Erythromelalgia Update

I know, it’s been a while since I’ve put out an update on Tracey’s erythromelalgia. Why? Frankly, we have been in a bit of a holding pattern after not having that much success. At a certain point, trying diet after diet, treatment after treatment, without much in the way of results can get very mentally and physically exhausting. In short, we’ve haven't done anything, except try and eat healthy and drink a lot of smoothies over the last few months.

The positive to report in this is that in the last few months to a year, there has not really been any progression in either direction: The condition isn’t getting worse or better. That second part we are obviously not happy about. The EM has us basically in the same position as it did a year ago. Tracey all but stays in bed, working from home and doing her writing thing. We continue to just try and control the condition.

That is our update. Sometimes you just need a break. We do hope to get some kind of treatment plan rolling again soon. We still want to beat this stupid disease.

Create Art...

I'm reading listening to a book, The Icarus Deception, by Seth Godin. The point of the book is that everything that we do, everything we create is art. This could be traditional art, writing, blogging, or programming, among everything else we do—the point is, it’s all art. More importantly, art—for the first time in history—is our ticket out of the rat race. 

Security is no longer getting the ideal job at the ideal company or trading our happiness and art for this perceived security. That perceived security is a myth...take it from someone who knows. This security comes at a cost—the cost of robbing us from not only happiness, but also our creativity or our ability to create art. The book has some very intriguing thoughts, which serve as a wake up call. 

And while this is not a review of the book, I do, however, highly recommend it. This is me deciding to "write everyday," because only through “practicing” art will I get better at creating it. 

What kind of art am I looking to create? The goal is to create something in the tech/web/entrepreneur field. Stay tuned...

What kind of art do you want to get better at creating?

When I Grow Up

A neat and inspirational short film to get you motivated and start your day!


When I Grow Up from The Academy on Vimeo.

Primal Part 2...

So a while back I decided to eat healthier and went on the Primal diet...yea didn't work out, mainly due to my love of bread.

Anyways, I decided to try again and started it this week, hopefully it will go better this time.

Just a little video I saw today on the diet....

Matt's 12 Must Have (Free) iPhone Apps*

Evernote 

The ultimate note taking app. Sync notes, pictures and voice memos automatically between your computer (Mac or PC), read your notes in the browser and share them with friends. Make sure you pair this with Evernote's web clipper for your browser of choice. You can also upgrade to the premium version for some added features, but I get along just fine with the amazing free version.

        

Download

Waze

Social networking meets navigation and they fall in love. Their love child is Waze, a great Navigation app that just keeps getting better as more people join. With every new user the apps becomes more  and more useful as users update others with notifications regarding traffic, construction and other hazards, all to help each other get places faster.

Download

Instagram


There is a reason that Facebook paid around a billion dollars for the company that made this app. The app is the perfect social network of sharing photos. Built in filters make it fun and easy to bring out the photographer in all of us.

Download

Google Search App 

This app has been around for years, since the early days of the iPhone. However, Google just did a major overhaul and this app went from being just "ok" to replacing Safari on my home screen. Search Google by typing or voice search to find out what you need to know in seconds.

Download

Fliboard

The ultimate RSS, social network, Tumblr, Twitter and News reading and sharing service…on any platform. Even better than anything you can use on your computer. This was true before but is even more so now, since they added full Google+ integration.

Download

Facebook

I'm going to be honest. It absolutely pains me to put this app on this list. If it wasn't for the fact that Facebook is an integral part of our lives at this point, it would not be anywhere near this list. But Facebook is, so it is on this list. With that being said, I hate this app. It is glitchy, slow and notifications work only when they feel like it…but alas, it's on my home screen and I use it constantly. If you can talk you're friends and family into using it, Google+'s app is a far superior user experience and an absolute delight to use. 

Download

Twitter

While I strongly prefer Tapbot's Tweetbot Twitter client, as I feel it is one of the best apps ever made for the iPhone, Twitter's official twitter client is actual pretty good if you can't stomach the $2.99 price tag for Tweetbot. 

Download

Mint

The ultimate finance app. Takes some work to setup (use Mint.com to do this) then it syncs down to your phone. Keep track of budgets, spending, income and the works all with this amazing free service. 

Download

Facebook Messenger

While not perfect, Facebook's official Messenger App works well and makes you wonder how a company that came up with this could also have come up with the official Facebook App (where the chat feature is slow and glitchy). I mean, the notifications actual work on this app. It's simple and a great addition for those that spend even an average amount of time on Facebook chat. 

Download

Team Stream

Are you a sports fan? Do you have favorite teams that you want news and updates on? Then get this app. End of story. It's that good! 

Download

Sportacular Free

While I prefer the paid version because it gets rid of the ads, this app is awesome at checking in on the score of any game you need to know about. Push alerts update you real time on everything from the final score, score changes and even close games, all customizable of course. 

Download

Kindle for iPhone

There are several good iPhone reading apps and while iBooks and the Nook app are good, my personal favorite is the Kindle app. Now, part of this is that currently the Kindle is my eReader of choice, but I also use iBooks on my iPad, so in my opinion the Kindle app just feels faster than the others. But you really can't go wrong with any of them and should get the one that matches your eReader of choice. 

Download

*Note: I included no games on this list and the list is in no particular order

So that is my list of must have free apps. What free apps did I miss that you feel are must have? 

New Bourne Legacy Trailer

World's Best Bartender

As someone that has bartended...there are NO words!