The common idiot is a parent who feeds their child a soda, popcorn, and candy at the movie theater and then expects their child to sit quietly for two hours. Note to all parents, you have probably just let your child ingest over a hundred grams of sugar, caffeine, and whatever toxic chemical that popcorn is floating in. It is normal for your child to be hyper, cranky, bratty, and belligerent for the next 24 hours, while their little systems work overtime to regulate. There is no need to rush to grab the ADD meds!

As one who enjoys donating to organizations that can stretch a dollar (not those who give your cash to the CEO), I found Kiva.org to be pretty cool. I’ve made frequent donations to Heifer International before, as they use your money to buy livestock for poor villages on the stipulation that some of the offspring be donated to other poor villages. Kiva.org is a micro-financing option that allows you to choose an entrepreneur in the third world and ‘invest’ money from $25 on up in that entrepreneur. This system is something akin to the system used by Prosper, except you will not earn interest on loans given via Kiva. Instead, your money will be repaid within a predetermined amount of time, at which point you can re-invest in another entrepreneur or cash out.

What this does is allows you to give money to someone in need around the world so they can grow their business, feed their family, and help their local economy, and then get your investment back to re-invest in another. Imagine, one $100 donation being used over and over again to help entrepreneurs worldwide.

Not only that, but their repay ratio is pretty good, reported at 99% but realistically probably more around 90-95%. With odds like that, it’s a pretty good chance your money will be returned to you, and even if it is not you have made a kind donation.

If you’re looking for a good use for your up-and-coming tax rebate check, you might want to consider giving back, and then getting back again, via Kiva!

Putting It All Together: The New Orthomolecular Nutrition by Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph. D & Morton Walker, D.P.M. is an excellent book that brings the reader’s attention to how damaging the effects of a poor diet can not only be to the body, but also to the brain and psyche of a person. Most people are ignorant to what food allergies are and how they can adversely affect a person. This book details greatly the effect on junk food and allergens (mainly sugar) on the brain of an individual. Depression, neurosis, schizophrenia, etc.. are all addressed in the book and how orthomolecular practitioners are using nutrition and vitamin/mineral therapy to solve the imbalances of patients. This book is a must for anyone who is interested in how to heal yourself and others of dis-ease!

I do want to make a note though about being careful with some of the advice about vitamins you may read. This book mentions that vitamins are pretty safe at doses way higher than the RDA. This is true for the most part. However, it would be very wise to be in the hands of a trained professional if you wanted to try extreme mega-dosing of different vitamins. Though rare, vitamin toxicity has occurred and can adversely affect the liver. Also, vitamins and minerals work in groups. A megadose of one type of vitamin, can imbalance another vitamin/mineral in the body. Lastly, you also have to take care to get the right vitamins; the ones sold at your neighborhood Food Lion probably have as many chemicals and toxins as a processed TV dinner. That being said, vitamin therapy is much safer than jumping on the newest pharmaceutical drug, because that is guaranteed to cause liver toxicity and side effects!

If you enjoy this sort of book and learning more about how the human body really works, you may also be interested in The Ultimate Healing System: The Illustrated Guide to Muscle Testing & Nutrition.

Even if you’re not a fan of ABC’s Lost – a science fiction television show about a group of airline passengers who crash on a mysterious – and treacherous – island – it’s likely that you know someone who is. With its in-depth character development, nail biting suspense, and tantalizing hints of what lies behind the curtain, Lost is undeniably compelling, and Thursday’s episode, titled The Economist, was no exception.

Told from the point of view of Sayid, a morally gray former Iraqi soldier, this episode left us with more questions than answers – par for the course when viewing Lost. Rich in ethical gradients, filled with suspense, and peppered with science – the formula works, and the creators of Lost have used it to full effect. This season, they’re digging a little deeper – adding ‘flashforwards’ instead of flashbacks, introducing more off-island characters, shedding just a little more light onto the physical properties of the island. In some shows such tactics can seem cheap and contrived, but Lost feels fresh and new this season. Case in point – even after three seasons of watching Sayid, I still didn’t know what he would choose at the climax of the episode. Lost could never be accused of becoming too predictable.

With the writer’s strike over, Lost fans can give a small sigh of relief. The plotline of this innovative television show will not be held hostage for profits, and we no longer have to fear ignorant ‘scabs’ stepping in and ruining the story in a misguided attempt to conclude the series. That doesn’t mean we can completely relax, though. In the back of our minds, anyone who has loyally watched Lost has wondered if the writers really have an ending in sight, or if they’re making all of this up as they go along. Add to these doubts a late season premiere, a few unresolved love triangles, and episode after episode of answers that only lead to more questions, and you’ve got yourself a sinkhole of viewer mistrust.

And yet, I can’t stop watching. I don’t want to miss even one second of the snail-paced storyline, one seemingly irrelevant flashback, one instance of Hurley saying ‘dude’. It may all be a hoax. It might be canceled any day. But this sci-fi geek is keeping the faith.

Not that I haven’t wavered, just as the quality of the episodes has fluctuated over the years. I have thrown my hands up at the screen, have exclaimed ‘we’re –nowhere-‘ as the credits rolled. I have even declared that I had given up, that I would no longer be watching Lost after a particularly abysmal episode in Season 3 . Inevitably, though, another fan reels me back in. And that right there is a large part of the draw of this show – endless message board fodder as we theorize and pick apart each scene, sometimes frame by frame, trying to detract some hidden meaning.

To those of you who have given up, or never watched in the first place, now is a great time to jump in. After two seasons of little forward movement, Lost seems to be back to the slow but steady and engaging pace of Season One. ABC’s site presently has an hour-long recap to bring old and new viewers alike up to speed. Don’t have an hour? No problem – YouTube has a Lost in 8 minutes that will give you the quick and dirty version. Either way, you can quickly delve into new mysteries, new characters, and new nail biting moments every week. Or, if you’re a ‘details’ person (read: obsessive dork), the season DVDs are rich in cast commentary and special features to squeeze every ounce of content (of which plenty is buried deep) from each episode.

The fantasy film Labyrinth, made in 1986, continues to be one of my all time favorite movies.

Labyrinth stars David Bowie as the Goblin King who kidnaps the brother of costar of Sarah Williams (Jennifer Connelly). Fairies, psychedelic dreams, crystal balls, and mystical creatures makes this rank high on the hippie list.

There are some great characters in this movie, very diverse, and very Jim Hensen.

• Ludo, a tall, big, and furry brute with horns on his head that talks cuter than he looks. He can yell for rocks to come to his help when he needs them.
• Hoggle, a cowardly little mix between a dwarf and a troll with the personality of Oscar the Grouch. Mostly harmless except for an inhumane prejudice against fairies
• Sir Didymus, a small fox-terrier knight that rides on the back of his faithful steed, another dog named Ambrosius. He lives in the Bog of Eternal Stench, a place with flatulence geysers, mud, and the nastiest scents in the Labyrinth. It is a place vaguely reminiscent of an occupied public bathroom stall, complete with the fact that touching anything makes you smell forever.

As far as David Bowie goes, he plays the ultimate antagonist that is easy to fall for. With wild hair, diabolic schemes, and toxic apples, he has the ability to capture his audience’s heart as the watcher realizes he has fallen in love with Jennifer Connelly’s character. Except for the overly excessive bulge, he’s a pretty stylish character.

This is a great movie for all ages. Only mild cussing, no sexual content, and very little violence (except for the Fun Gang trying to rip off Sarah’s head) makes this movie a wonderful choice for the whole family. And if you like Labyrinth, I’d also recommend The Dark Crystal, another Jim Hensen favorite with a bit more dark side and a lot less Bowie.