BETTER SLEEP
There are many ways to get better sleep, according to this article--for example:
"Deepen zzz's with exercise. Deep, restorative sleep (called delta or slow-wave sleep) decreases in your late 40s, making nighttime awakenings more frequent.  Working out more may help. Your muscles and tissues are repaired during slow-wave sleep, Arand explains. When you give your body more repair work to do thanks to increased physical exertion, it responds by stepping up the amount of slow-wave sleep you'll get.
The type of exercise that's best for triggering slow-wave sleep isn't clear, but aim for 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity on most days, suggests Wilfred R. Pigeon, Ph.D., director of the Sleep and Neurophysiology Research Lab at the University of Rochester Medical Center."

Read the whole thing...

LOVE YOUR HAIR
A new character on Sesame Street is urging just that these days--and all of us with Moebius Syndrome can readily identify with loving yourself as you are:
"A plucky little muppet in a pretty pink dress, her brown hair a perky 'fro, is helping little girls — and their moms — to accept themselves just the way they are by loving their hair.

The nameless muppet manages to trim away generations of yearning for long, silky locks with her song, "I Love My Hair" and has become an Internet sensation. Now her creator wants to give her a life beyond YouTube.    "I really want to sit down with the writers and figure out what we can do with her and give her a name, and really expand her out," said Joey Mazzarino, head writer for "Sesame Street," who co-wrote "I Love My Hair" with composer Chris Jackson. (Jackson played Simba in "The Lion King"; Chantylla 'Chauncey' Johnson, who sings the song, also appeared in the Broadway show as Nala.) The video is being shared on Twitter, and posted on gossip sites and blogs. It is popping up on Facebook pages and discussed in the comments section on YouTube, where the original clip gets a steady stream of views. It was posted Oct. 12, and had more than 600,000 views on YouTube as of a week ago, and tens of thousands more at other sites.  The tune is breezy and bouncy, the lyrics simple and filled with pride: "Don't need a trip to the beauty shop, 'cause I love what I got on top — it's curly and it's brown and it's right up there. You know what I love? My hair!"  With fast cuts, the Muppet changes hair styles — braids, pouffy ponytail, curly top. And no matter what the style, "I want to make the world aware, I love my hair," she sings with happy confidence."

FOOTBALL PICKS:

I was a little bit better last week, but still just 3-3-1.

Let's start with COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
Oregon v USC.  My pick:  DUCKS.  Some people give USC a big chance for an upset in this game.  Problem--USC has given up a lot of points to teams like Washington and Stanford; so just wait 'til you see what Oregon's high-powered offense will do to them.

Michigan State vs Iowa.  My pick:  SPARTANS.  A lot of people are picking Iowa in this one.  I just think Michigan State may be one of those teams of destiny, with lots of senior leadership and good players in key positions--which will keep finding ways to win.

Baylor at Texas.  My pick:  LONGHORNS.  Baylor has done a great job in getting back to the top 25.  They can score.  Texas has been inexplicable this year.  But Texas still has good players; they're at home; and one worries that Baylor's players won't be used to this kind of big stage.  And Mack Brown should have the Longhorns fired up after all the bashing he's done of them lately.

NFL PICKS:
Cincinnat 2 over Miami.  My pick:  DOLPHINS.  They're unbeaten on the road this season, and I have the feeling the Bengals are all messed up.

Detroit 3 over Washington.  My pick:  LIONS.  Matthew Stafford is back.  The Lions are at home.  They're an improved team; here's a chance for them to show it.

St. Louis 3 over Carolina.  My pick:  RAMS.  St. Louis and Sam Bradford have played well at home this year.

Oakland 3 over Seattle.  My pick:  RAIDERS.  Oakland is on a high after their 59 point outburst in Denver last week.  They're at home.  Seattle meanwhile on the whole has not been a good road team.

Arizona 3 over Tampa Bay.  My pick:  CARDINALS.  They're a different team at home.  Tampa will struggle with the long trip and the hostile arena.