Helping Pakistan

The floods in Pakistan are massive.  About 1/5th of the country has been affected, an area the size of Belgium, Austria and Switzerland combined. At least 1.2 millions homes have been destroyed with the UN reporting that 17.2 million people have been affected, 8.6 million of which are children.  To get a scope of the disaster, consider this.  Already more people have been affected then the Asian Tsunami, and the Haiti and Kashmir earthquakes combined.

According to the latest UNICEF report, the greatest humanitarian needs are: Food, clean water, hygeine, medical supplies and rebuliding of schools.

Humanists are helping by donating through SHARE (the Skeptics and Humanists Aid and Relief Effort), which will forward all donations on to Oxfam which has been active in Pakistan doing relief work for children and women prior to the floods.

The UN's report on the needs assessment for Pakistan is located here: http://www.unicefusa.org/assets/pdf/UNICEF-Immediate-Needs-Document-Pakistan-Flooding-26-August-2010.pdf

If you want to donate directly to the UN relief effort in Pakistan, you may do so here: http://www.unicefusa.org/work/emergencies/flood-relief/?gclid=CMmc_Inn36MCFYNR2godpj9GSA

The important thing is to help.  These are our fellow human beings here. If we are to call ourselves Humanists, we must be willing to act on our compassion for others. Donate today!

Procrastination

In my humble opinion, wasting time is never a waste of time. It means I was doing something I enjoy instead of doing something I obviously didn’t want to do. Now, my maxim about wasting time is one that only works in moderation, in accordance with Franklin’s famous maxim. Obviously, if you procrastinate too much, nothing will get done, and that won’t be good.

But my real point is that if your brain refuses to let you work on a project there is probably a good reason for it. Sometimes it is a good idea to allow your brain to play with other thoughts for a while, rather then force it to work on something it clearly doesn’t want to.

Case in point. I procrastinated on writing this article all morning. I got a lot of important stuff done; I just couldn’t begin to start working on it, mostly because I didn’t know what I wanted to write about. And then, while I was procrastinating on Facebook, it hit me, I should write about the value of procrastination.

Now I have my idea and I am excited to write this column. And in the meantime I had had fun brainstorming about different avenues in which to sell my new book (to be released in early Sept 2010). All things come in their own sweet time as another maxim goes. So, the next time you are procrastinating on a project, don’t fret. As long as you are not near your deadline, you will be fine. Waste time doing something your brain enjoys and eventually your brain will figure out how it wants to tackle the project you have been procrastinating on and then there will be no stopping you.

Appreciating Duran Duran

Today is National Duran Duran Appreciation Day. And as a Duran Duran fan who has stuck with them since my teens I wanted to write a little something about why, as a Humanist, I like Duran Duran. The reason I am still an avid DD fan is because their music has always been optimistic.  We Humanists are big into optimism, as I pointed out in my last post. Music that makes you feel happy to be alive still has a place in this world.  Plus, how can you not like a band whose best song is called "Hallucinating Elvis."

Anyway, their 2004 album, astronaut, was excellent (linked here). It came just a few years after 9-11 and for me it really just provided an emotional release from the post 9-11 funk we were all feeling at that time.  I remember thinking that just as U2 had managed to capture our anguish over 9-11. Duran Duran was now providing us with the antidote, encouraging us to "reach out for the sunrise" once again.  That is was now ok to get on with our lives and optimistically "let a new day enter your life." For helping me to remind me that optimism is the best antidote to all the troubles in the world - I appreciate Duran Duran. Plus, Bedroom Toys, which is on the Astronaut album, is one of the funniest songs ever.

Always look on the bright side of life

Humanism is an optimistic philosophy. We see no point in facing life's adversities pessimistically. We are also very realistic about death. We know we are going to die. And actually, we find this thought strangely very motivating. Our thinking is thus: If we are going to die, we might as well make the best of it while we are here. And that means, not succumbing to pessimism. We Humanists believe we can make things better, if we just try. And when we can't, we might as well laugh about our predicament. So, in the spirit of this outlook, I am sharing the following video - from Monty Python's Life of Brian. Enjoy!

Happiness Happens

The Secret Society of Happy People is celebrating the 11th Annual Happiness Happens Month (August). I’m participating in HappyThon 2010, 24 hours of social media messages about happiness. Below are some questions that I’ve answered.

• What’s the happiest moment you’ve had recently? Getting a regular column in the local paper to write about the Humanist Approach to Happiness- that was cool.

• What song makes your toes tap? You’ve got to Move It – by Wil-I-am from the movie Madagascar. It is impossible not to groove when that song is on.

• What TV show makes you laugh? The Daily Show – some of their jokes a really funny. Otherwise, That Mitchell and Webb Look is hysterical.

• When you need a happy-pick-me-up what movie do you watch? The Beatles: either Help or a Hard Day’s Night.

• What’s your favorite childhood food? I remember being really obsessed with Icees one summer. Collected the points and everything. Don’t know that I ever collected enough to turn them in for something, but boy – do I loves me an Icee.

• What’s your happy beverage? Ummmmm – a White Russian.

• What’s your favorite smell? Honey almond raison lamb cooking in the oven.

• Who makes you smile just thinking of them? My husband.

• Where and when was your favorite vacation? That’s a toughie. Either the Alaska trip where we were plane camping in the Wrangell Elias National Park the day before we got married on a ferry in front of a coastal glacier on Prince William Sound or the canal boat holiday we took in Scotland. Both vacations were awesome!

• What is your favorite holiday? Passover.

• If you had a happy adjective in front of your name what would it be? My mom’s nickname in college was apparently Giggles, but that doesn’t describe me. I have been told on multiple occasions in a variety of settings though that I am a goddess and I do like the sound of Goddess Jen Hancock – so let’s go with that. Yes – that would make me VERY happy.

• What are your favorite happiness quotes? “Most people would rather be certain they're miserable, than risk being happy.” - Robert Anthony

Want more information about the Secret Society of Happy People and Happiness Happens Month? Visit http://www.sohp.com/