Column

We live in volatile times. First, we have the weather. Aside from debate about the cause being human activity, normal fluctuations, or solar activity, everyone will agree that the weather is more unpredictable than ever. Severe droughts are contrasted with unseasonal blizzards and monsoon-like floods, as Mother Nature shuffles the deck with our seasonal expectations.

We also have foreign relations and global politics. While disputes between groups that really don’t like each other very much are nothing new, it seems that tensions are higher than ever. Besides the usual nation-versus-nation disputes, we also have a human virus of religious zealots that infect weak-minded individuals inside otherwise stable countries, causing grief wherever it appears. And if that is not enough, we have the troubling fact that what used to be the leading nation of the free world (that would be the United States, in case you were wondering) is now the hostage of some Iranian Imams and an ex-KGB colonel bully.

On top of all this, we’ve got a global economy comprised of wildly-fluctuating markets and insolvent or nearly-so nations. Rising prices on just about everything, alongside unemployment, underemployment and the crest of another real estate bubble, are all resting upon an uncertain future built with unsustainable, mind-boggling debt. With all that’s happening, can anyone’s blood pressure really be normal?

In light of all this, I have to laugh at all the political pundits that seemed so surprised at what is happening in politics. On the democrat side, what was supposed to be a fait accompli is being shaken, not so much by the fact that the subject of the assumed coronation is a person of dubious character, but by the fact the closest challenger within her own party is a far-left, socialist—a person that would have been considered a radical kook ten years ago.

On the republican side, we have the so-called “outsiders,” with the current leader dominating polls to such a degree that those same pundits are tongue-tied. “He’s a good entertainer,” they say, or, “He’s getting air time only because he brings high ratings”—their tone often implying that Americans who support these fringe candidates are, shall we say, “less than intelligent.”

I have a newsflash for all of the political experts and media elitists: You are missing the point.
Despite the steady stream (with your obvious support) of propaganda for the past several years, our country is in big trouble and most Americans know it. They are hungry for responsible leadership, as they see direct threats to our national security and financial stability.

They have witnessed a systematic undermining of race relations and the erosion of our cultural and moral institutions. They are saying, “Enough is enough!” A majority of Americans see that the United States has been fundamentally changed, as promised, and they don’t like it.

No, the American people aren’t stupid— they’re desperate. And just like what Mother Nature’s doing with the weather, the American people are about to do with our leadership; they’re going to give the deck a good shuffle.

 

Many of us watching a movie get totally absorbed in what is on the screen. It may be action, drama or a comedy, but how many of us would react the same if there was no music to support the sequence of events on the film?

An indispensable element in all film is music. Music brings out the heart and soul of the story. “For a couple of hours or so we may sporadically laugh; cry; gasp; jump; scream; hide our eyes; notice our heart pounding; fall in love (or more likely in lust); hate someone; cheer someone; want revenge; hope for reconciliation or fall asleep,” wrote T. A. McMahon in Showtime for the Sheep. “Movies can do all of this to us and more—it’s an amazing process. Motion pictures take us on a mental ride through the manipulation of our senses and emotions… all created by camera work and sounds that emulate real life situations,” wrote McMahon.

Well-crafted music can bring to life a scene in a movie, elicit a particular emotional and sometimes physical response or reaction. Film composers have become skilled in matching musical sounds that truly enhance the action on the screen. The same scene without music can often fall completely flat or fail to reach the audience at all. For example, when a screen writer writes a scary scene, a skilled film composer can make it even scarier by writing frightening music, causing the scene to have more impact. (Like the recurring, chilling music depicting the presence of the shark in the movie, Jaws.)

Silent Films
Experimental film making at the start of the 20th Century was rudimentary at best. Obviously, there was no sound track on the film. The music for these “Silent Films,” if present, was provided by live musicians, usually a pianist or organist in the front of the theater below the screen. On rare occasions, when the theater was large and money available, a full orchestra provided the background music for the film.

As the music element in movies grew with live musicians the technique of playing the music to fit the action on the screen became rather sophisticated. Musical scores, or cue sheets, were written to help the musicians play certain musical themes. This was a great help for the musicians, especially those whose imaginations were not as fertile as others. The live musicians were extremely talented and creative. They often had to ad lib, creating interest and tension, helping define what happened in the screen.

The advent of the “Theater Organ,” a massive instrument capable of many orchestral sounds and other sound effects like clopping horses, came into being. This instrument eclipsed the need for a full orchestra, as it could produce a plethora of different sounds and effects.

Talkies
The Jazz Singer of 1927 was thought to be the first “Talkie.” Before this new  invention of sound in films came along, drama was depicted on screen by mime and written dialog was shown on a black screen after the action. Needless to say, the written dialog was much shorter than the action on screen. Talkies revolutionized the movie industry in many ways and also gave birth to great movie musicals. This new method of film making often put some screen actors out of work, as their voices were not appropriate for certain roles or did not match their screen image.

The modern film composer must be multi-talented and able to produce music depicting many human emotions and conditions. The composer comes into play in the post-production phase of film making. He meets with the director and producers who view the movie and decide what scenes need music and what kind, style and length of music is required. The composer tries to create a mood that enhances and supports the action and dialog in the scene.

The composer creates music for the various scenes and the director, producer and others involved in this phase of film making, decide what music will be used in the film.  The best music that enhances a scene will hopefully create suspense, tension, romance and other human emotions. Other people involved with the production of film music are: the music editor, orchestrator, conductor, contractor, sound designer, and most importantly, the musicians.

One of the major forms of entertainment for most Americans is still the motion picture. Many aspects of film making include: drama; comedy; adventure; romance; westerns; musicals; science fiction; fantasy; animated films; period-pieces; historical; documentaries and animal films, to name a few. Without music all of these entertaining films would lack the excitement, emotional impact and enjoyment music provides.

Music makes, and will continue to make, one of the most important and necessary contributions to film making. Next time you are watching a movie think what it would be like without the addition of music to bring the story to life.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net
Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville
Community Band.

Dear HSSS,
I woke up the other day to an email from a friend I’ve known for 25 years. She said she no longer feels our friendship is beneficial and that, in essence, she is breaking up with me! She was never a great friend, more a taker than a giver, but my ego’s a little bruised. What do you make of this and should I respond?
~ Jane in Danville

He Said: With friends likes this, who needs enemies! First off, what kind of person does this? This is just plain weird and I think she’s telling you this to get some kind of reaction out of you. That being said, no, you should not respond. Unspoken words are so much louder in a situation like this. Your “friend” will go nuts trying to figure out why you didn’t respond and in the end, you’ll come out the winner. And if you absolutely feel the need to say something to this person, you should thank them and wish them the best. Doesn’t sound like she was much of a friend, and I’m sure you won’t even notice she’s gone.

She Said: I’m kind of impressed. Haven’t we all wanted to do this? Unfriending people is easy on Facebook, but directly? I’d have been even more impressed if she’d done it over lunch and then picked up the tab. You admit she was more a liability than a true friend, so let’s just be glad the trouble is over. Real friends stick with each other through thick and thin, so put the extra time you now have into those who deserve it. Respond if you want to, short and kind with honest understanding sprinkled in. Resist the need to engage. Onward and upward.

Dear SSHS,

My daughter is in her third year of college and has already gotten herself into financial trouble. Last year she was able to get a credit card and has already maxed it out and is no longer making payments because she doesn’t have a job right now. Should I help her out or let her get through this on her own?

She Said: As a fellow mom, I know the temptation of wanting to save our kids from themselves. We don’t want them to fall too far, lest they mess up their futures. But this is one that’s going to take a little love and logic to prevent her from doing it again. Advice, yes. Help, no. Advise her to call the credit card company and negotiate a lower rate. She’s going to need to get a job, which will cut into her social time, but again, we’re trying to teach a lesson. Help her set up a budget for how much she has to pay each month to get the balance down. It should hurt a little. There will be no more new shoes for a while. She’ll thank you later when it’s time to buy something really big, like a house or a car.

He Said: Bottom line is that your daughter got herself into this mess, therefore she can get herself out. And you should view this is as the perfect opportunity to teach your daughter one of life’s most important lessons about financial responsibility. Whatever you do, don’t let her off the hook, and don’t give her a single cent to pay off her debt. Tell her to get a part time job or even sell some of the stuff she bought with that credit card and she’ll have it paid off in no time. Just keep in mind that if you help her now, she’ll forever think of you as that piggy bank to turn to whenever she has money troubles.

Robin Fahr is a public relations specialist and co-host with Shawn Shizzo on Conversations and He Said/She Said seen daily on Tri-Valley TV, Channel 30 and online at www.trivalleytv.org. You can also catch He Said/She Said on TheTalkPod.com. Send your questions to www.AskHeSaidSheSaid.com.

The morning air is crisp and the sunsets are magnificent. There is a bountiful glut of end-of-season tomatoes and corn at the farmers’ market, and yet I can’t help but also gravitate toward crunchy apples and creamy winter squash.

At home there is a family of big fat pumpkins standing guard on my porch, and a parade of glistening glass ones to decorate my dining room table. A vintage Imari plate holds shiny orange persimmons, and it’s almost time to put a wreath of autumn leaves on the front door.

I feel a sudden urgency to reorganize my closet, bringing woolen sweaters and scarves to the forefront. It’s also time to wrestle those boots down from a high shelf, and make sure my jeans still fit. (Ahem.) A pot of soup bubbling away on the stove and a few candles flickering throughout the house may soon be in order. And okay, maybe I’m even ready for the sound of a football game being played in the background. (Note, I said “maybe.”)

Whatever happens to come our way, fall is rapidly approaching and I embrace it wholeheartedly.
But before I start planning my Thanksgiving menu and stacking logs in the fireplace, let’s not go overboard with these wintry daydreams. There will be plenty of time for that in the coming months. Living in the moment, we are currently blessed with what some call Indian summer—the last gasp of warm days before the frost sets in.

Few but the occasional British monarch want to feast on a standing rib roast when the temperature is soaring. Instead, I lean toward a good salad made hearty with ingredients from these changing seasons, and served at cool room temperature.

I realize kale is hopelessly trendy right now, but there are many good reasons for eating it. Other than the obvious health benefits, it makes a salad that not only tastes terrific, but can be assembled and dressed hours in advance without turning to slime. (Salad dressing, when tossed or “massaged” into kale leaves, merely tenderizes them.)

If you’re still on the fence concerning kale, my first bit of advice is to grow up. But if that is out of the question, go ahead and substitute mixed baby greens, spinach, or your favorite lettuce in the following salad and toss it just before serving.

When the evening turns chilly, you may want to begin dinner with a cup of fresh tomato soup. Otherwise, a crusty loaf of artisan whole-grain bread from the farmers’ market is the only accompaniment needed for this one-dish meal.

Look upon this recipe as a blueprint. Feel free to improvise as you use up odds and ends from your refrigerator drawers: a few slices of onion roasted along with the squash and corn; a few chunks of ripe tomato; a scattering of toasted walnuts; or a handful of dried cherries can only make it better.

Autumn Salad with Roasted Veggies & Kale

1 medium butternut or other winter squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes (3 to 4 cups)

Kernels from 2 large ears of corn (about 1 cup total)

Fine sea salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

5 tablespoons California extra virgin olive oil

Finely grated zest and juice of 1 small orange

1 1/2 tablespoons sherry or red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

2 teaspoons sweet-hot mustard or Dijon mustard

1 large garlic clove, crushed through a press

1 large bunch Tuscan kale (also known aslacinato, cavolonero, or dinosaur kale), stems removed and leaves cut crosswise into thin strips (5 to 6 cups)

2 cups cooked black beans, or 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained, rinsed well, and drained again

2 ounces soft California goat cheese, coarsely crumbled (about 1/2 cup)

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a shallow roasting pan, combine the squash, corn, 1/2 teaspoon salt, the cumin, smoked paprika, and cayenne. Toss to mix, then drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the oil and toss again. Spread the mixture in an even layer and roast, turning the vegetables once or twice, until lightly browned at the edges and the squash is tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, about 30 minutes. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

2. To make the dressing: In a small bowl, mix together the orange zest and juice, vinegar, honey, mustard, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; then whisk in the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil.Taste, adding more salt if needed.

3. In a large bowl, combine the kale with about 3/4 of the dressing and toss until evenly moistened. Scrape the reserved squash and corn into the bowl, along with any roasting juices that have accumulated in the pan. Add the black beans to the salad and toss gently to mix. Taste, adding the remaining dressing and/or more salt if needed. Crumble the cheese over the top. Serves 4.

The Danville Certified Farmers’ Market, located at Railroad and Prospect, is open every Saturday, rain or shine, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. For specific crop information call the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association at s1-800-949-FARM, or visit their web site at www.pcfma.com. This market is made possible through the generous support of the Town of Danville. Please show your appreciation by patronizing the many fine shops and restaurants located in downtown Danville. Buy fresh. Buy local. Live well!

It has not been great appointment television, but the debates among the republican Presidential candidates has kicked off another election season. Seems like an appropriate time for some Presidential trivia, keeping it light and not historically important.

1. In 1950, Irving Berlin wrote a song for the Broadway musical “Call Me Madam” which became a campaign slogan two years later. What was it?

2. Before his presidency, JFK wrote a book heralding acts of bravery over the years exhibited by American heroes. What was the name of the book?

3. Which President was captain and first baseman for Yale baseball team?

4. In which movie did Ronald Reagan play George Gipp?

5. Bill Clinton showed a light side by playing what musical instrument on late night TV?

6. Which U.S. president was an All American center for the University of Michigan?

Today we take a trip into Pleasanton and discover a building dripping with Americana. It is not very often that I find myself completely bowled over by a concept, and certainly not very often that I encounter a person like Eddie Westmoreland that has not only put all of his heart into a concept, but passionately seeks ways to keep the product and message fresh. Eddie Papa’s is the most unique restaurant that I have ever set foot in, and allow me to remind you that I have eaten freshly harvested goat off an outdoor table in Kenya.

Before any of my spy-savvy readers have a chance to blow my cover, allow me to expose the platform from which I write this month. As of earlier last month, and on select days, you can find me tending bar or even waiting the occasional table at Eddie Papas as my business partner and I fight tooth and nail to side step those pesky small business loans and I prepare for the March arrival of my baby girl. Eddie has just built an amazing front patio off of the bar area and was looking for seasoned veterans to help carry the bar message to the throngs of patrons that will come to discover us, some for the first time and some again because we already know their name. I printed my resume and headed out looking for Seth Thurman, the Bar Manager. I met Eddie right inside the door and we quickly grabbed a table to talk.

Eddie explained to me that he created the restaurant as an homage to the large family he continues to build, the rich culture of the Country we are lucky enough to wake up in everyday and most importantly his grandfather that came here via Armenia to live this American Dream. Eddie has nailed all that he has set out to accomplish.

Eddie Papa’s American Hangout is built on the G.F.U.N.D.: Genuine, Fun, Uncommon, Nostalgic and Delicious. The menu is a culinary history and geographic lesson from around the country boasting items like the real Hollywood Cobb Salad, Kansas City Ribs or Louisiana Jambalaya and Beignets, all made to the letter of where they originated. He has quarterly specials that pay homage to regions like the West Coast Korean Tacos (a tip of the hat to the food truck scene in LA). He even has S’mores with house-made marshmallows and open flame for their guests to prepare, and at the end of every meal, the guests (with child or not) gets hand spun cotton candy to cleanse the palette. This is the sheer definition of unique and nostalgic. These touches have put him at the top of rated family friendly restaurants in the Bay Area.

Then you head over to the bar. The concept here is Pre-Prohibition Era Bartending where bartending was an art form involving hand squeezed juices, fresh ingredients, infused syrups, fresh herbs and bitters. Couple all of this with showmanship and the requirement for the men to behave as gentlemen and the women like ladies and you really do have a bar that would have thrived in the early 1920’s.

Seth is a Cicerone. For those unaware, Cicerone is to beer what Sommelier is to wine, and Seth knows his beer! He hosts a remarkably well balanced and predominately local beer selection on draft in either 16oz or 24oz pours. Labels like 8 Bridges, 21st Amendment and Drakes drive the beer program and if you have spare time, get Seth talking about his whiskeys. This man knows his stuff and his back bar proves it.

I am truly honored to be a part of the happiness that Eddie is turning out from this location and my only desire now is that you stop taking my word for things. Come down and let me shake you a Broken Spoke!

4889 Hopyard Road, Pleasanton, CA 94588
(925) 469-6266

I wish I could be sitting in the same room when you watch this movie. Belle has such texture, such fabric, such color. There have been several worthy movies about slavery; so many are based on true stories mainly because there are so many noteworthy true stories to tell. Many of these stories are told from different vantage points. The 17th century England practically dictated that.

Belle is a film with a unique perspective. Very unique.

Born to an African slave mother and an aristocrat father, Dido was reared as nobility… almost. While young, getting a fine private education alongside her fair haired cousin, Dido’s plight was not as apparent. She and Cousin Elizabeth were playmates; more like sisters.

Belle is inspired by the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), the illegitimate mixed race daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode). Raised by her aristocratic great-uncle, Lord Mansfield (Tom Wilkenson) and his wife (Emily Watson), Dido’s lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from the traditions of noble social standing. While her cousin, Elizabeth Murray (Sarah Gadon) pursues suitors for marriage, Dido is left on the sidelines wondering if she will ever find love. Let me stop right here and assure you, this is not actually a love story. It just so happens that marrying either for love or any other reason is one of Dido’s challenges of her mixed racial birth.

Elizabeth is quite literally the belle of the ball until the families of her suitors realize she is the “poor” cousin. Now, wealth is relevant but as fate would have it, the real Belle of the Ball was actually the beautiful, exotic Dido. Wealthy but with a race stigma. Intelligent and strong-willed, she has an ambiguity of position—too high to dine with servants, too low to dine with guests. What would it be like to have power, inheritance and property and not be able to marry for love; to be both aristocratic and scorned?

There is a huge backstory here. After meeting an idealistic young vicar’s son, John Davinier, bent on changing society, he and Dido help shape Lord Mansfield’s role as Lord Chief Justice to end slavery in England through a quite controversial court case.

As I mentioned earlier, there is a unique perspective being played out here. Amma Asante, Director of this amazing work who is also black, said this about the painting that inspired Belle. “Around the time of the 18th century, we really were—people of color were—an accessory in a painting. We were there rather like a pet to express the status of the main person in the painting, who was always white. And for anybody who’s lucky enough to see the painting, what you see is something very, very different. You see a biracial girl, a woman of color, who’s painted slightly higher in the painting, depicted slighter higher than her white counterpart. She’s staring directly out at the painter, you know, with a very direct, confident eye…So this painting flipped tradition and everything that the 18th century told us about portraiture. These two girls were aristocrats. What I saw from the painting was this opportunity, if I got it right, to tell a story that would combine art history and politics.”

Like the film, Amazing Grace, Belle is a fascinating history lesson. With all the turmoil in our world today it brings another historical piece of this puzzle to the forefront. I highly recommend this beautiful movie.

I look forward to your comments as usual at chastings@rockcliff.com.

At United Capital, we often say, “More of something often means less of something else.” We repeat this phrase to ourselves and to our clients because we believe that it captures an important investment truth that can help us reach our investment goals.In fact, it resonates so strongly with us that we’ve aligned our investment platform around prioritizing sometimes-conflicting goals.We’ve outlined how investors must choose between strategies that emphasize outperformance, protection, tax minimization, or low cost tracking to a benchmark. So what does this really mean? We contend that it highlights the investment choices we need to make when identifying the investment goal for a specific, individual account.

Consider, for example, the resources that must be expended in order to achieve outperformance relative to a benchmark index, and how that must necessarily move away from “low cost”solutions. Moreover,if that strategy successfully outperforms a benchmark, it will no longer closely track that benchmark, much less be tax efficient. In a similar vein, a strategy whose primary focus is on risk avoidance can’t, at the same time, take aggressive positions that could pay off handsomely, because it could instead suffer notable losses if the investment thesis doesn’t pan out. No investment professional has a crystal ball, so it is impossible to invest in a strategy that can exploit potential profits yet takes no risks at all. Opportunities, by definition, come with some sort of risk or another. Otherwise, they are not opportunities.

By prioritizing which matters most to you for each of your particular accounts – low cost tracking, outperformance, tax minimization, or protection – we aim to provide solutions that best fit with your highest need for a specific account. Of course, these are spectrums, not a yes/no decision. One can have degrees to which an investment focuses on say outperformance. In fact, the spectrum can be quite broad. Even within the same investment series, you can choose, hypothetically, between a 100% equity version and a balanced version that contains varying elements of fixed income.

Of course, every investor is a complex individual and often has many nuanced investment objectives and accompanying emotions about investing. The answer of how to address these competing agendas is to reconcile your asset constituencies with your various, competing investment goals. Many clients have different accounts representing distinct pools of funds, each with a separate time horizon and investment objective. One may invest a retirement account entirely different from the college savings account for a child now entering high school. And then the same client may have one pool of funds with which they can take absolutely no risk and another pool of funds with which they can afford to take significant risks, depending on the ultimate goals that those funds serve. Each account may have a different objective – and thus a different solution, on a different axis on our platform, all aggregating up to a very multi-faceted approach to investing.

That means that our paradigm of viewing our investment platform holds true when one disaggregates your entire finances into a more easily understood (not to mention more actionable) framework of how to invest each of your individual accounts. And it is at this juncture where our platform fits into the equation.

By identifying where a particular portfolio fits along these axes, you can easily conceptualize the idea that more of something often means less of something else. A greater emphasis on protection by necessity means that one can’t focus on outperformance or follow a lowest-cost index strategy, and so on. By putting investments into this framework – and selecting investment vehicles that match your specific and mutually exclusive goals for an account – we can best help you achieve your goals. And by understanding this trade-off upfront, your journey to your investment destination will likely take a more satisfying and appealing route.

Disclosures
Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal, and investors should carefully consider their own investment objectives and never rely on any single chart, graph or marketing piece to make decisions. The information contained in this piece is intended for information only, is not a recommendation to buy or sell any securities, and should not be considered investment advice. Please contact your financial adviser with questions about your specific needs and circumstances.

An investor cannot invest directly in an index. Moreover, indices do not reflect commissions or fees that may be charged to an investment product based on the index, which may materially affect the returns presented.

© 2015 United Capital Financial Advisers, LLC. All Rights Reserved www.unitedcp.com

Last month I introduced the subject of how a bad attitude can affect our health through the creation of vagas nerve malfunction. To compound the problem, that same bad attitude can move over to one’s eating habits. Many of us understand the inflammatory effects that sugar, transfats, grain fed meats and junk foods can have in our immune system, but few are aware of a relatively new arrival: The exitotoxin.

Excitotoxins are nasty little additions to processed foods that can result in damage to one’s brain when it becomes excited and over produces glutamate. Excessive glutamate breaks down the ability of our neurons to interconnect; which can cause diseases like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and other neurological disorders.

The two most common Exitotoxin products are MSG and aspartame (as in Equal and NutraSweet). How can we avoid consumption of these poisons? It is very simple: Don’t buy them. “But I always read the labels.” That doesn’t always work. The FDA not only allows foods that are banned in many countries to be sold in the USA, but also allows the processed food companies to hide ingredients. Unless the MSG is 99% pure, it can be called other names such as “hydrolyzed vegetable protein,” “spices,” “natural flavorings,” and many more.

At all of the speaking engagements I have given, people come up to me and ask me what I do. When I tell them I eat only fresh foods, never processed, that I no longer like the taste of chips, processed crackers or processed dips, I usually get back an answer “awe, you are taking away all the fun.” Well, here we go, score another one up for bad attitude causing bad health. Why do you think we are now about to enter the “Flu Season?”

It is not by coincidence that we are also about to begin the season of self destructive eating and drinking binges. Now include diet soft drinks. Bad attitude dominates when one would rather not make the effort to buy fresh and healthy and cook it yourself. I have the good fortune of loving to cook. Anyone can change their attitude and learn to enjoy cooking. This might just turn out to not only add joy to your life, but bring your family closer and make it healthier, especially if you have them take part in the meal prep.

Now that we understand that simply going to the doctor and following their recommendations, in most cases, won’t give us the best health and a long, happy life, it is time to direct our attention to the total picture—one that requires each of us to be responsible, not just to ourselves, but to those around us, for the many gifts we have been given.

Attitude is the answer! To experience true happiness we must bring everything we have to the table.