January 2, 2010 @ 5:14 pm
Episode 130 : Optimization
It’s a new year, and we think about all the ways people try to improve themselves with the latest gadgetry. Plus, optometrist shop lady storytime!
Links mentioned:
- Find out why Chinese restaurant buddhas are all fat.
10 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post · TrackBack URI
Posted by Sara
January 4, 2010 @ 4:54 am
Totally off topic but I wanted to start this year by thanking people who have made a positive difference in my life so I hope you don’t mind. So firstly, Gwen and Patrick thank you for making these podcasts I have listened to every one. They are witty, thought provoking and based in reality.
I also want to thank you for introducing me to some fantastic books - I have gotten so much out of commit to sit and Brad Warner’s books. I have actually committed myself to sitting again as a result of reading them and now realise I can’t study Buddhism alone (lest I become a psychopath- as brad pointed out Dogen’s warnings in sit down and shut up!) Keep the recommendations coming.
I almost feel like I know you both personally - not in a creepy way. But you are so open and honest on the podcast that it is hard not to. I am going to listen to the latest zen is stupid now keep up the great work it is very much appreciated
Posted by admin
January 4, 2010 @ 2:45 pm
Thanks, Sara! We appreciate you, too. Glad to hear Brad’s books have made a difference in your life. He’s a funny guy. - G
Posted by Andrew Lynch
January 6, 2010 @ 8:07 am
When ever I listen to Zen is Stupid Lastfm ’scrobbes’ the track as this: http://www.last.fm/music/Patrick only, that’s not Patrick!
Posted by admin
January 6, 2010 @ 2:44 pm
Hey, you’re right that’s not me! Get my lawyer on the phone…
The “real” Patrick
Posted by Shelley
January 6, 2010 @ 10:14 pm
Hello.
I was once an optometrist shop lady! But Shelley didn’t shill no shammies, ah ha, not as funny as the Billy Blanks joke, which made me do one of those embarrassing giggle-snorts.
The best part of my old job was doing the eye pressure test, you know, that blast of air to the eyeball. Sure, it sucks for the patient but for the person on the other side it’s like a video game, a real life Duckhunt, you could say. What more could you want than a jittery persons eyeball as a moving target which you then have to line up into the target zone as the suspense is building, wait for it….. BLAM, shoot em!
Oh and dude, go for the laser, just think how much fun that Dr. will have! No, seriously, do it, you’ll be super happy, I never heard a patient have any regrets.
Posted by Twitter Trackbacks for Zen Is Stupid [zenisstupid.com] on Topsy.com
January 8, 2010 @ 12:16 pm
[…] Zen Is Stupid zenisstupid.com/?p=212 – view page – cached It’s a new year, and we think about all the ways people try to improve themselves with the latest gadgetry. Plus, optometrist shop lady storytime! […]
Posted by fb
January 14, 2010 @ 1:26 am
First, thanks for all the podcasts. They’ve all been great, except for the ones that were good.
The crazy optometrist does have a point. if you consistently use any old tissue from a public toilet to clean a lens, it’ll eventually show up as tiny scratches, or an indistinct haze when you look through it. So, for expensive glasses or lenses you’ll want something that doesn’t have large fibers, and is soft enough to not form hard shapes when folded or crumpled. Those qualities that, for example, see-through butt-grating paper don’t have. It’s probably more important for camera lenses though, because they usually have coatings that could be scratched off. Maybe glasses have them too.
Regarding optimizing devices, isn’t understanding your body systems the point, and quantifying them just a tool to do that?
Posted by Daniel Oates
January 18, 2010 @ 10:42 pm
It is so awesome to hear you getting in to getting out there and kicking your butt Gwen. Patrick, the way you saw how you were reacting to the subtle change in dynamic and then acknowledged and released the attachment… Zen in action. I know it wasn’t the “topic” but it sure meant a bunch to me.
Keep it up guys,
Oh… and all the gizmo’s are fun. A buddy of mine wants to get a glucose monitor to track the effect of his diet and exercise on his glucose levels just for the hell of it. He isn’t diabetic or anything, just a healthy curiosity. An important distinction is that he doesn’t seem to think that the device will in anyway MAKE him healthier. He just finds the metric to be interesting. That seems to be the breaking point. The supplement, gadget or cushion are not the same as the diet, exercise or practice. It is too easy to forget. Thanks for the reminder.
Posted by Dave Hartman
January 25, 2010 @ 3:39 pm
Patrick, I feel for you with the glasses thing. I couldn’t wear contacts for a long time as well, same problem. Now I have -9.5 in each eye and love it every day not having those lenses press down on my nose all the time.
I didn’t think people with such bad vision were candidates for lasik.
Posted by Dave Hartman
January 25, 2010 @ 3:46 pm
Also, on new tech… check out these contacts powered by body heat:
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/09/ar-contact-lens/