THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits."
~~Albert Einstein

AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS

"The Inauguration at Last" by Maria Kalman, in The New York Times:

For the rest of "The Inauguration at Last," click here.

FRIDAY'S LITTLE DOSE OF CUTE

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"We take our bearings, daily, from others. To be sane is, to a great extent, to be sociable."
~~John Updike, 1932-2009

Zztopdog note: R.I.P., Mr. Updike.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"The candle burns not for us, but for all those whom we failed to rescue from prison, who were shot on the way to prison, who were tortured, who were kidnapped, who 'disappeared.' That's what the candle is for."
~~ Peter Benenson, Amnesty International

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"Way too much coffee. But if it weren't for the coffee, I'd have no identifiable personality whatsoever."
~~David Letterman

COFFEE LINKED TO LOWER DEMENTIA RISK

By Nicholas Bakalar, for The New York Times:
"Drinking coffee may do more than just keep you awake. A new study suggests an intriguing potential link to mental health later in life, as well.
"A team of Swedish and Danish researchers tracked coffee consumption in a group of 1,409 middle-age men and women for an average of 21 years. During that time, 61 participants developed dementia, 48 with Alzheimer’s disease.
"After controlling for numerous socioeconomic and health factors, including high cholesterol and high blood pressure, the scientists found that the subjects who had reported drinking three to five cups of coffee daily were 65 percent less likely to have developed dementia, compared with those who drank two cups or less. People who drank more than five cups a day also were at reduced risk of dementia, the researchers said, but there were not enough people in this group to draw statistically significant conclusions.
"Dr. Miia Kivipelto, an associate professor of neurology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and lead author of the study, does not as yet advocate drinking coffee as a preventive health measure. 'This is an observational study,' she said. 'We have no evidence that for people who are not drinking coffee, taking up drinking will have a protective effect.'
"Dr. Kivipelto and her colleagues suggest several possibilities for why coffee might reduce the risk of dementia later in life. First, earlier studies have linked coffee consumption with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes, which in turn has been associated with a greater risk of dementia. In animal studies, caffeine has been shown to reduce the formation of amyloid plaques in the brain, one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. Finally, coffee may have an antioxidant effect in the bloodstream, reducing vascular risk factors for dementia.
"Dr. Kivipelto noted that previous studies have shown that coffee drinking may also be linked to a reduced risk of Parkinson’s disease.
"The new study, published this month in The Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, is unusual in that more than 70 percent of the original group of 2,000 people randomly selected for tracking were available for re-examination 21 years later. The dietary information had been collected at the beginning of the study, which reduced the possibility of errors introduced by people inaccurately recalling their consumption. Still, the authors acknowledge that any self-reported data is subject to inaccuracies."

TAGGED AGAIN

I've been tagged in the ubiquitous 25 Random Things About Yourself. I won't tag anyone with this, but if you'd like to play along, just leave a comment about it here, so we know to check it out.

25 Random Facts about Pam:
1. I am very kind-hearted - probably more than most people realize;
2. I am still, at 56, quite shy;
3. I quit smoking 23 years ago by having major surgery (I highly recommend it);
4. I am seriously anxiety prone;
5. I love to laugh - in fact it comes way too easily in often horribly inappropriate situations;
6. I love all animals, and will do whatever I can to help/protect an animal in need;
7. I often prefer the company of animals to that of people;
8. I can be very stubborn, if the situation warrants;
9. I have a quick temper, but over the years, have learned the benefits of controlling it;
10. I love to read, and am rather picky about what I read;
11. I adore movies, and again, am rather picky about what I'll watch;
12. I like music, but have to be in the mood, and play the appropriate music;
13. I REALLY adore technology - computers, phones, pods, my car; I still say, "Thank god there are smarter people than me in this world, or we would still be writing with coal on a shovel;
14. The book that has affected me like no other is Blindness, by Jose Saramago;
15. I am an only child;
16. But, I'm pretty good at sharing;
17. I love the show 24, but I often get too tense while watching it;
18. I am on my tenth Toyota, a 2008 Prius which is as close to a perfect car as I have ever driven;
19. My partner and I have been together nearly 16 years;
20. My son, daughter-in-law, and their 2 kids are the light of my life;
21. I wish I could see them more often;
22. I am so happy that Barack Obama is our President; I backed him from the start; I don't think I could have taken 4 more years of a Republican presidency;
23. I love coffee, and have been drinking it since I was about 3 (that's the Swede in me!); but I rarely have more than 2 cups per day or I become too jittery;
24. I am hating cold weather much more as I get older, but I still love snow;
25. I moderate a local Freecycle (TM) recycling group because I realy believe in recycling - for ourselves, our children, and our grandchildren.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"Don't wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great."
~~Orison Swett Marden

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons. You will find it is to the soul what a water bath is to the body."
~~Oliver Wendell Holmes

BOHEME

Tagging rears its ugly head again...
It goes like this:
1. Put your iTunes or iPod on shuffle
2. For each question press the next button to get your next answer.
3. You must write that song name down no matter how outrageous is sounds!
4. Tag ? friends who might "enjoy" doing the game as well as the person you got the note from. (I'm not tagging anyone; if you want to do it, go for it!)

IF SOMEONE SAYS, "IS THIS OKAY" you say?
Mother and Child Reunion (Paul Simon)

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Graceland (Paul Simon)

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Come Together (The Beatles)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
Sweet Painted Lady (Elton John)

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
We Can Work It Out (The Beatles)

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
The Only Living Boy in New York (Simon & Garfunkel)

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT OFTEN?
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon & Garfunkel)

WHAT IS 2+2?
Slip Slidin' Away (Paul Simon)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
Get Back (The Beatles)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Super Trouper (ABBA)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Sacrifice (Elton John)

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Tiny Dancer (Elton John)

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
A Most Peculiar Man (Simon & Garfunkel)

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Homeless (Paul Simon)

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Lady Maddona (The Beatles)

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Further to Fly (Paul Simon)

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
All Around the World or The Myth of Fire (Paul Simon)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Let It Be (The Beatles)

WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op.55 "Eroica" (Beethoven)

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
Train in the Distance (Paul Simon)

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
Sparrow (Simon & Garfulkel)

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
Rocket Man (Elton John)

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
Yes I Am (Mellissa Ethridge)

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
So Long Frank Lloyd Wright (Simon & Garfunkel)

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
Grey Seal (Elton John)

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Roy Rogers (Elton John)

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
The Winner Takes All (ABBA)

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
A Hard Day's Night (The Beatles)

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Boheme (Deep Forest)

THE BEST AMERICAN NON-REQUIRED READING 2008

By Mark Flanigan, Contemporary Literature Guide for About.com:
"The Best American Nonrequired Reading features fiction, nonfiction, journalism, comics, and humor, and is doubtlessly the most eclectic of Houghton Mifflin's Best American series. It grew out of the 826 Valencia project, a writing workshop for teens that Dave Eggers founded in San Francisco's Mission District. 826 Valencia has since evolved into 826 National, with writing workshops springing up around the country, and as in previous years, the pieces chosen for The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2008 were done so by high school student participants of these workshops. And while there's something in this collection for everybody, I found that the selection of fiction was largely overshadowed by the remarkable nonfiction inclusions:J. Malcolm Garcia's "The White Train" is an illicit peak into the lives of a caste of Buenos Aires trash scavengers, the cartoneros, whose existence depends upon the skeletal ghost train upon which they transport their recyclables through the city.Raffi Khatchadourian's "Neptune's Navy" came from The New Yorker, and is a short version of Peter Heller's book, The Whale Warriors, which delves into the adventures of marine activist Paul Watson and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as they patrol the icy waters of the southern seas to stop illegal Japanese whaling.
"Veteran fiction writer George Saunders really delivers with a piece of creative journalism entitled 'Bill Clinton, Public Citizen.' Saunders describes a classroom in a hospital in the Dominican Republic where children are playing chaotically prior to the arrival of a special guest. The guest is Bill Clinton, and Saunders fools me into believing that this is a fiction, an alternate world of his imagination, by painting Clinton not as the affable, gregarious figure we're accustomed to seeing, but as grave - dour even. Then he hits me with the punch line: 'If not for the William J. Clinton Foundation, every one of these little kids would be dead or dying soon, since every one of them is HIV positive, and until the foundation intervened, almost no one in the Dominican Republic had access to life-prolonging antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). And for most kids this young, the life expectancy for someone with HIV not on ARVs is five years.' Saunders is part of a press crew following the former president to several developing African nations, where the work of the William J. Clinton foundation has made ARVs affordable and saved the lives of hundreds of thousands of children. The author spotlights the private moments he shares with Clinton, moments when it becomes clear to Saunders, no slouch himself, just what an incredible individual the former president is. At a press dinner, Saunders notes that Clinton does most of the talking, not because he is self-absorbed or prone to pontification, but because Clinton is easily the most interesting person at the table:
" 'Because when Bill Clinton's at your table, you don't really want anyone else talking, and that includes you. When you do talk, you feel stupid. I mean, you are stupid. You are suddenly short of facts and full of intuition. You lack the conversational zing that comes with having once been leader of the free world. Have your previous dinner partners included Gobachev, Mandela, Bono, Liza Hurley, Stephen Jay Gould? Were you instrumental in bringing peace to Ireland? Were your personal foibles broadcast at a cringe-inducing level of detail into every home in America? Did you sign into law the Family and Medical Leave Act, already used by some three million Americans to be with a dying parent or at home after the birth of a child? Do people routinely accuse you and your wife of Macbethian levels of intrigue and ambition, levels that no actual living person is diabolical or efficient enough to attain? Have you ever made a speech to 50,000 people? Do people look at you and think: should have done more in Rwanda? Have you started a foundation that has saved, by even the most conservative estimates, hundreds of thousands of lives and set the stage, through a series of price cuts and the stabilization of markets, for millions more to be saved? Well, right, me neither.'
"The Gene Weingarten article, 'Pearls Before Breakfast,' about violinist Joshua Bell's experiment in the Washington D.C. metro originally ran in The Washington Post and won Weingarten a Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing. It's brilliant, and along with George Saunder's piece on Clinton, should never appear in something labeled "nonrequired." No, this reading is most certainly required. Everyone should be handed this reading at the door and quizzed upon it before they are allowed to leave.There are other amazing pieces in The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2008. The collection opens with Marjorie Celona's "Y," a heart-breaking short story, and graphic novelist Rutu Modan's "Queen of the Scottish Fairies," a single installment from her http://www.nytimes.com/ comics column, Mixed Emotions, is absolutely brilliant - this from someone who rarely reads graphic novels or comics. And "Cake," a hard-hitting short story from Patrick Tobin on the survival of pain, both emotional and physical, will leave you doubled-over, holding your gut.Pick up a copy of The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2008. As I said above, there's something for everybody, and with the Saunders and Weingarten essays being required anyway, you get an awful lot of bonus for your $14."

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"Once you choose hope, anything's possible."
~~Christopher Reeve

JANUARY 20, 2009 WAS A VERY GOOD DAY

By Bob Edwards, on the BobEdwardsRadio.com blog:
"I am absolutely overwhelmed by everything that took place on Inauguration Day and I say that as an aging cynic. My father was a lowly soldier in city machine politics. I've known from birth how the game is played, how the cards are dealt and how the deal goes down. Working in the news business for more than 40 years, my cynicism has been reinforced every day. I've seen the bright-eyed neophytes shot down, the brainy thinkers steam rolled, the truly needy cast aside with the powerless others. That's the routine of politics--that's the day-to-day reality. But then once in a great while comes a defining moment---the exception to the rule---a moment that gives you a little bit of hope that they're not all charlatans trying to line their pockets and accommodate their rich friends. Rarely---very, very rarely---comes an occasion when the cynic is moved to think there might be another way that we might be governed. I have had that feeling exactly twice. The first time was in 1960, when John F. Kennedy proclaimed that the torch had been passed to a new generation. He was talking about his generation (he was 43) but I felt he was talking about mine (I was 13). JFK made government service cool. He infused service to America with a status that a number of subsequent presidents have shot down. Federal workers have been told for years they are part of a bloated bureaucracy that's a burden on rich people trying to become richer. I think national service got a big lift at Barack Obama's inauguration. I believe that, for the first time since JFK. Obama inspired young people to give some thought to serving their fellow citizens through public service. He has sent a surge of energy into the populace unmatched since January 20, 1960. I was deeply moved by the events of Inauguration Day and I will be happy to unburden myself of decades of cynicism if this feeling lasts another week, a month or a year. I will give Obama time, because no one since FDR has been left with such a big load of crap to deal with. If he screws up, I'll give him the same treatment I've given George W. Bush. But for now, the honeymoon is underway, and who's not in the mood to enjoy a honeymoon? January 20, 2009 was a very good day. Let's hope we have many more like it!"

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"Abortion doesn't belong in the political arena. It's a private right, like many other rights concerning the family."
~~Bella Abzug

OBAMA BACKS 'RIGHT TO CHOOSE' ON ROE ANNIVERSARY

From CNN.com:
"President Obama affirmed his support for a woman's "right to choose" on Thursday, the 36th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that led to the legalization of abortion, as thousands of anti-abortion activists descended on the National Mall to challenge his position.
"Roe v. Wade 'not only protects women's health and reproductive freedom, but stands for a broader principle: that government should not intrude on our most private family matters,' Obama said in a statement.
"The landmark 1973 decision held that a woman's right to abortion was protected by the right to privacy under the Constitution's 14th Amendment, voiding most state laws against abortion at the time."

THOUGHT FOR THE FIRST 100 DAYS

"Welcome back to the fight. This time I know our side will win."
~~Victor Laszlo, Casablanca

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

"At long last, HOPE."
~~Zztopdog

EXIT THE BOY KING

By Maureen Doud, Op-Ed Columnist for The New York Times:
"It was the Instant the Earth Stood Still.
"Not since Klaatu landed in a flying saucer on the Ellipse has Washington been so mesmerized by an object whirring through the sky.
"But this one was departing, not arriving.
"As W. ceased to be president, he flew off over the Capitol and across the Mall en route to Andrews Air Force Base, and then back to Texas.
"I’ve seen many presidents come and go, but I’ve never watched a tableau like the one Tuesday, when four million eyes turned heavenward, following the helicopter’s path out of town. Everyone, it seemed, was waving goodbye, with one or two hands, a wave that moved westward down the Mall toward the Lincoln Memorial, and keeping their eyes fixed unwaveringly on that green bird.
"They wanted to make absolutely, positively certain that W. was gone. It was like a physical burden being lifted, like a sigh went up of 'Thank God. Has Cheney’s wheelchair left the building, too?'
"The crowd was exuberant that George Bush was now an ex-president, and 43 himself was jovial 'the way he always is,' according to his last press secretary, Dana Perino.
"It was like a catharsis in Greek drama, with the antagonist plucked out of the scene into the sky, and the protagonist dropping into the scene to magically fix all the problems. Except Barack Obama’s somber mien and restrained oratory conveyed that he’s no divinity and there will be no easy resolution to this plot.
"It was a morning of such enormous emotion and portent — jaw-dropping, Dow-dropping and barrier-dropping — that even the cool new president had to feel daunted to see his blocks-long motorcade and two million hope-besotted faces beaming up at him, dreaming that he can save their shirts.
"The optimism was tempered by pessimism, a vibe of 'Maybe this once-in-a-lifetime guy can do it, but boy, there are a lot of never-in-our-lifetime problems here.'
"Unlike W., Obama is a realist. He knows there is the potential of letting all these blissed-out people down.
"The day had its jittery moments: Teddy Kennedy’s collapse and Robert Byrd’s distraught reaction. There was also that match of the titan smarty-pants — the new Democratic president face to face with the conservative chief justice he voted against.
"First John Roberts had to say, Easy, cowboy, after Mr. Obama jumped the gun on “I” at the start of the oath of office. Then the president, who had obviously been looking over his lines, graciously offered the chief justice a chance to correct his negligent syntax, when he put the 'faithfully' and other words out of place.
"Under the platform, near where I sat, Denzel Washington, Beyoncé, Jay-Z and P. Diddy looked on proudly as the new commander in chief showed he was in command of the script and the country.
"After thanking President Bush 'for his service to our nation,' Mr. Obama executed a high-level version of Stephen Colbert’s share-the-stage smackdown of W. at the White House correspondents’ dinner in 2006.
"With W. looking on, and probably gradually realizing with irritation, as he did with Colbert, who Mr. Obama’s target was — (Is he talking about me? Is 44 saying I messed everything up?) — the newly minted president let him have it: 'As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals,' he said to wild applause (and to Bartlett’s), adding: 'Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake.' He said America is choosing hope over fear, unity over discord, setting aside 'false promises' and 'childish things.'
"Letting a little air out of the highest hopes about what one man, even 'The One,' can do, he emphasized the word 'our.' He stressed that rebuilding after the wreckage of W. and Cheney will be a shared burden and that 'giving our all to a difficult task' isn’t as bad as it sounds.
"I grew up here, and it was the first time I’ve ever seen the city wholly, happily integrated, with a mood redolent of New York in the weeks after 9/11. The Obamas have made an unprecedented pledge to get involved in the real city that lies beyond the political Oz, and have already started doing so in many ways, including starting the night out at the D.C. Neighborhood Inaugural Ball.
"Downtown was a euphoric pedestrian mall of commerce and communal kindness. The patience that America is extending to Mr. Obama, according to a Times poll, was reflected across the capital, as the cram of people sparked warmth rather than antsiness.
"Strollers laughed as a peddler in a Rasta hat hawked his 'Barack Obama incense.' And revelers stepped up to a spot where you could pick out a colored magic marker and complete posters that began, 'Mr. President, I hope for ...'
"Entries ranged from 'burning less oil' to 'healthcare for all' to 'a cure for cancer”' to this lofty and entirely understandable sentiment: 'a sick inauguration party.' "

JEN'S FAVORITE MOMENT FROM THE INAUGURAL SPEECH

"As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers ... our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more. "
~~President Barack Obama, in his Inaugural Speech, January 20, 2009