Specialized Launches Globe Brand *Make Me an Offer

In mint comdition.

The Specialized Globe line of bicycles has been around since the early nineties with a focus on short distance commuter and city bikes. With the recent economic downturn, rising gas prices and a renewed interest in urban riding, Specialized has taken the bold step and converted the Globe line into a complete brand. The new Globe brand, which will launch in 2010, was introduced Thursday in the bike friendly city of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The new Globe brand is big departure for Specialized, which has built its reputation on road and mountain bike race courses around the world. Instead of using the Specialized name to drive sales of Globe bikes, Globe is now separate and focused on changing the way people use bicycles in their daily lives. The Globe brand’s vision is to ‘Inspire everyone to a cycling lifestyle.’ To achieve this vision Globe as its own team of designers and engineers separate from Specialized and dedicated solely to the Globe’s vision.

When developing the brand the Globe team set out to create a line of bikes that they hoped will become integrated into people’s lives, essentially replacing their cars whenever possible. To establish the brand, the Globe team created a line of five bikes that while all serving different functions are united by the brands vision and several unique design features.

The consistent theme throughout the Globe line is the ultra clean design and muted color palette that was inspired by the classic Volkswagen bug. Another theme of note is the absence of branding on the frame and components. Without looking closely at the head tube badge it is virtually impossible to tell the make of the bicycle. This is a refreshing change compared to the heavily branded offerings of other manufacturers. There are also subtle chevron shaped elements on the seat clamp, fenders and head tube badge. The head tube badge is another element that is carried through the Globe line and is unique in that allows the rider to insert a 2 x 3.5-inch business card or picture for a bit of customization ? see Chewy above.

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Just some of the dishes I create

 Not bad for a systems engineer, would you like them all?

Here

Now what's the excuse?

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Managing your emotions can save your heart

We often think of the heart and brain as being completely separate from each other. After all, your heart and brain are located in different regions of your body, and cardiology and neurology are separate disciplines. Yet these organs are intimately connected, and when your emotions adversely affect your brain, your heart is affected as well.

The negative impact of emotions when your heart is already vulnerable

There are two kinds of stress that impact your brain. Helpful stress (also known as eustress) can assist you with getting things done by helping you focus your attention. Unhelpful stress (distress), on the other hand, can be so severe that it can lead to fatigue and heart disease.

If you have coronary artery disease (CAD), your heart may be deprived of oxygen. This deprivation, called myocardial ischemia, can occur in as many as 30% to 50% of all patients with CAD. It can be further exacerbated by emotional stress. In fact, if you have any type of heart disease, any strong emotion such as anger may also cause severe and fatal irregular heart rhythms. Expressions like “died from fright” and “worried to death” are not just hyperbole — they are physiologic possibilities. Furthermore, when patients with newly diagnosed heart disease become depressed, that depression increases the risk that a harmful heart-related event will occur within that year.

The negative impact of emotions when you have no heart disease

Of course, stress can have a big effect on your heart even if you don’t have heart disease. Here’s just one example: In 1997, cardiologist Lauri Toivonen and colleagues conducted a study of EKG changes in healthy physicians before and during the first 30 seconds of an emergency call. They saw changes that indicated oxygen deprivation and abnormal heart rhythms.

More recent studies have also observed these changes in the setting of with stress, anxiety, and depression — all of which are, of course, brain-based conditions. Even in people with no prior heart disease, major depression doubles the risk of dying from heart-related causes.

Cardiac psychology: Tending to your emotions for your heart’s sake

It is important to control your worry and stress, not just because you will worry less and feel better, but because less worry means less stress for your heart. This applies to the entire range of stressors, from a small episode of acute panic to a larger context such as living through a natural disaster. For all the reasons outlined above, a new emotion-based approach to heart health, called cardiac psychology, is receiving increasing interest.

You really can change your brain and get a healthier heart in the process. Here are some ways to get started:

• Seek professional help. Don’t ignore stress, anxiety, depression, excessive worry, or bouts of anger that overwhelm your life. Seek professional help. If you meet criteria for a diagnosis, treatment can help reduce symptoms, thereby protecting your brain and your heart.
• Available treatments in cardiac psychology. Aside from more traditional psychiatric treatment and exercise, psycho-educational programs, educational training, stress management, biofeedback, counseling sessions, and relaxation techniques should all be considered before or after a heart-related event. Newer treatments such as acceptance and commitment therapy and expressive writing can also be helpful.
• Exercise. Physical exercise can help you have a healthier heart and brain — in the right doses. For example, many recent studies have demonstrated that aerobic exercise can help you be more mentally nimble by helping you think faster and more flexibly. Even frail older adults have improved their thinking and overall psychological well-being from exercising for one hour, three times a week. And people in rehabilitation after being diagnosed with heart failure report clearer thinking when their fitness levels improve.As clinical research scientist Michelle Ploughman commented, “exercise is brain food.” Various types of aerobic exercise, including jogging, swimming, cycling, walking, gardening, and dancing, have all been proven to reduce anxiety and depression and to improve self-esteem. This is thought to be due to an increase in blood circulation in the brain, and the fact that exercise can improve the brain’s ability to react to stress.

A starting point for better brain — and heart — health

If you struggle with stress, anger, anxiety, worry, depression, or problems with self-esteem, talk to your primary care physician — or a cardiologist, if you have one. A consultation with a psychiatrist may be very helpful. Together, you can explore which of these potential therapies might best protect your psychological state, your brain, and your heart.

Related Information: Positive Psychology: Harnessing the power of happiness,…

Problem Competition: Who is Worse Off?

Jay Lake recently wrote an intriguing blog post about his theory of problems. To summarize, he states that problems cannot  be compared–that just because his problems (fighting cancer) are very serious, that doesn’t mean that other people’s “less serious” problems don’t matter too. He goes on to say that he still cares about his friends and that sometimes it can be a relief to talk about something besides cancer, even if the something else isn’t all rainbows and butterflies. (There is more interesting discussion in the comments, so you should check it out.)

I am in complete agreement. It is impossible to compare problems or lives, even though people try to do it all the time. It isn’t a contest with all of us competing to see who can have the biggest sob story to tell, who can be busiest and most stressed, who can have their behavior excused because gosh darn it, life hasn’t treated them well. Ultimately, we are each responsible for our own actions regardless of the problems we face. And each of us has the problems we have, and since we can’t literally be in someone else’s head (at least not yet!), we can’t know how our suffering truly compares.

I didn’t always understand this essential fact. I had a tough childhood and adolescence; my mom dying while I was fairly young was just the tip of the iceberg. It was easy to compare myself to others and minimize their problems in my head. “So his parents divorced years ago. That’s not a big deal. Why can’t he just get over it?” I know, I know, I wince to recall it. It’s embarrassing, and my only comfort is that at least I don’t remember usually saying such things out loud. Everyone is deserving of compassion for the hardships in their lives, and problems hit different people in different ways. What may be, for one person, a relatively insignificant event, may be a life-changing catastrophe for someone else.

And honestly, even if it were a competition for who has the worst life, why would you ever want to win such a contest?

Speaking as someone who, for many years, had “worse” problems than many of those around me, I never wanted to shut people down. (Perhaps this is why I had the minimal wisdom to try to keep my mouth shut during my occasional uncharitable moments.) I rarely discussed most of my problems, partly because I dreaded the initial reaction and partly because I didn’t want my experiences to change the way people related to me. I was already isolated enough; I didn’t want further barriers between me and the rest of the world. I wanted whatever normalcy I could get.

It’s a tricky business, because when we know someone is struggling with major problems, we don’t want to burden them with our own concerns, which in comparison seem to middle away into insignificance. But when we aren’t honest about what’s going on with us, when we choose to protect someone instead of share with them, what we’re really doing is pushing them away.

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t strive to be tactful and considerate. If a friend is retching in the toilet, that probably isn’t a great time to start bemoaning an inability to find the perfect juice squeezer. Someone who is ill might very well lack the energy to do certain activities with you. And sometimes there are subjects better left alone for a while. Raving about an amazing romantic relationship to someone who is going through a bitter divorce? Well, maybe not so much. But if you talk to that same friend about problems with your aging parents, it might not burden them so much as build the mutual connection between you. It may give your friend a break from dwelling on her own problems. It may make her feel less alone. Or she may tell you it’s not a good time to talk, and that’s okay too.

In my experience, everyone has problems, even those people who look like they have perfect lives. We all have bad days mixed in with the good, we all have setbacks, we all make mistakes, and we all have to live with the hard parts of being human. But ideally the people with whom we move through life can make the hard parts more bearable and the good times sweeter.

What do you think? Do you find yourself comparing problems? If someone has a really big problem, does that make you feel that you can’t speak freely to them?

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Tired of People Lying to You? Here's Why They're Doing It

Honesty is supposed to be one of the key components of integrity (you know, doing the right thing when no one is looking, that thing that's so critical to building the relationshipsthat help your business thrive). Yet, according to Bella DePaulo, Ph.D., a psychologist at the University of Virginia, lying is on the same par with brushing your teeth. Most people lie to someone else at least once or twice a day, and over a week, they lie to 30 percent of the individuals they interact with. And as with any bad habit, if you're going to stop people from lying to you, you have to understand what's motivating the behavior.

The function behind lying

Doctor and author Alex Lickerman asserts that, in general, lying serves a protective function. What we strive to protect through fibbing can vary considerably, though. We lie to protect ourselves, such as when we don't want to feel shame or experience some type of abuse. We do it to protect material and non-material interests, such as money or attention. We try to protect our image, covering up the flaws we think others will think less of us for. Sometimes we don't want to lose resources, including our energy. And lastly, we lie to give those same protections to the people we care about.

But it goes a little deeper than that. What are we really after, for example, in a bid for attention? Why is it so scary if others to have a lower opinion of us? What does all that protection get us?

Ultimately, when a person lies to you, they're holding onto something extremely basic--survival. They're afraid that, if they don't lie, they risk rejection and isolation, not having enough. Even though they know there's a risk of consequences if found out, because they frequently don't suffer consequences when lying, they see fibbing as a relatively safe way to keep those deep fears from coming to fruition. All this matters because, if you see the person who's lying to you as being vindictive rather than insecure, you'll likely lose out on a chance to respond with compassion and miss the mark on how to get them to stop their dishonest behavior for good.

Spotting liars

Understanding the above, part of the reason lies get to us is because we're actually pretty lousy at detecting them. A meta-analysis of some 253 studies of people distinguishing between truth and lies found that people are accurate barely over half (53 percent) of the time. We rebel when we catch someone in a lie because their behavior calls into question how accurate we've been in the past, making us feel foolish and incompetent. But if you know what to watch for, you're less likely to get duped. Former CIA officers Philip Houston, Michael Floyd and Susan Carnicero identify the following as tipoffs to dishonesty:

• Behavioral pause or delay when an immediate response would be expected
• Verbal/non-verbal disconnect (e.g., nodding while saying no in a narrative response)
• Hiding the mouth or eyes (literally shielding themselves from the reaction that might come from the lie, covering up the falsehood)
• Clearing the throat prior to response
• Hand-to-face activity (the autonomic nervous system tries to address the spike in anxiety from the lying, draining blood from the face, ears and extremities and producing feelings of cold or itchiness)
• Grooming or tidying behaviors (e.g., straightening a tie or skirt, suddenly repositioning paperwork on the desk; these distractions can alleviate the anxiety of lying)

So you've found a liar...now what do you do?

Once you're sure that someone's been stingy with the truth, you have four main options for how to handle it, as psychologist, emotional intelligence expert and author Dr. Travis Bradberry outlines:

1) Do nothing (sometimes the cons of calling the person out outweigh the pros).

2) Deflect with humor (acknowledges the lie but gives the liar a chance to admit the dishonesty without fearing you'll retaliate).

3) Play dumb (asking lots of questions to get details can force the liar into admitting the dishonesty without you calling them out).

4) Point out the lie (best done privately with directness).

Within these options, given the self-protective purpose of lying, seize opportunities to be reassuring and encouraging in ways that get to the root of the behavior. Empathy goes a long way. For instance, if you know that someone is strapped for cash but they lie and say it's no problem covering your bill at lunch, you can say something like, "Gosh, I appreciate that, but no--I can't contribute to an empty wallet when I remember what broke feels like myself!" The more you can convince a liar that the threats they're consciously or subconsciously perceiving aren't an issue, the more they'll probably relax, trust you and put their two-faced ways behind them.

Success Starts in the Mind (But Doesn’t End There)

What if there was a way to think your way into success, a way of turning ideas into reality?

Maybe it takes more than creativity. Maybe your mindset matters more than you think but only when backed up by intentional action.

And if that’s true, maybe there’s a process to follow…

It begins in the mind

What we think about when we are free to think about what we will — that is what we are or will soon become.

—A.W. Tozer

I cannot simply will myself to become a best-selling author or a world-class entrepreneur. I have to work at it, too. Everyone knows that.

But there is a step before any visible success that most people overlook. It goes beyond dreams and ideas and is what ultimately leads to meaningful action.

You must visualize what you want before you can get it. [Tweet that]

I know this runs the risk of sounding esoteric, but hear me out. So much of what matters in life involves faith:

• We trust friends with our deepest secrets.
• We put our kids to bed, believing they’ll wake up safe and sound in the morning.
• We hope a tragedy will turn out for good — somehow.

This is where all great endeavors begin: in the mind. With faith-filled thoughts that lead to action. The thinking initiates the dream, but faith causes you to take that first, uncertain step.

Then you must commit

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through.

—Zig Ziglar

This is the place where most people fail, myself included.

We get a great idea, think about it awhile, and then move on. Or we take the first step, maybe even a few, and then get distracted. And we move on or forget what we wanted in the first place.

The point at which we make a difference is not during a brainstorming session; it’s when we step out of the board room. When we decide to act and then start moving. Not recklessly, but intentionally.

All great things become great when we act, and not a moment before. The only way ideas take off is with a decision, a choice that costs you something.

Faith without works is dead, and dreams without action are just fantasies.[Tweet that]

You were meant for more than that. You were made to do great things, and that means at some point, you must not only decide to act but commit to a plan of action.

And it gathers momentum

If I find something I like, I’ll chase it and see what comes out the other side. Once a song gets momentum and gets away from you, that’s a good sign.

—Dave Matthews

Once we decide, we have to move. To sign up for class, board the plane, or quit that job. This is the scariest part, but if the first two steps are satisfied, the third comes almost naturally.

But if the laws of physics teach us anything, they should tell us that once something is set in motion, it wants to remain in motion. Which means that one step leads to another. And another.

The hard part, though, is inertia. Objects at rest want to stay at rest. So we have to exert a lot of force and energy on those objections, those projects that could be great if only they had a chance to succeed.

So the first step is, in fact, just the beginning — as it should be. But what’s the difference between a bunch of empty starts and stuff that actually takes off?

Momentum. It’s the reason successful people keep succeeding and failures keep failing.

How do you overcome inertia and set into motion the law of momentum? Focus intensely on one project and don’t let up or move on until it takes on a life of its own. Do this enough, and you’ll create a whole portfolio of success.

Let’s put it all together…

If you’re like me, you need things broken down occasionally. So here is a series of three steps you can practice over the next week:

1. Cultivate a habit of positive thinking. Pay attention to your thought life and look for ways you might be sabotaging yourself before you begin. Cut out of your vocabulary (both internal and external) any negative language that doesn’t encourage an attitude of faith. Healthy skepticism is find; perpetual self-doubt is not.
2. Commit more. Let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no. Follow through on what you say you’re going to do, and stop making empty promises. Teach yourself how to be a person of integrity, even if it hurts (and it might).
3. Work harder than you’re used to. Do what you do, and do it well — without cutting corners or selling yourself short. This is how discipline is built: like a muscle, stretching more and more each time you exercise it.

Try these three habits for a week, then a month. And once you’ve done it that long, look back at what you’ve accomplished. If you’re pleased with the results, why not keep going?

If you’re looking for a resource to help you, check out The Strangest Secret (affiliate link) by Early Nightingale (you can listen to it for free on YouTube).

Where does success start for you? Is there a process you follow? Share in the 45 Comments.

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DIY Home Improvement

25 Products All DIYers Should Have at the Ready for Quick-Fix Repairs

Sometimes the key to making a fix is just knowing the right product to use. We asked our team of professional carpenters, plumbers, painters, electricians and fix-it gurus what their favorite products were, and this is what they told us they never leave home without.

It all begins here.

Where to Learn Information Technology (Self Taught)

I am wanting to learn about IT, network security, networking, IT as a whole, but I am having trouble finding books/ websites that I can teach myself. Before you say "just go to college" I already am. I am in the military, so college is progressing slower than normal. So I am looking for anyway to learn what I can. Thank you for you help :)

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7 Signs You’re A Person Who Is Mad At The World

1. You’re Always Cranky

You’re not a morning person. You’re not an afternoon person. You’re not an evening person. Basically, you’re always cranky when you feel like it, which is most of the time. You’re not a patient person either. You get ticked off by the smallest of inconveniences, and you don’t like being bothered most of the time. You’re a straightforward person. You want people to get straight to the point when talking to you. Your anger sometimes scares people off, but you don’t care. Sometimes people wonder why you act a certain way, but you would never explain to them what’s going on.

2. You Question Everything

You like to analyze what’s going on. You want to know everything behind the scenes. “Why did he do that to me?” “Why do I feel this way?” You like to dig deep and you try to figure out everything. You sometimes blame others for the things that happen to you. You like to feel that it’s not your fault these things happen. You also like getting to the bottom of things so you can understand them better and try to fix it.

3. You Think That Society Is Messed Up

Society tells you to be yourself, then they judge you— that’s what you hate most about society. You feel that the world supposed to make you feel welcome and it’s supposed to make you feel good about yourself, but instead it judges you for being different. You hate bullying and discrimination because you think it’s pathetic. You want justice. You want people to always be right and do right. You can’t stand the fatal flaws society has. You wish you could just change all of their mistakes and wrongdoings.

4. You Feel Like You Deserve Better Than The Shitty Hand That Was Given To You

You feel sorry for yourself all the time. You like to mope around all day. You’re never contented with what you have because you always compare yourself to others and think that they have it better than you. You can’t stop thinking about the life you could’ve had if you were a different person born with different things and a different lifestyle. You don’t necessarily hate your life, but a part of you doesn’t want it. You wish you could be someone else, someone who has it better.

5. You’re Against Almost Everything And Everyone

You don’t take anyone’s side but your own. You only value your opinion because no one else’s opinion matters. You always think you’re right, even when you’re not. If you don’t like something, you sure as hell will never like it. You’re against people who are against your philosophies. You don’t take shit from anyone and you won’t tolerate anyone who bothers you or pisses you off. You also don’t like things that will add to your misery. So basically, you’re against anything that doesn’t make you happy.

6. You Feel Like The World Should Revolve Around You

You feel like you deserve all the credit in the world. You lack appreciation, which is why you act the way you do. You want people to notice you more. You crave attention. You want people to look up to you and follow your footsteps. But that’s not how it works. You don’t receive that much praise. People don’t notice the little things you do for them. Sometimes the effort you put into things are just wasted.

7. You Feel So Alone

This doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t have any friends; it’s just that you think that no one will ever understand the way you feel. You don’t have anyone to run to or rant to. You bottle your emotions and keep everything to yourself. You have a hard time expressing yourself to others. You want to be understood, but you just don’t know how to reach out to people. All you want is for someone to understand your pain and deal with it as well. You hate feeling alone. For once, you just want someone who will be by your side through everything — someone who will be worth it.

David Pecker About to Give Trump the Dick

David Pecker, CEO of National Enquirer Publisher, Granted Immunity in Michael Cohen Case

This isn't even news, bye Donald.

Citizens of America, You Lose

 Intelligent people knew their vote went from "who they wanted" to "the lesser of two evils or fuck it, let's not vote" when they saw these two losers facing off.

 Some are sitting at home praying that Trump weathers the storm, he won't, as other are celebrating his impending downfall because they're childish.

 No matter what happens from this point forward the Trump administration is hobbled and forever stained. Any future endeavors by this administration will be so scrutinized that true progress is just a joke.
 The Democrats, on the other hand, are hobbled as well, they don't have anyone to answer the call. Listen to them closely, none, not a one has a viable plan. Every time they get the chance to speak, it's about Trump, we already know about Trump, what the hell will You Do Differently? No answer.

 So how does everyone lose?

 The bullshit rubber banded, patched and quilted system that was in place is forever gone. Intelligence would dictate that all parties back away from the table and begin all over again but as you and I know, "America doesn't run on intelligence"!
 This is a quagmired conundrum, and guess who's going to pay for it? Your kids.
Healthcare, big pharma, DEBT, schooling, loans, interest rates, ally support & assistance, treaties, nuclear development, stock markets, etc. but most of all, "Neighborly trust and global trust". "Trust" on any level has shit the bed!

 Your college grads, teens, millennials and nondescript are headed for a whirlwind of change and there is no blueprint to follow.
 I have no proof but you can bet your bottom dollar that the enemies of the United States have been paying more attention to these developments than you have.

 Look above your head, you may see the vultures circling.

10 Easy Ways to Boost Your Metabolism (Backed by Science)

1. Eat Plenty of Protein at Every Meal

Eating food can increase your metabolism for a few hours.

This is called the thermic effect of food (TEF). It's caused by the extra calories required to digest, absorb and process the nutrients in your meal.

Protein causes the largest rise in TEF. It increases your metabolic rate by 15–30%, compared to 5–10% for carbs and 0–3% for fats (1).

Eating protein has also been shown to help you feel more full and prevent you from overeating (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8).

One small study found that people were likely to eat around 441 fewer calories per day when protein made up 30% of their diet (9).

Eating more protein can also reduce the drop in metabolism often associated with losing fat. This is because it reduces muscle loss, which is a common side effect of dieting (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15).

2. Drink More Cold Water

People who drink water instead of sugary drinks are more successful at losing weight and keeping it off (16, 17, 18, 19, 20).

This is because sugary drinks contain calories, so replacing them with water automatically reduces your calorie intake.

However, drinking water may also temporarily speed up your metabolism (18, 21).

Studies have shown that drinking 17 ounces (0.5 liters) of water increases resting metabolism by 10–30% for about an hour (22, 23).

This calorie-burning effect may be even greater if you drink cold water, as your body uses energy to heat it up to body temperature (21, 24).

Water can also help fill you up. Studies show that drinking water a half an hour before you eat can help you eat less (25, 26, 27).

One study of overweight adults found that those who drank half a liter of water before their meals lost 44% more weight than those who didn't (19).

3. Do a High-Intensity Workout

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves quick and very intense bursts of activity.

It can help you burn more fat by increasing your metabolic rate, even after your workout has finished (28, 29, 30, 31).

This effect is believed to be greater for HIIT than for other types of exercise. What's more, HIIT has also been shown to help you burn fat (32, 33, 34).

One study in overweight young men found that 12 weeks of high-intensity exercise reduced fat mass by 4.4 pounds (2 kg) and belly fat by 17% (35).

4. Lift Heavy Things

Muscle is more metabolically active than fat, and building muscle can help increase your metabolism (36, 37, 38, 39).

This means you will burn more calories each day, even at rest (40).

Lifting weights will also help you retain muscle and combat the drop in metabolism that can occur during weight loss (41, 42, 43, 44).

In one study, 48 overweight women were placed on a diet of 800 calories per day, along with either no exercise, aerobic exercise or resistance training (45).

After the diet, the women who did the resistance training maintained their muscle mass, metabolism and strength. The others lost weight, but also lost muscle mass and experienced a decrease in metabolism (45).

Highly interactive yet the bottom line is, "Get off your ass".