Don't Judge!

So, I spent a couple of minutes thumbing through the last month of notes in my Thinkbook, and I wrote the definitions of the following words. I found some relevant for various reasons, a couple were new to me, and I wasn't aware of certain subtleties or precise formal definitions of others:

Accountability: Being obliged to explain one's actions to justify what one does.

Proprietary: One that possesses, owns or holds exclusive rights to something.

Orrery: Apparatus showing relative motions and positions of bodies in the solar system by balls moved by clockwork.

Promulgate: Formally declaring new statutory administrative law after final approval.

Pyrrhic Victory: Winning a battle but sustaining losses so heavy as to prohibit another battle.

Postum: Coffee stubstitute invented by C. W. Post made with chicory and roasted grains.

Ceviche: Raw fish marinated in lime or lemon juice with oil, onions, peppers and seasonings.

Prima facie: Immediately apparent.

Normative: Of, relating to, or concerning establishment of norms or standards.

Nascent: Having recently come into being.

Concessionaire: The owner/operator of a concession.

Comptroller: Public official who audits gov't accounts and sometimes certifies expenditures.

Commensurate: Proportionate, equal in size or extent.

There were two that I've never in my life come across. I am ashamed that 'orrery' has never been in my vocabulary ::sob::, and somebody mentioned that their baby liked to eat 'ceviche.' I figured ceviche was a nice, mild vegetable but NO. It's raw fish.

Most of the rest of the book consists of random notes about my states-of-mind, grocery lists, to-do lists, dinner ideas (because we simply are not cooks), albums to buy (Keane, Muse, Mute Math), and an ornate, boxed statement:

Americans wear their stress as a badge of honor.

Ugh, I can't stand this. I am acquainted with a person who immediately pops into the forefront of my mind when I read this statement; she exists in a miasma of impending chaos, which becomes evident to everybody around her when she sweeps into the room, filling it with her Type A personality. The statement reminds me that it is in my best interests to be indolent and self-indulgent sometimes. Work will never love me back. Money is neither my means nor my end. Hurrying is only fun when it's fun.

Is it better to be an innovater, a member of the junto of the overworked - valued mainly for my diligence, my readiness to work more more more, longer longer longer, better better better... Or should I sit back, allow others do those things, enjoy relationships, freedom, nature, simplicity and love?

Which one is more selfish?

Which one is more valuable?