Happiness is Hank Williams Jr. singing his 1985 hit "I'm For Love"

Here.

"Hey, I'm for love

I'm all for happiness

And I'm for 'Not looking for something to make us mad'

I'm all for turning off the news and turning down the lights

And I'm for nothing else but me and you tonight"

Obama's Soup

Mmm Mmm no good

Mmm Mmm no good

That's what Obama's Soup is

Mmm Mmm no good

Samuel Johnson insisted "Taxation no tyranny", now Italians claim pasta not fattening

From the story here:

Researchers in Italy studied over 23,000 people in Italy and found that higher pasta intake was not associated with a raised body mass index (BMI) – widely used as a measurement of a person's body fat, based on a person's height and weight – and waist-to-hip ratio.

Happiness is Michael Cimino saying "And I think the more you work, the better you are"

"I mean, when you think of the fact that Victor Fleming ... Victor Fleming made Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz in the same year. Now today, between them it would take 30 years. It's ridiculous."

Michael Cimino, the Academy Award winning director of The Deer Hunter has passed away at the age of 77.

His tender tribute to Clint Eastwood who gave him the start in the business ("The Boss"/"I think Clint should be president") and John Wayne last year is here ( "I think both of them are very special. Two legends, two American legends, my God.").

May he rest in peace.

People appear to be most happy to stay home and watch TV

From the annual American Time Use survey, here:

On an average day, nearly everyone age 15 and over (96 percent) engaged in some sort of leisure activity such as watching TV, socializing, or exercising. ... Watching TV was the leisure activity that occupied the most time (2.8 hours per day), accounting for more than half of leisure time, on average, for those age 15 and over. Socializing, such as visiting with friends or attending or hosting social events, was the next most common leisure activity, accounting for 41 minutes per day.

Happiness is quitting smoking: All it took was about three weeks in August twenty years ago, and one of these

Happiness is "Tom Cat" by The Rooftop Singers from May 1963

See them perform, here.

Fixed it. Go here instead.

Happiness is Jennie-O Hot Italian Turkey Sausage on pasta night

You get five fresh sausages for $4.49, about $.90 apiece.

Sear quickly in a hot skillet to brown, but then simmer on low to retain the juices and spices.

When a superfoods breakfast is hard to arrange because you're in a hurry, try simple toast

Whole grain toast, slathered in raw honey, topped with ground cinnamon.

Three superfoods just like that.

The toast is loaded with fiber, the honey with antioxidants, and the cinnamon lowers glucose, triglyceride and cholesterol levels.

Happiness: My son said he totally won the Dad Lottery

So did I.

Happiness is learning how the Hekawi Indians got their name

Here!

"I think we're lost. Where the heck are we?"

Update:

New link here.

On a hot day way up north happiness is economical central air conditioning by American Standard

The 11 additional superfoods taking you to 25 forms of happiness

honey

garlic

extra virgin olive oil

apples

avocados

cinnamon

dark chocolate

dried fruits, such as figs, or apricots, dates, plums and cranberries ad infinitum

kiwifruit

onions

pomegranate

The original 14 superfoods

yogurt

beans

blueberries, salmon, spinach

oats

orange

pumpkin

tea

tomato

soy

turkey

walnut

broccoli

Happiness is Crispy Duck at First Wok Chinese Restaurant served with beautiful turnip "flower" garnish and delicious plum sauce

A delight to the eyes and to the palate.

Try it at 6740 Old 28th Street in Cascade, Michigan.

Happiness is Monty Python's send up of long aristocratic German names: Johann Gambolputty de von Ausfern-schplendenschlitter . . .

Johann Gambolputty
de von Ausfern
schplendenschlitter
crasscrenbonfried
diggerdingle
dangledongle
dungleburstein von knackerthrasher applebanger
horowitz
ticolensic
granderknottyspelltinkle
grandlich grumblemeyer spelterwasser
kurstlich himble eisenbahnwagen
gutenabend
bitte ein nürnburger bratwustle gerspurten mitz weimache luber hundsfut gumberaber schönedanker kalbsfleischmittler

aucher von Hautkopft of Ulm.

Here.

 

Or maybe here.

This is the kind of thing which makes San Marzano tomatoes San Marzano tomatoes!

Happiness is whole milk mozzarella on the pizza instead of part-skim: It's more tender and tastes fresher

Happiness is Boar's Head natural casing beef frankfurters

Available at D&W for $8.99 a package of seven, about $1.29 for each 2 oz. 6.5 inch sausage.

You'll want an extra long hot dog bun for these.

Happiness is a three year old Crane Lake Cabernet for $5.29

Tonight I'm drinking a 2013 which isn't as smooth and silky as a Kendall Jackson or anything, but this one has aged very well in the bottle after three years. Better than any other cheap varietal I've tried in quite a while. Maybe I should start cellaring them on sale! If I remember correctly it's the hearty varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon which mellow well with age. Never thought a cheapo would do that, but I was wrong.

Happiness is Florida Georgia Line singin' "Round Here"

Yeah that’s how we do it ’round here.

Happiness is Milwaukee's Best Ice for $0.599 a can

Dead this date for 400 years, I can think of no one's words which make me happier than William Shakespeare's

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Because ... 

 

his heroes are men, that the love and hatred, the hopes and fears, of his chief personages are such as common to other human beings. ... Shakespeare's excellence is not the fiction of a tale, but the representation of life: and his reputation is therefore safe, till human nature shall be changed.

-- Samuel Johnson

Happiness is "Taxing Deadlines" By Madeleine Begun Kane

Taxing Deadlines

By Madeleine Begun Kane (here):

Did you file your 1040? Not me!

Cuz I need an extension, you see.

Could not get it together.

I’m blaming the weather.

Do I wish it was finished? Mais oui!

Just one more reason bacon is happiness

h/t Theo

Happiness is highest for the intelligent when they spend less time with their friends

The Savannah Theory of Happiness, expanded upon here, indicates happiness declines as population density increases, except among the intelligent, for whom that matters little.

Happiness also generally increases with more interaction with close friends, unless you happen to be very smart, in which case less interaction is better for happiness. 

The latest reason to be optimistic about the future: Eccentricity continues to decline!

Eccentricity has been in decline for all of recorded human history, and will continue to decline until about 30,016 AD.

A measure of the deviation from perfect circularity, eccentricity of the earth's orbit around the sun is cyclical and has been in decline for tens of thousands of years.

In 5,000 BC the eccentricity of the earth's orbit measured .018869. Today it measures .016703, a less elliptical and more circular orbit by 11.5% in just 7,000 years. 

But by about 30,016 AD eccentricity will reach a nadir around .0023088, meaning earth's orbit around the sun will be almost 88% more circular than it was in 5,000 BC.

The more circular the orbit, the less extreme and more predictable should be the gravitational and climatic changes exerted on the earth by our sun.

Think positive!

You are at zero

Happiness is hearing Inspector Clouseau say "Not anymore"

Here.

Happiness is chocolate: Strongly linked to superior brain function

Story here.

My go-to bar is Lindt, 70% cocoa.

One square a day.