6 th July
06 July 2007
Yet another, dull, damp grey day.
He's a Birmingham lad and he's done rather well for himself."
Who are they talking about?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/6276056.stm
“A sledgehammer to crack a walnut if ever I heard one.”
Comment left on web site describing how a father was jailed for taking the rap for his son’s speeding offence.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article2017307.ece
The Daily Telegraph says that Britain is importing only the tiniest fraction of its oil from the Middle East, sourcing its crude instead from the Americas, Africa and Norway.
Unpaid taxes could be seized directly from people’s bank accounts without a court order under proposals drawn up by Revenue & Customs to deal with late payments.
Warren Buffett, the third-richest man in the world, has criticised the US tax system for allowing him to pay a lower rate than his secretary and his cleaner.
And in Britain.http://timesbusiness.typepad.com/money_weblog/2007/06/private-equity-.html
In a quandary about best Pizza bargains?
Simply square (multiply by itself) the diameter (width) of the pizza.
While this doesn’t give you the area, as the rest of the equation for area is a constant, then you can simply use these amounts as an easy way to compare relative areas.
An example will help
Imagine the choice is the following:
A. Two 8″ pizzas cost £11B. One 12″ pizza costs £10
At first glance the 12″ pizza doesn’t seem that much bigger,
Yet actually it’s much bigger.
Let’s do the comparison.
A. Square 8″ and you get (8x8=) 64.
Yet there are two eight-inch pizzas so we must double this to get 128.
B. Then simply square 12″ and you get (12x12=) 144.
What this means is you get more pizza buying one 12 inch than buying two eight inches. To be accurate there’s (144/128=1.125) 12.5% more pizza buying the 12″, and as it’s cheaper it’s a much better deal as its cheaper anyway.
Alternatively make your own.
Or there is the ready steady cook way...Quick and Easy Pizza DoughThe recipe is 4oz plain flour, splash of water, splash of olive oil.Mix to form a dough, roll out thin (5mm) and dry fry in a pan for 2/3 mins each side.Place on baking sheet and add pizza topping, cook in 220-degree oven for 5 mins.
The time it takes to apply for a new card and balance transfer to it (shift debt from the old card to the new one, hopefully at a cheaper rate) is roughly six weeks,
Apathy is valuable.
Many companies make a fortune out of our forgetfulness.
The tart alert is a way to fight back. Quite simply it's a free text or e-mail reminder six weeks before you need to act, so you can beat the bank.
To apply.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/credit-card-tart
What makes 1984 so popular?
Like most great works of literature its relevance is timeless and will always be so. Big Brother is an inherit part of any government.
At some point in your life you will feel disillusioned and will relate to Winston Smith, at least a bit.
At every point in your life you will be surrounded by countries where it is a crime to think and speak certain things.
Racistly, we assume that these laws exist in third world totalitarian countries, guarded by dark men with large guns.
In reality they exist in such “democratic” countries as Austria, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Israel, and Canada.
In the US one finds an extensive surveillance program, and with George Bush's recent announcement that the War on Terror (©) will last decades, Americans now live in the land of never-ending war.
The similarities could go on, but the point is clear.
The society we inhabit shares a lot in common with the one Orwell envisioned. This is not unique to our time, as control is an important aspect of any government.
The question is when does said control of society outweigh the benefits that society receives?
http://questionthemark.org/2007/01/31/anatomy-of-propaganda-how-the-government-lies-about-marijuana.aspx
What makes 1984 so popular?
Like most great works of literature its relevance is timeless and will always be so. Big Brother is an inherit part of any government.
At some point in your life you will feel disillusioned and will relate to Winston Smith, at least a bit.
At every point in your life you will be surrounded by countries where it is a crime to think and speak certain things.
Racistly, we assume that these laws exist in third world totalitarian countries, guarded by dark men with large guns.
In reality they exist in such “democratic” countries as Austria, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Israel, and Canada.
In the US one finds an extensive surveillance program, and with George Bush's recent announcement that the War on Terror (©) will last decades, Americans now live in the land of never-ending war.
The similarities could go on, but the point is clear.
The society we inhabit shares a lot in common with the one Orwell envisioned. This is not unique to our time, as control is an important aspect of any government.
The question is when does said control of society outweigh the benefits that society receives?
http://questionthemark.org/2007/01/31/anatomy-of-propaganda-how-the-government-lies-about-marijuana.aspx
http://www.healthology.com/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-treatment/article1007.htm
I have been trying to keep occupied today knowing that if all goes well my father should be having his operation some time.
I waited till 3 p.m. and rang mother.
He is having his op right now.
That news seemed to floor me, I was relieved when she said that there would be no point in going in to see him,
A) The staff wouldn’t want us there,
B) He wouldn’t know we were there.
I think I’ll have a couple of drinks and perhaps a couple of hours in bed.
I have been trying to keep occupied today knowing that if all goes well my father should be having his operation some time.
I waited till 3 p.m. and rang mother.
He is having his op right now.
That news seemed to floor me, I was relieved when she said that there would be no point in going in to see him,
A) The staff wouldn’t want us there,
B) He wouldn’t know we were there.
I think I’ll have a couple of drinks and perhaps a couple of hours in bed.
Got a call the op has been postponed.
Nothing taught me more about the love of my parents than my own depression.
http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/
Specific Exercises for Low Back Strength
Perform the following exercises at least three times a week:
Partial Sit-ups. Partial sit-ups or crunches strengthen the abdominal muscles.
Keep the knees bent and the lower back flat on the floor while raising the shoulders up three to six inches.
Exhale on the way up and inhale on the way down.
Perform this exercise slowly eight to ten times with the arms across the chest.
Pelvic Tilt. The pelvic tilt alleviates tight or fatigued lower back muscles.
Lie on the back with the knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
Tighten the buttocks and abdomen so that they tip up slightly.
Press the lower back to the floor, hold for one second, and then relax.
Be sure to breathe evenly.
Over time increase this exercise until it is held for five seconds. Then, extend the legs a little more so that the feet are further away from the body and try it again.
Stretching Lower-Back Muscles. The following are three exercises for stretching the lower back:
Lie on the back with knees bent and legs together. Keeping arms at the sides, slowly roll the knees over to one side until totally relaxed. Hold this position for about 20 seconds (while breathing evenly) and then repeat on the other side.
Lying on the back, hold one knee and pull it gently toward the chest. Hold for 20 seconds. Repeat with the other knee.
While supported on hands and knees, lift and straighten right hand and left leg at the same time. Hold for three seconds while tightening the abdominal muscles. The back should be straight. Alternate with the other arm and leg and repeat on each side 8 to 20 times.
By Deepak Chopra
You have been living inside a prison that has no visible walls - the confines of your self derive entirely from the habits and conditioning of your mind.
If you are committed to growing younger, you must escape this prison of conditioning. You are not to blame for living within unnecessary limitations.
If a rope is tied around the leg of a baby elephant and attached to a stake in the ground, it learns that it can only move within very narrow limits.
Years later, as a powerful adult, it remains within narrow confines when its leg is staked, even though it has the strength to uproot an entire tree.
It has been conditioned to accept the limitations imposed upon it.
Until recently, few have questioned the assumption that aging is irreversible, and therefore, for generation after generation, people have reinforced the habitual thinking that growing older meant a progressive decline in mental and physical capacity.
Before you decide which biological age you choose to experience, you are all possible biological ages.
It's up to you to decide what age you want to be.
According to Ayurveda, the ancient healing tradition of India, aging is an illusion because your true self is neither your body nor your mind.
Your essential nature, who you really are, is the domain of ever-present witnessing awareness that is beyond your physical and mental layers
The reason we perform any action is in the hope that it will bring us satisfaction, fulfilment, and happiness. Embracing the spiritual domain, which is the source and goal of all desires in life, creates the possibility for satisfaction, happiness, and fulfilment independent of the inevitably changing situations, circumstances, and people that surround us.
Those fortunate ones who dwell in this domain have achieved what is often called enlightenment.
When you become clear that the reason you want to live to a hundred or more years is so you can express your full creative potential, you change your chemistry and physiology.
When you identify your unique talents and commit to using them in the service of others, you strengthen your immune system.
When you decide that exercising regularly or preparing a balanced meal is an enjoyable experience, you improve your circulatory health and lower your blood pressure.
Your perceptions, interpretations, and expectations influence every aspect of your mental and physical health.
Shifting your perspective and making new choices provide you with powerful tools to change your life.
Pain in the present is experienced as hurt.
Pain in the past is remembered as anger.
Pain in the future is perceived as anxiety.
Unexpressed anger, redirected against yourself and held within, is called guilt. The depletion of energy that occurs when anger is redirected inward creates depression ...
http://www.thisisawar.com/OldAge.htm
Your past does not equal your future.
What matters is not yesterday but what you do right now. So many people are trying to drive into the future using a rear-view mirror to guide themselves! If you do that, you'll crash.
Instead you must focus on what you can do today to make things better.
Keep thinking, "Even though my life looks terrible right now, there are many things to be thankful for,
Like the two friends I have,
Or the fact that I have all my senses, or that I can breathe fresh air.
" I constantly reminded myself to focus on what I wanted, to focus on solutions instead of problems.
And I remembered that no problem affects my entire life, even though it may look like it right now.
http://www.thisisawar.com/AddictionNarc.htm
"At the age of 28 I was told I had maybe six months to live. I just turned 43. In that time I have given birth to a daughter who is now 12.
My oncologist gave me one hope. This is what he said:
"If you think you are going to die, chances are you will. If you think you are going to live, you have just increased your chances significantly.
Eighty percent of your cure is your attitude."
I do wonder if a sort of "social hypnosis" does prevail when it comes to retirement age. For some people, especially men, retirement is literally a death sentence.
Remember, just like every cell in our body, a human being needs to constantly receive the message: "You are needed." Retirement sends a very strong message: "You are no longer needed." If the common age of retirement became 75, then the definition of "old" would probably move up to 80 or 85.
Over time I did come to realize and believe it was possible for me to feel joy to be alive - and that was a wonderful new facet, another dimension to my life, and it gave me a shiny fresh new way of looking at people and things. And some people never know that at all. Or possibly, they don’t recognize it when it comes to them, and so dismiss it for a fluke? It can’t possibly last ... and so, of course, it doesn’t.
A self-fulfilling prophecy: I sabotaged myself this way dozens - maybe hundreds - of times when I was younger. It was a joyless existence. Yes, many people do get to appreciate life more as they grow older, though, from my experience, sometimes it takes a lot of work! But that’s okay.
One just has to be willing.
If I want to believe that life is lonely and that nobody loves me, then that is what I will find in my world.
Most of us have foolish ideas about who we are + many, many rigid rules about how life ought to be lived
This is not to condemn us; for each of us is doing the very best we can at this very moment.
If we knew better, if we had more understanding
"Men don't cry!" "Women can't handle money!" What limiting ideas to live with.
We are all victims of victims, and they could not possibly have taught us anything they did not know.
If your mother did not know how to love herself, or your father did not know how to love himself, then it would be impossible for them to teach you to love yourself.
They were doing the best they could with what they had been taught as children.
If you want to understand your parents more, get them to talk about their own childhood; and if you listen with compassion, you will learn where their fears and rigid patterns come from.
Those people who "did all that stuff to you" were just as frightened and scared as you are.
All the events you have experienced in your lifetime up to this moment have been created by your thoughts and beliefs you have held in the past.
They were created by the thoughts and words you used yesterday, last week, last month, last year, 10, 20, 30, 40, or more years ago, depending on how old you are.
However, that is your past.
It is over and done with.
What is important in this moment is what you are choosing to think and believe and say right now.
For these thoughts and words will create your future.
Your point of power is in the present moment and forming the experience of tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, and so on.
You might notice what thought you are thinking at this moment.
Is it negative or positive?
Do you want this thought to be creating your future?
Just notice and be aware.
The past has no power over us. It doesn't matter how long we have had a negative pattern.
The point of power is in the present moment.
What a wonderful thing to realize!
Change the thought, and the feeling must go."
Purposeful activities occupy mind-space, and the more the task engages or takes up your attention, the more mind-space it occupies.
Get involved enough in something or do something absorbing enough, and there’s no more mind-space left to think about anything else.
It's all too easy for you to turn down the volume on your feelings when they become too painful, yet this tactic may not work that well today.
Sure, you can distract yourself by jumping into one chore after another, but you will eventually tire and will still have to face your emotions.
Instead of keeping yourself so busy, set aside some down time to sink into your discomfort.
This can catalyze the healing that you have been seeking.
My stars for today!
