Jack A. Weil, hailed as the "the king of Western wear" and the oldest working C.E.O. in America, recently died at the age of 107. His grandson, Steven Weil, says that "he was to Western shirts what Henry Ford was to cars."

A true stylist, Jack Weil dedicated his life to producing and marketing a special fashion identity for Westerners--cowboys, ranchers, and farmers living in the American West. They had special boots and hats but until Jack A., wore ordinary, boxy, work shirts.

"The first thing I did was get rid of the farmer," Mr. Weil told the Denver Westword in 2001.

"Cowboys have a strong independent identity and want to be different. [I] offered them a special fashion statement...to make them stand apart from city slickers when they come to town." He says on his website.

To give them a distinct identity, he designed shirts that were slim fitting to accentuate the body--a better fitting shirt is less likely to get caught or snagged while riding the range. He also added shirt yokes to broaden the shoulders and flap pockets that fasten to better hold their contents. The snap fasteners also break-away to let loose if the shirt gets caught, say on a hostile horn, and hold better than buttons--figuring that most cowboys didn't like to sew.

By understanding his audience and appealing to their vanity Jack Weil popularized Western wear; and by popularizing Western wear, he popularized Rockmount Ranch Wear, the Denver company he founded in 1946. His constant motivation was to design for a western state of mind--life style, not trends that come and go. As Western wear's popularity spread across America Jack A. coined the phrase "The West is not a place, it is a state of mind."

Steven Weil says: "he remained vital until the end--when he got into his 90s, he seemed like he was 60." Steven remembers his Grandfather often saying: "Love your job; if you don't, change jobs because nothing's worse than the drudgery of a job you don't like." And he goes on to say: "for him, his work was his second romance--next to his marriage."

Before Jack died, he talked about one secret to his longevity: "a bit of Jack Daniels once or twice a week to keep [his] blood thin."

Rockmount Ranch Wear
1626 Wazee St. (map)
Denver, CO 80202

Phone: (303) 629-7777
Toll Free: 800 7 ROCKMO

LoDo (downtown) Office, Store & Museum Hours (Denver time)
Monday - Friday 7 - 5
Saturday 11-5
Sunday 11 - 4

Sources
"Oldest CEO And Popularizer Of Cowboy Shirts Dies." NPR. 15 August 2008.
"Jack A. Weil, the Cowboy's Dresser, Dies at 107." NY Times. 14 August 2008.
"Our Story." Rockmount Ranch Wear website

From the NY Times:

Berea College, founded 150 years ago to educate freed slaves and "poor white mountaineers," accepts only applicants from low-income families, and it charges no tuition. "You can literally come to Berea with nothing but what you can carry, and graduate debt free," said Joseph P. Bagnoli Jr., the associate provost for enrollment management. "We call it the best education money can't buy."

Actually, what buys that education is Berea's $1.1 billion endowment, which puts the college among the nation's wealthiest. But unlike most well-endowed colleges, Berea has no football team, coed dorms, hot tubs or climbing walls. Instead, it has a no-frills budget, with food from the college farm, handmade furniture from the college crafts workshops, and 10-hour-a-week campus jobs for every student.

To satisfy the work requirement, some students have jobs in the academic departments, administrative offices and labs, while others are assigned to the college farm, the workshops that make and sell traditional mountain crafts (its handmade brooms, especially, are well-known treasures) or the college-owned hotel, which anchors the town square.

Why do I get the feeling graduates of Berea College steer clear of jobs that are "probably not motivating or career-furthering?"

Source: "With No Frills or Tuition, a College Draws Notice." NY Times. 21 July 2008.

On July the Fourth America celebrates its Declaration of Independence (7/4/1776) from Great Britain, so what about the country's national anthem? While most citizens know the first stanza of said anthem, few know the other three. Nor do they know the history leading up to the crafting of its words.

The year was 1812 and the United States was at war with England over freedom of the seas. It was a tumultuous time as Great Britain was struggling with Napoleon's invasion of Russia. In 1814, however, Napoleon was beaten and England turned its attention to the United States. While many naval battles were fought, the fight eventually centered on the central part of the U.S. as the British attempted to split this country in half. Washington, D.C. was taken and then the Brits "marched" toward Baltimore, where a mere 1,000 patriots manned the cannons at Fort McHenry, whose guns controlled the harbor. If the British wanted Baltimore, they would have to take Fort McHenry first.

The attack commenced on the morning of September 13, 1814 as 19 British ships began pounding the fort with rockets and mortar shells. After an initial exchange of fire, the Brits withdrew to just outside the range of Forth McHenry's cannons and continued their bombardment for the next 25 hours. Surprisingly, on board one of the British ships was 35-year-old poet-lawyer Francis Scott Key, who was there arguing for the release of Dr. William Beanes, a prisoner of the British. Even though the captain agreed to the release, the two Americans were required to stay aboard until the attack on Baltimore was over. It was now the night of September 13th as the bombardment continued.

As twilight deepened, Key and Beanes saw the American flag flying over Fort McHenry. And, as reprised by famed author Isaac Asimov ("All Four Stanzas." March, 1991):

"Through the night, they heard bombs bursting and saw the red glare of rockets. They knew the fort was resisting and the American flag was still flying. But toward morning the bombardment ceased, and a dread silence fell. Either Fort McHenry had surrendered and the British flag flew above it, or the bombardment had failed and the American flag still flew.

As dawn began to brighten the eastern sky, Key and Beanes stared out at the fort, trying to see which flag flew over it. He and the physician must have asked each other over and over, 'Can you see the flag?'

After it was all finished, Key wrote a four stanza poem telling the events of the night. Called 'The Defense of Fort McHenry,' it was published in newspapers and swept the nation. Someone noted that the words fit an old English tune called, 'To Anacreon in Heaven' - a difficult melody with an uncomfortably large vocal range. For obvious reasons, Key's work became known as 'The Star Spangled Banner,' and in 1931 Congress declared it the official anthem of the United States.

Now that you know the story, here are the words. Presumably, the old doctor is speaking. This is what he asks Key:

Oh! say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there.
Oh! say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

'Ramparts,' in case you don't know, are the protective walls or other elevations that
surround a fort. The first stanza asks a question. The second gives an answer:

On the shore, dimly seen thro' the mist of the deep
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep.
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream
'Tis the star-spangled banner. Oh! long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

'The towering steep' is again, the ramparts. The bombardment has failed, and the British can do nothing more but sail away, their mission a failure.

In the third stanza I feel Key allows himself to gloat over the American triumph. In the aftermath of the bombardment, Key probably was in no mood to act otherwise?

During World War I when the British were our staunchest allies, this third stanza was not sung. However, I know it, so here it is:

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footstep's pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

The fourth stanza, a pious hope for the future, should be sung more slowly than the other three and with even deeper feeling:

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation,
Blest with victory and peace, may the Heaven - rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, for our cause is just,
And this be our motto --"In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

I hope you will look at the national anthem with new eyes. Listen to it, the next time you have a chance, with new ears. Pay attention to the words. And don't let them ever take it away . . . not even one."

Source: "All Four Stanzas." Isaac Asimov

As you may or may not know, Cream Cheese & Caviar is a big proponent of doing and finding your life's work. If you work for someone other than yourself, employers will aid you in your journey in 1 of 2 ways, by either promoting you along your career path internally, or by promoting you along your career path externally.

BusinessWeek published an article ("The Case Against Vacation Policy." 02 July 2008) about an Internet Technology start-up in New York that has chosen the former. A place where employees can "take paid time off for holidays, travel, and rest when they want, without asking permission--just letting managers know as a courtesy." In other words, employees are treated like grown-ups and have no formal vacation policy.

The casual vacation policy doesn't mean unlimited vacation--most people take three to four weeks each year--but there's no pressure to put in a certain number of days or hours as long as the work is getting done.

The key to making the casual vacation policy a success is helping management identify good goals. Everyone understands you have to actually work--no reading Cream Cheese & Caviar--when people take off. And the time off should be real--when you go on vacation, laptops and BlackBerrys should take their own separate vacation.

The concept of counting days and hours is a holdover from the industrial era that makes no sense for information workers who can do their jobs without being at their desks from 8 to 5, Monday through Friday.

The approach isn't unusual for companies of all sizes where much of the work can be done on flexible schedules. One example is Best Buy, where an employee-led movement toward results-only metrics transformed the company's culture.

Patagonia, one of Cream Cheese & Caviar's admired companies, lets workers at its Ventura (Calif.) headquarters surf during the day and offers up to two months of paid leave for employees to work with environmental groups.

As mentioned on Cream Cheese & Caviar before, IBM, Motley Fool, and Netflix are other examples of companies that have done away completely with tracking vacation.

Treating employees like grown-ups helps attract and retain motivated workers; it also keeps turnover low--Bluewolf said that that three people who left recently decided to return; companies can save money by not having bean-counters tracking time; and it also keeps people from burning out.

Source: "The Case Against Vacation Policy." BusinessWeek. 02 July 2008.

"Take As Much Vacation As You Want pt. I." Cream Cheese & Caviar. 21 December 2007.

Martin the Tailor from Ed David on Vimeo.

Galen Summer's short 8 min documentary on legendary Brooklyn tailor Martin Greenfield, whose work has been worn by a few U.S. presidents and in the collections of Band of Outsiders, Freemans Sporting Club, and Brooks Brothers.

A notable quote in regards to fit: "Everybody is a perfect person, there are no 2 people alike that you'll meet in your lifetime."

And a notable quote in regards to clientele: "I said, Mr. President, this is the White House, and you're on television everyday, so you have to be dressed right."

According to a comment on Treehugger "this photo is several years old, it is from a South African geographic magazine article describing the work of marine biologists studying great whites in a specific bay where they breed. The kayaker is a biologist who is very much aware of his situation- they turned to using kayaks while observing the sharks as motor boats were disruptive. The shark in the photo was curious of the kayaker, followed for a little while but left him alone."

via Treehugger

View the New York Times' slide show of hats at the 2008 Royal Ascot.

The Royal Ascot meeting is undoubtedly one of the racing and social highlights of the British summer. Queen Anne founded Ascot Races in 1711 and members of the royal family still lead the procession from Windsor Castle to Ascot each day.

Over the years, Ascot has become synonymous with fashion. The first recorded reference to Ladies Day, a day the focus switches from racing to fashion, was in 1823. Hats, in particular, take on a whole new importance during the meeting. All styles, colors, and designs are on show at Royal Ascot as women and designers, such as Louis Mariette, try to make their own individual mark during the meeting.

According to the Royal Ascot dress code, "hats or a substantial fascinator must be worn in the Royal Enclosure" but even those who are not in the Royal Enclosure take an opportunity to wear a hat. Although this year, the dress code was "clarified" and ladies are required to dress in a manner appropriate to a formal occasion as to avoid faux pas like these.

From the Times Online:

Nick Smith, a Royal Ascot spokesman, insisted this wasn't an indication that the event was failing to move with the times: "We have got to be very careful with fashion. Ascot has always been a fashion event and we want it to stay that way. However, we want the fashions to be appropriate to a formal occasion, not evening wear. It's a question of toeing the line."

Sources:
Ascot Racecourse
"A fashion revolution sweeps Royal Ascot." Telegraph, 20 June 2008
"Cracking the sartorial whip at Royal Ascot." Telegraph, 18 June 2008
"Slip into something more conservative." Times Online, 01 January 2008
"Top hats and high heels still reign supreme on Ladies Day." CNN, 20 June 2008
"Royal Ascot." The New York Times, 20 June 2008

Buying that new iPhone? What are you going to do with your old one? Well look no further, the Chicago Recycling Coalition maintains a comprehensive list of how to recycle pretty much anything in Chicagoland.

via Merge

At midnight tonight, every horse will age a year. That is the custom -- every horse has the same birthday, Jan. 1. Like all things calendrical, this is a human convention but you can believe it, just reference the Thoroughbred Information Agency (TIA).

Source: "New Year's Eve" by Verlyn Klinkenborg, December 31, 2007

From The Pmarca Guide to Career Planning: career planning = career limiting.

You can't plan your career because you have no idea what's going to happen in the future. And if you think you have an idea of what's going to happen, then watch "Next" with Nicolas Cage, Julianne Moore, and Jessica Biel.

Instead of trying to plan your career, focus on developing skills and pursuing opportunities--opportunities are key.

Pmarca's quote from Nassim Nicholas Taleb in The Black Swan sums it up pretty well:

"Seize any opportunity or anything that looks like opportunity.  They are rare, much rarer than you think..."

"Many people do not realize they are getting a lucky break in life when they get it.  If a big publisher (or a big art dealer or a movie executive or a hotshot banker or a big thinker) suggests an appointment, cancel anything you have planned: you may not see such a window open up again."

So if you're pressed for a career "plan" make it this: "[be] continuously alert to opportunities that present themselves to you spontaneiously, when you happen to be in the right place at the right time."

References: The Pmarca Guide to Career Planning

Are you routinely late to events by a precise amount of time and say to yourself "better late than never?" Family gatherings for example? Or work as another example?  Do you know why?

Jared Sandberg of the WSJ wrote an article entitled "I'm Not Really Late, I'm Just Indulging In Magical Thinking" where he spends some time on the subject:

Most chronically late people consistently underestimate time by 25% to 30%, says Diana DeLonzor, author of "Never Be Late Again."

"Late people engage in magical thinking," she says. "They remember that day 10 years ago when they made it to work in seven minutes flat. That becomes their standard."

Anthony Warren, a professor of entrepreneurship at Penn State's Smeal College of Business, deducts points from students who show up late. "It's an outrageous expression of arrogance," he says.

It also makes people mad.  Just ask designer Marc Jacobs.  In a NY Times article Jacobs is quoted as asking "Why are people so bitter and jealous and being so horrible to me?"  Had his critics been speaking strictly about his clothes, and not also reacting to the two-hour delay of his fashion show in September, he might not still be asking, as he did outside the Mercer Hotel in SoHo two months later. Mr. Sandberg continues:

What makes people late? Maybe it's being overly optimistic about the time needed to commute and park, a warm bed in a cold room, or a task for which no amount of planning can apportion adequate time: getting that second sock on a toddler's foot.

In the past, research suggested lateness had its roots in psychological issues of avoidance and anxiety. But more recent research shows late people are tardy to welcomed events, too. Piers Steel, a professor at the University of Calgary's Haskayne School of Business, says late people can be impulsive, but sometimes they're just chronically busy.

"There's not one comprehensive theory why everyone's late," says Prof. Steel, who authored an article earlier this year called, "The Nature of Procrastination." But one primary cause is that people "can't get motivated well before their deadlines," he adds.

Are you unsure whether your in the procrastination club?  Try measuring your procrastination with Prof. Steel's procrastination test.

References:  Sandberg, Jared "I'm Not Really Late, I'm Just Indulging In Magical Thinking." Wall Street Journal, November 13, 2007

Dodes, Rachel "Marc Jacobs: Unfashionably Late." Wall Street Journal, October 8, 2007

University of Calgary (2007, January 10). We're Sorry This Is Late ... We Really Meant To Post It Sooner: Research Into Procrastination Shows Surprising Findings. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 13, 2007, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­ /releases/2007/01/070110090851.htm

The below is an excerpt from "The Architecture of Happiness" by Iain Aitch published in Dwell, November 2006:

London-based Alain de Botton writes on what he terms the "philosophy of everyday life," and his works happily span the breach between the self-help section and academia. So far, he has analyzed the relationship between sex, shopping, and the novel, what makes us fall in love, what the point of travel is, and why we worry about our place in society. He also examined the power of literature in the surprise bestseller How Proust Can Change Your Life.

For his latest book, The Architecture of Happiness, de Botton turns his mind to the built environment, examining our rationale for where we choose to live and discussing the emotions reflected by our choice of architectural styles. But the book may not be happy reading for many architects, as de Botton variously labels the profession as being overstaffed, overly egotistical, and unwilling to make the value judgments that he believes make for good buildings and coherent cityscapes.

Dwell's London editor Iain Aitch met up with de Botton to find out where he thinks architecture is going wrong, what can be done to right it, and why he's so down on Zaha Hadid.

What is the architecture of happiness? The reason for the title of the book is this quote from [19th-century French writer] Stendhal where he says that "beauty is the promise of happiness." I am attracted to that quote because it connects what we find beautiful to what we find good in other areas of life. It makes a bridge between aesthetics and politics, home life, relationships--all these other things that are kind of connected. It is not literally a book about how architecture can make you happy. It is about how buildings can be repositories for certain values and attitudes to life that we can find attractive and might associate with happiness.

Did you come up with what amounted to a formula for architectural happiness? I tried to, partly to stimulate people to attempt their own. So I give five principles of good architecture. This is what architects used to do in the Renaissance; they used to write books about how to make a building and lay down their five or six or ten laws of architecture. In a way, it is in that kind of spirit that the book is written, to rehabilitate this kind of concept.

So what are your five principles of good architecture? I talk about the balance between order and complexity in the façade and arrangement of a building. We need things to be regular, but if they are too regular they get boring. And if they are too irregular they get chaotic. Then I look at the idea of contrasting forces within buildings. That can be between the masculine and the feminine, the old and the new.

I look at elegance, which I associate with handling weight or size gracefully. That is what makes cathedrals interesting, as you think, How is that held up? And I look at the idea of context and how buildings should reflect the context that they are in. Then I talk about the general principles that should guide designers in whom they are designing for and I look at Le Corbusier's work as an example of someone who forgot some of the finer-grained things that we need in order to be satisfied with an environment. I make the point that at some level good architecture is psychological; you have to understand whom you are designing for.

What makes you most happy in architecture? On the whole, the sort of buildings that generally appeal to me are the calm and ordered ones, as calm and order is what I am most lacking in life. I am generally not a fan of Daniel Libeskind or Zaha Hadid because my life feels kind of how their buildings look, and I don't want more of that. So, I tend toward the more austere.

Should we always be trying to constantly move forward in architecture? Or do we need to keep an eye on the past? I think there is, generally in society, a tedious overemphasis on the future and on things changing. And though they do change a lot in scientific areas, in artistic areas there is not that much change. I think the world of art has swallowed the idea of a future too forcefully. So if you read an interiors magazine, it will say what's hot this month. A month is such a short time span. The acceleration of time is a bit worrying. Many things have worked well down the ages, and we should not reinvent the wheel. I am a mixture of a traditionalist and a futurist.

You talk about how the egos and aspirations of individual architects can lead to unsatisfactory streetscapes. Do you think they need to change the way that they work?
In a way I feel very sorry for architects, as there are too many of them. But also, their whole training is to make them very individual, creative people who can break all the rules. There can only be a few Zaha Hadids, yet the system is geared to producing only Zaha Hadids. I think architecture has bought into a 19th-century idea of romantic artist as rebel, as someone who stands against his or her society, who does everything different, who might be hated at first then gradually loved, like van Gogh. Though that may be true to some extent, it is not true to the extent that architecture schools suggest that it is. I think it leads many architects down the wrong path, toward unhappiness.

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." - Benjamin Franklin from Poor Richard's Almanack

"Put no trust in the benefits to accrue from early rising, as set forth by the infatuated Franklin..." - Mark Twain from "Early Rising, As Regards Excursions to the Cliff House" published July 3, 1864 in The Golden Era

The Plan:

• Each day awake only 15-30 minutes earlier than usual until you hit the time that's right for you.
• Getting up earlier will cause you to get tired earlier. As this happens, listen to yourself and go to sleep. If you think it's too early, try reading a book.
• Don't use an alarm clock. Trust your circadian rhythm. You'll wake up when you need to. Try it.
• And once you wake up, get up. Go out of the bedroom as soon as your eyes open. Don't think about the comfy covers or waking your spouse. If you do, the next thing you know will be rushing out the door.
• Reward yourself for waking up. Eat a hearty breakfast (and lose weight), exercise, meditate, or take a hot bath, anything to take advantage of the quiet time and put the focus on you. By the time 6:30 rolls around you'll have done more than many people do the entire day.

References: "How to Become an Early Riser" by Zen Habits

"Make It an Early Bird" by The New York Times

[Scene: A New York apartment. Someone knocks on the door.]
Woman: [not opening the door] Yes?
Voice: (mumbling) Mrs. Arlsburgerhhh?
Woman: What?
Voice: (mumbling) Mrs. Johannesburrrr?
Woman: Who is it?
Voice: [pause] Flowers.
Woman: Flowers for whom?
Voice: [long pause] Plumber, ma'am.
Woman: I don't need a plumber. You're that clever shark, aren't you?
Voice: [pause] Candygram.
Woman: Candygram, my foot. Get out of here before I call the police. You're the shark, and you know it.
Voice: I'm only a dolphin, ma'am.
Woman: A dolphin? Well...okay. [opens door]

Comment: Grammar Whore says: "This reminds me of Monty Python's "Encyclopedia Salesman" sketch."

Holding out will get you a deal on consumer electronics but if you wait too long your sleek new cellphone or next-generation TV won't only be cheap--it'll be obsolete.

As a "late" adopter of an Apple iPhone, it paid to wait just 10 weeks after its launch to let the hype settle and watch the price drop $200 (although early adopters were offered a $100 store credit after they complained to Apple).

Kelli B. Grant writes for the WSJ:

"Sure, there's some intangible value to being the first kid on the block to have that new toy," says Denny Arar, senior editor with PC World magazine. "But -- and I can't think of a single product where this isn't true -- the first generation is bound to be buggy. Plus, you have to realize that the price is going to drop eventually."

Generally, six months after a product is released is a safe bet. Tech products have a lifecycle of up to a year before the "something-cooler-is-on-the-horizon price drop" kicks in, says Ms. Arar. Plus, most of the bugs associated with the launch of a new technology will have been fixed at that point.

Another suggestion: If possible, wait until January to do your gadget shopping, advises Jerry Grossman, editorial director for Demystifying Digital, an electronics education site. Post-holiday sales abound and prices fall even further as the latest hot gadgets are unveiled that month at major tech shows like the International Consumer Electronics Show and Macworld.

Beyond those basic rules of thumb, how long you should wait depends on the gadget you're eyeing:

• Computers: Wait longer than a year -- even a discounted, year-old "obsolete" model is still pretty darn fantastic, says Brian Cooley, editor at large for electronics review site CNET.
• Digital Cameras: Wait one year and buy a discounted older model, without missing more than a new design and minor feature(s).
• High-Definition Video: Wait until the dust settles between the HD-DVD and Blu-ray battle.
• Software: Wait one month when you can expect the first free patches and updates to be available.
• Televisions: Wait one year -- prices annually drop 25% to 30%
• Video Game Systems: Wait for cutting-edge video games to be released

Want to know the best days of the week to buy other items? See Kelli B. Grant's "The Cheapest Days to Buy Certain Items" at Yahoo Finance.

Source: Grant, Kelli B. "When to Hold Off on Latest Gadget." Wall Street Journal, September 23, 2007

Working at a standing desk will increase your productivity, improve your relationships with peers, and make you feel better at the end of the day. I know this from experience. Not only from two years standing at a drafting table in high school architecture classes, but also from three years standing at a height-adjustable desk while working for a technology firm.

And it turns out I'm not the only one. E. Thomas Gimbel, CEO of the LaSalle Network, decided to ditch his chair and start working at a standing desk after a lot of frustration (and pain) from sitting all day.

"About two years ago I was suffering from back pain that seemed to get worse when I sat for a long time. I am 6-foot-6, and no matter what office chair I tried, the only relief came when I got up. One day I read an article in a business magazine reporting that Donald Rumsfeld works at a desk where he can stand up. I said, 'Hell, if it's good enough for the Secretary of Defense, it's good enough for me.'"

And he's right, former Defense Secretary, and Chicago native, Donald Rumsfeld knows the benefits of standing at a desk too. "I stand here. I use the phone," he told ABCNEWS. "I like to. Have for decades. It works."

According to Wikipedia: "a standing desk is both an antique desk and a modern desk form conceived for writing and/or reading while standing up or while sitting on a high stool. The term stand-up or stand up desk is also used. Standing desks were popular in the homes and offices of the rich, during the 18th century and much of the 19th."

There's no more scrunching into an uncomfortable chair. And standing behind a desk eliminates the awkwardness that exists when someone walks up to your desk. It creates initial eye contact at the same level and makes peers feel comfortable to stop by and talk.

Conducting meetings while standing also has its benefits. Often referred to as a "stand-up," it's a daily team meeting held to provide a status update to the team members. The meetings are usually time boxed to 5-15 minutes and are held standing up to remind people to keep the meeting short and to the point.

For a classic standing desk, Standupdesks.com looks like a good place to start. For a more modern standing desk, Steelcase makes a nice one.

References: McWethy, John. "Primetime Exclusive: Donald Rumsfeld talks about his life." ABC News, March 25, 2004

Gimbel, E. Thomas. "A stand-up guy." Fortune Small Business, September 05, 2007

In the UK, a national travel survey from The Department of Transport indicates that the richer people become the further they cycle, overturning stereotypes that the bicycle is largely a poor man's mode of transport.

From the UK Times:

The richest fifth of the population cycle on average 2½ times as far in a year as the poorest fifth.

The poorest fifth, despite being five times less likely to have access to a car, are very unlikely to consider cycling as a solution to their transport needs.

The London Cycling Campaign said that people on higher incomes tended to be better educated about the health benefits of cycling and more concerned with maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Studies have shown that regular cyclists typically enjoy a level of fitness equivalent to someone 10 years younger, and those cycling regularly beyond their mid-thirties add two years to their life expectancy.

A spokesman for the campaign said: "People on lower incomes may be more concerned with the need to earn money than worrying about what constitutes healthy living or about the issue of climate change and how cycling is the greenest option."

He said that poorer people might also be concerned that being seen on a bicycle would encourage others to view them as socially inferior. Richer people might be more confident about their social position.

People living on council estates, especially those in high-rise blocks, were also less likely to have a secure place to park their bikes.

The Cyclists Touring Club recently received a £4.5 million lottery grant to promote cycling among disadvantaged groups.

Cycling groups believe that a lack of education and negative stereotyping of cyclists are the main reasons why poorer people appear unwilling to hop on bikes.

Roger Geffen, the club's policy manager, said that the growing popularity of cycling among white middle-class men was in danger of creating a new stereotype that would deter other sections of society from switching to two wheels.

"We need to counter the powerful status symbol of the sports car by finding iconic figures to demonstrate that the bicycle can be cool. A few positive role models could have a transformative effect."

Phillip Darnton, chairman of Cycling England, the Government-funded body that promotes cycling, said that bicycle sales in Britain had risen from 2.8 million in 2000 to 3.5 million in 2006. The number of cyclists has risen by 83 per cent in London since 2000 but there has been little change most other parts of the country.

He added that the most successful bicycle companies in recent years had been those selling expensive brands costing more than £400, such as [Specialized], Trek, Giant, and Cannondale.

Mr Darnton, a former chief executive of Raleigh, said: "These brands have helped to turn the bicycle into a lustworthy object to own but those on lower incomes are less able to afford them."

Source: Webster, Ben. "Ride a bike? You must be rich." The UK Times, September 21, 2007

In 2002, at age 47 as a single mother with 2 kids, Eva Birath decided to stop her career as a marketing executive and become a professional bodybuilder. Birath sold her house and moved into an apartment. She sold her car. She had no idea what to do next. She began going to a nearby gym, where one of the regulars told her she had a good physique for bodybuilding. She began adhering to a strict diet -- porridge for breakfast; chicken or fish, rice and vegetables for lunch and dinner; and no butter, milk, or animal fats -- in early 2003.

1 year later she was a tournament champion.

Last year she finished fourth at the Swedish national championships.

And this year, she is one of the favorites to win the Swedish national championships.

In the process, Birath changed her lifestyle, letting go of many of her possessions and embracing a love of painting she had cultivated since attending art school as a young woman.

She says she makes enough money selling her paintings to get by from day to day, and that her daughter, Victoria, 27, and son, Andreas, 20, have been supportive. Her son is eager to train with her, but Birath says he often strains himself trying to lift the same weights as his mother.

Birath has also discovered that not everyone is accepting of her new self. "The hardest part is people's attitudes," she says. "You know how you have those circle of people who are your friends? Suddenly, I wasn't invited to those parties anymore. I think they thought I was strange, but I don't care."

At some level, she says she is not concerned about how she may be judged at competitions; she is doing this for her well-being.

"My life now is so much better," she said. "I've stopped searching for a job because I realize I don't want it. I do what I love now: I paint and I train."

Source: Weinreb, Michael. "At 51, Establishing a New Body of Work." New York Times, September 21, 2007

From humorist Simon Rich in the March 26, 2007 edition of the New Yorker.

MOM: Pass the wine, please. I want to become crazy.
DAD: O.K.
GRANDMOTHER: Did you see the politics? It made me angry.
DAD: Me, too. When it was over, I had sex.
UNCLE: I'm having sex right now.
DAD: We all are.
MOM: Let's talk about which kid I like the best.
DAD: (laughing) You know, but you won't tell.
MOM: If they ask me again, I might tell.
FRIEND FROM WORK: Hey, guess what! My voice is pretty loud!
DAD: (laughing) There are actual monsters in the world, but when my kids ask I pretend like there aren't.
MOM: I'm angry! I'm angry all of a sudden!
DAD: I'm angry, too! We're angry at each other!
MOM: Now everything is fine.
DAD: We just saw the PG-13 movie. It was so good.
MOM: There was a big sex.
FRIEND FROM WORK: I am the loudest! I am the loudest!
(Everybody laughs.)
MOM: I had a lot of wine, and now I'm crazy!
GRANDFATHER: Hey, do you guys know what God looks like?
ALL: Yes.
GRANDFATHER: Don't tell the kids.

(via Boing Boing)

Update: This has been written about further in "Take As Much Vacation As You Want pt. II."

The New York Times reports on IBM's vacation policy.

"It's like when you went to college and you didn't have high school teachers nagging you anymore," said Mark L. Hanny, I.B.M.'s vice president of independent software vendor alliances. "Employees like that we put more accountability on them."

I.B.M. is probably the largest company to do away so completely with tracking vacation, although a number of newer, smaller firms have similar policies.

Best Buy has introduced a program called Results Oriented Work Environment for its 4,000 corporate employees, giving them freedom to do their jobs without regard to the hours they put in daily. The freedom, employees say, is changing their lives. They don't know if they work fewer hours-they've stopped counting-but they are more productive.

Motley Fool, the online investment adviser, has, since its founding 13 years ago, let employees take as many paid vacation or sick days as they need; the company's director of human resources, Lee Burbage, said that most of its 180 workers take three to four weeks a year. Netflix, the online DVD distributor, no longer allots specific numbers of vacation days to its 400 salaried employees.

"When you have a work force of fully formed professionals who have been working for much of their life," Patty McCord, the chief talent officer of Netflix, said, "you have a connection between the work you do and how long it takes to do it, so you don't need to have the clock-in and clock-out mentality."

(via the August 31, 2007 edition of the New York Times)

Tom Peters has an interview with Steve Shapiro about his book, Goal-Free Living:

The first thing is to clarify that sometimes we create these perceptions of what our needs are. There's a saying I like: "I used to dream of making the money that I now am struggling to get by on," or something to that effect. We get caught up in all the things we think we need--a bigger TV, a nicer car, a bigger house in a nicer neighborhood, and more. Sometimes if you just live a little more simply, you won't have so many needs.

One of the secrets in the book is to "want what you have." Once you really have a sense of appreciation of what you have, then you can move forward in finding things that may get you more jazzed up. It doesn't mean you have to quit your job. Sometimes it's just changing your attitude towards your job. If you're doing your job just because it pays the bills, that's probably not very satisfying. You're telling yourself, "I'm doing this because my life will be better in the future." But if you can create a powerful context for the way you relate to your job, you may find yourself saying, "I'm doing this because there's actually fulfillment today. And I can grow and develop, and it will take me to new and different places." Sometimes all it takes is a shift in attitude.

(via Emergic)

The benefits of working from home: A recently published study titled, "Fuel Smart Economy: It's No Gas," that examined the cost of the daily commute from April to September 2005, found that Americans spent US$250 million on commuting each business day during April.

The Easiest Commute Of All
The ranks of remote workers are swelling as companies see the sense in freeing them. (@ businessweek.com)

Download Squad has Five Simple Rules for Keeping an Empty Inbox:

1. If you don't need to read it now, it shouldn't be in your inbox.
2. If you've already responded to it, it shouldn't be in your inbox.
3. If it comes from a known source (some person, retailer or mailing list that sends you mail more often than once every few months) it should be labeled automatically.
4. No one needs to look at their own inbox more than once an hour (and for many, once every 2-3 hours).
5. To borrow from the cult of GTD, re-factor constantly and mercilessly.

(Via: Boing Boing)

Zen Habits also has some simple steps to achieving Email Zen:

1. Don't check email first thing in the morning, or have it constantly on--you get stuck in email for awhile. Instead, do your most important thing(s) for the day, or the thing(s) you've been procrastinating on the most. Then check email. Also, turn off your email notification so you're not constantly distracted and unable to focus on your tasks. I check once an hour, but you might have different needs.
2. When you check your email, quickly dispose of each one, one at a time. Make a decision on what needs to be done on each email:
   
• Is it junk or some forwarded email? Trash it immediately.
• Is it a long email that you need to read for information? File it in a "Read" folder (or tag it "Read" and archive) or print it to read on the road (e.g. waiting in line).
• If the email requires action, make a note of the action on your to-do, could-do, or getting things done (GTD) lists for later. Also note to check the email for info if necessary. Then archive the email--you can easily find it later when you need to do that task.
• If you can respond to it in under 2 minutes, do so immediately. Don't put it off. If you wait, you'll end up with a backlog of emails to respond to, and you may never get around to it. I respond quickly, with a short note, and send it right away. That way I'm viewed as responsive and on top of things.
• If you need to follow up on the email later, or are waiting for a response, note it on a "Waiting For" list. Don't just leave it in your inbox as a reminder.
3. I have only one folder: Archive. When I respond to an email, or finish reading it if it doesn't need response, or note it on my to-do list, I archive it. Simple as that. You could add a "Read" folder if you want. I usually print longer ones to read later, like during lunch or while waiting for something. Other people have an "Action" folder or a "Waiting For" folder, but I find that that's just an additional inbox (or "bucket" as GTD's David Allen calls it) that you have to constantly check. I don't like to check extra folders. I have my to-do lists and my "Waiting For" list, and that's good enough. So it's as simple as pressing "Archive" on an email, and if I need to find it later, Gmail's search is so good that it's easy to find. I've never had any problems with this system.

From Paris Rebecca Voight writes: What if the best design really was less design? Today the most coveted items are the ones that whisper. Men have rarely been partial to over-the-top fashion statements, but the current mood is so understated that even a belt can seem a bit too much, and luxury is now designed to be felt more than seen.

"This isn't a repeat of '90s minimalism; it's lively, elegant, slightly esoteric and intellectual," said Tom Kalenderian, executive vice president of menswear at Barneys New York. Kalenderian credits the front row of high- powered editors and retailers in Paris at the Lanvin show, designed by Lucas Ossendrijver of the Netherlands, and in Milan at the Jil Sander show, designed by Raf Simons of Belgium, for putting refined simplicity on men's style map.

"The most sophisticated customers aren't looking for outward signs of design; they're tired of overstatement," he said, adding that luxurious, but subtle, details rule. A trouser leg with a tuxedo stripe, a shirt in cotton sateen, bespoke button-through flys and bar tacks on seams are "sort of snobby, a chic sign language that shows you're in the club," he said.

Barneys New York is so convinced of the new "less is more" that its spring catalogue is dedicated to simplicity, featuring designer brands including Hermès, Jil Sander, Lanvin and Dries Van Noten.

"I've always started with simplicity," said Thom Browne, last year's winner of the Council of Fashion Designers of America menswear award. "Overt, attention-grabbing fashion is too easy. It's more interesting when it's understated." Browne will be designing the men's and women's 2007 Fall collection for the classic American label, Brooks Brothers.

Long before simplicity became a trend, Hermès made elegant understatement its raison d'être. With a rugged leather jacket, you can be sure the pockets are lined in kid. The designer Veronique Nichanian believes that pieces should harmonize from one season to the next, and that they look better when they have been worn in.

For Pierre-Henri Mattout, who designs a collection bearing his name for young men and more mature tailoring for Dormeuil, the time when shirts used to sport "useless buttons" is over. "I'm still using prints," he said, "because they're a specialty in my collection, but they aren't so busy." Mattout said his customers in their early 20s now expect fashion to have a timeless appeal.

Luxurious simplicity made in Italy has been the fuel that propelled Adam Kimmel to the top in New York in record time. Kimmel studied architecture and made clothes for friends, but when he showed his portfolio to Joe Serino, a former design president for Calvin Klein menswear, the ball got rolling.

For more go to IHT: "Menswear, at a whisper"

Photo: A still from The Septemberists, artist Anthony Goicolea's film mythologizing the creation of Thom Browne's Spring/Summer 2007 collection. Shot by Brooklyn-based cinematographer Brian Rigney Hubbard over five days on a farm in Massachusetts. The title is based on harvest and the film revolves around ritual--the importance of clothing in ritual and particularly, the ritual of making clothing. With music by Sigur Ros. Originally shown in a 30-minute version as part of New York's fashion week.

jorg&olif city bikes inspired by century old Dutch designs differ from most bikes ridden by North Americans today not only in design, but in the premise of riding a bike as well:

1. They come equipped with a heap of accessories, such as fenders (mud guards), lights, cargo rack and strap, safety locks, kickstands, bells, and chain/wheel splash guards;
2. The cyclist sits tall, rather crouched forward in a racing position; and
3. They are simple, single speed models, or multi-speed enclosed, low maintenance, rear hubs designed for cruising the city, carrying groceries, kids or brief cases.

Dutch bicycles are designed not for speed but for comfort. They remind us that it's not about getting from A to B; it's about enjoying the in-between. If you've ever ridden a bicycle that was made purely for enjoying the ride and not for speed, then you know what it's all about.

They believe that our lifestyles should reflect our values and communicate who we are. The choices we make ultimately shape the way we live, and like most, we are always seeking new ways to make an improvement.

The jorg&olif collective embodies the essence of modern living by taking a modest, conscientious, design-driven approach to building a bicycle.

The first ever gallery showing of photos by author Hunter S. Thompson is on exhibit at M+B Gallery in L.A. through January 20th. The show, GONZO, coincides with the release of Thompson's final book of that same name.

Source: Boing Boing via Clayton James Cubitt
Photo: "Sandy and Agar, Big Sur," 1961by Hunter S. Thompson.

Giorgio Armani believes that subtlety is the key, where the design enhances the wearer's appearance and personality, rather than overwhelm them.

"Often the purest elements and simplest cuts are the most elaborate and difficult to achieve. My mother used to tell me, if you want to create beauty, do only what is necessary, and no more," he says.

The designer realizes that you don't rise to the top of your profession through hard work alone. He says he's sacrificed a lot over the years..."All I know is, I have a very clear vision of what I like and want to achieve. And although ideas may come spontaneously, I am nonetheless disciplined in my work ethic and in the way I approach my daily routine."

Source: CNN "A Day in the Life: Giorgio Armani" by David Challenger