The Chicken

Once upon a time, there was a large mountainside, where an eagle's nest rested. The eagle's nest contained four large eagle eggs. One day an earthquake rocked the mountain, causing one of the eggs to roll down the mountain to a chicken farm located in the valley below. The chickens knew that they must protect and care for the eagle's egg, so an old hen volunteered to nurture and raise the large egg.

One day, the egg hatched and a beautiful eagle was born. Sadly, however, the eagle was raised to be a chicken. Soon, the eagle believed he was nothing more than a chicken. The eagle loved his home and family, but his spirit cried out for more. While playing a game on the farm one day, the eagle looked to the skies above and noticed a group of mighty eagles soaring in the skies. "Oh," the eagle cried, "I wish I could soar like those birds."

The chickens roared with laughter, "You cannot soar with those birds. You are a chicken and chickens do not soar."

The eagle continued staring at his real family up above, dreaming that he could be with them. Each time the eagle would let his dreams be known, he was told it couldn't be done. That is what the eagle learned to believe. The eagle, after time, stopped dreaming and continued to live his life like a chicken. Finally, after a long life as a chicken, the eagle passed away.

The moral of the story: You become what you believe you are. So, if you ever dream of becoming an eagle, follow your dreams... not the words of a chicken.

Shake It Off and Step Up!

A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer's well. The farmer heard the mule 'braying' - or - whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back: he should shake it off and step up! This he did, blow after blow.

"Shake it off and step up... shake it off and step up... shake it off and step up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought "panic" and just kept right on shaking it off and stepping up!

You're right! It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of that well! What seemed like it would bury him, actually blessed him. All because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.

U Didn't Get Mad

U didn't get mad when the Supreme Court stopped a legal recount and appointed a President.

U didn't get mad when Cheney allowed Energy company officials to dictate energy policy.

U didn't get mad when a covert CIA operative got outed.

U didn't get mad when the Patriot Act got passed.

U didn't get mad when we illegally invaded a country that posed no threat to us.

U didn't get mad when we spent over 600 billion (and counting) on said illegal war.

U didn't get mad when over 10 billion dollars just disappeared in Iraq.

U didn't get mad when you saw the Abu Grahib photos.

U didn't get mad when you found out we were torturing people.

U didn't get mad when the government was found to be illegally wiretapping Americans.

U didn't get mad when we didn't catch Bin Laden.

U didn't get mad when you saw the horrible conditions at Walter Reed.

U didn't get mad when we let a major US city drown.

U didn't get mad when the deficit hit the trillion dollar mark largely due to the Iraqi War.

U finally got mad when the government decided that people in America deserved the right to see a doctor if they are sick. Yes, illegal wars,lies, corruption, torture, stealing your tax dollars to make the rich richer, are all okay with you, but helping other Americans... oh hell no.

Anger begets anger

An employer gets up one morning and bawls out an employee. The employee is resentful and hurt. When he goes home, he is angry with his wife. The wife, feeling misused, slaps their child who, in turn, kicks the family dog, who chases the cat down the street ... and so the story goes on forever. Anger and violence reach out to capture the next one until the whole world is caught in their grip.

50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind

1. How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?

2. Which is worse, failing or never trying?

3. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t like and like so many things we don’t do?

4. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?

5. What is the one thing you’d most like to change about the world?

6. If happiness was the national currency, what kind of work would make you rich?

7. Are you doing what you believe in, or are you settling for what you are doing?

8. If the average human life span was 40 years, how would you live your life differently?

9. To what degree have you actually controlled the course your life has taken?

10. Are you more worried about doing things right, or doing the right things?

11. You’re having lunch with three people you respect and admire. They all start criticizing a close friend of yours, not knowing she is your friend. The criticism is distasteful and unjustified. What do you do?

12. If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?

13. Would you break the law to save a loved one?

14. Have you ever seen insanity where you later saw creativity?

15. What’s something you know you do differently than most people?

16. How come the things that make you happy don’t make everyone happy?

17. What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? What’s holding you back?

18. Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?

19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?

20. Do you push the elevator button more than once? Do you really believe it makes the elevator faster?

21. Would you rather be a worried genius or a joyful simpleton?

22. Why are you, you?

23. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?

24. Which is worse, when a good friend moves away, or losing touch with a good friend who lives right near you?

25. What are you most grateful for?

26. Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?

27. Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first?

28. Has your greatest fear ever come true?

29. Do you remember that time 5 years ago when you were extremely upset? Does it really matter now?

30. What is your happiest childhood memory? What makes it so special?

31. At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?

32. If not now, then when?

33. If you haven’t achieved it yet, what do you have to lose?

34. Have you ever been with someone, said nothing, and walked away feeling like you just had the best conversation ever?

35. Why do religions that support love cause so many wars?

36. Is it possible to know, without a doubt, what is good and what is evil?

37. If you just won a million dollars, would you quit your job?

38. Would you rather have less work to do, or more work you actually enjoy doing?

39. Do you feel like you’ve lived this day a hundred times before?

40. When was the last time you marched into the dark with only the soft glow of an idea you strongly believed in?

41. If you knew that everyone you know was going to die tomorrow, who would you visit today?

42. Would you be willing to reduce your life expectancy by 10 years to become extremely attractive or famous?

43. What is the difference between being alive and truly living?

44. When is it time to stop calculating risk and rewards, and just go ahead and do what you know is right?

45. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?

46. What would you do differently if you knew nobody would judge you?

47. When was the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?

48. What do you love? Have any of your recent actions openly expressed this love?

49. In 5 years from now, will you remember what you did yesterday? What about the day before that? Or the day before that?

50. Decisions are being made right now. The question is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?

Things Learned from watching movies...

1. If being chased through town, you can usually take cover in a passing St Patrick's Day parade - at any time of the year.

2. All beds have special L-shaped top sheets that reach up to armpit level on a woman but only waist level on the man lying beside her.

3. All grocery shopping bags contain at least one stick of French bread.

4. Once applied, lipstick will never rub off - even while scuba diving.

5. The ventilation system of any building is a perfect hiding place. No one will ever think of looking for you in there and you can travel to any other part of the building without difficulty.

6. Should you wish to pass yourself off as a German officer, it will not be necessary to speak the language. A German accent will do.

7. The Eiffel Tower can be seen from any window of any building in Paris.

8. A man will show no pain while taking the most ferocious beating but will wince when a woman tries to clean his wounds.

9. When paying for a taxi, never look at your wallet as you take out a note - just grab one at random and hand it over. It will always be the exact fare.

10. If you lose a hand, it will cause the stump of your arm to grow by 15cm.

11. Mothers routinely cook eggs, bacon and waffles for their family every morning, even though the husband and children never have time to eat them.

12. Cars and trucks that crash will almost always burst into flames.

13. A single match will be sufficient to light up a room the size of a football stadium.

14. Medieval peasants had perfect teeth.

15. All single women have a cat.

16. Any person waking from a nightmare will sit bolt upright and pant.

17. One man shooting at 20 men has a better chance of killing them all than 20 men firing at one.

18. Creepy music coming from a graveyard should always be closely investigated.

19. Most people keep a scrapbook of newspaper cuttings - especially if any of their family or friends has died in a strange boating accident.

20. It does not matter if you are heavily outnumbered in a fight involved martial arts - your enemies will wait patiently to attack you one by one by dancing around in a threatening manner until you have knocked out their predecessor.

21. During a very emotional confrontation, instead of facing the person you are speaking to, it is customary to stand behind them and talk to their back.

22. When you turn out the light to go to bed, everything in your room will still be clearly visible, just slightly bluish.

23. Dogs always know who's bad and will naturally bark at them.

24. When they are alone, all foreigners prefer to speak English to each other.

25. Rather than wasting bullets, megalomaniacs prefer to kill their arch-enemies using complicated machinery involving fuses, pulley systems, deadly gases, lasers and man eating sharks that will allow their captives at least 20 minutes to escape.

26. Having a job of any kind will make all fathers forget their son's eighth birthday.

27. All bombs are fitted with electronic timing devices with large red readouts so you know exactly when they're going to go off.

28. It is always possible to park directly outside the building you are visiting.

29. A detective can only solve a case once he has been suspended from duty.

30. If you decide to start dancing in the street, everyone you bump into will know all the steps.

Tips for Preventing Heat-Related Illness

The best defense is prevention. Here are some prevention tips:
• Drink more fluids (nonalcoholic), regardless of your activity level. Don't wait until you're thirsty to drink. Warning: If your doctor generally limits the amount of fluid you drink or has you on water pills, ask him how much you should drink while the weather is hot.

• Don't drink liquids that contain alcohol or large amounts of sugar-these actually cause you to lose more body fluid. Also, avoid very cold drinks, because they can cause stomach cramps.

• Stay indoors and, if at all possible, stay in an air-conditioned place. If your home does not have air conditioning, go to the shopping mall or public library-even a few hours spent in air conditioning can help your body stay cooler when you go back into the heat. Call your local health department to see if there are any heat-relief shelters in your area.

• Electric fans may provide comfort, but when the temperature is in the high 90s, fans will not prevent heat-related illness. Taking a cool shower or bath, or moving to an air-conditioned place is a much better way to cool off.

• Wear lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing.

• NEVER leave anyone in a closed, parked vehicle.

• Although any one at any time can suffer from heat-related illness, some people are at greater risk than others. Check regularly on:

o Infants and young children
o People aged 65 or older
o People who have a mental illness
o Those who are physically ill, especially with heart disease or high blood pressure

• Visit adults at risk at least twice a day and closely watch them for signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Infants and young children, of course, need much more frequent watching.
If you must be out in the heat:
• Limit your outdoor activity to morning and evening hours.

• Cut down on exercise. If you must exercise, drink two to four glasses of cool, nonalcoholic fluids each hour. A sports beverage can replace the salt and minerals you lose in sweat. Warning: If you are on a low-salt diet, talk with your doctor before drinking a sports beverage. Remember the warning in the first "tip" (above), too.

• Try to rest often in shady areas.

• Protect yourself from the sun by wearing a wide-brimmed hat (also keeps you cooler) and sunglasses and by putting on sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher (the most effective products say "broad spectrum" or "UVA/UVB protection" on their labels).

THE FIVE MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE

Lesson 1:

A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor. Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel.' After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob, after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs. When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, "Who was that?" "It was Bob the next door neighbor," she replies. "Great," the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?'

Moral of the story:

If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2:

A priest offered a Nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?' The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.
The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?' The priest apologized 'Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.' Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way. On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.'

Moral of the story:

If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.

Lesson 3:

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.' 'Me first! Me first!' says the admin clerk. 'I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.' Puff! She's gone. 'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep. 'I want to be in Hawaii , relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.' Puff! He's gone. 'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, 'I want those two back in the office after lunch.'

Moral of the story:
Always let your boss have the first say.


Lesson 4

An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, 'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?'The eagle answered: 'Sure, why not.' So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story:

To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5

A turkey was chatting with a bull. 'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the turkey, 'but I haven't got the energy.''Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull. They're packed with nutrients.' The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.

Moral of the story:
Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there..

Lesson 6

A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy..

(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.

(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth shut!

Psst! I got da Hookup on dem Crown Vics and Impalas Shawty...

Theives used a forklift to break into a repair lot Thursday and stole two unmarked police cars.

Some especially brazen thieves broke into a New Orleans repair lot for city-owned cars and other vehicles last night, making off with two unmarked police cars.

The burglars apparently hopped the fence at the equipment maintenance facility on Alvar Street in the Desire neighborhood, said Bob Young, a spokesman for the New Orleans Police Department. Once inside, they managed to break into a building, snatching keys to two cars that belonged to the police department.

To get the cars out, the thieves used a forklift inside the compound to knock down the chained fence gates. They were then able to drive the cars out of the lot.

The theft occurred sometime between 5 p.m. on Thursday and 5 a.m. on Friday, the hours when the maintenance facility is closed. The facility is run by the city, making repairs to any vehicles that need work.

Once they got into one of the cars, a 2002 silver Ford Crown Victoria, the burglars would have known they were stealing a police vehicle, as the car came equipped with a removable blue light and siren. The other vehicle, a 2002 red Chevy Impala, did not have any police equipment.

The suspects also stole some tools. Police are asking for help locating the missing cars. The silver Crown Victoria has a Louisiana license plate KXT 918. The VIN number is 2FAFP71W22X129398.
The red Impala did not have a license plate. The VIN number is 2G1WF52E229287549.

21 Rules to Live By

01. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
02. Marry a someone you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.
03. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.
04. When you say, 'I love you,' mean it.
05. When you say, 'I'm sorry,' look the person in the eye.
06. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
07. Believe in love at first sight.
08. Never laugh at anyone's dreams. People who don't have dreams don't have much.
09.Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.
10. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling...
11. Don't judge people by their relatives.
12. Talk slowly but think quickly.
13. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, 'Why do you want to know?'
14. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
15. Say 'bless you' when you hear someone sneeze
16. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
17. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; and Responsibility for all your actions.
18. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
19. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
20. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.
21. Spend some time alone

Don't Feed the Animals..unless their Good

Once upon a time an old Indian Chief was talking with his grandson. In their discussion, the grandson asked the wise old Chief “Grandfather, what is the meaning of life”? The wise Chief sat back and said, “Why do you ask Grandson”? The Grandson replied, “Because I want to do good but sometimes I am confused.” The Chief said, “Son, inside of every person are two wolves. Each wolf is fighting for control. One wolf represents all of your good qualities, like compassion, mercy, peace, understanding, and love for your family and friends. The other wolf represents all of your bad qualities, like strife, lust, envy, greed.” The grandson thought for a minute and sat back and said, “Grandfather, which one wins?” The wise Chief said without hesitation, “The one you feed”.

The story shares a good message about choice. We have a choice on the type of thoughts that we hold in our minds. It really makes you think about which wolf you’re “feeding” and realize that it’s up to you to take control of your life and not feed the “bad” wolf. The wolf we cultivate is the one that is predominant. Knowing that we have a choice can be empowering and life transforming. This story reminds us that even though each person is free to choose to feed whichever wolf they want, it is only us who can deside which wolf we feed. Make sure to give all of your precious resources to feed the wolf that allows you to do the good you want to do, so that good will show in you.

Pro-Choice Without A Choice

As a male, I will never have to make the tough choice of whether are not to have an abortion. The final decision will always fall in the woman’s hands. Legal or Illegal abortions will continue to take place as they have for decades. The advantage of legal abortions is that it takes place in a sanitized medical facility with sterilized equipment and educated medical physicians. When making this tough the decision the religious ideas of a lawmaker play relatively no important compared to the ideas of the troubled pregnant woman. By taking away the legal option it only leaves the dangerous illegal option but does not stop the abortion. I have no idea why I am blogging about this but as stated in my sub-heading, “it’s just my thoughts…how I was feeling at the time” and apparently I am thinking about the legality of abortions. Don’t get me wrong, I am not Pro-Abortion, but I am Pro-Choice. I would never recommend anyone to have an abortion especially someone bearing a child I was involved in creating. That is just my opinion and I have no right to enforce my belief on anyone. The choice still has to be made. For example, Alcohol is legal and has been legal my entire life, since the choice to drink alcohol is my choice whether or not to drink alcohol. Which I have chosen not to do, but I my opinion about alcohol should not stop someone else who enjoys drinking alcohol. The same option should be given to troubled pregnant woman. If you don’t want an abortion, then don’t have one, if you want an abortion have one, either way you will have to live with your choice.

Swine Flu Q&A

Here are some frequently asked questions and answers about Swine Flu from the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

What is swine flu?

Swine flu is a respiratory disease normally found in pigs and caused by type A influenza viruses. While outbreaks of this type of flu are common in pigs, human cases of swine flu do happen. In the past, reports of human swine flu have been rare—approximately one infection every one to two years in the U.S. From December 2005 through February 2009, only 12 cases of human infection were documented.

How is it spread?

Humans with direct exposure to pigs are those most commonly infected with swine flu. Yet, human-to-human spread of swine flu viruses have been documented, however it's not known how easily the spread occurs. Just as the common flu is passed along, swine flu is thought to be spread by coughing, sneezing, or touching something with the viruses on it.

If infected, a person may be able to infect another person one day before symptoms develop and up to seven or more days after becoming sick. Thus, a person is able to pass the flu on before they know they are sick. Those with swine flu should be considered potentially contagious as long as they are demonstrating symptoms and up to seven days longer from the onset of their illness. Children might be contagious for longer periods of time.

Can I catch swine flu from eating pork?

No. The CDC says that swine flu viruses are not transmitted by food. Properly cooking pork to an internal temperature of 160°F kills all bacteria and viruses.

What are the symptoms of swine flu?

Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of a regular flu: fever and chills, sore throat, cough, headache, body aches, and fatigue. Diarrhea and vomiting can also be present. Without a specific lab test, it is impossible to know whether you may be suffering from swine flu or another flu strain.

What precautionary measures should I take?

The same everyday precautions that you take to prevent other contagious viruses should be used to protect yourself against swine flu. "The best current advice is for individuals to practice good hand hygiene. Periodic hand washing with soap and water, or the use of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer when hand washing is not possible, is a good preventive measure. Also, avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth, as germs can more easily gain entrance into your body through those areas," suggests medical authorities. Covering your mouth with a disposable tissue when you cough and sneeze is also a good practice.

The CDC recommends avoiding contact with sick people and keeping your own good health in check with adequate sleep, exercise, and a nutritious diet.

What should you do if you think you are sick with swine flu?

Contact your health care professional, inform them of your symptoms, and ask whether you should be tested for swine flu. Be prepared to give details on how long you've been feeling ill and about any recent travels. Your health care provider will determine whether influenza testing or treatment is needed. If you feel sick, but are not sure what illness you may have, stay home until you have been diagnosed properly to avoid spreading any infection.

Watch for these symptoms in children. Seek emergency medical care if your child experiences any of the following warning signs:
• Fever with a rash
• Dehydration
• Fast breathing
• Bluish skin coloration
• Slow to wake or sluggish interaction
• Flu-like symptoms improve, but then return and cough worsens
• Severe irritability

For adults, emergency medical care is needed if you experience these warning signs:
• Difficulty breathing
• Dizziness
• Confusion
• Severe or persistent vomiting
• Pain/pressure in the chest or stomach

Remember that the symptoms for swine flu are almost identical to those you might experience with the regular flu. Only your doctor can give you the correct diagnosis.

Are there medicines effective in treating swine flu in humans?
The swine flu responds to the use of oseltamivir (Tamiflu) or zanamivir (Relenza) for those infected. For treatment, these antiviral drugs work best if started soon after getting sick (within 2 days of symptoms).

For more information check out the following sites
• CDC's Swine Flu web site
• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Infectious Diseases: How they spread and how to stop them

Do you celebrate Jesus or the Easter Bunny?

Easter is Sunday. Easter is the name for the day when Jesus was resurrected from the dead three days after his crucifixion. It is celebrated two days after Good Friday. The date of Easter is not fixed to a numerical calendar date. Easter falls at some point between March and April each year according to the cycle of the Moon. Easter is the first Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon, which is the first moon whose 14th day is on or after March 21. For the non-astrologist, it’s written on the calendar.

The customs and traditions of using eggs have been associated with Easter for centuries. The egg is seen as symbolic of the grave and life renewed or resurrected by breaking out of it. The egg is symbolic of Jesus’ resurrection, while being dormant it contains a new life sealed within it. Traditionally, Easter eggs were dyed red to represent the blood of Christ, shed on the Cross, and the hard shell of the egg symbolized the sealed Tomb of Christ. Cracking the egg symbolizes the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

The Easter Bunny has no symbolic meaning in reference to Easter. It is just a stretch of the imagination that makes the holiday appealing to children and non-Christians. Like many holidays and ceremonies, the true meaning is often lost or stretched out of content. There is nothing evil about painting and hiding eggs and having children search for them. The important thing is that we focus on Jesus Christ and not the eggs, our children will understand that the eggs are just a game as long as the true meaning of the day is explained and emphasized.As for me and my family, on Easter we will be celebrating the fact that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and was resurrected on the third day after his death. Thank You, Jesus.

U'll never leave where U R Are until U Decide Where U'd Rather B

I was walking around one day at work and I walked past a bulletin board with the following quote written on it; “You’ll Never Leave Where You Are Until You Decide Where You’d Rather Be”. It made me think for a minute about how truthful this quote is. Since that day the quote has remained in my mind sort of like a post it note, to come back and reflect on. The quote simply means you will always be in the same situation until you decide to change to another situation. For example, you will always live in the same house until you decide to move to another house or work in the same job until you decide on another job. Once you decide “where you’d rather be” than you will plan on steps to make the move from the old situation to the new situation. The point is the change will never happen until you decide to make it happen. That is the hard part! Deciding what situation you would rather be in than the one you are in. I can’t help you with that decision, nor can you help me decide. The decision has to be yours as you are the only one who can decide which situation is better for you and when you are ready to leave your current situation. Until that choice is made you will continue to be where you are at now.

Don't Get Fooled!

The new storm worm has an April Fool's Day theme. Victims will receive e-mail messages that contain links that direct users to Web sites that contain malware.
Once the files are downloaded and executed on the computer it sets a firewall exception rule and then attempts to 'phone home' using various outgoing ports , The packer and major sections of executable code have changed significantly, indicating that it could be another variant and AV detection for this threat is close to nonexistent.

Currently, this variant of the Storm Worm Trojan is being observed as having the following file names:
• aromis.exe
• foolsday.exe
• funny.exe
• kickme.exe

Subject lines can change at any time, but the following are currently being seen:
• All Fools' Day
• Doh! All's Fool, Doh! April's Fool
• Gotcha!, Gotcha! All Fool!, Gotcha! April Fool!
• Happy All Fool's Day, Happy All Fools Day!, Happy All Fools!
• Happy April Fool's Day, Happy April Fools Day!, Happy Fools Day!
• I am a Fool for your Love
• Join the Laugh-A-Lot!
• Just You
• One who is sportively imposed upon by others on the first day of April
• Surprise!, Surprise! The joke's on you
• Today You Can Officially Act Foolish
• Today's Joke!

The most effective way users can protect against these new threats is with anti-malware products that use behavioral technology. Traditional Anti-virus products, which use signature detection are simply not equipped with this behavioral technology and the threat is currently evading those users' defenses.

As always exercise caution when opening emails and surfing the internet. Don't just click on random links sent to your account via e-mail. Exercise even more caution when that random link is attempting to download a file to your system.

To protect your home Microsoft windows computer you should always practice the following:
• Enable windows update and apply all patches
• Install anti-virus software and keep virus signature files up-to-date.
• Do not open unsolicited email.
• Do not follow unsolicited links.

If you receive this type of e-mail, you should immediately delete it.

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander

Contrarily to popular belief, a gander is not a group of geese, that's a gaggle. A gander is male goose. A female goose is simply called a goose while baby geese are called goslings. Now that that’s cleared up, what is does this saying mean? It is usually used when talking about a relationship between people. It means that what is acceptable for one member of the relationship is acceptable for the others, preventing a double standard. Double standards are when certain applications may be acceptable to one group, but seen as taboo to another. If a goose says for the gander not to do something on Monday, and then on Friday she turns around and does the exact same thing, that technology is not a double standard. That’s a hypocrite. There is a distinction to be made between double standards and hypocrisy, which implies the acceptance of a single standard a person claims to hold himself or herself accountable to, but which in practice may be ignoreded. The difference is in the action, in this example, the goose condemned the gander’s intended activity then on Friday she actually participated in the activity. It’s a slight difference but hypocrisy and double standards are basically the same idea. Both violate the principle of fairness, which is based on the assumption that the same standards should be applied to all people, without discrepancy. Holding different people accountable according to different standards is wrong and unjust. All people should be treated fairly and when in the same predicament, the same rules should apply. What is good for a man is equally good for a woman; or, what a man can have or do, so can a woman have or do. Practice what you preach and always preach the same sermon.

Desparate, Need Financial Bailout to Pay Bonuses

Imagine you’re driving down the highway and you exit off the exit. At the stoplight you see a desolate man and his family standing beside the road begging with a sign that reads “Homeless, Need Food”. You feel empathic towards him and his family so you give the man some money. Later on that day, you are out to dinner with you family at an expensive restaurant and you notice the same man and his family sitting at the table next to you. You confront the man and he explains “Yes, We’re homeless and hungry but I promised my daughter I would take her to this restaurant if she made perfect attendance in school this year, and she did, so I can’t go back on my promise.” Is he right or wrong? That’s basically the current situation with AIG. The company promised all these retention bonuses for people agreeing to work for them for the past year before they accepted the fact the company was headed for failure and was given a financial bailout. I personally think both situations are wrong. Both the homeless man and AIG needed to prioritize and accept that their financial situation had changed and neither could afford to be wasteful with their charitable gifts. The homeless man could have provided many more, cheaper meals for his family instead of fulfilling a promise. Feelings may get hurt and lawsuits may emerge but making irrational decisions based on fear is neither smart nor moral. Like perfect attendance, retention bonuses were promised and given as a result of attendance. They were not based on performance, so to get these bonuses all these executive had to do was “show up for work”. The daughter may have showed up every day for school but if she, like the executives still flunks out what are you rewarding? AIG rewarded the same f-ups that ran the company into the ground creating a need for a final bailout. Apparently, those same f-ups are still running the company further into the ground but now they’re using our tax dollars.

Now the federal government is planning on placing a 90% tax on these types of bonuses, leaving the remaining 10% to be tax by the local state government. The taxes would apply to all companies receiving government bailout money, but they are clearly geared toward AIG. Sounds good to me!

Throwing Money On The Highway

So I’m driving home yesterday and I pass a car going in the opposite direction with the driver’s side door open. First I wondered why the door was open, and then I realized that the rear passenger was throwing his Pringles’ tube and empty drink bottle onto the highway. What a lazy mofo! The NC General Assembly is considering requiring a deposit on drink bottles and cans. The current proposal would require customers to pay an extra 10 cents on each can and bottle purchased. This deposit could cut the amount of litter along state highways. The deposit would create a reason for people to turn the cans and bottles in at designated collection sites to get money back. Eleven states already have so-called "bottle bills" in place and have seen a huge decrease in the amount of bottle along the highways. North Carolina currently spends about $16 million a year cleaning roadsides, and officials said about half of the litter is cans and plastic and glass bottles. Although I have no desire to pay an extra 10 cent for an already over-priced 20oz Dr. Pepper, I feel this program will decrease the amount of trash along the highway as well as the amount of tax money spent to pick up after lazy mofo. The program will fund itself and cut back on the $16 million a year NC is currently spending to clean the roadside. In light of today’s exhausted economy, this is the type of unconventional measures we need to take to reduce spending. The money not redeemed would be used to pay for the program and help fund other highway cleanup efforts.

You Can't Beat A Tiger With A Stick!

This blog is in response to the recent Siberian Tiger attack at a wildlife park near Beijing.

On March 7, 2009, it was reported that a three men were hiking along the Great Wall of China when they decided to take a short cut that landed them in the Badaling Wildlife World Tiger enclosure. Once inside the enclosure, a Siberian tiger pounced on one of the men knocking him down and clamping its jaws around his throat. Luckily the two other men escaped.

So today, a co-worker and I pondered about how we would have reacted in this situation being one of the two men who had the option to escape. My first response, which I believe to be completely honest, is to hall ass back to the fence we climbed in on. For the sake of argument, my co-worker stated that move would be completely wrong. He claims the correct procedure would be to find a stick or “something” and beat the tiger until he let the guy with his face in the tiger’s mouth go. My response to him is “You can’t beat a tiger with a stick”. Let’s be realistic about the situation if you pick up a stick and hit a 500 pound Siberian tiger, no matter how big the stick is, it’s only going to make the tiger mad. The tiger may release the victim but the victim is in no shape to run to safety and you are now the tiger’s main focus. This leads to a new predicament, for you to get away from a tiger that’s hunting you. NEWSFLASH: You can’t out run a tiger either.

I feel sorry for the family for their loss of a loved one to a tiger being a tiger but for the three men to ignore several warning signs that stated Beware of Predatory Animals there is no excuse. You can’t blame the tiger. To paraphrase Katt Williams, if you’re a grown man and you get killed by a tiger in the zoo than I feel God’s Will has been done, that’s exactly what’s suppose to happen.

Fox News: Bias and Subjective

First of all, there is nothing fair nor balance about Fox News, more like bias and subjective. At work we are tormented with this garbage on five 52 inch flat screen televisions in surround sound, on a daily basis. Most days I would love to hurl my lunch directly at my so called “fox and friends”. Fox News’s discredit in their dishonesty in labeling biased reporting as "fair and balanced". The difference between Fox News and any other news source is objective reporting and distinguishing editorial programs from hard news programs. Bias is perfectly acceptable for editorials but on Fox News, it is opinions all day long, delivered as hard news. Fox News doesn’t’t report the entire news story but breaks a part speeches and negatively reports a few lines of distort information. Currently, every story is twisted into a negative attack at the current administration. President Obama is not perfect but he’s done more in two months to try to fix the economy than the last administration did in 8 years. Maybe if Fox News had covered George’s 8 years of f*ck ups like they have cover’s the current administration; we would not be in this mess. Instead they chose to take a see no evil, hear no evil approach to Mr. Bush. In conclusion Fox News is bias and so is this blog. The difference is this blog is an editorial, based on my opinion not researched facts and data. Basically Fox News is bad. Stop believing everything you see on Fox News!

The Great Converter Box Conspiracy

I received my digital converter box today, it's a Dish Network DTV Pal Plus. It's pretty cool, well not really it's just a box that let you see basic channels on your TV, but they're clear and it's free. So if times get any tougher I can call up my satellite provider and say, "Hey I need my 60 bucks, cancel this $#*!" and still be able to catch Knight Rider on Wednesdays. LOL

Anyway, I read/watch these "nut jobs" on the Internet claiming conspiracy behind the converter boxes (google it, do i have to do everything 4 you). Apparently someone is suppose to be using the converter box to watch me sit on my couch, scratch myself and "stare at them" and in return I get to watch Knight Rider in crystal clear digital form for free. (Sounds fair to me). This leads me to a bunch of questions, these conspiracy theorist avoid answering when I reply on their blog or YouTube video;

1) Why in the hell would anybody want to watch me watch TV?
2)Why would they need a converter box to do this? Why not use the satellite box, cable box, DSL modem or the fifty other things hooked up to my TV? Who in the world uses rabbit ears to watch TV in 2009?
3) In order to watch everyone in the world, that would mean half the people in the world would have to be watching the other half of the people, then who is watching them, and why don't I know any professional coach watcher?
4))If these conspiracy theorist are so concerned about being watched, why in the world would you make a video and post it on YouTube?
5) What great accomplishment will they achieve by studying me sitting on my couch?

Anyway, if you would like a $40 TV Converter Box Coupon go to the government website wwwDTV2009.gov, fill out the form, when the cards arrives in the mail, go to one of the stores/websites listed on the government website and purchase a DTV converter box. Bring it home, hook it up to your analog TV (you don't need one for your digital TV) and your rabbit ears and watch some digitally clear basic TV (I recommend Knight Rider).

TIP: If you don't want to be watched, get a sheet of aluminum foil, make a hat with a pointed top, place it on top your head. Turn your converter box towards the wall and position your couch slightly to the left of your TV set, so you're watching out from the corner. Sit down and watch some digitally clear basic TV (I recommed the weather channel for you)

Is your Marraige Fireproof?

Last night I watched the movie Fireproof, It's a good chistain movie that lead to the title of this posting. I'm not going to ruin the plot so you'll have to check it out for yourself. My favorite quote of this movie is "Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it". Well the movie is about Marriage, so the quote is basically saying that if your marraige is fireproof that doesn't mean that there will never been hard times but when the hard times come, will you be able to work it out and stay together. I believe my marriage is fireproof because my wife and I have seen the flames but we're still here together. We're able to work through our problems. I'll end this blog with a quote from Chris Rock, "I ain't gonna nowhere".

Look @ Me, Im blogging too

I decided to start blogging today, Yeah, I must have been that bored. I started twittering too but I didn't get it, must be for those old farts in Washington who think twittering was more important than listening to the President. That's a shame, the twittering congress. I also started digging, I get that a little more than twitter. So I'm blogging about twittering and digging. A few years ago that whole sentence would have been totally uncomprehensive. LOL Since I'm online 24/7 anyway, why not do something unproductive. Ok that's it, I logged in, I twittered, I dugg, I blogged, without breaking a sweat.