The year 2007 began on a high note for me. No sooner followed a few setbacks. The choices were hard and the solutions seemed scarce. Time, friends and family kept the rhythm of life flowing. I don't have any regrets. It was indeed one of those life lessons. Perhaps I had to learn it the hard way. Given the same situation now, I probably would handle it differently.
Mid year came, I had to make some deceive decisions relating to my career. It was a tough one to make at the time. Looking back at it now, I know I made the right choice.
All in all, I have enough hallmark moments I can take away with me to the year 2008. I suppose at the end of it all, it really comes down to two things for me.
* The people…. who left a foot print in my life.
* The moments/memories…. that made me smile, happy and sad.
As you might have realized, this year has been a mixed bag of experiences for me. Through it all, I am proud to say that I have learned, grown and matured!
"Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning, but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us." ~ Hal Borland
As I step into another new year, I have hope…Hope of better days for you and me. What will year 2008 have in store for us?
Senin, 31 Desember 2007
Jumat, 28 Desember 2007
Earn More Money With Smorty
Smorty is a service that connects bloggers and advertisers.
How Smorty can benifit you
Bloggers
• You could to write reviews about the campaigns that are offered to you.
• Use the affiliate program and earn some extra dollars
Advertisers
• Advertise on blogs and get as many back links from the them as possible
• Increase your exposure
Payment details
• Smorty assignments generally range from $6 - $15 each
• Payment is done via Paypal, on a weekly basis.
My 2 cents;
• The registering process is very easy. You can join for free. Once the your blog is approved, you can begin your assignments. I was amazed when I received an approval mail within a day.
• The user interface of the website is simple and easy to understand. It will be suited even for someone who just entered the blogging world.
• The requirements of each Smorty assignment is well-explained in detail. The cost for the post is also indicated along with it. Thus, considering the time and the effort spent you can decide whether its worthwhile going ahead with the assignment.
• The payment doesn’t make one too enthusiastic. However, if you have some time on your hands and can write several posts a day… um.. do the calculations!
• If you love making money online using your blog, give Smorty a try and get paid to blog!
How Smorty can benifit you
Bloggers
• You could to write reviews about the campaigns that are offered to you.
• Use the affiliate program and earn some extra dollars
Advertisers
• Advertise on blogs and get as many back links from the them as possible
• Increase your exposure
Payment details
• Smorty assignments generally range from $6 - $15 each
• Payment is done via Paypal, on a weekly basis.
My 2 cents;
• The registering process is very easy. You can join for free. Once the your blog is approved, you can begin your assignments. I was amazed when I received an approval mail within a day.
• The user interface of the website is simple and easy to understand. It will be suited even for someone who just entered the blogging world.
• The requirements of each Smorty assignment is well-explained in detail. The cost for the post is also indicated along with it. Thus, considering the time and the effort spent you can decide whether its worthwhile going ahead with the assignment.
• The payment doesn’t make one too enthusiastic. However, if you have some time on your hands and can write several posts a day… um.. do the calculations!
• If you love making money online using your blog, give Smorty a try and get paid to blog!
Rabu, 26 Desember 2007
2007 Wind Down Of Enhance Life
I am going to uphold the tradition I started last year continue with my nominees for the year 2007.
* Most commented post - Its a tie between The Heart Of A Leader By Ken Blanchard and people Come Into Your Life For A Reason, A Season Or A Lifetime
* Most linked post (source:Technorati)- Top 5 Ways To Make Your Week-End Last Longer
* Most visited post (source:Google Analytics)- people Come Into Your Life For A Reason, A Season Or A Lifetime
* Favorite post - A Journal Doesn’t Have To Be A ‘Dear Diary’
* Debatable post - Are We There Yet?
* Blogging post - 6 'American Idol Ways' To Enhance Your Blogging
* Humor post - Top 5 Reasons Why The Voices Inside Your Head Talk Only To You
* Health post - Staying Motivated When We Don't Loose Weight, The Way We Want!
* Book review post - Reaching Your Potential By Norman Vincent Peale
* ‘Such is Life’ post - Designing Your future Begins Here ….
* Living simplified post - 6 Timeless Ways To Stay Out Of Trouble
* Relationship post- How To Easily (and Lazily!) Make Your Loved One Feel Special
* Finance post- 10 Questions that Determine your Financial Fitness
* Seasonal post – The Best Christmas Gift You Can Give Yourself
Many thanks for your all your comments, contributions and, most of all, continued
interest in Enhance Life. I enjoy writing it and it's always great to hear that other people enjoy reading it :-)
Please leave a comment and make your vote heard!
* Most commented post - Its a tie between The Heart Of A Leader By Ken Blanchard and people Come Into Your Life For A Reason, A Season Or A Lifetime
* Most linked post (source:Technorati)- Top 5 Ways To Make Your Week-End Last Longer
* Most visited post (source:Google Analytics)- people Come Into Your Life For A Reason, A Season Or A Lifetime
* Favorite post - A Journal Doesn’t Have To Be A ‘Dear Diary’
* Debatable post - Are We There Yet?
* Blogging post - 6 'American Idol Ways' To Enhance Your Blogging
* Humor post - Top 5 Reasons Why The Voices Inside Your Head Talk Only To You
* Health post - Staying Motivated When We Don't Loose Weight, The Way We Want!
* Book review post - Reaching Your Potential By Norman Vincent Peale
* ‘Such is Life’ post - Designing Your future Begins Here ….
* Living simplified post - 6 Timeless Ways To Stay Out Of Trouble
* Relationship post- How To Easily (and Lazily!) Make Your Loved One Feel Special
* Finance post- 10 Questions that Determine your Financial Fitness
* Seasonal post – The Best Christmas Gift You Can Give Yourself
Many thanks for your all your comments, contributions and, most of all, continued
interest in Enhance Life. I enjoy writing it and it's always great to hear that other people enjoy reading it :-)
Please leave a comment and make your vote heard!
Minggu, 23 Desember 2007
The Boston Globe - Dangerous Treatment
The provisional reauthorization was given by the Department of Mental Retardation, which is responsible for overseeing the shock therapy program. The Rotenberg Center is the only school in the nation that depends so heavily on shock treatments for its students, most of whom are autistic, mentally retarded, or have serious emotional problems.Source: boston.com via Boston
I wish more people would speak out about these abuses and stop these type of "treatments".
Jumat, 21 Desember 2007
The Best Christmas Gift You Can Give Yourself
It’s that time of the year …
The city is nicely lit with various breathtaking decorations. The roads are never a lonely sight. There are so many people walking about, one begins to wonder where they were all through the year!
I bet you also did your round of shopping for your loved ones. Did you get something for yourself as well? Probably spent a few dollars on that as well huh?
The gift I am proposing doesn’t cost you anything, in terms of any financial sense. If you thought this post was a way of using affiliate marketing… shame on you. :-)
I can’t take any credit for this idea. The idea originated from one of my mother’s good friend’s. She is an UK citizen and came to Sri Lanka(that’s where I live!) for a short holiday. About a week before her flight, she discovered a small lump under her chin while washing her face. As days passed by she began to get a tingling pain and went to the doctor to get it checked. The doctor had given her medication and as a precautionary measure asked her to get a biopsy done as well. She continued with her holiday plans and came to Sri Lanka. After a few days in Sri Lanka, she got her report. The biopsy confirmed that she has cancer. The doctor instructed her to come to UK immediately to proceed with chemotherapy.
With much regret she re-scheduled her flight. Even though she wanted to stay in Sri Lanka for about 5 weeks, the holiday was cut short. Hearing about it my mother went to visit her. When she talked about Christmas and what she wanted this year this is what she has said. “I want to have the courage to HOPE, that I will able to have by pass this hurdle and be back in Sri Lanka next year to relive the Christmas I couldn’t have this year.”
When my mother related the story to me, I was really moved. In my childhood days I too have spent time with her, and it was hard to believe that such things could happen to some I know.
Within each of us, there usually is something we long for. It may not be something as crucial as surviving cancer. You may have dreams which are yet to come true.So keep that HOPE alive. Don’t give up.
This Christmas 2007, I truly wish that you get what you HOPE for. Very Merry Christmas. Have a good one!
Related posts
So This is Christmas....
My Humble Christmas Request
The city is nicely lit with various breathtaking decorations. The roads are never a lonely sight. There are so many people walking about, one begins to wonder where they were all through the year!
I bet you also did your round of shopping for your loved ones. Did you get something for yourself as well? Probably spent a few dollars on that as well huh?
The gift I am proposing doesn’t cost you anything, in terms of any financial sense. If you thought this post was a way of using affiliate marketing… shame on you. :-)
I can’t take any credit for this idea. The idea originated from one of my mother’s good friend’s. She is an UK citizen and came to Sri Lanka(that’s where I live!) for a short holiday. About a week before her flight, she discovered a small lump under her chin while washing her face. As days passed by she began to get a tingling pain and went to the doctor to get it checked. The doctor had given her medication and as a precautionary measure asked her to get a biopsy done as well. She continued with her holiday plans and came to Sri Lanka. After a few days in Sri Lanka, she got her report. The biopsy confirmed that she has cancer. The doctor instructed her to come to UK immediately to proceed with chemotherapy.
With much regret she re-scheduled her flight. Even though she wanted to stay in Sri Lanka for about 5 weeks, the holiday was cut short. Hearing about it my mother went to visit her. When she talked about Christmas and what she wanted this year this is what she has said. “I want to have the courage to HOPE, that I will able to have by pass this hurdle and be back in Sri Lanka next year to relive the Christmas I couldn’t have this year.”
When my mother related the story to me, I was really moved. In my childhood days I too have spent time with her, and it was hard to believe that such things could happen to some I know.
Within each of us, there usually is something we long for. It may not be something as crucial as surviving cancer. You may have dreams which are yet to come true.So keep that HOPE alive. Don’t give up.
This Christmas 2007, I truly wish that you get what you HOPE for. Very Merry Christmas. Have a good one!Related posts
So This is Christmas....
My Humble Christmas Request
Selasa, 18 Desember 2007
Tame Your Temper; 6 Tips That Actually Work
You don’t wake up in the morning thinking “I am going to get mad today”. But it happens. There are moments in life where you get so annoyed, that you lose your temper and say and do things you might regret.
The following excerpt from the book It’s ok to ask them to work sums it up pretty well.
With or without your knowledge, your outbursts negatively affect your relationships. Ranging from your family to friends to co-works or may be even totally unknown people you meet on the road! Yes, I know, controlling your temper is not as easy as it sounds. However, try... you will get there..
1. Will it matter?
I went to a friend’s place one morning, to help her out with her baby’s first birthday party. She had nicely cleaned the main dining table when her eldest son( 4 yr old) Mark came and sat down for breakfast. The dog, who was sitting by our side, saw Mark and ran to greet him. Mark shifted his hand to pat the dog's head and accidentally split the milk on the table and then it dripped into the carpet. My friend was furious. She lost her temper and if I wasn’t there I think she probably would have even hit him. Later on of course she felt very guilty about her outburst and apologized profusely to Mark.
When confronted with such situations, ask your self “Will it matter in x years time?” Sometimes we just “lose it” over things that don’t really matter in the long run
2. Take a break
If you are trying to negotiate something you want, but you are not getting your way…. your emotions start to boil and you tend to lose your cool. Take a break.
Yes, count down to 10(heard it before huh?), take deep breaths. It all helps. If you have some paper around you, its also a nice feeling to tear the papers apart!
3. Give the other person a break!
Countless times I hear my father yell to drivers passing by, for various wrong doings. In fact, sometimes people yell at him too, for his maniac driving!
Have a bit of patient and visualize yourself doing the same thing. Come on now, give the other person a break!
4. Physical exercise
When I am annoyed or angry I like to take long walks, run or even swim. I even played badminton once, picturing the face of the person I was mad with on the shuttle cock! Seriously, It works.
5. Write it down
Sometimes, when people make us mad, you have so many things we want to tell them but out of courtesy you can’t. So write those thoughts. Of course make sure that they don’t get into the wrong hands ;-)
6. Monitor your progress
Keep an anger log. Note down the situations you got really mad and how you reacted.
What techniques do you use to control your anger?
Related posts
The Strongest Principle Of Growth Lies In Human Choice
Why Do Smart People Do Stupid Things Sometimes?
6 Ways to make you feel good (when the going gets tough)
The following excerpt from the book It’s ok to ask them to work sums it up pretty well.
The madder you get, the dumber you are
I never met a person who could make better decisions when angry than when calm. We even have a word for this:Irrational. Not rational. Not thinking.
Who among us has not-in the heat of an argument-said and done things that we would have moved heaven and earth to un-say and un-do when we finally returned to out rational state. Our observations and our lived experience validate it. The madder we get, the dumber we are. Our challenge, then, is to manage ourselves in a way that we can avoid anger-at least the trembling anger that leaves us sputtering rather than speaking. Anger creates situations that rupture relationships, ruptured relationships lead to enemies, and enemies accumulate.
With or without your knowledge, your outbursts negatively affect your relationships. Ranging from your family to friends to co-works or may be even totally unknown people you meet on the road! Yes, I know, controlling your temper is not as easy as it sounds. However, try... you will get there..
1. Will it matter?
I went to a friend’s place one morning, to help her out with her baby’s first birthday party. She had nicely cleaned the main dining table when her eldest son( 4 yr old) Mark came and sat down for breakfast. The dog, who was sitting by our side, saw Mark and ran to greet him. Mark shifted his hand to pat the dog's head and accidentally split the milk on the table and then it dripped into the carpet. My friend was furious. She lost her temper and if I wasn’t there I think she probably would have even hit him. Later on of course she felt very guilty about her outburst and apologized profusely to Mark.
When confronted with such situations, ask your self “Will it matter in x years time?” Sometimes we just “lose it” over things that don’t really matter in the long run
2. Take a break
If you are trying to negotiate something you want, but you are not getting your way…. your emotions start to boil and you tend to lose your cool. Take a break.
Yes, count down to 10(heard it before huh?), take deep breaths. It all helps. If you have some paper around you, its also a nice feeling to tear the papers apart!
3. Give the other person a break!
Countless times I hear my father yell to drivers passing by, for various wrong doings. In fact, sometimes people yell at him too, for his maniac driving!
Have a bit of patient and visualize yourself doing the same thing. Come on now, give the other person a break!
4. Physical exercise
When I am annoyed or angry I like to take long walks, run or even swim. I even played badminton once, picturing the face of the person I was mad with on the shuttle cock! Seriously, It works.
5. Write it down
Sometimes, when people make us mad, you have so many things we want to tell them but out of courtesy you can’t. So write those thoughts. Of course make sure that they don’t get into the wrong hands ;-)
6. Monitor your progress
Keep an anger log. Note down the situations you got really mad and how you reacted.
What techniques do you use to control your anger?
Related posts
The Strongest Principle Of Growth Lies In Human Choice
Why Do Smart People Do Stupid Things Sometimes?
6 Ways to make you feel good (when the going gets tough)
Kamis, 13 Desember 2007
Why Read Books When We Have Blogs?
This was one of the lunch table topics yesterday. I know it’s a bit geeky for a lunch time conversation. But hey, I work for a software firm!
Anyway, I thought I would take the discussion further by writing a post about it. Here are some thoughts by my fellow colleagues.
* Most people who write books have blogs. They use the blog as a means of advertising for the book. In order to create an interest about the book, the blog entries revolve around book.
* A blog post can be read and done with in quick time. It was argued that it is sometimes a summarized version of a book.
* Blogs are free, books are not!
My 2 cents on the matter
* Books are generally centered around one main goal or rather a central idea. Every chapter in book is structure in a manner to achieve that goal. (Generally speaking of course!)
*Unless it’s a series of posts, blog entries are rarely inter-related.
* Not everyone who has a blog write a book. In terms of sharing ideas, the possibilities are endless.
* For novels/ fiction etc you NEED books. I can’t picture myself reading a novel on a blog.
* Books are more portable and hazzle free!
My Conclusion: we need the best of both worlds. What your view on this?
Related Posts:
Why In The World Do I Blog
What Every Blogger Ought To Know About Outstanding Bloggers
Do You Know The Most Important Parameter For Building A Better Blog?
Anyway, I thought I would take the discussion further by writing a post about it. Here are some thoughts by my fellow colleagues.
* Most people who write books have blogs. They use the blog as a means of advertising for the book. In order to create an interest about the book, the blog entries revolve around book.
* A blog post can be read and done with in quick time. It was argued that it is sometimes a summarized version of a book.
* Blogs are free, books are not!
My 2 cents on the matter
* Books are generally centered around one main goal or rather a central idea. Every chapter in book is structure in a manner to achieve that goal. (Generally speaking of course!)
*Unless it’s a series of posts, blog entries are rarely inter-related.
* Not everyone who has a blog write a book. In terms of sharing ideas, the possibilities are endless.
* For novels/ fiction etc you NEED books. I can’t picture myself reading a novel on a blog.
* Books are more portable and hazzle free!
My Conclusion: we need the best of both worlds. What your view on this?
Related Posts:
Why In The World Do I Blog
What Every Blogger Ought To Know About Outstanding Bloggers
Do You Know The Most Important Parameter For Building A Better Blog?
Jumat, 07 Desember 2007
Staying Motivated When We Don't Loose Weight, The Way We Want!
As my regular readers would know, I returned from Oslo about two weeks ago. I didn’t sort out the luggage the first week thinking I will wear my old cloths for the time being. To my utter shock, I discovered that I couldn’t wear most of jeans I left behind. This led me to check my weight. Yes, I had put on a few ponds. Even though I was away for only 3 months, come to think of it I wasn’t too careful with my diet. I did a quick calculation on the Body Mass Index (BMI), and was relieved to find out that I am still in the “normal” range.With the sole motivation of fitting into my old clothes I started an exercise routine. I have been cautious with my diet as well. It has been two whole weeks now, however I am not too thrilled with the progress I made.
It is all too easy to give up and blame it on the scale. However, I still continue with the exercise routine. Here are a few things that stop me from quitting!
1. There is no quick fix
Starting from fantastic fitness machines to, too good to be true diets…. The media makes you believe that there is a quick solution out there. Watching such advertisements or even reading magazines, it seems too good to be true. I have come to realize that it is!
2. Set realistic goals
Following up on the above point, you might have seen headlines like “Loose 50 pounds in 50 days”. Yes, I agree that there many be people who have achieved that. However, the dynamics we have to deal with are different. For example due to work, I don’t get as many hours as I would like to exercise during weekdays. Thus, I need to take into account such constrains and set realistic goals. What works for you may not work for me and visa versa.
3. Temptation - The only thing I can’t resist
This is one of my biggest setbacks. It’s probably why the scale doesn’t show a favorable result. I bought several packets of chocolate at the air port duty free. Having so many chocolates, how can I not eat one?
That’s not the only temptation. Some days when I return from work I am so tired that I want to head straight to bed.
So how badly do you want to loose weight? :-)
4. Find some friends to “join” you
It can be encouraging if you are working with a group to loose weight. You will be able to discuss what works and what doesn’t. Not forgetting, sharing complaints!
5. Variety
Doing the same set of exercise every day can be very boring. I started varying it by going for swimming and playing badminton.
6. Have something to look forward to
As silly as it might sound, I am looking forward fit into my old jeans again. What do you have to look forward to?
Deciding to loose weight is rather easy. However, it takes a lot of determination and self persuasion to keep going. You have come so far, don’t give up now! Good Luck
If you find this article helpful, subscribe to Enhance Life for free updates by RSS.related posts
Relax and Unwind-Without Spending Any Money!
Health Watch: Posture Matters!
6 Ways to make you feel good (when the going gets tough)
Selasa, 04 Desember 2007
It Couldn't Be Done
By Edgar A. Guest
Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "cannot be done," and you'll do it.
Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "cannot be done," and you'll do it.
Jumat, 30 November 2007
What Would You Do, If You Were Not Doing, What You Are Doing Today?
Confused with that question? Let me explain. I was watching "Nothing personal" (a interview program) a few days ago and this was a question posed by the interviewer to a famous cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya. He said he doesn't have an answer to that because cricket is what he has been doing since he was 11 years old.
That question got me thinking too. When I was 8 years old, I wanted to become a veterinarian. I wanted to save the animal kindom from all it's sorrows! Needless to say that at the time, I loved pets! Little by little, I realized that it took more than that to actually become a veterinarian!
Several years later, I am not even close to being what I wanted to be. Rather, I now work for a software company. I know that it wasn't my childhood dream, but believe it or not I enjoy what I do. Looking back now, I don't think that I want to change steer my career in any other direction.
I asked my self the same question, "What would you do if you were not doing, what you are doing?" Hm… if I was not in software I would like to have been in psychology. Yap, I know that's a drastic change. However, the more I get to know the human operating system, the more fascinated I am with psychology.
Once in a while, I think its nice to pursue an interest or hobby that you couldn't do. I know a few people who make career decision based on financial matters, leaving behind what one would LIKE to do. But that doesn't mean you have to give up, what you love entirely.
So, What Would You Do, If You Were Not Doing, What You Are Doing Today?
Kamis, 29 November 2007
Contact Me
I would love to hear your comments, inquiries and suggestions. Enter your message and information in the form below, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
Rabu, 28 November 2007
Renegade School Board Member Educates Parents On ADHD Alternatives
ADHD has never been proven to be a neuro-developmental disease by any
of the currently acceptable scientific standards. There is a lack of
empirical evidence (meaning it cannot be repeated, tested, measured, or
verified) that ADHD is a disease by definition. Therefore, to make such
a claim is fraudulent.
Jumat, 23 November 2007
Drug Free World
Great videos from the Foundation for a Drug Free World. Check out this educational program.
Tags: drugs | EDUCATIONAL | Health | Scientology | video
Download Human Rights PSA
Great educational tools for students. You can download these and pass them along! Better yet, become a member and help make Human Rights a Reality.
Tags: Culture | Youth for Human Rights
Senin, 19 November 2007
Growth in animal farming increases disease risks for humans, says FAO
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has issued a serious warning against animal farming, especially intensive animal farming, for its risks to human health in a report entitled Industrial Livestock Production and Global Health Risks, published in September 2007 .“The risk of disease transmission from animals to humans will increase in the future due to human and livestock population growth, dynamic changes in livestock production, the emergence of worldwide agro-food networks and a significant increase in the mobility of people and goods,” writes FAO in this policy brief [emphasis added].
Excessive concentration of animals in large scale industrial production units should be avoided, said Joachim Otte, FAO livestock policy expert.
The FAO stresses the reality of the enormous growth in both demand for meat and industrial animal rearing in recent years due to their expansion in Third World countries. In Asia, South America and parts of Africa, traditional animal farming methods are being replaced by intensive ones.
“These developments have potentially serious consequences for local and global disease risks, which, so far, have not been widely recognized by policy makers,” observed Joseph Domenech, FAO Chief Veterinary Officer.
Internationally, pig and poultry productions are the fastest growing and industrializing of all animal farming sectors, and industrial pig and poultry productions depend on a great movement of live animals. The movement of animals and the concentration of a high number of confined animals increases the likelihood of transfer of pathogens (disease-causing agents). In addition, confined animal houses produce a lot of waste, which may contain great quantities of pathogens and is disposed of on land without treatment, posing an infection risk for wild mammals and birds.
The highly pathogenic H5N1 virus is now a major international concern, but the ‘silent’ circulation of influenza A viruses (IAVs) in poultry and pigs should also be closely monitored globally, said FAO. Some IAVs are now widespread in commercial poultry and pigs and could lead to the emergence of a human influenza pandemic.
Although generally speaking this is in no way earth-shattering news in the sense that it’s what the animal rights movement has been saying for decades, it’s interesting to note that the body responsible for issuing these warnings is now a United Nations organization, with no concern for animal equality but purely for human health.
Minggu, 18 November 2007
Selasa, 13 November 2007
Selasa, 06 November 2007
Artists for Human Rights Southern Africa
Arts Festival of Southern Africa
Sunday 21 Oct 2007
Sunday 21 Oct 2007
Click here for more info
The Arts Festival of Southern Africa takes place at the beginning of March each year.
The Festival is there to encourage artists in any and every field of the arts. Artists are an invaluable part of our society. A nation in which its artists are suppressed - and there have been a great number - is a drab and unhappy nation. Fortunately, South African arts and artists are booming. The nation is booming. It's no coincidence that the two are linked!
Based on the now famous Saint Hill® International Arts Festival, our Arts Festival has gone from strength to strength and is the highlight of the year for performers, artists, and audiences alike!
The philosophy behind the festival...
"The rehabilitation of that art-ability of a culture is a tremendously valid undertaking, and will repay a culture a thousand times over for any effort made in that direction. A culture is only as great as its dreams and its dreams are dreamed by artists."
L. Ron Hubbard
(Science of Survival Book 2, Chapter 18)
This statement by world-renowned humanitarian and philosopher, L. Ron Hubbard, is the inspiration and philosophy behind the Arts Festival of Southern Africa, which has as its purposes:
To rehabilitate the art-ability of people;
To create a safe environment for Artists that is without criticism, invalidation or evaluation, and where Artists of all levels feel confident to create their art;
To provide a platform where professional Artists or people who are considered to be experts in their field can deliver workshops to help, assist and train would-be Artists, thereby awakening the art-ability of people;
To impart the technology in the field of Arts as contained in the works of L. Ron Hubbard.
Our concerts are renowned for their friendly and welcoming atmosphere. Our audiences are there to see you win, not fail!
The arts can be tough, especially when lack of recognition or invalidation of your skills is used to put you down. Our Festival is intent on building up your confidence while having a great time, to the point where previous fears of performing or showing your art, fades away and you will finally know your own worth.
Kamis, 01 November 2007
Eating bacon and sausages every day increases cancer risk by 20%, new authoritative report says
A comprehensive, authoritative, 517-page new study published this Wednesday by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research points to three major lifestyle factors contributing to a much greater danger of contracting cancer: obesity, alcohol and not least red meat, especially processed or cured meats.
The cancer risk from processed meats is now considered to be comparable to that from smoking as a long recognised risk for lung cancer.
Eating 50 grams of cured meat a day increases the risk of colorectal (bowel) cancer by 21%. Compare that to tobacco: smoking 20 cigarettes every day increases the risk of lung cancer 20 to 40 fold.
The study simply recommends to avoid all processed meats like bacon, ham, sausages, salami and similar meats. For them there is no safe level of consumption, says Martin Wiseman, project director of the report.
This report represents the most comprehensive review of the evidence on the subject, and is considered a landmark. It is the result of five years of work by nine teams of 21 scientists who are world experts on cancer, who reviewed 7,000 studies on diet, weight, exercise, and their links to cancer.
Several types of food carry a risk of tumour, but nothing is as dangerous as cured or processed meat, because the bad effect of red meat is enhanced by the curing process. Bacon, ham, sausages, salami are particularly harmful.
It’s nothing fundamentally new. In fact the conclusions of the study are in harmony with the dietary recommendations of the World Health Organization, medical bodies, health experts, governments health departments: eat lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains and reduce or avoid red meats, dairy products and fats if you wish to protect yourself against heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
But it’s something that most people still do not know well enough.
The American Institute for Cancer Research also published a survey of 1,000 American adults showing that the majority do not understand these risks. 71 per cent of the people interviewed still incorrectly think that pesticides are a major cancer risk, whereas in fact they are not even remotely the biggest culprit, given the infinitesimal amount in which they are normally ingested by human consumers. There is no evidence that pesticides are a risk factor in cancer.
But the “nice” foods that the general population of the West has grown up believing to be good for them are actually the worst killers, comparable to tobacco.
Of the people polled in the survey, just 38 per cent was aware of the link between cured meats and cancer, and only 49 per cent knew that diets poor in fruits and vegetables increased the risk of cancer.
"Americans are increasingly likely to attribute cancer to factors over which they have no control, and for which no proven links to the disease exist," the survey concludes. "This reflects an 'everything causes cancer' mindset".
It’s easy to see why: it’s harder to take control over one’s life, and make difficult choices and changes. This despite the fact that lifestyle causes of cancer are actually good news, because they mean that we can influence our future at least to a certain extent.
"We need to think about cancer as the product of many long term influences, not as something that 'just happens,'" said Dr Walter Willett, a nutrition expert at the Harvard School of Public Health in Massachusetts.
Incidentally, the new study on nutrition advises to avoid dietary supplements, which could represent a problem for vegans.
The cancer risk from processed meats is now considered to be comparable to that from smoking as a long recognised risk for lung cancer.
Eating 50 grams of cured meat a day increases the risk of colorectal (bowel) cancer by 21%. Compare that to tobacco: smoking 20 cigarettes every day increases the risk of lung cancer 20 to 40 fold.
The study simply recommends to avoid all processed meats like bacon, ham, sausages, salami and similar meats. For them there is no safe level of consumption, says Martin Wiseman, project director of the report.
This report represents the most comprehensive review of the evidence on the subject, and is considered a landmark. It is the result of five years of work by nine teams of 21 scientists who are world experts on cancer, who reviewed 7,000 studies on diet, weight, exercise, and their links to cancer.
Several types of food carry a risk of tumour, but nothing is as dangerous as cured or processed meat, because the bad effect of red meat is enhanced by the curing process. Bacon, ham, sausages, salami are particularly harmful.
It’s nothing fundamentally new. In fact the conclusions of the study are in harmony with the dietary recommendations of the World Health Organization, medical bodies, health experts, governments health departments: eat lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains and reduce or avoid red meats, dairy products and fats if you wish to protect yourself against heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
But it’s something that most people still do not know well enough.
The American Institute for Cancer Research also published a survey of 1,000 American adults showing that the majority do not understand these risks. 71 per cent of the people interviewed still incorrectly think that pesticides are a major cancer risk, whereas in fact they are not even remotely the biggest culprit, given the infinitesimal amount in which they are normally ingested by human consumers. There is no evidence that pesticides are a risk factor in cancer.
But the “nice” foods that the general population of the West has grown up believing to be good for them are actually the worst killers, comparable to tobacco.
Of the people polled in the survey, just 38 per cent was aware of the link between cured meats and cancer, and only 49 per cent knew that diets poor in fruits and vegetables increased the risk of cancer.
"Americans are increasingly likely to attribute cancer to factors over which they have no control, and for which no proven links to the disease exist," the survey concludes. "This reflects an 'everything causes cancer' mindset".
It’s easy to see why: it’s harder to take control over one’s life, and make difficult choices and changes. This despite the fact that lifestyle causes of cancer are actually good news, because they mean that we can influence our future at least to a certain extent.
"We need to think about cancer as the product of many long term influences, not as something that 'just happens,'" said Dr Walter Willett, a nutrition expert at the Harvard School of Public Health in Massachusetts.
Incidentally, the new study on nutrition advises to avoid dietary supplements, which could represent a problem for vegans.
Selasa, 30 Oktober 2007
A Brave and Startling Truth
American poet Maya Angelou wrote this poem in honor of the UN's 50th anniversary.
We, this people on a small and lonely planet
Traveling through causal space.
Past aloof stars, across the way of indifferent suns,
To a destination, where all signs tell us,
It is possible and imperative that we discover,
A brave and startling truth.
And when we come to it.
To the day of peacemaking
When we realease our fingers
From fists of hostility
And allow the pure air to cool our palms
When we come to it
When the curtain falls on the minstrel show of hate
And face sooted wth scorn are scrubbed cleand
When battlefields and coliseum
No longer rake our unique and particular sons and daughters
Up with the bruised and bloody grass
To lie in identical plots in foreign lands
when the rapacious storming of churches
The screaming racket in the temples hav ceased
When the pennants are wavin gaily
When the banners of the world tramble
Stoutly in the good, clean breeze
When we come to it.
When we let the rifles fall from our shoulders
And children dress their dolls in flags of truce
When land mines of death have been removed
And the aged my walk into evenings of peace
When religious ritual is not perfoumed
By the incense of burning flesh
And childhood dreams are not kicked awake
By nightmares of abuse
When we come to it.
Then we will confess that not the Pyramids
With their stones set in mysterious perfection
Not the Garden of Babylon
Hanging as eternal beauty
In our collective memory
Not the Grand Canyon
Kindled in delicious color
By western sunsets
Not the Danube flowing in its blue soul into Europe
Not the sacred peak of Mount Fuji
Stretching to the rising sun
Neither Father Amazon nor Mother Mississippi who, without favor,
Nurture all creatures in the depths and on the shores
These are not the only wonders of the world
When we come to it.
We, this people, on this minscule and kithless globe
Who reach daily for the bomb, the blad, the dagger
Yet who petition in the dark for tokens of peace
We, this people on this mote of matter
In whose mouths abide cantankerous words
Which challenge our existance
Yet out of those same mouths
Can come songs of such exquisite sweetness
That the heart falter in its labor
And the body is quieted into awe
We, this people on this small and drifting planet
Whose hands can strike with such abandon
That in a twinkling, lifeis sapped from the living
Yet those same hands can touch with such healing, irresistible tenderness
That the haughty is happy to bow
And the proud back is glad to bend
Out of such chaos, of such contradiction
When we come to it.
We, this people, on this wayward floating body
Created on this earth, of this earth
Have the power to fashion for this earth
A climate where every man and every woman
Can live freely with out sanctimonious piety
And without crippling fear
When we come to it.
We must confess that we are the possible
We are the miraculous, the true wonders of this world
That is when, and only when
We come to it.
Traveling through causal space.
Past aloof stars, across the way of indifferent suns,
To a destination, where all signs tell us,
It is possible and imperative that we discover,
A brave and startling truth.
And when we come to it.
To the day of peacemaking
When we realease our fingers
From fists of hostility
And allow the pure air to cool our palms
When we come to it
When the curtain falls on the minstrel show of hate
And face sooted wth scorn are scrubbed cleand
When battlefields and coliseum
No longer rake our unique and particular sons and daughters
Up with the bruised and bloody grass
To lie in identical plots in foreign lands
when the rapacious storming of churches
The screaming racket in the temples hav ceased
When the pennants are wavin gaily
When the banners of the world tramble
Stoutly in the good, clean breeze
When we come to it.
When we let the rifles fall from our shoulders
And children dress their dolls in flags of truce
When land mines of death have been removed
And the aged my walk into evenings of peace
When religious ritual is not perfoumed
By the incense of burning flesh
And childhood dreams are not kicked awake
By nightmares of abuse
When we come to it.
Then we will confess that not the Pyramids
With their stones set in mysterious perfection
Not the Garden of Babylon
Hanging as eternal beauty
In our collective memory
Not the Grand Canyon
Kindled in delicious color
By western sunsets
Not the Danube flowing in its blue soul into Europe
Not the sacred peak of Mount Fuji
Stretching to the rising sun
Neither Father Amazon nor Mother Mississippi who, without favor,
Nurture all creatures in the depths and on the shores
These are not the only wonders of the world
When we come to it.
We, this people, on this minscule and kithless globe
Who reach daily for the bomb, the blad, the dagger
Yet who petition in the dark for tokens of peace
We, this people on this mote of matter
In whose mouths abide cantankerous words
Which challenge our existance
Yet out of those same mouths
Can come songs of such exquisite sweetness
That the heart falter in its labor
And the body is quieted into awe
We, this people on this small and drifting planet
Whose hands can strike with such abandon
That in a twinkling, lifeis sapped from the living
Yet those same hands can touch with such healing, irresistible tenderness
That the haughty is happy to bow
And the proud back is glad to bend
Out of such chaos, of such contradiction
When we come to it.
We, this people, on this wayward floating body
Created on this earth, of this earth
Have the power to fashion for this earth
A climate where every man and every woman
Can live freely with out sanctimonious piety
And without crippling fear
When we come to it.
We must confess that we are the possible
We are the miraculous, the true wonders of this world
That is when, and only when
We come to it.
Minggu, 28 Oktober 2007
Everything Depends On The Lens You Use To See Life
This was a email forwarded to me. Normally, I scan through the subject line and delete most of the emails which are "forwards". However, the I had some time on my hands, and thought of actually checking what the mail was all about.
Isn't it true that all depends on the lens you use to see life?
One can ask himself what would happen if we give thanks for what we have instead of always asking for more.
Learn to appreciate what you have. Wealth is all in one's point of view.
One day . . . a wealthy family man took his son on a trip to the country, so he could have his son see how poor country people live.
They stayed one day and one night in the home of a very humble farmer. At the end of the trip, and when they were back home, the father asked his son, "What did you think of the trip?"
The son replied, "Very nice dad."
Then the father asked his son, "Did you notice how poor they were?"
The son replied, "Yes."
The father continued asking, "What did you learn?"
The son responded, "I learned that we have one dog in our house, and they have four.
Also, we have a fountain in our garden, but they have a stream that has no end.
And we have imported lamps in our garden . . . where they have the stars!
And our garden goes to the edge of our property. But they have the entire horizon as their back yard!"
At the end of the son's reply the father was speechless.
His son then said, "Thank you dad for showing me how poor we really are."
Isn't it true that all depends on the lens you use to see life?
One can ask himself what would happen if we give thanks for what we have instead of always asking for more.
Learn to appreciate what you have. Wealth is all in one's point of view.
Selasa, 23 Oktober 2007
New Global Network Against the Fur Industry
There is a new international network of organizations against fur, which includes groups and individual activists from the animal rights/liberation movements from various countries: Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom.
It is called Global Network Against the Fur Industry, it was formed this autumn and it’s started its activity with a campaign against the ESCADA group.
Escada is a high fashion international company, with headquarters in Aschheim/Munich, Germany. It is involved in many stages of the process of fur garments production and sales: from designing its own collections to producing them in its own factories, to selling them in its own shops, in shop-in-shops and in concessions in department stores.
The ESCADA Group owns a sussidiary company called Primera, which in turn owns other brands: apriori, BiBA, cavita and Laurèl. All these companies and brands use fur for their collections.
There are 240 ESCADA stores all over the world, mainly in Europe (130), Asia (86) and North America (25), with a few in South America, Africa, Australia. In addition, there are the stores of other brands owned by the company: almost 400 stores, mostly in Europe but also worldwide.
The choice of ESCADA as a target is due to the fact that this is a company which has a huge influence on the catwalks of the world; if Escada stops using fur, this will send a signal to the fashion industry as a whole.
The Global Network Against the Fur Industry has organized a first weekend of international action against ESCADA’s fur trade on 12th – 14th October 2007. Many protests have taken places worldwide.
In Florence, the Escada store remained closed all day on Sunday 14th October, to avoid bad publicity in view of the protest, with consequent loss of revenue. As a result, the campaigners moved their protest to a department store, COIN, to force them to stop selling fur following the example of two other major Italian department stores chains, La Rinascente and UPIM.
The ZARA, Guess, H&M campaigns show how important global cooperation of anti-fur organizations is and how effective it can be in changing the policies of major retail groups.
Visit the Global Network Against the Fur Industry new website.
It is called Global Network Against the Fur Industry, it was formed this autumn and it’s started its activity with a campaign against the ESCADA group.Escada is a high fashion international company, with headquarters in Aschheim/Munich, Germany. It is involved in many stages of the process of fur garments production and sales: from designing its own collections to producing them in its own factories, to selling them in its own shops, in shop-in-shops and in concessions in department stores.
The ESCADA Group owns a sussidiary company called Primera, which in turn owns other brands: apriori, BiBA, cavita and Laurèl. All these companies and brands use fur for their collections.
There are 240 ESCADA stores all over the world, mainly in Europe (130), Asia (86) and North America (25), with a few in South America, Africa, Australia. In addition, there are the stores of other brands owned by the company: almost 400 stores, mostly in Europe but also worldwide.
The choice of ESCADA as a target is due to the fact that this is a company which has a huge influence on the catwalks of the world; if Escada stops using fur, this will send a signal to the fashion industry as a whole.
The Global Network Against the Fur Industry has organized a first weekend of international action against ESCADA’s fur trade on 12th – 14th October 2007. Many protests have taken places worldwide.
In Florence, the Escada store remained closed all day on Sunday 14th October, to avoid bad publicity in view of the protest, with consequent loss of revenue. As a result, the campaigners moved their protest to a department store, COIN, to force them to stop selling fur following the example of two other major Italian department stores chains, La Rinascente and UPIM.
The ZARA, Guess, H&M campaigns show how important global cooperation of anti-fur organizations is and how effective it can be in changing the policies of major retail groups.
Visit the Global Network Against the Fur Industry new website.
Senin, 22 Oktober 2007
Human health and animal ethics
Human health and animal ethics posts
Human health & animal ethics: an introduction to this Category
Mesothelioma and asbestos
Carcinogens, food poisoning and meat
The greatest scientific event of the millennium
Thalidomide tragedy, side effects, history
Carcinogenicity studies on animals
Cancer and animals
The half vegan monks who are the world's healthiest people
Eating bacon and sausages every day increases cancer risk by 20%, new authoritative report says
Growth in animal farming increases disease risks for humans, says FAO
Meat workers health problems
Human health & animal ethics: an introduction to this Category
Of all the major areas of animal exploitation, two of them, animal experimentation and farming, have two fundamental characteristics in common, which will make them, in my opinion, the real battleground on which the case for animal rights and equality will be fought.
What vivisection and farming have in common is: 1) they involve an enormous number of animals, far superior, at least in the case of farming, to other areas of animal abuse; 2) there is an appearance (I underline “appearance”) of genuine conflict between the liberation of animals from these two forms of abuse and human health, which in many people’s minds, unfortunately, justifies them on moral grounds.
For this reason I’ve created a special category in the current blog, Human health and animal ethics, to explore this assumed conflict between human and non-human animal interests. In animal testing, the conflict is purported to be in the fact that renouncing it would deprive medicine of an irreplaceable tool of immense value, or at least this is the claim. In animal farming, the conflict is said to derive from the fact that humans need to eat animal flesh products to stay healthy, believed by many people to be true despite the repeated assertions to the contrary by the most prestigious medical authorities and organizations in the world, who say that the opposite is true and vegetarianism is indeed a healthier option.
All other forms of animal exploitation do not involve any real, important human interest. Nobody can claim that they will die or become ill without a fur coat (not even Eskimos), if they don’t attend circuses, if they don’t visit zoos, don’t go fishing or hunting.
The lame excuses of some of these animal abusers, like hunters justifying torturing foxes to death because they are “pests”, are only seriously believed or appeared to be believed by themselves and their close supporters.
But with vivisection and animal farming, the belief that they are necessary for human health is widely held by a majority, so it needs to be addressed with empirical and logical instruments. I’ll do that in this category, which has the advantage of tackling both major areas of animal abuse with one common approach useful for both, and I will also explore the tricky question of whether veganism can really be suitable for human health: on this issue I have to say that I am not convinced myself. People wouldn’t need vitamin tablets to supplement a vegan diet if the latter were an appropriate, fully well-balanced diet. And if you look at it from a naturalistic viewpoint, the human species is not a herbivorous species: we use a similar argument against meat-eating when we say that humans are not a carnivorous species, so it seems to me that, if we are intellectually honest, we recognize that the argument cuts both ways.
What vivisection and farming have in common is: 1) they involve an enormous number of animals, far superior, at least in the case of farming, to other areas of animal abuse; 2) there is an appearance (I underline “appearance”) of genuine conflict between the liberation of animals from these two forms of abuse and human health, which in many people’s minds, unfortunately, justifies them on moral grounds.
For this reason I’ve created a special category in the current blog, Human health and animal ethics, to explore this assumed conflict between human and non-human animal interests. In animal testing, the conflict is purported to be in the fact that renouncing it would deprive medicine of an irreplaceable tool of immense value, or at least this is the claim. In animal farming, the conflict is said to derive from the fact that humans need to eat animal flesh products to stay healthy, believed by many people to be true despite the repeated assertions to the contrary by the most prestigious medical authorities and organizations in the world, who say that the opposite is true and vegetarianism is indeed a healthier option.
All other forms of animal exploitation do not involve any real, important human interest. Nobody can claim that they will die or become ill without a fur coat (not even Eskimos), if they don’t attend circuses, if they don’t visit zoos, don’t go fishing or hunting.
The lame excuses of some of these animal abusers, like hunters justifying torturing foxes to death because they are “pests”, are only seriously believed or appeared to be believed by themselves and their close supporters.
But with vivisection and animal farming, the belief that they are necessary for human health is widely held by a majority, so it needs to be addressed with empirical and logical instruments. I’ll do that in this category, which has the advantage of tackling both major areas of animal abuse with one common approach useful for both, and I will also explore the tricky question of whether veganism can really be suitable for human health: on this issue I have to say that I am not convinced myself. People wouldn’t need vitamin tablets to supplement a vegan diet if the latter were an appropriate, fully well-balanced diet. And if you look at it from a naturalistic viewpoint, the human species is not a herbivorous species: we use a similar argument against meat-eating when we say that humans are not a carnivorous species, so it seems to me that, if we are intellectually honest, we recognize that the argument cuts both ways.
Senin, 15 Oktober 2007
Designing Your future Begins Here ….
I was at an IT workshop recently and one activity given to us was to “design the future” (as opposed to predicting!) for the next 10 years. Dealing with technology, I am sure you will agree with me when I say, imagination is the limit. I have watched several movies with a high caliber of “future technology”. I often wondered, “how in the world did they think of that!”. May be you have too.
The workshop inspired me to “design the future”, again! Yet, from a different perspective. Let’s call this edition the ‘enhance life’ edition!
Yes, Life. Do you still have one?
Unlike technology, there a few additional parameters that adds to the equation, when designing your LIFE's future. I suppose imagination is bound by reality and human emotion.
Some people might regard this post as stupid or nutty. You are welcome to your own opinion, after you need the next sentence!
In order to be where you are today, you certainly have to have designed it; knowingly or otherwise. The sequence of actions that have taken place over the last few years, has led you to, today. (And you don’t need me to tell this to you!)
Looking back, about 10 years ago I never “designed” it to be where it is today. Well, may be I partially designed it!. In some areas, designs have materialized to a construction marvel; in certain other areas, the design needs effective execution!
So what do you think?
Is a design for the future needed? Or do I go with the flow? (In a couple of years time, you will know whether you made the right choice! )
The workshop inspired me to “design the future”, again! Yet, from a different perspective. Let’s call this edition the ‘enhance life’ edition!
Yes, Life. Do you still have one?
Unlike technology, there a few additional parameters that adds to the equation, when designing your LIFE's future. I suppose imagination is bound by reality and human emotion.
Some people might regard this post as stupid or nutty. You are welcome to your own opinion, after you need the next sentence!
In order to be where you are today, you certainly have to have designed it; knowingly or otherwise. The sequence of actions that have taken place over the last few years, has led you to, today. (And you don’t need me to tell this to you!)
Looking back, about 10 years ago I never “designed” it to be where it is today. Well, may be I partially designed it!. In some areas, designs have materialized to a construction marvel; in certain other areas, the design needs effective execution!
So what do you think?
Is a design for the future needed? Or do I go with the flow? (In a couple of years time, you will know whether you made the right choice! )
Jumat, 12 Oktober 2007
San Marino bans vivisection
Maybe a small step, but it seems highly significant to me: the Republic of San Marino, an independent state lying entirely in north-east Italy, has abolished all experiments on animals.
This tiny country on the Adriatic Coast, which already has the record of being the oldest republic in the world, now can be proud of another record in the history of civilization: to be the first country on the globe to totally forbid animal experimentation.
In February of this year the Associazione Sammarinese Protezione Animali (A.P.A.S.) presented a law proposal supported by citizens’ signatures to ban vivisection, which on the 20th September 2007 has been approved by the General Council, San Marino’s legislative body.
Now San Marino can call itself a “cruelty-free country”, at least as far as animal experimentation is concerned.
"We are very happy of this result, so good and quick" say Marina Berati from NoVivisezione.org and Massimo Tettamanti, Europe manager for I-CARE (Centro Internazionale per le Alternative nella Ricerca e nella Didattica), who, along with Stefano Cagno from Rome’s Lega Anti-Vivisezione, have been helping to achieve this outcome, "and A.P.A.S. volunteers have been extremely determined and successful. From now on San Marino will be off-limits for chemical and pharmaceutical companies carrying out animal tests and for all research institutions, both public and private, often funded by unaware members of the public, which base their research on vivisection".
A.P.A.S. Press Office says that thanks to this new law, which heavily punishes animal experimenters, San Marino Republic will represent a pole of attraction for companies using methods alternative to vivisection, which are better, more reliable and cheaper too.
I don’t know how many animal tests were conducted in San Marino before the introduction of this law. But I don’t think that the number of animals saved is the only issue here. I believe that this is a breakthrough anyway, because it establishes a precedent and has great historical significance, morally and politically.
This tiny country on the Adriatic Coast, which already has the record of being the oldest republic in the world, now can be proud of another record in the history of civilization: to be the first country on the globe to totally forbid animal experimentation.
In February of this year the Associazione Sammarinese Protezione Animali (A.P.A.S.) presented a law proposal supported by citizens’ signatures to ban vivisection, which on the 20th September 2007 has been approved by the General Council, San Marino’s legislative body.
Now San Marino can call itself a “cruelty-free country”, at least as far as animal experimentation is concerned.
"We are very happy of this result, so good and quick" say Marina Berati from NoVivisezione.org and Massimo Tettamanti, Europe manager for I-CARE (Centro Internazionale per le Alternative nella Ricerca e nella Didattica), who, along with Stefano Cagno from Rome’s Lega Anti-Vivisezione, have been helping to achieve this outcome, "and A.P.A.S. volunteers have been extremely determined and successful. From now on San Marino will be off-limits for chemical and pharmaceutical companies carrying out animal tests and for all research institutions, both public and private, often funded by unaware members of the public, which base their research on vivisection".
A.P.A.S. Press Office says that thanks to this new law, which heavily punishes animal experimenters, San Marino Republic will represent a pole of attraction for companies using methods alternative to vivisection, which are better, more reliable and cheaper too.
I don’t know how many animal tests were conducted in San Marino before the introduction of this law. But I don’t think that the number of animals saved is the only issue here. I believe that this is a breakthrough anyway, because it establishes a precedent and has great historical significance, morally and politically.
Jumat, 28 September 2007
21 Golden Rules For Everyday Life
I was uncluttering my inbox when I came across this email. Hope you benifit from it :-)
ONE. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
TWO. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their
conversational skills will be as important as any other.
THREE. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you
want.
FOUR. When you say, "I love you," mean it.
FIVE. When you say, "I'm sorry," look the person in the eye.
SIX. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
SEVEN. Believe in love at first sight.
EIGHT. Never laugh at anyone's dream. People who don't have dreams don't
have much.
NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only
way to live life completely.
TEN.. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.
ELEVEN. Don't judge people by their relatives.
TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.
THIRTEEN. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer,
smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"
FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great
risk.
FIFTEEN. Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.
SIXTEEN. When you lose, don't lose the lesson
SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others;
and responsibility for all your actions.
EIGHTEEN. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
NINETEEN. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps
to correct it.
TWENTY. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your
voice.
TWENTY-ONE. Spend some time alone.
A true friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your
heart.
ONE. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
TWO. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their
conversational skills will be as important as any other.
THREE. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you
want.
FOUR. When you say, "I love you," mean it.
FIVE. When you say, "I'm sorry," look the person in the eye.
SIX. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
SEVEN. Believe in love at first sight.
EIGHT. Never laugh at anyone's dream. People who don't have dreams don't
have much.
NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only
way to live life completely.
TEN.. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.
ELEVEN. Don't judge people by their relatives.
TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.
THIRTEEN. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer,
smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"
FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great
risk.
FIFTEEN. Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.
SIXTEEN. When you lose, don't lose the lesson
SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others;
and responsibility for all your actions.
EIGHTEEN. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
NINETEEN. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps
to correct it.
TWENTY. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your
voice.
TWENTY-ONE. Spend some time alone.
A true friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your
heart.
Senin, 10 September 2007
It's Ok To Ask 'em To Work (Book excerpt)
Problems live in the past;Solutions live in the future
Problems live in the past. It is often easy, as we journey into the land of problem solving and conflict resolution, to get so wrapped up in talking about the problem that we never look to the future for the solution. This is a mistake.
None of us is fortunate enough to have a rewind button on life. We can't simply reach up and press that button, undo the wrong and make it right. The wrong has been done.
Our only option is to make changes so the wrong is not repeated. So we look to the past only long enough to identify root causes for the problems we encounter. Then we become future-focused, realizing that the solution to the problem lies in the future, the only place we yet have a change to go, live and act.
Jumat, 07 September 2007
Kamis, 06 September 2007
Artists for Human Rights International Fine Art Show
International Deadline: September 15, 2007 - Call for entries for the International Fine Art Exhibition at the James Gray Gallery in Bergamot Station, Santa Monica, CA November 14-25, 2007. Exhibition of artwork reflecting the 1948 United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Show sponsored by Artists for Human Rights, founded by Actress Anne Archer.
All qualified submissions will be included in the show in a video of human rights art. Art juried to be hung in the show will also be on the AFHR website.
DETAILS
Academy Award Nominated Actress and activist Anne Archer founded Artists for Human Rights in 2006 to inspire artists to make known and forward the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, a document that moved the issues of human rights to the forefront of international importance. One hundred and ninety-one nations on the planet ratified the Declaration, acknowledging that all peoples of the earth have these basic rights. Yet by survey 98% of the population doesn’t know it exists.
As an artist, you have a unique opportunity to make a difference globally, to communicate ideas and raise awareness of important issues such as this Universal Declaration. The state of the world today is evidence that this vital document needs a voice. We as artists are providing that voice.
In just one year, AFHR has become a driving force for Human Rights. In New York City in August 2006 it co-sponsored the Youth for Human Rights Summit at the United Nations, opened the summit with an International Human Rights Art Exhibition in Soho and put on a huge Human Rights Concert in Union Square, hosted by Anne Archer with performances by internationally renowned musicians and a film presenting each of the 30 articles of the Declaration. The NY art show then traveled to Los Angeles in October where again it drew artists, celebrities, and media attention promoting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The AFHR website has been launched (www.artistsforhumanrights.org) and an on-line gallery is now being created. In December 2007, AFHR will be featured in Italy at the International Florence Biennale.
Selasa, 04 September 2007
I Am Still Here
I know my regular posting routine has gone astray, the past few weeks. If you wondered why, it is because of my new job. I am at a new company and work-wise have a lot of learning to do.
I will be traveling to Norway tomorrow and will be there for about 3 months. This is my first trip to Norway. I am looking forward to seeing the country, and the work experience. However I am not too fond of the cold weather! If you happen to be from Norway please drop me an email. I would love to hear from you.
Anyway, I will do my best to post something once in a way. Please stay with me…
I will be traveling to Norway tomorrow and will be there for about 3 months. This is my first trip to Norway. I am looking forward to seeing the country, and the work experience. However I am not too fond of the cold weather! If you happen to be from Norway please drop me an email. I would love to hear from you.
Anyway, I will do my best to post something once in a way. Please stay with me…
Selasa, 14 Agustus 2007
It's The Journey That's Important...
By John McLeod
Life, sometimes so wearying
Is worth its weight in gold
The experience of traveling
Lends a wisdom that is old
Beyond our 'living memory'
A softly spoken prayer:
"It's the journey that's important,
Not the getting there!"
Ins and outs and ups and downs
Life's road meanders aimlessly?
Or so it seems, but somehow
Leads us where we need to be,
And being simply human
We oft question and compare....
"Is the journey so important
Or the getting there?"
And thus it's always been
That question pondered down the ages
By simple men with simple ways
To wise and ancient sages....
How sweet then, quietly knowing
Reaching destination fair:
"It's the journey that's important,
Not the getting there!"
Life, sometimes so wearying
Is worth its weight in gold
The experience of traveling
Lends a wisdom that is old
Beyond our 'living memory'
A softly spoken prayer:
"It's the journey that's important,
Not the getting there!"
Ins and outs and ups and downs
Life's road meanders aimlessly?
Or so it seems, but somehow
Leads us where we need to be,
And being simply human
We oft question and compare....
"Is the journey so important
Or the getting there?"
And thus it's always been
That question pondered down the ages
By simple men with simple ways
To wise and ancient sages....
How sweet then, quietly knowing
Reaching destination fair:
"It's the journey that's important,
Not the getting there!"
Senin, 13 Agustus 2007
Ethical wool
There is a British company producing wool garments, Izzy Lane, that is actually doing good to animals. So, if you like wool but don’t want to contribute to the exploitation and abuse of sheep, here is the solution. In the words of the founder, Isobel Davies, in her interview to London’s Sunday Times Magazine, “The more successful our clothes are, the more sheep we can save.”
This is because Isobel Davies, former member of the indie band Edith Strategy and now 45, had the idea of starting a label selling knitwear made with wool from sheep rescued from slaughter.
She became a vegetarian at 17 when she first met a vegetarian and discovered that it’s not necessary to eat meat. “From that second,” she says, “I never touched it again.”
The idea for the label Izzy Lane originated when Davies discovered that British farmers were discarding the wool from slaughtered sheep while Britain imports wool from Australia and New Zealand. She thought of using British wool and at the same time saving animals from the meat market.
So, now, whenever they hear of sheep going to be slaughtered, her company Izzy Lane buys them. They buy sheep destined to the abattoir for being male, lame, too old, or having ”blemishes” like black spots.
Her flock of Wensleydale and Shetland sheep is now living happy lives (if not treated like breeding machines, they can live for 15 years or so) in their Sheep Sanctuary. In July, when they shear them, the sheep “are relieved to be rid of their fleeces and seem rejuvenated”, as Davies put it.
Isobel says on her company’s website izzylane.co.uk: “As a longstanding vegetarian I have always been confronted with the argument that sheep would not exist if we didn’t eat them. Izzy Lane hopes to demonstrate an economic model whereby sheep can exist, be valued and have a place in our world without becoming meat. It offers another way.”
Kamis, 09 Agustus 2007
Job Interview
Source
Reaching the end of a job interview, the Human Resources person asked the hotshot young Engineer, fresh out of MIT, "And what starting salary were you looking for?"
The engineer cooly said, "In the neighborhoodof $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."
The interviewer said, "Well, what would you say to a package of 5 weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every 2 years for starters, say, a red Corvette?"
The engineer tried to control his excitement, but sat straight up and said, "Wow! Are you kidding?"
"Yeah," the interviewer shrugged, "But you started it."
Reaching the end of a job interview, the Human Resources person asked the hotshot young Engineer, fresh out of MIT, "And what starting salary were you looking for?"
The engineer cooly said, "In the neighborhoodof $125,000 a year, depending on the benefits package."
The interviewer said, "Well, what would you say to a package of 5 weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental, company matching retirement fund to 50% of salary, and a company car leased every 2 years for starters, say, a red Corvette?"
The engineer tried to control his excitement, but sat straight up and said, "Wow! Are you kidding?"
"Yeah," the interviewer shrugged, "But you started it."
Kamis, 02 Agustus 2007
40 Things You May Not Know
Source
1. Money isn't made out of paper; it's made out of cotton.
2. The 57 on Heinz ketchup bottle represents the varieties of pickle the company once had.
3. Your stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks - otherwise it will digest itself .
4. The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper.
5. The dot over the letter 'i' is called a "tittle".
6. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.
7. Susan Lucci is the daughter of Phyllis Diller.
8. A duck's quack doesn't echo ... no one knows why.
9. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.
10 Every person has a unique tongue print (no licking at the scene of a crime!).
11. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelled.
12. The 'spot' on 7UP comes from its inventor who had red eyes. He was albino.
13. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily.
14. During the chariot scene in 'Ben Hur' a small red car can be seen in the distance.
15. Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine are brother and sister.
16. Chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system; a few ounces will kill a small sized dog.
17. Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode.
18. Most lipstick contains fish scales (eeww).
19. Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants!
20. Ketchup was sold in the 1830s as medicine.
21. Upper and lower case letters are named 'upper' and 'lower' because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the 'upper case' letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the smaller, 'lower case' letters.
22. Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time.
23. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
24. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.
25. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan, there was never a recorded Wendy before!
26. There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with: orange, purple, and silver!
27. Leonardo Da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa's lips.
28. A tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
29. The mask used by Michael Myers in the original "Halloween" was a Captain Kirk mask painted white.
30. If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar.
31. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand.
32. 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.
33. American Airlines saved $40,000 in '87 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first class.
34. 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.
35. Celery has negative calories! It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with. It's the same with apples!
36. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying!
37. The glue on Israeli postage stamps is certified kosher.
38. Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.
39. Back in the mid to late 80's, an IBM compatible computer wasn't considered a hundred percent compatible unless it could run Microsoft's Flight Simulator game.
40. Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a space suit damages them.
1. Money isn't made out of paper; it's made out of cotton.
2. The 57 on Heinz ketchup bottle represents the varieties of pickle the company once had.
3. Your stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks - otherwise it will digest itself .
4. The Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper.
5. The dot over the letter 'i' is called a "tittle".
6. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.
7. Susan Lucci is the daughter of Phyllis Diller.
8. A duck's quack doesn't echo ... no one knows why.
9. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.
10 Every person has a unique tongue print (no licking at the scene of a crime!).
11. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelled.
12. The 'spot' on 7UP comes from its inventor who had red eyes. He was albino.
13. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily.
14. During the chariot scene in 'Ben Hur' a small red car can be seen in the distance.
15. Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine are brother and sister.
16. Chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system; a few ounces will kill a small sized dog.
17. Orcas (killer whales) kill sharks by torpedoing up into the shark's stomach from underneath, causing the shark to explode.
18. Most lipstick contains fish scales (eeww).
19. Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants!
20. Ketchup was sold in the 1830s as medicine.
21. Upper and lower case letters are named 'upper' and 'lower' because in the time when all original print had to be set in individual letters, the 'upper case' letters were stored in the case on top of the case that stored the smaller, 'lower case' letters.
22. Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time.
23. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
24. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.
25. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan, there was never a recorded Wendy before!
26. There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with: orange, purple, and silver!
27. Leonardo Da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa's lips.
28. A tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion will make it instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
29. The mask used by Michael Myers in the original "Halloween" was a Captain Kirk mask painted white.
30. If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar.
31. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand.
32. 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.
33. American Airlines saved $40,000 in '87 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first class.
34. 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.
35. Celery has negative calories! It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with. It's the same with apples!
36. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying!
37. The glue on Israeli postage stamps is certified kosher.
38. Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Public Libraries.
39. Back in the mid to late 80's, an IBM compatible computer wasn't considered a hundred percent compatible unless it could run Microsoft's Flight Simulator game.
40. Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a space suit damages them.
Kamis, 26 Juli 2007
First Break All Rules By Marcus Buckingham (Book Review)
I finally got my hands on First, Break All The Rules. I know this book has been around for a long time. Unfortunately I didn’t get the opportunity to read it, until now.
Overall, the book provided some new insights into selecting the right people, setting expectations, motivating, and developing them. Yes, there are millions of books that make that promise! However, I believe First, Break All The Rules is one book that actually made a great contribution.
Chapter 1: Measuring Stick
Goes on to say, the strength of a workplace can be simplified to twelve questions.
1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel my job is important?
9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work?
11. In the last six months, has someone at work talked to me about my progress?
12. This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?
Chapter 2: The Wisdom Of Great Managers
Introduced the four keys, which are discussed in detail in the next four chapters.
Chapter 3: The First Key-Select For Talent
Talks about the four categories of talent;
Striving talent - explains the why of a person
Thinking talent - explains the how of a person
Relating talent - explains the who of a person
String, Thinking and relating – Combination of all
Chapter 4: The Second Key-Define The Right Outcomes
Highlighted the importance of setting expectations.
Chapter 5: The Third Key-Focus On Strengths
I had already read Marcus Buckingham’s other book Now, Discover Your Strengths. So this chapter to me, was more or less a summary of that. As the title suggests, the advice is to focus on each person’s strength and manage around his weaknesses.
Chapter 6: The Fourth Key-Find The Right Fit
This chapter gave birth to an intriguing statement. It argues that conventional wisdom persuades most of us that the right answer to the question “ Where do I go from here?” is “up”. I will be honest, at the beginning even I thought this was a bit absurd! However, as the chapter progressed it offered many engaging examples. Towards the end, I too was convinced that, most employees are promoted to their level of incompetence!
Chapter 7: Turning the Keys-A Practical Guide
An interesting take on Interviews and performance management.
My Favorite Excerpt:
“Everyone is exceptional” has a second meaning. Everyone should be treated as an exception. Each employee has his own filter, his own way of interpreting the world around him, and therefore each employee will demand different things of you, his manager.
What I like about the book:
* The book content was very well structured.
* I give full credit to the author, for maintaining simplicity! For an area that is so complicated, he made it sound so easy!
* Almost all concepts were backed up by good examples, which were practical and useful.
* There were thought provoking questions asked in most chapters.
What I dislike about the book:
* There were some key concepts which were repeated several times throughout the book. For someone reading the book at a stretch, this can be very annoying!
Verdict:
If you are in a leadership position or plan to be ‘there’ one day, then this book is definitely a must read.
Related Posts
Re-imagine By Tom Peters (Book Review)
Building A Better Business (Book Excerpt)
The Heart Of A Leader By Ken Blanchard (Book Excerpt)
Youth for Human Rights International
"The YHRI World Tour moved on from Congo to Nairobi to Kenya. We were met by the YHRI national representative for Uganda, the YHRI rep for East Congo and the Executive Director of the Nairobi Scientology Mission, Esther Macharia.One of our first visits in Nairobi was with the executives of the African Girl and Boy Scouts, which is the biggest youth movement in Africa, with a total of 38,000 scouts across the African continent.
They declared that the PSAs are exactly what they need and want to incorporate the YHRI activities into their program before the upcoming Jamboree this August!"
Senin, 23 Juli 2007
As You Travel Through Life….
By Author Unknown
As you travel through life there are always those times
When decisions just have to be made,
When the choices are hard, and solutions seem scarce,
And the rain seems to soak your parade.
There are some situations where all you can do
Is simply let go and move on,
Gather your courage and choose a direction
That carries you toward a new dawn.
So pack up your troubles and take a step forward -
The process of change can be tough,
But think about all the excitement ahead
There might be adventures you never imagined
Just waiting around the next bend,
And wishes and dreams just about to come true
In ways you can't yet comprehend!
Perhaps you'll find friendships that spring from new things
As you challenge your status quo,
And learn there are so many options in life,
Perhaps you'll go places you never expected
And see things that you've never seen,
Or travel to fabulous, faraway worlds
And wonderful spots in between!
Perhaps you'll find warmth and affection and caring
And somebody special who's there
To help you stay cantered and listen with interest
To stories and feelings you share.
Perhaps you'll find comfort in knowing your friends
Are supportive of all that you do,
And believe that whatever decisions you make,
They'll be the right choices for you.
So keep putting one foot in front of the other,
And taking your life day by day...
There's a brighter tomorrow that's just down the road -
Don't look back! You're not going that way!
Related Posts
If I Had My Life To Live Over
A Creed To Live By
Quarter Life Crisis
As you travel through life there are always those times
When decisions just have to be made,
When the choices are hard, and solutions seem scarce,
And the rain seems to soak your parade.
There are some situations where all you can do
Is simply let go and move on,
Gather your courage and choose a direction
That carries you toward a new dawn.
So pack up your troubles and take a step forward -
The process of change can be tough,
But think about all the excitement ahead
There might be adventures you never imagined
Just waiting around the next bend,
And wishes and dreams just about to come true
In ways you can't yet comprehend!
Perhaps you'll find friendships that spring from new things
As you challenge your status quo,
And learn there are so many options in life,
Perhaps you'll go places you never expected
And see things that you've never seen,
Or travel to fabulous, faraway worlds
And wonderful spots in between!
Perhaps you'll find warmth and affection and caring
And somebody special who's there
To help you stay cantered and listen with interest
To stories and feelings you share.
Perhaps you'll find comfort in knowing your friends
Are supportive of all that you do,
And believe that whatever decisions you make,
They'll be the right choices for you.
So keep putting one foot in front of the other,
And taking your life day by day...
There's a brighter tomorrow that's just down the road -
Don't look back! You're not going that way!
Related Posts
If I Had My Life To Live Over
A Creed To Live By
Quarter Life Crisis
Senin, 16 Juli 2007
Smart Answers
* A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store, but couldn't find one big enough for her family. She asked a stock boy, Do these turkeys get any bigger?" The stock boy replied, "No ma'am, they're dead."
* The cop got out of his car and the kid who was stopped for speeding rolled down his window. "I've been waiting for you all day", the cop said. The kid replied, "Yeah, well I got here as fast as I could." When the cop finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket.
* A truck driver was driving along on the freeway. A sign comes up that reads low bridge ahead." Before he knows it the bridge is right ahead of him and he gets stuck under the bridge. Cars are backed up for miles. Finally, a police car comes up. The cop gets out of his car and walks around to the truck driver, puts his hands on his hips and says, "Got stuck, huh?" The truck driver says, "No, I was delivering this bridge and ran out of gas."
* A girl was visiting her blonde friend who had acquired two new dogs, and asked her what their names were. The blonde responded by saying that one was named Rolex and one was named Timex. The friend said, "Whoever heard of someone naming dogs like that?" "Hellooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" answered the blonde."They're watch dogs!"
* The cop got out of his car and the kid who was stopped for speeding rolled down his window. "I've been waiting for you all day", the cop said. The kid replied, "Yeah, well I got here as fast as I could." When the cop finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket.
* A truck driver was driving along on the freeway. A sign comes up that reads low bridge ahead." Before he knows it the bridge is right ahead of him and he gets stuck under the bridge. Cars are backed up for miles. Finally, a police car comes up. The cop gets out of his car and walks around to the truck driver, puts his hands on his hips and says, "Got stuck, huh?" The truck driver says, "No, I was delivering this bridge and ran out of gas."
* A girl was visiting her blonde friend who had acquired two new dogs, and asked her what their names were. The blonde responded by saying that one was named Rolex and one was named Timex. The friend said, "Whoever heard of someone naming dogs like that?" "Hellooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" answered the blonde."They're watch dogs!"
Minggu, 15 Juli 2007
Good Deeds Get Rewarded (Even Here On Planet Earth!)
I was flipping through the television channels, when I came across the drama One Tree HillNext thing you know, I was wrapped up in this show! Normally, I just scoff at shows of this nature, but on this particular day, I happened to watch the episode. Don’t worry I won’t go into all the details; There was one heart warning moment, and I wanted to share it with you.
I will leave out the actual names of the characters for the benefit of those readers who are not familiar with the show.
Here goes,
A young man, visits an old man called Mel, every Saturday, at an elder’s home. One day, he took his date along with him to meet Mel. Apparently, Mel has been a popular and successful race car driver in his day! So, this girl suggested that they take Mel to a race track and do the go car thing. Mel enjoyed it very much. Then the girl comments, ‘Mel probably won't forget their big night for awhile’. Then this young man tells her that Mel is his grandfather who is suffering from the Alzheimer's disease. He went on to say that Mel most likely won't remember any of it of the good time he had that day.
She asks him why he keeps coming to see his grandpa when he'll just forget. The young man replies, “I will remember. Mel doesn't have much more time, and besides, no one should die alone”
I have often wondered why, some people risk their own lives to rescue total strangers. Tsunami, earth quakes, bombs etc… If you haven’t witnessed in real life, I am sure you must have at least seen it on television.
Now, I think I understand - Why.
Rabu, 11 Juli 2007
Enhance Life: Link Nuggets (June 11, 2007)
Liz has a wonderful take on The Ferrari Analogy for Organized WritingWe do several things in order to relax. However, have you every tried Using Your Craft to Relax.... 10 Ways To Have A Happy Work DayRelated Posts
Enhance Life: Link Nuggets (March 15, 2007)
Enhance Life: Link Nuggets (May 5, 2007)
Sabtu, 07 Juli 2007
Do You Know The Most Important Parameter For Building A Better Blog?
Lately though, I have begun to notice that most of the advice given in these articles revolve around one key “parameter”. What does that mean? Well, advice is all well and good… In most blogs ;-) . However, if we are to successfully improve, I would say we need a good balance of ….
There are plenty of blogs, blogging about building a better blog. They offer numerous ways of improving your blog. I have also contributed my share of blogging guidance.
Time
I wish I had endless hours to work on my blog. Sadly though, reality speaks otherwise. Unless you are full time blogger, you might squeeze a few minutes here and there to write a post. In most cases, it reflects on your post.
In order to reduce the time spent on a particular post, most of us purposefully compromise on perfection; Yes, quality indeed.
Proof reading
Some people are blindly sloppy. Others, simply “compromise” on proof reading. I am guilty as charged. On rare occasions, I just glimpse through once and then press the publish button.
Pardon me!
Content
You can’t transform yourself into a creative, free thought maverick everyday! Ideas are hard to come by sometimes.
I generally don’t write when I don’t have anything “moving” to add. However, I have come across a couple of blog posts, which are written for the sake of writing! Written for the sake of keeping the blogging rhythm ticking.
Spending a little more time on a headline, image or even structure… could it ultimately make your blog post better?
Blogging relationships
Do you take the time to reply your email, comments? Hm…
Well, those were a few examples that are somewhat obvious, I am sure you can think of more. What can you do about them? Hm……
Related Posts
6 'American Idol Ways' To Enhance Your Blogging
What Every Blogger Ought To Know About Outstanding Bloggers
Are We Blogging For Attention?
There are plenty of blogs, blogging about building a better blog. They offer numerous ways of improving your blog. I have also contributed my share of blogging guidance.
Time
I wish I had endless hours to work on my blog. Sadly though, reality speaks otherwise. Unless you are full time blogger, you might squeeze a few minutes here and there to write a post. In most cases, it reflects on your post.
In order to reduce the time spent on a particular post, most of us purposefully compromise on perfection; Yes, quality indeed.
Proof reading
Some people are blindly sloppy. Others, simply “compromise” on proof reading. I am guilty as charged. On rare occasions, I just glimpse through once and then press the publish button.
Pardon me!
Content
You can’t transform yourself into a creative, free thought maverick everyday! Ideas are hard to come by sometimes.
I generally don’t write when I don’t have anything “moving” to add. However, I have come across a couple of blog posts, which are written for the sake of writing! Written for the sake of keeping the blogging rhythm ticking.
Spending a little more time on a headline, image or even structure… could it ultimately make your blog post better?
Blogging relationships
Do you take the time to reply your email, comments? Hm…
Well, those were a few examples that are somewhat obvious, I am sure you can think of more. What can you do about them? Hm……
Related Posts
6 'American Idol Ways' To Enhance Your Blogging
What Every Blogger Ought To Know About Outstanding Bloggers
Are We Blogging For Attention?
Selasa, 03 Juli 2007
Ponder A While With These Quotations
# “Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." ~ Peter Drucker
# “What I know is, is that if you do work that you love, and the work fulfills you, the rest will come” ~ Oprah Winfrey
# “Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” ~ Abigail Adams
# “He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
# “Experience is the name so many people give to their mistakes” ~ Oscar Wilde
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# “What I know is, is that if you do work that you love, and the work fulfills you, the rest will come” ~ Oprah Winfrey
# “Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” ~ Abigail Adams
# “He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
# “Experience is the name so many people give to their mistakes” ~ Oscar Wilde
Related Posts
Quotes That Make Me Smile
6 Timeless Ways To Stay Out Of Trouble
Unintentionally Funny Movie Conversations
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