Daily Thoughts & Issues

IN THIS ISSUE:

JANUARY 4

Days left until the next millennium 01.01.3001
 

Photo of the Week
Bill Stevenson/Adventure Photo & Film
Achieve Your Dreams

 

January 4 - Martyrs of Independence (Zaire) * Independence Day in Myanmar. * On this date in 1920 the first black baseball league, the Negro National League, is established. African American History. * Day ethnic discrimination was outlawed world-wide (1969). Day to mourn all manifestations of racism. The Mystic's Wheel of the Year * President Benjamin Harrison (1893) issued a proclamation granting full amnesty and pardon to all persons who had since Nov 1, 1890, abstained from unlawful cohabitation of a polygamous marriage. This was intended in the main for a specific group of elderly Mormons who had continued in the practice of contracting serial marriages. Amnesty was based on the condition that those pardoned must obey the law in the future or be "vigorously prosecuted." The practice of polygamy was a factor interfering with attainment of statehood for Utah. * At approximately 4 am EST, planet Earth will reach Perihelion, that point in its orbit when it is closest to the sun (about 91,500,000 miles). * President Richard Nixon rejected the Senate Watergate Committee's subpoenas seeking White House tapes and documents (1974). * Birthdays: Michael Stipe and Jacob Grimm (1785) of Grimm fairy tales. Louis Braille, General Tom Thumb, Sterling Holloway, Isaac Newton, Benjamin Rush, Patrick Cassidy, Dave Foley, Floyd Patterson, Donald Francis (Don) Shula, Michael Stipe.

DAILY THOUGHTS

Stress/Pressure. Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin. Yet even Solomon in all his splendor was not arrayed like on of these. Matthew 6:28-29. We men who do next to nothing can find the beginning of a new day a perplexing and difficult time. All around us people are making agendas, setting lunch dates, and writing "to do" lists. The pressure that the workaholics who inhabit our world exert upon us to join them in their frantic struggle - to get it right, to get up off the couch, to switch off the ball game and lose the beer gut, to spend more time with the family - can be overwhelming. At trying times like these, it is important to remember that we are fashioned in God's image and perfect just as we are. Just for today, give me the willingness to do nothing at all. Meditations for Men Who Do Next to Nothing: and would like to do even less

Have a Fire Drill. Each year more than 1,000 youngsters 9 and under die in home fires. To safeguard your family, follow these tips. Make a family escape plan: Draw a floor plan of your house, identify two escape routes from each room, and mark them with Xs. Post the plan on the refrigerator or bulletin board. Choose a meeting place: Pick a safe spot away from the house where family members can meet. Mark this spot on your plan. Hold a dress rehearsal: Adults and children 5 and older should leave immediately using the designated exits. Younger kids should stand by a window and wait for a parent or firefighter to get them. Practice going to the meeting spot and reiterate that each family member should wait there until everyone arrives. Also, be sure to update your escape route regularly. Parents Tips & Tricks (Editor: around 30 years ago, some research was done. Adults were asked what areas of the house they would have a fire extinguisher. They said the kitchen or garage. Kids were asked the same question. Can you guess their answer?  Their bedroom. Ever since, every bedroom in my house has a ABC fire extinguisher that could get someone through the flames in the hall way and to safety. Think about it.)

Things to Be Happy About: Hot turkey and gravy sandwiches. sitting after a shopping expedition. A bundle of fried onions. 14,000 Things to Be Happy About

Power means demonstrating your ability to manifest reality. Within each of us lies a power center, and we learn to call upon this power as we set out to design our lives according to our will. Power is a natural state of being - it is a force to which we are all entitled and to which we have unlimited access. If Life is a Game, These are the Rules

The map is not the territory. A map is simply an explanation of certain aspects of the territory. While individuals may look at their own lives and interactions in means of paradigms or maps emerging out of their experience and conditioning, these maps are not the territory. They are a "subjective reality," only an attempt to describe the territory. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

One easy way to minimize the clutter in your home is to designate a place for your kids' sports equipment, then make sure they stash their gear there when they return from a game. Simplify Your Life

It's easier to be cheerful on a full stomach.  Really Important Stuff My Kids Have Taught Me

Cultivate a sense of patience with yourself. Don't expect to change lifelong patterns instantly. Recognize change is a process that takes time. Start with smaller, realistic goals (for example, try to exercise once or twice a week rather than every day) and compliment yourself on your progress. Stress Busters

Work with your kids to set some goals for the new year!  Some ideas for goals could be to spend just ten minutes in the shower, watch less TV or learn a new sport! To Do Today

You must see your goals clearly and specifically before you can set out for them. Hold them in your mind until they become second nature. - Les Brown. Win the Day!

When visiting someone in a nursing home, give them a little touch or pat them on the arm or shoulder. Many of these people are never touched except by someone who is paid to do it. Life's Little Instruction Calendar

Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending. - Henry W. Longfellow (1807-1882) The Old Farmer's Almanac

Co-Creativity. Right from the first moment you met, when you both began teaching each other how you expected the relationship to be, you were co-creating your relationship. Like a work of art, you jointly shaped what you now have. You are responsible for your choices and therein awaits your power. If you don't like how your marriage works, it will take both of you to change and re-create it. If one of you won't do that, you don't really have a relationship - because real love requires both of you to be involved. Intimacy is like a dance. It always takes both of you to co-create the steps you agree to take together. Today, agree to co-create something a bit different than you're used to. Perhaps you'll decide to take a walk after dinner holding hands or describe to each other when you felt the most happy in your life. You must create the intimacy of your marriage together. I know that lasting love is co-created. It takes two people working together to make a marriage work. - Abigail Van Buren (Dear Abby). Opening to Love 365 Days a Year

Aprender (ahprehnDEHR) - To Learn, Living Language

TODAY'S ISSUE: ENJOYMENT OF LIFE

I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it. - Alice Walker. Maybe Alice Walker's famous words say, in part, "Stop to smell the roses," but I think they also say much more. I think these words tell us we're not on earth just to push the boulder ahead of us; we're her for a variety of reasons, but surely, we're here to truly admire what has been put before us. Those of us who would be hard-pressed to describe the layout of their own home need to heed Ms. Walker's advice. We're running through the fields of life at full tilt, and rarely, if ever, do we look from side to side long enough to notice the color purple. Meditations For Men Who Do Too Much

Hey Man: Did you make a difference yesterday? Let us know at Contact Us. Let me be inspired today to look both ways before I cross the street. Let me hope to stop and admire the color purple. Meditations For Men Who Do Too Much Want to make a difference but you don't know where to start?

BOOK OF THE WEEK

 

Voices of Vets: A bridge back to the world. Poems from veterans and their families from Mosaic. The soul searching words of wonder and power that make up the poems in this book were distilled from the lived experiences of a group of war veterans and their family members who attended a five-day retreat in May, 2008. Their words were shaped during the heartfelt retreat and presented on the stage of the Angus Bowmer Theatre at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival on Memorial Day. It was compelling work, born of courage and blood, heat and memory. The voices of the veterans blazed through the theater with a rare authority and a devastating beauty - stunning the hearts of the audience and offering an unforgettable experience of anguish and awe that still reverberates throughout the town. From the gathered wounds and shared courage a terrible beauty has been born. It can sear the heart, yet it can also bring a healing touch to those willing to welcome and embrace our veterans and their lived stories. Green Fire Press, www.Mosaicvoices.org, 2008, ISBN 0-9766450-7-8

SPECIAL URLs

 

MENSTUFF COLUMNS BY AUTHOR

  • The Advice Diva - The Advice Diva - relationship and sexuality issues discussed - www.menstuff.org/columns/advicediva/archive.html
  • Peter Alsop - Song of the Month - www.menstuff.org/columns/alsop/archive.html
  • Reid Baer - A Man Overboard - Interview of the Month - www.menstuff.org/columns/overboard/archive.html
  • Reid Baer - Poetry - poetry read on YouTube - www.menstuff.org/columns/baer/archive.html
  • Molly Barrow - Shrink About This - www.menstuff.org/columns/barrow/archive.html
  • Peter Baylies - At Home Dads - on at-home-dad issues that impact fathers who stay at home to raise their kids - www.menstuff.org/columns/baylies/archive.html
  • Tom Blake - Middle-Age Relationships - from an expert on dating after 50. www.menstuff.org/columns/blake/archive.html
  • Mark Brandenburg - Great Fathers - on fathering issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/greatfathers/archive.html
  • Ted Braude - BoysWork - a columnist in the The Detroit Free Press "Body and Mind" section www.menstuff.org/columns/braude/archive.html
  • Armin Brott - A Father's Guide - hosts "Positive Parenting" on radio www.menstuff.org/columns/brott/archive.html
  • Dan Bulf - Get Real - weekly pod cast on men's issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/bulf/archive.html
  • Ken Byers - Transition - on men's life transitions - www.menstuff.org/columns/byers/archive.html
  • Sandra L. Caron - Sex Talk - college students get answers to their questions - www.menstuff.org/columns/sextalk/archive.html
  • Neil Chethik - Relationships - www.menstuff.org/columns/chethik/archive.html
  • Otto & Susie Collins - Susie and Otto - relationship issues discussed - www.menstuff.org/columns/susie&otto/archive.html
  • David Copeland - How to Succeed with Women - www.menstuff.org/columns/howtosucceed/archive.html
  • Forrest Craver - Spirituality & Social Change - www.menstuff.org/columns/craver/archive.html
  • Layne & Paul Cutright - Powerful Partnerships - relationship issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/cutright/archive.html
  • Ron DesMarais - Cavemen in the Kitchen - great recipes for men - www.menstuff.org/columns/desmarais/archive.html
  • Jed Diamond - Irritable Male Syndrome - www.menstuff.org/columns/diamond/archive.html
  • Doc Love - Women Don't Lie, Man Don't Listen - answers to relationship issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/doclov/archive.html
  • Barry Durdant-Hollamby - Creating Change - creating change in your life - www.menstuff.org/columns/durdant/archive.html
  • Irv Engel - The Real Deal - www.menstuff.org/columns/engel/archive.html
  • Nancy Fagan - Expert Dating Advice - with Nancy Fagan - www.menstuf.org/columns/fagan/archive.html
  • Warren Farrell - Men's Issues: Facts and Perspectives www.menstuff.org/columns/farrell/archive.html
  • Leonard Felder - Wake Up or Break Up - www.menstuff.org/columns/felder/archive.html
  • Marty Friedman - Strong Men, Strong Marriage - www.menstuff.org/columns/friedman/archive.html
  • Kim Garretson - Mansgland - using humor to encourage prostate exams - www.menstuff.org/columns/mansgland/archive.html
  • Lion Goodman - How to get Women to Love You - www.menstuff.org/columns/goodman/archive.html
  • Liz Halliday - In a Man's World - www.menstuff.org/columns/halliday/archive.html
  • Rick Hanson - Just One Thing - www.menstuff.org/columns/hanson/archive.html
  • Tim Hartnett - Daddyman Speaks - being a father www.menstuff.org/columns/daddyman/archive.html
  • John Hershey - Blood, Phlegm & Bile: Parenting with Humor - He writes a syndicated biweekly humor column about parenting and family life. www.menstuff.org/columns/hershey/archive.html
  • Gary Hoeber - Psychotherapy as Soul Work, www.menstuff.org/columns/hoeber/archive.html
  • Patrick Houser - Fathers Make a World of Difference, www.menstuff.org/columns/houser/archive.html
  • Paul Joannides - The Guide to Getting It On - on sex - www.menstuff.org/columns/getiton/archive.html
  • Jack Kahn - NOMAS Boston - www.menstuff.org/columns/kahn/archive.html
  • Patrick Kennedy - Seniors - www.menstuff.org/columns/kennedy/archive.html
  • Joe Kort - Gaydar - to increase understanding between gay and het men - www.menstuff.org/columns/kort/archive.html
  • David Kundtz - David Kundtz - presents seminars, workshops, retreats, and conference presentations in the areas of men's emotional health, stress management, and spirituality. www.menstuff.org/columns/kundtz/archive.html
  • Bruce Linton - Dr. Dad - on fathering - www.menstuff.org/columns/drdad/archive.html
  • Ron Louis - How to Succeed with Women - www.menstuff.org/columns/howtosucceed/archive.html
  • Wendy McElroy - Wendy McElroy on Feminism, www.menstuff.org/columns/mcelroy/archive.html
  • Robert N. Minor - Minor Details - on GBT sexuality - www.menstuff.org/columns/minordetails/archive.html
  • Robert L. Moore - Man & Mythology - www.menstuff.org/columns/moore/archive.html
  • Dennis W. Neder - Being a Man - general questions about men's lives - www.menstuff.org/columns/neder/archive.html
  • Marty Nemko - Worklife - general questions about men and work - www.menstuff.org/columns/nemko/archive.html
  • Eli Newberger - Eli Newberger - general information on men's lives - www.menstuff.org/columns/newberger/archive.html
  • Linda Nielsen - Embracing the Father - working with the father/daughter relationship. www.menstuff.org/columns/nielsen/archive.html
  • Kathy Noll - Bullies and Youth Violence - working with schools, teachers and parents to end school violence - www.menstuff.org/columns/noll/archive.html
  • Mark Phillips - Stay-at-Home-Dads - helping men maintain that which makes us men, instead of becoming hairy Mom-substitutes - www.menstuff.org/columns/phillips/archive.html
  • Carey Roberts - Socialism & Feminism - is a social commentator on political correctness. www.menstuff.org/columns/roberts/archive.html
  • Perry Rose - Dating, Relationship, Sex
  • Glenn Sacks - His Side - on fathering - www.menstuff.org/columns/sacks/archive.html
  • Trudy Schuett - Domestic Violence - serving the under-represented www.menstuff.org/columns/schuett/archive.html
  • Carl J. Schutt - Circumcision - social commentator on circumcision - www.menstuff.org/columns/schutt/archive.html
  • Hugo Schwyzer - A Pro-feminist's Response - www.menstuff.org/columns/schwyzer/archive.html
  • Michael Shaffran - Men's Issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/shaffran/archive.html
  • Judith Sherven - Judith & Jim - discussion and answers regarding relationship issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/judith&jim/archive.html
  • Judith Sherven - The New Intimacy - www.menstuff.org/columns/newintimacy/archive.html
  • George Simons - Bellicose Veins - is a US specialist in intercultural and gender communication who hangs out in Mandelieu - la Napoule, France, as well as in Santa Cruz, CA. www.menstuff.org/columns/simons/archive.html
  • Andy Smith - Hard Hat Brotherhood - www.menstuff.org/columns/hardhat/archive.html
  • David B. Smith - Fighting Father Dave - www.menstuff.org/columns/smith/archive.html
  • Jim Sniechowski - Judith & Jim - discussion and answers regarding relationship issues - www.menstuff.org/columns/judith&jim/archive.html
  • Jim Sniechowski - The New Intimacy - www.menstuff.org/columns/newintimacy/archive.html
  • Reena Sommer - Custody - is an internationally recognized relationship and divorce consultant. www.menstuff.org/columns/sommer/archive.html
  • R. Don Steele - Don Steele - relationship questions answered -
    www.menstuff.org/columns/steele/archive.html
  • David Steinberg - Comes Naturally - on sexuality - www.menstuff.org/columns/steinberg/archive.html
  • Mary Lou St Lucas - A Mother's Love - www.menstuf.org/columns/stlucas/archive.html
  • Surprise - Surprise Author - From a new columnist every month - www.menstuff.org/columns/surprise/archive.html
  • Steven Svoboda - Fatherhood, Activism and the Law www.menstuff.org/columns/svoboda/archive.html
  • Michael Taylor - A New Conversation with Men - www.menstuff.org/columns/taylor/archive.html
  • Bruce Van Horn - Yoga for Men - issues around the health benefits of yoga for men - www.menstuff.org/yoga/archive.html
  • Michael Webb - Secrets of Blissful Relationships - on relationship - www.menstuff.org/columns/bliss/archive.html
  • Stuart Wilde - Spirituality - www.menstuff.org/columns/wilde/archive.html
  • Dr.Williams - Sex Health - on sexual health - Dr. Williams, www.menstuff.org/columns/sexhealth/archive.html
  • KC Wilson - On Gender Politics is a social commentator and author. www.menstuff.org/columns/wilson/archive.html

Plus

  • Health Tips - on general health - www.menstuff.org/columns/healthtips/archive.html
  • Independent Means - resources for raising financially fit kids - www.menstuff.org/columns/independentmeans/archive.html
  • Numbers - www.menstuff.org/columns/numbers/archive.html
  • Questions - www.menstuff.org/columns/q&a/archive.html
  • Surprise - from a new columnist every month - www.menstuff.org/columns/surprise/archive.html
  • Words Can Heal - helping children grow up healthy - www.menstuff.org/columns/wordscanheal/archive.html
  • Wuzup?! - National or international events happening this month - www.menstuff.org/columns/whassup/archive.html

AWARENESS EVENTS THIS MONTH

January is: Birth Defects Prevention, Cervical Health Awareness, National Voluteer Blood Donor; Bald Eagle Watch; Celebration of Life; Fat Free Living; International Get Over It; International Life Balance; It's Okay to Be Different; Love Yourself; March of Dimes Birth Defects Prevention; National Be On-Purpose; National Book; National Clean Up Your Computer; National Environmental Policy Act; National Eye Care; National Glaucoma Awareness; National High-Tech; National Personal Self-Defense Awareness; National Poverty in America Awareness; National Reaching Your Potential; National Yours, Mine and Ours; Senior-Spirit; Sew for the Cure Month.

12/26-1/1: Kwanzaa. 12/31-1/6: Celebration of Life; Diet Resolution; National Lose Weight/Feel Great; New Year's Resolution; Silent Record Week; 1/5-13: Wilderness Wildlife Week of Nature. 1/6-12: Someday We'll Laugh About This Week.1/7-11: National Graves' Disease Awareness Week. 1/7-13: Universal Letter-Writing Week. 1/10-17: International Thank You Days. 1/13-19: Fire the Boss, International Printing, Let Men Be Our Heroes, Special Education Week. 1/14-18: Manwatchers Week. 1/20-26: Healthy Weight, National Creative Frugality, National Nurse Anesthetists, Solo-Preneuring Week. 1/21-25: Direct Deposit Week. 1/22-28: No Name Calling Week 1/21-25: *National Consumer Protection Week. 1/31-2/3: Mid-Winter/Candlemas/Groundhog's Day. 1/1: Attention to Dreams and Desires; Get a Life; Saint Basil's; Z Day. 1/2: Happy New Year for Cats; National Thrift with Flair Day. 1/6: International Respect-full Living Day; National Smith Day. Jan 7: United Kingdom Solid Gold Hat Day. Orthodox Christian Christmas. 1/8: National Bubble; Clean-Off-Your-Desk; Joygerm: Saint Gudula's Feast; Show & Tell at Work Day. 1/12 - National Handwriting Day. 1/15 - Humanitarian, Moliere, National Thank God It's Monday Day. 1/16 - Psychiatric Technicians Day. 1/18: Get to Know Your Customer Day. 1/19: International Sing-out Day. 1/20: Penguin Awareness Day. 1/21: National Hugging, World Religion Day. 1/22: World Religions Day, Celebration of Life Day. 1/23: Rid the World of Fad Diets and Gimmicks Day. 1/24: Just Do It Day - Make the Connection, National Compliment Day. 1/25: A Room of One's Own Day. 1/26: Fun at Work Day, Toad Hollow Day of Encouragement; Spouse's Day. 1/29: Freethinker's, National Puzzle Day. 1/30: Inane Answering Machine Day.

* Means a Presidential Proclamation has been made.

National Missing Children's Day
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Men are so competitive that we even "out-die" women in all 15 of the major causes of death in the U.S. Most of these deaths are preventable with a positive change in life-style, eating habits, and/or general health care. Let's not strive so hard to hold on to this record. See what you can change now to live a healthier life.
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