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Now Reading Atlas Shrugged

Tue, 25 Mar 2014 02:24:27 +0000

Now Reading Ayn Rand’s Classic: [Atlas Shrugged][1]

It’s been a long time since I’ve started on a book that has been hard to put down. [][1]After hearing about this book for years I finally had someone get it for me off of my [wishlist][2] and I’ve been up every night until around midnight to 1am reading. At over 1000 pages it’s a long read but it’s a great story with a message I mostly agree with (so far). Of course there are a few things I’m not entirely on board with, but I’m interested to see how it all shakes out in the end. By far my favorite part is Francisco’s speech at Jim Taggat’s wedding about 35% of the way into the book. Right now I’m on John Galt’s radio address near the end and sadly it’s my least favorite part. Too long winded. If he wants to sell his idea to the world I say he needs to cut to the chase instead of blathering on. The mental image I keep getting is of the entire nation listening, and after about ten minutes just tuning out.

Still, this is one [book][1] I would highly recommend.

Anyone else out there read it? Thoughts?[1]: /books/atlas-shrugged/ [2]: /wishlist/

Clutterfree with Kids

Mon, 27 Jan 2014 06:25:30 +0000

[][1]
A few weeks ago I was honored to receive an advanced copy of “[Clutterfree with Kids][1]” by Joshua Becker for review. One of the things I appreciate most about Joshua’s writing and articles is that he’s what I consider a “normal” minimalist in that he owns a house, has kids, and has a job. In other words, he’s just like you and me – only he and his family have chosen to live a life of less so that they may appreciate it more. Even better, he rightfully acknowledges that everyone’s brand of minimalism is different.

Regarding [the book][1], I’ll say that if you’ve read one book on minimalism you’ve read them all and this is not a huge exception to the rule, but if you have not this is a great place to start if you consider yourself to be a “normal” person and are interested in how living a life of less can give you more.

I think the key if you’re married is that you have to get your spouse on-board. Otherwise, don’t expect to have a truly “clutterfree” life (not that it’s really even possible with kids). I think the most you can really hope for is a more organized chaos. Making intentional choices like limiting TV or Internet time. Choosing to eat together as a family. Choosing your activities more deliberately. Choosing to travel with less so that you experience more.

To hit on some of the high points, these were a few of my main take-aways…

Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of everything that distracts us from it <- Read that again
Start with small victories. Don’t tackle the hard things first.
Owning less allows us to own higher quality items.
Consider the true cost of your purchases – time, maintenance, cleaning
Less is different than none.
There is more joy to be found in owning less then can ever be found in organizing more.
Organizing more never addresses the underlying problem.
It is far better to de-own than to declutter.
Intentionally or unintentionally we are all minimizing something.
Gift giving: take time to let the fads show themselves then purge without concern. Conversely don’t force your ideas on others.
Compare downward – many people with less “stuff” are actually happier.

Bottom line, for a couple bucks and a few hours of your time, there are much worse things you could be doing, and on the bright side, it just may change your life. Can’t go wrong with that.

[Get the book today][1]

What do you think?

PS: Thanks again Joshua for allowing me to preview the book. I read every word, and it was a good refresher.[1]: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HYNJKCU?ie=UTF8&tag=firenice

Now Reading Mini-Missions

Sun, 05 Jan 2014 20:10:54 +0000

Reading Courtney Carver’s latest book: Mini-Missions for Simplicity

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 Interesting so far. Anyone else out there read it? Thoughts?</td> 
 
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 <a href="http://cfg2.com/go/book/mini-missions/"><img decoding="async" alt="" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00H0LAI3Q&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=firenice" border="0" /></a><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" alt="" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=firenice&l=as2&o=1&a=B00H0LAI3Q" width="1" height="1" border="0" />
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The Best iPhone Apps

Sat, 09 Feb 2013 03:35:10 +0000

Despite what Apple may think, they don’t create the world’s greatest apps. I love my iPhone, but to really get the best experience outside of jailbreaking (work frowns on that) there are a handful of apps I use almost daily. Since I had a friend recently ask me about some of them I thought you, dear reader, may also find my “insight” useful. So in the interest of creating an up-to-date list of what i consider to be essential iPhone apps, I’ve created a page dedicated to [The Best iPhone Apps][1]!

Hit up the page for all [my recommended iPhone apps][1], but here’s the top 3…

<td valign="top">
 <b><a href="http://mjg2.net/go/itunes/toodledo">Toodledo</a></b><br /> After trying just about every single to-do and task list manager under the sun, the one I keep coming back to is Toodledo.
</td>

<td valign="top">
 <b><a href="http://mjg2.net/go/itunes/drafts">Drafts</a></b><br /> Far and away the best note taking and all purpose app
</td>

<td valign="top">
 <b><a href="http://mjg2.net/go/itunes/fantastical">Fantastical</a></b><br /> I wasn&#8217;t sure it would be worth it, but this app is so much better than the Apple calendar.
</td>

Hope you find something useful.[1]: http://visit.markjacobsen.net/resources/essential-iphone-apps/