blink

so i just finished reading Blink by Malcolm Gladwell. i picked it up randomly off of my friend's bookshelf while i was in maui. i identified it as something i've been wanting to read but the ultimate test for me always comes when i read the first few pages, if it grabs me, it's on! but if not, it'll go back on the shelf. yes, i am a fickle book reader. my bad yo.

but this book did grab me, mostly because it was about psychology and human behavior and i love analysis, i find it all terribly intriguing. however the best part was that it was written in a very approachable manner, not in highfalutin' psychobabble that would have lost me at hello. i'm smart but not that smart. ha.

in any case, i identify with this book because it's about how people make decisions whether it's a snap judgement or a well-thought out processed decision. the jist is that we humans have demonstrated repeatedly (of late) that we don't trust our gut instincts enough. it seems that Gladwell's opinion is that in the end only you know whether to trust your gut or whether you need more evidence. apparently the majority of the time we're flooded with information that only clouds our efforts at judgement. it seems, at times, the less information the better. he use examples of battles during times of war comparing leaders that had vast amounts of intelligence at their disposal vs. others that didn't. the leaders that didn't were forced to trust their instincts and they were usually the ones that won the battle. of course, i'm majorly oversimplifying Gladwell's writing and doubt i'm doing it the justice it deserves but my main attraction to it is that he's calling us to action. not to just be content to sit and evaluate things given all the data that is available to us in this age of technology. to me, he's saying that we as humans are losing our instincts because we're increasingly clouded by information. it's not to say that information is bad, not at all, we just have to be able to figure out what's useful, what's not, and when enough is enough. there are scenarios when computers will repeatedly trump human intellect in frequency and accuracy and hence the beauty of modern technology but there are also a multitude of situations where only our instinct and gut will help us and generally these are the ones that require split second reactions. Gladwell uses examples of studies done on policework, randomized studies, but the most interesting of all (and also the most brilliant in it's simplicity) is one about how orchestras choose new musicians.

apparently, once upon a time, people just came and tried out for specific instruments. makes sense right? but then randomly an orchestra in Germany decided to hold blind auditions which means that the classical musicians tried out behind a screen so the only thing they could be evaluated on was pure skill. so when the maestro of this orchestra heard a particular musician play and say, this is the one, this is the one. do you think he was surprised when the musician came out behind the screen and it was...a woman? absolutely. as is the case in so many things, women were discriminated against in this particular industry. it was thought that women just couldn't play certain, more masculine, instruments properly, they just didn't have the physical capacity or whatever other reason men of the time could come up with. but here, there was irrefutable evidence that a woman could indeed play as well as a man and so eventually (and remember i'm greatly simplifying this) now 50% of orchestras audition blindly. how awesome is that? a problem was identified and instead of organizing some mass method of inquiry/study/investigation someone thought, why not just make it the industry standard to have blind auditions? because in the end, all that matters is the music right? so Gladwell's point in the end, in my opinion, was that if we could return to that kind of thought that's more...simple, simplistic, basic, elementary...many of the issues that we as a society face right now could possibly be solved. again, i recognize that many of the problems of the world are complex but just because they are complex does that mean there's no simple solution?

if i had to sum up this book briefly i'd say that he's urging us to go back to our instincts, a tool we've been equipped with probably since the beginning of time now dulled by lack of confidence in humans over machines and a deluge of information. if you know me, you'd know by now why i like this book. it has been a process but i've gradually learned to trust my gut because it has been proven to me over and over again that it's usually right. i've allowed myself to be open to and at least consider the opportunities that come my way. and luckily i can say that 95% of the time it's turned out phenomenally. listen to your instincts and you'll know when to go, stop, and/or pause. have faith and patience that the universe is not out to destroy you. half full people, half full.

skydiving

it all started out on a girls night at C's house.

L said, 'hey i'm going skydiving for my birthday.'
i say, 'hey, i've been wanting to go again.'
L: 'you wanna go? my friend's mom is an avid skydiver and she's hooking me up."
B: 'sure, i'm in!
L: 'anyone else? lets all go.'

and that's pretty much how it came to be that 5 girls drove to connecticut on 4/26 to jump out of a plane...

but there's really nothing like it which makes it somewhat hard to describe when people ask, "well how was it?" actually i find that a hard question to answer in general. it's so broad, where does one begin?

lemme try.
picture it:

i jump into a suit that makes me look like a mechanic, 'give me a wrench C!'

getting on the plane you wonder what the hell you're doing and why. the further up you climb, the smaller objects on the ground seem, the more you think about your life and things you've yet to do. though i will say that there are worse ways to go then while skydiving. i thought about how lucky i am to have done as much as i have thus far. but as we climb to 4,000 ft and the 'funjumper' went out and was swept away abruptly by the atmosphere...THAT'S when the real fear kicks in and you want to cry 'mommy' and get back on the ground which, of course, isn't possible (at least not for someone with as much pride as me, if i go skydiving, i'm skydiving). when you watch someone else fall out of a plane and get taken away by the wind, it's not something you forget. my feet and legs start to tingle with a combination of general discomfort from my sitting position, fear, and more fear. i also thought i'd lose my sneakers in the air and kill some unfortunate person down below. i hold on to the hand grip with my right hand envisioning some grave mishap where i just fall out of the plane by accident and tried to look away from the open door, just a few feet in front of me on my left as the plane climbed higher and higher. "we'll be up in another 5 minutes," he says. and i thought, 5 minutes is an eternity, get me out now! luckily, my tandem, Mike has almost 7500 jumps under his belt and knows how to distract newbie jumpers. he pointed out the sights, "hey, there's UConn, there's Springfield, Mass., there's Harftord, and on a clear day you can see Manhattan." i say a combination of, "wow, that's cool, wow, awesome, so cool," in an effort to SEEM calm because god forbid I show fear. i even tried asking questions. my hands are clamming up and it's cold but we finally get to 10,500ft and move ourselves toward the door, i have to toss my legs over and the wind takes them to the right. i think my heart is about to jump out of my chest. he makes some final adjustments on the straps, i feel like my breath is being taken away (cue the song) and out we go. i do my best to keep my back arched and legs back as we practiced. but i don't really think i breathed at all during the free fall, the wind was hitting my face, i felt it contorting, my mind was racing at the speed of the free fall (about 140 mph i think)if not faster but it moved so quickly i had no idea what thoughts they were. i don't even recall seeing anything. mike said that i should look up and try to find the plane in my vision to get a sense of how quickly we were falling away but i couldn't. and then it was over, the parachute came out, i don't think i even had time to scream/yell. (the first time i jumped, in Interlaken, i distinctly remember yelling for most of the free fall.) after we started floating around that i start yelling a combination of, "ahhhhh! that's awesome! ahhhh! wooohooo! ahhhhh!" mike asks me how i feel and i say it was great. we do a few intense spins and twirls, he lets me steer a bit and a few minutes later we get back to solid ground. i don't know if this is the case for most people who skydive but for me, it's the anticipation, the flight up, and the free fall that make it all worthwhile.

i find myself to be a fairly calm and mellow person and perhaps that's why i like to do things that stimulate my senses. the added bonus was how this entire event came to be.i mean, it's not like we're all best friends from elementary school who made a pact to do this at a certain age. it was completely random.

now, i have a feeling girls night will be an institution to be reckoned with.

whats up party people?

tomorrow i will jump out of an airplane. what, you say? Barb you're crazy. why would you want to do that?

because it's fun dammit. the fear, rush, and adrenaline of jumping out of a plane is unparalleled. UNPARALLELED. it's only about 45 seconds but it may just be the best 45 seconds after you-know-what (hint, it starts with an 's' and ends with an 'x'). but plenty of people think i'm crazy already, might as well support the rep right?

in other news, as of 5pm today i am once again professionally unemployed. never fear dear fans, i'm a-okay, my freelance gig was up. time to find another that's all. plus the weather couldn't be more perfect for some time off. you say, but Barb you just went to Maui why do you need time off? you'd be right to ask but i'm also young and time's a wastin' if you ask me. i gotta see see see what's out there. so as i mentioned in my last post, i think i really may do that road trip down the east coast. if you've got a buddy, grandmother, candlestick maker friend that needs some Bahooba! in their life, lemme know.

of course, i also need to be rational and practical so if ya'll hear whisperings of any web editor positions, do pass them along. Bahooba! would really appreciate it. though considering i've been referring to myself in the 3rd person and also plan on jumping out of an airplane tomorrow, future employers may consider me clinically insane but hey, can't hurt putting it out there right?

in any case, that's the latest with me. oh wait, that's a lie, i've also been catching up on music and as expected, Madge's album doesn't live up to the Confessions legacy. boo.

anyway, if ya'll are so inclined, i'll be around so feel free to give me a call so we can hang out bc as of now, i'm a professionally unemployed two-hand touch football player so i've got some time.

because everything happens for a reason,

barbara aka wanderlust huber

Lately

I just spent a week in Maui, completely unplanned and I have to say it was quite fantastical. the sheer variety of flora and fauna that exists there (and that I'd never seen elsewhere) is spectacular. The colors were vivid. The weather was hot but not too humid. we stayed in a fully equipped 7 bdrm beachfront house. i mean, what else could you ask for? admittedly, i snuck in on this trip. i got a last minute invite and made it happen. but i'm really glad i made it. i learned to kayak and kinda love it. i jogged barefoot on the beach and kinda loved that too. i mean, these are the things i never really got to do as a city kid that never went to camp so it was nice. i'm glad i can get to do these things now. oh, and i'm skydiving on the 26th for the second time. it's so very exciting.

in other news, my current permalance gig is coming to an end in less than two weeks and i think it might be fun to drive down the east coast and just stop wherever we like. that way, we wont have to deal with flights, which are all a complete mess right now, and we can go at our leisure. i've not really explored this country as much as i have the rest of the world so perhaps it's time.