I came across an interesting website today entitled the Happiness project, based in the US, where they interview different people about happiness, always using the same 5 questions.

The questions are:

1. How do you define happiness?
2. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your happiness now, versus when you were a child?

3. What do you do on a daily basis that brings you happiness?
4. What things take away from your happiness? What can be done to lessen their impact or remove them from your life?
5. What do you plan on doing in the future that will bring you even more happiness?

So how would you answer?

For more info on the Happiness Project:

Incredible photos of a baby hippo that was stranded by the tsunami and the tortoise that adopted him

I discovered this website today, and think it is something we should all be supporting:

The Internet Watch Foundation

Their remit is: To minimise the availability of potentially illegal internet content specifically;

* images of child sexual abuse* hosted anywhere in the world
* criminally obscene content hosted in the UK
* incitement to racial hatred content hosted in the UK

so if you find any dodgy sites, then you can report it to them and they will investigate.
And that must be a good thing

Forget about all those expensive skin care products that offer you a re-juvenated skin. Now your face can have the complexion of a babies bottom! No I don't mean red and sore, I mean soft and peachy.

PS Happy Birthday SULA

A baby fell out of his pram here in Switzerland last week, on to the track just as a train was entering the station. Miraculously he fell between the tracks and the train went straight over the top without touching him

All he got was a bruise on his forehead from the fall.
His mother and the train driver both had to be treated for shock though, especially the mother. I can only begin to imagine how horrifying it must have been for her.
But now all are well and safely home.

It's been a while since I wrote on here...guess it's been a while since I believed there was good news!

It's good news the Olympic Torch is getting such a barrage along it's journey! I am still trying to get my head around the sensibility of separating sport from politics...but nevertheless...the 'Olymic Event' is ultimately engineered and hosted by the political powers at the time...hence, it's hard to separate them.

However, the strength of feeling shown by ordinary people about Tibet and China's unhealthy reputation (regardless of Tibet), is very good news too.

How an Olypmic symbol representing unity and freedom of expression through competitive sport can conceivably travel through THE iconic place of Chinese suppression is just inconceivable...

Watch this space. I do believe I may be posting good news regarding a difficult journey through Tibet.

Look what I found

A campaign by Men to end violence by men against women.
Must admit I have never seen anyone wearing a white ribbon, but it seems like something well worth promoting

Link to website

What is the White Ribbon Campaign (WRC)?

The WRC is the largest effort in the world of men working to end men's violence against women. It relies on volunteer support and financial contributions from individuals and organizations.
How did the WRC get started?

In 1991, a handful of men in Canada decided they had a responsibility to urge men to speak out against violence against women. They decided that wearing a white ribbon would be a symbol of men's opposition to men's violence against women. After only six weeks preparation, as many as one hundred thousand men across Canada wore a white ribbon. Many others were drawn into discussion and debate on the issue of men's violence. There are now White Ribbon Campaigns operating in many countries around the world.

The UK Branch of WRC was started in 2004.
What does it mean to wear a white ribbon?

Wearing a white ribbon is a personal pledge never to commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women.

Each year, we urge men and boys to wear a ribbon for one or two weeks, starting on November 25, the International Day for the Eradication of Violence Against Women

Cerebral palsy can't stop 10-year-old's winning writing.

It is 76 years since Cheeta the chimp was plucked from the African jungle to become a Hollywood star in the Tarzan movies. Yet incredibly, he is still going strong. The oldest known living chimpanzee enjoys a leisurely retirement in California, where he enjoys painting, piano and strolling in the sunshine. Not to mention writing his autobiography - or so we are told. Me Cheeta, an account of his life in the limelight, is to be published in the autumn and extracts from it appear in next month's Esquire magazine. The memoirs, widely suspected to be the work of a ghostwriter, discuss his acting career, the healthy lifestyle which has replaced his former diet of beer and cigars, and his views on his old co- star Johnny Weissmuller.

Hardy perennial: Cheeta has outlived his co-stars Maureen O'Sullivan and Johnny Weissmuller Cheeta, who is 4ft and 10st 2lb, was "discovered" as a newborn by an animal trainer on a trip to Africa in April 1932. He appeared soon afterwards alongside Weissmuller in Tarzan And His Mate, and went on to star in a dozen films about the jungle hero who swung from tree to tree. Cheeta, also known as Jiggs, appeared in 50 movies before his final appearance, as Chee-Chee in 1967's Doctor Dolittle. He has outlived both Weissmuller, who died in 1984 aged 79, and Maureen O'Sullivan, who played Tarzan's mate Jane and who died aged 87 in 1998. Although he was fond of smoking and drinking, both have been forbidden since he arrived more than a decade ago at the Cheeta Primate Foundation in the desert enclave of Palm Springs. He helps pay for his keep with his "Ape-stract" paintings which sell for £75 a time. Esquire also jokes that he has made a small fortune working as a body double for actor Robin Williams.

Oldest swinger in town: Cheeta tinkling the ivories
Chimpanzees in captivity regularly live to about 50, a decade longer than those in the wild. Another old-timer was Fifi, a star attraction at Sydney's Taronga Zoo until her death at the age of 60 last July. But Cheeta is by far the oldest documented chimp. Here, courtesy of Esquire, are some of his thoughts:

•On his career longevity: "I acted into my thirties. Most chimps retire by the age of ten because they won't do what they're told. I didn't want to end up in a lab with an electrode in my forehead."

•On his Hollywood legacy: "I can't deny that I'd like my own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, but I have been turned down for the last three years. I'm not bitter. I've had a rich career. Every day is a blessing."

•On painting: "The art world credits me with starting Ape-stract painting, but I don't like to blow my own trumpet. I prefer the piano."

Now this lady is from my birth town, so well done to her.

Mum-of-three Claire Hutchinson was at rock bottom. Jobless for eight months, no prospect of work and with only a couple of quid in her purse to try to feed her young children.

But now she's running her own business recycling clothes, earning a decent living and giving a substantial chunk of her turnover to a local children's charity.

And she's up for a prestigious award, which recognises her achievements and hard work.

Full story can be found http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/jobs/2008/03/13/mum-traded-poverty-and-despair-for-real-success-89520-20349815/