*a prayer for the wild at heart, kept in cages

Someone once told me that happiness is a state of mind. I laughed at his premise then. If happiness was a state of mind, then sadness, anger, excitement, fear & all emotive feelings would merely be states of mind. Did he mean that humans merely willed themselves into feeling a certain way that seemed plausible?

Then I met someone else, a forty-something who has led a fortunate life thus far, achieving her goals without obstacles. For someone most might imagine to be happy, she wasn’t. She was unhappy, but she confessed that she reminded herself to be glad for everything that she had, & that she had nothing to be unhappy about.

Perhaps happiness is merely a state of mind. Whenever we are unhappy there exists a little voice that tells us to revel in the happiness of all our other little victories. Regardless of our superficial sentiments of the everyday, our emotional core may just be simply, happy.

Happy to have been the X or Y chromosome that won the race.

Happy to have kissed and hugged.

Happy to have quenched our thirst.

Happy to have seen colours.

Happy to see happiness in smiles.

Happy to have felt rain.

Happy to have tasted chocolate.

Happy to have closed our eyes & slept,

& happy to wake to the morning sunshine.

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The restaurants are sloppy, the food lame, the owners & chefs mostly rather indignant & pissed off. The Fish & Anchor episode where a hungry man was kicked out by the furious dragon-lady host was hilarious.

But Ramsay saves the day as Santa with a team of interior designing elves. He manages to improve not only the restaurant menu & facade, but apparently the lousy attitudes in 2 days flat. Almost a Dr. Phil who knows his amaretto from his amuse bouche. Ramsay has no problems hamming things up & joining the odd argument for your viewing pleasure. He unapologetically dishes out the truth while cussing, & you even pity the man for trying harder to save the business than its shareholders.

Kitchen Nightmares has all the right ingredients, & a good dose of reality for anyone ever wanting to start any business. You would think that fresh food served to the right table is a simple recipe, but they get it all wrong.

Yet, appearing on a such a Restaurant-Rescue tv show is just a huge blob of bad publicity for any serious restaurant, looking to peddle good food without the dramatics.

On Sunday morning,

gingerly sifting through the newspapers,

to Astrud Gilberto.

From watching Friends

1. Traffic policemen named Hanson & Petty love being flattered by obvious puns on their name.

2. Make sure your walls are thin. Or else life would be an absolute bore.

3. Do not count Mississippi-ly unless told to do so. Effectively, that means never.

4. Hiking in Europe will get you action every single time.

From watching the Office.

1. Always, always type the right email address. Packing & Packer are not the same.

2. Be careful which Temp guy you choose to run your errands. You may have to call him Boss tomorrow.

3. Sausage-eating skills are essential in becoming Regional Manager. So is fire-walking. And carrying eggs in spoons while blindfolded.

4. If you hear strange noises at midnight on the Shrute family farm, do not investigate.

5. A beard, or the ability to sprout facial hair, gives you extra credibility at work.

Wonder if #5 applies to the fairer sex.

From watching SATC

1. Do not put on any random firefighter’s overalls at the local fire station.

2. Twenty-somethings live in dumps & skimp on toilet paper.

3. Don’t marry a man who replies “Alrighty” after you propose. Avoid men who say Alrighty to everything.