Welcome back, Jesse!

Now sleeeeeeeeeep.

by definition, it is impossible for a majority of people to be above average.

Nit picker here. You have three people a 10, another 10, and a 1. The average is 7. Two thirds, a large majority are above average.

Yeah, but with a large number of people and a normal distribution, it's true (if by majority you mean something more than 50.1%).

I suppose we could get into a discussion on what types of distributions there might be besides normal... but I think when you're talking about human ability, the distribution would be something close to normal.

eta: Also, it depends on whether you're talking mean average or not.... the median and mode of your example are both 10.

eta²: In the article, they're ranking people into quartiles, which means they're talking about the median average.

I suppose we could get into a discussion on what types of distributions there might be besides normal... but I think when you're talking about human ability, the distribution would be something close to normal.

Without discussing the truth value of the belief, most people believe the human race or at least the sample they encounter has a really large portion of idiots. This would in fact bias the distribution away from normal. So a belief that the majority of people are above average would in fact be consistent with the belief that a very large percent of the population is signifciantly below average. And when we are talking intuitive beliefs, most people think of mean averages, not median or mode.

most people believe the human race or at least the sample they encounter has a really large portion of idiots.

I'm not sure I would agree with that. If we're talking work performance, I think in the majority of workplaces, the majority of employees would believe that a (not necessarily the same) majority of employees possess basic competence.

Hmm... the more I think about that, the less sure I am....

Decorating meara:

If you can get the fabric swatches and a couple of large paint chips in potential future colors, I'd suggest that for helping narrow your choices.

That sounds very reasonable... if you're not me. The trouble is that of I start thinking about paint colors beyond "more blue-green than red-yellow" I'll end up making an Excel table with every possible combination of colors for everything, including trim, and nothing will ever actually get decided. So I'm figuring that if the chair & sofa lead me to an ottoman, then the chair+sofa+ottoman will help determine the paint choice.

Choose funkier bold colors for curtains or do a contrasty color on one of the walls closest to the sofa set.

I'm getting sliding bamboo blinds instead of curtains. (Not those icky vertical blinds; they're wider, more like panels.) Because one wall is basically sliding doors to the balcony. And the room is almost perfectly square so I think a contrasting wall color might make it seem narrower for the same reason it makes a rectangular room seem wider. From a decorating standpoint, the living room is problematic. Which is why it's still eggshell and feels like an atrium.

I think the ottoman you linked may be a little too traditional in form given the funky 60s look of your sofa and chair. If it's not too kitschy, what would you think about something more geometric with a bold contrasting pattern like this?

Hm, the yin-yang is cool, but I think that would be so bold it'd be the focal point of the room. Oh, but I'm fairly sure that the ottoman is also available with chrome feet rather than the wood ones in the picture -- the whole thing's kind of predicated on that, actually. Would that make it fit better? I find that chrome = instant retro.

(And thanks to all for the opinions. I need hand-holding for this stuff.)

That sounds very reasonable... if you're not me. The trouble is that of I start thinking about paint colors beyond "more blue-green than red-yellow" I'll end up making an Excel table with every possible combination of colors for everything, including trim, and nothing will ever actually get decided.

t hides hand-scribbled table of possible color choices for every room in the house.

Hey, I sometimes consult an old Pantone book for ideas. Though I decided five years ago that I'd use the same creamy off-white for all the trim, though, which cuts down on the color decision churn.

Would that make it fit better? I find that chrome = instant retro.

Yes. Chrome is good.

Jewel-encrusted Mr. Potato Head

You LA folks can go visit with JEMPH in person (He's in the Beverly Hills Neiman Marcus). Maybe the appropriate response is to bow down and worship him....

From the Snakes on a Plane replica sale on eBay:

Q: Are these Snakes, as Samuel L. Jackson so elequently put it, truly motherf--cking?

A: I can't really directly comment on the nature of these snakes because of an on-going legal battle between the 'Snakes' and myself. What I can say is this 'These REPTILES appear to be bad a-- MO FO's, and they're ON THE PLANE!'... But then again, I can't comment.

JZ, isn't it way too early for you to be up?

(Also, I've been writing for an Israeli tv site something about MSCL (and "thirtysomething") and it's making me think about you.)