Banned Books

I found this list on the Simply Bluestocking blog and thought I'd share it. (Note: the blog author was NOT advocating banning books.) You can all go through & see how many of these you've read & write a nice, interesting post about it! There are a lot of different lists of banned books. I don't know where this one originated but I like it because it has a wide range of books and it is nice & long so it looks like I wrote a long post!

What I don't understand is the criteria for adding books to a banned books list. I mean some I understand -- I don't agree, I don't believe books should be banned at all -- but at least I can understand the reasoning. Others just escape me entirely. Little House on the Prairie??? Come on, what possible reason is there to ban that? I truly hate it when I can't find some sense in things. I'd like to point out that I never stopped Jill from reading anything & look how she turned out. Oh, bad example. Anyway --- have some fun, liven up your life - read a banned book this week!

#1 The Bible
#2 Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
#3 Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
#4 The Koran
#5 Arabian Nights
#6 Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
#7 Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
#8 Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
#9 Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
#10 Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
#11 Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
#12 Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
#13 Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
#14 Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
#15 Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
#16 Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
#17 Dracula by Bram Stoker
#18 Autobiography by Benjamin Franklin
#19 Tom Jones by Henry Fielding
#20 Essays by Michel de Montaigne
#21 Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
#22 History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon
#23 Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
#24 Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
#25 Ulysses by James Joyce
#26 Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
#27 Animal Farm by George Orwell
#28 Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell
#29 Candide by Voltaire
#30 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
#31 Analects by Confucius
#32 Dubliners by James Joyce
#33 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
#34 Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
#35 Red and the Black by Stendhal
#36 Capital by Karl Marx
#37 Flowers of Evil by Charles Baudelaire
#38 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
#39 Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence
#40 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
#41 Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser
#42 Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
#43 Jungle by Upton Sinclair
#44 All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
#45 Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx
#46 Lord of the Flies by William Golding
#47 Diary by Samuel Pepys
#48 Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
#49 Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
#50 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
#51 Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
#52 Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant
#53 One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
#54 Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus
#55 Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
#56 Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X
#57 Color Purple by Alice Walker
#58 Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
#59 Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke
#60 Bluest Eyes by Toni Morrison
#61 Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
#62 One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
#63 East of Eden by John Steinbeck
#64 Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
#65 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
#66 Confessions by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#67 Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais
#68 Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes
#69 The Talmud
#70 Social Contract by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#71 Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
#72 Women in Love by D. H. Lawrence
#73 American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
#74 Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler
#75 A Separate Peace by John Knowles
#76 Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
#77 Red Pony by John Steinbeck
#78 Popol Vuh
#79 Affluent Society by John Kenneth Galbraith
#80 Satyricon by Petronius
#81 James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
#82 Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
#83 Black Boy by Richard Wright
#84 Spirit of the Laws by Charles de Secondat Baron de Montesquieu
#85 Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
#86 Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
#87 Metaphysics by Aristotle
#88 Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
#89 Institutes of the Christian Religion by Jean Calvin
#90 Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse
#91 Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
#92 Sanctuary by William Faulkner
#93 As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
#94 Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin
#95 Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
#96 Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
#97 General Introduction to Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud
#98 Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
#99 Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Alexander Brown
#100 Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
#101 Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines
#102 Émile by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#103 Nana by Émile Zola
#104 Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
#105 Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin
#106 Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
#107 Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
#108 Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Peck
#109 Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
#110 Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

Hope for Aging Brains

This is from an article in The New York Times.

When older people can no longer remember names at a cocktail party, they tend to think that their brainpower is declining. But a growing number of studies suggest that this assumption is often wrong.

Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit.

The studies are analyzed in a new edition of a neurology book, “Progress in Brain Research.”

For example, in studies where subjects are asked to read passages that are interrupted with unexpected words or phrases, adults 60 and older work much more slowly than college students. Although the students plow through the texts at a consistent speed regardless of what the out-of-place words mean, older people slow down even more when the words are related to the topic at hand. That indicates that they are not just stumbling over the extra information, but are taking it in and processing it.

When both groups were later asked questions for which the out-of-place words might be answers, the older adults responded much better than the students.

“For the young people, it’s as if the distraction never happened,” said an author of the review, Lynn Hasher, a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto and a senior scientist at the Rotman Research Institute. “But for older adults, because they’ve retained all this extra data, they’re now suddenly the better problem solvers. They can transfer the information they’ve soaked up from one situation to another.”

Such tendencies can yield big advantages in the real world, where it is not always clear what information is important, or will become important. A seemingly irrelevant point or suggestion in a memo can take on new meaning if the original plan changes. Or extra details that stole your attention, like others’ yawning and fidgeting, may help you assess the speaker’s real impact.

Poetry Day

I've decided to make Wednesday a poetry day. Every Wednesday I'll post a poem with a little information about the poet. You will be tested at some point in the future (just kidding, I think). I don't have a clever name like I came up with for Silent Sunday-- if anyone has an idea let me know. So here you go: the first official poetry day poem is from Emily Dickinson.

Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1830. During her life she rarely traveled outside of Amherst and earned a reputation for being eccentric. She wrote nearly 1800 poems but published fewer than a dozen during her life. This is one of my favorites.

The Soul selects her own society,
Then shuts the door;
On her divine majority
Obtrude no more.

Unmoved, she notes the chariot’s pausing
At her low gate;
Unmoved, an emperor is kneeling
Upon her mat.

I’ve known her from an ample nation
Choose one;
Then close the valves of her attention
Like stone.

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Volunteers Wanted

I've been pouring my heart and soul into this blog trying to come up with exciting ideas to retain the interest of my loyal readers. Ok, it's late, I guess I should go to bed before I become maudlin. Seriously though I really would like other people to do more posting. So I came up with this great idea. I have a Sunday theme and I'm sure you are all going to be pleasantly surprised at the theme I thought up for Wednesday. (I got this idea while riding my exercise bike today. I get a lot of ideas when I'm riding or walking - rarely does anyone else think they are as good as I do.)

Anyway, back to my story. I was thinking that people could volunteer to take a certain day of the week and post something that day on a regular basis. Anyone can, of course, post anytime they want but it would be nice to have a few people who would commit to a regular post. This would take all the stress and pressure out of my life and I would be a happy, cheerful person. And if you believe that I have a bridge for sale. If you are interested in taking on this challenging task, kindly email me with the day you would like. As you no doubt realize from my posts, it is not all that difficult to think of something to say. Just babble on for awhile and the next thing you know you have an entire post written!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

John McCain

This is an interesting article about John McCain from the New York Review of Books. Read carefully, I'm trying to do my part to influence your vote in November!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

I'm a Little Slow but

I get there eventually. It just occurred to me that in January of this year Stephen started the Bury My Sister at St. Paul's Fund. I'm sure that everyone has been making a substantial monthly contribution so there must be a lot of money in it by now. I thought of this because I posted a picture yesterday that I took in front of St. Paul's Cathedral. I was looking at the picture & thinking I'd like to go back & I hope that I don't have to wait until it is time for me to be buried there (since I'd be dead & wouldn't really enjoy it). That made me think about the fund. THEN I realized - Stephen is in Europe. I bet he went on the proceeds from MY burial fund. As soon as he returns I'm going to demand an audit of the fund. I think everyone who contributed should write to him & demand their money back.

So what did we learn from this post? (Pick one)

1. Robin is very bored.
2. Robin was desperate for something to post about.
3. Robin is delusional if she thinks anyone contributed to her fund.
   
4. Stephen is an embezzler.
5. I (meaning you, the reader) had better post something interesting before it gets even worse.
6. All of the above.

Robin, the lonely blog mistress (who will probably have to be buried in the backyard now)

Silent Sunday

This was taken in front of St. Paul's Cathedral in London!

Chihuly Exhibit

This looks like a really cool exhibit. It is an exhibit of the artwork of Dale Chihuly. If you look at his website (click on name) you can see a lot of the smaller glass items he has created. There are also pictures there of the exhibit that will be at the de Young Museum beginning June 14th. There will be 11 galleries showing his work. The Legion of Honor also has some sculptures outside.

This is from the press release: A pioneer of the studio glass movement, Chihuly has transformed the form and function of glass, making the Pacific Northwest a vital region in the contemporary art scene. Chihuly has also contributed to the evolution of public art, creating memorable installations for both architectural and natural settings.

The huge glass sculptures are really amazing - the Saffron Tower is a 30 ft neon glass sculpture. Pretty cool, isn't it!

On a different, but somewhat related note, I have a question that maybe some knowledgeable reader can answer. Many years ago at a museum in Sacramento (I know, it would probably help if I could remember which one), I saw an exhibit made of glass blocks that was like a little building you could walk inside. All I remember was that it was built of thick glass blocks & you could walk inside it, it was mainly clear but there was color in some of the blocks. Not much of a description & considering my advanced age, I could be remembering completely wrong. Anyway, it was really neat & I'd love to know what it was. If anyone has any ideas, let me know!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Timeless Wisdom

18 themes of timeless wisdom from TellmeOmuse. Take them to heart!

1~Think carefully about what you’re pursuing … and how you’re pursuing it.
2~There is a right and a wrong time for modesty, but never a good
time for hubris.
3~Fear less.
4~Leaders need strategies.
5~Stay awake or you may pay dearly.
6~ Use power to empower.
7~ Honor the guest-host relationship.
8~ Do not be fooled by disguises, beggars can be heroes.
9~Treat all people with dignity
10~ Accept the guidance of wise women and the advice of wise men.
11~Honor solemn oaths.
12~Realize the potential for enemies to become friends.
13~Maintain your vision, even in the face of temptation and despair.
14~When between a rock and a hard place, select the path that minimizes loss.
15~When in doubt, test before acting.
16~Take personal responsibility for your actions.
17~You’re not home, until you’re home.
18~There comes a time when the fighting must stop.

#13 & 14 are my favorites. How about the rest of you?

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

10 Dumbest Laws in America

I came across this today and was just dumbfounded by the Texas law and thought I would share it. The only ones I might need to worry about are Illinois and Nebraska (especially if Alex is with us).


10 Dumbest Laws in America

1. Texas: A recently passed anticrime law requires criminals to give their victims 24 hours notice, either orally or in writing, and to explain the nature of the crime to be committed.
2. Nevada: It is illegal to drive a camel on the highway.
3. Colorado: It is illegal to ride a horse while under the influence.
4. Virginia: Children are not to go trick-or-treating on Halloween.
5. Florida: A special law prohibits unmarried women from parachuting on Sunday or she shall risk arrest, fine, and/or jailing.
6. California: Animals are banned from mating publicly within 1,500 feet of a tavern, school, or place of worship.
7. Wisconsin: Margarine may not be substituted for butter in restaurants unless it is requested by the customer.
8. Illinois: You may be arrested for vagrancy if you do not have at least one dollar bill on your person.
9. Nebraska: If a child burps during church, his parent may be arrested.
10. Georgia: Donkeys may not be kept in bathtubs.

Technologically Challenged

This is a hilarious video. If you've ever had computer problems or been the person trying to answer them for someone, I think you'll appreciate it!

Silent Sunday

San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo Mission, est. 1771

Cat Songs

I read a really cool posting on The Way of Cats blog the other day. It was about cats having their own song & you put their name into it & sing it to them. I really liked this idea and felt pretty bad that my cats don't have a song. So . . . after much thought and consideration and consultation, I have come up with songs for my cats.

Pippin: Coming up with his song was pretty easy actually. It is Let Me Call You Sweetheart. Sweetheart, of course, is replaced with Pippin. Thus making the lyrics:

Let me call you "Pippin," I'm in love with you.
Let me hear you Purr that you love me too.
Keep the love-light glowing in your eyes so true.
Let me call you "Pippin," I'm in love with you.

Pippin is pretty pleased with the song although I'm not sure he appreciates my singing. He batted at my nose once but I think he is just a little hot.

Mellifera: This was a little harder but then Jill came up with Dear Prudence by the Beatles. Obviously Mellifera replaces Prudence:

Dear Mellifera, won't you come out to play
Dear Mellifera, greet the brand new day
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It's beautiful and so are you
Dear Mellifera won't you come out to play

I'm not sure how happy she is with this. Like Pippin she doesn't seem to appreciate my singing voice.

Anyway now that they each have their own song I'm going to sing it to them everyday. Pretty soon I'll be able to post a little video of them listening to me sing. I warned you folks, POST!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Same-Sex Marriage Ruling

Yesterday the California Supreme Court ruled that the state law banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Chief Justice Ron George said in the written opinion that, limiting the designation of marriage to a union 'between a man and a woman' is unconstitutional and must be stricken from the statute. This makes California the 2nd state in the nation, after Massachusetts, to recognize the right of all persons to marry whom they choose.

Definitely a historic decision, definitely should have happened a long time ago. This is just so basic: you fall in love and get married. It shouldn't matter if you are part of a same-sex couple or a traditional heterosexual couple. You deserve the right to marry, to legitimize your relationship, to be able to stand-up in front of family and friends and say, this is the person I love and want to spend my life with. I applaud the decision of the Supreme Court and anticipate that more states will follow our lead!

In future years when same-sex marriage is simply a given, I hope that people remember a couple of things. One is the courage it took for Mayor Gavin Newsom to allow same-sex marriages in San Francisco. The other is the courage and commitment of all those couples who have continued fighting for this most basic right.

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Why I Can't Work

Mellifera was a little upset that Pippin had a posting devoted to him so I told her I'd write something about her also. As I work from home, I spend a lot of time sitting at my computer devoting myself to my job. Oh, Stephen is out of the country I don't have to pretend!

Lately Mellifera has decided that she wants to sit in my desk chair. Being as I'm still working on this weight loss thing, there is just not enough room on the chair for both of us. Consequently we are engaged in an ongoing struggle for rights to the chair. In case you're wondering, Mellifera is winning. The other night I had to stand and check my email.

When I do manage to get the chair she'll jump up onto my desk, knocking things over in the process and sit right in front of the monitor. It is actually pretty cute & I knew you'd all like to see a picture!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Do what she says!

I think that perhaps a lack of food has addled my sister's wits. And yet, I appreciate her kind words. 

For all of you out there who even occasionally read this blog, please visit her other blog. Not only can you be a tremendous support to somebody, but I suspect that you will, as I have been, be quite amazed and inspired by the courage and commitment you will find there.

Accountability

Addendum: I realized that in mentioning my supporters I left out a very important person. My excuse, aside from senility, is that she rarely comments on my blog which is what I was talking about. Anyway I should mention Jill as she has been very supportive in my efforts to change my eating habits. She's given me lots of information, when we've gone out to eat she asks if it will be ok for my eating, and most importantly, she has informed me a number of times that I now look less blobby. I'm not sure blobby is a word but I'm pretty sure I'm glad that I'm less of it!

As some of you may know, I've been trying, with varying degrees of success, to lose weight since the beginning of the year. As a way to force myself to stick with it, I started a blog in January called Accountability. Every night I post what I ate & how much I exercised that day. It has helped a LOT. I don't think I would have stuck with it without the blog.

The reason it has been so helpful is because I've had people commenting and providing support. There have been a lot of times I've been tempted to eat something & think, I'll have to post that, and I change my mind about eating it. I'm not sure why I came up with the Accountability title and for a while it really annoyed me that I'd chosen it & I considered changing. I've come to realize that it is really very appropriate. Like most things in life, losing weight is about commitment and sticking with what you say you're going to do. But it's difficult, it takes a lot of work and it takes a lot of support.

Today is the 127th day I've been doing this. I've had a lot of great support from a handful of people and I can't begin to express how much I appreciate that. My main support on this though has come from one person who has consistently been there, commented, nagged, and listened. I may some day find words to express my thanks to my other supporters, for my brother I doubt I'll ever find the words. He may disagree, but I know for a fact that if he hadn't been there I'd never have come this far. The willingness to be honest with someone, even when it's risky, is not something many people will do. It takes a special kind of courage and love and he has those in abundance.

So, to get to the point. I know there are people reading this blog (you may wonder how I know but I'm not going to tell you). Clearly none of you are busy because you aren't posting here! Wander over to my Accountability blog and leave me some comments. Anything you want - why did you eat that cake? Don't you think you exercise too much? Whatever strikes your fancy.

I was a little hesitant about sharing this blog but I'm doing it for a couple of reasons. One is that Stephen is leaving for a well-deserved vacation (I just say well-deserved because he signs a check for me every month) on Thursday & I've been worrying that everyone might forget me. Not to be self-centered (well, I am sometimes), but I really need support, I need people to say nice things or negative if deserved! Also, my loyal supporters need help - I'm a very needy person & I don't want to wear them out! If you're reading this feel free to comment, you don't need to be related to me, know me or want to know me!

I love blogging. Don't ask me why, maybe it's just my excessive neediness & desire for attention. There are two things I've come to realize through blogging: 1) Communication is important, it matters a lot, and 2) Transparency & honesty are important. It matters that people know who you are. In the past 127 days, there have been many times I almost mentioned my Accountability blog to people who weren't aware of it. I'm a bit tired of watching what I say. Transparency is much easier to live with. Which, all kidding aside folks, is the main reason I wanted to share this.

Robin, the lonely (but thinner) blog mistress

Pippin & the Balloons

Last night Jill brought some Mother's Day balloons home from work for me. If I had thought about it in advance I would have assumed the cats would like balloons and try to get them.

Mellifera had no interest, she just ignored them. Pippin, however, pretty much freaked out. He looked at the balloons and took off running up the stairs to hide. A little while later he came down, carefully peeked around until he saw the balloons, looked at me reproachfully and took off running again. He wouldn't come into the living room at all last night - apparently he did come out while I was asleep because he ate some food. This morning he did the same thing though, peeking around & running when he saw them. I finally gave up and put them in my bathroom where he can't see them.

Being a doting cat mother, I thought this was all pretty cute & decided to share with all of you!

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

To my Mother on Mother's Day!

What memories of childhood I have are wrapped up in you. You were there to comfort and care for me. You taught me to love and how to be a mother. I can remember hiding in the car instead of going to school so I didn't have to leave you. If something good happened I would rush to tell you. If something bad happened I would rush to your embrace.
When I was a teenager I wanted to move out as soon as I could and be independent. I knew that I had grown up and no longer needed my Mommy. I realize now that nothing really changed by my moving out. I would now rush to the phone to share my joys and sorrows. I still turned to you in the good or the bad. If I had a problem you were the one that I turned to for help or counsel. Slowly over many years (decades??) I was able to truly become a more separate me, but you were still always there and I knew I could always go to you. Even when I made stupid or unwise decisions you always supported and loved me.
Now I'm a mother and my kids come to me for all of those things that I used to turn to you for. The mother I am is because of who you were and how you raised me. I know that I am not a perfect mother, but pray that my children will one day pardon any mistakes I make out of love or human fallibility, as I have for you long ago. I would not change one moment of my childhood if it meant not having you. You are the only mother I would ever want.

I used to love Mother's Day. I loved looking for a gift that you would like, something to make you feel special, something to make you smile. I can't do that anymore, but I still can't stop myself from looking at the Mother's day cards finding that special card that I would buy for you.
I can't call you and share all my joys and sorrows. I can't ask you if you felt the same as a mother as I feel now. I can't call to express all the love, joy, frustration, pride, wonder........... that I feel for my kids. I can't share you with them (except in stories).
None of this can change, but this year I decided to give you this as a present. Maybe you can't read this or maybe you can, but this is for you. You are a part of me that I will never lose and so also a part of my children and their children.

Happy Mother's Day Mommy, I love you!!

Happy Mother's Day to all the rest of the mothers out there.
I hope this wasn't to disjointed.

Silent Sunday

I took this in Monterey a few days ago. I'm not sure if that is a seal or a sea lion or an otter.

Hello?

Is anyone out there? On April 17th, which was a very, very, very long time ago, I posted the 100th post for OUR blog. In that post I begged and pleaded that other people post. Today I went through all the posts since then and found, to my astonishment (this is sarcasm folks), that only one other person has posted! I'm shocked, just shocked. I know that people are reading this blog.

Post something!!

To give credit, the only person, aside from me, who posted was Stephen. I should point out that he will be leaving the country this coming Thursday. I guess the stress of posting got to him. Anyway that means the burden of posting exciting, thoughtful blog entries falls on the shoulders of the rest of you. Come on people, how much more of my life and meandering thoughts do you really want to hear about? I'm going to start letting my cats write the entries. Or worse, I'll let Jill do it.

I've begged, bribed and threatened what does it take? I truly am

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Regret and the Danes

Generally I don't regret much. I don't find much value in the process of regretting something, so I generally don't do it. Generally, I say. There are one or two things that I've done, however, that I do regret. On the other hand, I am where and who I am today because of every little thing I've done in the past — large or small, mean or noble — and I'd rather not change that much about who I am, so maybe I don't really have any regrets after all. What about the rest of you? Do any of you really want to change who you are, or is it that you want to change what you do? How you do it? Where you do it? And with whom you do it?

Soren Kierkegaard, one of my favorite philosophers — was a Danish man who intellectualized every aspect of his life, whether personal, professional or emotional. In September of 1840, Kierkegaard — who was 27 at the time — became engaged to Regine Olsen who was 18. By October of 1841, Kierkegaard had broken off his engagement with the young Ms. Olsen and it was a decision that was to inform his life and his philosophy profoundly and in ways that are far beyond my modicum of knowledge in the field. One oft-quoted concept of his that clearly was born from that event I cite below. It provides, I think, an interesting perspective on the whole concept of action, inaction, regret and life in general. Here you go:

Marry, and you will regret it. Do not marry, and you will also regret it. Marry or do not marry, you will regret it either way. Whether you marry or you do not marry, you will regret it either way. Laugh at the stupidities of the world, and you will regret it; weep over them, and you will also regret it. Laugh at the stupidities of the world or weep over them, you will regret it either way. Whether you laugh at the stupidities of the world or you weep over them, you will regret it either way. Trust a girl, and you will regret it. Do not trust her, and you will also regret it. Trust a girl or do not trust her, you will regret it either way. Whether you trust a girl or do not trust her, you will regret it either way. Hang yourself, and you will regret it. Do not hang yourself, and you will also regret it. Hang yourself or do not hang yourself, and you will regret it either way. Whether you hang yourself or do not hang yourself, you will regret it either way. This, gentleman, is the quintessence of all the wisdom of life.

I'm not sure I entirely agree with Mr. Kierkegaard, but he certainly has a perspective that one should listen to...or not...either way, you may regret it.

Regrets

I received this story in an email from an unnamed source in a small state north of California. I'm supposed to pass it on to seven people so I thought I'd post it - I'm hoping at least seven people will read! I'm pretty sure everyone who reads this is supposed to send me $5. Feel free to send more if you'd like. Anyway, here is the story.

****************

My Name Is Rose!

The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know. I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.

I turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being. She said, 'Hi handsome. My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?' I laughed and enthusiastically responded, 'Of course you may!' and she gave me a giant squeeze.

'Why are you in college at such a young, innocent age?' I asked. She jokingly replied, 'I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, and have a couple of kids...' 'No seriously,' I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.

'I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one!' she told me. After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always mesmerized listening to this 'time machine' as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.

Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon and she easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she reveled in the attention bestowed upon her from the other students. She was living it up. At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three by five cards on the floor.

Frustrated and a little embarrassed she leaned into the microphone and simply said, 'I'm sorry I'm so jittery. I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order so let me just tell you what I know.'

As we laughed she cleared her throat and began, ' We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing.

There are only four secrets to staying young, being happy, and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. We have so many people walking around who are dead and don't even know it! There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.

If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing, you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty-seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn eighty-eight. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding opportunity in change. Have no regrets

The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets'

She concluded her speech by courageously singing 'The Rose.' She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives. At the year's end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago.

One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.

*********************

The thing that particularly struck me about this story was the part about not regretting what you had done, but what you hadn't done. I've read that before and I'm curious - what do you all think? Is it the things you've done you regret or the things you haven't done? Share folks! For myself I'm inclined to say it is the things I haven't done. I guess there is a fairly simple solution to that. . .

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Watch This!

This sounds like it will be an interesting show. Add it to your calendar!

DEPRESSION: Out of the Shadows

Premiers on PBS, channel 9 in SF Bay Area, Wednesday, May 21

The National Institute of Mental Health reports that approximately 18.8 million American adults have a depressive disorder. The disease is not discriminating, seeping into all age, race, gender, and socioeconomic groups.

DEPRESSION: Out of the Shadows is a multi-dimensional PBS project that explores the disease's complex terrain, offering a comprehensive and timely examination of this devastating disorder.

The first component of the project is a 90-minute documentary, premiering May 21, 2008, at 9:00 pm ET. By weaving together the science and treatment of depression with intimate portrayals of families and individuals coping with its wide-ranging effects, the film raises awareness and eliminates the stigma surrounding this prevalent disease, underscoring the fact that whether we are battling it in our families, our workplaces, or in our own minds, depression touches everyone.

Robin, the lonely blog mistress

Silent Sunday

Tower Bridge, London.

Jill's Affliction

If you'd like to read about Jill's affliction (I'm just typing what she tells me) you can go to her scintillating blog.

Lords of the Blog

This is incredibly cool. There is a blog called Lords of the Blog that is published by members of the House of Lords. You know, those people in Britain who are ruling the country. Pretty cool, huh? In the first six weeks the blog was up it received 30,568 visits. I'm a bit disappointed. The Texeira Life blog has been up much longer than six weeks and I don't think we are anywhere near that number. Why do you think we aren't as popular? Maybe if I had Lord in front of my name? I'll work on it.

My favorite post is the one that talks about how the Lords address one another and what it means. For example, "The noble Lord, for whom I have the greatest respect…" which means, You’ve lost it this time. I liked that. Perhaps if you all address me as Most Noble Lord it would increase our blog readership. I think it is worth a try.

You may wonder how I found this blog. Or you may not wonder but I think I'll tell you anyway. One of my favorite mystery authors is Laurie King who has a blog which I subscribe to. She mentioned Lords of the Blog in one of her postings and of course I had to check it out. This is an example of serendipity, a phenomenon of which I am quite fond and frequently encounter in my ramblings through the Internet. Made your day, haven't I?

Robin, Most Noble Lord