Experiencing ADDvantages

For Your Distraction: Numb Nut

Spelling has never been one of my strong points. Spelling bees bore me. And televised spelling bees could be used against me as a torture device.

Unfortunately, my better half loves them.

A few months ago I wandered into the family room while she was watching the National Spelling Bee. And although I protested at first, I'm glad I walked in when I did, because I caught what might be the most awkward--and absolutely funniest--moment of any spelling bee ever.

Every now and then, I randomly remember this moment and crack up on the spot. Like last night, while we were seconds away from sleep. I remembered this poor kid and the perplexed look on his face, and I completely woke myself up (Erin, too) by laughing my ass off.

Enjoy...

For Your Distraction: Your Mother is a Cliche

Once again, I have a great site for you to distract yourself with today as you anxiously await the weekend. And this one is nothing less than brilliant.

Postcards From Yo Momma is a blog that has taught me a valuable lesson: my mother is a cliche.

Apparently, everyone's mother is overly anxious, ridiculously paranoid, and has trouble "learning the computer." See for yourself...

This could be my mother:

First Terri Schiavo, then Frank Purdue. They say it happens in threes-will the Pope be next? It doesn’t sound good for him.

Or this:

Look who finally learned the computer. Dad set me up email ACCOUNT AND ALSO SHOWED ME HOW TO GO ONLINE.I DON’T KNOW WHY EVERYTHING IS SUDDENLY WRITING BIG LIKE THIS, SO JUST IGNORE IT.

This, too:

tell me about face book.  do you have a page on it?  can anyone look at your page?  I am worried about this type of thing.

And definitely this:

Did you just try to reach me on my cell?  I tried to call you back at work but it was one of those weird busy signals — where it is immediately busy so you can assume something is wrong.

If you have some time to kill, check out Postcards From Yo Momma.

For Your Distraction: A Lost Theory

I'm highly distracted today because, well, it's just that kinda day! I've spent the last hour studying this incredible theory of the story that will be revealed on my absolute favorite obsession show, Lost.

Warning, only click through to that link if:

1. You live for Lost.
2. You have an hour to kill. (And I really do mean an hour to kill. If you're procrastinating on something important right now, save this distraction for another day!)
3. You actually want to read what could prove to be a major series spoiler.

If you meet the criteria above, then enjoy!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

For Your Distraction: Peep Show

From the vortex known as icanhascheezburger.

For Your Distraction: The Only Time I Have Ever Liked Jack Nicholson

This distraction is especially for you if you live in Texas or Ohio. Wink, wink!

Update: Read a rare interview with Jack Nicholson on why he's supporting Hillary Clinton.

For Your Distraction: garfield minus garfield

Ready for the weekend and feel like killing some time at work this afternoon? I have the perfect distraction for you.

When Erin told me about garfield minus garfield, I must admit that I thought it sounded ridiculous. Some guy takes the Garfield comic strip from the paper every day and photoshops Garfield out. The result is Garfield's doofy owner all by himself, and it is unbelievably funny. As the website says:

Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against lonliness in a quiet American suburb.

It seems that this is a fairly new website, with only a month of posts, so you won't lose too much time if you have a look. Be sure to check out my favorite post, from Feb 24.

For Your Distraction: Bitches Get Stuff Done

I love Tina Fey. And Hillary.

Josiah Leming Pulled One Over on American Idol

Okay, this has nothing to do with adult ADD, but I feel like blogging about it.

I don't watch American Idol. Sure I might catch some episodes when it gets down to a few people and everybody starts talking about it. But it's not on my regular viewing schedule of shows I tend to obsess over, like Lost (who the hell sent these new people?), The L-Word (yay Bette and Tina!), and Nip/Tuck (last week's episode when Christian "served up" his manhood was priceless).

I did happen to catch one American Idol show this week in which Josiah Leming performed Mika's "Grace Kelly." I instantly loved that kid. He did a great job with the song, had a nice personality, and he was a cutie to boot.

So I was very surprised today when I can across what seemed like a few hundred headlines about Josiah not making it to the final 24 Idol contestants. I decided to look him up and found his MySpace. It is filled with amazing demos of songs he wrote and performed himself. (I particularly enjoy "To Run.") They're really good...which leads me to believe that this kid is a genius.

I'm thinking he had a plan all along. Wow the judges, get lots of air time, and then purposely cause drama and screw up the final performance knowing you'll be booted. Pretend to cry a little, pretend that you'll have to go back to living in a car, and then shock the world when they Google you, find your MySpace, discover you're actually more talented than anyone on American Idol, and get signed to a major label.

American Idol contracts are notorious for screwing the artist, and so many of their careers never get off the ground, so why bother? Why not use the show to get publicity and then cash in with a better deal? Trust me, this kid knew what he was doing...and I love it!

I hope to hear you on the radio soon, Josiah.

What WON'T You Do To Get The Job Done?

I am a member of a business Mastermind Group. We're a small group of coaches and business people who meet weekly to check in with each other, ask questions, and set the goals we'd like to be held accountable for.

In last week's meeting, I complained that I was once again setting the same goal for myself that I had set the week before. Despite wanting to complete that goal very badly, I just couldn't find the time to get it done.

That's when fellow Masterminder Doug Emerson, aka The Profitable Horseman, asked one of the best coaching questions I've ever heard:

In order to reach your goal this week, what WON'T you do?

He knows me well...and I think he's gotten to know ADD well, too!

Asking me that one little question forced me to articulate exactly what was getting in the way of my progress. It will come as no surprise that I was allowing myself to follow distractions that were new and more interesting than my original goal.

Simply articulating this problem forced me to be aware of it, which allowed me to consciously avoid the distraction. This proved to be an excellent tool for achieving my short-term goal.

So let's take this out of the business context and move it into the general scope of ADD management. Let's use a common example of a short-term goal that adults with ADD frequently get tripped up on: financial management. (Substitute organization or running errands or any other goals that you have trouble meeting.)

Let's say you set a goal for yourself this weekend to manage your finances and balance your accounts. When you set out to do this, what usually gets in the way? These are the things you can commit to NOT doing when you set out to achieve your goal this weekend.

A great example of what might get in your way (not matter what your goal) is getting caught up in your computer or getting sucked into television. So before beginning to get to work this weekend, you can commit to NOT watching TV or turning on the computer until you've met your goal.

By making this commitment, you make yourself aware of potential pitfalls and plan to deal with them before they become problems. Deciding what NOT to do is an excellent way to avoid the typical distraction that keep you from getting the job done.

I'd love to hear your thoughts about this topic! What short term goals do you usually get tripped up on? What will you NOT do in order to achieve your goal? Please share your thoughts!

For Your Distraction: Happy Halloween

This funny and all-too-true Trick-or-Treating Guide is courtesy of CollegeHumor.

Where to go, and what to expect when you get there:

A. Shady Ponds Senior Community
- Werther’s
- Raisins
- Pennies
- Grapes that hold the distant promise of one day being raisins
- Obsolete candy from the '50s, i.e. Yessuh™ brand Darkies
- Husband’s ashes

B. Overenthusiastic A-Hole Lane
- Man who hides in bushes, waiting to pounce (rumored Vietnam vet)
- Self-proclaimed defender of the Halloween Spirit who refuses to give candy to kids without costumes, doesn’t count “Pillowcase Face”
- Man who dresses up as something inappropriately horrifying (past costumes include Late Stage Pancreatic Cancer Victim and Neo-Nazi)

C. Desperate To Be A Cool Dad Street
- Unguarded basket filled with King Size Snickers, marked “Take One Only Please”
- Guilt
- Two King Size Snickers bars crudely taped together and marked “Emperor Size” (this is the ultimate house, unless you really like steak)
- Steak. Succulent, freshly-grilled slabs of USDA Grade-A marinated London Broil
- Candy Cigarettes

D. Mom Told Us Not To Go Here Alley
- Real Cigarettes
- Cans of spray paint and keys to his ex-wife’s house
- Just about anything in exchange for a bottle of Jim Beam – living room chairs, light fixtures, credit cards. Note: Make sure you bring a bottle of Jim Beam
- Unguarded basket filled with unsheathed razorblades, marked “Take As Many As You Want”
- An actual axe murderer. Dangerous, but he gives out King Size Zagnuts (your call)

E. The Dentist
- Unprecedented amounts of candy
- His business card

F. The Guy Who Pretends Not To Be Home
- An unspoken agreement that his house will be toilet papered

G. The Inventor of Runts
- Apology

Enjoy your Halloween! (I'll be sitting on the stairs staring into a bowl of candy and reminding myself that it's for the kids, not for me.)