What Ven Thinks!

In an age where people are more connected than ever, through twitter, Facebook, email, cell phones, etc., it’s a bit disheartening to learn that a recent study revealed that college students are lacking in empathy compared to students just 30 years ago, with the largest drop in empathy occurring within the last 10 years. These findings are based on a review of 72 studies of 14,000 students between 1979 and 2009.

As disappointing as this news is, I don’t find it all that surprising. College kids today are just a reflection of the times they are growing up in and self-focus seems to be the norm these days. Just take a good look at the majority of the most successful people in our country. Those at the top, the rich and powerful, are the ones who are able to set aside concern for the welfare of people and

Really. I’m asking for an explanation because I don’t get it. I signed up for a facebook account once, about a year ago. I logged into it twice, maybe three times, and then never went back. I don’t even know if the account is still there.

I know so many people whose whole lives seem to revolve around it and when I tell them I’m not on facebook, they give me this horrified look, as if some three headed monster has suddenly sprouted out of my head. “How can you not be on facebook?” But, honestly, I don’t miss facebook at all and I don’t feel that my social life is stunted without it. I still

Have you heard about the latest British medical study, which found that working overtime increases the risk of heart disease by 60 percent? People who work 10 hours or more a day are more likely to to develop heart disease and/or have a heart attack than people who work only 7 hours a day.

I’m not surprised by this study one bit. I have long believed that it’s wrong for employers to expect their employees to behave like robots, focusing on their job to the exclusion of their families and personal lives. US employers are the worst and US employees have some of the longest work days combined with the least amount of annual vacation time of just about any other major country.

I’m a firm believer in a balanced life. I love my job, but I love my personal life just

I’ve never been much of a fan of Saturday Night Live but when I heard about Betty White‘s recent appearance as host of SNL, I had to go and watch it for myself. I’ve been a big fan of Betty White since her Golden Girl days and I admit I still watch Golden Girls reruns several times a week. No matter how many times I’ve seen each and every episode, her Rose character still cracks me up with that goofy personality. I’m glad to see that, at 88 years old, Betty White is still as funny and entertaining as ever. She’s a joy to watch and more than capable of cracking me up.

Watch it on Hulu!

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• ARA: Did you watch Betty White on SNL? (timesunion.com)

According to Salary.com, if moms were actually paid for everything they do, a stay-at-home mom would earn approximately $118,000 per year and a working mom would earn approximately $72,000 a year in addition to the salary from her career. While those salary estimates are impressive, I don’t think they come even close to measuring the value of a mom.

The value of a mom comes from so much more than the cooking, cleaning, and other tasks she does day in and day out. The true value of mom comes from things that can’t possibly be measured in tangible ways. Things like love, support and the sense of identity we get from out mothers. Whether you spend your life trying to be like mom or trying not to be like mom, your mom and her influence on your life effects who you are and everything you do.