Gustav and George Carlin

Still reeling with excitement from Louisville as I now sit in Detroit, but still have a heavy heart as I watch the projections on Gustav..I have two friends who live in Texas....Mike & Jes live right in Houston which is near Galveston...Devona lives farther away so it sounds like she will get minimal or Gustav will be tones down by the time he gets there. Really praying for Mike & Jes, especially since they are within the close path and because Mike is in the Coast Guard -- please stay safe.

It's sad that he's going to probably hit New Orleans given all of the rebuilding that has gone on there. It will be sad to see some of that hard work be tested. I'm glad to see they are handling this one differently...It's going the way it should have the first time around. We have a friends weekend coming up at the end of the month to New Orleans, so it will be interesting to see if we can still stay in the French Quarter and what it will be like there.

On a brighter note, my great friend, Tana sent me this awesome email that I've been hoarding for awhile; and it's a bonus because it ends with my favorite quote. I wanted to post this one so I can keep it...I need to remind myself of all of the things at the bottom constantly.

Enjoy.

George Carlin's Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions. 'How old are you?''I'm four and a half!'You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key

You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead. 'How old are you?' 'I'm gonna be16!' You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . You become21. Even the words sound like a ceremony YOU BECOME 21 YESSSS!!! But then you turn30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME21, you TURN30, then you're PUSHING40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH50 and your dreams are gone. But wait!!! YouMAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME21,TURN 30,PUSH 40,REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday! You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30 ; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there.

Into the 90s, you start going backwards; 'I Was JUST92.' Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. 'I'm 100 and a half!' May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1.Throw out nonessential numbers.This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay 'them.'

2.Keep only cheerful friends.The grouches pull you down.

3.Keep learning.Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop And the devil'sname is Alzheimer's.

4.Enjoy the simple things.

5.Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6.The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7.Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8.Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9.Don't take guilt trips.Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10.Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,but by the moments that take our breath away.