Its is quite amazing how you can start your day in the usual way and then have it change dramatically.  I started today “blog surfing” – which is not uncommon for me. I saw a post titled; “Lessons for a Successful Life“. The blogger made a compelling case for spending the next 90 minutes watching a professor from Carnegie-Mellon University give a lecture talk. He was so right. Click on the image to watch and listen. (Alternate link here.) If you are still not ready to give 90 minutes, then watch this “brief“. It does not begin to convey the messages of full lecture but perhaps it will change your mind toward watching the full length talk.

If you have an iPod and will have 90 minutes stuck on a train, a plane, or the passenger seat of an automobile, you can  also download the video.

It’s a bit ironic (and fortunate) that I should come across both the post and the video. I will not pontificate on the lecture. Randy Pausch writes it better; “I am glad this lecture has been received so well. It really was for my kids …”

As part of selling the house and “downsizing” I gave my old canister vacuum to me neighbors for their barn. It was partly an excuse to finally get the vacuum cleaner I’ve always wanted. This last statement should set of all sorts of alarms. There actually is a vacuum cleaner I’ve have coveted for more than 20 years …

when I was in college, I saw the cleaning crew with these vacuum cleaners they wore like backpacks. they were very effective and weighed very little. Rather than have a huge hose like a central vac system, these had 50′ cords. I tried one out to clean my dorm room once and it was unbelievable – great suction, light weight, and easy to move around. In comparison, my best canister vacuum had decent suction, was a PITA to drag around and the cord was never long enough.

There is a down side to the “backpack vac”. It works best on hard surfaces and on very short (aka industrial) carpet. For me, that is not much of a downside since my new place has all hardwood floors (linoleum in the kitchen and bath) and my new construction will be wood or tile everywhere.

It’s really easy to use and very comfortable. I can do the whole first floor in about 15 minutes (partly because of size but also the long cord and easy maneuvering means I lever have to stop from one end of the house to the other).