Let's Take a Moment to Be Thankful:

For every accident that never happened,
For every grave illness that was not caught,

For every tornado that never formed,
And every mean word withheld when we fought.


We can only see what's right in front of us,
And can be thankful for all we've got,


But to really, truly embrace gratitude,
We have to also remember

To be thankful
For every "never," "didn't," and "not".


[Doe Zantamata]

"The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected. Maybe they always have been and will be. Maybe we've lived a thousand lives before this one and in each of them we've found each other. And maybe each time, we've been forced apart for the same reasons. That means that this goodbye is both a goodbye for the past ten thousand years and a prelude to what will come."

[Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook]




"I read once that the ancient Egyptians had fifty words for sand & the Eskimos had a hundred words for snow. I wish I had a thousand words for love, but all that comes to mind is the way you move against me while you sleep & there are no words for that."

[Brian Andreas]



"You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection!"

[Gautama Buddha]

Two factory workers are talking. The woman says, "I can make the boss give me the day off." The man replies, "And how would you do that?" The woman says, "Just wait and see." She then hangs upside down from the ceiling. The boss comes in and says, "What are you doing?" The woman replies, "I'm a light bulb." The boss then says, "You've been working so much that you've gone crazy. I think you need to take the day off." The man starts to follow her and the boss says, "Where are you going?" The man says, "I'm going home, too. I can't work in the dark."



A teacher wanted to teach her students about self-esteem, so she asked anyone who thought they were stupid to stand up. One kid stood up and the teacher was surprised. She didn'��t think anyone would stand up so she asked him, "Why did you stand up?" He answered, "��I didn'��t want to leave you standing up by yourself."


It was Christmas Eve. A woman came home to her husband after a day of busy shopping. Later on that night when she was getting undressed for bed, he noticed a mark on the inside of her leg. "What is that?" he asked. She said, "I visited the tattoo parlor today. On the inside of one leg I had them tattoo 'Merry Christmas,' and on the inside of the other one they tattooed 'Happy New Year.'" Perplexed, he asked, "Why did you do that?" "Well," she replied, "now you can't complain that there's never anything to eat between Christmas and New Years!"


A teacher is teaching a class and she sees that Johnny isn't paying attention, so she asks him, "If there are three ducks sitting on a fence, and you shoot one, how many are left?" Johnny says, "None." The teacher asks, "Why?" Johnny says, "Because the shot scared them all off." The teacher says, "No, two, but I like how you're thinking." Johnny asks the teacher, "If you see three women walking out of an ice cream parlor, one is licking her ice cream, one is sucking her ice cream, and one is biting her ice cream, which one is married?" The teacher says, "The one sucking her ice cream." Johnny says, "No, the one with the wedding ring, but I like how you're thinking!"

001. Ninety-nine percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.

002. Borrow money from a pessimist -- they don't expect it back.

003. Time is what keeps things from happening all at once.

004. Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.

005. I didn't fight my way to the top of the food chain to be a vegetarian.

006. Never answer an anonymous letter.

007. It's lonely at the top; but you do eat better.

008. I don't suffer from insanity; I enjoy every minute of it.

009. Always go to other people's funerals, or they won't go to yours.

010. Few women admit their age; few men act it.

011. If we aren't supposed to eat animals, why are they made with meat?

012. No one is listening until you make a mistake.

013. Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

014. We have enough youth. How about a fountain of "Smart"?

015. He who laughs last thinks slowest.

016. Campers: Nature's way of feeding mosquitoes.

017. Always remember that you are unique; just like everyone else.

018. Consciousness: That annoying time between naps.

019. There are three kinds of people: Those who can count and those who can't.

020. Why is "abbreviation" such a long word?

021. Nuke the Whales.

022. I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.

023. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

024. Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.

025. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

026. As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in public schools.

027. Laugh alone and the world thinks you're an idiot.

028. Sometimes I wake up grumpy; other times I let her sleep.

029. The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the ability to reach
it.

030. You can't have everything; where would you put it?

031. I took an IQ test and the results were negative.

032. Okay, who stopped the payment on my reality check?

033. We are born naked, wet and hungry. Then things get worse.

034. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.

035. Be nice to your kids. They'll choose your nursing home.

036. If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.

037. I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.

038. Eat right. Stay fit. Die anyway.

039. My mind is like a steel trap, rusty and illegal in 37 states.

040. Nothing is fool proof to a sufficiently talented fool.

041. On the other hand, you have different fingers.

042. I've only been wrong once, and that's when I thought I was wrong.

043. God made mankind. Sin made him evil.

044. I don't find it hard to meet expenses. They're everywhere.

045. I just let my mind wander, and it didn't come back.

046. Don't steal. The government hates competition.

047. Humpty-Dumpty was pushed.

048. National Atheist's Day April 1st.

049. All generalizations are false.

050. The more people I meet, the more I like my dog.

051. Work is for people who don't know how to fish.

052. If you don't like the news, go out and make some.

053. For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.

054. IRS: We've got what it takes to take what you have got.

055. I'm out of bed and dressed. What more do you want?

056. I used to think I was indecisive, but now I'm not too sure.

057. I can handle pain until it hurts.

058. No matter where you go, you're there.

059. If everything is coming your way, then you're in the wrong lane.

060. It's been Monday all week.

061. Gravity always gets me down.

062. This statement is false.

063. Eschew obfuscation.

064. They told me I was gullible...and I believed them.

065. It's bad luck to be superstitious.

066. According to my best recollection, I don't remember.

067. The word "gullible" isn't in the dictionary.

068. Honk if you like peace and quiet.

069. The Big Bang Theory: God Spoke and BANG! it happened.

070. Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

071. Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how it remains so popular?

072. Save the whales. Collect the whole set.

073. A day without sunshine is like, night.

074. The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

075. Corduroy pillows: They're making headlines!

076. Gravity: It's not just a good idea, it's the LAW!

077. Life is too complicated in the morning.

078. We are all part of the ultimate statistic -- ten out of ten die.

079. Nobody's perfect. I'm a nobody.

080. Ask me about my vow of silence.

081. The hardness of butter is directly proportional to the softness of the
bread.

082. The last thing on earth you want to do will be the last thing you do.

083. Diplomacy is the art of letting someone else get your way.

084. If ignorance is bliss, then tourists are in a constant state of euphoria.

085. If at first you don't succeed, don't try skydiving.

086. If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?

087. Stop repeat offenders. Don't re-elect them!

088. I intend to live forever. So far so good.

089. Who is "General Failure" and why is he reading my hard disk?

090. What happens if you get scared half to death twice?

091. I used to have an open mind but my brains kept falling out.

092. Energizer Bunny arrested; charged with battery.

093. I didn't use to finish sentences, but now I

094. I've had amnesia as long as I can remember.

095. Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of checks.

096. Vacation begins when Dad says, "I know a short cut."

097. Evolution: True science fiction.

098. What's another word for "thesaurus"?

099. Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time.

100. A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.

101. I went to the fights, and a hockey game broke out.

"The Brick"


A young and successful executive was travelling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something.


As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door! He slammed on the brakes and drove the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car, shouting, 'What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?'


The young boy was apologetic, 'Please mister ... please, I'm sorry... I didn't know what else to do,' he pleaded. 'I threw the brick because no one else would stop...'


With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. 'It's my brother,' he said. 'He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up.' Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, 'Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me.'


Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out his fancy handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay.


'Thank you and may God bless you,' the grateful child told the stranger.


Too shaken up for words, the man simply watched the little boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message: Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!



God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us.



[Source: 'Unknown']

"He Never Missed a Game" - "Moving Life Story"


Bob Richards, the former pole-vault champion, shares a moving story about a skinny young boy who loved football with all his heart.


Practice after practice, he eagerly gave everything he had. But being half the size of the other boys, he got absolutely nowhere. At all the games, this hopeful athlete sat on the bench and hardly ever played.


This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. Even though the son was always On the bench, his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game. This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high school. But his father continued to encourage him but also made it very clear that he did not have to play football if he didn't want to.


But the young man loved football and decided to hang in there He was determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice nor a game but remained a bench-warmer all four years. His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him. When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a "walk-on." Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did.


The coach admitted that he kept him on the roster because he always puts his heart and soul to every practice, and at the same time, provided the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.


The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games. This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in a game.


It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big playoff game, the coach met him with a telegram. The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, 'My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?' The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, 'Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.'


Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful teammate back so soon. 'Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today,' said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in.


All right,' he said. 'You can go in.' Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed, blocked, and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown. The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you never heard.


Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that this young man was sitting quietly in the corner all alone The coach came to him and said, 'Kid, I can't believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?"'


He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, 'Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?'


The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, 'Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!'

"Good Karma - Life Mantra"


This is a nice reading, but short. Enjoy! This is what The Dalai Lama has to say for 2007. All it takes is a few seconds to read and think over. Do not keep this message. The mantra must leave your hands within 96 hours. You will get a very pleasant surprise. This is true for all - even if you are not superstitious.... or of whatever religious belief....Faith....

Instructions for life Mantra

01. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

02. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

03. Follow the three R's of good karma:


Respect for self

Respect for others and

Responsibility for all your actions.

04. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

05. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

06. Don't let a little dispute injure a great relationship.

07. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

08. Spend some time alone every day.

09. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.

10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back,
you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.

12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.

14. Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.

15. Be gentle with the earth.

16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.

17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.



Forward this mantra to at least 5 people and your life will improve

0-4 people: Your life will improve slightly.

5-9 people: Your life will improve to your liking.

9-14 people: You will have at least 5 wonderful surprises in the next 3 weeks.

15 people & over: Your life will improve drastically and everything you ever dreamed of will begin to take shape.

Do not keep this message. The mantra must leave your hands within 96 hours.

You will get a very pleasant surprise......


N.B. Please send us your mantra or good karma.


Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to believe.

[Laurence J. Peter]

"Transcript of A Chinese Proverb About Money"


With money you can buy a 'house' but not a 'home'.

With money you can buy a 'clock' but not 'time'.

With money you can buy a 'bed' but not 'sleep'.

With money you can buy a 'book', but not 'knowledge'.

With money you can consult a 'doctor', but not buy 'good health'.

With money you can buy a 'position' but not 'respect'.

With money you can buy 'blood' but not 'life'.

Thought Provoking, Honest, Lovely, True and Amusing Epithets To Live By
Written by Regina Brett who is a 90 year old journalist - The Plain Dealer newspaper, Cleveland , Ohio.



01. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

02. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

03. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

04. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

05. Pay off your credit cards every month.

06. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

07. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

08. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

09. Save for retirement starting with your first pay cheque.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't mess 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 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.

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.

"Flattery for fools"


Zou Ji was an official in Qi, and a handsome man. One morning he looked at himself in the mirror and asked his wife "Who is more handsome, I or Xu in the North City?"

His wife replied without hesitation, "Of course you, my dear. No man can compare with you!"

Hearing this, Zou could not help feeling a little complacent. Yet to prove what his wife had said, he asked his concubine the same question. "Oh," answered the woman, "Beyond any doubt you are the number one in our country!" This sounded pleasant.

Next day a friend called on him in the hope of begging a favor of him. Business finished, Zou once more raised the same question. "Certainly Xu cannot compare with you in that," his friend answered. Now Zou really believed this was so, till Xu himself dropped in on him by chance. Looking Xu up and down, and then measuring himself carefully in the glass, Zou had to conclude that Xu was much more handsome than himself.

"Why, they all cheated me then!" he thought. All night he wrangled with the matter. At last it dawned on him. "I see now," he said to himself, "A man is liable to be flattered: my wife favored me because of her love; my concubine, of fear; my friend, to gain his own ends. How foolish I have been taken in by festering lies!"

As soon as the sun appeared in the east next day, he went to the king directly and told him the whole story and added, "For love, for fear, for benefit, truth can be twisted."

The king was impressed by Zou's story and at once gave orders: "Those who dare to point out my faults in my presence can be given the best rewards. And the timid ones who only talk about my errors in public and the talks reach my ear, rewards will also be given, though it may not be of great value."

This command issued, the palace became crowded with officials and common people coming to advise or criticize the king. As a result the king ruled the country very, very well.

"The Wild Goose and the Sparrow"


Confucius had a son-in-law, Kung Yeh Chang, who understood birds. He built a pavilion in his garden, which was rich in flowers, trees, shrubs, and ponds, so that the birds loved to gather there. Thus he was able to spend many delightful hours near them, watching.


One day while Kung Yeh Chang was resting in his pavilion, a small house-sparrow lit in a tree near-by and started to sing and chatter. A little later a wild goose dropped down by the pond for a drink. Hardly had he taken a sip when the little sparrow called out, "Who are you? Where are you going?"


To this the goose did not reply and the sparrow became angry and asked again, "Why do you consider me beneath your notice?" and still the goose did not answer. Then the little sparrow became furious and said in a loud, shrill voice, "Again I ask, who are you? Tell me or I will fly at you," and he put his head up, and spread his wings, and tried to look very large and fierce.

By this time the goose had finished drinking, and looking up he said, "Don't you know that in a big tree with many branches and large leaves the cicadas love to gather and make a noise? I could not hear you distinctly. You also know the saying of the ancients, 'If you stand on a mountain and talk to the people in the valley they cannot hear you,' "and the wild goose took another drink.

The little sparrow chattered and sputtered, shook his wings, and said, "What, for example, do you know of the great world? I for my part can go into people's houses, hide in the rafters under their windows, see their books and pictures, what they have to eat and what they do. I can hear all the family secrets. I know all that goes on in the family and state. I know who are happy and who are sad. I know all the quarrels and all the gossip, and I know just how to tell it to produce the best effect. So you see that I know much that you can never hope to know."

"It may be good to give others an equal chance with ourselves, or even to give them the first choice," said the goose. "We geese therefore fly in a flock in the shape of the letter V and take turns in flying first. No one takes advantage of the other. We have our unchanging customs of going north in the spring and south in the winter. People come to depend on us, and make ready for either their spring work or the cold of winter. Thus, we stay away from gossip and are a help to man.

"You sparrows, however, gossip and only thinking of your own good. Now, we are respected. Is there not a proverb that 'There are many people without the wisdom and virtues of the wild goose'? You sparrows, however, chatter about small affairs beneath my notice and I bid you good-day."

The sparrow now trembled with so much rage that she could not fly away nor keep her hold on the branch. She fell to the ground and soon died from the fall.

Kung Yeh Chang exclaimed after he had looked on it all, "Sad, sad, most of mankind are like the sparrow, but the truly superior man is somehow like the wild goose, and wiser still."

"Modern Philosophies"


01. If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.

02. A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.

03. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

04. For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.

05. He who hesitates is probably right.

06. Never do card tricks for the group you play poker with.

07. No one is listening until you make a mistake.

08. Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view.

09. The colder the x-ray table, the more of your body is required to press on it.

10. The hardness of the butter is proportional to the softness of the bread.

11. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.

12. To succeed in politics, it is often necessary to rise above your principles.

13. Two wrongs are only the beginning.

14. Work is accomplished by those employees who are still striving to reach their level of incompetence.

15. You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive. (The corollary is: You never learn to pray until your kids learn to drive!)

16. The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.

17. Monday is an awful way to spend one-seventh of your life.

18. The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.

"Collected Quotes from Albert Einstein"



"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction."


"Imagination is more important than knowledge."


"Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love."


"I want to know God's thoughts; the rest are details."


"The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax."


"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one."


"The only real valuable thing is intuition."


"A person starts to live when he can live outside himself."


"I am convinced that He (God) does not play dice."


"God is subtle but he is not malicious."


"Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."


"I never think of the future. It comes soon enough."


"The eternal mystery of the world is its comprehensibility."


"Sometimes one pays most for the things one gets for nothing."


"Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind."


"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."


"Great spirits have often encountered violent opposition from weak minds."


"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."


"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen."


"Science is a wonderful thing if one does not have to earn one's living at it."


"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."


"The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education."


"God does not care about our mathematical difficulties. He integrates empirically."


"The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking."


"Technological progress is like an axe in the hands of a pathological criminal."


"Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding."


"The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible."


"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them."


"Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school."


"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing."


"Do not worry about your difficulties in Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater."


"Equations are more important to me, because politics is for the present, but an equation is something for eternity."


"If A is a success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut."


"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe."


"As far as the laws of mathematics refer to reality, they are not certain, as far as they are certain, they do not refer to reality."


"Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods."


"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones."


"In order to form an immaculate member of a flock of sheep one must, above all, be a sheep."


"The fear of death is the most unjustified of all fears, for there's no risk of accident for someone who's dead."


"Too many of us look upon Americans as dollar chasers. This is a cruel libel, even if it is reiterated thoughtlessly by the Americans themselves."


"Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism -- how passionately I hate them!"


"No, this trick won't work...How on earth are you ever going to explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love?"


"My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind."


"Yes, we have to divide up our time like that, between our politics and our equations. But to me our equations are far more important, for politics are only a matter of present concern. A mathematical equation stands forever."


"The release of atom power has changed everything except our way of thinking...the solution to this problem lies in the heart of mankind. If only I had known, I should have become a watchmaker."


"Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence."


"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."


"A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeeded be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death."


"The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge."


"Now he has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That means nothing. People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion."


"You see, wire telegraph is a kind of a very, very long cat. You pull his tail in New York and his head is meowing in Los Angeles. Do you understand this? And radio operates exactly the same way: you send signals here, they receive them there. The only difference is that there is no cat."


"One had to cram all this stuff into one's mind for the examinations, whether one liked it or not. This coercion had such a deterring effect on me that, after I had passed the final examination, I found the consideration of any scientific problems distasteful to me for an entire year."


"...one of the strongest motives that lead men to art and science is escape from everyday life with its painful crudity and hopeless dreariness, from the fetters of one's own ever-shifting desires. A finely tempered nature longs to escape from the personal life into the world of objective perception and thought."


"He who joyfully marches to music rank and file, has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice. This disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once. Heroism at command, how violently I hate all this, how despicable and ignoble war is; I would rather be torn to shreds than be a part of so base an action. It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder."


"A human being is a part of a whole, called by us _universe_, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest... a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."


"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts." (Sign hanging in Einstein's office at Princeton)


[Copyright: Kevin Harris 1995 (may be freely distributed with this acknowledgement)]

"John Lennon":


"You make your own dream. That's the Beatles' story, isn't it? That's Yoko's story . That's what I'm saying now. Produce your own dream. If you want to save Peru, go save Peru. It's quite possible to do anything, but not to put it on the leaders and the parking meters. Don't expect Jimmy Carter or Ronald Reagan or John Lennon or Yoko Ono or Bob Dylan or Jesus Christ to come and do it for you. You have to do it yourself. That's what the great masters and mistresses have been saying ever since time began. They can point the way, leave signposts and little instructions in various books that are now called holy and worshiped for the cover of the book and not for what it says, but the instructions are all there for all to see, have always been and always will be. There's nothing new under the sun. All the roads lead to Rome. And people cannot provide it for you. I can't wake you up. You can wake you up. I can't cure you. You can cure you."


[John Lennon's Dream for the 80's]

"This is a true story of Mother'��s Sacrifice during the China Earthquake"



After the Earthquake had subsided, when the rescuers reached the ruins of a young woman'�s house, they saw her dead body through the cracks. But her pose was somehow strange that she knelt on her knees like a person was worshiping; her body was leaning forward, and her two hands were being supported by an object. The collapsed house had crashed her back and her head.


With so many difficulties, the leader of the rescuer team put his hand through a narrow gap on the wall to reach the woman'��s body. He was hoping that this woman could still be alive. However, the cold and stiff body told him that she had passed away for sure.


He and the rest of the team left this house and were going to search the next collapsed building. For some reason, the team leader was driven by a compelling force to go back to the ruined house of the dead woman. Again, he knelt down and used his had through the narrow cracks to search the little space under the dead body. Suddenly, he screamed with excitement,� "A child! There is a child!"


The whole team worked together; carefully they removed the piles of ruined objects around the dead woman. There was a 3-months old little boy wrapped in a flowery blanket under his mother'��s dead body. Obviously, the woman had made an ultimate sacrifice for saving her son. When her house was falling, she used her body to make a cover to protect her son. The little boy was still sleeping peacefully when the team leader picked him up.


The medical doctor came quickly to examine the little boy. After he opened the blanket, he saw a cell phone inside the blanket. There was a text message on the screen. It said, "If you survive, you must remember that I love you." This cell phone was passed around from one hand to another. Everybody who read the message, wept. "If you survive, you must remember that I love you."

"Such is the mother'�s love for her child!"

"Lao Tzu Quotes":



"Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love."



"Being deeply loved by someone gives us strength, while loving someone deeply gives us courage."



"Silence is a source of great strength."


"Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment."


"Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses."


"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be."


"Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."


"The people are hungry: It is because those in authority eat up too much in taxes."


"Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it."


"Truthful words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not truthful. Good words are not persuasive; persuasive words are not good."


"Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline; simulated fear postulates courage; simulated weakness postulates strength."


"The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself."


"He who knows, does not speak. He who speaks, does not know."

"He who conquers others is strong; He who conquers himself is mighty."

"From caring comes courage."


"Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend. Non-being is the greatest joy."


"The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be."


"Respond intelligently even to unintelligent treatment."

"How could man rejoice in victory and delight in the slaughter of men?"


"He who obtains has little. He who scatters has much."

"9 Things I Hate" [Source:'Unknown']



1. People who point at their wrist while asking for the time.... I know where my watch is pal, where the hell is yours? Do I point at my 'tool' when I ask where the toilet is?


2. People who are willing to get off their butt to search the entire room for the T.V. remote because they refuse to walk to the T.V. and change the channel manually.


3. When people say "Oh you just want to have your cake and eat it too". Damn right! What good is cake if you can't eat it?


4. When people say "it's always the last place you look". Of course it is. Why the hell would you keep looking after you've found it? Do people do this? Who and where are they? Gonna Kick their butt!


5. When people say while watching a film "did you see that?". No Loser, I paid $12 to come to the cinema and stare at the damn floor.


6. People who ask "Can I ask you a question?".... Didn't really give me a choice there, did ya sunshine?

7. When something is 'new and improved!' Which is it? If it's new, then there has never been anything before it. If it's an improvement, then there must have been something before it, couldn't be new.


8. When people say "life is short". What the hell?? Life is the longest damn thing anyone ever does!! What can you do that's longer?


9. When you are waiting for the bus and someone asks "Has the bus come yet?". If the bus came would I be standing here, 'stupid'?

"Enjoy This Heartwarming Story about an Elephant" [Source: 'Unknown']


In 1986, Peter Davies was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Northwestern University .


On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air.


The elephant seemed distressed, so Peter approached it very carefully.


He got down on one knee, inspected the elephants foot, and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it.


As carefully and as gently as he could, Peter worked the wood out with his knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot.


The elephant turned to face the man, and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments.


Peter stood frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled.


Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked away.


Peter never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.


Twenty years later, Peter was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenage son.


As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Peter and his son Cameron were standing.


The large bull elephant stared at Peter, lifted its front foot off the ground, then put it down.


The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at the man.


Remembering the encounter in 1986, Peter could not help wondering if this was the same elephant.


Peter summoned up his courage, climbed over the railing, and made his way into the enclosure.


He walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder.


The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around one of Peter legs and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.


NB: Probably wasn't the same elephant..

"They walk among us" [Source:'Unknown']


I walked into a shop with a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for a sandwich.
I handed it to the girl and she looked over at a little chalkboard that said "Buy one-get one free". "They're already buy-one-get-one-free", she said, "so I guess they're both free". She handed me my free sandwiches......... ..........and I walked out the door.

"They walk among us and many work retail."
===============================================================================
A friend of mine bought a new fridge for his house.
To get rid of his old fridge, he put it in his front yard and hung a sign on it saying: "Free to good home. You want it, you take it."

For three days the fridge sat there without even one person looking twice at it. My friend decided that people were too un-trusting of this deal.
It looked too good to be true, so he changed the sign to read: "Fridge for sale �50." The next day someone stole it.

"They walk among us."
===============================================================================
One day I was walking down the beach with some friends when one of
them shouted, "Look at that dead bird!" Someone looked up at the sky and said, "Where?"

"They walk among us!"
===============================================================================
While looking at a house, my brother asked the real estate agent which
direction was north because, he explained, he didn't want the sun
waking him up every morning. She asked, "Does the sun rise in the North?"
When my brother explained that the sun rises in the east, and has for
sometime, she shook her head and said, "Oh, I don't keep up with that stuff."

"They Walk Among Us!!"
===============================================================================
I used to work in technical support for a 24/7 call center. One day I got a call from an individual who asked what hours the call center was open. I told him, "The number you dialed is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a Week." He responded, "Is that Eastern or Pacific time?" Wanting to end the call quickly, I said, "Uh, Pacific."

"They Walk Among Us!"
===============================================================================
My colleague and I were eating our lunch in our cafeteria, when we
overheard one of the administrative assistants talking about the
sunburn she got on her weekend drive to the shore. She drove down in a convertible, but "didn't think she'd get sunburned because the car was moving."

"They Walk Among Us!"
===============================================================================
My sister has a lifesaving tool in her car designed to cut through a
seat belt if she gets trapped. She keeps it in the trunk.

"They Walk Among Us!"
===============================================================================
I was hanging out with a friend when we saw a woman with a nose ring
attached to an earring by a chain. My friend said, "Wouldn't the chain rip out every time she turned her head?" I explained that a person's nose and ear remain the same distance apart no matter which way the head is turned.

"They Walk Among Us!"
===============================================================================
I couldn't find my luggage at the airport baggage area, so I went to
the lost luggage office and told the woman there that my bags never
showed up. She smiled and told me not to worry because she was a trained
professional and I was in good hands. "Now," she asked me, "has your plane arrived yet?"

"They Walk Among Us!"
===============================================================================
While working at a pizza parlor I observed a man ordering a small pizza to go.
He appeared to be alone and the cook asked him if he would like it cut into 4 pieces or 6. He thought about it for some time before responding. "Just cut it into 4 pieces; I don't think I'm hungry enough to eat 6 pieces."

Yep, "They Walk Among Us"!
===============================================================================

"They walk among us, AND they reproduce.."!!!

One day an old poodle starts chasing butterflies in the African bush and before long, he discovers that he's lost. Wandering about, he notices a leopard heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch.


The old poodle thinks, "Oh, oh! I'm in deep trouble now!" Noticing
some bones on the ground close by, he immediately settles down to
chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat. Just as
the leopard is about to leap the old poodle exclaims loudly, "Boy,
that was one delicious leopard! I wonder if there are any more
around here".


Hearing this, the young leopard halts his attack in mid-strike, a
look of terror comes over him and he slinks away into the trees.
"Whew!," Says the leopard, "That was close! That old poodle nearly
had me!"


Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a
nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and
trade it for protection from the leopard. So off he goes, but the
old poodle sees Him heading after the leopard with great speed,
and figures that something must be up. The monkey soon catches up
with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself
with the leopard.


The young leopard is furious at being made a fool of and says,
"Here, Monkey, hop on my back and see what's going to happen to
that conniving Canine!"


Now, the old poodle sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his
back and thinks, "What am I going to do now?", but instead of
running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers,
pretending he hasn't seen them yet, and just when they get close
enough to hear, the old poodle says: "Where's that damn monkey? I
sent him off an hour ago to bring me another leopard!"



"Moral of this story:"

'Don't mess with old farts...age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill! BullShi'T' and Brilliance only come with age and experience!'