perspective

 Helps to keep it all in perspective.
 This is something we should all read at least once a week!
 Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio
 "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
 It is the most-requested column I've ever written."
 
My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

 

 1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
 3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
 4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
 5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
 6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
 7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
 8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile..
 11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
 12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
 13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
 17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
 18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
 19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
 23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
 24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'
 27. Always choose life.
 28. Forgive everyone everything.
 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
 33. Believe in miracles.
 34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
 35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young..
 37. Your children get only one childhood.
 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
 41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
 42. The best is yet to come. 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
 44. Yield.
 45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

 

 Its estimated 93% won't forward this.

If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%'. 

I'm in the 7%.

 Remember that I will always share my spoon with you!
 Friends are the family that we choose for ourselves.

Dalai Lama

 

All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives.


Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.


Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.


I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.


If you can, help others; if you cannot do that, at least do not harm them.


If you have a particular faith or religion, that is good. But you can survive without it.


If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.


In the practice of tolerance, one's enemy is the best teacher.


It is necessary to help others, not only in our prayers, but in our daily lives. If we find we cannot help others, the least we can do is to desist from harming them.


It is very important to generate a good attitude, a good heart, as much as possible. From this, happiness in both the short term and the long term for both yourself and others will come.


Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.


My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.


Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day.


Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.


Sleep is the best meditation.


Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent.


The purpose of our lives is to be happy.


The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness.


The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual's own reason and critical analysis.


There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness.

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.


Today, more than ever before, life must be characterized by a sense of Universal responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to other forms of life.


We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection.


We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.


Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.


Whether one believes in a religion or not, and whether one believes in rebirth or not, there isn't anyone who doesn't appreciate kindness and compassion.


With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence in one's ability, one can build a better world.

China 's Las Vegas

China 's Las Vegas

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=uI2kO4qTi80&vq=medium 

ADVICE FROM AN UNDERSTANDING RETIRED HUSBAND...

It is important for men to remember that, as women grow older, it becomes harder for them to maintain the same quality of house keeping as when they were younger. When you notice this, try not to yell at them. Some are oversensitive, and there's nothing worse than an oversensitive woman.
   
   

My name is Jim. Let me relate how I handled the situation with my wife, Terri... When I retired a few years ago, it became necessary for Terri to get a full-time job along with her part-time job, both for extra income and for the health benefits that we needed. Shortly after she started working, I noticed

she was beginning to show her age. I usually get home from the golf club about the same time she gets home from work.
   
   

Although she knows how hungry I am, she almost always says she has to rest for half an hour or so before she starts dinner. I don't yell at her. Instead, I tell her to take her time and just wake me when she gets dinner on the table. I generally have lunch in the Men's Grill at the club so eating out is not reasonable. I'm ready for some home-cooked grub when I hit that door.

She used to do the dishes as soon as we finished eating. But now it's not unusual for them to sit on the table

for several hours after dinner.

 I do what I can by diplomatically reminding her several times each evening that they won't clean themselves. I know she really appreciates this, as it does seem to motivate her to get them done before she goes to bed.

Another symptom of aging is complaining, I think. 

For example she will say that it is difficult for her to find time to pay the monthly bills during her lunch hour.

But, boys, we take 'em for better or worse, so I just smile and offer encouragement. I tell her to stretch it out

over two or even three days. That way she won't have to rush so much. I also remind her that missing lunch completely now and then wouldn't hurt her any (if you know what I mean). I like to think tact is one of my strong points.

When doing simple jobs, she seems to think she needs more rest periods. She had to take a break when she was only half-finished mowing the yard. I try not to make a scene I'm a fair man. I tell her to fix herself a nice, big, cold glass of freshly squeezed lemonade and just sit for a while. And, as long as she is making one for herself, she may as well make one for me too.

I know that I probably look like a saint in the way I support Terri.I'm not saying that showing this much consideration is easy. Many men will find it difficult. Some will find it impossible! Nobody knows better than I do how frustrating women get as they get older. However, guys, even if you just use a little more tact and less criticism of your aging wife because of this article, I will consider that writing it was well worthwhile.  After all, we are put on this earth to help each other.

Signed, Jim 
   

EDITOR'S NOTE:

 Jim died suddenly on February 7 of a perforated rectum.

The police report says he was found with a Callaway extra-long 50-inch Big Bertha Driver II golf club jammed up his ass, with barely 5 inches of grip showing, and a sledge hammer laying nearby. His wife Terri was arrested and charged with murder. The all-woman jury took only 10 minutes to find her Not Guilty, accepting her defense that Jim, somehow without looking, accidentally sat down on his golf club.

   

After Christmas, a teacher asked her young pupils how they spent their holiday away from school.

  

One child wrote the following:

               

We always used to spend the holidays with Grandma and Grandpa.  They used to live in a big brick house, but Grandpa got retarded and they moved to Arizona.  Now they live in a tin box and have rocks painted green to look like grass.  They ride around on their bicycles, and wear name tags, because they don't know who they are anymore.  They go to a building called a wreck center, but they must have got it fixed because it is all okay now, they do exercises there, but they don't do them very well. There is a swimming pool too, but they all jump up and down in it with hats on.  At their gate, there is a doll house with a little old man sitting in it.  He watches all day so nobody can escape.  Sometimes they sneak out, and go cruising in their golf carts.  Nobody there cooks, they just eat out. And, they eat the same thing every night - early birds.   Some of the people can't get out past the man in the doll house.  The ones, who do get out, bring food back to the wrecked center for pot luck.  My Grandma says that Grandpa worked all his life to earn his retardment and, says I should work hard so I can be retarded someday too.   When I earn my retardment, I want to be the man in the doll house. Then I will let people out, so they can visit their grandchildren.

New Year's Wishes

New Year's Wishes

May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your cardiologist, your gastro-entomologist, your urologist, your proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber and the I.R.S.

May your hair, your teeth, your face-lift, your abs and your stocks not fall; and may your blood pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol, your white blood count and your mortgage interest not rise. 

May New Year's Eve find you seated around the table, together with your beloved family and cherished friends. May you find the food better, the environment quieter, the cost much cheaper, and the pleasure more fulfilling than anything else you might ordinarily do that night.

May what you see in the mirror delight you and what others see in you delight them. May someone love you enough to forgive your faults, be blind to your blemishes, and tell the world about your virtues?  

May the telemarketers wait to make their sales calls until you finish dinner, may the commercials on TV not be louder than the program you have been watching, and may your check book and your budget balance - and include generous amounts for charity.

May you remember to say "I love you" at least once a day to your spouse, your child, your parent, and your siblings; but not to your secretary, your nurse, your masseuse, your hairdresser or your tennis instructor.

And may we live  in a world at peace  and with the awareness of God's love in  every sunset, every  flower's unfolding petals, every baby's  smile,  every  lover's   kiss,  and  every wonderful, astonishing, miraculous beat of our heart.

CANNON BALLS!!! DID YOU KNOW THIS?

CANNON BALLS!!! DID YOU KNOW THIS?
It was necessary to keep a good supply of cannon  balls near the cannon on old war ships. But how to prevent them from rolling about the deck was the problem. The storage method devised was to stack them as a square based pyramid, with one ball on top, resting on four, resting on nine, which rested on sixteen.
 Thus, a supply of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon. There was only one problem -- how to prevent the bottom  layer from sliding/rolling from under the  others.        
The solution was a metal plate with 16 round indentations, called, for reasons unknown, a Monkey. But if this plate were made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem was to make them of brass - hence, Brass Monkeys.
Few  landlubbers realize that brass contracts much  more and much faster than iron when chilled.

Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the brass  indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon balls would come right off the  monkey.
 Thus, it was quite literally, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.  And all this time, you wondered where the phrase came from?
You must send this fabulous bit of historical knowledge to at least a few  intellectual friends.
It was necessary to keep a good supply of cannon  balls near the cannon on old war ships. But how to prevent them from rolling about the deck was the problem. The storage method devised was to stack them as a square based pyramid, with one ball on top, resting on four, resting on nine, which rested on sixteen.
 Thus, a supply of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon. There was only one problem -- how to prevent the bottom  layer from sliding/rolling from under the  others.        
The solution was a metal plate with 16 round indentations, called, for reasons unknown, a Monkey. But if this plate were made of iron, the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem was to make them of brass - hence, Brass Monkeys.
Few  landlubbers realize that brass contracts much  more and much faster than iron when chilled.

Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the brass  indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon balls would come right off the  monkey.
 Thus, it was quite literally, cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.  And all this time, you wondered where the phrase came from?
You must send this fabulous bit of historical knowledge to at least a few  intellectual friends.