April Fool's Day
I am a Grinch and grump around most holidays but I do love April Fool's Day. I love the idea of fools and jesters, and practical jokes, and humor. I think this is the only holiday worth celebrating. We should exchange gifts of funny noses, and rubber chickens and whoopee cushions. Actually, April is Humor Month. So if you don't enjoy any other month enjoy April. Take yourself less seriously and laugh. Below is a history of April Fool's Day:
April Fool's Day History
The history of April Fool's Day or All Fool's Day is uncertain, but the current thinking is that it began around 1582 in France with the reform of the calendar under Charles IX. The Gregorian Calendar was introduced, and New Year's Day was moved from March 25 - April 1 (new year's week) to January 1.
Communication traveled slowly in those days and some people were only informed of the change several years later. Still others, who were more rebellious refused to acknowledge the change and continued to celebrate on the last day of the former celebration, April 1. These people were labeled "fools" by the general populace, were subject to ridicule and sent on "fool errands," sent invitations to nonexistent parties and had other practical jokes played upon them. The butts of these pranks became known as a "poisson d'avril" or "April fish" because a young naive fish is easily caught. In addition, one common practice was to hook a paper fish on the back of someone as a joke.
This harassment evolved over time and a custom of prank-playing continue on the first day of April. This tradition eventually spread elsewhere like to Britain and Scotland in the 18th century and was introduced to the American colonies by the English and the French. Because of this spread to other countries, April Fool's Day has taken on an international flavor with each country celebrating the holiday in its own way.
In Scotland, for instance, April Fool's Day is devoted to spoofs involving the buttocks and as such is called Taily Day. The butts of these jokes are known as April 'Gowk', another name for cuckoo bird. The origins of the "Kick Me" sign can be traced back to the Scottish observance.
In England, jokes are played only in the morning. Fools are called 'gobs' or 'gobby' and the victim of a joke is called a 'noodle.' It was considered back luck to play a practical joke on someone after noon.
In Rome, the holiday is known as Festival of Hilaria, celebrating the resurrection of the god Attis, is on March 25 and is also referred to as "Roman Laughing Day."
In Portugal, April Fool's Day falls on the Sunday and Monday before lent. In this celebration, many people throw flour at their friends.
The Huli Festival is celebrated on March 31 in India. People play jokes on one another and smear colors on one another celebrating the arrival of Spring.
So, no matter where you happen to be in the world on April 1, don't be surprised if April fools fall playfully upon you.
Material taken from:
http://www.april-fools.us/history-april-fools.htm
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogstop.com
Monday, March 31, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
The First "ISM"
The first thing we ask about a baby is it a girl or boy. As a baby boomer I have experienced "sexism" all of my life and I find it frustrating that Geraldine Ferraro's remark is only criticized about what she said about Obama's race, not about his gender. Her remark is below:
"If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position," "And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is."
I don't agree with her statement that if he was a white man, he would not be in this position." I think if he was a white man he would. I do agree, however, that "if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position." Throughout my life, men less qualified, of all colors, have gotten positions, just because they are men. It is like the cartoon of the boy baby and the girl baby looking in their diapers and the girl baby saying, "Oh that explains our salary difference.
If Clinton and Obama switched ages and experiences I think things would be quite different. If Clinton was Obama's age and had his experience, she would never have even ran in the first place. People would have told her to get more experience. If Obama was Clinton's age and had her experience, he would already be the Democratic Presidential candidate. I think that being a man is very much to Obama's favor. People are, I believe more sexist than racist at this point in America. Many people, (all colors), would rather vote for a men any color than a woman, even if she is white.
Historically, black men have gotten their rights over women. Black men got the right to vote first and when early feminists like Elisabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony pointed that they didn't think that was fair they were called racists. Women are still not in the Constitution. Black, brown, any color man is less threatening to people than any color woman.
Throughout this campaign people are severely criticised for making racists comments but sexist comments are not frowned on and even encouraged. Until sexism is gone, non of the other "isms" will be gone. Racism, ageism, all other isms come from the mother of them all sexism.
My latest experience of sexism was a job that I applied for with four other candidates. Four of us were white women, with numerous advanced degrees in the area we were applying for and many years of experience. Three of us were already working in the department. The one lone male candidate was the least qualified, had no experience in the department and his degree was in another field. The organization that I was working for had just started a diversity program and the one lone male, who was African American was chosen.
I believe that if the tables were reversed and there had been four very qualified African American males, or any males, and a less qualified white woman had been hired, there would have been a price to pay. Don't tell me that sexism is less important than racism. Don't tell me that women now have all the rights they need. All I have to do is watch sports on television, and all I can find most of the time is men playing. When I go the movies, most of the stories are about men, and all most all the movies are directed by men.
Yes, racism exists, and women of color have it double. Not only are they dealing with sexism, they are also dealing with racism. I get very tired of hearing how hard it is for minority men, give me a break. As a woman I have it as bad or worse than you do. I still only make about 77 cents for every dollar you make. A new study shows:
If Obama is elected it really won't be that much of a first, because we only have had men as president, and he is only half black, and we have had, historians tell us, Presidents before with mixed blood.
If Hillary wins it will be for me, a time to rejoice, because finally the best person won, and she is a woman.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
The first thing we ask about a baby is it a girl or boy. As a baby boomer I have experienced "sexism" all of my life and I find it frustrating that Geraldine Ferraro's remark is only criticized about what she said about Obama's race, not about his gender. Her remark is below:
"If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position," "And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is."
I don't agree with her statement that if he was a white man, he would not be in this position." I think if he was a white man he would. I do agree, however, that "if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position." Throughout my life, men less qualified, of all colors, have gotten positions, just because they are men. It is like the cartoon of the boy baby and the girl baby looking in their diapers and the girl baby saying, "Oh that explains our salary difference.
If Clinton and Obama switched ages and experiences I think things would be quite different. If Clinton was Obama's age and had his experience, she would never have even ran in the first place. People would have told her to get more experience. If Obama was Clinton's age and had her experience, he would already be the Democratic Presidential candidate. I think that being a man is very much to Obama's favor. People are, I believe more sexist than racist at this point in America. Many people, (all colors), would rather vote for a men any color than a woman, even if she is white.
Historically, black men have gotten their rights over women. Black men got the right to vote first and when early feminists like Elisabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony pointed that they didn't think that was fair they were called racists. Women are still not in the Constitution. Black, brown, any color man is less threatening to people than any color woman.
Throughout this campaign people are severely criticised for making racists comments but sexist comments are not frowned on and even encouraged. Until sexism is gone, non of the other "isms" will be gone. Racism, ageism, all other isms come from the mother of them all sexism.
My latest experience of sexism was a job that I applied for with four other candidates. Four of us were white women, with numerous advanced degrees in the area we were applying for and many years of experience. Three of us were already working in the department. The one lone male candidate was the least qualified, had no experience in the department and his degree was in another field. The organization that I was working for had just started a diversity program and the one lone male, who was African American was chosen.
I believe that if the tables were reversed and there had been four very qualified African American males, or any males, and a less qualified white woman had been hired, there would have been a price to pay. Don't tell me that sexism is less important than racism. Don't tell me that women now have all the rights they need. All I have to do is watch sports on television, and all I can find most of the time is men playing. When I go the movies, most of the stories are about men, and all most all the movies are directed by men.
Yes, racism exists, and women of color have it double. Not only are they dealing with sexism, they are also dealing with racism. I get very tired of hearing how hard it is for minority men, give me a break. As a woman I have it as bad or worse than you do. I still only make about 77 cents for every dollar you make. A new study shows:
One year out of college, women working full time earn 80 percent of what men earn, according to the study by the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation, based in Washington D.C. Ten years later, women earn 69 percent as much as men earn, it said Even as the study accounted for such factors as the number of hours worked, occupations or parenthood, the gap persisted, researchers said. "If a woman and a man make the same choices, will they receive the same pay?" the study asked. "The answer is no. "These unexplained gaps are evidence of discrimination, which remains a serious problem for women in the work force." Specifically, about one-quarter of the pay gap is attributable to gender - 5 percent one year after graduation and 12 percent 10 years after graduation, it said. One year out of college, men and women should arguably be the least likely to show a gender pay gap, the study said, since neither tend to be parents yet and they enter the work force without significant experience. "It surprised me that it was already apparent one year out of college, and that it widens over the first 10 years," Catherine Hill, AAUW director of research, told Reuters.
So, yes, sexism still exists and I wish the candidates would talk more about it, even Hillary. As a woman, I want this talked about because I think it is just as important if not more inportant than racism.
If Obama is elected it really won't be that much of a first, because we only have had men as president, and he is only half black, and we have had, historians tell us, Presidents before with mixed blood.
If Hillary wins it will be for me, a time to rejoice, because finally the best person won, and she is a woman.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Monday, March 03, 2008
No Two-Armed Hugs Lasting More Than Two Seconds
What are we so afraid of? Don't we have more important things to worry about than whether kids are hugging in the hallways? And does this mean that teachers are going to have to go around with stop watches to time the kids hugs? The principal did say that students could shake hands and stand close to one anther.
During the 1960's we had "sit-ins," maybe students in 2008 will have to have "hug-ins."
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter,blogspot.com
What? Come again? At Shepherd Junior High School, in Mesa, Arizona, there is a new policy against public displays of affection. It seems that principal Eileen Cahoon felt that PAD's (public display of affection) should not be allowed on campus. It seems this policy has been around for many years and is only being reinforced now as the results of an annual student survey, where one-fourth of Shepherd students thought kissing and hugging in the hallways was a major problem.
Principal Cahoon felt that as a result of the survey she needed to take action. She said, "students were allowed to shake hands and it would probably be OK for athletes at sporting events to congratulate each other with a hug. But hugging in the hallways was strictly forbidden."
So what is a "too long hug?" The hugs have to last less than two seconds. What happens to the students who break the rules? The punishment goes from verbal warning to suspension. How are students responding to this new policy? After school on Friday February 29, 2008 about 100 kids gathered chanting, "We want hugs." One student planned to wear a T-shirt that said: "More hugs, less war."
I don't know about you but to me this is funny, but sad. With all the research out about the importance of Emotional Intelligence, and the importance of expressing your feelings in a positive way, this seems to me to be going backwards. It reminds me of when I was in High School in the 1960's and girls could not wear patient leather shoes, because anyone could look at our shoes and the reflection would show up our skirt or dress (girls were not allowed to wear pants).What are we so afraid of? Don't we have more important things to worry about than whether kids are hugging in the hallways? And does this mean that teachers are going to have to go around with stop watches to time the kids hugs? The principal did say that students could shake hands and stand close to one anther.
During the 1960's we had "sit-ins," maybe students in 2008 will have to have "hug-ins."
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter,blogspot.com
Friday, February 15, 2008
You Gotta Laugh
I did one of my "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life" workshops this week and I noticed something that I have noticed before, some people have the hardest time laughing. Now I am talking adults here, because children laugh all the time. Experts say that children laugh between 300 to 500 times a day and adults laugh between 8 to 15.
Children know that laughing is good for you and very fun. Adults think they have to have a reason to laugh. Laughter is physical and requires no reason. Most of the time, as adults, we laugh for no reason. Again experts have found that we laugh most of time just to be friendly and social. That there is no punch line.
Children, on the other hand, laugh all the time for all kinds of reasons. And who looks happier, children or adults? Children, of course, look happier and are happier.
Now the cool thing is that you can laugh for no reason. As William James said, "We don't laugh because we are happy, we are happy because we laugh. If you want to be happy you gotta laugh.
How to laugh? Just do it. Even if it is fake. You gotta do it. The body does not know the difference between fake and real. Women, does this sound like anyone you know? So you just say, "TEE HEE." TEE HEE", and force a laugh out. Endorphins are released and you feel better. Endorphins are the body's natural pain killer.
Another very cool thing is laughter is exercise. So if you are like me and whenever you feel like exercising, you just lay down until the thought goes away, you can exercise by laughing.
Besides thinking we have to have a reason for laughing, why do adults stop laughing. I think another reason is that we think if we laugh we are giving up control. Some of us are so concerned with always being in control and we hate the thought of losing control.
I don't know about you but I would rather be happy than worry about losing control and I just gotta laugh. What about you?
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
I did one of my "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life" workshops this week and I noticed something that I have noticed before, some people have the hardest time laughing. Now I am talking adults here, because children laugh all the time. Experts say that children laugh between 300 to 500 times a day and adults laugh between 8 to 15.
Children know that laughing is good for you and very fun. Adults think they have to have a reason to laugh. Laughter is physical and requires no reason. Most of the time, as adults, we laugh for no reason. Again experts have found that we laugh most of time just to be friendly and social. That there is no punch line.
Children, on the other hand, laugh all the time for all kinds of reasons. And who looks happier, children or adults? Children, of course, look happier and are happier.
Now the cool thing is that you can laugh for no reason. As William James said, "We don't laugh because we are happy, we are happy because we laugh. If you want to be happy you gotta laugh.
How to laugh? Just do it. Even if it is fake. You gotta do it. The body does not know the difference between fake and real. Women, does this sound like anyone you know? So you just say, "TEE HEE." TEE HEE", and force a laugh out. Endorphins are released and you feel better. Endorphins are the body's natural pain killer.
Another very cool thing is laughter is exercise. So if you are like me and whenever you feel like exercising, you just lay down until the thought goes away, you can exercise by laughing.
Besides thinking we have to have a reason for laughing, why do adults stop laughing. I think another reason is that we think if we laugh we are giving up control. Some of us are so concerned with always being in control and we hate the thought of losing control.
I don't know about you but I would rather be happy than worry about losing control and I just gotta laugh. What about you?
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Monday, January 28, 2008
Bad Word- Liberal
Since when did being a liberal become such a bad word? Today, Mitt Romney and John McCain accused each other of being a liberal. "Oh my, say it aint's so." I remember as a child, when the worst thing you could call someone was a communist. In fact, my Dad, would say "he would rather be red, than dead."
The Democrats are bringing up race and gender, so I guess the Republicans need to bring up something that is as scary to some as a woman President or African American president, so they are calling each other liberals.
It is like the song, "I can sing better than you. No, you can't. Yes, I can." "No, you can't." Yes, I can." "No, you can't." It is like Mitt and John are saying to to each, "You are a Liberal." No I'm not." "Yes, you are." "No, I'm not." It is like Will Rogers said, "I don't do political jokes, because too often they are elected."
I guess my question is why would anything want to be president? And than spend millions and millions of money to become president? I think we should just save all the money the politicians spend and use it for health care, or our economy, or getting us out of Iraqi.
I would vote enthusiastically for the person, man, woman, child, white, black, green, who said they were only going to spend a couple thousand dollars to run for President. That person, I would believe wanted to make a difference, and wasn't just on a power trip. I won't even mind if they were a liberal black lesbian midget.
"Territorial Governors--are nothing but politicians who go out to the outskirts of countries and suffer the privations there in order to build up stakes and come back as United States Senators." Mark Twain's Autobiography
"No matter how healthy a man's morals may be when he enters the White House, he comes out again with a pot-marked soul." quoted in My Father Mark Twain, Clara Clemens
"History has tried hard to teach us that we can't have good government under politicians. Now, to go and stick one at the very head of the government couldn't be wise." New York Herald, 8/26/1876
"Our constitution protects aliens, drunks and U.S. Senators."
Will Rogers US humorist & showman (1879 - 1935)
Jana Ruth author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Since when did being a liberal become such a bad word? Today, Mitt Romney and John McCain accused each other of being a liberal. "Oh my, say it aint's so." I remember as a child, when the worst thing you could call someone was a communist. In fact, my Dad, would say "he would rather be red, than dead."
The Democrats are bringing up race and gender, so I guess the Republicans need to bring up something that is as scary to some as a woman President or African American president, so they are calling each other liberals.
It is like the song, "I can sing better than you. No, you can't. Yes, I can." "No, you can't." Yes, I can." "No, you can't." It is like Mitt and John are saying to to each, "You are a Liberal." No I'm not." "Yes, you are." "No, I'm not." It is like Will Rogers said, "I don't do political jokes, because too often they are elected."
I guess my question is why would anything want to be president? And than spend millions and millions of money to become president? I think we should just save all the money the politicians spend and use it for health care, or our economy, or getting us out of Iraqi.
I would vote enthusiastically for the person, man, woman, child, white, black, green, who said they were only going to spend a couple thousand dollars to run for President. That person, I would believe wanted to make a difference, and wasn't just on a power trip. I won't even mind if they were a liberal black lesbian midget.
"Territorial Governors--are nothing but politicians who go out to the outskirts of countries and suffer the privations there in order to build up stakes and come back as United States Senators." Mark Twain's Autobiography
"No matter how healthy a man's morals may be when he enters the White House, he comes out again with a pot-marked soul." quoted in My Father Mark Twain, Clara Clemens
"History has tried hard to teach us that we can't have good government under politicians. Now, to go and stick one at the very head of the government couldn't be wise." New York Herald, 8/26/1876
"Our constitution protects aliens, drunks and U.S. Senators."
Will Rogers US humorist & showman (1879 - 1935)
Jana Ruth author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Monday, January 14, 2008
We Are Reflections of Each Other
We are reflections of each other. How scary is that? I can't like or dislike something about someone, unless I liked or dislike it in myself. How scary is that?
Actually it is not scary at all. I can, if I am open to it , learn from other people. And so can you. People, I believe come into our lives for a reason. They are a gift and they are meant to teach us a lesson.
We can learn about ourselves from both the positive and negative people that show up. The research suggest that positive people hang with positive and negative people hang with negative people. Successful people hang with successful people, non successful people hang with non successful people.
So what my Mom said, about watching my friends, or that my friends determined what kind of person I was, or going to become, was right on. Your friends, like everything else in your life are what you attract. So if I want to attract positive people into my life, I need to be positive.
I have, like I am sure many people have, been in some very negative relationships, both personally and professionally, and wondered why "I such a nice person," was with such negative people. Looking back now I realize that I was in a very negative place in my life, and attracting people that I felt I deserved.
Until we are happy with ourselves and love ourselves we can't attract anyone who will be happy or love us.
I am looking for you:
Are you good at sales and or marketing?
Do you like to laugh?
Do you have some time each week to spare?
Are you looking to make money based on your own efforts?
Do you want to work from your own home?
If you answered yes to three or more out of the five please call me at 480-600-5178 or janabanana15@cox.net
Jana Ruth- Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
We are reflections of each other. How scary is that? I can't like or dislike something about someone, unless I liked or dislike it in myself. How scary is that?
Actually it is not scary at all. I can, if I am open to it , learn from other people. And so can you. People, I believe come into our lives for a reason. They are a gift and they are meant to teach us a lesson.
We can learn about ourselves from both the positive and negative people that show up. The research suggest that positive people hang with positive and negative people hang with negative people. Successful people hang with successful people, non successful people hang with non successful people.
So what my Mom said, about watching my friends, or that my friends determined what kind of person I was, or going to become, was right on. Your friends, like everything else in your life are what you attract. So if I want to attract positive people into my life, I need to be positive.
I have, like I am sure many people have, been in some very negative relationships, both personally and professionally, and wondered why "I such a nice person," was with such negative people. Looking back now I realize that I was in a very negative place in my life, and attracting people that I felt I deserved.
Until we are happy with ourselves and love ourselves we can't attract anyone who will be happy or love us.
I am looking for you:
Are you good at sales and or marketing?
Do you like to laugh?
Do you have some time each week to spare?
Are you looking to make money based on your own efforts?
Do you want to work from your own home?
If you answered yes to three or more out of the five please call me at 480-600-5178 or janabanana15@cox.net
Jana Ruth- Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Some Good Jokes
I hope you enjoy these jokes:
THE BOTTLE OF WINE
For all of us who are married, were married, wish you were married, or wish you weren't married, this is something to smile about the next time you see a Bottle of wine:
Sally was driving home from one of her business trips in Northern Arizona when she saw an elderly Navajo woman walking on the side of the road .
As the trip was a long and quiet one, she stopped the car and asked the Navajo woman if she would like a ride.
With a silent nod of thanks, the woman got into the car. Resuming the journey, Sally tried in vain to make a bit of small talk with the Navajo woman.
The old woman just sat silently, looking intently at EVERYTHING she saw, studying every little detail, until she noticed a brown bag on the seat next to Sally.
"What in bag?" asked the old woman. Sally looked down at the brown bag and said, "It's a bottle of wine. I got it for my husband."
The Navajo woman was silent for another moment or two. Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said:
"Good trade....."
Old Versus New
A farmer went out one day and bought a brand new stud rooster for his chicken coop. The new rooster struts over to the old rooster and says, "OK old fart, time for you to retire.
"The old rooster replies, "Come on, surely you cannot handle ALL of these chickens. Look what it has done to me. Can't you just let me have the two old hens over in the corner? "
The young rooster said, "Beat it: You are done and I am taking over," the old rooster says "I tell you what, young stud. I will race you around the farmhouse. Whoever wins gets the exclusive domain over the entire chicken coop."
The young rooster laughs. "You know you don't stand a chance, old man. So, just to be fair I will give you a head start. "The old rooster takes off running. About 15 seconds later the young rooster takes off running after him. They round the front porch of the farmhouse and the young rooster has closed the gap. He is only about 5 feet behind the old rooster and gaining fast.
The farmer, meanwhile, is sitting in his usual spot on the front porch when he sees the roosters running by. The Old Rooster is squalking and running as hard as he can. The Farmer grabs his shotgun and- BOOM he blows the young rooster to bits.
The farmer sadly shakes his head and says "Dammit..... third gay rooster I bought this month.
Moral of this story? . Don't mess with the OLD FARTS - age, skill, wisdom, and a little treachery always overcome youth and arrogance!
Bikers
A grizzled old man was eating in a truck stop when three Hell's Angels bikers walked in.The first walked up to the old man and pushed his cigarette into the old man's pie, and then he took a seat at the counter.
The second walked up to the old man and spit into the old man's milk, and then he took a seat at the counter.
The third walked up to the old man and turned over the old man's plate, and then he took a seat at the counter.
Without a word of protest, the old man quietly left the diner. Shortly thereafter, one of the bikers said to the waitress, "Humph, not much of a man, was he?"
The waitress replied, "Not much of a truck driver, either. He just backed his truck over three motorcycles."
I hope you enjoy these jokes:
THE BOTTLE OF WINE
For all of us who are married, were married, wish you were married, or wish you weren't married, this is something to smile about the next time you see a Bottle of wine:
Sally was driving home from one of her business trips in Northern Arizona when she saw an elderly Navajo woman walking on the side of the road .
As the trip was a long and quiet one, she stopped the car and asked the Navajo woman if she would like a ride.
With a silent nod of thanks, the woman got into the car. Resuming the journey, Sally tried in vain to make a bit of small talk with the Navajo woman.
The old woman just sat silently, looking intently at EVERYTHING she saw, studying every little detail, until she noticed a brown bag on the seat next to Sally.
"What in bag?" asked the old woman. Sally looked down at the brown bag and said, "It's a bottle of wine. I got it for my husband."
The Navajo woman was silent for another moment or two. Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said:
"Good trade....."
Old Versus New
A farmer went out one day and bought a brand new stud rooster for his chicken coop. The new rooster struts over to the old rooster and says, "OK old fart, time for you to retire.
"The old rooster replies, "Come on, surely you cannot handle ALL of these chickens. Look what it has done to me. Can't you just let me have the two old hens over in the corner? "
The young rooster said, "Beat it: You are done and I am taking over," the old rooster says "I tell you what, young stud. I will race you around the farmhouse. Whoever wins gets the exclusive domain over the entire chicken coop."
The young rooster laughs. "You know you don't stand a chance, old man. So, just to be fair I will give you a head start. "The old rooster takes off running. About 15 seconds later the young rooster takes off running after him. They round the front porch of the farmhouse and the young rooster has closed the gap. He is only about 5 feet behind the old rooster and gaining fast.
The farmer, meanwhile, is sitting in his usual spot on the front porch when he sees the roosters running by. The Old Rooster is squalking and running as hard as he can. The Farmer grabs his shotgun and- BOOM he blows the young rooster to bits.
The farmer sadly shakes his head and says "Dammit..... third gay rooster I bought this month.
Moral of this story? . Don't mess with the OLD FARTS - age, skill, wisdom, and a little treachery always overcome youth and arrogance!
Bikers
A grizzled old man was eating in a truck stop when three Hell's Angels bikers walked in.The first walked up to the old man and pushed his cigarette into the old man's pie, and then he took a seat at the counter.
The second walked up to the old man and spit into the old man's milk, and then he took a seat at the counter.
The third walked up to the old man and turned over the old man's plate, and then he took a seat at the counter.
Without a word of protest, the old man quietly left the diner. Shortly thereafter, one of the bikers said to the waitress, "Humph, not much of a man, was he?"
The waitress replied, "Not much of a truck driver, either. He just backed his truck over three motorcycles."
Jana Ruth- Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Gracie Allen
One of my favorite comedians was Gracie Allen. Gracie Allen was born Grace Cecile Rosalie Allen in San Francisco in 1895 To Margaret (Darraugh) and George Allen Her father toured the vaudeville circuit as a song and dance man, and at the age of three or four she appeared in his act dressed in a top hat and suit. In 1922 she met George Burns and the unique talent of Gracie Allen to be unconsciously funny made the Burns and Allen the greatest husband and wife comedy team of all time. Some of their most famous lines are below:
George: Did you ever hear that silence is golden?
Gracie: No, what station are they on?
George: It's an adage, you know what an adage is?
Gracie: Oh sure, that's where you keep your old trunks.
George: Do you like to love?
Gracie: No.
George: Do you like to kiss?
Gracie: No.
George: What do you like?
Gracie: Lamb chops.
George: A little girl like you, can you eat two big lamb chops alone?
Gracie: No, but with potatoes I could.
Gracie: Did you know my brother was held up by two men last night?
George: For how much?
Gracie: Oh, all the way home!
George: You're absolutely brilliant. I'm beginning to think you are a wizard.
Gracie: I'm a wizard?
George: Yes. You know what a wizard is.
Gracie: Yes, a snowstorm.
George: Well, if that's a snowstorm, then what's a blizzard?
Gracie: A blizzard is the inside of a chicken. Anybody knows that.
George: Then if that's a blizzard, what's a lizard?
Gracie: A lizard is a man that's smart... A genius.
George: Did something happen to you when you were a baby?
Gracie: When I was born I was so surprised I couldn't talk for a year and a half.
George: Gracie what do you think of television?
Gracie: I think it's wonderful- I hardly ever watch radio anymore.
Gracie: I'll never forget the night I had to call the doctor for my cousin Marie...she got up in the middle of the night and gave the biggest scream you ever heard.
George: What happened?
Gracie: We looked down and her feet had turned black.
George: What did you do?
Gracie: We sent for the doctor.
George: What did the doctor do?
Gracie: He took off her stockings and we all went back to sleep again.
Gracie: Blanche, I heard some gossip about you from a woman.
Blanche: Oh, what was it?
Gracie: I don't remember- I forgot it the minute I told it to her.
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
One of my favorite comedians was Gracie Allen. Gracie Allen was born Grace Cecile Rosalie Allen in San Francisco in 1895 To Margaret (Darraugh) and George Allen Her father toured the vaudeville circuit as a song and dance man, and at the age of three or four she appeared in his act dressed in a top hat and suit. In 1922 she met George Burns and the unique talent of Gracie Allen to be unconsciously funny made the Burns and Allen the greatest husband and wife comedy team of all time. Some of their most famous lines are below:
George: Did you ever hear that silence is golden?
Gracie: No, what station are they on?
George: It's an adage, you know what an adage is?
Gracie: Oh sure, that's where you keep your old trunks.
George: Do you like to love?
Gracie: No.
George: Do you like to kiss?
Gracie: No.
George: What do you like?
Gracie: Lamb chops.
George: A little girl like you, can you eat two big lamb chops alone?
Gracie: No, but with potatoes I could.
Gracie: Did you know my brother was held up by two men last night?
George: For how much?
Gracie: Oh, all the way home!
George: You're absolutely brilliant. I'm beginning to think you are a wizard.
Gracie: I'm a wizard?
George: Yes. You know what a wizard is.
Gracie: Yes, a snowstorm.
George: Well, if that's a snowstorm, then what's a blizzard?
Gracie: A blizzard is the inside of a chicken. Anybody knows that.
George: Then if that's a blizzard, what's a lizard?
Gracie: A lizard is a man that's smart... A genius.
George: Did something happen to you when you were a baby?
Gracie: When I was born I was so surprised I couldn't talk for a year and a half.
George: Gracie what do you think of television?
Gracie: I think it's wonderful- I hardly ever watch radio anymore.
Gracie: I'll never forget the night I had to call the doctor for my cousin Marie...she got up in the middle of the night and gave the biggest scream you ever heard.
George: What happened?
Gracie: We looked down and her feet had turned black.
George: What did you do?
Gracie: We sent for the doctor.
George: What did the doctor do?
Gracie: He took off her stockings and we all went back to sleep again.
Gracie: Blanche, I heard some gossip about you from a woman.
Blanche: Oh, what was it?
Gracie: I don't remember- I forgot it the minute I told it to her.
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Funny Quotes
I'm apathetic and I don't care.
Graffiti
I'm marching to a different kettle of fish.
Graffiti
The trouble with some women is that they get all excited about nothing, and then marry him.
Cher
The surest way to be alone is to get married.
Gloria Steinem
The difference between owning a book and borrowing a book is that when you own it you can get food on it.
Susan Catherine
Life is a glorious cycle of song.
A medley of extemporania:
And love is a thing that can never go wrong,
And I am Marie of Rumania
Dorothy Parker
You should always believe all you read in the newspapers, as this makes them more interesting.
Rose Macaulay
It costs a lot of money to look this cheap.
Dolly Parton
There's not much good in the worst of us, and so many of the worst of us get the best of us, that the rest of us aren't even worth talking about.
Gracie Allen
Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world.
Lily Tomlin
Love conquers all things except poverty and a toothache.
Mae West
Before the Iraq War started, a friend of mine proposed that Bush and Hussein go off to a small room together. I figured she'd say that the two of them should just slug it out. But no, she suggested that they go into the room, close the door, pull down their pants, and compare penis sizes. Whoever's was bigger, would be declared the winner and everybody could go home.
Ellen Orleans
Adults are always asking little kids what they want to be when they grow up because they're looking for ideas.
Paula Poundstone
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogstop.com
I'm apathetic and I don't care.
Graffiti
I'm marching to a different kettle of fish.
Graffiti
The trouble with some women is that they get all excited about nothing, and then marry him.
Cher
The surest way to be alone is to get married.
Gloria Steinem
The difference between owning a book and borrowing a book is that when you own it you can get food on it.
Susan Catherine
Life is a glorious cycle of song.
A medley of extemporania:
And love is a thing that can never go wrong,
And I am Marie of Rumania
Dorothy Parker
You should always believe all you read in the newspapers, as this makes them more interesting.
Rose Macaulay
It costs a lot of money to look this cheap.
Dolly Parton
There's not much good in the worst of us, and so many of the worst of us get the best of us, that the rest of us aren't even worth talking about.
Gracie Allen
Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world.
Lily Tomlin
Love conquers all things except poverty and a toothache.
Mae West
Before the Iraq War started, a friend of mine proposed that Bush and Hussein go off to a small room together. I figured she'd say that the two of them should just slug it out. But no, she suggested that they go into the room, close the door, pull down their pants, and compare penis sizes. Whoever's was bigger, would be declared the winner and everybody could go home.
Ellen Orleans
Adults are always asking little kids what they want to be when they grow up because they're looking for ideas.
Paula Poundstone
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogstop.com
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Tis The Season to be Blue
This is the time of year, where many of us feel blue. This is the time of year, where many of us feel depressed. This is the time of year, where many of us feel frustrated. This is the time of year, where many of us feel disappointed.
We are told that we should be happy. We are told that we should feel joy. We are told that we should feel grateful. We are told that we should feel like giving to others. We are told that we should feel excited.
Too often we are tired. Too often we spend too much money. Too often we don't have the energy. Too often we spend too much time, energy and money, in two months, and we spend the next ten months trying to make it up.
I have to ask WHY? What is the reason we do these things. Why don't we make things simpler. I remember my Mom would run herself ragged for the holidays and than feel very disappointed after it was all over.
It is getting so bad that we have Christmas music on the radio now even before Thanksgiving. So what can we do to be less stressed during the holidays. Below is my top ten list.
1. Lower your expectations
2. Keep it simple
3. Laugh
4. Get extra sleep
5. Set a realistic budget and stick to it
6. Laugh
7. Spend more time with family and friends instead or shopping for presents for family and friends
8. Set a limit on what you spend on each gift
9. Laugh
10. Make up your mind to have fun, no matter what
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogstop.com/
This is the time of year, where many of us feel blue. This is the time of year, where many of us feel depressed. This is the time of year, where many of us feel frustrated. This is the time of year, where many of us feel disappointed.
We are told that we should be happy. We are told that we should feel joy. We are told that we should feel grateful. We are told that we should feel like giving to others. We are told that we should feel excited.
Too often we are tired. Too often we spend too much money. Too often we don't have the energy. Too often we spend too much time, energy and money, in two months, and we spend the next ten months trying to make it up.
I have to ask WHY? What is the reason we do these things. Why don't we make things simpler. I remember my Mom would run herself ragged for the holidays and than feel very disappointed after it was all over.
It is getting so bad that we have Christmas music on the radio now even before Thanksgiving. So what can we do to be less stressed during the holidays. Below is my top ten list.
1. Lower your expectations
2. Keep it simple
3. Laugh
4. Get extra sleep
5. Set a realistic budget and stick to it
6. Laugh
7. Spend more time with family and friends instead or shopping for presents for family and friends
8. Set a limit on what you spend on each gift
9. Laugh
10. Make up your mind to have fun, no matter what
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogstop.com/
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Lessons from the Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz has some wonderful lessons on how to live a happy and productive life. Let me explain. Dorothy and Toto find themselves due to a tornado in a strange land. Dorothy immediately has a long term goal. She wants to get back to Kansas. And because she does not know how to achieve it, she starts asking questions, and for help to get back to Kansas. We all need long term goals for our life, and a life purpose. Once we have that, we need to do as Dorothy did and ask questions and ask for help. By asking the questions she found a solution to her long term goal. The solution became her short term goal and that solution was to see the Wizard of Oz, who she was told, could help her.
So she set out down the "Yellow Brick Road." Almost immediately she meets the Scarecrow, and helped him get off the post he was on. His long term goal was to get a "brain," and Dorothy invited him to join her to see the Wizard. Now they could help each other and they both had the same short term goal to go to the Wizard. In life, we meet people who we can help and in turn they can help us. So Dorothy, Toto, and the Scarecrow, set off to see the Wizard.
They hadn't gone far down the "Yellow Brick Road," when they ran into the Tin Man. They helped oil him so that he could move again, and his long term goal was to get a "heart." His short term goal was the same as Dorothy, and the Scarecrow, to go to the Wizard. Now there support group, and network was increasing.
A little further down the "Yellow Brick Road," they ran into the Cowardly Lion. The Cowardly Lion tried to scare Toto, and Dorothy hit the Cowardly Lion in the nose, and he started to cry. It turns out his long term goal was to have courage, and so he joined the group to obtain his short term goal of going to the Wizard. Now the group was complete.
The group set off to visit the Wizard, who would help them with their goals. But immediately, they ran into an obstacle or barrier. The Wicked Witch caused the poppy field that they were going through to be poisonous, and they fell asleep. Now in life, we will run into barriers, and we will need help in the form of mentors (or femtors) to help us, as Glenda. the Good Witch provided. Glenda, the Good Witch made it snow and therefore woke up Dorothy, Toto, and their friends.
Because of this obstacle or barrier, Dorothy and her friends could have decided to give up, but they didn't. They still wanted to reach their long and short term goals, so they set off down "The Yellow Brick Road."
How many of us give up on our dreams when we ran into a obstacle or barrier?
They reach the Wizard and he tells them that he won't grant them their wishes until they bring back the Wicked Witch's broom. Well, now their goals have changed. They still have their individual long term goals, but their common short term goal has now changed. It is to get the Wicked Witch's broom. They are not really sure how they are going to do this. Dorothy thinks that if they just ask, maybe the Wicked Witch will give it to them. The others think that Dorothy may have smoked some of the poppies they went through. They know the Wicked Witch will not give up her broom without a fight.
After all, the Wicked Witch is not too happy about the fact that Dorothy and her house fell on and killed her sister. And the Wicked Witch wants the Emerald Slippers, which Dorothy stole off her sister's feet. Along the way to the Wicked Witch's castle, the Wicked Witch sends her Winged Monkey's who tear the scarecrow apart, and take Dorothy and Toto to her castle. The Wicked Witch has an hour glass and she warns Dorothy that she will kill her and take the slippers within the hour if Dorothy doesn't give them to her. Toto escapes and runs to find the others and leads them to Dorothy.
In the meantime the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion have put the stuffing back into the Scarecrow and he is all better. About that time Toto finds the three friends and leads them to the castle. The three work together and plan their rescue of Dorothy. They knock off some of the guards that are marching in front of the castle and slip in as guards. The Cowardly Lion has to hide his tail under his uniform.
As a child watching the movie I always thought they took too much time hugging and kissing Dorothy, when they found her. And sure enough in their reunion celebration the Wicked Witch founds them. She is not a happy camper, or even witch, and takes her broom and puts it in a fire and is going to kill the Scarecrow by putting him on fire. Dorothy in an act of courage, grabs some water, and tosses it on the Scarecrow and the Wicked Witch, and she starts to melt, and says very dramatically, "I'm melting, melting." It was very cool.
Now this unlikely group of friends or support group, had accomplished their short term goal of getting the broom. Their individual long term goals are still all in place. Getting the broom back to the Wizard, becomes their short term goal. Since the Wicked Witch is dead that is a easy goal to achieve.
They take the broom back to the Wizard and this is where they find out that the Wizard is a fake. However, from him they learn some important lessons. The Scarecrow is given a diploma from the Wizard, but learns that all along he already had a "brain" and was smart. He just needed someone to believe in him, or tell him so that he could believe in himself. The Tin Man is given a clock, shaped like a "heart," and he discovers that he always had a "heart." He just needed the Wizard to point this out to him. The Cowardly Lion was given a bravery medal from the Wizard, and like the others he always had "courage" within himself, he just needed someone to point it out.
Dorothy then says, "What about me." The Wizard says, "I am an old Kansas man, and now that I am found out, I want to go back to Kansas. And I just happen to have a balloon that will take us there." After all the speeches and crying and hugging, Dorothy and Toto get on the balloon with the Wizard, and right when the balloon starts to go up, Toto runs off the balloon, and of course Dorothy, won't leave her beloved Toto.
The Wizard can't stop the balloon, and he leaves Dorothy and Toto. Dorothy now is very upset and believes that she will never get home. At this time Glenda, the Good Witch, comes to the rescue. She tells Dorothy that she always had the power to get home; she just needed someone to tell her. Glenda, the Good Witch tells her to click her heels together three times and say, "There is no place like home." Dorothy does that and she wakes up in her home with her Auntie Em and Uncle.
So the lessons of the Wizard of Oz are:
- Have short term and long term goals and change them to meet your needs
- Ask questions and for help
- Have a strong support group of people who support you and who you support
- Know that you will encounter barrier or obstacles and still believe in yourself and your goals
- Have mentors and femtors that help you
- Know that all the skills, knowledge, and talent that you need is already inside of you
- Believe in yourself and your dreams
- Have a purpose for your life and write it down
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Monday, October 29, 2007
Some Comedy Quotes
OK, every time the president comes up with a new secret tactic to take down al Queda, the media blows its cover: torture, monitoring our e-mails, secret prisons, all perfectly reasonable, temporary concessions of freedom that will only be in effect as long as our never-ending war of terror.
- Steve Colbert
Ladies and gentlemen, the face of evil, the Hitler of our generation. Let's hear his terrifying words (on screen: Ahmadinejad claiming that there are no homosexuals in Iran)... That's so interesting that there are no homosexuals in Iran because in America, there are no homosexuals in our conservative movement either.
- Jon Stewart
If I had known this would have made you so happy, I would have told you years ago.
J.K. Rowling- author of the "Harry Potter" series, on the gasps and giggles that seized her audience at an event in New York after she casually revealed that Dumbledore, the fictional headmaster of Hogwarts, is gay.
Every family has a black sheep.
Bill Burton, spokesperson for presidential candidate Barack Obama, on the revelation that Vice President Dick Cheney is a distant cousin of Obaam's.
New Rule: For the next 18 months, let Brush be Reagan. A completely dissociative personality who lets the real work of the nation go on elsewhere, while he sits behind his desk and hums. I don't think the problem is that Bush lives in a bubble. I say make the bubble thicker. Use the armor we can't get to the troops. For example on this whole "bomb Iran" thing. Let's not, and just tell him we did. Who's going to tell him the truth? Rove? Gonzales? Rummy? Scooter? Harriet Miers? It's like a haunted house. The douche bag cupboard is bare. According to the Times of London, the Air Force has drawn up plans for massive strikes against 1,200 targets in Iran. The plan doesn't just call for eliminating Iran's nuclear program, but for taking out its entire military in one blow. Can Brush destroy another country's whole army? Why not? He did it to ours. We'll get Condi to slip him a note. "Mr. President, Iran is free!" And he'll scribble some garbled bullshit on it. like "let freedom Purple Rain" and that will be that. Mission Accomplished. Oh, and the astronauts you sent to Mars just called. They said to say, "hi."
- Bill Maher
I stay away from the miserable people, because misery does love company. Just look at a fly strip. You never see a fly stuck there saying. "Go around." Go around."
- Margaret Smith
OK, every time the president comes up with a new secret tactic to take down al Queda, the media blows its cover: torture, monitoring our e-mails, secret prisons, all perfectly reasonable, temporary concessions of freedom that will only be in effect as long as our never-ending war of terror.
- Steve Colbert
Ladies and gentlemen, the face of evil, the Hitler of our generation. Let's hear his terrifying words (on screen: Ahmadinejad claiming that there are no homosexuals in Iran)... That's so interesting that there are no homosexuals in Iran because in America, there are no homosexuals in our conservative movement either.
- Jon Stewart
If I had known this would have made you so happy, I would have told you years ago.
J.K. Rowling- author of the "Harry Potter" series, on the gasps and giggles that seized her audience at an event in New York after she casually revealed that Dumbledore, the fictional headmaster of Hogwarts, is gay.
Every family has a black sheep.
Bill Burton, spokesperson for presidential candidate Barack Obama, on the revelation that Vice President Dick Cheney is a distant cousin of Obaam's.
New Rule: For the next 18 months, let Brush be Reagan. A completely dissociative personality who lets the real work of the nation go on elsewhere, while he sits behind his desk and hums. I don't think the problem is that Bush lives in a bubble. I say make the bubble thicker. Use the armor we can't get to the troops. For example on this whole "bomb Iran" thing. Let's not, and just tell him we did. Who's going to tell him the truth? Rove? Gonzales? Rummy? Scooter? Harriet Miers? It's like a haunted house. The douche bag cupboard is bare. According to the Times of London, the Air Force has drawn up plans for massive strikes against 1,200 targets in Iran. The plan doesn't just call for eliminating Iran's nuclear program, but for taking out its entire military in one blow. Can Brush destroy another country's whole army? Why not? He did it to ours. We'll get Condi to slip him a note. "Mr. President, Iran is free!" And he'll scribble some garbled bullshit on it. like "let freedom Purple Rain" and that will be that. Mission Accomplished. Oh, and the astronauts you sent to Mars just called. They said to say, "hi."
- Bill Maher
I stay away from the miserable people, because misery does love company. Just look at a fly strip. You never see a fly stuck there saying. "Go around." Go around."
- Margaret Smith
Monday, October 15, 2007
Laugh. Just Laugh.
We possess one of the most powerful ways to stay happy and healthy and it is laughter. Children know this. They laugh about 300 to 400 times a day. We, as adults have forgotten how to laugh. We laugh about 8 to 15 times. Laughter is physical. Humor is mental. You do not have to have a reason to laugh. Let me repeat that. You do not have to have a reason to laugh.
If you look for laughter it will find you. William James, considered the father of modern education said, "We don't laugh, because we are happy, we are happy because we laugh." If some of us waited to be happy before we laughed we would never laugh. Or as Oscar Wilde said, "Life is too important to take seriously."
I totally believe in the Law of Attraction, which tells that what we focus on we get. If I focus on my life being serious, it will be serious. If I focus on my life being happy, and fun, and full of laughter. It will be happy, and fun, and full of laughter.
I don't know about you but I want happiness, fun, and laughter in my life. So, what are some things you might do? Try doing the following, which come from my book, Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life:
- Pledge to yourself that every person you run across during the day you will help smile or laugh.
- Use exaggeration to help get perspective. Jokingly expand the situation to life and death proportions.
- Be more playful. Try being dramatic, silly, and improvisational. Others will pick up your spirit and laughter.
- Remember personal stories from your own lives that, in retrospect, are humorous. Offer these anecdotes as an antidote when others encounter problems,
- When an embarrassing moment happens to you share it with your friends and family.
- Make a list of potential stressful situations and prepare humorous responses.
- Carry a funny picture, cartoon, or joke, in your wallet or purse and look at it when you are feeling depressed.
- Hang out with people who laugh and find joy in their life
Most important Laugh. Just Laugh.
Jana RuthAuthor of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com/
Sunday, October 07, 2007
The Twelve Pathways
In 1972 The Twelve Pathways were created by Ken Keyes, Jr,. author of "The Hundredth Monkey, and "How to Enjoy Your Life In Spite of It All," and other books. The The Twelve Pathways is just as valuable today as it was in 1972 that is why I am sharing it with you and excited about it. These Pathways are a modern, practical condensation of thousands of accumulated wisdom.
Many of the concepts in The Twelve Pathways are similar to the concepts from The Secret. they relate to the Law of Attraction. The concept that you create your reality with your thoughts. Our thoughts create our feelings that create our behavior. You are the creator of your life.
It is highly suggested that you use The Twelve Pathways in interpreting your moment-to-moment stream of consciousness. By doing so it can lead you into higher consciousness and enable you to find the love, happiness, wisdom, and fulfillment that is your birthright in life.
To benefit the most from The Twelve Pathways, memorize them word perfectly. Memorizing them is the best way to have them readily available when you need them. By memorizing them you will not have to paraphrase or put them in other words. Each of The Pathways is loaded with several systematically interlocking concepts that help you create a more harmonious enjoyment of your life.
The Twelve Pathways
Freeing Myself
1. I am freeing myself from security, sensation and power addictions that make me try to forcefully control situations in my life, and thus destroy my serenity and keep me from loving myself and others.
2. I am discovering how my consciousness dominating addictions create my illusory version of the changing world of people and situations around me.
3. I welcome the opportunity (even if painful) that my minute-to-minute experience offers me to become aware of the addictions I must reprogram to be liberated from my robot-like emotional patterns.
Be Here Now
4. I always remember that I have everything I need to enjoy my here and now- unless I am letting my consciousness be dominated by demands and expectations based on the dead past or the imagined future.
5. I take fully responsibility here and now for everything I experience, for it is my own programming that creates my actions and influences the reactions of people around me.
6. I accept myself completely here and now consciously experience everything I feel, think, say, and do (including my emotion-backed addictions) as a necessary part of my growth into higher consciousness
Interacting With Others
7. I open myself genuinely to all people by being willing to fully communicate my deepest feelings, since hiding in any degree keeps me stuck in my illusion of separateness from other people.
8. I feel with loving compassion the problems of others without getting caught up emotionally in their predicaments that are offering them messages they need for their growth.
9. I act freely when I am tuned in, centered, and loving, but if possible I avoid acting when I am upset and depriving myself of the wisdom that flows from love and expanded consciousness.
Discovering My Conscious Awareness
10. I am continually calming the restless scanning of my rational mind in order to perceive the finer energies that enable me to intuitively merge with everything around me.
11. I am constantly aware of which of the Seven Centers of Consciousness ( 1. The Security Center, 2. The Sensation Center, 3. The Power Center, 4. The Love Center, 5. The Cornucopia Center, 6. The Conscious Awareness Center, 7. The Cosmic Consciousness Center), I am using, and I feel my energy, perceptiveness, love, and inner peace growing as I open all the Centers of Consciousness.
12. I am perceiving everyone, including myself as an awakening being who is here to claim his or her birthright to the higher consciousness planes of unconditional love and oneness.
I believe that if we all followed The Twelve Pathways, we would find a happier, healthier, and more Laughing World.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
janabanana15@cox.net
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com/
In 1972 The Twelve Pathways were created by Ken Keyes, Jr,. author of "The Hundredth Monkey, and "How to Enjoy Your Life In Spite of It All," and other books. The The Twelve Pathways is just as valuable today as it was in 1972 that is why I am sharing it with you and excited about it. These Pathways are a modern, practical condensation of thousands of accumulated wisdom.
Many of the concepts in The Twelve Pathways are similar to the concepts from The Secret. they relate to the Law of Attraction. The concept that you create your reality with your thoughts. Our thoughts create our feelings that create our behavior. You are the creator of your life.
It is highly suggested that you use The Twelve Pathways in interpreting your moment-to-moment stream of consciousness. By doing so it can lead you into higher consciousness and enable you to find the love, happiness, wisdom, and fulfillment that is your birthright in life.
To benefit the most from The Twelve Pathways, memorize them word perfectly. Memorizing them is the best way to have them readily available when you need them. By memorizing them you will not have to paraphrase or put them in other words. Each of The Pathways is loaded with several systematically interlocking concepts that help you create a more harmonious enjoyment of your life.
The Twelve Pathways
Freeing Myself
1. I am freeing myself from security, sensation and power addictions that make me try to forcefully control situations in my life, and thus destroy my serenity and keep me from loving myself and others.
2. I am discovering how my consciousness dominating addictions create my illusory version of the changing world of people and situations around me.
3. I welcome the opportunity (even if painful) that my minute-to-minute experience offers me to become aware of the addictions I must reprogram to be liberated from my robot-like emotional patterns.
Be Here Now
4. I always remember that I have everything I need to enjoy my here and now- unless I am letting my consciousness be dominated by demands and expectations based on the dead past or the imagined future.
5. I take fully responsibility here and now for everything I experience, for it is my own programming that creates my actions and influences the reactions of people around me.
6. I accept myself completely here and now consciously experience everything I feel, think, say, and do (including my emotion-backed addictions) as a necessary part of my growth into higher consciousness
Interacting With Others
7. I open myself genuinely to all people by being willing to fully communicate my deepest feelings, since hiding in any degree keeps me stuck in my illusion of separateness from other people.
8. I feel with loving compassion the problems of others without getting caught up emotionally in their predicaments that are offering them messages they need for their growth.
9. I act freely when I am tuned in, centered, and loving, but if possible I avoid acting when I am upset and depriving myself of the wisdom that flows from love and expanded consciousness.
Discovering My Conscious Awareness
10. I am continually calming the restless scanning of my rational mind in order to perceive the finer energies that enable me to intuitively merge with everything around me.
11. I am constantly aware of which of the Seven Centers of Consciousness ( 1. The Security Center, 2. The Sensation Center, 3. The Power Center, 4. The Love Center, 5. The Cornucopia Center, 6. The Conscious Awareness Center, 7. The Cosmic Consciousness Center), I am using, and I feel my energy, perceptiveness, love, and inner peace growing as I open all the Centers of Consciousness.
12. I am perceiving everyone, including myself as an awakening being who is here to claim his or her birthright to the higher consciousness planes of unconditional love and oneness.
I believe that if we all followed The Twelve Pathways, we would find a happier, healthier, and more Laughing World.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
janabanana15@cox.net
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com/
Friday, September 21, 2007
The Art of Concentration
I love Emmet Fox (1886-1951), scientist, philosopher, and spiritual teacher, was a leader in the New Thought Movement, and an early contributor to Alcoholic's Anonymous. He is a author of many books and a readership in the million. Anyway, this is Emmet Fox's take on Concentration:
The only subject that matters is getting an understanding of Truth, developing our souls; but in order to develop our souls we must have some knowledge of the power of concentration. If you can learn and practice right concentration, there is no good thing in the universe that you cannot attain. Concentration means literally 'bringing to a common center." Until you can put your attention where you want it you have not become master of yourself. You will have be happy until you can determine what you are going to think about for the next hour.
First make your body comfortable, then tell it to be good until you come back for it. Concentration has nothing to do with the muscles, it has nothing to do with the blood vessels. Concentration means thought control. It is purely a mental thing and if you are rightly concentrating you will find you are actually relaxed.
People imagine that concentration means holding on to one thought. The human mind is so constituted that it is impossible to do that. True concentration is a movement of the mind along a predetermined path. Nineteen people out of twenty people who say they have failed in concentration have been trying to stand still mentally. All people do have good powers of concentration, but not when they want them. You always concentrate on what you are interested in.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
I love Emmet Fox (1886-1951), scientist, philosopher, and spiritual teacher, was a leader in the New Thought Movement, and an early contributor to Alcoholic's Anonymous. He is a author of many books and a readership in the million. Anyway, this is Emmet Fox's take on Concentration:
The only subject that matters is getting an understanding of Truth, developing our souls; but in order to develop our souls we must have some knowledge of the power of concentration. If you can learn and practice right concentration, there is no good thing in the universe that you cannot attain. Concentration means literally 'bringing to a common center." Until you can put your attention where you want it you have not become master of yourself. You will have be happy until you can determine what you are going to think about for the next hour.
First make your body comfortable, then tell it to be good until you come back for it. Concentration has nothing to do with the muscles, it has nothing to do with the blood vessels. Concentration means thought control. It is purely a mental thing and if you are rightly concentrating you will find you are actually relaxed.
People imagine that concentration means holding on to one thought. The human mind is so constituted that it is impossible to do that. True concentration is a movement of the mind along a predetermined path. Nineteen people out of twenty people who say they have failed in concentration have been trying to stand still mentally. All people do have good powers of concentration, but not when they want them. You always concentrate on what you are interested in.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
www.janaruth.biz
www.laughandlivehappier.com
www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
Friday, September 07, 2007
Laugh Just Laugh!
You don't need a reason to laugh. If you just fake a laugh you get the benefits of a real laugh. Don't wait for a reason to laugh. Sometimes in this serious life, a good reason for laughing never comes. William James said, "We don't laugh because we are happy. We are happy because we laugh. Many of us would never laugh if we waited for a reason.
Laughter is physical, humor is intellectual. We can laugh any time we want to for no reason. Children laugh about 300 to 400 times a day. Adults laugh between 8 and 15. What happened?As adults many of us start to take life way too seriously. As Woody Allen said, "You might as well enjoy life, because you are not going to get out of life alive anyway."
Listed below are ways to bring more laughter into your life:
* Read or collect humorous material from your favorite comedy writers and comedians.
* Collect cartoons and jokes you enjoy from the Internet, newspapers, magazine, etc. Share these with your friends, co-workers, and family, and even complete strangers.
* Pledge to yourself that every person you run across during the day you will help smile or laugh.
* Use exaggeration to help get perspective. Jokingly expand the situation to life and death proportions.
* Be more playful. Try being dramatic, silly, and improvisational. Others will pick up your spirit and laughter.
So laugh just laugh. And if you can't do it for real, just say TEE HEE! HOO HOO and give the best fake laugh you can.
Laughter is probably the only thing that faking it is almost as good as the real thing.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com/
Check out the following article:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/stories/DN-standup_0407gl.ART.State.Edition1.4499333.html
You don't need a reason to laugh. If you just fake a laugh you get the benefits of a real laugh. Don't wait for a reason to laugh. Sometimes in this serious life, a good reason for laughing never comes. William James said, "We don't laugh because we are happy. We are happy because we laugh. Many of us would never laugh if we waited for a reason.
Laughter is physical, humor is intellectual. We can laugh any time we want to for no reason. Children laugh about 300 to 400 times a day. Adults laugh between 8 and 15. What happened?As adults many of us start to take life way too seriously. As Woody Allen said, "You might as well enjoy life, because you are not going to get out of life alive anyway."
Listed below are ways to bring more laughter into your life:
* Read or collect humorous material from your favorite comedy writers and comedians.
* Collect cartoons and jokes you enjoy from the Internet, newspapers, magazine, etc. Share these with your friends, co-workers, and family, and even complete strangers.
* Pledge to yourself that every person you run across during the day you will help smile or laugh.
* Use exaggeration to help get perspective. Jokingly expand the situation to life and death proportions.
* Be more playful. Try being dramatic, silly, and improvisational. Others will pick up your spirit and laughter.
So laugh just laugh. And if you can't do it for real, just say TEE HEE! HOO HOO and give the best fake laugh you can.
Laughter is probably the only thing that faking it is almost as good as the real thing.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com/
Check out the following article:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/stories/DN-standup_0407gl.ART.State.Edition1.4499333.html
Sunday, September 02, 2007
Where are All The Women?
There you are. It is the first World Championship Speech Contest that you have ever attended. You belong to the organization that sponsors this contest and you know that half of the membership is like you, or at least the same gender. You know that there are people in your gender high up in the organization. You know that there are people in your gender in speech contests, because you have seen them, because you have been in contests yourself.
You are excited and looking forward to this. The room is large with hundreds, maybe even a thousand people there. Half the audience is people from your gender. So you sit ready, for the contest, actually more like a show, to begin. The first person to speak, is a member of the opposite gender. The second person to speak is a member of your gender; in fact this person has the same first name as you. This is unusual, but nice, since you have a name, not too many people have.
You look at the program, and the name of the contestants catches your eye. It seems from the names that at the most only 2 people might be of your gender. You find that odd, and wonder if there might some subtle discrimination that no one talks about or is even aware of.
The contest starts and one member after another of the opposite gender than yours comes forward to participate. There are different races and nationalities, and even one disabled person competing, and that is all good. In fact the 1 member of your gender that is a contestant is a member of a minority race.
So in a contest with 10 people, 9 people are from the gender other than yours , and there is only 1 person in your gender. With a 9 to 1 ratio, the person that is from your gender, has a slim change in winning.
In fact the organization that you belong to and who is sponsoring this event has been around since 1932 and has held World Championship in Public Speaking contests since 1938. However your gender was not allowed to join until 1973. Since 1973 there have been only 3 members of your gender that have won, and the last one was in 1986.
For an organization that has a policy of non-discrimination (including based on ethnicity, nationality, and gender), this is a upsetting fact. I think this discrimination in the World Championship Contests is not overt, I think it is unconscious. After all there are members of my gender, who act as judges. This unconscious discrimination I think comes from a belief that still is hold by many in society that members of my gender are just inferior speakers.
This is ridiculous, considering all the research that shows that people of my gender are better communicators. We start speaking at a much earlier age and by age 3 we have twice the vocabulary of the opposite gender. We continue to excel in communications. If there is one area in which my gender has an advantage, it is in public speaking.
In doing some research, I have found that this organization does a very good job of inclusion for ethnicity and nationality, and even disability. Unfortunately, this inclusion only includes one gender and not the other.
A young person, from my opposite gender, and from other country than the U.S. was sitting next to me at the contest, and was confused with my disappointment at the lack of members of my gender. I asked this person if their gender was only represented by a 1 in 10 ratio if this person might be upset. The reply was a resounding, Yes.
So what is the solution? I think that awareness is the first option. I think this is an issue that we need to think about and talk about. By seeing one member of the same gender win year after year, is quite discouraging to the other gender.
The gender that always wins is, of course ,men, and the gender that has only won 3 times in the past 34 years is women, of which gender I proudly belong to.
So the organization is Toastmasters International which has more than 226,000 members and 11,300 clubs in 90 countries, including 73 clubs in Phoenix alone. And each year more than 10,000 members of Toastmasters International compete in this speech contest. The competition begins at the club level with winners advancing to area and regional contest, and it culminates each August during the International Convention where 10 finalist contend for the top honor.
So are you telling me that out of 10,000 members, many of them who I know must be women, only 1 woman is able to make up the 10 finalists? As I congratulated the one woman contestant and mentioned her being the only woman contestant, she mentioned that "we, as women, just need to work harder."
I disagree. No matter how hard we work on speaking, we will never win on a regular basis, or even have more than 1 contestant out of 9, if people aren't aware that they are unconsciously discriminating again women. What would people say if one man of color hadn't won, or no man of disability had won. There would be outrage. And there are many less men of color and disability as members of Toastmasters than there are women, and there are more men of color and disabilities that have won than women.
So I must ask where are all the women? So I must ask when is Toastmaster's International going to live up to it's policy of non-discrimination against gender?
Come on. I know we can do better for the other gender.
Jana Ruth
Author of Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz/
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com/
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot/
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Are Men Threatened by Funny Women?
There is a thought out there that women are just not funny. As a recovering stand-up comedian I found that many people, especially men almost dared me to make them laugh. They were sitting in the front row of a comedy club with their arms folded, almost saying, "So you think you are funny? I will decide that!" Research came out last year from the scientific journal "Evolution and Human Behavior." And it shows that men, are in fact, threatened by women's humor.
"Men see being funny as a male thing," explained Dr, Rod Martin, who led the project. Hundreds of men and women in their twenties were questioned. Asked if they found a sense of humor to be attractive in women, most men said yes. But when they were asked if they would want to be with a woman who cracked jokes herself, the answer was a resounding NO!
"When forced to choose between humor production and humor appreciation in potential partners, women valued humor production, whereas men valued receptivity to their own humor," said Dr. Martin.
More than half the men who took part in the survey revealed that a witty woman was not what they were looking for in partner. Dr. Martin said the findings suggested that men see themselves as the ones who should be delivering the lines and feel threatened by humorous women.
This study helps me understand the reluctance of the male members in my audience to laugh at my humor. Dr. Martin, who did the study and who is a psychologist at the University of Western Ontario, says the research may shed light on the failure of female stand-ups who struggle to impress some male audiences.
"One of the reasons why men don't life female comedians may be that humor is seen as a masculine thing," he said.
One of Britain's funniest females, Meera Syai, who co-wrote the starred in the BBC comedy show, "Goodness Gracious Me," said: "The idea that men are more interested in having an audience rather than sharing banter doesn't really surprise me. Women see men with a sense of humor is a mark or intelligence. Many men don't really want to be the recipient of a cutting remark in public that will make them look small or stupid."
Comedy definitely mirrors the culture, says comedian Kelley Lynn, who is also an adjunct professor who teaches a comedy class at Adelphi University, in Garden City, N.Y. She says she is amazed at the differences between her male and female students. "The boys just seem to come in with all this confidence, whether their material is funny or not. Whereas the girls come in and say, 'Is this funny?' Almost always the material is just as funny, if not more so, but the girls lack the confidence to deliver it with conviction. There will continue to be progress for woman in the world of comedy as the world changes, but it may take generations."
Certain roles have been acceptable for women since the rise of the mass media: the sexy vamp (think of Mae West), or the ditsy klutz (everyone from Carole Lombard to Lucille Ball and Debra Messing). "These roles aren't threatening to men, " says actress Jennifer Coolidge who has made a career of crafting cunning klutzy air headed females. She adds, "They play into men's stereotypes of women as sexpots or stupid."
Witness the recent column in Vanity Fair, which declared "Women Aren't Funny" (written by Christopher Hitchens) And despite the fact that his ABC comedy employed numerous funny women, comic Drew Carey says the prejudices are real. "It's not so much that women aren't funny, as that men don't want them to be funny. Comedy is about aggression and confrontation and power. As a culture we just don't allow women to do all that stuff."
All of this just goes to show that men are threatened by funny women. And I say, Too Bad! And get over it!
I want to leave you with some jokes:
My parents had a typical Catholic wedding. My father was a repressed homosexual and my mother was sedated.
How do you know if it's time to wash the dishes and clean your house? Look inside your pants. If you find a penis in there, it's not time.
Never trust a man with testicles.
And a Jana Ruth, because that's my name, joke.
Men may still rule the world, but can they fake orgasms?
Material taken from: "Why Men Don't Fancy Funny Women...because it scares the poor dear." by Roger Dobson in "The Independent" August 18, 2007 and "Are Women Allowed to be Funny," by Gloria Goodale in "The Christian Science Monitor," February 2, 2007
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
There is a thought out there that women are just not funny. As a recovering stand-up comedian I found that many people, especially men almost dared me to make them laugh. They were sitting in the front row of a comedy club with their arms folded, almost saying, "So you think you are funny? I will decide that!" Research came out last year from the scientific journal "Evolution and Human Behavior." And it shows that men, are in fact, threatened by women's humor.
"Men see being funny as a male thing," explained Dr, Rod Martin, who led the project. Hundreds of men and women in their twenties were questioned. Asked if they found a sense of humor to be attractive in women, most men said yes. But when they were asked if they would want to be with a woman who cracked jokes herself, the answer was a resounding NO!
"When forced to choose between humor production and humor appreciation in potential partners, women valued humor production, whereas men valued receptivity to their own humor," said Dr. Martin.
More than half the men who took part in the survey revealed that a witty woman was not what they were looking for in partner. Dr. Martin said the findings suggested that men see themselves as the ones who should be delivering the lines and feel threatened by humorous women.
This study helps me understand the reluctance of the male members in my audience to laugh at my humor. Dr. Martin, who did the study and who is a psychologist at the University of Western Ontario, says the research may shed light on the failure of female stand-ups who struggle to impress some male audiences.
"One of the reasons why men don't life female comedians may be that humor is seen as a masculine thing," he said.
One of Britain's funniest females, Meera Syai, who co-wrote the starred in the BBC comedy show, "Goodness Gracious Me," said: "The idea that men are more interested in having an audience rather than sharing banter doesn't really surprise me. Women see men with a sense of humor is a mark or intelligence. Many men don't really want to be the recipient of a cutting remark in public that will make them look small or stupid."
Comedy definitely mirrors the culture, says comedian Kelley Lynn, who is also an adjunct professor who teaches a comedy class at Adelphi University, in Garden City, N.Y. She says she is amazed at the differences between her male and female students. "The boys just seem to come in with all this confidence, whether their material is funny or not. Whereas the girls come in and say, 'Is this funny?' Almost always the material is just as funny, if not more so, but the girls lack the confidence to deliver it with conviction. There will continue to be progress for woman in the world of comedy as the world changes, but it may take generations."
Certain roles have been acceptable for women since the rise of the mass media: the sexy vamp (think of Mae West), or the ditsy klutz (everyone from Carole Lombard to Lucille Ball and Debra Messing). "These roles aren't threatening to men, " says actress Jennifer Coolidge who has made a career of crafting cunning klutzy air headed females. She adds, "They play into men's stereotypes of women as sexpots or stupid."
Witness the recent column in Vanity Fair, which declared "Women Aren't Funny" (written by Christopher Hitchens) And despite the fact that his ABC comedy employed numerous funny women, comic Drew Carey says the prejudices are real. "It's not so much that women aren't funny, as that men don't want them to be funny. Comedy is about aggression and confrontation and power. As a culture we just don't allow women to do all that stuff."
All of this just goes to show that men are threatened by funny women. And I say, Too Bad! And get over it!
I want to leave you with some jokes:
My parents had a typical Catholic wedding. My father was a repressed homosexual and my mother was sedated.
How do you know if it's time to wash the dishes and clean your house? Look inside your pants. If you find a penis in there, it's not time.
Never trust a man with testicles.
And a Jana Ruth, because that's my name, joke.
Men may still rule the world, but can they fake orgasms?
Material taken from: "Why Men Don't Fancy Funny Women...because it scares the poor dear." by Roger Dobson in "The Independent" August 18, 2007 and "Are Women Allowed to be Funny," by Gloria Goodale in "The Christian Science Monitor," February 2, 2007
Jana Ruth
Author of "Laugh and Live Happier: P.L.A.Y.S. for Life
http://www.janaruth.biz
http://www.laughandlivehappier.com
http://www.onewomanslaughter.blogspot.com
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