As we admired Rex’s fine craftsmanship, Granny reminisced about when Pop – aka Mrs. Dude’s Grandfather – built the original Summer Slide…the inspiration for Rex’s new slide.

Granny recalled how proud Pop was of the plastic and wooden structure. And how he HAD to roll it out to the water as soon as it was complete. Even though it was dark. How Pop would stand back and admire the slide. As if it was the finest piece of craftsmanship he ever laid eyes on.

We admired Rex’s slide in a similar fashion.

There’s something great about building things with your hands. And then admiring what you’ve done.

I was happy to hear I’m part of a lineage of men (stretching back to the dawn of time?) who take the time to admire a job well done.

Because I’ve been admiring this beauty for a couple weeks now…

While Mrs. Dude was flying across the country to photograph Top Gun pilots, I was recruiting my 65 year old dad to lift heavy lumber. And surprise the fam with a tree house.

We crafted the platform in a few hours, and over the last couple weeks I’ve added the extras.

• Rope ladder
• Slide – slide’s are expensive, get the Home Depot or Lowe’s version
• Firemen’s pole – 10 foot electrical conduit from Lowe’s…sweet!
• Cargo net – Military surplus cargo net for trucks…way cheaper than rope versions and has tie-downs that can go around the tree.

It is pretty much as I envisioned it. Which is to say that like Pop’s slide, this could be the most impressive structure I’ve ever laid eyes on.

Long live handcrafted awesomeness. Even if the mental version is slightly more grandiose than the real thing.

Well, add this 9 year old philosopher to the list. This dude is super rad! He rattles off some serious answers to some of life’s most serious questions. And he’s ONLY 9!

I feel like the Dude could jam with this philosopher…until my brain started to hurt.

• Why are we on earth?
• What’s our place in the universe?
• Is there life elsewhere in that universe, or, for that matter, do we live in a multiverse?
• What’s the meaning of life?
• And, finally, might our life be predestined — all scripted out for us in advance?

Oh, no sweat, just let a 9 year old answer that for you…

Click here to view the embedded video.

PS – Isn’t it amazing how little we actually know?

Hat tip Open Culture.

Small tricks make a big difference. It makes me wonder how many other fantastic tricks I’m missing.

Here’s a great post from TheArtOfManliness.com about wrapping your extension cords. Awesome.

I’m always wrastling with tangles. I’m the typical throw it around your elbow and wrap. Not any more.

This slip knot approach looks sweet.

www.ArtOfManliness.com

Although, I will say there’s some chatter in the comments about life of extension cord, yadda, yadda, yadda. I clicked through to another suggestion, and there is a cool “over, under” method that is pretty rad too.

Happy wrapping.

Over, Under Method:

Click here to view the embedded video.

It seemed destined to fail. And it almost did. Until the UFC had an amazing resurgence in the early 2000′s.

New money, new rules, and a new generation of athletes.

As the UFC was gaining some renewed traction, one of my BFF’s decided to hop in the ring with pretty much no experience. The next seven years saw a pretty wild ride from bar stool critic to Las Vegas fight nights and national TV.

Lucky for the Dude, Alex “T-Rex” Karalexis took me along for many of the celebrity filled rides. Movie premiers, dinner with UFC champs, Las Vegas penthouse parties. Interesting times.

I’d much rather be hanging with the fam these days, but it was nice to see how the other half live.

Alex has moved on from throwing punches for a living, and he is now helping run Jared  Allen’s Foundation for Wounded Warriors. But living vicariously through Alex for a few years has carved out a small spot in my heart for MMA and the UFC.

I stumbled across the below MMA video today, and it grabbed the Dude. I started watching out of respect for my Red Bull fueled UFC nights, but by the end, I was laughing at myself as tears rolled down my cheeks.

Mrs. Dude often refers to me as the Cave Man. How often does the Cave Man tear up? Not often. But this dude is pretty rad.

Garrett “G-Money” Holeve has down syndrome. He is also an MMA fighter.

That is a crazy combination. At first glance, it seems questionable. But to see the confidence that Garrett has in himself is inspirational.

Most of us sell ourselves short on a regular basis. We underestimate our abilities or we don’t push to reach full potentials.

Then someone like Garrett comes along and reminds us how totally awesome we ALL are.

This is definitely worth 13 minutes of your time. Garret “G-Money” Holeve whoops down syndrome MMA style…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Hat tip Ross Training.

Mr. T. – Treat Your Mother Right

Well, what do ya know?! The Dude has returned.

It’s been almost four months, but the Dude is back. More on my hiatus later. For now, I’d like to wish all the Mama Bears a happy Mother’s Day.

Moms, we couldn’t be here without you. Literally. Without your ovaries, placenta, and the rest of your female bits and pieces, we would ALL be lacking a key part of existence…existence.

So, thank you very much for giving us life and putting up with all of our shiat (figuratively & literally)  for oh so long.

We LOVE you.

But don’t just take my word for it. The Dude has recruited two of his fav compadres – Mr. T & Kid President – to spread the Mother’s Day love.

Kick your feet up, smell the flowers, and relax. You deserve it.

And while your at it, soak in the sage advice of Mr. T and Kid President…

Mr. T – Treat Your Mother Right: Classic 80′s right here. Love it! Mr. T, you will always hold a special spot in the Dude’s heart.

Click here to view the embedded video.

An Open Letter to Moms from Kid President: The Kid does IT again. El Nino Presidente rocks. Always a hit in the Dude’s book, and this is some great lovin’ for the Moms in the audience.

Click here to view the embedded video.

A quick glance up, and you realize quickly how small we are and how little we know.

Mi padre was a stargazer and took the time to share constellations and rad stellar events as we were growing up. NASA was also a big deal for a long time (what happened to that?!), so space was a regular topic of discussion.

It seems the allure of space has faded a bit these days. Perhaps because our heads are stuck looking down at technology so much.

But space still dazzles the Dude. I love to gaze up at the stars and point out constellations to the kiddos. It doesn’t get much better than a fire-pit  a few brews, and some gazing towards the heavens.

With that in mind, let’s take a few minutos to enjoy some space…

Google Presents an Interactive Visualization of 100,000 Stars: Google may be spying on our every move, but they sure do offer some cool tricks. 

 One Hundred Thousand Stars  is an interactive map of space including the locations of—you guessed it—more than 100,000 stars. (Note: Before you experience the map, you will need to download the Chrome browser.)

Read the full description at OpenCulture.com. It’s worth the read…space is crazy cool!

Click here to view the embedded video.

An Astronaut Self-portrait: How cool is this?!

This awe-inspiring self portrait brings into one frame “the Sun, the Earth, two portions of a robotic arm, an astronaut’s spacesuit, the deep darkness of space, and the unusual camera taking the picture.” – Hat tip to OpenCulture.com.

Astronaut Self-portrait

The Universe & a Brain: And if that wasn’t enough space radness, it seems the Universe is growing like a giant brain. Nature is awesome.

A team of scientists from University of California San Diego recently published a study in Nature Scientific Reports suggesting that the bioelectrical firings between brain cells mirror the shape of expanding galaxies. – Gracias RealitySandwich.com

The Dude

I’ve professed my love for The Big Lebowski in the past.

The Dude abides. And that’s a nice way to live life.

I’m always excited to come across something Lebowski related, and this week I was blessed with three Dude sightings in my online travels.

A bit of a Big Lebowski Buffet to share with you…

1. An Esoteric Take on The Big Lebowski

This article gives a nice, quick history of The Big Lebowski, and digs into what makes The Dude so great – in this Dude’s humble opinion any way – The Dude’s approach to life.

The spiritual, philosophical, or esoteric undertone of The Big Lebowski that is oh so groovy. This is the idea behind Dudeism – by the way, I’m ordained.

Here’s a taste of what the article offers about The Dude’s groovyness…

• [N]othing seems to phase the Dude. Yes, he gets angry (to the point that Walter tells him: “Come on. You’re being very unDude.”), swears constantly, and talks back to Walter and many other unreasonable people who seem to surround him like mosquitoes, but soon he will be stirring himself another White Russian, or will have a smoke, or relax in a warm bath.
• Occasionally he resorts to the gentle movements of Tai chi to keep stress at bay. Like a mystic, he focuses on the big picture. Better yet, like a true mystic, he doesn’t focus at all.
• There is something transcendental about this: the Dude rises above all circumstances.
• Dudeism: Much has been made of Dudeism, a philosophy of life inspired by the Dude. But there’s nothing new in this, as he seems to belong in the great stream of Philosophia Perennis which, down the millennia, has produced strikingly similar concepts even if expressed in different ways and from different cultures and ages. And in fact the proponents of Dudeism cite Lao Tzu, Epicurus, Heraclitus, the Buddha, and the pre-ecclesiastical Jesus Christ as examples of ancient Dudeist prophets.

The Dude and the Zen Master

2.  The Dude and the Zen Master

Is Jeff Bridges The Dude in real life? He just might be. Here’s a new book with Bridges and his Zen Master/friend Bernie Glassman – The Dude and the Zen Master. I’m sure there are some rad thoughts on life tucked away in here.

3. The Big Lebowski Explains the Fiscal Cliff

In my opinion, the “Fiscal Cliff” is a joke. The US/world is definitely facing a massive fiscal cliff – probably a wide variety fiscal cliffs – the political/media charade that we’ve watched promoted over the past few weeks hardly addresses the BIG issues.

But thank the holiest of holy that the great politicians saved the day at the last minute on New Year’s Day! Just like a Hollywood movie. Hmmm.

However, with the out of the way, here’s a quick use of The Big Lebowski to try to explain what went down in Washington as politicians continue to convince themselves they are saving the world while they are actually steering towards the ice berg that is “dead ahead.” And any reason to share The Dude is good with the Dude.

PS – Here’s one of my fav jams – 75 & Sunny from Boston native Ryan Montbleu – that I was grooving to while slapping away at the keys this morning. Great vibe for a Saturday morning contemplating The Dude.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Hello 2013!

The year of the Dude?! Fo sho. We expect big things every year.

Although, 2013 is most definitely going to get off to a fantastic start. The newest addition to the Dude Clan did not make an appearance during the holidays – although we were pretty darn sure we were close a couple times. So, we’ve crossed into a new month and a new year.

The Dude can only nest so much. I don’t think the house can get any cleaner. So, we’re just relaxing and waiting for the bambino to decide it’s (he or she?!) ready to say hi. Apparently there’s some cooking left to be done. No rush, baby, no rush.

I’m generally not much for New Year’s resolutions. I’m of the mindset that if you want to get ‘er done, then get ‘er done. We don’t need no stinkin’ resolutions.

However, we’ve had some time to kill, and I’ve come across some nice thoughts in my online travels, so here are some New Year’s thoughts – not resolutions – I’ll share with y’all…

Carpe Diem 
I subscribe to an online magazine called Bearings – “A Southern Lifestyle Magazine for Men.” It’s pretty great – food, music, fashion, drinks. I highly recommend it. They sent along a great end of the year message, and since you’re not a subscriber – yet, I thought I’d share a piece of their great message…

Seize the Day –  We are living bridges between who we were yesterday and who we can become, but the difference between the masterful and the mundane life is whether we make the most of the here and now. While some languish in their ode to past failures and others give up on their becoming because tomorrow never arrives, may we seize the day – purposefully living with the time, people and resources we have today.

Resolutions?!
Like I said, I’m not much of the resolution type, however, this is a pretty great list of 12 Powerful Resolutions You Should Make Every Year. Although, these feel like great life lessons more than fleeting resolutions.

I just started following this cat, but I’m digging what he’s laying down. I’ll let you click over to see the full list, but here are a couple good examples…

5.  Focus on solutions.

Life gets better when you choose to make it so.  Negative people make lots of noise about how bad things are, while positive people quietly and steadily improve things.

There are always problems, there are always challenges, and there are always people willing to transform those problems and challenges into great opportunities.  Those who have the courage, commitment and discipline to do so, create a better life for everyone.  Be one of these people.  Focus on solutions and work your way eagerly toward a brighter future.

9.  Set a good example.

It’s not about what you say; it’s about how you live your life every day.  The people who look up to you are watching you all the time.  These people are like sponges – what they see or feel you do, they will imitate.  So remember that your words mean a lot less than what you’re doing.  Choose to believe that you can and will change lives with what you do each day, and you will.

Let your actions speak for themselves.

Life Lessons
Speaking of life lessons, here’s a good list of 50 important pieces of advice that people usually aren’t told. Day 1 of a new year – a great time to soak up some great pieces of advice. Click on over for the full list, but here are a few of the Dude’s favs…

•  Don’t lie to yourself.
• Wealth is measured by your happiness and not by your financial statement.
• Nobody has it all figured out.
• Take your time.
• Make mistakes – and LOTS of them!
• Stop thinking so much and act.
• Swallow your pride and apologize.
• The grass is only greener where you water it.
• You and you alone control how happy you allow yourself to be.
• Be present here and now. You are lucky. Your life is a gift. Realize it.

Here’s to an awesome 2013! Keep on keepin’ on.

PS – Here are 10 great inspirational manifestos if you need a little added motivation.

The mass of information available to us on a daily basis can be a bit mind-numbing. However, with the right focus – or flow – the plethora of info at our fingertips can be liberating.

Information has the potential to create knowledge. And knowledge leads to power.

Although, on the flip side, the more wisdom you acquire, the more you realize how little you actually know. Life sure is a slippery slope.

Somewhere in the middle of life’s slippery slopes is a point of balance. A point where we can flow. Finding this balance is the challenge.

As I consume our daily cornucopia of information, I am constantly categorizing and filing information into areas of my life where my flow can be drawn into a tighter focus.

My flow is constantly flowing. Shifting focus. Moving in new directions. Experimenting.

And sometimes this flow sends me off the reservation into areas that may seem extreme and buck the commonly held beliefs, knowledge, and/or dogma.

In my view, going rogue is a good thing (BTW, www.RogueFitness.com is a great site for fitness equipment ). Moving off the reservation generally leads to the potential for big rewards. Group-think often does a great job of holding us back.

Don’t worry about what anyone else has to say or thinks of your decisions. The only person that can take care of you, is you.

Self reliance.

“Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.” – Thoreau

I’m doing my best to use the information superhighway that dangles at our fingertips to build a strong foundation of self reliance.

As my self reliance foundation grows, it develops a feedback loop that perpetuates my belief that a hefty dose of self reliance would do wonders for our collective conscious as well.

Do “authorities” really have all the answers? Probably Definitely not. Find the answers yourself.

This post could meander in a wide variety of directions…just like the Dude’s Flow. It will definitely create jump-off points for future posts. But for now, I’m going to try to keep the focus relatively tight.

I’m going to open the Dude’s skull and take a gander at where the Dude’s health is flowing these days.

A bunch of links, a few comments here and there, perhaps a tangent or two, and most definitely a trip off the reservation for anyone clinging to the status quo for their health knowledge.

More to come as the flow flows, but for now, let’s dive in….

…after a couple quotes and one of the Dude’s fav jams to get us primed…

“All of our life is nothing but a mass of habits.” - William James

“What you give your love , you give your life.” – Mumford Sons

Be careful with the habits you choose. You’re the only one that can take care of you…

And don’t be afraid to change…

Blind Melon: Change

Click here to view the embedded video.

Dude’s Timeline: A quick timeline to offer a bit of perspective on where the Dude is coming from…

• High school and college: Ate anything in sight and worked out consistently for athletics.
  • Graduated high school at 165 lbs.
• College+: Working out for athletics morphed into working out for size. I realized the crucial ingredient of diet – mainly protein = muscles.
  • By 25, I tipped the scales at 235. It was eye opening to see how much I could control my body with a conscious focus on eating and lifting heavy weights. But I wasn’t healthy.
• 25+: I reduced my processed food intake, drastically limited my salt intake (Does salt really effect high blood pressure as much as “they” say? Probably not.), and overall focused on fresh, whole foods – including whole grains.
  • Dropped down to about 195 pounds.
• 34 – today: I’ve jumped on the primal/paleo bandwagon big time.
  • I’m maintaining at about 185 pounds with a very streamlined workout regimine, the cleanest diet I’ve ever eaten, and some “wacky” dietary practices – including intermittant fasting and butter in my coffee!

Dude’s Workout

• I’ve already shared a down and dirty of my workout. It’s evolved and morphed a bit over the past few months, but that post is still very relevant. I won’t reinvent the workout post here. But there will be more to discuss down the road.
• Although, I will highlight a point I made in that post. Diet is 80% (maybe more) of your overall health and physical fitness. You should pay close attention to what you put in your body and make conscious/educated decisions.

Status Quo:

• I’m not going to spend much time dissecting the misguided health information the status quo has perpetuated through the years, in this particular post. However, I do want to point out a very interesting statistic/article I recently came across. Are you aware that medical care is the 3rd leading cause of death in the US! Wow. 
• Should we add to this stat the fact that The Man – big med, big pharma, big govt – is also the source of questionable dietary and health guidelines? I wonder how many deaths result from poor guidance? 
• Question authority; build self reliance. 

Paleo/Primal

•  At the bottom of the post is a great infographic that covers the Peleo lifestyle very well.
• Think in terms of lifestyle, not diet.  Flow = lifestyle, not quick fixes.
• Paleo, or Primal, is gaining in popularity these days, and as a result, there is a lot of good info/opinions online. However, my advise is start with Mark’s Daily Apple and build from there. No need to get overwhelmed, Mark Sisson has the direction you need to get rolling.
• A few highlights
  • Stay away from grains – yes, including whole grains. No bueno.
  • Check out this Dr./Author – Wheat Belly.
  • Figure out how to get grass-fed meats, dairy, etc. Grass-fed makes a significant difference. The industrial food production system is muy no bueno.
  • Go barefoot.
  • Get dirty.
  • Soak up the sun.
  • Play.

Bulletproof

•  Paleo is most definitely divergent from the mainstream, but now we’re headed way off the reservation – The Bulletproof Executive.
• Dave Asprey is Silicon Valley executive who has turned his diligent business perspective on his health. He considers himself a “bio-hacker.” He researches and experiments with himself to find the most efficient and effective methods to obtain optimal health and well-being. He has some pretty rad ideas – diet, supplements, sleep, mindfulness.
• In the end, Dave’s research has led him to a diet/lifestyle very similar to Paleo, however, Dave kicks it up a notch in a few ways.
• For one, the Bulletproof lifestyle focuses on reducing toxins – mycotoxins…mold. Apparently there is a huge amount of mold – i.e. mycotoxins – in the food we eat.
• Bulletproof also focuses very heavily on consuming good fats. Paleo does as well, but Dave takes this to a new level…and the results are very impressive.
• Let’s get crazy with some Bulletproof coffee - remember, the right fat is VERY beneficial.
  • High quality coffee (single origin, wet processed) + grass-fed butter + MCT oil + vanilla = an amazing breakfast.
  • No carbs + high fat = ketosis.
  • High energy and a fat burning machine.
• FYI – I’ve grown to love great coffee, but I’m more of a green tea kinda dude (stay tuned for a green tea post). I’ve tested butter and MCT oil in green tea, and it’s pretty darn good.

Intermittent Fasting

• If you told me a year ago that I would be substituting my breakfast for coffee with butter and not eating until 1 or 2 PM on many days, I would not have believed it. Yet, here I am doing just that on most days of the week.
• Along with Paleo, intermittent fasting has grown in popularity recently, so there is a large amount of info out there. Here’s what Mark’s Daily Apple has to say about IF.
• Bulletproof coffee takes IF to a new level because you’re not really fasting, but you are creating a perfect environment for ketosis – i.e. burn fat for energy.

Carb Back-Loading

• Continuing waaay off the reservation…carb back-loading. How about saving your carbs for night?
• Here’s a Master’s Degree physicist turned health/fitness guru that has developed an amazingly successful protocol for consuming carbs backasswards from the beliefs perpetuated by the people in the “know.”
• 7 reasons you need junk carbs at night…

Mobility

• Before we meander back to the reservation, let’s wander back to the physical rather than the dietary for a final piece of the Dude’s healthy flow. Mobility.
• The idea of “mobility” wasn’t even on my radar until the passed year or so, and now it’s a daily activity.
• Our bodies are in rough shape. We may not know it because we mask the pain and/or grow accustom to it, but physical activity wears you down and creates all sorts of hidden damage.
• The awareness and exercises I get from MobilityWOD are amazing.
• You need to stretch and you absolutely need to “smash” your muscles, connective tissues, etc. with massage on a regular basis.
• This is a very rewarding process because your body feels great when your bits and pieces are working well. However, it’s far from easy…and it hurts. In fact, things may get worse before they get better.
• Mobility as a metaphor for life? You’ll be amazed by how much is connected. A mangled muscle in your lower back will lead you “up and down stream” from issues in your legs to issues through your neck. It’s amazing.

Whew, that’s enough for now. I think about the Dude’s health/lifestyle flow everyday, and even my head hurts trying to wrap itself around what seem like crazy ideas. But crazy is all about perspective.  Crazy comes from many moons of poor guidance.

Self reliance is our ticket to the truth, regardless of what may seem crazy to some…most. Don’t be afraid to travel off the reservation…there’s some great scenery out here.

Bonus: Here are a couple great examples of practical use of some of the above ideas by Dr.’s…

1. Dr. Terry Wahls defeats her MS with diet…not drugs!?

   Click here to view the embedded video.

2.  Dr. Mary Newport helps defeat her husband’s Alzheimer’s with coconut oil and a ketogenic diet?!

Paleo Infrographic

Mrs. Dude has gone from, “we better make it passed Christmas,” to “this baby is coming soon!”

I’m not really sure what that means, but my guess is the baby will be coming soon.

We all prepare for life’s milestones differently. The Dude? He packs up Little Dude and hits Walmart to torture himself purchase a bunch of unnecessary crapola and organize under the bathroom sink.

Seems logical. Organization under the bathroom sink = ready for baby? Ok.

I guess the Dude has been bitten by a bit of pre-bambino nesting.

Seriously. I Googled it. Dudes nest too.

See you soon baby.

Dude Nesting – Part 1 #walmartisthedevil

Dude Nesting – Part 2 #underbathroomsinkorganized=readyforbaby?