andy grayson

wisdom in surprising places

So I'm on a research trip to Denver and was surprised by these little cards in the SFO airport. They made me starting thinking that (1) the world needs more good quotes, and (2) there are surprisingly few brands who take the time -- or might have something worthwhile to offer -- to make a simple positive impact with a simple positive message. Dove is the one that comes first to mind.

Anyways, enjoy the wisdom.

bet you didn't know #9

Jimi Hendrix pretended to be gay to be discharged from the US Army.*

*wikipedia

eat this, lose weight

A recent article in Esquire -- well it was more like one of those interesting side columns for people with ADD (not to even mention the fact that magazines themselves are for people with ADD who are avoiding books. I digress.) -- focused on making a few small changes in your diet that would, after a year, add up to about 40 lbs. lost from that body you're not so jazzed about. 40 frickin' pounds people. Here's the rundown:

Coke (one per day) to Diet Coke, saves 51,000 calories (annually) resulting in 14.5 lbs. lost in one year.

Deep-dish cheese pizza (two slices a week) to thin-crust cheese pizza, saves 8,320 calories resulting in 2.5 lbs. lost over the course of a year.

Now that you get the drift...

Butter on your bagel (3 per week) to fruit preserves or jam, 14,976 cals = 4 lbs.

Mayo on 3 sandwiches per week to mustard, 13,260 cals = 4 lbs.

Omlettes to egg-white omlettes, 12,272 cals = 3.5 lbs.

Bacon (3 slices per week) to turkey bacon, 15,756 cals. = 4.5 lbs.

Regular domestic beer (six pack a week) to light beer, 14, 664 cals. = 4 lbs.

2 burgers a week to turkey burgers, 10, 816 cals. = 3 lbs.

All of that together is a whopping 40 lbs. for the year. Makes it easy to want to change something, huh? I could do everything but beer. I just don't have the willpower. Plus, sometimes ordering a light beer makes you look like such a wuss.

I think this type of dieting is going to catch on. I already saw a segment on Oprah (wife was watching it, I swear to God) that covered a new diet called The ChangeOne Diet. Basically over 3 months you change one small thing a week. So 90 days later, you're a changed eater. Seems a lot smarter than eating bacon, eggs, and burgers without the bun for a year. Gross. You're a dirty, demented man Mr. Atkins.

Oh, by the way, credit for the above plan in Esquire goes to Chris Carmichael, Lance Armstrong's personal coach, from his book Chris Carmichael's Fitness Cookbook ($24).

bet you didn't know #8

When faced with  danger, an octopus can wrap six of its legs around its head to disguise itself as a fallen coconut shell and escape by walking backwards on the other two legs, scientists discovered.*

*msnbc

the start of something new

Yesterday was my first day at Goodby. I'm loving it. My new email is.. andy_grayson@gspsf.com. Send me a note and say hey.