Small Acts of Gratitude

I was reminded the other day about my son's service in the military. He spent 15 months on a base outside of Tikrit, Iraq serving in the U.S. Army. The tasks he was trained for required travel into the countryside, to smaller bases and in the training of Iraqi personnel. This exposed him as it does thousands of soldiers each day to the possible violence that can occur.

It is his service and the service of hundreds of thousands of other military personnel that are helping a country rebuild itself, for which I am thankful. The political debate can take place in other forums of discussion, yet it is in my heart to know that military personnel are simply doing their job and doing it well.

And so it is with that, I thank them. You also have a way to thank service men and women when you see them in public. A very simple and easy way is by giving the 'gratitude' sign to military personnel. It is similar to the 'thank you' sign, but many folks may have a tough time giving a 'blowing kiss' sign to the military.

In the 'gratitude' sign language, you can use both hands or a simple one-hand indication. The idea is to simply sign a non-verbal symbol of thanks to those in the military for their service. I'm thankful to my own son for his service and to the many others. I thank you for thinking of them as well.

"That best portion of a good man s life? His little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love." - William Wordsworth
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Send In The Clowns

Today is about forgetfulness, the kind that a sibling shouldn't have but does in a hectic life. Okay, now I'm starting to make excuses. It was A. A. Milne that said, "Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” Well that is what I did a couple of days ago, started to think about calling my brother on his birthday and then....

What was it I was talking about again? Oh yeah, my brother John's birthday. Being that he is six years older then me, forgetfulness should be more akin to someone his age than mine.

So without further ado and before I forget again,

Happy Birthday To You, a few days ago !!
Happy Birthday To You, a few days ago !!
Happy Birthday dear John, a few days ago !!
Happy Birthday To You, a few days ago !!

Okay, I've paid my penance. Can I have my marbles back now?

P.S. Do clowns still bother you?


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St. Patricks Day

It was a fine day for the Irish in all of us, St Patricks Day - Lá ’le Pádraig or Lá Fhéile Pádraig.

From Wikipedia: Legend says that Patrick banished snakes from Ireland, though all evidence suggests that post-glacial Ireland never had snakes; one suggestion is that snakes referred to the serpent symbolism of the Druids of that time and place, or that it could have referred to beliefs such as Pelagianism, symbolized as “serpents”. Legend also credits Patrick with teaching the Irish about the concept of the Trinity by showing people the shamrock, a 3-leaved clover, using it to highlight the Christian belief of 'three divine persons in the one God'

So I celebrate my mother's heritage which is mine as well and raise a pint to all and say, 'Sláinte chuig na fir, agus go mairfidh na mná go deo.' In other words, "Health to the men, and may the women live forever!

Erin Go Bragh
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Thank God Its Friday

The unthankful heart... discovers no mercies;
but let the thankful heart
sweep through the day and,
as the magnet finds the iron,
so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings!
Henry Ward Beecher

This cartoon caught my eye and got me to thinking about being thankful in life and being able to express it. It seems to be the only phrase that a majority of people are willing to use the name 'God' openly. Most everyone of us has said it, "Thank God Its Friday" at some point in our life.

The words are simple and meaningful in expressing an idea that you have been able to make it through a work week. It is an open expression to God thanking him for helping you accomplish so much. Also, for getting you to the weekend where you can relax from the toils of your job.

What I find more important though is to find things to be thankful for through out the week. The idea of TGIF is just a reminder that we really do have quite a bit to appreciate in our lives. things such as 'having a job' that we can go to. So many people are out of work currently with an unemployment rate of over 8% here in the U.S. (as of February 2009), many predict it will reach 10%. So maybe we could start saying, "Thank God I Have A Job" each day.

Every morning you get up and are able to get to a job. Your health is good and only the occassional cold seems to bother you. When you arrive at work, you take the stairs in order to get a little bit of exercise, maybe stop at the gym after work or even play with the kids on the weekend. So maybe we could start saying, "Thank God I Have My Health" each day.

And what about those kids of yours? Also a lovely wife and a great friend or two that you can say hello to are great to have around. The ability to talk with someone else and have a friendly conversation. So maybe we could start saying, "Thank God I Have My Family" or "Thank God I Have Friends" each day.

Even when you feel you have nothing in life or even if you have everything in life, each and every day we can find something to be thankful for. Try to be more thankful in your life and appreciate that which you do have. All you have to say is, "Thank You God."

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Economy Hurts Harder For Some

There is a lot of pain and suffering going on across this nation and most certainly across the world. Economic fortune can turn from good to bad very quickly for some people. The folks in this video are in Sacramento, California and should not be considered the entire picture of our U.S. economy. But they are an indication, a real example of a portion of our society that are hurting.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

When all is said and done, it means you need to work as hard as you can and appreciate the things in your life that you do have. This economy will eventually turn for the better as is the nature of economic cycles. We only hope that those which have fallen further then others are able to climb back as well.
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Paint It

As I will be with a bunch of other folks painting today, here is a short video to get us moving. I just could not foresee us painting in this early morning sun!!



Okay, maybe it is about a guy mourning the death of his girlfriend, but it really is a pretty "catchy" tune. Enjoy your weekend everyone!!
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One Step Finance

It was Benjamin Franklin that said, "Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship." And so it is during these tough economic times, you need to be more aware of where your money goes each and every day.

There is truth to the fact that how an economy rises once again is by getting people to spend that money. It does not mean that you should be expending dollars in a 'willy nilly' fashion. What it means is to spend in a smart and structured way.

When times are great and we have lots of money, it becomes very easy to toss our money about. Excess of anything allows us to become lazy in how we treat that excess. But when things become tighter, we usually have to learn once again how to become disciplined.

So how do you become disciplined? I like the idea of keeping it simple and not throw to many steps or bullets out there. Having too many steps to follow simply complicates it. Some call it the 'kiss' principle or 'keep it simple stupid', which is similar to Occam's razor.

Either way, my one step suggestion is (hold on, this is earth shaking); "Create a budget."

Exactly, the one thing we've been told over and over again in our life but never seem to fully adhere to. Create a budget which covers your personal finances. It doesn't matter how you do it or how complex or how simple. What matters is that you do it. When you create a budget, it lets you know what your financial 'reality' is.

Most people don't create a budget because they are afraid to really know how much they spend or how little they really have. Reality can 'bite', but it is the only way you can truly understand how to get through a tough economic time and enjoy even greater the good economic times.

The U.S. government has a really great website that provides lots of free information on a wide range of topics. The site is called the Federal Citizen Information Center and is a forgotten service the government provides that has a wealth of information. To get started on your budget, I suggest reading, There’s a Lot to Learn About Money. It will give you some basic information and a starting place to put you back in charge of your finances.

To quote Benjamin Franklin once again, "All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move." Be the type that moves and change your life forever.
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Winning Lottery Number

So what would you do if you won the 'Mega Money Mucho Bucks' Lottery? Would you hide out for a while and try to figure out what to do with the winnings? Would you jump up and let the world know of your new riches?

You can dream and wish to win some of the biggest lotteries. Some take those dreams and wishes to Las Vegas to try out their luck. Each and every one of these are dreams that do come true for some people. So I'm not here to debate or lay opinion on lotteries.

What I am here is to let you know that you can plan your dreams even if they are not about winning money. Planning for your dreams are important in order to place yourself in a position to actually achieve them. By planning, you become more aware of what is needed to succeed. But what does planning have to do with winning the lottery?

First, the planning on what you would do with the winnings is practice for what you would do by reaching your others dreams. Practice, practice; plan and plan all in an effort to get you closer to that vision.

Second, you have to participate in your dream. Success does not just come to you, you have to be involved in order to grab it. Same is true of a lottery, if you don't buy a ticket, you have no chance in winning the 'pot of gold'. As Hunter Thompson said, 'buy the ticket, take the ride.'; involve your self and take the ride to your goals.
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Forecast Great Things

The weather channel says there is a probability of rain or snow. The news channels begin to repeat it over and over. The impending storm could possibly happen and there is no shortage of people reminding you. So you run to the store and buy bread, eggs and milk along with some extra batteries. You are convinced the storm will happen so preparation is your motto.

Early in the morning you wake to see just how bad it is outside. The surprise on your face tells the story. The hype of news over snow materialized and now you have a lot of egg sandwiches to eat. The idea of being prepared is not what I'm writing about though.

Being prepared is a good thing. Looking to the future and believing in a forecast is like believing in your own goals. The forecast and signs of success are there, but do you prepare nearly as much. Do you believe in what you have forecast for yourself and then done as much as you can to get yourself ready for the outcome?

You must believe in your goals, more importantly in yourself. The forecast for you is success and great things; are you prepared?
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