All Caught Up And Newsweek, Too

It's amazing what a few free hours can do. I am on OT -- overtime desired list -- at work and they have been using me every day. But they must let me have one eight hour day each week or face paying penalty OT, an absolute no no. So my very smart supervisor, Damasio, let me have Thursday so I can be available on Friday, which is the end of the work week. Any OT people who haven;t had an eight hour day by Friday MUST get it then.

So I get to catch up a little -- and on the blogging front, I feel pretty caught up, at least with time. I still have two more blogs to write after this one, but three in one day is more than enough. My poor readers!

Speaking of reading, I don't think that Newsweek will mind if I use their material. Since the magazine is dying, as are all weekly news mags and daily newspapers, crushed in the internet age (are books to follow?), it seems only fitting that I use the information highway to remind us all that these great sources once were, and still struggle to be.

Over the two past weeks Newsweek has had articles that particularly struck home for me in my current mental state (no guffaws or wisecracks, please). The first one dealt with healthy living at any age. I have ragged on about this before, so I will only cite the NUMBER ONE rulke for proper living, according to that article. It is, "LEARN TO COOK."

Therein lies true independence, individuality, and control.

The second article had to do with creativity in America and how we are losing it. There are seven "bubbles" or rules to follow to promote creativity. I want to cite four, briefly.

REDUCE SCREEN TIME. Kids spend about 3 hours a day in front of the TV, reducing play time by one-third. It is play that drives imagination. Look at me.

FOLLOW A PASSION. People wh are focused on one great interest or love tend to excel at it, and are better disciplined in their approach. Remember the old adige,m Jack of all trades, master of none? And I find that people who are creative in one area almost always spill over onto others, as well, as a matter of natural progression.

EXPLORE OTHER CULTURES. Cross cultural experiences encourage adaptability and flexibility, and promote new ideas.

GET MOVING. Just 30 minutes of exercise improves cognition everywhere, including creativity. But thgere's a catch -- you have to be fauirly fit, otherwise the exercise will cause fatigue and stop the brain from wantng to work. So, fitness, whatever that is, is a boon to creativity.

It all goes hand in hand. It all matters, not just to each of us as individuals, but also to the society in which we live and which will benefit from our creative outputs, whether in art or science or living.