Good morning, good morning. I watched, or rather read the subtitles (I was on the elliptical), of President Obama’s Farewell Address. In fact, every person on a machine at Equinox had their faces titled up to the screen. This is our President. Emphasis on “our.” A man voted into office twice. A man who is a leader. A man who commands. And now we have to say goodbye to him. If you missed it, or want to re-watch or have a copy of what he said to be forever with you, here is the full transcript and video. I urge you to do so. There’s going to be a lot of opinions but the one that matters is yours.

President Obama: “No matter how imperfect our efforts, no matter how expedient ignoring such values may seem, that’s part of defending America. For the fight against extremism and intolerance and sectarianism and chauvinism are of a piece with the fight against authoritarianism and nationalist aggression. If the scope of freedom and respect for the rule of law shrinks around the world, the likelihood of war within and between nations increases, and our own freedoms will eventually be threatened. So let’s be vigilant, but not afraid.”

Amen.

So, it turns out that moving over to the right on an escalator, in order to let people scurry up the stairs, is doing long term damage on the machinery.

Say what you will about Saturday Night Live (I’m a huge fan), it is an institution that has given women long-term careers. Women like Molly Shannon, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer. The significance of these three women in particular is that they are ladies like us, women over the age of 40. And in an industry rife with ageism–show business that is—for the aforementioned plus so many others, this longevity is inspirational.

Finally, two ladies I love, talking. Madonna and Roxane Gay. Madonna: “I believe in freedom of expression, I don’t believe in censorship. I believe in equal rights for all people. And I believe women should own their sexuality and sexual expression. I don’t believe there’s a certain age where you can’t say and feel and be who you want to be.”

More women I love: Solange and Beyonce in conversation. Solange: “I feel so happy that I got to grow up in a place where you could be the pastor’s wife, you could be a lawyer, you could be a stripper on the side, you could be a schoolteacher—we saw every kind of woman connect on one common experience, which was that everyone wanted to be great and everyone wanted to do better.”

Kate Brown is sworn in as governor of Oregon.

Agnes Martin. “Toward freedom is the direction that the artist takes. Art work comes straight through a free mind—an open mind. Absolute freedom is possible.” 

And now, have a laugh with Whitney Cummings.