A laudable endeavor, as I'm sure you'll agree.

I'll second that. Modern society has become a cacophony of unwanted, irritating noise. Peace and quiet are harder than ever to find.

I'm sure you have your work cut out for you.

For product managers, "quiet" has a wider meaning than "silent."

I always have a funny feeling when I turn on the ignition in my new hybrid car. Instead of turning a key, I press a button. And then the engine starts quietly turning over, instead of coming to life with the kind of reassuring roar I'm used to.

I'm interested in finding out how the 'quiet car' concept is catching on with American commuter railways. How popular are they?
They seem to have gradually caught on since Amtrak introduced the concept on a trial basis in 2000.

There are signs asking that passengers bring such matters to the attention of the conductor.
And I'm sure they do so unobtrusively - and quietly.

It gives them an edge over the competition.

Whenever I speak English, I always have to make a conscious effort to watch my grammar, syntax and pronunciation. I still have a long way to go. It's a bit mentally tiring at times.

Awesome is what I call it.

I have my parents to thank for that.

They put their foot down about not speaking in a hybrid.

I must admit that Spanish speakers account for two-thirds of those people with limited English.

Never seem wiser nor more learned, than the people you are with. Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket: and do not merely pull it out and strike it; merely to show that you have one.

Aim at perfection in everything, though in most things it is unattainable. However, they who aim at it, and persevere, will come much nearer to it than those whose laziness and despondency make them give it up as unattainable.

Man alone is born crying, lives complaining, and dies disappointed.

Ultimately the bond of all companionship, whether in marriage or in friendship, is conversation.

He must be very ignorant for he answers every question he is asked.

You know, although the middle years of your life are usually the time when you're earning the most money and are in peak mental form,, middle-aged adults are less equipped than you might think to assume midlife's new challenges and burdens. Few people are prepared for the kind of stress and strain that comes with an honest-to-goodness midlife crisis. It can be a real wake-up call.

Examinations are formidable even to the best prepared, for the greatest fool may ask more than the wisest man can answer. (from Lacon)

That can be a big blow to the old ego. But most of us eventually come to understand that that's OK, and get on with the business of enjoying life.

I contrast to earlier generations, people who hit the midlife mark are less likely to feel they've missed out on having their share of fun.

carpe diem.

Suit the action to the word, the word to the action. (from Hamlet)

They may have issues that go all the way back to their childhood that they've never dealt with adequately and which suddenly rise to the surface.

It's always difficult to come to terms with major life events like divorce or the death of a parent. When they happen at the same time as the transition to the middle stage of one's life, feelings of regret and loss can be quite overwhelming and bewildering.

As we get older, our healthcare costs rise. That eats away at our savings and makes it harder to make ends meet. That's why I follow a strict exercise program. As you know, exercise helps people stay healthy and maintain the level of fitness you need to follow an active, independent life. Physical decline is not necessarily an inevitable consequence of reaching midlife.

Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grief.

Consuming too much saturated fat can be harmful to our bodies because it raises our levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, which is often referred to as "bad" cholesterol. When we have high levels of LDL cholesterol, it can build up in our arteries and increase our risk of heart disease and stroke.
In addition, consuming a diet that is high in saturated fat can also lead to weight gain and obesity, which can increase the risk of developing other health problems such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and certain types of cancer.
It's important to note that our bodies do need some saturated fat to function properly, but it's recommended that we consume it in moderation and balance it with other healthy fats such as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in foods like nuts, seeds, and fish.

True friendship can afford true knowledge. It does not depend on darkness and ignorance. (from A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers)

There are only two kinds of people who are really fascinating --- people who know absolutely everything, and people who know absolutely nothing. (from The Picture of Dorian Gray)

This helps to lower stress levels, not to mention serving as team-bonding activities. The right dose of fun can help break up the monotony of work, and do a lot to improve employees' engagement level.

If people don't get at least some sense of enjoyment from their work, they won't be as satisfied and productive as they could be.

The happiest conversation is that of which nothing is distinctly remembered, but a general effect of pleasing impression.

I don't mean fun in a frivolous sense,. I suppose I mean "enjoyable".

We'd ask this question to get a sense as to whether our employees feel like they're here to stay -- or if there are underlying issues that are making them look elsewhere for work.

Ask them if they were to quit tomorrow, what their reason would be.

The survey is a benchmark that helps us collect data that we can copare on a year-on-year basis.

I can forgive, but I cannot forget, is only another way of saying, I will not forgive. Forgiveness ought to be like a cancelled notre --- torn in two, and burned up, so that it never can be shown against one.

They see it as a professional dead end.

That's a sign of the times

Younger workers are less inclined to feel a sense of loyalty to the company.

Where do you see yourself in one year or two years from now?

The worst thing that can happen to a man is to lose his money, the next worst his health, the next worst his reputation.

It is always safe to learn, even from our enemies; seldom safe to venture to instruct, even our friends.

Friendship consists in forgetting what one gives and remembering what one receives.

You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.

Quality is not an act, it is a habit.

Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.

Some people got to priests; others to poetry; I to my friends. (from The Waves)

I fancied becoming a sports referee.
I'm sure you would have been great, Shota.

One school of thought says this is a positive move, because it eliminates the chance of human error. But others point out that many rules are subjet to interpretation. Some even go so far as to say that the possibility of human error increases the excitement.

The snake which cannot cast its skin has to die. As well the minds which are prevented from changing their opinions; they cease to be mind.

He who hath many friends hath none.

He who knows best knows how little he knows.

Whatever possession we gain by our sword cannot be sure or lasting, but the love gained by kindness and moderation is certain and durable.

Diligence is the mother of good fortune, and idleness, its opposite, never brought a man to the goal of any of his best wishes. (from Don Quixote)

Friendship, like love, is destroyed by long absence, though it may be increased by short intermissions. (from The Idler)

Persist and persevere and you will find most things that are attainable possible.

A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It's jolted by every pebble on the road.

Books, like friends, should be few and well-chosen.

It is better to risk saving a guilty man than to condemn an innocent one.

Our incomes should be like our shoes; if too small, they will gall and pinch us; but if too large, they will cause us to stumble and to trip.

The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them.

I don't know who my grandfather was; I am much more concerned to know what his grandson will be.

If you want work well done, select a busy man: the other kind has no time.

I quote others only in order the better to express myself. (from Essais)

Lost wealth may be replaced by industry, lost knowledge by study, lost health by temperance or medicine, but lost time is gone forever.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.

To be prepared is half the victory.

So long as we are loved by others I should say that we are almost indispensable; and no man is useless while he has a friend.

Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can… As a peacemaker the lawyer has a superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough.

A father may turn his back on his child, brothers and sisters may become inveterate enemies, husbands may desert their wives, wives their husbands. But a mother's love endures through all.

Life is the art of drawing sufficient conclusions from insufficient premises.

galvanize : 電気を通して刺激する。敵などを活気づける。
power vacuum : 権力の空白。
fertile : 肥えた、豊作をもたらす。
invert : ひっくり返す。When baking a cake, you should invert the pan onto a cooling rack to release the cake from the pan.
revert : 立ち戻る。
stray : コースからそれる。
caveat : 警告、注意事項、ただし書き。
forked : 分岐した。フォークの形が分岐してるからか。
intervention : 介入。user intervention : ユーザーの操作。
superfluous : 余分な、必要以上の。
clutter up my head with : ～で頭をいっぱいにする。
pristine : ピカピカの、手つかずの。
adhere : 規則や信念に忠実である。支持する。
adherent : 支持者、信奉者。
coherent : 理路整然と一貫していてわかりやすい。
alteration : 変更、修正。
scrutinize : 注意深く丹念に調べる。
plentiful : 豊富な、十分な。
novel : 奇抜な、今までにない。novel coronavirusか。あと小説。
canonical : 規範的な、標準的な、正当な。
outage : 停電。
aside from : とは別に。
extensive : 広範囲の。
authenticate : 本物であることを証明する。
authorize : 許可する、権限を与える。
takeaway : 話し合いなどの覚えておくべき点。
frivolous : 不真面目な。unserious.
synonymous : 同義の。
antonymous : 反意語の。
credential : 仕事、任務などの遂行に必要な資格。

Nothing is so great an example of bad manners as flattery. If you flatter all the company, you please none; if you flatter only one or two, you offend the rest.

Age is a matter of feeling, not of years.

If a man does not make new acquaintances as he advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone. A man, sir, should keep his friendship in a constant repair.

We are all full of weakness and errors; let us mutually pardon each other our follies. It is the first law of nature.

A friend is a gift you give yourself.

Our hours in love have wings, in absence, crutches.

The whole is more than the sum of its parts.

A weak mind is like a microscope, which magnifies trifling things but cannot receive great ones.

Tears are the silent language of grief.

Corruption is like a ball of snow, once it's set a rolling, it must increase.

And we should note that many studies have identified clear health benefits from having a pet.

Some animal rights activists make that very argument.

Strictly speaking, I wonder if it's appropriate to call pets like that "donors." I mean, it's not as if they can give their informed consent.

As someone who flinches at the sight of a needle, I don't imagine pets take too kindly to having needles stuck into them.

Whatever you think about it, there's no denying that pet healthcare is a growth industry.

The problem is that there simply aren't enough pet blood banks to match demand. The supply of blood often falls short. As with human blood, it's by donation only.

I was surprised to learn that cats have three blood types and dogs have a lot more --- a dozen or so.

But generally speaking, the infrastracture for pet blood donation isn't nearly as developed and widespread as the human version.

Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance.

The wise are instracted by reason, average minds by experience, the stupid by necessity and the brute by instinct.

Get up tomorrow early in the morning, and earlier than you did today, and do the best that you can. Always stay near me, for tomorrow I will have much to do and more than I ever had, and tomorrow blood will leave my body above the breast.

Where there is charity and wisdom. there is neither fear nor ignorance. (from The Counsels of the Holy Father St. Francis)

Brevity is the soul of wit. (from Hamlet)

Rain made an unwelcome appearance at the picnic.

Will you get the kids out of my hair while I engage in a videoconference?

Curiosity is one of the permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous intellect.

The information age has brought with it a number of changes for the publishing industry.
The overall number of titles being put out hasn't changed that much. Nor has the process by which books are reviewed by professional editors.
But these days - and this change is not for the better - some books are not reviewed at all.
That wasn't so much the case in the past.

I suppose one weekend isn't long enough.
Not this time, at least.

Foods that are nutritious are nourishing and provide the substances needed for health. Things like "This vegetable soup is both delicious and nutritious."
A person who argues for a certain action or position is an advocate for that action or position. As in "She's always been an advocate for animal rights."

I couldn't agree more. I completely agree in other words. We also have the expression "couldn't care less" which means we don't care at all. If I say I couldn't care less whether he is angry. Then, that means it doesn't bother me at all I don't care at all that guy is angry. And oddly we also use the expression "could care less" in an exactly the same way. Even though technically this seams wrong doesn't it? But you can also say I could care less  whether he is angry.

That blog has been inactive for quite some time. I don't think the writer has posted anything new in two years. Or we are moving all this inactive equipment to the warehouse. It's just taking up the space.
Physical activity also provides protection against chronic diseases such as adult-onset diabetes. This is a diabetes that develops when a person is adult. As opposed to juvenile diavetes which develops when someone is a child. And gestational diabetes which develops in the womb before a child is born. We also have a term early-onset. When something happens earlier than typical. For example early-onset dementia. 

A lot of the physical frailty we associate with aging is actually the result of inactivity.

It's always difficult to come to terms with major life events like divorce or the death of a parent. If we come to terms with something, we become able to accept a difficult or painful situation. He struggled to come to terms with his son moving overseas, for example."Come to terms" can also mean reaching agreement. Company X and company Y have finally come to terms on the joint venture.

That's a very perceptive observation, Shota. A very insightful observation. Observant. Discerning.

They may have issues that go all the way back to their childhood that they've never dealt with adequately and which suddenly rise to the surface.

Middle-aged adults are less equipped than you might think to assume midlife's new challenges and burdens. Few people are prepared for the kind of stress and strain that comes with an honest-to-goodness midlife crisis.

You tend to become rather introspective when you're faced with the death of somebody your age that you knew really well.

It's not unusual to feel unhappy and restless as we struggle with aging, mortality and looking for a sense of purpose in life.