This is a special tribute to a fellow baby boomer who inspired me to treat each day as if it were my last. Randy Pausch became a celebrity, of sorts, when he found out he was dying of pancreatic cancer. His “Last Lecture” was conducted at Carnegie Mellon University where he was a computer science professor. He gave his last inspirational speech at the University this past May.  If you haven’t seen it, please take a moment to do so:

Today Randy left us in the physical word, but his legacy will live on.

Best Quotes of Randy Pausch: October 23, 1960 - July 24, 2008

• Show gratitude. Gratitude is a simple but powerful thing.
• Find the best in everybody…. Wait long enough, and people will surprise and impress you. It might even take years, but people will show you their good side. Just keep waiting.
• Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted…. I probably got more from that dream [of playing professional football] and not accomplishing it than I got from any of the ones that I did accomplish.
• Better to fail spectacularly than do something mediocre.
• When there’s an elephant in the room introduce him
• Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people.
• We can’t change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand. If I’m not as depressed as you think I should be, I’m sorry to disappoint you.
• Decide if you’re a Tigger or an Eyeore. I’m a Tigger.
• It is not about achieving your dreams but living your life. If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself, the dreams will come to you.

Now that fellow baby boomer Hillary Clinton has suspended her campaign and made nice with Barack Obama, the question is will she be his running mate come November?

Most Obama supporters object to the idea while Hillary supporters say it is the smart thing to do. Hillary supporters believe it will ensure a democratic victory in November.

But If Not Hillary, Then Who?

A number of names come to mind: New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Texas Congressman Ron Paul or what about General Colin Powell. What do you think?

Did You Know?

• 50 to 70 year-old women are about to become the richest demographic in U.S. history.

• Boomers outspend other generations by an estimated $400 billion each year on consumer goods and services.

• Women between 45 and 64 are the most likely age group to shop online for beauty products.

• The 50+ market has $2.4 trillion in annual income, which accounts for 42% of all after-tax income.

• There are now more people over 65 than there are teenagers.

• Over the next 10 years the boomer generation’s leading female edge will transform the American market in nearly every consumer product category.

• 83.2% of US Boomers will use the Internet regularly in 2011, up from 75% in 2006.

• There are 8 million Hispanic Boomers.

• There are 9.1 million African American Boomers

• More than 70% of the US Boomers report buying music in the past year, making it the most important buying segment for CDs and an increasingly important market for digital downloads.

• By 2010, adults 45 years old and older will outspend younger adults by $1 trillion annually.

• Boomers, on average, have the most discretionary income of any segment of the US population.