What I Hate About the GOP

This is what I hate about the GOP.  It's not everyone but there's enough.  They really need to overhaul their culture if they want  to get people of color and other religions to vote for them.

However, I can't in good conscience join a party that supports legalized abortion.  So, I pick the lesser evil.  Afterall, who is really meaner - the one who murders or the one who disrespects?

The Pursuit of Happiness

When my daughter asked "What will make you happy  Dad?",  I had to stop and think about it.  Ever since I became a father, I have lived for my kids.   I drive 2 hours to a work that pays better.  On the way home, I do groceries.  When I get home, I wash poop and throw the garbage.  I eat the leftovers because I think of those abroad who eat garbage.  And sleep is simply a time to prepare to do it all over again.  


Then there're homeworks and projects, birthdays and holidays, changing seasons that punctuate the routine until it's another year - a time to reset the online banking payment schedule and reorder drugs.  So, what makes me happy?  At that point, I didn't know.  I didn't have any desires for myself because there's neither time nor energy left.


But I realized there are stuff that keeps me from being sad:  the absence of sickness, having a job, receiving Holy Communion, intimacy with my wife,  the laughter  of my kids,  a job well done, my dog jumping at my arrival, new readers of my blog, spraying the roaches dead, friends,  Scotch and  Prime Rib, gardening in the sun, Sashimi and Sake,  losing weight, working out in the company gym ... and so on.  I just enjoyed them without thinking.  I don't intend to organize these in an essay right now;  it's more of a sharing.  But here are some ideas about happiness that I have kept in the back burner.  I hope you realize what makes you happy; then that'll double the pleasure and double the fun.


Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.  Abraham Lincoln


If you want happiness for an hour — take a nap.
If you want happiness for a day — go fishing.
If you want happiness for a year — inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime — help someone else.
Chinese Proverb


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


That man is richest whose pleasures are cheapest.  Henry David Thoreau

Happy New Year 2010 ( Joy & Optimism of St. John Bosco)

As the year begins, I wish everyone conservative and liberals alike to fill their hearts with joy and optimism.  "Let nothing bother you,"  St. John Bosco used to say.  The Salesian Spirituality focuses in God's Providence and refuses to be discouraged by hardships and set backs.  It is also based on St. Francis de Sales optimistic humanism that believes in the innate goodness of people without ignoring his weaknesses.  As St. Paul exhorts, "Rejoice in the Lord always" (Phil 4:4) because the "fruit of God's spirit is love, joy, peace..."( Gal 5:22 ) and this is the foundation of our hope.

video: 16 & pregnant

Documentary on teen pregnancy.  All the episodes are in YouTube. Here's the trailer.  'nuf said.

















source for trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLiXS02Mj7U or click here

Best episode click here or type http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzCSckoIWuI
Content: Soon-to-be teen parents, Catelynn and Tyler, think adoption is best for their baby, but question if they'll be strong enough to let go.




Get all the episodes here or type http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mtv+16+and+pregnant+full+episodes&search_type=&aq=2&oq=mtv+16

How to Overcome Procastination

Fix the root cause:

1. Procrastination due to dislike of an activity

If you procrastinate because you don’t like a task, look for ways to increase task appeal such as:

• Make it into a game, and keep score.
• Make it into a game, competing with others.
• Listen to upbeat music while doing it.  Schedule a reward immediately after you complete it.

2. Procrastination due to overwhelm
If you’re avoiding a task because it is lengthy and overwhelming, then “divide and conquer”:

• Break the large task into separate, short-term segments.
• Then check off each segment as an accomplished short-term task.

 3. Procrastination due to inertia
If you procrastinate because you have difficulty initiating a task, create something to react to. Tasks that can be reacted to are easier to begin than those that you must initiate yourself.

• Work on the task with others – then you can react to their questions, emails, etc.
• Establish a deadline with your supervisor.

 4. Procrastination due to lack of organization
Sometimes we procrastinate on beginning a large project because we haven’t organized the task and don’t know where to start. If you can’t seem to get a project organized:

• Think through the task.
• Talk with your supervisor or collaborators to plan it.
• Break the larger task into do-able segments.
• Create a list of resources and supplies needed to accomplish the task. 
• Create a timeline for the task.
• Then schedule the first segment of the task.
• Create an email or text reminder for this segment.

 5. Procrastination on difficult tasks
Not all tasks can be made easy, but if you find a task particularly difficult, you must analyze how it can become easier.

• Do you need help?
• More training?
• More practice?
• More assistance from other?
• Analyze what is making the task so difficult, and then get the help you need to succeed.

 6. Procrastination at certain times of day
More challenging tasks should be done at whatever time of day you seem to feel more focused and energetic. Take note of your daily rhythms, and then try to schedule the most avoided tasks for the time of day when you’ll have more energy to tackle them.

from http://skoach.com/blog/6-ways-to-combat-procrastination.html?utm_source=Constant&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NL30Dec09

It's really Christmas for 12 days and the symbols in that song.

In the Catholic Church, the Christmas season starts on the evening before Christmas Day and lasts until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord - celebrated on the Sunday after the Feast of the Ephany (January 6th).

This is when we celebrate the birth of Jesus hence the song "Twelve Days of Christmas".  The gifts are symbolic as follows:

A Partridge in a Pear Tree: Jesus Christ
Two Turtle Doves: The Old and New Testaments
Three French Hens: The Theological Virtues (Faith, Hope, and Charity)
Four Calling Birds: The Four Gospels / The Four Evangelists
Five Golden Rings: The first Five Books of the Old Testament, the “Pentateuch”
Six Geese a-Laying: The Six Days of Creation
Seven Swans a-Swimming: The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit or the Seven Sacraments
Eight Maids a-Milking: The Eight Beatitudes
Nine Ladies Dancing: The Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
Ten Lords a-Leaping: The Ten Commandments
Eleven Pipers Piping: The Eleven Faithful Apostles
Twelve Drummers Drumming: The Twelve Points of Doctrine in the Apostle's Creed



H/T to A Roman Catholic Cop

Video: Rick Warren on Obama, Jobs, Healthcare, Abortion, Holocaust

Rick Warren discusses Obama's responsibility and the current challenges in America today.


source http://www.tangle.com/view_video?viewkey=1c9822d6706c63a33256
Excerpts:
I am neither left nor right wing; I am for the whole bird - America.
What stewardship of influence is for those without a voice.
Any 16 year old boy who bought a condom knows when life begins.
46 million Americans are not here; that's a holocaust.
I am not pro-life; I am whole life. We need to expand the agenda after the child is born.