American fat

America is known the world over for the excess fat we wear on our bodies. Yet, the amount varies from state to state. In a new yearly analysis by CalorieLab, Inc. Colorado was found once again the “slimmest state in the Nation” despite an increase in obesity of 0.8% over three years. The fattest state was Mississippi for the third straight year in a row. How did Utah fare in that fatty contest? We placed 8th overall behind of course Colorado, Hawaii, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island and Montana. This is not too bad, but we could do better if I least we slurped less Jell-O on Sundays and less ice-cream the rest of the week. We could probably beat Colorado, but it would take for the “republic of Park City” to break-away from Utah and apply for statehood, but that would be too much paperwork! Could we beat the Japanese whose obese population is below 5% or even the Europeans who hover around 12%? Probably not, but we might get to a respectable 15% just like our Canadian neighbors; enough of that though, I'm already late for my daily run...

Finn and the cow bell

Yesterday, Finn came and visited us for the afternoon and, as usual, brought an extra dose of sunshine to an already superb day. Aside from Tommy, our neighbor's golden retriever, Finn fell in love with the bronze cow bell that we had custom-made in Champéry, Switzerland for our 30th wedding anniversary. Every time he, or someone else rang this powerful sound source, Finn was exploding with laughter and while he couldn't say it, was probably wishing he was in the middle of some Alpine pasture or cheering up some ski racer at a future World Cup...

The “reset button”

These days, the term “reset button” is something we talk a lot about. I've first heard it in the context of US-Russian relationships, but soon after I heard the same applied to the financial crisis, the economy as well as personal re-invention. This kind of pipe-dream device is akin of catholic confession; you can mess-up a lot and in just one blink everything gets repaired and supposedly back to the point it stood before. Call it a miracle if you will, or something analogous to the “undo” button on your computer . Instead, I'm a believer that whatever gets torn apart needs first to be mended back to its previous state before it can be possible to resume any kind of function. So whether it's our relationship with the Russians or any other topic, there's no magic substitute for fixing things first and then making a sincere effort to rebuilt whatever was thrown into a state of disrepair...

Fourth of July Parade

Today we walked to town for the fourth of July Parade, our nation 233rd birthday and our town's 125th! We often do that and this is a good reason to cover a full 5 mile without even realizing it. This year's event had its usual floats, but nothing exceptional or incredibly innovative. I personally liked the Stein Eriksen Lodge's pair of mine carts with rugged miners and scantily clad belles as passengers, that showed a tad of originality. What was remarkable this year though were the crowds; we thought they were huge and stood as a testimony that more people than ever went for a “staycation” instead of a trip during the long weekend. We saw a few people we know and watched the whole procession next to Cheryl and Mark, our Park City second-home neighbors who live in Santa Cruz, California, the rest of the time. All in all this was a fun outing, filled with casual Park City style...

Identifying the obstacle

Whether you climb a mountain, sell commodities or play golf, there's always a major obstacle that stands in your way to success. We could call that your nemesis; you're not quite sure it's the problem although all your senses point to its direction and when you start thinking it's not, it begins rearing its ugly head again. Typically, a nemesis is an entanglement of contradictions; it seems omnipotent yet it is fundamentally weak, it might have good reason for its obstructionist power yet it really has none. It has just positioned itself into a perfectly protected cocoon that is both an armor and a hiding place. As a result, it grows bigger in our mind than reality as we fail to fully understanding it. We mythologize the beast instead of breaking it apart into weaker and winnable components. It's only when we start taking the obstacle for what it really is that its luster begins to pale off and it become assailable. If you can recognize “beasts” like the one I'm trying to describe, tell me how you can overcome them?

Things we can change...

In life there are things we can change and others we can't do much about. We sure can shine the spotlight onto them, but if no one cares or is motivated to follow the guidance, then, all the efforts engaged might be in vain. Just like in “Selling 101,” there has to be some tangible benefits to dangle in front of the buyer to justify that the money is well spent. When people can't imagine the way they might feel once the product or the service offered is obtained, they probably won't buy it. It's clear that changing minds and eliciting a purchasing decision or a shift into a different direction involves modifying views, educating, convincing and demonstrating that the proposed change is worth it. Sometimes, the offer is so ahead of its time that the vast majority can't even understand it, yet alone fathom its benefits. The work of conviction is an uphill battle and there might be countless other great battles worth fighting for instead of beating a dead horse. But tell me, is the horse dead yet?

When innovation takes over routine

I'm sold on innovation; in it, I see the “second coming” or at the very least, the rescue hatch for the entire planet. With my very valuable time on the earth ticking away like crazy, I've had the revelation last night that my mere existence was far too precious to be wasted on mundane thoughts and ordinary undertakings. From that day forward, I'm all for bringing an innovative slant into everything I see, anything I think about and whatever I decide to embrace. Nothing will be a repeat of yesterday unless there's really no other substitute. The ruts are already deep enough and it's time to get out while there's still a chance... Watch me!