Changing the World

In 2006, Kellie O'Brien and her daughter, Heather, traveled to Africa to volunteer at a convent in Sanya Ju, Tanzania.  With so much hardship around them, they felt impelled to give away much of the clothing and money they had with them.  At the end of the day, however, they knew they had not made a lasting difference.  When asked how they could, the sisters told them about a Massai man named Gabriel who had come to the convent for the last five years, asking for a school.  Even then, Kellie O'Brien knew that her life was about to change.

[and more from Costco Magazine, December 2013]

Harold Ramis

The world of movies and the world of comedy has lost a legend as actor and comedian Harold Ramis has died at the age of 69. The actor had been suffering from a number of health issues in recent years and finally succumbed to his battle with them on Monday.
Per the Chicago Tribune:

Ramis, a longtime North Shore resident, was surrounded by family when he died at 12:53 a.m. from complications of autoimmune inflammatory vasculitis, a rare disease that involves swelling of the blood vessels, his wife Erica Mann Ramis said. He was 69.

Ramis is perhaps best known for his work in 80s comedies with his collaborators Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd. The trio helped create some of the classic comedies we revere today such as Ghostbusters, Caddyshack and Stripes. He also has writing credits on such classics as Animal House, Meatballs and Groundhog Day.

***

Reactions

[via facebook]

10 Obvious Truths

well, maybe not so obvious (or obvious after the fact)

You know how you can hear something a hundred times in a hundred different ways before it finally gets to you?  The ten truths listed below fall firmly into that category - life lessons that many of us learned years ago, and have been reminded of ever since, but for whatever reason, haven't fully grasped.

-- via facebook

The Country Doctor weighs in

The 1909 film Country Doctor was a tear-jerker in which a small-town American physician was torn between staying bedside with his gravely ill daughter and helping others who equally needed his services.

That brings me to the story of Marc Shlachter, M.D., self-styled “Country Doctor” of Hauula and Laie. Very small-town American doctor.

He’s from Cleveland (where I was born and lived through age 7), and if you’re curious how he came here, it’s pretty simple:

“From watching the 1961 movie Gidget Goes Hawaiian at a high school graduation party.”

I’ve known the doc since he came to Hauula 43 years ago and I lived in Punaluu, when he had to dump the usual doctor’s exam table and use a butcher’s block to handle his weighty, mostly Polynesian patients. When he got paid in taro, fish, chickens and cooked food. Was inaugurated as a Samoan chief. When he married a local Filipina and raised two children, divorced, married again to a woman from Japan, who now manages his office and his money – the latter being what he’s worst at.

Wherever you go with him in Hauula-Laie, people shout, “Hey, Dr. Shlachter!” The Chinese restaurant in Laie Shopping Center carries a vegetarian “Dr. Shlachter Special.”

I was curious what the Country Doctor, who was featured on MidWeek‘s cover back in 1994, thinks about Obamacare and the limits on Medicare reimbursements. And what does this physician with so many patients who will never access HealthCare.gov on the Internet think of the state of our health care system?

“The premise that every American should have health coverage should be a right,” Shlachter says. “The changes that already exist are very good, such as a child staying under the parents’ plan through age 26. And that physical exams and wellness checks are a covered service.

“I believe the country would be much better off with a universal payer like Medicare for everyone, with the federal government or the state contributing to the premiums for indigents. Having multiple insurance companies competing with each other drives up the cost – for example, the five Quest insurers here for indigents.

“The argument that mandatory health care insurance is a form of communism is hogwash. No one says mandatory auto insurance for all drivers is communism. I believe non-competitive health insurance with (one payer) would save the country much money that can be used for other things.”

Shlachter says he didn’t end up making much money out there in Hauula and Laie, and his home phone rings at all odd hours – just like the doctors’ home phones of old days.

But there in “the country” he’s an icon and a family friend, not just a health provider.

And in 43 years, there haven’t been many illnesses, diseases or injuries he’s not seen, diagnosed and treated.

That – rather than the money – used to be what drew our young people into the medical profession.

-- Bob Jones, MidWeek, February 5, 2014

habits of the mentally strong

In 1914, Thomas Edison's lab burned down, and years' worth of his work was destroyed. This could easily be described as the worst thing to happen to Edison, but the inventor instead chose to see it as an energizing opportunity that forced him to rebuild and re-examine much of his work. Edison reportedly said at the time: "Thank goodness all our mistakes were burned up. Now we can start again fresh."

"In a world that we don't control, tolerance is obviously an asset," Ryan Holiday, author of the forthcoming The Obstacle Is The Way, told The Huffington Post. "But the ability to find energy and power from what we don't control is an immense competitive advantage."

He's talking about mental strength, a difficult-to-define psychological concept that encompasses emotional intelligence, grit, resilience, self-control, mental toughness and mindfulness. It's something that Edison had in spades, and it's the reason that some people are able to overcome any obstacle, while others crumble at life's daily challenges and frustrations.

The ability to cope with difficult emotions and situations is a significant predictor of our success and happiness. The most capable individuals in this way are able to turn any obstacle into a source of growth and opportunity. And while much has been made of what mentally strong people avoid doing -- things like dwelling on the past, resenting the success of others and feeling sorry for themselves -- what do they actually do? What tactics do they use to overcome adversity time and time again?

"Things that we think are obstacles are actually opportunities to do something," says Holiday. "[To] be rewarded in some way that we never would have expected, provided that we address and don't shirk from that obstacle."

Here are 9 essential habits and practices of mentally strong people that can help you get through any challenge or hardship.

[via facebook]

14 Things Your Children Can Teach You

One windy, rainy day my cheap umbrella was blown inside out, leaving me drenched and furious.  Muttering under my breath, I wrestled the umbrella closed and jammed it into the trash.  Just then a small girl and her father walked by.  Her little red umbrella had also been blown inside out.  Instead of becoming angry, the girl smiled, "Look Daddy, a giant flower," she said.  I realized then, I needed to lighten up.

Whether it is making the most of a bad situation or discovering wonderment in the ordinary world, children have their own way of teaching adults as much as we teach them.  But many of us are so wrapped up in our day-to-day lives that this wisdom is wasted.  So we took the time to talk to some perceptive parents, educators and other people who work with youngsters.  Their observations provide some subtle and not so subtle lessons for all of us.

The power of perseverance.  Susan Van Zant, a 52-year old grandmother and elementary school principal in San Diego, remembers one of her most influential "teachers," a 9 year-old named Brian, who has cerebral palsy.  When Brian entered the school's charity jogathon., Van Zant assumed he would use his wheelchair, but Brian had planned a surprise for his classmates.  "He had been undergoing occupational therapy and learned to walk with a walker.  He waited until that day to show the other kids," says Van Zant.

Each step Brian took was enormously difficult and sweat poured down his face as he made his way around the track.  "He stumbled and fell, but he got back up again," recalls Van Zant.  "After he went around once,we thought he would stop, but he said he wanted to like everyone else and insisted on doing it for a whole hour.  He was an inspiration to us all.

Money isn't everything.  Carole Kennedy, 54, an elementary-school principal in Columbia, Missouri, recalls preparing for a field trip to St. Louis with her students.  Kennedy, whose school serves many children from low-income families, bought a new outfit for one second grader who didn't have many nice clothes.  "We thought she'd be delighted, but she wouldn't accept the gift," says Kennedy.  "She was comfortable with who she was and if she didn't have things as good as everybody else, that was fine."  The episode also taught Kennedy that "the really important issue is the love of family, not trying to keep up with the Joneses."

It's OK to ask for help.  While adults often think asking for help is a sign of weakness, children know not only is it smart, but seeking the assistance of others can make them stronger.

Robin Capecci, 36, a social worker at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, learned this from Jessica, a 15-year old patient who was dying of cancer.  Jessica came to Capecci for advice on how to discuss her condition with her family.  "She wanted to reassure them that they would be OK, but she didn't know how," says Capecci.

Since speaking with Jessica, Capecci has been better able to come forward when she feels overwhelmed.  "Jessica didn't want anyone to think she was weak in any way, but she taught me that it was OK to turn to someone else to talk."

-- by Stephanie Dolgoff, Women's Day 3/14/95

Sid Caesar

Sid Caesar, one of the first stars created by television via his weekly live comedy program “Your Show of Shows,” died Wednesday at his home in Beverly Hills after a brief illness. He was 91.

A two-time Emmy winner, Caesar (above in a photo with Red Buttons and Mickey Rooney) and his partner Imogene Coca broke comedic ground with the 90-minute live program: It didn’t rely on vaudeville or standup material but rather on long skits and sketches written by an impressive roster of comedy writers including Mel Brooks, Woody Allen, Neil Simon, Larry Gelbart, Carl Reiner, Lucille Kallen and Mel Tolkin.

Reiner said Caesar had an ability to “connect with an audience and make them roar with laughter.”

“Sid Caesar set the template for everybody,” Reiner told KNX-AM in Los Angeles. “He was without a doubt the greatest sketch comedian-monologist that television ever produced. He could ad lib. He could do anything that was necessary to make an audience laugh.”

“Your Show of Shows” was “different from other programs of its time because its humor was aimed at truth,” Simon once observed. “Other television shows would present situations with farcical characters; we would put real-life people into identifiable situations.”

Shirley Temple

(CNN) -- Shirley Temple Black, who rose to fame as arguably the most popular child star in Hollywood history, died late Monday night, her publicist said.

She was 85.

Temple Black, who also enjoyed a long career as a diplomat, died of natural causes at her Woodside, California, home. She was surrounded by family and caregivers, a statement from Cheryl Kagan said.

She began acting at age 3 and became a massive box-office draw before turning 10, commanding a then-unheard of salary of $50,000 per movie.

Her first film of notice was in 1932 when she played in "War Babies," part of the "Baby Burlesks" series of short films.

For about 18 years, she sang, tap-danced and acted her way into the hearts of millions. Her corkscrew curls were popular with little girls from the 1930s through the 1970s.

Early years

Her star shone brightest as a toddler, and 20th Century Fox cranked out a series of feature films with the adorable, talented little girl. Her hits included "Little Miss Marker" (1934), "Curly Top" (1935) and "The Littlest Rebel" (1935).

At the box office, she beat out the great adult stars of her day, such as Clark Gable and Bing Crosby. Her popularity spawned a large array of merchandizing items, such as dolls, hats and dresses.

She was the top box-office star four years in a row, from 1935 to 1938. Her career was at its peak as the country was suffering the effects of the Great Depression, and her films offered uplifting moments.

She retired from filmmaking at 22 and married Charles Black, changing her last name from Temple to Temple Black.

But she did not fade from the public eye.

She embarked on a new career as a foreign diplomat: She served in the U.S. delegation to the United Nations from 1969 to 1974 was U.S. ambassador to Ghana from 1974 to 1976, and U.S. ambassador to Czechoslovakia from 1989 to 1992.

the Bezos factors (traits of success)

When Jeff Bezos was a child, he dreamed of being the next Thomas Edison. Today, he's the multibillionaire founder and CEO of Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) , with personal ambitions geared toward outer space, financing a clock that measures time for 10,000 years, and, perhaps equally ambitious, supplanting Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) at the top of the retail food chain.

How did he go from being an admittedly accomplished child to one of our generation's greatest (and richest) entrepreneurs? And, more specifically, are there lessons we can draw from his experience to increase our own chance at success in the future?

I believe the answer to the latter question is yes. As I highlight in the following list of factors underlying Bezos' stratospheric ascent, as recounted by Brad Stone in The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon, while luck and genetics certainly positioned the Amazon founder for success, other traits such as confidence, work ethic, and a fierce independence are both critical to explaining his rise and largely replicable by others.

1. LuckTo a certain extent, every great entrepreneur is a product of luck -- that is, of their specific time and place of birth.

"Shortly before or very shortly after 1840 were born nearly all the galaxy of uncommon men who were to be the overlords of the future society," Matthew Josephson wrote nearly 80 years ago in The Robber Barons, a book about the scions of the Gilded Age. By coming into their own on the heels of the Civil War, these men were uniquely positioned to capture the wealth from the postwar industrial revolution.

The same can be said of Bill Gates, the founder and longtime CEO of Microsoft, who was born on the eve of the computing revolution and attended a private middle school that had only recently started a computer club. "It was an amazing thing, of course, because this was 1968," Malcolm Gladwell wrote in Outliers: The Story of Success. "Most colleges didn't have computer clubs in the 1960s."

Even Warren Buffett's current station in life can be attributed in part to happenstance. Born in 1930, he was too young to be burdened with memories of the Crash of 1929 or the Great Depression, yet old enough to ride the epic wave of prosperity that followed World War II and ignited one of the greatest bull markets in history.

Bezos is no exception here. Beyond his considerable intellect and skill set, it simply can't be denied that he was of the age (late 20s) and ability to exploit the Internet revolution of the mid-1990s.

2. IntelligenceThat Bezos has been lucky, however, doesn't detract from his own talents and abilities. "A lot of what we ascribe to luck is not luck at all," Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX  ) CEO Howard Schultz wrote in Pour Your Heart Into It. "It's seizing the day and accepting responsibility for your future."

To Schultz's point, of the roughly 4 million babies to be born in 1964, there was only one Jeff Bezos. Only one person thought of Amazon. Only one person threw caution to the wind, abandoned a lucrative Wall Street career, and drove cross-country to make his dream a reality. And only one person had the emotional fortitude to stare down the likes of Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble in order to see the vision through to completion.

What made Bezos "the one"? Perhaps more than anything, it's his uniquely keen and "hyper-rational" intellect. He was a standout pupil in elementary school, the valedictorian of his high-school class, and a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton University. He sprinted through the ranks at D.E. Shaw, one of the earliest and still most sophisticated quantitative hedge funds on Wall Street.

Three decades ago, when a teacher of his was asked to estimate 12-year-old Bezos' grade level, she responded: "I really can't say, except that there is probably no limit to what he can do, given a little guidance."

3. Work ethicLayered on top of this intellect has been a fierce work ethic that's propelled by Bezos' intense ability to focus and strong underlying discipline.

At one point, Bezos announced to his high-school class that he intended to be the valedictorian, Stone recounts. After that, it became a race to be No. 2. "Jeff decided he wanted it and he worked harder than anybody else," recalled a friend of Bezos' from the time.

At D.E. Shaw, he kept a sleeping bag in his office and a makeshift mattress pad on his windowsill for nights that he chose to sleep at the office. At Amazon, one of his guiding principles is that "you can work long, you can work hard, you can work smart, but at Amazon you can't choose two out of the three."


"He was excruciatingly focused," said the same friend. "Not like mad-scientist focused, but he was capable of really focusing, in a crazy way, on certain things."

[That's the main three.  The other seven are somewhat redundant to me.  For more, read Outliers.]

become the change

I've come to strongly believe that you cannot change others, for better or worse.  So what I have decided to do is become the change I wish to see in others through action.

I find that people have to want to change themselves, and without experiencing some kind of epiphany will likely remain the way they are for the rest of their lives. Trying too hard to change people will often drive them further away from you, and closer to whatever it is you're trying to get them to avoid. This is because people naturally get defensive when others - especially those closest to them - question their decisions or lifestyle. If you're trying to effect change in someone you become an external force which inevitably puts the other party in a position to internalize their feelings and emotions.

I realized this many years ago when dealing with my own mother. ...

becoming exceptional

How can people like you and I can become exceptional in our own right -- both in terms of investing (as The Motley Fool is an investing site) and in life more generally?

As I promised at the beginning, the answer to this is much simpler and easier to implement than one might think. This is because each day presents you with a series of otherwise infinitesimal challenges -- i.e., opportunities -- that can be used to differentiate yourself from the pack.

Giving up your seat on the subway for the older woman who just boarded. Not retaliating when you're cut off on the freeway. Not yelling at your children in those inevitable moments when chaos ensues. Or, in the case of investing, not succumbing to the urge to check your brokerage account when the market is down.

Are these small and arguably meaningless examples? Absolutely. But that's the point.

Becoming exceptional, while not necessarily complicated, is a process. Small tests steel you for bigger ones. They elevate your consciousness in the face of adversity and fuel your willingness to seek out and conquer new challenges.

In Richard Sherman's case, this was prevailing in the face of Compton's ubiquitous culture of violence. In Phil Knight's case, it was prevailing over a deeply entrenched and well-financed industry.

What's it going to be in your case?

Leno says goodbye again

BURBANK, Calif. » Jay Leno has said goodbye to "The Tonight Show" before, but not like this. The comedian became tearful and choked up Thursday as he concluded what he called the "greatest 22 years of my life."

"I am the luckiest guy in the world. This is tricky," said an emotional Leno, stepping down for the second and presumably last time as host of TV's venerable late-night program. Jimmy Fallon takes over "Tonight" in New York on Feb. 17.

Leno shared that he'd lost his mother the first year he became "Tonight" host, his dad the second and then his brother.

"And after that I was pretty much out of family. And the folks here became my family," he said of the crew and staff of "Tonight."

It was a tender finish to a farewell show that was mostly aiming for laughs, with traditional monologue jokes, clips from old shows and a wild assortment of celebrities helping to usher Leno out the door.

Leno first departure came in 2009, when he was briefly replaced by Conan O'Brien but reclaimed the show after a messy transition and O'Brien's lackluster ratings. In '09, he was moving to a prime-time show on NBC; this time he's out the door, and has said he'll focus on comedy clubs and his beloved car collection.

Looking sharp in a black suit and bright blue tie, Leno was greeted by an ovation from the VIP audience. The typically self-contained comic betrayed a bit of nervousness, stumbling over a few lines in his monologue.

He didn't trip over his opening line, though — a final dig at his employer.

"You're very kind," he told the audience. "I don't like goodbyes. NBC does."

Leno brought his show full circle with Billy Crystal, who was his first guest in May 1992 and his last guest Thursday. Crystal played ringmaster at one point, calling on Oprah Winfrey, Jack Black, Kim Kardashian, Carol Burnett and others for a musical tribute to Jay with a "Sound of Music" song parody.

"So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye. If Fallon tanks you'll be back here next year," sang Jack Black.

"The Big Bang Theory" star Jim Parson's contribution: "We've watched you when we're weary. Your great success is called the big chin theory."

In a videotaped segment, celebrities offered career advice to Leno.

"Why would I give am (expletive) about what he does. He's a grown man," said Mark Walberg.

President Barack Obama, like other politicians a favorite target of Leno's, struck back in his clip.

"Jay, you've made a whole lot of jokes about me over the years, but don't worry, I'm not upset," Obama said, then said he was making Leno the U.S. ambassador to Antarctica. "Hope you have a warm coat, man."

Crystal sang Leno's praises during the show, saying the late-night host made America feel a little better at bedtime and invoking his predecessor, Johnny Carson. Leno's "Tonight" tenure was second in length only to Carson's 30 years.

"You were handed the baton by one of the all-time greats. But once it was in your grasp, you ran the race," Crystal said. He and Leno, longtime friends, reminisced about the old days, with Leno recalling how Crystal and other comedians visiting his town, Boston, stayed in Leno's apartment.

"You're calling it an apartment. I'm calling it a bomb site," Crystal joked.

Leno told how he was poised to make his network debut on Dean Martin's show in 1974 when news came that President Richard Nixon had resigned in the Watergate scandal. Leno's appearance didn't happen.

"Making me the last guy screwed by Nixon," Leno said.

Garth Brooks performed his touching song "The Dance" before Leno's farewell remarks. "Now that I brought the room down," Leno joked, he asked Brooks to lighten it up.

Another Brooks' song, "Friends in Low Places," closed out the show.

***

Dave congratulates Jay.

Conan?  Not so much.

I wouldn't mind one more appearance with Dave.

should we save poor children?

Will saving poor children lead to overpopulation?

No.  It's the other way around says Hans Rosling.

the greatest period in world history

Expanding on my belief that everything is amazing and nobody is happy, here are 50 facts that show we're actually living through the greatest period in world history.

1. U.S. life expectancy at birth was 39 years in 1800, 49 years in 1900, 68 years in 1950, and 79 years today. The average newborn today can expect to live an entire generation longer than his great-grandparents could.

4. In 1949, Popular Mechanics magazine made the bold prediction that someday a computer could weigh less than 1 ton. I wrote this sentence on an iPad that weighs 0.73 pounds.

5. The average American now retires at age 62. One hundred years ago, the average American died at age 51. Enjoy your golden years -- your ancestors didn't get any of them.

10. People worry that the U.S. economy will end up stagnant like Japan's. Next time you hear that, remember that unemployment in Japan hasn't been above 5.6% in the past 25 years, its government corruption ranking has consistently improved, incomes per capita adjusted for purchasing power have grown at a decent rate, and life expectancy has risen by nearly five years. I can think of worse scenarios.

11. Two percent of American homes had electricity in 1900. J.P Morgan (the man) was one of the first to install electricity in his home, and it required a private power plant on his property. Even by 1950, close to 30% of American homes didn't have electricity. It wasn't until the 1970s that virtually all homes were powered. Adjusted for wage growth, electricity cost more than 10 times as much in 1900 as it does today, according to professor Julian Simon.

14. In 1952, 38,000 people contracted polio in America alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control. In 2012, there were fewer than 300 reported cases of polio in the entire world.

15. From 1920 to 1949, an average of 433,000 people died each year globally from "extreme weather events." That figure has plunged to 27,500 per year, according to Indur Goklany of the International Policy Network, largely thanks to "increases in societies' collective adaptive capacities."

16. Worldwide deaths from battle have plunged from 300 per 100,000 people during World War II, to the low teens during the 1970s, to less than 10 in the 1980s, to fewer than one in the 21st century, according to Harvard professor Steven Pinker. "War really is going out of style," he says.

20. Almost no homes had a refrigerator in 1900, according to Frederick Lewis Allan's The Big Change, let alone a car. Today they sell cars with refrigerators in them.

29. In 1900, African Americans had an illiteracy rate of nearly 45%, according to the Census Bureau. Today, it's statistically close to zero.

30. People talk about how expensive college is today, but a century ago fewer than one in 20 Americans ever stepped foot in a university. College wasn't an option at any price for some minorities because of segregation just six decades ago.

31. The average American work week has declined from 66 hours in 1850, to 51 hours in 1909, to 34.8 today, according to the Federal Reserve. Enjoy your weekend.

39. The average American car got 13 miles per gallon in 1975, and more than 26 miles per gallon in 2013, according to the Energy Protection Agency. This has an effect identical to cutting the cost of gasoline in half.

41. The percentage of Americans age 65 and older who live in poverty has dropped from nearly 30% in 1966 to less than 10% by 2010.

42. Adjusted for inflation, the average monthly Social Security benefit for retirees has increased from $378 in 1940 to $1,277 by 2010. What used to be a safety net is now a proper pension.

44. From 1920 to 1980, an average of 395 people per 100,000 died from famine worldwide each decade. During the 2000s, that fell to three per 100,000, according to The Economist.

46. As recently as 1950, nearly 40% of American homes didn't have a telephone. Today, there are 500 million Internet-connected devices in America, or enough for 5.7 per household.

47. According to AT&T archives and the Dallas Fed, a three-minute phone call from New York to San Francisco cost $341 in 1915, and $12.66 in 1960, adjusted for inflation. Today, Republic Wireless offers unlimited talk, text, and data for $5 a month.

49. You need an annual income of $34,000 a year to be in the richest 1% of the world, according to World Bank economist Branko Milanovic's 2010 book The Haves and the Have-Nots. To be in the top half of the globe you need to earn just $1,225 a year. For the top 20%, it's $5,000 per year. Enter the top 10% with $12,000 a year. To be included in the top 0.1% requires an annual income of $70,000. America's poorest are some of the world's richest.

50. Only 4% of humans get to live in America. Odds are you're one of them. We've got it made. Be thankful.

damaging parenting behaviors

I was intrigued, then, to catch up with leadership expert Dr. Tim Elmore and learn more about how we as parents are failing our children today — coddling and crippling them — and keeping them from becoming leaders they are destined to be. Tim is a best-selling author of more than 25 books, including Generation iY: Our Last Chance to Save Their Future, Artificial Maturity: Helping Kids Meet the Challenges of Becoming Authentic Adults, and the Habitudes® series. He is Founder and President of Growing Leaders, an organization dedicated to mentoring today’s young people to become the leaders of tomorrow.

Tim had this to share about the 7 damaging parenting behaviors that keep children from becoming leaders – of their own lives and of the world’s enterprises:

The Professor

NEW YORK >> Actor Russell Johnson, who became known to generations of TV fans as "The Professor," the fix-it man who kept his fellow "Gilligan's Island" castaways supplied with gadgets, has died. He was 89.

Johnson died this morning at his home in Washington State of natural causes, said his agent, Mike Eisenstadt.

Johnson was a busy but little-known character actor when he was cast in the slapstick 1960s comedy about seven people marooned on an uncharted Pacific island.

He played high school science teacher Roy Hinkley, known to his fellow castaways as The Professor. There was seemingly nothing he couldn't do when it came to building generators, short-wave radios and other contraptions from scraps of flotsam and jetsam he found on the island. But, as Russell would joke years later, the one thing The Professor never accomplished was figuring out how to patch the hole in the bottom of the S.S. Minnow so the group could get back to civilization.

During its three-season run on CBS, critics repeatedly lambasted the show as insipid. But after its cancellation in 1967, it found generations of new fans in reruns and reunion movies.

another way to go to college

I can't count how many roundtable discussions I've heard asking whether college is still worth the cost. They are important debates; college can be expensive. But most leave out an important point: There is more than one way to go to college.

Tradition says you graduate high school at age 18 and head straight to a university. I've found that less than 30% of 18-year-olds are emotionally prepared for college, and a smaller percentage have a reasonable idea about what they want to do for a career.

This sets legions of new students on a devastating path: Start college at age 18 studying your childhood dream. Change your major at age 19 when you realize it requires too much math. Change it again at age 20 when you encounter a mean professor, and once more at 21 to match your boyfriend's class schedule. Eventually stick with a major at 23, graduate at 24, and at 26, finally figure out what you really want to do for a career, which invariably has no relation to your degree.

I can't offer individual advice, because everyone has different goals, backgrounds, and financial means. What worked for me might not work for you, and what works for you might not work for someone else.

But if I had to come up with a blanket college plan for the average non-rich American graduating high school, it would look like this.

one man's solution to hunger

“All around the island people complain about feral chickens and roosters, but when have you seen the food bank – or anyone else – teach anyone how to pluck feathers?”

“Although dogs and cats produce tasty lean meat and pigeon pie is famous around the world, when and where have you seen any such meat on a menu? Polynesians brought the Pacific rat to our island to provide their children with meat, and missionaries brought the black and Norway rat, but when have you seen rat on the menu? There is no reason for anyone on Oahu to go hungry when there is an abundance of food available!”

So let me get this straight. He does not donate food, ever. OK, that’s his choice and I have no problem with that.

But the reason he doesn’t donate is because he thinks down-and-out people should be catching feral chickens and rats and cats and dogs and plucking and skinning the critters themselves. And then they should bake tasty pigeon pies and simmer up savory rat stew, and feed that to their hungry families.

I have to say, I’m sort of speechless.

-- Jade Moon, MidWeek, November 27, 2013

progress

Comedian Louis C.K. does a great skit showing how oblivious we can be when complaining about our lives.

We get frustrated when our cell phone reception goes out for 30 seconds without realizing how amazing cell phone technology is. "Can you give it a second?" Louis asks. "It's going to space. Can you give a second to get back from space?"

"The worst cell phone in the world is a miracle," he says. "Why are you so mad at it?"

It's a wise question to ask. When something doesn't work perfectly but is still much better than it used to be, you are better off. Our perceptions and emotions play an evil trick by convincing us otherwise.

"Everything is amazing and nobody is happy," Louis says.

This could apply to the U.S. economy, too.

Everywhere you go these days, gloom wins.

"Jump in percentage of those saying things not going well," reads one headline.

"Americans see more doom and gloom in the economy," writes another.

"Americans Are Pessimistic, Miserable and Completely Fed Up," warns another.

A lot of Americans are in bad shape. Their problems are worse than bad cell phone service. They're unemployed, uninsured, underpaid, underappreciated, overmedicated, and overpromised.


But this is nothing new. It has always been true. And by most measures, most Americans live in a better, safer, more prosperous world today than they could have dreamed of a few decades ago.

The average American born in 1950 could expect to live to age 68. The average American born in 2010 can expect to live to almost 79.

Think about that: In two generations, the average American gained a decade of life expectancy.

Do you know what can happen in a decade? A little more than 10 years ago, AOL dominated the Internet, oil cost $13 a barrel, Fortune magazine named Enron one of America's "most admired corporations," and Apple was a joke. Everything can change, in other words. You get an extra one of those now.

Minorities have made even greater progress. African Americans have gained 15 years of life expectancy since 1950.

Odds are this will continue. Biomedical gerontologist Aubrey de Grey thinks the first person to live to see their 150th birthday is already alive. As San Francisco Chronicle columnist Jon Carroll joked, "Americans have come to view death as optional."

The biggest reason life expectancy has gone up is because childhood mortality has plunged, from 32 per 1,000 in 1950, to 19 in 1970, all the way down to six in 2012.

How often do we have BREAKING NEWS when stocks fall half a percent? Several times a week. But no one ever says, "Breaking news: Far Fewer Children are Dying Than Used To." We ignore the really important news because it happens slowly, but we obsess over trivial news because it happens all day long. This is another evil trick our minds (and media) play on us.

Not only are fewer children dying, but older Americans are experiencing something they couldn't dream about a few decades ago: retirement.

Think of it this way: The average American now retires at age 62. One hundred years ago, the average American died at age 51.

Poverty among the elderly has plunged, too. More than a quarter of those over age 65 were living in poverty in the 1960s, compared with less than 10% today. Medicare has only been around since the 1960s. Before that, as one 1963 Social Security report put it, "paying for necessary health services and providing adequate insurance for non-budgetable expenses remains beyond the economic capabilities of most aged persons."

he list goes on and on:

• In 1950, the average household spent 30% of its budget on food. Today, less than 13% of an average budget has to be devoted to food.
• High school graduation rates are at the highest level in 40 years.
• Traffic deaths per 100,000 people have fallen by half since the 1960s.
• The median new home today is 34% larger today than it was 25 years ago.
• 49% of new homes had air conditioning in 1973. Today, 89% do.
• Nearly 30% of Americans over age 25 have a bachelor's degree. In the 1960s, less than 10% did.

I'm not arguing that inefficiencies, injustices, and inequalities don't exist today. Of course, they do. But they always have, and by comparison, we are living in one of the most prosperous times in the history of this world.

We have a lot to be thankful for.

-- Morgan Housel

Star Trek: Into Darkness (where are the special features?)

No I haven't seen the movie yet, and I probably won't care to watch all the special features.  But I hate to be missing something that I could in theory watch (someday)...

How much does it cost to acquire the “complete” Star Trek Into Darkness blu-ray and how much effort does it take to enjoy it?  That would normally seem like an odd question, but Paramount’s inexplicable release strategy has left Trekkies and general blu-ray completists scratching their heads in confusion and frustration. You see, unlike most blu-ray releases, where the studio puts the respective bonus features either on the disc that every consumer can buy from every outlet, Paramount has done something… a little silly.  They have spread out the available special features into several different retail outlets. So basically, if you want the “complete” American Star Trek Into Darkness blu-ray, you have to buy it twice. Oh, and you can’t even enjoy some of those features on your television.

Offering an exclusive bonus disc to a consumer if you buy a given film at one specific store is not new.  However frowned upon it might be, it isn’t that much of a headache to, for example, buy Disney’s The Avengers at Target instead of Best Buy or Amazon in order to get a 90-minute documentary that isn’t available anywhere else. It’s annoying, as when Paramount put most the deleted scenes of Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol in the Best Buy bonus disc, but most studios at least have the decency to usually keep their content-related exclusives (as opposed to special packaging) to a single establishment.

What Paramount has done is an enhanced variation of this kind of release pattern. They have offered a near-barren disc for Star Trek Into Darkness and instead offered the various special features as exclusives at two different retailers.

On the standard release, you get 42 minutes of mostly solid documentary featurettes, eight in all, including an amusing seven-minute bit where the filmmakers try to justify their pointless inclusion of a certain major character from the prior canon. And that’s pretty much it, save for a PSA for a group called ‘The Mission Continues‘, which helps returning war veterans re-acclimate to civilian life through service projects. There are no trailers, no deleted, scenes, and no commentaries on the standard release disc.

If you must buy only one version of Star Trek Into Darkness, get the Target disc.  The disc set contains the feature on a separate disc, with the 42 minutes of bonus features from the normal release, as well as thirty minutes of additional featurettes, along with the domestic trailer campaign, which is a nice touch.

Unlike the Canadian Best Buy version, the American Best Buy bonus content isn’t disc-based.  It’s only accessed through their online service CinemaNow. One can’t just go onto CinemaNow and watch the stuff either. You have to actually get an account with them first.

Now if you’ve bought both retail versions for approximately $40 plus shipping or taxes, you’ve got the film itself, the three American trailers, and about 105 minutes of relatively solid bonus material. But the adventure is not over yet, folks. Because here’s the goofiest and most frustrating part of this release pattern.  There actually is a commentary track for Star Trek Into Darkness - a pretty darn good one no less.  But it is only available as an iTunes download. The good news is that the retail version comes with the iTunes download, meaning you don’t have to buy the film a third time to get that commentary track. The bad news is that it’s once again a major bonus feature that isn’t on the disc or even on a bonus disc. Not only is it a commentary track, but it’s a full video-based commentary track, a separate video file that is filled with talking heads and behind-the-scenes footage that runs nearly 30 minutes longer than the actual 132 minute feature. But you can’t watch it on your television and you have to sign up for an iTunes account and then download the hefty file before you can watch it on your computer.

Star Trek is the kind of franchise for which the fans will crave the most complete versions of the newest incarnation and will still devour any and all supplements offered. What Paramount has inexplicably done here is basically punish the fans both for their love of Star Trek and the general consumers who still prefer the physical media that everyone tries to claims is dead.

***

trekmovie.com has more info on the special features

Wait. The CinemaNow features are now free?

And here's commentary on the commentary.

bonus article: 15 things you (probably) didn't know about Star Trek

should you get long-term care insurance?

When it comes to purchasing long-term care (LTC) insurance, there’s no one-size-fits-all plan. Choosing the right LTC policy for you means factoring in a range of information about your life, your goals, your family’s medical history, where you expect to live in retirement, and other factors.

Getting this decision right can make or break your retirement—and your ability to leave a legacy to your family. Consider this: The median length of stay in an assisted living facility was nearly 26 months, according to a 2012 MetLife survey on long-term care costs.¹ The average monthly cost for a standard level of care at these facilities was $3,550, meaning a stay of 26 months would cost more than $90,000. And those costs could rise for a higher level of care to treat issues such as Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

The key is determining if you need coverage, and if so, what is the right level, type, and cost. Not all individuals need long-term care insurance. At one extreme, the wealthy can self-insure. At the other end, veterans and people with low income and limited resources can get government assistance through the U. S. Department of Veterans Administration and Medicaid, respectively. Most people, however, fall somewhere in the middle.

Let’s consider four very different hypothetical situations

factors which can lead to Alzheimer's

According to the Alzheimer's Association, there are three primary factors that have been identified by researchers which can lead to Alzheimer's.

The first is simply advancing age. Every five years over the age of 65 leads to a rough doubling of your chance of developing the disease. Second is family history. Simply put, if someone directly related to you has Alzheimer's disease, your chances of developing Alzheimer's increases as well. Finally, genetic make-up plays a role as well with select genes, such as apolipoprotein E-e4, being identified as raising the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's.

There are other factors which may play a role, but are still being researched. The key suggestion from the Alzheimer's Association to help lower your own potential risk (since many of these are genetic, and thus beyond your control) would be to address issues which regulate your cardiovascular health, such as diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, stroke, or heart disease which can lead to poor blood flow to your brain and possibly elevate your risk of developing Alzheimer's.

addicted to Oreos

Wonder why it's hard to stop eating Oreos once you've taken that first bite? A new study suggests that "America's favorite cookie" is just as addictive as cocaine or morphine -- at least in lab rats.

"Our research supports the theory that high-fat/high-sugar foods stimulate the brain in the same way that drugs do," co-author Joseph Schroeder, an associate professor of neuroscience at Connecticut College in New London, Conn., said in a press release. "It may explain why some people can't resist these foods despite the fact that they know they are bad for them."

Researchers tested rats' affinity for the chocolatey sandwich cookie in several lab experiments. Co-author Jamie Honohan explained that Oreos were chosen not only for their taste, but because they have high amounts of fat and sugar and are marketed heavily in areas where people tend to have lower socioeconomic status and higher obesity rates.

"Even though we associate significant health hazards in taking drugs like cocaine and morphine, high-fat/high-sugar foods may present even more of a danger because of their accessibility and affordability," Honohan said.

[what about soda?]

yes and no

lost episode of the Three Stooges found

A man in Australia recently found a lost “Three Stooges” movie in his shed. It's annoying though because every time he goes to pick it up, he steps on a rake and it hits him in the face.

-- Jimmy Fallon

Managing Your Time

I suppose I'm already supposed to know this (supposedly), but it doesn't hurt to have a reminder...

This article and the next offer tips and resources to help you be more efficient and productive. We can’t change the fact that there are only 24 hours in a day, but we can change how we manage our time!

1) Clearly define your vision and goals for your personal and professional life. By defining your vision and top priorities, you set your eyes on what you need to be focused. Continually go back to this and ask yourself if what you are doing directly leads you to accomplishing your top priorities. If it doesn’t, ask yourself if it is worth doing. The goal is to get rid of anything that distracts you from what you should be focused on. Every morning I read through my vision and goals to remind myself of what I need to be focused on throughout the day. Visit artofthinkingsmart.com for more information on goal setting.

2) Create a to-do checklist and do the easy ones first. If you are like me, your to-do list can be long and intimidating. We can be paralyzed by our lists and find excuses to procrastinate! Studies show that getting started on tasks is more difficult than completing them. Although some say do the harder tasks first so you can get them out of the way, in my experience, if you complete easy tasks first, you have a sense of accomplishment that gives momentum and motivation to complete more-difficult tasks. If you have a list of 15 items and are able to knock out five of them quickly, it is rewarding to cross them off the to-do list! You also get the smaller tasks out of the way so you can concentrate and devote your energy to the larger ones. Eliminating these easy ones can take away stress while making it easy to get started.

3) Break big tasks into smaller tasks. When some tasks seem large and daunting, break them up as much as you can without much effort and stress. This will help you get started and move you closer to completing the entire task. Breaking up the task also helps you be more specific and give a step-by-step framework so you don’t miss anything. At times, you may need to delegate tasks, and breaking them up will help others accomplish theirs. Look to combine tasks that may be for different projects. Batching tasks together and counting them as one can help you be more efficient and avoid duplicative work.

***

Last week we covered part one of learning to manage your time better. Visit artofthinkingsmart.com for the article. With more demands in our lives, managing our time better makes a significant difference in productivity. Here is part two of tips and resources to manage your time better!

1) Follow the “Ivy Lee Formula.” You can go to artofthinkingsmart.com for the full article, but the premise is to prioritize the six most important things you need to accomplish and that correlate to your goals. Complete the tasks from the most to least important and when done, cross them off. If you aren’t able to complete a task, move it to the top of the list the next day. At the end of the day, create another prioritized to-do list for the following day. This sets you up for success so you are ready to go and know exactly what you have to look forward to.

2) Focus! Distractions are one of the biggest obstacles to efficiency. Set up an environment where you can stay as focused as possible without interruptions. Try turning off your email notifications or phone so you aren’t tempted to check them constantly. If you are distracted by certain websites, there are programs that can block them until your tasks are completed. If you are in the habit of multi-tasking, research shows that it actually decreases productivity. If you try to do too much at once, you may end up not getting anything done at all! Focus is one of the most effective and powerful tools for productivity.

3) Block time on your calendar. According to studies, when you switch from one task to another, you lose 20 minutes of productivity. Schedule time on your calendar solely to complete a task. Most calendar programs allow you to share with others so they can see the time blocks not to interrupt you. Also, link your to-do list with your calendar. Set reminders the day before and 15 minutes before each task scheduled so you don’t miss any deadlines. I use a free online program called do.com that syncs tasks with my smartphone, desktop and calendar. The program also lets me assign tasks and projects to others, which leads to my next point.

4) Delegate! Not everyone may be in a position to have an assistant, but there may be situations where you can outsource and use third parties. Time is money, and even if you have to pay to delegate some tasks, it may be beneficial if it frees up much-needed time. Visit artofthinkingsmart.com for resources on outsourcing, virtual assistants and other online tools that help you be more productive and efficient.

5) Learn to say no. If you are like me, creating boundaries can be tough, since we feel like we should do everything that comes our way. But it is important to be honest with ourselves and others on what we can or cannot do. It is better to say “no” rather than say “yes” and not be able to complete it. Setting boundaries gives a solid foundation to focus on your priorities while minimizing things that can distract you.

Kevin Trudeau, the saga

[9/18/13] Controversial TV pitchman Kevin Trudeau, who in July was found in contempt for failing to pay a $37.6 million sanction against him for deceptive marketing, was ordered to jail today and remains in federal custody in Chicago.

In August, a federal judge sided with the Federal Trade Commission in granting a court-appointed receiver broad authority to marshal assets and take over businesses the judge ruled were controlled by the infomercial king.

Appearing before U.S. District Court Judge Robert Gettleman today, Trudeau was found in contempt for violation of the asset freeze and receivership by transferring nearly $20,000 from an Australian account and for using a debit card tied to that account to buy things beyond what is ordinary and necessary living expenses.

The specific expenditures from the Australian account that led to the contempt finding, meaning money Trudeau allegedly spent after the asset freeze, included $894 at a liquor store, $359 for two haircuts at Vidal Sassoon, $1,057 for meats ordered online and $920 on cigars. There was also an $18,642 transfer from the Australian account that was paid to a lawyer who worked on Trudeau's taxes, which happened without the judge's approval.

***

[9/19/13] Former infomercial king Kevin Trudeau was released from jail today after spending one night in federal custody in Chicago.

Trudeau and his attorneys argued Wednesday for more time to prove his cooperation, and offered to pay back any money spent on things the judge deemed inappropriate expenditures.

But Gettleman wasn't convinced and ordered Trudeau to report to the Metropolitan Correctional Center and to remain in federal custody.

But Trudeau, who appeared in court today wearing a short-sleeve orange jumpsuit, with slip-on orange sneakers, pleaded for the judge to believe him and pledged once again to be "100 percent" cooperative.

"I am penniless. I am homeless. I surrender. I am at your mercy," Trudeau told the court. "I will do anything you ask."

After hearing his pleas, Judge Gettleman said he is giving the controversial TV pitchman another week to somehow convince him that Trudeau is truthfully disclosing his assets, and granted Trudeau his freedom. Gettleman admonished him to cooperate fully or else he would be back in court "wearing the same color you are now."

Trudeau's next court appearance is scheduled for next week.

***

[3/17/14] CHICAGO » Best-selling author Kevin Trudeau, whose name became synonymous with late-night TV pitches, was sentenced to 10 years in prison Monday for bilking consumers through ubiquitous infomercials for his book, "The Weight Loss Cure 'They' Don't Want You to Know About."

As he imposed the sentence prosecutors had requested, U.S. District Judge Ronald Guzman portrayed the 50-year-old Trudeau as a habitual fraudster going back to his early adulthood. So brazen was Trudeau, the judge said, he once even used his own mother's Social Security number in a scheme.

"Since his 20s, he has steadfastly attempted to cheat others for his own gain," Guzman said, adding that Trudeau is "deceitful to the very core."

Trudeau, whose trademark dyed black hair turned partially gray as he awaited sentencing in jail, showed little emotion as the stiff sentence was handed down at the hearing in Chicago.

Addressing the judge earlier in a 10-minute statement, Trudeau apologized and said he's become a changed man. He said he's meditated, prayed and read self-help books while locked up at Chicago's Metropolitan Correctional Center.

"I have truly had a significant reawakening," said Trudeau, who was dressed in orange jail clothes. "If I ever do an infomercial again ... I promise: No embellishments, no puffery, no lies."

Trudeau became rich selling millions of books with titles such as "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About" and "Debt Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About," touting them in commercials with a news-interview formats.

As legal scrutiny intensified over the years, Trudeau claimed the U.S. government was out to get him, and he accused agencies and other vested interests of conspiring to suppress low-cost, common remedies to diseases, including cancer.

His weight-loss book, which once topped best-seller lists, was the focus of the criminal conviction for which he was sentenced. It also was the subject of related civil case brought by the Federal Trade Commission, in which Trudeau was ordered to pay a $37 million judgment.

In that civil case, Trudeau said he couldn't pay the judgment because he's broke. But FTC lawyers balked at that claim, accusing him of hiding money in shell companies. Trudeau, they noted, has spent lavishly in recent years, including $359 on two haircuts.

Supermarket Superfoods

you don't have to hit a health food store to find foods that help you lose weight, boost your energy and stay healthy.  They're right in your grocery aisle.  Here are the best of the best.

1.  Nonfat Ricotta Cheese - Ricotta boasts three times the calcium of cottage cheese and is made from whey protein, a nutrient that may help you lose weight by preserving muscle (which you lose with age, causing your metabolism to slow).
2.  Peanut Butter - This spread has more than 30 essential vitamins and minerals, including niacin, a B vitamin that helps you burn calories.  Peanut butter's combo of healthy fats, fiber and a compound called resveratrol also make it good for your heart.
3.  Wild Canned Salmon - One 3.5-oz can has 1,100 mg of brain and heart-healthy omega-3 fats.  Salmon is also a great source of bone-building vitamin D (78% of your daily needs per can).
4.  Oatmeal - A heart health must-have, oats are filled with a cholesterol-lowering fiber called beta-glucan as well as iron, a mineral that your body needs to carry oxygen to your muscles and other tissue.  And with 4 g total fiber per half-cup, oatmeal helps you stay full longer - and keeps you regular too.
5.  Cabbage - All colors of this vegetable are loaded with compounds that may help fight breast cancer.  Cabbage is also a top source of bone-strengthening vitamin K.
6.  Canned Tomatoes - Tomatoes are packed with vitamin C, which helps produce collagen, a protein that keeps skin firm, and lycopene, an antioxidant that protects your skin from the sun.  Your body absorbs lycopene better from cooked tomatoes, making the canned option a great source.
7.  Whole-wheat Pasta - Eating three or more servings of whole grains (such as whole-wheat pasta) each day can help reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.  Whole grains are diet-friendly too: One study found that women who ate more whole grains weighed less and had smaller waists than women who rarely ate them.
8.  Strawberries - These red berries are bursting with vitamin C and antioxidants, which help your mind stay sharp.  In fact, eating two or more servings of strawberries a week may delay cognitive decline by up to two and a half years, according to a recent Harvard University study.
9.  Avocados - With their creamy, rich flavor and texture and 65% of their fat coming from the heart-healthy monounsaturated kind, avocados (sliced or mashed) are an ingenious swap for butter, cream cheese or mayo on your morning toast or afternoon sandwich.  They also serve up other nutrients that may help your heart, including fiber and potassium.
10.  Sweet Potatoes - Ounce for ounce, sweet potatoes pack more vitamin A and beta-carotene than carrots and can help you peel off the pounds.  A 4-oz sweet potato contains 4 g fiber, and you digest them more slowly than white potatoes so you're satiated for hours.
11.  Edamame - Move over meat:  Edamame (also known as soybeans) are one of the best plant sources of protein.  One cup supplies all of the essential amino acids you need.
12.  Cocoa - Yes, it's the key ingredient in most candy bars, but unsweetened cocoa powder is a true health food.  Cocoa contains flavanols, potent antioxidants that help lower blood pressure.  Make sure the package says its 100% cocoa.

-- Woman's Day, October 2012

11 acts of generosity

It doesn't take much to make a stranger feel special in our society. Just holding the door open for someone or letting a fellow shopper back out in a crowded parking lot can go a long way. It seems like we don't see even those basic levels of courtesy quite often enough.

That's why it's so noteworthy when someone makes a real difference. When people open their pocketbooks or make a decision that is so striking, so jaw-droppingly generous, that they change lives forever. It happens, in big and small ways.

We've pulled together several examples of people going out of their way for others. They made large donations of money that they could have used themselves. They helped neighbors in crisis, or young people with medical problems. They spent money just to put a smile on someone's face.

And the funny thing about this kind of goodwill is that it can spread like a virus. In some of these cases, one generous act was the spark that spurred on a spree of similar kind-hearted gestures. People wanted to keep the momentum going, to maintain a pattern of giving that is all too rare.

Read on to see 11 amazing acts of generosity.

Happiness U

Ask a dozen people what they want out of life and chances are, among the top 10 desires will be to achieve happiness. Even though happiness is free, it eludes many.

The number of people who grumble about or feel trapped by varying circumstances in their life is what led Alice Inoue to launch Happiness U, which opens next week. She believes that happiness, like learning to read or ride a bike, can be taught. But you don't need to travel the world to find a guru when the formula is no more difficult than: balance + positive thinking = happiness.

"People want life to make them happy instead of making themselves happy and end up waiting their whole lives to be happy," said Inoue, who has given herself the title of chief happiness officer. Some people may not even recognize happiness because it is a state of mind unattached to any "eureka" moment.

"It's not like climbing to the top of a mountain and suddenly realizing, ‘I'm happy,'" she said. "But, you can climb your way out of wherever you are and move yourself to a better place."

Like many people, Inoue grew up believing that people are born with negative or positive dispositions that determine how much happiness they can achieve. Her own experience has taught her that happiness is a choice, and that the brain can be rewired to seek out and embrace the positive in life. She knows because she's turned her own life around with positive thought and action.

This idea has been backed by research and is the subject of a 2012 book, "Rainy Brain, Sunny Brain: How to Retrain Your Brain to Overcome Pessimism and Achieve a More Positive Outlook," by Elaine Fox, a psychology professor at the University of Essex in England.

Those who know Inoue see her as a buoyant and effervescent individual with a ready smile and infectious enthusiasm, but that wasn't always the case. She said she grew up in a strict household with "a strongly abusive father" and a mother who was ill. From the time she was 10, she had to care for a younger brother and a sister with Down syndrome. On top of that, she was overweight throughout her teens.

"I hated my life. I never got to go out. No one liked me and I wanted everyone to like me," she said. "I'd put on a smile on the outside but inside I was very unhappy, to the point where I thought of suicide. But deep inside, I felt happiness was out there, that life had to be better than this."

After graduating with a degree in biology from the University of California at Santa Cruz, she traveled to Japan to teach English. Learning the Japanese language helped her when she moved to Hawaii in 1989. This marked a turning point in her life when she decided to let go of negative emotions and go with the flow of life. She found herself unexpectedly entering the world of media, becoming host of her own weekly Japanese TV show. Her television exposure led her to a secondary career as spokeswoman for several national and international companies.

"Life was good but I was missing purpose," she said.

She embarked on a spiritual path, studying feng shui and astrology. She also became an ordained minister with the purpose of marrying couples and setting them on a path of happily ever after.

"I read about 300 books, thinking that if I focused hard enough, the right information would come to me," she said.

And what she realized, after about 12 years of guiding individuals with feng shui consultations and astrological readings, was that everyone who came to see her — no matter the circumstance — in the big picture was looking for happiness.

Toward that end, classes at Happiness U will address well-being in four categories: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.

The easiest to tackle is the physical, dealing with such day-to-day stressors as environment and finances, with classes titled "Get Unstuck," "Feng Shui 101" and "Healthy Money Mindset."

On the emotional level are classes like "Goodbye to Guilt," "Get Over It 101" and "Irritating Relationship Clarity," addressing the irritating people around you. In the third instance, Inoue says the solution is simple: "Those people are not going to change, so you have to change your reaction to them."

The aim is to overcome basic physical and emotional issues to reach the spiritual level of defining and realizing one's life purpose and ultimate grail, the meaning of life.

American culture is not conducive to happiness because of the weight placed on consumption and individual achievement, but long-term happiness is not incumbent on rewards or material goods.

"We think we will get to a certain place and we will feel happy. We put success ahead of happiness, but I've found happiness comes first," she said. "It's a precursor to success and we need to change our thinking to recognize that ‘bad' things don't happen to you. They happen for you. Everything that happens helps you grow in some way.

"It's all good. On my journey of building this business, I thought I would have a lot of headaches, and I have had them, but I've learned to flow with life instead of fight it. When you stop wishing for life to be something it's not and accept it for what it is, you are on the path to happiness."

Tangible benefits come with happiness. Laura Kubzansky, an associate professor of society, human development and health at Harvard University School of Public Health, is at the forefront of such research. In a 2007 study that followed more than 6,000 men and women ages 25 to 74 for 20 years, she found that emotional vitality — a sense of enthusiasm, hopefulness, engagement in life, and the ability to face life's stresses with emotional balance — appears to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease as well as help people avoid or manage heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and depression.

Kubzansky has also shown that 7-year-olds able to stay focused on tasks and maintain a positive outlook report better general health and fewer illnesses 30 years later. She has found that optimism cuts the risk of coronary heart disease by half.

Before going to bed, Inoue suggests, make a habit of thinking of three good things that happened that day. Consistency helps create new neural pathways to view situations in a positive light.

"Finding happiness is a gradual thing. It's not like one day you wake up and say, ‘I'm happy.' But I can look back five years, and 10 years, and see I've come a long way."

[image here http://media.staradvertiser.com/images/20130829_HAPPY.jpg no longer works -- 6/11/19]

-- by Nadine Kam, Star-Advertiser, August 29, 2013

100 best TV shows of all time

From The Sopranos to Louie.  I've watched (or at least looked at for more than a minute) 49 of them.  [via Donna on facebook]

Actually it appears this list came from the 101 best-written shows ever.

Here's another list: TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time

I think I might have written about this earlier..  yeah, sort of.

Ben Affleck: Batman

(CNN) -- The last time Ben Affleck played a superhero, the world cried.

The year was 2003, and the movie was "Daredevil" -- a Hollywood fail that even Affleck has insinuated he'd rather forget.

So is it any wonder that within hours of Warner Bros. announcing the actor was going to play Batman in the upcoming "Man of Steel" sequel, Twitter immediately tried to recast the part using the hashtag #BetterBatmanThanBenAffleck. (Suggestions have included "the drunken hobo who lives under the overpass," the dog from "Air Bud" and "Manti Te'o's girlfriend.")

[8/13/14]  Sorry, Matt Damon won't be Robin.

[9/27/14] The seven actors who've played Batman (before Ben Affleck) [take special notice of Lookwell, starring Adam West and written by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel]

Sanjay Gupta on marijuana

NEW YORK >> CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta says he spoke too soon in opposing the medical use of marijuana in the past and that he now believes the drug can have very real benefits for people with specific health problems.

Gupta, the network's chief medical correspondent and a brain surgeon, detailed his change of heart in an interview Friday and in an article for CNN's website titled, "Why I changed my mind on weed." He will narrate a documentary on the topic that will air on the network Sunday.

He wrote in Time magazine in 2009 about his opposition to laws that would make the drug available for medical purposes. "Smoking the stuff is not going to do your health any good," he wrote then. But Gupta said Friday he too easily associated marijuana with "malingerers that just wanted to get high."

Now he wants to say he's sorry.

Gupta said he didn't look hard enough at research on the topic, and found some new research that had been done since then. He was encouraged to look into the issue further upon meeting a 5-year-old girl in Colorado for whom medical marijuana has sharply cut down on the amount of seizures she had been suffering.

Time spent with her and others made him realize that medical professionals should be responsible for providing the best care possible, and that could include marijuana.

"We have been terribly and systematically misled for nearly 70 years in the United States, and I apologize for my own role in that," he wrote.

Centenarian secrets

There were more than 53,000 Americans who were at least 100 years old as of the 2010 census, and the number is expected to soar to more than 600,000 by 2050. Undoubtedly, many of these long-lived Americans have been blessed with good genes, but many also share common habits that have helped them in aging well, according to the new book "Celebrate 100: Centenarian Secrets to Success in Business and Life," based on interviews with 500 centenarians.

"I love to share the wisdom of the older generation. We need to hear it," says co-author Steve Franklin, a former professor and associate dean at Emory University's Goizueta Business School, who collaborated on the book with Lynn Peters Adler, the founder and director of the nonprofit National Centenarian Awareness Project.

1) avoid taking on debt
2) find work you love
3) delay your retirement
4) save at least 10%
5) diversify your investments
6) learn to be resourceful in tough times
7) plan for a long life
8) exercise
9) maintain a positive outlook
10) stay in the habit of learning

dementia in decline?

A new study has found that dementia rates among people 65 and older in England and Wales have plummeted by 25 percent over the past two decades, to 6.2 percent from 8.3 percent, a trend that researchers say is probably occurring across developed countries and that could have major social and economic implications for families and societies.

Another recent study, conducted in Denmark, found that people in their 90s who were given a standard test of mental ability in 2010 scored substantially better than people who had reached their 90s a decade earlier. Nearly one-quarter of those assessed in 2010 scored at the highest level, a rate twice that of those tested in 1998. The percentage of subjects severely impaired fell to 17 percent from 22 percent.

The British study, published on Tuesday in The Lancet, and the Danish one, which was released last week, also in The Lancet, soften alarms sounded by advocacy groups and some public health officials who have forecast a rapid rise in the number of people with dementia, as well as in the costs of caring for them. The projections assumed the odds of getting dementia would be unchanged.

Yet experts on aging said the studies also confirmed something they had suspected but had had difficulty proving: that dementia rates would fall and mental acuity improve as the population grew healthier and better educated. The incidence of dementia is lower among those better educated, as well as among those who control their blood pressure and cholesterol, possibly because some dementia is caused by ministrokes and other vascular damage. So as populations controlled cardiovascular risk factors better and had more years of schooling, it made sense that the risk of dementia might decrease.