Whether it was placing a sign announcing that a monstrous 60-story housing project would be built in the middle of my parents’ green little neighborhood and spreading panic amongst the concerned neighborhood committee to mysteriously hanging fruits on trees and shrubs they are not indigenous to, or even pranking the other doctors at work by asking for a the rush delivery of 2 beds formed into an “L” shape in order to accommodate Siamese twins who he claimed share a head, my dad absolutely LIVED for this day. The rest of us were mostly frightened, although good-humored about it all.

While the exact origins of this funny little holiday are unknown, it is thought to have been celebrated soon after the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, once it became apparently uncool to stick to the previous Julian calendar. In pre-Christian times, those who rushed out to celebrate spring prematurely – meaning prior to May Day – were perceived as April Fools. Throughout the years, these traditions evolved into a celebratory day for hoaxes and pranks across the world.

Just can’t get enough April Fool LOLZ? Check out Google’s impressive archive of April’s Fool pranks. Just remember, it’s always funny, as long as the joke isn’t on you!

Got an idea for a great office or workplace prank? We wanna hear about it!

Disappointingly for Julius Caesar, fortune was not up his alley on that fateful day which led up to his death at the Theatre of Pompey on this date, by the hands of the Liberatores. At the very least, we have both Julius and Shakespeare to thank for some very famous last words left to linger in history and popular culture – “You too, Brutus?”

Learn more about the Roman empire with this history tidbit from WatchMojo.

Personally, I feel I have much to be thankful for this year, as it has been a year of learning and creativity, and most of all – fun. Working as a part of a leading how-to hub like 5min, I get to learn something new each day, which is pretty darn thrilling – from growing my own veggies to mastering Final Cut to mixing cocktails to doing push ups, I’ve definitely grown thanks to heaps of excellent how-to’s. Moreover, this was the year I officially made the hop from a PC to a Mac – perhaps one of the most life-altering decisions I have made in my adult life thus far, and nope, I’m totally not kidding.

On a wider level, the holidays in general and Thanksgiving in particular tend to remind even the most cynical of people that what really counts in the longer run of life is family, friends, love, happiness and a personal feeling of freedom and content. The older I get, the more this rings true, as I’m sure it does for many of you.

Although it’s been a couple of years since I last attended a big Thanksgiving family hoopla, I happen to remember these quite fondly, whether it was running around outside with the other kids before dinnertime, eagerly awaiting the marshmallow yams portion of the evening, or heading out with the entire familial entourage to a stroll on the lakeside after dinner, to help all that food settle and make more room for dessert. There was always that feeling that we’re all extremely lucky to be where we are.

I hope that you too find yourself feeling lucky this year – celebrating all that is around you, and perhaps noticing things you may have missed otherwise. I think that if we dig a little deeper and drill beyond sarcasm, skepticism and all that we take for granted, each of us has at least a little something to be grateful for.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Ealeal & the 5min Team

Some people decide to go to Psychoanalysis and go back to the minute they were born. Others, to try hypnosis and solve their karma issues. Some need some Valium in order to get through the day, others, relaxation methods. Everybody needs something different, so we need to make sure we’re making the right choice. A person with chronic insomnia doesn’t want to be told that he has unsolved things from his life as Napoleon. You need to find the right couch to lie on.

Illumistream gives us different tips to find a therapist, including questions to ask ourselves and the specialist before we decide to start undergoing therapy. And don’t worry: if none of this works, start making films. After all, according to one of the biggest fans of the psychiatrist’s couch, Mr. Allen, it’s even better than therapy.

Well, after watching many an episode from Wine Library TV, I have to say that the only thing better would be drinking with Gary Vaynerchuk, and you can pretty much bet your best bottle of vino on that!

While to many of us, wine – or rather a deep knowledge and familiarity with wine – may seem like a stuffy, over-sophisticated alcoholic accessory meant for those of impeccable class, honorable breeding and copious amounts of cash, Gary has done us all a solid by making wine approachable, interesting and most of all, fun. Gary’s unique approach to wine and spirits has not only made him a bona-fide celebrity amongst 5min’s recreational drinking fans, but a true internet star. Manning a daily video wine review under the Wine Library TV brand since February 2006, Gary invites us all to join him in braving new wines, sampling spirits and above all, making wine into something so wonderfully fun, you won’t be able to resist exploring the spirits aisle next time you’re grocery shopping.

Affectionately dubbed “The Thunder Show”, Gary’s wine review is guaranteed to rock your world with the power of wine. But Gary’s not your run-of-the-mill wine expert – he’s also big on the web 2.0 scene, sharing his gusto with anyone he interacts with – in fact, this social media sommelier is one of my favorite Twitterers, and I follow him regularly. When he’s not pouring quality wine into the world of web, Gary can be found dishing out love to the New York Jets, cool little gadgets and web services, and of course, bringing thunder to everyone around him, Gary can be found answering piles upon piles of emails full of questions from his many fans.

So what – other than the free online crash-course in wine country – makes Gary stand out so much in the scene? His down-to-earth manner, his approachable presentation, and uber-friendly disposition are just the top of my list. Above all, I think Gary and the amazing vision he’s turned into a thriving, infectious reality represent the ability to just get out there and do it, no matter what your dream is – all you need is a webcam and your own pinch of personal thunder.

In the meantime, sit back and have a sip with Gary, as he boldly goes where no wine wizard has gone before, and samples TruBlood just in time for HBO’s premiere.

The truth is, non-treated schizophrenia can lead to all these events, but in general, people know little about the true facts of schizophrenia. And therefore, leave it as a social taboo that doesn’t offer any help to the people who suffer from it.

Illumistream gives us simple facts about schizophrenia, such as the factors that increase the risk from developing it, and what’s the percentage of the population who are affected with this illness. So that makes us look for the bright side: schizophrenia is no longer the incurable disease that was before, and people who suffer from it can be treated and have normal lives.

And even win the Nobel Prize. Just look at John Forbes Nash.

With all those terrorists running around, one might get truly frightened by the experience. It can be horrible if you just get messed up and sick from the plane ride itself.

Luckily, Illumistreamhas given us some great tips on traveling well:
Put a stop to cabin pressure pain with one, soak up some general health travel guidelines with another and learn how to leave jet lag behind with another great video in this series.

Go ahead – travel well with Illumistream!

Everything made sense when I was asked  to memorize a poem. This poem was a selection of random words that sounded poetic for whoever wrote it, but that made no sense at all.

I explained to them that I wasn’t going to learn that poem, and that I would certainly not perform it in front of an audience. The result? Improvisation. After reading the poem for more than 50 times, I couldn’t remember more than 3 out of 10 of the words that were in it.

What was going on in my brain wasn’t only  natural selection, that told me that this poem wasn’t worth being memorized by anyone, but rather the desperate search for a context to place those words in.  When there is no context, it’s up to us to make one up and tie the words together, but if we’re not willing to do so, those words will be easily forgotten.

We can all improve our memory skills, even when we have the excuse that our selective brain won’t “waste space” on things that don’t seem to interest us. By using this technique, we can memorize even the most absurd poem.

For more terrific tips on how to refresh and maximize your mind, memory and well-being, check out Illumistream’s studio on 5min.

“I guess that’s why they call it the blues?”
Guess again, Elton.

If a hypothetical someone just broke up with their girlfriend, or should I say, she broke up with him over some silly reason like that someone having forgotten her birthday. So that first someone is taking their girlfriend to a McDonalds, where very inconsiderably she makes a HUGE fuss about it, saying it was barley funny the first time, and that her mother was right about you all along. Then, maybe that someone is saying something about the girlfriend’s mom, something that may sound insulting if taken out of context, and not surprisingly, shortly afterwards that hypothetical someone finds himself sitting in a dark, empty apartment listening to Elton Johnand weeping like a baby.

Luckily, this poor hypothetical fellow can sit down and relax – Illumistream tells us that there are many ways to beat mild depression, from acupuncture to eating a more nutritious sandwich, using herbal supplements like St. John’s wort and cutting back on caffeine.

Boosting my blue mood never seemed so easy – I feel better already!

Irwin and Nicola, from Design2Share, show us the worst of the design world, teaching us that good quality is one of the main points in order to have a good design. They’re not as strict as Adolf Loos when defining these common mistakes, as they do allow ornament when decorating a house used correctly, and they don’t define you as a criminal for doing it. You can use these elements, but beware, because if you don’t pick the proper dimensions, the right material, or the desired quality, you might be falling into the hole of the Worst Design Mistakes.