Ray&#039;s Daily

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.

HELEN KELLER

I worry that some folks have let despair destroy their ability to hope during these difficult times. There is growing evidence showing that there are better days are ahead. In my view hopelessness leads to distress, stagnation and inaction.

Please believe that those who retian their abilty to embrace hope will be ready to take advantage of a better tomorrow. Here a few thoughts I captured off the internet that provide some insight into why hope is important for us all to retain.

Why Hope Is So Vital

Most people associate hope with a dire situation. People hope to get out of difficult circumstances. That is often when people do find themselves hoping fervently! But hope also can provide the key to making everyday life better.

That’s because just envisioning something hopeful – the child seeing herself riding her new bike, for example – gives a person a moment of happiness, according to Psychology Today. It can make present difficulties much easier to bear.

An example of that is reported by the American Psychology Association. Children who grew up in poverty but had success later in life all had one thing in common – hope. Dr. Valerie Maholmes, who worked on the research, said hope involves “planning and motivation and determination” to get what one hopes for.

Deeper Meaning

In a way, having hope links your past and present to the future. You have a vision for what you hope will happen. Whether it does not, just envisioning it can make you feel better. And if it’s something you can somewhat control – like the kids working to get out of poverty – then hope can motivate you to take whatever steps you need to take.

Dr. Neel Burton, a book author who writes about emotions, writes that he always asks patients for what they hope for, because if they say “nothing” then that is a sign of depression or worse.

Having hope is important to the very act of being a human being. As Dr. Judith Rich writes, “Hope is a match in a dark tunnel, a moment of light, just enough to reveal the path ahead and ultimately the way out.”

~~~

They say a person needs just three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to love, something to do, and something to hope for.

TOM BODETT

~~~

Joan: You know, my ex never came right out and criticized my cooking. He would just make snide remarks.

Mary: Like what?

Joan: He’d look at his plate and ask, “Was the dog not hungry?”

~~~

If Barbie’s so popular, why do you have to buy all her friends?

~~~

Dentist: “Try to relax. I’ll pull that aching tooth in five minutes.”

Patient: “How much will this cost?”

Dentist: “It’ll be $100.”

Patient: “That much for just five minutes work?”

Dentist: “Well if you prefer, I can pull it out very slowly.”

~~~

The cardiologist’s diet: if it tastes good, spit it out.

~~~

Feeling Stressed?

Picture yourself near a stream …Birds are chirping softly in the crisp, cool mountain air … Nothing can bother you here … No one knows this secret place … You are in total seclusion from that place called The World … The soothing sound of a gentle waterfall fills the air with a cascade of serenity … The water is clear … You can easily make out the face of the person whose head you’re holding under the water …

There now … Feeling better?

~~~

Don’t cry because it’s over: smile because it happened.

~~~

A man and a little boy entered a barbershop together.

After the man received the full treatment – shave, manicure, haircut,etc. – he placed the boy in the chair.

“I’m goin’ to buy a tie to wear to the party,” he said.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

When the boy’s haircut was done and the man still hadn’t returned, the barber said, “It looks like your daddy forgot all about you.”

“That wasn’t my daddy,” said the boy. “He just walked up, took me by the hand and said, ‘Come on, son, we’re gonna get a free haircut!'”

~~~

Most people would like to be delivered from temptation, but would like it to keep in touch.

Robert Orben

~~~

A group of elderly Jewish men meet every Wednesday for coffee and a chat. They drink their coffee and then sit for hours discussing the world situation. Usually, their discussion is very negative. One day, Aaron surprises his friends by announcing, loud and clear, “You know what? I’ve now become an optimist.”

Everyone is totally shocked and all conversation dries up. But then Sam notices something isn’t quite right and he says to Aaron, “Hold on a minute, if you’re an optimist, why are you looking so worried?”

Aaron replies, “Do you think it’s easy being an optimist?”

~~~

The trouble with being punctual is that no one notices it when you are.

~~~

All of his life, Len had heard stories of an amazing family tradition. It seems that his father, grandfather and great-grandfather had all been able to walk on water on their 21st birthday. On that day, they’d walk across the lake to the boat club for their first legal drink.

So, when Len’s 21st birthday came around, he and his friend, Corky, took a boat out to the middle of the lake. Len stepped out of the boat and nearly drowned! Corky just managed to pull him to safety. Furious and confused, Len went to see his grandmother.

“Grandma, it’s my 21st birthday, so why can’t I walk across the lake like my father, his father and his father before him?”

Granny looked Len straight in the eyes and said, “Because your father, grandfather and great- grandfather were born in January. You were born in July.”

~~~

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

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than twenty years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@comcast.net. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are hundreds of readers from around the world.

Category:

Stay Connected

Ray’s Daily

April 29, 2021

“At different states in our lives, the signs of love may vary: dependence, attraction, contentment, worry, loyalty, grief, but at the heart, the source is always the same. Human beings have the rare capacity to connect with each other, against all odds.”

Anonymous

Ray’s Daily first published on April 29, 2005

We had a speaker at my Kiwanis meeting yesterday who talked about networking and communicating. She talked about how we can connect with others to the benefit of both them and ourselves. I am paraphrasing her message, well maybe I am taking her message as I understood it and put my own spin on it. Here are my thoughts on how we can connect and enrich our lives.

You can’t connect if you are never in a place where you can meet others. Attend a club meeting, take a class, attend a lecture, take a trip, the list is endless, and when you do make sure you say hello to the people around you. The point is that if we limit our relationships to only close friends, fellow workers, and family, we will miss a lot of what life has to offer.

When we truly take an interest in someone else we refresh the human spirit and lay the foundation for sincere bonds of friendship. People are wonderful and complex, everyone is unique and learning more about them can be both fun and enlightening. And I am sure you will find that if you take an honest interest in others, they will take an interest in you.

It is our interest in each other that brings us together. Lasting relationships are built on interest, comfort, and most of all trust. Trust that we will listen to each other and do everything we can to understand. Often the very nature of our sharing implies a risk as we open up and let some of our more personal feelings emerge, we can only do that if we expect understanding and not judgment in return.

~~~

We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.

Herman Melville

~~~

A teenager is:

* A person who can’t remember to walk the dog but never forgets a phone number.

* A weight watcher who goes on a diet by giving up candy bars before breakfast.

* A youngster who receives her allowance on Monday, spends it on Tuesday, and borrows it from her best friend on Wednesday.

* Someone who can hear his favorite singer 3 blocks away but not his mother calling from the next room.

* A whiz who can operate the latest computer without a lesson but can’t make a bed.

* A student who spends 12 minutes studying history and 12 hours studying for her driver’s license.

* A connoisseur of 2 kinds of fine music–loud and very loud.

* An enthusiast who has the energy to bike for miles but is usually too tired to dry the dishes.

* A young woman who loves the cat and tolerates the brother.

* A romantic who never falls in love more than once a week.

* A budding beauty who never smiles until her braces come off.

* A boy who can sleep till noon on any Saturday he suspects the lawn needs mowing.

* An original thinker who is positive that her mother was never a teenager.

~~~

Love is the ability and willingness to allow those that you care for to be what they choose for themselves without any insistence that they satisfy you.

Wayne Dyer

~~~

There was this West Va. sheriff and his deputy riding along the small town. They spot a car with out of town plates and decided to pull it over. The sheriff says “Where you from boy?”

The man says Chicago. Sheriff says, “Don’t lie to me son I saw them Illinois tags.”

~~~

Our boss told us that she is planning a salary raise.

One of the guys asked, “When does it become effective?”

The boss answered, “As soon as you do.”

~~~

The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.

-William James

~~~

Have you ever realized that children are like dogs—loyal and affectionate, but teenagers are like cats?

It’s so easy to be a dog owner. You feed it, train it, boss it around. And yet it still puts its head on your knee and gazes at you as if you were a Rembrandt painting and bounds indoors with enthusiasm when you call it.

Then around age 13, your adoring little puppy turns into a cat. When you tell it to come inside, it looks amazed, as if wondering who died and made you emperor. Instead of dogging your doorsteps, it disappears. You won’t see it again until it gets hungry. Then it pauses on its sprint through the kitchen long enough to turn its nose up at whatever you’re serving. When you reach out to ruffle its head, in that old affectionate gesture, it twists away from you, then gives you a blank stare, as if trying to remember where it has seen you before. You, not realizing that the dog is now a cat, think something must be desperately wrong. It seems so antisocial, so distant. It won’t go on family outings.

Since you’re the one who raised it, taught it to fetch and stay and sit on command, you assume that you did something wrong. Flooded with guilt and fear, you redouble your efforts to make your pet behave. Only now you’re dealing with a cat, so everything that worked before now produces the opposite of the desired result. Call it, and it runs away. Tell it to sit, and it jumps on the counter. The more you go toward it, with open arms, the more it moves away.

Instead of continuing to act like a dog owner, you should learn to behave like a cat owner. Put a dish of food near the door, and let it come to you. Sit still, and it will come, seeking that warm, comforting lap it has not entirely forgotten. Be there to open the door for it.

And just remember…

One day your grown-up child will walk into the kitchen, give you a big kiss and say, “You’ve been on your feet all day. Let me get those dishes for you.” Then you’ll realize your cat is now a dog again!

~~~

Ten Things a Cat Thinks About

I could have sworn I heard the can opener.

Is there something I’m not getting when humans make noise with their mouths?

Why doesn’t the government do something about dogs?

I wonder if Morris really liked 9-Lives, or did he have ulterior motives?

Hmmm … If dogs serve humans, and humans serve cats, why can’t we cats ever get these stupid dogs to do anything for us?

This looks like a good spot for a nap.

Hey! No kidding, I’m sure that’s the can opener.

Would humans have built a vast and complex civilization of their own if we cats hadn’t given them a reason to invent sofas and can openers in the first place?

If there’s a God, how can He allow neutering?

If that really was the can opener, I’ll play finicky just to let them know who’s boss!

~~~

It’s lonely at the top, but you eat better.

~~~

I was listening to a lady who called a radio minister. The minister was a wise, grandfatherly gentlemen who had that calm reassuring voice that can melt all fear.

The lady, who was obviously crying, says,

“I was born blind, and I’ve been blind all my life. I don’t mind so much being blind but I have some well-meaning friends who tell me if I had more faith I could be healed and see again.”

The minister asked her,

“Tell me, do you carry one of those white canes?”

“Why, yes, I do,” she replied.

“Well, then… the next time someone says that to you, hit them over the head with your cane,” he said. “Then tell them… ‘If you had more faith, that wouldn’t hurt!’ “

~~~

Love is a force that connects us to every strand of the universe, an unconditional state that characterizes human nature, a form of knowledge that is always there for us if only we can open ourselves to it.

Emily H. Sell

~~~

Ray Mitchell

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Ray’s Daily has been sent for more than twenty years to people who want to start their day on an upbeat. If you have system overload because of our daily clutter, let me know and I will send you the information via mental telepathy. If you have not been getting our daily you can request to be added by e-mailing me at raykiwsp@comcast.net. Back issues are posted at http://rays-daily,com/ currently there are hundreds of readers from around the world.

Category:

I Can Do Better

Ray’s Daily

April 28, 2021

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are some days when I wished I had behaved better. I don’t like myself when I am so preoccupied that I miss the signs of need in others. The good news is that I usually do better the next day.

Being who we would like to be is really up to us. I am at the stage in life where I do not need much, but I do need self respect, something I can only earn by my behavior. The good news is that we always have another chance at doing better.

Who will you be tomorrow?

One man sat at a stop light. The woman in front of him was going through papers on the seat of her car, and when the light changed to green she didn’t go. A green light is not a suggestion, you know, it is more of a commandment. But she didn’t notice.

When the light turned red again, she still had not moved. The man in the car behind her now started screaming epithets and beating on his steering wheel.

A policeman tapped on his windshield. ‘You can’t arrest me for hollering in my car,’ the man said. The cop asked for his license and registration, returned to his car, talked on the radio for a while, and finally handed the papers back. The driver protested, ‘I knew you couldn’t cite me for yelling in my own car!’

The officer replied, ‘I didn’t want to cite you for shouting in your car. But I was directly behind you at the light. I saw you screaming and beating your steering wheel, and I said to myself, ‘That man is out of control. He’s going to hurt someone!’

‘Then I noticed the cross hanging from your rear view mirror, the bright yellow ‘Love Is a Choice’ license tag, the ‘Give Peace a Chance’ and ‘Prayer Changes Things’ bumper stickers, and I was sure you must have stolen the car.’

His behaviour did not reflect his bumper stickers. But let’s not be too critical. Are we always the people we want to be?

We make changes by stretching. Personal transformation can happen when the person we presently are does not yet resemble the person we hope to be. Better to set high ideals and occasionally fall short than to settle for mediocrity and succeed.

The important question is not, ‘Who are you today?’ It is better to ask, ‘Who will you be tomorrow?’

Remember: if nothing ever changed, there’d be no butterflies.

Written by Steve Goodier

~~~

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.”

William James

~~~

Why men don’t write advice columns:

Walter’s Problem Page

Dear Walter:

I hope you can help me here. The other day I set off for work leaving my husband in the house watching the TV as usual. I hadn’t gone more than a few hundred yards down the road when my engine conked out and the car shuddered to a halt. I walked back home to get my husband’s help.

When I got home I couldn’t believe my eyes. He was parading in front of the wardrobe mirror dressed in my underwear and high-heel shoes, and he was wearing my make up. I am 32, my husband is 34 and we have been married for twelve years. When I confronted him, he tried to make out that he had dressed in my lingerie because he couldn’t find his own underwear. But when I asked him about the make up, he broke down and admitted that he’d been wearing my clothes for six months. I told him to stop or I would leave him.

He was let go from his job six months ago and he says he has been feeling increasingly depressed and worthless. I love him very much, but ever since I gave him the ultimatum he has become increasingly distant.

I don’t feel I can get through to him anymore. Can you please help?

Sincerely, Mrs. Sheila Uisk

Dear Sheila:

A car stalling after being driven a short distance can be caused by a variety of faults with the engine. Start by checking that there is no debris in the fuel line. If it is clear, check the jubilee clips holding the vacuum pipes onto the inlet manifold. If none of these approaches solves the problem, it could be that the fuel pump itself is faulty, causing low delivery pressure to the carburetor float chamber. I hope this helps.

Walter

~~~

Never close your lips to those to whom you have opened your heart.

Charles Dickens

~~~

She said: I was barely sitting down when I heard a voice from the other stall saying, “Hi, how are you?”

I’m not the type to start a conversation in the restroom and I don’t know what got into me, but I answered, somewhat embarrassed, “Doin’ just fine!”

And the other person says, “So, what are you up to?”

What kind of question is that? At that point, I’m thinking this is too bizarre so I say, “Uhhh, I’m like you, just traveling!”

At this point I am just trying to get out as fast as I can when I hear another question. “Can I come over?”

OK, this question is just too weird for me, but I figure I’ll just be polite and end the conversation. I say, “No, I’m a little busy right now!”

Then I hear the person say nervously, “Listen, I’ll have to call you back. There’s an idiot in the other stall who keeps answering all my questions.”

~~~

Our greatest glory consists not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

Confucious

~~~

A couple of young fellers were fishing at their special pond off the beaten track when out of the bushes jumped the Game Warden. Immediately, one of the boys threw his rod down and started running through the woods like a bat out of hell, and hot on his heels came the Game Warden

After about a half mile the fella stopped and stooped over with his hands on his thighs to catch his breath and the Game Warden finally caught up to him… “Lets see yer fishin’ license, Boy!!” the Warden gasped. With that, the fella pulled out his wallet and gave the Game Warden a valid fishing license.

“Well, son,” said the Game Warden, “you must be about as dumb as a box of rocks! You don’t have to run from me if you have a valid license!”

“Yes, sir,” replied the young feller, “But my friend back there, well, he don’t have one…”

~~~

“Our self-respect tracks our choices. Every time we act in harmony with our authentic self and our heart, we earn our respect. It is that simple. Every choice matters.”

Dan Coppersmith

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

Make it a good one

Ray’s Daily

April 27, 2021

Lovely days don’t come to you, you should walk to them.

Rumi

One of the things I have learned has been to appreciate each day. I have found that it is not as important about what happens as it is how I deal with the day’s challenges. In other words how my day goes is up ro me. And you know what, when I make an effort to make each day a good one they almost always turn out that way.

So my friends make today a good one for yourself, I know I will. Need help? Here are you few tips from an abridged article to put you on the right track.

5 Tips on How to Make Every Day a Good Day

By Brenda Raftlova

Exercise first thing in the morning – I know a lot of people dislike exercising, especially early in the morning. But the fact is this is the best thing you can do for your well-being.

Eat well – Right after you finish exercising, it’s important that you fuel your body with healthy food. Research has shown that eating a healthy diet can influence brain chemistry, meaning that food can actually make you happy.

Put on a killer outfit – Have you ever heard of the saying “when you feel good on the outside, you feel good on the inside?” Well, it’s true, so don’t take this point lightly. It’s important to wear clothes that make us feel confident, attractive, and comfortable.

Avoid situations that stress you out – Did you know that only you have the power to decide to be happy or angry at any given moment? All you need is to know yourself, and to know what stresses you out and what relaxes and soothes you.

Do something nice for yourself – Every day, most people think about how they could please someone around them. What they don’t often think about, however, is how they could do something to please themselves for once. It’s extremely important to do something nice for yourself daily. So go eat lunch at that place you’ve wanted to for so long, or go taste that Americano from the new coffee shop next to your work. But remember, it doesn’t always have to mean spending money. Doing something nice for yourself can also mean allowing yourself to watch your favorite TV show, or to read a book – whatever it is that makes you happy.

~~~

A day is a day. It’s just a measurement of time. Whether it’s a good day or a bad day is up to you. It’s all a matter of perception.

Donald L. Hicks

~~~

George, a career Army officer I once met, was jumpmaster for his unit and was taking up a few novices for a drop. The flight was pretty rough, and, after a while, George called off the jump because of high winds. As the plane headed back to base, and the pilot pulled off an unusually smooth landing, two of the neophytes got airsick.

“How come you could take that rough flight, but you couldn’t handle the smooth landing?” asked George.

“Well, Sir,” one trainee explained, “we’ve always jumped out of planes. We’ve never actually landed before.”

~~~

Something popped into my mind and left right away. Maybe it was lonely.

~~~

A little old lady gets onto a crowded bus and stands in front of a seated young girl. Holding her hand to her chest, she says to the girl, “If you knew what I have, you would give me your seat.”

The girl gets up and gives up her the seat to the old lady. It is hot. The girl then takes out a fan and starts fanning herself.

The woman looks up and says, “If you knew what I have, you would give me that fan.”

The girl gives her the fan, too. Fifteen minutes later the woman gets up and says to the bus driver, “Stop, I want to get off here.”

The bus driver tells her he has to drop her at the next corner, not in the middle of the block. With her hand across her chest, she tells the driver, “If you knew what I have, you would let me off the bus right here.”

The bus driver pulls over and opens the door to let her out. As she’s walking out of the bus, he asks, “Madam, what is it you have?”

The old woman looks at him and nonchalantly replies, “Chutzpah.”

~~~

A fool and his money rarely get together to start with.

~~~

She said: I blame my mother for my poor sex life. All she told me was, ‘the man goes on top and the woman underneath’.

For three years my husband and I slept on bunk beds.

~~~

Accomplishing the impossible means only the boss will add it to your regular duties.

~~~

A Psychology professor was giving a lecture on Bi-Polar Disorder.

“Let us establish some parameters,” said the professor. “Now then, Bennett, what is the opposite of joy?”

“Sadness,” replied Bennett.

“And the opposite of depression, Ms. Buston?”

“Elation and joy, sir.”

“And you Morris, how about the opposite of woe?”

“I believe that would be giddy up, sir.”

~~~

My mind not only wanders, it sometimes leaves completely.

~~~

A collector of rare books ran into an acquaintance who told him he had just thrown away an old Bible he found in a dusty, old box. He happened to mention that Guten-somebody-or-another had printed it.

“Not Gutenberg?” gasped the collector.

“Yes, that was it!”

“You idiot! You’ve thrown away one of the first books ever printed. A copy recently sold at an auction for half a million dollars!”

“Oh, I don’t think this book would have been worth anything close to that much,” replied the man. “It was scribbled all over in the margins by some clown named Martin Luther.”

~~~

True religion is the life we lead, not the creed we profess.

Louis Nizer

~~~

“That was nice of you to set up a blind date for your ex-boyfriend.”

“I know, but I don’t hold any grudges.”

“I’m surprised he trusted you enough to agree to go out with her.”

“Well, I had to swear to him she’s Jennifer Lopez’s double.”

“Wow! Is that true?”

“I wouldn’t lie. She’s twice her weight and twice her age!”

~~~

Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.

Groucho Marx

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

You Are Special

Ray’s Daily

April 26, 2021

“Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.”

Malcolm S. Forbes

I think what has surprised me most over the years has been how many people I have met who are better than they think they are. Often I would sit with folks for hours as they searched for a better future helping them see themselves in a new light. In most cases they did not value their everyday attributes, rather chosing to feel they were not attractive enough, were not smart enough, had not won enough or somne such. Yet in every cas it was their untapped wisdom and goodness that made them special, they just had never convinced themselves of their worthyness.

Make Life More Positive By Practicing Self-Compassion

By Adrian Sullivan,

In a world where a lot of things are naturally against you, you have to make sure you aren’t against yourself. Growing to be your biggest cheerleader and motivator is what self-compassion is all about. Self-compassion can also help boost your happiness by helping you become mindful of your internal dialogue.

Here are tips on how you can start practicing self-compassion.

Remember Not Everything Happens Overnight – Having patience with yourself to see your endeavors through is a way to practice self-compassion. We have to make ourselves comfortable with the process of being better.

Accept That It’s Okay To Make Mistakes – You are human and will make mistakes—that’s okay. Take accountability for mistakes you make and create better habits. Having self-compassion means that you care enough to not want to make the same mistakes. Learning from the past and responding well to adversity is one of the best ways we can develop self-compassion.

Embrace Mindfulness and Positive Intention – Being as intentional as possible is another great way to show self-compassion. When we are not measured, we are not being a friend to ourselves. Take time to be as thorough as possible to the situations you encounter.

Practicing Self-Compassion Is a Marathon, Not a Sprint – Don’t emphasize the things that are going wrong. Self-compassion can help you emphasize things that are going right or neutral. I invite you to align yourself with the virtues of your self-compassion, which is a true form of self-care and self-love. Let’s empower ourselves by treating ourselves how we deserve to be treated. Do you want to pat yourself on the back or bring yourself down?

If we water and nurture ourselves, we will have taken a huge step in showing self-compassion. Let’s show up for ourselves and be in our own corners every day.

~~~

“Self-care is never a selfish act–it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer to others.”

Parker Palmer

~~~

(Notes pinned to the pillow of a mother who has the flu by a well meaning husband who has inherited the house and kids.)

Monday A.M. Dearest: Sleep late. Everything under control. Lunches packed. Kids off to school. Menu for dinner planned. Your lunch is on a tray in refrigerator: fruit cup, finger-sandwiches. Thermos of hot tea by bedside. See you around six.

Tuesday A.M. Honey: Sorry about the egg rack in the refrigerator. Hope you got back to sleep. Did the kids tell you about the Coke I put in the Thermoses? The school might call you on this. Dinner may be a little late. I’m doing your door-to-door canvas for liver research. Your lunch is in refrigerator. Hope you like leftover chili.

Wednesday A.M. Dear Doris: Why in the name of all that is sane would you put soap powder in the flour canister! If you have time, could you please come up with a likely spot for Chris’s missing shoes? We’ve checked the clothes hamper, garage, back seat of the car and wood box. Did you know the school has a ruling on bedroom slippers? There’s some cold pizza for you on a napkin in the oven drawer. Will be late tonight. Driving eight Girl Scouts to tour meatpacking house.

Thursday A.M. Doris: Don’t panic over water in hallway. It crested last night at 9 P.M. Will finish laundry tonight. Please pencil in answers to following:

1. How do you turn on the garbage disposal?

2. How do you turn off the milkman?

3. Why would that rotten kid leave his shoes in his boots?

4. How do you remove a Confederate flag inked on the palm of a small boy’s hand?

5. What do you do with leftovers when they begin to snap at you when you open the door? I don’t know what you’re having for lunch! Surprise me!

Friday A.M. Hey: Don’t drink from pitcher by the sink. Am trying to restore pink dress shirt to original white. Take heart. Tonight, the ironing will be folded, the house cleaned and the dinner on time. I called your mother. have a great day.

~~~

A man’s best friend is his dogma.

~~~

THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE

2000 BC: Here, eat this root

1000 AD: That root is heathen. Say this prayer.

1850 AD: That prayer is pure superstition. Here, drink this potion.

1940 AD: That potion is snake oil. Here, swallow this pill.

1985 AD: That pill is ineffective. Here, take this antibiotic

2000 AD: That antibiotic doesn’t work any more. Here, eat this root.

~~~~

Nothing is fool-proof to a talented fool.

~~~

She said, as the bus pulled away, I realized I had left my purse under the seat. Later I called the company and was relieved that the driver had found my bag. When I went to pick it up, several off-duty bus drivers surrounded me. One man handed me my pocketbook, two typewritten pages and a box containing the contents of my purse. “We’re required to inventory lost wallets and purses,” he explained.

“I think you’ll find everything there.” As I started to put my belongings back into the pocketbook, the man continued, “I hope you don’t mind if we watch. Even though we all tried, none of us could fit everything into your purse. And we’d like to see just how you do it.”

~~~

Don’t worry about temptation — as you grow older, it starts avoiding you.

~~~

A local priest and pastor stood by the side of the road holding up a sign that said, “The End is Near! Turn yourself around now before it’s too late!” They planned to hold up the sign to each passing car.

“Leave us alone you religious nuts!” yelled the first driver as he sped by.

From around the curve they heard a big splash.

“Do you think,” said one clergy to the other, “we should just put up a sign that says ‘bridge out’ instead?”

~~~

“If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person.”

Fred Rogers

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

This too will pass

Ray’s Daily

April 23, 2021

“Calmness is the cradle of power.”

Josiah Gilbert Holland

The other day, a late April day, we had freezing temperatures and a record breaking spring snow. The snow resulted in an early morning power outage that lasted until midday. My cpap (breathing machine) went out about 1 AM waking me up. I spent the next hours, mostly in the dark as my apartment got colder and colder. Once power was restored I ended my day by showing u at a meeting 10 minutes late because I misremembered the start time. It was truly a bad day.

In the past a day like that would have triggered stress but now I knew that the day would pass and the next day would be fine. I often remind myself that my problems won’t linger and they seldom do. Here is something I saved about twenty years ago on how we can handle stress.

Stress

Can stress cause physical problems?

Stress often causes physical problems. The most common include:

Headaches
Stomachaches
Body aches and pains
Flare-up of allergies
Problems falling asleep or staying asleep
Excessive hunger or lack of appetite

As your level of stress is reduced, you will find your physical problems will disappear.

What can I do?

Talk it out! Bottling up feelings and thoughts restricts your ability to work through what happened and cope with the pain and insecurity.
Listen to others.
Perform random acts of kindness. Reassure yourself there is tenderness and thoughtfulness in the world. Volunteer your services to someone in need.
Spend time with your family.
Return to your usual routine.
Sit under a tree, look at a brook, lake, river or ocean trip.
Remind yourself of other times you have felt strong emotions and how they resolved themselves. They will always be part of you and will guide who you become and what you do, but they do not rule your life.
Ask for help when you need it. Talk about your feelings with someone you trust, such as your parents or another relative, a school counselor or a spiritual leader. If your feelings continue to remain as strong or last longer than four to six weeks, you may want to seek professional help to help you sort through your feelings.
Do something that could help others – for example, take a first aid or CPR class.

~~~

. “The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.”

William James

~~~

How do you get a redhead to argue with you? A: Say something
How do you get a redhead’s mood to change? A: Wait 10 seconds
If you love a Redhead, set her free…..if she follows you everywhere you go, if she pitches a tent in your front lawn, and if she puts your new girlfriend in the hospital, she’s yours.
How do you know a guy at the beach has a redhead for a girlfriend? A: She has scratched “stay off MY TURF!” on his back with her nails.
What do you call a Redhead with an attitude? A: Normal
How do you know when your redhead has forgiven you? A: She stops washing your clothes in the toilet bowl
Only two things are necessary to keep a redhead happy. One is to let her think she is having her own way, and the other is to let her have it.

One of my favorite friends is a red headed professor and I know she is not like that (Don’t tell anyone but if I said she was I would be afraid of the consequences).

~~~

Some people are discovered, others are found out.

~~~

A little boy is told by his mother that he has been very bad this year. Thus, he would probably not get anything for Christmas.

“What? Nothing for Christmas?” cried the little boy.

“Well,” said mom, “maybe if you write a letter to baby Jesus and tell him how sorry you are, Santa will bring you some presents.”

The little boy returned to his room and began his letter. With each attempt at writing he would first apologize and then promise to be good for a certain amount of time. Each letter he crumpled up started again, making the “be good” time shorter with each letter.

Finally in frustration, he gave up and then was struck by a bolt of inspiration! Running to the living room he carefully removed the little Mother Mary figure from the family’s manger scene and just as carefully wrapped it in a sock, placing it in his top drawer. Returning to his desk, he took out a clean piece of paper and began to write:

“Dear Baby Jesus, if you ever want to see your Mother again…”

~~~

You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.

Dale Carnegie

~~~

Wanting to lose weight, a woman placed a picture of a shapely, pinup model INSIDE her refrigerator to remind her of her goal. It worked like a charm as the woman discovered that she had lost ten pounds in the first month of using this method.

The downside to this was that her husband spent so much time going into the fridge to look at the picture that he ended up gaining fifteen pounds!

~~~

You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you a look that says, “My God, you’re right! I never would’ve thought of that!”

Dave Barry

~~~

During the Second World War, when many young men were being trained for combat, they were stationed in the south, and it was the custom for some of the local residents to offer some Southern Hospitality to our fighting men.

One day, in a camp that will remain nameless, the phone rang; a woman at a local woman’s school offered to entertain a dozen soldiers at a party being held the upcoming weekend, and would the captain send some of her best behaved men over? The captain agreed, but before he could finalize the agreements, the woman made a request: “Please, suh, don’t send any Jewish boys.”

The captain agreed … no Jews.

The day of the party, the soldiers were dropped off at the school, and knocked on the door. The hostess opened the door … to the sight of a dozen Black soldiers, all in dress uniforms.

“Why, th-there m-must be some kind of m-mistake,” she stammered.

“No, ma’am,” said one of the soldiers, “Captain Rabinowitz, he doesn’t make mistakes.”

~~~

“Everyone is born a genius, but the process of living de-geniuses them.”

Richard Buckminster Fuller

~~~

Joe: Why don’t you play golf with Bob any more?

Mike: Would you play with someone who curses after each shot, cheats in the bunkers and enters false scores on his card?

Joe: No!

Mike: Neither will Bob.

~~~

“I read somewhere that 77 per cent of all the mentally ill live in poverty. Actually, I’m more intrigued by the 23 per cent who are apparently doing quite well for themselves.”

Emo Philips

I think I know who some of them are.

Ray

~~~

“We can easily manage if we will only take, each day, the burden appointed to it. But the load will be too heavy for us if we carry yesterday’s burden over again today, and then add the burden of the morrow before we are required to bear it.”

John Newton

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

Compassion Rewards

Ray’s Daily

April 22, 2021

“There is a nobility in compassion, a beauty in empathy, a grace in forgiveness.”

John Connolly

I think our world would be a batter place if we all were mo0re compassionate. There are so many little things we can do for those who will benefit from a small act of kindness from someone like you and me. I find that a simple gesture of goodwill to another is heart warming. I know I do not want to spend the rest of my days so self centered that I have little time for kindness to others.

I edited the following article but retained the things we can do for others and our selves.

10 WAYS TO SHOW COMPASSION

KATIE KRAWCZYK

1. CHALLENGE YOURSELF TO SMILE MORE. – Changing your look from unemotive to something more like this smile is a small action can that can have a huge impact on someone else.

2. OPEN THE DOOR FOR SOMEONE. – Take a few seconds to open the door for someone else and better yet, remember to smile as they walk by you.

3. MOTIVATE OTHERS. – Motivation is often an idea that many people struggle with. With the help from others, encouraging words and positivity can help to uplift someone’s spirit.

4. PRACTICE ACTS OF KINDNESS. — Attempt to practice at least two different acts of kindness a day. This could include donating clothes to the poor, time to help serve meals, or maybe just taking a minute to hold the door open for someone else. The possibilities are endless!

5. ALLOCATE TIME TO BOND WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY. – Set aside time to forget about everything you need to do and just spend a few hours catching up with family and friends. It will be time well spent and you will have plenty of time to catch up on your to-do list later.

6. SAY ENCOURAGING WORDS. – Instead of dwelling on everything people do wrong, use your voice to tell them what they are doing right and encourage them to continue working towards their goals.

7. SHARE A HUG OR A HANDSHAKE. – The power of touch is unique. Sharing a hug or a hand shake can be a powerful but simple way to show compassion.

8. INCORPORATE THE PHRASE “THANK YOU” INTO YOUR DAILY ROUTINE. – Manners matter! Incorporate the phrase “thank you” into more of your routine activities. Gratitude is something that should never be left unspoken.

9. OFFER TO HELP SOMEONE WITH THEIR TO-DO LIST. – Volunteer to help someone out with his or her chore list. Checking any task off that list will feel like a great accomplishment.

10. NURTURE RELATIONSHIPS BY TAKING TIME TO LISTEN TO OTHERS. – Sometimes, the easiest way to build a relationship can be done simply by listening. Put forth an effort to just listen to what others have to say around you. It is easy to be the only person talking in a situation, it is much more difficult to listen to the contributions of others.

~~~

“May your daily choices be a reflection of your deepest values.”

Coleen Patrick-Goudreau

~~~

An engineer, a psychologist, and a theologian were hunting in the wilderness of northern Canada. Suddenly, the temperature dropped and a furious snowstorm was upon them. They came across an isolated cabin, far removed from any town. The hunters had heard that the locals in the area were quite hospitable, so they knocked on the door to ask permission to rest. No one answered their knocks, but they discovered the cabin was unlocked and they entered. It was a simple place … 2 rooms with a minimum of furniture and household equipment. Nothing was unusual about the cabin except the stove. It was large, pot-bellied, and made of cast-iron. What was strange about it was its location … it was suspended in midair by wires attached to the ceiling beams.

“Fascinating,” said the psychologist. “It is obvious that this lonely trapper, isolated from humanity, has elevated this stove so that he can curl up under it and vicariously experience a return to the womb.”

“Nonsense!” replied the engineer. “The man is practicing the laws of thermodynamics. By elevating his stove, he has discovered a way to distribute heat more evenly throughout the cabin.”

“With all due respect,” interrupted the theologian, “I’m sure that hanging his stove from the ceiling has religious meaning. Fire LIFTED UP has been a religious symbol for centuries.” The three debated the point for several hours without resolving the issue.

When the trapper finally returned, they immediately asked him why he had hung his heavy pot-bellied stove from the ceiling. His answer was succinct. “Had plenty of wire, not much stove pipe.”

~~~

SHE SAID: Darling, I want to dance like this forever.

HE SAID: Don’t you ever want to improve?

~~~

Heavily laden with groceries, my aunt asked a young clerk at the grocery store to accompany her to her car. Arriving there, she unlocked and opened the doors and, without thinking, sat down in the back seat to check off her list of errands. A moment later, the perplexed clerk walked around the car to my aunt.

“Lady,” he said firmly, “I don’t mind helping you load your groceries, but I really gotta draw the line at driving you home.”

~~~

A little inaccuracy sometimes saves tons of explanation.

~~~

A little girl runs out to the backyard where her father is working, and asks him, “Daddy, what’s sex?”

Her father sits her down, and tells her all about the birds and the bees. He tells her about conception, sperms and eggs. He goes on to tell her about puberty, menstruation and he thinks, what the hell, and goes on to tell her the works.

He covers a wide and varied assortment of sub-topics and by the time he’s finished, his daughter is somewhat awestruck with this sudden influx of bizarre new knowledge.

Her father finally asks, “So what did you want to know about sex for?”

“Oh, mommy said to tell you lunch would be ready in a couple of secs…”

~~~

“Let our hearts be stretched out in compassion toward others, for everyone is walking his or her own difficult path.”

Dieter F. Uchtdorf

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

Judge me for what I do, not what you think I do.

Ray’s Daily

April 21, 2021

“If life isn’t about human beings and living in harmony, then I don’t know what it’s about.”

Orlando Bloom

Ray’s Daily first published on April 21, 2006

I spent time this morning with a new and special friend. She has achieved much in her short life. She has a doctorate in Business, and currently serves as program director in a degree granting institution. She is a respected small business consultant. All this after spending many years in Africa working with international organizations getting food to people caught in conflicts, people who would have starved to death if not for her and her colleagues. She and her engineer husband are raising a couple of great kids. She is kind, thoughtful and for a number of years has donated much of her time in service to others in need here in Central Indiana. She is smart, caring, and selfless and I am glad we have become friends.

Oh yes, I almost forgot, she is a Muslim. I am sure that many who see her in her traditional headdress blame her for the evil of others instead of embracing her for all she does. I know none of our readers harbor animosity toward others because of their origin, race, creed, or gender, after all seeing individuals as they are and not as stereotypes is the foundation upon which we can join with one another in harmony.

~~~

My daily wish is that we may see good in those who pass our way;

Find in each a worthy trait that we shall gladly cultivate;

See in each one passing by the better things that beautify

A softly spoken word of cheer, a kindly face, a smile sincere.

I pray each day that we may view the things that warm one’s heart anew;

The kindly deed that can’t be bought that only from good are wrought,

A burden lightened here and there, a brother lifted from despair,

The aged ones freed from distress; the lame, the sick, brought happiness.

Grant that before each sun has set we’ll witness deeds we can’t forget;

A soothing hand to one in pain, a sacrifice for love – not gain;

A word to ease the troubled mind of one whom fate has dealt unkind.

So, friend, my wish is that we may see good in all who pass our way.

Phil Perkins

~~~

You don’t get harmony when everybody sings the same note.

Doug Floyd

~~~

A woman goes to the local psychic in hopes of contacting her dearly departed grandmother. The psychic’s eyelids begin fluttering, her voice begins warbling, her hands float up above the table, and she begins moaning. Eventually, a coherent voice emanates, saying, “Granddaughter?

Are you there?”

The customer, wide-eyed and on the edge of her seat, responds, “Grandmother? Is that you?”

“Yes granddaughter, it’s me.”

“It’s really, really you, grandmother?”, the woman repeats.

“Yes, it’s really me, granddaughter.”

The woman looks puzzled, “You’re sure it’s you, grandmother?”

“Yes, granddaughter, I’m sure it’s me.”

The woman pauses a moment, “Grandmother, I have just one question for you.”

“Anything, my child.”

“Grandmother, when did you learn to speak English?”

~~~

To be what we are, and to become what we are capable of becoming, is the only end in life.

Baruch Spinoza

~~~

He said: I moved from Chicago to Houston and was nervous about the summers in this new city. My queries got this reply from a native Houstonian. “Sir, we have four seasons here: almost summer, summer, still summer, and Christmas.”

~~~

My dad told me that life is like a big game of solitaire. Until you get married. Then it’s like a big game of solitaire with a partner telling you you’re playing it wrong.

~~~

In a stationery store, I quickly picked out a card for my wife for our anniversary.

The clerk was surprised by how little time it took me, and she began relating a story about another customer who spent a half-hour searching for the right anniversary greeting.

Noticing the man lingering over one card after another, the clerk went to see if she could help. “Is there a problem?” she asked.

“Yes, there is,” he replied ruefully. “I can’t find one my wife will believe.”

~~~

“I’m not a fatalist. But even if I were, what could I do about it?”

Emo Philips

~~~

She said: According to Leah, my mother, she and Dad decided to start a family soon after he became an office manager.

When months went by without success, they consulted a noted physician, who chose to examine Mom right then and there.

“Please disrobe,” the doctor told her.

“With him in the room??” she yelled, pointing to my father.

Turning to Dad, the doctor said, “Aaron, I think I found the problem.”

~~~

“You may think your boss is stupid, but remember if he was smart you probably wouldn’t have a job”

John Gotti

~~~

A Sunday school teacher asked her second graders if anyone knew another name for God. She was picturing answers like ‘Lord’ or ‘Almighty’.

After a long moment of silence a little boy raised his hand and said, “Howard.”

“Howard?” replied the confused teacher.

“You know,” continued the boy, “Howard be thy name.”

~~~

“Pain is temporary. Pride is forever.”

~~~

He was extremely nervous about his first funeral service as a Navy chaplain, but the undertaker assured him that he would prompt him. All went well until, at the close, the undertaker whispered to him to instruct the family to come up and view the body.

“Will the family now come forward and pass around the bier,” he said. He cringed inwardly when he heard his own words.

Later, as he was leaving, he overheard two of the cemetery workers talking. “I didn’t get any beer,” one said. “Did you?” “You heard the chaplain,” the other replied. “It was just for the family.”

~~~

“To keep the lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.”

Mother Teresa

~~~

Two smart fellows were in an English pub. They called the publican over and asked him to settle an argument.

‘Are there two pints in a quart or four?”, asked one.

“There be two pints in a quart, confirmed the publican.

They moved back along the bar and soon the barmaid asked for their order.

“Two pints please, miss, and they are on the house.”

The barmaid doubted that her boss would be so generous so one of the fellows called out to the publican at the other end of the bar, “You did say two pints, didn’t you?”

“That’s right, he called back, two pints.”

~~~

I shall allow no man to belittle my soul by making me hate him.

Booker T. Washington

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

Yes You Can

Ray’s Daily

April 20, 2021

“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”

Zig Ziglar

Some of us are satisfied just doing what we have always done. I think those have chosen to just go with the flow miss opportunity after opertunity to soar. We do not have to be the best but we can be our best.

Those who decide to break the chains of a boring life find pleasure others miss. So my friends if you unleash your talents I think you will find a satisfying future.

The brilliant you, released!

You’re a remarkable person. But, you knew that already. Still, buried among apathy, unbelief and inhibition, is the brilliant “you” waiting to be released. You already knew that, too.

A few disappointments here, several temporary defeats there, and POOF! just like that, you settled for being a risk-conscious, opportunity: self-denied, generality. Nobody has ever made any progress by standing still. You’re not an exception; and you’re not alone. In fact, you have plenty of company. But, why settle for a life that looks like just about everyone else’s? Do something magnificent with your God-given gifts and boldly distinguish yourself from the masses. Decide-on this day-to connect with your brilliance, within.

Paramount in your quest for brilliance is the personal development and daily utilization of your talents and abilities. As a matter of fact, it’s required. It’s not necessary to be perfect. Striving for excellence in everything you do is enough to release your brilliance.

Trust me. You were not born to be “mild.” So cut it out! There’s an entire universe out there starving for your gifts. How long will you continue to wait to take those last four classes needed for your degree? What career have you just been “wishing it were so” about? If all you can see is yourself remaining 16 units short of your degree, how can you possibly prepare for an exciting future? If you can’t believe for a meaningful vocation now, will you have the passion to believe for one later?

Challenge yourself. Commit to do just two things this hour that will untap your brilliance. Revamp your resume; make a phone call to your advisor. Even a modest amount of brilliance unreleased, would relay the message to your brain: “Wow, she’s serious!”

Ignite your passion. Inhale, then excel. Stand and deliver! See, then be!

Your life matters. Visualize your brilliance totally released. Then boldly, step into the vision.

Written by Fran Briggs

~~~

If you do things well, do them better. Be daring, be first, be different, be just.

Anita Roddick

~~~

A TEENAGER IS…

– A person who can’t remember to walk the dog but never forgets a phone number.

– A weight watcher who goes on a diet by giving up candy bars before breakfast.

– A youngster who receives her allowance on Monday, spends it on Tuesday, and borrows it from her best friend on Wednesday.

– Someone who can hear his favorite singer 3 blocks away but not his mother calling from the next room.

– A whiz who can operate the latest computer without a lesson but can’t make a bed.

– A student who spends 12 minutes studying history and 12 hours studying for her driver’s license.

– A connoisseur of 2 kinds of fine music–loud and very loud.

– An enthusiast who has the energy to bike for miles but is usually too tired to dry the dishes.

– A young woman who loves the cat and tolerates the brother.

– A romantic who never falls in love more than once a week.

– A budding beauty who never smiles until her braces come off.

– A boy who can sleep till noon on any Saturday he suspects the lawn needs mowing.

– An original thinker who is positive that her mother was never a teenager.

~~~

Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely.

~~~

There was a barber that thought that he should share his faith with his customers more than he had been doing lately.

So the next morning when the sun came up and the barber got up out of bed he said, “Today I am going to witness to the first man that walks through my door.”

Soon after he opened his shop the first man came in and said, “I want a shave!”

The barber said, “Sure, just sit in the seat and I’ll be with you in a moment.”

The barber went in the back and prayed a quick desperate prayer saying, “God, the first customer came in and I’m going to witness to him. So please give me the wisdom to know just the right thing to say to him. Amen.”

Then quickly the barber came out with his razor knife in one hand and a Bible in the other while saying, “Good morning sir. I have a question for you……….Are you ready to die?”

~~~

You’re getting old when you wake up with that morning-after feeling, and you didn’t do anything the night before.

~~~

Rita wanted her husband to stop smoking so she sent him to the doctor.

The doctor gave him a box of these patches and said to use one a day. He said ok, and took them home.

Rita asked him what the doctor said and he showed her the patches and told her that the doctor said to use one a patch day. Rita commenced to sew one patch on each shirt he had.

The both of them are still trying to figure out how that’s going to help him quit smoking.

~~~

To make mistakes is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity.

~~~

Customer to Accountant: I’ve been working on my budget like you told me to. Line one is my fixed expenses. Line two is my fixed income. And… the difference is the fix I’m in.

~~~

My mother wanted me to be a priest. Can you imagine giving up your sex life and then once a week people come in to tell you the details and highlights of theirs?

~~~

“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”

Will Rogers

~~~

Investment Definitions

STOCK: A magical piece of paper that is worth $33.75 until the moment you buy it. It will then be worth $8.50.

BOND: What you had with your spouse until you pawned his/her golf clubs to invest in Amazon.com.

BROKER: The person you trust to help you make major financial decisions. Please note the first five letters of this word spell “Broke”.

BEAR: What your trade account and wallet will be when you take a flyer on that hot stock tip your secretary gave you.

BULL: What your broker uses to explain why your mutual funds tanked during the last quarter.

MARGIN: Where you scribble the latest quotes when you’re supposed to be listening to your manager’s presentation.

SHORT POSITION: A type of trade where, in theory, a person sells stocks he doesn’t actually own. Since this also only ever works in theory, a short position is what a person usually ends up being in (i.e. “The rent, sir?” “Hahaha, well, I’m a little short this month.”).

COMMISSION: The only reliable way to make money on the stock market, which is why your broker charges you one.

YAK: What you do into a pail when you discover your stocks have plunged and your broker is making a margin call.

~~~

Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.

John Wooden

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

Category:

Be a good person

Ray’s Daily

April 19, 2021

http://rays-daily.net

“I think if you’re a good person and spread happiness, good things will come to you.”

Jessie James Decker

I am really enjoying the gradual reopening of society.I get to renew old friendships and hopefully make new friends. I have found that I feel better and do better when I do things for the right reasons. I think the greatest gift we can give ourselves is doing our best, not only for ourseves but also for others.

The following is an abridged article that ioffers us tips on how we can be the person we want to be.

15 Ways to Become a Better Person

BY JOHN RAMPTON

If you want to continue to grow as a person, here are 15 ways to make the most of yourself.

1. Compliment Yourself – Every morning before you go on with your daily routine, take a couple of minutes to give yourself a compliment. Whether you compliment your outfit, haircut, or how you recently completed a task using your unique skill sets, giving yourself a little emotional boost will make you happy.

2. Don’t Make Excuses – Blaming your spouse, boss, or clients is fruitless and won’t get you very far. Instead of pointing fingers and making excuses about why you aren’t happy or successful in your personal or professional life, own your mistakes and learn from them.

3. Let Go of Anger – Letting go of anger is easier said than done. While anger is a perfectly normal emotion, you can’t let it fester.

4. Practice Forgiveness – Joyce Marter, LCPC, suggests you forgive and let go of resentment. She notes, “If for no other reason than for yourself, forgive to untether yourself from the negative experiences of the past.'”

5. Be Honest and Direct – Learn to articulate your thoughts, feelings, and ideas in an open and honest manner.

6. Be Helpful – Being helpful is one of the easiest and most effective ways to practice becoming a better person. I find that the more I help others, the better I feel about myself and everyone around me.

7. Listen to Others – As Jeet Banerjee notes on Lifehack, “listening to people and giving everyone a voice is one of the greatest things you can do.” Being a good listener can change your life in a positive manner.”

8. Act Locally – You may not be able to save the world, but you very well could make a difference in your neck of the woods. Get to know and care about your community.

9. Always Be Polite – How much effort does it take to say, “Thank you,” or to hold the elevator door open for someone? Not much at all. However, these acts of kindness can make someone’s day.

10. Be Yourself – Tiffany Mason has five excellent reasons on Lifehack why you should be yourself. These include being able to align yourself with your values and beliefs, establish your identity, build courage, create boundaries, and find focus and direction.

11. Be Open to Change – This allows you to grow because you experience something new. It helps you be high functioning and self-confident if you are not wary of change.

12. Be Respectful – Be respectful of others’ time, thoughts, ideas, lifestyles, feelings, work, and everything else. You don’t have to agree with any of it, but people have a right to their opinions and yours is not necessarily correct.

13. Don’t Show Up Empty-handed – Going to a party this weekend at your friend’s apartment? Make sure you don’t arrive empty-handed.

14. Educate Yourself – Remember, we’re all interconnected, and being aware of different cultures, different people, and what their lives are like can make you a more well-rounded individual. This will also help you understand points of view different from your own.

15. Surprise People – How good does it feel to make someone smile? It feels pretty good, right? Surprise your loved ones or co-workers now and then, with a gift, a night out on the town, or by offering help when you know they could use it.

~~~

“Never regret being a good person, to the wrong people. Your behavior says everything about you, and their behavior says enough about them.”

Marc & Angel Chernoff

~~~

Bernie and Esther were not the most religious Jews and in fact they really only went to Temple once a year. As they were leaving the Temple, the Rabbi said, “Bernie, it sure would be nice to see you and Esther here more than once a year!”

“I know,” replied Bernie, “but at least we keep the Ten Commandments.”

“That’s great,” the Rabbi said. “I’m glad to hear that you keep the Commandments.”

“Yep,” Bernie said proudly, “Esther keeps six of them and I keep the other four.”

~~~

“Carve your name on hearts and not marble.”

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

~~~

I was driving the other day and came up on a VW Beetle with a license plate reading ‘BOBS MG’. I was able to pull up beside the car at the next light, so I said to the driver, “Hey, that’s not an MG.”

The driver looked over at me and said, “I’m not Bob.”

~~~

The Washington POST asked its readers to supply the beginning of a sentence that you don’t want to hear the end of:

“It looks like when they built your basement, they did a kind of funny thing…”

“Sir, uh, me and your daughter…”

“In what experts are emphasizing is merely a long-overdue market correction…”

“First, I’d like to thank the academy…”

~~~

Forty is the old age of youth; fifty is the youth of old age.

~~~

Leaving a plush night club one evening, a miserly gentleman walked past the doorman without tipping him.

Never the less, the doorman helped the man into a taxi with a flourish and said pleasantly, “By-the-way, in case you happen to lose your wallet on the way home, Sir, just remember that you didn’t pull it out here.”

~~~

“In elementary school, in case of fire you have to line up quietly in a single file line from the smallest to tallest. What is the logic? Do tall people burn slower?”

Warren Hutcherson

~~~

A highway patrolman pulled alongside a speeding car on the freeway. Glancing at the car, he was astounded to see that the blonde behind the wheel was knitting! Realizing that she was oblivious to his flashing lights and siren, the trooper cranked down his window, turned on his bullhorn and yelled, “PULL OVER!” “NO!” the blonde yelled back, “SCARF!”

~~~

Jane had a system for labeling homemade freezer meals. She would carefully note in large clear letters, “Meatloaf” or “Pot Roast” or “Steak and Vegetables” or “Chicken and Dumplings” or “Beef Pot Pie.”

Everyday when she asked her husband what he wanted for dinner, he never asked for any of those meals. She decided to stock the freezer with his various requests. What he really likes.

In Jane’s freezer you’ll see a whole new set of labels. You’ll find dinners with neat little tags that say: “Whatever,” “Anything,” “I Don’t Know,” “I Don’t Care,” “Something Good,” or “Food.”

No more frustration for Jane because no matter what her husband replies when she asks him what he wants for dinner, it’s there waiting.

~~~

Marriages are made in heaven. But then again, so are thunder and lightning!

~~~

A young clergyman, fresh out of seminary, thought it would help him better understand the fears and temptations his future congregations faced if he first took a job as a policeman for several months. He passed the physical examination; then came the oral exam to test his ability to act quickly and wisely in an emergency. Among other questions he was asked, what would you do to disperse a frenzied crowd?

He thought for a moment and then said, I would take up a collection.

~~~

“Give me a sentence about a public servant,” said a teacher.

The small boy wrote: “The fireman came down the ladder pregnant.” The teacher took the lad aside to correct him. “Don’t you know what pregnant means?” she asked.

“Sure,” said the young boy confidently. “It means carrying a child.”

~~~

“To this day, just always treat people the way you want to be treated. Whether it’s family or friends or co-workers, I think it’s the most important thing. Whether you have success or don’t have it, whether you’re a good person is all that matters.”

Brenda Song

~~~

Indianapolis, Indiana

Management is not responsible for duplicates from previous dailies. The editor is somewhat senile.

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