“There are three basic body styles to consider. The compact or ultra compact digital camera fits inside your shirt pocket. There is a “wow” factor to these cameras, and they are convenient, but you will be paying a premium for the size or lack thereof. The standard camera is bigger, provides better quality for the money, and is usually able to provide all the features that a typical “point-and-shoot” photographer needs. The digital SLR camera provides the best quality shots of the three. The lenses can be changed, and the camera provides a great deal of flexibility. The cost is higher than either the compact or standard digital cameras.”

It seems that everyone is sporting the tiny cameras. Now I’m not sure which way to go… How about you. If you were to give me advice on a new camera, which way would you point me??

More shopping help…

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Life isn’t a matter of milestones but of moments.
Rose Fitgerald Kennedy

I have to keep reminding myself of that. The days slip by soooo quickly these days and if someone asked me what happened a week ago, I couldn’t tell them. I think the answer might be a diary where I could record special little moments that occur every day. And they do occur, I am so busy with a hundred other things on my mind, that they don’t even make it to my long term memory.

Now for a laugh, I should start a cooking diary. I could record all the little mistakes that I make and fix before anyone notices. Which reminds me of my mom when I was growing up. She was determined to make pie crusts from scratch and more often than not, her attempts would be tossed into the garbage before Dad got home.

But she can make kick ass pies now!

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“No man in the world has more courage than the man who can stop after eating one peanut.”
Channing Pollock

Those of us in the Baby Boomer generation can remember the Cowardly Lion daring us to eat only one potato chip. So courage changes. One generation it is one thing, the next it is another.

“In the midst of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.”
Albert Camus (Consider how thinking outside of the box, is an act of courage in, and of, itself.)

“Conscience is the root of all true courage; if a man would be brave let him obey his conscience.”
James Freeman Clarke

“We can do no great things, only small things with great love.”
Mother Teresa (It takes REAL courage to go on when you know, no one may notice.)

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I love finding good Web sites. Ones that are caring, peaceful, and give to their readers. I sure found one today and I want to share it with you. Actually, it is more than a Web site. It is a community of people who are working together to change the world. It is interfaith, so no one need feel they are not welcome. It has, from what I can see, some pretty special people involved!

From Brian Johnson, Founder & Philosopher:

“Our Mission. That’s easy. We’re gonna change the world. Our math goes like this: you be the change + you follow your bliss + you give your greatest strengths to the world moment to moment to moment + we do everything in our power to help you succeed + you inspire and empower everyone you know to do the same + we team up with millions like us = we just affected billions = we (together) changed the world.”

Zaadz is looking for inspired souls that want to change the world. People who really mean it! They have something special here. If you are looking for a way to “follow your bliss,” take a look. You may find your Internet home.

“Unless the secret of inward peace is also the secret of escape from fear, it does not meet a need I believe is almost the central need of mankind. If it be asked, “Why are so many people in the modern world anxious, worried, nervous, irritable, depressed, bad sleepers, and not quite well?” the answer in most cases is that they are frightened. . . . What, then, is the way to escape from the power of this ever-present enemy? I know none except learning that we are in the keeping of a God who will never desert us. . . . There is no fear where love is, and the love of God is always present. . . . Till we have faced that fact, we are not ready to understand what God does actually for those who trust in Him. But when we have learnt that truth, we may go on to say, “Come what may, we know that He will be with us and therefore need not fear.” We may have to suffer in the body, but His sustaining grace will never leave us. We may lose our dear ones and so be wounded in our very hearts, but His grace will give us strength to carry even that cross. We may have to face poverty; but if so, He will do for us what He has done for thousands and teach us how to be poor and yet content. We may have to face hunger of the heart, and no one who knows what that means will ever think lightly of it; but even through that fiery trial, His love will sustain those who turn to Him.”
A.H. Gray

“A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is to be ultimately at peace with himself. What one can be, one must be.”
Abraham Maslow

“There is but one freedom, to put oneself right with death. After that everything is possible. I cannot force you to believe in God. Believing in God amounts to coming to terms with death. When you have accepted death, the problem of God will be solved – and not the reverse.”
Albert Camus

Zaadz – Inviting You To Change The World

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I thought I might be giving up my computer for Lent this year!  First it was those bookmarks, then it was some bad sectors on the hard drive – which of course, explains the bookmarks.  Anyway, it is fixed and I am back with hopefully a well-behaved computer! 

But it was very frustrating.  You know that feeling that computers can give you – that “I’m about ready to chuck this out the window,” feeling?  I’ve always thought that was why they named it ”Windows.” 

And I now am asking myself, and you I guess, is frustration always a negative emotion?

William Faulker’s quote above certainly says we need it.  To sharpen the spirit on?  I think what he meant by that was that without challenges, without obstacles that we have to think our way through, we just don’t grow.  Hence the comment about vegetables.  (Yes they grow, but not in the same way.)

Challenges and frustrations are the very beginning of thinking outside of the box.  They force us to take our vision to other alternatives that we would have never looked at before.  We may be frustrated and ready to rip out all of our hair, but while we are fussing and fuming, part of our brain is working on a work-around.  That part of our brain is the cause of our growth.

Next time your computer goes on strike, and you feel the sense of frustration welling up, consider your options.  Possibly there are other things you could do – maybe even need to do. 

Perhaps there are bigger problems within the situation that you would not have noticed had the smaller problem not occurred.  Remember, I thought it was the bookmarks, but it was a funky hard drive that could have caused me much greater problems in the future.

All that is necessary to break the spell of inertia and frustration is to — act as if it were impossible to fail.
^{Dorothea Brande}

“My recipe for dealing with anger and frustration: set the kitchen timer for twenty minutes, cry, rant, and rave, and at the sound of the bell, simmer down and go about business as usual.”
^{Phyllis Diller}

“There came a point in time, with all the difficulty, all the frustration, where I was quite content to be where I was. I suppose one could call it a kind of enchantment, I don’t know.”
^{Madeleine Stowe}

Technorati Tags: quotes quotations frustration computer+problems hard+drive+failure

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“God grant me the courage not to give up what I think is right even though I think it is hopeless.”
^{Chester W. Nimitz}

Nimitz is not an unfamiliar name; most any American can tell you about the aircraft carrier class and the pride of the U.S. Navy in the U.S.S. Nimitz. Admiral Chester Nimitz was the Commander in Chief of the Pacific Fleet during World War II. He was a true military hero, leader, and at times, a philosopher. His quotes show integrity, leadership, honor, and a sense of responsibility to his fellow man and country. I particularly liked his words on personal responsibility and praise of the actions of others.

Today, February 24th, marks the birthday of Chester Nimitz. He was born in 1885 and passed away in 1966. The official site of the U.S. Navy says of Nimitz, “His application, intelligence, and good humor earned him a place in the inner circle of senior officers … Nimitz’s characteristics are ones that officers of any time or era can appreciate and emulate.”

Some Parting Thoughts from Chester Nimitz:

“Three favorite rules of thumb: Is the proposed operation likely to succeed? What might be the consequences of failure? Is it in the realm of practicality in terms of material and supplies?”

“Not one of us who fought in the late war can forget — nor should any citizen be allowed to forget — that the national resource which enabled us to carry the war to the enemy and fight in his territory and not our own was our Merchant Marine. The fighting fleets and Marines of our Navy, the ground forces of our Army, and the aircraft of both would have been helpless to pound the enemy into defeat overseas, had it not been for the steady stream of personnel, equipment and supplies of every character brought into the rear of the combat areas, and often directly into those areas, by the ships of our own Merchant Marine and those of our allies…. It is well to remember that a professional Army and Navy are merely nuclei of the armed forces needed to wage war…. there is a natural tendency to forget the vital relationship which the Merchant Marine bears to our individual and collective welfare, in peace as well as war.”

“The battle of Iwo Jima has been won. Among the Americans who served on Iwo, uncommon valor was a common virtue.”

“It is the function of the Navy to carry the war to the enemy so that it will not be fought on U.S. soil.”

“I have just taken on a great responsibility. I will do my utmost to meet it.”

Focus on the U.S.S. Nimitz – Online newspaper about the crew of the famous aircraft carrier

Technorati Tags: aircraft+carrier USS+Nimitz Nimitz Chester+Nimitz U.S.+Navy Navy military+quotations quotes quotations

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“If you are doing your best, you will not have to worry about failure.”
^{Robert S. Hillyer}

I don’t know what interested me in this poet today, but I found this one quote and was inspired to find more about his writing. I found this quote interesting because of his view on success and failure and what this quote might likely mean to the majority of readers. I believe that most people would see this to mean that if you try hard enough – if you do your best – you will indeed avoid failure.

But I don’t think that is what Mr. Hillyer meant at all. I think he meant if you try your hardest, you won’t care if you succeed or fail. You won’t have to worry about it, because you will know you gave it your best shot and that is more important than the actual end result. You won’t have to worry because you know you lived and did the things you did, with integrity.

Hillyer won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1934. He considered his best book of poetry to be, “Poems for Music.” He was considered a master of sonnets, a difficult form of poetry to write. Many of his sonnets are available at SonnetsCentral.org. Take the time to read them, or maybe print them as I did – they are really good!

Some Parting Thoughts from Robert S. Hillyer:

“Perfectionism is a dangerous state of mind in an imperfect world. ”

“By the age of twenty, any young man should know whether or not he is to be a specialist and just where his tastes lie. By postponing the question we have set on immaturity a premium which controls most American personality to its deathbed. ”

^{Being the First of thirty-Four Sonnets}

^{Quickly and pleasantly the seasons blow
Over the meadows of eternity,
As wave on wave the pulsings of the sea
Merge and are lost, each in the other’s flow.
Time is no lover; it is only he
That is the one unconquerable foe,
He is the sudden tempest none can know,
Winged with swift winds that none may hope to flee.
Fair child of loveliness, these endless fears
Are nought to us; let us be gods of stone,
And set our images beyond the years
On some high mount where we can be alone;
And thou shalt ever be as now thou art,
And I shall watch thee with untroubled heart.}

Technorati Tags: quotes quotations poetry success failure Robert+S.+Hillyer Robert+Hillyer sonnets

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An Offbeat Holiday:
Today is Groundhog Day. Supposedly, when a groundhog peeks out of his hole, what he sees determines whether winter is almost over, or is going to hang around another six weeks. It’s just a tradition that has always been there.

One of my favorite movies is “Groundhog Day.” I love the idea of someone who has their life so out-of-whack, that fate, or a Higher Power, intervenes to straighten him out. It isn’t an original theme; “It’s A Wonderful Life,” and “Family Man,” are two other examples and I know there are more. But the groundhog movie really drives the point home. I once tried to determine how long Bill Murray’s character was forced to relive February 2nd, and I think I came up with approximately two to three years (based on various things that happened, but mostly the piano playing). It took him that long to get his priorities in the right order. Of course, then he “got” the girl and everything moved forward. (I am sure this breaks every rule quantum physics has to offer, but in this case, suspension of belief is the better part of the experience.)

I did a little research on Groundhog Day, and was looking for something really profound. Well, I didn’t find it, but I found something that was pretty interesting – people on the east coast probably know this but I didn’t. Puxsutawney Phil is for real. In fact, the whole town is. And the Groundhog Day ceremony happens just like they show it in the movie. This has been going on for over 120 years (obviously with descendants of the original Phil but the town fathers claim it is the same one).

But the best part of this? You too, can be a part of Puxsutawney Phil’s legend. You can join the club or better yet, you can start your own chapter in your area! Don’t laugh – the 101st Airborne has their own chapter. There are chapters all over the United States. Take a look and join up – give yourself and your community a little bit of the fun that can be found at Gobbler’s Knob today.

Official Site of the Puxsutawney Groundhog Club

Technorati Tags: quotes, quotations, woman, Groundhog Day, Movie Quotes

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Has anyone bagged their New Year’s Resolutions yet? I’d love to hear about it.

Technorati Tags: resolutions

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Thinking Outside of the Box:
It is never easy to take the moral high ground. It can come across as arrogant, holier-than-thou, and it can feel very, very alone. But contrary to popular belief, doing the right thing, even when it is not the popular thing, is easier.

I have a theory that if you don’t do the right thing, whenever you can, whenever the opportunity presents itself, complications develop down the line. It is a bit like ignoring a bad chest cold and ending up with pneumonia. If only you had seen the doctor earlier…

Anyway, my theory works like this: If you take the easy way out and go with the popular opinion, bend to peer pressure or fold to the majority, you have compromised your priniciples. That compromise is the just the first. Later on, you will have to make another one; you will have to do something that rationalizes out the original compromise so you can live with it. And after some time passes, you have nothing to look back on but a series of lies, for that is all rationalization ends up being. Lies by omission, lies by outright deceit, and worst of all, the lie we whisper within to make it possible to look in the mirror.

That isn’t easy. Avoiding the right thing to do is a lie within a lie. It promises an easier life, or an easier period of time, but it turns and betrays you and stabs you in the back with another lie. Take the moral high ground. It’s only difficult for a short time and then everything is much easier.

Just think about it.

Some Last Thoughts:
“We must not always judge of the generality of the opinion by the noise of the acclamation.”
Edmund Burke

“Whenever you find that you are on the side of the majority, it is time to reform.”
Mark Twain

“It is good to follow one’s own bent, so long as it leads upward.”
Andre Gide

“The most important human endeavor is the striving for morality in our actions. Our inner balance and even our very existence depend on it. Only morality in our actions can give beauty and dignity to life.”
Albert Einstein

“A man can do what he ought to do; and when he says he cannot, it is because he will not.”
Feoude
Technorati Tags: Quotes, morality

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