Can play an essential part in the maintenance of a balanced view of the world and ourselves. That is my revelation for today. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t something that needs to be physical, or even something done to us by another person, but its necessary for balance.

When things go well we are happy, we are comfortable, and we get lazy. Think about that job you have, remember how on the edge you were at the beginning, how hard you pushed yourself no only for your boss’ benefit, but for your own.

Fast forward a few years, things have gotten routine, boring, safe. You come in to work, have your coffee, read some email, surf the web, get some more coffee, etc. until your entire day has become nothing but another carbon copy of the last. Before you know it your weeks start to blur and without even realizing it — you feel dead inside, a husk of the worker you once were.

Or, you go down another equally destructive path… You become narcissistic, cocky, flippant. Your work begins to degrade but you can’t see past the golden glow of your own worth that you have constructed around yourself. You end up fucking up because of your own hubris and find yourself out on your ass without a job.

Congratulations, it turns out that you are not that delicate and rare orchid that inspires people to wipe your ass and worship the ground you walk on, rather you are a mere dandelion — easily replaced by someone better, smarter and less expensive who hasn’t lost his or her hunger to succeed that you once had.

So how can you remedy this situation that is starting to spiral out of control. Simple solution — Slap yourself mentally. Write a note to your future self telling the future you to stop being an ass. Do whatever it takes, employ whoever you can, but get that slap.

Hell, just bookmark this post. It might help you in the future when and if you need it, why do you think I wrote this after all? For you? Yeah.. that’s it.

This has been a pretty excited time for Brotherhood of the Bean, my Coffee product & culture blog. For a long time I have worked to develop it into a coffee resource that offers valuable product and culture insights. In truth it has been a lot of fun.

Some time ago I became aware of the 9rules blog network, from what I saw I knew it was the community for me. The problem was that thousands of others had the same idea. So I decided to sit back and enjoy the community while I waited for my application to be reviewed.

Along the way I found some of the most interesting people on the web, and with the newly available notes feature, I could communicate my thoughts with them. I thought it was pretty cool.

You can imagine my pride and excitement when I was invited to become a member. To have Brotherhood of the Bean recognized as being being of a high enough caliber for 9rules means a lot to me.

For those of you wondering what 9rules is all about:
9rules is a place where members and readers can connect, build relationships, gain exposure, learn new things, and have fun. 9rules started in 2003 with a set of 9 rules:

1. Love what you do.
2. Never stop learning.
3. Form works with function.
4. Simple is beautiful.
5. Work hard, play hard.
6. You get what you pay for.
7. When you talk, we listen.
8. Must constantly improve.
9. Respect your inspiration.

A slight correction, Borat was watched on Friday (Part 1), the new King Kong was watched on Saturday (Part 2), and I am just too lazy right now to go back and change my earlier posts. But I digress…

Cranky and cantankerous we awoke to yet another dreary day. After what had already been a whirlwind tour of all things Vermont, we decided to just take it easy. Now I myself consider kicking back on the couch with a block of cheese in my boxers taking it easy (Seinfeld reference for those who care). My friend Phlerb is the same way.

Our wives however have a slightly different idea of taking it easy. As we would soon learn our destination was the Echo Children’s Museum in Burlington. The exhibit currently in house was on dinosaurs, a classic topic that all kids seem to love so it at least had an entertainment factor built into it.

We started our day with another Jericho staple — breakfast at the local coffee shop (The Village Cup). I am coffee nut as many know, and I have to say they served a good cup — or should I say pint of coffee. In what I can safely say was the first time ever, I was served a latte in a pint glass. The latte foam reminded me of a Guinness head when served in a pint.

The coffee was hot, and that glass did little to hamper its inferno temperature. If I was eighty and in a McDonald’s and served it this way I would surely have dropped it in my lap and sued for millions. Why can’t I remember to do that?

After scarfing down a croissant sandwich we started out for Burlington. The Echo Museum turned out to be a really cool place. The kids just ate it up, they ooh’d and ahh’d and ran, and played for a few hours as we took in the museums sights and sounds. By now it was late afternoon and we decided to stop for lunch.

Easier said than done. Our first few attempts to find a restaurant came up bust — either out of business or just closed, we ended up happily at a little hole in the wall Chinese food place which had the best hand made crab ran goons I have had in a long time.

Heading home we kicked back and let the kids play for a while before Grandma Phlerb was to come over. I think we were all looking forward to a nice quiet night out without the kids. We decided to go to a restaurant called the Bearded Frog. It sounds like it would be a bar you would find in Key West, but in reality its cuisine is in fact fine dining.

From the moment we stepped into the car our minds were focused on one thing — calamari! We had our fill and more. I won’t bore you with details other than to tell you what I had (mainly so I don’t forget) — sesame crusted sliced tuna steak with wasabi infused potato salad. The tuna was rare with what I believe was a balsamic and cream sauce. It took every bit of willpower I had to not tear into it like a ravenous beast of some sort.

Settling in for the night we decided to do yet another day of hiking which should maker for some very interesting reading in Part 5. Until then …