The Geography of Bliss continued...

Having read and discussed The Geography of Bliss, you might enjoy these videos on happiness:

Research in "positive psychology" has shown that people are surprisingly bad at predicting what will make them happiest. This lively psychology lecture given at Yale on what makes us happy is 34 minutes long if you start 11 minutes into the video and skip the last 2 minutes (for those of you short on time!) http://academicearth.org/lectures/the-good-life-happiness


Stumbling on Happiness, written by Harvard psychologist Dan Gilbert, was on the New York Times best-seller list in 2006. Here's a 21-minute video where Dan Gilbert asks, Why are we happy? Video on TED.com. He addresses why our beliefs about what will make us happy are often wrong -- a premise he supports with examples from his intriguing research.

Shelly's Tangy Thai Cucumbers

Tangy Thai Cucumbers

½ cup Vinegar
½ cup Water
½ cup Sugar
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. Red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
1 large Cucumber, peeled, cubed or sliced thin
3 Tbsp. thinly sliced shallots or red onion

Combine 1st 4 ingredients in saucepan and cook over medium heat until sugar/salt dissolve. Remove from heat and let come to room temp.

Combine cucumber with shallots/onions in bowl. Pour sauce over all – let marinate at least a ½ hr before serving.

Julie’s Smoked Salmon Torta

Julie’s Smoked Salmon Torta
8 oz s cream cheese
With Mortar and pestle like method make Salmon Cream Cheese
Small container (4 OZ) of Vita Salmon
Adjust amount s to your taste

Topping:
¼ cup plain black olives chopped
1 Tablespoon rinsed capers
1 glove garlic minced
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Utensils
1 small shallow flat bottom dish
Saran wrap
Olive oil


Procedure
Using saran wrap and olive oil, lightly oil saran wrap
Lay saran wrap inside the dish, avoiding wrinkles and allowing edges to hang over.
Mix olives, capers, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice in a bowl.
Spread mixture evenly on the bottom of the saran wrapped lined dish.
Very gently dollop the cream cheese on to the olive layer and spread to edges.
Fold the edges of the saran wrap over the cream cheese. Chill one hour.
Invert the torta on to a platter using the saran to gently guide it out
Serve with Carr’s Table Water crackers.