Hello all!

Welcome all. I think it's best to always start a blog with a "hello", regardless of the topic. Thanks for stopping by! This is the first idea for a blog that I actually think is maintainable, so I'm interested to see if any other people wind up viewing and enjoying this blog.

Blog Description:
I've written a blog description, but it is too long for this site to "accept". I will put the full version here, then put an edited version to the site template. Any questions or comments, please comment below!

I love the TED talks. They are about topics I care about, by people I care about (whether I know it or not!). They are compact but extremely full: dense, concentrated, powerful.

I watch at least two TED talks per week, but usually 4-5. Sometimes I discuss them with a friend, sometimes I write something about them, sometimes I simply file them away in my brain for later use.

I did notice something unexpected: I have begun to have a TED vocabulary. I often use TED talks as a reference point for ideas or emotions during a conversation. I pass the talks on to friends to whom they will be relevant, enjoyable, meaningful.

I hope that by creating this blog, I will be able to do the same for a larger audience.

Blog Format:
For each post, I will try to include each of the following sections:

1. Talk: A link to the talk
2. Brief Synopsis: Provide a brief synopsis of the talk.
3. Ben on TED: Discuss what the impact of the talk was on me.
4. Take-away: Conclude with how this talk has changed my actions, thoughts, and/or emotions.
5. Rating: A rating from 1-5 stars, on the following scale:

***** : One of the best, ever. Life-altering
**** : Truly enjoyable, something I'll look forward to watching again.
*** : Glad I watched it, it added value in some way. Once was enough.
** : It was OK, but I would have been just as happy if I hadn't bothered.
* : This actively irked me. Screw you too!

I hope that this will make the site easy to use for those who have not heard the talk yet, as well as those who have. It will also give me room to occasionally post follow-ups to TED talks where my take-away had to do with proposed actions.