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WITandWISDOM(tm) - February 22, 2007 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: One of the lessons of history is that nothing is often a good thing to do and always a clever thing to say. - Will Durant Source: Quotes of the Day, http://www.quotationspage.com/qotd.html ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: I shouldn't admit this. I guess it would be foolish of me, but I'm not crazy about greeting cards. "You write and sell greeting cards, Bob!" You are right. I guess it's just that I personally always have a hard time finding just the right card for the right person, at the right time. Like mushy cards about going fishing and an "always understanding father." They didn't create one for my Dad. Oh, he had his moments, but I always tended to buy "Thanks for all you have done for me" generic cards. My wife loves greeting cards. She even has a membership card to the big card shop chain. But, yesterday I saw them in a different light. Through the eyes of a child. I needed a card for a friend. I had already been standing in the card aisle for at least twenty minutes, when I noticed the young girl. "Okay, I need one for Granny and one for my best friend, Jackie. Oh, and one for Mommy and Daddy..." Just then a woman walked around the corner. "How are you doing this time?" she asked. "Oh, Mommy I think I'm finding the best one's here." Looking up, the woman caught me listening in on their conversation. "She loves buying cards," she said. "I don't. I always find it a difficult task," I replied. "Why?" the little girl asked me. "It's the words. They don't always fit the person I need to buy a card for." "Oh, that's the problem," she said. "Really?" "I don't read the cards." "Well, how do you know it's the right one?" Placing her finger on her chin, looking much like the famous statue, "The Thinker," the young child said, "It looks like them." Her mother then explained that her daughter doesn't buy cards for what they say. She buys them for how they look. "When Granny is sad, I buy her a card that looks happy. My best friend is sick. I found a sunshine card for her," the child said. "If I describe my friend, could you pick out a card for her?" "Yes, of course. It would be better if I could see her, but tell me what she looks like." I went on to describe her. "I'll be right back," she said. Heading off to the other side of the card rack, she suddenly re-appeared smiling with pride for her selection. "Here, this is your friend," she said. The front of the card had puppies all over it. Inside it said, "From the dog. Happy Birthday! I hope you get good treats!" "That's just perfect!" I said. In reality, my friend just lost her job and has been pretty upset about it. I couldn't find the right words. But that was the problem. I needed to find the right picture. "Thank you for helping me. She loves puppies. By the way. What card did you pick out for your Granny?" I asked. She handed me the card she had chosen. On the front was a picture of a beautiful baby all wrapped up in blankets. Inside it said, "Congratulations! We celebrate the birth of your child and all the joy that will fill your life." I looked at her mother, she shrugged her shoulders and said, "Granny will be surprised." "I bet she will be," I said smiling. "The baby looks like me. Granny says I make her happy." "Well, I'm glad I met you today, young lady, you made me happy, too," I said. These are the moments I live for. Chance meetings at just the right time? No, I think not. This one was meant to be. I guess you could say, "It was in the cards." By Bob Perks, Copyright (c) 2007 mailto:Bob@BobPerks.com http://www.bobperks.com Bob Perks is a professional Speaker, Trainer and author. To receive his free weekly messages, I Believe in You!, visit: http://www.topica.com/lists/Ibelieveinyou ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: 15 Excuses for Calling in Sick By Richard Castellini, Senior Career Adviser for CareerBuilder.com CareerBuilder.com recently took a look at employees who call in sick with bogus excuses. Thirty-two percent of workers said they called in sick when they felt well at least once during the last year, down from 43 percent in the 2005 survey. . . . The most popular motivator for missing work: good, old-fashioned R&R. Almost half of workers said they needed to relax, while 24 percent wanted to catch up on sleep. Other top reasons included running personal errands (20 percent), doctor's appointments (17 percent), plans with family and friends (16 percent) and housework (16 percent). Forty-one percent of hiring managers said they have received unusual or suspicious sick-day alibis. When asked to share the most unusual excuses workers gave for missing work, hiring managers revealed some of their favorite alibis: 1. Employee was poisoned by his mother-in-law. 2. A buffalo escaped from the game reserve and kept charging the employee every time she tried to go to her car from her house. 3. Employee was feeling all the symptoms of his expecting wife. 4. Employee called from his cell phone, saying that he was accidentally locked in a restroom stall and that no one was around to let him out. 5. Employee broke his leg snowboarding off his roof while drunk. 6. Employee's wife said he couldn't come into work because he had a lot of chores to do around the house. 7. One of the walls in the employee's home fell off the night before. 8. Employee's mother was in jail. 9. A skunk got into the employee's house and sprayed all of his uniforms. 10. Employee had a bad case of hiccups. 11. Employee blew his nose so hard, his back went out. 12. Employee's horses got loose and were running down the highway. 13. Employee was hit by a bus while walking. 14. Employee's dog swallowed her bus pass. 15. Employee was sad. From: MSN Careers website, http://tinyurl.com/29osbu Source: Preaching Now, http://www.preaching.com/newsletter/subscribe.html ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: Tammy (age 4) was with her mother when they met an elderly, rather wrinkled woman her Mom knew. Tammy looked at her for awhile and then asked, “Why doesn’t your skin fit your face?” Submitted by Becky ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: What's so special about the midsummer compass plant? During midsummer, the radical leaves of the compass plant invariably point precisely north and south. http://www.lib.ksu.edu/wildflower/compassplant.html Source: ArcaMax - Trivia, http://tinyurl.com/9kf44