happiness (slightly off topic)

[Guest guest]

Are married people happier? Also, in the article:

People's level of happiness may be largely inborn, but many psychologists

also say there are conscious techniques that people can use to raise their

level of happiness. People who make a point of expressing gratitude for

their blessings, for example, have been shown to feel better than those who

make a practice of being irritable.

" Entertainment and sex are fine, but the dependable satisfactions come from

constructive activities,ranging from cleaning up the yard in the spring,

which is what we're doing now, to writing a paper or helping someone in some

significant way, " said Lykken, a professor emeritus of psychology.

Lykken also had a warning: Fearfulness and irritability are among the

" thieves of happiness. "

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53974-2003Apr18.html