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Book Club: The Geography of Madness
Is PMS real? Can you die from voodoo? Is it possible for a man to have his penis stolen?
These things all seem real to people who experience them. But science can’t prove that they actually exist. These cultural syndromes “exists in a swirl of belief and expectancy and biology.”
Our business book club just finished reading a fascinating book: The Geography of Madness: Penis Thieves, Voodoo Death, and the Search for the Meaning of the World’s Strangest Syndromes by Frank Bures.
L to R: me, Steve Kamb, Ramit Sethi, Wayne Mulligan, and Derek Halpern.
In selecting this book, Ramit Sethi said:
I loved this book and it made me think differently. How many of our “diseases” are cultural? How many are in our head? What assumptions do we make? What else is cultural? What can we control and change? It was one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read. It’s also very different than the other books we’ve read in our book club.
Table of Contents
- Our Discussion Questions
- Discussion Questions from the Author, Frank Bures
- Selected Highlights
- More Information and Links
Cover of the book The Geography of Madness by Frank Bures
Havana, Cuba: My Pictures and Visit Notes
What comes to mind when you think about Cuba? For me now: Classic American cars. Empty grocery store shelves. Beautiful beaches. Delicious food. Long lines at the bank. Great people. Socialism. And embargoes.
I spent a long weekend in Havana, Cuba. I loved it.
Rachel and I are sun-kissed and happy at the beach in Havana, Cuba. This was actually within the city limits of Havana!
Click here or scroll down to read my 5 must-do suggestions in Havana.
I saw a totally new side of the city. My girlfriend’s childhood friend showed us around town.
Maile and Rachel after a day at the beach. They grew up together in Oregon. Now Maile is living in Havana doing research with the American Studies program at Yale University.
Here are my best photos and random observations.
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First Aid and CPR Workshop in NYC
My friend Danielle Strle invited me to join a First Aid and CPR workshop today in New York City.
It was five hours long and we each paid $105.
I’m glad that I went!
Find a class in your area here: Red Cross: CPR Classes in NYC
I learned many things such as:
- Yes, you can pump the chest to the song “Staying Alive.”
- You can also do it to the “Baby Shark” song.
- How to do CPR: 30 pumps, then 2 recovery breaths mouth-to-mouth (repeat)
- How to use an AED: that’s the defibrillator you see frequently now which can administer heart shocks to save someone from cardiac arrest!
- SAMPLE and FAST: acronyms in case of an emergency.
- How to use an EpiPen: stab it in someone’s leg if they go into anaphylactic shock.
Danielle Strle holding the AED with a test dummy
Goliathon Obstacle Course: Review and Pictures (2019)
I’m not very athletic. I don’t particularly enjoy these races. But if my friend Nina invites me to something, I’ll do it. She’s great and I like hanging out with her.
My friend Nina Simon invited me to compete in the Goliathon obstacle course race on 5 October 2019.
I invited my girlfriend Rachel to join us. We all did it (or most of it) together and it was fun!
Group photo! Rachel, me, and Nina at the start of Goliathon 2019 
Rachel and Nina at the Finish line for Goliathon 2019Jump to:
Car Buying Tips: How I Saved 14% And Bought a Car In 4 Days
This is a guest post by my friend Michael Galpert about his experience buying a used car in four days. Here’s what he did to save $4,618 on buying a used 2017 Honda CRV near San Francisco.
Michael Galpert and me at his wedding in California a few years ago, from my video at his wedding
Hi, I’m Michael. I live in San Francisco with my wife and two daughters.
My wife and I wanted to buy a car. We came across this listing on TrueCar we liked:
We wanted to see if we could get this car any lower. So we went to the dealership to ask.
I posted the following to Twitter while we were waiting at the Honda dealership:
Any tips on negotiating with a car dealership?
This is everything that I learned.
Hair Loss: What I’m Doing About It
I’m 37 years old now and the hair on the crown of my head is thinning.
I did some research, talked to experts, and started taking some medicine to mitigate future loss and instill new growth.
Here are the resources that were helpful to me and what I’m doing now.
My Hair Loss Plans And Next Steps
I spoke to a dermatologist, my doctor, asked a lot of friends, and then hired Bauman Medical from the below podcast to do a medical consult with me.
Medellin, Colombia: Travel Tips and Tricks
I spent about 10 days in Medellin with my girlfriend, Rachel, during July 2019. We found: the best local SIM card in Medellin was Avantel. The safest neighborhood was Poblado and my favorite coffee shop there was Pergamino. Our favorite tour was Comuna 13. We made a bunch of videos. And more!
See all the places we were recommended and (and some of which we liked) on this shared Google Map.
Freediving in Roatan
Roatan is famous for SCUBA. It is also home to an excellent freediving community.
Sean Naficy took these pictures of me one day as we were diving off the Grand Roatan Resort beach.
Check out his girlfriend’s Instagram @samunderthesea for more freediving pics.
Me chasing a little school of fish in Roatan, Honduras (July 2019)