Books

Give me books, fruit, french wine, and fine weather and a little music out of doors, played by somebody I do not know.

(John Keats)

A book should teach us to enjoy life, or to endure it.

(Samuel Richardson)

Much have I sorrowed,

learning to my cost

that a book that's borrowed

is a book that's lost

Arthur Guiterman

The Home Planet

"Even as humanity ventures farther and farther into the solar system, the focus on our planet is as sharp as ever. Whether taken from astronauts in orbit, satellites circling above or spacecraft at the moon and Mars, NASA's stunning images of Earth highlight the diversity, fragility and beauty of the place we all call home. Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders, who took the famous "Earthrise" photo above in 1968 noted later, "here we came all this way to the moon, and yet the most significant thing we're seing is our own home planet, the Earth."

See wonderful photos on NASA' site: http://www.nasa.gov/

Daniel Gilbert studies happiness

Do you know Daniel Gilbert? You should! At Harvard, the social psychologist is known as Professor Happiness. Read his interview at the New York Times and learn a little with dr. Gilbert. Here is just a small sample. That's something to think about and act. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/22/science/22conv.html?ei=5070&en=f9bcb768eb369e1f&ex=1209528000&emc=eta1&pagewanted=all

NYT: AS AS THE AUTHOR OF A BEST SELLER ABOUT HAPPINESS, DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE ON HOW PEOPLE CAN ACHIEVE IT?

We know that the best predictor of human happiness is human relationships and the amount of time that people spend with family and friends.
We know that it’s significantly more important than money and somewhat more important than health. That’s what the data shows. The interesting thing is that people will sacrifice social relationships to get other things that won’t make them as happy — money. That’s what I mean when I say people should do “wise shopping” for happiness.
Another thing we know from studies is that people tend to take more pleasure in experiences than in things. So if you have “x” amount of dollars to spend on a vacation or a good meal or movies, it will get you more happiness than a durable good or an object. One reason for this is that experiences tend to be shared with other people and objects usually aren’t.

Queen Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II Born this day in 1926 was Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, who ascended the throne in 1952 at age 25 and is known to favour simplicity in court life and to take a serious, informed interest in government business. This drawing was made by Anna Mitchell, 11 years old.