We have a good life when we manage to live with both satisfied and unsatisfied needs... ~Kjell Magne Bondevik

"We have a good life when we manage to live with both satisfied and unsatisfied needs, when we are not obsessed by what is beyond our reach."

USF recently awarded Kjell Magne Bondevik, the former Prime Minister of Norway, an honorary doctorate to recognize his life's work to promote international human rights, world peace, religious tolerance, and democracy:

http://www.usfca.edu/usfnews/news_stories/Bondevik.html

Video of his speech can be seen at http://www.usfca.edu/stream/bondevik/bondevik_jls.html

I didn't know who he was until today, but I found his story and work inspiring. I get so wrapped up in my day-to-day life and technology that I forget there is waaaay more to life than what is contained in my little sphere.

This quote was interesting because it's about being content. That I have to stop the continuous pursuit of the elusive "carrot" and be thankful for what I have now. That life will be full of challenges and rewards, but knowing what I'm already blessed with is truly a good life.

Don't try this at home! ~ Unknown, but used often

Ok, so I'm reading "Marketing in the Groundswell" by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff who referenced a YouTube a video series by Blendtec called "Will it blend?" in which they blend an iPhone and I'm thinking nooo - really? Sure enough I see Tom Dickson blending away an iPhone and you can see it too:







Wow - so many things are swaying in my head. We've so gone beyond the nutty things we see on tv that warn us not to try some insane and idiotic stunt, but now we can get it 24/7/365 on YouTube. But the even crazier thing is that these videos made an impression on me, I'm thinking that's a tough & durable blender -- maybe it is worth $399 because I need to blend some really hard food?! Makes my Oster look like a wimp and that just won't do.

Click in and you'll see Tom blend hockey pucks, golf balls, marbles and more. If nothing else, you'd wish he could blend up a Monday so we don't have to go to work.

Some friendships do not last, but some friends are more loyal than brothers. ~ Proverbs 18:24

Throughout our lives friends have come and gone, some have hurt us or have made us laugh, but no matter what our lives have been enriched and blessed for having had the experience of these friendships. Those friends that are still in my life today know me better than my family -- what a true blessing it is.

They are the ones I will have to pay off if I'm ever famous because they have the goods that would make the Equirer or Inside Edition drool over.

Cheers to friendship and the goods that have on ya!

The Lost Weekend, 1945

Don Birnam: What kind of party did you say that was?
Helen St. James: A cocktail party.
Don Birnam: In that case, I'll join you

Yes, at last, at last it's Friday and I'm all ready for it! It's been wacky foggy week in the City (despite every weather report of the "heat wave") and the sun has finally decided to join the party and bring its warmth and light just in time for the weekend. No matter how crazy the week has been, knowing that Saturday & Sunday exists is sheer bliss.

Weekends are the reason that the "Pink Section" exists in the SF Chronicle and it's the reason why the Sunday edition of the NY Times is so thick and heavy. Sundays are honored with champagne brunches and Bloody Mary's. We can run and ride in Golden Gate Park because cars are prohibited during the weekends. The Masters and all other golf events provide the climatic endings to their tournaments on Sundays. And we are gifted with football all day long on Sundays. How can you not love weekends?

Honor God, Follow your bliss, Keep your child heart, Radiate love, Laugh and be thankful ~ Velzoe Brown

Velzoe Brown is 99 years old and she's still bringing joy & laughter by playing jazz piano. That's simply awesome! Her words of wisdom as quoted pretty much sums it up for me. She lived through the Depression and she's still able to sing about it. We're going through our Recession, may we be as vibrant decades from now.
Check out the article & give it a Digg!

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/22/DD6019LDHA.DTL&type=music

Friendship isn't a big thing - it's a million little things. ~Author Unknown

Nothing could be truer. It's not only those "big moments" that matter, although they can be just as fun and rewarding, but it's all the little moments that we share with our friends that make our life richer. I just spent the weekend with my buddies at a clam bake and we just laughed at all of the silliness that comes out during the day and through just spending some time together. It's incredible to have these "million little things" moments so that when the big whammy comes, you have something to cushion it with. I hope you have those moments during the day where you just giggle a little because you remembered something funny a friend has shared with you sometime in your life.

Veni, Vidi, Vici ~ Julius Caesar

Well, since this was the initial question posted, it's the way to start my posts. "Veni, vidi, vici" was uttered by Caesar around 47 BC. It translates from Latin meaning, "I came, I saw, I conquered."
For me today, it's a cry to get up and get going. While I'm not out to conquer the world at-large, I'm out to conquer my day and hope that through it all, at the end of the day, I have something to celebrate and most importantly, am thankful for having the privilege to have lived.

Say What?!

Say what?! What does that mean to me? How does the Brainiacs or the Trivia Gurus of the world remember all of these quotes? However they mighty retention abilities work, my brain simply doesn't hold that much info, so I'm just going to have to Google or Bing it all and hope to relate it back to my day and somehow apply it to my life no matter what century it was originally uttered in.