Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Stairs

Stairs
(and then some)


Anybody who’s been to a gym has seen a medieval contraption called a stair master. This is a machine that simulates climbing stairs. They are a great workout, and a lot of fun, depending on your opinion.

If you’ve ever lived in an old apartment building in New York City, Paris, or any old world metropolitan region, then you probably had real stairs to climb. A lot of apartment buildings were built before elevators.

Stair climbing works your legs, gluteus maximus, (butt), heart, and just about every muscle and joint in your whole body.
I’ve only been climbing stairs now for two days and believe you me, I’m feelin’ it!
I’m on a cruise ship, which has plenty of elevators, but I have vowed never to use them! It’s vital to get your exercise while cruising because the primary activity is consumption! I have pledged to walk and climb stairs daily. There is a large, well-equipped gym on board, which I briefly toured and will probably never use. I will however swim and soak, but that’s not much exercise compared to climbing stairs.

The cabin is on deck 14, while most of the activities take place at least 6 decks below, so I’m doing plenty of stair climbing. I feel it everywhere! I feel it in places I didn’t even know I had feeling! My knees, hips, heart, arms, shoulders, feet, ankles, glutes, neck, fingers, toenails, eyebrows, and nose are all screaming:
“HEY! WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?!”

At the moment the all-you-can-eat buffet is calling me. I will have to walk a bit to get there even though it’s on the same deck as the cabin.

After breakfast I’ll walk a mile, which is three times around the ship. She’s a big ship. Walking around the ship is wonderful. You meet your fellow passengers, feel that sea breeze in your face, breath the pure ocean air, and generally feel as though you are the first person to see this large expanse of salt water, which covers about 85% of Planet Earth. We’re in the middle of the Pacific, about half way between Los Angeles and Hawaii. No land is in sight. An occasional seagull flies overhead in hopes of a snack. We’re bound for Hilo, Hawaii.

We’ll sail about 2,200 nautical miles at about 19 knots (approximately 23 miles per hour). In my opinion, this is the only way to travel.

Stay tuned. To be continued. Bingo starts in 20 minutes!

Frank Landfield
December 22, 2009
From the Pacific Ocean

Saturday, December 12, 2009

FYI

for anybody who wants to buy me a present for hanukah, christmas, kwaanza, or just because, i'd LOVE an apple itablet! check with me first about configuration before you purchase please!
happy holidays!
:-O

Friday, December 11, 2009

Thursday, December 10, 2009

quote of the day

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed."
Dwight D. Eisenhower

Friday, December 04, 2009

"A Stiff Penis"

Spitzer, Letterman, & Woods
(not the law firm)


Obviously Eliot, David, and Tiger all have some things in common. Let’s see: They’re all pretty wealthy. They are all very good at what they do. They’re all college graduates, as far as I know. They are all married. They have all experienced tremendous success in their respective careers, and “the limelight”. They all have or had remarkable power. They have all cheated on their wives, as far as I know, and they all have a penis, as far as I know. No doubt there are more similarities.

Where do we go from here?

There are at least 360 different directions we could go, and that’s only in our Universe.

Why did these men cheat? Why does anybody cheat? I suspect there are as many answers to this question as grains of sand on the beach.

Perhaps human beings are not by nature monogamous? Few species mate for life.
The divorce rate is above 50%. What is really going on here?

Countless research has been done. Whatever the theory or belief, a study can be found to support or refute it.
And let’s not even get in to religion!

To this point we have about 203 words, and honestly, how many are really necessary for this? They cheated, purportedly. Is it our business? Must we know every dirty detail? I think not.

Why then am I writing about this? And why is this all over our media? Are too many of us “media whores”? Are we obsessed with watching people on pedestals tumble off? You’re asking me?
I haven’t a clue!

What is the point of this essay? That, my friend, is entirely up to you. Perhaps we should all simply focus on our own lives.

And lastly as my father was fond of saying:

“A stiff penis has no mind!”

Frank Landfield
Palm Desert, CA
12/04/2009

BE HAPPY!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20091203/sc_livescience/studyrevealstheangriestamericans

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Hugh's Views

Hugh’s Views


The Future


One of the greatest human illusions is that with enough planning and effort one can determine one’s future. Yet when people honestly look at what defines their lives—whom they married, what house they live in, what job they work at--it becomes apparent that most of it occurred serendipitously, not through precise planning. What lies around the bend or over the horizon is impossible to know. We cannot see it and we cannot predict it!

No one has ever been very good at predicting the future. When one looks at time capsules left 100 years ago, the predictions that were made were wildly off base. I remember as a kid thinking that by the time I was a grown-up, everyone would have a helicopter in his driveway to avoid traffic congestion—not too sound a forecast as it turns out, and certainly not something that comes close to what is today’s reality.

No one predicted the computer and the revolution it has wrought in our lives. Yet today it is routine for people to walk around with computers the size of their hand that are not attached to anything but can access a universe of information on the internet, can send messages instantly to others, and can take pictures and also immediately send them to friends.

No one predicted the unending wars that have taken place over the last 90 years. In 1919 people thought that the end of World War I marked “the war to end all wars” because the trench warfare that characterized that war was so terrible that nothing worse could follow.

No one foresaw the breakdown of morality, of the family, and of social mores that so defined past generations. In the past 50 years, the changes that have transpired in our society in these areas are beyond belief.

Just two years ago how many people knew enough to take their hard earned savings out of the stock market to avoid losing half their money? Many pundits were writing about too much national debt, but who was prescient enough to see the collapse of the world financial markets?

Planning for the future is almost as difficult as predicting it. Problems with one’s own health or one’s partner’s health, or the loss of a job or of investments, have a way of intervening in one’s life’s plans to lead to a reality far different than anticipated.

Go back five years in time and imagine yourself to be living exactly as you were then. Then jump to the present and take an honest look at what is now transpiring in your life. How much of the new reality is what you had anticipated? When I do this exercise, I am astounded at how different my life is today compared to what I thought it would be. Some activities that used to be very important to me no longer have appeal. People whom I did not know have married into my family. People have been born and people have unexpectedly died. My attention has turned toward new interests and new friends, neither of which existed in my life then.

There is, of course, a certain amount of practical planning that is appropriate in helping one reach future goals. That is why one invests years in obtaining a higher education or why one saves money. But beyond these broad strokes, the specifics of future planning remain too uncertain to be made too precisely. Like a good sailor or pilot, it is important to have a navigation or flight plan to arrive safely at your destination. But as any sailor or pilot will tell you, be prepared for the unexpected because it is likely to occur.

Part of what defines our lives is the uncertainty that unfolds as time passes—it is in fact what makes for the awe and wonder that partly defines the human condition. Since we do not know exactly where we are headed, perhaps it is best simply to relax and enjoy the ride.

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

more good news!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8390055.stm

i am honored to participate in the circle of life.

Tuesday, December 01, 2009

World AIDS Day

"Today is World AIDS Day 2009.

Each year, we mark World AIDS Day on December 1st, to remind everyone of the global pandemic that was first identified 28 years ago in the U.S.

Yet, more people than ever before are living with HIV today in America. As infection rates rise, the public's awareness of the very real risk for contracting HIV wanes. And stigma continues to prove as deadly as the disease itself, keeping people from getting tested and treated for HIV or AIDS.

Here's a snapshot of where HIV lives in America today, who is at-risk, and what's being done to curb this persistent epidemic.

Gender prevalence. Just over 75% of adults and adolescents living with AIDS are men.
Race prevalence. Those most impacted by the infection are black/African American at 44.1%, white at 35.1%, and Hispanic/Latino at 19.1%.

How are we infected? More than two-thirds of infections in the U.S. occur via male-to-male sexual contact. Heterosexual contact accounted for 83% of diagnoses among women.

Where does the infection live? The HIV/AIDS epidemic in America was once concentrated mainly in the gay populations on the East and West coasts. However, in recent years AIDS has become increasingly prevalent within black and Latino communities in many Southern states. Highest infection concentrations were found in Texas, California, Florida, Georgia and New York.

What prevention efforts have been most successful? One of the most successful efforts toward prevention has been intervention of mother-to-child transmission and antiviral therapies.

Stigma. President Obama announced that America's 1987 ban on any HIV positive person entering the country would be lifted as of January 2010.

Government funding. The 2009 budget request for HIV and AIDS domestic spending is estimated at just over $18 billion. Of this, roughly 68% is for care, 15% for research, 10% for cash and housing assistance, and 4% for prevention.

Children and HIV. Approximately 9,000 children under 13 years of age have been diagnosed with AIDS in America. Of those, close to 90% were likely infected via mother-to-child transmission.

Today's a day to take action.
Talk about HIV prevention with your friends and family. If you've engaged in high risk behaviors, get tested for HIV and most importantly, support those living with HIV and AIDS with your compassion and understanding."

Thank You.
Peace.

there is always HOPE

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34152254/ns/technology_and_science-science/?pg=1#Tech_NonExtinctSpecies