Best products from r/CFBOffTopic

You sound like me. Here are some helpful resources I've found on reddit and elsewhere. Obviously, this is just my personal list so please ignore anything you don't think will help you.

Self-improvement subs: like most subs, there is a lot of junk but sorting by best all time/year/month leads to some good articles and posts.

• /r/DecidingToBeBetter
  
• /r/selfimprovement
  
  Self improvement books
  
  
• The Power of Habit - it explains the science behind how we form habits (both good and bad) and how to change them.
  
• Mindfulness: An Eight-Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World - introduces the basics of mindfulness and meditation while providing a good beginner's course if you want to start meditating.
  
  Fitness Subs
  
  
• /r/Fitness - a mixed bag if you're not focused on body building but there are good posts that are applicable to a variety of fitness goals in there.
  
• /r/loseit - good sub for motivation. Average redditors making amazing progress.
  
• /r/bodyweightfitness - a good resource if you want to spend time working out at home but don't have a bunch of equipment.
  
• /r/crossfit - this one is more controversial but it is something I personally enjoy. I believe in the idea that the best workout is the one you will actually do.
  
  Fitness App (free)
  
  
• Myfitnesspal - an excellent tool for tracking calories and macros (carbs, fat, protein).
  
• Jefit - A resource for logging and tracking workouts. I just started this one but a lot of people use it.
  
• Chains - this is a great app for any habit you are trying to create/break including fitness habits. Simple Example - if you are trying to drink more water, add a chain each day you drink 8 glasses. It allows you to visualize a habit being formed or broken.
  
  Sites You Might Find Helpful
  
  
• skillsyouneed - includes life and personal skills.
  
• Artofmanliness - apologies if you are not male but this is also an excellent resource for personal skills.
  
  
  
  

My first master's degree was in Intelligence Studies with a concentration in Intelligence Operations.

My two favorite books are supplemental to each other but talk about the the US v. the USSR during the mid 80s to late 90s. One is from the perspective a former CIA case officer and the other is from the perspective of a former KGB case officer.

The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB by Milt Bearden
Spy Handler: Memoir of a KGB Officer

A great overview of intelligence history is A Century of Spies: Intelligence in the Twentieth Century by Jeffery T. Richelson. Richelson is very knowledgeable about intelligence history and well respected as one of the premiere historians in the field. He has written a ton of other books and I imagine they're pretty good and worthwhile.

Finally, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis is a great book not only about the Cuban Missile Crisis but examining how national security decisions are made.

A nail polish or two. I personally like sally hansen complete manicure polishes but a lot of people like opi. Butters has some super nice ones but more expensive.

A birchbox subscription could be fun- you pay $10 a month and fill out a thing on what you're skin tone and all that is and what you prefer and they send you 5-6 pretty decent samples a month of makeup, face stuff, perfumes, etc.

At sephora they have a bunch of mini sized items too that make good stocking stuffers.

I like Elf's bronzer blush duo

Also if she doesn't have one and has room for it on her bathroom counter or somewhere around there, I found getting a acruylic (or something similar) makeup organizer helps save time versus a makeup bag. Something like this

If you're fairly new to makeup I'd look into a tinted moisturizer, face powder, a natural blush, and mascara for starters. You definitely don't want to start off too strong, especially if you don't typically wear makeup.

• Tinted moisturizer is great because it isn't heavy and is pretty easy to match to your skin tone since it isn't very opaque. It gives your skin a little color without appearing caked on. This can be applied with a sponge or even with your fingers if you prefer. I like this one a lot!
  
  
• Face powder is great if you have oily skin. You can get translucent powder or one that has color in it. It's best to apply with a large, fluffy brush but sometimes they will come with a pouf that works as well. This is a great loose powder.
  
  
• Blush will give your face a little color. It's hard to recommend a shade since I don't know your skin tone, but Maybelline makes really nice blushes that are pigmented, but not so much that you will look like a clown with just a touch.
  
  
• Mascara will make your eyes look more open and awake without overpowering them. You can even get brown for a more natural look! This one is my current favorite!

I have an Audio Technica LP60, which I WOULD NOT recommend. It's okay but is missing a lot of features that makes it a questionable choice in the long run. I plan on replacing it soon.

There are 2 turntables that I would recommend:

Audio Technica LP120 - this is the beefed up version of my turntable. All the features my turntable is missing are included here. My friend just got one of these and I am very impressed with it.

U-Turn Orbit - This is another great, affordable choice. Bonus points for being built in the USA. I would recommend the option for the built-in preamp. If you can afford it, the upgraded Orbit Plus model has some really nice components that should lead to better sound. However, if you are just starting out you probably don't need it and you can always upgrade those things on your own later.

There are a few other nice entry-level turntables on the market such as the Fluance and the TEAC but I haven't read up on them enough to make a recommendation.

Avoid stuff like Crosley at all costs. They are basically toys and can damage your records.

I didn't realize they make them without that anymore. I am happy with these though I really wish these hadn't stopped working after like three weeks, because they were perfect in terms of comfort.

My hammock. I've had the same eno double nest for going on 7 years and it's been through a lot.

My cast iron skillet. Use it almost daily.

Anker powerbanks. REALLY useful, especially when camping or on long trips.

This thing that has saved me from needing a jump 4 or 5 times now

Edit: Also, my UE Boom bluetooth speaker. It's the shit. Great sound, ~15 hours battery. Bring it camping all the time.

Highly recommend the book [The Hot Zone] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Hot-Zone-Terrifying-Origins/dp/0385479565/ref=sr_1_1/186-9120780-8703741?ie=UTF8&qid=1408833773&sr=8-1&keywords=hot+zone+book) which came out almost 20 years ago but is a fantastic read. It is part historical, part scientific, and just a well written account of the history of the virus as we know it.

I'm not sure how many know that the virus has already appeared in the US back in 1989 as a pathogen to monkeys but not humans. It also details the appearance of Marburg virus in German cities in the late sixties and is closely related to Ebola as it results in viral hemorrhagic fever.

Anyway, good read, pick it up if this is something that interests you.

All 8 dozen cupcakes are now baked and the kitchen is cleaned up! I'm frosting and decorating tomorrow. A few things:

/u/roboticinfidelity made it sound like I totally kicked him out of the kitchen. I didn't. I just didn't need his help and he doesn't like baking anyway. I told him to update this and sit at the dining table to keep me company. And the water glass he gave me is a glass we only have because he loves it. It's enormous and I literally cannot hold it with one hand. It's a pain.

Flavors of cupcakes are as follows. Mint limeade: limeade cakes topped with mint line frosting, a lime wedge, and mint leaves. Lemon blueberry: lemon blueberry cakes topped with lemon cream cheese frosting and some fresh blueberries. Cookies 'n' cream: chocolate cake with baked in Oreo topped with cookies n cream frosting (basically a vanilla buttercream with a ton of Oreo powder) and another cookie. Peanut butter cereal: chocolate cake with peanut butter fudge and peanut butter frosting rolled in Reese's puffs cereal.

None of these recipes are mine. I absolutely adore Lizzy Early's blog at Your Cup of Cake. These all came out of her cookbook [Your Cup of Cake](Your Cup of Cake https://www.amazon.com/dp/1621082598/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_RBpavb1RZQQDM
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1621082598/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_RBpavb1RZQQDM). I love her flavors, her results, and her unapologetic use of cake mixes.

Sorry for no pictures. Apparently he didn't want to do pictures. But they're not frosted anyway.

My apartment smells great.

Edit: sorry for stupid link formatting. Apparently the brackets and parentheses don't work on alien blue.

I've recently been reading Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning and am really enjoying it. I'm a graduate music performance student, so efficient and effective learning/practice techniques and strategies are some of my favorite things to read. This is also reminding me that I need to re-read The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle. One of my absolute favorites, but it's been almost 3 years now.

Also the blogs on both The Talent Code and Bulletproof Musician websites. It's a lot of similar type stuff (with bulletproof musician obviously being much more geared towards musicians) and also has some stuff relating to performance psychology mixed in too (it's all kind of linked in a way).

The System it's a couple years old but it goes into some good detail about the inner workings about recruiting and how schools hire coaches and even some booster topics. Pretty good so far.

This is the one I got. Price appears to have gone up a touch but it was definitely a good investment for me. I cannot stress how much it has saved my butt several times.

I got a 1970s Craig turntable from Ebay for $44, paired that with an entry level Behringer preamp that cost $27, and hooked it up to a Raspberry Pi 2 B ($35) with a Cirrus Logic audio card ($40, but it's discontinued now :/), giving me a networked FLAC streaming record player for a total cost of $146.

The most commonly recommended USB turntable that doesn't suck is $300.

My setup isn't audiophile grade by any means, but it sounds good to me and cost way less than anything comparable.

Edit: fixed link

Recently read "The Boys in the Boat" to get my rowing fix. If you like non-fiction, it's great!

If you are interested in Ebola, and you haven't read it already, I would highly recommend The Hot Zone.

If you like non-fiction biographies The Boys in the Boat is a solid choice.

I actually just bought one off amazon for like $120.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E56WY18/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I just got it a few days ago but haven't tried it out yet

Here is the mobile version of your link