Around the Web: Happiness is Only a Download Away

Simple, but Brilliant

My wallet is overflowing with club cards and my keychain looks like a janitor's because of all the junk on it. Why does every store want to make you a "member" of their special club? And, more importantly, why do I always fall for it? No matter how hard I try, it's almost impossible to avoid the card-craze. I mean, if all I have to do is carry that silly piece of plastic to get a discount, I'm willing to do it I guess. Apparently, I'm not the only one getting annoyed with the piles of cards filling my wallet and weighing down my keychain. JustOneClubCard.com was created specifically to help us bargain-hunters out. This site allows you to put up to 8 club cards on one single card. Just input the information from each card and then print out the new one for free.

Stop the Hunt and Peck

If you're a "hunt and peck" person (you know who you are) TypingWeb was made for you. It's a free site that provides typing tutorials, exercises and lessons. No registration or download is required. It's specifically designed to help typists of ALL ages and skill levels. So, even if you just want to improve your speed and/or accuracy, this site will help. Plus, if you register, the site will track your progress for you. And don't worry about being bored. Many of the practice exercises use the daily news so you're actually catching up on world events while improving your typing skills!

Game Your Way to Happiness

Research shows that a smile - even if forced at first - can help reduce stress, improve mood and boost confidence. Now, an award-winning game has been created based on this principle. Basically, the player has to pick out the smiling face from a sea of frowny faces. The goal is to play it so much that you subconsciously teach your brain to look for approval and acceptance, while ignoring rejection. (This reminds me of playing Tetris so much in college that I started dreaming about stacking geometric figures, and now I'm really good at packing lots of stuff into small spaces). Grab a free demo download at MindHabits.com and see if you really can game your way to happiness.

When is It EVER the Right Time?

You know, it never fails that - about halfway into a movie, just when something huge is about to happen - I have to hit the ladies room. If only there was a way to know for certain when it was ok to leave the theater for a few minutes... Turns out, there is! RunPee.com (great name!) is the answer. Just select a movie and the system indicates the "optimal" pee times. For example, according to RunPee, during Will Ferrell's new movie Land of the Lost, there's a perfect point at 44 minutes into the movie, just after Dr. Marshall talks with the space lizard, Enik. RunPee indicates that you have about four minutes to leave the theater without missing too much. Plus, if you want to know what's happening while you're gone, just click the "unscramble" button. This is definitely one to bookmark on your Smartphone.

OA Retro: Listen Up. No Really. Listen!!

This week, I want to ask everyone to read this straight-forward, simple article called How to be a Good Listener. And then, I want you to forward it to a friend. Because the world simply doesn't listen enough. We need to start a movement to open our ears. Plus, this article opens with one of my favorite lines ever. Enjoy!