Is this logical?

Here is a video that I think everyone should watch:

It seems elegant to me. Has he, or have I, missed something?

All politics aside, here’s what we should try:

http://www.ted.com/talks/david_keith_s_surprising_ideas_on_climate_change.html

Cheer loudly when people accomplish big things

My sister received her PhD last Spring. She completed the highest level of schooling in a difficult field at one of the top 10 best institutions in the world. Wow! That’s awesome by anyone’s metrics! Yet, at the terminal degree graduation ceremony (that packed a college basketball arena) attendees were completely civilized (quiet). As Allison strode across the stage I let out a loud whoop! of approval and felt eyes on me for my social outburst.

Months later, this still bothers me. Why don’t we (civilized Americans) cheer loudly when people accomplish big things? I’m not sure any amount of noise could truly capture the the effort Allison put in and pride that we all felt, but that shouldn’t stop us from whooping and hollaring with merriment.

The next time someone you love accomplishes something big, celebrate loud and proud!

Vaccines for travel to Thailand make me feel blah

In preparation for an exciting trip to Thailand, I got vaccinated against all (okay, a small subset of) the baddies that seek to share my body. As an American in good living conditions, I have never worried about these ailments, but they are a reality in other countries so I thought it best to be protected. Last Tuesday I was given three shots:

• Hepatitis A and B
• Tetanus/Diphtheria
• Influenza

Tuesday morning my arms were sore and I had the sniffles. By afternoon I needed a nap. Wednesday, I was uncontrollably tired–I slept about 12 hours and lazed around the rest of the day. This felt very much like a weak version of the flu, so I assume the effects were caused by the flu shot.

My fourth vaccine was an oral Typhoid vaccine, Vivotif, which consists of four pills–one every other day. Andrea had taken Vivotif in preparation for her trip, so I had seen one set of potential side effects. To avoid discomfort, I took my pills shortly before bed. My first Vivotif pill was simple; if there were any side effects, I could not differentiate them from those suffered from my three shots. The second pill was okay; I had some dull stomach pains, but nothing awful. After a few days, I saw that the effect seemed to be cumulative. Saturday was unpleasant and Sunday was rough. Monday, my stomach hurt all day and I finished the dose with a feeling of being poisoned, except my body would not, or could not, evacuate the offender. Tuesday I slept almost 12 hours as I had right after receiving the other vaccines; with lingering stomach pain, I ate with care. Today, I’m feeling better and hope to be back to 100% by tomorrow.

The moral of the story: vaccines for travel to Thailand make me feel blah, but they’re better than the full-on illnesses!

Should I have avoided the vaccines? Have you had similar experiences?