"People have become so self-conscious because people have become so judgmental."
-Q

We all have habits, good and bad. I'll agree, sometimes some can become annoying. But you can't get mad. Why? Think of it this way: You do something over and over. Once you've done it so many times, your body says, "Hey, how about I do this automatically for you, so you don't even have to think about it?" Your subconscious mind then takes over from there. A habit is your body going into autopilot. It's just trying to save you precious thinking time (since we all think so much anyways...). So, don't get mad. Get autopilot. It rules.

Sean and I saw a group playing out at the friz course the other day. They had a small dog with them that had to be no larger than five pounds (guess) and looked like a little, brown fur ball running around. As the group walked away, we watched as the little fella comically trudged along after its masters, trying to keep up. The terrain on this particular hole was once engulfed by the river, so the ground is completely covered with smooth stones. The pup was obviously having a hard time navigating over the landscape. With a laugh and a smile, Sean turned to me and said, "There is no way that is a native animal."

Ever since this incident, I've found myself applying this idea whenever I see an animal. Many pets people own are obviously not made for our area, and it shows. And it's freaking hilarious. Give it a try.

"Cause a hundred years from now all the people will be new.
So there's really only one important thing for us to do,
and it's not from the thoughts of the things that you can't
but the echo from the tiny little seed that you plant."
-Wookiefoot

Speaking of the economic crisis, How about this idea? Whenever an individual wants a new car, they have to take it up with the car manufacturer themselves. If I want a brand new car, I could approach the manufacturer and request it. The factory then orders it, builds it and ships it to my area. An open market is left open for individuals to sell their used vehicles amongst other people. Car lots covered with strings of shiny, new cars would be no more. For new vehicles, demand would meet supply perfectly.

This is from an article in the St. Petersburg Times Newspaper. The Business Section asked readers for ideas on "How Would You Fix the Economy?" This guys kills it.

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Dear Mr. President:

Please find below my suggestion for fixing America 's economy.

Instead of giving billions of dollars to companies that will squander the money on lavish parties and unearned bonuses, use the following plan. You can call it the Patriotic Retirement Plan.

There are about 40 million people over 50 in the work force.

Pay them $1 million apiece severance for early retirement with the following stipulations:

1) They MUST retire.
Forty million job openings - Unemployment fixed.

2) They MUST buy a new American CAR.
Forty million cars ordered - Auto Industry fixed.

3) They MUST either buy a house or pay off their mortgage.
- Housing Crisis fixed.

It can't get any easier than that!

If more money is needed, have all members of Congress and
their constituents pay their taxes...

"Chin up, chin up until it touches the moon sad and forsaken one.
It's you I'm talking to."
-Catch 22

"We will always want what we don't possess."
-Q

While I was feeding my fish in the backyard pond today, a few wasps zoomed by me. I've always been curious but have never actually known exactly where bees go or what bees do during the winter. Surely they're not out and about, I've never seen even one bee during the cold season. So I hit the books. I learned that different species of bees will behave differently during winter, so I stuck with the classic honeybee.

When temperatures fall, honeybees stay in their hives. Some bees will hibernate, but the workers form a huge "bee ball" surrounding their queen. The bee ball is constantly moving, with each bee vibrating his wing muscles to raise temperature. Heat is also generated by the oxidation of the honey that was produced during the warm season. This heat is then disbursed amongst the hive by the wing-fanning of worker bees. These methods warm the hive enough to keep it from freezing. The workers feed on the stored honey and can consume up to 30 pounds of it throughout the winter. And you thought honeybees are working so hard to supply us with honey? Think again, they are working hard to survive!

"We all have problems, we will all face hardships. How we deal with them is what makes us who we are."
-Q