The Bluebird Patch

Atlanta Streets Alive — a bike ride meets block party —  For 5 hours 2 miles of road were closed so people can roam free.  We really enjoyed this event. I hope sponsors repeat it for next year.    

Happiness is....3 sunburned kids.... all tuckered out....at a rented beach condo! Happiness is...... Flowers that are faithful  to bloom in my yard year after year!         Happiness is.......a daddy daughter kiss on a boat! Photos by Angie Tillman AKA Miss Phickles Pickles ;) Happiness is…connecting with nature. Photo by Mark A. Ficek ( @Papachote in Twitter) Happiness is realizing how much  two siblings love each other. Photo by Liza. A. Cardona

  According to Sonja Lyubomirsky Ph.D., author of "The How of Happiness", there are three main factors that influence our happiness: Genetics, Environment, and Voluntary Choice! Yes, happiness is a choice. Why are you waiting to embrace it? You can choose to brood and be angry or find the brighter side and be happy with what you have.

The good life begins at fifty claims a new report which found that this was the start of the happiest time of our lives. For many, the age of 50 may be the beginning of the end, but a group of scientists claim the good life begins only when people reach their fifties. Despite increased risk of death and disease, it seemed that people in their fifties worry less, ignore the negatives and accentuate the positives, according to scientists at Stony Brook University, New York.  "As people age, they are less troubled by stress and anger," the researchers noted in their study, which was led by Arthur Stone, of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at Stony Brook University and published online May 17 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences . "And although worry persists, without increasing, until middle age, " they continued, "it too fades after the age of 50." Read the full post here .

“Life gives us brief moments with another...but sometimes in those brief moment we get memories that last a life time...”  

Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. A Schweitzer

  New research by Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, James Fowler, and Bruno Frey has found that the default setting for happiness is directly controlled by a single gene.  Twin studies have already established that baseline happiness is heritable but, using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, these authors show that individuals with a more efficient version of the serotonin transporter gene, 5HTT, are significantly more likely to report higher levels of life satisfaction. Having one or two versions of the more efficient gene raises the average likelihood of being very satisfied with one's life by 8.5% and 17.3%, respectively.  This is a direct, linear relationship which, as the authors point out, is not evidence of a gene-environment interaction, but of a direct association between the gene and subjective well-being: double the gene, and the satisfaction doubles with it! However, the authors add that “It is crucial to point out at the outset that this a

Richard Davidson a University of Wisconsin-Madison neuroscientist has become a partner in the Dalai Lama's attempts to build a connection between Buddhism and western science. Davidson's research has used brain imaging technology on Buddhist monks and other veteran practitioners of meditation to try to learn how their training affects mental health. His team's findings suggest meditation and other "contemplative practices" can improve compassion, empathy, kindness and attention. They support the concept that even adult brains can change through experience and learning. Read the full article here . <A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Ftheblueofhapp-20%2F8003%2Fd64e8db8-a253-46ef-8676-0eac45bd0c71&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A>

If you want happiness for an hour take a nap. If you want happiness for a day go fishing. If you want happiness for a month get married. If you want happiness for a year inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime help someone else.    Chinese proverb Please support the thru my lens project. Please submit a photo with the caption "Happiness is..." to capturinghappiness@yahoo.com

This week #thrumylens photos R dedicated 2 the joys of motherhood. Send Ur pic with the caption Happiness is 2 capturinghappines@yahoo.com less than a minute ago via TweetDeck Liza Cardona LizaCardona