Thanks to the awesomeness of infographics, now everyone can understand how that crazy multi-level dream episode in Inception actually worked. Enjoy!

Courtesy of Visual.ly.

"Destiny is for people who are too lazy to create alternate timelines."
- R. Stevens

"When a person cannot deceive himself the chances are against his being able to deceive other people."
- Mark Twain

"A failure is not always a mistake, it may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying."
- B.F. Skinner

I can confidently say that all of this is true - stereotypical, but true.

"I have an existential map. It has ‘You are here’ written all over it."
- Steven Wright

"I cannot call to mind a single instance where I have been irreverent, except toward the things which were sacred to other people."
-  Mark Twain

“If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.”
- Oscar Wilde

“Some editors are failed writers, but so are most writers.”
- T. S. Eliot

"In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present."
-Lao Tzu

My wife says that one of the things she likes most about me is how easily impressed I am by almost anything. I must admit that this is true, to a point. You know that guy who just likes being sad, depressed, and terrible to be around? Well, I'm not that guy. I'm the other guy - the guy who really likes being happy. Because I like happiness so much, I sometimes get a little over excited about things that most people would find mediocre to just down right dull. Luckily for you, this post is not actually about my happiness OCD problem.

Last weekend I made the arduous drive - some eight teeth-pulling hours - to my hometown in Alabama. I took the wife, the little child, and the boxer dog. (The elder child was already there on sabbatical.) The occasion of my journey was the college graduation of my little sister, Bethany. Why, you ask? Bethany impresses me.

Bethany had this childhood dream of becoming fluent in German and working for the U.N. For a kid in middle school, that's fairly ambitious and quite detailed. She stuck with this dream, went to a college with a program that would perfectly fit her plan, and worked as hard as she could to make her plan work out. But just like me, when Bethany got to college she realized her dream wasn't exactly what she had envisioned. She could have given up, got a "husband degree," and moved on, but she didn't. 

Bethany decided she wanted to be a teacher. She transferred to the University of Alabama, and she got accepted into its elite Multiple Abilities Program (MAP). She applied herself; she did well; she helped others succeed. She studied abroad in South Africa for a semester; she applied for a job in our hometown school system; she got it. Her first class of students arrives in two days.

Last weekend, Bethany graduated summa cum laude, or for the English speakers, "with the highest honors." We've competed with each other for years in terms of who got a better grade or a better ACT score, but quite honestly, in this case, she bested her brother. I'm proud of her and for her. She will make an excellent teacher, and she will make a difference in the lives of the kids she comes in contact with everyday. I'm excited to see what all she can accomplish.

Congrats, Bethany.