In my daily ritual of reading some of my fellow bloggers blogs, I often stumble across something I "keep".
Whether it be as a word document in one of way too many files on my computer, or as an indelible mark upon my consciousness, here is this weeks........(Thanks Davey!- his words in red)
We only have a few short years on this planet, so it certainly behooves us to enjoy and cherish every last second of this life. Here are my tips for doing just that:
1.Anyone can see the future, but it takes a true wizard to see the present moment. Don’t spend your present dwelling on the past or dreaming of the future - nothing is promised. Live!
2.Walk barefoot.
3.Change yourself, not others. If you don’t like or can’t accept what you see in others, change yourself.
4.Take your ego out of your relationships. Without ego, jealousy will never find its footing.
5.Eat ice cream.
6.Take time to love yourself. As you learn to love yourself, you’ll find it much easier to love others.
7.Read good books. I’d recommend The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success.
8.Eat whipped cream and strawberries off of someone’s bum at least once.
9.Don’t do the things you don’t like. Seriously. If you hate your job, quit. Seriously. Life is way too short, man.
10.Love the times when you are single.
11.Love the times when you are partnered.
12.Instead of regretting your "mistakes", learn from them. It’s much more productive.
13.Don’t struggle against the universe. You only need oars if you’re fighting the current.
14.Drop the soap.
15.Work to create a more loving tomorrow, but accept the world as it is today.
16.Be inappropriate at least once a day.
17.Express gratitude.
18.Smile at strangers. Sometimes, they’ll smile back.
19.Throw out these rules and make your own.
Thanks again Davey, for reminding me that we each have our own life, to live.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
The Rest of the Story - Thank You Paul
Lust is easy. Love is hard. Like is most important. ~Carl Reiner
I found this observation very interesting. I asked myself, what do I like, love, and/or lust over?
Yes, that is ALOT to wrap my head around.
This could take a while, so more on that later.
On a sadder note....Paul Harvey has finished "the rest of the story".
http://www.abcrn.com/harvey/
When I was much much younger I remember hearing his radio shows and was always hooked into waiting for the "rest of the story". The stories always started off "normal" enough, but then there would be a twist, or flaw in the story and I would have to "stay tuned" if I wanted to know "the rest of the story".
Life is like that too. We gather our knowledge and experience and once we think we "know it all" we attempt to apply it to our lives. Most often we do not wait for "the rest of the story" and find ourselves lost, confused, or at the very least, frustrated.
We are bombarded daily with sound bytes, dramatic headlines, gossip, and new information that we somehow have to try to digest and make sense of. Our "drive-thru" mentality has made us a country of "I want it, and I want it NOW!" consumers. We buy the next big thing whether we really need it or not. We bitch about gas prices as we fill up our SUV so we can drive to the corner store. We gang up against politicians & celebrities that get accused of anything we can fight against based on only a headline or sound byte we saw on Entertainment Tonight, or TMZ.
We have lost our patience to wait for "the rest of the story".
In my personal history there is ALOT of stuff that at first sight would make me out to be a monster. BUT if you wait and listen to "the rest of the story" you will find that I am not a bad guy at all.
I will miss Paul Harvey, although I have not heard any of his stories in years. The mystery, the hope, the anticipation he conveyed is what we all experience every day in our everyday lives.
So the next time you are ready to jump on the judgement bandwagon, remember Paul Harvey, and be sure you have "the rest of the story"
I found this observation very interesting. I asked myself, what do I like, love, and/or lust over?
Yes, that is ALOT to wrap my head around.
This could take a while, so more on that later.
On a sadder note....Paul Harvey has finished "the rest of the story".
http://www.abcrn.com/harvey/
When I was much much younger I remember hearing his radio shows and was always hooked into waiting for the "rest of the story". The stories always started off "normal" enough, but then there would be a twist, or flaw in the story and I would have to "stay tuned" if I wanted to know "the rest of the story".
Life is like that too. We gather our knowledge and experience and once we think we "know it all" we attempt to apply it to our lives. Most often we do not wait for "the rest of the story" and find ourselves lost, confused, or at the very least, frustrated.
We are bombarded daily with sound bytes, dramatic headlines, gossip, and new information that we somehow have to try to digest and make sense of. Our "drive-thru" mentality has made us a country of "I want it, and I want it NOW!" consumers. We buy the next big thing whether we really need it or not. We bitch about gas prices as we fill up our SUV so we can drive to the corner store. We gang up against politicians & celebrities that get accused of anything we can fight against based on only a headline or sound byte we saw on Entertainment Tonight, or TMZ.
We have lost our patience to wait for "the rest of the story".
In my personal history there is ALOT of stuff that at first sight would make me out to be a monster. BUT if you wait and listen to "the rest of the story" you will find that I am not a bad guy at all.
I will miss Paul Harvey, although I have not heard any of his stories in years. The mystery, the hope, the anticipation he conveyed is what we all experience every day in our everyday lives.
So the next time you are ready to jump on the judgement bandwagon, remember Paul Harvey, and be sure you have "the rest of the story"
Sunday, March 1, 2009
It is Sunday, the temperature is dropping, and I have spent most of the day recovering from karaoke last night.
But, in an effort to keep my brain active and healthy I felt the need to educate myself in areas previously unknown.
Here is what I have learned........
•A rat can last longer without water than a camel.
•Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks or it will digest itself.
•The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle.
•A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.
•A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate. I know some people like that!
•A duck's quack doesn't echo. No one knows why.
•A 2 X 4 is really 1-1/2 by 3-1/2. I kind of figures as much
•During the chariot scene in "Ben Hur," a small red car can be seen in the distance.
•On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily! That explains it!
•Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants.
•Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
•The number of possible ways of playing the first four moves per side in a game of chess is 318,979,564,000.
•There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with orange, purple and silver.
•The name Wendy was made up for the book "Peter Pan." There was never a recorded Wendy before. This I found Amazing!
•The very first bomb dropped by the Allies on Berlin in World War II killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo.
•If one places a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
•Bruce Lee was so fast that they actually had to s-l-o-w film down so you could see his moves.
•The first CD pressed in the US was Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA."
•The original name for butterfly was flutterby.
•The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.
•The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was the Victrola, so they called
themselves Motorola.
•Roses may be red, but violets are indeed violet. Oh the horror of having to re-write all that poetry!
•By raising your legs slowly and laying on your back, you cannot sink into quicksand.
•Celery has negative calories. It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with.
•Charlie Chaplin once won third prize in a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest.
•Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.
•Sherlock Holmes NEVER said "Elementary, my dear Watson." Say it isn't true!
•An old law in Bellingham, Washington, made it illegal for a woman to take more than 3 steps backwards while dancing.
•The glue on Israeli postage is certified kosher.
•The Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.
•Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a spacesuit damages them. Not to mention the other drawback.
•Bats always turn left when exiting a cave- because they just ain't right?
It is my hope that I have somehow enlightened you on this glorious Sunday.
Rest assured that tomorrow is Monday.......
But, in an effort to keep my brain active and healthy I felt the need to educate myself in areas previously unknown.
Here is what I have learned........
•A rat can last longer without water than a camel.
•Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks or it will digest itself.
•The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle.
•A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.
•A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate. I know some people like that!
•A duck's quack doesn't echo. No one knows why.
•A 2 X 4 is really 1-1/2 by 3-1/2. I kind of figures as much
•During the chariot scene in "Ben Hur," a small red car can be seen in the distance.
•On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily! That explains it!
•Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants.
•Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
•The number of possible ways of playing the first four moves per side in a game of chess is 318,979,564,000.
•There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with orange, purple and silver.
•The name Wendy was made up for the book "Peter Pan." There was never a recorded Wendy before. This I found Amazing!
•The very first bomb dropped by the Allies on Berlin in World War II killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo.
•If one places a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
•Bruce Lee was so fast that they actually had to s-l-o-w film down so you could see his moves.
•The first CD pressed in the US was Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA."
•The original name for butterfly was flutterby.
•The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.
•The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was the Victrola, so they called
themselves Motorola.
•Roses may be red, but violets are indeed violet. Oh the horror of having to re-write all that poetry!
•By raising your legs slowly and laying on your back, you cannot sink into quicksand.
•Celery has negative calories. It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with.
•Charlie Chaplin once won third prize in a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest.
•Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.
•Sherlock Holmes NEVER said "Elementary, my dear Watson." Say it isn't true!
•An old law in Bellingham, Washington, made it illegal for a woman to take more than 3 steps backwards while dancing.
•The glue on Israeli postage is certified kosher.
•The Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.
•Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a spacesuit damages them. Not to mention the other drawback.
•Bats always turn left when exiting a cave- because they just ain't right?
It is my hope that I have somehow enlightened you on this glorious Sunday.
Rest assured that tomorrow is Monday.......
Saturday, February 28, 2009
I am going to die today, and tomorrow too
While doing my daily blogroll reading, I came across an entry in http://www.breaktheillusion.com/?p=1412 regarding death. It's okay, you can keep reading.
Read what my buddy Davey wrote, it is not Terminal, lol- go ahead........I'll wait.......
***
After reading this, and the responses that followed, one in particular grabbed me----
I’m a medical student and while on the floor today, we had a patient that has
been diagnosed with Stage III Osteosarcoma transferred to our hospital. When I
walked into the room to get a history and physical the first thing she said to
me was, “I’m dying.” Taken back and with confusion on how to respond I light
heartedly said, “well, aren’t we all?” We both laugh and then she asked me,
“Well are you okay with that? (long pause while I’m in deep contemplation)
Because I am.”
All day I’ve been thinking, if I was now diagnosed with a terminal illness,
knowing I was going to die soon, would I be okay with that. Sadly, I still
haven’t answered that question to myself.
I can relate to this feeling of being not quite sure how I really feel about death.
Like most people, I avoid applying the concept to myself. And I avoid dealing with it when it concerns anyone I love. Never quite mastered that one.
We seem to spend most of our lives avoiding the subject, especially when it applies to ourselves.
We all know that it is a “fact of life”, yet see it as an be-all and end-all. But as Davey Wavey said, we all die (in some way) everyday.
Hopefully, we remember to LIVE each day too!
Read what my buddy Davey wrote, it is not Terminal, lol- go ahead........I'll wait.......
***
After reading this, and the responses that followed, one in particular grabbed me----
I’m a medical student and while on the floor today, we had a patient that has
been diagnosed with Stage III Osteosarcoma transferred to our hospital. When I
walked into the room to get a history and physical the first thing she said to
me was, “I’m dying.” Taken back and with confusion on how to respond I light
heartedly said, “well, aren’t we all?” We both laugh and then she asked me,
“Well are you okay with that? (long pause while I’m in deep contemplation)
Because I am.”
All day I’ve been thinking, if I was now diagnosed with a terminal illness,
knowing I was going to die soon, would I be okay with that. Sadly, I still
haven’t answered that question to myself.
I can relate to this feeling of being not quite sure how I really feel about death.
Like most people, I avoid applying the concept to myself. And I avoid dealing with it when it concerns anyone I love. Never quite mastered that one.
We seem to spend most of our lives avoiding the subject, especially when it applies to ourselves.
We all know that it is a “fact of life”, yet see it as an be-all and end-all. But as Davey Wavey said, we all die (in some way) everyday.
Hopefully, we remember to LIVE each day too!
Friday, February 27, 2009
The Landscape of our Lives
Imagine you are the Earth, as a whole.
Now imagine you are a sattelite in space, looking down upon the Earth (you).
You can see all of the Mountain Ranges, and the deep blue of the Oceans.
The cuts and crevices left by time, nature, circumstance.
Life is like that. People are like that.
We all have our highest peaks of accomplishments, and the depths of our unknown souls.
The scars left from years of neglect, avoidance, and pure dumb luck.
We have have the wrinkles of time that has marched across our skin.
We spend too many years, and too much money on things like therapy, skin cream, and barely necessary prescription drugs, often to "fix" things we could have prevented.
We covet the trophys we have won, the positions we hold, the person we like to think we are.
We cling to delusions that do not serve us well.
We want to rationalize decisions by using "prettier" words. Chocolate covered shit, is still shit.
Life is like that. The Earth is like that.
If we only gave the Earth the attention and respect we give our own vanity, well, you can figure it out.
And by the way, this is calling out me also, as it is never "all about" any one. It is all about
Everyone.
Now imagine you are a sattelite in space, looking down upon the Earth (you).
You can see all of the Mountain Ranges, and the deep blue of the Oceans.
The cuts and crevices left by time, nature, circumstance.
Life is like that. People are like that.
We all have our highest peaks of accomplishments, and the depths of our unknown souls.
The scars left from years of neglect, avoidance, and pure dumb luck.
We have have the wrinkles of time that has marched across our skin.
We spend too many years, and too much money on things like therapy, skin cream, and barely necessary prescription drugs, often to "fix" things we could have prevented.
We covet the trophys we have won, the positions we hold, the person we like to think we are.
We cling to delusions that do not serve us well.
We want to rationalize decisions by using "prettier" words. Chocolate covered shit, is still shit.
Life is like that. The Earth is like that.
If we only gave the Earth the attention and respect we give our own vanity, well, you can figure it out.
And by the way, this is calling out me also, as it is never "all about" any one. It is all about
Everyone.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Inspiration from Left Field
I came across this (not sure where) and I think it really applies to our Country, our President, and each of us as individuals......
**
Creativity loves a problem, but it hates a lousy audience.
If everyone around you is sure the economy is tanking, that the end is near, that time is up and the company is headed for the tubes, it's almost impossible to find a creative solution.
Creativity changes the game, whatever game is being played. "We're going to run out of cash by the end of the year," is accurate unless you count creativity into the equation. Then the accurate statement is, "Under the current rules and assumptions, we're going to run out of cash..." Big difference.
Creativity demands exposure to market needs, and insulation from market fears. Give it some time to work, some support, some breathing room. That's when creativity has a chance to change the game.
**
I think a new kind of creativity will be required in areas like alternative fuels, healthcare reform, education reform, as well as numerous others. Instead of thinking outside the box, I think it is time to get rid of the box altogether. Radical? Maybe. Although there was a time when the world thought that it was radical, even impossible to think that the wall would (could) ever come down between East and West Germany.
Never underestimate the impossible.
**
Creativity loves a problem, but it hates a lousy audience.
If everyone around you is sure the economy is tanking, that the end is near, that time is up and the company is headed for the tubes, it's almost impossible to find a creative solution.
Creativity changes the game, whatever game is being played. "We're going to run out of cash by the end of the year," is accurate unless you count creativity into the equation. Then the accurate statement is, "Under the current rules and assumptions, we're going to run out of cash..." Big difference.
Creativity demands exposure to market needs, and insulation from market fears. Give it some time to work, some support, some breathing room. That's when creativity has a chance to change the game.
**
I think a new kind of creativity will be required in areas like alternative fuels, healthcare reform, education reform, as well as numerous others. Instead of thinking outside the box, I think it is time to get rid of the box altogether. Radical? Maybe. Although there was a time when the world thought that it was radical, even impossible to think that the wall would (could) ever come down between East and West Germany.
Never underestimate the impossible.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Hope within the Younger Generation
I have a very close friend that is very active in local politics. He is about 13 years younger than I, and therefore falls into the category I affectionately refer to as "younger men". Or better put,
the Younger Generation. I know that a big part of where we "end up" once we emerge from this economic/global crisis lies in the hands of this Younger Generation.
It is easy, and reckless to stereotype the youth of today (and tomorrow) based on the nightly news reports of local robberies, shootings, and drop out rates. It is easy to do, until you come across something like I did today hidden within a MySpace friend request from a 53 year old woman from Maui, on behalf of her 8 year old son, Axil.
Once you see her/their page, and read the story, and watch the videos, hopefully you too will see the Hope of the next generations yet to come.
Here is the link (be sure and add her as a friend!) and the words to one of the songs that Axil sings in one of the videos.
***
www.myspace.com/worldpeacebefore2021
Here are the lyrics to “World Peace Before Two Thousand and One”
Let the Sun shine down.
Down on you.
Right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done!
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One..
Earth’s racial and religious tensions escalate each day Violence and terrorism..
Everyone is prey.
Democracy gone mad versus no human rights at all.
We all must work for peace now or the human race will fall.
Diseases growing stronger while morality just won’t keep.
Pollute the skies, rape the Earth, the price is getting steep.
Oppression in the cities, while the rich enjoy their greed.
A drive by shooting takes a life, now see the child bleed.
People put your hands together.
This message now must be sent.
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done.
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One.
Political attention feeds the symptoms not the cure.
While citizens go homeless and the workers become the poor.
Countries in disagreement while the innocent shed their lives.
These natural disasters should be opening our eyes!
People put your hands together this message now must be sent.
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done.
World Peace Before 2021.
Now, take a look around at what's right from what's wrong.
We’ve got to keep believing and we’ve got to be strong!
So... People put your hands together.
This message, now must be sent
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right thru the pourin’ rain.
We've got to get together.
It doesn’t matter who’s to blame.
Just hold on to the faith and cry out what you believe.
We know it can be done!
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One.
***
Thank You Axil, for feeding the fires of Hope that will surely help make America her best.
Share this. Hope. Nurture the next generations.........
the Younger Generation. I know that a big part of where we "end up" once we emerge from this economic/global crisis lies in the hands of this Younger Generation.
It is easy, and reckless to stereotype the youth of today (and tomorrow) based on the nightly news reports of local robberies, shootings, and drop out rates. It is easy to do, until you come across something like I did today hidden within a MySpace friend request from a 53 year old woman from Maui, on behalf of her 8 year old son, Axil.
Once you see her/their page, and read the story, and watch the videos, hopefully you too will see the Hope of the next generations yet to come.
Here is the link (be sure and add her as a friend!) and the words to one of the songs that Axil sings in one of the videos.
***
www.myspace.com/worldpeacebefore2021
Here are the lyrics to “World Peace Before Two Thousand and One”
Let the Sun shine down.
Down on you.
Right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done!
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One..
Earth’s racial and religious tensions escalate each day Violence and terrorism..
Everyone is prey.
Democracy gone mad versus no human rights at all.
We all must work for peace now or the human race will fall.
Diseases growing stronger while morality just won’t keep.
Pollute the skies, rape the Earth, the price is getting steep.
Oppression in the cities, while the rich enjoy their greed.
A drive by shooting takes a life, now see the child bleed.
People put your hands together.
This message now must be sent.
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done.
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One.
Political attention feeds the symptoms not the cure.
While citizens go homeless and the workers become the poor.
Countries in disagreement while the innocent shed their lives.
These natural disasters should be opening our eyes!
People put your hands together this message now must be sent.
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right through the pouring rain.
We know it can be done.
World Peace Before 2021.
Now, take a look around at what's right from what's wrong.
We’ve got to keep believing and we’ve got to be strong!
So... People put your hands together.
This message, now must be sent
The cries of war, cries of pain, starvation and corruption All must come to an end.
So let the Sun shine down upon you right thru the pourin’ rain.
We've got to get together.
It doesn’t matter who’s to blame.
Just hold on to the faith and cry out what you believe.
We know it can be done!
World Peace Before Two Thousand Twenty One.
***
Thank You Axil, for feeding the fires of Hope that will surely help make America her best.
Share this. Hope. Nurture the next generations.........
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