I now interupt the steady stream of archival posts to bring you the best of the past weeks archives in my blog reader.  It turns out other people write some great things too.  In fact, they often put me to shame.  So without any further delay, I present to you the absolute, entire, best of my google reader-

Regarding the Mind-

 At Neuronarrative, David shares the story of William James, American philosopher, polymath and the “Godfather of modern psychiatry.” He recounts how he counted decisiveness as a virtue, and yet was famously indecisive, and describes his wonderful compromised solution in the end.

At Brain Blogger, Erin Falcouner ponders the cognitive mechanisms and social power of looking others in the eye.  She shares some very interesting ideas as to what may be going on in the mind of those with conditions such as autism, with impaired eye contact, or “fear blindness.”

At Vicarious Therapy, Aqua personifies the mighty inner voice of depression as a false prophet that would destroy us.  She comes up with some brilliant personal insights into how to fight this prophet’s self destructive message.

Regarding the Soul-

 At Thinking in a Marrow Bone, Dennis shares continues a thoughtful reflection on life, time, and our own mortality, rejecting in part the idea that we can solve our problems by living simply in the present.  He hints at a way to live past, present, and future simultaneously in order to reach true happiness, in an intriguing post that has me waiting anxiously for more.

At Musings of a Distractible Mind, Dr. Rob probes the Christmas story for an ultimate meaning that everyone, Christian or no, can appreciate. He articulates beautifully what Christmas is all about in what has to be one of the best Christmas posts I have ever read.

Not to be outdone, Dr. Bruce Campbell at Reflections in a Head Mirror shares the story of his own personal Christmas epiphany in a story about giving, deserving, needs, desires, and the greatest gift of all. 

Regarding the Body-

 At Notes from an Anesthesioboist, T. writes a wonderful poem honoring the vocal cords, a part of the body she is supremely familiar with, passing an endotracheal tube through them daily to protect the airway of anyone undergoing general anesthesia for surgery.

Bill Harbaugh, professor in neuroeconomics at the University of Oregon, has curated a magnificent art display for the “worlds largest collection of anatomically correct fabric brain art.”

At Neurophilosophy, Mo reports an exciting breakthrough for amputees in an experiment where an illusion made a rubber hand feel  like their own.

or All the Above-

At World of Psychology, John M. Grohol, Psy D wonders if our mental health care system has really advanced in the area of patients rights and dignity as much as we like to think it has, as he reports the present day stories of people locked away simply because it is cheaper and easier than caring for those we cannot cure.  

At Blog Segullah, Justine relates her own personal life threatening health crisis, and an epiphany right in the Doctor’s office that taught her we are not alone

At Mothers in Medicine, Tempeh shares the touching story of a devoted husband of a dying patient who both literally and figuratively insisted  on breaking through the sterile field she set up to provide “optimal” care for her patients.

and just because I Liked it-

 At Normal Mormon Husbands, with trademark goofball humor, the NMH reports how he learned this Christmas that there are, in fact, angels among usin a post that manages a bit of a hearfelt, touching spiritual message in between chuckles.

 In the New York Times, Oliver Morton recounts vividly the profound perspective changing experience of the Astronauts of Apollo 18, viewing earthrise from the moon for the first time, in a beautiful Op-ed piece looks at the interconnectedness of all things, encourages us to believe in possibilities, and urges us to harness the universe in order to take care of life and this blue planet we all share.

At the Art of Manliness, Brett and Kate McKay share a list of 25 of America’s greatest self made men in an effort to revive the concept and sing its praises. 

   That is all I got for now.  However, the blog carnivals are out in force.  Check out a very special Holiday Grand Rounds, which includes RSS feeds for all the major medical blog carnivals as one outstanding gift.  The Brainblogging carnival is out and excellent as always, giving a human perspective on the brain and mind, and Change of shiftis up at Nurse Ratched’s place.

    I am also excited to report that I have cracked the top 20 in the voting so far for the Wellsphere People’s health Blogger awards, far exceeding my own expectations.  If you have not yet voted, Please, please head out there and voteso you, too, can join the legions of devoted readers in the Mind, Soul, and Body fan club.