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WITandWISDOM(tm) - December 10, 2004 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things only hoped for. – Epicurus Source: Carol's Thought for Today, http://www.kalama.com/~carola/ ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: Many years ago I was working around the house when a knock came at the door. When I opened it, there stood Sally, a young woman in her late teens: "I’m selling brushes," she said, "and I wonder if you'd like to buy any." I told her politely that I wasn't interested in buying anything that day, and Sally said, "I know. No one else is, either." With that, she began to cry. I invited Sally to come in for a cup of coffee and asked her to share her story. It turned out that she was an unmarried mother who was struggling mightily to support her two-year-old son. That night, we went to her shabby little apartment above a garage to see how we could help her and her toddler. When we opened the cupboards, there was nothing there for them to eat - I mean nothing. That night they both dined on a can of Spaghetti-Os. We took Sally to the market and did what we could to help her get on her feet. There are millions of single mothers out there who are desperately trying to survive in a hostile world. All of them could use a little kindness - from babysitting to providing a meal to repairing the washing machine to just showing a little thoughtfulness. Have you opened your eyes to them lately? Source: Night Light: A Devotional for Couples, By Dobson, James C.; Dobson, Shirley Published by Multnomah Pub (September 1, 2000), ISBN: 1576736741, http://isbn.nu/1576736741 ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: Excuses For Breaking The Speed Limit I didn't realize I was speeding. I was traveling with the flow of traffic. I was only passing someone. My speedometer must be wrong or broken. But I had my cruise set at _____. Your radar must be wrong. Running late for something. I'm on vacation. I was trying to get to a rest room. This is someone else's car. I wasn't paying attention. I didn't know what the speed limit was. I was going downhill. I'm almost out of gas. My accelerator stuck. _______ is dying/just died. I have a fast car and this is a good road. I was just trying to get home. I was mad at someone. My wife's having a baby. I was just on my way to do someone a favor. I was trying to get away from someone... Road rage. The kid was fussing. I was just trying this car out. I didn't know you were around. I've always driven like this. I was trying to catch someone. I'm just tired and hunting for a place to eat. I didn't have my CB on. My fuzz buster is broken. I never thought I'd get stopped. I'm allowed to go ten miles over where I'm from. Source: Top Greetings ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: Kurt was being chided for his low grades. Little Paul, who lived a few doors away, was held up as an example. "Paul doesn't get C's and D's does he?" asked his father. "No," Kurt admitted, "but he's different. He has very bright parents." Source: Cascade_Express(tm) E-Zine mailto:Cascade_Express-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Holiday Spending The average consumer plans to spend 4.5 percent more on this year's holiday shopping compared to a year ago. A National Retail Federation survey of consumers found that the average person will spend $702 on Christmas and other winter fetes, with $406 of that going to family gifts. The most popular gifts on consumer lists for Santa: books, CDs, DVDs and video games. The biggest increase in popularity was for gift certificates: 50.2 percent now want one or more. Other popular presents: consumer electronics, jewelry and home decor. About 38 percent plan to shop online, while the largest percentage said it would patronize discount stores. Source: Peninsula Daily News, December, 2004, http://peninsuladailynews.com |