Now this is funny...after griping yesterday that nobody seems to want the opinion poll of an over 50 Okie female, what should I get in the mail today but a shopping opinion poll to turn in! Guess the next thing I should kvetch about should be my lack of fund$...I'm reminded of the Secret book and how it said what you think about materializes. Well, that opinion poll sure worked. I think it would be oh so much nicer if a new Prius showed up in my driveway though...or Jon Hamm with roses at my door, or finding out a long lost relative died, leaving me a huge inheritance...

Opinion polls are slanted to the young

The other day I was happy to read about a new way to get a little bit of cash just by sharing my opinion on internet polls for various products and companies. I thought, this is great, and dove right in to the selection process, only to be rebuffed with "sorry, you aren't in the age demographics or region we need at this time." Ow, kicked to the curb once again because I happen to qualify for an AARP card (which, by the way, I refuse to get because I don't want to acknowledge my gray hairs just yet). And I really can't understand why I'm not the prime age for opinion polls, because aren't Baby Boomers the majority of the populati0n? Since when did the desires of Lady Gaga fans become more important to company product marketers? Don't they realize that the mamas and daddys of those teens and 20-somethings are forking over the money and therefore should have some say in what that money buys. But the pollsters don't seem to care, they cater to the young and upwardly mobile, not the "mature" and over-the-hill. And it seems you can totally forget doing opinion polls if in addition to being over 50, you happen to live in a state where people talk with a twang.

Emotional Awareness and Stillness

I am reading "Emotional Awareness," Overcoming the Obstacles to Psychological Balance and Compassion, by the Dalai Lama and Paul Ekman, PH.D., and was struck by how deeply it made me reconsider various aspects of how I have responded to situations in the past, and how I have changed in the past couple of years. Very thoughtful book, worthy to study.