Okay. So what are you going to do about it?

AFAIK you're good to go as long as you don't reveal any patient information (called PHI in the HIPAA world). So instead of leaving a message like, "Calling to confirm John Doe's appointment at Johnson Health Institute" it would need to be "Calling to confirm an appointment at Johnson Health Institute". That way if the number is incorrect for some reason there hasn't been a breach of privacy.

Arguably this is more sound advice than the one in the article. More often than not (particularly in relationships) complaining is a toll on the road to getting over it, whatever it is.

Yelling at the TV is a long-established American tradition. :)

Sebastian's got a great article here -- he's really been on a roll lately. The only thing I'd add is that sometimes you can't do anything. When I read that book on stoicism last month, one of the key points was that you need to sort out the things you can change, the things you can't, and the things you have some bit of leverage with. Ignore the things you can't change, act on the ones you can.

The ones in the middle -- the things you can change but only a little bit -- you internalize, separating the parts that you own and the parts you don't. For instance, you can't make yourself win a sports match. But you _can_ make sure you play the game as absolutely the best as possible.

This is such a simple observation -- almost stupidly simple -- yet we keep getting the three categories mixed up, worrying about stuff we can't change, and giving up on things we can.

Interesting comparison to the Speed-Freak Football article from yesterday (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1969332).

For those who missed it, the Oregon football team's offense is playing faster then the referees move the first down markers and return balls, changing the sport. The fans respond by booing the refs!

So about an hour and a half from now, we know you will be drinking much beer and yelling progressively louder at the TV. :)

EDIT: "The kicker should go back to bagging groceries!"

Neglected to mention that this one seems to have worked. :)

> "The announcers don't understand the game!"

Actually, this one we could do something about, no? I agree that professional sports announcing is terrible for people who are seriously into the game. So, could we build either an official or amateur broadcasting/dub-over of the commentary?

Would NFL Network carry an alternate commentary version of the game, with more football commentary and less nonsense about who is dating what celebrity? Could you do it unofficially? I bet it'd be really, really popular.

That's why I like "So, what are we going to do about it?" - Even if you don't do it, you might get some interesting ideas. If there was a serious analysis/no nonsense/no frills football commentary, I might tune in to that. Things like analyzing the plays, the line play, the coverages, how different players size/speed/length of arms make a difference, etc.

Anyway, Patriots fan but I always liked the Steelers. Classy organization, heavy focus on defense and an efficient game. Hope the two see each other in the AFC championship game.

Edit: Also, sometimes you decide it just isn't worth bothering because you've got more important stuff to do. It's still a fun thought exercise in that case, and occasionally you stumble on something cool.

Ah yes, symbolic actions.

This is what is going on this weekend. My Facebook news feed is being spammed with people changing their profile avatars to cartoon characters, signifying that they're thinking of the children - honest! It reminded me of this cartoon: http://nonadventures.com/2010/01/09/the-breast-intentions/

I posted that and told people if they're having trouble thinking of holiday gifts, they should make donations on the behalf of others and give that as a gift. It solves their "what do I buy X" conundrum and actually provides some real help to the cause they claim to care about.