Opinions

Yours truly always assumed that the state sport of Texas was high school football. It turns out that this is not the case, it’s actually rodeo, which makes a lot of sense, especially in this part of the great state of Texas. Rodeo is also the state sport of Wyoming and North Dakota, both of which try to emulate Texas.

Anyway, this past weekend I had the great pleasure of driving my Aunt Yvonne to White Deer Friday and Saturday nights to attend the White Deer Rodeo. Her grandson and great grandson (my cousins) were participants. Aunt Yvonne’s grandson, Jimmy Ray King worked the chutes during the bull riding competition and her great-grandson, Chaison King, rode a bull in Saturday night’s competition.

Both Jimmy and Chaison currently reside in White Deer and are part of the wonderful legacy left by Jimmy’s father and Chaison’s grandfather, Larry Wayne King – a cousin that I loved dearly and miss to this day. Larry Wayne was the chief deputy of Armstrong County when he was tragically killed in the line of duty. More than a decade later, Larry’s son Marcus, was also killed in the line of duty – while serving as an Armstrong County volunteer fireman. The King family has surely made two very tragic sacrifices for Armstrong County and Texas. Their sacrifices must never be forgotten.

Larry’s widow, Jeannie, lost both a husband and a son as they were protecting our state and community. Yet, she has been able to remain a remarkably uplifting and caring person, someone who continues to make this area a much better place. Both Jim, and her daughter, Lanita, continue to serve the people of Texas with distinction and compassion. Lanita is now a nurse (perhaps the highest calling of all) in Amarillo, and Jimmy puts his life in danger on a daily basis when he is called upon to extinguish dangerous gas pipeline leaks.

Chaison, a remarkably good looking young man, is both polite and respectful of others. You can tell that he was raised right by his mother and father. His grandfather, Larry Wayne, would be extremely proud of him and his beautiful sister Chancie. Yours truly is rather shocked that he shares so many genes with these two young people. They are both good looking enough to be movie stars or models and yours truly strongly resembles the south end of a north-bound mule. How in the world can that be?

Anyway, back to the story at hand: Chaison is a bull rider and a rodeo cowboy. He is a great example of my assertion that rodeo cowboys are the best athletes in the world. Any way you look at it, rodeo performers must possess great athletic ability as well as excessive amounts of personal courage. Their opponents are far superior to the mere human opponents that football, baseball, soccer, and basketball players must compete against. You can also include ropers and steer wrestlers in that group of superior athletes. Another local athlete with exceptional capabilities also participated in the bronc riding. Colton Kingston, the former outstanding football player from Hedley also did himself proud.

It was compelling to watch father and son work the White Deer rodeo. Jimmy worked the chutes during the bull riding competition and Chaison rode the bull – a monster, ill-tempered beast if I ever saw one. Of course, as is often the case in bull riding, Chaison was thrown just before the buzzer, and was sent flying through the air, landing rather abruptly and in some disarray. As the bull bore down on Chaison with the intent of stomping him into the dirt, the bull fighter, better known as a rodeo clown, jumped in front of Chaison, most assuredly saving him from serious injury. The bull then hit the clown instead, violently knocking him into the dirt of the arena. The rodeo clown, Reese Mitchell, repeatedly gave up his body as he saved several bull riders from being stomped into puddles by the ill-tempered bulls.

During the course of the rodeo I was able to meet relatives that I’ve not had the opportunity to meet in the past. They are the descendants of Jeannie and Larry Wayne King, as good a man as has ever lived, and a man that I miss. Even though he sacrificed his life just as it was in full bloom, he and Jeannie left a beautiful and priceless legacy. Their children and grandchildren are the kind of good, high character, and high purpose people who make this world a much better place. They are some of the people that make the Panhandle of Texas such a great place to live.

Rodeo is the state sport of Texas, and is a wonderful representation of Texas values. However, the family unit is the most priceless and sacred pillar of Texas and Texas values, and combining the two makes for an incomparable and heavenly experience. I’m grateful that I had the opportunity to meet another part of my family, and I’m thankful that I was able to share a nice slice of Texas culture with them.

Finally, our inept Congress has done a little something to reign-in the outrageous spying on Americans by the NSA. Granted, it wasn’t much, but at least it was a start. We need to insure that it continues.

Last Thursday night, the US House of Representatives voted 293 – 123 to

pass an amendment to a Department of Defense appropriations bill that would cut off all funds for two of the agency’s most insidious activities: Firstly, using the myriad provisions of the Foreign Service Intelligence Surveillance Act to perform searches of the mass communications data that is collected from all Americans, and secondly, asking hardware manufacturers and software developers to install backdoors into their products designed to give the agency access to their users’ communications. On that second item, the amendment specifically forbids funding for any agency attempt “to mandate or request that a person or company redesign its product or service to facilitate electronic surveillance.”

This amendment represents a response against the nefarious behavior revealed from the leaks of Edward Snowden, which have shown that the NSA subverted cryptography standards, redirected hardware shipments to plant NSA bugs in products, and created other ways to gather raw, bulk communication data from companies like Google, Facebook, AT&T, Microsoft, Apple, ad nauseam. These companies, unfortunately, are not our friends. They knowingly cooperate with the NSA.

Of course, this amendment and bill must pass the senate (home of our Texas Senator from Canada, eh) if anything is to be done. Hopefully, the House vote sends a message that there is now the political will to do something about the abusive spying on Americans by the NSA. The point is that these spying programs need money in order to survive, and we can cut off that funding if they continue their dastardly ways.

The bill also represents a remarkable shift from the useless Freedom bill, intended to curb NSA mass surveillance, which passed the House last month in a paltry effort that disappointed privacy adherents. The members of the house only paid lip service to the American people, and passed a Freedom bill that was an absolute joke. Actually, the contrast between the Freedom bill and this bill is a result of political procedure: Most of the weakening of the original Freedom bill occurred in the Judiciary and Intelligence committees. However, as an amendment to an appropriations bill, last week’s defunding legislation was able to escape the intense lobbying that was present in the aforementioned committees. It did not have to go through the Intelligence Committee, which is basically a puppet of the intelligence community.

Actually, that powerless surveillance reform bill may have inspired Thursday night’s vote by not going far enough to please House members seeking to curtail the NSA’s spying on Americans. Due to the diluting of that bill’s anti-spying provisions in committee, many House members never had the opportunity to show their wish to drastically limit the NSA’s overzealous spying activities.

So, what does this all really mean? Even if the amendment actually becomes law, which is iffy at best, it still wouldn’t end all federally mandated backdoors in hardware and software. For example, it will have no effect of the FBI, which drastically limits its effectiveness.

However, the passage of the amendment still signals a welcome shift in the political landscape, thanks primarily to Snowden’s spying disclosures. Last year, for example, a similar amendment was put to the vote and it fell seven votes short of passing. The lopsided vote this year illustrates that reigning in the NSA has become a popular political cause that crosses party lines. There is now a sense, at least in the House, that if you’re not doing something about this issue, it could result in unpleasant political repercussions, like losing your seat.

Now, it is up to the Senate to pass similar legislation. If they don’t act satisfactorily on this legislation, then we need to hold them accountable by voting them out of office. In the immortal words of Ben Franklin, “Those who are willing to sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither.” I’m not willing to benignly accept a situation in which the federal government is allowed to listen to all my phone conversations, read my emails, or view my other internet communications, whatever the form they may take.

Who knows, perhaps someday I may have a brilliant thought. If so, I would like to keep ownership of it. Or, perhaps an ex-wife or two decides to mistakenly take me to task for some obviously exaggerated transgression that I may have committed in the past. If so, I don’t want the government or anyone else to shed undue light on it. In short, I want my personal life kept personal. Perhaps even more importantly, I want the personal lives of others to also be kept personal.

Meanwhile, we all owe Edward Snowden a healthy portion of gratitude. His revealing the reality of the spying on Americans by our own government can only make our democracy stronger. After all, over the years, many Americans have given their lives defending our liberty and freedom. Let’s do all we can to make sure their sacrifices were not in vain.

For the first time in my life, I may actually be the person I’ve always wanted to be, even if becoming this person snuck up on me. Now, I’m not talking about my body, with all its wrinkles, saggy skin, droopy butt, etc. I’m still often shocked to see that older person who lives in my mirror. You see, I’m now officially “the elderly” according to the United Nations and the US Government.

I’m actually shocked that I’m considered elderly. I sure don’t consider myself to be all that old. However, I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, and my loving family for more hair and a flatter belly. As I’ve aged I’ve become kinder to myself and less critical of others. Perhaps most importantly, I’ve become my own friend. I don’t chide myself for eating an extra cookie or two, or for not making my bed, and keeping my home spotless. You see, I am entitled to overeat, to be messy, to be extravagant. I have witnessed too many dear friends leave this world much too soon before they understood the wonderful freedom that comes with aging.

Who cares if I choose to read or play computer games until 4 am, then sleep until noon or so? I still love to dance to those outstanding 60s tunes whenever I choose. Whose business is it if I weep over a lost love?

I like being older. It has set me free. I like the person that I’ve become. Even though I’m not going to live forever, as I recently proved, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been while I’m alive.

Hints that we are aging start subtly, you first notice it first when others address you. Gone is the, “Hey kid,” replaced by “Yes, sir.” In the grocery cart the staples like bread, milk, and eggs are replaced by vitamin and fiber supplements, along with heating pads and assorted balms. No longer is that jump shot or 300 yard drive a sure thing. Your reflexes slow, your senses aren’t as keen, and hospital food starts to taste good.

Irony now accompanies sex, where women no longer need to take the pill, yet men rush to their doctor to take a different type of little blue pill.

Resistance to aging is futile. Nothing, except an early death, can keep it away. Luckily, with aging comes wisdom, patience, and years of experience bucking the system. So, whether you acquiesce willingly to the waves of time rolling towards you, or fight back with an army of plastic surgeons, personal trainers, and spandex (which does not look as good on older folks); following are a few signs that age is creeping up on you.

1. Your doctors are all younger than you.

2. You spend more time and money in the pharmacy than the grocery store.

3. You’re less interested in your abs and more concerned in your prostate.

4. Men begin urinating in Morse code – dot. dot. dash.

5. A good night’s sleep is just as important as good loving.

6. Your progressive state of inaction is mistaken for Zen-like wisdom.

7. Women are no longer referred to as “foxes” but as “cougars.”

8. Making new friends is a low priority unless s/he is a medical provider.

9. Coins that fall out of your pocket aren’t worth picking up.

10. You dump the Jet-Ski and motorcycle magazines and subscribe to mobility scooter magazines.

11. You spend less time with Excel and more time on Sudoku.

12. Country and Western music becomes appealing.

13. Elastic waist bands and thick rubber soles become important parts of your wardrobe.

14. You become a target for life insurance agents, Nigerian scam artists, and salespeople for retirement communities.

15. A rocking chair is not quaint; it’s comfortable.

16. You need a running start to get out of La-Z-Boy recliner chair.

17. You write notes to yourself – frequently.

As I’ve grown older I’ve taken an interest in reading epitaphs on tombstones throughout the world. I hope to “borrow” one or two to use on my headstone – if I decide to be buried rather than cremated.

On a tombstone somewhere in Texas: “Jesus called and Kim answered.” Along with the epitaph was a likeness of a grandmother with her ear to a portable phone, taking the call.

“Ann Mann: Here lies Ann Mann, Who lived an old maid But died an old Mann. Dec. 8, 1767”

“Anna Wallace: The children of Israel wanted bread. And the Lord sent them manna. Old clerk Wallace wanted a wife, And the Devil sent him Anna.”

“Here lies Johnny Yeast, Pardon me for not rising.”

“Here lies the body of Jonathon Blake: Stepped on the gas instead of the brake.”

“Here lays Butch. We planted him raw. He was quick on the trigger, But slow on the draw.”

“Sacred to the memory of my husband John Barnes who died January 3, 1803. His comely young widow, aged 23, has many qualifications of a good wife, and yearns to be comforted.”

“Sir John Strange: Here lies an honest lawyer, And that is Strange.”

Here lies Lester Moore. Four slugs from a .44. No Les No More.”

“I told you I was sick.”

And finally: “Here lies an Atheist All dressed up And no place to go”

I’m inclined to agree with Doris Day when she said, “The really frightening thing about middle age is knowing you’ll grow out of it.”

Remember that a life well-lived is dying young as late as possible. So, let’s all make a special effort to enjoy the rest of the time we have on this magnificent planet.

Well, last week’s column was well received, and even a few folks reported that they would like to hear more about the art of being happy. Granted, we in the Texas Panhandle region have a big advantage when it comes to being happy. The big blue sky, pristine air (except when New Mexico or Oklahoma is passing overhead during a windstorm), and our lack of traffic snafus present us with a very high quality life. Additionally, the Western values of our friends and neighbors make for mostly pleasant conversation and social intercourse.

So, without further ado, here we go. Quick thinking is associated with positive feelings. Those of us who pride ourselves on being fast readers and quick witted usually have a more positive mood. In a recent study, published in Psychological Science, it was reported that happiness is more commonly associated with faster cognitive thoughts. While many folks in the Texas panhandle may not be well educated, we are very adept when it comes to adapting to external problems and circumstances. Folks in this area are sharp even though we may talk a little funny.

Job satisfaction can impact our happiness. Several recent studies, including an examination published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology linked happiness with work to overall happiness and life satisfaction. Yet another study conducted by the University of Aberdeen revealed that job fulfillment was ranked as one of the most critical factors to overall well-being and happiness.

Amazingly, there are allegedly over 18 different types of smiles, according to “those who know these things.” These very same scientists have classified expressions that range from an amused smile to an embarrassed smile (which yours truly is good at). Anyway, it doesn’t really matter which smile we see, just seeing smiles makes us happy. So, we need to smile more.

Foods can also make us happier. One of the keys to a quick boost of happiness may lie in our diets. Foods like nuts, chicken, and milk contain higher levels of tryptophan, which can lead to elevated production of serotonin, a chemical that helps induce calm and happiness.

During adulthood, marriage protects against declines in happiness. However, all family structures bring their own joy: Although childless married couples ranked as the happiest in a recent study conducted in the United Kingdom, the survey’s results also revealed that mothers are the most content with life overall – as compared to any other group. So, if you know any single mothers whose children have left home, give me a call? Romance could be in my near future.

On a more positive note (which is the whole point of this column) getting some extra shuteye can help us retain more positive thoughts. In an observation of sleep-deprived college students, one experiment found that the students remembered fewer positive words from a list of words they had previously memorized. It works the other way, too, as a 2013 Cornell study found that a happy outlook on life will get you a better night’s sleep.

Why is the happiest country in Europe? For the second year in a row, Denmark was crowned the earth’s happiest country, according to the United Nation’s World Happiness Report. The U.S., on the other hand, ranked 17th, falling six places from last year’s spot. How can this be? Do we need more guns? Or, do we need to invade some of these happier countries. That will dampen their spirits! Personally, I suspect that our inept Congress must accept some of the blame for this despicable state of affairs. Of course, some of the fault should go to the tea party types, who seem to think they are misunderstood and unfairly maligned.

Practicing gratitude can help us lead a happier life. When we are thankful, we are more likely to be a happier person, according to researchers the University of California, Berkley. Expressing gratitude has also been proven to generate a more optimistic outlook on life, and can even help lower stress.

Pets can make us happier. When we pet our furry friends, oxytocin (better known as the “snuggle hormone”) releases in our brains, making us instantly happier. Oxytocin also helps to reduce stress levels and lower our blood pressure. If our spouses are on the furrier side, petting them can also have the same benefits.

We are happier in the mornings. When the sun rises, so does our mood. A Cornell study found that the brightest periods of the day are when we first get out of bed. Researchers analyzed the tweets of 2.4 million people around the world, and found peaks in positive messages at the start of the day, then the tones grew more negative as the day passed.

Our happiness minimally depends upon external circumstances like owning a house or car. Our happiness rarely depends upon our bank accounts or our physical attractiveness (which is a good thing since I resemble the south end of a north-bound mule), primarily because we adapt to most situations rather quickly. “Ultimately, whether we drive a battered truck or a Lexus to work; whether we have hypertension or asthma, our ability to be happier doesn’t vary much,” according to Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life you Want.

The older we get, the happier we are with ordinary moments. Researchers at Dartmouth College and the University of Pennsylvania surveyed participants on how extraordinary and ordinary experiences contributed to our overall happiness and discovered as we get older, it is the little things that make a difference. No matter the age, extraordinary moments always created a spike in happiness, but older adults were much more satisfied with the simple experiences. Older folks saw these tiny moments as more self-defining than younger folks.

So, don’t worry, be happy.

While lying prostrate in various hospital beds this past winter (and a long winter it was), yours truly had plenty of time to contemplate the mysteries of nature, the human condition, and even the Divine. The gist of this copious contemplation is that we should not worry and just be happy.

In honor of the recent arrival of spring, and the renewal it brings, I would like to share several scientifically-backed facts that we need to know about getting to our happy place. Luckily for us, there is plenty of scientific evidence that the state of being happy is easy to accomplish for most humans, excepting a herd of tea party types and ex-wives. Now, understand that I know plenty of tea party types who are happy on an individual basis. However, tea party Republicans come across as a very unhappy group in their public discourse and other political pontifications. Who knows, perhaps they all suffer from some sort of unfortunate genetic abnormality?

Not to worry! We are all fortunate to have access to the knowledge of many characteristics that result in happy lives and happy wives. (Now, exactly where was this knowledge when yours truly was married?) However, we now have access to this fantastic knowledge. Hopefully, we will use it often.

It turns out that there are a lot of factors that can affect whether or not we are consistently sporting sunny dispositions. Ranging from mindful presence to the scantly gently riding the air currents, we may not even be aware that these influences could be contributing to our overall life satisfaction.

Being happy is a choice that we must choose every day. As Aristotle once said, “Happiness depends upon ourselves.” Perhaps the easiest way that we can find bliss is to accept the fact that it is completely upon us. Happiness researchers say that as much as 40 percent of our happiness levels remain within our personal control. If we are to turn happiness into something that we can create we need to adopt small habits – like lingering on positive moments and forcing ourselves to smile. If we do this then we will start to feel joy on our own.

Even the weather can influence happiness. Those of us who live in temperate climates have a good chance of being more cheerful. Some research indicates that there is a correlation between milder summers and winters and happiness. While mild climates can boost our mood, harsher climates can have a negative effect. During the winter months, many people suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, primarily due to the lack of sunlight that accompanies winter.

Happiness also responds to fragrances. If we want to feel more cheerful then we need to stop and smell the roses – literally. Researchers have discovered that the smells put forth from flowers have positive influences on our emotions. Studies have found, too, that perfumes can have a prosocial effect and make folks more altruistic.

Music can also elevate our happiness. Upbeat music equals an upbeat mindset? According to a study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology, those of us who listen to rousing music are better able to put ourselves into a positive mood. So, there is room in our lives for a little ZZ Top and John Philip Sousa.

Happiness grows as we grow older. It may be time to forget everything we thought we knew about happiness and youth. The results from a 2013 Harris Poll revealed that life satisfaction is higher for older adults than young adults. Almost 50 percent of Americans over the age of 65 are very happy, as compared to only 31 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 24.

Giving to others can give us a happiness boost. Whether it is through philanthropy or simply small acts of kindness, altruism makes us feel good. One study even suggests that the happiness gleaned from volunteering can increase our longevity.

Joy is contagious. Connecting ourselves to happy people will makes us happier too, according to a study published across the pond, the British Medical Journal. The research discovered that if a close friend is happy, it increases the likelihood that we will feel happy, by 15 percent. Even being near people who we don’t know very well will increase our chance for joy by six percent. On the other hand, being too near ex-spouses can have just the opposite effect, especially if they are armed or have a new attorney.

According to a study published in the Personality and Psychology Bulletin, reflecting on the past can make us look forward to the future. Researchers discovered that past memories help maintain feelings of self-worth and promote optimism for the future. Allowing ourselves to feel nostalgic will also result in our feeling less lonely.

Happy people prefer deep conversation. Cheerful folks are social butterflies – but only if we forgo the trivial small talk. University of Arizona researchers discovered that a spike in happiness occurred during social intercourse when people were engaged in more substantive conversations. Of course, if the conversation was with tea party types, it is highly like that the only spike that occurs is a spike through the heart of moderate Republicans, if such a beast still exists.

My recent convalescence allowed me to delve more fully into the characteristics of happy people. Should this particular column prove to be well received then this subject will continue to be explored in next week’s column. Meanwhile, I wish all my readers (and non-readers, too) to have abundant happiness and everlasting joy.