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I don't believe that prayers actually change God's mind - if there is a God - but I liked praying for people in need. It was like moral weightlifting. I tend to be self-obsessed, and it was nice to get out of my brain once in a while.

A. J. Jacobs

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A. J. Jacobs
Age: 56
Born: 1968
Born: March 20
Journalist
Writer
New York City
New York
AJ Jacobs
Arnold Steven Jacobs
Jr.
Honey K Balani
Honey K. Balani
A.J. Jacobs
A J Jacobs
Arnold Stephen Jacobs
Jr.
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More quotes by A. J. Jacobs

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I was what they call 'skinny fat' - a body that resembled a python after swallowing a goat.
A. J. Jacobs
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My goal? To test out every diet and exercise regimen on planet earth and figure out which work best. I sweated, I cooked, I learned to pole dance. In the end, I lost weight, lowered my cholesterol and doubled my energy level. I feel better than I ever have.
A. J. Jacobs
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Since I was relatively new to the Bible, I was surprised by the Old Testament God. He's wrathful, but at other times, He's incredibly compassionate. He's not a one-dimensional figure at all.
A. J. Jacobs
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Its sort of my job to feel good.
A. J. Jacobs
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Jealousy is a useless, time-wasting emotion that's eating me alive.
A. J. Jacobs
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When I was with the serpent-handlers in Tennessee, it was the most bizarre method of worship I could think of. Yet when you sit with these people, you can kind of see how it makes sense.
A. J. Jacobs
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Sometimes miracles occur only when you jump in.
A. J. Jacobs
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It's hard to be in a bad mood when you're walking around looking like you're about to play the semifinals at Wimbledon.
A. J. Jacobs
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The best we can do, to paraphrase Pollan, is to eat whole foods, mostly plants, and not too much.
A. J. Jacobs
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Plus, in one of his e-mails, the guy said he didn't like pancakes. What kind of asshole doesn't like pancakes?
A. J. Jacobs
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There's a beauty to forgiveness, especially forgiveness that goes beyond rationality. Unconditional love is an illogical notion, but such a great & powerful one
A. J. Jacobs
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The year showed me beyond a doubt that everyone practices cafeteria religion... But the important lesson was this: there's nothing wrong with choosing. Cafeterias aren't bad per se... the key is in choosing the right dishes. You need to pick the nurturing ones (compassion), the healthy ones (love thy neighbor), not the bitter ones.
A. J. Jacobs
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Giulia Melucci has written a wonderfully funny and moving book. It's like Eat, Pray, Love, with recipes.
A. J. Jacobs
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I prefer the earlier birth control techniques, which ranged from the delicious (using honey as a spermicide) to the aerobic (jumping backward seven times after coitus).
A. J. Jacobs
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Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t really explain why.
A. J. Jacobs
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Behavior shapes emotions.
A. J. Jacobs
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It comes back to the old question: How can the Bible be so wise in some places and so barbaric in others? And why should we put any faith in a book that includes such brutality?
A. J. Jacobs
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Med students panic their first year when they learn all the diseases. It's not until the second year that they learn the cures.
A. J. Jacobs
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Paintings! They're like TV, but they don't move.
A. J. Jacobs
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I'm all for cafeteria religion. I think there's nothing wrong with cafeterias - I've had some great meals at cafeterias. I've also had some horrible meals, so it's important to pick the right things. Take a heaping helping of compassion and mercy, and leave the intolerance on the table.
A. J. Jacobs