Ideas Inspire Innovation

“Place your forehead here, turn your head, and position your eye over the hole. Push your face gently against the bumper and look for the light to turn green. Now open your eye as wide as you can” Then the doctor’s assistant clicked the Optomap’s camera button and a huge flash of green light crossed across the screen. My retina had just been captured on film. After a few more space age machines puffed air into my eye to measure pressure and tracked my eye as it found a flashing red light, I was taken to a private exam room, where the assistant asked me questions regarding why I was there that day. It was the first time I had had an eye exam in more than a decade. I explained I’ve had an eye twitch for several years and am suspicious one of my eyes is stronger than the other causing strain and possibly the twitch. I can see fine, and I can read but heavy computer use followed by driving is a major strain. I feel squinty all the time. She had me hold an eye occluder over m

We have some dog treats that Sadie doesn’t like; she seriously spits them out. Standing in front of the refrigerator, I say to my husband, “should we just throw them away?” “No, we’ll get rid of them little by little by throwing a few over the fence into the neighbors’ yards for their dogs,” Richard says with a sly grin on his face. “That’s not a bad idea” I say. This is not the first time I’ve used that phrase, and I’ve been catching myself using it more frequently with friends and family. Why do I say that’s not a bad idea rather than actually acknowledging a good idea, or dismissing a bad idea? As per my nature, I took to the internet to see if I could find some clarity on the origin or psychology of “that’s not a bad idea” but instead I was barraged by headlines and copy that used the phrase: “Paying Attention to PC Makers is Not a Bad Idea” Motley Fool June 12, 2013 “Tao of Pooh? Doing nothing not a bad idea in this market, says GMO’s Montier” InvestmentNews

Last week I declared to my husband that this will be the summer of the bean. I will be inspired by beans. I will eat beans whenever possible, either by cooking them myself or ordering them at restaurants. Richard agreed but couldn't help following it up with a Bean-O joke. So go ahead and crack your jokes, I can handle it. But the fact is that beans are good for us. Or I read it somewhere anyway. Beans are a great source of protein and since my husband mainly only eats fish and soy proteins, I’m looking for something else that I can sink my teeth into on a regular basis when I eat dinner with him. Something nice and earthy with a crunch or a mush. Something that can go in salads, soups, stews, casseroles, or as a standalone dish. Something that can sit for hours in my crock pot. What’s better than a bean? To prepare for this, I beaned up late last week and bought every bean I could find at Safeway, except not the red kidney beans because I read that they are toxic unless p