Earth Hour 60+ 2012

It is more than switching off the lights for 1 hour, it is the action, the willingness, the participation & involvement, and the "want to" in each and everyone of us.. Beyond 60+




The movement that speaks by its own...

孫運璿

台灣政壇知名行政院長孫運璿，生前曾給兒子寫過一封信，這封信最近才流傳出來，並很快的流傳於各大網站，很多父親看後感觸很深，其實這信適合所有人看！

[下輩子，無論愛與不愛，都不會再見]----孫運璿送給兒子的備忘錄

我兒：寫這備忘錄給你，基於三個原則：

（一）人生福禍無常，誰也不知可以活多久，有些事情還是早一點說好。

（二）我是你的父親，我不跟你說，沒有人會跟你說這些事?

（三）這備忘錄記載的，都是我經過慘痛失敗得來的體驗，可以為你的成長省不少冤枉路。

以下，便是你在人生中要好好記住的事：

（一）對你不好的人，你不要太介意，在你一生中，沒有人有義務要對你好，除了我和你媽媽。至於那些對你好的人，你除了要珍惜、感恩外，也請多防備一點，因為，每個人做每件事，總有一個原因，他對你好，未必真的是因為喜歡你，請你務必搞清楚，而不必太快將對方看作真朋友。

（二）沒有人是不可代替，沒有東西是必須擁有。看透了這一點，將來你身邊的人不再要你，或許失去了世間上最愛的一切時，也應該明白，這並不是什麼大不了的事。

（三）生命是短暫的，今日你還在浪費著生命，明日會發覺生命已遠離你了。因此，愈早珍惜生命，你享受生命的日子也愈多，與其盼望長壽，倒不如早點享受。

（四）世界上並沒有最愛這回事，愛情只是一種霎時的感覺，而這感覺絕對會隨時日、心境而改變。如果你所謂的最愛離開你，請耐心地等候一下，讓時日慢慢沖洗，讓心靈慢慢沉澱，你的苦就會慢慢淡化。不要過分憧憬愛情的美，不要過分誇大失戀的悲。

（五）雖然很多有成就的人士都沒有受過很多教育，但並不等於不用功讀書，就一定可以成功。你學到的知識，就是你擁有的武器，可以白手興家，但不可手無寸鐵，謹記！

（六）我不會要求你供養我下半輩子，同樣地，我也不會供養你的下半輩子，當你長大可以獨立時，我的責任已經完結。以後，你要坐巴士還是賓士，吃魚翅還是粉絲，都要自己負責。

（七）你可以要求自己守信，但不能要求別人守信，你可以要求自己對人好，但不能期待人家對你好。你怎樣對人，並不代表人家就會怎樣對你，如果看不透這一點，你只會徒增不必要的煩惱。

（八）我買了十多二十年的六合彩，還是一窮二白，連三獎也沒有中，這證明人要發達，還是要努力工作才可以，世界上沒有免費午餐。

（九）親人只有一次的緣分，無論這輩子我和你會相處多久，都請好好珍惜共聚的時光，下輩子，無論愛與不愛，都不會再見。

By: Anmax Chen

Get Angry?

When Tempers Flare

Do you lose your temper and wonder why? Are there days when you feel like you just wake up angry?

Some of it may be the changes your body's going through: All those hormones you hear so much about can cause mood swings and confused emotions. Some of it may be stress: People who are under a lot of pressure tend to get angry more easily. Part of it may be your personality: You may be someone who feels your emotions intensely or tends to act impulsively or lose control. And part of it may be your role models: Maybe you've seen other people in your family blow a fuse when they're mad.

No matter what pushes your buttons, one thing is certain — you're sure to get angry sometimes. Everyone does. Anger is a normal emotion, and there's nothing wrong with feeling mad. What counts is how we handle it (and ourselves) when we're angry.

Tools to Tame a Temper: Self-Awareness and Self-Control

Because anger can be powerful, managing it is sometimes challenging. It takes plenty of self-awareness and self-control to manage angry feelings. And these skills take time to develop.

Self-awareness is the ability to notice what you're feeling and thinking, and why. Little kids aren't very aware of what they feel, they just act it out in their behavior. That's why you see them having tantrums when they're mad. But teens have the mental ability to be self-aware. When you get angry, take a moment to notice what you're feeling and thinking.

Self-control is all about thinking before you act. It puts some precious seconds or minutes between feeling a strong emotion and taking an action you'll regret.

Together, self-awareness and self-control allow you to have more choice about how to act when you're feeling an intense emotion like anger.

Getting Ready to Make a Change

Deciding to get control of your anger — rather than letting it control you — means taking a good hard look at the ways you've been reacting when you get mad. Do you tend to yell and scream or say hurtful, mean, disrespectful things? Do you throw things, kick or punch walls, break stuff? Hit someone, hurt yourself, or push and shove others around?

For most people who have trouble harnessing a hot temper, reacting like this is not what they want. They feel ashamed by their behavior and don't think it reflects the real them, their best selves.

Everyone can change — but only when they want to. If you want to make a big change in how you're handling your anger, think about what you'll gain from that change. More self-respect? More respect from other people? Less time feeling annoyed and frustrated? A more relaxed approach to life? Remembering why you want to make the change can help.

It can also help to remind yourself that making a change takes time, practice, and patience. It won't happen all at once. Managing anger is about developing new skills and new responses. As with any skill, like playing basketball or learning the piano, it helps to practice over and over again.

The Five-Step Approach to Managing Anger

If something happens that makes you feel angry, this approach can help you manage your reaction. It's called a problem-solving approach because you start with the problem you're mad about. Then you weigh your choices and decide what you'll do.

Each step involves asking yourself a couple of questions, then answering them based on your particular situation.

Let's take this example: There's a party you're planning to go to, but your mom just told you to clean your room or stay home. The red-hot anger starts building.

Here's what to do:

1) Identify the problem (self-awareness). Start by noticing what you're angry about and why. Put into words what's making you upset so you can act rather than react.

Ask yourself: What's got me angry? What am I feeling and why? You can do this either in your mind or out loud, but it needs to be clear and specific. For example: "I'm really angry at Mom because she won't let me go to the party until I clean my room. It's not fair!" Your feeling is anger, and you're feeling angry because you might not get to go to the party.

Notice that this is not the same as saying, "Mom's so unfair to me." That statement doesn't identify the specific problem (that you can't go to the party until you clean your room) and it doesn't say how you're feeling (angry).

2) Think of potential solutions before responding (self-control). This is where you stop for a minute to give yourself time to manage your anger. It's also where you start thinking of how you might react — but without reacting yet.

Ask yourself: What can I do? Think of at least three things. For example, in this situation you might think:

(a) I could yell at Mom and throw a fit.
(b) I could clean my room and then ask if I could go to the party.
(c) I could sneak out to the party anyway.

3) Consider the consequences of each solution (think it through). This is where you think about what is likely to result from each of the different reactions you came up with.

Ask yourself: What will happen for each one of these options? For example:

(a) Yelling at your mom may get you in worse trouble or even grounded.
(b) Cleaning your room takes work and you may get to the party late (but maybe that adds to your mystique). With this option, you get to go to the party and your room's clean so you don't have to worry about it for a while.
(c) Sneaking out may seem like a real option in the heat of anger. But when you really think it through, it's pretty unlikely you'd get away with being gone for hours with no one noticing. And when you do get caught — look out!

4) Make a decision (pick one of your options). This is where you take action by choosing one of the three things you could do. Look at the list and pick the one that is likely to be most effective.

Ask yourself: What's my best choice? By the time you've thought it through, you're probably past yelling at your mom, which is a knee-jerk response. You may have also decided that sneaking out is too risky. Neither of these options is likely to get you to the party. So option (b) probably seems like the best choice.

Once you choose your solution, then it's time to act.

5) Check your progress. After you've acted and the situation is over, spend some time thinking about how it went.

Ask yourself: How did I do? Did things work out as I expected? If not, why not? Am I satisfied with the choice I made? Taking some time to reflect on how things worked out after it's all over is a very important step. It helps you learn about yourself and it allows you to test which problem-solving approaches work best in different situations.

Give yourself a pat on the back if the solution you chose worked out well. If it didn't, go back through the five steps and see if you can figure out why.

These five steps are pretty simple when you're calm, but are much tougher to work through when you're angry or sad (kind of like in basketball practice when making baskets is much easier than in a real game when the pressure is on!). So it helps to practice over and over again.

Other Ways to Manage Anger

The five-step approach is good when you're in a particular situation that's got you mad and you need to decide what action to take. But other things can help you manage anger too.

Try these things even if you're not mad right now to help prevent angry feelings from building up inside.

• Exercise. Go for a walk/run, work out, or go play a sport. Lots of research has shown that exercise is a great way to improve your mood and decrease negative feelings.

• Listen to music (with your headphones on). Music has also been shown to change a person's mood pretty quickly. And if you dance, then you're exercising and it's a two-for-one.
• Write down your thoughts and emotions. You can write things in lots of ways; for example, in a journal or as your own poetry or song lyrics. After you've written it down, you can keep it or throw it away — it doesn't matter. The important thing is, writing down your thoughts and feelings can improve how you feel. When you notice, label, and release feelings as they show up in smaller portions, they don't have a chance to build up inside.
• Draw. Scribbling, doodling, or sketching your thoughts or feelings might help too.
• Meditate or practice deep breathing. This one works best if you do it regularly, as it's more of an overall stress management technique that can help you use self-control when you're mad. If you do this regularly, you'll find that anger is less likely to build up.

• Talk about your feelings with someone you trust. Lots of times there are other emotions, such as fear or sadness, beneath anger. Talking about them can help.
• Distract yourself. If you find yourself stewing about something and just can't seem to let go, it can help to do something that will get your mind past what's bugging you — watch TV, read, or go to the movies.

These ideas can be helpful for two reasons:

1. They help you cool down when you feel like your anger might explode. When you need to cool down, do one or more of the activities in the list above. Think of these as alternatives to taking an action you'll regret, such as yelling at someone. Some of them, like writing down feelings, can help you release tension and begin the thinking process at the same time.
2. They help you manage anger in general. What if there's no immediate problem to solve — you simply need to shift into a better mood? Sometimes when you're angry, you just need to stop dwelling on how mad you are.

When to Ask for Extra Help

Sometimes anger is a sign that more is going on. People who have frequent trouble with anger, who get in fights or arguments, who get punished, who have life situations that give them reason to often be angry may need special help to get a problem with anger under control.

Tell your parents, a teacher, a counselor, or another adult you trust if any of these things have been happening:

• You have a lasting feeling of anger over things that have either happened to you in the past or are going on now.
• You feel irritable, grumpy, or in a bad mood more often than not.
• You feel consistent anger or rage at yourself.
• You feel anger that lasts for days or makes you want to hurt yourself or someone else.
• You're often getting into fights or arguments.

These could be signs of depression or something else — and you shouldn't have to handle that alone.

Anger is a strong emotion. It can feel overwhelming at times. Learning how to deal with strong emotions — without losing control — is part of becoming more mature. It takes a little effort, a little practice, and a little patience, but you can get there if you want to.

Reviewed by: D'Arcy Lyness, PhD
Date reviewed: September 2010
Originally reviewed by: Matthew K. Nock, PhD

30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself

When you stop chasing the wrong things you give
the right things a chance to catch you.


As Maria Robinson once said, “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” Nothing could be closer to the truth. But before you can begin this process of transformation you have to stop doing the things that have been holding you back.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

1.Stop spending time with the wrong people. – Life is too short to spend time with people who suck the happiness out of you. If someone wants you in their life, they’ll make room for you. You shouldn’t have to fight for a spot. Never, ever insist yourself to someone who continuously overlooks your worth. And remember, it’s not the people that stand by your side when you’re at your best, but the ones who stand beside you when you’re at your worst that are your true friends.

2.Stop running from your problems. – Face them head on. No, it won’t be easy. There is no person in the world capable of flawlessly handling every punch thrown at them. We aren’t supposed to be able to instantly solve problems. That’s not how we’re made. In fact, we’re made to get upset, sad, hurt, stumble and fall. Because that’s the whole purpose of living – to face problems, learn, adapt, and solve them over the course of time. This is what ultimately molds us into the person we become.

3.Stop lying to yourself. – You can lie to anyone else in the world, but you can’t lie to yourself. Our lives improve only when we take chances, and the first and most difficult chance we can take is to be honest with ourselves. Read The Road Less Traveled.

4.Stop putting your own needs on the back burner. – The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too. Yes, help others; but help yourself too. If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now.

5.Stop trying to be someone you’re not. – One of the greatest challenges in life is being yourself in a world that’s trying to make you like everyone else. Someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter, someone will always be younger, but they will never be you. Don’t change so people will like you. Be yourself and the right people will love the real you.

6.Stop trying to hold onto the past. – You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.

7.Stop being scared to make a mistake. – Doing something and getting it wrong is at least ten times more productive than doing nothing. Every success has a trail of failures behind it, and every failure is leading towards success. You end up regretting the things you did NOT do far more than the things you did.

8.Stop berating yourself for old mistakes. – We may love the wrong person and cry about the wrong things, but no matter how things go wrong, one thing is for sure, mistakes help us find the person and things that are right for us. We all make mistakes, have struggles, and even regret things in our past. But you are not your mistakes, you are not your struggles, and you are here NOW with the power to shape your day and your future. Every single thing that has ever happened in your life is preparing you for a moment that is yet to come.

9.Stop trying to buy happiness. – Many of the things we desire are expensive. But the truth is, the things that really satisfy us are totally free – love, laughter and working on our passions.

10.Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness. – If you’re not happy with who you are on the inside, you won’t be happy in a long-term relationship with anyone else either. You have to create stability in your own life first before you can share it with someone else. Read Stumbling on Happiness.

11.Stop being idle. – Don’t think too much or you’ll create a problem that wasn’t even there in the first place. Evaluate situations and take decisive action. You cannot change what you refuse to confront. Making progress involves risk. Period! You can’t make it to second base with your foot on first.

12.Stop thinking you’re not ready. – Nobody ever feels 100% ready when an opportunity arises. Because most great opportunities in life force us to grow beyond our comfort zones, which means we won’t feel totally comfortable at first.

13.Stop getting involved in relationships for the wrong reasons. – Relationships must be chosen wisely. It’s better to be alone than to be in bad company. There’s no need to rush. If something is meant to be, it will happen – in the right time, with the right person, and for the best reason. Fall in love when you’re ready, not when you’re lonely.

14.Stop rejecting new relationships just because old ones didn’t work. – In life you’ll realize that there is a purpose for everyone you meet. Some will test you, some will use you and some will teach you. But most importantly, some will bring out the best in you.

15.Stop trying to compete against everyone else. – Don’t worry about what others doing better than you. Concentrate on beating your own records every day. Success is a battle between YOU and YOURSELF only.

16.Stop being jealous of others. – Jealousy is the art of counting someone else’s blessings instead of your own. Ask yourself this: “What’s something I have that everyone wants?”

17.Stop complaining and feeling sorry for yourself. – Life’s curveballs are thrown for a reason – to shift your path in a direction that is meant for you. You may not see or understand everything the moment it happens, and it may be tough. But reflect back on those negative curveballs thrown at you in the past. You’ll often see that eventually they led you to a better place, person, state of mind, or situation. So smile! Let everyone know that today you are a lot stronger than you were yesterday, and you will be.

18.Stop holding grudges. – Don’t live your life with hate in your heart. You will end up hurting yourself more than the people you hate. Forgiveness is not saying, “What you did to me is okay.” It is saying, “I’m not going to let what you did to me ruin my happiness forever.” Forgiveness is the answer… let go, find peace, liberate yourself! And remember, forgiveness is not just for other people, it’s for you too. If you must, forgive yourself, move on and try to do better next time.

19.Stop letting others bring you down to their level. – Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs.

20.Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others. – Your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe it anyway. Just do what you know in your heart is right.

21.Stop doing the same things over and over without taking a break. – The time to take a deep breath is when you don’t have time for it. If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting. Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.

22.Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments. – Enjoy the little things, because one day you may look back and discover they were the big things. The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.

23.Stop trying to make things perfect. – The real world doesn’t reward perfectionists, it rewards people who get things done. Read Getting Things Done.

24.Stop following the path of least resistance. – Life is not easy, especially when you plan on achieving something worthwhile. Don’t take the easy way out. Do something extraordinary.

25.Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn’t. – It’s okay to fall apart for a little while. You don’t always have to pretend to be strong, and there is no need to constantly prove that everything is going well. You shouldn’t be concerned with what other people are thinking either – cry if you need to – it’s healthy to shed your tears. The sooner you do, the sooner you will be able to smile again.

26.Stop blaming others for your troubles. – The extent to which you can achieve your dreams depends on the extent to which you take responsibility for your life. When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility – you give others power over that part of your life.

27.Stop trying to be everything to everyone. – Doing so is impossible, and trying will only burn you out. But making one person smile CAN change the world. Maybe not the whole world, but their world. So narrow your focus.

28.Stop worrying so much. – Worry will not strip tomorrow of its burdens, it will strip today of its joy. One way to check if something is worth mulling over is to ask yourself this question: “Will this matter in one year’s time? Three years? Five years?” If not, then it’s not worth worrying about.

29.Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen. – Focus on what you do want to happen. Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. If you awake every morning with the thought that something wonderful will happen in your life today, and you pay close attention, you’ll often find that you’re right.

30.Stop being ungrateful. – No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life. Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs. Instead of thinking about what you’re missing, try thinking about what you have that everyone else is missing.

Source: http://www.marcandangel.com/2011/12/11/30-things-to-stop-doing-to-yourself/

Apple (蘋果) CEO Steve Jobs (賈伯斯) 的三個故事

Apple (蘋果) CEO Steve Jobs (賈伯斯) : 我只說三個故事，不談大道理，三個故事就好..

今天，
很榮幸來到各位從世界上最好的學校之一畢業的畢業典禮上。
我從來沒從大學畢業過，說實話，這是我離大學畢業最近的一刻。

今天，我只說三個故事，不談大道理，三個故事就好。


第一個故事，

是關於人生中的點點滴滴如何串連在一起。

我在里德學院（Reed College）待了六個月就辦休學了。
到我退學前，一共休學了十八個月。那麼，我為什麼休學？

（聽眾笑）這得從我出生前講起。

我的親生母親當時是個研究生，
年輕未婚媽媽，她決定讓別人收養我..

她強烈覺得應該讓有大學畢業的人收養我，
所以我出生時，她就準備讓我被一對律師夫婦收養。
但是這對夫妻到了最後一刻反悔了，他們想收養女孩。

所以在等待收養名單上的一對夫妻，我的養父母，
在一天半夜裡接到一通電話， 問他們
「有一名意外出生的男孩，你們要認養他嗎？」
而他們的回答是「當然要」。

後來，我的生母發現，我現在的媽媽從來沒有大學畢業，
我現在的爸爸則連高中畢業也沒有。
她拒絕在認養文件上做最後簽字。直到幾個月後，
我的養父母保證將來一定會讓我上大學，她的態度才軟化。

十七年後，我上大學了。但是當時我無知地選了一所
學費幾乎跟史丹佛一樣貴的大學（聽眾笑），
我那工人階級的父母將所有積蓄都花在我的學費上。

六個月後，我看不出唸這個書的價值何在。那時候，
我不知道這輩子要幹什麼，也不知道唸大學能對我有什麼幫助，
只知道我為了唸這個書，花光了我父母這輩子的所有積蓄。
所以，我決定休學，相信船到橋頭自然直。

當時這個決定看來相當可怕，可是現在看來，
那是我這輩子做過最好的決定之一。（聽眾笑）

當我休學之後，我再也不用上我沒興趣的必修課，
把時間拿去聽那些我有興趣的課。這一點也不浪漫。

我沒有宿舍，所以我睡在友人家裡的地板上，
靠著回收可樂空罐的退費五分錢買吃的。
每個星期天晚上得走七哩的路，
繞過大半個鎮 去印度教的 Hare Krishna 神廟吃頓好料，
我喜歡 Hare Krishna 神廟的好料。

就這樣追隨我的好奇與直覺，大部分我所投入過的事務，
後來看來都成了無比珍貴的經歷
（And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on ）。

舉個例來說。當時里德學院有著大概是全國最好的書寫教育。
校園內的每一張海報上，每個抽屜的標籤上，都是美麗的手寫字。

因為我休學了，可以不照正常選課程序來，
所以我跑去上書寫課。 我學了 serif 與 sanserif 字體，
學到在不同字母組合間變更字間距，學到活字印刷偉大的地方。

書寫的美好、歷史感與藝術感是科學所無法掌握的，
我覺得這很迷人。

我沒預期過學這些東西能在我生活中起些什麼實際作用，
不過十年後，當我在設計第一台麥金塔時，

我想起了當時所學的東西，所以把這些東西
都設計進了麥金塔裡，這是第一台能印刷出漂亮東西的電腦。

如果我沒沉溺於那樣一門課裡，
麥金塔可能就不會有多重字體跟等比例間距字體了。

又因為 Windows抄襲了麥金塔的使用方式（聽眾鼓掌大笑）。
因此，如果當年我沒有休學，沒有去上那門書寫課，
大概所有的個人電腦都不會有這些東西，
印不出現在我們看到的漂亮的字來了。

當然，當我還在大學裡時，
不可能把這些點點滴滴預先串連在一起，
但在十年後的今天回顧，一切就顯得非常清楚。

我再說一次，
你無法預先把點點滴滴串連起來,
只有在未來回顧時，
你才會明白那些點點滴滴是如何串在一起的
（you can't connect the dots look-ing forward;
you can only connect them looking backwards ）。

所以你得相信，眼前你經歷的種種，將來多少會連結在一起。
你得信任某個東西，直覺也好， 命運也好，生命也好，或者業力。

這種作法從來沒讓我失望，
我的人生因此變得完全不同。（ Jobs停下來喝水）

____________________________________________________

我的第二個故事，是有關愛與失去。

我很幸運－年輕時就發現自己愛做什麼事。我二十歲時，
跟 Steve Wozniak在我爸媽的車庫裡開始了蘋果電腦的事業。

我們拚命工作，
蘋果電腦在十年間從一間車庫裡的兩個小夥子擴展 !
成了一家員工超過四千人、市價二十億美金的公司。
在那事件之前一年推出了我們最棒的作品－
麥金塔電腦（ Macintosh），那時我才剛邁入三十歲；
然後，我被解僱了。

我怎麼會被自己創辦的公司給解僱了？（聽眾笑）

嗯，當蘋果電腦成長後，
我請了一個我以為在經營公司上很有才幹的傢伙來，
他在頭幾年也確實幹得不錯。
可是我們對未來的願景不同，最後只好分道揚鑣，
董事會站在他那邊，就這樣在我 30歲的時候，公開把我給解僱了。

我失去了整個生活的重心，我的人生就這樣被摧毀。

有幾個月，我不知道要做些什麼。
我覺得我令企業界的前輩們失望－
我把他們交給我的接力棒弄丟了。

我見了創辦 HP的 David Packard跟創辦Intel的 Bob Noyce，
跟他們說很抱歉我把事情給搞砸了。
我成了公眾眼中失敗的示範，我甚至想要離開矽谷。

但是漸漸的，我發現，我還是喜愛那些我做過的事情，
在蘋果電腦中經歷那些事絲毫沒有改變我愛做的事。

雖然我被否定了，可是我還是愛做那些事情，
所以我決定從頭來過。 當時我沒發現，
但現在看來，被蘋果電腦開除，是我所經歷過最好的事情。

成功的沉重被從頭來過的輕鬆所取代，
每件事情都不那麼確定，讓我自由進入這輩子最有創意的年代。

接下來五年，我開了一家叫做 NeXT 的公司，
又開一家叫做 Pixar 的公司，
也跟後來的老婆（Laurene）談起了戀愛。

Pixar接著製作了世界上第一部全電腦動畫電影，
玩具總動員（Toy Story），
現在是世界上最成功的動畫製作公司（聽眾鼓掌大笑）。

然後，蘋果電腦買下了 NeXT，我回到了蘋果，
我們在 NeXT發展的技術成了蘋果電腦後來復興的核心部份。
我也有了個美妙的家庭。
我很確定，如果當年蘋果電腦沒開除我，就不會發生這些事情。

這帖藥很苦口，可是我想蘋果電腦這個病人需要這帖藥。
有時候，人生會用磚頭打你的頭。不要喪失信心。

我確信我愛我所做的事情，
這就是這些年來支持我繼續走下去的唯一理由
（I'm convinced that the only thing
that kept me going was thatI loved what I did）。

你得找出你的最愛，
工作上是如此，人生伴侶也是如此。

你的工作將佔掉你人生的一大部分，
唯一真正獲得滿足的方法就是做你相信是偉大的工作，
而唯一做偉大工作的方法是 愛你所做的事
（ And the only way to do great work is
to love what you do ）。

如果你還沒找到這些事，繼續找，別停頓。盡你全心全力，
你知道你一定會找到。而且，如同任何偉大的事業，
事情只會隨著時間愈來愈好。所以，
在你找到之前，繼續找，別停頓。（聽眾鼓掌， Jobs喝水）

____________________________________________________

我的第三個故事，是關於死亡。

當我十七歲時，我讀到一則格言，
好像是
「把每一天都當成生命中的最後一天，你就會輕鬆自在。
（ If you live each day as if it was your last,
someday you'll most certainly be right ）」（聽眾笑）

這對我影響深遠， 在過去 33 年裡，我每天早上都會照鏡子，
自問：「如果今天是此生最後一日，我今天要做些什麼？」

每當我連續太多天都得到一個「沒事做」的答案時，
我就知道我必須有所改變了。 提醒自己快死了，
是我在人生中面臨重大決定時，所用過最重要的方法。

因為幾乎每件事－所有外界期望、所有的名聲、
所有對困窘或失敗的恐懼－在面對死亡時，都消失了，
只有最真實重要的東西才會留下
（ Remember-ing that I'll be dead soon
is the most important tool I've ever encountered
to help me make the big choices in life.
Because almost everything - all external expectations,
all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure -
these things just fall away in the face of death,
leaving only what is truly important ）。

提醒自己快死了，
是我所知避免掉入畏懼失去的陷阱裡最好的方法。
人生不帶來、死不帶去，沒理由不能順心而為。

一年前，我被診斷出癌症。我在早上七點半作斷層掃瞄，
在胰臟清楚出現一個腫瘤，我連胰臟是什麼都不知道。
醫生告訴我，那幾乎可以確定是一種不治之症，
預計我大概活不到三到六個月了。

醫生建議我回家，好好跟親人們聚一聚，
這是醫生對臨終病人的標準建議。
那代表你得試著在幾個月內把你將來十年想跟小孩講的話講完。
那代表你得把每件事情搞定，家人才會儘量輕鬆。
那代表你得跟人說再見了。

我整天想著那個診斷結果，那天晚上做了一次切片，
從喉嚨伸入一個內視鏡，穿過胃進到腸子，將探針伸進胰臟，
取了一些腫瘤細胞出來。

我打了鎮靜劑，不醒人事，但是我老婆在場。她後來跟我說，
當醫生們用顯微鏡看過那些細胞後，他們都哭了，
因為那是非常少見的一種胰臟癌，可以用手術治好。
所以我接受了手術，康復了。（聽眾鼓掌）

這是我最接近死亡的時候，我希望那會繼續是未來幾十年內
最接近的一次。

經歷此事後，我可以比先前死亡只是純粹想像時，
要能更肯定地告訴你們下面這些：
沒有人想死。即使那些想上天堂的人，也想活著上天堂。
（聽眾笑）

但是死亡是我們共同的終點，沒有人逃得過。
這是註定的，因為死亡很可能就是生命中最棒的發明，
是生命交替的媒介，送走老人們，給新生代開出道路。

現在你們是新生代，但是不久的將來，你們也會逐漸變老，
被送出人生的舞台。抱歉講得這麼戲劇化，但是這是真的。

你們的時間有限，所以不要浪費時間活在別人的生活裡。

不要被教條所侷限-- 盲從教條就是活在別人思考結果裡。

不要讓別人的意見淹沒了你內在的心聲。
最重要的，擁有追隨自己內心與直覺的勇氣，
你的內心與直覺多少已經知道你真正想要成為什麼樣的人
（have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.
They somehow already know
what you truly want to become），
任何其他事物都是次要的。（聽眾鼓掌）

在我年輕時，有本神奇的雜誌叫做 《Whole Earth Catalog》，
當年這可是我們的經典讀物。
那是位住在離這不遠的 Menlo Park 的 Stewart Brand發行的，
他把雜誌辦得很有詩意。

那是 1960年代末期，個人電腦跟桌上出版還沒出現，
所有內容都是打字機、剪刀跟拍立得相機做出來的。
雜誌內容有點像印在紙上的平面 Google，
在Google 出現之前35年就有了：
這本雜誌很理想主義，充滿新奇工具與偉的見解。

Stewart 跟他的團隊出版了好幾期的《Whole Earth Catalog》，
然後很自然的，最後出了停刊號。當時是 1970 年代中期，
我正是你們現在這個年齡的時候。在停刊號的封底，
有張清晨鄉間小路的照片，
那種你四處搭便車冒險旅行時會經過的鄉間小路。
在照片下印了行小字：

求知若飢，虛心若愚
（Stay Hungry , Stay Foolish）。

那是他們親筆寫下的告別訊息，我總是以此自許。
當你們畢業，展開新生活，我也以此祝福你們。



過去 Past Time - 賈伯斯 Steve Jobs



現在 Now - 賈伯斯 Steve Jobs

____________________________________________________

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How to Counter Resistance to Change

Across the table from my most important and challenging client, I faced a conflict that required a delicate and sophisticated approach if I was to achieve the outcome I wanted. This client is by far the savviest negotiator I've ever faced and she's driven to win. The conversation went something like this:

"Daddy, what's for dessert?" Isabelle was six at the time. Willpower was not one of her "areas needing development."

"Well let's see, you can have an apple or some grapes."

"I want ice cream."

"That's not one of the choices, Sweetie. Do you want an apple or grapes?"

"Ice cream."

We went on like that for a few minutes and then she said, "If I can't have ice cream then I want a banana."

"Hmm," I responded, "that's not one of the choices but that's OK too. I'll get you one."

"Thanks Daddy," she said, clearly happy. Was she happy to have a banana or happy to have gotten something that was not one of the choices I offered?

It doesn't matter. Because my goal wasn't to break her will or show her who's boss. I was going for a very specific and clear outcome: nothing less than to build in her a lifelong habit of healthy eating. I wanted her to eat fruit for dessert and (this is the challenging part) be happy about it.

Having others work hard to achieve a goal you've set — not because you're forcing them to but because they choose to — is exactly the challenge leaders face in organizations every day.

And succeeding in it makes all the difference. For the employee it's the difference between being micromanaged and being self-motivated. For the organization it's the difference between passive resistance and energized alignment. And for you, the leader, it's the difference between frustrating exhaustion and inspired collaboration.

The job of a leader or manager (and these days who isn't a leader or a manager in one form or another?) is simple: to influence people. And there's one defining idea we have in our heads that makes that job harder.

We believe that people resist change.

So we do all sorts of things to counter that resistance. We try to motivate or coerce people to change.

But instead of breaking through resistance, we create it. People resist being controlled. And so 70% of all corporate change efforts fail.

Here's what's interesting: people freely choose to make major life changes every day. We move, get married, start families, face challenges, learn new technologies, change jobs, and develop new skills. Not all of these changes are smooth. But most of the time we seek those changes ourselves and make them successfully.

So why are people willing to change in one situation and resistant to it in another?

Because people don't resist change, they resist being changed.

In their personal lives people usually make their own choices. But in organizations they feel coerced. And so they use the only power they have to regain control: resistance.

To avoid the resistance? Give them control. Let them make decisions. If you offer them two choices (apple or grapes) and they pick a third (banana) you have the opportunity to cede control to them as long as their choice achieves the outcome acceptable to you (fruit). Then they own their decision and are happy with it because they made it themselves.

The key is to make it real. If you try to trick people into thinking they have control when they don't, you'll lose credibility. You have to actually give them some control, while keeping some for yourself, because as a manager, you're always accountable for the outcome.

So here are the three steps:


1. Define the outcome you want.

2. Suggest a path to achieve it.

3. Allow people to reject your path as long as they choose an alternate route to the same destination.


For example, if you want managers to have career development conversations with employees, propose a method of having those conversations. If managers disagree, ask them what they'd prefer to do and when they offer an alternative, as long as it gets employees and managers talking, accept it.

Same idea if you're rolling out a new technology, sales process, HR practice, or (fill in the blank). Don't sell it or try to get "buy-in." Instead of seeking agreement, try to surface disagreement. That gives you the opportunity to allow people to make changes, there on the spot. And then they become accountable.

Or let's say you need an aligned, focused, collaborative senior team but two of the top team members can't seem to work together. Put them in a room and explain to them the negative impact they're having on the business. Then ask what they want to do about it.

Yesterday Isabelle (now seven) was upset about something her friend did in school. She asked me to speak with her friend's mother. I didn't immediately say I wouldn't, though I clearly knew I wouldn't.

The outcome I want is for her to develop confidence in her ability to solve her own problems and also feel supported by me. So I asked her what she wanted me to say to her friend's mother. She told me and then I offered her two choices: she could say that to her friend or she could say it to her friend's mother. She didn't like either choice so she opted for the banana: she would say it to her friend and her friend's mother at the same time, while holding my hand.

Often a banana is the sweetest dessert there is.

Source: Peter Bregman
URL: http://blogs.hbr.org/bregman/2009/04/how-to-counter-resistance-to-c.html

How to Make Your Girlfriend Never Forget You

There’s one thing that will make you stand out from all the other guys in the world and that is the ability to inspire. Inspire your woman for a greater purpose. Change her from the inside, change the way she sees the world. Help her stand out and help her live a more happy life. Do it successfully and you’ll never be forgotten, for that I’m sure.

Don’t ever doubt if you can do this because yes, for sure you CAN! Help her find what she wants in life and make her understand and believe how important is to do it. Inspire her, change her, make her better. If you do it, you’ll naturally gain a special place in her life. Everyone is looking for something more. Find that something and help her achieve it, show her it’s possible. Teach her that the most important thing in life is to be happy. Help her find the way to be so. If she is already, help her be even more.

Leave something inside every girl that is special for you and you’ll never be one more guy in her life – you’ll be the man who changed her. Be a before and after in her life. Years will go by and perhaps many men will go through her life, but you will never be one more. Make her discover what she wants in life, in a man, or any aspect of her existence. Do it. Do it from your heart, believe what you say and what you tell them. Don’t bluff, be a great man. Down to earth, human but ambitious – make it clear that dreams should be high.

Definitely it’s not easy to be an inspirational figure, but it’s worth it to go all the way to become one. You have to speak about your and her dreams, what’s all you want in life. And you have to remind her and yourself that the key for happiness and success is to make all these dreams come true. Show her the way and do the impossible yourself, defeat all the pessimists and leave your girl shocked.

For example, at a dinner in Vienna I swore in front of all my friends I would learn how to speak German in just two months. Those who didn’t know me laughed and those you did know me looked at me strangely. Two months later, speaking fluently and working with the language, I left everyone speechless. Break your heart working for your dreams, push your limits to the highest you can imagine.

Set the example with yourself. If your objective is to get a beautiful woman for girlfriend, work like crazy for it. Turn the world around and don’t be afraid! Do it, work for your dreams. If this is what you dream, it will deserve all the attention and commitment in the world, all your effort. Find your purpose and don’t lie down.

Never give up, pursue your dreams until the last moment of your life, until your very last breath. Never, never settle for less! Be crazy about your dreams and teach her how to be too.

Source: beautifulwomendating.com

Lee Kuan Yew On Aging

MY CONCERN today is, what is it I can tell you which can add to your knowledge about ageing and what ageing societies can do. You know more about this subject than I do. A lot of it is out in the media, internet and books. So I thought the best way would be to take a personal standpoint and tell you how I approach this question of ageing.

If I cast my mind back, I can see turning points in my physical and mental health.. You know, when you're young, I didn't bother, assumed good health was God-given and would always be there. When I was about 1957 that was - I was about 34, we were competing in elections, and I was really fond of drinking beer and smoking. And after the election campaign, in Victoria Memorial Hall - we had won the election, the
City Council election - I couldn't thank the voters because I had lost my voice. I'd been smoking furiously. I'd take a packet of 10 to deceive myself, but I'd run through the packet just sitting on the stage, watching the crowd, getting the feeling, the mood before I speak.

In other words, there were three speeches a night. Three speeches a night, 30 cigarettes, a lot of beer after that, and the voice was gone.

I remember I had a case in Kuching, Sarawak. So I took the flight and I felt awful. I had to make up my mind whether I was going to be an effective campaigner and a lawyer, in which case I cannot destroy my voice, and I can't go on. So I stopped smoking. It was a tremendous deprivation because I was addicted to it. And I used to wake up dreaming...the nightmare was I resumed smoking.

But I made a choice and said, if I continue this, I will not be able to do my job. I didn't know anything about cancer of the throat or oesophagus or the lungs, etc. But it turned out it had many other deleterious effects.

Strangely enough after that, I became very allergic, hyper-allergic to smoking, so much so that I would plead with my Cabinet ministers not to smoke in the Cabinet room. You want to smoke, please go out, because I am allergic.

Then one day I was at the home of my colleague, Mr Rajaratnam, meeting foreign correspondents including some from the London Times and they took a picture of me and I had a big belly like that (puts his hands in front of his belly), a beer belly. I felt no, no, this will not do. So I started playing more golf, hit hundreds of balls on the practice tee. But this didn't go down. There was only one way it could go down: consume less, burn up more.

Another turning point came when - this was 1976, after the general election - I was feeling tired. I was breathing deeply at the Istana, on the lawns. My daughter, who at that time just graduating as a doctor, said, 'What are you trying to do?' I said, 'I feel an effort to breathe in more oxygen.' She said: 'Don't play golf. Run.
Aerobics.' So she gave me a book , quite a famous book and, then, very current in America on how you score aerobic points swimming, running, whatever it is, cycling. I looked at it sceptically. I wasn't very keen on running. I was keen on golf. So I said, 'Let's try'. So in-between golf shots while playing on my own, sometimes nine holes at the Istana, I would try and walk fast between shots. Then I began to run between shots. And I felt better. After a while, I said: 'Okay, after my golf, I run.' And after a few years, I said, 'Golf takes so long. The running takes 15 minutes. Let's cut out the golf and let's run.'

I think the most important thing in ageing is you got to understand yourself. And the knowledge now is all there.

When I was growing up, the knowledge wasn't there. I had to get the knowledge from friends, from doctors. But perhaps the most important bit of knowledge that the doctor gave me was one day, when I said, 'Look, I'm feeling slower and sluggish.' So he gave me a medical encyclopaedia and he turned the pages to ageing. I read it up and it was illuminating. A lot of it was difficult jargon but I just skimmed through to get the gist of it.

As you grow, you reach 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and then, thereafter, you are on a gradual slope down physically.

Mentally, you carry on and on and on until I don't know what age, but mathematicians will tell you that they know their best output is when they're in their 20s and 30s when your mental energy is powerful and you haven't lost many neurons. That's what they tell me.

So, as you acquire more knowledge, you then craft a programme for yourself to maximise what you have. It's just common sense. I never planned to live till 85 or 84! I just didn't think about it. I said: 'Well, my mother died when she was 74, she had a stroke. My father died when he was 94.'

But I saw him, and he lived a long life, well, maybe it was his DNA. But more than that, he swam every day and he kept himself busy. He was working for the Shell company. He was in charge, he was a superintendent of an oil depot. When he retired, he started becoming a salesman. So people used to tell me, 'Your father is selling watches at BP de Silva.' My father was then living with me. But it kept him busy. He had that routine: He meets people, he sells watches, he buys and sells all kinds of semi-precious stones, he circulates coins. And he keeps going. But at 87, 88, he fell, going down the steps from his room to the dining room, broke his arm, three months incapacitated.

Thereafter, he couldn't go back to swimming. Then he became wheelchair-bound. Then it became a problem because my house was constructed that way. So my brother - who's a doctor and had a flat (one-level) house - took him in. And he lived on till 94. But towards the end, he had gradual loss of mental powers.

So my calculations, I'm somewhere between 74 and 94. And I've reached the halfway point now. But have I?

Well, 1996 when I was 73, I was cycling and I felt tightening on the neck. Oh, I must retire today. So I stopped. Next day, I returned to the bicycle. After five minutes it became worse.

So I said, no, no, this is something serious, it's got to do with the blood vessels. Rung up my doctor, who said, 'Come tomorrow'. Went tomorrow, he checked me, and said, 'Come back tomorrow for an angiogram.'

I said: 'What's that?' He said, 'We'll pump something in and we'll see whether the coronary arteries are cleared or blocked.' I was going to go home. But an MP who was a cardiologist happened to be around, so he came in and said: 'What are you doing here?' I said, 'I've got this.' He said: 'Don't go home. You stay here tonight. I've sent patients home and they never came back. Just stay here. They'll put you on the
monitor.

They'll watch your heart. And if anything, an emergency arises, they will take you straight to the theatre. You go home. You've got no such monitor. You may never come back.'

So I stayed there. Pumped in the dye, yes it was blocked, the left circumflex, not the critical, lead one. So that's lucky for me. Two weeks later, I was walking around,I felt it's coming back. Yes it has come back, it had occluded. So this time they said: 'We'll put in a stent.'

I'm one of the first few in Singapore to have the stent, so it was a brand new operation. Fortunately, the man who invented the stent was out here selling his stent. He was from San Jose, La Jolla something or the other. So my doctor got hold of him and he supervised the operation. He said put the stent in. My doctor did the operation, he just watched it all and then that's that. That was before all this
problem about lining the stent to make sure that it doesn't occlude and create a disturbance.

So at each stage, I learnt something more about myself and I stored that.

I said, 'Oh, this is now a danger point.'

So all right, cut out fats, change diet, went to see a specialist in Boston, Massachusetts General Hospital. He said: 'Take statins.' I said, 'What's that?' He said, '(They) help to reduce your cholesterol.' My doctors were concerned. They said, 'You don't need it. Your cholesterol levels are okay.' Two years later, more medical evidence came out. So the doctors said, 'Take statins.'

Had there been no angioplasty, had I not known that something was up and I cycled on, I might have gone at 74 like my mother. So I missed that deadline.

So next deadline: my father's fall at 87.

I'm very careful now because sometimes when I turn around too fast, I feel as if I'm going to get off balance. So my daughter, a neurologist, she took me to the NNI, there's this nerve conduction test, put electrodes here and there.

The transmission of the messages between the feet and the brain has slowed down.

So all the exercise, everything, effort put in, I'm fit, I swim, I cycle. But I can't prevent this losing of conductivity of the nerves and this transmission. So just go slow.

So when I climb up the steps, I have no problem. When I go down the steps, I need to be sure that I've got something I can hang on to, just in case. So it's a constant process of adjustment.

But I think the most important single lesson I learnt in life was that if you isolate yourself, you're done for.

The human being is a social animal - he needs stimuli, he needs to meet people, to catch up with the world.

I don't much like travel but I travel very frequently despite the jet lag, because I get to meet people of great interest to me, who will help me in my work as chairman of our GIC. So I know, I'm on several boards of banks, international advisory boards of banks, of oil companies and so on.

And I meet them and I get to understand what's happening in the world, what has changed since I was here one month ago, one year ago. I go to India, I go to China.

And that stimuli brings me to the world of today. I'm not living in the world, when I was active, more active 20, 30 years ago. So I tell my wife. She woke up late today. I said, 'Never mind, you come along by 12 o'clock. I go first.'

If you sit back - because part of the ending part of the encyclopaedia which I read was very depressing - as you get old, you withdraw from everything and then all you will have is your bedroom and the photographs and the furniture that you know, and that's your world. So if you've got to go to hospital, the doctor advises you to bring some photographs so that you'll know you're not lost in a different world,
that this is like your bedroom.

I'm determined that I will not, as long as I can, to be reduced, to have my horizons closed on me like that. It is the stimuli, it is the constant interaction with people across the world that keeps me aware and alive to what's going on and what we can do to adjust to this different world.

In other words, you must have an interest in life. If you believe that at 55, you're retiring, you're going to read books, play golf and drink wine, then I think you're done for. So statistically they will show you that all the people who retire and lead sedentary lives, the pensioners die off very quickly.

So we now have a social problem with medical sciences, new procedures, new drugs, many more people are going to live long lives. If the mindset is that when I reach retirement age 62, I'm old, I can't work anymore, I don't have to work, I just sit back, now is the time I'll enjoy life, I think you're making the biggest mistake of your life.

After one month, or after two months, even if you go travelling with nothing to do, with no purpose in life, you will just degrade, you'll go yo seed.

The human being needs a challenge, and my advice to every personin Singapore and elsewhere: Keep yourself interested, have a challenge.

If you're not interested in the world and the world is not interested in you, the biggest punishment a man can receive is total isolation in a dungeon, black and complete withdrawal of all stimuli, that's real torture. So when I read that people believe, Singaporeans say, 'Oh, 62 I'm retiring.' I say to them, 'You really want to die quickly?' If you want to see sunrise tomorrow or sunset, you must have a reason, you must have the stimuli to keep going.'

Have a purpose driven life and finish well my friends.



________________________________

Where the hell is Matt?

Hi, I watch this video today (13 Apr 2009) and I feel its owesome, you try...



Uploaded by Matt Harding on June 20, 2006
I had a great time making this. Hope you enjoy it.

Finish watching the first video then only watch the below one, thanks.


The next video was 2 years after, its different... trust me...



Uploaded by Matt Harding on June 20, 2008
14 months in the making, 42 countries, and a cast of thousands. Thanks to everyone who danced with me.

Source: www.wherethehellismatt.com

Thank you.

10 things you can do during Earth Hour

About Earth Hour
Earth Hour is a global WWF climate change initiative. Individuals, businesses, governments and communities are invited to turn out their lights for one hour on Saturday March 28, 2009 at 8:30 PM to show their support for action on climate change.

The event began in Sydney in 2007, when 2 million people switched off their lights. In 2008, more than 50 million people around the globe participated. In 2009, Earth Hour aims to reach out to 1 billion people in 1,000 cities.


10 things you can do during Earth Hour
Earth Hour is about taking simple steps everyday that collectively reduce carbon emissions - from businesses turning off their lights when their offices are empty to households turning off appliances rather than leaving them on standby.

Here are ten different ways to spend Earth Hour and reduce your greenhouse gas emissions:

1. Gather family and friends for a night picnic
2. Dine in one of the many Earth Hour participating restaurants by candlelight
3. Oraganise a family night playing board games
4. Throw an Earh Hour street party with your neighbours
5. Arrange a house party lit by torches
6. Take the dog for a night walk
7. Hand write a letter to loved one by lantern
8. Sit in the dark and share stories
9. Read a book using a book light
10. Share a romantic night in with your loved one

To find out more, visit the official website www.earthhour.org/malaysia and sign up.

Cheers...

Why do you whine?

Whining is something that we all do, but the question is why? When you whine nothing really happens other than you sounding like a baby. And if you sound like a baby then you are probably going to be treated like one. But seriously, why do people whine?

Over the last few weeks I have heard dozens of people whine and the most common one was:

Why doesn’t anyone fund my business idea? Trixie and Biff got venture capital funding and my idea is much better than theirs!

When you whine your problems don’t get solved because you are spending all your time whining instead of fixing. So the next time you are upset and are about to whine, do the following:

1. Take all the IF’s and BUTs out of your head. It doesn’t matter if Trixie or Biff had a better outcome; this is you we are talking about and not them.

2. Think about the situation and why it happened the way it did.

3. If another party was involved, think about the situation from their perspective. If another party was not involved, think about the situation from a neutral perspective (I know this is hard, but you can do it).

4. List out all the possible ways you can potentially change the situation to be favorable for you.
Try and fix the situation using one of the ways you listed out. If things go your way, that’s great. If things don’t go your way or if the situation can’t be changed, then learn from it and move on.

5. Life is not perfect and we all whine about things (even me), but you’re more likely to succeed if you think about things from a logical perspective instead of an emotional whiny perspective.

P/S: Hopefully it didn’t sound like I was whining about people whining.

Source: http://www.quicksprout.com/2008/05/21/why-do-people-whine/

Cheers

CAN

This is the True Story

A son says to his father: 'Dad, would you be willingly to run a marathon with me?'
The father, despite his age and a heart disease, says 'YES'.
And they run that marathon, together.

The son asks: 'Dad, can you run another marathon with me?' Again father says 'YES'.
They run another marathon, together.

One day the son asks his father: Dad, would please do the Iron Man with me?'

(Now just in case you wouldn't know, 'The Iron Man' is the toughest triathlon in existence; 4km swimming, then 180 km by bike, and finally another 42 km running, in one stroke).

Again his father says 'YES'

Maybe this doesn't 'touch' you yet by your heart strings... until you see this movie (put on sound!):

My Redeemer Lives...



Read and comments:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJMbk9dtpdY

When words fail me...unconditional LOVE which has no boundaries !!
(Janet Desborough, 21 Nov 2008)

Regards

有助減患癌風險，建議禁用保麗龍容器

檳城消費人協會主席莫哈末依里斯促請政府禁止人們使用聚苯乙烯（保麗龍）食物容器，因為研究證明聚苯乙烯會滲出致癌物質苯乙烯。

他於今日（週三，9月24日）召開新聞發佈會說，小販普遍使用聚苯乙烯泡沫塑料容器，盛滾熱及油膩的食物，經常是直接把食物放進這類容器，以致增加致癌物質進入食物的機會。

“餐館和飲食中心也使用聚苯乙烯制的杯、碗、碟、叉和湯匙。聚苯乙烯通常被稱為6號塑料，為國內第3大常用塑料，全世界每年使用數以百萬噸計。”

苯乙烯歸類為2B級致癌物

他說，世界衛生組織屬下的國際癌症研究機構，把苯乙烯歸類為2B級致癌物，為可能使人患癌症的物質。

“苯乙烯也是一種誘發突變的物質，誘變劑為可能引發癌症的風險因素，同時可能損害生殖能力。”

他說，生產聚苯乙烯要用苯。苯是人類的致癌物質，已證實與白血病（血癌）有關。據英國對包裝食品的聚苯乙烯塑料的研究，發現其苯含量可高達百萬分之八十。

“研究證明，接觸少量苯乙烯，可能造成紅血球的數量偏低。婦女在工作場所接觸了低濃度的苯蒸汽，會患上各種經期紊亂的疾病。”

他說，把苯乙烯從人們的飲食習慣中剔除，將有助於減少人們患癌的風險。

為此，檳消協勸請消費人在向小販購買食物時，攜帶安全的食品容器，拒絕苯乙烯的致癌物質。

甚麼是聚苯乙烯？

聚苯乙烯比紙做的代替品便宜，因此成為食品製造商、食品包裝服務業者、學校、醫院和其他機構的選擇。

聚苯乙烯包裝有2類，即泡沫塑料和結實塑料。泡沫聚苯乙烯用來製造打包食物的泡沫塑料盒和用後即丟的杯、碗和碟等。

結實的聚苯乙烯則用來做食品盒（蓋子分開的）、餐具，和酸奶及乾酪的容器。

聚苯乙烯製品，有時可從食品容器底部的6號或PS代號辨認。這號碼或字母圍在連環的箭號之內。

聚苯乙烯包裝通常含有一些殘餘的苯乙烯，有可能進入食物中，或因受熱、曝曬及磨損而碎裂，以致化學物質成份滲入食物之中，最終會進入人體，影響健康。

Source: 星洲日報‧2008.09.24

Spending too much time in office? Read this.

HAVE you ever wondered why we tend to be more polite with total strangers than we are with our own family?

Think back the last time you accidentally bumped into a passer-by. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had said something like, “I’m sorry, please excuse me.”
Now think back to the time when you accidentally collided into your child at home. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if you had sternly retorted with “Can’t you see where you’re going?”

If you’re saying to yourself. “Yeah, it’s true”, you’re not alone.

When someone spoke to me about this recently, I had to sheepishly admit to him that I am one of those who are “guilty as charged”.

It would seem at first that these reactions are totally normal, but you need only look a sliver below the surface to realise that if we can be so polite to people we don’t even know, how much more we should be considerate and show courtesy to the people who are closest to us.

But why do we react the way we do? Is it familiarity that breeds contempt? Is it an ingrained unconscious habit to take things too much for granted at home? Or is it just something that’s intrinsic in our culture?

Think about this too: We pour ourselves into work so passionately that it often exceeds the enthusiasm and dedication which we are prepared to shower upon our families.

In the same breath, we readily acknowledge the fact that if we die tomorrow, the company we work for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

In spite of this, many of us continue to partake in such “unwise investments” which invariably yield poor rates of return. I know of people in my office who spend so much time at work that they jest about knowing more about their fellow colleagues than their own spouse and kids. For me, this is no laughing matter.

Here’s a story I heard some years ago:

A professor stood before his philosophy class with some items in front of him.
When the class began, he picked up a very large and empty glass jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked
once more if the jar was full.

The students responded with a unanimous “yes”. The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor.
“I want you to recognise that this jar represents your life. The golf balls represent the important things – your family, your health, your children, your friends, your passions – the kind of stuff that if all else was lost and only these remained, your life would still be full.

“The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, your car.
“The sand is everything else – the small stuff.
“If you put the sand into the jar first, there will be no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.”

You know, the same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small things, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
Pay attention to the elements that are critical to your happiness.

Play with your children. Set aside time for your medical check-ups.Help out at a charitable institution. Take your spouse out to dinner.

Don’t worry. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the hinge on that cupboard door.

Take care of the golf balls first; the rest is just sand.

Wrirter: Geoff Tan

婚姻存摺

我的'婚姻存摺'是出嫁那天，媽媽遞到我手上的，當時,我以為會是一大筆錢，打開一看發現只有1000元，我用失望的眼神看著媽媽，媽媽卻笑著說:'這是我特意為你們辦理的'婚姻存摺'，'以後每逢值得紀念的日子，都可以存一筆錢，等到老的時候,裡面除了錢,還有無限的幸福…'。

當時,我對母親這份心思不以為然,倒是丈夫記在了心上。

婚後沒多久!，他就先後存了兩個500元，
一個是因為他升職了，第二個是因為我手術治愈出院。
當時我嘴上笑他無聊，其實心裡甜蜜無比，
畢竟他把我的健康也當作一件讓他感到幸福的事。
沒過多久,我懷孕了,這一次,我足足往裡面存了2000元。

但很快，我們開始有了爭吵和冷漠﹔
孩子出生帶來的快樂是短暫的，洗不完的尿布、喂不完的奶，
進一步加劇了我們感情的惡化而那本婚姻存摺像被遺忘了，
寂寞地躺在抽屜角落，上面的數字久未見漲。

我們鬧離婚的時候，媽媽說:你們先把存摺上面的錢花光了再離吧，
雖然錢不多，但是你們共同的財產。

於是，我第一次取了1000元，然後拎著幾件心儀已久的衣服離開商場時，
我又回去對售貨小姐說:'對不起,我不買了!請你退回我剛才付給你的錢。'
也許當時的局面窘迫極了A
但我腦海裡想到的是那1000元婚姻積蓄的來源:
他是個害羞的男人，但曾在街頭大聲地對我說'我愛你'，我為此存下100元，
他記得我的生日、鞋號、密碼及最怕的事，我為此在生日那天存下300元，
他對女人有風度,也有距離，不給暗戀他的女下屬任何機會，我為此存下500元...
啊，這1000元裡就有這麼多的幸福積累，再看看婚姻存摺上的兩萬多元，我的眼睛忽然就有些濕潤起來。

晚上回到家，我把存摺交給他，說:'趕緊花吧，花光了好離婚。

第二天晚上，他把存摺遞到我手上，我打開一看，發現反而多了1000元。
他說:'那上面的每一元錢都記錄著我們走過的歷程。'
我第一次發覺原來是這樣的愛你，索性又存i了1000元，我們從此又和好如初了。

還是媽媽說得對，以愛情的名義為婚姻開個戶口，把夫妻間所有快樂的、幸福的、浪漫的事，通通存進銀行！

有了這本日積月累的婚姻存摺，即使是再貧窮的婚姻，也決不害怕透支。

這一生，你可能會遇到許多喜歡你的人。
但是，你可能永遠都遇不到一個你真正愛的人。
所以，一但遇到了，一定要好好的把握。
很多事情，錯過了就沒有了，錯過了就是會變的，緣份也是。

多關懷我們身旁的人

儘可能多關懷我們身旁的人 - 無論是父母、夫妻、子女、朋友、同事 ,一個笑容 , 一聲問候 , 都可能改變一個悲劇的產生.

他是一位退休教授，跟老妻過著優游的生活，早上一起爬上小山崗舒展筋骨，下午他料理陽台的花草，又或看看雜誌，妻子則和朋友到咖啡室聊天。他們唯一的女兒，在美國定居。

月前的一個晚上，朦朧間他感到床墊濕了，是老妻尿床。 他推推她，發覺她已沒有反應。

「節哀順變。」不少親戚朋友說。「謝謝關心，我會的。」 他極有禮貌地回答，沒失方寸，一派學者風範。

暗地裡，他部署一切。
花草贈給鄰居，向人借的書籍郵寄送還，然後，走上律師樓立遺囑。全部準備好了。

在月圓的晚上，銀光薄薄的灑滿一室，他亮起微黃的檯燈，寫下最後的說話。
面前，是一瓶藥丸。瓶子上，他看見老妻微笑。就在他打開瓶蓋的時刻，電話響起。他拿起電話筒，一把熟悉的聲音傳來：「爸爸，我在機場，我好想陪陪你。」 他猛然醒覺。

老教授向我說完他的故事，喝一口香片，緩緩道：「最有效防止自殺的東西，不是學術修養，不是心理醫生，不是豐厚財富， 原來是一種簡簡單單的被愛感覺。」

因為重要，請多傳一次

1.這個社會病態報導多，鼓勵人心的少。
2.我們其實是他人豐厚財富的一部分，值得多存一些。

於是我轉寄了

Two men in a hospital room

A story starts here...

Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room.

One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs.

His bed was next to the room's only window.

The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end.

They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside.

The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake.

Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by.

Although the other man could not hear the band, he could see it in his mind s eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months passed.

One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep.

She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone.

Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside.

He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed.

It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window.

The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.

She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you..."



Epilogue:

There is tremendous happiness in making others happy, despite our own situations.

Shared grief is half the sorrow, but happiness when shared, is doubled.

If you want to feel rich, just count all the things you have that money can't buy.

"Today is a gift, that is why it is called The Present."

The origin of this letter is unknown, but it brings good luck to everyone who passes it on.

Please forward this link to your friends to whom you wish blessings.
http://jlim16.blogspot.com/2008/06/two-men-in-hospital-room.html

Thank you for reading.

Can A Family Man With Salary RM3,000 Survive In Malaysia...?

Can A Family Man With Salary RM3,000 Survive In Malaysia?

Can a family man with Salary RM3,000 survive in Malaysia

Let's do some simple calculations here.

In Malaysia, the average family income is RM3,000 /month
(where father works, mother doesn't).

I understand there are many families whose monthly income does not reach RM3,000, but, to make things simple, let's take RM3,000 as the figure. Ok lah, right?

Okay, let's start rolling with a family which has Papa, Mama, 1 daughter and 1 son. Ngam-ngam .....

Calculation starts...

Electricity and water bill: RM100
(No air-con, No home theatre, No water heater ... ok?)

Phone bill (Telekom+handphone): RM100

Meals for a happy family: RM775
(3 meals on RM25/day, RM25 for 4 persons...?)

Papa makan / teh-tarik during working hrs: RM155
(RM5/day, RM5 ... can eat what?)

Car repayment: RM400
(A proton saga aeroback, 7 yrs repayment)

Petrol (living in city, traffic-jam): RM300
(go to work, bring son to school, only can afford one car running)
Insurance: RM650
(kids, wife and myself)

House repayment: RM750
(low cost housing repayment for 30 yrs, retired still have to work to pay!)

Tuition: RM80
(got that cheap meh? i don't think so)

Older children pocket money @ school: RM20
(RM1/day, eat bread?)

School fees: RM30
(enough ah?)

School books and etc: RM100 (always got extra to pay in school)

Younger children milk powder: RM50
(cannot have the DHA, BHA, PHA one, expensive)

Miscellaneous: RM100
(shampoo, rice, sauce, toilet paper)

Oh wait!!! I have to stop here, so...

No Astro,
no movie @ cinema,
no DVD,
no CD,
no online,
cannot KFC,
cannot McDonald,
cannot go Park walk during weekend (petrol expensive),
no chit chat on phone with grandparents, and etc...

Let's use a calculator to total up... WALAO EH! Shit! RM3,610 already...

EPF belum potong, income tax lagi........oledi RM3,610 ....

How to survive lah tuan-tuan dan puan-puan sekalian ???

Our Deputy Prime Minister asked us to change lifestyle?

How to change? Don't eat? Don't work? Don't send children to school and study?

Besides that, I believe in Malaysia population, there are millions of rakyat Malaysia which still don't earn RM3,000/month!!!

What is this? Inilah Malaysia Boleh... Sorry ... it should be Malaysians Boleh , because we're still alive and kicking!!

Our politicians must be mad!!!!

Please forward and comment boleh or tak boleh. No wonder so many Ah Loong around lah....

Pictures you can't miss...

Holding the sun... FANTASTIC !!