What I learned this week, August 20, 2022

(click to enlarge) Mural, Deep Ellum Dallas, Texas

The Big Bang didn’t happen

What do the James Webb images really show?


Writing in my Moleskine Journal outside the Mojo Lounge, Decatur Street, French Quarter, New Orleans

‘Habit Stacking’ Is the Simple Mind Trick for Making a New Routine or Ritual Stick

Starting a single new ritual or habit, whether it’s washing your face every night or taking a walk every afternoon, can feel daunting for many of us. And just forget starting a whole wellness routine. Mornings complete with journaling, meditating, and yoga before breakfast might as well be aspirational, reserved for only the most methodical among us…right? Well, not if you consider the basic premise of habit stacking, which says that you only need to find one thing you regularly do by default in order to build an entire tower of routine practices.


Psychology: do you have a social vampire in your friendship group? Here’s how to handle them

Psychologists say that if you don’t know who the social vampire is in your friendship group, then there’s a very high chance it’s you…


State Street Gallery, Dallas, Texas

Four ways to stop thinking the worst will happen when you’re stressed

Imagine you have an interview for a new job tomorrow. Some people might think about what kind of questions they will be asked so that they can prepare, or imagine the interview going well. For others, the thought of an interview will cause them to toss and turn all night thinking of every worst case scenario possible – no matter how outlandish these may be. If you’re someone who has a tendency to do the latter, you are prone to catastrophising.


We Stand Together, George Rodrigue, The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden

What Is Minimalist Living? Here’s How to Start Living With Less, According to Experts

This simple, purposeful lifestyle is about more than just decluttering your home.


Dallas Museum of Art Dallas, Texas

Stop drinking, keep reading, look after your hearing: a neurologist’s tips for fighting memory loss and Alzheimer’s

When does forgetfulness become something more serious? And how can we delay or even prevent that change? We talk to brain expert Richard Restak


Why the Afghanistan Withdrawal Was the Perfect Storm of Bureaucratic Incompetence

President Biden wants you to forget about what happened in Afghanistan. He wants you to forget about the bureaucratic incompetence and incompetent decision-making by nearly every senior leader. To this day, no one has been held accountable. Accountability, even verbally, would mean admitting failure and taking ownership, something the Biden administration refuses to accept.