Health & Wellness

A Happy Have-Not

admin — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:08:48 -0500

What am I thankful for this Thanksgiving?

I am thankful that I do not have a clothes dryer.

If I owned one, surely I'd miss the exhilaration that comes from taking a basketful of clothes into the fresh morning air. I'd miss the ritual of the clothesline, where once a week, garment by garment, peg by peg, I link my family together, symbolically at least.

I'd miss the wet-flapping sound that sheets in the wind make. I'd miss the feeling of sisterhood I share with all the women of all the ages who have worked at homely chores for the people they love.

A Chance Encounter

msteiger — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 09:23:12 -0600

I was driving across the barren plains of west Texas, growing tired as the sun set behind shadowed buttes and flat cattle land.

Stopping at a roadside cafe for a cup of coffee, I settled into a corner booth and glanced at the newspaper headlines. It was Veterans Day, I realized with surprise.

Looking up, I saw an elderly couple sitting quietly at a table in front of me. The man wore a faded jean jacket and a blue baseball cap with gold letters that read, WORLD WAR II VETERAN.

The Biggest Winner

admin — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:14:00 -0600

Try to make people laugh for a living, it's not always easy, but it was my dream in life—to be able to give the gift of laughter. Sometimes people come up to me after a comedy show and tell me they would love to do what I do and that all their friends think they're funny, but they are too afraid to do it themselves.

Happiness Is an Inside Job

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2006 10:20:00 -0600

Got the blues? Can't get no satisfaction? Maybe you're just having a bad day. Or maybe you've always been a bit of a grouch.

"There seem to be genetic differences in people's baseline positive and negative affect," says University of Iowa psychology professor Lee Anna Clark, Ph.D., meaning some of us are just naturally more cheerful.

If you're not one of those lucky folks (many of us aren't) take heart. You have the power to bring joy to your world. Here's how:

Tired of Feeling Tired?

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2006 10:16:00 -0600

"I wish I had more energy." Have you caught yourself saying that? We have, so we checked in with energy coach and author Jon Gordon.

The Biggest Stocking Ever

admin — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:18:00 -0500

When I was a kid, growing up in Brooklyn, my family didn't celebrate Christmas Eve. But my best friend Karen's family did.

They were Italian, and, according to tradition, they had a huge meal on Christmas Eve with 13 different kinds of fish. Then they opened presents. I always spent Christmas Eve with Karen's family, as she would celebrate Christmas day with mine.

Woman Creates Non-Profit to Thank Troops for Their Services

batch — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 04:05:05 -0600

When Carolyn Blashek met a soldier in 2003 who said that he had never received a letter or a reminder of home while he was deployed, she vowed to stop this real life story from occurring to other soldiers.

The Power of Gratitude

mcherkezian — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:59:21 -0600

It is probably not that helpful to tell a really angry person that they are learning something valuable, but it is good to tell yourself.

If this doesn’t work, look back on past experiences that made you angry and see if you can appreciate them from a different perspective now.

What’s Thanksgiving All About?

test_1 — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 18:11:40 -0600

One of the greatest American philosophers of all time was Henry David Thoreau.

The thing that distinguishes Thoreau is that he was an original thinker. And one of the wise things he said was that all of us ought to give thanks at least once every day for the fact that we were born. Thoreau said that he did this himself.

Now I’ve heard some people say that they wished they hadn’t been born; but they don’t really mean it. They’re only reacting to difficulty in their lives.

My Perfectly Imperfect Thanksgiving Dinner

jbloustein — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:48:41 -0500

Remember the first Thanksgiving of your married life?

Remember wanting to make it perfect, so you’d make a good impression, especially on your mother-in-law?

I’ll never forget mine. It should have been a disaster. It almost was.

Let me start where every Thanksgiving dinner starts, with the turkey. I’m not a novice when it comes to turkey.