THE MORNING SHOW ON SPIRIT FM
WITH
JIM & KAREN
6-9 AM MONDAY THRU FRIDAY
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 23
Love always protects.
Love always protects. 1 Cronithians 13:7 (NIV)
Marriage is made up of many things, including joys, sorrows, successes, and failures. But when you think about what you want marriage to be like, the furthest things from your mind is a battleground. However, there are some battles you should be more willing to fight. These are battles that pertain to protecting your spouse.
Unfortunately your marriage has enemies out there. They come in different forms and use different strategies, but nonetheless they will conspire to destroy your relationship unless you know how to ward them off. Things like harmfulinfluences, unhealthy relationships, shame, and parasites that suck the life out of your spouse.
Wives you have a role as protector in your marriage. You must guard your heart from being led away through novels, magazines and other forms of entertainment that blur your perception of reality and put unfair expectattions on yourhusband.
Men, you are the head of your home. You are the one responsible before God for guarding the gate and standing your ground against anything that would threaten your wife or marriage.
TODAY’S DARE: Remove anything thatis hindering your relationship, any addiction or influence that’s stealing your affections and turning your heart away from your spouse.
ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS: What did you throw out first? Are there others that need to go as well? What do you hope the removal of these things will do for you, your marriage, and your relationship with God?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Dream Day, a time to focus attention on dreams for a better world
Today is National Oatmeal-Nut Waffles Day.
Today is Apple Appreciation Day, honoring the memory of Johnny "Appleseed" Chapman, who died on this date in 1847. He planted apple trees everywhere he went and was regarded by native Americans a great medicine man. Most famous people are honored on the date of their birth, but in Johnny Appleseed's case it seemed more appropriate on the day he was planted.
Today is National Debunking Day, a day to debunk rumors and myths.
Today is Enjoy Your Tools Day. * What is YOUR favorite tool to use around the house?
1951: The comic strip "Dennis the Menace" first appeared in U.S. newspapers. His favorite drink was root beer. For years, he always carried a slingshot in his back pocket.
One of America's great meat packers, Oscar Mayer, died at the age of 96 on this day in 1955. But, of course, his baloney lives on.
Thank goodness Oscar was not a politician.
In The News…..
Obama Education
President Obama wants public schools to go beyond math and reading proficiency and include classes on "creativity" and "imagination." Kids who grow up with more creative imaginations and less math and reading ability have great career opportunities in the White House budget office.
NFL Immune
A new report shows that the National Football League is exempt from being sued if terrorists attack a site the league is protecting. And the terrorists have a right to sue if they somehow get stuck in the upper deck with at a Kansas City Chiefs game.
Over the weekend in D.C., first lady Michelle Obama was at a homeless shelter serving food to the homeless. Isn’t that nice? Reaching out to the middle class . . .
Former president George W. Bush says he will start a speaking tour. I don’t know why I find this funny…but I do.
An art exhibition in Holland gives people the chance to telephone God - but they have to leave a message. Dubbed God's Hotline, it aims to focus attention the ways Dutch people perceive religion. Artist Johan van der Dong chose a mobile phone number to show that God was available anywhere and anytime. Forming part of an art exhibit in the town of Groningen, the voicemail message says: "This is the voice of God, I am not able to speak to you at the moment, but please leave a message." The phone number already has 1,000 messages left for God.
Today's Octo-Mom update: NADYA SULEMAN now has a set of nurses to help her with the task of caring for eight little ones — not to mention her six other kids. MSNBC reports that Angels in Waiting, a nonprofit group which specializes in premature infant developmental care, will have 14 nurses a day, four to five at a time, working around the clock for the Octo-Mom. Other developments: People magazine says the Suleman family is buying a house in Orange County, CA, which is "nearly twice as big" as the one they currently have in lovely Whittier, CA. For the record, a Prudential Realty rep blabs that it’s almost 26-hundred square feet, with four bedrooms, three baths and a steal at $564,900.• In other news, Nadya talked to "The Insider" tabloid TV show and told them some of her children are angry over the impending arrival of the octuplets.
STIMULUS MONEY COMING TO YOU IN TAX CREDITS NOT IN A CHECK THIS TIME
The latest, $787 billion economic stimulus package President Obama signed last month includes about $287 billion in tax cuts, if you believe the calculations Congress came up with. (It’s always hard to know exactly how the numbers will shake out).
But instead of mailing out a check for up to $600 per person and $1,200 for couples, as the Bush administration did, Congress and the White House decided to take a different approach. One big reason is that the evidence suggests that a lot of people didn’t spend the money but stashed it in savings or used it to pay off credit cards. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s not the fastest way to get the money flowing through the economy.
Instead, the new tax cuts are going to a variety of different people in various circumstances, or to those who buy or invest in certain things the government wants them to. That means some people will get checks mailed to them; others may see a bigger tax refund check, still others will get a break on their taxes.
TOP TEN SONGS AMERICAN IDOL FINALISTS SHOULD AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE
NEW YORK — "I just don't know if that was the right song for you."
That's the recurring riff American Idol contestants have been hearing more this season than ever before.
Because for every Jennifer Hudson belting out "Circle of Life" or David Archuleta crooning "Imagine," there's a Casey Carlson, who this season chirped "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" to a grim death.
Maybe that's why Simon Cowell has promised a "Simon Picks The Songs Week."
But until then, the final 13 Idol contestants should check out the list of 10 classics no Idol singer should attempt.
1. HELP The Beatles
2. With or Without You U-2
3. Piano Man Billy Joel
4. Respect Aretha Franklin
5. An I’m Telling You Jennifer Hudson (Dream Girls)
6. Rock N Roll All Night KISS
7. Let’s Get It On Marvin Gaye
8. My Heart Will Go On Celine Dion
9. Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough Michael Jackson
10. Bohemian Rhapsody Queen
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE THIS NAME?
BELOIT, Wis. - Police years ago pulled over a young woman who rushed through an amber traffic light. "I'm about to arrest this person right now," the irritated officer radioed to a dispatcher. "She's telling me her name is Marijuana Pepsi Jackson."
It's the truth. Marijuana and Pepsi are her legal first and middle names, and the Beloit woman embraces them as a symbol of her struggle to succeed and to help other children overcome obstacles.
No Mary or Mary Jane or Mary Wanda for her. It's Marijuana, thank you, she's told bosses, co-workers and friends over the years, and even wore it on nametags at work.
This tall, striking, self-assured, motorcycle-riding woman is a schoolteacher with a master's degree in higher education administration. Soon, she'll start work on her doctorate.
All of her achievement came despite that smoky, carbonated name. And partly because of it. No one named Marijuana Pepsi gets lost in the crowd.
"Everybody I meet says this: You're nothing like I thought you'd be," she told me when we sat down for an interview in Beloit last week.
These days she goes by Marijuana Sawyer, the surname of her ex-husband from Georgia, where she spent 10 years before returning to Beloit in 2008 to fulfill a promise to make a difference in her hometown. She has a 6-year-old son named, mercifully, Isaac.
Sawyer's mother, Maggie Johnson, picked her name. Her father objected but lost the argument. To this day, a lot of family members and best buds call her Pepsi.
Sawyer was the most improved student at graduation in 1990, and she received a $12,000 scholarship to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where she studied to be a teacher. She was invited to a White House conference in 1995 and met President Bill Clinton, who swears he never inhaled.
In 1998, she got a job teaching elementary school children in Atlanta. She also sold real estate there. It was the one time in her life that she went by MP Sawyer professionally because the name Marijuana was freaking out the customers and causing her for-sale signs to be stolen as souvenirs.
Over two semesters and a summer, she earned her master's degree from Georgia Southern University and moved back to Beloit with her son in May. She plans to fund a scholarship bearing her unique name.
At the moment she is a substitute teacher at a variety of city schools ("I heard of you!" the students will say), but she's looking for a job in academic advising and admissions at a college or university, preferably near Beloit. She has no doubt that her difficult childhood and the way she tenaciously rose above her name have helped her to reach kids with problems.
She's exactly what any kid in America needs to know about someone who can truly make it if they put their mind to it." In case you're wondering, she said she never once smoked the stuff and prefers orange soda.
FUNERAL SERVICES FOR ILLINOIS PASTOR ANNOUNCED
KSDK -- The pastor of a Maryville church who was gunned down Sunday will be laid to rest this Friday.
Senior Pastor Fred Winters, 45, was shot and killed while delivering a sermon at the 8:15 a.m. Sunday service at First Baptist Church of Maryville. The alleged gunman, 27-year-old Terry Sedlacek, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of aggravated battery.
Maryville is located about 20 miles northeast of St. Louis.
Winters' family said visitation services will take place Thursday, March 12, between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the church where the pastor once presided. The funeral is scheduled for the following day at 10:30 a.m. at the same location. Burial services will be private.
A trust fund has a
lso been established for Winters' family. Donations can be made at the church or by dropping them off at Scott Credit Union in Collinsville.
JAY LENO TO DO A FREE SHOW FOR THE UNEMPLOYED
Comedian Jay Leno unveiled his own stimulus package for the jobless in Detroit, Michigan.
"The Tonight Show" host will put on a free comedy show -- "Jay's Comedy Stimulus Plan" -- next month at the Palace of Auburn Hills, which holds about 24,000 people.
Free tickets will be given out beginning at Monday at 10 a.m. for the April 7 show, according to Leno's Web site.
Leno, host of NBC's "Tonight Show" for more than 15 years, has a new job himself. He will move from late night to a 10 p.m. show.
IF YOU HAVE LOST YOUR JOB THIS WEBSITE HAS A WEALTH OF INFORMATION THAT COULD HELP YOU!
http://www.rileyguide.com/cope.html
Things like maintaining your health insurance; how to cope with the stress of losing your job, your rights and unemployment help. It is all at this website!
GOOGLE LAUNCHES “TIP-JAR”
Google has created TipJar, a new website where people can share money-saving advice and vote on how useful they find the information.
TipJar is a collection of money-saving tips submitted and ranked by the web community. Advice is divided in to several categories, including at home, at work, travel, shopping and family.
So far, more than 2,060 people have contributed more than 1,520 tips to the TipJar since the site launched on Thursday. Users have cast more than 21,750 votes about the usefulness of tips. The voting system means that the most useful tips will get greater prominence on the site.
Among some of the tips shared so far are: “Buy a water filter and take your own water to the gym/sports etc. Bottled water is expensive, unnecessary and bad for the environment,” posted by Dough Roller; “Master the thirty day rule. Whenever you’re considering making an unnecessary purchase, wait thirty days and then ask yourself if you still want that item,” shared by The Simple Dollar; and “Drink a lot of water all day long, your body will thank you,” posted by CG in El Paso, Texas.
TipJar is an example of generating ideas through “crowdsourcing”, said Google.
“Google believes that people working together can help one another through even the most difficult times, tapping collective minds to find answers on how to make small changes that save the pennies,” said a spokesman. “We’d like to put these beliefs in to practice. So go ahead: Take a tip. Share a tip. We’ll all be a little bit richer for it.”
DID YOU COLLECT BASEBALL CARDS AS A KID? WE BET THEY DIDN”T LOOK LIKE THESE….
They look like normal baseball cards -- until pitcher Tim Lincecum or slugger Ryan Howard start strutting across your computer desk.Beam me up Scotty... Topps' new baseball cards offer much more than a stick of chewing gum and stats.
When Topps' 3D Live cards are held in front of a webcam, an avatar of the player pops up and begins pitching, hitting or fielding.
"This is the ‘Beam me up, Scotty’ version of a baseball card that will get kids to buy more, " Steve Grimes, chief digital officer at Topps, told the New York Times. "We see this baseball season as a redefining moment for us,"
The "augemented reality" baseball cards place an image of the player on the computer screen. The on-screen player can be moved around to make the player on the card perform motions.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
TODAY IS TUESDAY - MARCH 10, 2009
THE MORNING SHOW
WITH
JIM & KAREN
ON
SPIRIT FM
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 22
Love is faithful.
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the Lord. Hosea 2:20
As Christians, love is the basis of our whole identity. Our spiritual rebirth came about because “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”. (John 3:16)
So if love is what we were created to share, what do you do when your love is rejected? How do you handle it when the one to whom you’ve pledged your life stops accepting the love you’re called to give?
All we need to do is look to the story of Hosea and Gomer in the Bible. Hosea’s marriage to Gomer shows us what Heaven’s unconditional love looks like towards us. You can give undeserved love to your spouse because God gave undeserved love to you –repeatedly, enduringly. That’s the power of faithfulness.
TODAY’S LOVE DARE: Love is a choice, not a feeling. It is an initiated action, not a knee-jerk reaction. Choose today to be committed to love even if your spouse has lost most of their interest in receiving it. Say to them today in words similar to these, “I Love You. Period. I choose to love you even if you don’t love me in return.”.
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF: Why is this kind of love impossible without the love of Christ beating in your heart? How does His presence within you enable you to love, even when it’s primarily one-sided?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Temple Completion Day. After the Jewish captivity, the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem was completed on March 10, 515 B.C.
The American Salvation Army was founded on this date in 1880.
Today is Telephone Day. On March 10, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell transmitted the first successful phone message when he said to his assistant, "Mr. Watson, Come here!" Bell was born on March 3, 1847, in Scotland.
Today is Organize Your Home Office Day.
The first driver's license with a photo was issued in Paris on this day in 1899.
Actor Chuck Norris, TV's "Walker, Texas Ranger," is 69 today. At his birthday party, he'll slice the cake with judo chops and play "Kick the Tail Off the Donkey."
In The News…..
Drug Merger
Pharmaceutical giant Merck is buying rival Schering-Plough for $41 billion. The combined company is hoping to break new ground in making life-saving new drugs that no one can afford.
The producers of American Idol say to keep the show fresh they will make changes next season. Maybe they’ll drop that thing where people sing and the judges make comments and viewers vote
Barbie’s Birthday Bash Yesterday
Along the way, Barbie has changed jobs more than 100 times, lost four presidential races, and dumped her boyfriend, Ken, on Valentine's Day 2004 after 43 years together (however, they reunited in 2006). Barbie has four sisters: Skipper, Stacie, Kelly and Krissy, and Mattel says about 90 percent of US girls ages 3-10 own at least one Barbie doll. The company also estimates that there are more than 100,000 adult Barbie collectors.
SUSAN ASBURY, a curator at the National Toy Hall of Fame says an original Barbie could fetch more than $25,000 in mint condition, but the the most expensive Barbie sold on eBay to date fetched $7,999.99.
More Americans Say They Have No Religion (Side note: Brandon Heath and Give Me Your Eyes was featured on the CBS Nightly News last night as part of this story).
15% of those surveyed say they have no religion. An increase of 14.2% from 2001 and 8.2 percent in 1990. The study also found that the numbers of Americans with no religion rose in every state.. About 12% of Americans believed in a high power but not the personal God at the core of many faiths.
Since 1990 almost all denominations have lost members, however the study found that the percentage of American who identified themselves as Muslim grew and there was a slight increase in those who said they were part of new religious movemebts, such as Schientology, Wicca and Santeria.
Why do you think Americans seem to be losing their “faith” in organized religion?
Canadian Study Shows Believing in God Can Reduce Anxiety
Canadian researchers found distinct brain differences between believers in God and non-believers. Even after controlling for personality and cognitive ability, when asked to perform tasks while wearing electrodes, those having faith in God showed significantly less activity than those without belief, in the anterior cingulate cortex of the brain -- a portion of the brain that helps modify behavior by signaling when attention and control are needed, usually as a result of some anxiety-producing event.
"You could think of this part of the brain like a cortical alarm bell that rings when an individual has just made a mistake or experiences uncertainty," lead author Michael Inzlicht of the University of Toronto said in a statement.
"We found that religious people or even people who simply believe in the existence of God show significantly less brain activity in relation to their own errors," Inzlicht said. "They're much less anxious and feel less stressed when they have made an error."
However, anxiety, Inzlicht cautions, may be a "double-edged sword."Anxiety can be negative if it paralyzes with fear but it can also be useful, he said.
"Anxiety alerts us when we're making mistakes," Inzlicht said. "If you don't experience anxiety when you make an error, what impetus do you have to change or improve your behavior so you don't make the same mistakes again and again?"
Billy Graham Answers Letter and says to Put Job Decisions in God’s Hands
DEAR BILLY GRAHAM: I lost my job a few weeks ago, and I can’t decide what to do next. My choices are to take a job that has been offered to me (at less pay) or else dip into my savings and take some job training at our local community college. What would you do if you were in my shoes? — W.L.
DEAR W.L.: The first thing I’d do is thank God that I had a choice. Almost every day I receive at least one letter from people who have lost their jobs and have little hope of finding another one. We should be praying for all who face these hardships and also for our leaders during this difficult time.
The most important step you can take is to pray and seek God’s will about this decision. God knows all about you; he knows what is best for you and wants to guide you, because he loves you. Do you believe that? It’s true, and I know it’s true because Jesus Christ was willing to lay down his life for you. If you have never opened your heart and life to him, I urge you to take that step of commitment today.
How does God guide us as we make decisions like this? Sometimes he gives us an inner conviction that a certain path is the right one. Sometimes he opens a door of opportunity for us, while closing others. He also may use wise friends to help us understand our abilities (and limitations) or help us see where each choice might lead. The Bible also is vital; it tells us how to live and what our goals should be.
The Bible says, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him. ... Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him” (Psalm 37:5, 7). Put your life — and your future — into his hands.
Let’s Talk Baseball!
Major League Baseball clubs, concerned by a 12% drop in spring-training attendance, already are trying to find ways to avert a similar downturn in the regular season.
"Baseball is comfort food," says Bob Crotty, founder of the private Green Diamond Gallery of baseball memorabilia near Cincinnati, who has traveled to Florida and Arizona this spring to watch games. "And people can't afford that comfort right now. Every industry is down 20%, and baseball is no different. Baseball has got to get creative to compete."
Teams have begun offering lower-priced — even free — tickets to help attract cash-strapped fans. Faced with the worst economic climate in decades, some clubs are dropping prices for cheap tickets below the $7.18 average cost of a movie ticket.
"We're the first sport to really go on sale in the teeth of this (recession)," MLB President Bob DuPuy says. "We'd like to hope that people recognize that we are affordable and that there are ways of coming to games."
The Los Angeles Angels are requiring everyone in the organization to attend a customer-service seminar. The Baltimore Orioles are offering free tickets to fans celebrating their birthdays that month. The Toronto Blue Jays are offering a $95 pass for 81 home games in their upper deck. And the Minnesota Twins, playing their final games in the Metrodome, are pricing select tickets on the close of the Dow Jones industrial average. If the Dow closes in the 7000s, the $21 tickets will cost $7.
"At least if the market goes down," says Patrick Klinger, Twins vice president of marketing, "so does the price of a Twins ticket."
The average spring attendance downturn is due in part to some less-attractive exhibitions featuring World Baseball Classic teams. There have been fewer such games at sites in Arizona, where the recession has hit hard; attendance is down more than 1,200 a game there. The Arizona Diamondbacks took note: In the regular season, the club will invite fans to bring their own food to the ballpark.
WITH
JIM & KAREN
ON
SPIRIT FM
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 22
Love is faithful.
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the Lord. Hosea 2:20
As Christians, love is the basis of our whole identity. Our spiritual rebirth came about because “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”. (John 3:16)
So if love is what we were created to share, what do you do when your love is rejected? How do you handle it when the one to whom you’ve pledged your life stops accepting the love you’re called to give?
All we need to do is look to the story of Hosea and Gomer in the Bible. Hosea’s marriage to Gomer shows us what Heaven’s unconditional love looks like towards us. You can give undeserved love to your spouse because God gave undeserved love to you –repeatedly, enduringly. That’s the power of faithfulness.
TODAY’S LOVE DARE: Love is a choice, not a feeling. It is an initiated action, not a knee-jerk reaction. Choose today to be committed to love even if your spouse has lost most of their interest in receiving it. Say to them today in words similar to these, “I Love You. Period. I choose to love you even if you don’t love me in return.”.
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF: Why is this kind of love impossible without the love of Christ beating in your heart? How does His presence within you enable you to love, even when it’s primarily one-sided?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Temple Completion Day. After the Jewish captivity, the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem was completed on March 10, 515 B.C.
The American Salvation Army was founded on this date in 1880.
Today is Telephone Day. On March 10, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell transmitted the first successful phone message when he said to his assistant, "Mr. Watson, Come here!" Bell was born on March 3, 1847, in Scotland.
Today is Organize Your Home Office Day.
The first driver's license with a photo was issued in Paris on this day in 1899.
Actor Chuck Norris, TV's "Walker, Texas Ranger," is 69 today. At his birthday party, he'll slice the cake with judo chops and play "Kick the Tail Off the Donkey."
In The News…..
Drug Merger
Pharmaceutical giant Merck is buying rival Schering-Plough for $41 billion. The combined company is hoping to break new ground in making life-saving new drugs that no one can afford.
The producers of American Idol say to keep the show fresh they will make changes next season. Maybe they’ll drop that thing where people sing and the judges make comments and viewers vote
Barbie’s Birthday Bash Yesterday
Along the way, Barbie has changed jobs more than 100 times, lost four presidential races, and dumped her boyfriend, Ken, on Valentine's Day 2004 after 43 years together (however, they reunited in 2006). Barbie has four sisters: Skipper, Stacie, Kelly and Krissy, and Mattel says about 90 percent of US girls ages 3-10 own at least one Barbie doll. The company also estimates that there are more than 100,000 adult Barbie collectors.
SUSAN ASBURY, a curator at the National Toy Hall of Fame says an original Barbie could fetch more than $25,000 in mint condition, but the the most expensive Barbie sold on eBay to date fetched $7,999.99.
More Americans Say They Have No Religion (Side note: Brandon Heath and Give Me Your Eyes was featured on the CBS Nightly News last night as part of this story).
15% of those surveyed say they have no religion. An increase of 14.2% from 2001 and 8.2 percent in 1990. The study also found that the numbers of Americans with no religion rose in every state.. About 12% of Americans believed in a high power but not the personal God at the core of many faiths.
Since 1990 almost all denominations have lost members, however the study found that the percentage of American who identified themselves as Muslim grew and there was a slight increase in those who said they were part of new religious movemebts, such as Schientology, Wicca and Santeria.
Why do you think Americans seem to be losing their “faith” in organized religion?
Canadian Study Shows Believing in God Can Reduce Anxiety
Canadian researchers found distinct brain differences between believers in God and non-believers. Even after controlling for personality and cognitive ability, when asked to perform tasks while wearing electrodes, those having faith in God showed significantly less activity than those without belief, in the anterior cingulate cortex of the brain -- a portion of the brain that helps modify behavior by signaling when attention and control are needed, usually as a result of some anxiety-producing event.
"You could think of this part of the brain like a cortical alarm bell that rings when an individual has just made a mistake or experiences uncertainty," lead author Michael Inzlicht of the University of Toronto said in a statement.
"We found that religious people or even people who simply believe in the existence of God show significantly less brain activity in relation to their own errors," Inzlicht said. "They're much less anxious and feel less stressed when they have made an error."
However, anxiety, Inzlicht cautions, may be a "double-edged sword."Anxiety can be negative if it paralyzes with fear but it can also be useful, he said.
"Anxiety alerts us when we're making mistakes," Inzlicht said. "If you don't experience anxiety when you make an error, what impetus do you have to change or improve your behavior so you don't make the same mistakes again and again?"
Billy Graham Answers Letter and says to Put Job Decisions in God’s Hands
DEAR BILLY GRAHAM: I lost my job a few weeks ago, and I can’t decide what to do next. My choices are to take a job that has been offered to me (at less pay) or else dip into my savings and take some job training at our local community college. What would you do if you were in my shoes? — W.L.
DEAR W.L.: The first thing I’d do is thank God that I had a choice. Almost every day I receive at least one letter from people who have lost their jobs and have little hope of finding another one. We should be praying for all who face these hardships and also for our leaders during this difficult time.
The most important step you can take is to pray and seek God’s will about this decision. God knows all about you; he knows what is best for you and wants to guide you, because he loves you. Do you believe that? It’s true, and I know it’s true because Jesus Christ was willing to lay down his life for you. If you have never opened your heart and life to him, I urge you to take that step of commitment today.
How does God guide us as we make decisions like this? Sometimes he gives us an inner conviction that a certain path is the right one. Sometimes he opens a door of opportunity for us, while closing others. He also may use wise friends to help us understand our abilities (and limitations) or help us see where each choice might lead. The Bible also is vital; it tells us how to live and what our goals should be.
The Bible says, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him. ... Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him” (Psalm 37:5, 7). Put your life — and your future — into his hands.
Let’s Talk Baseball!
Major League Baseball clubs, concerned by a 12% drop in spring-training attendance, already are trying to find ways to avert a similar downturn in the regular season.
"Baseball is comfort food," says Bob Crotty, founder of the private Green Diamond Gallery of baseball memorabilia near Cincinnati, who has traveled to Florida and Arizona this spring to watch games. "And people can't afford that comfort right now. Every industry is down 20%, and baseball is no different. Baseball has got to get creative to compete."
Teams have begun offering lower-priced — even free — tickets to help attract cash-strapped fans. Faced with the worst economic climate in decades, some clubs are dropping prices for cheap tickets below the $7.18 average cost of a movie ticket.
"We're the first sport to really go on sale in the teeth of this (recession)," MLB President Bob DuPuy says. "We'd like to hope that people recognize that we are affordable and that there are ways of coming to games."
The Los Angeles Angels are requiring everyone in the organization to attend a customer-service seminar. The Baltimore Orioles are offering free tickets to fans celebrating their birthdays that month. The Toronto Blue Jays are offering a $95 pass for 81 home games in their upper deck. And the Minnesota Twins, playing their final games in the Metrodome, are pricing select tickets on the close of the Dow Jones industrial average. If the Dow closes in the 7000s, the $21 tickets will cost $7.
"At least if the market goes down," says Patrick Klinger, Twins vice president of marketing, "so does the price of a Twins ticket."
The average spring attendance downturn is due in part to some less-attractive exhibitions featuring World Baseball Classic teams. There have been fewer such games at sites in Arizona, where the recession has hit hard; attendance is down more than 1,200 a game there. The Arizona Diamondbacks took note: In the regular season, the club will invite fans to bring their own food to the ballpark.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
TODAY IS MONDAY - MARCH 9, 2009
THE SPIRIT FM MORNING SHOW
WITH
JIM AND KAREN
6 a.m. - 9 a.m.
MONDAY - FRIDAY
jim@spiritfm.org
karen@spiritfm.org
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 21
Love is satisfied in God.
The Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire. Isaiah 58:11
Day 20 was a vitaly important day in the Love Dare and in your life. You came face to face with the glaring need of every human heart. That Jesus is the only One who can supply what you have been missing. If you’ve received him by faith and have turned over your life to him to manage and lead, then his Holy Spirit is renewing your heart. His wisdoma nd grace and power can now be released into everything you do. Including, not the least, your marriage.
We need God every single day of our lives. He alone can satisfy, even when all else fails you. Your husband may be late coming home. Again. But God will always be right on time. Your wife may let you down. Again. But God can always be trusted to deliver on his promises.
TODAY’S LOVE DARE: Be intentional today about making a time to pray and read your Bible. Try reading a chapter out of Proverbs each day (there are thirty-one---afull month’s supply), or reading a chapter in the Gospels (Matthew – Mark-Luke and John). As you do, immerse yourself in the love and promises God has for you. This will add to your growth as you walk with him.
ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS: How do you think spending time daily with God will change your situation and perspective? How can you make him a bigger part of your day?
TODAY IS…..
Ford introduced the V-8 engine on this day in 1932.Apparently, it was the first engine to run on vegetable juice.
The first man to orbit Earth, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, was born on this day in 1934. Gagarin's flight into space lasted 108 minutes and everything went well except for one major problem -- he landed back in Russia. In Russia, a man who goes around in circles is called a "cosmonaut." In the U.S. he's called a "congressman."
Napoleon married Josephine on this day in 1796. What a great French wedding that must have been. Instead of rice, they probably threw croissants.
Today is Barbie Day, marking this date in 1959 when the doll went on sale in the U.S. More than 900-million Barbies have been sold, and still sell at the rate of about 120 dolls a minute.
Today is National Napping Day, a day for employees to lie down and be counted in support of napping in the workplace. Be careful.
Today is Panic Day, sponsored by the Wellness Permission League of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, a group that encourages you to run around today in a panic and tell everyone you can’t take it anymore.
Today is False Teeth Day. On March 9th, 1822, Charles Graham, a New York dentist, received a patent for false teeth.
1969: CBS-TV cancelled "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour," indicating that though the show’s irreverent comedy had high ratings, it was more trouble than it was worth. The replacement was called "Hee Haw."
In The News…..
NASA Search MissionNASA launched the Kepler spacecraft, mounted with the biggest telescope ever. Its mission is to find Earth-like planets in the Milky Way... and then ask them for $500 trillion to bail us out.
Malia and Sasha Obama came home from school yesterday and found a nice surprise — a new swing set on the White House lawn. That’s fun.
Bill Gates has forbidden his children from owning an iPhone or iPod. Luckily, they’re still allowed to play with their piles and piles of money.
Scare at the White House Friday . Police were called to the White House. Apparently President Obama was in a meeting with some potential Cabinet nominees when someone noticed a suspicious-looking document on the table that no one had ever seen before. Turns out it was just a tax form. The president’s latest nominee for U.S. trade representative, Ron Kirk, who owes the government $10,000 in back taxes, has agreed to pay his taxes. When was there a choice? You try that on April 15.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced he plans to go after tax evaders . . . this after failing to pay his own taxes. This is part of operation “Do As I Say, Not As I Do.”
Bernie Madoff — here’s a guy who made a living swindling his friends. He and his wife, Ruth, say they are entitled to keep $69 million. They say the money is not fraud money — they got it by saving money with Geico.
Cramdown Bill PassesThe House has passed a bill that will allow bankruptcy judges to permanently lower mortgage payments for distressed homeowners. But the price will still be high as every mortgage holder who gets help will be forced to pay the courts back by doing jury duty.
Big Spending Bill
Congress is pushing through a new $410 billion omnibus spending bill that includes millions of dollars for driftwood cleanup on the Potomac. American taxpayers would be more supportive of a bill that cleans up the deadwood on the Potomac known as Congress.
Treasury Staff Problems
Several candidates for top jobs at the U.S. Treasury have withdrawn their names from consideration. If they wanted to take jobs in the financial industry with no chance of succeeding, they'd work for Citigroup.
The Road To LoveBachelors in a remote Indian village are building a new road which they hope will bring them brides. I suppose you could call it the Road To Love. Barwaan Kala, is located high in the Kaimur hills and is known locally as the "village of unmarried people". Some 121 villagers aged between 16 and 80 remain bachelors because of the remoteness of the village. Armed with shovels, chisels, hammers, spades and other tools, villagers decided to take measures into their own hands and build a road so they could get wives there to marry them. In the past month-and-a-half, they have already laid more than half of the four mile stretch of road on the hilly terrain.
Who Is The Best Dressed Guy in the World?Those are pretty big shoes to fill, but this month’s edition of Esquire magazine claims PRINCE CHARLES of England is the guy! Did I mention this was the British edition of Esquire? Presdient Obama came in fourth. Prince Charles was likely helped by the contrast when CAMILLA PARKER BOWLES stands beside him
THE WEEKEND TIME CHANGE DOES AFFECT YOUR BODY CLOCKBen Franklin couldn’t abide wastefulness. So, as an American envoy in Paris, he thought nothing of firing off a crotchety letter to a French newspaper complaining of Parisians who daily squandered daylight.
Les Parisiens, he complained, stayed up late into the night and awoke at noon, wasting 96 million pounds of wax and tallow each year.
Franklin’s solution wasn’t to spring clocks forward and back, as is the modern custom with daylight saving time, which began at 2 a.m. Sunday.
Instead, he proposed a mandatory awakening at 4 a.m. from mid-spring to mid-fall, an idea that laid the groundwork for our twice-a year time change.
“Every morning, as soon as the sun rises, let all the bells in every church be set ringing,” he proposed in 1784. “And if that is not sufficient, let cannon be fired in every street to wake the sluggards effectually.”
So, if you wake up groggy Sunday, just remember that it could be worse. Cannon fire could have roused you.
The United States adopted daylight saving time during World War I and II to save energy — electric lights, not candles — and permanently in 1966. Today, there are competing studies on whether energy actually has been saved.
Scientists, however, are beginning to understand that jumping forward even a single hour plays havoc with our circadian rhythms, the biological clocks within our brains and cells.
Instead of precisely following Earth’s 24-hour days, most people’s biological clocks run a bit fast or slow, said Stuart Dryer, chairman of biology and biochemistry at the University of Houston.
Larks and owls If there were no external stimuli, people with faster clocks — called “larks” by researchers — would tend to rise earlier each subsequent day.
But most people — as many as two-thirds of the population, Dryer said — are “owls,” whose clocks run more slowly. By the end of a work week with a daily alarm, owls tend to feel worn out.
“If you have difficulty adjusting to daylight saving time, you’re probably an owl,” he said.
Theoretically, daylight saving time could cause adverse effects on the biological clocks within such organs as the heart, which are more active in humans during the day. Studies have found that sleep-shift workers have statistically higher incidences of cancer and other medical problems.
Might such a relationship be found for countries with daylight saving time?
“I wouldn’t go that far, but I’m not a fan of daylight saving time,” said Dr. Richard Castriotta, division director of pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
With daylight saving time, Castriotta said, parents must get children in bed when it’s daylight. In general, children tend to have slower biological clocks than adults. Elementary-school children need 10 or 11 hours of sleep, and adolescents nine or more.
Kids often end up missing needed sleep as a result.
WOMAN BURPS FOR TWO STRAIGHT YEARSJean Driscoll, 72, was a healthy, active retiree, busy volunteering as a school governor and at her local hospital in Essex, England.
Two years ago, however, chest pains behind her sternum slowly developed into intense belches that never went away and brought Driscoll's life to a standstill.
"You think to yourself, 'I'm probably imagining it,' which we do when we get aches and pains sometimes," Driscoll said. "But [belching] is something, which has affected my whole life. I don't go out because it's embarrassing."
Driscoll, a former nurse and social worker, has given up her volunteering and much of her social life for a more private life at home.
Driscoll's son Steven, 36, with whom she lives, said friends and family help Driscoll shop, run errands or go to doctor's appointments. But practical support is all they can provide.
"It's not really affecting us in a bad way," her son said. "We're all just concerned for her and are wondering why it's taking doctors so long to do anything for her. We can't help her physically."
Stethescope YouTube Videohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYI_aOyCn9Y
This is a clever video created by Southern Hills Church of Christ in Texas. It has been watched by nearly 3 million people on YouTube so far!
Happy Meal Toys Sell for MillionsLONDON — A British boy made a big deal out of Happy Meals.
Luke Underwood, 11, had his 5,000-piece collection of posters, Happy Meal boxes, toys, and promotional displays auctioned Wednesday night, selling for $11,500, which includes a 15 percent buyer's premium.
Luke, who is from South Clifton, Nottinghamshire, 140 miles north of London, said Thursday it was tough to put the collection under the hammer.
"It was sad to see it go," he said on a telephone interview on his way home from school. "We just needed the room. It was on the landing. It was everywhere."
Unique Auctions' owner Terry Woodcock said he had no idea the memorabilia would sell.
"I didn't think people would be interested in McDonald's toys. I've never been so wrong about an auction in 20 years," he said.
Woodcock said that people from around the world — including the U.S., Germany and Australia — bought pieces of the collection. One man paid $420 for a 101 Dalmatians toy to finish his own collection.
Luke's father, Philip, had bought most of the collection for his son four years ago for $350, and they've been adding to it.
Luke said he wants to continue to buy and sell collector's items. Batman and James Bond toys are on his shopping list.
"They are going to be the biggest sellers in the future," he said.
Maryville Illinois Pastor Killed – Please Pray for the Congregation and His FamilyThe pastor of a Maryville, Illinois, church was shot to death during a service Sunday in front of horrified parishioners who then tackled the gunman, state police said.
Fred Winters, the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Maryville, was shot and killed during the 8 a.m. service, and the attacker and two parishioners suffered knife wounds in the attack, said Illinois state police spokesman Ralph Timmins.
The gunman walked in during the service and walked up to the pulpit, opening fire when he was met by Winters, Timmins said. A police dispatcher in Maryville, about 10 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri, told CNN the pastor was shot three times.
Timmins said the gunman's .45-caliber pistol jammed after he shot Winters. The shooter then pulled out a knife and turned it on himself before being tackled by some of the roughly 150 worshippers attending the church.
Two of those who went after the attacker suffered non-life-threatening injuries, while the suspect's injuries are "very serious," Timmins said.
Witness Claudia Bohley told CNN affiliate KSDK she was in the church's foyer waiting for the service to begin when she heard "pop, pop, pop. ... We just couldn't imagine what had happened."
She said she ran into the sanctuary and saw what looked like paper scattered on the pulpit. She said she was later told that the bullet hit Winters' Bible.
"It was like confetti. It went everywhere," she said. "People were down on their knees and on the floor, screaming and praying."
She described Winters -- who is pictured on the church's Web site along with his wife and two children -- as "such a pleasant pastor."
St. Louis University Hospital spokeswoman Laura Keller told CNN three males, including the suspect, were brought to the hospital. One was dead on arrival, she said, but the hospital was not releasing names and ages. She said the second was in an operating room and the third was the suspect, whose condition was not immediately available.
Phone calls to the church office from CNN rang unanswered Sunday. A posting on the church's Web site said a prayer vigil would be held at 6 p.m. at Metro Community Church in Edwardsville, Illinois, about six miles north of Maryville.
First Baptist Church is fairly large, with about 1,000 members, KSDK reported. The church holds four Sunday services.
Timmins said many of the people attending the service remained for hours afterward, as police were conducting interviews.
Senior Pastor Dr. Fred Winters has served as the Senior Pastor of FBCM since 1987. He graduated with his BA. from Southwest Baptist University in 1985. He received his Master's degree in Systematic Theology and Church History from Wheaton Graduate School in 1986 and a Master' s of Divinity from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1991. Pastor Fred also went on to earn a Doctorate from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Pastor Fred and Cindy Lee (Jackson) were married September 12, 1987 and they have two children: Alysia Grace and Cassidy Hope. Our pastor is the former president of the Illinois Baptist State Association and an adjunct professor for Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
BARBIE TURNS 50!NEW YORK (Reuters) - Barbie, the iconic doll that has claimed countless hours of girls' lives in a make-believe world that mirrored real life glamour, high-fashion and fabulous careers, is turning 50.
But is her star fading?
Some people say Mattel's doll that has had such "careers" as astronaut, Army medic, scuba diver, pediatrician and presidential candidate, has run her course.
"It's very clear that the taste of little girls who play with dolls has changed," said Jerry Oppenheimer, author of a book on Mattel called 'Toy Monster.'
"They have come into the 21st century, where they play on their own laptops, and have their own cell phones. Dolls will be a part of their lives ... and Barbie will be part of that, but it will be a small window."
Introduced at a toy fair in New York City on March 9, 1959 as a teenage fashion model, Barbie, whose full name is Barbie Millicent Roberts, cost $3.
With her shapely figure, carefully styled pony tail and curly bangs, strapless black and white geometric bathing suit and spiked heels, Barbie was at once an instant rage and outrageous.
At a time when "Leave It to Beaver" was depicting the so-called "All-American Family" and June Cleaver never showed any cleavage, Barbie created her share of controversy.
Created by Ruth Handler 14 years after she and her husband Elliot started the toy company Mattel Creations, sales of Barbie reached 300,000 the first year.
BIG BIRTHDAY BASH
Whither Barbie goes, the world's No. 1 toymaker is waging an extensive campaign to promote Barbie, perhaps its most notable toy, and celebrate her birthday.
Mattel has opened a six-story flagship store in Shanghai called House of Barbie, featuring a restaurant, spa and runway where girls can pretend to be fashion models. [ID:nL6651818] Film stars Jet Li and Cathy Chung attended the Shanghai opening.
Supermodel Heidi Klum and other celebrities are expected on Monday at Mattel's Malibu Dream House party in a 3,500-square foot house at Malibu, California, near Los Angeles. The interior of the house was designed by Jonathan Adler.
One of Barbie's major attractions over the past five decades has been her clothes, created by some of the world's most famous designers, including Gucci, Calvin Klein, Galliano and Versace. Throughout her life, Barbie's hair and fashions have reflected real life haute couture, and fashion trends and crazes.
Fans mobbed a fashion show at New York's Fashion Week in February, where models took to the runway in 50 new designer outfits to celebrate Barbie's life of fashion.
On March 14, specialty toy store chain Toys "R" Us is due to hold a Barbie party at its flagship store in Manhattan.
A ROLE MODEL - STILL?
"Growing up, my sister had the nurse outfit for Barbie and my sister became a nurse," said Nancy Parsons, 50, who has been collecting Barbie dolls for 25 years.
"It was what she was, what she could be. It gave even little girls the idea that 'I could do that.'"
Parsons, who prefers the vintage Barbie and has amassed a collection of about 500 dolls, is president of the Western Pennsylvania Doll Club, which is hosting the 2009 National Barbie Doll Collectors Convention in Washington D.C. in June.
The event, Parsons said, draws collectors who show and sell Barbie dolls, clothes and other items made for the doll.
Other collectors said they are ardent Barbie fans. But is she still a hit with youngsters?
Sales of Barbie dolls declined 6 percent in the United States and 28 percent overseas in the last quarter.
It is far from certain if Mattel's efforts to spark greater interest in Barbie by lighting birthday candles around the world will pay off.
But one thing was evident in the looks on faces of dejected fans, ranging in age from tots with parents to college students and business people who were turned away at the crowded fashion show -- Barbie still has a devoted audience.
"I really don't see Barbie disappearing at all," said Stephanie Gentile, 25, of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, a Barbie collector for nine years.
"She's still so popular with collectors and young girls alike. She's still got another 50 years in her."
PRESIDENT OBAMA TO LIFT STEM CELL FUNDING BAN TODAYOne of the most outspoken abortion opponents in Congress labeled President Obama the "abortion president" on Friday in response to news that Obama intended to sign an executive order Monday lifting restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., accused Obama of launching two attacks on pro-life measures. In addition to lifting President Bush's stem cell restrictions, Obama intends to lift regulations from the Bush administration that allow health care providers and institutions to refuse to participate in abortions on grounds of conscience.
Smith labeled Obama's stem cell policy an expansion of "human embryo experimentation."
"Why does the president persist in the dehumanizing of nascent human life when better alternatives exist? Human embryo-destroying stem cell research is not only unethical, unworkable and unreliable- it is now, demonstrably unnecessary," Smith said.
The long-promised move on stem cell research will allow a rush of research aimed at one day better treating, if not curing, ailments from diabetes to paralysis -- research that crosses partisan lines, backed by such notables as Nancy Reagan and the late Christopher Reeve. But it stirs intense controversy over whether government crosses a moral line with such research.
Embryonic stem cells are master cells that can morph into any cell of the body. Scientists hope to harness them so they can create replacement tissues to treat a variety of diseases -- such as new insulin-producing cells for diabetics, cells that could help those with Parkinson's disease or maybe even Alzheimer's, or new nerve connections to restore movement after spinal injury.
But the research is controversial because days-old embryos must be destroyed to obtain the cells. They typically are culled from fertility-clinic leftovers otherwise destined to be thrown away.
Under President Bush, taxpayer money for that research was limited to a small number of stem cell lines that were created before Aug. 9, 2001, lines that in many cases had some drawbacks that limited their potential usability.
WITH
JIM AND KAREN
6 a.m. - 9 a.m.
MONDAY - FRIDAY
jim@spiritfm.org
karen@spiritfm.org
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 21
Love is satisfied in God.
The Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire. Isaiah 58:11
Day 20 was a vitaly important day in the Love Dare and in your life. You came face to face with the glaring need of every human heart. That Jesus is the only One who can supply what you have been missing. If you’ve received him by faith and have turned over your life to him to manage and lead, then his Holy Spirit is renewing your heart. His wisdoma nd grace and power can now be released into everything you do. Including, not the least, your marriage.
We need God every single day of our lives. He alone can satisfy, even when all else fails you. Your husband may be late coming home. Again. But God will always be right on time. Your wife may let you down. Again. But God can always be trusted to deliver on his promises.
TODAY’S LOVE DARE: Be intentional today about making a time to pray and read your Bible. Try reading a chapter out of Proverbs each day (there are thirty-one---afull month’s supply), or reading a chapter in the Gospels (Matthew – Mark-Luke and John). As you do, immerse yourself in the love and promises God has for you. This will add to your growth as you walk with him.
ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS: How do you think spending time daily with God will change your situation and perspective? How can you make him a bigger part of your day?
TODAY IS…..
Ford introduced the V-8 engine on this day in 1932.Apparently, it was the first engine to run on vegetable juice.
The first man to orbit Earth, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, was born on this day in 1934. Gagarin's flight into space lasted 108 minutes and everything went well except for one major problem -- he landed back in Russia. In Russia, a man who goes around in circles is called a "cosmonaut." In the U.S. he's called a "congressman."
Napoleon married Josephine on this day in 1796. What a great French wedding that must have been. Instead of rice, they probably threw croissants.
Today is Barbie Day, marking this date in 1959 when the doll went on sale in the U.S. More than 900-million Barbies have been sold, and still sell at the rate of about 120 dolls a minute.
Today is National Napping Day, a day for employees to lie down and be counted in support of napping in the workplace. Be careful.
Today is Panic Day, sponsored by the Wellness Permission League of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, a group that encourages you to run around today in a panic and tell everyone you can’t take it anymore.
Today is False Teeth Day. On March 9th, 1822, Charles Graham, a New York dentist, received a patent for false teeth.
1969: CBS-TV cancelled "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour," indicating that though the show’s irreverent comedy had high ratings, it was more trouble than it was worth. The replacement was called "Hee Haw."
In The News…..
NASA Search MissionNASA launched the Kepler spacecraft, mounted with the biggest telescope ever. Its mission is to find Earth-like planets in the Milky Way... and then ask them for $500 trillion to bail us out.
Malia and Sasha Obama came home from school yesterday and found a nice surprise — a new swing set on the White House lawn. That’s fun.
Bill Gates has forbidden his children from owning an iPhone or iPod. Luckily, they’re still allowed to play with their piles and piles of money.
Scare at the White House Friday . Police were called to the White House. Apparently President Obama was in a meeting with some potential Cabinet nominees when someone noticed a suspicious-looking document on the table that no one had ever seen before. Turns out it was just a tax form. The president’s latest nominee for U.S. trade representative, Ron Kirk, who owes the government $10,000 in back taxes, has agreed to pay his taxes. When was there a choice? You try that on April 15.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced he plans to go after tax evaders . . . this after failing to pay his own taxes. This is part of operation “Do As I Say, Not As I Do.”
Bernie Madoff — here’s a guy who made a living swindling his friends. He and his wife, Ruth, say they are entitled to keep $69 million. They say the money is not fraud money — they got it by saving money with Geico.
Cramdown Bill PassesThe House has passed a bill that will allow bankruptcy judges to permanently lower mortgage payments for distressed homeowners. But the price will still be high as every mortgage holder who gets help will be forced to pay the courts back by doing jury duty.
Big Spending Bill
Congress is pushing through a new $410 billion omnibus spending bill that includes millions of dollars for driftwood cleanup on the Potomac. American taxpayers would be more supportive of a bill that cleans up the deadwood on the Potomac known as Congress.
Treasury Staff Problems
Several candidates for top jobs at the U.S. Treasury have withdrawn their names from consideration. If they wanted to take jobs in the financial industry with no chance of succeeding, they'd work for Citigroup.
The Road To LoveBachelors in a remote Indian village are building a new road which they hope will bring them brides. I suppose you could call it the Road To Love. Barwaan Kala, is located high in the Kaimur hills and is known locally as the "village of unmarried people". Some 121 villagers aged between 16 and 80 remain bachelors because of the remoteness of the village. Armed with shovels, chisels, hammers, spades and other tools, villagers decided to take measures into their own hands and build a road so they could get wives there to marry them. In the past month-and-a-half, they have already laid more than half of the four mile stretch of road on the hilly terrain.
Who Is The Best Dressed Guy in the World?Those are pretty big shoes to fill, but this month’s edition of Esquire magazine claims PRINCE CHARLES of England is the guy! Did I mention this was the British edition of Esquire? Presdient Obama came in fourth. Prince Charles was likely helped by the contrast when CAMILLA PARKER BOWLES stands beside him
THE WEEKEND TIME CHANGE DOES AFFECT YOUR BODY CLOCKBen Franklin couldn’t abide wastefulness. So, as an American envoy in Paris, he thought nothing of firing off a crotchety letter to a French newspaper complaining of Parisians who daily squandered daylight.
Les Parisiens, he complained, stayed up late into the night and awoke at noon, wasting 96 million pounds of wax and tallow each year.
Franklin’s solution wasn’t to spring clocks forward and back, as is the modern custom with daylight saving time, which began at 2 a.m. Sunday.
Instead, he proposed a mandatory awakening at 4 a.m. from mid-spring to mid-fall, an idea that laid the groundwork for our twice-a year time change.
“Every morning, as soon as the sun rises, let all the bells in every church be set ringing,” he proposed in 1784. “And if that is not sufficient, let cannon be fired in every street to wake the sluggards effectually.”
So, if you wake up groggy Sunday, just remember that it could be worse. Cannon fire could have roused you.
The United States adopted daylight saving time during World War I and II to save energy — electric lights, not candles — and permanently in 1966. Today, there are competing studies on whether energy actually has been saved.
Scientists, however, are beginning to understand that jumping forward even a single hour plays havoc with our circadian rhythms, the biological clocks within our brains and cells.
Instead of precisely following Earth’s 24-hour days, most people’s biological clocks run a bit fast or slow, said Stuart Dryer, chairman of biology and biochemistry at the University of Houston.
Larks and owls If there were no external stimuli, people with faster clocks — called “larks” by researchers — would tend to rise earlier each subsequent day.
But most people — as many as two-thirds of the population, Dryer said — are “owls,” whose clocks run more slowly. By the end of a work week with a daily alarm, owls tend to feel worn out.
“If you have difficulty adjusting to daylight saving time, you’re probably an owl,” he said.
Theoretically, daylight saving time could cause adverse effects on the biological clocks within such organs as the heart, which are more active in humans during the day. Studies have found that sleep-shift workers have statistically higher incidences of cancer and other medical problems.
Might such a relationship be found for countries with daylight saving time?
“I wouldn’t go that far, but I’m not a fan of daylight saving time,” said Dr. Richard Castriotta, division director of pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
With daylight saving time, Castriotta said, parents must get children in bed when it’s daylight. In general, children tend to have slower biological clocks than adults. Elementary-school children need 10 or 11 hours of sleep, and adolescents nine or more.
Kids often end up missing needed sleep as a result.
WOMAN BURPS FOR TWO STRAIGHT YEARSJean Driscoll, 72, was a healthy, active retiree, busy volunteering as a school governor and at her local hospital in Essex, England.
Two years ago, however, chest pains behind her sternum slowly developed into intense belches that never went away and brought Driscoll's life to a standstill.
"You think to yourself, 'I'm probably imagining it,' which we do when we get aches and pains sometimes," Driscoll said. "But [belching] is something, which has affected my whole life. I don't go out because it's embarrassing."
Driscoll, a former nurse and social worker, has given up her volunteering and much of her social life for a more private life at home.
Driscoll's son Steven, 36, with whom she lives, said friends and family help Driscoll shop, run errands or go to doctor's appointments. But practical support is all they can provide.
"It's not really affecting us in a bad way," her son said. "We're all just concerned for her and are wondering why it's taking doctors so long to do anything for her. We can't help her physically."
Stethescope YouTube Videohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYI_aOyCn9Y
This is a clever video created by Southern Hills Church of Christ in Texas. It has been watched by nearly 3 million people on YouTube so far!
Happy Meal Toys Sell for MillionsLONDON — A British boy made a big deal out of Happy Meals.
Luke Underwood, 11, had his 5,000-piece collection of posters, Happy Meal boxes, toys, and promotional displays auctioned Wednesday night, selling for $11,500, which includes a 15 percent buyer's premium.
Luke, who is from South Clifton, Nottinghamshire, 140 miles north of London, said Thursday it was tough to put the collection under the hammer.
"It was sad to see it go," he said on a telephone interview on his way home from school. "We just needed the room. It was on the landing. It was everywhere."
Unique Auctions' owner Terry Woodcock said he had no idea the memorabilia would sell.
"I didn't think people would be interested in McDonald's toys. I've never been so wrong about an auction in 20 years," he said.
Woodcock said that people from around the world — including the U.S., Germany and Australia — bought pieces of the collection. One man paid $420 for a 101 Dalmatians toy to finish his own collection.
Luke's father, Philip, had bought most of the collection for his son four years ago for $350, and they've been adding to it.
Luke said he wants to continue to buy and sell collector's items. Batman and James Bond toys are on his shopping list.
"They are going to be the biggest sellers in the future," he said.
Maryville Illinois Pastor Killed – Please Pray for the Congregation and His FamilyThe pastor of a Maryville, Illinois, church was shot to death during a service Sunday in front of horrified parishioners who then tackled the gunman, state police said.
Fred Winters, the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Maryville, was shot and killed during the 8 a.m. service, and the attacker and two parishioners suffered knife wounds in the attack, said Illinois state police spokesman Ralph Timmins.
The gunman walked in during the service and walked up to the pulpit, opening fire when he was met by Winters, Timmins said. A police dispatcher in Maryville, about 10 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri, told CNN the pastor was shot three times.
Timmins said the gunman's .45-caliber pistol jammed after he shot Winters. The shooter then pulled out a knife and turned it on himself before being tackled by some of the roughly 150 worshippers attending the church.
Two of those who went after the attacker suffered non-life-threatening injuries, while the suspect's injuries are "very serious," Timmins said.
Witness Claudia Bohley told CNN affiliate KSDK she was in the church's foyer waiting for the service to begin when she heard "pop, pop, pop. ... We just couldn't imagine what had happened."
She said she ran into the sanctuary and saw what looked like paper scattered on the pulpit. She said she was later told that the bullet hit Winters' Bible.
"It was like confetti. It went everywhere," she said. "People were down on their knees and on the floor, screaming and praying."
She described Winters -- who is pictured on the church's Web site along with his wife and two children -- as "such a pleasant pastor."
St. Louis University Hospital spokeswoman Laura Keller told CNN three males, including the suspect, were brought to the hospital. One was dead on arrival, she said, but the hospital was not releasing names and ages. She said the second was in an operating room and the third was the suspect, whose condition was not immediately available.
Phone calls to the church office from CNN rang unanswered Sunday. A posting on the church's Web site said a prayer vigil would be held at 6 p.m. at Metro Community Church in Edwardsville, Illinois, about six miles north of Maryville.
First Baptist Church is fairly large, with about 1,000 members, KSDK reported. The church holds four Sunday services.
Timmins said many of the people attending the service remained for hours afterward, as police were conducting interviews.
Senior Pastor Dr. Fred Winters has served as the Senior Pastor of FBCM since 1987. He graduated with his BA. from Southwest Baptist University in 1985. He received his Master's degree in Systematic Theology and Church History from Wheaton Graduate School in 1986 and a Master' s of Divinity from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1991. Pastor Fred also went on to earn a Doctorate from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Pastor Fred and Cindy Lee (Jackson) were married September 12, 1987 and they have two children: Alysia Grace and Cassidy Hope. Our pastor is the former president of the Illinois Baptist State Association and an adjunct professor for Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
BARBIE TURNS 50!NEW YORK (Reuters) - Barbie, the iconic doll that has claimed countless hours of girls' lives in a make-believe world that mirrored real life glamour, high-fashion and fabulous careers, is turning 50.
But is her star fading?
Some people say Mattel's doll that has had such "careers" as astronaut, Army medic, scuba diver, pediatrician and presidential candidate, has run her course.
"It's very clear that the taste of little girls who play with dolls has changed," said Jerry Oppenheimer, author of a book on Mattel called 'Toy Monster.'
"They have come into the 21st century, where they play on their own laptops, and have their own cell phones. Dolls will be a part of their lives ... and Barbie will be part of that, but it will be a small window."
Introduced at a toy fair in New York City on March 9, 1959 as a teenage fashion model, Barbie, whose full name is Barbie Millicent Roberts, cost $3.
With her shapely figure, carefully styled pony tail and curly bangs, strapless black and white geometric bathing suit and spiked heels, Barbie was at once an instant rage and outrageous.
At a time when "Leave It to Beaver" was depicting the so-called "All-American Family" and June Cleaver never showed any cleavage, Barbie created her share of controversy.
Created by Ruth Handler 14 years after she and her husband Elliot started the toy company Mattel Creations, sales of Barbie reached 300,000 the first year.
BIG BIRTHDAY BASH
Whither Barbie goes, the world's No. 1 toymaker is waging an extensive campaign to promote Barbie, perhaps its most notable toy, and celebrate her birthday.
Mattel has opened a six-story flagship store in Shanghai called House of Barbie, featuring a restaurant, spa and runway where girls can pretend to be fashion models. [ID:nL6651818] Film stars Jet Li and Cathy Chung attended the Shanghai opening.
Supermodel Heidi Klum and other celebrities are expected on Monday at Mattel's Malibu Dream House party in a 3,500-square foot house at Malibu, California, near Los Angeles. The interior of the house was designed by Jonathan Adler.
One of Barbie's major attractions over the past five decades has been her clothes, created by some of the world's most famous designers, including Gucci, Calvin Klein, Galliano and Versace. Throughout her life, Barbie's hair and fashions have reflected real life haute couture, and fashion trends and crazes.
Fans mobbed a fashion show at New York's Fashion Week in February, where models took to the runway in 50 new designer outfits to celebrate Barbie's life of fashion.
On March 14, specialty toy store chain Toys "R" Us is due to hold a Barbie party at its flagship store in Manhattan.
A ROLE MODEL - STILL?
"Growing up, my sister had the nurse outfit for Barbie and my sister became a nurse," said Nancy Parsons, 50, who has been collecting Barbie dolls for 25 years.
"It was what she was, what she could be. It gave even little girls the idea that 'I could do that.'"
Parsons, who prefers the vintage Barbie and has amassed a collection of about 500 dolls, is president of the Western Pennsylvania Doll Club, which is hosting the 2009 National Barbie Doll Collectors Convention in Washington D.C. in June.
The event, Parsons said, draws collectors who show and sell Barbie dolls, clothes and other items made for the doll.
Other collectors said they are ardent Barbie fans. But is she still a hit with youngsters?
Sales of Barbie dolls declined 6 percent in the United States and 28 percent overseas in the last quarter.
It is far from certain if Mattel's efforts to spark greater interest in Barbie by lighting birthday candles around the world will pay off.
But one thing was evident in the looks on faces of dejected fans, ranging in age from tots with parents to college students and business people who were turned away at the crowded fashion show -- Barbie still has a devoted audience.
"I really don't see Barbie disappearing at all," said Stephanie Gentile, 25, of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, a Barbie collector for nine years.
"She's still so popular with collectors and young girls alike. She's still got another 50 years in her."
PRESIDENT OBAMA TO LIFT STEM CELL FUNDING BAN TODAYOne of the most outspoken abortion opponents in Congress labeled President Obama the "abortion president" on Friday in response to news that Obama intended to sign an executive order Monday lifting restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., accused Obama of launching two attacks on pro-life measures. In addition to lifting President Bush's stem cell restrictions, Obama intends to lift regulations from the Bush administration that allow health care providers and institutions to refuse to participate in abortions on grounds of conscience.
Smith labeled Obama's stem cell policy an expansion of "human embryo experimentation."
"Why does the president persist in the dehumanizing of nascent human life when better alternatives exist? Human embryo-destroying stem cell research is not only unethical, unworkable and unreliable- it is now, demonstrably unnecessary," Smith said.
The long-promised move on stem cell research will allow a rush of research aimed at one day better treating, if not curing, ailments from diabetes to paralysis -- research that crosses partisan lines, backed by such notables as Nancy Reagan and the late Christopher Reeve. But it stirs intense controversy over whether government crosses a moral line with such research.
Embryonic stem cells are master cells that can morph into any cell of the body. Scientists hope to harness them so they can create replacement tissues to treat a variety of diseases -- such as new insulin-producing cells for diabetics, cells that could help those with Parkinson's disease or maybe even Alzheimer's, or new nerve connections to restore movement after spinal injury.
But the research is controversial because days-old embryos must be destroyed to obtain the cells. They typically are culled from fertility-clinic leftovers otherwise destined to be thrown away.
Under President Bush, taxpayer money for that research was limited to a small number of stem cell lines that were created before Aug. 9, 2001, lines that in many cases had some drawbacks that limited their potential usability.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
TODAY IS FRIDAY - MARCH 6, 2009
THE MORNING SHOW
ON
SPIRIT FM
WITH
JIM AND KAREN
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!
Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 20
Love IS Jesus Christ
While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Romans 5:6
If you listened to the Love Dare yesterday you knew that there could be no other conclusion than this. Jesus has come to seek and to save you. Everything you have failed at and haven’t been able to do, every minute you wasted trying to fix things your own way…all of it can be forgiven and made right by putting your life into the hands of the One who first gave it to you.
When you receive this new life and love as your own, you are free to love in ways you’ve never been capable of before. True love is found in Christ alone.
TODAY’S DARE: Dare to take God at His Word. Dare to trust Jesus Christ for salvation. Dare to pray “Lord Jesus, I’m a sinner. But you have shown your love for me by dying to forgive my sins, and you have proven your power to save me from death by your resurrection. Lord, change my heart, and save me by your grace.
Do this even if you are only renewing your commitment to receive and express His love, and then see what He shows you.
TODAY IS…..
Today is the 122nd annual World Day of Prayer, sponsored by Church Women United. Always the first Friday in March.
Today is Headache Day, marking the patenting of aspirin on this date in 1899. On the same day, the Bayer Company trademarked the name aspirin for the medicine developed by German chemist Friedrich Hoffman. Aspirin is also known as acetylsalicylic acid.
Today is Middle Name Pride Day. Tell three people your middle name today, no matter how goofy it is.
Today is National Chocolate Cheesecake Day
On this day in 1925 the first packaged frozen food appeared in Springfield, Massachusetts. It was Clarence Birdseye who invented the "deep freeze" process. In 1929 Birdseye sold out to the Postum Company for $22-million in, you should excuse the expression, cold cash.
This is National Procrastination Week. It’s a time to put things off until you have more time to forget them entirely. Which is why I didn’t tell you about it on Monday at the beginning of the week.
In The News…..
"CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta won't be the next surgeon general, the Obama administration confirmed Thursday.
"Certainly it wasn't an income tax issue, was it?
Speaking of taxes, now this public service announcement: Worried about an IRS audit? Avoid what's called a red flag. That's something the IRS always looks for. For example, say you have some money left in your bank account after paying taxes. That's a red flag.
Bush Surgery
Former first lady Barbara Bush underwent open heart surgery last night. The hospital had to find a conservative doctor to perform the procedure because liberals refuse to believe any Republicans have a heart.
Work Furloughs
More businesses are using worker furloughs to save money and weather the economic downturn. Restaurants have been closing on weekdays, car dealerships are cutting their hours, and the Kansas City Royals haven't showed up to play a game since 1993.
The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is offering a pledge of $900 million to the Palestinians in Gaza. Let’s hope they don’t spend it all on rocks this time. Apparently we ran out of banks here to bail out, so now we’re bailing out the West Bank. The U.S. government guaranteed the $900 million will go directly to the Palestinian people . . . why can’t we get that deal in this country?
Owens Released
The Dallas Cowboys have released wide receiver Terrell Owens. For the Cowboys, the move frees up $34 million in salary cap money and $980 billion in Prozac costs through 2010.
I am getting a little concerned though about my bank. Every time I go there and make a deposit the tellers high-five each other.
China Stimulus
China is considering a huge stimulus plan as its economic woes continue to grow. The Chinese have been caught off guard as the global recession has surprisingly killed demand for faulty electronics and poisonous toys.
Here we go again: President Obama’s latest nominee for U.S. trade representative, a man named Ron Kirk, owes $10,000 in unpaid back taxes. Apparently when it comes to taxes, “yes we can” is now “no we didn’t.” One of his tax deductions was $17,000 for tickets to a Dallas Mavericks game. He deducted $17,000 for basketball tickets. But to be fair, since it was the Mavericks, he should be able to write that off as a failed investment.
Bernie Madoff and his wife are saying they have $69 million that is theirs. It’s not part of the money he swindled — it’s money he saved by switching to GEICO.
The Federal Reserve chairman said today that the $700 billion bailout of banks isn’t going to be enough. Now the government is giving AIG $30 billion more. We gave them $165 billion, now we’re giving them another $30 billion. You know what AIG stands for? “And It’s Gone!”
Inspector Gadget? Maxwell Smart?
An Australian computer scientist has developed a mobile phone housed in a shoe. Paul Gardner-Stephen got the idea from 1960s TV spy spoof Get Smart in which bumbling agent Maxwell Smart used a shoe phone. He says the gadget has aroused so much interest among the geek crowd that he's considering selling it online. Could be cool for investigators..they could “pump” people for information. Of course, some investigators would probably be a “heel” about it. And then there are the ones that can’t decide whether to use it or not…just just “flip flop” back and forth.
Not Good News for Prince Charles!
A Chinese company requires job applicants to show their ears during interviews. The Wuhan-based building materials firm says it wants to make sure their appearance won't have a negative effect on customers. One applicant said she was amazed at the request. A company spokesman said: "Besides their capabilities and diplomas, we pay special attention to their faces since a good face can leave our clients with a good impression of the company."
Sick bay: PETER TORK of THE MONKEES has cancer. He announced Tuesday that he was recently diagnosed with Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma, which is a rare form of the disease. The cancer was discovered on the lower region of Peter's tongue. He underwent extensive surgery yesterday in New York City which will be followed-up by radiation treatments. Doctors say the cancer has not spread from its original site.
Latest internet scam:
Free stimulus money.
The colorful online billboards, some with the president's picture, offer free government money. All you have to do is submit your credit card number for a small shipping and handling fee.
You can guess what happens to your credit card.
The government isn't sending out e-mails or posting websites offering free stimulus money. Period.
UPDATE ON BILLY GRAHAM:
At a Wednesday media event at the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove, Will Graham gave a quick rundown of his grandfather’s health and general condition.
“He’s 90 – I think that’s about the best way to describe it,” said Will Graham, 34, who works at the Cove. “He has good days and bad days.”
He noted that the world famous evangelist still suffers from hydrocephalus, sometimes called water on the brain, and that it causes tremors and other problems.
“Please do not report that he’s got syphilis,” Graham joked.
A relatively new programmable electronic shunt, which drains fluid off Graham’s brain, has allowed doctors to treat the condition more easily. Once the fluid is removed, Graham’s condition improves markedly.
Will Graham said he was amazed at the improvement when he visited Billy Graham about two weeks ago.
“I went in there and I couldn’t believe it,” Graham said. “It looked like he got two years of his life back."
The elder Graham, who lives in Montreat, was so talkative that day he didn’t want Will to leave.
On another note, Will Graham said one of his aunts gave Billy Graham a cat for his 90th birthday on Nov. 7. A dog lover, Graham was less than enthused, but he’s taken to the feline.
Will Graham said he visited with his grandfather Sunday, and the cat kept biting Billy’s hands.
“He said, ‘That’s OK – it lets me know I’m still alive,’” Will Graham said
TATOOED BARBIE NOT A BIG HIT WITH A LOT OF PARENTS
SACRAMENTO, March 5 (UPI) -- Some parents have objected to Mattel's "Totally Stylin' Tattoos" Barbie doll, a new toy that has already sold out in several Sacramento, Calif., area stores.
The Barbie comes with a set of tattoo stickers that can be placed anywhere on her body and a tattoo gun that allows children to stamp temporary tattoos on the doll's clothes and on themselves, KVOR-TV, Sacramento, reported Thursday.
"I think it's attracting kids too young that want to expose parts of body to show off tattoos," Sacramento-area parent Jen Alcayaga said.
Some parents said they find the doll relatively harmless.
"Maybe it's a sign of the times. Each generation is different. Elvis was evil at one time," Brandon Thompson said.
Mattel said there are no plans to discontinue production of the toy.
WOMAN FINDS MAMMAL BONE IN AN M&M
Talk about a surprise candy center.
An Atlanta woman has a bone to pick with the candy company Mars after she took a bite into her peanut M&M and says she discovered what a local biologist says is a vertebra from a small mammal.
J. Paulette Potts, who works for an advertising and public relations firm in downtown Atlanta, told FOXNews.com that last Friday she discovered the object encased inside a blue peanut M&M.
When her "teeth wouldn't go through it," Potts said she washed the chocolate off of the approximately inch-long object in the office sink and saw it certainly wasn't a peanut, an act FOXNews.com confirmed with several of her colleagues.
Potts is not currently pursuing a lawsuit against Mars, the global giant that owns M&Ms, but the issue kept gnawing at her, so on Tuesday she said she took the object to Professor Larry Blumer, director of environmental studies in the biology department of Morehouse College in Atlanta, for an examination.
"It's definitely bone, and it came from some type of mammal," Blumer told FOXNews.com. "This isn't [a] tail vertebra — it's something higher up, and the reason I'm certain for that is because it's hollow. The nerve cord would run through there."
Blumer could not identify exactly what type of animal the vertebra came from but said that, because of the smoothness of the material, it had likely been dead for some time.
ON
SPIRIT FM
WITH
JIM AND KAREN
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!
Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 20
Love IS Jesus Christ
While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Romans 5:6
If you listened to the Love Dare yesterday you knew that there could be no other conclusion than this. Jesus has come to seek and to save you. Everything you have failed at and haven’t been able to do, every minute you wasted trying to fix things your own way…all of it can be forgiven and made right by putting your life into the hands of the One who first gave it to you.
When you receive this new life and love as your own, you are free to love in ways you’ve never been capable of before. True love is found in Christ alone.
TODAY’S DARE: Dare to take God at His Word. Dare to trust Jesus Christ for salvation. Dare to pray “Lord Jesus, I’m a sinner. But you have shown your love for me by dying to forgive my sins, and you have proven your power to save me from death by your resurrection. Lord, change my heart, and save me by your grace.
Do this even if you are only renewing your commitment to receive and express His love, and then see what He shows you.
TODAY IS…..
Today is the 122nd annual World Day of Prayer, sponsored by Church Women United. Always the first Friday in March.
Today is Headache Day, marking the patenting of aspirin on this date in 1899. On the same day, the Bayer Company trademarked the name aspirin for the medicine developed by German chemist Friedrich Hoffman. Aspirin is also known as acetylsalicylic acid.
Today is Middle Name Pride Day. Tell three people your middle name today, no matter how goofy it is.
Today is National Chocolate Cheesecake Day
On this day in 1925 the first packaged frozen food appeared in Springfield, Massachusetts. It was Clarence Birdseye who invented the "deep freeze" process. In 1929 Birdseye sold out to the Postum Company for $22-million in, you should excuse the expression, cold cash.
This is National Procrastination Week. It’s a time to put things off until you have more time to forget them entirely. Which is why I didn’t tell you about it on Monday at the beginning of the week.
In The News…..
"CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta won't be the next surgeon general, the Obama administration confirmed Thursday.
"Certainly it wasn't an income tax issue, was it?
Speaking of taxes, now this public service announcement: Worried about an IRS audit? Avoid what's called a red flag. That's something the IRS always looks for. For example, say you have some money left in your bank account after paying taxes. That's a red flag.
Bush Surgery
Former first lady Barbara Bush underwent open heart surgery last night. The hospital had to find a conservative doctor to perform the procedure because liberals refuse to believe any Republicans have a heart.
Work Furloughs
More businesses are using worker furloughs to save money and weather the economic downturn. Restaurants have been closing on weekdays, car dealerships are cutting their hours, and the Kansas City Royals haven't showed up to play a game since 1993.
The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is offering a pledge of $900 million to the Palestinians in Gaza. Let’s hope they don’t spend it all on rocks this time. Apparently we ran out of banks here to bail out, so now we’re bailing out the West Bank. The U.S. government guaranteed the $900 million will go directly to the Palestinian people . . . why can’t we get that deal in this country?
Owens Released
The Dallas Cowboys have released wide receiver Terrell Owens. For the Cowboys, the move frees up $34 million in salary cap money and $980 billion in Prozac costs through 2010.
I am getting a little concerned though about my bank. Every time I go there and make a deposit the tellers high-five each other.
China Stimulus
China is considering a huge stimulus plan as its economic woes continue to grow. The Chinese have been caught off guard as the global recession has surprisingly killed demand for faulty electronics and poisonous toys.
Here we go again: President Obama’s latest nominee for U.S. trade representative, a man named Ron Kirk, owes $10,000 in unpaid back taxes. Apparently when it comes to taxes, “yes we can” is now “no we didn’t.” One of his tax deductions was $17,000 for tickets to a Dallas Mavericks game. He deducted $17,000 for basketball tickets. But to be fair, since it was the Mavericks, he should be able to write that off as a failed investment.
Bernie Madoff and his wife are saying they have $69 million that is theirs. It’s not part of the money he swindled — it’s money he saved by switching to GEICO.
The Federal Reserve chairman said today that the $700 billion bailout of banks isn’t going to be enough. Now the government is giving AIG $30 billion more. We gave them $165 billion, now we’re giving them another $30 billion. You know what AIG stands for? “And It’s Gone!”
Inspector Gadget? Maxwell Smart?
An Australian computer scientist has developed a mobile phone housed in a shoe. Paul Gardner-Stephen got the idea from 1960s TV spy spoof Get Smart in which bumbling agent Maxwell Smart used a shoe phone. He says the gadget has aroused so much interest among the geek crowd that he's considering selling it online. Could be cool for investigators..they could “pump” people for information. Of course, some investigators would probably be a “heel” about it. And then there are the ones that can’t decide whether to use it or not…just just “flip flop” back and forth.
Not Good News for Prince Charles!
A Chinese company requires job applicants to show their ears during interviews. The Wuhan-based building materials firm says it wants to make sure their appearance won't have a negative effect on customers. One applicant said she was amazed at the request. A company spokesman said: "Besides their capabilities and diplomas, we pay special attention to their faces since a good face can leave our clients with a good impression of the company."
Sick bay: PETER TORK of THE MONKEES has cancer. He announced Tuesday that he was recently diagnosed with Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma, which is a rare form of the disease. The cancer was discovered on the lower region of Peter's tongue. He underwent extensive surgery yesterday in New York City which will be followed-up by radiation treatments. Doctors say the cancer has not spread from its original site.
Latest internet scam:
Free stimulus money.
The colorful online billboards, some with the president's picture, offer free government money. All you have to do is submit your credit card number for a small shipping and handling fee.
You can guess what happens to your credit card.
The government isn't sending out e-mails or posting websites offering free stimulus money. Period.
UPDATE ON BILLY GRAHAM:
At a Wednesday media event at the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove, Will Graham gave a quick rundown of his grandfather’s health and general condition.
“He’s 90 – I think that’s about the best way to describe it,” said Will Graham, 34, who works at the Cove. “He has good days and bad days.”
He noted that the world famous evangelist still suffers from hydrocephalus, sometimes called water on the brain, and that it causes tremors and other problems.
“Please do not report that he’s got syphilis,” Graham joked.
A relatively new programmable electronic shunt, which drains fluid off Graham’s brain, has allowed doctors to treat the condition more easily. Once the fluid is removed, Graham’s condition improves markedly.
Will Graham said he was amazed at the improvement when he visited Billy Graham about two weeks ago.
“I went in there and I couldn’t believe it,” Graham said. “It looked like he got two years of his life back."
The elder Graham, who lives in Montreat, was so talkative that day he didn’t want Will to leave.
On another note, Will Graham said one of his aunts gave Billy Graham a cat for his 90th birthday on Nov. 7. A dog lover, Graham was less than enthused, but he’s taken to the feline.
Will Graham said he visited with his grandfather Sunday, and the cat kept biting Billy’s hands.
“He said, ‘That’s OK – it lets me know I’m still alive,’” Will Graham said
TATOOED BARBIE NOT A BIG HIT WITH A LOT OF PARENTS
SACRAMENTO, March 5 (UPI) -- Some parents have objected to Mattel's "Totally Stylin' Tattoos" Barbie doll, a new toy that has already sold out in several Sacramento, Calif., area stores.
The Barbie comes with a set of tattoo stickers that can be placed anywhere on her body and a tattoo gun that allows children to stamp temporary tattoos on the doll's clothes and on themselves, KVOR-TV, Sacramento, reported Thursday.
"I think it's attracting kids too young that want to expose parts of body to show off tattoos," Sacramento-area parent Jen Alcayaga said.
Some parents said they find the doll relatively harmless.
"Maybe it's a sign of the times. Each generation is different. Elvis was evil at one time," Brandon Thompson said.
Mattel said there are no plans to discontinue production of the toy.
WOMAN FINDS MAMMAL BONE IN AN M&M
Talk about a surprise candy center.
An Atlanta woman has a bone to pick with the candy company Mars after she took a bite into her peanut M&M and says she discovered what a local biologist says is a vertebra from a small mammal.
J. Paulette Potts, who works for an advertising and public relations firm in downtown Atlanta, told FOXNews.com that last Friday she discovered the object encased inside a blue peanut M&M.
When her "teeth wouldn't go through it," Potts said she washed the chocolate off of the approximately inch-long object in the office sink and saw it certainly wasn't a peanut, an act FOXNews.com confirmed with several of her colleagues.
Potts is not currently pursuing a lawsuit against Mars, the global giant that owns M&Ms, but the issue kept gnawing at her, so on Tuesday she said she took the object to Professor Larry Blumer, director of environmental studies in the biology department of Morehouse College in Atlanta, for an examination.
"It's definitely bone, and it came from some type of mammal," Blumer told FOXNews.com. "This isn't [a] tail vertebra — it's something higher up, and the reason I'm certain for that is because it's hollow. The nerve cord would run through there."
Blumer could not identify exactly what type of animal the vertebra came from but said that, because of the smoothness of the material, it had likely been dead for some time.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
TODAY IS THURSDAY - MAYCH 5, 2009
The Spirit FM Morning Show
with
JIM & KAREN
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 19
Love is impossible.
Let us love one another, for is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7
The Love Dare starts with a secret. And though it’s been an unspoken element throughout each day, you’ve likely grown more and more suspicious of it all the time. Now that you’re this far, it’s a secret you’re discovering for yourself, even if you haven’t exactly known how to put it into words.
The secret is this: you cannot manufacture unconditional love out of your own heart. It’s impossible. It’s beyond your capabilities. It’s beyond all our capabilities. It is something only God can do.
Perhaps you are already a believer, but you would admit that you have walked away from fellowship with God. You’re not in the Word. You’re not in prayer, maybe you’re not even in church. The love you used to feel coursing through your veins has dwindled. The truth is, you can’t live without God and you can’t love withoutHim. But there is no telling what He could do in your marriage if you put your trust in Him.
TODAY’S DARE: Look backover the Dares from previous days. Were there some that seemed impossible to you? Have you realized your need for God to change your heart and to give you the ability to love? Ask Him to show you where you stand with Him and ask for the strength and grace to ssettle your eternal destination.
Ask Yourself This Question: What do I think God is trying to tell me?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Act Goofy Day, a day to do silly things just for the fun of it.
Today is National Cheese Doodle Day
1912: The Oreo cookie was born at the National Biscuit Company in New York. Since then, somebody has eaten over 62 billion of them. That’s enough to stack and reach the moon and back five times.
In The News…..
The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is offering a pledge of $900 million to the Palestinians in Gaza. Let’s hope they don’t spend it all on rocks this time. Apparently we ran out of banks here to bail out, so now we’re bailing out the West Bank. The U.S. government guaranteed the $900 million will go directly to the Palestinian people . . . why can’t we get that deal in this country?
I am getting a little concerned though about my bank. Every time I go there and make a deposit the tellers high-five each other.
Sales Pitch
President Obama says he wants the American people to buy stocks. Why should the government be the only one buying worthless pieces of paper.
I Love What Will Rogers Said About Our Government: "We have plenty of Confidence in this country, but we are a little short of good men to place our Confidence in."
Blockbuster Bankruptcy?
Movie-rental chain Blockbuster has hired law firm Kirkland & Ellis to explore restructuring. The firm is expected to suggest several options. Maybe I won’t have to pay those late fees afterall!
Save the Animals
President Obama is overturning the Bush Administration's efforts to reduce protections for endangered species. The Obama team is looking to save all endangered species except the middle class.
Seriously, why do people do these things?
A Chinese man pulled a car by a rope attached only to his eyelids for more than five meters. Yang Guanghe was cheered and applauded at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Guangzhou as he towed the VW car. Yang said he had been practicing the stunt for more than 10 years.
"McGruff the crime dog has been roughed up.
D.C. police said the mascot, who urges children to 'take a bite out of crime,' became a victim Saturday when a bus driver punched him in the face as he handed fliers to children. Police said the 38-year-old Metro bus driver, climbed off the bus, adjusted both sideview mirrors and then swung at Officer Tyrone Hardy, who was dressed as McGruff.Police said McGruff staggered, children screamed and the bus driver drove off.
Officers quickly pulled him over and charged him with assaultMetro spokeswoman Candace Smith said the bus driver told a supervisor he was trying 'to be funny.'
Smith said the driver will undergo drug and alcohol testing. His future with the agency was under review."
Is global warming currently "on hold?"
The Discovery Channel report that some scientists are starting to take a fresh look at climate change coming off data showing that global temperatures have pretty-much flat-lined since 2001, despite what experts still say are rising greenhouse gas emissions.
A new study in Geophysical Research Letters says that global warming may have hit a "speed bump" and could go into hiding for decades. Scientists say they're baffled as to what's causing the sudden cooling.
Oh gee, I dunno. Maybe we don't know all we profess to know when it comes to climactic cycles? Maybe those scientists who say (only to be shouted down) that the Earth has gone through warming and cooling trends since the beginning of time might be right? Maybe AL GORE is crazy after all, who knows?
NEW WEBSITE: Do My Homework Dot Com
PARIS (Reuters) - "You can't do it? We're here to help," says the homepage of a new French website where children can pay for older students to do homework for them.
On faismesdevoirs.com (domyhomework.com), children will be able to buy answers to simple maths problems for 5 euros ($6), while a full end-of-year presentation complete with slides and speaking notes will cost 80 euros ($100).
The website goes live Thursday morning, founder Stephane Boukris told Reuters.
"I realized there was a gap in the market. Add to that a dose of insolence, a zest of arrogance and the internet, and you have faismesdevoirs.com," he said.
Schoolteachers reacted with outrage.
"It is shocking. It defeats the purpose of education which is that the pupils need to learn for themselves how to do the work," said Agathe Field, a young English teacher at a secondary school in a suburb of Paris.
"It turns them into consumers. The message is that for the right price you can get the results you want. It's nonsense," she said.
Boukris defended the website, saying that the schoolchildren would still learn something if they bought homework from the site because it would come with annotations from the students explaining how they got to the final result.
"We're not just giving them the fish, we're teaching them how to fish," Boukris said in a telephone interview.
"Of course some schoolchildren might use the system to cheat, but they'll have to learn sooner or later because we won't be there on exam day," he said.
with
JIM & KAREN
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 19
Love is impossible.
Let us love one another, for is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7
The Love Dare starts with a secret. And though it’s been an unspoken element throughout each day, you’ve likely grown more and more suspicious of it all the time. Now that you’re this far, it’s a secret you’re discovering for yourself, even if you haven’t exactly known how to put it into words.
The secret is this: you cannot manufacture unconditional love out of your own heart. It’s impossible. It’s beyond your capabilities. It’s beyond all our capabilities. It is something only God can do.
Perhaps you are already a believer, but you would admit that you have walked away from fellowship with God. You’re not in the Word. You’re not in prayer, maybe you’re not even in church. The love you used to feel coursing through your veins has dwindled. The truth is, you can’t live without God and you can’t love withoutHim. But there is no telling what He could do in your marriage if you put your trust in Him.
TODAY’S DARE: Look backover the Dares from previous days. Were there some that seemed impossible to you? Have you realized your need for God to change your heart and to give you the ability to love? Ask Him to show you where you stand with Him and ask for the strength and grace to ssettle your eternal destination.
Ask Yourself This Question: What do I think God is trying to tell me?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Act Goofy Day, a day to do silly things just for the fun of it.
Today is National Cheese Doodle Day
1912: The Oreo cookie was born at the National Biscuit Company in New York. Since then, somebody has eaten over 62 billion of them. That’s enough to stack and reach the moon and back five times.
In The News…..
The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is offering a pledge of $900 million to the Palestinians in Gaza. Let’s hope they don’t spend it all on rocks this time. Apparently we ran out of banks here to bail out, so now we’re bailing out the West Bank. The U.S. government guaranteed the $900 million will go directly to the Palestinian people . . . why can’t we get that deal in this country?
I am getting a little concerned though about my bank. Every time I go there and make a deposit the tellers high-five each other.
Sales Pitch
President Obama says he wants the American people to buy stocks. Why should the government be the only one buying worthless pieces of paper.
I Love What Will Rogers Said About Our Government: "We have plenty of Confidence in this country, but we are a little short of good men to place our Confidence in."
Blockbuster Bankruptcy?
Movie-rental chain Blockbuster has hired law firm Kirkland & Ellis to explore restructuring. The firm is expected to suggest several options. Maybe I won’t have to pay those late fees afterall!
Save the Animals
President Obama is overturning the Bush Administration's efforts to reduce protections for endangered species. The Obama team is looking to save all endangered species except the middle class.
Seriously, why do people do these things?
A Chinese man pulled a car by a rope attached only to his eyelids for more than five meters. Yang Guanghe was cheered and applauded at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Guangzhou as he towed the VW car. Yang said he had been practicing the stunt for more than 10 years.
"McGruff the crime dog has been roughed up.
D.C. police said the mascot, who urges children to 'take a bite out of crime,' became a victim Saturday when a bus driver punched him in the face as he handed fliers to children. Police said the 38-year-old Metro bus driver, climbed off the bus, adjusted both sideview mirrors and then swung at Officer Tyrone Hardy, who was dressed as McGruff.Police said McGruff staggered, children screamed and the bus driver drove off.
Officers quickly pulled him over and charged him with assaultMetro spokeswoman Candace Smith said the bus driver told a supervisor he was trying 'to be funny.'
Smith said the driver will undergo drug and alcohol testing. His future with the agency was under review."
Is global warming currently "on hold?"
The Discovery Channel report that some scientists are starting to take a fresh look at climate change coming off data showing that global temperatures have pretty-much flat-lined since 2001, despite what experts still say are rising greenhouse gas emissions.
A new study in Geophysical Research Letters says that global warming may have hit a "speed bump" and could go into hiding for decades. Scientists say they're baffled as to what's causing the sudden cooling.
Oh gee, I dunno. Maybe we don't know all we profess to know when it comes to climactic cycles? Maybe those scientists who say (only to be shouted down) that the Earth has gone through warming and cooling trends since the beginning of time might be right? Maybe AL GORE is crazy after all, who knows?
NEW WEBSITE: Do My Homework Dot Com
PARIS (Reuters) - "You can't do it? We're here to help," says the homepage of a new French website where children can pay for older students to do homework for them.
On faismesdevoirs.com (domyhomework.com), children will be able to buy answers to simple maths problems for 5 euros ($6), while a full end-of-year presentation complete with slides and speaking notes will cost 80 euros ($100).
The website goes live Thursday morning, founder Stephane Boukris told Reuters.
"I realized there was a gap in the market. Add to that a dose of insolence, a zest of arrogance and the internet, and you have faismesdevoirs.com," he said.
Schoolteachers reacted with outrage.
"It is shocking. It defeats the purpose of education which is that the pupils need to learn for themselves how to do the work," said Agathe Field, a young English teacher at a secondary school in a suburb of Paris.
"It turns them into consumers. The message is that for the right price you can get the results you want. It's nonsense," she said.
Boukris defended the website, saying that the schoolchildren would still learn something if they bought homework from the site because it would come with annotations from the students explaining how they got to the final result.
"We're not just giving them the fish, we're teaching them how to fish," Boukris said in a telephone interview.
"Of course some schoolchildren might use the system to cheat, but they'll have to learn sooner or later because we won't be there on exam day," he said.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
TODAY IS WEDNESDAY - MARCH 4, 2009
The Morning Show
with
Jim & Karen
on
SPIRIT FM
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!
Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
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FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 18
Love seeks to understand.
How blessed is the man who finds wsdom, and the man who gains understanding. Provers 3:13
We enjoy discovering as much as we can about the things we truly care about. If it’s our favorite football team we’ll read any article that helps us keep up with how they are doing. If we like to cook we’ll spend hours searchingout new techniques and recipes. If there is a subject that appeals to us, we’ll take notice any time it comes up. In fact, it’s often like an area of personal study. So then..when is the last time you studied your spouse?
When you first started dating you studied them all the time. Finding out what they were like, what they were intersted in. It was challening and intriguing. But unfortunately, after years of marriage we tend to not put the study time in anymore. Sometimes the problems we are having with our spouse is simply because we don’t understand them now, we don’t know who they have become.
If you miss the level of intimacy you once shared with your spouse, one of the best ways to unlock their heart again is by making a commitment to know them. Study them. Read them like a book you’re trying to understand.
TODAY’S DARE: Prepare a special dinner at home, just for the two of you. The dinner can be as nice as you prefer. Focus this time on getting to know your spouse better, perhaps in areas you have rarely talked about. Determine to make it an enjoyable evening for you and your mate.
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION: What did I learn about my spouse that I didn’t know before? What were some of the moments that made the evening memorable?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Old Inauguration Day. The first U.S. president, George Washington, was inaugurated on March 4, 1789. Until the Twentieth Amendment, ratified in 1933, changed the date of the Presidential Inauguration to January 20th, every American president was inaugurated on this date.
Today is National Grammar Day, a time to honor our language and its rules
Today is March Forth, Do Something Day. Stop procrastinating.
Today is Learn What Your Name Means Day.
F.Y.I.
The meaning of the name James is Supplanter
The origin of the name James is Hebrew
The meaning of the name Karen is Pure
The origin of the name Karen is Scandinavian
Find out the meaning of your name at www.babyname.com
Today is Sleeping On The Job Day. In 2002, the German town of Vechta reported that civil servants allowed to sleep for 20 minutes after lunch worked more efficiently and effectively. Some 22 percent of the German population napped.
Today is Hug a G.I. Day, honoring all the men and women who serve in the military .
1924: The song "Happy Birthday to You" was published.
Chinese writer and champion of women's rights Ding Ling died on this day in 1988. Ding Ling was survived by her sister, Ding Dong, the first Chinese Avon Lady.
In The News…..
Research shows that men who hug and kiss their wives before going to work each morning live an average of five years longer than those men who do not! So pucker up sweetie!
Madoff Request
Bernie Madoff is asking the federal court to allow him to keep his Manhattan penthouse. Madoff is arguing that if he loses his home, he might run out of places to hide all his stolen money.
HHS Pick
President Obama has named Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as his choice for Secretary of Health and Human Services. But it's not clear how wise it was to choose someone whose name sounds like a disease.
Blagojevich Book
Ousted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has made a deal to write a book. But anyone wanting to read it will first have to make a $10,000 campaign donation.
Cricket Attack
Pakistani terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying the national cricket team from Sri Lanka. I hate to say it but it was the first exciting thing to happen in the sport of cricket in 67 years.
It was this week in 1854 that the Republican Party was founded with only a handful of true believers. Just like today.
At the Conservative Political Action Conference, Mitt Romney was picked over Sarah Palin, in a straw poll, to be the next presidential candidate, which is kind of interesting. I mean, one is a pretty face obsessed with hair and makeup, and the other, of course, is governor of Alaska.
Big snowstorm in New York this week. The snow was falling faster than the Dow! I think Regis Philbin had to attach a snowblower to his Rascal Scooter! Of course, the good news is all that snow broke the fall of all those jumping stock brokers..so that’s some good news, right?
Researchers at Georgia Tech who managed to harness the energy-producing power of hamsters by fitting them with tiny detector jackets say that it would take 1,000 hamsters to generate enough energy to power a cell phone. Are we paying for this stuff? Seriously who pays for these studies?
Update on Ed McMahon….ED McMAHON's rep doesn't think we should count the old guy out of the game just yet. Although the former "Tonight Show" announcer is currently in the intensive care in the hospital, his publicist, HOWARD BRAGMAN, told TMZ.com that Ed will "always be a Marine who will fight to the end and confront his health
problems with strength, courage and dignity." He also encouraged fans to say their prayers, remain hopeful and send good wishes because they're looking forward to celebrating his 86th birthday this Friday
Your computer screen shows your personality:
A new study shows people's personalities, habits and ambitions can be figured out just by looking at their computer screens! Psychologist DONNA DAWSON says her Microsoft-sponsored study into desktop psychology identified several clues which could indicate a person's personality.
For instance, having a screen cluttered with icons strewn across the screen shows the owner is disorganized and tends to lose focus easily. Here’s a further breakdown:
An even number of icons on each side of the screen shows the person values balance and proportion and tends to keep a cool head in tricky situations.
Too many rows of icons shows a person who needs everything handy, likes to feel in control — but is probably slightly disorganized.
The study also says the wallpaper you use on your computer also shows what kind of person you are and what priorities you have. For instance, photos of friends show how popular you are. Plain wallpaper indicates a person who likes to keep their personal life private.
Trophy photos as wallpaper suggests somebody with a big ego and someone who revels in their past successes.
TOP TEN HEALTHIEST FAST FOOD RESTAURANTS….Wait isn’t that an oxy-moron? Healthy? Fast Food?
This economy makes it tough to ignore fast food: It's inexpensive, and satisfying.
With people looking to save every penny, it's tough to say "no" to a meal for $6 that fills you up.
Trouble is, for decades now, fast food has been written off as ultimately unhealthy and fattening. So much of it is fried, processed, or both.
But in its March issue, Health magazine tells about the top ten healthiest fast food chains in the country. It examines why they're healthy, what the healthiest meals are to eat there, and what to avoid. The chains were scored and ranked on such factors as the use of healthy fats and preparations, healthy sodium counts in entrees, availability of nutrition information, and the use of organic produce.
One big surprise: A traditional fast-food chain, McDonald's, cracked the top 10.
1. Panera Bread Over 1,230 locations nationwide
This bakery-café-based eatery wowed our judges with a comprehensive menu of healthy choices for every meal. Half-size soups, salads, and sandwiches make it a cinch to control portion size. Also, most of the chicken is antibiotic- and hormone-free, a rarity for large chains. Panera also won top honors for its kid fare.
Try it: Delicious, nutrient-packed combos like half a Turkey Artichoke on focaccia bread with a bowl of black bean or garden vegetable soup.
Danger zone: Sticky buns and cheese Danishes are on display at the counter.
2. Jason's Deli 206 locations in the West, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, South
This up-and-comer snagged second place largely because of its devotion to organic food: About one-fifth of all its ingredients are organic, from blue-corn tortilla chips and whole-wheat wraps to field greens and spinach. Jason's menu also highlights ultra-healthy sandwiches and provides the nutritional info.
Try it: Any sandwich on an organic whole-wheat wrap.
Danger zone: High-sodium counts on some sandwiches.
3. Au Bon Pain 280 locations nationwide
A pioneer in healthy fast food, Au Bon Pain serves up sandwiches, soups, salads, and hot entrées made with whole grains, veggies, and hormone-free, antibiotic-free chicken. New this year: Portions, a 14-item menu of nutritious small plates, all of which are less than 200 calories. Au Bon Pain also provides on-site nutritional information via computer kiosks, so before you even order you know each option's calories, fat, and sodium.
Try it: Low-calorie soups, from Jamaican Black Bean to Fire Roasted Exotic Grains and Vegetables.
Danger zone: The sodium counts can get high if you don't pay attention.
4. Noodles and Company 204 locations in West, Midwest, South
Noodles and Company isn't your typical greasy Asian food-court joint. In fact, it goes beyond Asian fare and cuts out the grease (only healthy soybean oil is used in sautéing). Lean proteins-hormone- and antibiotic-free chicken, beef, shrimp, and organic tofu-can be added, to your bowl and you can opt for a smaller sized portion.
Try it: The whole-grain linguine-usually hard to find when eating out.
Danger zone: The desserts.
5. Corner Bakery café 111 locations in West, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, South
A fantastic and healthy breakfast menu sets this chain apart from all others. But Corner Bakery also has healthy salads, sandwiches, and soups made with whole grains, fresh, lean meats, and vegetables, as well as great portion-controlled combinations that make limiting calories easy.
Try it: Healthy oven-roasted chicken that comes with most pastas and salads.
Danger zone: You have to go to their Web site to get nutritional info.
. Chipotle 800+ locations nationwide
Buffet-style Chipotle gives every customer complete control over her burrito, taco, or salad and you get to build it with fresh, local ingredients. In fact, Chipotle won high marks for its commitment to organics, hormone- and antibiotic-free meats, and produce sourced from local suppliers, which is revolutionary in a chain this big.
Try it: Burrito Bowls, which let you skip the tortilla-and the extra carbs.
Danger zone: Make sure you go light on cheese and sour cream.
7. Atlanta Bread 106 locations in 24 states (Southeast, West, and North)
This innovative bakery features whole-grain bread, fresh sandwiches (including paninis), and hearty, healthy soups and salads. It earned high marks for great sides, too, including fire-roasted black bean and corn salad.
Try it: The entrée salads like Salsa Fresca Salmon Salad
Danger zone: Pasta entrees at some locations are offered with bread … that's a whole lot of carbs!
8. McDonald's 14,000 locations nationwide
Among the big burger-based chains, McDonald's is leading the way in overhauling its menu to offer more heart and waist-friendly fare. Take the Happy Meals, which you can order with a side of apple dippers (with low-fat caramel) instead of fries and low-fat milk or fruit juice instead of soda. And if you have to have fries, McDonald's are made in a healthy canola-blend oil and come in at just 230 calories for a small. The Grilled Chicken Classic sandwich and wraps are healthy choices, too (just skip the mayo or sauce). And our whole panel commends McDonald's for spelling out the nutritional information right on the back of its tray liners.
Try it: The chain's 260- to 270-calorie Snack Wraps (choose grilled chicken) for protein without a lot of unwanted carbs.
Danger zone: Although McDonald's made our list, this is still the land of super-sizing and giant sodas. It's up to you to request a small.
9. Einstein Bros. Bagels 649 locations nationwide
We all know that bagels are pretty high-carb, but slathering cream cheese or butter on them is what really gets you into trouble. Einstein Bros. offers healthier alternatives like reduced-fat shmears, hummus, and peanut butter-a great way to add healthy fat to breakfast (or lunch). It also serves a Good Grains bagel that has an impressive 4 grams of fiber and any salad can be ordered in a half-size.
Try it: The high-fiber Veg Out on a sesame seed bagel.
Danger zone: "Overstuffed" size sandwiches are a calorie nightmare.
10. Taco Del Mar 270 locations in 22 states
Whole grains are easy to get here, with whole-wheat tortillas available as an alternative in burritos. The chain gets high marks for its new 320-calorie chicken burrito, available at most locations. Our judges were also impressed that Taco Del Mar banned lard from its beans and bakes its fish and taco shells instead of frying them.
Try it: The 460- to 555-calorie Mondito-size burrito, which fills you up but keeps fat and sodium in check.
Danger zone: The breakfasts. In particular, steer clear of the Mondo Breakfast Burritos, which are more than 1,000 calories.
Story of King David to be Told in NBC Mini-Series
A modern-day retelling of the biblical story of King David will be premiering on NBC next month as a network television series.
“Kings,” created by Michael Green (“Heroes,” “Everwood”), centers on the drama surrounding David Shepherd, a young soldier in the war-torn country of Gilboa, who will rise to fame after inspiring the nation through his fearless rescue of the king’s son. Amid Shepherd's thrust toward destiny and peace for the kingdom, however, the country's power players will go to great lengths to see him fall, blurring the line between his allies and enemies.
The series is expected to draw the religious and the non-religious – the latter because of epic style and dramatic feel, and the former because it is expected to stick closely to the Old Testament, which Green says provides enough material to shape at least several seasons.
The biblical King David, the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel, was an acclaimed warrior, musician and poet who is traditionally credited with the authorship of many of the psalms included in the Book of Psalms.
Among Jews, David's three-decade reign represents the formation of a coherent Jewish kingdom centered in Jerusalem. To Muslims, David is a prophet of Islam to whom the Zabur, or Psalms, were revealed by Allah. And for Christians, the life of the Old Testament king was a prelude to that of Jesus Christ, whose earthly father, Joseph, was a direct descendent of David.
The show will not likely be anything like NBC’s earlier attempt at a religiously-rooted series – the short-lived “Book of Daniel,” Thank goodness….that was anything BUT biblical. And NBC has not asked the creators to “censor” the Bible.
The premier episode “Kings” will air on Sunday, Mar. 15, at 8 p.m. ET as a special two-hour event.
On the Web:
"Kings" website at www.nbc.com/Kings/
How You Can Save Money By Calling The Police
DALLAS, Texas – There are some simple steps you can take to save money on your homeowner's insurance.
In Missouri and Kansas, State Farm Insurance will give you a two percent discount if you have a deadbolt, smoke alarm, and fire extinguisher in your home. You can earn a 10 percent discount if you have those items plus a monitored security system.
Texas residents can earn a five percent discount from State Farm if they call the police to come and inspect their home.
"They're going to look for an open door, they're going to look for an open window. They're easy access in, they're easy access out," said Mike Bedrich of the Southlake, Texas Police Department.
Not every city offers the home inspections, but the cities that do, local police will check dead bolts, windows and garage doors.
"In today's economy, we're finding more and more break-ins, more and more thefts, and if people have their windows and doors all fixed up according to this discount we can apply, then it's just better for us, as well as the policy holder," said Dan Sweeney of State Farm Insurance.
The inspection takes less than an hour and could save hundreds of dollars.
A Soda That Will Help You Burn Calroies?
If there is one category of products that could use a healthier image, soft drinks, one could argue, would be it.
The beleaguered, mostly carbonated offerings have suffered various slings and arrows in recent years, ranging from charges they contain too much high fructose corn syrup to studies that back their role in heart disease and other ills.
It's an image that a drink, sold under the brand name Celsius, hopes to shatter. And if the television ad campaign launched this past weekend is to be believed, these drinks go a step beyond zero calories -- they can actually make your body burn calories after you drink them.
Steve Haley, CEO of Celsius Holdings, Inc., said the claims are backed by several clinical studies funded by his company showing that the beverage ramps up the body's metabolism -- allowing those who consume it to stoke their calorie-burning furnaces.
"[Consumers] can replace what they normally enjoy with this," he said. "We're a great replacement for soft drinks, to a point."
The method behind this boost is not magic; rather it's caffeine -- and quite a bit of it. At 200 milligrams of caffeine, a can of Celsius packs nearly twice the amount of caffeine in an eight-ounce cup of coffee.
But Haley pointed out that the calorie-burning power of the drink comes not only from caffeine, but also from other metabolism-boosting ingredients, like the green tea chemical Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), chromium and ginger. In addition, he said, the drink contains vitamins, as well as calcium to counteract the bone-robbing effects of caffeine.
In short, Celsius may be the health food industry's answer to the soft drink in something of the same way that a PowerBar stacks up to a Snickers bar.
The Next Narnia Release Is Planned for 2010
LOS ANGELES, March 3 (UPI) -- Twentieth Century Fox and Walden Media say they are planning to release the third installment of "The Chronicles of Narnia" film franchise in December 2010.
Variety.com said "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is slated for U.S. release Dec. 10, 2010, returning the family movie series to winter, the season when "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion (OTCPK:LIOPF), the Witch and the Wardrobe" was an enormous blockbuster in 2005.
The second film in the franchise "Prince Caspian" was released last May but wasn't as big as a box office smash, Variety.com noted.
The first two installments were collaborations between Walden and Disney but Disney opted not to take part in the third entry, which will now be a Fox and Walden effort.
The "Narnia" movies are based on the classic fantasy books by C.S. Lewis.
Mainlow Music VS The Mall Rats!!!
WELLINGTON, New Zealand – It'll be Barry Manilow versus the mall rats.
The New Zealand city of Christchurch hopes that putting the American crooner's smooth and gentle tones into the mix of music to be broadcast through the central mall district can pacify unruly teens who congregate there_ or at least convince them to go elsewhere.
"The intention is to change the environment in a positive way ... so nobody feels threatened or intimidated," Central City Business Association manager Paul Lonsdale told The Associated Press. "I did not say Barry Manilow is a weapon of mass destruction."
A group of several dozen young people regularly spread rubbish, spray graffiti, get intoxicated, use drugs, swear and intimidate patrons at the outdoor mall, he said.
The city council, police and local property owners covering 410 businesses agree that "nice, easy listening" music like Manilow's "Can't Smile Without You," "Mandy" and other hits might change the behavior of loitering teens.But one 16-year-old told The Press newspaper that unfashionablemusic wouldn't deter them.
"We would just bring a stereo and play it louder," Emma Belcher said.
Lonsdale countered that the city would then hit them with anti-noise laws.
Those Crazy Iowans Are At It Again!
SAC CITY, Iowa -- The town of Sac City is trying to get back into the Guinness Book of World Records.
The town was known as the home of the World's Biggest Popcorn Ball in 1995 and 2004. Saturday, residents worked to get their title back.
Volunteers whipped up a 5,000-pound popcorn ball, including 1,500 pounds of popcorn, 2,400 pounds of sugar and 11 pounds of corn syrup.
The new ball will be kept at the town's museum on Main Street.
By the way, there are only 2,300 people in Sac City, which means the ball is big enough to give each person over two pounds of the popcorn ball.
GO TO THIS WESBITE TO SEE PICTURES:
http://www.kcci.com/entertainment/18837938/detail.html
with
Jim & Karen
on
SPIRIT FM
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!
Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 18
Love seeks to understand.
How blessed is the man who finds wsdom, and the man who gains understanding. Provers 3:13
We enjoy discovering as much as we can about the things we truly care about. If it’s our favorite football team we’ll read any article that helps us keep up with how they are doing. If we like to cook we’ll spend hours searchingout new techniques and recipes. If there is a subject that appeals to us, we’ll take notice any time it comes up. In fact, it’s often like an area of personal study. So then..when is the last time you studied your spouse?
When you first started dating you studied them all the time. Finding out what they were like, what they were intersted in. It was challening and intriguing. But unfortunately, after years of marriage we tend to not put the study time in anymore. Sometimes the problems we are having with our spouse is simply because we don’t understand them now, we don’t know who they have become.
If you miss the level of intimacy you once shared with your spouse, one of the best ways to unlock their heart again is by making a commitment to know them. Study them. Read them like a book you’re trying to understand.
TODAY’S DARE: Prepare a special dinner at home, just for the two of you. The dinner can be as nice as you prefer. Focus this time on getting to know your spouse better, perhaps in areas you have rarely talked about. Determine to make it an enjoyable evening for you and your mate.
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION: What did I learn about my spouse that I didn’t know before? What were some of the moments that made the evening memorable?
TODAY IS…..
Today is Old Inauguration Day. The first U.S. president, George Washington, was inaugurated on March 4, 1789. Until the Twentieth Amendment, ratified in 1933, changed the date of the Presidential Inauguration to January 20th, every American president was inaugurated on this date.
Today is National Grammar Day, a time to honor our language and its rules
Today is March Forth, Do Something Day. Stop procrastinating.
Today is Learn What Your Name Means Day.
F.Y.I.
The meaning of the name James is Supplanter
The origin of the name James is Hebrew
The meaning of the name Karen is Pure
The origin of the name Karen is Scandinavian
Find out the meaning of your name at www.babyname.com
Today is Sleeping On The Job Day. In 2002, the German town of Vechta reported that civil servants allowed to sleep for 20 minutes after lunch worked more efficiently and effectively. Some 22 percent of the German population napped.
Today is Hug a G.I. Day, honoring all the men and women who serve in the military .
1924: The song "Happy Birthday to You" was published.
Chinese writer and champion of women's rights Ding Ling died on this day in 1988. Ding Ling was survived by her sister, Ding Dong, the first Chinese Avon Lady.
In The News…..
Research shows that men who hug and kiss their wives before going to work each morning live an average of five years longer than those men who do not! So pucker up sweetie!
Madoff Request
Bernie Madoff is asking the federal court to allow him to keep his Manhattan penthouse. Madoff is arguing that if he loses his home, he might run out of places to hide all his stolen money.
HHS Pick
President Obama has named Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as his choice for Secretary of Health and Human Services. But it's not clear how wise it was to choose someone whose name sounds like a disease.
Blagojevich Book
Ousted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has made a deal to write a book. But anyone wanting to read it will first have to make a $10,000 campaign donation.
Cricket Attack
Pakistani terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying the national cricket team from Sri Lanka. I hate to say it but it was the first exciting thing to happen in the sport of cricket in 67 years.
It was this week in 1854 that the Republican Party was founded with only a handful of true believers. Just like today.
At the Conservative Political Action Conference, Mitt Romney was picked over Sarah Palin, in a straw poll, to be the next presidential candidate, which is kind of interesting. I mean, one is a pretty face obsessed with hair and makeup, and the other, of course, is governor of Alaska.
Big snowstorm in New York this week. The snow was falling faster than the Dow! I think Regis Philbin had to attach a snowblower to his Rascal Scooter! Of course, the good news is all that snow broke the fall of all those jumping stock brokers..so that’s some good news, right?
Researchers at Georgia Tech who managed to harness the energy-producing power of hamsters by fitting them with tiny detector jackets say that it would take 1,000 hamsters to generate enough energy to power a cell phone. Are we paying for this stuff? Seriously who pays for these studies?
Update on Ed McMahon….ED McMAHON's rep doesn't think we should count the old guy out of the game just yet. Although the former "Tonight Show" announcer is currently in the intensive care in the hospital, his publicist, HOWARD BRAGMAN, told TMZ.com that Ed will "always be a Marine who will fight to the end and confront his health
problems with strength, courage and dignity." He also encouraged fans to say their prayers, remain hopeful and send good wishes because they're looking forward to celebrating his 86th birthday this Friday
Your computer screen shows your personality:
A new study shows people's personalities, habits and ambitions can be figured out just by looking at their computer screens! Psychologist DONNA DAWSON says her Microsoft-sponsored study into desktop psychology identified several clues which could indicate a person's personality.
For instance, having a screen cluttered with icons strewn across the screen shows the owner is disorganized and tends to lose focus easily. Here’s a further breakdown:
An even number of icons on each side of the screen shows the person values balance and proportion and tends to keep a cool head in tricky situations.
Too many rows of icons shows a person who needs everything handy, likes to feel in control — but is probably slightly disorganized.
The study also says the wallpaper you use on your computer also shows what kind of person you are and what priorities you have. For instance, photos of friends show how popular you are. Plain wallpaper indicates a person who likes to keep their personal life private.
Trophy photos as wallpaper suggests somebody with a big ego and someone who revels in their past successes.
TOP TEN HEALTHIEST FAST FOOD RESTAURANTS….Wait isn’t that an oxy-moron? Healthy? Fast Food?
This economy makes it tough to ignore fast food: It's inexpensive, and satisfying.
With people looking to save every penny, it's tough to say "no" to a meal for $6 that fills you up.
Trouble is, for decades now, fast food has been written off as ultimately unhealthy and fattening. So much of it is fried, processed, or both.
But in its March issue, Health magazine tells about the top ten healthiest fast food chains in the country. It examines why they're healthy, what the healthiest meals are to eat there, and what to avoid. The chains were scored and ranked on such factors as the use of healthy fats and preparations, healthy sodium counts in entrees, availability of nutrition information, and the use of organic produce.
One big surprise: A traditional fast-food chain, McDonald's, cracked the top 10.
1. Panera Bread Over 1,230 locations nationwide
This bakery-café-based eatery wowed our judges with a comprehensive menu of healthy choices for every meal. Half-size soups, salads, and sandwiches make it a cinch to control portion size. Also, most of the chicken is antibiotic- and hormone-free, a rarity for large chains. Panera also won top honors for its kid fare.
Try it: Delicious, nutrient-packed combos like half a Turkey Artichoke on focaccia bread with a bowl of black bean or garden vegetable soup.
Danger zone: Sticky buns and cheese Danishes are on display at the counter.
2. Jason's Deli 206 locations in the West, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, South
This up-and-comer snagged second place largely because of its devotion to organic food: About one-fifth of all its ingredients are organic, from blue-corn tortilla chips and whole-wheat wraps to field greens and spinach. Jason's menu also highlights ultra-healthy sandwiches and provides the nutritional info.
Try it: Any sandwich on an organic whole-wheat wrap.
Danger zone: High-sodium counts on some sandwiches.
3. Au Bon Pain 280 locations nationwide
A pioneer in healthy fast food, Au Bon Pain serves up sandwiches, soups, salads, and hot entrées made with whole grains, veggies, and hormone-free, antibiotic-free chicken. New this year: Portions, a 14-item menu of nutritious small plates, all of which are less than 200 calories. Au Bon Pain also provides on-site nutritional information via computer kiosks, so before you even order you know each option's calories, fat, and sodium.
Try it: Low-calorie soups, from Jamaican Black Bean to Fire Roasted Exotic Grains and Vegetables.
Danger zone: The sodium counts can get high if you don't pay attention.
4. Noodles and Company 204 locations in West, Midwest, South
Noodles and Company isn't your typical greasy Asian food-court joint. In fact, it goes beyond Asian fare and cuts out the grease (only healthy soybean oil is used in sautéing). Lean proteins-hormone- and antibiotic-free chicken, beef, shrimp, and organic tofu-can be added, to your bowl and you can opt for a smaller sized portion.
Try it: The whole-grain linguine-usually hard to find when eating out.
Danger zone: The desserts.
5. Corner Bakery café 111 locations in West, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, South
A fantastic and healthy breakfast menu sets this chain apart from all others. But Corner Bakery also has healthy salads, sandwiches, and soups made with whole grains, fresh, lean meats, and vegetables, as well as great portion-controlled combinations that make limiting calories easy.
Try it: Healthy oven-roasted chicken that comes with most pastas and salads.
Danger zone: You have to go to their Web site to get nutritional info.
. Chipotle 800+ locations nationwide
Buffet-style Chipotle gives every customer complete control over her burrito, taco, or salad and you get to build it with fresh, local ingredients. In fact, Chipotle won high marks for its commitment to organics, hormone- and antibiotic-free meats, and produce sourced from local suppliers, which is revolutionary in a chain this big.
Try it: Burrito Bowls, which let you skip the tortilla-and the extra carbs.
Danger zone: Make sure you go light on cheese and sour cream.
7. Atlanta Bread 106 locations in 24 states (Southeast, West, and North)
This innovative bakery features whole-grain bread, fresh sandwiches (including paninis), and hearty, healthy soups and salads. It earned high marks for great sides, too, including fire-roasted black bean and corn salad.
Try it: The entrée salads like Salsa Fresca Salmon Salad
Danger zone: Pasta entrees at some locations are offered with bread … that's a whole lot of carbs!
8. McDonald's 14,000 locations nationwide
Among the big burger-based chains, McDonald's is leading the way in overhauling its menu to offer more heart and waist-friendly fare. Take the Happy Meals, which you can order with a side of apple dippers (with low-fat caramel) instead of fries and low-fat milk or fruit juice instead of soda. And if you have to have fries, McDonald's are made in a healthy canola-blend oil and come in at just 230 calories for a small. The Grilled Chicken Classic sandwich and wraps are healthy choices, too (just skip the mayo or sauce). And our whole panel commends McDonald's for spelling out the nutritional information right on the back of its tray liners.
Try it: The chain's 260- to 270-calorie Snack Wraps (choose grilled chicken) for protein without a lot of unwanted carbs.
Danger zone: Although McDonald's made our list, this is still the land of super-sizing and giant sodas. It's up to you to request a small.
9. Einstein Bros. Bagels 649 locations nationwide
We all know that bagels are pretty high-carb, but slathering cream cheese or butter on them is what really gets you into trouble. Einstein Bros. offers healthier alternatives like reduced-fat shmears, hummus, and peanut butter-a great way to add healthy fat to breakfast (or lunch). It also serves a Good Grains bagel that has an impressive 4 grams of fiber and any salad can be ordered in a half-size.
Try it: The high-fiber Veg Out on a sesame seed bagel.
Danger zone: "Overstuffed" size sandwiches are a calorie nightmare.
10. Taco Del Mar 270 locations in 22 states
Whole grains are easy to get here, with whole-wheat tortillas available as an alternative in burritos. The chain gets high marks for its new 320-calorie chicken burrito, available at most locations. Our judges were also impressed that Taco Del Mar banned lard from its beans and bakes its fish and taco shells instead of frying them.
Try it: The 460- to 555-calorie Mondito-size burrito, which fills you up but keeps fat and sodium in check.
Danger zone: The breakfasts. In particular, steer clear of the Mondo Breakfast Burritos, which are more than 1,000 calories.
Story of King David to be Told in NBC Mini-Series
A modern-day retelling of the biblical story of King David will be premiering on NBC next month as a network television series.
“Kings,” created by Michael Green (“Heroes,” “Everwood”), centers on the drama surrounding David Shepherd, a young soldier in the war-torn country of Gilboa, who will rise to fame after inspiring the nation through his fearless rescue of the king’s son. Amid Shepherd's thrust toward destiny and peace for the kingdom, however, the country's power players will go to great lengths to see him fall, blurring the line between his allies and enemies.
The series is expected to draw the religious and the non-religious – the latter because of epic style and dramatic feel, and the former because it is expected to stick closely to the Old Testament, which Green says provides enough material to shape at least several seasons.
The biblical King David, the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel, was an acclaimed warrior, musician and poet who is traditionally credited with the authorship of many of the psalms included in the Book of Psalms.
Among Jews, David's three-decade reign represents the formation of a coherent Jewish kingdom centered in Jerusalem. To Muslims, David is a prophet of Islam to whom the Zabur, or Psalms, were revealed by Allah. And for Christians, the life of the Old Testament king was a prelude to that of Jesus Christ, whose earthly father, Joseph, was a direct descendent of David.
The show will not likely be anything like NBC’s earlier attempt at a religiously-rooted series – the short-lived “Book of Daniel,” Thank goodness….that was anything BUT biblical. And NBC has not asked the creators to “censor” the Bible.
The premier episode “Kings” will air on Sunday, Mar. 15, at 8 p.m. ET as a special two-hour event.
On the Web:
"Kings" website at www.nbc.com/Kings/
How You Can Save Money By Calling The Police
DALLAS, Texas – There are some simple steps you can take to save money on your homeowner's insurance.
In Missouri and Kansas, State Farm Insurance will give you a two percent discount if you have a deadbolt, smoke alarm, and fire extinguisher in your home. You can earn a 10 percent discount if you have those items plus a monitored security system.
Texas residents can earn a five percent discount from State Farm if they call the police to come and inspect their home.
"They're going to look for an open door, they're going to look for an open window. They're easy access in, they're easy access out," said Mike Bedrich of the Southlake, Texas Police Department.
Not every city offers the home inspections, but the cities that do, local police will check dead bolts, windows and garage doors.
"In today's economy, we're finding more and more break-ins, more and more thefts, and if people have their windows and doors all fixed up according to this discount we can apply, then it's just better for us, as well as the policy holder," said Dan Sweeney of State Farm Insurance.
The inspection takes less than an hour and could save hundreds of dollars.
A Soda That Will Help You Burn Calroies?
If there is one category of products that could use a healthier image, soft drinks, one could argue, would be it.
The beleaguered, mostly carbonated offerings have suffered various slings and arrows in recent years, ranging from charges they contain too much high fructose corn syrup to studies that back their role in heart disease and other ills.
It's an image that a drink, sold under the brand name Celsius, hopes to shatter. And if the television ad campaign launched this past weekend is to be believed, these drinks go a step beyond zero calories -- they can actually make your body burn calories after you drink them.
Steve Haley, CEO of Celsius Holdings, Inc., said the claims are backed by several clinical studies funded by his company showing that the beverage ramps up the body's metabolism -- allowing those who consume it to stoke their calorie-burning furnaces.
"[Consumers] can replace what they normally enjoy with this," he said. "We're a great replacement for soft drinks, to a point."
The method behind this boost is not magic; rather it's caffeine -- and quite a bit of it. At 200 milligrams of caffeine, a can of Celsius packs nearly twice the amount of caffeine in an eight-ounce cup of coffee.
But Haley pointed out that the calorie-burning power of the drink comes not only from caffeine, but also from other metabolism-boosting ingredients, like the green tea chemical Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), chromium and ginger. In addition, he said, the drink contains vitamins, as well as calcium to counteract the bone-robbing effects of caffeine.
In short, Celsius may be the health food industry's answer to the soft drink in something of the same way that a PowerBar stacks up to a Snickers bar.
The Next Narnia Release Is Planned for 2010
LOS ANGELES, March 3 (UPI) -- Twentieth Century Fox and Walden Media say they are planning to release the third installment of "The Chronicles of Narnia" film franchise in December 2010.
Variety.com said "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is slated for U.S. release Dec. 10, 2010, returning the family movie series to winter, the season when "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion (OTCPK:LIOPF), the Witch and the Wardrobe" was an enormous blockbuster in 2005.
The second film in the franchise "Prince Caspian" was released last May but wasn't as big as a box office smash, Variety.com noted.
The first two installments were collaborations between Walden and Disney but Disney opted not to take part in the third entry, which will now be a Fox and Walden effort.
The "Narnia" movies are based on the classic fantasy books by C.S. Lewis.
Mainlow Music VS The Mall Rats!!!
WELLINGTON, New Zealand – It'll be Barry Manilow versus the mall rats.
The New Zealand city of Christchurch hopes that putting the American crooner's smooth and gentle tones into the mix of music to be broadcast through the central mall district can pacify unruly teens who congregate there_ or at least convince them to go elsewhere.
"The intention is to change the environment in a positive way ... so nobody feels threatened or intimidated," Central City Business Association manager Paul Lonsdale told The Associated Press. "I did not say Barry Manilow is a weapon of mass destruction."
A group of several dozen young people regularly spread rubbish, spray graffiti, get intoxicated, use drugs, swear and intimidate patrons at the outdoor mall, he said.
The city council, police and local property owners covering 410 businesses agree that "nice, easy listening" music like Manilow's "Can't Smile Without You," "Mandy" and other hits might change the behavior of loitering teens.But one 16-year-old told The Press newspaper that unfashionablemusic wouldn't deter them.
"We would just bring a stereo and play it louder," Emma Belcher said.
Lonsdale countered that the city would then hit them with anti-noise laws.
Those Crazy Iowans Are At It Again!
SAC CITY, Iowa -- The town of Sac City is trying to get back into the Guinness Book of World Records.
The town was known as the home of the World's Biggest Popcorn Ball in 1995 and 2004. Saturday, residents worked to get their title back.
Volunteers whipped up a 5,000-pound popcorn ball, including 1,500 pounds of popcorn, 2,400 pounds of sugar and 11 pounds of corn syrup.
The new ball will be kept at the town's museum on Main Street.
By the way, there are only 2,300 people in Sac City, which means the ball is big enough to give each person over two pounds of the popcorn ball.
GO TO THIS WESBITE TO SEE PICTURES:
http://www.kcci.com/entertainment/18837938/detail.html
Monday, March 2, 2009
TODAY IS TUESDAY - MARCH 3, 2009
The Morning Show
with
Jim and Karen
on
Spirit FM
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
FAITH DEPLOYED – A GUIDE FOR MILITARY WIVES
www.faithdeployed.com
Faith Deployed is not a guide to long-distance relationships or a how-to on navigating through the military culture. It does not offer "ten easy steps" for an easier, painless life. Instead, through squarely addressing the challenges you face, Faith Deployed will equip you to respond biblically to the daily struggles that threaten to wear you down.
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 17
Love promotes intimacy
He who covers an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. Proverbs 17:9
Nothing rivals the closeness between a husband and a wife. Marriage is the most intimate of all human relationships. The prospect of sharing our home with another person who knows us down to the most intimate details is part of the deep pleasure of marriage. Yet this great blessings is also the site of its greatest danger. Someone who knows us this intimately can either love us at depths we never imagines, or canwound us in ways we never fully recover from.
Are the secrets your spouse knows about you reasons for shame, or reasons fro drawing you closer? If your spouse were to answer thi squestion, would they say you make them feel safe, or scared?
TODAY’S DARE: Determine to guard your mate’s secrets (unless they are dangerous to them or to you) and to pray for them. Talk with your spouse and resolve to demonstrate love in spite of these issues. Really listen to them when they share personal thoughts and struggles with you. Make them feel safe.
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION: How much of an effort is it for you to hold back from saying something critical, or otherwise? Whathave you learned about your spouse today, simply from listening?
TODAY IS…..
Today is I Want You to Be Happy Day, a day to be thoughtful to others
Today is Unique Names Day, a time to honor anyone who has an unusual name.
Today is National Anthem Day. The "Star Spangled Banner" became the U.S. National Anthem on May 3, 1931
1988: Singer Luciano Pavarotti set a record with 165 curtain calls at a West Berlin opera. The standing ovation lasted 67 minutes.
In The News…..
Winter Storm
A major winter storm has slammed the East Coast. The Obama Administration is preparing a $17 trillion spending bill to bail out the people who didn't bother to buy a shovel.
Freddie CEO Stepping Down
The head of mortgage giant Freddie Mac is resigning as CEO David Moffett says he wants to return to the financial services sector. For the last few years he's only been in the financial losses sector.
HSBC Capital Raise
HSBC bank says it will raise $17.8 billion in new capital this month... and it's going to do that by selling unicorn rides and fairy wings.
More Money for AIG
The U.S. government will provide troubled insurance giant AIG another $30 billion. AIG executives are promising to spend this money much more wisely by making less risky investments and using discountspas and resorts.
THE DOW INDUSTRIAL FALLS BELOW 7,000 – Lowest it has ever been since 97
"The Dow Jones industrial average plunged below 7,000 Monday for the first time in more than 11 years as investors grow even more pessimistic about the health of banks, and in turn the economy."
As an investor you may be losing money but keep everything in perspective.
Money can buy a House............But not a Home
Money can buy a Bed..............But not Sleep
Money can buy a Clock............But not Time
Money can buy you a Book.........But not Knowledge
Money can buy you Medicine.......But not Health
So you see money isn't everything. And it often causes pain and suffering. I tell you all this because I am your friend, and as your friend I want to take away your pain and suffering.
Can You Hear Me Now?????
A businessman in the UK who lost his cell phone on a beach was amazed when it turned up - in the belly of a giant cod. Andrew Cheatle thought it had been swept out to sea after it slipped from his pocket. But a week later his girlfriend's cell phone rang and it was fisherman Glen Kerley saying he'd found the phone in a 25lb fish.
Mom Shows Up For Duty With Kids In Tow
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- A woman who was called back to the Army has braved a winter storm to report for duty -- with her children in tow.
Lisa Pagan drove from North Carolina to Georgia's Fort Benning and arrived Sunday night. She said bad weather made the drive "a little scary." She and her children were staying in a motel.
Pagan was honorably discharged four years ago, but she has been on "individual ready reserve" status -- eligible to be recalled at any time.
She has filed several appeals, arguing that because her husband travels for business, no one else can take care of her kids. The appeals have been rejected.
An Army spokesman said the commander of Fort Benning will decide how to handle the situation. Pagan said her goal is another honorable discharge.
Pagan is among thousands of former service members who have left active duty since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, only to be recalled to service.
Toyota Has Had To Charter A Ship To Store Unsold Cars
The global auto sales slump has hit Toyota so hard it has had to charter a ship to store some of its unsold cars.
The Japanese automaker announced last week it had chartered a 2,500-capacity vessel which will simply stand idle in port in Malmo, Sweden, reported Lloyd's List, a maritime and transport news Web site.
The vessel became necessary because Toyota ran out of room to store cars at its import site in Malmo, a company spokesman said
"We have space for 12,500 cars in Malmo, which acts as a distribution center for all the Nordic countries," Toyota spokesman Etienne Plas told Lloyd's List. "But we have run out of space. We need the ship to store cars while they are waiting to be delivered."
Plas said the company hopes it won't have to use the cargo ship for long.
Toyota reported that its exports fell by 60 percent in January alone, like many auto exporters. Photos of cars parked at race tracks and stacked rows deep at ports are circulating around the Internet as all automakers try to deal with the fall-off in demand.
A Brand New Car For Just $2,000…But Unfortunately You Can’t Buy It!
The cheapest car in the world is expected to begin rolling off assembly lines March 23, seven months behind schedule.
India's tiny Tata Nano, priced at 100,000 rupees, or about $2,000 at current exchange rates, will not be sold in the United States. Cars will reach dealerships across India in April, and production for the first year is expected to reach 250,000 vehicles.
The Nano's unveiling in January 2008 caused a stir worldwide and especially in India, where there are fewer than 10 cars for every thousand people, compared with 40 per thousand in China and 450 in the U.S.
Indians bought about 1 million cars in 2007. Far more middle-class Indians buy and transport their entire families on scooters.
The Nano -- its working name was the "People's Car" -- is just half the price of the next-cheapest car in the world, a Chery Automobiles QQ3 sold only in its domestic market of China. The $5,200 Suzuki Maruti is the current least
expensive option for Indians, where per capita incomes are nearing $1,000 after years of explosive economic growth. In the U.S., the cheapest option is the Nissan Versa, which, at $9,990, is about five times the price of Nano.
With a snub nose and a sloping roof, the world's cheapest car can hold five people --if they squeeze. And the basic version is spare: There's no radio, no air bags, no passenger-side mirror and only one windshield wiper. If you want air conditioning to cope with India's brutal summers, you need to get the deluxe version. Analysts estimate taxes, delivery and extras will add 30% or so to the car's cost.
At 10 feet long, the Nano is about 2 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper. Its 623-cubic-centimeter, two-cylinder engine is estimated to produce about 35 horsepower, good for a top speed of 75 mph.
One Third of Us Are Losing Sleep Over the Economy
Worries about money keep one-third of people in the U.S. from sleeping properly, according to a survey by the national Sleep Foundation.
The group said that the number of people who say they get less than six hours of sleep a night rose 13 percent since 2001
"It's easy to understand why so many people are concerned over the economy and jobs, but sacrificing sleep is the wrong solution," National Sleep Foundation CEO David Cloud said. "Sleep is essential for productivity and alertness and is a vital sign for one's overall health."
"With the economy worsening, we are seeing patients in our clinic who have told us that they would not be returning for treatment because they or other family members have lost their jobs, and they are concerned about costs," said Dr. Meir Kryger of Gaylord Sleep Services. "Some patients have elected not to be treated for sleep apnea because they could not afford the co-pay for the equipment. These patients may wind up far sicker."
The National Sleep Foundation said in a news release it encourages people to maintain good sleep, exercise and diet routines to help combat anxiety and improve health and productivity.
The Secret Of Belly Button Lint Is Finally Revealed
After three years of research, Georg Steinhauser, a chemist, has discovered a type of body hair that traps stray pieces of lint and draws them into the navel.
Dr Steinhauser made his discovery after studying 503 pieces of fluff from his own belly button.
Chemical analysis revealed the pieces of fluff were not made up of only cotton from clothing. Wrapped up in the lint were also flecks of dead skin, fat, sweat and dust.
Dr Steinhauser's observations showed that 'small pieces of fluff first form in the hair and then end up in the navel at the end of the day'.
Writing in the journal Medical Hypotheses, he said the scaly structure of the hair enhances the 'abrasion of minuscule fibres from the shirt' and directs the lint towards the belly button.
"The hair's scales act like a kind of barbed hooks," he said. "Abdominal hair often seems to grow in concentric circles around the navel."
The researcher, from Vienna University of Technology also asked friends, family and workmates about their own belly button fluff.
Dr Steinhauser established that shaving one's belly will result in a fluff-free navel - but only until the hairs grow back.
Other suggestions for keeping the navel fluff-free include wearing old clothes, as they tend to shed less lint than newer garments, which can lose up to one thousandth of their weight to the belly button over the course of a year.
A body piercing can also be used, with belly button rings particularly effective at sweeping away fibres before they lodge.
Dr Steinhauser, whose other projects have included monitoring the erosion of his wedding ring, said: "The question of the nature of navel fluff seems to concern more people than one would think at first glance.
"We hope we have been able to provide information for doctors when they are next confronted with the simple question of 'why some belly buttons collect so much lint and others do not'."
An earlier, Australian study of samples from 5,000 people concluded the typical carrier of navel fluff to be 'a slightly overweight middle-aged male with a hairy abdomen'.
Researcher Karl Kruszelnicki said: "The reason it is usually blue is that we mostly wear blue or grey trousers, often jeans, and when these rub against the body, the fibres often end up finding their way to the navel."
Not all belly button fluff is blue however. In the curious case of Australian hospital worker Graham Barker much of his fluff is red, even though he rarely wears the colour.
Mr Barker has been collecting his own navel fluff in jars every day since 1984. The achievement has won him a place in the Guinness Book of Records for the world's largest collection of navel lint.
Marine One Info Found on Computer in Iran – That’s Right…The President’s Helicopter. Blue prints and all. So much for security.
A Pennsylvania company that monitors peer-to-peer file-sharing networks discovered a potentially serious security breach involving President Obama's helicopter, Marine One, WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh reported.
Sensitive information about Marine One was reportedly found by Tiversa employees at an IP address in Tehran.
Tiversa CEO Bob Boback said a defense contractor in Bethesda, Md., had a file sharing program on one of their systems that contained highly sensitive blueprints for Marine One and financial information about the cost of the helicopter.
"We found a file containing entire blueprints and avionics package for Marine One," Boback said.
Boback said the issue most likely stemmed from someone downloading the file-sharing program without realizing the problems that could result.
"When downloading one of these file-sharing programs, you are effectively allowing others around the world to access your hard drive," Boback told WPXI.
"We found where this information came from. We know exactly what computer it came from. I'm sure that person is embarrassed and may even lose their job, but we know where it came from and we know where it went," Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, an adviser to Tiversa, told WPXI.
A Classroom With No Chairs
FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Talk about a teacher's dream: No more slouching, no more wiggly little boys and no more snoozing at desks.
All teachers have to do is ditch the classroom chair. A growing number are replacing them with exercise stability balls more associated with pilates classes than schoolroom lectures as an innovative way to improve student posture and attention.
"They're awesome," gushed 10-year-old James Howell, a fourth grader at Bauder Elementary School whose class switched to purple stability balls in January. "They help you focus, they help you keep your structure. And sometimes you get to bounce on them, get the wiggles out."
The kids in Tiffany Miller's class sound like little pilates teachers when they talk about their new chairs, dropping phrases like "strengthen your core" and "engage your center." They don't roll around wildly or play games with them except in gym class. Instead, they've taken to their rubbery seats as naturally as older office workers who sit on stability balls to alleviate back pain.
"The whole theory with the brain is that when your body's engaged, your brain's engaged," Miller said. "I call it actively sitting. They're maybe moving their legs a little, wiggling some. But their upper body, they're focused on writing, on the teacher. It really works."
Research is starting to back up that theory. John Kilbourne, a professor in the Department of Movement Science at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich., switched to stability balls in his college courses last semester and surveyed 52 students on the change.
Nearly all said they preferred sitting on the balls. Students mentioned improvement in their ability to pay attention, concentrate, take notes, engage in classroom discussions and take exams.
Some scientists warn the balls aren't a miracle cure for bad posture. When people sit on them for long periods of time, bad habits can reappear. And because they don't have backs, the balls don't allow sitters to lean back and take pressure off the tailbone, said Fabio Camana, an exercise physiologist at the American Council on Exercise.
with
Jim and Karen
on
Spirit FM
MARCH FOR OUR TROOPS
FOR OUR LISTENERS
During the month of March our Spirit FM listening family is invited to help make a difference in the lives of our United States Troops serving their country in various locations around the world.
Please write a card or letter of thanks and encouragement to a US soldier. Your card can be homemade or store-bought, it doesn’t matter, just send it with love and appreciation. You can send in one card or hundred cards, get your family involved, your co-workers, your Bible study or church group, even your school, and once you have your cards and letters ready send them to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Missouri 65020. We’ll see that all of these cards and letters of appreciation and encouragement will be sent to our troops “with love” from the Spirit FM listeners!
If you want to do something a little bit extra, include a long distance phone card for the soldier as well!Spirit FM is also working with our record companies and will be sending lots of Christian music CDs along with your cards and letters!!
So get busy and start writing and then send those best wishes for our troops to Spirit FM P.O. Box 800 Camdenton, Mo. 65020. More information is also available on our website at spiritfm.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------FOR OUR SOLDIERS
It’s time for March For Our Troops and that means if you are serving in the US Military Spirit FM wants to especially bless and recognize you throughout the next few weeks!
Be listening throughout the month of March for a series of interviews with Dr. David Stoop of New Life Ministries. Dr Stoop is a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California. He also has his Masters in Theology and is the founder and director of The Center for Family Therapy in Newport Beach, California, where he has his counseling practice. Dr. Stoop has written over 25 books, including his latest book, Ten Minutes Together with God: A Devotional for Couples.
Dr. Stoop will be sharing with us information for military families including how to maintain a loving and faithful marriage while serving your country. Recognizing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. How to forgive and move on, as well as, a variety of other topics of interest to soldiers and their families.
These interviews will also be posted on our webpage for listening to later or downloading to your MP3 player! Plus, New Life Ministries has been kind enough to send us three gifts to give away this month, including Every Soldier’s Battle Kit which includes Every Man's Battle, Every Man's Battle Workbook, Every Man's Bible, Every Day for Every Man Devotional, and Being God's Man facing Tough Times Bible Study. So if you are a member of our military, thank you, and stay tuned, this month is all about you and helping you discover the love the Lord Jesus has for you, as well as the love your Spirit FM listening family feels for you as well!
FAITH DEPLOYED – A GUIDE FOR MILITARY WIVES
www.faithdeployed.com
Faith Deployed is not a guide to long-distance relationships or a how-to on navigating through the military culture. It does not offer "ten easy steps" for an easier, painless life. Instead, through squarely addressing the challenges you face, Faith Deployed will equip you to respond biblically to the daily struggles that threaten to wear you down.
LIFE CHANGING WORD
LOVE DARE # 17
Love promotes intimacy
He who covers an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. Proverbs 17:9
Nothing rivals the closeness between a husband and a wife. Marriage is the most intimate of all human relationships. The prospect of sharing our home with another person who knows us down to the most intimate details is part of the deep pleasure of marriage. Yet this great blessings is also the site of its greatest danger. Someone who knows us this intimately can either love us at depths we never imagines, or canwound us in ways we never fully recover from.
Are the secrets your spouse knows about you reasons for shame, or reasons fro drawing you closer? If your spouse were to answer thi squestion, would they say you make them feel safe, or scared?
TODAY’S DARE: Determine to guard your mate’s secrets (unless they are dangerous to them or to you) and to pray for them. Talk with your spouse and resolve to demonstrate love in spite of these issues. Really listen to them when they share personal thoughts and struggles with you. Make them feel safe.
ASK YOURSELF THIS QUESTION: How much of an effort is it for you to hold back from saying something critical, or otherwise? Whathave you learned about your spouse today, simply from listening?
TODAY IS…..
Today is I Want You to Be Happy Day, a day to be thoughtful to others
Today is Unique Names Day, a time to honor anyone who has an unusual name.
Today is National Anthem Day. The "Star Spangled Banner" became the U.S. National Anthem on May 3, 1931
1988: Singer Luciano Pavarotti set a record with 165 curtain calls at a West Berlin opera. The standing ovation lasted 67 minutes.
In The News…..
Winter Storm
A major winter storm has slammed the East Coast. The Obama Administration is preparing a $17 trillion spending bill to bail out the people who didn't bother to buy a shovel.
Freddie CEO Stepping Down
The head of mortgage giant Freddie Mac is resigning as CEO David Moffett says he wants to return to the financial services sector. For the last few years he's only been in the financial losses sector.
HSBC Capital Raise
HSBC bank says it will raise $17.8 billion in new capital this month... and it's going to do that by selling unicorn rides and fairy wings.
More Money for AIG
The U.S. government will provide troubled insurance giant AIG another $30 billion. AIG executives are promising to spend this money much more wisely by making less risky investments and using discountspas and resorts.
THE DOW INDUSTRIAL FALLS BELOW 7,000 – Lowest it has ever been since 97
"The Dow Jones industrial average plunged below 7,000 Monday for the first time in more than 11 years as investors grow even more pessimistic about the health of banks, and in turn the economy."
As an investor you may be losing money but keep everything in perspective.
Money can buy a House............But not a Home
Money can buy a Bed..............But not Sleep
Money can buy a Clock............But not Time
Money can buy you a Book.........But not Knowledge
Money can buy you Medicine.......But not Health
So you see money isn't everything. And it often causes pain and suffering. I tell you all this because I am your friend, and as your friend I want to take away your pain and suffering.
Can You Hear Me Now?????
A businessman in the UK who lost his cell phone on a beach was amazed when it turned up - in the belly of a giant cod. Andrew Cheatle thought it had been swept out to sea after it slipped from his pocket. But a week later his girlfriend's cell phone rang and it was fisherman Glen Kerley saying he'd found the phone in a 25lb fish.
Mom Shows Up For Duty With Kids In Tow
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- A woman who was called back to the Army has braved a winter storm to report for duty -- with her children in tow.
Lisa Pagan drove from North Carolina to Georgia's Fort Benning and arrived Sunday night. She said bad weather made the drive "a little scary." She and her children were staying in a motel.
Pagan was honorably discharged four years ago, but she has been on "individual ready reserve" status -- eligible to be recalled at any time.
She has filed several appeals, arguing that because her husband travels for business, no one else can take care of her kids. The appeals have been rejected.
An Army spokesman said the commander of Fort Benning will decide how to handle the situation. Pagan said her goal is another honorable discharge.
Pagan is among thousands of former service members who have left active duty since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, only to be recalled to service.
Toyota Has Had To Charter A Ship To Store Unsold Cars
The global auto sales slump has hit Toyota so hard it has had to charter a ship to store some of its unsold cars.
The Japanese automaker announced last week it had chartered a 2,500-capacity vessel which will simply stand idle in port in Malmo, Sweden, reported Lloyd's List, a maritime and transport news Web site.
The vessel became necessary because Toyota ran out of room to store cars at its import site in Malmo, a company spokesman said
"We have space for 12,500 cars in Malmo, which acts as a distribution center for all the Nordic countries," Toyota spokesman Etienne Plas told Lloyd's List. "But we have run out of space. We need the ship to store cars while they are waiting to be delivered."
Plas said the company hopes it won't have to use the cargo ship for long.
Toyota reported that its exports fell by 60 percent in January alone, like many auto exporters. Photos of cars parked at race tracks and stacked rows deep at ports are circulating around the Internet as all automakers try to deal with the fall-off in demand.
A Brand New Car For Just $2,000…But Unfortunately You Can’t Buy It!
The cheapest car in the world is expected to begin rolling off assembly lines March 23, seven months behind schedule.
India's tiny Tata Nano, priced at 100,000 rupees, or about $2,000 at current exchange rates, will not be sold in the United States. Cars will reach dealerships across India in April, and production for the first year is expected to reach 250,000 vehicles.
The Nano's unveiling in January 2008 caused a stir worldwide and especially in India, where there are fewer than 10 cars for every thousand people, compared with 40 per thousand in China and 450 in the U.S.
Indians bought about 1 million cars in 2007. Far more middle-class Indians buy and transport their entire families on scooters.
The Nano -- its working name was the "People's Car" -- is just half the price of the next-cheapest car in the world, a Chery Automobiles QQ3 sold only in its domestic market of China. The $5,200 Suzuki Maruti is the current least
expensive option for Indians, where per capita incomes are nearing $1,000 after years of explosive economic growth. In the U.S., the cheapest option is the Nissan Versa, which, at $9,990, is about five times the price of Nano.
With a snub nose and a sloping roof, the world's cheapest car can hold five people --if they squeeze. And the basic version is spare: There's no radio, no air bags, no passenger-side mirror and only one windshield wiper. If you want air conditioning to cope with India's brutal summers, you need to get the deluxe version. Analysts estimate taxes, delivery and extras will add 30% or so to the car's cost.
At 10 feet long, the Nano is about 2 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper. Its 623-cubic-centimeter, two-cylinder engine is estimated to produce about 35 horsepower, good for a top speed of 75 mph.
One Third of Us Are Losing Sleep Over the Economy
Worries about money keep one-third of people in the U.S. from sleeping properly, according to a survey by the national Sleep Foundation.
The group said that the number of people who say they get less than six hours of sleep a night rose 13 percent since 2001
"It's easy to understand why so many people are concerned over the economy and jobs, but sacrificing sleep is the wrong solution," National Sleep Foundation CEO David Cloud said. "Sleep is essential for productivity and alertness and is a vital sign for one's overall health."
"With the economy worsening, we are seeing patients in our clinic who have told us that they would not be returning for treatment because they or other family members have lost their jobs, and they are concerned about costs," said Dr. Meir Kryger of Gaylord Sleep Services. "Some patients have elected not to be treated for sleep apnea because they could not afford the co-pay for the equipment. These patients may wind up far sicker."
The National Sleep Foundation said in a news release it encourages people to maintain good sleep, exercise and diet routines to help combat anxiety and improve health and productivity.
The Secret Of Belly Button Lint Is Finally Revealed
After three years of research, Georg Steinhauser, a chemist, has discovered a type of body hair that traps stray pieces of lint and draws them into the navel.
Dr Steinhauser made his discovery after studying 503 pieces of fluff from his own belly button.
Chemical analysis revealed the pieces of fluff were not made up of only cotton from clothing. Wrapped up in the lint were also flecks of dead skin, fat, sweat and dust.
Dr Steinhauser's observations showed that 'small pieces of fluff first form in the hair and then end up in the navel at the end of the day'.
Writing in the journal Medical Hypotheses, he said the scaly structure of the hair enhances the 'abrasion of minuscule fibres from the shirt' and directs the lint towards the belly button.
"The hair's scales act like a kind of barbed hooks," he said. "Abdominal hair often seems to grow in concentric circles around the navel."
The researcher, from Vienna University of Technology also asked friends, family and workmates about their own belly button fluff.
Dr Steinhauser established that shaving one's belly will result in a fluff-free navel - but only until the hairs grow back.
Other suggestions for keeping the navel fluff-free include wearing old clothes, as they tend to shed less lint than newer garments, which can lose up to one thousandth of their weight to the belly button over the course of a year.
A body piercing can also be used, with belly button rings particularly effective at sweeping away fibres before they lodge.
Dr Steinhauser, whose other projects have included monitoring the erosion of his wedding ring, said: "The question of the nature of navel fluff seems to concern more people than one would think at first glance.
"We hope we have been able to provide information for doctors when they are next confronted with the simple question of 'why some belly buttons collect so much lint and others do not'."
An earlier, Australian study of samples from 5,000 people concluded the typical carrier of navel fluff to be 'a slightly overweight middle-aged male with a hairy abdomen'.
Researcher Karl Kruszelnicki said: "The reason it is usually blue is that we mostly wear blue or grey trousers, often jeans, and when these rub against the body, the fibres often end up finding their way to the navel."
Not all belly button fluff is blue however. In the curious case of Australian hospital worker Graham Barker much of his fluff is red, even though he rarely wears the colour.
Mr Barker has been collecting his own navel fluff in jars every day since 1984. The achievement has won him a place in the Guinness Book of Records for the world's largest collection of navel lint.
Marine One Info Found on Computer in Iran – That’s Right…The President’s Helicopter. Blue prints and all. So much for security.
A Pennsylvania company that monitors peer-to-peer file-sharing networks discovered a potentially serious security breach involving President Obama's helicopter, Marine One, WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh reported.
Sensitive information about Marine One was reportedly found by Tiversa employees at an IP address in Tehran.
Tiversa CEO Bob Boback said a defense contractor in Bethesda, Md., had a file sharing program on one of their systems that contained highly sensitive blueprints for Marine One and financial information about the cost of the helicopter.
"We found a file containing entire blueprints and avionics package for Marine One," Boback said.
Boback said the issue most likely stemmed from someone downloading the file-sharing program without realizing the problems that could result.
"When downloading one of these file-sharing programs, you are effectively allowing others around the world to access your hard drive," Boback told WPXI.
"We found where this information came from. We know exactly what computer it came from. I'm sure that person is embarrassed and may even lose their job, but we know where it came from and we know where it went," Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, an adviser to Tiversa, told WPXI.
A Classroom With No Chairs
FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Talk about a teacher's dream: No more slouching, no more wiggly little boys and no more snoozing at desks.
All teachers have to do is ditch the classroom chair. A growing number are replacing them with exercise stability balls more associated with pilates classes than schoolroom lectures as an innovative way to improve student posture and attention.
"They're awesome," gushed 10-year-old James Howell, a fourth grader at Bauder Elementary School whose class switched to purple stability balls in January. "They help you focus, they help you keep your structure. And sometimes you get to bounce on them, get the wiggles out."
The kids in Tiffany Miller's class sound like little pilates teachers when they talk about their new chairs, dropping phrases like "strengthen your core" and "engage your center." They don't roll around wildly or play games with them except in gym class. Instead, they've taken to their rubbery seats as naturally as older office workers who sit on stability balls to alleviate back pain.
"The whole theory with the brain is that when your body's engaged, your brain's engaged," Miller said. "I call it actively sitting. They're maybe moving their legs a little, wiggling some. But their upper body, they're focused on writing, on the teacher. It really works."
Research is starting to back up that theory. John Kilbourne, a professor in the Department of Movement Science at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich., switched to stability balls in his college courses last semester and surveyed 52 students on the change.
Nearly all said they preferred sitting on the balls. Students mentioned improvement in their ability to pay attention, concentrate, take notes, engage in classroom discussions and take exams.
Some scientists warn the balls aren't a miracle cure for bad posture. When people sit on them for long periods of time, bad habits can reappear. And because they don't have backs, the balls don't allow sitters to lean back and take pressure off the tailbone, said Fabio Camana, an exercise physiologist at the American Council on Exercise.
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