If you’re a frequent reader of this blog, you know that there are sometimes seemingly frivolous yet ponderous questions that strike me that I then pass on to you. It’s Friday, and we’ve made it through another news-producing heart-pounding week, so let’s end it(except for tomorrow’s “Sensible Saturday” blog) with this weighty query. (Thanks to Art Maggio for sending it to me.]
Archive for September 15, 2017
Basketball, Coaching, and Life
John Wooden, an American basketball player and head coach at UCLA, gives us today’s Thursday Thought quote–an idea he lived by for his almost 100 years of life.
“You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”
Anxious or Neurotic? You May be Healthier and Live Longer
[I guess I’ll have to stop trying to calm down my anxious and neurotic friends. According to a London study, they’re healthier and will live longer than me! — Thanks to Linda Younts for sending this to me.]
From “Calling all Clean Freaks….”:
If you’ve always seen yourself as a Monica Geller, George Costanza, Miranda Hobbes, Sheldon Cooper or Danny Tanner, we have news for you: Science says you might live longer than your laid-back, Uncle Jesse and Phoebe-esque friends.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh and University College London recently studied a group of 500,000 U.K. residents, paying attention to those who identified themselves as being exceptionally nervous or anxious. In general, these neurotic people tended to be healthier and have a longer life span, especially if they perceived their own health as being fair or poor.
The theory? Because neurotic people tend to think their health is poor even when it isn’t, they’re more likely to visit a doctor and be proactive if they notice any strange symptoms. A more laid-back person might postpone getting checked out, or ignore an illness altogether. But not you, neurotic folks. You’re running to get checked out as soon as the office opens.
Nice work, anxious friends. We’ll see you in the waiting room.
I Want to Die!
I want to die. Life isn’t worth living. I can’t go on like this. You may not feel like this right now, but you probably know someone who does. The U.S. suicide rate is the highest it’s been in 30 years. It’s up to those of us in a good space to help those in a dark one. We can’t erase all the negativity in the world–we don’t control oppression, war, power-hungry dictators, or devastating disease. But we can keep a positive attitude around others (we never know when an affirmative word or action is just what the person we’re with needs). And we can speak up against public people who constantly spew negativity.
In everyday life we can watch for suicide warning signs (read the signs of potential suicide), keep the Suicide Prevention Hotline number (800-273-8255) handy to give to an at-risk person, and lend him/her our cell phone to call immediately.
Together, giving of ourselves and positive, concerned actions can stop that suicide rate from increasing and bring hopeless people back into the light.
(This is Suicide Prevention Week.)
The Real America
Sixteen years ago we proved that we are America strong, America compassionate, America resilient, America united, America tough, America protective.
A group of fanatics set about to bring us to our knees in fear. But instead of creating terror, they unleashed the American spirit.
God HAS blessed America–through its people.
Get Outside NOW!
Being out in nature is good for our minds, bodies, and spirits. We know that. But there’s no place close to where I live.
Wrong. Let the Nature Conservancy tell you where beautiful, soul-refreshing nature preserves are in your area. Go to Explore Nature in Your Area, choose your state from the drop-down menu just above the word “Features” in green, and find the natural wealth in your own backyard.
Then…get outside and enjoy!
Clearing the Quagmire
Pity our poor legislators. Yes, we get mad at them–and impatient because so little seems to be getting done. Imagine their position, with all that’s currently in front of them. What do they take on first, among all the vital issues?
I found A Guide to the Fall 2017 Congressional Session to be helpful. It gave me needed perspective on the Washington quagmire and how our legislators can approach it. It doesn’t cut down Trump, a political party, or a person or group, and it comes from several viewpoints rather than just super Republican/Democrat/Etc. I thought you, too, might find it helpful.
Of People and Flowers
I don’t have a quote for today’s Thursday Thought, just a musing…something that I’ve been thinking about:
How can it be that someone who marvels and delights in the myriad colors and hues of various flowers don’t have the same attitude toward people?
Just wondering….
A Day to Enjoy
Sit back. Relax. And enjoy…a good book. It’s National Read a Book Day. Read something funny, or mind-blowing, or mind-stretching, or even trashy. Read some biography or poetry. Just read.
You may not have time to browse the library down the street from you, so here’s an idea: e-books. Sites like Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, and Kobo have a ton of e-books to choose from. Or you can read one of my six FREE e-books. Get descriptions and locations for a FREE download by going to http://www.jackieodonnell.net/book-previews. The easiest place to download them is Smashwords.com.
Enjoy!
Foil Those BBQ Blues
I know it’s not Saturday, when I give you a tidbit about the environment or non-toxic (and cheap!) ways to clean. But, as I looked this morning at the BBQ I neglected to clean yesterday, I thought I’d help you avoid the BBQ Blues by passing this on. It’s easy, good for the environment, and, yes, cheap.
- Fill a spray bottle (as full s you want) with straight white vinegar.
- Liberally spray the vinegar onto that cruddy grill.
- Let the vinegar soak on the grill for five minutes.
- Crumple up aluminum foil and use it to scrub the grill.
- You may want to wipe off the loose particles, but another heavy spray of vinegar should wash them into the fire box beneath the grill. Vinegar–a natural product–won’t harm anything.
And you’re ready for your next BBQ get-together…without the after-BBQ Blues.
Easy.
