to pick up the girls singlehandedly. At this moment, I'm pretty sure I started thinking about Murphy's law.
I drove first to Janae’s, where her friend was also. They hopped in the car. Early on, Janae pointed out that her sister was someone I used to date. When she said her sister's name, I immediately became embarrassed. My face must have undoubtedly turned red. You see, the relationship with this girl's sister did not end on a good note and memories were now flooding back to me. The evening would only get better from this moment on.
Janae and friend were probably expecting another male in the car, so I told them that my cousin was at the movie theater, but that I needed to pick up a friend on the way. Then I pulled up to Ashli’s, rang on the door, and walked her to my car where two other girls were. She gave me a look that asked, “uhhhhhh, what’s going on here?” I told her as we walked to the car that it wasn’t what she thought, and that I’d explain later. She climbed into the back half-smiling as she began to fathom the awkwardness of the situation. The conversation managed to remain shallow all the way over to the theater. With three girls and one guy, nobody dared to bring up what this situation was, although I knew that everyone was thinking about it.
Unfortunate event 4 – We didn’t arrive at the movie theater early enough. This was unfortunate for two reasons: There was insufficient time to establish a good connection with everyone in the group before the movie began. Peter burst onto the scene just minutes before we entered the theater, and Andrew still wasn’t there. Without that group chemistry, it set the tone for the rest of the evening. The second reason it was unfortunate was that the seating in the theater was complicated. Because it was opening night, there were a lot of people already in the theater when we arrived. We finally decided on one region of seating with a decent view. There were four empty seats on back-to-back rows. It looked something like this:
X X X X
|_|_|_|_|XX
|_|_|_|_|XX
I knew this setup wasn’t ideal as we’d have to choose whom we'd sit by, but I thought to myself, 'Whatever, we'll just sit as a group.' Well, Peter led the way up the aisle and he started going down the top aisle. I was next and didn't want to sit next to Peter, because I wanted another girl to so I hesitated. I was like a deer in the headlights in between the two rows. There ensued an awkward moment where everyone was thinking the same thing probably: Where are we going to sit? Janae and friend went for the bottom row, then Ashli sat next to them. I didn't want them to feel excluded so I decided to sit next to Ashli. Picture it: Trent, Ashli, Janae, and friend on the first row, Peter on the back row by himself. Andrew eventually came and joined Pete up a row.
As you can see, this evening was turning out to be an evening devoid of group engagement and interactiveness. The one thing good thing is that movies encourage silence. After the movie, the dynamics of the group situation did not change. Everyone knew that something weird was going on. The girls didn't buy their tickets. They had been picked up in a car from their respective apartments. Was this just a really nice guy that wanted to bring people together or was it kind of like a date? That is what everyone was probably wondering. The answer, of course, was not that straightforward. Hence the after-movie moment of awkwardness. We engaged in some small-talk discussing the film and after that fizzled, it was time to make a decision. Was the evening going to continue? or were we done? Of course we were not done. We had barely interacted. So we decided to go to Starbucks for some cocoa or something. We had to travel over there in two cars though so Peter met the rest of us there. Inside the coffee shop, another awkward moment struck. By now, Janae and her friend were pretty much getting the vibe that this wasn't necessarily a date so they paid for their drinks. However, Ashli beforehand had a pretty clear impression that we were going on a date and she knew that I bought her ticket for her. In a moment of silence, where we both understood that this was really weird, she went ahead and paid for my hot chocolate. I dropped off Andrew at his car, then dropped off the girls, then I walked in the living room where Andrew was watching TV. I looked at him and could not believe that evening had really happened.
First was this girl in my ward, Ashli. We had transcended the hometeaching bounds and started hanging out to become quite good friends. The other girl, Janae, worked as a secretary for the BioAg college. I got to know her as I came in regularly to finalize my impending graduation. What started out as casual Facebook messaging turned into "maybe we should hang out sometime" and "most definitely. you should give me a call sometime."
Two girls I was interested in getting to know better, a limited amount of time to work with. What to do? My plan was to organize a group to see Spiderman 3 on opening night. Lucky for me, I had a couple single guy friends that were willing and able to participate.
There is a law known as Murphy's law that states "Whatever can go wrong will go wrong." Pay special attention to this law as I continue my story.
A series of events disrupted my plans for a casual group activity. Two days before the movie night, I was hanging out with Ashli and her two roommates. I threw out the idea that we should all go see Spiderman that weekend. Ashli was positive, but the vibes from her roommates were unenthusiastic. In fact, if I could read one of the girls' minds, it would have probably said: 'Dude, Ashli is digging on you. You need to stop hanging out with us as a group, and hook up with her.' Needless to say, I didn't press the issue. Ashli was in--even if she was under the impression it was going to be a date.
Next, I called up my facebook friend Janae. The conversation was a little more formal than I anticipated, it was as if I were also asking her out on a date. This I did not want, but at the same time I feared being rude so I told her that my cousin was also coming and that if she wanted to bring a friend that would be cool. My reasoning was that at least in her mind, the setting was going to be more casual than a one-on-one date. After I hung up the phone with her, I was pretty sure that Janae was now under the impression that we were going on a double date. I started thinking about the predicament I was getting myself into. "Oh well," I thought to myself, "it'll sort itself out tomorrow."
The next day, Janae let me know that a friend of hers was indeed coming. I invited my cousin Andrew and another friend of mine Peter. My logic was as follows: even if 3 out of the 3 girls thought it was going to be a date, maybe the 2 guys with me could work some magic and make it more of a casual group setting. A series of unfortunate events proved to make this untrue.
1st unfortunate event – My car cannot hold 6 people. This meant that one of us was going to have to meet us there at the movie theater. I thought it would be fine as Peter was in Orem anyway, and Andrew could ride in my car.
2nd unfortunate event - Andrew, my cousin, got tied up practicing with his brother's band. Because he was running late, he called to tell me that he'd meet me there. I remember getting a sick feeling in my stomach.
3rd unfortunate event - Because Andrew called me on such bad notice, I was unable to get Peter to come down to Provo and to pick the girls up with me because he was in Orem. This meant that I would have to pick up the girls singlehandedly. At this moment, I'm pretty sure I started thinking about Murphy's law.
I drove first to Janae’s, where her friend was also. They hopped in the car. Early on, Janae pointed out that her sister was someone I used to date. When she said her sister's name, I immediately became embarrassed. My face must have undoubtedly turned red. You see, the relationship with this girl's sister did not end on a good note and memories were now flooding back to me. The evening would only get better from this moment on.
Janae and friend were probably expecting another male in the car, so I told them that my cousin was at the movie theater, but that I needed to pick up a friend on the way. Then I pulled up to Ashli’s, rang on the door, and walked her to my car where two other girls were. She gave me a look that asked, “uhhhhhh, what’s going on here?” I told her as we walked to the car that it wasn’t what she thought, and that I’d explain later. She climbed into the back half-smiling as she began to fathom the awkwardness of the situation. The conversation managed to remain shallow all the way over to the theater. With three girls and one guy, nobody dared to bring up what this situation was, although I knew that everyone was thinking about it.
Unfortunate event 4 – We didn’t arrive at the movie theater early enough. This was unfortunate for two reasons: There was insufficient time to establish a good connection with everyone in the group before the movie began. Peter burst onto the scene just minutes before we entered the theater, and Andrew still wasn’t there. Without that group chemistry, it set the tone for the rest of the evening. The second reason it was unfortunate was that the seating in the theater was complicated. Because it was opening night, there were a lot of people already in the theater when we arrived. We finally decided on one region of seating with a decent view. There were four empty seats on back-to-back rows. It looked something like this:
X X X X
|_|_|_|_|XX
|_|_|_|_|XX
I knew this setup wasn’t ideal as we’d have to choose whom we'd sit by, but I thought to myself, 'Whatever, we'll just sit as a group.' Well, Peter led the way up the aisle and he started going down the top aisle. I was next and didn't want to sit next to Peter, because I wanted another girl to so I hesitated. I was like a deer in the headlights in between the two rows. There ensued an awkward moment where everyone was thinking the same thing probably: Where are we going to sit? Janae and friend went for the bottom row, then Ashli sat next to them. I didn't want them to feel excluded so I decided to sit next to Ashli. Picture it: Trent, Ashli, Janae, and friend on the first row, Peter on the back row by himself. Andrew eventually came and joined Pete up a row.
As you can see, this evening was turning out to be an evening devoid of group engagement and interactiveness. The one thing good thing is that movies encourage silence. After the movie, the dynamics of the group situation did not change. Everyone knew that something weird was going on. The girls didn't buy their tickets. They had been picked up in a car from their respective apartments. Was this just a really nice guy that wanted to bring people together or was it kind of like a date? That is what everyone was probably wondering. The answer, of course, was not that straightforward. Hence the after-movie moment of awkwardness. We engaged in some small-talk discussing the film and after that fizzled, it was time to make a decision. Was the evening going to continue? or were we done? Of course we were not done. We had barely interacted. So we decided to go to Starbucks for some cocoa or something. We had to travel over there in two cars though so Peter met the rest of us there. Inside the coffee shop, another awkward moment struck. By now, Janae and her friend were pretty much getting the vibe that this wasn't necessarily a date so they paid for their drinks. However, Ashli beforehand had a pretty clear impression that we were going on a date and she knew that I bought her ticket for her. In a moment of silence, where we both understood that this was really weird, she went ahead and paid for my hot chocolate. I dropped off Andrew at his car, then dropped off the girls, then I walked in the living room where Andrew was watching TV. I looked at him and could not believe that evening had really happened.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Get in your element
Listen, I wish I knew more about psychology because I find human behavior insanely interesting. I've noticed that we humans are comfortable in certain settings and uncomfortable in others. I have been trying to figure out why this is the case. I understand the argument that an individual has the power to choose how he or she will act in any situation, but I would argue that this is the exception to the rule. Not to sound pessimistic, each of us have our scenes in which we don't do well period.
Every once in a while, you get struck upside the head with a truth that seems so novel, but so glaringly obvious. Such was the case with me last weekend while backpacking in the white mountains of New Hampshire. Let me explain.
Three friends and I were hiking along a trail, and we started talking about our preferences of socializing with people. Then I really started analyzing my preferences, and I noticed something interesting: my social preference depends on if I'm in my element or not. You may be asking yourself what is "your element." For all intents and purposes here, your element is an environment where you feel comfortable and like you fit in. As we were discussing what types of situations we feel most comfortable in, we all agreed that we were comfortable in that moment at that place. This struck me. One reason why is because we were all very into the outdoors. When you get people doing something that they all similarly love and are passionate about, the environment is bound to be more conducive for him or her to thrive in.
After I made my discovery of truth, I came up with a take-home message: For you to be comfortable in different social situations, get into whatever you are into. Get into your element.
Every once in a while, you get struck upside the head with a truth that seems so novel, but so glaringly obvious. Such was the case with me last weekend while backpacking in the white mountains of New Hampshire. Let me explain.
Three friends and I were hiking along a trail, and we started talking about our preferences of socializing with people. Then I really started analyzing my preferences, and I noticed something interesting: my social preference depends on if I'm in my element or not. You may be asking yourself what is "your element." For all intents and purposes here, your element is an environment where you feel comfortable and like you fit in. As we were discussing what types of situations we feel most comfortable in, we all agreed that we were comfortable in that moment at that place. This struck me. One reason why is because we were all very into the outdoors. When you get people doing something that they all similarly love and are passionate about, the environment is bound to be more conducive for him or her to thrive in.
After I made my discovery of truth, I came up with a take-home message: For you to be comfortable in different social situations, get into whatever you are into. Get into your element.
My blog
I love the concept of blogging. It's amazing: you write, the world listens. Recently, I've discovered one problem with my blog - it is trying to extend to too broad an audience. I've decided to divide and conquer in the blogosphere. trentathon will continue to be used to relate my thoughts and stories from the perspective of an up-and-coming LDS young man. trentostler (the new blog) will be devoted to my professional, sometimes technical or geeky, non-personal thoughts.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Recent happenings
An update on some things that are going on in the life of Trent...
1) I am going to law school in one month. I will be attending Franklin Pierce Law in Concord, NH. That means that I will be leaving Boston very soon! I can't believe how many people take it as a surprise when I tell them this "news". I thought everybody knew.
2) I am really excited for law school. I feel similar to when I first started BYU as a freshman: ambitious, eager, charged, excited, motivated, and happy. These are very different feelings compared with my senior year of BYU...
3) I have not seen the Dark Knight yet, but I want to so bad that it hurts. Tomorrow may be the day. I've only run into two individuals who didn't give it amazing reviews, but these two individuals may not count. First off, they are both girls and let's be honest-some girls can't always fully appreciate the Batman. They're also roommates so maybe they infused each other with falsehoods.
4) I am training for a marathon... in New Hampshire... October 4th. It is USATF certified, meaning that if I run it in 3:10 I qualify for Boston. I'm shooting for a sub-3 hour performance. I just ask myself, 'Is there a better way to complement a rigorous school schedule than with some intense physical exertion?' The answer that keeps echoing in my mind is 'No.'
5) My apartment all of the sudden has a lot of ants, everywhere. For almost one year, we have been ant-free. But now they are here, and I'm just wondering where these little guys come from... I was on the bus the other day and there was an ant crawling on my backpack. I shook my head, realizing where he came from. This morning, I was reading my scriptures with my B-Sox hat on, and I looked up at the rim. Lo and behold there was an ant crawling on the rim. Well, good thing that Windex works wonders on them.
6) The idea of social justice is really starting to fascinate me. I'll write more about this later, but really briefly I believe that we all should have equal opportunities for success in life. The question is implementation. I wonder if people would voluntarily help others if it were not mandated. That would be the best case scenario ideally, but we all know that we don't live in an ideal world.
7) East of Eden is a very fascinating book. I read it almost daily and am now a third of the way done. If you haven't gotten over the bad high school memories of reading Grapes of Wrath, you probably wouldn't believe me when I say that Steinbeck is a great author. Well, trust me. Or better yet, go out and see for yourself. He really has a knack with using the English language to convey his message.
8) I want to start a new website that may potentially be a big deal. I don't want to publicly expose this idea though, as I may get scooped. If you're interested in hearing about it, write me an email and if I deem you trustworthy, I will fill you in.
9) Cooking = good times. I have really gotten into the dessert making thing lately. Yesterday it was caramel popcorn and I'm coming to the point where I don't need a candy thermometer. Watch out.
1) I am going to law school in one month. I will be attending Franklin Pierce Law in Concord, NH. That means that I will be leaving Boston very soon! I can't believe how many people take it as a surprise when I tell them this "news". I thought everybody knew.
2) I am really excited for law school. I feel similar to when I first started BYU as a freshman: ambitious, eager, charged, excited, motivated, and happy. These are very different feelings compared with my senior year of BYU...
3) I have not seen the Dark Knight yet, but I want to so bad that it hurts. Tomorrow may be the day. I've only run into two individuals who didn't give it amazing reviews, but these two individuals may not count. First off, they are both girls and let's be honest-some girls can't always fully appreciate the Batman. They're also roommates so maybe they infused each other with falsehoods.
4) I am training for a marathon... in New Hampshire... October 4th. It is USATF certified, meaning that if I run it in 3:10 I qualify for Boston. I'm shooting for a sub-3 hour performance. I just ask myself, 'Is there a better way to complement a rigorous school schedule than with some intense physical exertion?' The answer that keeps echoing in my mind is 'No.'
5) My apartment all of the sudden has a lot of ants, everywhere. For almost one year, we have been ant-free. But now they are here, and I'm just wondering where these little guys come from... I was on the bus the other day and there was an ant crawling on my backpack. I shook my head, realizing where he came from. This morning, I was reading my scriptures with my B-Sox hat on, and I looked up at the rim. Lo and behold there was an ant crawling on the rim. Well, good thing that Windex works wonders on them.
6) The idea of social justice is really starting to fascinate me. I'll write more about this later, but really briefly I believe that we all should have equal opportunities for success in life. The question is implementation. I wonder if people would voluntarily help others if it were not mandated. That would be the best case scenario ideally, but we all know that we don't live in an ideal world.
7) East of Eden is a very fascinating book. I read it almost daily and am now a third of the way done. If you haven't gotten over the bad high school memories of reading Grapes of Wrath, you probably wouldn't believe me when I say that Steinbeck is a great author. Well, trust me. Or better yet, go out and see for yourself. He really has a knack with using the English language to convey his message.
8) I want to start a new website that may potentially be a big deal. I don't want to publicly expose this idea though, as I may get scooped. If you're interested in hearing about it, write me an email and if I deem you trustworthy, I will fill you in.
9) Cooking = good times. I have really gotten into the dessert making thing lately. Yesterday it was caramel popcorn and I'm coming to the point where I don't need a candy thermometer. Watch out.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
A breakfast you must try before you die
I started this morning off on a really good note because I ate something I haven't eaten in a long time: buckwheat, also known as grechka. More than likely, you have never tried this classic Russian dish. If you like good food, you will most probably enjoy grechka. Let me tell you the secret to making it taste delicious.
Buckwheat is a grain that has an appearance similar to rice. If you are unable to find it at your local grocery store, go to a more natural/healthy store like Whole Foods. You also need some peach juice. I'm not talking about the juice that accompanies canned peaches, rather actual peach juice. Going to your local Russian store is a surefire way of finding everything I'm talking about. You'll also need a banana, milk, and sweetened condensed milk.
Cook the buckwheat just as you would rice--on the stove and uncovered. However much buckwheat you want to cook, add double the water. I made half a cup of buckwheat and it was plenty for me. Once all the water has boiled out, the smell will have filled up your kitchen with grechka goodness. Now you are ready to add the other materials. Get your banana and smash it to a pulp in a separate dish. Then add it, along with some milk, peach juice, and a dash of condensed milk to the mix. Delicious!
Now I'd like to talk about the health benefits of buckwheat. The nice thing about eating buckwheat is that you don't feel hungry shortly after breakfast. This is because the glycemic index is a whopping 65. Just to give you perspective, dry pasta is only 49. It has so much fiber which provides a cleansing feeling throughout the day. This isn't a sluggish feeling, rather a feeling of refinement. After eating a serving, my intestinal tract feels like a well-oiled machine. The iron makes you more alert during the day. It is low in saturated fat, sodium, and cholesterol. In fact, a protein in buckwheat has been shown to bind to cholesterol very tightly, not letting it go and congest your body. 2. Feel grateful that you have little friends that go around your body binding the bad guys. Buckwheat contains rutin, a medicinal chemical that strengthens capillary walls, reducing hemorrhaging in people with high blood pressure and increasing circulation. 1 Also, it contains D-chiro-inositol, a component related to Type II diabetes. Research to treat diabetes with buckwheat looks promising. Also, prepared my way, you get your Vitamin C, Potassium and healthy sugars.
My advice to all you blog readers: Get out of your mundane breakfast regimens and try grechka. Your body will thank you.
2. H. Tomotake, I. Shimaoka, J. Kayashita, F. Yokoyama, M. Nakajoh and N. Kato. (2001). "Stronger suppression of plasma cholesterol and enhancement of the fecal excretion of steroids by a buckwheat protein product than by a soy protein isolate in rats fed on a cholesterol-free diet.". Bioscience Biotechnology and Biochemistry 65: 1412–1414. doi:10.1271/bbb.65.1412
Buckwheat is a grain that has an appearance similar to rice. If you are unable to find it at your local grocery store, go to a more natural/healthy store like Whole Foods. You also need some peach juice. I'm not talking about the juice that accompanies canned peaches, rather actual peach juice. Going to your local Russian store is a surefire way of finding everything I'm talking about. You'll also need a banana, milk, and sweetened condensed milk. 
Cook the buckwheat just as you would rice--on the stove and uncovered. However much buckwheat you want to cook, add double the water. I made half a cup of buckwheat and it was plenty for me. Once all the water has boiled out, the smell will have filled up your kitchen with grechka goodness. Now you are ready to add the other materials. Get your banana and smash it to a pulp in a separate dish. Then add it, along with some milk, peach juice, and a dash of condensed milk to the mix. Delicious!
Now I'd like to talk about the health benefits of buckwheat. The nice thing about eating buckwheat is that you don't feel hungry shortly after breakfast. This is because the glycemic index is a whopping 65. Just to give you perspective, dry pasta is only 49. It has so much fiber which provides a cleansing feeling throughout the day. This isn't a sluggish feeling, rather a feeling of refinement. After eating a serving, my intestinal tract feels like a well-oiled machine. The iron makes you more alert during the day. It is low in saturated fat, sodium, and cholesterol. In fact, a protein in buckwheat has been shown to bind to cholesterol very tightly, not letting it go and congest your body. 2. Feel grateful that you have little friends that go around your body binding the bad guys. Buckwheat contains rutin, a medicinal chemical that strengthens capillary walls, reducing hemorrhaging in people with high blood pressure and increasing circulation. 1 Also, it contains D-chiro-inositol, a component related to Type II diabetes. Research to treat diabetes with buckwheat looks promising. Also, prepared my way, you get your Vitamin C, Potassium and healthy sugars. My advice to all you blog readers: Get out of your mundane breakfast regimens and try grechka. Your body will thank you.
Sources
1. N. Ihme1, H. Kiesewetter, F. Jung, K. H. Hoffmann, A. Birk, A. Müller and K. I. Grützner (2003). "Leg oedema protection from a buckwheat herb tea in patients with chronic venous insufficiency: a single-centre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial". European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 51: 7287–7291.2. H. Tomotake, I. Shimaoka, J. Kayashita, F. Yokoyama, M. Nakajoh and N. Kato. (2001). "Stronger suppression of plasma cholesterol and enhancement of the fecal excretion of steroids by a buckwheat protein product than by a soy protein isolate in rats fed on a cholesterol-free diet.". Bioscience Biotechnology and Biochemistry 65: 1412–1414. doi:10.1271/bbb.65.1412
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Being modest is not always the hottest
Apparently, I am good at a few things in life. The problem is that I don't know how to react when others give me praise. I end up downplaying others' compliments--not the proper way of responding. I'll give you some recent examples.
Example 1
Person A: You are a really fast runner!
Me: I'm not that fast.
Person A (unfazed): How do you get to be so fast?
Me: [Awkward pause] Well, testosterone goes a long ways in the sport of running.
Person A: Really?
Example 2
Person B: You are really good at swing dancing.
Me: There are a lot of dancers better than me.
Person B: No, you're really good, honestly.
Me: Well, I just make up moves out there...
Basically, I think I need to come up with better responses to compliments that are less modest. I thought of the solution while I was on my run this morning. Here are some one-liners that I will now use in response to praise of any kind:
"I know!" [in an enthusiastic and confident tone]
"Aren't I?" [with a genuine expression, pausing until they give an answer]
"I was thinking the same thing." [nodding slightly]
"I'm glad you brought that up. I'll have to concur." [non-sarcastically]
Example 1
Person A: You are a really fast runner!
Me: I'm not that fast.
Person A (unfazed): How do you get to be so fast?
Me: [Awkward pause] Well, testosterone goes a long ways in the sport of running.
Person A: Really?
Example 2
Person B: You are really good at swing dancing.
Me: There are a lot of dancers better than me.
Person B: No, you're really good, honestly.
Me: Well, I just make up moves out there...
Basically, I think I need to come up with better responses to compliments that are less modest. I thought of the solution while I was on my run this morning. Here are some one-liners that I will now use in response to praise of any kind:
"I know!" [in an enthusiastic and confident tone]
"Aren't I?" [with a genuine expression, pausing until they give an answer]
"I was thinking the same thing." [nodding slightly]
"I'm glad you brought that up. I'll have to concur." [non-sarcastically]
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