The Butt Stops Here

"The Butt Stops Here!" I've done it again. Thank you. Oh, thank you so much. I'd like to thank my Irish heritage and my parents' having 4 sons for the development of my exceptional sense of humor. Moving along...

It seems that monetary incentives work for just about everything but long-term risk management of a publicly traded financial services corporation. A new study shows that smokers who are given financial incentives to quit smoking are about 3 times as likely to stay smoke-free.

This is the gist of the article from MSN Health & Fitness -

All of the employees were given information about available smoking-cessation programs in their areas. Members of the financial incentive group were also told they would be given $100 for the completion of a smoking cessation program. Then, they would receive an additional $250 if they successfully quit smoking within six months from the start of the study, and they were promised another $400 if they stayed smoke-free for another six months. Smoke-free status was assessed using either a hair or urine sample to test for a substance known as cotinine, which is present when someone has smoked.

Nine to 12 months after the study began, 14.7 percent of the incentive group had kicked tobacco, compared to just 5 percent in the information-only group. Between 15 and 18 months after the study's start, 9.4 percent of those in the incentive group had stayed off cigarettes, compared to just 3.6 percent in the control group.

TMQ Sign-off

Some words of wisdom from a pretty smart guy -

TMQ Season Sign-Off: Tuesday Morning Quarterback folds its tent and steals off into the desert till August, though will resurface briefly around the NFL draft. As usual, I recommend you employ the offseason to engage in spiritual growth. Take long walks. Perform volunteer work in your community. Exercise more and eat less. Attend worship services of any faith. Drink less coffee, more green tea. Appreciate the beauty of nature -- God did not make nature by accident. Read one of the great books you've always meant to read. Be with your family and friends. As Barbara Bush said to the graduating class of Wellesley College in 1990, "At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a child, a friend or a parent."

Of newly released works, in political books, I recommend "The Party Faithful" by Amy Sullivan; in science, "Why Evolution Is True" by Jerry Coyne; in psychology, "Beyond Revenge" by Michael McCullough (explains why the desire for retribution is an evolutionary proclivity we must overcome); in general nonfiction, "Traffic" by Tom Vanderbilt (hilariously shows that traffic jams have plagued society at least since the days of the Caesars); in economics, "Good Capitalism Bad Capitalism" by William Baumol, Robert Litan and Carl Schramm; in history, "A Nation on Fire" by Clay Risen (about the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. -- the night before King died, he said, "Only when it's dark can you see the stars"); in self-published books, "The Losing Game" by T.E. Scott, which argues Wall Street is a giant hustle designed to separate investors from their money; in sports, "Positive Sports Parenting" by Jim Thompson, a book every youth-league and high-school coach and parent should read; in humor, "Our Dumb World" by the writers of The Onion; in fiction, "Bridge of Sighs" by Richard Russo and "Lark and Termite" by Jayne Anne Phillips.

Read, mediate, serve others: Do these things, and you will feel justified in racing back to the remote, the swimsuit calendars and the microbrews when the football artificial universe resumes anew in the autumn.

You may find Gregg Easterbrook's final TMQ column of the season here.

Scraping By On 500K/Year

Even though it's more than the president himself gets paid (though he has lots of perks like Air Force One), this article in the New York Times shows how tough it can be to live on such a meager pittance. I think it probably qualifies as "cruel and unusual punishment".

Steve and Gandhi

My father recently handed me a transcript of Steve Jobs' 2005 commencement speech at Stanford. You may read it here or watch a video of it here.

These are some of the most powerful words I have ever read -

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

Then today I received my "Motivational Quote of the Day" from Nightingale-Conant and it was one of Gandhi's -

"Live as if you were going to die tomorrow."

And here's a great tune from Tim McGraw called "Live Like You Were Dying" -



Yeah, a little heavy today. Poop is a funny word. That lightened things up a bit. Hee hee, poop.

Dog Whisperer

I found this piece on dog training very interesting. I love my dog, but have trouble controlling him. I think the dog whisperer has some good tips. Click here for the article.

It's a Start

This is a great article from the Washington Post. A study of 21,000 doctors over a period of 20 years has revealed that even minimal "vigorous" exercise (1-3 times/month!) makes heart disease less likely (18%). The study's results also find that being a little bit overweight (BMI of 25-29.9) makes one significantly more likely to develop heart disease (49% more likely).

So, the point is that, even if you think you don't have time to exercise, or you hate exercising, or you think there's no hope, even a slight change in your behavior can yield you health benefits.

Getting Your Zs

A new study points to the importance of getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night. If you get less, you could be increasing your risk of heart disease -

"On average, those in the study got about six hours of sleep a night.

"However, only 6 percent of those who got at least seven hours of sleep had calcification, compared with 11 percent who got five to seven hours and 27 percent who got less than five hours, said the senior author, Diane Lauderdale, an associate professor of health studies at the University of Chicago.

"The study took into account other known risk factors for heart disease, including sleep apnea, cholesterol, blood pressure, body weight, diabetes and depression.

"In fact, getting an extra hour of sleep had the same effect on heart disease risk as lowering one's systolic blood pressure (the upper reading) by 16.5 points"

Won't somebody please think of the children!?

That's from The Simpsons, in case you don't recognize Helen Lovejoy's ubiquitous line.

The economic downturn is having an interesting effect on the nation's married couples, particularly because of falling real estate prices.

From the New York Times -

"In a normal economy, couples typically build equity in their homes, then divide that equity in a divorce, either after selling the house or with one partner buying out the other’s share. But after the recent boom-and-bust cycle, more couples own houses that neither spouse can afford to maintain, and that they cannot sell for what they owe. For couples already under stress, the family home has become a toxic asset."

The article contains a reference to one of my old favorites-

"'There’s an old joke,' said Randall M. Kessler, Ms. Needle’s lawyer. 'Why is a divorce so expensive? Because it’s worth it. Now it better really be worth it.'"

The Governator on 60 Minutes

Arnold has accomplished so much in his life and he has some interesting thoughts on goal setting at the conclusion of the interview. Well worth watching.

The Atkins Diet Is Stupid

Scientists from Tufts (so you know they're smart) say that eating low and no-carb diets makes you stupid. Duh, you're better off eating a balanced diet. I can't believe it. So they're telling us that you can't use some shortcut like eating nothing but steak to lose weight and be healthy? I mean, I'm as shocked as you are.

"The scientists behind the study believe that low-carb diets reduce the amount of glucose or blood sugar carried to the brain and used by nerve cells for energy."

Here's the link.

Mr. Madoff or: How I Learned to Stop Whining and Count My Blessings

I've been whining to people about how much I've lost in the stock market in the last six months, but wow, it could be so much worse. Even if you're having trouble paying for college or your kid's tuition, or even your mortgage, perhaps, it's not as bad as it could be. You could be one of the many who invested with Bernard Madoff.

There are people who, until today, thought they had millions upon millions of dollars invested with the (now infamous) Wall Street legend. Over night, that money has disappeared, as it turns out to have been one giant Ponzi scheme. The origins of that term are worth learning, in case you don't know the story.

This is not what Wall Street needs right now. From madoff.com -

"In an era of faceless organizations owned by other equally faceless organizations, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC harks back to an earlier era in the financial world: The owner's name is on the door. Clients know that Bernard Madoff has a personal interest in maintaining the unblemished record of value, fair-dealing, and high ethical standards that has always been the firm's hallmark."

How ironic, indeed.

Hey, Big Spender

My friend Kim sent me an article about evolution playing a part in male spending. It's not a huge surprise that men spend money to attract mates, but it is fascinating to find that there is a direct correlation between the amount they spend as a percentage of income and how many sexual partners they have and desire in the future.

From a LiveScience article posted on Yahoo News -

"It is partially a result of our economic system and recent financial policies, but I really do think that our evolved mating strategies have an influence. Our competition for economic displays drives our consumer economy and culture of affluence.

"In terms of the current mortgage crisis, the findings suggest that one of the reasons why we overextend ourselves is that we're basically in a status race. We have expectations that spiral upward as people make more money, and everyone wants to show that they are better than average."

This is Timely

I take no satisfaction in reading this article, by which I mean, of course, that I was ecstatic on the inside but trying to show that I am not a bad person who is jealous of someone so rich, powerful and successful. Kind of like when management says that "So-and-so is our quarterback" or "so-and-so is our coach". Once you hear those words, you know you're canned. Not literally, of course. So, the point is that when you hear "I take no satisfaction" it means the exact opposite. Moving along...

I guess the acai berry thing hasn't worked out, because Oprah has just revealed (which I assume is no secret to people who actually watch her show) that her weight has climbed to 200 lbs. The reason for this is that Oprah tries to come up with gimmicky ways to lose weight and goes on diets. She needs to make a lifestyle change. That is the only way she will keep her weight at healthy levels. There is a notorious episode from 1988 when she paraded out on stage in size 10 jeans. To wit -

"When it came to slipping into those jeans, 'I had literally starved myself for four months [on a liquid-protein diet] – not a morsel of food,' Winfrey, an admitted food addict, said in 2005. 'Two hours after that show, I started eating to celebrate – of course, within two days those jeans no longer fit!'"

This is not just about looking good or fitting into a dress for Barack Obama's inauguration.

"According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Winfrey's weight and height rank her as obese, with a body mass index of 31.8 – putting her at 'at higher risk for chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol."

Dieting is Dumb

Earlier today I noticed a banner ad about "Oprah's New Acai Berry Diet!" or something like that. Are acai berries even something? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll go look it up. Stupid Internet. Here you go, I found it at some site that I don't feel like referencing -

"Nature's Energy Fruit: Acai Berry as seen on Oprah's Show! You've likely never even heard of Acai Berry but Oprah has just featured it on her show and it is one of the 10 superfoods promoted by Dr Perricone. Studies have shown that this little berry is one of the most nutritious and powerful foods in the world! Açaí (ah-sigh-ee) berries are the high-energy berry of a special Amazon palm tree. Harvested in the rainforests of Brazil, açaí berry tastes like a vibrant and yummy blend of berries and chocolate. Açaí berry is packed full of antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. Although açaí berry may not yet be available in your local supermarket, you can find it in several health food and gourmet stores."

At least I know how to pronounce it now. I read it as "a-kai". Boy would my face have been red if I happened to run into the big O at an Art Basel party or something.

The whole reason I am writing this is not to promote acai berries, but rather to point out how utterly ridiculous it is for women to follow Oprah's nutrition advice. Does it merit an explanation? Why would you take advice from someone whose weight fluctuates so dramatically? She obviously has no handle on how to take care of her body. It's a good thing she's so rich, because it must be really expensive to keep buying clothes every month to keep up with the different sizes she requires.

I guess it's kind of like how I'm getting so super jacked that my t-shirts get tighter and tighter, except that I don't buy larger sizes. So I guess it's not the same thing after all.

As I write this I am coming to the realization that it is likely that women like the fact that someone else who has so much trouble is trying to show them the way, and they therefore think that Oprah feels their pain, so that somehow makes her a better person to advise them. But that's like taking financial advice from Dick Fuld or getting help with your drug addiction from Robert Downey, Jr.

I'm assuming that there's a website that has photos of Oprah at all different weights, and I can also assume that she will have hilarious, varying hair styles (cough, wigs), kind of like you can look up all the different faces of Michael Jackson or Mickey Rourke (I put Rourke in there since this paragraph had taken a potentially dangerous turn towards a "race" thing).

It's taking too long, but I'm pretty sure that site exists or will exist in the near future.

My original reason for this post is not Oprah, rather it is an article in the New York Times about how Americans are the most informed people on the planet when it comes to nutrition and yet somehow manage to be the heaviest. Part of that phenomenon can be attributed to the "health halo". In New York City, Benevolent Dictator Michael Bloomberg long ago got the ban on trans fats through and now people think everything is healthier.

Here's some interesting information as well as some classic French condescension. You have to love that. If you read it with a silly French accent it's really funny. I now have to make sure I have the correct alternation of double and single quotation marks lest my brother Brendan berate me for bad grammar. I hope he appreciates that alliteration.

"'People who eat at McDonald’s know their sins,' Dr. Chandon said, 'but people at Subway think that a 1,000-calorie sandwich has only 500 calories.' His advice is not for people to avoid Subway or low-fat snacks, but to take health halos into account.

"'People need to look up calorie information, and this information needs to be clearly available on the menu or on the front of packages,' Dr. Chandon said. 'If no information is available, people should say to themselves: "This restaurant or this brand claims to be healthy in general. Let’s see if I can come up with two reasons why this claim would not apply to this particular food." When we asked people to follow this "consider the opposite" strategy, it completely eliminated health halos.'

"More generally, Dr. Chandon advises American consumers, food companies and public officials to spend less time obsessing about 'good' versus 'bad' food.

"'Being French, I don’t have any problem with people enjoying lots of foods,' he said. 'Europeans obsess less about nutrition but know what a reasonable portion size is and when they have had too much food, so they’re not as biased by food and diet fads and are healthier. Too many Americans believe that to lose weight, what you eat matters more than how much you eat. It’s the country where people are the best informed about food and enjoy it the least.'"

Boohoob Tube

I think that's one of my most clever titles yet. Don't mind if I pat myself on the back.

TV might make you sad. Or maybe if you're sad you just watch more tv. It's probably one of those vicious circles. That's my guess. Those are the worst. Well, maybe when people say "equally as" or "myself" (when they mean "I"). Those are worse. Or when people put celery in tuna salad. I hate that.

TV provides an escape from reality and if you're not so crazy about your reality, a pretty quick and easy way out is to dive into the glamorous lifestyle of someone whose job or adventures are something about which you would only dream. You know, like Ocean's 11 or James Bond.

If you're stressed out about something, you might put it off to be entertained by a comedian who makes you laugh and forget about your worries. Well, when the show's over you have the same problem, but instead of doing something about it, you've put it off and not taken any steps to correct it. We're all guilty of this from time to time, but there are definitely people out there who need to snap themselves out of it and live.

This is bumming me out. I'm going to go watch the Ricky Gervais special that I dvr-ed on Saturday night.

From MSN Health & Fitness -

Short-term pleasure, long-term malaise

"These conflicting data suggest that TV may provide viewers with short-run pleasure, but at the expense of long-term malaise," said researcher John Robinson, a sociologist at the University of Maryland, College Park.

In this scenario, even the happiest campers could turn into Debbie-downers if they continue to stare at the boob-tube. The researchers suggest that over time, television-viewing could push out other activities that do have more lasting benefits. Exercise and sex come to mind, as do parties and other forms of socialization known to have psychological benefits.

Get a Job

Monster has some tips for how to land one during a recession. Hopefully we aren't in the throes of a depression. I might have to post something else in that case.

Eight Tips for Job Hunting During the Recession

I can say that after receiving hundreds of applications for a job I posted, and then interviewing about 8 of those people, that the suggestions made in the Monster article would have helped some of the applicants a great deal.

I like this one, in particular -

Stay Positive

The most important thing when searching for a job in tough economic times is to retain a positive attitude, says Carol Vecchio, founder and executive director of Centerpoint Institute for Life and Career Renewal in Seattle. “Even in a job market with 10 percent unemployment, there’s 90 percent employment,” she says. “There is an average of over 3 million jobs available in the US per month -- and each job seeker is looking for one. Those are pretty good odds.”

HSA 2009

These are the new minimum deductibles and annual contribution limits for Health Savings Accounts in 2009.

Minimum Deductible -

Individual $1,150
Family $2,300

Annual Contribution Limit -

Individual $3,000
Family $5,950

If you're 55 or older, there's an additional $1,000 catch up contribution you can make to your HSA.

The maximum out-of-pocket amounts have been increased to $5,800 and $11,600. That's the entire in-network exposure you can have in a health insurance policy that is HSA-qualified.

You're Covered

^{This is a fairly recent Florida Statute that you should know about. Dependents are now covered until age 25 (and possibly extended to age 30), as long as they meet the requirements that historically have applied to university students.}

¹627.6562 Dependent coverage.--

(1) If an insurer offers coverage under a group, blanket, or franchise health insurance policy that insures dependent children of the policyholder or certificateholder, the policy must insure a dependent child of the policyholder or certificateholder at least until the end of the calendar year in which the child reaches the age of 25, if the child meets all of the following...

Read the entire statute here.

Super Stretch

I'm amazed that the most popular article on the New York Times website is not about Obama. It's about stretching. I learned back when I was playing squash in college that "static stretching" was considered no good anymore by those in the sports medicine world. Things like touching your toes and pulling your leg behind your butt.

But most people do not know that. You should really only stretch after sports. Beforehand you need to warm up your muscles and tendons. This is a great article and has some examples of "dynamic stretching", the kind you should be doing. Silly.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/sports/playmagazine/112pewarm.html?em

It'd Be A Good Start...

From Wall Street Journal's Health Blog -

"In a comment published online by the Lancet today, four physicians with the American Academy of Family Physicians argue that more attention should be paid to the dwindling ranks of primary-care docs. They write:

Our system is riddled with unconscionable disparities–geographical, socioeconomic, ethnic, and racial–in health care and health status, which could all be mitigated by consistent access to a medical home. A medical home is a health-care setting that facilitates partnerships between individual patients and their physicians. So, what we really need in this country is universal access to primary care.