... stehen sie vor der Tür, vom 23.01. - 30.01., mit einem vielversprechenden [Programm] - doch woher die Zeit nehmen für so viel gutes Programm?

... quält auch 2014.

(...) Wirklich zu schaffen macht die Masse des Guten, die tagtäglich auf den Buchmarkt drängt. Hier herrscht die permanente Überforderung durch ein wachsendes Riesenangebot, zumal jeder sich ausrechnen kann, wie viel er bis zu seinem Lebensende noch lesen kann, wenn man großzügig [vier Bücher pro Jahr ansetzt ...]

... to make the world better, because I don’t think that progress is necessarily part of the package. I’m just telling you to live in it. Not just to endure it, not just to suffer it, not just to pass through it, but to live in it. To look at it. To try to get the picture. To live recklessly. To take chances. To make your own work and take pride in it. To seize the moment. And if you ask me why you should bother to do that, I could tell you that the grave’s a fine and private place, but none I think do there embrace. Nor do they sing there, or write, or argue, or see the tidal bore on the Amazon, or touch their children. And that’s what there is to do and get it while you can and good luck at it.
- Joan Didion

1. Not traveling when you had the chance.
Traveling becomes infinitely harder the older you get, especially if you have a family and need to pay the way for three-plus people instead of just yourself.

2. Not learning another language.
You’ll kick yourself when you realize you took three years of language in high school and remember none of it.

3. Staying in a bad relationship.
No one who ever gets out of a bad relationship looks back without wishing they made the move sooner.

4. Forgoing sunscreen.
Wrinkles, moles, and skin cancer can largely be avoided if you protect yourself.

5. Missing the chance to see your favorite musicians.
“Nah, dude, I’ll catch Nirvana next time they come through town.” Facepalm.

6. Being scared to do things.
Looking back you’ll think, What was I so afraid of?

7. Failing to make physical fitness a priority.
Too many of us spend the physical peak of our lives on the couch. When you hit 40, 50, 60, and beyond, you’ll dream of what you could have done.

8. Letting yourself be defined by gender roles.
Few things are as sad as an old person saying, “Well, it just wasn’t done back then.”

9. Not quitting a terrible job.
Look, you gotta pay the bills. But if you don’t make a plan to improve your situation, you might wake up one day having spent 40 years in hell.

10. Not trying harder in school.
It’s not just that your grades play a role in determining where you end up in life. Eventually you’ll realize how neat it was to get to spend all day learning, and wish you’d paid more attention.

11. Not realizing how beautiful you were.
Too many of us spend our youth unhappy with the way we look, but the reality is, that’s when we’re our most beautiful.

12. Being afraid to say “I love you.”
When you’re old, you won’t care if your love wasn’t returned — only that you made it known how you felt.

13. Not listening to your parents’ advice.
You don’t want to hear it when you’re young, but the infuriating truth is that most of what your parents say about life is true.

14. Spending your youth self-absorbed.
You’ll be embarrassed about it, frankly.

15. Caring too much about what other people think.
In 20 years you won’t give a damn about any of those people you once worried so much about.

16. Supporting others’ dreams over your own.
Supporting others is a beautiful thing, but not when it means you never get to shine.

17. Not moving on fast enough.
Old people look back at the long periods spent picking themselves off the ground as nothing but wasted time.

18. Holding grudges, especially with those you love.
What’s the point of re-living the anger over and over?

19. Not standing up for yourself.
Old people don’t take shit from anyone. Neither should you.

20. Not volunteering enough.
OK, so you probably won’t regret not volunteering Hunger Games style, but nearing the end of one’s life without having helped to make the world a better place is a great source of sadness for many.

21. Neglecting your teeth.
Brush. Floss. Get regular checkups. It will all seem so maddeningly easy when you have dentures.

22. Missing the chance to ask your grandparents questions before they die.
Most of us realize too late what an awesome resource grandparents are. They can explain everything you’ll ever wonder about where you came from, but only if you ask them in time.

23. Working too much.
No one looks back from their deathbed and wishes they spent more time at the office, but they do wish they spent more time with family, friends, and hobbies.

24. Not learning how to cook one awesome meal.
Knowing one drool-worthy meal will make all those dinner parties and celebrations that much more special.

25. Not stopping enough to appreciate the moment.
Young people are constantly on the go, but stopping to take it all in now and again is a good thing.

26. Failing to finish what you start.
“I had big dreams of becoming a nurse. I even signed up for the classes, but then…”

27. Never mastering one awesome party trick.
You will go to hundreds, if not thousands, of parties in your life. Wouldn’t it be cool to be the life of them all?

28. Letting yourself be defined by cultural expectations.
Don’t let them tell you, “We don’t do that.”

29. Refusing to let friendships run their course.
People grow apart. Clinging to what was, instead of acknowledging that things have changed, can be a source of ongoing agitation and sadness.</font></strong></i>[/html]

30. Not playing with your kids enough.
When you’re old, you’ll realize your kid went from wanting to play with you to wanting you out of their room in the blink of an eye.

31. Never taking a big risk (especially in love).
Knowing that you took a leap of faith at least once — even if you fell flat on your face — will be a great comfort when you’re old
.
32. Not taking the time to develop contacts and network.
Networking may seem like a bunch of crap when you’re young, but later on it becomes clear that it’s how so many jobs are won.

33. Worrying too much.
As Tom Petty sang, “Most things I worry about never happen anyway.”

34. Getting caught up in needless drama.
Who needs it?

35. Not spending enough time with loved ones.
Our time with our loved ones is finite. Make it count.

36. Never performing in front of others.
This isn’t a regret for everyone, but many elderly people wish they knew — just once — what it was like to stand in front of a crowd and show off their talents.

37. Not being grateful sooner.
It can be hard to see in the beginning, but eventually it becomes clear that every moment on this earth — from the mundane to the amazing — is a gift that we’re all so incredibly lucky to share.

Link: [BuzzFeed]

Passend dazu: [Have you lived life to the full? Study lists activities Britons need to do before they die.]

Auf dem Bett liegend, Hand in Hand, wurden sie aufgefunden. Romantische Liebe, ewig vereint, bis in den Tod, die Medien haben in ihren Berichten wiederkehrend dieselben Motive betont. Und hinzugefügt: Das Paar sei erstickt, die Köpfe in Plastiktüten.

Ein altes Paar hat sich Ende November in Paris das Leben genommen: ein Mann, eine Frau, die in nur einer einzigen Ehe Jahrzehnte des Lebens miteinander verbrachten, zwei mündige Staatsbürger der weltlichen Republik, gleich an Rechten, durchaus unabhängig voneinander, gebildet, heiter und elegant. Eine eher bürgerliche als aristokratische Utopie der Moderne, ein französischer Mythos, den auf seine Art auch das linke Paar Beauvoir/Sartre zu verkörpern schien. Als sich der Sozialphilosoph André Gorz und seine Frau Dorine 2007 gemeinsam im hohen Alter das Leben nahmen, lag darin auch ein Moment dieser Utopie. Nicht anders in Michael Hanekes preisgekröntem Film Liebe, in dem sich die lebenslange Liebe zuletzt durch das Töten des geliebten Menschen beweist.

Und nun also das Ehepaar Georgette und Bernard Cazes. Alles an diesen beiden entspricht dem Mythos: sie eine stets stilvoll gekleidete, geistreiche Literaturprofessorin, Schulbuchautorin, Mutter, er ein ehemaliger hoher Staatsbeamter, Offizier der Ehrenlegion, Vater, beide 86 Jahre alt, zusammen seit 60 Jahren, Pariser gebildete Oberschicht. Sie haben dem Tod wie zuvor dem Leben selbstbestimmt die Stirn geboten. (...)

Nach dem Tod der Cazes’ wird nun zweifellos in der Debatte auch eine Rolle spielen, was das Ehepaar in seinem letzten Brief einforderte: das besondere Recht alter Menschen, "das Leben heiter zu verlassen". "Mit welchem Recht", fragt dieser Brief anklagend, zwinge der Staat seine Bürger, die alle Pflichten für das Land erfüllt hätten, zu grausamen Methoden des Selbstmords? Warum dürfe ein Mensch, der genug vom Leben habe, nicht ruhig und selbstbestimmt sterben? (...)

Aus dem Feuilleton der ZEIT Nr. 51 vom 12.12.2013 unter dem Titel: [Komm, schöner Tod] - sehr aufschlussreich auch die anschliessenden Leserkommentare.

A girl and her cat - under the full moon.
[by Andy Prokh]

... who began his career in the ‘70s, tells this story about German director Werner Herzog’s visit to Reykjavík:

“Werner Herzog came to Iceland in 1979 - at that point there was no film production in Iceland. At a press conference he was asked whether he believed there would ever be an Icelandic Cinema. He answered that he did not expect there to be. He had just arrived from Peru where he had been shooting ‘Fitzcarraldo.’ There he had seen such pain in the streets of Lima, but there was no pain on the streets of Reykjavík, and he believed pain was necessary for cinema. At that point I stood up and told him: ‘We have pain on the brain, Mr. Herzog.’”

"Oh my hat - as they say!"