Second Opinion

If anyone tells you that he is a person of integrity, 

get a second opinion. 

(Lewis B. Smedes, A Pretty Good Person, p. 86) 

28 February 2013

Cognitive Dissonance

The self-deceit practiced by nations is written on a larger scale [than our tendency to personally corrupt our own consciousness] but it is no different from the lies we tell ourselves. We do not want to know things that could threaten our investments, subvert our priorities, challenge our principles, and in general put too much stress on us. So, in the blink of an eye, we close our minds to reality we do not want to be real. ...

Psychologists call this cognitive dissonance: the experience of having reality we do not want to know bang up against our minds while we deny its existence, "Don't upset me with the truth I do not want to know."
(Lewis B. Smedes, A Pretty Good Person, p. 73-4) 27 February 2013

What Me Worry?

In this land of freedom, ... [many of us] jealously guard our right to do as we please; we [want to] keep the rules few and simple. Yet confronted by school shootings and terrorist attacks, promiscuity and irresponsible parents, lying politicians and greedy evangelists, ... [others] plead for more standards, tougher laws, real accountability. ... In such an environment, discussion of laws and standards conjures up anxiety, confusion, frustration, resignation or anger. (J. Marshall Jenkins in The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 13 September) 26 February 2013

Guilt

The United States ... has never really dealt with its guilt in handling its native people so savagely. It hasn't fully owned up to and sought forgiveness for slavery. We could, even now, show clear, sincere appreciation for the beauty and wisdom of our native ancestors. We could make strong, public resolution to atone for slavery. Without strong, sincere, participatory expressions of remorse on our part, Native Americans carry the moral weight on themselves, and the society as a whole has little access to its original spirituality. African-Americans still struggle for their basic rights and dignity. Like a person burdened with guilt ... [he] may not be aware of, a country can be held back by its failure to deal with its past. (Thomas Moore, Dark Nights Of The Soul, p. 64) 25 February 2013

The Reality Of The Present

A society that has lost its soul looks for security in the future and is willing to deny the reality of the present. But a society can't move ahead if its values and ideals are jammed behind failures and mistakes. It has to own up to its neglect and its atrocity, while at the same time proclaiming its highest values. It is possible for a society to deal with the moral pollution of its history. Gestures, language, acts of compensation, and rites of forgiveness can all be effective. But they have to be done sincerely, without guile and without mere formalism. (Thomas Moore, Dark Nights Of The Soul, p. 64)
24 February 2013

Detachment

• I will not permit myself to become emotionally involved in matters that should not be my concern.
• I will not interfere with the working out of another's difficulties, however dear and close we may be to each other.
• Detachment is essential to any healthy relationship between people.
• Each of us is a free individual, with neither one in control of the other.

(One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 23 February)
23 February 2013

One Day At A Time

When it comes to your ability to sustain your own life, your natural, spontaneous reaction is to negotiate the situation one day; one minute or one second at a time. Past and future vanish. The present is the only basis of your survival. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Sky's The Limit, p. 50) 22 February 2013

Choose Men Of Ability

Choose men of ability from all of the people

They must have respect for God.

You must be able to trust them ...

Appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.

Let them serve the people.

(Exodus 18:21-22 (NIRV) Promises of Joy, p. 50)

21 February 2013

Showing Interest

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, 1888-1955, American Motivational Writer in Pocket Positives, no page numbering) 20 February 2013

Negotiate

What minor irritants do you need to negotiate ... so they don't build up lasting resentments?
(Harry & Emily Griffith, This Love We Share, 26 January)

******

Last night I watched a one hour documentary, narrated by Rachel Maddow. Everyone who watches this program or reads the book from which it was adapted won't be pleased. No matter, it's food for thought, and in my opinion should be watched with an open mind by all adults.

Hubris. Selling the Iraq War

Mr. Dickie

19 February 2013

Discernment

... one way to develop discernment is to limit our factual intake. There are millions of things that clamor for our attention that we are no worse off for not knowing. Millions of things we should pay no attention to whatsoever. But it is up to us to turn our eyes [and ears] away from them, the way we turn off a television set. We do not need to know everything. We need to focus on what matters most. (Lewis B. Smedes, A Pretty Good Person, p. 129) 18 February 2013

Present Possibilities

Photo: Melva at the Community College Quilt Show

... life has a bitter side, and you have to be prepared to deal with it. (Thomas Moore, Dark Nights Of The Soul, p. 75)

... how do the people who are often undervalued by society find the hope, direction and encouragement they need to fulfill their God-given destinies? (John C. Maxwell, Leadership, 26 January)

The perfectionist, clinging stubbornly to ideas of what life ought to be, often has difficulty grasping the concepts of acceptance and detachment. (after One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 23 December)

I will examine my own attitudes and activities and face the fact that much of what I do or leave undone - contributes to my distress. (One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 4 February)

Many people procrastinate making life changes because of fears of disapproval from others. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 77)

Look for fears and limiting beliefs as you'd seek weeds in a garden. Observe them, and then yank them out by the roots! (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 80-1)

... honor people and their process even when it looks dysfunctional by your standards. ... Rather than allowing indifference to close your heart and mind to situations and people, learn how to be detached. In this way you will be available to offer what you can, when you can. (Iyanla Vanzant, Until Today! 16 December)

... focus on present possibilities, and be content with today. ( A Gentle Spirit, 19 December)

******

This morning I inadvertently altered the appearance of my Chrome browser's bookmark bar. At first I was upset. After thinking about what happened for a few minutes I came up with a "fix" that will probably prove better. I created a folder that I labeled, Access which will thus be the left-most (first) folder to appear on the Bookmarks bar. In the Access folder I stored the links to the pages I frequently access like:

• Arrow Prayers
• Mr. Dickie's Blog
• HenthornFamily Wiki
• Facebook
• Gmail
• Wonderpage
• Delicious
• Google Reader

Mr. Dickie

17 February 2013

Discipline

We may respond to discipline in several ways:

1. we can accept it with resignation;
2. we can accept it with self-pity, thinking we really don't deserve it;
3. we can be angry and resentful toward God; or
4. we can accept it gratefully, as the appropriate response we owe a loving Father.

(The One Year Book Of Bible Readings, 27 January)
16 February 2013 (Post 1,700)

Smart People

Somewhere, there are some smart people huddled in a high-level staff session, devising ways to take control of our lives. They seduce us, they trick us, and they lie to us; they promise anything if we will turn over control to them, control of what we buy, how we live, what we will live for, how we will vote, and how we will feel about what matters most. They are out to get control. (Lewis B. Smedes, A Pretty Good Person, p. 116)

The truest measure of the conscience of any country is how it treats those who are less fortunate than "the majority," unable to "make the team" without some extra help. If we adopt an overall authoritarian anti-weakness mentality, all our potential greatness as a nation goes out the window. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Sky's The Limit, p. 90)
15 February 2013)

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day

Keeping Our Footing

If we keep our footing in the shaky space between our arrival and departure from this world, we owe our survival - not to mention our success - to many other people who held us up and helped us crawl or fly or just muck our way through. (Lewis B. Smedes, A Pretty Good Person, p. 23) 13 February 2013

Crisis

Crises can be averted by making some changes. Change is seldom easy, especially when we deal with deep-rooted habits, long-standing associations, and entrenched attitudes. Drastic situations demand decisive action. Whatever causes you to stumble, tear it out or cut it off! (Les Dahl in The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 27 September) 12 February 2013

Mind, Body, Spirit

There are a few [medical practitioners] who are beginning to look seriously at the prospects of behavioral medicine and methods for teaching people to think, feel, and behave in healthy ways, from the very beginning of their lives. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Sky's The Limit, p. 27) 11 January 2013

Self-Punishment

Self-punishment takes many different forms:

1. Putting oneself last.
2. Not setting, starting, or completing goals.
3. Being a martyr/victim.
4. Squandering resources.
5. Staying in unhealthy relationships.
6. Negative self-talk.
7. Mistreatment of one's body.
8. Being stingy with oneself.
9. Trying too hard to please others.

(Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 72-4)
10 February 2013

Enlightenment

Learning to identify ways in which you're creating your own obstacles is tremendously enlightening if you're willing to explore this area of your life. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Power Of Intention, p. 62)

******

HTML, XHTML

and

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)

In April 2011 I worked on a project to learn about Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). I had moderate success and create an inline CSS that worked. For some reason I never actually used what I learned to create a webpage and uploaded it to the Internet. Recently, I've been thinking about picking up the project where I left off. I found the file with my practice CSS on my old computer, moved it to the new laptop, printed out the nine pages and tested how they work on my own computer.

I discovered three nice sets of tutorials on YouTube which cover the topics of: HTML, XHTML and CSS.

• CSS Website
• HTML Tutor4u
• CSS Tutor4u

My YouTube search lead me to a very nice instructional website.

• Little Web Hut

I own two books on these topics.

• CSS - The Missing Manual  by David Sawyer McFarland
• HTML For The World Wide Web with XHTML and CSS by Elizabeth Castro

Mr. Dickie

9 February 2013

Decision Making

Be aware of the things you do that diminish and distort your sense of wholeness, worthiness and your ability to make your own choices and decisions. (Iyanla Vanzant, Until today! 7 December)

Fear is an ineffective motivator because it results in poor decision making and low creativity. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 16)

Fear of making a wrong decision keeps people in limbo, as they procrastinate deciding which way to go. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 64)

Constant wavering can only hinder me from breaking out of my present thinking patterns. (One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 13 January)

Unclear goals create unclear results. You need to know where you're going and have faith that you will get there. Your intuition has been nagging at you to get moving on your goals. It's time to listen and obey your intuition, because that's how you'll get the joy, freedom, and security you deserve. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 45)

... lukewarm decisions create lukewarm results. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 18)

When attempting to solve a problem avoid the mistake of stopping with just stating the negative aspects of the problem. This behavior leads you nowhere. (after Cloud & Townsend, Boundaries Face To Face, p. 40)

Unclear goals create unclear and therefore, unsatisfying outcomes. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 47)

Only those who have real knowledge know what to do. (Indian Wisdom, in A Calendar Of Wisdom by Leo Tolstoy, 14 November)

... I have learned that it's better to make a mistake once in a while than never do anything at all. (Twenty-Four Hours A Day, 18 November)

Let me first be sure what I intend and the reasons for my choice; this will guide my thoughts into constructive channels, and keep me from attempting the impractical or impossible. (Celebra Tueli in One Day At A Time In Al-Anon, 28 December)

There is no greater demonstration of the power of faith than to decide what you're going to do, and to become determined in your own mind that you're going to do it. (Napoleon Hill, author of Think And Grow Rich)

How sad when a dream is within reach, yet we clutch tightly to obstacles that hinder our accomplishments. (Doreen Virtue, Ph.D., I'd Change My Life If I Had More Time, p. 59)

8 February 2013

Marlboro Man

[Remember the Marlboro Man?] Riding horseback through wild nature with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, he was the symbol of virility and raw vigorous health. But on closer look the Marlboro Man was uneducated, smelly, lonely, and destined to die young from lung cancer. (Gail Sheehy, Understanding Men's Passages, p. 69) 7 February 2013

Opinion

There is no doubt about it: in this free country it is your constitutional right to refuse to think at all if you want to. You can sit back and stay "safely" with the majority, maybe even smugly, while berating those who voice unpopular minority opinions. But the world will be improved only by those who are willing to follow their own consciences, even when it is unpopular to do so. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Sky's The Limit, p. 83) 6 February 2013

Children

There is no greater reward for a well-spent life than to see one's children well-started in life, owing to their parent's good health, good principles, fixed character, good breeding, and in general the whole outfit, that enables them to fight the battle of life with success. (William Graham Sumner, 1840 - 1940), American Sociologist in Pocket Positives, no page numbering)

---

Our society and many parts of the world are not child friendly:

• child labor is used to make expensive running shoes for the global economy;
• child soldiers are trained to hold and fire guns;
• military spending takes priority over funding for child care and children's education.

And here, in the richest country on earth, one in every five children lives in poverty.

These facts certainly imply that children are not welcome.

(Kolya Braun-Greiner in The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 19 September)

---

Love children especially for, like angels, they too are sinless and they live to soften and purify our hearts and, as it were, to guide us.
(Feodor Dostoevsky, 1821 - 1881, Russian Writer in Pocket Positives, no page numbering)

---

5 February 2013

Present Moment

... getting into the present begins with giving up the past and the future in favor of the now, for as many of your life experiences as you possibly can. (Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, The Sky's The Limit, p. 49) 4 February 2013

Turning Points

Some turning points in life may cast a dark shade on your future. When you get seriously sick, your illness is not just physical; it forces you to see yourself and your world in a different way. (Thomas Moore, Dark Nights Of The Soul, p. 25) 3 February 2013

Challenges

Photo: Approaching the summit of Pike's Peak

You have to prepare yourself for challenges that could be far more radical than you expect. (Thomas Moore, Dark Knights Of The Soul, p. 30) 2 February 2013

Economic Reality

... some of our casual attitudes toward the economic reality in which we live may need revision as we responsibly consider the ripple effects of our actions that we have not imagined. (The Upper Room Disciplines - 2003, 5 September) 1 February 2013