The Union, our local daily paper, ran an article on Wednesday by AP Education Writer Ben Feller entitled “Teachers can now sell their work online”. That’s right, an Ebay-style forum for teachers to share teaching curriculum. The site is called TeachersPayTeachers.com.

The article first piqued my interest because my sister teaches 5th grade (though right now she’s in Spain on summer break!) Reading along I was thinking that it would be a good resource for her to check out. She spends a lot of time working on lesson plans and this could help her out, yes?

Then I got to the info about the founder, Paul Edelman. For me, that’s when the story got really interesting. 33-year-old former teacher turns entrepreneur… now that’s my kind of story! He believes he’s found a niche and he’s putting his financial situation on the line to back up that belief. The market and world being what it is, dedication and belief alone won’t guarantee success. Remains to be seen if the service will catch on with teachers.

The price is right, each lesson plan or worksheet is in the neighborhood of $1 - $5. Sellers pay an annual fee of $29.99. For a teacher, it seems like affordable enough to go for it, but high enough that you’re going to take the time to post good stuff to recoup your cash and then some.

In our newspaper world dedicated to death and destruction, I’m always thrilled to read about someone following their dreams and making a positive contribution to the world.
I look forward to hearing what my sister thinks about it–when she gets back from Spain.

The tenth issue of the Project Simplify newsletter The Weekly Simplifier is now archived on our newsletter archives page.

Here is a brief summary of the contents:

1. A Note From Shawn
Shawn finds that the number 10 has a lesson to offer us, while celebrating our 10th issue
2. Quote of the Week
by Charles Mingus
3. Article: How Project Management Can Be Made More Simple
guest article by David Brewster
4. This Week’s Simplification Tip
Set Time Limits
5. In the News & On the Web
In The News: organizing your pantry, and your books and magazines; plus, energy management
6. Featured at ProjectSimplify.com
Subscribe to Our Site’s Feed
7. Keep Smiling
Popular Movies Re-enacted by Bunnies in 30 Seconds

Read the full issue here.
Subscribe to The Weekly Simplifier here.

[posted by Lance]

Fern update: Repotted fern is hanging in there. Still looks to be a little bewildered at its new home, yet happy to have room to grow and stretch its roots.

Rose update: Not happy, though, is the rose bush with lavender flowers. On the entire bush only one shoot had buds, and all four of them bloomed at once! Sweet! Until yesterday. Some incredibly rude person went to pick one of them, and broke the stem for all of them. Accident? Intentional? That’s between the perpetrator and the rose bush. Imagine 3 lavender roses in bloom hanging pathetically. Sad!

Why not leave it in its natural environment for everyone who walks by to enjoy?

So then I saw Steve Rubel’s post today, on his blog Micro Persuasion, entitled, Fear of Losing Control Unites Us All. Hmm, maybe I’m just being a control freak. Admittedly, organizers need a bit of control freak-ness in their nature. I mean really! Just imagine, you’ve hired a professional organizer to help you straighten out your office and they keep answering your questions with, “well, you know, if you want…” Geez, you’ll be there ’til the end of time!

Maybe the person who tried to take one rose really needed something to take with them to brighten their day. Like I said, that’s between the perpetrator and the rose bush.

I started a new page on the website today that will list various instructions, usually of the computer oriented variety. Right now there is one, (Yowza!) Printing labels from Mac’s Address Book.

For some people this process is old hat, for some an intuitive find on their own. I feel it is worth making available, though, because for some it just isn’t all that easy or intuitive.

When contemplating whether to mention it or not, I thought of our individual sensitivities.–let me explain that the instructions page was primarily created for my clients’ benefit. I’ve had two clients ask about this capability in the last couple of weeks so I thought if I had it online in a printable version, I could simply send them a link or print it out before going to an appointment.

For example, when watering a houseplant today, I noticed that the leaves were bizarrely sticky. Hmmm, the fern I replanted last night that had lost all of its leaves (and which turned out to be root bound) had become really sticky as well. Is a sticky leaf state a sign of a root bound plant? I’ll investigate tomorrow by replanting the newly discovered sticky plant.

Point being that my sensitivity to plant communication is somewhat low. Someone else could come along and say, Yes, sticky leaves mean root bound or No, sticky leaves mean _____. And it would be totally obvious to them and they’d wonder how in the world I hadn’t figured that one out yet.

That same someone could make me feel like a dummy, or they could simply affirm/discredit my hypothesis. As I don’t particularly appreciate feeling a dummy, I’d go for option #2.

So if printing labels, or whatever instructions end up listed on the new page, seems like simple info, I say, better to spell it out than encourage dummy-hood.

[posted by Lance]

Abstract Dimension offers Six Ways to Improve Your Life: Meditation, Change your diet, Exercise, Learn something new, Get involved in something, Try to improve yourself.

I was going to say that it’s a pretty basic list (which it is), but then I realized that I can only really lay claim to pursuing three of these six supposedly basic steps toward life improvement with any real vigor—at least at the present time. And I must concede that it would probably improve my life to get something going on with the other three things. Especially meditation, since it’s the only thing on the list I’ve never pursued with any real vigor. I’ve just never been much for quietude and/or stillness. (And yes, I realize that probably only heightens the benefits I might get if I were to successfully meditate. Doesn’t make it any easier for me to do though.)

I see that Abstract Dimension also has instructions on how to make a smoke bomb. Now there’s something I can do to improve my life! ;-)

Abstract Dimension actually has some pretty cool other posts besides those two. They focus on “Science & Philosophy”, and some of their other recent posts have some neat science knowledge. (About static electricity, ancient healthy grains that are gaining in popularity, and brain cells on a chip, among other things.)

I have a potted fern that’s been limping along for several years now. It would waver between sparse and dried out looking and then would take a turn for the better and start filling out and show more green. I wasn’t sure if it wanted more or less sun, more water etc. At one point, my mom saw it and said, “You know what that pot needs? A new plant!” har har har

In the last few months it took a major downturn and lost the majority of its leaves. All that was left were a bunch of long wiry threads with a few green leaves at the ends.

I decided to give it one more chance. Last weekend I had reclaimed a narrow planter in the front yard that was trying to support a single rose bush. It got very little direct sun and the rose bush always looked pathetic and mildewed. What a relief to finally get it out of there.

I thought this would be a good place for the few strands of fern left. This evening I dug a hole then popped the fern out of the pot. Oh! No wonder! The poor thing was completely root bound. I had to wrestle with it to loosen it up enough to plant. (You gardeners out there are probably cringing. “Well, duh!” you might be saying.)

Moral of the story: (I like this one–it wasn’t completely obvious to me at first.) You enter into a situation in which you are encouraged and supported to grow and learn. You thrive. Once you’ve learned everything you are meant to learn in that situation, it is time to move on. The situation doesn’t become inherently bad, you’ve simply outgrown it. What once supported and encouraged you will eventually stifle you if you don’t leave.

Friday morning comes again with 8:30 yoga class at Wild Mountain Yoga with Center owner, Katie Carter. Lately, there has been a consistent before and after yoga experience.

before class:
“I should be writing.”
“I’m tired.”
“I really should water the plants.”
“Did I shave this week?”
“Maybe I should just rest instead.”
“Why don’t I just practice at home?”

after class:
“ohhhh yeahhhhh” emphasized by a full body perma-grin

This is my reference point for experiential simplicity. And really, I’d say that having an experiential reference point has been an incredibly powerful tool for me. When I get away from that full body perma-grin, I know what I want to come back to. I know what state of being is the most helpful for maintaining my priorities.

I read an article in Business 2.0 today about the man, Gamal Aziz, behind the MGM Grand rebirthing in Las Vegas. They called his approach “working backward”, but what struck me was the vision of success. It wasn’t relative, it wasn’t comparative (i.e. well, I’m more productive today than yesterday…). It was almost like his fantasy vision, and with resources as extensive as they were at his disposal, he was able to create his vision. It’s been wildly successful. (successful in terms of financial bottom line. I’m not going to belabor my primary criticism of this method, namely, major demolition–read: waste–of perfectly functional buildings = high resource cost.)

I appreciate his integrity in sticking with his vision as a recipe for success, not benchmarks and measurements. Similarly, I desire to stick to my vision of simplicity. Not relative or comparative, simply 100%.