Peter Jennings @ MindSay

peter jennings' death and the announcement by dana reeve that she has lung cancer has alot of people thinking about quiting smoking. (even though dana reeve isnt a smoker) i've already talked to a friend who said she was quiting, and two family members have asked me if i'm still on the "official" quit list. so maybe this is on everyone's mind. people who smoke or who know a smoker.

the sad thing for me, is that same friend thinking about quiting, reminded me that she remembers when i rallied against all these ordinances against smokers. the ones where you're not allowed to smoke in public places etc. how vocal i was about it. that if it was legal to buy cigarettes, you should be allowed to smoke etc. (at least where they sell them)

the weird thing is, i still feel that way. of course, i didnt want her to think about that, and i didnt want to think about it either... so i changed the subject. still, afterwards, it made me think. (ironic, no?)

there's a ton of things that are bad for your health. some are legal, some are not. some should be, and arent. some are, that shouldnt. the debates range far and wide, especially on smoking. but no matter what's in the news, or where i am in my own struggle with an issue, i'll always come down on the side of self-regulation.

so i dont know if peter jennings and dana reeve are going to make anyone quit smoking... but at least it's out there right now, and people are talking about it. if it makes a difference to one person, one way or the other (hopefully in a positive way) at least there's a conversation out there again.

american lung association
canadian lung association

Does anyone remember Frank Reynolds? He was the anchor of ABC news prior to Peter Jennings. I realized yesterday while reading an article about Jennings that Reynolds also died of cancer. Two anchors in a row is a bit weird.

And wow! How about the news that Dana Reeve has lung cancer and she never even smoked.

My quest to quit is going alot better. The cravings are getting fewer and farther between. There's still that bad craving after a meal but even it's getting easier to manage.My wife and I have taken up bicycle riding for exorcise and i really enjoy it. The riding is helping me to stay off the smokes because i know that if i was still smoking i'd never be able to do it. Besides after a long ride i'm too tired to smoke.

discovery lands safely.  good news for a change. (they sure did make it dramatic, didnt they?) after two and a half years, i guess they deserve to make it so... as long as everyone is safe on the ground again.  a friend of mine was worried even before all the delays in landing.  he said he saw an awful lot of "specials" on astronauts... which according to him... couldnt be a good sign.

now maybe we can get back to regular flights again.  remember the days when people were waiting for all that "nasa research" to turn into real world products?  i'm still looking for an extra bouncy super-ball, or a tv dinner that doesnt taste as cardboardy. (that's not too much to ask, is it?)

after my recent thoughts on smoking and peter jennings, i just heard that dana reeve (wife of christopher reeve) has lung cancer.  it's depressing enough to have lost superman the way we did, you know?  the work she's done through their foundation in such a short time has been awe-inspiring.  i hope everyone is sending out the get-well soon vibes for her.

sidenote for the day: it was really cool to write one thing, and get a welcome to mindsay.  i've been looking around a little and liking everything i see.  i have a trip to plan, and nine million things on my mind... but it's good to read other people's thoughts again. (so to speak)

its weird. i started a blog about six months ago on the advice of a friend. i had been blogging for a while before elsewhere, but had stopped. life, things, stuff. it gets in the way i suppose.

back then, i told him that only a few friends would see it, strangers mostly... the off/on interested blogger too. i also reminded him that i rarely write anything that personal... mostly just what's on my mind at the time... so why bother?

he said it would be good for me to do again.

4 months ago, i stopped again. personal loss and life in general pulled me away... but really strange... is that the other night... i remembered the last time i blogged something. it was about peter jennings, and how he had lung cancer. four long or short months... that can last forever, or go by in the blink of an eye.

i thought maybe i should have railed away at why i felt the big 3 (rather, brokaw and jennings) meant so much to the balance of american media. i probably should have writen more about how, no matter where you are in the world, it's important to always question the things you see or hear... and how good it is to have standards for such things. (highhorse)

maybe i should have writen about smoking. i've started, quit, started and quit again. i havent really ever had a reason to quit... except once, for a job. no matter what i do, non smokers get on me, smokers get on me... it's always neverending on who exactly you can piss off, you know?

arguments:
it's a personal choice / or it's a bad habit.
that's your story / i have mine.
life is too short / or life might be longer than you think.

i've used both sides of them too.

so i'm thinking, peter jennings was 67, and was by all accounts "blessed" to have had a life that he truly wanted... kids that he loved, and a career he enjoyed. though he may have been taken away from that "blessed life" by something too early... he may have also had some solid answers to all those little questions some of us ask ourselves from time to time.

are we living life to its fullest...
are we doing ok...
are we where we want to be...
(insert your favorite existential question here)

so he was 67... but he could have been 27, you know? life is too short... or life might be longer than you think... and right now, four months still sounds short to me. maybe four months from now, i'll remember why i wrote this. -- life, things, stuff.

and hopefully i'll keep up with this blog.
(i only say that in case i'm handing out links later)