Day with a Difference

Day with a Difference - Feb 22, 2007

2007-02-22T08:42:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Obstacles can't stop you. Problems can't stop you. Most of all, other people can't stop you. Only you can stop you."

SHARPEN YOUR AXE

Allan, a woodcutter, was employed in a timber company for ten years, yet he never got a raise. The company later hired Richard to do the same job. However, Richard got a raise within the first twelve months. Allan was disappointed and decided to approach the management of the company. He was told that his production had never increased over the last ten years. On the other hand Richard had cut more trees in the period of one year. The company however promised to give Allan a raise if his production goes up. He went back to work and tried harder but unfortunately his result did not improve. One day he happened to meet Richard and decided to get Richard’s advice. Richard told Allan that after he cut down a tree, he would take a short break to sharpen his axe. Allan suddenly realized that he was too busy cutting down trees that he failed to take a break to sharpen his axe.

It is important to take a break from the pressure of work to go on a holiday once in a while. Have a break to take care of your physical body and your precious mind. Spend some time on self-development to improve yourself and to renew your mind. There are plenty of seminars, books, tapes and materials in the market. Make it a habit to search for good books to read, and associate with people who are successful and with the same wave length and you will surely see success.

Expand your knowledge base

I can be straight or not
I can be flat or round
I have three layers
The rounder I am - the straighter I am
I can be a person's trademark
I can be chemically challenged

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Hair

Straight hair is round in shapeWavy or curly hair is flat in shape (the curlier the hair the flatter)Hair consists of 3 layers - Cuticle (outer layer) Cortex (second layer) Medulla (center layer)Chemically challenged - permed, tinted, bleached, etc.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 21, 2007

2007-02-21T08:09:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

My mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. She said that achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you. Success is being praised by others. That is nice but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for achievement and forget about success --- Helen Hayesz

Knowing Yourself --- Copyright © 1998 Victoria Muller

Control, fear, doubt and anger; these are the real deadly killers of the human he race. We hurt ourselves by feeling these emotions and we hurt others by directing these emotions at them.
But what if we could direct unconditional love to whomever we meet? What then? Could we help the world be a better place? Maybe, maybe not but we'd certainly help ourselves. Why do we let other people hurt us? Because we put expectations on them, expectations that we ourselves have failed to live up to with others.

If you love someone you feel it and that feeling is yours. Look at children. We still love our children when they disappoint us why not our workmates, teachers, friends and most of all partners? It's because we put conditions on what we give out.

Who hasn't bought a present or done a job around the house expecting something in return - why? If you want to help someone or give something you choose to do it because you want to, not for "Brownie Points". No other reason than just because you want to - that is showing love.

You can help an old lady with her groceries and it feels good so why not with everything else? When you learn that giving love without expectation is the purest of all faith, then and only then, will you be on the road to really knowing yourself.

Expand your knowledge base

The following sentences have two blanks that can be filled with two words that are anagrams of each other. Please find those words.

1. Mark's math __________ was a mild-mannered man. But one thing he would not tolerate was a __________. He would immediately fail anyone caught doing so.

2. The patient __________ his pain through physical therapy. He had seen enough __________ surgeries to know that too many people elected surgery when they shouldn't have.

Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer

1. teacher, cheater
2. lessened, needless

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 20, 2007

2007-02-20T08:06:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Determination, patience and courage are the only things needed to improve any situation.

Alexis's Ark (http://www.alexisleon.com/index.html)

Alexis’ life can be termed as the best comeback story in the recent times. Alexis met with a fatal road accident on 2nd December 1993, which literally broke his spine and left him to be a wheelchair user for the rest of his life. At that time Alexis was on the threshold of hitting big time in the IT industry. Alexis has made the best use of his skill and his shrewd business acumen, he realized that there was a market for cheap computer books and approached some publishers saying that he could write books which would cost very less than the imported books.

Alexis has authored thirty-two books on various subjects related to computers: from programming, Y2K and IT to E-Business in the last seven years. Alexis plans to write a book about his eventful life, which has been tentatively titled as ‘Reinventing the Wheel’. A few chapters are already stored in the hard disk of his computer. Alexis has not yet decided whether he will write straight non-fiction autobiography or a fictionalized account of his life:

Alexis’ homepage on the web is titled ‘Alexis Ark’. You instinctively question him whether the title has any metaphorical connection with the biblical Noah’s Ark, does he see himself as a survivor and saviour? He politely denies any such significance and explains that he just likes the rhyming effect it has. But for hundreds of harassed software professionals around the world who email to him for finding solutions for their problems, Alexis is certainly a saviour.

Expand your knowledge base

My first is a number, my second another,
And each, I assure you, will rhyme with the other.
My first you will find is one-fifth of my second,
And truly my whole, a long period reckoned.
Yet my first and my second (nay, think not I cozen),
When added together, will make but two dozen.

How many am I? ... Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Four Score.

(The word 'score' meaning twenty, derived apparently from the ancient practice of counting sheep in lots of twenty, and keeping tally by cutting ('scoring') notches into a stick.)

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 19, 2007

2007-02-19T09:16:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Don't look back on happiness or dream of it in the future. You are only sure of today; do not let yourself be cheated out of it. - Henry ward beecher.

LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE TIME HATING PEOPLE --- Written in 2002 by Crystin Miller

Never be awful to anyone, that person you were awful to may teach you the most.

Always remember...you are a somebody, God didn't take the time to create a nobody.

Always smile, you never know whose day you might be making.

Never 'forget' to say hi to anyone, never miss the chance to laugh or smile, never get too caught up in yourself that you forget to help others.

Never forget that you aren't the only one with problems, and most of all...never forget that when you feel like you only have one friend, that friend will remind you of all the others.

If you forget about all the bad things in life, the good will take over.

If fear is staring you in the face, close your eyes so you don't have to look at it.

Be yourself, you can't be anyone else...The best you can be is you!

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

What Does Jesus Drive?

A Sunday School teacher of preschoolers told her students that she wanted each of them to
have learned one fact about Jesus by the next Sunday. The following week she asked each child in turn what he or she had learned. Susie said, "He was born in a manger."

Bobby said, "He threw the money changers out of the temple."

Little Johnny said, "He has a red pickup truck but he doesn't know how to drive it."

Curious, the teacher asked, "And where did you learn that, Johnny?"

"From my Daddy," said Little Johnny. "Yesterday we were driving down the highway, and this red pickup truck pulled out in front of us and Daddy yelled at him, 'Jesus Christ! Why don't you learn how to drive?'"

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 16, 2007

2007-02-16T08:22:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from the inside. We think that hating is a weapon that attacks the person who harmed us. But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do, we do to ourselves. - Mitch Albom, The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Mitch Albom (http://www.albom.com)

MITCH ALBOM is the author of nine books, including the newest, “For One More Day”, published 9/26/06. His first novel, "The Five People You Meet in Heaven", (9/03) is the most successful U.S. hardback first novel ever and has to date sold over 8 million copies worldwide "Tuesdays With Morrie," (1997) his chronicle of time spent with a beloved but dying college professor, spent four years on the NY Times bestsellers list and is now the most successful memoir ever published. Both books were eventually turned into celebrated TV films. The critically acclaimed “Five People You Meet in Heaven” aired on ABC in winter, 2004. Oprah Winfrey produced the film version of "Tuesdays With Morrie" in December 1999; starring Jack Lemmon and Hank Azaria. The film garnered four Emmy awards, including best TV film, director, actor and supporting actor.

An award-winning journalist and radio host, Albom wrote the screenplay for "The Five People You Meet in Heaven," and is an established playwright, having authored numerous pieces for the theater, including the off-Broadway version of “Tuesdays With Morrie” (co-written with Jeffrey Hatcher) which has seen more than 40 productions nationwide, and several recent comedies which have been produced and performed in venues across the country.

Albom has founded three charities in the metropolitan Detroit area: "The Dream Fund," established in 1989, allows disadvantaged children to become involved with the arts. "A Time To Help," founded in 1998, brings volunteers together once a month to tackle various projects in Detroit, including staffing shelters, building homes with Habitat for Humanity, and operating meals on wheels programs for the elderly. “S.A.Y Detroit,” Albom’s most recent effort, is an umbrella program to fund shelters and care for the homeless in his city. He also raises money for literacy projects through a variety of means including his performances with The Rock Bottom Remainders, a band made up of writers which includes Steven King, Dave Barry, Scott Turrow, Amy Tan and Ridley Pearson. Albom serves on the boards of various charities and, in 1999, was named National Hospice Organization's Man of the Year.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

Christopher's class was having an English lesson, and the teacher called on Christopher to recite a sentence with a direct object.
Christopher stood and thought, then said, "Teacher, everybody thinks you are beautiful."
"Why thank you, Christopher," the teacher said, blushing. "But what is the direct object?"
"A good report card next month," he replied.

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 15, 2007

2007-02-15T08:51:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it – as long as you really believe one hundred percent."

Laughter is the BEST medicine

Norman Cousins is a man who laughed his way from sickness to complete health. He had a terminal illness which the doctors gave him a one-in-five-hundred chance of making a full recovery. Norman Cousins refused to accept the doctors opinion and decides to take matters into his own hand. Laughter was one tool Cousins used in a conscious effort to mobilize his will to live and to succeed. He spend most of his time immersed in films, television programs, and books that made him laugh. He eventually recovered completely and wrote a book entitled, "Anatomy of an Illness".

Cousins also served as Adjunct Professor of Medical Humanities for the School of Medicine at the University of California, where he did research on the biochemistry of human emotions, which he long-believed were the key to human beings' success in fighting illness. It was a belief he maintained even as he battled heart disease , which he fought both by taking massive doses of Vitamin C and, according to him, by training himself to laugh.

The above story illustrates the importance of laughter, smiling, having fun and focusing on the positive side of things and circumstances. Our physiology can have a big impact on our physical and mental well being and also our emotion. Movement creates our emotion or state of mind. If we approach our work with fun, then we are not only going to enjoy it but we are surely going to be more successful. We are also going to make more friends and keep our body and mind healthy!
Cousins received the Albert Schweitzer Prize in 1990. He died of heart failure on November 30, 1990 in Los Angeles, California, having survived years longer than his doctors predicted: 10 years after his first heart attack, 16 years after his collagen illness, and 26 years after his doctors first diagnosed his heart disease.

Expand your knowledge base

Laughter

Medical studies show that laughter boosts levels of endorphins, the body's natural painkillers, and suppresses levels of epinephrine, the stress hormone.
According to Arnold Glasgow, " Laughter is a tranquilizer with no side effects."

In an ABC television interview, Professor Lee Berk, who has studied laughter and medicine for the past 18 years, explained that laughter increased the Natural Killer Cell activity, the cells that destroy viruses and tumors. Laughter increased a disease-fighting protein, B-cells, the source of a disease-destroying antibody, and T-cells which help cellular immune response.

Hearty laughter also exercises the lungs and circulatory system and increases the amount of oxygen in the blood. "He who laughs," said Mary Pettibone Poole, "lasts."

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 15, 2007

2007-02-15T07:56:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it – as long as you really believe one hundred percent."

Laughter is the BEST medicine (Cappucino Success Story)

Norman Cousins is a man who laughed his way from sickness to complete health. He had a terminal illness which the doctors gave him a one-in-five-hundred chance of making a full recovery. Norman Cousins refused to accept the doctors opinion and decides to take matters into his own hand. Laughter was one tool Cousins used in a conscious effort to mobilize his will to live and to succeed. He spend most of his time immersed in films, television programs, and books that made him laugh. He eventually recovered completely and wrote a book entitled, "Anatomy of an Illness".

Cousins also served as Adjunct Professor of Medical Humanities for the School of Medicine at the University of California, where he did research on the biochemistry of human emotions, which he long-believed were the key to human beings' success in fighting illness. It was a belief he maintained even as he battled heart disease , which he fought both by taking massive doses of Vitamin C and, according to him, by training himself to laugh.

The above story illustrates the importance of laughter, smiling, having fun and focusing on the positive side of things and circumstances. Our physiology can have a big impact on our physical and mental well being and also our emotion. Movement creates our emotion or state of mind. If we approach our work with fun, then we are not only going to enjoy it but we are surely going to be more successful. We are also going to make more friends and keep our body and mind healthy!
Cousins received the Albert Schweitzer Prize in 1990. He died of heart failure on November 30, 1990 in Los Angeles, California, having survived years longer than his doctors predicted: 10 years after his first heart attack, 16 years after his collagen illness, and 26 years after his doctors first diagnosed his heart disease.

Expand your knowledge base

Laughter

Medical studies show that laughter boosts levels of endorphins, the body's natural painkillers, and suppresses levels of epinephrine, the stress hormone.
According to Arnold Glasgow, " Laughter is a tranquilizer with no side effects."

In an ABC television interview, Professor Lee Berk, who has studied laughter and medicine for the past 18 years, explained that laughter increased the Natural Killer Cell activity, the cells that destroy viruses and tumors. Laughter increased a disease-fighting protein, B-cells, the source of a disease-destroying antibody, and T-cells which help cellular immune response.

Hearty laughter also exercises the lungs and circulatory system and increases the amount of oxygen in the blood. "He who laughs," said Mary Pettibone Poole, "lasts."

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 14, 2007

2007-02-14T08:21:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Love and magic have a great deal in common. They enrich the soul, delight the heart. And they both take practice.-- Nora Roberts

Mathematical Aphrodisiac by Alex Galt

In the days when John and I used to break up all the time, we made a decision to see each other only casually. Dates were okay, but no more than once a week. We were going to lead separate lives, getting together occasionally when the spirit moved us, but without worrying about commitment.

One day at the beginning of this period, we were sitting together on the floor of John’s one-room apartment. He was knitting himself a sweater and I was reading Fermat’s Last Theorem. Every now and then, I’d interrupt his knitting to read him passages from my book.

“Did you ever hear of amicable numbers? They’re like perfect numbers, but instead of being the sum of their own divisors, they’re the sum of each others divisors. In the Middle Ages people used to carve amicable numbers into pieces of fruit. They’d eat the first piece themselves and then feed the other one to their lover. It was a mathematical aphrodisiac. I love that – a mathematical aphrodisiac.” John showed little interest. He doesn’t like math much. Not like I do. It was one more reason for us to be casual.

Christmas fell during this period, and since I hate to shop, I was glad to be able to cross John off my shopping list. We were too casual for presents. While I was shopping for my grandmother, however, I saw a cryptic crossword puzzle book and bought it for John. We had always worked on the cryptic crossword puzzles at the back of The Nation, and for five bucks I figured I could give it to him.

When Christmas rolled around, I handed John the book – unwrapped, very casual. He didn’t give me anything at all. I wasn’t surprised, but my feelings were a little hurt, even though I wasn’t supposed to care. The next day, John invited me over to his apartment. “I have your Christmas present” he said. “Sorry it’s late.”

He handed me an awkwardly wrapped bundle. When I pulled it open, a rectangle of hand-knit fabric fell on my lap. I picked it up and looked at it, completely confused. One side had the number 124,155 knitted into it; the other side had 100,485. When I looked up at John again, he was barely able to contain his excitement anymore. “They’re amicable numbers,” he said. “I wrote a computer program and let it run for twelve hours. These were the biggest ones I found, and then I double-knit them in. It’s a pot holder. I couldn’t give it to you last night but I still haven’t figured out how to cast off. It’s kind of geeky, but I thought you might like it.”

After that Christmas, we were a lot of things, but we weren’t casual anymore. The ancient mathematical aphrodisiac had worked again.

Expand your knowledge base

Amicable numbers

Amicable numbers are two numbers so related that the sum of the proper divisors of the one is equal to the other, unity being considered as a proper divisor but not the number itself. Such a pair is (220, 284); for the proper divisors of 220 are 1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 11, 20, 22, 44, 55 and 110, of which the sum is 284; and the proper divisors of 284 are 1, 2, 4, 71, and 142, of which the sum is 220. Amicable numbers were known to the Pythagoreans, who accredited them with many mystical properties. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amicable_numbers

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Feb 12, 2006

2007-02-12T07:19:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Whatever the price, identify it now. What will you have to go through to get where you want to be? ... There is a price you can pay to be free of the situation once and for all. It may be a fantastic price or a tiny one - but there is a price."

WHOSE TIME IS RIGHT? (Cappucino Success story)

There was a man who works as a foreman at a factory. Every morning on his way to work , he would pass a particular shop selling watches. He will stop in front of the shop and adjust the time on his wrist watch, andwill then proceed to work. He will do this everyday. The watch shop owner became very curious and one day stopped the man and asked him what he was doing. The man said that he was the foreman of the factory andeveryday it was his duty to ring the bell to sound the alarm at 5.00pm to indicate that it was time to stop work for the day. He wanted to be accurate with the time and therefore everyday he would look at the bigclock in the shop to adjust the time on his wrist watch. The shop owner started laughing! He said, “Everyday at 5.00pm when the factory bell sounds the alarm, I would quickly adjust the time on my clock”.

It is important for us to realize that to be successful we have to follow and copycat the right leaders. We should role model leaders with good characters, values and beliefs, otherwise we may find that we may reachthe “top of our ladder”, but only to realize that we are on “top of the wrong ladder”.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

An Illinois Congresswoman called last week. She needed to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:20 a. m. and got into Chicago at 8:33 a. m. I tried to explain that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois, but she could not understand the concept of time zones. Finally, I told her the plane went very fast, and she bought that!

A senior Senator called and had a question about the documents he needed in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion about passports, I reminded him that he needed a visa. "Oh, no I don't. I've been to China many times and never had to have one of those." I double checked and sure enough, his stay required a visa. When I told him this he said, "Look, I've been

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Jan 03, 2006

2007-01-03T08:23:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"There are no hopeless situations; there are only people who have grown hopeless about them."
TWO HORSE POWER (Cappucino Success Story)

There was once an old Indian who was poverty stricken. But one day, he strike it big when oil was discovered on his land. He became wealthy overnight and decided to reward himself by buying a Cadillac touring car.

In those days, the Cadillac touring cars had two spare tires on the back. The old Indian wanted to be different and so he placed four spare tires at the back of his car. He bought himself a beautiful suit and hat. Everyday, with a cigar in his mouth he would drive into the hot, dusty, little Oklahoma cowboy town nearby. He wanted to show off his new car. He waved and spoke to everyone that he passed by, on the right and on the left. He sometimes turned all the way around to speak to the folks. The strange thing is that he never ran into anybody or over anybody. He never did hit anybody or anything. Guess why? Directly in front of that big beautiful car, there were two horses – pulling it!

There was nothing wrong with the car, but the old Indian never learned how to start the car engine. Inside the car were a hundred horses, but the old Indian was only using two horses on the outside. Most of us make the same mistake of looking outside of us when we already have within us the necessary power to move us forward. Scientists said that we only use about 10% to 15 % of our full potential. Therefore, it is up to us to tap into our own potential and awaken the sleeping giant within us.

Expand your knowledge base

When does the following equation become true:

16 + 53 + 3 + 27 + 7 = 14

Answer

It becomes true when the addends are replaced with the chemical symbol of that atomic number...

16 = S (Sulfur)
53 = I (Iodine)
3 = Li (Lithium)
27 = Co (Cobalt)
7 = N (Nitrogen)

...and the sum is replaced with the element name, not symbol, that has that atomic number.

So the equation would in fact look like this S + I + Li + Co + N = Silicon

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Jan 02, 2006

2007-01-02T09:19:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all. - Dale Carnegie

Difference between doing and knowing

Ever heard the story of the giant ship engine that failed? The ship's owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure but how to fix the engine. Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a youngster. He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work. He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom.

Two of the ship's owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something. Instantly, the engine lurched into life. He carefully put his hammer away. The engine was fixed! A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for ten thousand dollars. "What?!" the owners exclaimed. "He hardly did anything!" So they wrote the old man a note saying, "Please send us an itemized bill."

The man sent a bill that read:

Tapping with a hammer...... $2.00
Knowing where to tap ....$9998.00

Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort in your life makes all the difference.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

“How is it that every time I pass your station, you are not working,” the angry department head said to an employee.

“It’s because you wear sneakers, sir!”
----------------------------
Policeman: Excuse me, sir, but your license requires you to wear glasses. You are not wearing them, why not?

Driver: I have contacts!

Policeman: I don’t care who you know! I’m giving you a ticket and you can tell it to the judge!

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 29, 2006

2006-12-29T06:01:00.000+04:00

Day with a Difference wishes all its readers a new year filled with happiness from good deeds, hard work, unconditional love and a better YOU. Happy New Year 2007 ! ... Priya

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The best things in life aren’t things - Art Buchwald

Control of Your Heart Author: Terri McPherson

A wise and understanding heart does not repay a hurt with a hurt. In doing so, the heart is diminished. Fissures form. Love leaks out. Every pain given in return for one received, changes the contents of the heart. It is no longer defined by love, wisdom and understanding. It is redefined by the bearers of hurt and hate, pain and prejudice, meanness and madness, sorrow and sadness. You give away control of your very own heart.

The despair of being hurt is healed by overcoming it, not clinging to the hurt and inflicting more of it on the world. When darkness is added to darkness, no one can see, no one can love. Everyone loses.

Love is not always warm and fuzzy. Sometimes it's the integrity we hold on to when we're tempted to strike back. Sometimes it's the honor that keeps us from exchanging the valuable contents of our heart for the harsh satisfaction of lashing back.

No, the way of love is not always easy, but when night falls, dawn is assured.

The integrity and honor of a wise and understanding heart, rises with the sun of a new day.

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A clean joke to sign off the week with laughter

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson went on a camping trip. After a good meal and a bottle of wine they lay down for the night, and went to sleep. Some hours later, Holmes awoke and nudged his faithful friend awake. "Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see." Watson replied, "I see millions and millions of stars." "What does that tell you?" Holmes questioned. Watson pondered for a minute. "Astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, I can see that God is all powerful and that we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What does it tell you?" Holmes was silent for a minute, then spoke. "Watson, you idiot. Someone has stolen our tent."

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 27, 2006

2006-12-27T08:23:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Present-moment living, getting in touch with your 'now,' is at the heart of effective living. When you think about it, there really is no other moment you can live. Now is all there is, and the future is just another present moment to live when it arrives. One thing is certain, you cannot live it until it does appear."

THE TRAP (Cappucino success story)

There was a village that was attacked by wild boars. Everyday the wild boars would enter the village to rampage the whole village of their food. The villagers tried various means to fight and chase away the wild boars, but without much success.One day a wise man approached the village headman to offer his advice. He told the villagers that they will have to follow all his advice and directions. Out of desperation, the villagers agreed. The wise man told the villagers to gather all the food from every household and put it in the middle of a big empty field. They followed his advice, and immediately they saw hundreds of wild boars approaching the vicinity where the food was placed. The wild boars were apprehensive initially, but after a while they went for the food. Once the wild boars had a taste of the foodthey came back for the free food everyday.

And everyday the villagers would put more food in the field and the wild boars would come to have their free meals. After a while, the wise man asked the villagers to erect four poles at the four-corners of the field. The wild boars were too busy having their food that they did not take notice of what was happening. After a few weeks, the wild boars developed the habit of having free food. The wise man then asked the villagers to put fencing around the field, with a large gate through which the wild boars can enter to have their food. Finally once the fencing and the gate were completedthe villagers closed the gate and all the wild boars were trapped inside the field. The wild boars were finally defeated!

Habits are easily developed but difficult to get rid of. The wild boars were trapped because out of their greed, they developed the habit of having free food, and without having to work for their food. They became so comfortable, that they did not realize they were being trapped. Most of us are like the wild boars because we become too comfortable with our jobs and businesses that we do not realize we are in one way or another being “trapped”. We seek security rather thanfreedom!

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An antigram is an anagram which has a meaning opposite to its unscrambled version. Try these:

EVIL'S AGENTS
NICE LOVE
NO MORE STARS

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

EVANGELISTS
VIOLENCE
ASTRONOMERS

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 26, 2006

2006-12-26T05:46:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate."

NO F^REE LUNCH

Once upon a time there was a king who wanted to compile the “wisdom of ages”. He commissioned his wise men together and asked them to carry out the urgent task immediately, and condensed it into a book. The wise men
began their research and after one year they returned with a thick book on the “wisdom of ages”. The king was pleased, but requested them to condensed it further. The wise men later came back with one chapter, and yet
the king insisted that it was too long. Finally, they condensed it into a sentence. When the king read it he was very pleased and said, “This is truly the wisdom of ages.” The sentence simply said, “There are no free
lunch” – and there “aren’t”.

How true it is, “there are no f.ree lunch”. If you want success then you will need to invest your time, effort, money, etc. to get it. If you want good employees you will have to pay them more, so that they will stay with you. There is always a price to pay for everything! As the saying goes, “if you pay peanuts, you will get monkeys”. The Law of Compensation states that, “You will receive according to the effort you put in!”

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

According to a recent article I just read on nutrition, eating right doesn't have to be complicated. Nutritionists say there is a simple way to tell if you're eating right. Colors. Fill your plate with bright colors: Greens, Reds, Yellows.
In fact, I did that this morning. I had an entire bowl of M&M's. It was delicious! I never knew eating right could be so easy.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 19, 2006

2006-12-18T20:17:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The person who tries to live alone will not succeed as a human being. His heart withers if it does not answer another heart. His mind shrinks away if he hears only the echoes of his own thoughts and finds no other inspiration.- Pearl S. Buck

Warren Edward Buffett (b. August 30, 1930, Omaha, Nebraska) is an American investor, businessman and philanthropist.

Nicknamed the "Oracle of Omaha" or the "Sage of Omaha", Buffett has amassed an enormous fortune from astute investments, particularly through the company Berkshire Hathaway, of which he is the largest shareholder and CEO. With an estimated current net worth of around US$46 billion, he is ranked by Forbes as the second-richest person in the world, behind only Microsoft chairman Bill Gates.

In June 2006, he made a commitment to give away his fortune to charity, with 85% of it going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ([3]). Buffett's donation was the largest act of charitable giving in United States history ([4]).

Despite his immense wealth, Buffett is famous for his unpretentious and frugal lifestyle. His children will not inherit a significant proportion of his wealth. The following two quotations from 1995 and 1988, respectively, highlight Warren Buffett's thoughts on his wealth and why he long planned to reallocate it:

"I personally think that society is responsible for a very significant percentage of what I've earned. If you stick me down in the middle of Bangladesh or Peru or someplace, you find out how much this talent is going to produce in the wrong kind of soil... I work in a market system that happens to reward what I do very well - disproportionately well. Mike Tyson, too. If you can knock a guy out in 10 seconds and earn $10 million for it, this world will pay a lot for that. If you can bat .360, this world will pay a lot for that. If you're a marvelous teacher, this world won't pay a lot for it. If you are a terrific nurse, this world will not pay a lot for it. Now, am I going to try to come up with some comparable worth system that somehow (re)distributes that. No, I don't think you can do that. But I do think that when you're treated enormously well by this market system, where in effect the market system showers the ability to buy goods and services on you because of some peculiar talent - maybe your adenoids are a certain way, so you can sing and everybody will pay you enormous sums to be on television or whatever -I think society has a big claim on that." (Lowe 1997:164-165)

"I don't have a problem with guilt about money. The way I see it is that my money represents an enormous number of claim checks on society. It's like I have these little pieces of paper that I can turn into consumption. If I wanted to, I could hire 10,000 people to do nothing but paint my picture every day for the rest of my life. And the GNP would go up. But the utility of the product would be zilch, and I would be keeping those 10,000 people from doing AIDS research, or teaching, or nursing. I don't do that though. I don't use very many of those claim checks. There's nothing material I want very much. And I'm going to give virtually all of those claim checks to charity when my wife and I die."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_Buffett

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What does each word in each group have in common?

Group A

A baby
A cow
A shoe

Group B

A duck
A restaurant goer
Congress

Group C

A river
A cave
A face

Answer

Group A- a tongue
Group B- a bill
Group C- a mouth

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 18, 2006

2006-12-18T05:28:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Never measure the height of a mountain until you have reached the top. Then you will see how low it was."

THE SMART DRIVER

There was once a very famous motivational speaker. He had a driver who followed him to all his speaking engagements. The driver saw and heard the motivational speaker spoke so often that he knew word for word what
the motivational speaker was going to say. He became an expert too. The driver told the motivational speaker that he could speak just as well. One day when the motivational speaker was not feeling well, the driver
asked for a chance to speak in his place. The motivational speaker agreed and the driver went on stage confidently and gave the best motivational speech of his life. The motivational speaker was shocked because the driver spoke and moved exactly like him.

The driver got a standing ovation from the big audience at the end of his speech. After the speech, it was question time. One of the audiences asked a very difficult question. The driver knew that there was no way he could answer the question. He paused for a moment and confidently told the audience that the question was too easy for him so he will ask his driver (the motivational speaker) to answer it instead.

It is easy to be successful if you find a successful person as a mentor to follow. To be successful you have to be a good “copycat” and follow what successful people do. Let them be your role model. Follow what they do, what they believe in, how they move, how they talk, and what they think about most of the time. If they succeed in what they do, you can also have the same degree of success if you role model them. Successful people have developed a pattern of
excellence.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Q: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for pulse?
A: No.
Q: Did you check for blood pressure?
A: No.
Q: Did you check for breathing?
A: No.
Q: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
A: No.
Q: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
A: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.
Q: But could the patient have still been alive nevertheless?
A: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law somewhere.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 15, 2006

2006-12-10T20:16:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

It requires less character to discover the faults of others than is does to tolerate them. - J. Petit Senn

Pickup in the Rain

One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her - generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960s. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxi cab. She seemed to be in a big hurry! She wrote down his address, thanked him and drove away.

Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached. It read: "Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes but my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others."

Lessons:

Offer help to anyone who needs it
Thank others for helping you.
If you help someone. Someone will help you.
If everyone does just these, the whole world will live in happiness.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

Three engineers and three accountants are traveling by train to a conference. At the station, the three accountants each buy tickets and watch as the three engineers buy only a single ticket. "How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?" asks an accountant. "Watch and you'll see," answers an engineer. They all board the train. The accountants take their respective seats but all three engineers cram into a restroom and close the door behind them. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets. He knocks on the restroom door and says, "Ticket, please." The door opens just a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor takes it and moves on. The accountants saw this and agreed it was quite a clever idea. So after the conference, the accountants decide to copy the engineers on the return trip and save some money (being clever with money, and all that). When they get to the station, they buy a single ticket for the return trip. To their astonishment, the engineers don't buy a ticket at all. "How are you going to travel without a ticket?" says one perplexed accountant. "Watch and you'll see," answers an engineer. When they board the train the three accountants cram into a restroom and the three engineers cram into another one nearby. The train departs. Shortly afterward, one of the engineers leaves his restroom and walks over to the restroom where the accountants are hiding. He knocks on the door and says, Ticket, please."

Have a memorble day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 14, 2006

2006-12-10T20:08:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

If evil be said of thee, and if it be true, correct thyself; if it be a lie, laugh at it. - Epictetus

BUS 54 - Funny stories for all ages

A blonde was visiting Washington, DC for the first time. She wanted to see the Capitol building. Unfortunately, she couldn't find it, so she asked a police officer for directions."Excuse me, officer, how do I get to the Capitol building?"The officer replied, "Wait here at this bus stop for the number 54 bus. It'll take you right there." She thanked the officer and he drives off.Three hours later the police officer returned to the same area and, sure enough, the blonde is still waiting at the same bus stop. The officer got out of his car and said, "Excuse me, but to get to the Capitol building, I said to wait here for the number 54 bus. That was three hours ago. Why are you still waiting?" The blonde replied, "Don't worry, officer, it won't be long now. The 45th bus just went by!"

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As you are reading this message, you will notice some spelling errors. Do not be frigtened, however. This is how you must anelyze: First, find al of the missing, repeated, or incorrect lettersSecond, alow yurself to look at these and look at the wword that is represintedFinally, tell me a numbur that most commonnly is associated with the word

Scroll down for the answer ...

Missing, Repeated, and Incorrect Letters:H-A-L-L-O-W-E-E-NWord: HalloweenNumber: 31 (Halloween is the 31st of October)

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 13, 2006

2006-12-10T20:02:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The more you say, the less people remember. - François Fénelon

Heart Prints

Whatever our hands touch...we leavefingerprints on.On walls, on furniture, on door knobs,dishes and books.As we touch we leave our identity..Oh please where ever I go today...help me leave heart prints.Heart prints of compassion,understanding and love.Heart prints of kindness and genuine concern.May my heart touch a lonely neighbor...or a runaway daughter...or an anxious mother...or perhaps a dear friend!I shall go out today...to leave heart prints...and if some one should say..."I felt your touch!"

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If you balanced a broom horizontally on your finger, so that your finger was exactly on the broom's center of gravity, marked that spot and cut the broom in two, then you would have a long and a short piece. The long piece being most of the handle and the short piece being the bristle end and a small part of the handle. Now what will happen if you weigh both pieces? (pick all that apply)

A) The short piece will weigh more.
B) The long piece will weigh more.
C) Both will weigh the same.
D) Your mom will find out and hit you with both pieces!

Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer

A) The short piece will weigh more! This is due to the torque needed to hold the long piece up. It is the same reason a heavy kid has to sit closer in on a see-saw when he is on it with a lighter friend. Oh yeah, D) may also be correct depending on your mother's temperament.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 12, 2006

2006-12-10T19:55:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Arguing with a fool proves there are two. - Doris M. Smith

FRIENDSHIP WISH

May there always be work for your hands to do;
May your purse always hold a coin or two;
May the sun always shine on your window pane;
May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain;
May the hand of a friend always be near you;
May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

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Can you find the eleven hidden colours in the following paragraph: Many injured animals are invited to live at the 'Toronto Range'. Stop in kangaroo corner and marvel at the lovely creatures within. Dig over the potato patch to find small furry caterpillars, but don't yell! Owls can be found swooping for edible rodents, earwigs or perhaps bluebottles in the undergrowth. The brown bear, Rob, lacks grace and may look like an ogre, enter at your own risk! Peacocks can be found showing their colourful wares, which look fantastic when viewed with our ultraviolet torch.

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Many injured animals are invited t(o live) at the 'Toront(o Range)'. Sto(p in k)angaroo corner and marvel at the lovely creatures with(in. Dig o)ver the potato patch to find small furry caterpillars, but don't (yell! Ow)ls can be found swooping fo(r ed)ible rodents, earwigs or perhaps (blue)bottles in the undergrowth. The (brown) bear, Ro(b, lack)s grace and may look like an o(gre, en)ter at your own risk! Peacocks can be found showing their colourful wares, which look fantastic when viewed with our ultra(violet) torch.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 11, 2006

2006-12-10T19:32:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

A good deed is never lost: he who sows courtesy reaps friendship; and he who plants kindness gathers love. Basil

How Do You Think

If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't!
If you'd like to win, but you think you can't, It's almost certain you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you're lost;

For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will;
It's all in the state of mind!

If you think you're outclassed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise.
You've got to be sure of yourself
Before you 'll ever win the prize.

Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the person who thinks he can!

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Envelopes: Morris had just been hired as the new CEO of a large high tech corporation. The CEO who was stepping down met with him privately and presented him with three envelopes number 1, 2 and 3. "Open these if you run up against a problem you don't think you can solve," the departing CEO said. Things went along pretty smoothly, but six months later, sales took a downturn and Morris was really catching a lot of heat. About at his wit's end, he remembered the envelopes. He went to his drawer and took out the first envelope. The message read, "Blame your predecessor." Morris called a press conference and tactfully laid the blame at the feet of the previous CEO. Satisfied with his comments, the press -- and Wall Street -- responded positively, sales began to pick up and the problem was soon behind him. About a year later, the company was again experiencing a slight dip in sales, combined with serious product problems. Having learned from his previous experience, the CEO quickly opened the second envelope. The message read, "Reorganize." This he did, and the company quickly rebounded. After several consecutive profitable quarters, the company once again fell on difficult times. Morris went to his office, closed the door and opened the third envelope. The message said, "Prepare three envelopes." ...

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 08, 2006

2006-12-08T05:53:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Knowledge of what is possible is the beginning of happiness. George Santayana

My "Operator's Manual"

1. WHEN THINGS GO BAD, always remember: It could be worse.
2. NEVER, NEVER GIVE UP. Keep working on your speech and your life.
3. NEVER LOSE YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR. Laugh at yourself, laugh with others.
4. STEM DEPRESSION by thinking of, reaching out to and helping others.
5. DO UNTO OTHERS as you would have them do unto you.
6. PRAY, not for God to cure you but to help you help yourself.

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Funny answering messages to sign off your week with laughter

Thanks for calling Dial-An-Idiot. Right now, all our idiots are busy. After the tone, leave your name and number, and we'll have an idiot return your call as soon as possible.

This is the Literacy Self Test Hotline. After the tone, leave your name and number and recite a sentence using today's vocabulary word. Today's word is supercilious

"Hello, is this the person to whom I am speaking?"

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 07, 2006

2006-12-07T06:24:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The ability to concentrate and to use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business--or almost anywhere else for that matter. - Lee Iacocca

Financial Freedom and Freedom of Time --- Copyright © 2006 Azman Taher - azmantaher@yahoo.com

When I was still going to school I had a simple dream. I just wanted my own space. You see, I am the eldest in a family of six siblings. We grew up in a two-bedroom flat. We actually lived in this flat for more than 20 years.

Imagine this: My parents and my brother, the youngest in the family who was still a baby at the time, in one room and the rest of us in the other room. So, naturally I needed some space of my own. I couldn't complain because that was all my father could afford. So, I kept thinking … where in this world I could get my own space, go to a good school and have the chance to continue my studies overseas?

I really wanted to go to a university in England but I thought that a chance to go to a university in the United States was equally fantastic. Remember that this was in the 1970's. The formula, "study hard, get good grades, go to a good school, get a college degree, get a good job and you are all set to conquer the world" very much applied back then. But more importantly, at the tender age of 13, I had a dream and was ready to put tangible actions in place.

Sure I did well in school, got a place in a boarding school where I actually got my own space. I did well in high school and earned a place to pursue my degree and masters in the United States. But it all started with a simple dream. With the right choices and the right actions, dreams do come true.

I will continue to hope and pray for a lot of things in life because I am a firm believer in the powers of prayers and I am also a firm believer that every single thing that takes place has its reasons. God never works in coincidences. Since we can't explain certain incidences logically and scientifically, the term "coincidence" seems to be the most appropriate response and the best excuse to get ourselves out of the cobweb of helplessness. It is just that our knowledge and ability to understand is confined to our own interpretations.

Things never happen for the fun of it nor do things happen for the sake of it. The intricate network of the if-then-else equation and the possibilities of events are so huge that it is mind-boggling. We are mere pawns of our own decisions and destiny.

Yes, the future is still wide open although I do not expect miracles. We just have to learn to knock on the right door. With sheer perseverance and steadfast courage, the right door will open and there we are "standing in the eyes of the world".

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Find five geographical terms by adding one of the given letters to each word and rearranging the letters. Each letter will be used only once.

F I O P Y

1. Steep + ? =
2. Raven + ? =
3. Store + ? =
4. Along + ? =
5. Serge + ? =

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

1. Steppe
2. Ravine
3. Forest
4. Lagoon
5. Geyser

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 04, 2006

2006-12-04T10:30:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them. - Henry David Thoreau

It's your life

Life is like a song,
So sing it loud and clear
As we move along
What's important, we keep near

Each turn we take is another chance
And opens up another door
It's up to us if we get up and dance
Or choose to sit on the floor

You see, life is what we make it
Nothing more and nothing less
Trust is strong but once you break it
Everything becomes a mess

There will be times when pain is all we feel
The clouds are all we can see
It will seem to be too much for us to deal
But in the end, God will set us free

Open up your mind
And just live for today
Each of us, our paths will wind
As we search and find our way

You'll remember the sun that always came out
After the passing of the rain
It wouldn't allow you to doubt
That the joy was worth the pain

--- Copyright © 2006 Molly Mae Miller

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If you're good at solving puzzles, these will be easy. Every answer is a two-word phrase in which the first word begins with "BE" and the second with "ST".

1.)What separates Alaska from Russia.
BE _ _ _ _ ST_ _ _ _

2) A fairy tale is a popular one.
BE_ _ _ _ _ ST_ _ _

Answer

1. Bering Strait
2. Bedtime Story

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Dec 01, 2006

2006-12-01T06:46:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. Thomas Jefferson

The Most Destructive Illusion about Success (--- Copyright © Michael R. Norwood, D.C., C.C.N. )

Have you ever put your heart and soul into a project, just to see your very first attempts to make it succeed miserably fail? If you have, you are no different than most other successful people.
Despite that we all are attracted to the "overnight success stories" we see on television and in the news, for most people, these stories can ultimately be more disillusioning than inspiring. Rather than fortifying us for the long and bumpy but ultimately joyous and successful journey ahead whenever you launch a new endeavor, having the image that it's all going to happen overnight for you very likely will be your undoing.

Despite that illusion, are you continuing to take one small but enthusiastic step ahead at a time?And by doing that, have you also discovered that not only are you gradually changing your own life, you are changing others lives, as well?Don't let your dreams be destroyed by shallow illusions.The greatest of lives are made all in the same way:One challenge . . . one hurdle . . . one step . . . and one small victory at a time.

Dr. Michael Norwood is the best-selling author of "The 9 Insights of the Wealthy Soul," which has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. Interviews of him have been broadcast on more than 300 radio and television stations worldwide. You can read his book 21 days for free now

Note: To read the full story visit http://www.motivateus.com/stories/success-illusions.htm

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Take seven matchsticks and arrange them on a table to make two adjacent squares of the same size. The matchsticks should look like the number 8.Now, moving only two matchsticks, can you make....200?

You cannot:

Stack the matchsticks.
Bend or break the matchsticks.
Remove the matchsticks. Scroll down for the answer ......

Answer

Assuming that the matchsticks are upright (forming an 8), take the upper-right match and place it horizontally above the 8. Next, take the match on the lower-left of what now looks like a 6, and place it vertically just above the match you last put down. What you should have is 1/5, or .200 . Ellipses only consist of three points, not four. In other words, I asked you for .200, not 200.

(Ellipses - series of dots (...) following a command, indicating that more choices are available through a dialog box.)

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 30, 2006

2006-11-30T05:45:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Holding on to anger, resentment and hurt only gives you tense muscles, a headache and a sore jaw from clenching your teeth. Forgiveness gives you back the laughter and the lightness in your life. - Joan Lunden

Ad In The Paper

The local newspaper funeral notice telephone operator received a phone call. A woman on the other end asked, "How much do funeral notices cost?"

"$5.00 per word, Ma'am," came the response.

"Good, do you have a paper and pencil handy?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"OK, write this: 'Fred dead.'"

"I'm sorry, Ma'am; I forgot to tell you there's a five-word minimum."

"Hmmph," came the reply, "You certainly did forget to tell me that." A moment of silence. "Got your pencil and paper?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"OK, print this: 'Fred dead, Cadillac for sale.' "

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Every clue below can be answered with a two word phrase in which each word contains OR. Your job is to figure out what they are. Good luck.

1. Listing in the Guiness Book
2. Piece of fiction not as long as a novel Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

1. World Record

2. Short Story

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 29, 2006

2006-11-29T06:38:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast, you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."

THE MAN WHO WILLED HIMSELF TO DIE

There was a man who worked for the railroad. One day as he went into the freezer compartment to do his routine work, the door accidentally closed and he found himself trapped in the compartment. He shouted for help but no one heard him since it was past midnight. He tried to break down the door but he could not. As he lay in the freezer compartment, he began to feel colder, and colder. Then he began to feel weaker, and weaker, andhe wrote on the wall of the compartment, “I am feeling colder, and colder; and I am getting weaker, and weaker. I am dying, and this may be my last words”. In the morning when the other workers opened up the compartment they found him dead. The sad twist to the above story is that the freezing apparatus in the compartment had broke down a few days earlier. The poor worker did not know about the damaged freezing apparatus and in his mind the freezing apparatus was working perfectly. He felt cold, got weaker and literally willed himself to die.

Our sub-conscious mind can be cheated. The sub-conscious mind can only accept and act on information passed to it by the conscious mind. It has no capacity to reject or decline any instructions or information passed to it by the conscious mind. In the case of the poor worker, he consciously thought that he was getting colder, weaker and dying and the sub-conscious mind accepted the above instructions and affected his physical body. That was how he willed himself to die.

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Liz, Blondulla, and Fred were talking to each other. Blondulla and Liz have been friends for many years, but they just met Fred a week ago and were trying to get to know him. They started talking about computers, and after Fred had repeated the word, "Chip" a few times while talking about computer chips Blondulla told him to stop saying it, as it tastes bad. Fred thought she was full of it, but Liz knew she was telling the truth. How could Blondulla taste the word? Scroll down for the answer ...

AnswerBlondulla has a very rare ability called Synaesthesia. It is where people are "Wired" a different way, and two senses come together. In her case, she tastes what she hears. There have also been cases where people feel what they hear, people hear what they smell, etc. In fact, the majority people who have this case are usually unaware that they even have it. Some of you may be shocked to learn as you read the answer that you have this condition.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 28, 2006

2006-11-28T11:03:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities. Aristotle

Count Your Blessings

I've never made a fortune,
and it's probably too late now.
But I don't worry about that much,
I'm happy anyhow.

And as I go along life's way,
I'm reaping better than I sowed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,
'Cause my cup has overflowed.

I remember times when things went wrong,
My faith wore somewhat thin.
But all at once the dark clouds broke,
and the sun peeped through again.

And may I never be too busy,
to help others bear their loads.
When I think of how many peoplein this world
have it worse than I do.
I realize just how blessed most of us really are.

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Bob was having a big party. He decided on a technique to get lots of people to come. He invited his five closest friends and said that they could each invite 4 people.Each of those could invite 3.Each of those could invite 2.Each of those could invite 1.Overall, how many people did Bob invite to his party? Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Just 5.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 27, 2006

2006-11-27T13:43:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

One who understands much displays a greater simplicity of character than one who understands little. - Alexander Chase

The Shipwreck

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements and to store his few possessions. But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky.

The worst had happened; everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. "God, how could you do this to me!" he cried. Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. "How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers. "We saw your smoke signal," they replied.It is easy to get discouraged when things are going badly. But we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground--it just may be a smoke signal that summons The Grace of God.

Expand your knowledge base

A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Three sons left home, went out on their own and prospered. Getting together for Christmas, they discussed the gifts they were able to give their elderly mother.The first said, "I built a big house for our mother." The second said, "I sent her a Mercedes."The third smiled and said, "I've got you both beat. You remember how mom enjoyed reading the Bible? And you know she can't see very well. So I sent her a remarkable parrot that recites the entire Bible. It took elders in the church 12 years to teach him. He's one of a kind. Mom just has to name the chapter and verse, and the parrot recites it." Soon thereafter, Mom sent out her letters of thanks:"Dear Milton," she wrote one son, "The house you built is too huge. I live in only one room, but I have to keep the whole house clean!" "Dear Gerald," she wrote to another, "I am too old to travel. I stay at home most of the time, so I rarely use the Mercedes." "Dearest Donald," she wrote to her third son, "You have the good sense to know what your Mother likes. The chicken was Dee-licious!"

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 20, 2006

2006-11-20T06:54:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The future depends on what we do in the present. - Mahatma Gandhi

Lessons from an Oyster

There once was an oyster Whose story I tell,
Who found that some sand Had got into his shell.
It was only a grain, but it gave him great pain.
For oysters have feelings Although they're so plain.

Now, did he berate the harsh workings of fate
That had brought him To such a deplorable state?

Did he curse at the government, Cry for election,
And claim that the sea should Have given him protection?

'No,' he said to himself As he lay on a shell,
Since I cannot remove it, I shall try to improve it.

Now the years have rolled around, As the years always do,
And he came to his ultimate Destiny stew.

And the small grain of sand That had bothered him so
Was a beautiful pearl All richly aglow.

Now the tale has a moral, for isn't it grand
What an oyster can do With a morsel of sand?

What couldn't we do If we'd only begin
With some of the things That get under our skin.

Expand your knowledge base

You are enjoying your breakfast after having put some salt on your scrambled eggs when your nerdy brother presents you with an ice cube floating in a glass of water and a short length of string. He challenges you to remove the ice cube from the glass using the string without tying any knots. What strategy do you use to remove the ice cube from the water glass? Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Take the string and soak it in the water. Let the string rest across the ice cube. Reach across the table and get the salt that you used on your eggs; pour the salt over the string and the ice cube. The salt causes the ice to melt. However, when you stop pouring the salt, the water that formed on the top of the cube will refreeze with the string embedded in it. Now you can lift it.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 16, 2006

2006-11-16T06:15:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable."

WHO PUSHED ME?

There was a wealthy man who wanted to choose a husband for his only daughter. One day he invited the eligible young men from the whole town. During the occasion, when everyone was present he made an announcement, "Today, I am going to choose a husband for my daughter. Anyone who can swim across this pool can have my daughter's hand in marriage and inherit half of my wealth. The only challenge is that the pool is full of alligators." With that announcement everyone present was silent. Suddenly, there was a loud splash, and in a matter of seconds a young man swam across the pool to the other side. Everybody cheered at the heroic feat of the young man. The wealthy man walked towards the young man and congratulated him. The young man said, "Sir, I am not interested in marrying your daughter. What I want to know is the name of the person who pushed me into the pool?"

There are various types of motivation, and the one that is related to the above story is "fear" motivation. Sometimes, to bring out the best in us or in others, we have to use fear motivation. We have potentials within us but we need to stir it up with motivation and inspiration. However, fear motivation will only work in the short term, because people will get accustomed to it in the long run.
Expand your knowledge base

A simple riddle you behold,
All that glitters is not gold.

My first is second in line,
I'll send shivers up your spine.

Though I'm not quite shining bright,
I seem to glitter in the light.

What am I?

Answer

Ice, of course!

My first letter, 'I', is the second letter in the word, 'LINE'. In daylight, ice seems to glitter.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 14, 2006

2006-11-12T14:20:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend. - Laertius Diogenes

Life is the coffee

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and in life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee. When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. "What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups and were eyeing each other's cups.Now consider this: Life is the coffee and the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and do not change the quality of Life. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided. So, don't let the cups drive you ... enjoy the coffee instead."

Expand your knowledge base

Can you interpret what these sentences mean?

1. It requires a number of people greater than one to perform a terpsichorean series of low dips and twisting steps on the toes.
2. Emanating from a culinary vessel into a site of pyrogenic activity.Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

1. It takes two to tango.

2. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 09, 2006

2006-11-09T08:46:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

It is our choices...that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. - J. K. Rowling

Harry Potter books and After

In 1995, Rowling completed her manuscript for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone on an old manual typewriter. Upon the enthusiastic response of Bryony Evans, a reader who had been asked to review the book's first three chapters, the Fulham-based Christopher Little Literary Agents agreed to represent Rowling in her quest for a publisher. The book was handed to twelve publishing houses, all of which rejected it. A year later she was finally given the greenlight (and a £1500 advance) by editor Barry Cunningham from the small publisher Bloomsbury. The decision to take Rowling on was apparently largely due to Alice Newton, the eight-year-old daughter of the company's chairman, who was given the first chapter to review by her father, and immediately demanded the next. Although Bloomsbury agreed to publish the book, Cunningham says that he advised Rowling to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in children's books. [
Harry Potter has made Rowling a well known and a very successful author, but after Rowling finishes the final Harry Potter book, she plans to continue writing. Rowling declared, in a recent interview, that she will most likely not use a new pen name as the press would quickly discover her true identity.

In 2006, Rowling revealed that she had completed a few short stories and another children's book (a "political fairy story") about a monster, aimed at a younger audience than Harry Potter readers.
She is not planning to write an eighth Harry Potter book, but has suggested she might publish an "encyclopedia" of the Harry Potter world consisting of all her unpublished material and notes. Any profits from such a book would be given to charity.

Expand your knowledge base

A spoonerism is a pair of words that can have their initial sounds switched to form new words. The pairs need only sound the same, not necessarily be spelled the same (power saw & sour paw, horse cart & coarse heart). There may sometimes be one or two connecting words (kick the stone & stick the cone, king of the rats & ring of the cats). Given the following definitions, what are the spoonerisms?

1) overweight dam builder & symptom of a sick flying mammal
2) bottom of the ocean & an insect-bitten dog has this Scroll down for the answer ...

1) fat beaver & bat fever
2) sea floor & flea sore

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 08, 2006

2006-11-08T08:30:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

A little knowledge that acts is worth infinitely more than much knowledge that is idle. - Kahlil Gibran

DREAM OF FLIGHT (Cappucino Success Story)

In the late 1800s, a well-known bishop was travelling the United States, speaking to religious and academic leaders. At one of his stops, he was invited to have dinner with some prominent leaders. During the dinner he was asked, "What do you think the future holds for us?" After a moment's pause, he replied, "The future is bleak, and in my opinion, we have discovered all there is to discover, created all there is to create, and invented all there is to invent." One of the leaders commented, "I think someday, man shall learn to fly like the birds." To this, the bishop replied, "You are mad, flight is only reserved for the angels." With that statement he stormed out of the room. The good news was that the bishop's last name was Wright! Years later, his two sons Orville and Wilbur, made the dream of flying real on the windswept salt marshes of Kitty Hawk.

We live in a world full of riches. We have to be open to the idea of change. What is needed to tap into the vast potential of this world are new and better "ideas". Never under rate yourself and others. Others will ridicule and laugh at your ideas but you will have the last laugh at the end.

Expand your knowledge base

Each group of words has one four letter prefix that fits in front of them to form another word or phrase. Can you figure out which word it is for each group?

1. Nail, man, out, ten
2. Sick, work, room, plate

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

1. Hang
2. Home

Have a memorable day !
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 06, 2006

2006-11-05T15:57:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Never live in the past but always learn from it

Imagine

The secret to a genuinely peaceful world is within us.
We can make it so, if we all start now.
Right now, pledge to do acts of kindness each and every day
Be gentle, kind, caring, and loving
Always smile. Laugh! Learn.
Teach. Above all, be patient.
Share, be part of a team, and be fair.
Listen. Sing. Play.
Be the music.
Hug someone.
Remember the ultimate goal of true unity...
And the world will live as one."

Expand your knowledge base

What is represented here?

Spring - Hola
Summer - Bonjour
Fall - Hello
Winter - Aloha

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

Season's Greetings.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 03, 2006

2006-11-03T12:52:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Great changes may not happen right away, but with effort even the difficult may become easy. - Bill Blackman

YOU CAN SURVIVE - YOU HAVE IT WITHIN YOU --- Copyright © 2004 Tammy Clancy

When the ocean empties and the land turns blue, When my path is blocked and I can't make it through, When the stars fall down one by one and it rains snow, When my car breaks down and I can't find a tow, I will still stand on my own feet proud and tall, I will get back up on my feet after the hardest fall, I will find my way home through the foggiest dim path, I will always have the strength for a smile and a good laugh. We walk each day down a narrow and winding road, We struggle and always seem to survive each life turn, No matter how big and heavy we always carry the load, I may fall and crash but I won't lie there to burn, Each moment of life contains a lesson to be learnt.

Whenever something gets you down and all those bad feelings return you have to remember you're the soldier and this life is your war. Are you going to let life beat you down and keep you there or are you going to fight for your rights?

Expand your knowledge base

A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

The supervisor of my work section recently made a casual comment about my shaggy mane of hair. He then went on to extol the virtues of a good haircut, which, he insisted, makes an elderly man look younger and a younger man seem more mature. "How would a haircut make a middle-aged man like me appear?" I asked. "Still employed," was his answer.

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 02, 2006

2006-11-02T05:47:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"It is inevitable that some defeat will enter even the most victorious life. The human spirit is never finished when it is defeated... it is finished when it surrenders."

HOW TO BOIL A BULLFROG? (Cappucino Success Story)

Years ago some scientists did a simple experiment on a bullfrog. They threw a bullfrog into a container of boiling water, and the bullfrog instantly popped out of the boiling water. Next they put the bullfrog into a container of cold water. The bullfrog liked it and stayed in the container. The scientists then turned on the heat at the bottom of the container. As the water got warmer, the bullfrog relaxed and took a nap. The bullfrog was so comfortable that it stayed in the container and was "cooked".

Most of us are in the "comfort zone". We have a house to go home to, a nice bed to sleep on, food in the fridge, a group of friends to mingle with, along with some basic necessities of life. We have worked hard to get to where we are now. So why should we change this? The truth is most of us are like the bullfrog, because we feel warm and comfortable, we refuse to get out of our comfort zone, and prefer to stay where we are. In life we are either creating or disintegrating. There is no such thing as "staying where we are", because there is always movement. So if we are not moving ahead in life, we must by nature, be moving in the opposite direction.

Expand your knowledge base

Brain Teaser

Follow these steps and see if you can figure this out.

1) Get a brown, cardboard box.
2) Get purple, orange, and turquoise paints.
3) Paint the box orange.
4) Paint on purple spots.
5) Paint on turquoise stripes.
7) Turn it upside down.
8) Lie on your side.

Answer :

Step 6!!!!!

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Nov 01, 2006

2006-11-01T05:34:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

You're happiest while you're making the greatest contribution. Robert F. Kennedy

Why not you?

Today, many will awaken with a fresh sense of inspiration. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to leave the ghost of yesterday behind and seize the immeasurable power of today. Why not you?

Today, many will rise above their believed limitations and make contact with their powerful innate strength. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to free themselves from the personal imprisonment of their bad habits. Why not you?

Today, many will decide to no longer sit back with a victim mentality, but to take charge of their lives and make positive changes. Why not you?

Today, many will take the action necessary to make a difference. Why not you?

Today is a new day! Many will seize this day. Many will live it to the fullest. Why not you?
--- Copyright © 2004 Steve Maraboli

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What is the meaning of this rebus?ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQUSTRVWXYZ Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

You are out of order (the letters "U" and "R" have traded places; U R out of order).

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 31, 2006

2006-10-31T05:18:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity. George Patton

Heart Prints

Whatever our hands touch...we leave
fingerprints on.
On walls, on furniture, on door knobs,
dishes and books.

As we touch we leave our identity..
Oh please where ever I go today...
help me leave heart prints.

Heart prints of compassion,
understanding and love.
Heart prints of kindness and genuine concern.

May my heart touch a lonely neighbor...
or a runaway daughter...
or an anxious mother...
or perhaps a dear friend!

I shall go out today...
to leave heart prints...
and if some one should say...
"I felt your touch!"

Expand your knowledge base

The blanks in the following sentences will be filled in with three different homonyms (words that are spelled differently but sound alike) to make valid sentences. The dashes indicate the number of letters in the words. Can you fill in the blanks?

1. The cut on his _ _ _ _ won't _ _ _ _ in time for the race, so _ _ '_ _ have to drop out.

Answer

1. The cut on his HEEL won't HEAL in time for the race, so HE'LL have to drop out

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 30, 2006

2006-10-29T16:55:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

To love deeply in one direction makes us more loving in all others. - Anne-Sophie Swetchine

Beauty Tips

A dear old lady was asked what she used to make her complexion so beautiful and her whole being so bright and attractive.

She answered:

"I use for my lips, truth
I use for my voice, kindness
I use for my ears, compassion
I use for my hands, charity
I use for my figure, uprightness
I use for my heart, love
I use for any who do not like me, prayer."

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Anagrams - Each of the following sentences has three missing words. The first missing word of each sentence is 6 letters long, the second missing word is 5 letters long, and the third missing word is 4 letters long. All the 6 letter words are anagrams of each other, as are all the 5 letter words, and all the 4 letter words. Can you fill in the blanks?

1) Nobody would ______ to the old pirate any more, because his _____ were far too ____.
2) The fans were ______ as the opposition managed to _____ the game from the home ____.

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

1) Nobody would LISTEN to the old pirate any more, because his TALES were far too TAME.
2) The fans were SILENT as the opposition managed to STEAL the game from the home TEAM.

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 27, 2006

2006-10-26T21:28:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspiratonal Quote:

I am only one, But still I am one. I cannot do everything, But still I can do something; And because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. - Edward Everett Hale

THE BRICK

About ten years ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.

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 child darted out, but a brick sailed out and - WHUMP! - it smashed Into the Jag's shiny black side door! SCREECH..!!!! Brakes slammed! Gears ground into reverse, and tires madly spun the Jaguar back to the spot from where the brick had been thrown. Josh jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!" Building up a head of steam, he went on. "That's my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?"

"Please, mister, please. . . I'm sorry! I didn't know what else to do!" Pleaded the youngster. "I threw the brick because no one else would stop!" Tears were dripping down the boy's chin as he pointed around the parked car. "It's my brother, mister," he said. "He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up." Sobbing, the boy asked the 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 young executive tried desperately to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapes and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long walk back to the sleek, black, shining, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE -a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. . . Some bricks are softer than others. Feel for the bricks of life coming at to you. For all the negative things we have to say to ourselves, God has positive answers.

Expand your knowledge base

A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

A husband, the owner of a new car, was somewhat reluctant to allow his wife to drive his prize possession, even to the grocery store, which was a few blocks from the house. After she insisted, he finally relented, cautioning her as she departed, "Remember, if you have an accident, the newspaper will print your age."

One night at the dinner table, the wife commented, "When we were first married, you took the small piece of steak and gave me the larger. Now you take the large one and leave me the smaller; You don't love me any more..." "Nonsense, darling," replied the husband, "you just cook better now."

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 26, 2006

2006-10-26T08:15:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Nature does nothing uselessly. - Aristotle

LET YOUR "EYES" DO THE TALKING

I know a lot of people feel really uncomfortable when people stare at them, but it doesn't bother me so much. I guess I assume people are just friendly and curious. Personally, I'm always curious about the people around and I know I would stare at others more if it wasn't "against the rules". In Asia, it's not culturally impolite to stare and as a white person, people really do tend to stare at you. I know that a lot of travelers find it very offensive, but in Nepal, I learnt that the best thing to do was to stare back at the person staring at you. The results were amazing. Sometimes it would take a full 10 seconds or more of staring and smiling but eventually the other person would start to smile and you felt a real connection. Actually it's really amazing what you can say with your eyes alone. For instance have you ever wondered what happens if you do break the eye contact rules?One day in Stockholm, I was feeling so lonely that I decided to find out. It was a pretty funny experience. I was on the train about eight minutes from my station, and opposite me sat a young guy about the same age as me. So I looked at him and when he looked back at me I didn't do what was expected - I just keep looking, and of course smiling. Well, what happened? After a short time, it occurred to me that he thought I was "checking him out". Oops, so that's what happens if you break this rule. The last few minutes to my station were a little uncomfortable and I couldn't get off that train fast enough! So wherever you go in the world you can say a lot without even opening your mouth. The problem is that sometimes what you are saying with your eyes depends on where in the world you are. One thing is for sure though, wherever in the world you end up, a friendly look and a smile can open doors. So I challenge you to go out there and let your eyes do the talking!

--- Written in 2006 by Clare McLennan --- Sweden

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Bob was having a big party. He decided on a technique to get lots of people to come. He invited his five closest friends and said that they could each invite 4 people.Each of those could invite 3. Each of those could invite 2.Each of those could invite 1.Overall, how many people did Bob invite to his party?

Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer
Just 5

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 25, 2006

2006-10-25T06:25:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles."

HE BURNED HIS BOATS

A long time ago there was a great General who was faced with a situation which made it necessary for him to make a drastic decision to insure his success on the battlefield. He was about to send his army on shore to face a powerful enemy, whose men outnumbered his. He loaded his soldiers into boats, and sailed to face the enemies on shore. When they reached the shore, he ordered them to unload the soldiers and cargoes. He then ordered for all the ships and boats to be burned. Addressing his men before the battle, he said, "You see the ships and boats going up in smoke. That means that we cannot leave these shores alive unless we win! We now, have no choice – either we win, or we perish." They WON!

Just like the General, we have to burn all our bridges if we want to achieve success. There can be no room for retreat and we must have an attitude of, "Whatever it takes", taking into consideration that we can have anything we desire provided we do not violate Universal Laws and the rights of our fellow human beings. Do not dwell on the past. Move forward with confidence and we will surely see success, unexpected in common hours.

Expand your knowledge base

Every clue below can be answered with a two word phrase in which each word contains OR. Your job is to figure out what they are.

Person on an assembly line
Whiskey made from ears of a certain vegetable
1970s-'80s tennis champ from Sweden
Listing in the Guiness Book .... Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer

1. Factory Worker
2. Corn Liquor
3. Bjorn Borg
4. World Record

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 24, 2006

2006-10-24T06:36:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Laughing at our mistakes can lengthen our own life. Laughing at someone else's can shorten it. - Cullen Hightower

Climb Every Mountain In Life - By: Sean Swarner

I'm actually the first (and only) cancer survivor to summit the world's highest mountain... Mt. Everest. When I was only 13, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease and given three months to live. When I was 15, I was diagnosed with Askin's Sarcoma. The prognosis was much worse as the doctors gave me only two weeks to live. Again, I survived.

Being the only person in the world to have ever had these two cancers, I really felt I should share my story to help motivate others and influence lives. On May 16th, 2002 at 9:32am, I became the first cancer survivor to summit Mt. Everest.

Since then, I have been lucky enough to reach the summits of three more of the world's seven highest peaks and have spoken internationally about my life and adventures to countless people and organizations. On the summit of Everest I brought a flag adorned with names of people who have been affected by cancer and left it on the top of the world forever commemorating the struggle of cancer patients worldwide.

I did the same to the highest point in Africa, Europe and just recently returned from 23,000-foot Aconcagua in South America! My ultimate goal is to climb the highest mountain on each continent AND trek to the North and South poles.

I am covering the globe with inspiration. There are plans for live chat sessions during the expeditions as well as TV spots and live summit bids from a number of the mountains! The reason for these expeditions is to inspire those affected by cancer (as well as anyone with a pulse!) to dream big and never give up.

We invite you to visit these fine websites: seanswarner.com

Expand your knowledge base

What expression is represented below?

+ DEEF Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer:
Positive Feedback !!!

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 20, 2006

2006-10-20T06:34:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is to not stop questioning. - Albert Einstein

HAVING A BAD DAY?

The average cost of rehabilitating a seal after the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska was $80,000. At a special ceremony, two of the most expensively saved animals were released back into the wild amid cheers and applause from onlookers. A minute later, in full view, a killer whale ate them both.

A woman came home to find her husband in the kitchen, shaking frantically with what looked like a wire running from his waist towards the electric kettle. Intending to jolt him away from the deadly current she whacked him with a handy plank of wood by the back door, breaking his arm in two places. Until that moment he had been happily listening to his Walkman.

Two animal rights protesters were protesting at the cruelty of sending pigs to a slaughterhouse in Bonn Germany. Suddenly the pigs, all two thousand of them, escaped through a broken fence and stampeded, trampling the two hapless protesters to death.

In the Jan. 6, 2002 edition of Parade magazine, Kirk Douglas wrote the following that I think applies well to anybody struggling with any adversity: My "Operator's Manual": To help people understand and recover from a stroke, I constructed the following guidelines. Then, I had an epiphany: Dealing with a stroke---dealing with any ailment or misfortune---is no different than the way we all should live our lifes.
1. WHEN THINGS GO BAD, always remember: It could be worse.

2. NEVER, NEVER GIVE UP. Keep working on your speech and your life.

3. NEVER LOSE YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR. Laugh at yourself, laugh with others.

4. STEM DEPRESSION by thinking of, reaching out to and helping others.

5. DO UNTO OTHERS as you would have them do unto you.6. PRAY, not for God to cure you but to help you help yourself.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

I burned a CD with some multimedia stuff on it for a friend of a friend. He couldn't get them working, because, it turned out, he had a 486 with 8 megs of RAM.

Him: "How come they don't work?"
Me: "You need a new motherboard, CPU, case, power supply, lots more RAM, and maybe a new video card."
Him: "Can you download them for me?"

Have a meorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 18, 2006

2006-10-18T05:29:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

I long to accomplish a great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker. - Helen Keller

FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT (Cappucino Success Story)

She was born normal on 27th June 1880, in Tuscumbia, Alabama. When she was 19 months old she had a severe fever and illness which left her blind and deaf. As a result she could not speak. Over the next five years she was a problem child, always in uncontrollable rage and violence. When she was seven years old her parents sought help for the young girl.

Help came in the form of Annie Mansfield Sullivan. With love, patience, and understanding given by Annie, the little girl gradually awaken her intellectual faculty and was "born again". The stubborn, headstrong, self-willed, and almost unmanageable child became patient, gentle and obedient. She developed an eagerness to learn. At 16 years old she could speak well enough to enter college, and she later graduated from Radcliffe College.After her graduation Helen Keller dedicated her life to bringing messages of hope and courage to the handicapped people everywhere. Helen Keller's books were translated into more than 50 languages. She lectured in over 25 countries and raised millions of dollars for the benefit of the blind.

The success of Helen Keller is the story of Annie Sullivan. She was the one who believed in the hidden potential of Helen Keller. With love, patience, understanding and encouragement Annie Sullivan managed to help Helen Keller awaken the sleeping giant within her. A successful person is a person who is willing to give of himself for the betterment of another human being. Practice giving! Helen Keller on the other hand had to overcome challenges to be a blessing to others.

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Corpus Callosum

The corpus callosum is the part of the brain the connects the left and right hemispheres of the cerebral cortex. Most of the communication between the two halves of the brain is carried over the corpus callosum. Some studies have shown that women have more fibers in the posterior portion of the corpus callosum. This added ability for cross-talk within the brain may account for the tendency for women to be more intuitive and better multitaskers. This interconnect is also very important for reading. This may be why dyslexia is five times more common in men versus women.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 17, 2006

2006-10-17T03:57:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don't recognize them

Teamwork

"There are plenty of teams in every sport that have great players and never win titles. Most of the time, those players aren't willing to sacrifice for the greater good of the team. The funny thing is, in the end, their unwillingness to sacrifice only makes individual goals more difficult to achieve. One thing I believe to the fullest is that if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships."

-- Michael Jordan

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Clean joke Philosophies to Ponder

If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.
Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view.
The light at the end of the tunnel is the headlight of an approaching train
No one is listening until you make a mistake.

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 16, 2006

2006-10-16T05:20:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

If a profound gulf separates my neighbor's belief from mine, there is always the golden bridge of tolerance.

There is no joy in easy sailing

"There is no thrill in easy sailing
When the skies are clear and blue.
There is no joy in merely doing
Things which anyone can do.
But there is some satisfaction
That is mighty sweet to take,
When you reach a destination
That you never thought you'd make."
--- Spirella

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Riddle:

What king can you make if you take

the head of a lamb
the middle of a pig
the hind of a buffalo and
the tail of a dragon? Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer:

A LION, king of the jungle! (the head of a Lamb, the middle of a p Ig, the hind of a buffalO and the tail of a dragoN)

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 12, 2006

2006-10-12T08:55:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Economics is not about things and tangible material objects; it is about men, their meanings and actions. - Ludwig von Mises

The Tone of Voice

It's not so much what we say
As the manner in which we say it.
It's not so much in the language we use
As the tone in which we convey it.
"Come here!" I sharply ordered;
And a child cowered and wept.
"Come here," I softly whispered;
And into my arms he crept.
Words may be mild and fair,
But the tone pierces like a dart.
Words may be soft as summer air,
But the tone can break a heart.

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The group of three definitions describes three words that are spelled the same, except for one letter Example: king, ring, wing.

A small territorial division of a country
An artillery piece
A deep valley with high steep sides

Scroll down for the answer .....

canton, cannon, canyon

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 11, 2006

2006-10-10T16:38:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"When you can do the common things of life in an uncommon way you will command the attention of the world."

TWENTY YEARS COMMITMENT (Cappucino Success Story)

Oliver Napoleon Hill was born to a poor family in 1883. He fought his way out of his backwoods Virginia town with a burning desire to be successful. He was always searching for ways to improve himself and was involved in numerous ventures, including managing a coal-mine, practicing law, and becoming a business journalist. His big break came when he had the opportunity of meeting Andrew Carnegie, the "Steel King". Andrew Carnegie asked Napoleon Hill if he would take up the challenge of devoting 20 years of his life in order to prepare a formula of success for helping others to become successful. Andrew Carnegie would provide him with letters of reference to meet hundreds of successful people in the likes of Woodrow Wilson, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Theodore Roosevelt, John D. Rockefeller, to name a few. Napoleon Hill made his decision to take up the challenge in less than 60 seconds. Later he came to know that Andrew Carnegie had given him 60 seconds to make up his mind, failing which he would have lost his chance of undertaking the important assignment.

After 20 years of dedicated research in 1937 he came out with his best seller, "Think And Grow Rich", which has helped countless of people around the world to achieve success. One of his famous saying was, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve". Successful people make up their mind fast, but are slow at changing their mind once they make their decision. On the other hand those who are not too successful tend to be slow at making up their mind and quick to change after the decision is made. In actual fact most people do not make their own decisions at all, because their decisions are made for them or influenced by others. It is also true that whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve. The key word here is "believe".

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Lateral Thinking Puzzle

There are two very poor boys. The first is 18 and the second is 14. They live on their own. They are so poor they live in a small, strange house with only one bed. They both sleep in this bed every night, however, they sleep in separate rooms. How is this possible? Scroll down for the answer ...

Answer

The bed was very thin, about 3/4 of a meter wide, but it was very long, about 6 meters long. It fits in the doorway connecting two rooms. One of the boys sleeps at one end of the bed in one room, and the other sleeps at the other end in a different room. (I told you it was a strange house.)

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 10, 2006

2006-10-09T19:34:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Catch a passion for helping others and a richer life will come back to you!"

OVERNIGHT PACKAGES

Fred Smith attended Yale University business school. He wrote a project paper on overnight packages deliveries, and was given a C minus for it. The professors commented that nobody would want to send overnight packages when they have the service of the US Mail. This result did not deter Fred Smith and he later put all his money into his idea and started Federal Express. On the first day of operation Federal Express intended to deliver 167 packages. However, they only delivered seven. Five of the packages were to themselves and only two were to outsiders. Did Fred Smith quit? We know the answer because Federal Express is now a billion dollars corporation.

There is no failure to Fred Smith. Because when he took action on his decision, he only considered the results as outcome. On the first day of operation when Federal Express delivered only two packages to outsiders, he said that he succeeded in learning how to send two packages. Now he had to learn how to send more packages. This is an empowering principle - if we want to succeed in a bigger way we have to look at the positive side of everything, and take massive and consistent action.

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Anagrams - words or phrases made by mixing up the letters of other words or phrases, e.g. THE EYES is an anagram of THEY SEE.

Synanagram - Single words that are anagrams of other single words, such as angered = enraged.

Trianagram - Also called triplets, these are three-way anagrams such as mastering = emigrants = streaming.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 09, 2006

2006-10-09T05:14:00.000+04:00

Todyay's Inspirtional Quote:

It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has. - Henry Ward Beecher

Work and Play

The master in the art of living makes little distinction between
his work and his play, his labor and his leisure,
his mind and his body, his education and his recreation,
his love and his religion He hardly knows which is which.
He simply pursues his vision of excellence
in whatever he does, leaving others to decide
where he is working or playing. To him, he is always doing both.

-- From a Zen Buddhist quoted in "Head to Head" by Lester Thurow, Dean of M.I.T.'s Sloan School of Management

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

*INTERESTING YEAR 1981

1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned soccer Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes tournament.
4. Pope Died

*INTERESTING YEAR 2005

1. Prince Charles got married
2. Liverpool crowned soccer Champions of Europe
3. Australia lost the Ashes tournament
4. Pope Died Lesson Learned?

The next time Charles gets married, warn the Pope and Australia !

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 03, 2006

2006-10-02T18:30:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out.

Outcome vs. Process

There are two types of goals. Outcome goals give you direction, such as winning or making a particular play. Process goals include mastering the fundamentals and strategy to be competitive in basketball.

You dramatically increase your chances of making a basket by focusing on the process and letting the outcome take care of itself. When you focus on the outcome, you open yourself up to the fear of missing or losing. If you make a bad play or make a mistake, it is easier to become angry.

Fear and anger are negative emotions that adversely affect your brain's chemistry and performance. You will be more relaxed and efficient by focusing on instinctive execution, rather than thinking about scoring or winning.

While you may not be able to control the outcome, you can control your thoughts and actions to improve the process. Success in mastering the process builds confidence and makes it easier to achieve your desired outcome.
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Interesting phrase origins - White Elephant

Meaning: Something that is costly to obtain or maintain and provides little benefit or value.

Example: The London Bridge became a white elephant. The bridge was relocated to Havasu City Arizona, where it now remains as a tourist attraction.

Origin: From the Burmese belief that albino elephants are sacred. They can't be used for work and they must be lavished with the ultimate amount of care. Giving a gift of a white elephant would be done to someone considered an enemy. The idea being that you would eventually wipe out your enemy's wealth with the care of the sacred elephant.

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Oct 02, 2006

2006-09-30T15:11:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Again and again, the impossible problem is solved when we see that the problem is only a tough decision waiting to be made. - Robert H. Schuller

Robert Schuller

"My denomination shunned me when they heard I was preaching in a drive-in theater."

The young minister had always been proud to belong to the oldest Protestant denomination in the country, the Dutch Reformed Church in America. Many of his colleagues and co-religionists thought the setting of a drive-in movie theater was beneath the dignity of a minister of the church, but Robert Schuller was determined to reach the people of Southern California, and the drive-in ministry grew and grew.

Today, Robert Schuller broadcasts his message from the spectacular Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California, to an estimated audience of 30 million people, in 184 countries on all seven continents. His program, The Hour of Power, is the most widely televised one-hour church service in the world.

Dr. Schuller has represented the United States as a member of the Presidential Delegation at the funerals of Mother Teresa and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. His goal-setting ideas have made him a sought-after speaker for business conventions and conferences around the world, and his "theology of self-esteem" is a source of strength and hope to millions.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

The math teacher saw that little Johnny wasn't paying attention in class. She called on him and said, "Johnny! what are 4, 2, 28 and 44?" Little Johnny quickly replied, "NBC, CBS, HBO and the Cartoon Network!"

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 29, 2006

2006-09-29T09:22:00.001+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The entire law is summed up in a single command, "Love your neighbor as yourself." - Galatians 5:14 (NIV)

God's Minute

I've only just a minute,
Only sixty seconds in it.
Forced upon me, can't refuse it,
Didn't seek it, didn't choose it,
But it's up to me to use it.
I must suffer if I lose it,
Give an account if I abuse it,
Just a tiny little minute,
But eternity is in it.
-- Dr. Benjamin E. Mays

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

A farm boy accidentally overturned his wagonload of corn. The farmer who lived nearby heard the noise and yelled over to the boy, "Hey Willis, forget your troubles! Come in and visit with us. I'll help you get the wagon up later." "That's mighty nice of you," Willis answered, "but I don't think Pa would like me to." "Aw come on boy," the farmer insisted. "Well okay," the boy finally agreed, and added, "but Pa won't like it." After a hearty dinner, Willis thanked his host. "I feel a lot better now, but I know Pa is going to be real upset." "Don't be foolish!" the neighbor said with a smile. "By the way, where is he?" "Under the wagon!"

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 29, 2006

2006-09-29T09:22:00.000+04:00

Day with a Difference - Sep 28, 2006

2006-09-27T17:51:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"We either make ourselves happy or miserable. The amount of work is the same."

TWENTY YEARS LATER (Cappucino Success Stories)

In 1953 Yale University did a research on its graduating seniors. The graduates interviewed were asked if they had a clear, specific set of goals written down with a plan for achieving those goals. Only 3 percent had their goals written down. Twenty years later, in 1973, these surviving graduates were tracked down and interviewed again. It was discovered that the 3 percent with specific written down goals were worth more financially as compared to the 97 percent put together. They were also more successful in other areas of their lives.

The above story clearly demonstrates the importance of having specific written down goals. The goals must be specific in terms of what you desire, the precise date you desire to achieve it, and what you are willing to give in return for the goals. It must be written down and read every single day. If you write down something that you may not believe at the moment but if you read it long enough, you will start to believe and act upon it.

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Google Phrases

A Google bomb or Google wash is an attempt to influence the ranking of a given site in results returned by the Google search engine. Due to the way that Google's PageRank algorithm works, a website will be ranked higher if the sites that link to that page all use consistent anchor text. Googlebomb is used both as a verb and a noun.

Once a month Google updates its entire index of web sites. That is called the Google Dance and can last for a couple of days.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 27, 2006

2006-09-26T20:06:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The best way to predict your future is to create it.

The handwriting on the wall

A weary mother returned from the store, Lugging groceries through the kitchen door,
Awaiting her arrival was her 8 year son, Anxious to relate what his younger brother had done.
"While I was out playing and Dad was on call, T.J. took his crayons and wrote on the wall!
It's on the new paper you just hung in the den.I told him you'd be mad at having to do it again."
She let out a moan and furrowed her brow, "Where is your little brother right now!"
She emptied her arms and with a purposeful stride, She marched to his closet where he had gone to hide.
She called his full name as she entered his room. He trembled with with fear--he knew that meant doom!
For the next ten minutes, she ranted and raved About the expensive wallpaper that she had saved.
Lamenting all the work it would take to repair, She condemned his actions and total lack of care.
The more she scolded, the madder she got, Then stomped from his room, totally distraught!
She headed for the den to confirm her fears. When she saw the wall, her eyes flooded with tears.
The message she read pierced her soul with a dart. It said, "I love Mommy," surrounded by a heart.
Well, the wallpaper remained, just as she found it, With an empty picture frame hung to surround it.
A reminder to her, and indeed to us all. Take time to read the handwriting on the wall.

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This day in history: Hurricane Gloria forces NYSE close

The mighty winds of Hurricane Gloria forced the New York Stock Exchange to batten down the hatches and close its doors for the day on September 27, 1985. Overall, the storm caused extensive damage along the East Coast of the United States, amounting to $900 million ($1.6 billion in 2005 USD).

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 26, 2006

2006-09-26T08:28:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. - Elie Wiesel

Four Things

Four things a man must learn to do
If he would make his life more true:
To think without confusion more clearly,
To love his fellow man sincerely,
To act from honest motives purely,
To trust in God and heaven securely.

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Interesting Phrase Origins

To make no bones about a matter - to speak frankly and directly

A form of this expression was used as early as 1459, to mean to have no difficulty. It seems evident that the allusion is to the actual occurrence of bones in stews or soup. Soup without bones would offer no difficulty, and accordingly one would have no hesitation in swallowing soup with no bones.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 25, 2006

2006-09-25T04:26:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

A little knowledge that acts is worth infinitely more than much knowledge that is idle. - Kahlil Gibran

99 ways to say "Very Good"

Appreciate everything your associates do for the business. Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They're absolutely free and worth a fortune. Here are some ways to say it ...

SUPER GOOD!
You've got it made.
I'm proud of the way you worked today.
I knew you could do it.
PERFECT!
You did that very well.
Now that's what I call a fine job.
You outdid yourself today.
It's such a pleasure to work with you.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson went on a camping trip. After a good meal and a bottle of wine they lay down for the night, and went to sleep. Some hours later, Holmes awoke and nudged his faithful friend awake. "Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see." Watson replied, "I see millions and millions of stars." "What does that tell you?" Holmes questioned. Watson pondered for a minute. "Astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, I can see that God is all powerful and that we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What does it tell you?" Holmes was silent for a minute, then spoke. "Watson, you idiot. Someone has stolen our tent."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 22, 2006

2006-09-22T08:35:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Be not ashamed of mistakes and thus make them crimes. - Confucius

Eulogy For A Teacher

How will you be remembered
By those who come to you?
What will they say,
The ones you serve,

When teaching days are through?
"He never had a favorite."
"He smiled when he was down."
"She made me feel that I was loved."
All jewels in the crown.

And yet one priceless accolade
Out-sparkles all the rest.
A single phrase sums up the days:
"My teacher gave his best."

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

"Job Competition" - Two bright young engineers applied for the same position at a computer company. Since they had identical qualifications, the company asked the two applicants to take a ten-question test. At the conclusion of the test, one of the applicants was called into the manager's office. "I have graded the test, and you both scored nine correct answers and got one answer wrong. Thank you for your interest, but we've decided to give the job to the other applicant."

"And why would you choose him if we both got nine questions correct?" asked the rejected applicant. "We have based our decision not on the correct answers, but on the question you missed," said the Department manager. "And just how would one incorrect answer be better than the other?" the rejected applicant inquired. "Simple," said the Department manager, "The other gentleman answered Question #5, 'I don't know.' Your answer to Question #5 was, 'Neither do I.'"

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 21, 2006

2006-09-20T21:35:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Use what talent you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best. - Henry Van Dyke

Live each day to the fullest. -- S. H. Payer

Get the most from each hour, each day,and each age of your life.Then you can look forward with confidence,and back without regrets.

Be yourself - but be your best self. Dare to be different and to follow your own star. And don't be afraid to be happy.

Enjoy what is beautiful. Love with all your heart and soul. Believe that those you love, love you.

When you are faced with decisions, make that decision as wisely as possible - then forget it. The moment of absolute certainty never arrives.

And above all else, remember that God helps those who help themselves. Act as if everything depended upon you,
and pray as if everything depended upon God.

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This day in history - Sep 21, 1945 : Henry Ford II ascends to the throne

Henry Ford II, grandson and namesake of Henry Ford, succeeded his father as president of the Ford Motor Company on this day, inheriting a company that was losing money at the rate of several million dollars a month. After recovering from the shock of his father's unexpected death, Henry Ford II was effectively given a crash course in management, but fortunately for the company, he turned out to have the magic touch. He quickly set about reorganizing and modernizing the Ford Motor Company, firing the powerful Personnel Chief Harry Bennett, whose strong-arm tactics and anti-union stance had made Ford notorious for its bad labor relations. He also brought in new talent, including a group of former U.S. Air Force intelligence officers, among them Robert McNamara, who became known as the "Whiz Kids." During his tenure as president, Henry Ford II nursed the Ford Motor Company back to health, greatly expanding its international operations and introducing two classic models, the Mustang and the Thunderbird.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 20, 2006

2006-09-19T20:25:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Unless a man undertakes more than he possibly can do, he will never do all that he can. – Henry Drummond

A Life In Your Hands -- Dorothy Law Holte

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn;
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight;
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy;
If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty;
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient;
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns confidence;
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate;
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice;
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith;
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself;
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, he learns to find love in the world.

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WHO WAS HENRY DRUMMOND?....Born in Scotland in 1851, he was a man of varied talents. Perhaps best remembered as a gifted evangelist who assisted Dwight L. Moody during his revival campaigns, he was also a lecturer in natural science.

Although he never received a degree, he was an ordained minister and a professor of theology. He also wrote several books. "Natural Law in the Spiritual World", published in 1883, sold 70,000 copies in five years and made him famous. He published another popular book, "Tropical Africa", after making a geological survey of southern Africa. "The Ascent of Man" was also a significant book during his lifetime.

However, "The Greatest Thing in the World" - a meditation he wrote in 1874 that illuminates the importance of 1 Corinthians 13 - is the one that assured he would be remembered by later generations. Widely read and quoted during his lifetime, it went on to sell over 12 million copies and it continues today to influence people to follow God's two great commandments: to love God and to love each other.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 19, 2006

2006-09-18T21:31:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

To live for results would be to sentence myself to continuous frustration. My only sure reward is in my actions and not from them. - Hugh Prather

Attitudes Are More Important Than Facts ~Read these twelve points every day for the next thirty days and see how your life changes.~

1. It is your attitude at the beginning of a task more than anything else that will determine your success or failure.

2. It is your attitude towards life that will determine life's attitude towards you. Despite many people's belief to the
contrary, life pays no favorites.

3. You control your attitude. If you are negative it is because you have decided to be negative and not because of
other people or circumstances.

4. Act as if you have a good attitude. Remember actions trigger feelings just as feelings trigger actions.

5. Before a person can achieve the kind of results he wants, he must first become that person. He must then think,
walk, talk, act and conduct himself in all of his affairs, as would the person he wishes to become.

6. Treat everybody as the most important person in the world.

7. Attitudes are based on assumptions. In order to change attitudes one must first change one's assumptions.

8. Develop the attitude that there are more reasons why you should succeed than reasons why you should fail.

9. When you are faced with a problem, adopt the attitude that you can and will solve it.

10. We become what we think about. Control your thoughts and you will control your life.

11. Radiate the attitude of confidence, of well being, of a person who knows where he is going. You will then find
good things happening to you right away.

12. In order to develop a good attitude, take charge first thing in the morning. Do you say, "Good morning, Lord" or
"Good Lord, morning?"

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Interesting phrase origins - When the chips are down

Meaning: Tough times, when things are looking bleak.

Origin: From the practice of using chips as a substitute for money when gambling. When winning you accumulate a lot of chips. But when you lose, your chips dwindle down.

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 18, 2006

2006-09-17T14:58:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers. - Ralph Nader

The Lion & Gazelle

Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up and knows that it will have to outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.

And, every morning in Africa a lion wakes up and knows that it will have to outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.

So, in Africa, it doesn't matter if you are the lion or the gazelle. When that sun comes up, you had better be running.
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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

A man and his wife were having some problems at home and were giving each other the silent treatment. The next week, the man realized that he would need his wife to wake him at 5:00 AM for an early morning business flight to Chicago. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence (AND LOSE), he wrote on a piece of paper, "Please wake me at 5:00 AM. The next morning the man woke up, only to discover it was 9:00 AM and that he had missed his flight. Furious, he was about to go and see why his wife hadn't woken him when he noticed a piece of paper by the bed. The paper said, "It is 5:00 AM. Wake up."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 15, 2006

2006-09-14T13:34:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Wise men speak because they have something to say, fools because they have to say something. – Plato

Lady, Are You Rich? by Marion Doolan (Chicken Soup for the Soul)

They huddled inside the storm door—two children in ragged outgrown coats.

"Any old papers, lady?" I was busy. I wanted to say no—until I looked down at their feet. Thin little sandals, sopped with sleet. "Come in and I'll make you a cup of hot cocoa."

There was no conversation. Their soggy sandals left marks upon the hearthstone. I served them cocoa and toast with jam to fortify against the chill outside. Then I went back to the kitchen and started again on my household budget.
The silence in the front room struck through to me. I looked in.

The girl held the empty cup in her hands, looking at it. The boy asked in a flat voice, "Lady . . . are you rich?" "Am I rich? Mercy, no!"

I looked at my shabby slipcovers. The girl put her cup back in its saucer—carefully.

"Your cups match your saucers."

Her voice was old, with a hunger that was not of the stomach. They left then, holding their bundles of papers against the wind. They hadn't said thank you. They didn't need to. They had done more than that. Plain blue pottery cups and saucers. But they matched. I tested the potatoes and stirred the gravy. Potatoes and brown gravy, a roof over our heads, my man with a good steady job—these things matched, too.

I moved the chairs back from the fire and tidied the living room. The muddy prints of small sandals were still wet upon my hearth. I let them be. I want them there in case I ever forget again how very rich I am.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

Bad Career Move

Once, I worked as an operator on an old IBM 370/Model 138 mainframe at a local college. My position had been reclassified so that it fell into a new area outside of the Information Technology staff. One day, my new supervisor entered the room and stared at the air conditioning unit directly behind me. He studied the two flashing lights for a few moments and asked what job it was currently processing.I killed my career by replying, "Actually, sir, it's cooling the room. The computer is over there."

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 14, 2006

2006-09-14T04:56:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult. - Seneca

Concentration Opens the Door to Success (© Max Stein)

The first law of success is concentration.Bend all your energies to one point,and go directly to that point,looking neither to the left nor the right.

By focusing your efforts to a single point,you'll always achieve the greatest results.If you concentrate your efforts on a few major goals,your efficiency will soar, your projects will be completed, and you'll be going somewhere.

Focus totally on the business at handand command yourself to do exactly what you want to do.

If you focus the full power of all you areon what you have a burning desire to achieve,you'll attain success.

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Interesting Facts

The symbol on the "pound" key (#) is called an octothorpe.
The dot over the letter 'i' is called a tittle.
The word "Checkmate" in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat," which means "the king is dead."
The reason firehouses have circular stairways is from the days of yore when the engines were pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the ground floor and figured out how to walk up straight staircases.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 13, 2006

2006-09-13T05:47:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Every time we open our mouths, men look into our minds.

THE FASTEST WOMAN ON EARTH - Cappucino Success Story

Wilma Rudolph was born into poverty in the state of Tennessee. When she was four years old she had double pneumonia with scarlet fever, which left her paralyzed with polio. She had to wear braces and the doctor said that she would not be able to walk normally again. Her mother encouraged her and said that she could do anything she wanted if she only believed. Wilma said, "I want to be the fastest woman on this earth." At the age of nine, against the advice of the doctors, she removed the braces and took her first step. At the age of thirteen, she took part in her first race and came way, way last.

She entered various other races and came way, way last until one day, she came in first. At the age of fifteen she went to Tennessee State University where she met a coach. She told him that she wanted to become the fastest woman on the track, on this earth. The coach replied, "With your spirit nobody can stop you." In the 1960 Olympics Wilma Rudolph, the paralytic girl, became the fastest woman on this earth by winning three gold medals - in the 100 meter race, 200 meter race, and 400 meter relay.The past cannot be regained, although we can learn from it; the future is not yet ours even though we must plan for it. Time is now. We have only today.

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Born this day - Judith Martin (born Judith Perlman on September 13, 1938).

Better known by the pen name Miss Manners, is an American journalist, novelist, and etiquette authority.
Since 1978 she has written an advice column, which is distributed three times a week by United Features Syndicate and carried in more than 200 newspapers worldwide. In it, she answers etiquette questions contributed by her readers and writes short essays on problems of manners, or clarifies the essential qualities of politeness.

Martin writes about the ideas and intentions underpinning seemingly simple rules, providing a complex and advanced perspective, which she refers to as "heavy etiquette theory". Her columns, noted for their wit, humor, depth of analysis, and broad knowledge of history and customs and their applications to the problems of today, have been collected in a number of books. In her writings, Martin refers to herself in the third person, e.g. "Miss Manners hopes..."

Have a memorable day!Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 12, 2006

2006-09-12T05:19:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing. - Dale Carnegie

In The Arena

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy course; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."
-- Theodore Roosevelt

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Interesting Word Origins - Fortnight

Hadrian's Wall, built to guard the Romans northern England border against the marauding Scots, had forts situated at regular intervals along its length. Every two weeks the soldiers got to sleep inside them and this is where our term for two weeks, 'Fortnight' comes from.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 11, 2006

2006-09-11T04:44:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Anger makes you smaller, while forgiveness forces you to grow beyond what you were. - Cherie Carter-Scott

A Million Dollar Lesson : Petey Parker

A cab driver taught me a million dollar lesson in customer satisfaction and expectation. Motivational speakers charge thousands of dollars to impart his kind of training to corporate executives and staff. It cost me a $12 taxi ride.
I had flown into Dallas for the sole purpose of calling on a client. Time was of the essence and my plan included a quick turnaround trip from and back to the airport. A spotless cab pulled up. The driver rushed to open the passenger door for me and made sure I was comfortably seated before he closed the door. As he got in the driver's seat, he mentioned that the neatly folded Wall Street Journal next to me was for my use. He then showed me several tapes and asked me what type of music I would enjoy. Well! I looked around for a "Candid Camera!" Wouldn't you? I could not believe the service I was receiving! I took the opportunity to say, "Obviously you take great pride in your work. You must have a story to tell."

"You bet," he replied, "I used to be in Corporate America. But I got tired of thinking my best would never be good enough. I decided to find my niche in life where I could feel proud of being the best I could be. I knew I would never be a rocket scientist, but I love driving cars, being of service and feeling like I have done a full day's work and done it well. I evaluate my personal assets and... wham! I became a cab driver. One thing I know for sure, to be good in my business I could simply just meet the expectations of my passengers. But, to be GREAT in my business, I have to EXCEED the customer's expectations! I like both the sound and the return of being 'great' better than just getting by on 'average'"

Lessons:

Go an Extra Mile when providing any Service to others.

The is no good or bad job. You can make any job good.

Good service always brings good return.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

A customer was bothering the waiter in a restaurant. First, he asked that the air conditioning be turned up because he was too hot, then he asked it be turned down cause he was too cold, and so on for about half an hour. Surprisingly, the waiter was very patient, he walked back and forth and never once got angry. So finally, a second customer asked him why he didn't throw out the pest. "Oh, I really don't care or mind," said the waiter with a smile. "We don't even have an air conditioner."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 08, 2006

2006-09-07T21:22:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

A man's dreams are an index to his greatness. - Zadok Rabinwitz

Creativity

In his book about Creativity, "A Whack on the Side of the Head", Roger von Oech tells us about a major oil company's concern with the lack of creativity among some of its research and development people. To deal with the problem, top management brought in a team of psychologists to determine the difference between the creative R & D people and the less-creative ones. The hope was that their findings would stimulate the less-creative people.

The psychologists asked the scientists all kinds of questions. They asked about educational backgrounds, about the environment in which their favorite colors were. After three months, the psychologists found that the biggest difference between the two groups was that the creative people thought they were creative and the less-creative people did not. As a consequence, those who thought they were creative acted like it. They ignored old methods and hatched new ideas. The less-creative people did things as they had always been done.
Some "I'm not creative" people stifle themselves because they think creativity belongs only to people like Beethoven, Einstein, and Shakespeare. These are some of the superluminaries of the creative world, but by and large, these people didn't get their big ideas out of the blue.

On the contrary, most of their big ideas came from paying attention to their small ideas, playing with them, and making them big ideas.One of the major factors that differentiates creative people from less-creative people is that creative people pay attention to their small ideas. They know that a small idea can lead to a big breakthrough, and they believe that they are capable of making it happen.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

Great excuses on a monday morning

I can't come in to work today because I'll be stalking my previous boss, who fired me for not showing up for work. OK?
I have a rare case of 48-hour projectile leprosy, but I know we have that deadline to meet...
I am converting my calendar from Julian to Gregorian.

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 07, 2006

2006-09-06T20:51:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use."

THE IRON HORSE

An old couple made their way down the mountain to witness the "iron horse". As they approached the railway station their hearts began to pound faster and faster since this was the first time they were going to witness a train – the iron horse. Both of them were amazed at the size of the iron horse. They looked at each other and "Ma" asked "Pa", "What do you think?" "Pa" said, "It will never get moving". Just then the whistle blew and the train started moving slowly and then gathering speed. After a while the train began to gain more speed and disappeared around the sharp corner. "Ma" asked "Pa" again, "What do you think?" "Pa" was still recovering from his shock, and he replied, "I don't think that it will ever stop".

Momentum is one of the ingredients for success. Success is a matter of starting to take action and maintaining the momentum. Just like a kid learning to ride a bicycle. As long as the bicycle is moving the kid will not fall off the bicycle. The moment he stops cycling, the kid will fall off the bicycle. When you set your goal, never lose momentum by being distracted or discouraged by others or circumstances.

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Born on this day: Elizabeth I (1533-1603) born on Sep 7. English ruler. ""Good Queen Bess" ruled Great Britain and N. Ireland, 1558-1603; during her reign England became a world power."

Some quotes of queen Elizabeth I:

I do not want a husband who honours me as a queen, if he does not love me as a woman.
The stone often recoils on the head of the thrower.
What a family is without a steward, a ship without a pilot, a flock without a shepherd, a body without a head, the same, I think, is a kingdom without the health and safety of a good monarch.

Have a memorable day !

Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 06, 2006

2006-09-06T05:15:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

There are two things to aim at in life; first to get what you want, and after that to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind has achieved the second. - Logan Pearsall Smith

Handling Frustration

Frustration is caused by not accomplishing or getting what you want. Instead of dwelling on your failures or frustrations, focus on what you can achieve and then build on your successes. Start by selecting only one or two things to work on at a time. Try to accomplish small goals initially. Once you can handle small goals, move on to larger ones.

Change takes time because your mind is very good at keeping you where you are. It is almost impossible to change over night, so there is no need to get frustrated. Just acknowledge that it will take time to change your present limitations and take it one step at a time.

As you gain more control over yourself and improve, you will become less frustrated and more confident in your ability to eventually succeed.

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Interesting Facts

A company in Taiwan makes dinnerware out of wheat, so you can eat your plate.

In Albania, nodding your head means 'no' and shaking your head means 'yes'.
When you walk down a steep hill, the pressure on your knees is equal to three times your body weight.
Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a 'Friday the 13th'.
During WWII, because a lot of players were called to duty, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles combined to become The Steagles.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 05, 2006

2006-09-04T18:54:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Each time anyone comes into contact with us, they must become different and better people because of having met us.

Never Give Up

Sir Winston Churchill took three years getting through eighth grade because he had trouble learning English. It seems ironic that years later Oxford University asked him to address its commencement exercises.

He arrived with his usual props. A cigar, a cane and a top hat accompanied Churchill wherever he went. As Churchill approached the podium, the crowd rose in appreciative applause. With unmatched dignity, he settled the crowd and stood confident before his admirers. Removing the cigar and carefully placing the top hat on the podium, Churchill gazed at his waiting audience.

Authority rang in Churchill's voice as he shouted, "Never give up!" Several seconds passed before he rose to his toes and repeated: "Never give up!" His words thundered in their ears. There was a deafening silence as Churchill reached for his hat and cigar, steadied himself with his cane and left the platform. His commencement address was finished.

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Interesting phrase origins Put my two cents in

Meaning: To state one's opinion.

Example: If I can put my two cents in, maintenance on that Ferrari will kill you.

Origin: "Put my two cents in" originates from the older "put my two bits in" and has its origin in the game of poker.
When playing poker you have to make a small bet before the cards are dealt called an "ante" to begin play
in that hand.This phrase draws an analogy to the poker ante (two bits) and gains your entry into the
conversation. Two bits means one quarter (currently the American twenty five cent piece).

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 02, 2006

2006-09-04T06:13:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. Aristotle

"I" am the owner of my body and mind. "I" am not the body and mind!

We have so often heard statements like "My back is hurting", "My heart is longing for you", "My leg is aching after that strenuous soccer game"... We have also heard many a times: "I am depressed", "I am angry", "I am hungry", etc. When I say, "I am hungry", I really mean that my stomach is hungry because by saying "I am hungry", it cannot mean my stomach, my shoulder, my arm, my legs, my head etc., are all hungry. When I say, "I am depressed", it can at best mean only my mind is depressed, though I am not. When you are angry, when you are depressed, simply say silently in your mind, "It is not me but only my mind is depressed or angry". The magic of such recitation will douse the anger and dilute the depression. I am the owner of my body and mind; I love my body and mind. They are my truest ever friends right from the time I came to this earth and they will remain with me till I breathe my last breath. To reach within my body, I use my mind. I often ill-treat my body and mind. I often smoke, I often drink, I often have sleepless nights just to complete a work, and I often eat junk food. Yet, I am responsible for the state of health of my mind. When I trust my mind, my best friend and treat it well, when I provide it only with healthy food (positive thoughts), I know my mind will do wonders to keep my other friend, my body, in good health. Over the years

I have learnt, "A healthy mind resides in a healthy body". Then isn't it true, that when I have a healthy mind, my body will in turn remain or become healthy?I have found the easy and simple way to keep my mind healthy. I know that my mind needs only healthy and positive thoughts to remain healthy. In turn, I know my healthy mind will keep my body healthy. I know that as I treat my best friends well - my body and mind - without any abuse, they in turn gift me a life of unending happiness with sound good health on a physical, mental, and spiritual level. I bow to the power of my inner mind for its boundless power. All the great work that happens through me, I know is because of a level that is far deeper than my conscious level.I have realized that humility unleashes the power within me that helps me tide over all difficulties of life with profound ease and a smile. --- Copyright © 2004 Partho Rakshit

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

"How is it that every time I pass your station, you are not working," the angry department head said to an employee. "It's because you wear sneakers, sir!"

Do you wanna hear a joke backwards? Laugh first...

Policeman: Excuse me, sir, but your license requires you to wear glasses. You are not wearing them, why not? Driver: I have contacts!
Policeman: I don't care who you know! I'm giving you a ticket and you can tell it to the judge!

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Sep 01, 2006

2006-09-01T04:57:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action. - Benjamin Disraeli

MY DOG CAN WALK ON WATER (Cappucino Stories)

There was a hunter who came into the possession of a special bird dog. The dog was the only one of its kind, because it can walk on water. One day he invited a friend to go hunting with him so that he could show off his prized possession. After some time, they shot a few ducks, which fell into the river. The man ordered his dog to run and fetch the birds. The dog ran on water to fetch the birds. The man was expecting a compliment about the amazing dog, but did not receive it. Being curious, he asked his friend if the friend had noticed anything unusual about the dog. The friend replied, "Yes, I did see something unusual about your dog. Your dog can't swim!"

More than 90% of the people that we face everyday are negative. They choose to look at the hole in the middle rather than the doughnut. Do not expect compliments or encouragement from them. These are the people who cannot pull you out of your present situation. They can only push you down. So be aware of them, spend less time with them, and do not let them steal your dreams away from you.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

What days of the week begin with the letter 'T'?
How many seconds are there in a year?

Scroll down for the answer ...

Today and Tomorrow
Twelve: January second, February second, March second etc

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 31, 2006

2006-08-30T21:22:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out. -Walter Winchell

10 Qualities of a Complete Winner -- adapted from D. Scott Ward, Ph.D.

1. Positive Self-Expectancy - Always expect success - embrace the challenge
2. Positive Self-Motivation - Go after the rewards of success, not away from the penalties of failure
3. Positive Self-Image - If you can see it, you can do it
4. Positive Self-Direction - Ink what you think--write down your goals. Strive to be better today then you were
yesterday.
5. Positive Self-Control - Winners make things happen - losers let things happen to them. Trust yourself and your
preparation.
6. Positive Self-Discipline - Practice winning every single day. Be mentally tough - deal with the situation.
7. Positive Self-Esteem - Single most important human quality - feel good about being you. Always respond with a
positive reply.
8. Positive Self-Dimension - Little successes lead to victories. Live in the 'Precious Present' - It's the only moment
in which you have control.
9. Positive Self-Awareness - See your unlimited potential. Force yourself to push the envelope.
10. Positive Self-Commitment - Measure success against self. Don't get caught up with competing against others.
Commit to Excellence

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The Shroud of Turin is a centuries old linen cloth that bears the image of a crucified man. A man that millions believe to be Jesus of Nazareth. Is it really the cloth that wrapped his crucified body, or is it simply a medieval forgery, a hoax perpetrated by some clever artist? Modern science has completed hundreds of thousands of hours of detailed study and intense research on the Shroud. It is, in fact, the single most studied artifact in human history, and we know more about it today than we ever have before. And yet, the controversy still rages.

Arguments and evidence cited for the shroud's being something other than a medieval forgery include textile and material analysis pointing to a 1st-century origin; the unusual properties of the image itself which some claim could not have been produced by any image forming technique known before the 19th century; objective indications that the 1988 radiocarbon dating was invalid due to improper testing technique; and repeated peer-reviewed analyses of the image mode which contradict McCrone's assertions. Also, pollen from many places the shroud was said to have gone through are found, such as pollen from plants that exist only in certain areas near Jerusalem.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 30, 2006

2006-08-29T21:22:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Toleration is the greatest gift of the mind; it requires the same effort of the brain that it takes to balance oneself on a bicycle. - Helen Keller

The Power Of Positive Thinking - Norman Vincent Peale

A man once telephoned Norman Vincent Peale. He was despondent and told the reverend that he had nothing left to live for. Peale invited the man over to his office. "Everything is gone, hopeless," the man told him. "I'm living in deepest darkness. In fact, I've lost heart for living altogether."

The famous author of The Power of Positive Thinking smiled sympathetically."Let's take a look at your situation," he said calmly. On a sheet of paper he drew a vertical line down the middle. He suggested that they list on the left side the things the man had lost, and on the right, the things he had left. "You won't need that column on the right side," said the man sadly. "I have nothing left, period."

Peale asked, "When did your wife leave you?" "What do you mean? She hasn't left me. My wife loves me!" "That's great!" said Peale enthusiastically. "Then that will be number one in the right-hand column—Wife hasn't left. Now, when were your children jailed?" "That's silly. My children aren't in jail!"

"Good! That's number two in the right-hand column—Children not in jail," said Peale, jotting it down. After a few more questions in the same vein, the man finally got the point and smiled in spite of himself. "Funny, how things change when you think of them that way," he said.

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Jokes: Actual Bumber Stickers

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

I want to die in my sleep like my grandfather ... ... Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car ...

When there's a will, I want to be in it!

Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie!'... till you can find a rock.

Have a memorable day!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 29, 2006

2006-08-28T19:58:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

To succeed... you need to find something to hold on to, something to motivate you, something to inspire you. –Tony Dorsett

Parents Have Dreams Too

This is about how my gesture of booking an air ticket for my father, his maiden flight, brought forth a rush of emotions and made me realize how much we all take for granted when it comes to our parents. The moment I handed over the tickets to him, he was surprised to see that I had booked them by air. The excitement was very apparent on his face, waiting for the time of travel. Just like a schoolboy, he was preparing himself on that day. We all went to the airport together, right from using the trolley for his luggage, the baggage check-in and asking for a window seat and waiting restlessly for the security check-in to happen. He was thoroughly enjoying himself and I, too, was overcome with joy watching him experience all these things.

As they were about to go in for the security check-in, he walked up to me with tears in his eyes and thanked me. He became very emotional and it was not as if I had done something great, but the fact that this meant a great deal to him. As a child, how many dreams did our parents have that came true? Without understanding the financial situation, we, as children, asked for cricket bats, dresses, toys, outings, etc. Irrespective of their affordability, they catered to all our needs. Did we ever think about the sacrifices they had to make to accommodate many of our wishes? Did we ever say thanks for all that they have done for us?

Many times, when my parents asked me some questions, I have actually answered back without patience. When my daughter asks me something, I have been very polite in answering. Now I realize how they must have felt at those moments. Let us realize that old age is a second childhood and just as we take care of our children, the same attention and same care needs to be given to our parents and elders.

Rather than my dad saying thank you to me, I would want to say I'm sorry for making him wait so long for this small dream. I do realize how much he has sacrificed for my sake and I will do my best to give the best possible attention to all their wishes. Just because they are old does not mean that they have to give up everything and keep sacrificing for their grandchildren also. They have wishes, too. --- Written in 2006 by Venkatesh Balasubramanian

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Black Box: Popular name given to either the CVR* or the FDR * used to investigate an accident. Cockpit Voice Recorder is one of the so-called "black boxes". It is a device recording the last 30 minutes of sound inside the cockpit, before impact. Sounds recorded include all conversations, radio transmissions, and background noise and Flight Data Recorder is actually painted bright orange to be easily identified among aircraft debris, and records various parameters such as altitude, heading, airspeed, engine statistics, etc... It is used to investigate in the case of an accident.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 28, 2006

2006-08-28T08:17:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one. - Elbert Hubbard

The Power of Holding Hands By Rabbi Harold Kushner

I was sitting on a beach one summer day, watching two children, a boy and a girl, playing in the sand.They were hard at work building an elaborate sandcastle by the water's edge, with gates and towers and moats and internal passages.Just when they had nearly finished their project, a big wave came along and knocked it down, reducing it to a heap of wet sand. I expected the children to burst into tears, devastated by what had happened to all their hard work. But they surprised me. Instead, they ran up the shore away from the water,laughing and holding hands, and sat down to build another castle.

I realized that they had taught me an important lesson. All the things in our lives, all the complicated structures we spend so much time and energy creating, are built on sand. Only our relationships to other people endure. Sooner or later, the wave will come along and knock down what we have worked so hard to build up. When that happens, only the person who has somebody's hand to hold will be able to laugh.

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A Clean joke to start your week with laughter - Rabbit Resurrection

A man was driving along the highway, and saw a rabbit hopping across the middle of the road. He swerved to avoid hitting the rabbit, but unfortunately the rabbit jumped in front of the car and was hit. The driver, being a sensitive man as well as an animal lover, pulled over to the side of the road and got out to see what had become of the rabbit. Much to his dismay, the rabbit was dead. The driver felt so awful he began to cry. A woman driving down the highway saw the man crying on the side of the road and pulled over. She stepped out of her car and asked the man what was wrong. "I feel terrible," he explained. "I accidentally hit this rabbit and killed it." The woman told the man not to worry. She knew what to do.

She went to he car trunk and pulled out a spray can. She walked over to the limp, dead rabbit, and sprayed the contents of the can onto the rabbit. Miraculously, the rabbit came to life, jumped up, waved its paw at the two humans and hopped down the road. 50 meters away the rabbit stopped, turned around, waved at the two again, hopped down the road another 50 meters, turned, waved, and hopped another 50 meters. The man was astonished. He couldn't figure out what substance could be in the woman's spray can! He ran over to the woman and demanded, " What was in your spray can? What did you spray onto that rabbit?" The woman turned the can around so that the man could read the label. It said: " 'Hare Spray' Restores Life to Dead Hare. Adds Permanent Wave."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 25, 2006

2006-08-25T08:44:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. - Leo Buscaglia

STAY TRUE TO YOUR GOALS

A personal goal or personal goals are yours - they are what you want not what others want for you. Believe in yourself - you can do anything. See what Jacquie has to say. The key to being happy is to respect your desire to make your life better by your own choices-even if and, especially when others ridicule them. Do not let the ignorance or the short-sightedness of others redirect your life's goal. Everyone has their own path to follow-their own map for the future.

The key is to understand everyone is different and to respect their goals as well as your own.Do not accept behavior that goes against your beliefs or wishes, and do not accept behavior from friends, family, or a spouse that you wouldn't accept from a stranger. Be true to yourself. Stand firm. And, do not postpone your dreams or wishes to please someone else's idea of what it should be... -

-- Copyright © 2006 Jacqueline Mendez

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

there's these guys who wanna go bungie jumping off a building. so they get the cord and all the equipment. they wanna bungie jump off a 24 floor building. then the president dude or leader whatever u wanna call him goes first then he jumps dives pretty much... and BAM! he died... what happened? Ill give u a hint it has nothing to do with the measurements and and u gotta think real hard about this...

Ans: think about the 13th floor nobody goes there so they slice it off and it pretty much is a 23 floor building so they measured 24 the so that's why he died instantly

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 24, 2006

2006-08-24T05:57:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Joy is the feeling of grinning inside. - Melba Colgrove

BREAKING THE BARRIERS (Cappucino Stories)

This is the story of the four-minute mile. For thousand of years, people held the belief that it was impossible for a human being to run the mile in less than four minutes. In ancient Egypt it was said that they released lions to chase after slaves in order to break the four-minute mile. These attempts too proved to be futile. The best time ever recorded was 4:06, and there was no way the barrier would be broken. Scientists, doctors and experts declared that there was no way, a man could run a mile under four minutes. They said that if any person should try, "His heart will jump right out of his body".

This negative belief continued until a man by the name of Roger Bannister decided not to believe in the experts, and others. Roger Bannister believed in himself. He went through a systematic training program and in 1954 he ran the mile in less than four minutes. Thus the barrier was finally broken, and within one year later, 37 other runners also broke it.

Roger Bannister, chose not to believe in others, but to believe in himself. He had to change his own belief about the possibility of the four-minute mile. He got into shape physically and mentally. He actually visualized himself breaking the four-minute barrier, since no one had ever done it before. The greatest aspect of his breakthrough was what it did for others. If Roger Bannister can do it, so can we!

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Born on this day - Shirley Hufstedler

US government official. "She was first secretary of Education during the Carter administration, 1979-1981." She is the recipient of 20 honorary doctoral degrees from American universities. She was a partner in the firm Hufstedler & Kaus, now merged into Morrison & Foerster.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 23, 2006

2006-08-23T06:17:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Laughing at our mistakes can lengthen our own life. Laughing at someone else's can shorten it. - Cullen Hightower

Paradigm Shift

Imagine you are at an Airport. While you're waiting for your flight, you notice a kiosk selling cookies. You buy a box, put them in your traveling bag and then you patiently search for an available seat so you can sit down and enjoy your cookies. Finally, you find a seat next to a gentleman.

You reach down into your traveling bag and pull out your box of cookies.As you do so, you notice that the gentleman starts watching you intensely. He stares as you open the box and his eyes follow your hand as you pick up the cookie and bring it to your mouth. Just then he reaches over and takes one of your cookies from the box, and eats it! You're more than a little surprised at this. Actually, you're at a loss for words. Not only does he take one cookie, but also he alternates with you. For every one cookie you take, he takes one.

Now, what's your immediate impression of this guy? Crazy? Greedy?He's got some nerve? Can you imagine the words you might use to describe this man to your associates back at the office? Meanwhile, you both continue eating the cookies until there's just one left. To your surprise, the man reaches over and takes it. But then he does something unexpected. He breaks it in half, and gives half to you. After he's finished with his half he gets up, and without a word, he leaves.

You think to yourself, "Did this really happen?" You're left sitting there dumbfounded and still hungry. So you go back to the kiosk and buy another box of cookies. You then return to your seat and begin opening your new box of cookies when you glance down into your traveling bag. Sitting there in your bag is your original box of cookies - still unopened.

Only then do you realize that when you reached down earlier, you had reached into the other man's bag, and grabbed his box of cookies by mistake. Now what do you think of the man? Generous? Tolerant? You've just experienced a profound paradigm shift. You're seeing things from a new point of view. Is it time to change your point of view?

Many a times, we are clouded by our own instincts and predispositions. These hamper our relationship with our peers, subordinates and superiors. Try to be non-judgmental and look beyond the obvious.

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Interesting Phrase Origins: Hunky Dory

Meaning: To be okay, everything is good.
Example: If you would only pay the bills on time, everything would be hunky dory.
Origin: Huncho-dori was a major street in Yokohama that was frequented by American sailors on leave during
W.W.I. To be in Huncho-dori was to be enjoying leisure activities, and having a good time. Alternatively,
The archaic English word "hunk" meant "goal" and is probably derived from the Dutch "honk" also meaning
"goal". To have reached one's goal is to be satisfied and happy.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 22, 2006

2006-08-22T05:56:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend. - Laertius Diogenes

Encouragement

Some of the greatest success stories of history have followed a word of encouragement or an act of confidence by a loved one or a trusting friend. Had it not been for a confident wife, Sophia, we might not have listed among the great names of literature the name of Nathaniel Hawthorne. When Nathaniel, a heartbroken man, went home to tell his wife that he was a failure and had been fired from his job in a customhouse, she surprised him with an exclamation of joy.

"Now," she said triumphantly, "you can write your book!" "Yes," replied the man, with sagging confidence, "and what shall we live on while I am writing it?" To his amazement, she opened a drawer and pulled out a substantial amount of money. " Where on earth did you get that?" he exclaimed. "I have always known you were a man of genius," she told him. "I knew that someday you would write a masterpiece. So every week, out of the money you gave me for housekeeping, I saved a little bit. So here is enough to last us for one whole year."
From her trust and confidence came one of the greatest novels of American literature, The Scarlet Letter.

- By Nido Qubein from Chicken Soup for the Soul Copyright 1993 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen

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The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is an American romance novel ever written by Nathaniel Hawthorne; it is generally considered to be his masterpiece. Set in Puritan New England in the 17th century, the novel tells the story of Hester Prynne, who gives birth after committing adultery, refuses to name the father, and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout, Hawthorne explores the issues of grace, legalism, and guilt.

Hester Prynne, the story's protagonist, is a young married woman whose husband was presumed to have been lost at sea on the journey to the New World. She begins a secret adulterous relationship with Arthur Dimmesdale, the highly regarded town minister, and becomes pregnant with a daughter, whom she names Pearl. She is then publicly vilified and forced to wear the scarlet letter "A" on her clothing to identify her as an adulteress, but loyally refuses to reveal the identity of her lover. She accepts the punishment with grace and refuses to be defeated by the shame inflicted upon her by her society. Hester's virtue becomes increasingly evident to the reader, while the self-described "virtuous" community (especially the power structure) vilify her, and are shown in varying states of moral decay and self-regard. Hester only partially regains her community's favor through good deeds and an admirable character by the end of her life.

It is noteworthy that hester means "hidden" in Hebrew -- this word is associated with feminine modesty and hiddeness, virtues that Hester is shown to possess despite her adulterous affair.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 21, 2006

2006-08-21T05:54:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Your neighbor's vision is as true for him as your own vision is true for you. - Miguel de Unamuno

Trees That Wood

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty." Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull." Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me."

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end. The third tree was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark. The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.

Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time. Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and he stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Another long day at the office, and if you're like most of us, an uninvited nap might be looming. So we've prepared excuses for you to use if you're caught sleeping at your desk!

"This is just a 15-minute power-nap like they raved about in the last time management course you sent me to."

"I wasn't sleeping! I was meditating on the mission statement and envisioning a new paradigm!"

"This is one of the seven habits of highly effective people!"

"Darn! Why did you interrupt me? I had almost figured out a solution to our biggest problem."

"I wasn't sleeping! I was trying to pick up contact lens without using my hands."

"Amen."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!

Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 18, 2006

2006-08-18T05:16:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

Learn to write in the sand

A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. In a specific point of the journey, they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one, who got slapped, was hurt, but without anything to say, he wrote in the sand: "TODAY, MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE".

They kept on walking, until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who got slapped and hurt started drowning, and the other friend saved him. When he recovered from the fright, he wrote on a stone: "TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE".

The friend who saved and slapped his best friend, asked him, "Why, after I hurt you, you wrote in the sand, and now you write on a stone?"The other friend, smiling, replied: "When a friend hurts us, we should write it down in the sand, where the winds of forgiveness get in charge of erasing it away, and when something great happens, we should engrave it in the stone of the memory of the heart, where no wind can erase it"

Learn to write in the sand.

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Clean jokes to sign off your week with laughter

A Sunday school teacher asked the children just before she dismissed them to go to church, "And why is it necessary to be quiet in church?" Annie replied, "Because people are sleeping."
A Sunday School teacher asked her class why Joseph and Mary took Jesus with them to Jerusalem. A small child replied: "They couldn't get a baby-sitter."
A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year olds. After explaining the commandment to "honor thy father andthy mother," she asked "Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?" Without missing a beat one little boy answered, "Thou shall not kill."
A very dirty little fellow came in from playing in the yard and asked his mother, "Who am I? " Ready to play the game she said, "I don't know! Who are you?" "WOW!" cried the child. "Mrs. Johnson was right! She said I was so dirty, my own mother wouldn't recognize me!"
A wise schoolteacher sends this note to all parents on the first day of school: "If you promise not to believe everything your child says happens at school, I'll promise not to believe everything he says happens at home.

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 17, 2006

2006-08-17T06:02:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Never look down to test the ground before taking your next step; only he who keeps his eye fixed on the far horizon will find the right road."

THE DREAMER

Joseph was a dreamer, and he had the gift to interpret dreams. He was his father's favorite and had a good life until one day, out of jealousy, his eleven brothers sold him as a slave to the Egyptians. He was sold to an Egyptian Captain of the Guards. Because of Joseph, the master was blessed and was very prosperous. He found favor and was promoted to take charge of the family and business affairs of the master. This did not last long as one day he was falsely accused of seducing the master's wife, and was thrown into prison.

In prison, he again found favor and the Warden put him in charge of all the prisoners' welfare.In the meantime, the Pharaoh's cupbearer was also thrown into prison. During the term of his imprisonment, Joseph helped him to interpret his bizarre dream. Later, the cupbearer was released from prison and made a promise to Joseph that he would speak to Pharaoh about Joseph's innocence. Years went by and the cupbearer forgot about his promise to Joseph.

One day, Pharaoh had a strange dream and none of his advisers could interpret the dream. The cupbearer suddenly remembered about Joseph and mentioned to Pharaoh that Joseph may be able to help interpret the dream. Pharaoh summoned Joseph to come before him, and Joseph was able to interpret the dream. Joseph found favor with the Pharaoh and was appointed as the Prime Minister of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh.

Joseph followed his destiny, and although he met with many challenges, he forgave his brothers and those who ill-treated him. Eventually, he won and became the most powerful man in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh. It is important for us to practice forgiveness, and look at the positive side of things. Remember that every adversity carries with it the seeds of a greater benefit.

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Good Exercise

Letter Equations are well known phrases or facts where the key words have been replaced with the first letter of that word. These are often in the form of an equation, which contain a number, an = sign and the rest of the obscured phrase or fact.

1,860 = the N of S to the T of the E S B Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer

1,860 = the Number of Steps to the Top of the Empire State Building

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 16, 2006

2006-08-16T06:01:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

If your ship doesn't come in, swim out to it. - Jonathan Winters

Abraham Lincoln Didn't Quit - Chicken Soup for the Soul

Probably the greatest example of persistence is Abraham Lincoln. If you want to learn about somebody who didn't quit, look no further. Born into poverty, Lincoln was faced with defeat throughout his life. He lost eight elections, twice failed in business and suffered a nervous breakdown. He could have quit many times - but he didn't and because he didn't quit, he became one of the greatest presidents in the history of our country. Lincoln was a champion and he never gave up. Here is a sketch of Lincoln's road to the White House:

1816 His family was forced out of their home. He had to work to support them.
1818 His mother died.
1831 Failed in business.
1832 Ran for state legislature - lost.
l832 Also lost his job - wanted to go to law school but couldn't get in.
1833 Borrowed some money from a friend to begin a business and by the end of the year he was bankrupt. He
spent the next 17 years of his life paying off this debt.
1834 Ran for state legislature again - won.
1835 Was engaged to be married, sweetheart died and his heart was broken.
1836 Had a total nervous breakdown and was in bed for six months.
1838 Sought to become speaker of the state legislature - defeated.
1840 Sought to become elector - defeated.
1843 Ran for Congress - lost.
1846 Ran for Congress again - this time he won - went to Washington and did a good job.
1848 Ran for re-election to Congress - lost.
1849 Sought the job of land officer in his home state - rejected.
1854 Ran for Senate of the United States - lost.
1856 Sought the Vice-Presidential nomination at his party's national convention - get less than 100 votes.
1858 Ran for U.S. Senate again - again he lost.
1860 Elected president of the United States.

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A clean joke to start your day with laughter

The Great Writer

There was once a young man who, in his youth, professed his desire become a great writer.
When asked to define "great" he said, "I want to write stuff that the whole world will read, stuff that people will react to on a truly emotional level, stuff that will make them scream, cry, howl in pain and anger!"
He now works for Microsoft, writing error messages.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 14, 2006

2006-08-14T06:01:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other's folly - that is the first law of nature. - Voltaire

Sparky

For Sparky, school was all but impossible. He failed every subject in the eighth grade. He flunked physics in high school, getting a grade of zero. Sparky also flunked Latin, algebra and English. He didn't do much better in sports. Although he did manage to make the school's golf team, he promptly lost the only important match of the season. Throughout his youth Sparky was awkward socially. He was not actually disliked by the other students; no one cared that much.

However, one thing was important to Sparky - drawing. He was proud of his artwork. Of course, no one else appreciated it. In his senior year of high school, he submitted some cartoons to the editors of the yearbook. The cartoons were turned down. Despite this particular rejection, Sparky was so convinced of his ability that he decided to become a professional artist.

After completing high school, he wrote a letter to Walt Disney Studios. He was told to send some samples of his artwork, and the subject for a cartoon was suggested. Sparky drew the proposed cartoon. He spent a great deal of time on it and on all the other drawings he submitted. Finally, the reply came from Disney Studios. He had been rejected once again. Another loss for the loser.

So Sparky decided to write his own autobiography in cartoons. He described his childhood self - a little boy loser and chronic underachiever. The cartoon character would soon become famous worldwide. For Sparky, the boy who had such a lack of success in school and whose work was rejected again and again, was Charles Schultz. He created the "Peanuts" comic strip and the little cartoon character whose kite would never fly and who never succeeded in kicking a football, Charlie Brown.

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CHARLES M. SCHULZ (b. 1922) is the most widely syndicated cartoonist in history, with his work appearing in over 2,300 newspapers. He has published more than 1,400 books, won Peabody and Emmy awards for his animated specials, and is responsible for the most-produced musical in the American theatre, entitled "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown". And all this diversity and recognition and continuous success began 45 years ago when the United Feature Syndicate ran the first installment of a comic strip it dubbed "Peanuts".

A Peatnut comic strip attached to start your week with laughter

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 11, 2006

2006-08-11T06:14:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

You can't expect people to look eye to eye with you if you are looking down on them.

Letting Go Simon Heighwaya

One evening a man was out walking, but he had become so absorbed is his own thoughts that, without realizing, had wandered way off course and was now completely lost. It was getting late and cold and would soon be dark. An hour or so passed and it was now pitch-black. He began to feel afraid and his steps became quicker and unsteady. Suddenly, something underneath him gave way and he fell. He tumbled down and down and just as he way about to fall over a ledge he managed to grab onto a branch. But, he was now just hanging there. No way to climb back up and nothing but darkness below him. "Help! Somebody!! Please…Help me!" he cried out. …But no one came; it was a desolate place. He was terrified. His hands were freezing cold and he was losing his grip on the branch.There was no one to help!!

In sheer desperation this man, who was an atheist, call out to God, "Please…please…if you're there…God…please help me, save me and I will believe in you always!!" Suddenly, and to his amazement, a voice echoed all around him, "Trust Me….Let Go…. I've Got You… Trust In Me." The man looked around him and below him and thought for a moment, then he mumbled to himself, "Let go? Trust? You must think I'm mad?? No way!" This story doesn't always end like this but I think that many people find themselves in this man's situation. Maybe not necessarily hanging from a branch in the middle of no where, but never the less in a desperate situation where all their deepest instincts are telling them just to let go, to surrender themselves to a higher, deeper power or energy of some kind, to drop… into the unknown, with just trust. But they are so full of doubt and fear that they just cling on instead. The alternate ending to this story is that the desperate man, sensing he has little choice, decides to let go. He falls into the void below, but moments later he finds himself on solid ground. It had been so dark that he could never have known that the ground was no more than about 20ft below. He was safe and unharmed.

What's more, it turns out that the ground he has landed on is a pathway; the pathway he had been searching for all along - the route home! To me, this whole story is a lovely metaphor for having the courage to trust what is deepest within us, no matter what, to have the nerve to surrender to ourselves. We will get a beautiful surprise. The dark void is actually the source of all life. The 'ground' below is actually the "Ground of Being", which is another way of saying God, which is another way of saying our truest, realest Nature. This is most definitely the way home!

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A clean joke to sign-off your week with laughter

The flight home from a recent business trip was pretty empty. So the pilot made a simple request of the passengers. "We have a little extra room tonight, folks," he said over the PA system. "So if you wouldn't mind, please take a window seat so the competition thinks the plane is full."

A taxpayer received a strongly worded "second notice" that his taxes were overdue. Hastening to the collector's office, he paid his bill, saying apologetically that he had overlooked the first notice. "Oh," confided the collector with a smile, "we don't send out first notices. We have found that the second notices are more effective."

Finally, the good-natured boss was compelled to call Smith into his office. "It has not escaped my attention," he pointed out, "that every time there's a home game at the stadium, you have to take your aunt to the doctor." "You know you're right, sir," exclaimed Smith. "I didn't realize it. You don't suppose she's faking, do you?"

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 10, 2006

2006-08-10T04:35:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quotes:

How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these. - George Washington Carver

THE GENERAL AND THE BOY

Once, there was a General who wanted to cross a river. He was unsure of the depth of the river, and whether his horse could make it across the river. He looked around for help and saw a little boy nearby. He asked the boy for advice. The boy looked at the size of the General's horse and paused for a moment. He then confidently told the General that it is safe for the General and his horse to cross the river. The General proceeded to cross the river on his horse. As he approached the middle of the river, he suddenly realized that the river was, in fact, very deep, and he almost drowned. After he recovered from his shock he shouted at the boy and threatened to punish him.

The boy was stunned and innocently replied, "But General, I see my ducks crossing the river everyday without any problem, and my ducks have shorter legs than your horse". If you need advice, get it from people who know what they are talking about. Napoleon Hill says that, "opinion is the cheapest commodity on earth". Make sure you review for yourself the opinion of others before you act on them.

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Lateral Thinking: What phrase is represented below?

JG
UN
MI
PP
IM
NU
GJ
Good
New
New Scroll down for the answer ....

Answer

Jumping up and down over good news.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 09, 2006

2006-08-08T20:12:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. -Mark Twain

Friends

It's easier to make friends than to keep them.

A pretty face, a clever mind, a jovial manner, a generous impulse, a happy occasion, can be cause enough to arouse your interest in a person at first encounter. But time tells.

The friends you want to keep are the friends who mean the most. Do not expect too much of them. Be careful. Do not ask favor. Just content yourself with the pleasant belief that they would do anything for you. Do not set traps for them. If you tempt a friend, you are unworthy of friendship. Do not ask them to go out of their way to accomodate you. Do not presume on their good nature.

Enjoy friends like flowers, but never cut them.

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Interesting Phrase Origin: Wing and a prayer

Meaning: Hopeful but unlikely to succeed.
Example: She is driving on a wing and a prayer in that old jalopy.
Origin: During World War One airplanes were still a novelty and untested in war. A "wing and a prayer" was first
uttered when an American flyer came in with a badly damaged wing. His fellow pilots and mechanics
were amazed he didn't crash. He replied he was praying all the way in. Another pilot chimed in that "a
wing and a prayer brought you back."

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 08, 2006

2006-08-08T05:10:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

What we see depends mainly on what we look for. - John Lubbock

BURDEN OF MY OWN - Sunshine Magazine

A MONARCH OF LONG AGO had twin sons. There was some confusion about which one was born first. As they grew to young manhood, the king sought a fair way to designate one of them as crown prince. All who knew the young men thought them equal in intelligence, wit, personal charm, health, and physical strength. Being a keenly observant king, he thought he detected a trait in one which was not shared by the other. Calling them to his council chamber one day, he said, "My sons, the day will come when one of you must succeed me as king. The burdens of sovereignty are very heavy. To find out which of you is better able to bear them cheerfully, I am sending you together to a far corner of the kingdom. One of my advisors there will place equal burdens on your shoulders. My crown will one day go to the one who first returns bearing his burden like a king should."

In a spirit of friendly competition, the brothers set out together. Soon they overtook an aged woman struggling under a burden that seemed far too heavy for her frail body. One of the boys suggested that they stop to help her. The other protested: "We have a burden of our own to worry about. Let us be on our way." The objector hurried on while the other stayed behind to give aid to the aged woman. Along the road, from day to day, he found others who also needed help. A blind man took him miles out of his way, and a lame man slowed him to a cripple's walk.

Eventually he did reach his father's advisor, where he secured his own burden and started home with it safely on his shoulders. When he arrived at the palace, his brother met him at the gate, and greeted him with dismay. He said, "I don't understand. I told our father the burden was too heavy to carry. However did you do it?" The future king replied thoughtfully, "I suppose when I helped others carry their burdens, I found the strength to carry my own."

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Listen Closely

Assuming you can't steal an animal's sense of hearing, or use an electrical device, what would you need in order to hear a pin drop from over 20 yards? - Scroll down for the answer ...

A bowling ball :-)

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 07, 2006

2006-08-07T05:40:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Change does not necessarily assure progress, but progress implacably requires change. Education is essential to change, for education creates both new wants and the ability to satisfy them. - Henry Steele Commager.

Great expectations! - Katherine Micoleta

Great expectations! Whose life are you living? Yours or one that others expect from you?

More than a year ago, I remember myself wildly chasing my dreams as if there's no tomorrow. Yearning to be the best that I can be, trying to bear out my worth to everybody and doing whatever it takes to be identified.For years and years, I let my dreams and my ambitions rule over me. Everyday, I am fueled by this indistinct and unidentified force inside me to get up everyday, live other's expectations of me and be the best, so that they can be proud of me.
As I think of it now, I know why. It's because all my life I was trying to be what other people wanted me to be. I was trying to appease the people who wanted to drag me down to their level so that I could surpass them. In doing so, I did not have the opportunity to reflect on what I in fact sought; what will, if truth were told, what will make me happy?
One thing I learned is that there is a time when you will have to be what other people expect you to be, not because you want to, but because you love them and you don't want to let them down. But we should also remember that we only live once. They had their chance to live their lives; it's our time to live ours.

I'm relieved that I served my time. I am happy I am now breathing and truly existing, happy and contented. Thank you to that person who taught me what life is. I hope you find yours too.

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter

Actual headlines collected from local, national, and international newspapers that are rather ambiguous. It is clear what the writer was trying to say, but in each case there is a funnier interpretation of the headline. Enjoy!

Eye Drops Off Shelf
Milk Drinkers are Turning to Powder
Include Your Children When Baking Cookies
Two Soviet Ships Collide, One Dies

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!

Thanks
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 04, 2006

2006-08-04T05:44:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

There is no pleasure in life equal to that of the conquest of a vicious habit.

Kelly Johnson's Rules for Project Management

Rule No. 1 The program manager must be delegated practically complete control of his program in all aspects. He
should report to a division president or higher.
Rule No. 2 Strong but small project offices must be provided both by the industry.
Rule No. 3 The number of people having any connection with the project must be restricted in an almost vicious
manner. Use a small number of good people (10 percent to 25 percent compared to the so-called normal
systems).
Rule No. 4 A very simple drawing and drawing release system with great flexibility for making changes must be
provided.
Rule No. 5 There must be a minimum number of reports required, but important work must be recorded thoroughly.
Rule No. 6 There must be a monthly cost review covering not only what has been spent and committed but also
projected costs to the conclusion of the program. Don't have the books ninety days late and don't
surprise the customer with sudden overruns.
Rule No. 7 The contractor must be delegated and must assume more than normal responsibility to get good vendor
bids for subcontract on the project. Commercial bid procedures are very often better than military ones.
Rule No. 8 The inspection system meets the intent of existing military requirements and should be used on new
projects. Push more basic inspection responsibility back to the subcontractors and vendors. Don't
duplicate so much inspection.
Rule No. 9 The contractor must be delegated the authority to test his final product in flight. He can and must test it
in the initial stages. If he doesn't, he rapidly loses his competency to design other vehicles.
Rule No. 10 The specification applying to the hardware must be agreed to in advance of contracting.
Rule No. 11 Funding a program must be timely so that the contractor doesn\'t have to keep running to the bank to
support government projects.
Rule No. 12 There must be absolute mutual trust between the military organization and the contractor with very
close liaison on a day-to-day basis. This cuts down misunderstanding and correspondence to an
absolute minimum.
Rule No. 13 Access by outsiders to the project and its personnel must be strictly controlled by appropriate security
measures.
Rule No. 14 Because only a few people will be used in engineering and most other areas, ways must be provided to
reward good performance by pay, not simply related to the number of personnel supervised.

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Top things you don't want to hear over an Airplane PA

Hey folks, we're going to play a little game of geography trivia. If you can recognize where we are, tell your flight attendant and receive an extra pack of peanuts.

This is your Captain speaking....these stupid planes are a lot different than the ships I\'m used to.. so you\'ll have to give me some leeway...

Ocean crossing flight: This is your Captain speaking, I just wanted to take this time to remind you that your seat cushions can be used as floatation devices.

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 03, 2006

2006-08-03T04:35:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer. Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller and more of it can be taken in at a glance and a lack of harmony and proportion is more readily seen."

THE MAN WHO WILLED HIMSELF TO DIE

There was a man who worked for the railroad. One day as he went into the freezer compartment to do his routine work, the door accidentally closed and he found himself trapped in the compartment. He shouted for help but no one heard him since it was past midnight. He tried to break down the door but he could not. As he lay in the freezer compartment, he began to feel colder, and colder.

Then he began to feel weaker, and weaker, and he wrote on the wall of the compartment, "I am feeling colder, and colder; and I am getting weaker, and weaker. I am dying, and this may be my last words". In the morning when the other workers opened up the compartment they found him dead. The sad twist to the above story is that the freezing apparatus in the compartment had broke down a few days earlier. The poor worker did not know about the damaged freezing apparatus and in his mind the freezing apparatus was working perfectly. He felt cold, got weaker and literally willed himself to die.

Our sub-conscious mind can be cheated. The sub-conscious mind can only accept and act on information passed to it by the conscious mind. It has no capacity to reject or decline any instructions or information passed to it by the conscious mind.

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Add together each of the defined words to get a whole new word.

1) A light brown color + to leave = a dance.
2) A store's announcement + a type of women's clothing = a building's location.
3) A vehicle + an animal pal = a floor covering. .... Scroll Down for the answer ...

1) tan + go = tango.
2) ad + dress = address.
3) car + pet = carpet.

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 02, 2006

2006-08-02T05:05:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

The best things in life aren't things. - Art Buchwald

Hanna Reitsch and Third Reich

Third Reich means the Third Empire. This was the official name of Hitler's regime, which ruled from 1933 to 1945. The Nazis regarded their rule as the successor to two previous empires: the Holy Roman Empire (962 AD-1806) and the Second Reich founded by Otto von Bismarck (1871-1918).

Hanna Reitsch is one of the most celebrated women of the Third Reich. As a decorated test pilot for the Luftwaffe and a protege of Hitler, Reitsch was one of a handful of women who achieved personal success by breaking from the traditionally defined role of wife and mother in Nazi Germany. Reitsch's skills and accomplishments ultimately earned her an Iron Cross and celebrity status. A witness to the last days of the Third Reich, Reitsch visited Hitler's Berlin bunker where she received orders to deliver letters designed to rally the Luftwaffe. She left on this futile mission only minutes before Hitler's marriage to Eva Braun.

An interesting fact is that, Hannah Reisch saw a UFO speeding by at an altitude of 20,000 meters (66,000 feet) while flight-testing a forerunner of the Messerschmitt 163 Komet. The first rocket engine was developed by the Germans during World War II. Germany's first women pilot, Hannah Reisch, was the test pilot.

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Inflight Humour

"Hello Everyone, we have a first time flyer on board today - and it is also their 50th birthday!" After everybody cheers, the flight attendant continues, "Will everyone please wish the captain a Happy Birthday!?"

After landing: "Thank you for flying Delta Business Express. We hope you enjoyed giving us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride."

Pilot: "Folks, we have reached our cruising altitude now, so I am going to switch the seat belt sign off. Feel free to move about as you wish, but please stay inside the plane till we land. It's a bit cold outside, and if you walk on the wings it affects the flight pattern."

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - Aug 01, 2006

2006-08-01T07:24:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Progress is the activity of today and the assurance of tomorrow -Ralph Waldo Emerson

KamiKaze - World War II

Kamikaze is a word of Japanese origin, (pronounce kA´´mukA´zE) which in the English language usually refers to suicide attacks carried out by Imperial Japan's military aviators by crashing their planes into warships. In the Japanese language, kamikaze usually translated as "divine wind" (kami is the word for "god", and kaze for "wind"), came into being as the name of a legendary typhoon said to have saved Japan from a Mongol invasion fleet in 1281.

Japanese forces, after their defeat at the Battle of Midway in 1942, lost the momentum they had at the start. The task facing the Japanese air forces seemed totally impossible. The 1st Air Fleet commandant, Vice Admiral Takijiro Onishi decided to form a suicide attack unit, the Kamikaze Special Attack Force. In a meeting at Magracut Airfield near Manila on October 19, Onishi, visiting the 201st Navy Flying Corps headquarters, suggested: "I don't think there would be any other certain way to carry out the operation [to hold the Philippines], than to put a 250 kg bomb on a Zero (carrier-based fighter planes) and let it crash into a U.S. carrier, in order to disable her for a week."

By the end of World War II, the Japanese naval air service had sacrificed 2,525 kamikaze pilots and the army air force had given 1,387. According to an official Japanese announcement, the missions sank 81 ships and damaged 195, and according to a Japanese tally, suicide attacks accounted for up to 80 percent of US losses in the final phase of the war in the Pacific.

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"Squawks" - problem listings that pilots generally leave for maintenance crews. Here are some actual maintenance complaints submitted by Air Force pilots and the replies from the maintenance crews.

Request: "Something loose in cockpit."
Response: "Something tightened in cockpit."

Request:"Dead bugs on windshield."
Response: "Live bugs on order."

Request:"Test flight OK, except autoland very rough."
Response:"Autoland not installed on this aircraft."

Have a memorable day!
Priya

Day with a Difference - July 30, 2006

2006-07-31T04:20:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. - Franklin D. Roosevelt

How does stealth technology work? (HowStuffWorks.com)

The goal of stealth technology is to make an airplane invisible to radar. There are two different ways to create invisibility:

The airplane can be shaped so that any radar signals it reflects are reflected away from the radar equipment.
The airplane can be covered in materials that absorb radar signals.

Most conventional aircraft have a rounded shape. This shape makes them aerodynamic, but it also creates a very efficient radar reflector. The round shape means that no matter where the radar signal hits the plane, some of the signal gets reflected back: A stealth aircraft, on the other hand, is made up of completely flat surfaces and very sharp edges. When a radar signal hits a stealth plane, the signal reflects away at an angle. In addition, surfaces on a stealth aircraft can be treated so they absorb radar energy as well.

The overall result is that a stealth aircraft like an F-117A can have the radar signature of a small bird rather than an airplane. The only exception is when the plane banks -- there will often be a moment when one of the panels of the plane will perfectly reflect a burst of radar energy back to the antenna. The Nighthawk is the world's first operational stealth aircraft. (see attached picture)

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A clean joke to start your week with laughter: In-flight humor

1. From a Southwest Airlines employee.... "There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only 4 ways out
of this airplane..."

2. From the pilot during his welcome message: "We are pleased to have some of the best flight attendants in the
industry...Unfortunately none of them are on this flight...!

3. Another flight Attendant\'s comment on a less than perfect landing: "We ask you to please remain seated as
Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal."

Have a memorable day and a great week ahead!
Priya

Day with a Difference - July 28, 2006

2006-07-28T05:08:00.000+04:00

Today's Inspirational Quote:

Unless we think of others and do something for them, we miss one of the greatest sources of happiness. - Ray Lyman Wilbur

Doing well by doing good - William R.Brody

There is a man who I'd like to tell you about. His name is Sandy Greenberg. In his youth, Sandy was a very good student, but he came from a poor family. And so he went to Columbia University on a scholarship and there he met his roommate who also was receiving financial aid. Now while he was a sophomore at Columbia University, Sandy contracted an eye disease that eventually proved to be glaucoma. But the trouble was, it wasn't detected early enough, and as a result he became legally blind. But something else happened to Sandy that may surprise you. Sandy said that when he lost his sight, his roommate would read his textbooks to him, every night.

And as a result, Sandy went on to graduate with honors. He got a Fulbright Scholarship, and he went off to study at Oxford. He was still quite poor, but he said he had managed to save about five hundred dollars as he went along. His roommate, meanwhile, also went on to graduate school. One day, Sandy got a call from him at Oxford. And his former roommate said, "Sandy I'm really unhappy. I really don't like being in graduate school, and I don't want to do this." "Sandy, I really love to sing. I have a high school friend who plays the guitar. But we need to make a promo record, and in order to do that I need $500."

So Sandy Greenberg told me he took all his life savings and sent it to his roommate. He told me, "You know, what else could I do? He made my life; I needed to help make his life." \nWhat you get will depend a lot on what you give. And that\'s the end of the story of doing well, by doing good. My hope today, as you commence to new beginnings, is you will always keep your eyes open for those opportunities to give and embrace them as your best sure way of doing well.

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A clean joke to sign off your week with laughter

During the \'rush hour\' at Houston\'s Hobby Airport, a flight was delayed due to a mechanical problem. \nSince they needed the gate for another flight, the aircraft was backed away from the gate while the maintenance crew worked on it. The passengers were then told the new gate number, which was some distance away. Everyone moved to the new gate, only to find a third gate had been designated for them. \nAfter some further shuffling, everyone got on board, and as they were settling in, the flight attendant made the standard announcement, \'We apologise for the inconvenience of this last-minute gate change. This flight is going to Washington, \nD.C. If your destination is not Washington, D.C., then you should \'deplane\' at this time.\' \nA very confused-looking and red-faced pilot emerged from the cockpit, carrying his bags. \'Sorry,\' he said, wrong plane.\'

Have a memorable day and a fun-filled weekend!",
Priya