Dilanka's Random Notes



Introduction


I keep a lot of (off-line) notes in journals and paper. Unfortunately, paper is an impractical medium for interactive content. I maintain this page for reference, convenience and ease of sharing.

Key: A star (*) is used for emphasis. If you find any broken links, let me know, so I could fix those.





Top 5 People I'd Like to Meet


If you know any of these people, I'd love an introduction.


  1. Robert J. Pera
  2. Manoj Bhargava
  3. Dan Bull
  4. Montel Williams
  5. Cormega
  6. Nassim Taleb


Favorite Music



  1. 50 Cent - life's on the line
  2. Adina Howard - Freak Like Me
  3. Albert King & Stevie Ray Vaughan - In session *
  4. Aerosmith - dream on *
  5. Atmosphere - yesterday *
  6. Atmosphere - guarantees
  7. AZ - problems
  8. AZ - the come up *
  9. AZ - the format
  10. Bathiya Santhush - various
  11. B.B. King - thrill is gone *
  12. Ben E. King - stand by me
  13. Bessie Smith - poor man's blues
  14. Big L - mvp *
  15. Big L - put it on
  16. Bill Withers - ain't no sunshine
  17. Bill Withers - lean on me
  18. Billy Joel - piano man *
  19. Biz Markie - just a friend
  20. Bob Dylan - hurricane *
  21. Bob Dylan - mister tambourine man *
  22. Bob Seger - mainstreet
  23. Bob Seger - night moves
  24. Bone Thugs N Harmony - i tried
  25. Britney Spears - piece of me
  26. Brother Ali - self taught *
  27. Cannonball Adderley - mercy, mercy, mercy
  28. Cat Stevens - father and son
  29. Color Me Badd - I wanna sex you up
  30. Cormega - the saga remix
  31. Cormega - the true meaning (a)
  32. Cormega - valuable lessons
  33. Carole King - it's too late
  34. Carole King - will you love me tomorrow
  35. Celph Titled - rock to the rhythm
  36. Chuck Berry - ding a ling *
  37. Chuck Berry - johnny b. good
  38. Clarence Carter - patches *
  39. D12 - revelation *
  40. Darius Rucker - wagon wheel
  41. Del Shannon - runaway
  42. Diana Coupland - mango tree
  43. Dispatch - the general *
  44. Dobie Gray - drift away *
  45. Ella Fitzgerald - let's fall in love *
  46. Emancipator - soon it will be cold enough * (a)
  47. Eminem - infinite (a)
  48. Eminem - the eminem show (a)
  49. Fugees - rumble in the jungle
  50. Gang Starr - moment of truth *
  51. Gypsies - various
  52. Ice Cube - gangsta rap made me do it
  53. Ice Cube - it was a good day
  54. Ice T - money, power, woman
  55. Immortal Technique - dance with the devil
  56. Immortal Technique - you never know
  57. Immortal Technique - point of no return
  58. Jay-Z - can I live *
  59. Jay-Z - reasonable doubt (a)
  60. Jessie J - who you are
  61. Jessie J - nobody's perfect
  62. Jimi Hendrix - all along the watchtower *
  63. Jimmy Cliff - sitting in limbo
  64. Joe Cocker - with a little help
  65. John Hiatt - have a little faith *
  66. John Hiatt - you may already be a winner *
  67. Johnny Cash - I walk the line
  68. Joss Stone - high road
  69. Joss Stone - karma
  70. Judith Hill - desperation
  71. Jurassic 5 - what's golden
  72. Keith Sweat - make it last forever
  73. Keith Sweat - twisted
  74. Kid Rock - all summer long
  75. Lazyboy - desiderata
  76. Leon Bridges - coming home
  77. Les Crane - desiderata
  78. Led Zeppelin - stairway to heaven *
  79. Lighthouse - ain't no sunshine
  80. Louis Armstrong - what a wonderful world
  81. Lupe Fiasco - food & liquor * (a)
  82. Luther Vandross - dance with my father
  83. Lynyrd Skynyrd - sweet home alabama
  84. Lynyrd Skynyrd - free bird *
  85. Lynyrd Skynyrd - ballad of curtis loew *
  86. Marie Digby - feel
  87. Mazzy Star - fade into you
  88. Mobb Deep - shook ones *
  89. Mos Def - I'm leaving
  90. Mungo Jerry - in the summertime
  91. Murs - yesterday and today
  92. Nahko and Medicine for the people - black as night
  93. Nas - illmatic * (a)
  94. Nas - it was written * (a)
  95. Nas - surviving the times *
  96. Naughty By Nature - o.p.p *
  97. Neil Diamond - song sung blue
  98. Neil Young - old man
  99. Neutral Milk Hotel - aeroplane over the sea *
  100. Notorious B.I.G. - ready to die (a)
  101. Notorious B.I.G. - life after death * (a)
  102. N.W.A. - fuck the police
  103. Office Space Soundtrack - various (a)
  104. Patti Page - detour
  105. Phaeleh - fallen light * (a)
  106. Pink Floyd - dark side of the moon (a)
  107. Pink Floyd - the wall (a)
  108. Pink Floyd - high hopes *
  109. Puff Daddy ft. FE - I'll be missing you *
  110. Queen - under pressure *
  111. Queen - bohemian rhapsody
  112. Rafi:ki - mixtape 013
  113. Ray LaMontagne - trouble
  114. REO Speedwagon - time for me to fly
  115. Roots - what they do
  116. Roots - you got me
  117. Scorpions - wind of change *
  118. Simon & Garfunkel - sound of silence *
  119. Simon & Garfunkel - the boxer
  120. Sixto Rodriguez - crucify your mind *
  121. Sixto Rodriguez - cause
  122. Smashing Pumpkins - today
  123. Shpongle - are you shpongled? (a)
  124. Steve Miller Band - the joker
  125. Styx - come sail away
  126. Sugar Ray - fly
  127. Sunlounger - downtempo edition *
  128. Tal Wilkenfeld - the river of life
  129. Tech N9ne - low
  130. The Beatles - hey jude *
  131. The Beatles - let it be *
  132. The Beatles - In my life
  133. The Drifters - under the boardwalk *
  134. The Jayhawks - blue *
  135. The Stone Roses - the stone roses (a)
  136. Tom Lehrer - pigeons in the park *
  137. Tupac - greatest hits * (a)
  138. Tupac - last muthafucka breathin
  139. Tupac - starin' through my rearview
  140. Yelawolf - best friend
  141. Yelawolf - love story (a)
  142. Wu-Tang Clan - C.R.E.A.M




Favorite Documentaries



  1. Albert Einstein
  2. Benjamin Franklin
  3. Biggie and Tupac
  4. Blackfish
  5. Blood Brother *
  6. Burt's Buzz
  7. Camp 14
  8. Cave of Forgotten Dreams *
  9. Call me lucky
  10. Cocaine Cowboys
  11. Cosmos: A Personal Voyage *
  12. Dark Days
  13. Dear Zachary *
  14. Dirty Pictures *
  15. Encounters at the end of the world *
  16. Fear and Loathing: Road trip to Hollywood
  17. Feynman
  18. Gasland
  19. Gideon's Army
  20. Gonzo *
  21. Grey Gardens
  22. Grizzly Man *
  23. Harlan County, USA
  24. Hoffman's Potion
  25. Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel *
  26. The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz
  27. Jiro Dreams of Sushi *
  28. John Adams *
  29. Jonestown
  30. Journey to the edge of the universe *
  31. The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
  32. Kumaré *
  33. Lawrence of Arabia
  34. Malcolm X: Make it plain *
  35. Man on Wire *
  36. Manufacturing Consent *
  37. Marley *
  38. Merchants of Doubt
  39. Murderball
  40. Murder on a Sunday Morning *
  41. No Direction Home *
  42. O.J.: Made in America
  43. Philosophy: A Guide to Happiness
  44. Powers of ten
  45. Project Nim *
  46. Rest Repo
  47. Searching for Sugarman
  48. Senna *
  49. Shoah *
  50. Sick: Bob Flanagan
  51. Steve Jobs: The Man In The Machine *
  52. Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon *
  53. The Ascent of Money *
  54. The Central Park Five *
  55. The Bridge
  56. The Cove
  57. The Imposter
  58. The Spirit Molecule
  59. The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till *
  60. The UP Series *
  61. The Buddha
  62. Tim's Vermeer *
  63. Titicut Follies *
  64. Tony Robbins: I am not your guru
  65. Touching the Void *
  66. Tyson
  67. VICE guide to Liberia *
  68. When we were kings *




Favorite People



  1. Adam Carolla
  2. Alan Turing
  3. Alan Watts
  4. Albert Hoffman
  5. Alexander Shulgin
  6. Angelina Jolie
  7. Anousheh Ansari
  8. Barry Crimmins
  9. Bathiya & Santhush
  10. Benjamin Franklin
  11. Bob Dylan
  12. Bruce Halle
  13. Charles Babbage
  14. Chris Hadfield
  15. Chuck Feeney
  16. Chris Sacca
  17. Cornelius Vanderbilt
  18. Dave Chappelle
  19. Derek Redmond
  20. Dobie Gray
  21. Duncan Bannatyne *
  22. Edwin Armstrong
  23. Edwin Catmull
  24. Elon Musk
  25. Eminem
  26. Felix Dennis *
  27. Freddie Mercury
  28. John Carmack
  29. John Romero
  30. Genghis Khan
  31. George Carlin
  32. Gilbert Gottfried
  33. Greg Giraldo
  34. Hayao Myazaki
  35. Hélio Gracie
  36. Herman Melville
  37. Hunter S. Thompson
  38. Hyman Rickover
  39. Ice T
  40. Immortal Technique
  41. Jay-Z
  42. Jeff Ross
  43. Jim Clark
  44. Jimi Hendrix
  45. Joe Rogan
  46. Johannes Kepler
  47. Joss Stone
  48. Kerri Strug
  49. Leonard Kleinrock
  50. Leonard Pickard
  51. Les Brown
  52. Lao Tzu
  53. Marie Digby
  54. Milton Humason
  55. Mitch Hedberg
  56. Napoleon Hill *
  57. Nelson Mandela *
  58. Norm Macdonald
  59. Notorious B.I.G
  60. Oprah Winfrey
  61. Patrice O' Neal
  62. Pat Cooper
  63. Paul Graham
  64. Peter Higgs
  65. Ralph Waldo Emerson *
  66. Richard Branson
  67. Richard Stallman
  68. Robert Greene
  69. Rubin Carter
  70. Ryan Leslie
  71. Shane Smith
  72. Shania Twain
  73. Simon & Garfunkel
  74. Temple Grandin
  75. Terence McKenna
  76. Tom Lehrer
  77. Tupac Shakur




Favorite Entertainment



  1. Ali G Show *
  2. Blackhawk Down *
  3. Blazing Saddles *
  4. Boardwalk Empire *
  5. Breach *
  6. Breaking Bad *
  7. Casablanca
  8. Changeling *
  9. Fracture *
  10. Game of Thrones
  11. Glengarry Glen Ross
  12. I love lucy *
  13. Maltese Falcon
  14. Me, Myself & Irene
  15. Office Space *
  16. Oz *
  17. Prison Break
  18. Rear Window
  19. Shawshank Redemption *
  20. Sherlock
  21. Spirited Away
  22. Tears of the Sun
  23. The Grand Budapest Hotel *
  24. The Hurricane
  25. The Insider *
  26. The I.T Crowd *
  27. The Matrix *
  28. The Rock *
  29. The Wire *




Favorite Audio Clips



  1. Art Williams - just do it *
  2. Alan Watts - how do we define ourselves?
  3. Alan Watts - the most important thing you never learned *
  4. Alan Watts - what if money were no object? *
  5. Alan Watts - music and life
  6. Alan Watts - society is a hoax
  7. Alan Watts - finding work you love
  8. Alan Watts - worrying and anxiety
  9. Angela Morgan - when nature wants a man
  10. Carl Sagan - the pale blue dot *
  11. Earl Nightingale - the strangest secret *
  12. Felix Dennis - how to get rich *
  13. Hunter S. Thompson - voicemail to video store *
  14. Hustle and Flow - walk the walk
  15. Adam Carolla - life and depression *
  16. Manoj Bhargava - business *
  17. Oprah Winfrey - finding your purpose
  18. Patrice Oneil - on relationships *
  19. Patrice Oneil - debate with Dr. Victoria Zdrok *
  20. Sam Harris - religion & christianity
  21. Steve Jobs - commencement at stanford *
  22. Terence McKenna - how to use psychedelics
  23. Terence McKenna - talks about dmt
  24. Terence McKenna - dmt vs 5-meo-dmt
  25. Terence McKenna - trust yourself *
  26. Terence McKenna - describing a dmt trip
  27. Terence McKenna - reclaim your mind *
  28. Terence McKenna - more on psychedelics
  29. Terence McKenna - culture
  30. Tupac Shakur - life and death




Favorite Porn

Too many to list, email me.





Favorite Cars



  1. Aston Martin Vantage V12 *
  2. BMW M5
  3. Lamborghini




Favorite Books


I have a reading log.





Favorite Drugs


Too many to list, email me.





Favorite Quotes


I have a quote blog.





Favorite Podcasts



  1. a16z
  2. Adam & Drew Show
  3. Ancient Warfare Magazine
  4. Dan Carlin's Hardcore History
  5. Democracy Now
  6. Econ Talk
  7. Harvard Business Review
  8. Ice T: Final Level Podcast
  9. I Love Marketing
  10. Intelligence²
  11. Marketplace
  12. Nature
  13. NPR TED Talks
  14. Phone Losers of America
  15. Point of Inquiry
  16. Science
  17. Security Now!
  18. Six Pixels of Separation
  19. The Combat Jack Show
  20. The Economist
  21. The Joe Rogan Experience
  22. The Partially Examined Life
  23. This American Life
  24. This Week in Startups
  25. Triangulation




Favorite Photographs



  1. Emmett Till [i]
  2. Earthrise [i]
  3. Evelyn McHale [i]
  4. Internet Pioneers [i]
  5. John Lennon [i]
  6. Malcolm X [i]
  7. The Final Embrace [i]




Things To Put Life In Perspective



  1. Kate Von Roeder Suicide Note
  2. Shaun Miller's Last Goodbye
  3. Kyle Maynard Climbing Kilimanjaro
  4. My Last Days: Meet Zach Sobiech
  5. The Live Tweet
  6. Madison Holleran
  7. Homeless Father
  8. Claire Wineland




Must Read Books for Living a Great Life



I consider the list below to be REQUIRED studying for anyone interested in living a good life.

After going through hundreds of books, I have carefully curated the titles below and can vouch for their quality and timeless nature.

In fact, I consider them to be PRICELESS due to their life changing nature.

I recommend that you get the audio version(s) when possible.

I re-listen to these programs regularly as needed -- and, I can confirm that the more you listen to them, the better they get.

This is not a complete list, rather it is meant to be an excellent starting point for those that feel lost.

Enjoy.



  1. The Secret Advantage by Earl Nightingale
  2. How to Be a No-Limit Person by Wayne W. Dyer
  3. The Art of Living by Epictetus
  4. Teachings of Napoleon Hill by Napoleon Hill
  5. The Secret of the Ages by Robert Collier
  6. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
  7. As a Man Thinketh by James Allen
  8. The New Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz
  9. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
  10. Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins