Congratulations to the team over at EnerMax Inc! Their new design has just gone live. For an independent oil and gas company in the Dallas / Fort Worth area, they've done an excellent job of providing a deep site with rich content about oil and gas drilling, oil and gas development, oil and gas investment, and the future of the industry.

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If you find yourself glued to the set during CSI Miami, it has more to do with psychology than acting. Someone on the team learned about the psychological affects of colored light on the emotions, and has turned CSI into one psychotically refreshing show. Just to be clear, I don't watch the show. I have on occasion, however, turned off the volume and watched a few minutes just to catch the vivid colors.

CSI Miami is like no other show I've seen. Granted, there are other shows out there like your Law & Orders and House that always seem to portray business at night with cool glowing office lights, but CSI Miami takes color to a whole new level. Look at the otherworldly yellows, blues, and greens that are always displayed in the background of every headshot. Tell me that you don't somehow feel yourself in a better mood after watching, despite the fact that every show is about people being butchered by deranged lunatics and psychotic lovers.

Despite the grotesque, graphic nature of the show, people are addicted to it like crack. And they're addicted because the colors are so rich and vibrant that their eyes are getting high. It's like the sugar rush of a Dr. Pepper.

I cannot stand the show from a content and storyline basis, but even I must admit that the light filtering and colorization is uncannily effective. Someone is a genius.

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Here in Dallas, we're still in shock and recovering from the disappointment that is this year's Dallas Mavericks team. After the initial shock wore off, everyone in sports radio started asking the question: how did we ever expect this team to win a championship? And what will it take to get this team on the track we expected?

There's no doubt that Dallas needs a major change. Sure, we all think Dirk's a nice guy and he's great for regular season play. Yee-haw. That doesn't solve our woes. We need someone who will carry the team on their back when it counts.

We need someone like Tracy McGrady or Allen Iverson. AI is obviously not an option, but we need a player to come in and lead the team by example. Forget trying to pump up the players with speeches. Give them someone they can believe in who defies logic, and you'll have a championship team.

Of course, we've never had a championship in Dallas, so we're not really expecting the Mavericks to get it right for next year. We expect that the team is in the condition it's in because the leadership has terminal weaknesses.

Don't shrug it off and say that the Mavs just had a difficult matchup against the Warriors. Champions don't make excuses.

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As some of you know, Lennard Darbee was my grandfather. He had his flaws for sure, but his radio show and traveling healing ministry reached hundreds of thousands over the span of his lifetime.

I received the remaining print and audio materials from his ministry after he and my step grandmother both died. I am amazed by the paper saving abilities of that man! He wrote sermon notes on the back of every conceivable advertisement, napkin, church bulletin, and unused letter.

I've had these materials for eight years now, and it's time they were put to more efficient use. That's why I will be opening a new website to make streaming audio and/or downloadable versions of his radio sermons available to the public. It will take me some time to make them all available, seeing as there are hundreds of them.

A donation button will be located on the site. Please feel free to contribute whatever you feel is appropriate to assist me in the time and effort it will take to make these sermons and other materials available to the public.

Look for it soon at LennardDarbee.com!

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It's true... It's in the works. I announced this to my friends and family a few months ago on MySpace, but I thought I'd go ahead and mention it here. I've given myself until January of next year to complete this book, though God knows I'd love to finish early and start shopping it around.

The hardest part of writing a book is not the actual writing. Not even close. The hardest part of writing is narrowing down the topics to one final storyline or topic. There are so many possibilities. Some are only substantial enough to be short stories. Others require more life experience before the subjects are approached.

I'm not going to give away any details just yet. One must properly exercise the art of The Tease in order to woo the public. Or so I've heard. After a year and a half blogging here on CultureFeast, it was time to move to the next level. Blogging is nice, and I will continue to post my randomness here. It doesn't pay the bills, however, because I'm not OCD enough to blog 10 times a day on one topic in order to draw readers to click on my AdSense or other blog ads.

I'm excited about this venture because it is something I've talked about and toyed with these past ten years. I've even despaired to the point of eternal surrender upon realizing that I'd already lived longer than John Keats without a single shred of literary accomplishment to my name. Then again, I should be grateful for not dying at a young age, so there is that.

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If I had a dollar for every person I've met who has yet to grasp this concept, I'd be rich. Why do self-absorbed people never understand this simple lesson? I'm going to spell it out for you in simple English so you won't miss it this time:

Stop always talking about yourself!

Okay, now for some elaboration. You're not off the hook yet. This includes all of you who may not talk about yourself, but you're only interested in the conversation because someone else is talking about you. If they discuss themselves for very long at all, your mind wanders and you wish the conversation was over.

Here's a tip: Grow up!

Some people actually believe that they are very popular because the people they speak to are less selfish. Sorry, but you're somehow taking their kindness and unselfishness and assuming that they don't have a dozen other topics as interesting or more than you that they fail to mention. Well, if they have so much of importance to say, why do they always talk about me? Hmmm.... Well, the obvious reason is that you hung the moon.

Right.

Interpersonal Relationship Tip #1: Engage the other person on whatever level they are capable. Start by discussing the other person. If and when they appear comfortable discussing other things for any length of time, feel free to follow their lead. At times, it will be necessary to prod someone out into unfamiliar waters because without some help they're going to stay put forever.

How do you know which type of person you are? It's simple, really. Does the conversation revolve around you or the other person? There you go. If you don't regularly express interest in other people's lives, you are the weaker one in the relationship (don't freak out, guys - this includes any level of knowing another person).

This post comes from years of being the person who always asks dozens of personal questions about other people in an attempt to get people to talk. It's great to know people, so don't think that I'm complaining for all the information I've received. Far from it. But there comes a point when you realize that after all the effort you've put into knowing someone, they've never reciprocated interest. They still know you only on the levels which you engage them.

At some point, we call these people leeches. They feed off the attention of others who are willing to get to know them. But they're uncomfortable allowing someone else to receive positive attention, so they either stick with selfish topics or they lash out in resentment. Some people already know that they fall into this category, but feel powerless to change. Others don't care to change. Still others are unaware, or refuse to become aware, and they choose instead to make others feel stupid when the conversation ceases to revolve around them.

There are two types of bodies of water: flowing and stagnant. People very closing resemble these two types. Stagnant water becomes a swamp: rotting, infested with insects and mold. Flowing water remains fresh and healthier to drink. People who absorb all the attention and conversation are a swamp. They start to stink after a while.

Think about it. Even if you're too proud to overtly acknowledge the point, maybe there's someone in your life you'd rather not lose to your own selfishness. It's worth considering.

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That's right! We have more Joost invites to give away. So this is how it works. In order to receive a Joost invitation, add a link to CultureFeast using the phrase "Dallas copywriter" as your anchor text. It doesn't matter if you link to the Home Page or any other page on the site. Whether you just add one sentence about your favorite Dallas copywriter or your least favorite, if you make "Dallas copywriter" the anchor text for a link to our site, we'll hook you up with an invite to Joost.

For those of you who are still unaware, Joost is Internet television access. You can watch all kinds of shows online through Joost. It's a growing phenomenon which we expect to gain global popularity within the next 18 months. Get in on it now, and get in by linking to CultureFeast.com.

Thanks in advance for the link love! Post a comment with the URL in which the anchor text and link are located. Once we've varified that the link exists, your invite will be on its way!

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