Zen Observations

I found this today while going though old papers. Enjoy and have a happy New Year!

Zen Observations

• Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead.  Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow.  Do not walk beside me, either.  Just leave me the hell alone.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and a leaky tire.
• It’s always darkest before dawn.  So if you’re going to steal your neighbor’s newspaper, that’s the time to do it.
• No one is listening until you make a mistake.
• Never test the depth of the water with both feet.
• It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.
• If you think nobody cares if you’re alive, try missing a couple of car payments.
• Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes.  That way, when you criticize them,you’re a mile away and you have their shoes.
• If at first you don’t succeed, skydiveing is not for you.
• If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
• If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.
• Some days you are the bug, some days you are the windshield.
• The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.
• Timing has an awful lot to do with the outcome of a rain daince.
• A closed mouth gathers no foot.
• Duct tape is like the force.  It has a light side and a dark side, and it it holds the universe together.

Surprised Kitty

Ok, i saw this on Youtube and it made me smile, so i thought I’d let everyone else see it. Enjoy!

Lists

As we near the end of the year, I am compelled by nature to create lists. In December, my list making expands from grocery lists to categorizing everything that happened over the year. As a necessity, I have to create a Christmas gift list identifying what I’m giving to friends and family. Then of course there’s the Holiday Card/Newsletter list. I haven’t really decided whether to once again to pour the events of the year into a double-sided, color printed paper, or just sign a nice card that says “Happy Holidays to you and yours.” However, for either one of these options, I have to round up the card list.

Tis the Season

At this time of year, I look around and am grateful for all that I have.  No, I’m not talking about material items, although they do make life a bit more comfortable.  What I mean is the friendships that make my days fuller.  The family gatherings that make me laugh and cry.  The feeling of love I get every evening when I welcome Norm home.  The way our dogs jump up and wait for hugs when I come home from work.  These are all the things that make up my life and make me happy to be here.

You Must Wash Your Hands

My husband seems to have become obsessed with hand washing.  Since the H1N1 (the flu formerly known as swine) became an issue, he’s obsessively posted hand washing articles to his Facebook page.  There are articles about how to wash your hands, now people tend not to wash their hands, pictures of cats washing their paws, and of course, the hand washing dance video.  Is this something I should worry about?  Has he suddenly become a clean freak?   Wait, strike that, I’m pretty sure this hand washing cleanliness trend has not transferred into his everyday life.  So why the obsession?

Want to Save Money? Go Green!

A few weeks ago, an organization I belong to announced that it was “Going Green” by ending the publication of a couple of their standard quarterly magazines.  Although I’m all for the “Green” revolution, I question the use of the term when it is used simply to save money for organizations.  Yes, having written marketing materials for large corporations, I’m quite aware of the spinning of bad news.  In this case, the correspondence welcomed us to feel good about sacrifice, and informed us that, if you really, really, really needed a paper copy, it would cost us extra.  In an email immediately following this announcement, we were informed that our membership fees would increase by 100%.

At the Mall

It’s the talk of the office lately.  Have you been to the new mall?  Wow, it’s all bright and shiny!  There’s a Best Buy and Target over there!

If you’ve ever worked in an office, you realize that there’s very little to talk about with fellow workers after the initial “meet and greet” is over.  Kids are ok?  Wife is fine? Dog just finished his training huh?  Every once in a while, like manna from heaven, a new topic arises that engages everyone in the office.  For us, it’s the “New Mall.”

Ballad of the Balloon Boy

I love this song.  My friend Joe Will wrote it and it’s very funny. Well Done Balloon Boy!

Happy Birthday Norm!

This weekend was Norm’s birthday weekend.  I know I’m insane, but I do tend to make a big deal about birthdays.  Personally, I think I’m overcompensating for the time my Mom forgot my birthday…for 3 days.  Ok, granted, my mom was kind of busy at the time. She had 5 kids, a house to run and a part-time job to go to.  But when you’re 8, stuff like that matters.  So I’ve been scarred for life, to the benefit of my friends and family.

At the very least, I like to send a card congratulating the individual on another year of life.  These days, however, my memory isn’t as good as it should be.  This year I’ve been especially remiss passing out the birthday congratulations.  I wonder if that means I’m cured?  Probably not.  What it really means is that my record keeping isn’t as good as it should be.

Anyway, for those of you whose birthdays I’ve missed over the past 10 months, Happy Birthday and many happy returns!  The card is in the mail.

Does Barack Obama Deserve a Nobel Prize?

Early on Friday morning, October 2, 2009, the Nobel Committee surprised the world by awarding the Nobel Peace Prize on a relatively young, relatively green, President of the United State. To say that the world was shocked is an understatement. I saw the news at about 4:30am PDT. I too was shocked. My first response was “Why?”. President Obama has been in office about 9 months. Prior to that, he did good works in his community, was a U.S. Senator for a while and an Illinois legislator for a while. Yes, it is an amazing thing for an African American man to rise in politics to the highest office in the land. But does he deserve a Nobel Peace Prize?